bean the pit

Bean and the Bump

2010-09-13T21:28:00.010-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, I took Bean to the vet's office for some regularly scheduled maintenance. On the way over, I looked over at Bean, sitting in the passenger's seat, and noticed that the little bump on her side that had been there for years was looking different. Since any sudden change in a mole/bump is potentially concerning, I asked the vet to take a look at it. The doctor came in and said she wasn't sure what the bump was, but it was suspicious enough to warrant taking it off. She also said that if it were her dog she would have it taken off as soon as possible.

OK....now I speak Doctor, and I know this is code for "THIS IS REALLY REALLY BAD!!! OMG GET IT OFF!!!"

And so on Friday Bean had surgery to remove the bump and send it off for analysis. Since she was going to be under anesthesia anyway, I asked them to go ahead and clean her teeth (did you know dogs have to be put under to have their teeth cleaned?). Here she is recovering this weekend:

"Hey mom, check out my rad new scar. I'm going to go as Franken-Bean on Halloween!"

[Yes, those are Bryan's arms holding Bean. We are trying to figure out how to still be a part of each other's lives...what makes sense now. It's going OK so far. And he has really come through to help me with Bean this past week.]

Bean never reacts well to anesthesia, and she spent the first night home standing over me (front legs on my left side, back legs on my right side) in my bed and crying. Every few minutes she would fall asleep standing up, start to lean over, and then startle herself awake and cry some more.

Then today, the pathology report came back. The bump was scary. It was a mastocytoma, aka "mast cell tumor". These can be nasty and sometimes need chemotherapy. Thank God Bean's was a Grade 1, and they seem to have gotten all of it. The vet says she will need to have any new bumps checked out, but we can pretty much consider her "cured". I am so relieved! I don't know what I would do if my Bean got sick right now. She's such a good companion.

"Oh Mom, you know I'll always be here for y....SQUIRREL!!!"

By the way, 2010? You can cut it out now. I've had enough. Thank you.

first day of school!

2010-08-29T20:27:00.003-04:00

Well, not really. Or at least not for Bean. But I did find a way to walk Bean without her dragging me from tree to tree all the way down the street. I went to a very nice pet shop in the area called Phydeax (pronounced "Fido"), where a very nice lady helped me find a solution. It's called a Sporn Halter and it works like a charm.

There are two other perks:

1) it doesn't look at all like a muzzle, which some people seemed to think her old Gentle Leader was (people already assume she is aggressive, they don't need another reason to think so!)

2) The straps make it look like she is wearing a backpack if you see her from the front, don't you think?

Can I you walk me to the bus stop now mom?

I don't want to be late for the first day of school!

Now that I can walk her, she is much happier and more calm. (By the way, I'm feeling much better too. Thanks for all the support!)

sad to say

2010-08-08T12:34:00.006-04:00

That Bryan and I are no longer together. He left a couple of months ago, and that's all I want to say about that.

My recent troubles are no reason to deprive the world of the happiness that is The Bean. And so, a photo of my little girl. She's been missing Bryan, and spends a good amount of time hanging out by the front door...just in case he comes back. Of course, I may just be projecting here, and she could be laying there because it's where the sun was at that moment... Either way, we're a couple of sad girls right now. But we'll be just fine on our own, right Bean?

Sure mom, but you're going to have to learn to walk me!

So much Snow!

2010-01-31T15:08:00.005-05:00

In case you haven't heard, the Southeast has been blanketed with snow this weekend. Bryan is away in NYC, and so it is just the Bean and me. We are snowed in! At first, Bean was not sure how she felt about the snow. She stood on the back porch and whined, wanting me to come get rid of it somehow.

Hey MOOOO-OOOOMM! Someone stole our yard!

Eventually, she got used to it. All of the photos were snapped by me from inside the kitchen, by the way. There was no way I was going out there!

Who ever heard of snow and bamboo together? It's like a snowy jungle out here!

She spent the whole afternoon out there, running around investigating. ALL of the tracks you see in this next photo were made by Bean. But I guess she didn't realize that because she spent a good amount of time sniffing and following her OWN tracks! Such a good hunter...

It seems these tracks were made by a dog. 55 pounds or so. Female. They're still fresh. I wonder where she went?

I hope everyone gets a snow day tomorrow!

bean surveys her kingdom

2010-01-09T12:16:00.005-05:00

Bryan is back! We are so excited to have him home. I have some new photos of Bean relaxing with her dad, but first a few more from when he was away.

We had a nice, warm-ish sunny day here soon after he left, and I decided to rake up some of the billion or so leaves around our house. I started at the curb, so that our neighbors can see we are at least trying to deal with our yard. Yes. We are that house.

I tethered Bean to the porch while I worked, so that she could soak up some rays and get a view of the street she can't get from the backyard. She made herself comfy in our out-of-control ivy bed. Doesn't she look regal?

But this one is my favorite. A great big goofy smile, much more like the real Bean.

"I has a happy."

No yard work this week though. It is freezing out. In fact, we built a fire last night, which Bean enjoyed very much. Pictures to come...

Bean enjoys christmas cookies

2009-12-28T10:12:00.006-05:00

Bryan is out of the country right now, working for justice. Bean and I are both super-proud of him and miss him so much. With him gone, it's just me and the Bean at home, and she keeps bugging me to (finally!) update her blog, so here we go.

A fellow teacher at Bryan's school was kind enough to bring doggie Christmas cookies for Bean. They were lovingly hand made by her two dogs, Lucy and Ruben (with a little bit of help from their mom for the oven part). Before I let Bean destroy them, I took a picture of how lovely they were.

I especially like that they included a "B" for Bean. And also a little cat-shaped cookie, because Bean hates cats and this is likely the closest she will ever come to getting to eat one. And a nice, crunchy one too!

I took a video of Bean devouring these (a process which was way too blurry to photograph - her jaws are moving so fast that even parts of the video are blurry!) which I hope you will enjoy. Please excuse the unswept floor. I couldn't see the point of sweeping before I let my dog spew cookie crumbs all over the place.

Here's hoping that you had a lovely and delicious holiday!

It's officially Summer!

2009-06-27T11:07:00.008-04:00

I took my Surgery exam yesterday, so I am now a 4th year medical student! I have July off to celebrate. Bryan always has July off because he's a teacher. And Bean...well, Bean has every month off. That means we will all be spending some quality "family time" together, and I'll be sure to have my camera with me!

This morning I had to get up early (on my first day off!) to take Bryan to the airport. He is going to Miami for the weekend to attend a meeting. As I pulled on my sweatpants in the dark I looked over at Bean snoring in her corner of the bedroom and I thought ~~"If I can't sleep, no one will"~~ "I bet she wants to see Daddy off at the airport!"

So I woke her up (which took quite a bit of effort) and we all climbed into my car. After she determined there were no other dogs out on the streets yet, she settled in to her favorite car-riding position - squishing her head down between the armrests.

"What can I say? It calms me."

At the airport, I got out to say my goodbyes after Bean said hers in the car. I didn't think airport security would appreciate it if we let Bean out to run all over the place and bark at all the planes. Here she is saying a final goodbye, such a touching moment.

"Bring me back a t-shirt from Miami. Green, if they have it. I'm a size dog."

As we drove off, Bean stood up in the back window and stared. She couldn't understand why we were leaving one of the pack behind. She was kind of depressed the whole way home. Not even having the energy for a good head-squishing, she just rested her nose on the armrest.

"I miss Dad already."

I miss him too, Bean. Now let's go back to bed.

Bean helps me clean out my dresser

2009-04-22T16:51:00.005-04:00

Hi everyone! So sorry about the long time between posts. Not much exciting has been going on at Chez Bean. I am thrilled to report that the lost dog I posted about last time was found. Yay!

As an example of how dull things have become around here lately, let me tell you about when I cleaned out and re-organized my dresser....

Anyone still there? Still awake? OK. Bean decided to help/observe me since she didn't have anything better to do than wait for Bryan to come home. Her day doesn't start until she hears his keys in the door. She is such a Daddy's Girl! Anyway, she was helpful (kind of) and cute (very) so I decided to snap a few photos. Enjoy!

I think you should keep these two. Red is your color.

Here, let me help you fold this scarf.

Another Lost Dog...

2009-02-11T18:24:00.004-05:00

There is another doggie out there on the streets of Durham tonight, trying to find his home. Here is a photo and some more info. Please keep an eye out!

"Hey all, My dog took off last night!!! He's so incredibly nosy that he probably didn't realize he was out of the yard until it was too late. Please if you belong to any of the neighborhood list serves let folks know. His is black with a white belly and old man gray whiskers. He's about 72 lbs and ridiculously friendly, barely barks, is curious about other dogs but not a fighter. He's about 13 yrs old so I'm pretty worried about him out it night he's got creaky bones and some deafness. He answers to spliff, puppy, daddy and old man (when he feels like it). If anyone spots him please call me at 919-358-3707 Thanks!!!"

Bean helps with the yardwork

2009-02-01T22:33:00.003-05:00

Another post....you know that that means. I am in between clerkships and have the weekend off!

A few weeks ago Bryan and I (finally) raked up some of the leaves in front of our house. Bean wanted to be outside with us, of course. Since only the backyard is fenced off, we always put her on a lead when she is in the front yard with us. I don't want to take the chance of her running into the street.

The lead is not long enough for her to go down the steps to the curb, so she stood up high and monitored Bryan's progress.

Good job there, Dad. Strong work.

The crappy thing about having to have Bean on a lead is that she manages to get wrapped around something every 2.8 seconds. Then she stands there and cries until we untangle her. On this particular day, she had already wrapped herself around a tree, two bushes, and a flower pot. I thought she was done, and then I looked up and saw this.

Umm....a little help here guys?

She managed to corral two random bricks that were on opposite sides of the yard and bring them together by wrapping her lead around them. How does she manage to get stuck on something that is 4 inches off the ground??? Oh well, at least she gathered up a few leaves in the process!

Happy New Year!!

2009-01-03T12:15:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you had fun ringing in 2009. We certainly did! Well...Bryan had fun partying. Bean is always terrified by the fireworks and spent the night running from window to window growling and barking. Occasionally I was able to get her back into bed with me. Then just when she was about to fall asleep.... BOOM!! BOOM!! CRACK!! She was so scared. She was shaking and had her tail between her legs and everything. She seems to be more scared of fireworks and thunderstorms since she was stolen. I wonder if she was trapped outside during a storm during that week. Poor thing!

We are all catching up on sleep over here at Chez Bean, so no action photos today. Instead I present to you, My Very Sleepy Family.

Go Away. Just 10 more minutes....
(Yes, I do tuck Bean in under her covers when it's cold; and yes, I realize we need to have human children)

What could possibly be so important that you have to wake me up at 11:30 in the morning???

Meh, I'm not getting up unless there's bacon waiting for me.

"Good morning my love! Say hello to the internet!"
"........."
"Bryan? Angel?"
".........mmpph.....gaurrum......naamm....."
"OK, I'll come back later."

Well, there you have it. I guess I'll go entertain myself for few hours and try again this afternoon.

Bean is in The New Yorker!

2009-01-03T12:00:00.003-05:00

A friend called us a few days ago to tell us that he saw Bean mentioned in the most recent issue of The New Yorker. Apparently there is an article about dog-napping, and they list some of the most famous victims of 2008:

There are no reliable statistics about dog thefts, either citywide or nationwide, but a couple of years ago Lisa Peterson, of the American Kennel Club, took it upon herself to begin monitoring what she saw as a disturbing trend. Her list of the disappeared includes not only Samantha, a Maltese from Brooklyn; Misha, a bichon frise from Flushing; and Enzo, a Yorkie from Chappaqua (later returned to his owner, former Miss America Vanessa Williams), but also LeeLoo, a poodle from Sugar Land, Texas; Bean, a pit bull from Durham, North Carolina; Pixie, a pug from Boling-brook, Illinois; and more than two hundred others in twenty-four states.

I am just glad they are getting the word out about this terrible crime, and putting dog owner's on the alert. It's a sad fact, but you really cannot assume that your dog will be safe (even for a minute!) in backseat of your car, or tethered to a lamp post outside Starbucks, or anywhere outside of your sight. We were unbelievably blessed to get our Bean back (and to have a whole army of volunteers out there looking for her!), but most aren't that lucky it seems.

Thanksgiving in VA

2008-12-07T08:11:00.004-05:00

So....sorry about not posting in so long. I am in my third consecutive month of inpatient clerkships. If you are lucky enough not to know what that means, consider yourself blessed. Basically I have been crazy busy.

I had to make the time to write this though. I just want to say that I am so proud of our girl. Bean went with us to VA to spend part of Thanksgiving weekend at my in-law's place. I have to admit, I was nervous. Would she beg during the dinner? Would she knock Bryan's 90-something-year-old grandpa over? Would she bark constantly?

I am happy to report that Bean was a perfect little angel the whole trip, starting with the drive up (although she is always good in the car).

I'm not going to look at you, woman. Please get that camera out of my face.

