Bella's Boxer Shorts

Portland Pool Party

I thought my friend Emmi had it tough with the scorching hot weather in Las Vegas, but I just watched the weather report and it's supposed to get into the triple digits here in Portland. In Portland! Oregon! That kind of stuff isn't supposed to happen here. My apocalyptic mom is convinced that global warming is going to fry us all.

At least the hot weather has been good for the Fred Meyer store down the street. My dad is there right now looking for a bedroom fan because he's afraid I'm going to hyperventilate at night. He was there just a few days ago, too -- and look what he bought me:

I was hoping for one of those pools with the built-in slides, but this pool is kind of nifty. I like the blue colors and the octupuses that are painted along the bottom (or is it octopi? octopodes? I never know about this stuff).

I've been thinking about charging admission to all the other overheated dogs in the neighborhood. Of course, all my blogging friends will be able to get in for free. It'll be the coolest pool party in town!!

xoxo - Bella

The Grass Is Always Greener...

...on my side of the fence!

That said, my hope is that ALL dogs have green grass to enjoy. Starting today, 85 American Eskimo dogs (out of 400) rescued from a huge puppy mill operation in Kennewick, Washington, are available for adoption at the Oregon Humane Society. Click here to read more about this case, and then celebrate the news that the Oregon State Senate passed the Puppy Protection Act (HB 2470) which makes this type of operation illegal here in Oregon (where the grass is always very, very green!).

xoxo - Bella

Never Run Out of Pancakes

What a great weekend, there was lots of sunshine and I saw dozens of boxers at the Oregon Humane Society's Doggie Dash. Here's a picture of me and my Dad:

The picture was taken while he was still in a good mood, 'cuz when we got to the finish line they had run out of pancakes and the pancake ladies weren't very friendly so Dad was kind of cranky. Lesson #1: Always make sure you have enough pancakes!!

We also didn't get our doggie bags 'cuz there was one person handing them out and hundreds of people standing in line to get them which made Mom kind of cranky. Lesson #2: Always make sure you have enough people handing out the doggie bags!!

With two cranky humans on my hands, I suggested that we high-tail it out of there and head to a nice outdoor breakfast spot instead. Mom got a biscuit-and-egg sandwhich, while Dad munched on a raspberry-rhubarb scone, and I got to scavenge for crumbs under the picnic table. I guess you can say that I saved the day, because after that everybody was happy:

xoxo - Bella

Portland's Biggest Party for Pets & People

Hey Everybody,

It's not too late to register for this Saturday's Doggie Dash (you can join my team or kick in a few bucks here to help the Oregon Humane Society find homes for 10,000 animals in 2009). And guess what? The S-U-N is supposed to make an appearance, too! Woo-hoo!

Organizers are expecting more than 3,000 dogs at the event, and twice as many two-legged creatures. Here's a list of the top ten things to do at the event:

• Get a free wellness exam for your dog by vets from Banfield, the Pet Hospital
• Enter your dog in a canine talent contest (everything from musical doggie chairs to best dog kiss, which I expect to win)
• Get a pre-Dash yoga lesson for you and your dog
• Attend a post-Dash massage clinic for dogs
• Bring the family to the Banfield Kids Corner, chock-full of activities for the ankle-biters
• Get tips on doggie frisbee from Border Collies International
• Enjoy a tasty pancake breakfast (my Dad's looking forward to this one!!)
• Enter the "Dig my DNA" contest and guess the breeds of two lovable mutts
• Listen to live music by Portland's Lost Creek bluegrass band and Jonathan Hoffman
• Meet Oregon Humane Society's Executive Director Sharon Harman as she greets Dashers at the finish line

I hope to see some of my friends there. I'll also be taking lots of pictures that I'll share.

xoxo - Bella

Dash, Doggie, Dash!

Hey y'all...the Oregon Humane Society's annual Doggie Dash is coming up soon (Saturday, May 9th), so I hope to see you there. If you don't already have a team, come join me! I'll be racing with Team Hand's Happy Hounds, which includes my pals Desi, Lucy, Zippy and Zoe. But don't worry, you don't actually have to race if you don't want to. You can walk or stroll, or you can just show up for the post-race pancake breakfast (yummmmmmm, pancakes). The goal is to help the Oregon Humane Society raise money so that it can meet its goal of finding homes for 10,000 animals in 2009.

See you there!

xoxo - Bella

My New Favorite Blog by The Oregonian's Deb Wood

My Mom and I love to read Deb Wood's Pet Column in The Oregonian. She always has good advice for pet owners and lots of great links to things happening around town. I wrote her an email a few weeks ago and she was nice enough to mention me in her online blog! Cool!

I learned two great things from Deb's blog today. First, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department is asking people to take a short online survey about the possibility of allowing pets in some yurts and cabins. Please, please, please vote Y-E-S so that I can accompany Mom & Dad legally (not that they ever tried to hide me in a yurt, no way would they do that, no sirree, no way, no how). Click here to take the quick survey.

