Tag Archives: #gotchaday

Angel Layla’s Gotcha Day

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TGIF!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But most important Happy Gotcha Day to Angel Layla.

Dear Layla,

I was so proud to be your mom, to be able to keep you healthy and happy but most important of all am so blessed to have had you in my life. You taught me so much and I was so blessed.

I am once again going to share your Gotcha Story here so that others will realize rescuing is so worth it and that is why I speak out for rescues, as like you, they all need a home with a warm bed to sleep on, and that is why I opened my home and heart to Nili.

I remember when your sister (Baby) passed away, I waited about 6 weeks and then decided my home was too empty without the pitter patter of paws, so the search was on. I ran around to all the shelters in the city but could not find a little fluffy at the time, which is what I wanted.

So, Uncle Michael introduced me to Aunt Cindy by email, told me that he would be in LA for a week so I had a week to search online for a new fur kid and he would bring her home to me.

 

I sat 24/7 on Petharbor and Petfinder and was nearly giving up when I saw you sitting in a cage in the Carson Shelter. Your look on your face said to me take me home. I immediately emailed Aunt Cindy with your information and photo and she went to the Shelter on Saturday to fetch you for me. I remember her calling me from there telling me she had a smelly matted mess kissing her, that sealed the deal.

You arrived on Sunday evening, the 31st of January 2011, I had got the house ready for you, bought you a new pink bed and was so excited. Yes, you were smelly and dirty, but I did not care as there are washing machines for laundry, and for me what was important was you were finally home, safe and sound with a nice warm bed.

Your dumping papers said you had been an outdoor dog; you bit when groomed and in a nutshell, everything negative a person can say and OH what a lie. You are the opposite. I am ashamed to even say what your name was.

I waited a couple of days and then met a friend of mine, a vet, Dr. Phil in the dog park, he looked at you, checked you and said I had won, and he was so right.

During your first couple of days you slept and ate, I had to teach you to climb the stairs, potty outside and am proud to say you had an accident inside. You did no damage, and I did not crate you as I do not believe in crates but as far as I remember you chewed a tissue LOL.

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You overcame your fear of men, your fear of so many things but with love and patience we did it together and you succeeded and we did many adventures together, you riding in your backpack, went to different lakes, different events in San Francisco, and our life was full of fun.

 

You came a long way Layla, 13 wonderful years with me, we moved, you became one of the most happiest waggy tail dogs I know, friendly, full of love and I could not have asked for anything more.

 

As you grew older with me, Mom is growing older too, I could not ask for a better way to grow old but with you, you made me laugh, shower me with unconditional love, and even when you were naughty I giggle as it is so seldom. In your last years when you lost your sight, ability to walk, you still loved to be outdoors, sniffing around, riding in your stroller like a princess, nothing stopped you. Your last birthday last year is something I will never forget especially when you got into mischief finding your Uncles pocket of his jacket to search for your favorite chicken jerky but in the end unravelling the roll of poop bags all over the floor. We all had a good laugh and you wagged your tail, then went and lay down and went to sleep.

Napping at her birthday party

She loved riding in her backpack

 

Thank you for rescuing me Layla, Mommy is so proud of you, so blessed to have shared my bed with you and most of all, Mommy loves you very much and misses you daily.

Happy Gotcha Day Sweetheart over the Rainbow Bridge, my Lullybelle (her nickname) and I promise you are always with me in my heart, I miss you terribly and I know you would have loved Nili, thank you for sending her to me.

Hugs and lots of love Mom

I can honestly say Online Love Affairs do exist.

It is my birthday next week.

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TGIF!!! Friday has arrived and I hope it does not rain so I can go somewhere as I am tired of being stuck in the house and Mom feels the same. I know I should not complain as so many of my friends are stuck with snow but enough is enough.

When it rains you snuffle for treats BOL

 

 

So weather permitting Mom is taking me to the Shi Tzu Meet Up tomorrow morning, it is a fantastic park and I am really excited. I cannot wait to wander around, bark of course BOL and embarrass Mom like I like doing, eat lots of treats and have some fresh air plus spend time with other fluffies like me. I am really excited and it better not rain.

 

On the 31st of January 2011 I was rescued from the Carson Shelter in Los Angeles. The story of how it was an online affair I love sharing to prove to people it can happen and it does work out. Mommy saw me sitting in a cage, emailed a friend of a friend who is a rescuer, Cindy went to the shelter and pulled me out, then Uncle Michael drove to me San Francisco.