OK, fine. Here you go. CHEESE. Happy now? Now can I go back to helping Dad drive?

When we needed to baby-gate her upstairs (for the fancy dinner), she did not cry. She kept watch over us for awhile and then went to sleep. Here she is at the top of the stairs, looking down at everyone else in the living room. She really likes being high up!

Hey! I can see everyone from here. This is the perfect spot for keeping tabs on all my humans at once.

She especially likes how the windows in that house go almost all the way to the floor, making it possible for her to look outside without standing up on her hind legs. She spent quite a bit of time at this window looking at the other dogs in the neighborhood and watching out for squirrels.

Dog...dog...another dog....SQUIRREL!!!...oh wait, just a Chihuahua....dog...dog...

And when she finally got tired, she rested quietly on her new turquoise dog bed (which is from bow wow beds and is awesome).

Whew! It sure is exhausting being such a good dog!

We hope your holiday was just as relaxing, and there are lots more photos to come. Only, not until after my shelf exam on the 19th. Speaking of which, I am off to go study. Bye bye!

The Scariest Basement Ever

2008-08-28T22:15:00.006-04:00

I went to take a shower tonight, and was none too happy to discover there was no hot water. Apparently the pilot light went out on our gas water heater. In the interest of basic hygiene, we called the gas company and they are sending someone out to relight it.

This house has a basement. I have never lived in a house with a basement, and am sort of scared of them anyway. But this basement is the prototypical scary basement. It has cobwebs and creaky wooden stairs and a single bare light bulb. If I was an ax murderer, it's totally where I would hang out.

Someone had to go down there to confirm that the pilot light was indeed out. We drew straws and Bryan lost. Actually we didn't draw straws. I told him he had to go down there and Bean and I would wait upstairs with the phone ready to dial 911 if he screamed.

Bean was very disturbed by the sudden disappearance of her favorite parent, and stood with her head in the doorway until he was safely back upstairs.

"Dad? You OK down there?"

"Daaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad? Bark twice if you can hear me."

Bean has relocated!

2008-08-20T19:19:00.004-04:00

Well, the move is over. We are...25% unpacked. Also we have painted 25% of the house. The rest will happen when it happens. Bean is loving all the space. This house has much more room for her to run around. You can go from the office to the hall to the dining room to the living room and back to the office in one big circle. When Bean gets a chew or a new toy, she she takes it in her mouth and runs a few laps around this circle to get out some of the excess joy before finally settling down on her bed to consume whatever it is. The number of laps she runs corresponds to her level of excitement over the treat. For a regular rawhide, she will do maybe 1 or 2 laps. I gave her a squeaky-stuffed hot dog toy yesterday and I thought she'd never stop running!

Here she is surveying her new (and much larger) backyard from our bed.

How the *&^%@ did those squirrels get my new address??

Bean visits the Burbs

2008-07-21T18:08:00.007-04:00

As I mentioned in the last post, we spent the 4th of July weekend at Bryan's parents' house in VA. They live in a very nice house in a very polished subdivision. It is a very different place than where Bean has spent most of her life, and she really enjoyed investigating it. One of the most striking differences, from her perspective, had to be the immaculate condition of the sidewalks and lawns. She really loved her walks there!

"This is niiiiiice. Do you think they wash these sidewalks? I mean there is NO trash whatsoever! Although, I do miss the fun of looking for a stray chicken bone or an old piece of gum, like we do at home."

"Just look at that curb! It looks bleached. It's clean enough to eat off of. Of course, I also will eat out of the trash. I'm not really picky."

"The grass is still green here! It looks so comfy! I just want to roll around in it and scratch my back! Don't you?"

"Mom, we have GOT to do something about the landscaping situation at home. Seriously."

Sorry Bean! Until your Mom graduates and gets a J-O-B, we'll just have to live with weeds and dead leaves.

(By the way, we move into the new house this weekend. I will be sure to take pictures of Bean's first moments checking out her new digs!)

Well, I am so glad that's over!

2008-07-06T20:49:00.007-04:00

I took the boards on Thursday! The entire ordeal was much, much worse than I had anticipated. But it's all behind me now! Now I just have to wait 6 weeks before I find out how I did...

As soon as I finished, we drove to VA to spend the holiday weekend with Bryan's parents. I took lots of photos. I think some of the best are a few that don't even have Bean in them. I'm sure you will agree that they are still cute, though.

We were all in the car on the way somewhere when the traffic stopped to let a rather large group of geese cross. They just went right out like they do this all the time. The leader made sure they all got across before they regrouped on the other side and waddled up the hill.

I wonder where they were going...

I would not dare post without including at least one photo of Bean. So here she is, completely worn out on the way home. As I have mentioned before, Bean finds it especially comfy when she can wedge her extra large head into an extra small space. She slept for about 45 minutes with her head wedged in between the car seats.

"This spot is taken. You'll have to find another place to wedge."

I especially like this photo because it shows how floppy her lips have gotten as she has grown up. Here her left lip is draped over Bryan's armrest. You can also see the crumbs of sleep in her eyes. Definitely not her most becoming photo, but I think it's so funny!

Over the River and Through the Woods...

2008-05-29T11:11:00.007-04:00

The whole family (Me, Bryan and Bean) went to stay with Bryan's parents in Virgina over Mother's Day weekend. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous about how it would go. Bean has only been to their house once, and that was when she was recovering from her surgery, and was therefore confined to a small pen. This time she would have the freedom to explore the whole house as she pleased. And it's a nice house. With nice things. I had visions of crystal vases, throw pillows, and floral arrangements scattered in shreds and pieces all over the nice wood floors.

Bryan had more faith in Bean's ability to "act right" when needed. In preparation for the visit, I took her to get a mani/pedi (nail trim) so that she would not leave claw marks on the wood floors. I bought half a dozen plush squeaky toys for emergency use, and we packed a Super Jumbo bag of rawhide chews. We were ready.

On the drive up, she was a perfect angel. She is very good on long car trips. She alternates between napping and checking for other dogs in the cars that pass by.

Clear...Clear...Clear...Cle-WAIT! Is that a CAT in that car??? Oh..It's just a Chihuahua...OK Clear... Clear...

Where'd Dad go? Oh, he's filling up the tank.

WHAT??? Gas costs HOW much??!!

Later on, after the sun set, she slept for the rest of the trip. When we slowed down to get on the exit ramp, I snapped this photo.

Huh? What? Are were there yet?

I'll have to split the rest of the trip into a different post. I really should at least pretend to study!
Stay tuned...

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming...

2008-05-26T17:24:00.002-04:00

...because I am studying for the boards. I have 5 weeks left to study. It seems impossible!

Anyway, I may not be able to find much time for the blog. I will try to post photos at least. Bean is pissed. She is considering firing me and hiring a professional biographer to take over the site.

Wish me luck!

Mystery at the Friday Night Movie Fest

2008-05-17T12:29:00.005-04:00

Last night we were watching the last few episodes of the final season of Gilmore Girls. (Fans of the show will understand how distracted and emotional we must have been...for those of you who don't like the show - where is your heart???)

After the last episode, when we were done crying about how inevitable it is that your children will grow up and stop needing you and break your heart (and how do you even begin to deal with that anyway?), Bryan got up to go pee. From the bathroom he yells, "Hey, did you shower today?"

Given that yesterday morning I took the last exam of my second year of medical school (Whoohooooo!) and have been very busy this week, this was a totally reasonable thing to ask. So reasonable, in fact, that it took a minute for me to recall when I had last showered. After a brief sniff of the pits (sorry, I'm gross), I responded "Yeah, why?"

Bryan: Um, ever hear of a towel?
Me: What are you talking about?
Bryan: The bathroom rug is still wet. Did you just stand here and drip-dry?

I get up to go see what he's talking about (yes, Bryan is still peeing during all of this. He is a World Champion peer.) and sure enough, there is a big wet spot smack dab in the middle of the rug.

Bryan looks up at the ceiling: Maybe there is a leak from upstairs.
Me: This is a single story house. How is that even possible?

Eventually, we pieced it all together. Somewhere during the episode where Luke takes Lorelei car-shopping, I noticed Bean sitting by the front door staring at me. Knowing that this means she wants to go out, and having no intention of getting up myself, I told Bryan to take her to pee. "Sure, just after this episode." Three episodes later, he found himself standing on a wet bathroom rug....

Yes that's right. Once she ascertained that we were not going to take her out to use her bathroom, she decided she'd just use ours.

I was actually impressed. She is clearly smart enough to have figured out that the bathroom is to us what the backyard is to her. That's pretty awesome. A lesser dog would have just peed by the front door. I'm not sure why she picked the rug. Maybe it reminded her somehow of grass? I can assure you she has never seen me take a leak on the rug (though, I can't speak for Bryan).

So, Bryan washed his feet in the tub and I hauled the rug off to the garage to wash it. Then we all snuggled in to watch The Heartbreak Kid. Looking over at Bean, who was wedged in between us snoring, I took Bryan's hand and said, "You know what? Bean will never grow up and leave us."

"Nope. I ain't going nowhere."

Bean is a Daddy's Girl

2008-05-05T00:03:00.003-04:00

I took this photo on Saturday night, from my tiny corner of the bed. You can see my pink-pajama-covered knee in the picture. Why was I smooshed into a corner of my own bed? Because of this:

Aren't they precious? They were so cute I didn't have the heart to shove them over. Bean loves her daddy.

Bean Ignores Mom

2008-04-29T11:19:00.002-04:00

Yay! Another video!

Here, you can see that I am making a fool out of myself trying to get Bean to do something (anything!) for the camera, while she is obviously just trying to go back to sleep. It's shocking how she can be perfectly still when I want her to move, but turns into a ball of pure energy when I want her to be still. If you look closely, you can see that she blinks her eyes once. Other than that, it is pretty much the most boring 17 seconds of your life.

I hate having to work with moody celebrities.

Bean Gets Comfy

2008-04-20T15:00:00.005-04:00

On a recent ride in the car, Bean got tired pretty quickly of looking out the window and settled in for a quick nap. Or at least she tried to settle in. It took a little repositioning before she could find a comfy position.

"This won't do at all."

"This is even worse."

"Ah, yes. I forgot about the Dog Nose Holder. What a neat invention. How thoughtful of Toyota to put one of these in all their cars. All that shifting around wore me out. I'm...so...sleeepp....zzzzzzzz"

Just a note. #1 Yes, my car is filthy. Bean and I are the only ones who ride in it, though, and she doesn't mind. #2 She is still wearing her head-collar because it was a short trip. For longer trips, I take it off and let her get really comfy!

Once, Bean got to ride in her Grandma's SUV. She got the whole back section to herself, and she loved it! Windows on three sides, a nice carpeted area to stretch out on, and no chance of sliding onto the floor at stop lights! She is really lobbying hard for me to get an SUV when my car dies [Updated to Add: My car may be dead now. It stopped working yesterday. Rest in Peace, 1994 Toyota 2 door Camry with the paint falling off, RIP.]. I think the best I can do will be some sort of hybrid station wagon thing, though. She will just have to ride with Grandma when she wants to ride in style!

Bean is Busy

2008-04-12T21:37:00.003-04:00

I took this yesterday. Bean and I are on the bed, waiting for the start of the Friday Night Movie Festival. Well, I'm waiting. Bean is busy concentrating on the window behind the bed, scanning the yard for squirrels. Those are her "concentration ears." Bryan is busy returning phone calls.

Can't pose now Mom. I'm busy.

I suppose I'm busy too. Busy watching them both and giggling.

Wake Up Sleepy Head!

2008-04-06T22:24:00.007-04:00

This has been a rainy, lazy weekend. It's one of those rare weekends when I don't have an exam on Monday. It was so hard to get out of bed! Some of us (Bean) decided just not to try. When I attempted to wake Bean and get her out of the bed so I could make it, it went like this:

Me: Bean. Time to get up now!

I'm invisible. I'm invisible. If I can't see her, she can't see me. I'm invisible...

Me: Bean, I know you are in the bed. I am looking right at you.

Okay. I'm in bed. But I'm soooo sleeepy. And sooo cute. You don't really want to get me up, do you? Look at this face...

Me: If you get out of bed, I'll make you breakfast.

Breakfast!? Did you just say "breakfast"?? I love breakfast!

And then she got up to eat. Within ten minutes of breakfast, we were both back in the bed!

Baby Talk

2008-04-02T19:48:00.003-04:00

Congratulations to Shelby the Pug, another dog-who-blogs, because she is getting a new (human) baby brother! Many blessings to Shelby and her family. It will be interesting to see how Shelby adjusts to having another baby in the house. I know she'll be a great big sister.

We have often wondered what kind of a big sister Bean will be. She hasn't really been around very many babies, simply because we don't know that many (aside from the ones I babysit for). Of course, we are years away from introducing a new little brother or sister to Bean, but I think it would be good for her to have some exposure to them beforehand.

Well you know what? It is surprisingly difficult to get anyone to let you borrow their child for use as a "practice baby" to see how your dog reacts. Can you believe that? I even asked the parents I babysit for. They said no! Some people are just selfish, I guess.

