The Pugman Snoreth

You see, Pugsley snores. Pretty loudly. He happened to be sleeping-snoring on the pillow next to female staff.

I jumped up on the bed on the other side of her head and nuzzled the top of her ear. Nothing. Then, put my cute, wet little nose IN her ear and nuzzled. She made some noise and then rolled over.

Now this is where Pugsley came in. As he snores, he often lets out a bit more than a snort – it’s actually a snuffle-snort-sneeze type thing. He did this at the every moment staff rolled over, spraying cat juice right in her face.

She jumped up, wiped off her face and looked at both of us with a not-so-happy look on her face but who cares? Because BREAKFAST was on its way.

Hooray for Pugsley! Hooray for me! Hooray for BREAKFAST!

It’s Petside’s Annual Pet Net Day! This year, a group of bloggers have come together to write about pet adoption and rescue. Today, I’m letting the staff take the reins to talk about breed specific rescues. But first, a few housekeeping issues.

MOST IMPORTANT, please visit Petside’s page and VOTE for this post as your favorite! If we win, we will get $500 to donate to the organization of our choice. I say “our” choice because, we’re in this together. You guys cast the votes and you guys get to choose the rescue if we win. I will ask YOU to submit your fave rescue and then do a drawing! Wheeeee!

There are other ways you can help raise food for shelter and rescue pets. You can see how right here.

Okay, staff. Go:

On Facebook recently, a friend posted her desire to find a good breeder because she wanted a black lab. Her family had always had labs and her sweet old baby had recently gone to the bridge. I love this friend but I was near hysteria. Trying not to sound like a crazy zealot (because that never works, my friends) I emailed her privately and said, “OMG go to your local shelter or find a lab rescue!” She was skeptical at first. “There are lab rescues??” Uh, yah.

Here was this smart, fabulous, kind and caring woman who didn’t know that, according to the ASPCA, 25 percent of dogs in shelters are purebred. And, with the many breed-specific rescues out there, the number of adoptable pure breds is quite a bit higher.

It’s okay to be obsessed with a specific breed of dog or cat. I’m not quite sure how it happens but for some of us humans, a certain breed creeps into our hearts, lays down and stays put.

This woman loves her labs. I love my persians. My friend Bev loves her bichons. My brother and sister in law love their bostons. And there are plenty of people out there who couldn’t live without a series of wonderful loyal mutts (a breed of their own, in my opinion!) in their lives. It’s okay to have a preference. You can find almost any breed in a shelter or breed-specific rescue. And we need to spread the word to help these breed-specific rescues help more pets in need.

Neither of my persian babies would have survived without a breed-specific rescue.

Romeo was two-years-old when he was brought into a shelter in Kentucky for the second time. He was covered in scabs and deaf in both ears. He had litter box issues. He was a mess. And probably would be hard to adopt out. But a shelter worker who knew of a persian rescue in Ohio called them and asked if they wanted him. Of course they did! So Renee drove several hours to pick up this little matted, flea ridden ball of misbehaving fluff that would completely change our lives.

Sweet Pugsley was an 11th hour rescue. In a shelter in Indiana, he was (incorrectly) diagnosed with a life-threatening and contagious disease and slated for you-know-what. The eve before, one of the workers who wasn’t entirely sure he had the disease in question, called the persian rescue. Within hours, he was in a carrier, headed to Ohio and, several months later, into our home.

What if these shelter workers had not known about The Forgotten Persian Rescue & Friends? The more people who know about breed-specific rescues, the better. Most organizations out there are wonderful and do everything they can to save the dogs and cats in their care. But often a breed specific rescue can take it just one step further, as in Romeo and Pugsley’s cases.

So tell me, do you have a specific breed of cat or dog that you love? Do you have a story you want to share? Please do!

Thanks to everyone who has provided feedback! I will certainly adjust my editorial schedule to align with your wishes. An overwhelming number of you would like to see more Pug interaction so he and I will discuss where he might have time between naps and meals to contribute. He’s a very busy dude. If you have not taken the quick survey, you can do so here. I’d really appreciate it!

Today I employed one of my most favorite wake up strategies. First, I climbed onto the female staff’s stomach and made my way to her chest and sat there. Sometimes she will wake up immediately if I do that. Today, I think she was playing possum. So I put my paw on her nose and pressed, ever so gently. Beep.

That never fails to get BREAKFAST moving. She hauled herself out of bed and, in the dark, went to grab what she thought were her black yoga pants off the chair. But instead she grabbed Pugsley! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Poor Pug meowed in surprise, staff yelped in surprise, and I just sat there giggling.

