Oh! What A Year It Was

Cottonwood Tails Vol. 2 No. 1 _ February 2013 Oh! What A Year It Was Early September saw us back at the Boulder Reservoir for Cause for Paws. The event is an annual fundraiser where humans and canines come together for a 5K run or walk. There was a scrumptious pancake breakfast, pet-related booths, vendors and much more! Oh what fun we had this year at Cottonwood Kennels. Besides what we do right here at the kennel, we go on the road and participate in all sorts of dog friendly events. We started the year back in January by attending the Super Dog s Show in Loveland at the Budweiser event center. Over half our crew made the journey over to Loveland to watch those dogs fly. There was also a world class agility course. May saw us travel to Longmont to be a part of the 19th annual Ella s Walk. The event is the annual fundraiser for the Longmont Humane Society and is held in memory of Meredith Hope Ellis and her Lab mix Ella. Over 350 people took part in the walk In June it was Bark in the Park in Erie. This event hosts the shortest pet parade and was MC d by Bernie The Colorado Avalanche Mascot. Activities included a 25 yard dash, toy catch, Frisbee catching and down stay on command competition. Late in September we broke all the rules along with hundreds of others at the Scott Carpenter Park s annual Dog Daze event. Between September 17 through the 30th, the pool went to the dogs. On Saturday September 22th, we along with others set up shop poolside and took our dogs swimming. Oh what fun. Well a new year is starting and with it the anticipation of more fun to come. So watch for upcoming events and come on out to spend a day with your favorite little four legged family members. In April,, we attended the Canine Classic at the Boulder Reservoir, and yes, there were more flying dogs. Those little Frisbee catchers really got some air. Cottonwood Kennels 7275 Valmont Road See Us ON Facebook Boulder, Colorado Phone (303) 442-2602 CottonwoodKennels1@yahoo.com

Cottonwood Tails Page 2 February 2013 Front Office Report The Golden Retriever Lifetime Study Morris Animal Foundation and Flint Animal Cancer Center By Rhonda Beitzel Kennel Manager Team Up Against Canine Cancer at CSU By Penny Vardell The time is just flying by! We are very close to being c o m p l e t e l y booked for Spring Break right now. This year, our Easter weekend falls during our busy spring break season. So if you are needing any boarding time during the last two weeks of March or the first week of April, book now! Our main holidays that book very early are: Spring break, Easter, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. We are already taking reservations Thanksgiving and Christmas 2013. Make sure to book months in advance to secure your spot. At these holiday times, we do ask for prepayment to hold these dates open. Payments are due at the beginning of the month of the stay. This allows us to confirm our numbers and secure accurate dates. We do maintain a wait list and begin making those calls right after the prepayment due date passes. This will allow us to fill those spaces. Our daycare scheduling is also affected by these busy holiday times. When the weather is cold, we cannot bring in daycare dogs in to warm up as all of our kennels are occupied by boarders. Call anytime after 7 am for information on our daycare schedule during these peak times. We love being able to spend the holidays with our special furry friends. Great news! A new cancer study is set to take off in the next two years. It is called the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study. The study will be 10 to 15 years long with 3000 dogs involved. All participants will be volunteers. This is the largest and longest observational study ever undertaken to improve the life of dogs. The project is one of the most significant in veterinary medicine. This is because there is no valid database to determine how frequently cancer may occur. It will also give clues on factors that may influence it. These dogs will be monitored through out their whole lives. This will help identify genetic, nutritional and environmental risk factors for cancer as well as other diseases. Findings from this study will also benefit human illness studies. Some of the diseases that will be watched along with this study will be obesity, epilepsy, thyroid disease, arthritis as well as skin and coat problems. To qualify for the study, your Golden must be under two years of age and presently healthy. Owners must be at least 18 years old, and pedigree must be traceable back 3 generations.. The study will cost approximately 25 million dollars with the Morris Animal Foundation funding the greatest part of the study. The rest of the funding will come from online public donations. So, donate to the Morris Animal Foundation and help sponsor these dogs and their dedicated people and veterinarians. Find out more and volunteer to participate at caninelifetimehealth.org. * In memory of my dog Gabi. Penny Vardell ********************************************************************** Cottonwood Kennels Play and Stay for Pets Remember us for all your boarding, day- care and grooming needs. Open 7 Days A Week 7:30am until 6:00 pm