So, we will just have to practice with dolls for now. Although, considering the fate of Bean's other toys, that might end in a gruesome mess!

You know they just aren't as much fun after the stuffing is gone...{sigh}

Bean Goes Multimedia!

2008-03-28T13:00:00.001-04:00

I got an awesome new camera for my birthday on Monday (thanks Mom and Dad!) and decided to play around with it after Bean and I got back from the vet on Wednesday. It has the ability to take short (1 min) videos, and thought "Finally! I get to show Bean in action!" So I taped the destruction of the fleece toy I gave Bean in reward for not killing any cats in the waiting room.

I taped it in three parts. Unfortunately, the last part (which is the most thrilling) is kind of blurry. I tried to get fancy and mess with the settings without actually reading the manual first. Oh well. There will be many more toys for Bean to destroy I am sure!

So without further ado, I present to you:

Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part I

Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part II

Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part III

Notice in that last clip that she is able to remove the stuffing and the squeaker in less than 60 seconds. Now that is impressive!

Close Call in the Cat Room

2008-03-27T14:34:00.004-04:00

Yesterday we went to the vet for some routine blood work. Our vet, like many others, has separate waiting rooms for dogs and cats. In the dog waiting room, there is a selection of toys for sale. The proceeds go towards the clinic's Stray Fund. We always buy Bean a toy on the way out to reward her for being a good girl at the vet.

Well, yesterday, I stayed in the waiting room while they took her back (it was just a quick lab visit). I had already picked out a toy for her (a pink fleece squeaky horse, more on that later) and stashed it in my purse. I don't like to give it to her until we get home, because she tends to make a mess with her toys. Well, there I was, thumbing through the latest issue of Dog Fancy, when the door from the lab bursts open and Bean comes tearing out of it, dragging her leash along, and followed closely by a vet tech. She had gotten free from the tech on their journey back to the waiting room. And her destination?

The cat area.

Oh yes. Bean decided that instead of the usual plush toy, this time she wanted a living, breathing chew toy to take home. One that meows instead of squeaks. She was caught before she could make it there, and no cats were harmed during this ordeal, although there was some hissing and back-arching. When they brought her to me, I wasn't sure if she still deserved a toy. Should I reward this behavior?

OK. I know how that looked. But let me just say... the cats started it.

I ended up giving her the toy once we got home. How can I resist that face? Besides, she looks sorry, doesn't she? Man, I am a pushover.

Profile shot

2008-03-25T22:00:00.005-04:00

Here is a nice shot of Bean in my back yard scanning for squirrels. She is lovely in profile, isn't she? As you can see, there is a huge old tree in the middle of the yard. There must be hundreds of squirrels that live in that tree. And every one of them has tormented Bean at one time or another. Their newest trick is to climb out to the end of a branch and fall. That's right. They just fall to the ground with a loud thud! and then tear off for the tree trunk as fast as they can.

Uhhh. Where'd he go? Where'd he go!!! Let me at 'em!!!

As you can imagine, this drives Bean absolutely insane. By the time she focuses on one of them, it is already too close to the tree for her to get it, and in the meantime, the next one has jumped. It's pretty much the craziest thing I've ever seen squirrels do. Kind of like a real-life version of Whac-A-Mole. Either they have a death wish, or they are confident in the knowledge that Bean is the Worst. Hunter. Ever.

She doesn't so much as glance at me during this, even when I open the gate. Like this past weekend, when I needed to go inside and grab a sweater. Nothing. I did not even exist to her. But when I came back? It was a whole different story.

Hi mom!! I missed you!!! Don't ever leave me again, OK?

Dog Years

2008-03-19T10:25:00.000-04:00

I saw this posted on dooce yesterday, and just had to post it here. It is so funny, and so well done. I also kind of teared up at the end. It is surprisingly moving.

I give it 4 paws up, which is the equivalent of "2 thumbs up" in human, because you only use two of your paws correctly. Just one more reason why I pity you poor, confused creatures. But that is a topic for another day. You'll laugh. You'll cry. Just watch it.

Coworkers

2008-03-18T00:52:00.003-04:00

Both Bryan and I have desks in the office, each of which are in front of a window. That way we can stare out the window, which greatly enhances our ability to procrastinate. The downside of this is that Bean can't see out of these windows like she can in the others in the house - by standing up and putting her paws on the windowsill. Her solution is to just stand up and put her paws on our desks instead. Occasionally, she will do this while one of us is working, and it looks like we are discussing some very important project. The other day she did this with Bryan.

See, if you move this sentence here into the conclusion, I think it makes the whole piece flow much better, don't you?

It can be very distracting when you are trying to study or grade papers and there is this gigantic dog head in your peripheral vision like that. But we love her anyway!

In other news, it seems that we have found a new house, and will be moving in August. There are 2 windows in the office at the new house as well, so Bean will be able to continue to "help" us with our work.

Objects in Mirror are Closer Than They Appear

2008-03-09T21:08:00.005-04:00

We spent some time this weekend driving around town with Bean. Mostly, we were all enjoying the lovely weather. We were also looking at houses, as we are considering a move. Since Bean will be spending more time in any house we take than we will, we thought it best to bring her along so she could give us her opinion.

See, this one is big enough, but there aren't many trees around here. That will seriously impede my squirrel-hunting. Also I'm not sure I like the widows. They are too high for me to see out of. I like the porch, though. Is this a Cape Cod or a Bungalow?

I kept getting distracted by this scene in the rear-view mirror on my side of the car:

Is that Christy's car? That looks like Christy's car. Where is she anyway? I miss her.

And when I tried to talk to Bryan about what we were seeing, I turned my head to face this:

If you take this next left you can cut across town without having to take the freeway.

This whole process could take awhile....

Gizmo has been found!

2008-03-04T23:27:00.002-05:00

Thanks to the help of volunteers and the media, Gizmo has been found and reunited with her foster family! All the dog-nappers in this town had better pay attention. This is just not acceptable. Congratulations Gizmo!!

Another stolen dog!

2008-03-03T18:28:00.005-05:00

I can hardly believe it, but another dog has been stolen in Durham. Her name is Gizmo and she is a 12 year old Pekingese female. More info and pictures at Animal Protection Society of Durham. The weird thing is that Gizmo was stolen from her foster home. That's right, she was up for adoption! If anyone wanted her that badly they could have adopted her for the $120 fee. Ugh! Humans!!

Bean't first fashion accessory.

2008-03-02T19:55:00.004-05:00

We went out of town this past weekend to visit Bryan's parents in Virginia. Bean stayed at the Doggie Spa and Daycare. This was her first time staying there and we were very impressed. When we picked her up, she was so happy! She clearly had a good time. Earlier today she got a bath with the works (nail trim, ear cleaning, teeth cleaning, and anal gland maintenance...don't click on that link unless you really want to know). After her bath, they dressed her in this shamrock bandanna, in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Bean has never worn a bandanna before. Doesn't she look so pretty?

Give me the cheese, I want the cheese, give me the cheese, I want the cheese, give me the cheese...

To get her to sit for this picture, Bryan stood off to the right and held up pieces of string cheese, which she got after each shot. I was able to take like twenty shots! I can never get her to sit still for that long by myself. Bryan may just have to become my official photographer's assistant!

Have it Your Way!

2008-02-28T09:58:00.002-05:00

I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but remember how we took Bean to the vet the day after we got her back? Well, not only did our Bean not waste away to skin and bones during her week on the streets, she actually gained two pounds. I think we figured out why.

Two days before she came home, I wrote about a dog spotted hanging around the local Burger King that looked a lot like Bean. When Bryan got there he saw a loose dog, but it was not Bean. He made sure this dog got back to his owner, and came home.

It turns out that Bean probably was there at the Burger King that Friday afternoon. But before Bryan could get there, another man picked her up and took her home with him. This was the man who saw our flier on Sunday and later gave her back to us. So all those people who called us actually had seen Bean hanging out at Burger King. (Thanks, people!)

Judging by her weight, it seems she spent quite a bit of time feasting on Whoppers and french fries culled from the dumpsters behind the restaurant. Since we got her back, she has been on her normal, no-frills diet. She had to go back to the vet this past Monday to get her vaccinations, and is now back at her pre-dog-napping weight. While we are pleased that her very becoming girlish figure has returned, we will miss calling her Fatty McFatdog.

Do you smell fries? I could have sworn I smelled fries out here...

Back on the streets

2008-02-25T11:55:00.003-05:00

Because walking Bean is a lot like walking a Clydesdale, she wears a Gentle Leader when we go out. Like most dogs, Bean despises wearing this thing. The first time I put it on her, she thrashed around the living room for 20 minutes, rolling around on her back and pawing at her face to try to take it off. So we were not surprised to hear that, within hours of getting away from the man who stole her, Bean was spotted wondering around without her Gentle Leader and leash. I am sure the first order of business after getting free of him was to roll around and paw at her face until she finally got that thing off. Now that she is back (Yay!!!), I have bought her a brand new leash and head collar. She was none too happy when we pulled it out and put it on her.

Damn you!!! How did you find this??? I thought I threw it in the creek...I'll have to find a better hiding place next time...maybe in that dumpster over there...

Even with the collar, Bean is very happy to be back patrolling the neighborhood like usual. Now all the residents can sleep soundly, knowing that they are protected from squirrels, cats, blowing leaves, plastic grocery bags, the wind, and everything else that Bean thinks is suspicious.

Also, Bryan wrote a wonderful article in which he discusses what the search for Bean taught him about community organizing. It can be found in multiple places, including here.

Friday night film festival

2008-02-23T16:21:00.003-05:00

We spent last night in bed watching movies with Bean. Here she is right after we watched The Painted Veil with our friend Christy, but before we watched more of the series Planet Earth. We highly recommend both.

If you don't come back to bed right now, I am claiming your pillows (and your husband) as my own. Also, enough with the flash, OK?

However, if you are grossed out by cockroaches and bat droppings, you might want to skip the episode called "Caves." I kind of wish I had....

Now that the search is over....

2008-02-20T13:14:00.002-05:00

The city has very nicely asked us to take down the Bean fliers that were put up all over town. Since so many people put them up in so many places, it would be really great if everyone could take down the fliers they put up. If you are unable to do that (because you put up fliers in an area other than where you live) please let me know where you posted them, and I will get someone else to take them down.

Also, if you happen upon a flier in your daily travels, please take a moment to rip it down. It will be such a happy task compared to putting the posters up! We don't need them anymore because we have our Bean back!

The city has been unbelievably understanding about these fliers, and I really don't want them to have a reason to regret it. So if we could try to get those fliers down as soon as possible that would be awesome!

No photos. Sorry. Just business, since I am sending this from school. I am pretty sure we can all guess what Bean is doing right now anyway!

Sleeping Beauty

2008-02-19T22:41:00.005-05:00

Here is another photo of Bean. As you can see she is still sleeping most of the time. This time she is on the bed.

Go away. I'm sleeping.

I did however get her to at least raise her head this time, so that you all can see that she is not dead:

Please leave me alone.

I am happy to report that her stomach has settled down, and we are adding the dry food back into her diet. I am also happy to report that I passed my psychiatry exam!

Also, I feel that I have been done wrong by the press. From reading some of it, you would think I didn't even exist! It is bad enough I was left out the photos for the paper, I am also barely even mentioned in any of them.

I would just like to point out for the record that I am the one who wanted a dog, I am the one who picked Bean, I am the one who is on the official adoption papers, and (most importantly) I am the one who created and maintains this blog. There is some reference to "Bryan Proffitt's blog" somewhere. Please give me URL. I would love to see this blog, because as far as I know he doesn't have one.

This is kind of a sore point for me, as you can tell. Why? Because when I started this blog 3 years ago, Bryan was mortified. He laughed at me. I think his exact words were "What kind of a nerd makes a website for her dog?"

Who's laughing now, baby?

Finally a photo....

2008-02-18T21:10:00.003-05:00

I'm getting up. Just ten more minutes...

Here is a photo of Bean sleeping in the living room this afternoon. This is proof that we do indeed have her back. As you can see, she is healthy and settling back into her routine quite well. She has been pretty much sleeping non-stop since she got home. I couldn't even get her to get up off her blanket and move into the light for this picture. I ended up having to use the flash, which is why it's not such a pretty picture. I am sure the one the professional photographer took will be much, much better! He took a bunch of photos of us outside. Bean was sitting on her bench on the deck, and we were standing beside her petting her. After a few minutes, for no apparent reason, she got up and went back inside through her dog door. She is such a diva that she is actually walking off the set during photo shoots. We are so proud!

So, we reached the goal of $1000 in less than one day! At $1000 per day, Bean is now the breadwinner of the household. We are not going to tell her that, though. She is already letting her celebrity status go to her head.

It's so good to have her home.

WOW!

2008-02-18T14:55:00.003-05:00

So, I post this plea for donations to Bean's Recovery Fund, I eat my lunch, pack a bag, meet Bryan in Durham for lunch, come home and do a photo shoot for the paper (more on that later), and then check the blog. Now we are 93% of the way to the goal!??!