 

Because they do not know my exact birth date, and have worked out I am 18 years old, Mom is working hard organizing a birthday party for me for next Friday afternoon, not sure who is going to be there, dogs and humans, but she says she will have a lot of surprises for me, my one gift arrived today but she would not me smell it and hid it in the closet immediately. She promised she would let me sniff it tomorrow when it assembled. I am so excited and cannot wait.

So I am getting really excited for next week, it is going to be so much fun I cannot wait. I might be old but you are never too old to have fun.

I am off to bed now as I am exhausted from dictating to Mom,

 

Have a safe warm weekend everyone, I wish you all could come to celebrate with me,

Lots of love as always with a woof

Layla xxx

 

 

 

 

 

Gotcha Day is over, but I did a Reiki and Animal Communicator Session

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TGIF!!!! I need to relax LOL.

Layla and I went shopping last Saturday for her Gotcha Day on Tuesday, if she had her own way, she would have bought everything in the store LOL but I stuck to two bags of her favorite treats, minnows and shrimp and she cannot get enough of them in her snuffle toys.

My favorite pet store

I do not want the hat but want treats only

Mom did not buy this for me as she said it was too big for my tummy

On Wednesday the sun was shining so I took her to the park which she loved and just slept in the sun plus of course wandered around smelling all the pmail, she had to catch up on all the gossip which she has missed out on so she was one happy girl when we came home, and went to sleep, such a hard life.

 

In my last blog I had said there would be a surprise this week and this is the surprise, I have wanted for months to know if Layla is happy as she does not smile anymore, and have always been fascinated with people who do Reiki and communicate with animals so I have been following this woman on FB and when she contacted me to thank me for following her and sharing her posts she offered to do a session with Layla which I of course jumped on the idea.

Her name is Cherokee Billie Spiritual Advisor

YouTube : https://youtu.be/QTNmv5hrmd0

Website : https://cherokeebilliespiritualadvisor.com/

So last Sunday we did one on Zoom which unfortunately got cut off before it ended because of connections, but I got so many answers to my queries I was really pleased with the results as they have relaxed me. I am also understanding Layla more as she ages so our lives will be less stressful, anxious and we can age peacefully together.

When we started the session Layla was sitting on my lap in front of the camera and was very antsy, could not figure out where the voice was coming from so Billie suggested I put her on the floor, she went to drink water and then went to her normal sleeping place and totally calmed down.

I will share our video session on our blog next week as my laptop keeps freezing but cannot wait to share.

What I learned:

Since going blind Layla is afraid to go out, that is why she will only walk a little and then stares into space with her tail between her legs but is comfortable sitting in her stroller, so we are going to have to slow down on adventures in some ways so she is not afraid.

She cannot understand why her body is changing as she ages although she feels like a puppy inside and is very healthy TG.

Because of all the above she is not smiling anymore which has upset me as I miss her smiles, but I understand also and I am sure I would be the same if it happened to me.

She does love me very much.

Another thing I learned is that because of the above her anxiety has gone through the roof, so am checking into new calming solutions for her and keeping a t-shirt on all the time that does keep her calm. Billie also suggested music by Mozart or the Beatles to calm her so am going to do some research this weekend on YouTube to see what I can find although I have the Jazz on all the time I do not think it’s working for her.

So as a dog Mom to a senior dog I strongly suggest others do a session with Billie as it is an eye opener and will make everyone’s lives calmer and happier.

Everyone please have a safe happy weekend, make memories and enjoy your moments with your pets, they are precious and deserve the best.

 

Lots of love from

Layla

 

 

 

12 Year Journey with Layla

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TGIF!!! It is the end of the week, the sun has been shining so we have managed to have some dog park time, fun and of course lots of chicken LOL.

It is Layla’s Gotcha Day on the 31st, she has been with me for 12 years and I still say it was the best online love affair in the world.

Where and how did it begin ? After Baby passed I waited about 3 months and then started searching on PetFinder and PetHarbor for a new munchkin to share my life with me. I had a friend who was in LA at the time working, so he told me to look in the shelters there for a fluffy butt that I wanted, if I saw one his friend who is a rescuer would go and get her and he would bring her to me in SF.  So after 3 days of searching I saw her sitting in a cage in the Carson Shelter, her face said it all although she was a matted mess, I told Cindy that was the ONE, Cindy went on the Saturday to get her, called me to say she was on her lap licking her and that said it all, Cindy took her home and the following day Michael brought her to me and the rest is history.

