Christmas with out my Roxanne

The Christmas Holiday is a heartwarming, joyful time of the year. Christmas is a special time of the year for my family. Decorating, Tree Picking, and shopping are all on the top of the "to do list" in the Rose house- hold. 


Roxanne always made Christmas MERRY. Gifts from Santa Paws under the tree, silly outfits my sister and I would insist she wear, opening her gifts her self.... the Joy of Christmas. Roxanne had her own stocking and signed the Christmas cards.


Last winter we lost Roxy a month after Christmas, so this was our first with out her. Emotions got the best of us when we got the decorations out to find her stocking, ornaments and silly outfits. Roxy's stocking is hanging this year, as well as a special area decorated where her remains are displayed. Roxanne was in our hearts this Christmas... and for everyday to follow. 


I will always remember waking up at the crack of dawn to run out together to open our gifts. Roxy was like my sister; my best friend. 


Roxanne lived with grace and changed more lives in her 16 years then some people do it 80. The love Roxanne and I shared brings me comfort. I always have her in my heart; she is always with me. 

Merry Christmas Roxanne, I miss you more than you will ever know.  

"Dogs' lives are too short. Their only fault, really." 

Doggone wonderful

Dog ownership is a true delight....

Me and Candy

A dreadful, imperfect day at work? Your admirable four legged companion is usually the first to greet you. They are ECSTATIC just to see your face. Speaking from experience, there is nothing more pleasant than seeing their loving face to comfort you. Dogs don't understand the hardships you may encounter in your lifetime, they just love you unconditionally. 

Me and Molly

I am in pure amazement how loving they really are. I learn so much from dogs ( and other animals) I am blessed to work with, everyday. Each patient teaches me something important about life. Countless times I find my self growing a huge attachment to them. Owners bring their beloved pet in with simple complaints that their animal just isn't quite right. Working up the patient, we find the dog has cancer and may only have a few days, or the arthritis in their back or legs makes you turn your head viewing the radio-graph. Humans would complain of the pain these animals are in, they just go about living life to the fullest. They are happy to see their owners and just appreciate the life they have. 

Clifford

It is sad to say life really is too short.... so make others around you happy, smile at strangers, and tell everyone in your life how they make you feel every chance you get. Hang your head out the car window and SMILE! Live in the moment and make every second count.

"Dogs are forever in the moment. They are a tidal wave of feelings, and every feeling is some variant of love." -- Cytnthia Heimel 

Me and Buddy

"I think dogs are the most amazing creatures. They give unconditional love. For me they are the role models for being alive." 

Holiday Shopping for your Pups!

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays !

This past weekend has started the Holiday shopping for many people. Here is a list of some fun places to go shopping for your dogs and other animals.

Canine Couture- This is a new grooming place that opened right next to Celebrie Vet. Hospital in Kingsville. She has Ravens gear, jackets, charms and great deals on grooming. Her place is beautiful. She is having an open house this coming Saturday from 1 to 3-- she is having a fashion show and pictures with SANTA PAWS!

Spoiled Rotten- Located in White Marsh in the Avenue. They have very cute things, collars and leashes, Christmas toys and cookies.

That Fish Place- They are located in P.A. so if you wanted to take a day trip, it would be FUN! You can take your dog and let them pick out their own gifts. I have taken my dogs for the day, the place is HUGE and they have a million things to choose from. They have pictures with Santa.

Pet valu- They always have cute sweater and jackets and YUMMY treats! They have a few locations.

Barons k9 Country Store- They have great treats for dogs with Allergies and LOTS of  toys for dogs and cats. I had a lot of fun looking around this store.

These are all places I have been this Holiday Season. I love shopping for my PUPS, if you have any you would like to add please leave a comment or e-mail them to me.

"You can NEVER have too much HAPPY."

Foxy Roxy

Roxanne was my first beloved four legged BEST FRIEND.... 


My entire life I have adored animals.  I was never frighten by any dog, cat, spider, horse, bee... etc. At any function, I could be found playing with the family dog. Any size, shape or color... I loved them and wanted to play with them. Twenty- Three years later... my love has only grown. From the age of Six to eight, I had family DOG meetings. Being the eager, determined girl I am,  would insist my mom, dad and sister all gather to talk about why I felt that our family NEEDED a dog. Finally by the age of eight my dream had come true. February 15th, 1997 we were on our way to the Defenders of Animal rights animal shelter. I was overwhelmed with pure excitement. 