Wow. Just....Wow.

We have gotten calls from both local papers today. One (The News and Observer) sent a photographer over to take some shots of Bean and her family.

Why was I left out of the final shot? That's cold.

It's a photo of Bean kissing Bryan on the chin. I am off in the background welcoming visitors. That pretty much sums up how things work around here. Bryan gets all the love! But when he is not around, and it's just me and Bean, it's a whole other story. Then she's all "Mom, I totally love you best. I just do that stuff with Dad because he's insecure. Seriously....Let me get in the bed. Please?...Mom?"

I just took some photos of Bean. She is sleeping on a blanket in the living room. All of her beds and things are in the laundry from the puking last night. The vet says she is totally healthy. We are trying her on a bland canned food for a day or two, and if she keeps that down, we will mix in her dry food until she is back to just dry. Bean probably stuck her paw down her throat last night while no one was looking, just so she could get some of this canned food. She LOVES this stuff. She had some after her knee surgery too. Bryan gave her 1/2 a can when he got back from the vet, and he said she almost hurt her face she was trying so hard to get all the food in her mouth at once.

Unfortunately, I didn't pack the cord that let's me download photos from my camera to the computer, so you will have to wait until tonight for those. But there are professional photos coming! I will let you know when they are in the paper and link to them from here.

You all are the best!

Rebecca

Passing the Hat for Bean!!

2008-02-18T10:25:00.003-05:00

Are you still giddy from the news that we have found our Bean?? Do you want to make that feeling last a little longer??? Can you spare five dollars?? Then this post is about you!!!

In the last days of Bean's disappearance, there was talk on this blog in the comments about us increasing the reward, and that some folks out there would be willing to help donate for us to do so.

Well, the good news is that there was no need to take such drastic measures. The less good news is that even with the reward set to $1000, that is way more than we actually have. Our thought process went like this: "We will cross that bridge when we get to it, and PLEASE GOD let us get to that bridge!!" In fact, at this moment we owe most of that amount to the various friends who ran off scrambling with their ATM cards trying to get the cash together yesterday afternoon.

There are many costs of getting her back which either cannot be recovered or we will come up with the money on our own for, including: the HUNDREDS of hours put in by us and everyone involved in the search, the astronomical copying costs of making thousands of fliers, and the vet costs (which we are hoping won't be too bad!) for getting her back to her usual excellent health. But we are really hoping it is not too much to ask for more support in this one last thing.

So, I have set up a campaign where YOU (yes you!) can donate and make this happen! There is a little icon in the top right of this page, which you can click on to donate (via Paypal). You don't even have to have a Paypal account to donate, just a credit/debit card. There is a progress bar so we can all watch as we reach this goal.

I have done some math (which is really painful to do post-exam, by the way), and figured out that the following scenarios will all get us to the $1000 goal:

1) Every person who has checked this blog during the past week donates ONE dollar

2) Every person who was involved in the search in some small way (from putting up a flier to combing the streets for Bean) donates FIVE dollars

3) Every person who wanted to help, but because of time/distance (hello out-of-state Bean fans!) constraints were limited to praying and hitting the refresh button on this page every 3.6 minutes donates TEN dollars.

4) Oprah Winfrey (a well-known dog lover) sees this, checks the cup holder in one of her cars for loose change, and donates ONE THOUSAND dollars

Which will it be? Stay tuned to find out!!

The Story...

2008-02-18T10:03:00.003-05:00

I just got home from my exam. I definitely passed, so no worries there. I talked to Bryan. He says that Bean threw up again this morning, and has an appointment with our vet in a couple of hours. I think it's just something she ate, but we'll have her checked out head to paw anyway.

Bryan sent out an email to friends/family last night with the story of how we got Bean back. I am posting it here, but with all the names changed (except for Bryan and Bean, of course!):

I'm on my way back from Chapel Hill today, after a long day of crying and exhausted naps. I was getting to the point of really feeling like we wouldn't see Bean again. Listening to the blues and everything.

Then I got a phone call from a young sounding dude (late teens?) who said that he had Bean and could I meet him around 9th St. I said sure, told him which parking lot I'd be in, and headed straight there. He called back and asked about the reward, was it still $1000? I said that it was, but that I wouldn't have it on me. I then told him what kind of car I was driving and what I looked like, and asked him to do the same. He hemmed and hawed for a minute about not being sure what car he'd be in, and then told me he'd have on red pants and a blue short.

At this point, I'm pretty sure that the dude is going to try to rob me since he sounded so shaky and wouldn't give me any info about himself.

So my two most ride-or-die-for-Bean comrades Elizabeth and Jane came out and parked nearby and waited to make sure that I was cool. We waited for about 45 minutes and decided to leave because the person obviously wasn't being serious. Or, he'd been dissuaded when I told him I wouldn't have the money on me. Whatever, we didn't have any more energy to waste.

Then, Elizabeth gets a call from Fitzwilliiam saying that he's at the bike co-op and he's looking at Bean. He said that the guy who was bringing her to me rolled up to get a flyer, and that he had jumped out to stop him. Elizabeth's all, "yeah right," because there were about 1500 phone calls from folks saying that they had her, and of course, none of them were her. So, the 3 of us speed over there, and sure enough, I get out of the car and see my baby pulling on her leash like she always does.

It was Bean for sure.

So I go talk to the guy and he tells me that he had picked her up two days ago by the Burger King at Club and Guess (by the mall). She was wandering around. I'd actually gotten several calls that she was over there, and Elizabeth and I went, but we found another loose dog that people could have mistaken for her. It turns out there's about 10,000 loose dogs in this town.

He had gotten her, taken her home, and kept her in his garage to try to take care of her. His nephew saw the flyer at Walmart on Saturday, and they called me today. We stood there and talked a while, and he was the nicest guy. He had just lost his dog, an 11-year-old chihuahua/poodle mix like 3 weeks earlier and he'd been real sad about it. Elizabeth and Jane went to get the money, and we brought Bean home.

Then came the phone calls, the visitors, and the lovin on our Wonderdog. She looks healthy, but she's exhausted, and clearly just ready to lay in bed for like the next week or two. We're taking her to the vet tomorrow. She'll be snuggling in bed with me tonight.

Y'all have all been so amazing with the constant walks, posting the flyers, calling your friends, telling your co-workers, saying your prayers, having your dreams, driving around yelling her name out of your windows. It's overwhelming really, and y'all can't know what it means.

There will be a Bean party later on in the week, maybe Friday, so be on the lookout.

Goodnight y'all. Going to bed tired, but so so happy.

love

bryan

Waiting to take my exam..

2008-02-18T07:19:00.003-05:00

Just a quick post before my exam starts. I am shockingly unprepared for this, but I can't make myself study anymore, so we'll see.

I called Bryan a little while ago. Apparently, Bean threw up earlier this morning. Probably a combination of whatever she's been eating this past week and all the excitement/treats after getting home. Oh well, back to her plain old healthy kibble I guess! We will have her checked at the vet just to be sure.

I'm going to look over my atypical antipsychotics one more time...wish me luck!

She is home and HEALTHY!!

2008-02-17T20:52:00.002-05:00

OK

I am taking a break from Bean's impromptu welcome home party (which she is sleeping through, she is so tired!)

The story is detailed, and Bryan is the one who really was there for the whole thing. He didn't call me until he had her safe and sound.

She is FINE. She has a scratch on the top of her nose, which she probably gave herself when she pawed her head collar off. She had one tick. Other than that, she looks EXACTLY like she did before she was taken! We are taking her to the vet tomorrow, just to be safe, for a check up.

I will have Bryan write a detailed account of the whole day, and will post it tomorrow. For now, just know that she is safe at home, curled up in the middle of our bed, snoring.

I can't thank everyone enough.

PS - Photos to come - I was so excited I left my camera in Chapel Hill. I will take lots tomorrow!

SHE IS HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-02-17T17:07:00.000-05:00

Bryan just called. He was shouting. He said something about having Bean in his car. I am going to Durham right now.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Sunday 8:10 AM

2008-02-17T08:10:00.002-05:00

Well, we are officially well into our second week of the search. I keep remembering the story of one woman who called to say she knew of a pit that was stolen and showed up 3 weeks later. We are not even close to that yet. This is great, because there is still so much reason to have hope. It is also scary, because if we are this close to complete physical and emotional exhaustion after one week, what kind of shape will we be in after three??

I am letting Bryan sleep in a little. Later I have to go back to Chapel Hill and study. My exam is in less that 24 hours and I have even started to prepare. I have no idea how I will make myself concentrate....

Some wonderful Team Bean members are looking in the woods around where Bean was last seen today. The hope is that maybe she has avoided being seen for this long by staying up in the woods. Oh Bean, I don't blame you for hiding! I would hide too after what you have been through. As you have so cruelly found out, there are awful people out there. But there are some great ones, too, so please let one of them see you today, OK? We really need for you to be seen.

Rebecca

Saturday 4:56 PM

2008-02-16T16:56:00.002-05:00

Well, that was not Bean either. But I think that the word is spreading to the right people, people who know about the many (illegal) ways there are to get a pit bull.

I just had a wonderful pep talk in my living room from 4 wonderful women. They are involved with the organization that let us adopt Bean, and they are angels. I even laughed, which I didn't think would happen today. One of them had her dog with her, and he wondered around looking for treats. It was nice to have a dog in the house again!

Bryan's phone continues to ring. Some calls are helpful, and some are not ("I don't have your dog, but I have dogs just like her that I will sell to you for less than $1000...")

Bryan is home and I hope I can convince him to sit down and eat something. (He has had a bagel and a bag of chips today, both while on the move.)

I'll post as soon as there is any news worth posting.

Rebecca

Saturday 4:11 PM

2008-02-16T16:11:00.002-05:00

I was so moved to see so many new (to me) faces this morning at the meet-up. People brought water, supplies, fliers, and most importantly HOPE.

Lots of ground was covered by the morning crew. We are trying to keep track of it all with maps and lists.

I came home just before the 1:00pm meeting. It was generally agreed upon that a sobbing little brown woman covered in snot would not really be useful in the search.

I have just spoken with Bryan. Apparently, the flier was shown to someone in a house where people are known to steal pits. When the person saw the flier, he slammed and locked the door. The police were called, and are on their way there now (and so is Bryan). This is exactly the kind of house I am scared she is in. Please pray that this leads to something!

The word is spreading like wildfire. Bryan's phone has been ringing constantly.

Bean, if you are out there honey, just hold on a little longer. We are coming as fast as we can!

Rebecca

Friday 5:43 PM

2008-02-15T17:43:00.002-05:00

OK now Bryan is going to check out another stray someone called in about. He is getting really good at this, and thinking of changing careers and working for animal control.

About tomorrow...

A very smart friend had a very good idea. Let's have 2 "meet ups," one in the morning at 10, and one in the afternoon at 1. This way people who can't do both can do either one or the other, and people who can help the whole time will have time to get lunch, reconvene, and just catch their breath.

So THE PLAN is:

Meet us tomorrow at either 10:00am or 1:00pm (or both) in Northgate Park. It should be easy to find us. The park is not that big. From there we will distribute supplies (thanks to the nice lady who left 2 cases of bottled water on our porch!) and figure out who is going where. There will be a pep talk, and group hug, and then we will head out and flier the crap out of this town.

Thanks!

Friday 5:18 PM

2008-02-15T17:18:00.003-05:00

It's not Bean.

It's another stray. Bryan is trying to catch it now, and I have alerted animal control. THANK YOU to the woman who called us though. That kind of quick action is what will bring Bean home!

I am at least relieved to know that Bean has not been spotted without her collar, as that really makes her stand out from the other strays.

Whew! My heart is jumping out of my chest. I found my shoes and I am not taking them off until Bean comes home.

Friday 5:08 PM

2008-02-15T17:08:00.003-05:00

Possible Bean sighting!

A woman called Bryan 30 seconds ago and said she saw a dog matching Bean's description (no collar though) running loose across Club Blvd near Northgate Mall, where the Burger King is. Bryan and a friend are headed there now. I didn't have any shoes on, so they raced out without me. Please keep your fingers crossed! And if you are in that area please please look around!

I'll update as soon as I hear anything.

Where are my $*#))(*) SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rebecca

Friday 8:56 AM

2008-02-15T08:56:00.002-05:00

Sorry about the rapid-fire posting this morning. I just won't be near the computer for awhile once I leave to make the rounds of all the vets/shelters.

Here is an important link:

http://pctraininggirl.com/teambean.html

This is the TEAM BEAN resource page, created by the talented and wonderful Kelly. It has all 3 fliers (English, Spanish, and the Car flier) available to download. If you have access to a printer and copier PLEASE make as many copies of the flier as you can to bring to the meet-up on Saturday. We think it will be at 10:00 AM at Northgate Park in Durham. More info will be posted as the day goes on. Things that you should bring (if you can) include:

1) as many copies of the flier as you can make
2) bottled water (enough for yourself and maybe a few others if you can swing it)
3) Leashes/Collars (for when you find her. If you find her and you don't have a leash, just grab whatever part of her you can get your hands on and yell like crazy for help.)
4) Maps of Durham
5) Comfy/warm clothes and walking shoes.