We have gone through a lot together it has been a wonderful blessed journey and now my goal as she ages is to keep her as happy and healthy as possible which in a way seems to be working.

She gets home cooked food and I have now added some new supplements to her food which seem to helping a lot plus she is sleeping better at night which is fantastic.  Thanks to Dr Harvey’s amazing products she is on his :

  • Kidney Health : A herbal and mushroom supplement designed to help support your dog’s kidneys.
  • Contains Rehmannia Root, Organic Reishi, Organic Shiitake, Organic Poria and Organic Cordyceps (all edible fungi), Organic Astragalus Root which provide overall kidney support and health by tonifying the kidneys.
  • Contains Codonopsis, a herb that works to boost the immune system of the whole body as well as the kidneys. Codonopsis also supports urinary health.

Since she is on this she is not wanting to go out every hour to pee, sleeping better through the night as she does not need to pee as much and in a nutshell I have seen a big difference.

Since getting this in her food she seems to be more awake, full of energy and back to being bossy barker which is my favorite nickname for her LOL.

Golden Years : A proprietary Blend of Alfalfa, Kelp, Flaxseed, Brewer’s Yeast, Lecithin Granules, Spirulina, Garlic, Rose Hips, Fo-Ti Root, Bilberry Leaf, Ginkgo Biloba Leaf, Ginger Root, Licorice Root, Nettle Leaf, Rosemary Leaf, Burdock Root, Red Clover, Suma, Yellowdock Root, Calendula………………………..2.6 grams

Like most dogs, Layla sometimes gets an upset tummy and the probiotics she was getting were not working so I got from Dr Harvey’s his Runs Be Done which is fantastic and I love that it is Natural with no chemicals. It contains : Dr. Harvey’s Runs Be Done is a digestive supplement for your dog. Ingredients : Pumpkin, Bentonite Clay, Slippery Elm Bark, Apple Pectin, Plantain, Marshmallow Root, Fennel Seed, Banana, Ginger Root, Chamomile.

She of course gets Dr Harvey’s Raw Vibrance which gives her all the nutrients she needs I feel she is getting the best of the best food and supplements, there are others she gets, but the plus is all supplements are in powder form so easy to give to her as I mix them all in her food so she does not know she is getting them.

If you want to learn more about his products you can find them on his website : https://www.drharveys.com/

You have a 10% coupon when shopping on his site : Layla10

We were sponsored by Dr Harvey’s for this blog.

So our journey plods along, we growing older together, I am so blessed to have her by my side every day, barking orders, sometimes not sleeping through the night, but would not change it for anything.

To celebrate her Gotcha Day next week I am doing a surprise for her on Sunday and am keeping it that way till you read all about it next week where we will also share our favorite photos of her, I am really excited and curious also.

This is Layla’s weekly woof this week, exciting and happy as always, she is at the moment napping and I  have the Jazz on so the music keeps our house calm.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone, be safe

With a woof and love from Layla

 

 

 

 

Gotcha Give Away

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Friday has arrived, first week in February and Mom has been celebrating my Gotcha Day the whole week. Some of my friends know my story and how Mom found me but am going to share again.

When my fur sister passed away, Mom was with no fur kid and hated coming home to an empty house so after three months she decided to start looking again for a new rescue fur kid. My Uncle was in Los Angeles on business and his friend who lives there is a rescuer offered to help me, she is now my Aunt Cindy. Mom saw me on PetHarbor, emailed Aunt Cindy who went to the Carson Shelter, met me, called Mom and the rest is history. It was an online love affair.

Every year we celebrate my Gotcha Day with lots of treats and my favorite Costco Chicken, yummm, it is the one day in the year Mom does not watch my weight.

It has been 11 years since Mom rescued me, I am now about 14+ years old and Mom has become really strict with my diet, making sure I eat healthy and as she cooks for me my diet has to be very well balanced.

I have been eating Dr. Harvey’s Holistic Dehydrated food for some time but when Mom read about the Paradigm, a green superfood mix she knew she had to get it for me as it is made with 6 dehydrated vegetables, plus herbs and multi vitamins. It has not starchy vegetables or grains so it helps me keep my weight. It is easy to prepare, you mix the food with hot water, add fish oil, let it stand for about 8 minutes and then add the protein you want to add.

Mom also decided to get me some of Dr Harvey’s treats which I love and will never say no to, she got for me a bag of the dehydrated Wild Alaskan Salmon Bites and because Valentines Day is around the corner what could be better than a bag of dehydrated Chicken Hearts. A great way to show your love for each other.

