Toxic Toad

Our friend Tosca scared us. Tosca wrote about WOD visiting her and even sent pictures. When we saw WOD, we thought Bufo Toad (Bufo marinus). When we read WOD was a frog, a collective sigh of relief could be heard throughout the house. We posted a picture of a Bufo Toad for you.

We heard somebody bark, what is a Bufo Toad? Why should I worry about a toad? Dogs living in south Florida, north east Australia, the Philippines, Central America, northern South America and some other places know about Bufo. These toads grow to typically 4-6 inches (10-15 cm) in length. They get up to 7 inches (17 cm) here in Key West.

Bufo Toads secrete toxic venom through their skin. If a dog eats or licks a Bufo Toad, death will very likely result if untreated. There have been cases where these toads sat around the water bowl and left enough toxin behind on the rim to poison a dog. They have even been known to eat dog food. Hmmm, that is why Dad doesn't leave our bowls outside.

Symptoms of Bufo Toad poisoning are:

-- Mouth irritation with foamy salivation

-- Depression

-- Weakness

-- Collapse

-- Difficulty breathing

-- Seizures

-- Fever

-- Vomiting

-- Diarrhea

The following two hyper-links provide a lot of pawtastic information about the Bufo Toads. Between them they cover where the live, look like, and the second one talks some what Dog Dad or Dog Mom can do to help you survive a Bufo incident.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_Toad

http://www.panama-guide.com/article.php/2006020820155180/print

Dog Speed.

Essex & Deacon

Where is Baby?

We were hoping to hear that Baby was found, but alas that was not to be. Baby is a Shih-Tzu living in Singapore, that has been missing from home since 10 February. Dear cyber-paw pals, spread the word. For more information click on the link below.


Click
HEREfor contact info.

HERE for
Baby's blog.

Dog Speed,

Essex & Deacon

****** IMPORTANT UPDATE - 18 FEBRUARY ******

Baby has returned home. Our tails are wagging because we have a happy ending.

Paw Prints in the Snow

Happy Valentine's Day every paw. That is us to the right on our road trip from Key West to the Cleveland, Ohio area. For most of the trip we were such well behaved Collies. We would like to share this poem we barked in memory of our Dad's Mom, who passed away in January. It our way of showing our love for those that have crossed the rainbow bridge and we now remember. When we went to Ohio, it snowed five days in a row, and we got to leave our paw prints in the snow. Enjoy.

We remember when we were little,
a time you were not frail and brittle.
As a pup, we were full of fire,
we ran and jumped to hearts desire.
Once we looked down by our toe,
To see a few small paw prints in the snow.

As time went by, we traveled far,
to distant shores, searching for our star.
We gazed at the silent moon above,
our hearts remembering those we love.
Looking back we saw the trail grow,
there were more paw prints in the snow.

At last came the time of your journeys end,
and we couldn’t join you around the last bend.
You huff and puff to cross one last ridge,
now you’ve crossed over the rainbow bridge.
Our loving heart will like an ember glow,
when we think of your paw prints in the snow.

(The Key West Collies)

Friends and Funky

We are catching up reading the other blogs and posting a couple awards for some of our cyber-paw pals.

First we want to thank Charlie (aka, the "Reverend Lady Charlie the Antediluvian of Goosnargh on the Carpet) for thanking us for being her friend. Charlie it is truly our honor to be your friend. You are one lucky dog. We enjoy reading about all your adventures and places you have been. We would like to extend that thank you to our friends Tosca, Gomer & Opie , Jake & Just Harry and Pacco. They frequently visit us and leave comments behind. We really appreciate that.

The second award was from Gomer and Opie. They think we are funky. We can hear them up in Minnesota singing that old song, "Play that funky music White Dog, Play that funky music dog." We would like to tag five other sites as being funky. They are Charlie; Tatum Tot Spice; Bella, Eddie & Peaches; Maximillian the Valliant and Dakota.

Dog Speed,

Essex & Deacon

A Poem

A good friend e-barked us the below poem. We knew many of you in cyber-paw land would enjoy it.

Essex & Deacon

My dogs live here, they're here to stay.

You don't like pets, be on your way.

They share my home, my food my space

this is their home, this is their place.

You will find dog hair on the floor,

they will alert you're at the door.

They may request a little pat,

a simple 'no' will settle that.

It gripes me when I hear you say

'Just how is it you live this way?

They smell, they shed, they're in the way..'

WHO ASKED YOU? is all I can say..

They love me more than anyone,

my voice is like the rising sun,

they merely have to hear me say

'C'mon, time to go and play'

then tails wag and faces grin,

they bounce and hop and make a din.

They never say 'no time for you',

they're always there, to GO and DO.

And if I'm sad? They're by my side.

And if I'm mad? They circle wide.

And if I laugh, they laugh with me.

They understand, they always see.

So once again I say to you

come visit me, but know this too..

My dogs live here, they're here to stay.

You don't like pets, be on your way.

They share my home, my food, my space

this is their home, this is their place.

----------- Aurthur Unknown

Kansas Condolences

Great Niece Essex and Great Great Nephew Deacon,

I am sure proud of how you cared for your Dad. My family wants to send our condolences. I am sure Mac, Honey and Sam met your Dog Dad's mother at the Rainbow Bridge. You did well guys. All the strength a person needs can sometimes be found in the eyes of a Collie and your Dad knows that.

During the college bowl games, we were rooting for different teams. Here I am with Mom supporting our LSU Tigers. Geaux Tigers.

Woofs and Sniffs

Great (Great) Uncle Bobby

Bobby sez Geaux LSU Tigers.

= = = = = = = = = =

Great (Great) Uncle Bobby,

Thanks for the kind words, all of us appreciate them. We helped Dad through all this. Dad was running a fever of 103 degree Fahrenheit on Wednesday. Essex watched over Dad, sniffing, staying near by and made a few whining noises. Dad sure has been resting a lot trying to shake the bug.

We got back Saturday and have been real busy. Dad was tired from traveling and being sick. He did take us to Angel Paws before we went home. Quite a guy in our book. He wanted to reward us for our good behavior at the hotel and all the time in the vehicle. Below are some more pictures of us enjoying the Ohio snow.

Woof Ya,

Essex & Deacon

Essex gazes ever forward.

Our good friends Hattie (top) and Cassie

Cassie, Deacon and the Red Ball

"Curses foiled by the Red Baron, again"