I think that's it for now. Hopefully she will turn up today, and we can just change tomorrow's meet up into a Welcome Home Bean Celebration!

Rebecca

Friday 7:59 AM

2008-02-15T07:59:00.003-05:00

Well, sleeping sucked. I kept dreaming about Bean.

Anyway, I am up now. I have been notifying vets/shelters individually about Bean and her microchip number, and I will continue to do so. I have also just called HomeAgain (the makers of Bean's microchip) and notified them that she has been stolen. I enrolled her in their lost pet program, in which (for $15) they will be sending out an alert to all facilities within a 25 mile radius that have microchip scanners. That should help.

By the way, when Bean gets home, in addition to her microchip, she will also be equipped with a GPS navigational system like Zoomback. It's the same technology they use to track down stolen cars.

Also, she will no longer be allowed outside the house for any reason whatsoever. We will be putting astro-turf down in the spare room, installing one of those light bulbs that simulates daylight, and maybe dragging a few potted ficus trees in there. That will be her new "outside". She'll deal.

Rebecca

Friday 12:18 AM

2008-02-15T00:18:00.002-05:00

I can't sleep. I am considering driving around, but I seriously doubt Bean will be out and about at this time of night...

The nights are the worst by far. It's the time when Bean would normally be snuggled with us on the bed. I can't not think about where she might be sleeping right now.

A note about my previous post:
I absolutely did not mean to portray the Durham Shelter in a negative way. If I am mistaken about their policy, please do let me know! I am just going by what the woman who answered the phone told me on Monday. We go there at least once a day, and the staff have been extremely sympathetic and accommodating. I only wanted convey what some folks have told me about why someone would take her to a shelter outside of Durham. I would consider it the greatest blessing for Bean to end up in their capable hands!

I'm going to try to sleep. Goodnight everyone. And goodnight my little Beanie.

Rebecca

Thursday 7:57 PM

2008-02-14T19:57:00.003-05:00

1) No Sightings Today. Not much more to say about that....

2) Bean is still not at the Durham County shelter.

3) A "nest" has been set up along the trail that runs through our area. It includes Bean's favorite fleece sleep-pad, and our bedsheets. We will be checking it regularly.

4) I have tomorrow "off" (I am supposed to be studying for the exam on Monday, but oh well!). My plan is to: a) Pay a visit to every vet in Durham to make sure they have a color photo and her microchip number. b) Go in person to the Wake County and Orange County shelters and make sure they know about Bean and have her microchip ID number. Someone may have picked her up in Durham and taken her to one of those shelters, thinking that she would have a better chance of finding a home. The Durham shelter does not adopt out pits, from what I understand. Pits that are picked up on the streets or brought in by someone are kept for one week. If no one claims them in that time, they are put down. If someone knows about this policy, they might have chosen to take her to a neighboring county. c) Contact the microchip company and report Bean as missing.

5) The plan is to organize a meet-up on Saturday. The idea is to meet at one central location and divide into groups. Each group takes a neighborhood and a stack of fliers, and then puts one on every door there. I think the best chance of finding Bean is to have every pair of eyes in Durham looking for her. Would you guys be up for doing this? What neighborhoods should we put on the list? I am especially interested in getting the word out in areas where people have a lot of pits in their yards, etc. I think we have missed those areas so far, and maybe they would be more likely to notice Bean on the street? What do you all think? We will also need people to volunteer to bring bottled water. Or everyone could make sure to bring their own? More info about Saturday is coming...

6) The window fliers are working!! We got a call from a woman this afternoon who had just seen the photo of Bean and our number in the window of someone's car. Unfortunately the lead was one we had already checked into (the found pit in Southpoint). Please print them out and get them into those car windows! I am going to try to bring out a bunch to the Saturday meet-up to hand out to people who volunteer.

7) Photo copying costs are getting big. Does anyone know of anywhere cheaper than Kinko's? If I post a link to the flier, would people be up for printing it and making/paying for copies? Then you could bring them to the meet up. We need LOTS of copies!

I think that's it for now. Keep up the awesome work everyone!! We are getting so close, I just know it!

Also, apparently Bean was mentioned on the radio this morning! We have covered every type of media now, short of having her name written in the sky (which we will look into next week!).

Much love,
Rebecca

Thursday 1:28 PM

2008-02-14T13:28:00.004-05:00

Aaaaaghhh!!! This class will NEVER end!!

Here's some good news. I got this response from the city about the flyers:

Dear Ms Silver:

The recent mobilization of the community to assist in finding Bean clearly indicates that losing a pet is a distressful situation for not only the pet’s owners but for everyone who hears about it. Those feelings of distress and sympathy for the owner are shared by the staff in the City-County Planning Department.

Interim Director Steve Medlin is attending an out-of-office meeting today but he forwarded your message to me so that I could provide you with a more timely response to your concerns about posting flyers in the rights-of-way and on utility poles.

As you may have learned, such signs in the rights-of-way and on utility poles are not permitted by ordinance. In addition, most power companies, including Duke Power and Progress Energy prohibit signs on utility poles. We have been told that the residual staples create hazards for line workers. As an alternative, we encourage people to put the signs adjacent to the right of way on private property.

The standard procedure for the Planning Department is to first provide information verbally about the violation, since most people are not familiar with zoning regulations. A second step would be to write a Notice of Violation seeking voluntary compliance with the ordinance. Compliance is our goal for a better Durham. We are NOT seeking fines, although fines have been used as a last resort to resolve situations.

At this point in time, the Department has not issued a Notice of Violation in this case. Since Steve Medlin is out of the office, we will await his return to discuss the situation with him, review our obligations to enforce Durham’s ordinance with equality, and determine what course of action the Department should take.

We will be happy to keep you informed of the situation and, in the meantime, continue to hope that Bean will be returned home safely.

Sincerely,

Bonnie Estes

Assistant Director

Thursday 11:15 AM

2008-02-14T11:15:00.001-05:00

The dog found at Southpoint is NOT Bean. That dog has been taken to the animal shelter. I am trying to get out of class early so I can resume the search. I'm sending this from class right now, so I have to go. Just a quick update!

Rebecca

Thursday 6:25 AM

2008-02-14T06:25:00.003-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone! Please send some of that Valentine's love Bean's way!

I am sitting at my desk looking at a sweet card I ordered from Etsy for Bryan, which I never even got around to opening, let alone writing in. Our Valentine's Day has gotten a little sidetracked by all of this. But angel, you know that I love you and that our little family is too strong to be broken by one bad person. We will celebrate Valentine's Day when Bean comes home with a romantic dinner of steak, hot dogs, puppy chow, and peanut butter. All mixed up together. Over candlelight.

Someone posted a lead in the comments from the last post about a pit bull that has been found in the Southpoint area. I have no idea how Bean could have gotten that far, but maybe she decided to do a little window shopping. At any rate, we will be calling them as soon as the sun comes up.

Someone called me at one o'clock this morning to tell me that they saw a red pit bull being walked by a man yesterday morning and that it was a male dog. My heart jumped out of my chest when the phone rang! But after I assured the caller that, yes, we are positive Bean is not a boy, and, yes, we think red-nosed pits are beautiful too, I was able to fall back asleep without too much difficulty.

I have to put in a major appearance at school today. So I will be pretty much off the search until 6pm. Which sucks because it is a perfect day for Bean-watching! But I know that Team Bean will be out in full force, and that Bryan will be searching starting at noon.

Today is the day! It will be Bean's Valentine's Day gift to all of us!

Rebecca

Wednesday 10:07 PM

2008-02-13T22:07:00.005-05:00

It's so cold outside right now. And it's raining ice. And I'm so scared. I hadn't really considered yet that the weather might be something else that Bean has to survive to get back to us. I am trying really hard to think of all the ways that she might be keeping warm enough to survive. She has never been an outside dog. Not even for one night. I don't know anything about what kinds of temperatures dogs can survive. Or what they do on cold nights. Those of you who know about such things, please please help me think of scenarios where Bean is not freezing to death tonight.

Bryan says she could be curled up in someone's garage or shed. Or maybe even a vacant dog house. I would really appreciate some more ideas, if anyone else is still awake. I need to be able to picture her somewhere where she can survive until morning, or else I don't think I will be sleeping tonight.

Pray really hard that Bean survives another night out in the cold until we can find her.

Rebecca

Wednesday 8:06 pm

2008-02-13T20:06:00.002-05:00

1) Bean is on the N&O website and will be in tomorrow's print edition, with a photo! Here's the link (thanks Amy!):
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/942684.html

2) The wonderful Kelly has made a mini-poster for Bean that is to be printed out and taped inside the window of your car (backseat please! You need to be able to see out all the front windows so you can look for Bean (and so that you can drive safely :) ). It can be found here:

http://www.pctraininggirl.com/bean.pdf

It might be true that no lost dog in the history of Durham has been searched for with this much intensity. I am liking Bean's odds!

Rebecca

Wednesday 3:41 PM

2008-02-13T15:40:00.003-05:00

No sightings. This is an update on Bean and the media.

1)Bryan tells me that she should be in the News & Observer tomorrow, and that she is on their website now.

2)I had placed an ad in the Independent to run both in print and online for 2 weeks. It shows up online, but was accidentally left out of the print version this week!!! I called and the guy says he will give me a refund (don't care) and will run it for an extra week (please God don't let her still be lost in 2 weeks!!). The nice thing was that when I prompted him about which ad I was talking about by saying "It's about a red dog named Bean..." He said "Oh yeah! I know all about Bean, I have seen her photo everywhere around my neighborhood." So that's good. The fliers/flyers are working!!

3)Bryan is going home now to work on calling radio stations to see if they can put out an alert. Maybe it can go into the list of possible material for radio talk show personalities to play with. You know: "easiest way ever to earn $1000!!" or "Don't want to go to work today? Call in sick and look for this dog. You will make more money than you would have at work anyway!"

That's all for now.

Rebecca

Wednesday 2:52 PM

2008-02-13T14:52:00.003-05:00

Remember that class I am supposed to be in right now? Well I sat down to "rest" around noon before going and cried myself into a restless sleep. Just now waking up.

Bean is still not at the shelter as of this morning. However, they are open until 6pm today, so we will check again before they close. The difficult thing is that the same instinct to run away from strangers that seems to have allowed her to escape her kidnapper and evade capture by dog fighters will probably also make it hard for anyone GOOD to catch her. My best advice if you see her is this:

1) Squat down and call her. This will at least get her to stand still. She knows humans can't run very fast while squatting. She may eye you suspiciously, because usually when Bryan or I do this it is because we want to give her medicine or brush her teeth or something else unpleasant.

2) Once she sees you, try jogging in the OPPOSITE direction, looking back and calling her. This is how we play "Chase". She will try her best to "beat" you to....no where. I don't think she ever realizes that we are not running towards anything. That doesn't matter, all that matters to her is that she is winning.

No new news. No sightings. I keep hoping it is just because of the rain. The Good news is that it will be bright and sunny tomorrow. That means Bean is more likely to be out, as are folks who might see her.

No word back from the city re: the flyers (is it fliers?).

I'm just holding on to the "no news is good news" philosophy.

Rebecca

Wednesday 10:38 AM

2008-02-13T10:37:00.002-05:00

Another lead on a found pit bull, again from the comments section of this blog (Thanks emily!):

My mom lives in SW Durham, and reads the TP list. I got this email from her just now:

"I read on the TP listserve about the pit bull that was stolen. A woman was putting up a dog-found sign at Massey Chapel and 751. I stopped to ask, as one of our neighbors has a stray at her house. This lady found a sweet pit bull yesterday or today and took it to the Durham Shelter, as she has five dogs and wasn't sure about the pit bull.I'm sure the owners of the one on the listserve are keeping in touch with the shelter, but thought I'd give you this info (I don't know how to post to the listserve). She is afraid they will put it down quickly since it's a pit bull and said it was a really sweet dog. It's unlikely that it's the same one, but look at "Hannah"!

Hope this is helpful! We'll keep our eyes open for Bean!

The pound just opened 9 minutes ago, but I am calling them and someone (another angelic stranger to us who has joined the Bring Bean Home Task Force) is going to visually check the dogs there this morning. We will probably go again before it closes at five.

Also, as for the found pit bull in the pink collar I just wrote about... The woman who found her just went home from work to check on the dogs (both her dog and the pit were in her back yard) and the pit has escaped! But I am not freaking out because: 1) she saw the poster of Bean before she found this dog, and never thought that this dog looked very much like the photo of Bean, and 2) Bean is NO escape artist. This woman has a fenced in backyard, and though she says the fence is not the most secure, she states that her dog has never gotten out of it. If a door in the house is only slightly ajar (but still 20 inches open) and not all the way open, Bean does not think she can go through it and will sit on the other side and cry. Again, not exactly a Houdini.