Layla chomping on her new treats can be seen on this video : https://youtu.be/5cdeY0ttlek   

Dr. Harvey’s link to read more :https://www.drharveys.com/

There is a coupon for 10% : LaylasWoof10

So, to celebrate my Gotcha Day and Valentines Day we decided to share these goodies with my friends and are having a Giveaway.

The Giveaway is for US residents only, you must be over 18 years old to enter. 

We were given these products to review by Dr. Harvey’s.

Below is the link to enter and we wish everyone good luck.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/7d1ec19c54/?

Now am going to finish my dinner and everyone please be safe and stay warm.

Woof with love from Layla

Happy Gotcha Day 01.31.21

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January is nearly over and that means it will be Layla’s Gotcha Day !

I cannot believe it is 10 years since I adopted her from the Carson Shelter.
I so remember looking at all the photos on Petfinder and Petharbor, seeing this matted mess and knew in my heart she was the one.


The 10 years have been wonderful, she is an amazing little dog, full of energy at the age of 14 and excluding her eyes which we are having problems with and she will be seeing a Eye Specialist next week, I cannot complain.


Layla, we have Aunt Cindy to thank for pulling you from the shelter, Uncle Mike for bringing you to San Francisco, Uncle David for allowing us to have outdoor time during the lockdown in his garden, Aunt Alice for taking us on adventures during the lockdown where we can get out of the city and everyone else that is part of our life.


And Layla a big big thank you for keeping me sane through the hard times, making me walk a lot as you love your sniffs when we walking and thanks to those sniffs a two block walk becomes six and what would be a half hour becomes 2 plus hours, but would not change it for anything. If your tail is wagging and you happy then so am i, never mind my morning coffee is always cold.


I pray to have many more years with you and as I always joke we are growing old together, we both have eye problems so we are two peas in a pod.


January is freedom month for both of us, it is the month I ran from Domestic Violence and the month you were freed from the shelter. So each January I reflect on what has happened since, count my blessings and look forward to what the New Year will bring us.


Happy Gotcha Day !!!!!!!!!


Love from Mom

A letter to Layla on her Gotcha Day

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TGIF !!!!!!!!!!!!!! But most important Happy Gotcha Day to my best friend, my partner in life and most of all to Layla. 


Today we are going to dedicate this blog to Layla, who is my Boss, the owner of this blog as I am her secretary.


Dear Layla,


I am so proud to be your Mom, to be able to keep you healthy and happy but most important of all am so blessed to have you in my life. 


I am once again going to share your Gotcha Story here so that others will realize rescuing is so worth it and that is why I speak out for rescues, as like you, they all need a home with a warm bed to sleep on.


I remember when your sister passed away, I waited about 6 weeks and then decided my home was too empty without the pitter patter of paws so the search was on. I ran around to all the shelters in the city but could not find a little fluffy at the time, which is what I wanted. 


So Uncle Michael introduced me to Aunt Cindy by email, told me that he would be in LA for a week so I had a week to search online for a new fur kid and he would bring her home to me.


I sat 24/7 on Petharbor and Petfinder and was nearly giving up when I saw you sitting in a cage in the Carson Shelter. Your look on your face said to me take me home. I immediately emailed Aunt Cindy with your information and photo and she went to the Shelter on the Saturday to fetch you for me. I remember her calling me from there telling me she had a smelly matted mess kissing her, that sealed the deal.


You arrived on the Sunday evening, the 31st of January 2011, I had got the house all ready for you, bought you a new pink bed and was so excited. Yes, you were smelly and dirty but I did not care as there are washing machines, and for me what was important was you were finally home, safe and sound with a nice warm bed.


Your dumping papers said you had been an outdoor dog, you bit when groomed and in a nutshell everything negative a person can say and OH What A Lie. You are the opposite. I am ashamed to even say what your name had been.


I waited a couple of days and then met a friend of mine, a vet, Dr. Phil in the dog park, he looked at you, checked you and said I had won, and he was so right.


Your first couple of days you slept and ate, I had to teach you to climb the stairs, potty outside and am proud to say you had one accident inside. You did no damage and I did not crate you as I do not believe in crates but as far as I remember you chewed a tissue LOL.

You overcame your fear of men, your fear of so many things but with love and patience we did it together and you succeeded.


You have come a long way Layla, 9 wonderful years with me, we have moved, you have become one of the most happiest waggy tail dogs I know, friendly, full of love and I could not ask for anything more.