Cottonwood Tails Page 3 February 2013 Purrs from the Cattery By Penny Vardell The Joy of Rescue Come visit the Cottonwood Kennels Cattery. It is one of the nicest you will find. It is located in an upstairs room away from the dogs and is perfectly quiet and relaxing environment for the cats. Street Dogs. Two words which should never have to be used in the same sentence, but all to often are in this country. Thankfully, there are organizations who combat this problem daily. There are lots of plants and windows to make our little feline visitors feel at home. The big bay window in the front is a perfect place for them to sit and watch the birds and squirrels outside, as well as the people who come and go all day. The cat kennels are very spacious and the cats are rotated in and out all day so that they may all enjoy the feeling of moving about the room as if they were right at home. Each cat gets from one to three hours of roaming time depending on the amount of boarders we have. Most kitties only stay a few days, but we have had some that have stayed as long as six months. Our long term cats usually get to stay in the kitchen area or the kitty corral, a long tunnel like structure with windows in the end. Cottonwood over the last year has sponsored quite a number of these poor lost individuals as their respective organizations scramble to find them a Forever Home. Here are the stories of a few of them. Otis was a young Akbash who came to stay at Cottonwood last spring. Otis had been in 8 foster situations in his life and really needed settling. Jan Mitchell of Mountain Dog Rescue brought him in to us to see how he would handle kenneling. He did great. After a short time, he would be relaxed and had much fun playing with the staff. After only a short time, MDR found Otis that forever home. Now he has 200 acres to live on and since his mission in life is to guard the goats and sheep, his new parents are thinking of getting him. a small herd of goats to care for. Next we had Teddy. Teddy was another MDR rescue dog who came up from Louisiana. He was being treated for heartworms and had to be kept very quiet, so he stayed at Penny s house as part of her family. All of her dogs accepted Teddy into the family. Teddy was being treated by a local veterinarian for the heartworm problem. After the last, and most dangerous part of the treatment, that vet decided to keep Teddy at her home for observation. Her and her family fell in love with Teddy during the convalescence period and one thing led to another and Teddy stayed on with them in his new Forever Home. Patsy was found living in the streets of Sugarland, Texas. She came to us with a companion, also from the streets, named Guy. Patsy was a hit immediately with Penny as she was both from her home state of Texas, and found in the city where her mother was born. When she came to us, she had been dubbed Sarah by MDR, Penny decided that this little one had been in the system too long and decided to adopt her. What were the odds that this little dog from the same town in Texas where her mother, also Patsy, was born, would show up as a rescue at her kennel in Boulder, It was too perfect, and so as they say, the rest is history and Patsy now resides here permanently with new brother, Michael, and sister Lulu.

Cottonwood Tails Page 4 February 2013 Notes From Small Dog Playgroup By Pilar Heffelfinger Mikes Canine Culinary Corner By Mike Thorpe This go round I would like to talk about a couple of sweet little dogs who are here with us for an extended stay. Lisbeth and her sister Lacey. They are two sweet little girls who are staying with us for a few months while their mother makes the move to Australia. Lisbeth is a Bichon and Lacey a Shi Tzu mix. They are excited to join her when things get settled in, but are also excited about being a part of the family here while they wait. They both love all the attention they receive as well as the daily routines. A typical day for them is playgroup first thing in the morning, then breakfast. After that, more playgroup, then lunch. They then get a midday rest break and finish their day off with more playgroup and a pasture walk. Both are on medications and have no problem taking them. They actually look forward to it, jumping up and down when they see the medication tray come around.because it s carefully prepared in cheese. Some of their favorite activities in playgroup are fetch, frolicking and sunbathing. They really love to play tag with each other and their friends too!they are great ambassadors. They befriend every new pup on their first days and show them the ropes. Lisbeth loves kissing all the new pups and Lacey shows them which are the best toys. Once they are satisfied that the new kids are comfortable, they proudly sit back and relax as they watch them make new friends. If Lisbeth and Lacey could give each other high fives, they would. Lacey and Lisbeth hanging out with some of their friends in play group. ************************************ * Editors note: The girls have now made the trip to Australia and will spend a month in quarantine before moving in to their new home Down Under. FISH DOG COOKIES 15 OZ CAN OF SALMON, MACKREL, OR WHITEFISH. ONE TEASPOON SALT ONE TEASPOON BAKING POWDER 1 CUP OF FLOUR ON STAND BY MIX THE FISH, SALT, AND BAKING POWDER AND USE ENOUGH ( NOT ALL) OF THE FLOUR TO REACH A GOOD TEXTURE. SPREAD ON A COOKIE SHEET, I GREASE EVERY SHEET I GUESS I DON T LIKE THINGS TO STICK. YOU CAN SCORE THEM FOR SIZE IF YOU LIKE AND IT WILL MAKE THEM EASIER TO BREAK APART.LARGE OR SMALL BITE SIZE.. SHOULD BE STORED IN A CLOSED CONTAINER AND YOU CAN FREEZE THEM TO KEEP THEM FRESH I USE QUART ZIPLOC TYPE BAGS./.. BAKE THEM AT 350 DEGREES FOR 30 MINUTES OR UNTIL THEY ARE GOLDEN BROWN Playing around in the Christmas snow

