Stormwind Kennel

The Gentle Giants: English Mastiffs on the loose

One evening, hubby and I visited Jugs, my good friend. It was past 11pm and I thought of dropping by since we were in the area. We got down from our car and as we were walking towards his house, this crazy guy released his 2 huge dogs without any leash.

The 2 MASSIVE dogs ran towards us and oh was hubby scared! I laughed so hard while I gave the dogs a hug. I was just with the dogs a few days earlier, and I know how ever so gentle they are.

Guys, meet Fysol-- the 2 year old English Mastiff and Matsu, the mom. See the size difference between the 2 dogs?

Matsu giving out a funny face:

See that saliva on his face? I am being careful as he might wipe it off me again. haha!

Look at the size of that head! compared to mine:

Fysol up! He was soooo heavy and I felt like falling on my back

We stayed over for 2 hours, the entire time Fysol kept close to us and wanted to be pet and hugged all the time. He showed off his tricks and obedience stuff.

Both dogs are very smart and trained by their master, Jugs.

Hubby's turn to "dance" with Fysol

Fysol and his mom, Matsu!

Did I mention the dogs are trained using German commands?

I only remember the words Fuss! Platz! Sitz! Aus! So ist brav!

If any of you are looking for a dog stug for your English Mastiff, you may contact my friend directly in this number: 0917.8466.444 (Jugs/Julian T.)

3 Dogs swimming in the Beach

Here's Kenzo,my 8-month old Siberian Husky; Suki, the Am. Cocker Spaniel and Kenshee, the Golden Retriever having a blast swimming in the beach. The dogs were swimming and chasing each other the entire morning.

This was an overnight trip at my Aunt's beach resort in Moalboal Cebu, Philippines. When we woke up at 8am, we found Kenzo (the husky) gone! I tied him up but he got away (huskies are great escapist).

We found Kenzo lounging by the breakfast table. My father told me that he saw Kenzo swim in the beach as early as 6am! Went for a dip and then came back to the beach house by himself. This dog loves to swim in the beach. He just couldn't wait for us to wake up so he went on his own. :)

Lets "LEAVE IT" together!

Keep your eye on the prize

My dogs know the command "leave it" but I decided to have a little fun letting them face each other. This video captured the first time I did this kind of face off :) Oh was I laughing so hard!

Check out Suki, the Am. Cocker Spaniel fully concentrating on the dog treat...while Kenzo, the Husky did his best to control his food urges. He needs a little more practice on speed!

This video was taken after our afternoon walk. I let them rest for an hour before giving them a bath. While waiting and out of sheer boredom, I did this food face-off.

It's 4am right now and I'm still doing some overtime work. A few hours from now we're going to the BEACH! I don't want to leave without finishing my tasks. The better to fully enjoy our weekend get-away with nothing to think of.

I feel a little sad that I can only bring along 1 dog. 2 people are hitching in the car with my hubby and I, thus I can't bring 2 dogs to the beach. We were supposed to take Summer (Golden Retriever) along, but he has a stud session service to fulfill this weekend. I was undecided between Zoe (the other golden) or Kenzo (husky). Looks like only Suki will be joining us in the beach. She sits and sleeps quietly like a baby in my lap during the entire ride.

My dogs are sleeping right now and this is what they exactly look like:

Suki is so cute sleeping in her dog bed! This wonder dog loves to sleep while with a pillow for her head. We did not humanize her. She's much too observant for her own good that she is so attuned with the human ways.

This used to be one of the pillows in our bed...and now its hers. Crazy thing is, she did not pay much attention to her dog bed before when it was just a plain dog bed. Once I transferred this specific pillow there, she's been sleeping most of the time in her own dog bed if she ain't snuggling up with us.

Ok, time to go back to work now. No more dog blogging. Ahhh excited to go back to the beach!

Why we repack our dog food

Every time we buy a big bag of dog food, I tell our helper to repack them in the appropriate servings per day. These are then placed in a big container tightly covered.

Why go through all that hassle? I found out that repacking has many benefits:

1. It keeps the dog food fresh since they are individually sealed. Humidity, molds, ants and other insects won't be able to penetrate the bag. Thus, no bacteria and bad elements to make my dogs sick.

