Portraits for a Cause!

This weekend I finished a portrait of Luna that I started a couple weeks ago. I haven't really drawn in at least 2 years, so when I took this project on I was a little afraid about how rusty I am. Drawing is just like playing a sport; if you don't practice a lot, you can lose your skill. You might always know how to play that sport, you just might never reach your prime if you stop working at it. 

I saw a pet portrait on Instagram, and thought it looked amazing and it motivated me to get back into fine art. I am pretty happy with how the portrait of Luna turned out, but I know I have a lot of room for improvement. I posted the drawing on Luna's Instagram account, and it got a lot of positive feedback. This made me think that people might actually like pet portraits. 

With that said, I've decided to sell animal portraits, and to give 10% of proceeds to an animal organization of the purchaser's choice. 

If you are interested in a portrait of your pet, email me at brittmaag@yahoo.com and attach a high resolution image of your fur baby.

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De-Fur Your Belongings

If you have a frequent shedder like I do, you probably have accepted the fact that in your home fur is an accessory just like the paint on your walls, or the picture frames full of candid photos. Fur is just part of your life, you have to accept it. I have even gone out of my way to purchase certain items because I know Luna's fur is more likely to blend in with it. Kind of like buying a tan car over a black car because the dirt and dust is less obvious on a tan colored car. 

I've accepted that I have a shedder, but I do try and clean up her fur every once in a while. Vacuuming becomes a challenge, where every 5 minutes I have to empty the contents because it is FILLED with fur. I swear I could make a whole pack of wolves with the amount of fur that comes off that dog. 

This weekend I decided to de-fur one of my blankets that Luna has now claimed as her own. It usually sits in my car to attempt to protect my back seat from dirt, mud, fur and whatever else Luna tracks in there. So you can imagine this blanket looking pretty gnarly. I shook it out first to try and get all loose fur and dirt off as much as I could.

After a quick Google search, I found a few alternatives to getting fur off of blankets or any other belonging that is furever furry. 

The first thing wiki how said to do was get your hands wet and rub your hands over the area. This weighs down the fur by getting it wet and makes it easier to grab the fur. Let me tell you, that is not happening. It is taking way too long with this blanket.

Another suggestion was to use latex gloves and use the "magnetic attraction" to get the fur off. I guess this would be like using a balloon (which Wiki actually suggested too), rubbing it on your head and attracting fur to it through static. This attempt was again taking way too long and the gloves I was using would just slip off my hands. (This was one of the better options Wiki How came up with though).

One of the last things I tried that Wiki said to use was fabric softener sheets. Dampening it then rubbing on the furry surface. Well that just made a soapy kind of mess and was really not working whatsoever (I think this was the worst option ever).

Finally, I stopped by Target to see if they had some kind of fur removal device I could use. And what do you know, in their cleaning supplies section they have a lint roller specifically for furry situations. It has a rubber little brush on one end and a huge roll of lint rolling sticky tape on the other side. What you were to do was "rake" the fur to one area and then pick it up by using the sticky tape. I found this alternative the best, easiest and fasted way to get the results I wanted. Buy this Evercare product at Walgreens for $6!

After defurring the blanket as much as I could, I threw it in the washer then dryer, and was pretty pleased with the results. (Not perfect, but as good as it's gonna get)

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October is Coming!!!

For those of you who don't know it already... there's less than 3 weeks left until OCTOBER!!! Woohoo! For me, October is the true beginning of Fall. A time where boots, sweaters, and chowder are regular daily occurrences. And that is AWESOME!

Luna's First Fall

But what is also awesome about October is... Walk N Wag! Yes that's right, I'm using this blog post to try to squeeze that cow's utter and see if any milk drops into my bucket of charity fundraising. 

I know it probably sounds desperate, and that I'm trying way way WAY too hard, but please, just join my team! I understand times are difficult and you really can't donate a penny, but you can still JOIN the team for FREE. What does this do? This makes you able to raise money yourself! 

Now you can send your link out to family and friends (probably those who like animals) and ask them to donate. They can donate in YOUR name towards our team! So even if you can't donate your own money, maybe you can fundraise, and have the money donated in your name, and your effort.

