Not so Wordless Wednesday: Puppy Blues

Two posts ago, I had mentioned of visiting Cartimar Pet Center. This is where more than 50 pet stores are located in one vicinity. I had so much fun looking at the different dog accessories and toys. What I had not mentioned is they also sold purebred puppies and dogs and even advertise stud services.

Anyway, here's a picture I'd like to share with you guys.

Mind reading time! What do you think is this little guy dreaming of?

Purebred dogs (like this Japanese Spitz puppy) in the Philippines are generally treated like little children. They are loved, exercised and fed very well. It's the street dogs (termed "askal") that are usually left to fend for themselves (Sigh).

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Laundry and Brother Dog's Reaction

I apologize for not being able to visit your blogs so often. I've officially taken a new role at home which includes playing nurse to the sickly, doing the dishes, cooking, cleaning and waking up every morning at 5 AM to open the door so my partner can come in (his shift is from 8 PM to 5 AM and we have double chain locks). All of this plus my doggy responsibilities.

So today, I've added one more chore in my list- doing all the laundry. As I carried the washing machine outside- situating it on top of the dogs' balcony, one particular being stands up and "THANKS" me.

INGRATE! Now, I'm having second thoughts of washing your beds.

You might be wondering why BD looks thin. That's because he won't eat dog food like the others. I have to feed him rice and viand from our meals.

And he's still not allowing me to pet him or hold him, which annoys me to death because I wouldn't be able to cure the nasty case of mange on his back.

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Cartimar Pet Center: A Pet Lover's Heaven!!!

You may be wondering what a Cartimar is. Well, Cartimar is like a bazaar in Metro Manila, Philippines, where most items sold here are far cheaper than the ones being sold in malls. During my vacation, I'd browsed online for a cheap dog crate I could buy for Peanuts and came across Cartimar. We had to take a jeep (public transportation) and a train to reach it at Pasay City.

Imagine having more than 50 pet stores in one center. They sell everything and anything from pets to pet accessories, beds, food, toys, cages, crates and more. My mouth almost drooled as it was pretty overwhelming.

The first store on the left greeted us with such pretty fishes. Imagine seeing an albino fish as wide as an eating plate. I'm pretty sure the aquarium is also for sale (probably for $500 or more).

The Cartimar Pet Center  goes all the way to where my camera reaches. More than 20 stores are in this area alone.

As you could see, dog crates and cages are all over the place. The prices are reasonably cheap as well. The lowest price for a dog crate was roughly $10. As you know, these kinds of stores allow haggling.

And I thought two hallways were enough. They even had more pet stores at the back.

This picture was taken at the back. Their stores are bigger.  More grooming parlors are located in here.

Now you must be wondering what I got when there were so many to choose from. Well, here it is.

Oh, the hedgehog was my niece's joke of "Let's pretend that's Peanuts" because I was overly concerned that the dog crate may be too small for her.

I was lucky enough to have located a store where the person-in-charge immediately gave me his "last price" for the dog crate. The crate was being sold for 650 Php ($15), he gave it to me for 450 Php. The screaming chickens cost 120 Php (approximately $3), I got the two for 150 Php ($3.50) justifying that I should get it at a bigger discount because I was buying the crate.

Happy weekend!

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Dog Project: The Bed!

Yes, dear friends and fellow bloggers! I have hand-sewn a bed for Peanuts because the one I bought seemed to be a bit too small.

So with my imperfect skill in sewing, I took out some old pillows, tear it up and steal some stuffing from it. Then, I began sewing the old cloth in different horizontal sections. 

LOL. That's the straightest I could get because the stuffing was already in the case before I did the sewing.

You made this for ME!?!?

 And here's my finished product... Oh, it's just so embarrassing!

Haopee: Yes, Peanuts. I made it for for you.

She actually slept in this position for a good 30 minutes, which made me really happy that she seemed to have enjoyed the pillow.

For REALS?!? I love you! (And she licks my hand *^_^* )

 Haopee: YES!

It was a little dark when I took the picture so it's not a surprise that the photos turned out this way. I hope you could bear with them.

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Why do they breed?

A couple of days ago, me and my sister were talking about getting another dog to be added in their pack. And coincidentally, I was also searching through this famous buy-and-sell website for nothing in particular. So since we were in the topic, I searched for available dogs being sold as online dog ads are conveniently found in this site. To cut to the chase, here are some ads I've read.

Most of them are in my country's language. I will be posting the translated version already.

"For Sale Shih-Tzu

Never been mated 100% Virgin

Perfect for Breeding"

"Puppy for Sharing Shih-Tzu Stud

Male

2 Balls

In Heat, So He Needs A Bitch!"

"JRT Stud Service

I have 2 JRTs (Jack Russel Terriers) you can choose from.

They're awesome at mating since they already know what to do!"

"No Need for Shooter! My dog knows what to do!"

"Never Missed! Proven! Always Successful! Promise,"

"Looking for Crossbreed pups? I can provide you with any kind, just send me a message. Price is negotiable depending on the breed."