2. One big container is good for one day for all of my dogs. Thus, we don't underfeed or overfeed them. If we feel they are hungrier than usual (boosted appetite because of play and exercise), then we just open the other small resealable containers.

3. I know how many days a big sack of dog food lasts, thus I can budget my finances and plan ahead for the next purchase.

4. A sack of dog food now lasts longer than it used to (thus saving me a LOT of money). There are no estimates when my helper is lazy to scoop out the exact portions or when she losses count. Make no mistake, quality dog food does cost a lot! I will never scrimp on my dogs...but I also don't want to give them excess dog food too, making them obese and unhealthy. That's extra fat on their belly and an ouch on the pocket for me!

5. We keep the big container in the garage and just bring the individual servings in the kitchen where it is lovingly prepared when we sometimes mix boiled vegetables in it.

6. The only semi-hard part is portioning the dog food all at once (will take less than an hour). After that, its a breeze! We have 7 dogs, so scooping out and counting all the portions from the big bag every single day is tiring! Ever since we repacked, we just open the container good for that day and then divide into their individual bowls. Fresh and easy.

7. Trust me, if you do this method--- you will find that your sack of dog food will last longer than it used to.

***advisable if you have more than 3 dogs

Stormwind's Dog Motel

We have a new guest in the house tonight and her name is Precious! We met the dog's owner Allan this morning as he dropped off his Golden Retriever. Like one of our previous stud service clients, the dog's owner is a busy person and he is going out of town this weekend-- thus cannot drop their female dog 3x (every other day) to our place.

We're going to be dog-sitters for the next couple of days.

We have had many instances wherein our dog guests do not like our dog food. They eat so little and I do not like that. Either they are homesick thus has no appetite. Perhaps they are fed a different dog food brand mixed with ultra delicious sauces or their owners feed them pure table food. For my own pack, I do mix in human food once in awhile but I am extra careful--feeding mostly vegetables and shredded meat. I do not add savory sauces and soups if they are salty and made delicious with flavor enhancers (MSGs, ready-mixed stuff and bouillons are a total no-no!).

Aside from stamina during the stud session, these future moms need their nutrition for a healthy womb environment. So, learning from our previous experience--- We always advice the owner of the dam to BRING THEIR OWN DOG FOOD. Not only that, we tell them to REPACK it in the appropriate portions/food servings of their dog. When we meet up, we ask about the feeding time and other weird habits of their dog. Talk about personal service. :)

As a dog friendly Bed & Breakfast, How I wish we had real doggy beds for our guest, complete with fresh sheets. (uh-oh!). Spoil them to frenzy with their own towels, shampoo & massage too. Being realistic, we feed our guest, give them fresh mineral water, play with them and take them out for short walks too.

SLIVERS AND SLIVERS OF LIVER
So back to our guest for tonight: Precious. Imagine my disbelief when the dog's owner handed my the food: a pack of liver. He then told me that his Precious does not eat dog food at all. Naturally we are going to mix the liver with rice. I asked, "So what do you feed your dog back home?" He goes, "Liver everyday." WHAT? Was he totally serious?

I told him that feeding liver for long periods of time is BAD for dogs. Yes, liver is a remedy against anemia... it contains a unique acid that from the blood in the liver (thus giving "fresh blood"). What's scary is you have to make sure that the liver you are feeding your dogs comes from a healthy animal. Among the liver's many responsibilities are blood detoxification, waste removal and bile production to aid digestion. If that liver you are feeding your dogs comes from a bad source, you may directly be feeding your dogs bacteria and toxic stuff. There's such a thing as liver toxicity that's why just give it to your dog with moderation, not more than twice a week.

I use boiled liver as dog treats, but again...too much is harmful. It may cause vitamin A toxicity. Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin which means excess is not excreted in the urine.
This can cause deformed bones, excessive bone growth on the elbows and spine, weight loss and anorexia.

Oh please, go easy on the liver for Precious when she gets back home.

Dog kisses alarm clock

Its so good to be back home after being out of town for 5 days. We missed our dogs so much! Two of our dogs sleep in our room: Suki, the Am. cocker spaniel and Kenzo, the Siberian Husky.