Keep the leads coming!

Wednesday 10:28 AM

2008-02-13T10:28:00.003-05:00

Update on the this posting about a found pit bull:

"A female brown and white pit bull just followed me to my house on 9th street. I have her in the yard with my dog. Please contact me by phone if you know who she belongs to. XXX-XXXX. Thanks!"

I have called her, and the pit bull she found is brown with white markings on her face, with a pink collar. It doesn't sound like Bean, but Bryan will go by and confirm this visually later on today. I got her address. I deleted the original post by Melissa (Thanks Melissa!) and didn't put her phone number here, because (as Melissa so correctly suggested) I don't want this poor woman to be called by half of Durham since we are already looking into it.

Bean's search team has become quite a force to be reckoned with!

Also, we are leaving the signs up until further notice. Lots of people have contacted the city, and some of you are even offering to help pay the fine! We may have to take them down eventually, but I don't want to do it a minute before we have to.

Rebecca

Wednesday 7:40 AM

2008-02-13T07:39:00.003-05:00

This is the update Bryan emailed out yesterday. I thought I would post it here as well. It's titled "What Bean Does When it Rains":

She walks up to her dog door, pokes her head outside to stare at the rain, and then realizes that she's too big of a diva to be out in that kind of weather and walks back in.

So...

The fact no one called us to say that they saw her today in the rain is just a testament to:

a) Her prissy-ness
b) Her newfound street smarts
c) some really sweet old lady letting her stay in the house and watch The Price is Right all day

But, we have had about another dozen or so folks that we don't know out driving around, taking their lunch breaks to look for her, etc. etc. It's really a world full of amazing people that we live in. One of my students brought his dog out from across town and walked around with me for 2 hours, then called and told me he'd help out in any way he could.

We're still on the hunt y'all, and we're not giving up anytime soon. Our baby is coming back to us. If you'd like to help tomorrow, please do one of the following things:

1) Take down signs that you see around town on lightpoles and stuff like that. The city said that they were going to fine us $500 if we didn't have them all down by like 2 tomorrow. Jerks. Just the city property, not bulletin boards and stuff like that. Hold off on this until we see if we can't get an extension/ exception. Call/email the city planner and ask for the rules to be relaxed in this case. His contact info is listed in the previous post.

2) Pass out flyers to everyone you know.

3) Take a minute to go out and look. The latest area of concentration (5 sightings yesterday) is on the nature trail that runs North/South between Trinity and Club between Duke and Washington and then down at Northgate park.

4) We'll be out again in full force in the afternoon if you'd care to join us.

5) Keep having your dreams, sending your prayers, and telling everyone you know.

Let's make it happen

Wednesday 7:12 AM

2008-02-13T07:12:00.004-05:00

Yes, I am supposed to be in class right now. But I don't think it would be conducive to anyone's learning experience for me to be sobbing and wailing in the front of the auditorium. I'm just not ready to go on with life as usual. It feels too much like giving up on Bean. So I am sitting here in my tiny Chapel Hill apartment (Bryan and I officially have two separate addresses, that's a whole other story) typing this while wrapped in a comforter that we snuggled with Bean on just 2 Sundays ago.

There is a mandatory Clinical Epidemiology class from 2:00-3:30 that I will make myself go to. (For those of you who don't know, I am a 2nd year medical student at UNC). When my exam rolls around on Monday, by which time we will have of course found our Bean, if you all would not mind rolling those "Bean come home" prayers into "Please let Rebecca pass her Psych Exam" prayers, that would be great. After all, I have to graduate and get a job so I can afford to keep Bean in steak and sausages for the rest of her warm, safe, happy life!

So, let's everyone just hold off on taking down the signs. I think they are too important in the search for Bean. Everyone who has called about seeing her has done so because of the signs and flyers. Let's just hope that the city has some mercy on this lost dog of mine. A commenter has some helpful advice:

Steve Medlin is the Director of Planning and Zoning for the City of Durham. I suggest we all (politely) e-mail (steve.medlin@durhamnc.gov) or call him at (919)560-4137 and let him know how the citizens of Durham feel about how the sign ordinance is being applied to "lost dog" posters. It's one thing to regulate solicitations, it's another thing to impede a rescue effort! Not just for Bean, but for any of us who could be in this situation someday.
Here are the pertinent links:
http://www.durhamnc.gov/departments/planning/
http://www.durhamnc.gov/departments/planning/udo/pdf/udo_11.pd

I am going to email him right now about this, and call later on. Hopefully if enough people do this we will be granted some sort of exception. If not, I say leave them up until they actually mail us a bill. What do you think?

Tuesday 10:52 pm

2008-02-12T22:52:00.002-05:00

One more thing, "the city" called today and said that if we did not take all the posters of Bean off of the telephone and electric poles by 1:00 pm on Wednesday, they would fine us FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS!!! I hope that is not a per-flyer charge...

I'm not sure how they are going to enforce this, or how serious they are about the precise time they need to be down, but we are going to go around as soon as we can tomorrow and tear down all the posters. If you happen to be walking by one, and wouldn't mind taking it down for us, that would be great.

I honestly can't even remember where we put them all....

Ugh!! Doesn't the city have anything more important to do??? Like, say...finding my dog!!!

OK , now I really am going to bed.

Rebecca

Tuesday 9:23 pm

2008-02-12T21:23:00.000-05:00

Well, I just got dropped off back at the house. Bryan, along with 3 other amazingly awesome people, have returned to sit in their cars in the rain. They are hoping to see Bean on the trail, and Bryan is checking on the doggie trap every 15 or 20 minutes. Bryan is sitting in the rain, staring at a damp piece of fried steak. I don't think it gets much sadder than that.

I have to admit that things are looking pretty grim. I know it's probably because of the rainy weather, but the fact that Bean has not been seen at all today is really scaring me. I think the weather should clear up soon, and she will hopefully start making appearances again.

Tomorrow I have to go back to school. I have skipped classes Monday and today. I hadn't even thought as far ahead as Wednesday, because I thought "We will surely have found Bean by then!"

And here it is. Just a few hours till Wednesday and our little girl feels farther away than ever. Another reason I need so desperately for her to be spotted running around loose everyday is that it is the only way I can know that she has not been picked up off the street by those monsters who like to do horrible things to pit bulls. I would honestly rather find out that she is dead than to have her end up chained to pole in someone's basement for the rest of her life. That is the life we rescued her from. When she came to us we promised her she would never have to worry about being hurt again.

If anyone out there has stories about pets who went missing for weeks, and then showed up out of the blue unharmed, now would be a really good time to share them.

Also, I know we are in a severe drought crisis and all, but if you could pray for sunny skies, that would be awesome too.

Sorry to be so down. I will try to be more positive tomorrow.

Rebecca

Tuesday 7:44 pm

2008-02-12T19:44:00.000-05:00

It's kind of a sad evening around here.

This is the first day since she was taken that there has not been a sighting of Bean called in. The last she was seen was last night on the trail that runs through the woods behind our house. It's also raining, and that means that Bean is out there in the rain somewhere. I hope she has found someplace dry and warm.

Late this afternoon, there was apparently a dog bite incident on the other side of downtown. Rumor has it it was a pit bull. A brindle one, so it doesn't sound like Bean (I would also be shocked to hear that she is biting now). However, it is being said that animal control picked up that dog as well as several others that were running with it. It is possible that Bean has fallen in with a bad crowd, and that she got thrown in the slammer with the biter. But we can't know until tomorrow when the shelter opens.

Tonight, a very sweet woman who works with a local animal rescue lent us a humane dog trap. It looks like a very long wire dog crate. The door swings up, and stays propped up until it is triggered. At the other end of the trap, there is a little platform that is about 1 inch off the ground. If you put food on the far end of the trap, on the other side of the platform, then the dog would have to step on the platform to get the food. The second the platform is pressed down, the door slams shut.

I am currently frying Beef and Cheddar-filled sausages. Since neither of us eats red meat, it is kind of disgusting. But hopefully it will be irresistible to Bean. Of course, you have to check the trap very often, since you don't want the dog to be trapped in the cage for very long. They don't like it at all and start freaking out.

We are going to set the trap on the trail she was seen on last night, and then camp out nearby. I wonder how many other strays that aren't Bean we will catch!

Wish us luck. Will post an update later on, before I go to bed.

Rebecca

Tuesday 12:28 PM

2008-02-12T12:28:00.000-05:00

No new news.

I just spent 90 minutes walking the trails around Northgate Park. I walked so much I ended up back home, and now I have to wait for Bryan to come home from work (any minute now) to take me back to my car. It was a sad, gray walk, and I was in tears by the time I got home. I found myself peering into little creeks as I passed them, actually looking for her body! But I have to keep telling myself that she is strong and she is still out there somewhere. As I walked into the house, I called for her again. We have opened the fence to the backyard, so that if she were to get home, she could come in through her dog door. Every time I unlock the front door I say a quick prayer that she will be on the other side, staring up at me, demanding dinner.

It feels like we are always one step behind her.

It really does feel like the whole city is looking for her!! Thanks to everyone for being our "eyes" all over town.

I'm feeling really down right now. But it does help to check my email and this site and get all the encouraging messages. Please don't you give up hope!!

What hurts the most is that I feel like I have let Bean down. She was trusted to us because we promised to keep her safe for the rest of her life. And now we have lost her. I hope she knows we are looking her her. That we have not forgotten about our little girl. That we never will.

Rebecca

Tuesday 10:53 AM

2008-02-12T10:52:00.001-05:00

Another sighting!!

A very nice woman just called to say that she saw been yesterday at about 5pm. Bean was "running really fast" along Club Blvd, and then turned into Northgate Park. This was just an hour or two before she was spotted on the trail behind our house, which also leads to that park.

There is a dog park there, and Bean has always been excited about other dogs, so maybe that's where she's been hanging out. I am headed there right now with flyers and my staple gun.

At least if she is running, she is not hurt too bad. Poor girl! Her bad leg must be sore by now. She is getting a massage and a hot bath (and a steak) as soon as she gets home!

No sightings today, but a good friend went to the shelter for me (those places always make me cry) and confirmed that she is still not there.

Keep the prayers coming everyone! And check back often!!

Rebecca

Tuesday 9:12 AM

2008-02-12T09:12:00.000-05:00

This morning a very kind man (a stranger to me and our situation) at a local copy shop paid for me to make 500 copies of Bean's flyer. I pretty much started crying right there. How can there be even one bad person like the man who stole Bean when clearly we are surrounded by angels every single day?

I have covered a very long street near where she was last seen. They are forecasting a cold rain this afternoon, and I pray we can find her before then.

I will go to the shelter when it opens at 10:30, to see if she was picked up overnight.

Thank you all. Keep on praying!

Rebecca

Tuesday morning 6:30 AM

2008-02-12T06:41:00.000-05:00

Hello all,

Alas, another night has passed without Bean in our bed safe and warm. We know that she is very close, and I am spending the morning going door-to-door in the surrounding areas. We must have printed thousands of flyers by now. I feel good. Good enough to write my own words today. We are bringing her home today! I just know it!

Keep checking back,
and keep on praying (the prayers have worked wonders already!!)

Rebecca

Monday Night 8:30pm

2008-02-11T20:28:00.001-05:00

Good News! Bean was spotted at around 7pm on the trail right behind our house!!!

She was not only clever enough to get away from the man who stole her, and to make it on her own for 2 nights on the streets, she seems to have found her way back to our neighborhood! Everyone is out with flashlights now. I have a good feeling about this. I know that if she can just find our street, she will know how to get home. We have all the lights on, and a big bowl of peanut butter is sitting on the front porch.

I'm going back out now.

Please keep your fingers crossed that we will find our baby tonight!

Rebecca

Monday afternoon 1:30pm

2008-02-11T16:49:00.000-05:00

Again, this is an email Bryan sent out. I don't have anything to say, except that is feels like my heart is breaking. Please keep praying.

Okay y'all...

Today's the day! Everybody seems to be feeling it. Thanks so much to all of y'all that have called/emailed and let her know.

Bean was not at the shelter this morning, so Rebecca and I came home and got a little rest (not much of that has been going on). We're getting ready to head out and just sit on a couple of corners for a while. Bean seems to be a moving target, so maybe if we sit still, she'll emerge.

We're asking any and all of you to join us today/tonight when you get off of school and work. We'll still be out there, and we'll have fliers so that we can show them to folks and ask if they've seen her. I think that if we saturate the neighborhood one more night, she's bound to show up.

Michelle apparently had a dream that Bean came home tonight. Keep dreamin y'all. For my Catholics, holla at St. Francis and/or St. Christopher. Everybody just keep doing what you do. We're going to find her and bring her home and smother her with all the love and attention she can imagine.

And just so that y'all know, if she's been out this long and walking, she's going to be limping a significantly. Her back right leg is no good, and she's got to be getting tired. Not that you could mistake her for another dog, but just in case.