So this time I'm not asking you to donate (though you can if you'd like), I'm just asking you to take 5 min out of your day to JOIN my team (for free) and send out a mass email to family and friends to donate to the Humane Society.

It truly is a good cause. 

P.S. I know there's about 6 people who read my posts...So I am expecting to get 6 new team mates out of this...No pressure, I'm watching you... 

Here's the link: 

http://hssv.convio.net/goto/CrazyDogCrazyLady

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New Stuff!!

Did Christmas come early this year? Nope, just spoiling Luna (as per usual). 

Actually, I've been looking for a good bed for Luna for a while now. And I've been super hesitant to buy her one since she chews every thing on the planet. But I found a good deal at Home Goods, for this chopped foam pet bed. It's the perfect size, machine washable cover, and the inside stuffing is also removable/replenishable. I think it was quite a great find. 

The only other thing was hoping that Luna loved it as much as I loved the price. She's never had a "bed" before, so will she even know what to do with it? I brought it home, laid it down at one of her favorite resting spots. The first thing she does is smells it, then after she decides it smells okay, she rolls on her back and starts rolling on it, getting her scent on it. Well, that was successful. Then she basically laid on it the rest of the night.

Drew and I are making sure that she does not get to lay on it or have any contact with it, without our supervision (in case she chews it up like our comforter). So far the pet bed is intact, and in one piece—I hope I don't regret saying this later...

Also this weekend, I bought a coffee mug (dog themed, of course). It has my name written all over it. It has graphic design elements—all about typography—and dog related words on it. It's perfect. 

While at Home Goods, I found this cool little dog toy called a "ball teaser". It's a ball inside a ball, by the brand Jolly. I've purchased other Jolly dog toys, but Luna didn't seem too interested, in fact she hasn't even TOUCHED the other toy. But this one I think she would be a little more interested in. And I was right. I brought it home and she only put it down to beg for the food I was eating for dinner. 

Surprisingly, Luna did not have a "cookie jar," so when I saw one at Home Goods while browsing in the pet section (most dangerous section there for me), I thought it was perfect! So now her treats are in a cute storage, instead of in their boring food packaging. 

(Obviously not a photo of Luna)

The last thing I bought, I will have to return. It was one of the things I was most excited for, but it did not work out as well as I had liked. It was one of those hammocks for your car's back seat. It's waterproof and easily machine washable. And I figured it would be a good fur trap. My car's back seat has SO much fur on it that I refuse to drive more than one person in my car. Someone sat back there one time, and they got out of the car with a sweater on made out of Luna's fur. It was BAD. So I thought this investment would be good. But I put it on, and 1. it was way too small (even though the packaging said that it fits all cars), 2. it was flimsy and not wrapping around the seat cushions how I'd like, and 3. I think Luna was really uncomfortable in it, slipping and sliding because of the cheap material. I'll be returning it, maybe finding a similar thing but a different, better brand.

All in all, a very successful trip to Home Goods, or a dangerous one (as they always are). It seems like I spent a lot of money since I bought a lot of items, but really my total didn't pass $70! Check out Home Goods for great deals on pet home supplies (they also have other amazing human home supplies).

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Volunteering Feels Good!

This weekend was very exhausting, but in a good way. The kind of way where you get back from a really tough work out at the gym, and every muscle in your body is throbbing but you know it was worth it. Well, I don't go to gyms, so I wasn't exhausted in a successful workout kind of way. But it was still a very rewarding outcome.

Friday afternoon, I got an email from the Volunteer Coordinator from Maddie's Fund saying that she needed one extra volunteer to help out at "Dog Dynasty's Charity Dog Wash" on Saturday. I emailed her back saying I would be able to help out, and if I could bring Luna along (since she needed a bath anyways). She said of course!

So saturday, Luna and I went to go help out at the Charity Dog Wash, and try to get people to sign up to volunteer or become foster parents to animals in need. Unfortunately, we didn't have to many people interested. A lot said that they are too busy (if you remember I HATE this excuse), and that maybe when they retire. I'm sorry, do I look a retired woman? Well I hope not! I'm a 23 year old woman who puts in a couple hours here and a couple hours there to give back to my community, and to dogs in need! Volunteering does not involve you spending hours on end with animals. I really don't get how "being busy" is an excuse not to volunteer...but what ever. 