The natural way to wake up
At exactly 7am, Kenzo wakes up and jumps on our bed to wet our face with his slurpy kisses. If you try to push him down the bed, the more he will try to kiss you some more. I reached out for my cam and took some photos this morning.

He won't stop kissing us not until we stand up.

They both have their dog beds and their own pillows right below our bed. Kenzo is getting so big already (turning 8 months) that we had to get him his own bed. Suki is the cunning one. She waits for us to sleep and then climbs on our bed once we're snoring.

What a pretty sight! Since Kenzo woke me up first, I was able to take a photo of my hubby and Suki asleep!
Suki likes to snuggle up.

Now that we're all awake, here's Kenzo lying down and hugging me. If I say the command "lie down" he automatically lies down in my lap for his much favorite belly rub.

This is Kenzo's favorite spot.... directly facing the air-con. He has super bionic ears. Once he hears the air-con being turned on, he quickly makes a dash to this spot to position himself.

We're all up but Suki falls asleep again in the foot of the bed. Kenzo tries to nudge and wake her up but to no avail. The cool air-con and our cozy room is very conducive to sleep in. Besides, its so early!

Siberian Husky drinks Budoy's Coffee

See how coffee tastes better, after being slurped by our dog!
Hanging out over s cup of coffee one lazy afternoon with my hubby, GK and Budoy.
This was actually an old video clip taken last January 2009. I bought 3 new different
flavors of Nescafe Coffee 3-in-1 mix and we were trying it out.

My frisky running dogs

A short video of my 7 dogs playing a game of fetch. Oh how they love to frolic and run outside our house and in the beach. Footages were taken 2 months ago.

Also catch Keanu (now owned by ashtareth)
Nina (now owned by chickrock)
and Mojo (now owned by Chomeng)
Simone (Emerie, is not here because she was already with her new owner Squire).

Music arranged and performed by my band Junior Kilat.

How to spot fake Frontline Plus

Could this be a fake Frontline?

I have been using Frontline the past few years whenever we would have some flea and tick infestation. I noticed all the parasites would die and they'd be protected for as long as 3 months. Beginning last year though, I was questioning how effective this product really is.

Around 2 weeks ago, I bought 2 boxes of Frontline Plus and immediately applied it to my dogs. You see, we went to the beach last April and that was where my dog got the ticks. My cousin brought his Golden retriever which was super infested. He was sprayed with Frontline and left there in my Aunt's beach while he got "rehabilitated". I isolated my dogs so they wouldn't catch those parasites from my cousin's dog. Zoe, my own golden though, kept playing with Kenshee much to my despair.

To cut the long story short, Zoe got the fleas/ticks and she passed it on to my other dogs.

I used Frontline on them just 2 weeks ago. I also put borax on the cracks and crevices, sprinkled it on our rugs and furniture and then vacummed our house every few days. So why am I beginning to see the ticks/fleas coming back? I know it takes 24 hours for them to be killed and all. But hey, I have used Frontline before and it was more potent and effective than this.

How easy it is these days to make counterfeit products. With the influx of fake medicines & tampering with the packaging, the avant of technology and desperation... I was beginning to get scared. What did I put on my poor dogs?

I researched and I found out that fake Frontlines were being made from Taiwan, Australia and even Canada. :(

Could my suspicions be right? First thing I noticed was THERE WAS AN EXPIRATION DATE. Most meds do expire but I checked their official website-- and it said that Frontline Plus doesn't expire.

Here's a photo of the Frontline Plus that I recently bought: (click to enlarge image)

NO TEXT WRITTEN on the back of the applicator!!

The packagings may differ, especially in the units of measurements. The 20-40kgs as stated in my box, might be for a "different market" but how come I wasn't able to see any image like this when I googled it?

Oh no! Do check out the expiration date too.

----------------------------------

The Authentic Frontline Plus:

The fake one:

When does this product expire?

Genuine, EPA Approved flea medications DO NOT expire. This flea medication does NOT have an expiration date. Your flea medication will remain fresh, and effective till the very last dose.

