Preparing For Christmas

Mom and Dad have prepared our home to celebrate Christmas with our family, friends, and neighbors.

We pray each of you have a blessed holiday with hearts full of love.

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

The Busy Perdue Zoo

Lately, it's been pretty busy in The Perdue Zoo. Mom and Dad have been spoiling.....I mean loving Savannah and Elijah, a lot. The rest of their days are full putting up Christmas decorations, doing laundry and other necessary chores, and attempting to keep our yard clean.

The leaves continue to blanket our corner of the world. This past Saturday, Dad and two of our human brothers, Chase and Wil spent "seven" hours getting up leaves and cleaning the gutters. Guess what happened? More leaves fell on Sunday while Mom and Dad were at church.

Mom says, "Our lives are a lot like the yard. We have to re-evaluate and clean up daily or the task is overwhelming."

I'm not sure if Mom is right or not, but it sounds good!

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

~Please remember Trouble, my toy poodle brother. He will have dental surgery on Thursday!

Listen Intently

Lately, Mom has been on one adventure after another! Each time she comes home, I see a change. Yes, a change. Mom seems to grow a little closer to our Heavenly Father with each new experience. Often, Mom must remind my furry brother and I to listen. It seems our Heavenly Father does the same with Mom. We are both taking one step at a time trying desperately to become all GOD created us to be.

Lesson for furry creatures and humans:

Keep putting one paw in front of the other while "listening intently!" 

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

GO MOM GO

Mom and Dad have been out and about again. They love chasing sunrises and sunsets. I just don't understand why they can't stay home and chase them from our yard! For several years Dad has been trying to get  Mom to help me compile a book revealing my adventures from "dog therapy!" How about you guys all join Dad in pushing Mom.

GO MOM GO!

By the way: Mom loves working in her pajamas. This picture shows her on the beach early in the morning still in her pajamas.

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

KEYO

About three years ago, our human sister, Lauren adopted a "baby" horse. She named him "Keyo!" Lauren bottle fed, loved, guided, trained, and even broke "Keyo!" This magnificent creature in the picture is our "Keyo!" My human parents (Keyo's human grandparents) are very proud of both his and Lauren's accomplishments. In this picture, "Keyo" and Lauren are giving Savannah her first riding lesson. Lauren's husband Joe is assisting.

So, let's get the numbers straight:

Keyo is 3 years old.

Savannah is 5 years old!  

WOW, I'm a dog and I'm impressed! 

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

Enjoying The View

Last Friday, mom and dad took Trouble and I to the mountains. We followed Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park stopping at our favorite places. Trouble and I enjoyed the view all along the way.

We love traveling with our humans and visiting with other humans along the way! The leaves were just beginning to turn. I'm sure they are full of color this week. I wonder if Trouble and I could convince our parents to take us back before all the beautiful leaves fall off the trees!?!

We are adjusting to the change in "The Perdue Zoo." We desperately miss our furry brother, Nanuq, but we are thankful he is no longer suffering. Thank you to everyone for your prayers, love, and encouragement.

Happy Fall!

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

Nanuq's Obituary

On Saturday, September 29th, 2012, Nanuq drew his last earthly breath and joined his GOD. Each of us in "The Perdue Zoo" still struggles with sadness. We miss our furry brother. He was just shy of 12 years old. We are thankful for the time GOD gave us with him. Nanuq came to us when he was six years old. He did not know what a leash was or any basic commands. However, he was a fast learner. He completed beginner, intermediate, and advanced dog school and joined the therapy dog team. Over the last six years, Nanuq has touched the lives of many outside our home. God used Nanuq to heal hearts in many places including Central State Psychiatric hospital. For over two years, Nanuq visited the patients weekly. Whether human or canine, let's remember to use the gifts GOD has given us to make a difference in the world around us.

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

Poop Happens

If you can't tell by this picture, there is a very large septic tank truck stuck in our front yard. It sank about 3-4 feet while trying to exit the front yard. Our septic tank is in the back yard. On the way back out, Mr. Septic Man drove through a different spot. A big wrecker truck came and after some work, the septic truck was removed.

If you are wondering, Dad and Mom did not get upset. The Septic Tank Company employees were shocked at my parents reaction. My furry brothers and I knew they would remain calm. As Mom would say, "poop happens and you just have to deal with it!" Dad was far more concerned the young men operating the truck would get in trouble or even fired for sinking the truck.

When I am out in public, I hear people say things like, "being nice is over-rated!" I disagree! Nanuq, Trouble, and I are thankful our parents always try to be nice when crazy things happen. They are human and they make mistakes. In fact, they make lots of mistakes! However, getting angry is something that does not happen very often in The Perdue Zoo. God blessed us when he gave us humans with sensitive hearts.

Woofs and Wags,

Sitka

Nanuq's Health

This picture was taken about 5 years ago just after we adopted Nanuq. Over the last few years we have all become quite attached to him. He blended well into "The Perdue Zoo!" He is about 11 1/2 years old, now.

Recently, Nanuq has begun to show his age. He is having more and more trouble getting up and down. He also suffers from "Doggie Alzheimer's!" Mom and Dad help him to get out and back in. They have added new pain medications to keep him comfortable. Please pray for our family as we continue to try and make the best decisions for my furry brother, Nanuq!

Woofs and Wags,
Sitka

Dad and Mom

Mom and Dad spent fourteen days in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. They came home with lots of great pictures. My furry brothers and I are happy they had a great time, however we are very jealous. They left us with our human siblings. We would have much rather been strolling the beach with our parents. It's just not fair. They know how much we love to travel. What were they thinking?

Mom shared from her personal journal her blog, Arise 2 Write. Dad encouraged her not to keep the beautiful words God gave her to herself. Dad told her, "they should be in a book somewhere!" Mom says, "Dad is too gracious!"  We agree with Dad. Mom should keep writing and sharing.

Woofs and Wags,

Sitka