What a great way to start the day!

Today is DAY FOUR of our seven day tribute to the beautiful blackness living among us – BLACK CATS!

AND an added bonus….this month I am also teaming up with American Pet Products Association and their Pets Add Life campaign to help them promote responsible pet ownership. If I can help them generate 6K Twitter followers for their handle, @petsaddlife by October 31, they will donate $1K to the rescue of my choice. Since I am celebrating Black Cats this month, I have chosen Black Cat Rescue, an awesome organization in Boston. Will you PLEASE help me win them $1K by simply following @petsaddlife on Twitter? Thank you!

Okay, here are the black superstars for today:

This is my black beauty, Dahlia with her best friend, Thomas. They fell in love the minute I brought Dahlia home from the shelter and they've been best friends, grooming buddies, and everything short of lovers since then. And the most amazing thing is that if one purrs, the other starts to purr, too. It's so sweet.

Here is my 8 mth old Dexter w his adopted Minidach bros Sundance and Hotchkis. It was love at first romp. He was the son of a feral black cat momma when the Boxer Dog of one of the angels at Loving Hands Animal clinic rescued the litter (!!!) and brought them all on the porch. The babies and mom were moved into her garage to grow big enough and then the babies went to the clinic to find new families... (momma cat was altered and still lives w the Boxer and her mom) Well Dexter got us as a family and I kinda think he likes it

Pugsley with his human sister. He even lets her pull his ears. For a minute.

Send me your black cat photos! I know you’re out there! Send to caroline (at) romeothecat (dot) com! xo!

Today is DAY THREE of our celebration of amazing, mysterious, sleek, furry and fabulous black kitties.

AND an added bonus….this month I am also teaming up with American Pet Products Association and their Pets Add Life campaign to help them promote responsible pet ownership. If I can help them generate 6K Twitter followers for their handle, @petsaddlife by October 31, they will donate $1K to the rescue of my choice. Since I am celebrating Black Cats this month, I have chosen Black Cat Rescue, an awesome organization in Boston. Will you PLEASE help me win them $1K by simply following @petsaddlife on Twitter? Thank you!

Here are today’s featured felines….

Here is Percy, so comfortable and relaxed in his bed. When I first got him and he wouldn't come out of his hidey corner, I wondered if he'd ever become this relaxed. (After this photo was taken, he came over for a cuddle.)

Here is my my 2-year-old, Rònan. He’s the latest in a long line of black kitties in my life, starting with my very first cat (well, he was a tuxedo, but mostly black) when I was 9 years old. That was Cinders, then came Scraps (along with his tortie sister, Patches). There was a grey tabby in there next (Amelia Earhart – I found her at an airport when I was learning to fly), but eventually I came back to the black and had Alexander for 14 years. Alex was 36” long from tip of nose to tip of tail and never weighed more than 12 pounds. He was the most elegant of cats. His companion was Jello, who was a pudgy bunch of love. After Alex, I couldn’t go for another black, so along came Tinkerbelle, a tortie princess. But when Jello died, Tink let me know she wanted a companion, so I set out to find another black. Along came Rònan, which means “little seal” in Scottish Gaelic. I fell in love with him right from the first at the Fancy Cats Rescue adoption fair. He’s grown up now, and a healthy 17 pounds (not fat, just a big cat), but he’s still my little seal!

Reggie & Rascal are 6 year old littermates that I adopted from the shelter I volunteered at. They are completely inseparable from each other. They sleep, play, wrestle, and bathe each other daily. You can never find one without the other. They are so much fun and provide so much love and entertainment for me that I would be lost without them. I wish more people would get past their fears and superstitions that prevent them from adopting black cats. They really have the shiniest fur and the greatest purrrrsonalities!!!

Here is my my 13 yr old black cat, Gizmo, drinking out of the cat faucet which they thoughfully supply in most bathrooms here in Italy. He came to us when he was tiny tiny. A friend was walking dogs for the local pound when suddenly a tiny black kitten attached himself to her leg like a burr. She brought him to us as she had already reached her pet quota (3 dogs, 2 cats). He moved to Italy with us from WV about 4 years ago. He has learned to speak Italian like a native.

The housepanther, 11 year old RUSH.

Do you want your “house panther” (hee hee, love that) featured? Email my staff a photo and story at caroline (at) romeothecat (dot) com. And, even if you were already featured last year, you can participate again! Send those photos in!