The following are REAL EPA registration numbers for FRONTLINE products :

Frontline Top Spot for Cats (EPA Reg. No. 65331-2)

Frontline Top Spot for Dogs (EPA Reg. No. 65331-3)

Frontline Plus for Cats (EPA Reg. No. 65331-4)

Frontline Plus for Dogs (EPA Reg. No. 65331-5)

EPA # ON BACK OF RETAIL BOX :

LOT # ON THE SIDE OF THE RETAIL BOX MATCHES
LOT # ON APPLICATOR PACKING :

LOT # ON APPLICATOR PACKING MATCHES LOT # ON SIDE OF BOX :

(picture below shows applicator packing from a different box as an example)

REAL - Frontline applicator packing has Lot # and dogs weight --->

COUNTERFEIT

There are NO STRIPES on the back of applicator packing ---->

COUNTERFEIT
Real packing is NOT square , no oval shaped cut to open --->

COUNTERFEIT
Text on applicator is readable from BOTTOM TO NECK --->
Also notice the liquid amount on packing is shown in ml !

THE REAL SCORE:

The lot number on the retail carton matches the lot number on the applicator package and/or the individual applicators.
The instruction leaflet is included. It provides the following information: first-aid statements, including emergency U.S. telephone numbers; precautionary statements for humans and pets; directions for use; and storage and disposal statements.
The pesticide is contained in an applicator package, which is child-resistant. The directions for opening the child- resistant applicator package include an illustration that actually looks like the applicator package. The directions include "To remove applicator, use scissors or lift and remove plastic tab to expose foil, then pull down."
The legitimate applicator package has a notch between the individual applicator packages, which generally are absent on counterfeit products. Text on the package is in English only.
Once you open the applicator package, each individual applicator has a label that includes the registrant's name "Merial;" the product name; the EPA registration number; the net contents in fluid ounces (fl. oz.) (not in metric measure, i.e., ml); percentage (%) of active ingredient(s) (fipronil for Frontline Top Spot products; and fipronil and (S)-methoprene for Frontline Plus products); and the statements "CAUTION," "Keep out of reach of children," and "See full label for additional directions." Text is in English only.
The applicator label for the dog products includes the size of the dog in pounds on which the product is to be used.

Sources:

http://www.ask-the-vet.com/frontline-plus-dogs.htm

http://reviews.ebay.com/HOW-TO-SPOT-COUNTERFEIT-FRONTLINE-FLEA-MEDICATION_W0QQugidZ10000000007091697

Healthy Dog Treats

In addition to feeding my pack their daily dog food, I take the time every week to make some them healthy dog treats. It's great for snacking during our daily afternoon walks and I also use it as a reward when I train my dogs.

Satin Balls are made to

put weight on your dogs. That's why I originally made them because I have one dog (among my pack of 7) who's a very picky eater. He's not only picky, he eats very slow. Pretty weird for a humongous golden retriever.

Now i make Satin Balls as dog treats and only use high quality lean ground beef. I only feed a 2-4 ping-pong sized balls per training (which I also divide into smaller bite-sized treats). I don't want them to get used to eating this delicious treat (without the dog food) as it will spoil them.

Here's one version of Satin Balls:

Ground Beef

Wheat Germ

Oatmeal

Eggs

Karo syrup (mollasses)

I mix the ingredients above and then roll it in crushed whole wheat cereal (no sugar) for some crunch. Sometimes I mix in some chopped boiled chicken liver and a little cheese, but just a little bit because too much is not good for them.

I sprinkle their dog food with a little Brewer's Yeast a few times each week (I tend to forget as it is stored in the fridge).

-------------------------

One of the things we include in our grocery list is plain yogurt and yakult. All my dogs love it!

Every week we each give them 2 tablespoons of yogurt and half a serving of yakult. They both have live cultures that includes Lactobacillus Acidophilus. Probiotics keeps us humans and dogs healthy! They replace the bad bacteria with the good bacteria and it helps to maintain a good digestive system.

Yogurt is also great for dogs with diarrhea and upset stomach. If you have tiny puppies that are sick, its ok to give them a little yogurt because it's very gentle on the tummy. Yogurt is also one of the main ingredients in homemade puppy formula.

