Diamond - Another Star in the Sky

Today, I learned the passing of yet another great DALE named "Diamond"


Diamond was surrendered to ATRA - the wonderful Airedale Terrier Rescue & Adoption back in December 2006 with a left eye that was blinded by a tumor. After her eye removal surgery, Diamond found her forever home with Wolfgang and Helene Kayser.

Diamond was only with her forever family for a short 7 months before she made the trip over the Rainbow Bridge, but in that 7 months time, she worked her Airedale magic and clung onto the hearts of Wolfgang and Helene.

"What a smart and pretty girl she is! We are inordinately proud of her and to say that we love her is very much an understatement! We would never let her go, she is part of us and this is where she belongs!

Diamond, our girl, would second that motion with alacrity!"

~Wolfgang Kayser

Click on the following pictures to read the full story on Diamond prior to her passing. (Courtesy of The Newsletter of Airedale Terrier Rescue and Adoption, June 2007; Vol. 13, Issue 6)




From Sunshade's mum:

I have yet to have to go through the pain of losing someone/somepup close to me so I can't say I know exactly what the heartbreak Diamond and Oscar's guardians are going through feels like. But, I know, we, as human beings were born with strong hearts. We grew up knowing we were going to live a long time. It is our responsibility to bear the suffering of loving others - others who do not have the long life expectancy equal to us. Just like I cry when I think about the inevitable that comes with sharing my life with a heart dog - my Sunshade.

It is difficult, and we cry. But once we cry it out loud, and say "as long as we will be together again, and you will get to meet all the new friends that I will bring", you must lift your head and look around. For there will be another that is meant to be for you.

Life renders our hearts into printer's trays. All things we do are represented by a slot and the object is to get as many slots filled as you can. Some slots are wonderful and joyous and makes everything we do worth while; while others, hurt like h*ll..........

Be brave fellow mommies and daddies!

Katy, Martin, Wolfgang, Helene, Ann and Ellen, my heart is with you all.

Elaine - the Aire-mum

Smiley Boy - Oscar (5/28/06 - 7/28/07)

HE WAS......

The CUTEST puppy

HE WAS......

The most HUGGABLE puppy



HE WAS......

The greatest football player



HE WAS......

The best Sheriff Woody



HE WAS......

The greatest kitchen helper



HE WAS......

The best behaved boy



HE WAS......

The best fed boy



HE WAS......

The HANDSOMEST boy



HE WAS......

The best ball thief



HE WAS......

The HAPPIEST boy



HE WAS......

The most stylish Dale



HE WAS......

A CHAMPION agility jumper



HE WAS......

His mommy's BESTEST boy



HE WAS......

His daddy's BESTEST boy



HE WAS......

The sweetest boy



HE WAS......

A BEAUTIFUL SOUL



HE WAS......

Our Friend - OSCAR



HE NOW......

Runs free and awaits us over at the Rainbow Bridge

Until we meet again Oscar.......

Love nibbles,
Miss Sunshade & family

Eat ICE CREAM & help some DALES!!

We all need a bit of cheering up these days, that's what our friends over at the Rainbow Bridge would want us to do.

SOOOOO....

How does some ICE CREAM sound?!?!?!?!

Sounds GREAT I'd say!!



Come on BOYZ and girls, have your mom or dad buy you an ICE CREAM!!!




Take LOTS of photos of you and your ICE CREAM!!!


(trust me, photo snapping is worth putting up this time)



Or you and your ICE CREAM tongue!!!




And enter your pictures in the Airedale Rescue of North Texas Photo Contest!!!

You don't need to be a blogger, you don't need to be an Airedale, you just need YOU and your ICE CREAM to enter!!

How great is that when you can eat ICE CREAM and help out Airedales in need???
Deadline for submission is August 4th, so hurrrrrry, put on your pathetic face and BEG for ICE CREAM!!!!

Thank you Maggie!!

Thank you Maggie for being born NINE years ago today!!!


Not only are you the BESTEST gurrrrrl for your mom and dad, you are a great friend to all of us blogging pups.

Most of all, BECAUSE OF YOU......


STINKY & I got these (plus two cup cakes) in celebration of your birfday!!


BECAUSE OF YOU.......... (and because of STINKY's strange way of "eating" his kookies....)

I got to eat for TWOOOOOOO!!! I'm the wise one (I'll leave the "old" part out), that STINKY's attention span is way too short for him to learn anything from me. Gee... I can just see him starving to death if we were in the wild. (mum: he definitely would if you were looking after him.. LOL)

After I finished eating for two, I went to look for more food. Well, since I have the 25 Important Life Lessons down pat, I located the SOURCE - one left over cup cake.

(mum: ate her share, Jaffa's cup cake, now onto the left over one. There were three in a package.)


And put all my skills to work!!

I seemed to have missed one important lesson from my previous post, so here it is:

Lesson 26 - DON'T LISTEN WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL, SWALLOW FIRST, THEN LISTEN

(mum: I didn't think she could reach the cup cake at all, it took me by surprise.)

THANK YOU Maggie for being born, because, BECAUSE OF YOU, I had:

3 cup cakes

AND,

8 kookies (mum: there were 10 cookies all together..)

I hope you had a great BIRFDAY Maggie!!!

Canada Day

It's Canada's 140th Birfday today!!!


Mum put maple leaf bandannas on me and STINKY and took us to Canada Place, located in downtown Vancouver.


This is where most of the celebration took place,


There were a lot of people,


And a lot of noises..... (we were both a little startled here, STINKY, of course was more startled than me!)


People sang Happy Birfday to Canada!!

Then we walked around Canada Place, and of course, people just LOVED us.


A couple of hooman pups thought we were the Firehouse Dogs!


(The dog in the movie is actually an Irish Terrier which is very similar looking to an Airedale Terrier other than it is a bit smaller in size and has no black saddle, just reddish tan all over.)

Actually, I should say, a couple of hooman pups thought STINKY was the Firehouse Dog. They asked to pet "him", but because of his land-sharking (mum: Jaffa can still be quite mouthy), mum told them they should pet me instead (I feel soooo USED!!).

And guess WHAT the boy hooman pup said......

He said,

He looks like a toy, I want to pet the Firehouse Dog!

Now, the first "he" was meant for me. Apparently I was too toy-ish for him to pet! He thought STINKY was the real Firehouse Dog... GEEEEZUS! (mum: I think because Jaffa has a very wiry coat, he looked more like the Irish Terrier in Firehouse Dog. Sunshade is my fluffy, sheep coated girl!!) What's worse is that he did end up petting ME because STINKY slobbered all over him when he tried to pet him.

HMMMMPH!

Anyway, we came to a fountain and took a break there to have a drink.


Even tho it was overcasting, our dense coat (wiry or sheep coated!!) made us very hot. Mum brought water for us, cause she said we couldn't drink the yucky fountain water!


Me and MY mummy!!!


We circled back to Canada Place to watch the celebration some more,


And I, the CutieDALE...


Worked my SuperDALE magic yet again,


And became the chick magnet amongst tourists!!


Then we made our way towards Coal Harbour and came to another water fountain. Mum had to have pictures taken again of course, and STINKY was not cooperating of course. I'm the perfect one you know, always so perfect! (mum: *not saying a word*)


This was me walking down the see-through ramp at Coal Harbour. STINKY was afraid, but when he saw me walking down, he followed me. I'm the brave one you know, always so brave!!


Before going home, I did some zen-ing to recharge my Aire-ZEN!!