Please call me (210-9256) or Rebecca (604-1143) and come join us.

Let's do it y'all

Update Monday morning 6:30 AM

2008-02-11T06:45:00.001-05:00

This was sent out by Bryan late last night. I am too incoherent to write an update myself. Although I am not able to express it right now, I am so grateful for everyone's help and kind words. But I am too sad to write more.

"Hey y'all...

Here's where things are right now. Rebecca and I are going to sleep without our Bean for the 2nd night in a row. Theo, Rebecca's dad (Curtis), and I just got in from one more late night sweep, and we didn't find anything.

I did, however, just get a call from someone who said that he saw Bean near Lancaster and Markham today with another dog, wandering about. Our baby has, apparently, made a friend, and is looking for us.

While this has been an excruciating couple of days, we are so warmed by all that everyone has done. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family of people around us. Many of you have worked with us, many of you have worked on your own; many of you have said prayers and chanted for Bean to come home to us, and many of you have spread the word far and wide. I personally am in love with the people of Walltown, who have been so supportive and so willing to help us, calling just to see if we've found her, and going out of their way to bring our baby back to us. It's just a testament to how many wonderful people are in this world, despite the broken soul who took our Bean in the first place.

Please don't stop. Everyone in the area knows about Bean, and everyone is looking. One more day of persistent searching, and I know that our love will be back here annoying all of us on a daily. Please keep talking to your neighbors. Please keep walking around and looking for her when you can. Please keep putting up flyers. We will find her. And we will find her because of this wonderful family that we have.

Rebecca and I are checking the animal shelters first thing in the morning, and then we'll be back out in the neighborhoods if she's not in the shelters. We'll find her. Hit me on my phone (210-9256) if you want to come out with us.

Thanks so much y'all. You don't know how much it means to both of us.

bryan"

Bean update 2:30 am

2008-02-10T02:15:00.001-05:00

We are printing up hundreds of these at Kinko's and knocking on doors to hand them out first thing in the morning. I will also be bringing copies to every vet office and shelter within 30 miles on Monday. Please pray that we find her before then, though. I know that every hour she is out there increases her chances of being hurt, or being found by the horrible people who stole her.

Update: Saturday night 11pm

2008-02-09T23:03:00.000-05:00

Here's where things stand:

We have posted many fliers advertising a $1000 reward for her safe return. We have gotten 2 calls since she was stolen, both people who had seen her wondering around in the neighborhood near wear she was taken. The wonderful news is that she was dragging her leash around and walking alone! She seems to have gotten away from the bastard (pardon the language) who took her! Now she is not "stolen" so much as "lost" and I think that is good news. We walked all through the neighborhood (about 12 of us) in teams of 2 from this afternoon until just now at 11pm. Tomorrow I am going to knock on doors and pass out fliers. I can't bear to think that she is out there alone tonight, but at least I know that she is not with the person who stole her, and that it will not be too cold. God willing, we will find her tomorrow.

please pray for us

2008-02-09T16:27:00.000-05:00

earlier this afternoon bean was stolen out of bryan's car while he was buying her dog food. please please pray for her, and if you are in the durham nc area please keep an eye out for her. the police are looking as well as several friends. if she is not found before dark, then I just don't know what I will do. She is micro-chipped, but I am so scared she was taken by the kind of people who will not take her to vet. Oh my baby.

please pray for us.

rebecca

Bean's 100th post!!!

2008-02-04T12:33:00.001-05:00

Wow! According to Blogger, this is Bean's 100th post on this blog. That just blows my mind. It seems that only yesterday we brought our tiny little big-eared puppy home for the first time. They grow up so fast...{sniff, sniff}

I am just getting home from taking a monster of a neuropathology exam, and am heading off for a much-deserved nap. But I just had to post this photo first.

Bryan and Bean spent Saturday night here with me. Because my bed is only a full-sized one, and because Bryan is well over 6 feet tall, Bean doesn't sleep with us during the night. She sleeps on her deluxe LLBean dog bed in the corner. (I know, it's sad to see a dog being abused so cruelly.)

However, on Sunday morning, after taking her out to pee (no dog door here) we invite her up into bed to snuggle with us. Is there any better way to start your morning than rolling over and seeing this face?

Oh, Hi. Morning.

Of course, she makes sure to let me know that she is the #1 girl in Bryan's life by draping herself over him in such a way that makes it hard for me to cuddle with him.

Go on, try to kiss him if you dare.

I'm not sure I like this competition.

ps- ignore all dirty laundry in the background, please. things get a little messy around here right before an exam!

I'm dreaming of a white MLK day...

2008-01-20T20:29:00.001-05:00

That title is wrong on so many levels. I meant to play off of the "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas" song, but somewhere things went awry.

Anyway, as I was trying to convey with this title, we have snow!! I know it's not much, and those of you who are up north will laugh at me. But really, this is a lot of snow for us.

Bean and Bryan spent last night with me, and as soon as we got up this morning I took her out back to investigate. She also ate quite a bit of snow.

As you can see, although my backyard is fenced, it's a wire fence. So unlike the privacy fence she is used to, Bean can see through this one. She has accidentally run right into it on several occasions after seeing something exciting (a squirrel or another dog) off in the distance. I'd like to say that I didn't laugh when she did this, but I can't.

I was surprised she didn't seem to mind how cold her feet must have been. I don't think it hit her until we got back inside. Then she wanted to hop into bed with us and warm up. So of course, we let her. I mean who could refuse this face?

Um, hi. My paws are cold. And my nose. Can I warm them on you??

Bean the Philanthropist

2008-01-04T15:46:00.000-05:00

In the spirit of generosity that always comes with the holidays and the new year, Bean has taken all of her allowance money and used it to sponsor one of the dogs at our local shelter. Since Bean doesn't actually like being around other dogs, even the ones she wants to help, I was the one to go to the shelter today and pick a dog to sponsor.

At first I was reluctant to go. Previous experiences with shelters gave me good reason to think that I might leave in tears with a car full of newly adopted dogs. I have only been to shelters that kill animals who do not get adopted. Those are very sad places for me. I want to run in and yell "I'll take whoever is scheduled to die next!!" Even though I understand the reasoning behind the kill-shelters, it is very, very sad.

Also, Bean is 100% against the kill shelters, for obvious reasons.

I was delighted to find that this shelter is unlike any I have seen before. First of all, it is a no-kill shelter. When I arrived, I met a very nice woman named Tracy who gave me a tour. No one is kept in a cage. Even the cats are allowed to roam freely in large rooms full of toys and beds and things to scratch. After touring the cat rooms briefly (We are dog people here, after all) we moved on to look at the dogs. All dogs have pens with both indoor and outdoor areas, beds, and toys. All dogs are allowed to play outside off leash everyday, and get lots of walks. They also have heated floors!

Bean had specifically requested that the money be used to sponsor any bully breeds that might be there. There were two in the facility today. A male named Rocco, who was quite the gentleman, and a bouncy brindle female named Misty. Since Rocco was scheduled to move into a foster home soon, I decided to sponsor Misty.

Everyone, meet Misty. Misty is a beautiful girl with lots of energy. The doors to the pens are the kind that are cut in half and each half opens separately. The bottom halves of all the doors were shut, so that you could still lean in and talk to the dogs. The larger dogs could put their paws up on the ledge and keep an eye on things. The only pen that had both top and bottom doors locked was Misty's. It soon became obvious why. Once she heard us coming, it was like her butt was made of springs. I kept seeing her head bounce in and out of the glass window in the top of her door. Boing! Boing! Boing! Apparently she is a little escape artist, so her door has to be shut all the way.

Tracy opened the top half and we gave her a treat. She is so soft and polite. She reminded me of Bean. Especially her ears. I could not believe that she has been looking for a home for four months now! She is a wonderful dog that deserves a wonderful home. When I was writing out the check at the front desk, I asked if Bean could be listed as the sponsor. Not only did they say yes, they even put a link to Bean's blog beside Misty's photo! So if any of you are in the NC area and have space in your home for this little love of a dog, please contact the shelter! Because as any dog will tell you...

Being homeless sucks, y'all.

Apples and Oranges Eggs

2007-12-29T23:28:00.000-05:00

Bean has stayed with me for the past couple of nights. Bryan's house is being repainted. It's just the outside that's being painted, so the workmen aren't actually inside the house. However, given Bean's super-powered ears and her strong instinct to bark and whine when she hears anything odd outside, we thought it best to keep her away till the job is done.

This morning I woke to find that I didn't have anymore of Bean's food here. Of course I was not about to let her go without breakfast, so I scanned my kitchen for things that would be safe for a dog to eat. At this point I realized that I have way too much chocolate in my house. But I did see a red delicious apple in the fruit bowl, and remembered giving Bean an apple core once which see seemed to enjoy. So I chopped the apple into large pieces, tossed them in her bowl, and stood back.

She inspected the apple. She smelled the pieces. She even licked one. But she would not eat them.

Then I had the brilliant idea of spreading some of the apple pieces on the floor, because of the well-known...

Canine Culinary Rule #1
The hierarchy of food desirability is as follows (in order of descending yummy-ness):
Food that humans are eating
Food left on plates by humans
Food dropped on floor by humans
Food put into your bowl because humans want you to eat it

Sadly, Bean was not fooled.

Isn't this is the same apple I didn't want 2 minutes ago?

Remembering something I read about eggs giving dogs shiny coats, I grabbed the last two eggs from the fridge and put them in a pot of water to boil. A few minutes later, while I was peeling and chopping the hard-boiled eggs, I was reminded of...

Canine Culinary Rule #2
The stinkier it is, the more delicious it will be.

I diced up the apple into finer pieces and mashed it in with the eggs, making a disgusting sort of warm egg salad.

It smells even worse than it looks.

The results? A complete success. All the pictures I got of her eating it are blurry because her jaws are moving faster than the speed of light.

Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom Nom...

Nom Nom [thud of the bowl hitting the baseboard] Slurp Slurp...

Lick surrounding rug...just in case.

It's actually really satisfying to cook for a dog. They really make sure you know they appreciate it. However, if you are planning on making this dish for your pooch, I must warn you. The combination of eggs and ruoughage makes for some pretty awful farts. Farts that will wilt your houseplants. So open the windows.

Bryan was asleep just feet away (did I mention my place is tiny?) during this whole ordeal. Later he complained that he heard all of it, but I have evidence that he slept soundly the whole time.

Sleeping Beauty.

He later woke up because of the eye-watering dog farts. But then we lit a bunch of incense and all went back to sleep. It was a nice family morning.

Bean visits Mommy's new place...and is underwhelmed

2007-09-06T04:03:00.001-04:00

Last weekend Bryan and Bean came over for a sleepover at my new place. It was the first time Bean has really spent any time over here. She kept pacing the perimeters of the rooms, searching for "the rest of it". My place is only 400 sq. ft., and our old house (where she still lives with Bryan) is about 1500 sq. ft., with a big backyard.

When we first adopted Bean, before we were married, I lived in another small place by myself, and she lived there with me. But that was a long time ago, and she seems to have become accustomed to more spacious accommodations since then. Also, back then she was just a little puppy, so the apartment probably didn't seem as small as it was.

She made it very clear during her visit that she had no intentions whatsoever of staying here with me. She wanted to go "home" with Bryan, and kept a careful eye on him at all times, lest he should sneak out and leave her here with me.

It was really hard not to take all of this personally. I mean, I decided to adopt a dog, I picked her out, but she still is somehow Bryan's dog. Man's Best Friend, I guess. She just loves him so much. I'm sure she loves me too. Just in a different, less obvious kind of way.

"You know I'm leaving as soon as Dad gets back, right?"

Here we are, waiting by the front door just before she and Bryan left. Bryan had gone back to use the bathroom before getting on the road. That left just Bean and me in this sort of awkward silence. She sat facing the bedroom (from which Bryan was soon to emerge) the entire time, and only looked up at me when I picked up the camera.

My eyes teared up from all the love and devotion.

Maybe I should start keeping dog biscuits and treats here for her. Perhaps a special toy that she only gets when she visits me. I cannot believe I am already resorting to buying her affections.

Still here!

2007-08-17T11:04:00.000-04:00

Hi Guys! We are still here. I like the photo above, because Bean is chewing on a part of her lip. She does this from time to time. Don't know why...Sorry for the long delay between posts. Bean has been very busy. She has had several overnight guests. Three so far, actually. Always the perfect hostess, she makes sure each guest feels safe and comfortable by offering herself as a bed-buddy. There is nothing our Bean likes more than sharing a bed with a human. She really can be so sweet and cuddly. It is strange, because she sleeps with her head on the pillow next to yours. I don't think most dogs do that. In fact, I distinctly remember seeing images of dogs sleeping at the foot of the bed in movies when I was growing up.

I guess Bean hasn't seen those movies.

Big changes have happened. I no longer live in the house with Bean and Bryan. I have a small apartment closer to school, as I will be returning to class next week. So Bean is looking for a new roommate. Any takers? Must love dogs, of course. We are working on getting a digital camera for Bryan, since he will now be Bean's primary photographer. I will still be doing the posts.

