THE SADDEST MELODY IN AMERICA

BRUTUS

Woof everypups and everycats. We were very sad after Brutus left and didn't feel like playing at all, so we just hung out in the backyard. When Mom came home we could tell she was really upset. We thought it was because she gave Brutus away until she reached in the car and pulled out.......... none other than..........

Brutus!!!!!

Woo! Woo! We couldn't believe it! Mom had brought Brutus back. We asked her why she didn't leave Brutus at his new home and she said......and we quote......"There was no way in H%$#@ that she was going to leave Brutus with those %$#@ people. He would have been dead in a week". Mom was using words that we had never heard before. Those %$#@ people were going to put him in a tiny 8x10 chain link enclosure with very little grass or dirt. Now tortoises and chain link are not a good combination. Brutus could have gotten his little arms or even his head caught in the fence. And they had brick covering about half of the enclosure floor. Tortoises and brick? That's crazy bark. And the only shade was corrugated tin which would have made the enclosure really hot, especially in this desert heat. There were no trees for shade or plants for him to eat. And the only view he would have had was a block wall. Mom just apologized, quickly grabbed Brutus, and got the H%$#@ out of there before they could tortoise-nap him. Welcome Home Brutus!!!

GOODBYE BRUTUS

Woof everypups and everycats. Today is a sad day. We have to say goodbye to our tortoise brother(or sister) Brutus. Mom doesn't want to give him up but she doesn't want baby tortoises either. And since she is beginning to believe that Brutus is actually a girl tortoise and Cato is a boy tortoise, she decided to find one of them a good home. Cato is a special needs tortoise(he has a damaged beak and needs help eating) so Mom found a home for Brutus. We told Mom to take the tortoises to the Doggie Doctor and get them neutered but she just looked at us like we were crazy. Anyway we will miss him because he is just like us. He likes to chew on everything and dig holes, kind of like a tiny dog with a tortoise shell on his back.

OUR NEIGHBOR HENRY

Woof everypups and everycats. Toby here, this is me and Keiko in the backyard. We were talking about our neighbor Henry.

This is Henry. He is an Emu and he lives right across the road so we see get to him a lot. He is very friendly and loves to come to the fence to say hello. Henry was found wandering in the desert a few years ago and was in really bad shape. But his human Mom and Dad took really good care of him and now he is just fine. We think he is part dog because he likes to chase cars.

SNAKES

Woof everypups and everycats, Suka's post about his fearless battle with the monstrous snake in his yard reminded us that we have a couple of snakes in our backyard.

This is a tiny Gopher snake. Mom named him Draco and even though he is very small, this little guy can grow to be nine feet long. Draco just hangs around in the backyard looking for food.

This is what Draco will become. This is a adult Gopher snake(he's about six feet long) and he's recently moved in with the tortoises. Mom hasn't named him yet, probably because he scared the puppy poop out of her the first time she saw him.


Mom says that Gopher snakes are good to have around because they keep the yard free of other snakes and rodents. That's because they have an attitude problem, they didn't get the nickname "Bull Snake" for nothing. For more info on Gopher snakes, please visit the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum website.

BACKYARD PHOTOS

Norman here, just thought I'd show a couple of photos of our backyard. This is me with our pool. Mom got us a new one this year because someone chewed a hole in the old one. Yeah, that's it, someone(probably a freakin rabbit) sneaked in at night and chewed a big hole in the old pool, that's what happened.

Here is a picture of Mom's favorite rock(she likes rocks, it's weird). The thing behind the rock is called an ocotillo. It's a desert plant with sharp thingys on it but it's not as bad as some plants and it gives us something else to pee on.

This is me, Keiko and Toby next to the tortoise pen. We're pretty good about staying out of the pen. We only jump into the pen in emergency situations, like when there's a rabbit or gopher in the pen. We've got to keep the yard free of those beasts.

DESERT TORTOISES

Woof everypups and everycats, here are some photos of our Desert Tortoises brothers(or sisters, we don't know yet). We've had them for about 6 years.

This is inside their den where they have a little visitor. They had a snake once but Mom was too scared to stick the camera in the den.

This is Brutus, he is the smaller of the two but he is the most active and loves to dig holes(Mom doesn't let us dig holes).

Here are both Brutus(left) and Cato(right) eating. Mom feeds them greens and yucky stuff like that to supplement their diet. They also eat desert shrubs and grasses such as Trailing 4 O'Clock and Fairy Duster which they have in their enclosure. And as you can see, they get grass in their pen. Mom says we can't have grass because all we will do is pee on it and dig holes in it.

LITTLE DOG SADIE

Woof everypups and everycats. Twice a week Mom goes down to Hope Animal Shelter to volunteer to help clean the kennels. About a month ago, a little white dog was brought to the shelter where she was named Sadie. Sadie is a feral dog and is really nervous most of the time. When Sadie was brought to the shelter she would constantly walk the perimeter of her kennel when she is inside and just have a distant look on her face. The lady that runs the shelter believes that Sadie has some type of neurological problems but Mom doesn't think so. Mom thinks that because Sadie was alone in the desert for so long she doesn't know how to interact with anybody. We think that Mom is right because Sadie doesn't seem to walk in circles as much as she use to and she is focusing more on her surroundings. She even has taken food from Mom's hand and will let Mom scratch her little nose. Mom asked us what we thought about Sadie coming to live with us and we thought that was a pawsome idea.

Pee Ess: Once again, thanks to Suka and K for being such great friends.

PHOTOS

This is me, Keiko. I don't get a chance to post a lot so I figured I would sneak in while the boys are outside peeing on everything. You know how boy dogs are.

This is a patio that Mom has been working on. It's not very level and Mom ran out of brick so she made rock gardens in the corners. It gives Toby and Norman something else to pee on.

Woo Woo! We have a new roof. Mom's happy with it and us dogs are just glad to have our yard back. We were cooped up for three days and couldn't go into the back yard at all.

Pee Ess: Thanks to Suka and K for cheering Mom up. We love you guys.

ALPHA DOG TOBY

Woof everypups, cats and hamsters, Toby here. Since Scuba died, Mom says that I'm now the Alpha Dog in the pack. I've never been Top Dog and I don't know if I can do a good job. Scuba was such a great Alpha and made it look easy. She tried to teach me the ways of a good Alpha Dog before she died and I hope I can remember everything. Anyway, here are some photos of our house after a big storm a couple months ago. It was really scary and Mom made us all sleep in the living room together.

CROSSING THE BRIDGE

Top dog Scuba

October 18th 1995 - April 12th 2010

Toby here, sorry it's been awhile since we've written anything and Mom has promised to try and post a couple times a week. Like a lot of folks she has had a difficult time finding steady work but she still manages to bring home doggie biscuits for us. And, to make everything worse, Scuba Crossed The Bridge on April 12th, 2010. It's been hard on Mom, but Norman, Keiko and myself are doing what we can to cheer her up. I think it's working because this morning Mom actually laughed and said that The Ghost of Scuba must have tipped over the garbage because me, Norman and Keiko have been so good lately.