I remember walking through the shelter like it was yesterday. We saw so many dogs who were in need of our love. There was sweet Roxanne... soon to be the dog who made the Rose house a HOME. 

  Roxanne was a beautiful, German Shepherd/ Doberman mix. Goofball was "hell on wheels" and didn't slow down until the age of 13 or 14. Roxy Foxy enjoyed everything about life. She often found her self in trouble. A few chewed personal belongings, missing food, exploratory surgeries, and wandering the neighborhood causing trouble, we loved her just the same. Known for having nine lives, Roxanne had her fair share of "accidents." 
* Kicked in the head by the horse 
*Jumped out of the car while driving to chase a critter
*Ate a slipper and had to have emergency surgery TWICE to have all of it removed. ( World's most expensive slipper EVER!)
* Emergency surgery to have the plastic HEDGE HOG removed from her rectum ( this was really quite classy, but it must of tasted so good at the time) 


The worst was the slipper incident.. we almost lost her. The vet called and told us to come in and say our good byes. When Roxanne saw my family, her eyes had an encouraging sparkle... she obviously recovered and lived many years to come. (Just lost her privilege of playing with any more slippers.) 


Roxanne has so many goofy stories to look back on...
* Getting off the leash during my sisters j.v. soccer game and running like hell. She ran right in the middle of the game and both teams were trying to catch her. ( My sister was pretty embarrassed at the time!) 
* Running around my elementary school with my entire class trying to catch her. 
* Causing "mischief"  in the neighborhood with, Sama the dog who looked just like her, with the same purple collar.  
* Bringing back dead fish from the gun powder 
*Tangles with the grumpy ground hog 

Roxanne was the true definition of spoiled rotten. She got a milk bone every time she went out, lunch meat in the middle of the night, hundreds of toys, yummy treats, a guaranteed spot in between my mom and dad every night and every thing else she wanted. Road trips were one of her simple joys in life. Whether it was a dump run or a trip to burger king for her own personal cheeseburger, she was happy just to be with us. Fishing, hiking, crabbing, walking and trips to pets mart. 


Roxanne held our family together during rough times. She was very in- tune to everyone and their needs. Roxy girl was the first to come when someone cried, laughed or just needed a friend. I can remember when I got my wisdom teeth out I was very ill due to a reaction to the medication. Roxanne stayed by my side the entire two days I was on bed rest. She didn't eat, barley moved. Every time a boy broke up with me, or someone hurt my feelings... Roxy was ALWAYS there. 

Dogs are amazing for that simple reason. They don't care if you are black, white, purple or blue. They don't care if you are over weight, skinny or just right. They love you for exactly the person that you are. They never judge and they live in the moment. The compassion our sweet girl showed us over the years only grew stronger. The last 2 years of Roxy's life she had a tough time getting around. She never complained and was very patient with all her doctors visits, treatment and medications. We did whatever we could to make our sweet old gal as comfortable and happy as she could be. 


We lost Roxanne on January 17th, 2011. She was dying and our family couldn't watch her suffer any longer. Heaven needed their angel back and Roxanne told us it was time. Dr. Zimmerman came to our house around Six that night. Saying good bye to my best friend since the third grade was the hardest thing I have ever done. There is not one day I don't think of her. Roxanne will always live on in my heart. My sweet angel inspired me to want to work with animals everyday and make a difference. My family was very Blessed to have her for 16 years. Roxanne touched the hearts of many. She died very peacefully in my arms and surrounded by the purest of love. 

 "A good dog never dies, he always stays; he walks beside you on crisp autumn days when frost is on the fields and winter's drawing near, his head is within our hand in his old ways." Mary C. Davies

"Blessed is the person who has earned the love of an old dog." Sydney J. Seward

"Dog ownership is like a rainbow. Puppies are the joy at one end. Old dogs are the treasure at the other." 

Rest in Peace, sweet Roxanne. I miss you dearly. 

Photo Challenge

E-mail me pictures of your dogs dressed in their Holiday "outfits" to Colleenmackenzierose@gmail.com 

The winner of the BEST photo will win a $ 15.00 dollar gift card to PETS-MART! 