Just popping in to say that, despite my staff’s complete disregard for the upkeep of this blog, we are all alive and well on Long Island. Well, there’s no power. I sent staff to the local Starbucks with my notes scribbled on a post it note.

Staff also wishes to apologize for the neglect. With BlogPaws 2011 (that silly pet blogging conference she plans) and earthquakes and hurricanes and whatnot, it’s been a little hard for her to keep on top of things. Slacker.

But stay tuned. We have a lot of fabu stuff planned in the coming weeks. Stick with us!

xo

The Boys.

Today I have a special guest poster: female staff. She’s been angling for her moment in the spotlight for some time now so I guess I should give her a shot. Hope you guys don’t mind indulging her.

Thanks, Romeo. Female staff here. I’m known to most as Caroline or MOMMY! As much as Romeo and Pugsley complain about my laziness and inability to serve food on time, I know they love me.

And I love them. Oh, MAN do I love these guys. And, while individually they are absolutely wonderful, together they are Team Persian – the spectacular, furry, dynamic duo that brings our family joy every single day.

There are so many things I love about “Black and White,” “Romeo and Pug,” “White BOY and Black BOY,” “R & P,” and “the boys.”

I love sitting on the couch with my boys next to me – what my husband (a.k.a. lazy male staff) calls being “surrounded by Persians.”

"Big Floof" Romeo v. "The Puginator" Pugsley

I love when, out of the blue, the cats whiz by me on their way up the stairs. I hear them stampeding together through the hallway, jumping up on the bed, thunking back down on the floor and streaking back down the stairs and past me again.

I love when they sit side-by-side, looking out the screen door and watching the bird feeder in silent, focused companionship.

I love when I am in the kitchen and they are both simultaneously meowing/yelling at me to hurry up and feed them. I have to laugh out loud.

There's plenty of sunshine - and love - for everyone!

I love when they are curled up together in a sunbeam or cozy comforter  – my heart just swells.

If you’re a regular reader, you know that our household has been in upheaval for the last three years since my oldest daughter (the Creature) was born. And, just as the boys were getting used to her, I had to go and have another daughter (the other Creature). Romeo and Pugsley must be so frustrated with me!

When I was pregnant with my first daughter, several people told me, “Oh, once you have your children, your cats will become just cats.”

Ummm, nope.

In fact, I think I love and appreciate them even more now that I have human kids.

Team Persian on the job.

They’ve adjusted and adapted. Their loyalty and love is unwavering. Their needs are minor compared to those of screaming kids. No one else is interested in hanging out with me during late night baby feedings, but Romeo and Pugsley are. They snuggle with me, they follow me around and patiently wait by my side until I have a free hand to give them a scritch or a belly rub.

They add a special furry piece of life to our world. They infuse a gentleness in my three-year-old daughter who learned at an early age to be “gentle with the boys.” They add humor to my day. They evoke a tenderness in my heart that only a pet parent can appreciate.

I’m so happy to participate in helping to promote pet ownership though the American Pet Products Association’s Pets Add Life (PAL) campaign. No gimmicks, nothing to sell, nothing to push – except the joy of being owned by one’s pets. You can support the campaign too, by visiting their Facebook page and uploading photos of your pets.

I’m honored to be entrusted with the care of these beautiful boys. Thanks, PAL, for working to showcase how Pets Add Life. Because they do.

This post is sponsored by the American Pet Products Association. But obviously these views are my own. What can I say? I love my pets!

The picture of misery.

Read about Pugsley’s ordeal over at The Happy Litter Box and please send him healing purrs.

Genius gift, courtesy of Dopey Dog Artworks.

This Sunday is Father’s Day.

And, while male staff is just as much of a slacker as the female staff, Pugs and I still plan to celebrate.  Because it’s the right thing to do. And, he’s half of the food service team around here.

We’ve been pawing our noggins trying to figure out what to get him. Thanks to my pals at Catsparella, I learned about these awesome t-shirts by Dopey Dog Artworks.

Um, LOVE THESE.

What are you getting your cat dad?

My staff is SO silly. I don’t know why they insist on calling Pugsley and me by different nicknames but they do. Here are some of the names we answer to:

Me = Mr. Fluffypants, Mr. Furrybritches, BOY, BOYEEEEE, White BOY, Rom, Ro, Piggy von Piggerson (at dinner) furrybutt, poops, schmoopie, boo boo, floofy and the Creature calls me Romo.

Pugsley = Pug, Pug-ley, Pugman, Puginator, Black BOY, Black, None-more-black, stinky butt (only apres litterbox). The Creature calls him Pus-lee.

What are YOUR nicknames? Please share!