"Selling  Shih- Tzu.  The previous owner failed to save the dog's eyes from blindness , but she is healthy. If you need one for breeding purposes, it's definitely okay."

"Big Head, Heavy Bones, Sad Face" - description for a beagle

"Mini Pinscher Chihuahua Mix. Almost in heat. If the female is mated to a purebreed, the possible outcome is a PURE one!"

And the last one,

"Release Date is on DEC ______ , GREAT AS CHRISTMAS PRESENTS!"

It's just sad to know that majority of the reasons that breeders here choose to take care of purebred dogs is for monetary gain. Purebred dogs are like luxury items in the Philippines which is why they are highly sought after. It's a rare case for a person to pick up strays.  And one of the reasons why dog adoption from pounds isn't popular is because of this (aside from the fact that some cities don't have pounds).

Comments anyone?

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Wordless Wednesday: Buchi's Bath

Shih Tzu + Heat + Water = Super Awesome Bathing Ritual with Music.

Hope you guys enjoy this Wednesday's post. The video was taken 2 years ago. 

Oh my goodness, how fast time passes.

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Monday Mischief: How Do You Plead?

I know it looks pretty tattered up, but this Sketchers Sandals was my favorite pair of shoes for more than 3 years. It's probably the reason why it looks so... over used.

Your shoesies are the best! Om-Nom,  Om-Nom, Om-Nom... Nom Nom Nom Nom.

Anyway, I finally decided to put this picture up. Peanuts just love chewing on it that I had to say "No" a couple of times before she eventually decided to give it up.

There's always a first time for everything! ^_^

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Buchi's Touchy Thursday

Remember me posting about the two hour grooming session... Well, this cut took me four hours to finish- with breaks in between. Still, four hours for one little Shih-Tzu is like forever. With an extra slow clipper, a pair of scissors and an inexperienced groomer, I think I did okay.

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Turmeric Dramatically Reduces Rin's Eye Cyst Size

Before we go further to discussion, let me just give you guys a brief background of Rin's case. Rin has had this cyst for more than a year now. My sister had though it was just accumulated eye discharge. However, since it kept growing bigger, she finally decided to bring Rin to the veterinarian.

It was unfortunate for us to hear that Rin's cyst will keep on growing and that even if they'd try to remove it, the cyst will just keep growing back. So the veterinarian's advise went this way, "If it doesn't bother the dog at all, then it's just better to leave it alone."

So we were left with Rin having a large mass growing from her tear duct. As you could see, this was her picture last November 24, 2011. The cyst is now actually smaller compared to a couple of months ago.

Poor Gal, the cyst is pretty inflamed because she had accidentally touched it.

Rin doesn't like anybody approaching her and taking a look at it, so we had to hold her head to take a picture of the cyst. If she accidentally scratches it or bumps it to something, it bleeds and swells more so I'm pretty sure that the bigger it got, the more uncomfortable it became

So I searched the net for home remedies that may help them because of what the vet said- that the mass would just grow back and surgery was pointless. I came across posts of people adding a tablespoon of turmeric in their dog's diet daily which turned out to be effective.

I told my sister about it and she was pretty eager to try it on Rin. Last, February 29, I took another picture of Rin's eye cyst and I was pleased that the Turmeric showed positive results.

Rin's a pretty big girl. She's more than 7 years old now.

My sister had mentioned that a month ago it had been actually smaller than it is right now. However, the person in charge of feeding Rin is not giving her that much Turmeric which is the reason why it's size has grown back.

For those who are curious as to what property Turmeric has which may be attributed to this effect, here's my assumption: 

Turmeric is known to be effective at reducing inflammation. As an herb and spice, it is added in people's diet to lower the risk of Alzheimer' and some cancers. Turmeric is also known as an natural antiseptic and anti-bacterial agent.

I'm not sure if you guys have had problems like we have encountered with Rin, but feel free to share your insights. It's highly appreciated.

Update (8/6/2012): To follow on our next post.

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Pet Express + Dog Toys = Shopping Spree

I couldn't resist it. I had to buy them. I'm sorry, Mrs. Wallet. You had to lose some weight. Fate should not have led me to pet heaven.

Last Sunday, we went to find something for my niece. During our journey, we came across... Pet Express, a haven for four legged family members. And my eyes wandered and I went into a frenzied trance where I had to see and touch anything and everything.

Pet Express has multiple branches in Metro Manila, Philippines.

I mentioned previously that Kongs weren't sold in our city... Well, looky here! My mouth almost watered with all the Kongs they had on display. I was also able to touch one that's similar to Hawky's Mr. Wubba Octopus.

My prayers are answered. Kongs, Kongs, and more Kongs!!!

You're probably wondering what I bought in their store. Here they are. I really couldn't help it. I was under the influence of an addiction... pet addiction... I had to buy something to commemorate my visitation.

The green squeaky toy is currently with Buchi. It's one of the first he is truly enjoying as his old one was too big for his mouth to squeeze. The brown one came from another shop.

Have you ever felt so weak and helpless to have given in to the temptation?

If you're interested in checking out the Pet Express at SM Mall of Asia, just click on the link.

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