Contest will begin Friday, November 25th 
The winner will be chosen December 24th 

I will be posting all the pictures of your animals on my blog with some special holiday stories. 

It's a PIT thing...

The American Pit Bull Terrier is a wonderful Breed..... 

A dog should not be judged on his or her breed.... a dog is a dog. Often times people rescue dogs and never really know what "breed" they are. True animal lovers just love a dog for being a DOG. One of my goals with Colleens Dog Blog is to educate and show people that Pit Bull's should not be looked down on. When matched with the right owner these animals are INCREDIBLE! Please send me pictures and stories of your Pit Bull's ( and other dogs) to colleenmackenzierose@gmail.com to help me pass good messages for the breed. 

Kaia

Life started out very rough for Kaia.  The oh so wonderful Dr. Zimmerman took her case on at Erdman Animal Hospital. Kaia's  original name was Eve. Dr. Zimmerman had treated her a few times prior to the surrender. She could not walk and things were getting worse. The owners had no money and quickly lost interest in her treatments. Dr. Zimmerman being the INCREDIBLE person she is had the owners surrender her. Kaia deserved a second chance with someone who could care for her properly. Dr. Zimmerman brought her to Celebrie and I fell in LOVE with her. Poor Kaia's story broke my heart and I was determined to do whatever I could do to help this dog overcome her illness. 

Memorial day weekend my dearest friend Kelly took her to her house. I believe this was the turning point for her. Kelly and I went out and got her a pool to try and work some rehab in. Dave, Kelly and I filled up Kaia's therapy pool and got to work. We brought Bella Boo over for some motivation. Sweet Kaia did such a great job that weekend. Lots of pictures were taken and sent to Dr. Zimmerman. She was so HAPPY with her progress. With the proper balance of medication, rehab, love and support Kaia could walk. Having a part in her story is something I will never forget. Kelly, Dr. Zimmerman and Dave gave her so much love and NEVER gave up on her. We all worked together as a team. Could you have guessed Kelly adopted her ?! Kelly is AMAZING and does a phenomenal job with her. 

Kaia is living the GOOD LIFE now with Kelly and her gang of fur balls. Kelly is a good friend of mine so we often get the pups together for play dates. On big hikes Kaia keeps up with Bella, Lily, and Kelly's two other dogs Munchkin and Dakota. She is a little slow jumping over the logs like Bella, but we LOVE her just the same. 

"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog that matters." --  Dwight D. Eisenhower 

Willow the silly pup

This is the very lovable Willow. She is a very beautiful Pit Mix.Her mom is one of the nicest people in the world. She comes to Celebrie with her gang of furry critters. Kelsey has a really good heart. She has rescued animals who are really in need. She found Willow on craigslist. Kelsey has been an animal lover her entire life but she was very undecided on the breed. She admitted to me she wouldn't have gone to look at Willow if she knew she was a true pit mix. Kelsey and Willow bonded so quickly. Kelsey's mind changed about the breed. She has nothing but nice things to say about Willow and other bully breeds she knows. Willow has got a great personality!

Willow lives with such a wonderful gang of fur balls. She has 2 feline sisters Roxy and Daisy. Roxy was rescued from a shelter. Daisy was rescued from all of the girls at Celebrie. Poor Daisy was brought in to be euthanized because she urinated on her owners new carpets. The man left her there and just told us to take care of it for him. Dr. Garrett didn't have the heart to do this. Daisy is only eight years old. kelsey and her husband Billy opened up their hearts and home and adopted Daisy. They feed her a special urine diet. And she is happy in her FUR EVER home.

Dorito is the silliest cat I've ever met. He was also rescued from Celebrie. One of the clients had a stray cat living outside her house. She brought the cat in to us. She was due to have the kittens any day... so we decided we were going to let her have her litter and place the kittens. Mama cat did great and got spayed shortly after. She is living with the lady who found her. I was there the day little Dorito was born. Kelsey and her husband came to meet the kittens and fell in love with him. I will post some stories about him in later blogs. He has some silly ones.

This is Shorty. Kelsey rescued him from the shelter. He was a little older and had to have surgery on his eyes. Her family did everything and anything for him. He passed away last year. He was such a joy and is greatly missed everyday. We love you Shorty see you over the Rainbow Bridge one day.