So as you grow older with me, nearly 13, and Mom is growing older too, I could not ask for a better way to grow old but with you, you make me laugh, shower me with unconditional love, and even when you are naughty I giggle as it is so seldom.


Thank you for rescuing me Layla, Mommy is so proud of you, so blessed to share my bed with you and most of all, Mommy loves you very much.


Happy Gotcha Day Sweetheart, my Lullybelle (her nickname) and I promise today, we are going to do something special.


Hugs and lots of love Mom


PS. I can honestly say On Line Love Affairs do exist.

It is Layla’s Gotcha Day 31 January

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Wednesday has arrived and tomorrow is Layla’s gotcha day. I cannot believe she has been with me for 8 years WOW, it seems like yesterday she arrived a matted mess from the shelter.
I am not sure how many of you know her story, but she was one of the unlucky ones to be dumped by her family at the age of about 6 for the same reason everyone else dumps their pets, no time.

I saw her online sitting in the shelter, the photo said it all, my friend rescued her and another brought her to me and the rest is history.  Layla has come a long way from being a scared shy dog and I am blessed daily to have her in my life.

This is one of the reasons I think I am so paranoid when she does not feel well whether upset tummy, allergies or anything else and I am doing my utmost to keep her as healthy as possible.

She has always hopped with her left back leg up and the vets have never worried about it, but with aging I have become more concerned so have been doing research on different products which will make sure she is not in pain or uncomfortable.

Through my research I came across this company, Restorative Botanicals that make Hemp products specifically for pets plus humans and contacted them as their products sounded exactly what I was looking for for Layla.

They were kind enough to send me their 4 Paws Hemp Oil Extract which  supports Weary Muscles and Joints, Calming Disposition and Overall Health. It is made with Certified Colorado hemp, cod liver oil and cold pressed organic, virgin hemp seed oil, in a well balanced nutritional blend designed to keep your companion feeling calm, healthy and comfortable.

Since I have been using it on Layla I have noticed her to be calmer, especially with me starting a new job and not home in the afternoons, when she walks she is not hopping as much unless she starts running which is not that often. It is something I have been looking for and so happy I found.

Another product I received from them and I am so happy with this is their 4Paws PET Hemp Extract Topical Relief Balm. As you all know Layla suffers from allergies and then of course it causes hot spots. I am so against all the topical sprays so when I saw this I thought to myself WOW, perfect for her.

You all know from my last blog we went to the beach about 10 days ago and Madam has been scratching since. Between that and the warm weather last week and park, Missy started a little hot spot and I immediately rubbed the balm on her. It worked wonders, she stopped chewing on herself, calmed down and I found that within one day the hot spot was nearly healed. It was so great to see that and not have to worry about her getting an upset tummy from licking it, as the Hemp Extract Topical Relief Balm is safe and relaxes her, in a nutshell a must in a persons first aid box.

The company also surprised me with a gift of Muscle & Joint Cream which I have been using on my ankle and feeling so much better plus a bottle of Spice Flavor Restore Calm Hemp Oil Supplement which is really helping me to stay calm.

I want to say thanks to them for making our lives calmer and mine more relaxed for sponsoring us with these products.

If you want to learn more about them, below is their link:

https://www.restorativebotanicals.com/?rfsn=2263342.782237

The difference I have found with Layla when it comes to CBD oil or Whole Plant Hemp Oil, I am more and more preferring the Whole Plant Hemp oil as I am finding she is calm but not sleepy, eating better and much more herself. I personally think in the future I will be using Whole Plant Hemp oil with her and not CBD oil.

With the research I have also learnt the difference between Whole Plant Hemp Oil and CBD Oil and am happy to share here so we all understand it better.

Within the hemp plant, there are numerous cannabinoids and other phytonutrients.  A good full-spectrum hemp oil will include all of this material in the same proportion that occurs naturally in the plant – and that’s our belief – for maximum effectiveness, you need a full-spectrum, whole plant extract.  Plus, when all of these materials work together in the body to support the endocannabinoid system, it’s known as the “entourage effect”. (Thank you Rick from Restorative Botanicals) for the explanation.

“CBD” (CBD isolate) products contain only the CBD cannabinoid without all of the other beneficial materials – and therefore may not be as effective as the full spectrum whole plant extract.

So the question now is what am I going to do for her gotcha day LOL. Madam is spoiled all year round so decided for her birthday am going to get her her favorite for dinner, chicken livers and gizzards mixed with chicken, she will be in heaven from that.

I am now off to work, Layla is sleeping, everyone please stay warm in these freezing temperatures, take care and be safe

With a woof from us