I want to keep this blog going as long as I possibly can, because I think that some people enjoy looking at it. Even more importantly, I believe it acts as one small piece of evidence that pit bulls can be wonderful, gentle, loving pets, and that they do not deserve the reputation they have gotten lately. I believe that if you treat an animal with cruelty and neglect, then yes, you will raise a monster. (That goes for human animals too!) But if you raise a puppy with love and affection (and rules and boundaries, as appropriate), you will get an affectionate member of the family.

I am so glad we took a chance on our Bean.

Riding in the car, Bean-style.

2007-07-22T22:07:00.000-04:00

When most dogs ride in the car, I am imagining that they are either: a) ecstatic to be in the fresh air and ride the whole way with their heads out the window, or b) underwhelmed or even frightened, and just curl up on the back seat and sleep. Of course I don't know this for sure, seeing that Bean is really our first dog. But her way of riding in cars just seems too bizarre to be normal.

She sits with her butt on the backseat, puts her front paws on the floor, and wedges her gigantic head in between the two front seats, resting it on the emergency brake. So that on a recent long car trip to Virginia, I got to see this every time I looked over at Bryan:
It just doesn't look comfortable, does it? You would think that she did not have an entire backseat to herself to stretch out on. Normally she can't do this because we have her in the seat belt, but this was during her recovery period, and I didn't want her to get her leg tangled like she does sometimes. Eventually I caved in and gave her my pillow to rest on:

I am such a good dog-mommy.

Reclaiming the Backyard

2007-07-15T20:20:00.001-04:00

This weekend we let Bean start having limited access to the backyard through her dog door. I chronicled her first moments in this fascinating photo essay. Enjoy!

Here her eyes are glowing with the red hot glare of excitement.

She immediately ran to the gate, to see if perhaps we had left it open. Always testing the limits, this one!

Checking to see if any birds have made the fatal mistake of nesting in our gutters.

Still checking for birds, but with gusto.

Resuming her look-out post. The neighborhood can rest safely once again.

Project Recovery: Looking Back (part II)

2007-07-07T02:40:00.000-04:00

This post is in honor of a few of the stuffed animals that served as Bean's compaions during her recovery period. Fisrt, there was the big white bear. Bryan brought him home after he cleaned out his classroom from this past schoolyear. Here is Bear, anxiously awaiting his introduction to Bean. As we will see, his anxiety is not unfounded.
The introduction....
And it seems that Bear is a little worse off for meeting Bean. One of his eyes is loose, and he has a droopy lip.
But they soon made up, and Bean placed Bear on his own bed in her recovery pen. Isn't this sweet? I came downstairs one morning and they were just lying like this.
Next up was Pig. We got Pig at the yard sale of some dear friends who just moved to Boston. (Hi Aiden! Hi Havalah!) It was one of Bean's first outings when she was allowed longer walks again. It was also her first yard sale. She was very excited when she saw Pig, and spent her whole week's allowance on him. Havalah was worried that Pig would meet an untimely death. But she let Bean bring her home anyway. As you can see, there was nothing to worry about.
Pig has been been treated with nothing but respect and hospitality.
A great big thanks to Bear and Pig!

Bean the Nurse

2007-07-02T19:08:00.001-04:00

Bryan threw out his back today. He has an appointment tomorrow with a chiropractor, but for today he is just going to lie on the floor with pillows under his legs, in excruciating pain. Just so you know, I offered to take him to urgent care, but he decided to rough it till tomorrow.

Bean has assigned herself full-time nursing duties, and has not left his side:

Or his head:

I guess she is just returning the favor from when we nursed her through her recovery. Such a good girl!

Project Recovery: Looking Back (part I)

2007-07-01T01:27:00.000-04:00

Now that we have internet access again, I am going to post some more photos I took of Bean during her recovery. This set documents the one and only day that she got to spend a good amount of time outside during those two months.

It was on Father's Day, and I came home from lunch with my sister and my dad to find that Bryan had moved Bean's whole recovery area out to the back porch while he mowed the grass. She was so happy! However, you could tell that she wanted be let out so that she could chase the squirrels, instead of just watching them.

Here she is scanning the treetops for squirrel-related movement:

Here she is staring at house next door. She can hear the kids playing on the other side of the fence, but can't see them:

Here she is, sitting nicely for her momma:

What a pretty girl!

Project Recovery: Day 54

2007-06-26T19:51:00.000-04:00

Today = Freedom!!!

Bean's appoimtment with the surgeon this morning went great. Dr. Clarke gave her a clean bill of health and told us that we could stop her confinement immediately and gradually introduce more activity until she was back to her usual routine.

When we got home, Bryan walked her inside and she headed straight for her penned-in little recovery area. She was certainly surprised when we took her off leash instead and let her walk around on her own! She walked around the downstairs part of the house all afternoon, just checking out all the rooms and sniffing all the furniture. I guess she forgot what it smells like?

Our plan is to confine her to the first floor of the house for one week. We have baby-gated the bottom of the stairs. Then she will be allowed upstairs but will be kept inside for another week. And then, in two weeks, we will take the cover off the dog door and let her have her backyard back. She will be so thrilled!

We are so happy to have our puppy back. She is putting weight on the new knee, and there is not a limp or anything anymore. It's amazing what Dr. Clarke was able to do. But what's even more amazing, what I will never forget, is how all of you pitched in to help make this happen. We will always be so grateful.

Thanks everyone! I'm baaaaaaaaaccccckk!!

Project Recovery: Day 44

2007-06-16T13:23:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the long absence folks. We have been having a bit of trouble with our internet service (Darn you, Verizon! Darn you to heck!!!). We are in the process of switching ISPs and should be back to our regular high-speed selves soon.

In the meantime, I spent twenty minutes uploading a photo for you. I hope you like it:

Mmmm......rawhide......

As you can see, Bean is continuing to improve. In fact, she now feels so good that she does not feel the need for further recovery, and is emitting a constant, high-pitched whistle to let us know that she is done, much like a little kettle. There are only three instances in which she does not make this noise: when she is being walked, when she is sleeping (which is not happening as much as it used to), and when she is chewing on rawhide. As you can imagine, we are going through quite a bit of the stuff over here!

Oh, and she has her 8-week follow-up appointment with the surgeon on the 26th of June, during which we will find out if Bean needs an additional 4 weeks of confinement, or if she will be be released early on good behavior.

Keep your fingers crossed!

Project Recovery: Day 35

2007-06-07T13:22:00.000-04:00

Bean has a history of taking out her frustration on her stuffed animals (see previous post), so it was no surprise when we noticed the stuffies in her "cell" starting to look a little mutilated. Many of them are missing faces, and all of them are little lighter since they "met" Bean, due to severe hemorrhage of stuffing.

What surprised me was a recent, unprecedented act of kindness she performed for one of these poor creatures. I walked by one day and saw that she was allowing the gray kitty to have first dibs at her breakfast.

I can only guess that she made a deal with God - that she will start showing mercy and remorse for her past acts of violence against these innocent creatures in exchange for a speedy release from her own hexagonal prison of sin.

Well, if nothing else good comes from all of this, at least our little Bean has found religion.

Project Recovery: Day 32

2007-06-04T02:29:00.000-04:00

This blog seems to be full of examples of sub-standard parenting these days. What can I say? We are doing the best we can in a difficult situation.

Don't judge me!!

Exhibit #352:

What do you do when the (dog's) valium is no longer working but it's too early for the next dose; you are out of rawhide chews; you can't make a peanut butter Kong because you are out of peanut butter; Bryan is hours away from coming home to relieve you of duty; and your dog is repeatedly making a sound that is just slightly more bone-chilling than that of a dentist's drill?

Answer: Give the dog the remains of the peanut butter jar and let her tire herself out trying to lick the peanut butter residue out. You are smarter than she is, and know that her tongue will never reach all the way to the bottom, and that she will fall over from exhaustion before giving up.

Uh...guys?...I don't feel too good...

I realize that this is equivalent of me posting a picture of my toddler passed out on an empty jumbo-sized bag of Cheetos. I am not ashamed. If I had any such pictures, I'd post them too. But we are years away from having a baby other than Bean. So for now, she will have to bear the brunt of my poor parenting skills.

Project recovery: Day 25

2007-05-28T21:23:00.000-04:00

I am almost ashamed to admit this one. Given that I have several years of medical training under my belt, you would think I would have figured this out much sooner. Let's see how you do:

Say you had surgery (let's call it knee surgery, for the sake of this example) that would decrease the amount of your daily physical activity by over 90% for about 12 weeks. Say that after said surgery, you continued the same caloric intake that you were eating pre-operatively. You would expect your weight to:

a) decrease
b) remain constant
c) increase
d) explode exponentially

If you chose "d" , then congratulations! You are smarter than we are! We noticed a week or so ago that Bean was looking a little ....well..."husky." She was also getting way too tired after even the short 5-minute walk she gets three times a day. Then one day, while we were watching a movie in the living room where her dog-prison is kept, she sat up to reveal an unmistakably rounded belly. After laughing for a few minutes, I jumped up and got the camera. Here is Bean's first fat photo - a milestone in any girl's life. I am so proud of my baby!

We have since cut back on the amount of food we feed her.

I am NOT fat!! I am just big boned.

Project Recovery: Day 23

2007-05-26T10:00:00.000-04:00

Forgive the lack of posts this past week. Things have been going so well with Bean, I actually got to catch up on my non-Bean life. That's progress! I did take some very cute pictures of her which I will be posting here over the next few days. They are too cute to post all at once. So you'll just have to come back, won't you? :)

As you can see from the photo below, there are two things that we no longer have to deal with. Can you tell? No more diapers and no more E-collar! You would think that this would make Bean happier. And for a day or two it did. But now it just seems that all of her attention is focused on the last obstacle, that final frontier of this whole process - the confinement.

What can I say? She wants out!! And if I dare to open the back door (which leads out to her "room" - the fenced in backyard) she starts crying so loudly that I feel like an asshole for rubbing it in her face and I immediately shut the door again. It's just like a teenager shrieking, "Moooooooooommmm!!!!!!!! Stay out of my rooooom! .......... GAWD!!"

But seriously mom, stay out of my room, OK?

Project Recovery: Day 14

2007-05-17T23:32:00.000-04:00

Things have improved drastically in the past week. Out of the 3 things that were making our lives suck, I am thrilled to report that we have made serious progress on all 3 fronts:

1) Diarrhea
Gone! Our vet cured her. She is down to one poop a day (two if it's a big day). The process of deep cleaning the first floor of our house has begun. I wonder if you can buy Soft Scrub by the case?

2) E-collar
The staples came out on Monday, but since Bean just can't leave well enough alone and was licking at her incision, she has to wear the E-collar until Saturday. But then we will be rid of it! She has been clumsy with it on (understandably), and can't see where she is putting her front paws. She has twice now accidentally stepped in and overturned her water bowl. But I am not complaining. I would much rather clean up spilled water than poop!

3) Confinement
Bean is two weeks out from her surgery, and the doctor says she can now have three 5-minute walks per day. This means going to the end of our street and back. At the end of the street is a little grassy area, which we spend some time in before heading back. Bean, the little angel, has figured that we want her to poop and pee here on this area if she can. So we have had no more poops in the house, and only one pee. We can increase her walks by 5 minutes in 2 weeks.

Things are looking up! Thanks for the kind words during the rough patch. And keep checking for updates.

Project Recovery: Day 7

2007-05-10T07:54:00.000-04:00

Things here are really hard right now. I am feeling a little desperate. Issues include:

1) The diarrhea.
It's still here. We have switched antibiotics. We have de-wormed her (did I mention the worms? No? Well, that was for your own good then.) We have given her bowls of Kaopectate. We have done 5 loads of laundry a day. There is still poop everywhere.

2) The E-collar.
She still needs it. She still has her staples in over her knee, and what's worse, she tends to lick her butt if it's off. Her butt, which is now absolutely raw from the non-stop pooping. So we have to keep the E-collar for the next week at least.

3) The confinement.
The sedatives she was sent home on weren't cutting it. Yesterday she was switched to valium, but last night was just as bad. She wants out. She doesn't understand why she can't run around in the backyard and have unlimited access to the house. She doesn't understand why she has to spend all day in a little hexagon-shaped plastic jail. She voices this frustration (literally) by wailing and crying at all hours. Bryan and I switch off "sleeping" downstairs on the couch next to her. It doesn't matter though, because she still cries and neither of us gets any sleep.

For all of these reasons (and probably more, I can't think right now. no sleep) I have had to take Bean to our regular vet almost every day this week for day-boarding, so that I can get some sleep, and make some progress on laundry and de-pooping of the house. Then Bryan picks her up at night, and we start another 12 hours of sleepless, poop-y misery. I feel so guilty for not being able to take care of her myself. I am sitting here in tears as I write this. I didn't know this would be so hard. I definitely would have waited until Bryan was out for the summer (he's a school teacher) before having the surgery done.

This is not a one-person job.