When our dogs get sick and we have to administer some real antibiotics-- we always bounce them back with yogurt. Antibiotics attempt to kill off ALL bacteria in the system -- good guys and bad guys alike. So we need to replace the good bacteria that was also destroyed by antibiotic treatments.

Please don't buy flavored yogurt, with fruit bits as they are too sweet for them.

Never give them fresh cow's milk since dogs lack the enzymes to process cow's milk, so this can cause an upset stomach. Be very careful just in case your pet is lactose intolerant.

I used to buy benebac for my newborn puppies, but I realized that yogurt can give the same beneficial effect.

My dogs loved boiled or steamed veggies. This cauliflower snack is for my Cocker Spaniel, Suki. This is one of her favorite veggies.

While those treats above were for my dogs, I made some treats for us humans as well! Homemade blueberry cheesecake! yum yum yum! (wiped-out in just one day)

Naughty Kenzo destroyed Suki's dog tag. :(

Summer - the smooth and gentle lover

My hubby was the one present in the stud session above. He forgot the name of this light-colored female golden. whoops! My hubby also forgot to take photos of the other dog that had Summer's stud service last April. Talk about being forgetful. :) I was out of town that time and he even forget to fill up our official records to keep track of all our stud services.

Hubby didn't like the shooter named Dennis and swears never to allow him to be near Summer again. This particular shooter was chosen by the owner of the dog and it was his first time to be us. He was very rough and crude. Just as Summer was about to release, he offensively showed Summer's thing to my hubby while it was inside the female's body. I wouldn't go down to rest of the details of what else he did. Why he did it, we don't know. It's very unprofessional and cruel. All we were concerned about was that Summer let out a yelp and was hurt. Our poor dog.

--------

Here are my shots of Lyka and Athena, both gorgeous goldens! The rain suddenly poured hard thus we had to do the stud session inside the garage. Lyka and Summer both got wet here as they were transferred indoors. The shooter's name is Paul and he was ok.

---------

Here's our favorite shooter, Rod...doing his thing as gentle as can be. He knows Summer's style and the way he approaches his female as he readies to mount. We had to let Summer rest for a month, because he had some treatments. We had to turn down one stud session, but its all good! All for the well being of Summer boy.

After more than a month of abstinence, Summer was as hot as ever. hehe! As soon as he saw Athena, Summer was able to mount him in less than a minute...barely with the help of the shooter. We all laughed so hard!

Athena is a first-timer and Rod was amazed that she didn't cry and hesitated a bit. He mentioned he forgot to bring the muzzle (an essential for first-timer females, so they wouldn't nip when they're in pain). Athena, without any qualms looked like she was actually enjoying it! :)

Summer was amazing as usual! smooth and steady...

Aaaathena baby! One of our favorite dog boarders. She stayed with us for almost a week, even after the stud sessions. Her owner, a very nice guy left out-of-town for work. He baby talks to Athena a lot and that's how this dog probably got her loving attitude. She's the sweetest dog and would call our attention everytime we'd pass by. She craves for a loving rub on her belly. Once you stop, she'll bark to ask for some more pats.

She's initially quite a shy dog and would often hide her tail in submission. Our dogs had fun playing with Athena and I'm pretty sure she had fun too. It's a great thing that she's trained to walk off-leash, thus she was able to join a long game of fetch with my dogs every afternoon.

Here's Athena chasing the ball with Suki, my Cocker Spaniel

Summer x Sunshine Pups

ere are some pics of the puppies of our dog Summer and Sunshine. I think there's still some male pups available. If i'm not mistaken, the pups are at P8k only. Contact Eddie at 0910-2514036. (Cebu based). With PCCI papers and complete vaccinated. For our stud service, you may reach us at 0909-3217756

This is how Summer exactly looked like when he was a pup!

Summer's bloodlines sure are strong as they come out dominantly in his puppies.

Dogs playing fetch in the beach

Here are more photos of my 3 dogs at Hale Manna Resort in Moalboal Beach, Cebu. I lost the rope toy and ball that I brought somewhere-- but was glad that I found a small driftwood for them to play with.

It was Kenzo's first time in the ocean (and to swim for that matter), but this pup is a brave one! He headed straight to the waters without any hesitation at all.