Besides dealing with lazy people—okay maybe I'm being too harsh here—Luna and I had a grand ole time. She got a bath, she played with some dogs, people thought she was "Maddie" (the dog Maddie's Fund was founded upon), people thought she was up for adoption (hell no she's not!), she got to spend time with mommy, and on and on. Luna was so well behaved, the coordinator there said Luna could probably come to more events like this since she is so mellow. This makes me happy because one of the reasons I don't volunteer as much as I can is because I like to spend time with my baby girl. I feel bad leaving her to go spend time with other dogs...I'm cheating on her. And she knows it when I come home smelling like Mocha the Pit Bull, or Heath the Chi Mix. 

As much as I "cheat" on Luna, I know what I am doing is for a good cause and that it is to get other dogs to be in the same loving environment as Luna. So hopefully she understands ;)

Sunday, Luna was not able to come with me when I went to volunteer at Stand Down. This event is amazing. When I first went to my volunteer orientation, I remember them explaining this event, and I knew right away that I wanted to get involved somehow. Stand Down is an event that is held at the Alameda County Fairgrounds every year since 1998 (a man told me today). The community comes together to provide homeless veterans a second chance (or a third, or a fourth). At Stand Down, veterans are able to get medical attention, legal help, showers, haircuts, dental help, drivers license registrations, AA meetings, etc. Anything you can think of. The reason they do this is so the veterans can leave with a better chance of getting on their feet and finding a job and being able to provide for themselves.

Well, since this event is at the Fairgrounds, there are no animals allowed. A lot of these vets have pet dogs, so most are not interested in showing up to this event if their dogs can't join too! (I mean who could blame them! Would you be able to abandon your dog for 4 days to seek personal help?) But that's where Maddie's Fund come in to help. We work with Dog Dynasty to board these vets dogs and give them baths, medical attention, food, dental care, spay and neuter, etc. These dogs are in good hands. 

Stand Down is a 4 day event, Thursday through Sunday. The animals and the owners are apart for FOUR DAYS! Can you believe that? If you were away from your companion who you are with 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, would you be able to survive 4 days with out them? It definitely wouldn't be easy. Sunday, the owners and their dogs were reunited. And I was able to experience this. And it was AMAZING! I haven't seen dogs so happy to see their owners, and vice versa. There were grins ear to ear, tails wagging and tongues out all over the place! You could see that even though these dogs may not have houses to stay in, they had homes with their companions who loved them. They were not loved any less by these men and women who served our country. 

This was such a rewarding experience for me. I am still elated (6 hours after the fact) just remembering the happiness and greatness of this event. It makes me really remember why I decided to become a volunteer. THIS is why I became a volunteer.

Here are some photos I took from this event:

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We Remember

Today marks 13 years since the traumatic events that took place in New York City, Philadelphia, and Arlington County. There were so many heroes who put their life on the line to help save lives and find survivors. Some of those heroes were 4 legged and furry. That's right, dogs. 

When you think back to September 11, 2001, you can probably recall what you were doing when you found out about the first plane that flew into the World Trade Center. For us (humans), it was only 13 years ago, just a little over a decade, not that long ago in people years. But for dogs, that's a life time. Literally! Out of the hundreds of dogs that helped out at Ground Zero, only 15 are reportedly still living. 

One photographer, Charlotte Dumas, decided to capture these veteran canine heroes. 

Bretagne

Abigail

Orion

Bailey

Guinness

Merlyn

Moxie

Red

Today Luna wore her American bandana to show her support in the service working dogs who served their country with great honor 13 years ago today.

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Follow Luna on Instagram!

Yes... I am now THAT girl even more. My dog has an Instagram. I'd like to make excuses for myself like, "Oh well, I wanted to differentiate my dog followers with my people followers," or "I want to keep less of Luna on my real profile," etc... But the truth is, I'm just that crazy. Hey! At least I am not in denial ;)

So if you would like to follow Luna and get updates on cute photos, and maybe vote for her in some contests (she's won 1 contest already!) CLICK HERE!  Or just search for her name "lunavino" and follow :)

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