Second, I found out about the Oregon Humane Society's new "End Petlessness" campaign which is super-duper-cute (that's a marketing term, by the way). The goal is to reunite every man, woman and child with their own furry soulmate. So, please do your part and pass along the word (and not just in Oregon!).

xoxo - Bella

The Boxer Project

This past weekend my Mom and Dad hosted Susan and Mary, two of their favorite "foodie" friends. Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to join them in any of their culinary adventures. Apparently, the health department frowns on dogs in restaurants.

This is a picture of me, registering my displeasure at being tied up outside Cupcake Jones while everyone stuffed themselves with mini cupcakes. And they didn't stop there! In a single weekend, they managed to eat their way through the Portland Farmer's Market, Pix Patisserie, Roux, Simpatica Dining Hall, and Burgerville. And I didn't get a single doggie bag out of the deal. What gluttons!
 

By the time Sunday rolled around, everyone needed a little exercise and we walked around the city....and discovered lots of tiny little plastic toy horses tied up on street curbs! I tried to bite one, but my Mom explained that it was "art" - something called The Horse Project. I think it would be a lot more interesting to have little plastic Boxers everywhere, don't you?

Pet Pride

One of the super cool things about living in Portland is its diversity and tolerance. There's even a bumper sticker that says "Keep Portland Weird." I mean, where else can a Boxer sit in a cafe with her laptop and take advantage of free WiFi to update her blog? Or join her Mom & Dad for a gourmet breakfast at the dog-friendly Tin Shed Cafe (which even has its own dog menu)? So it's no surprise that Portland has one of the biggest Pride festivals in the country. But this year, things got even better...they held a Pride Pet Parade! I wasn't an official contestant but that didn't stop Mom, Dad and me from heading down to the waterfront to catch the action. There were some really adorable participants and plenty of fun giveaways. The grand prize went to a stylish Weimaraner wearing a pink poodle skirt. But, off the record, I think I could've been a contender. Perhaps it was the pink feather boa around my neck or my self-confident swagger, but I got lots and lots - and I mean LOTS - of attention. It was a ton of fun and I'm going to start working on my costume for next year.

Go Pride! xoxo - Bella

Homecoming for Bella

Finally, I'm here in Portland with Mom & Dad. They came to pick me up today, and I was sad to say goodbye to my breeder who loved me a lot and took great care of me. But alas, new adventures await - like riding in the Subaru. I slept the whole way home, snuggled in Mom's arms in the backseat while Dad drove home (which I understand isn't too often, since Mom has control issues when it comes to driving. Just a little something I overheard).

Anyway, when we pulled into the driveway we were met by an entire welcoming committee. First, there was Norm, the chocolate lab across the street. He is even more handsome in person, and although he likes to play a little rough, I held my own and slapped him upside the head a few times (girls rule! boys drool!). But it's all a natural part of puppy play and I can tell we're going to be great friends. Norm's Mom & Dad are super-cool, too, as are all the other neighbors. I know I'm going to like it here once I get used to the awful collar-thingy that Mom put around my neck. She says I'm fleet-on-my-feet and could easily escape without it. Meanwhile, Dad's been snuggling me a lot which is making it a lot easier to adjust to this new and strange place.

I'll be blogging a lot more now that I'm in my forever home. Stay tuned.

xoxo - Bella

My Name Is...Bella!?

It's been an exhausting day, and I'm still a little confused. You see, I'm only five weeks old and I still live in the Oregon countryside with my birth mom and my four siblings (they're all great, except maybe for my brother...he's a pest!).

Anyway, life was really simple until today when this couple from Portland pulled up in their shiny Subaru. They seemed very nice, but boy did they ask a lot of questions! What's her temperament? What are her parents like? Does she have any health issues? What shots has she had? What should we feed her? They spent a lot of time playing with me, and they also gave my birth mom a lot of compliments (like, "what a gorgeous red brindle bitch!" Which I guess is OK to say, even though the man from Portland laughed hysterically every time. Very immature).

Fortunately, our breeder is a great lady who really loves boxers and encourages lots of questions (check out Mi-T Boxers). She asked the couple from Portland a lot of questions, too, because she wants to make sure they will be good pet parents. Well, I guess they passed the test because I'm going home with them in three weeks! And guess what they named me? Bella! They say it's because I'm so pretty, which I can't argue with.

Although I'm really going to miss my siblings, I'm excited to be going to Portland. My new Mom's name is Ellen, and she's already enrolled me in puppy kindergarten. My new Dad's name is Patrick. His hair is reddish, just like my coat. And although he's never had a dog before, he's pretty cool. In fact, he has his own blog, which is where I got the idea to start mine. I think it will be good to keep notes on how their training goes (they don't know it yet, but I'm going to rock their world!).

Well, it's nap time now and I have to start packing my crate for the big move to Portland.

xoxo, Bella