Page 5 February 2013 Notes from Large Dog Playgroup By Peter Keeler Playgroup in the winter is sometimes a coin toss depending on the weather. Luckily in recent weeks, it has been warm enough to go out and play the majority of the day. Often the morning and the evening are too cold, our criteria is around 40 degrees, but we still find times during the day that it is OK to get the big guys out. Sometimes, when it is relly cold out and we have to put on our full cover Carharts, we also put coats from our supply on the shorter haired dogs so that they may still enjoy play group. When we feel the dogs are getting too cold, we send them in for a break in our heated runs with heated floors. Careful records are kept of who has or had not had breaks. Once warmed, they come back out for some more fun. The most important thing is that all the dogs are as comfortable as possible. If it is truly too cold to run a playgroup, we will take the dogs out on individual pasture walks and spend time with them in the individual exercise yards. It is very rare that we do not run a playgroup, even if we can only be out for two or three hours during the middle of the day. We always go outside when we can, because we love being out there with your dogs. We love watching them play, having fun, giving them attention and keeping them safe. It s more than just a job to us, because we all view them as if they are our dogs too. We are looking forward to spring and summer and full day, every day playgroups. Let s play!! Cottonwood Tails At Home With our Own By Danielle Reeves Animals are a huge part of all of our lives here at Cottonwood. We spend our days here caring for and loving the pets of others. After a long day at the kennel, we go home and share that love with our own little ones. Krystle Aaraas loves going home to her two kids, Autumn, a Border collie and Mr. Mosely, a Chocolate lab. She got Autumn back in New Hampshire as a puppy. Her and h u s b a n d B o b b y moved out here about 2 years ago and fell in love with it. She decided that Autumn needed some company and found Mr. Mosely at the Boulder Humane Society and couldn t pass up that cute little chocolate face. They love to take the dogs swimming, camping and hiking. They also like to practice their favorite tricks, Autumn s is Sit Pretty and Mosely s is Paw. They love to share Krystles favorite snack of peanut butter and banana sandwiches. The Aaraas family loves the Colorado lifestyle and the opportunity it offers for their dogs lives. Having fun at the Boulder reservoir Meet the Cottonwood Family By Penny Vardell Corrie Griffin has been a part of the Cottonwood family for over eight years. She can be found in every part of the kennel from the front desk, feeding, doing medications and cleaning in the back.. She also loves playing with the little guys out in play group. Corrie prepares to feed the munchkins Corrie says she loves working at the kennel. She really loves meeting all the new little guys who come in and someday will be old friends. Corrie also has her own pet at home, her cat, Rascal. Rascal is eight years old and Corrie loves spending time with her after a hard day at the kennel. Corrie moved here from Texas to be close to the mountains. She has climbed 2 fourteeners in her time in Colorado. Long s Peak and Mount Sherman. She also enjoys playing soccer and a game of pool every now and then. Sadly, Corrie is going to leave us soon. She has decided to go back and finish her education. She will continue to be a part of the Cottonwood family however, pitching in at the events we attend throughout the year. Corrie does a great job and we are lucky to have her on our team. We look forward to working with her in the future. Thank you Corrie!!

Page 6 February 2013 Our Barnyard Friends By Rhonda Beitzel Cottonwood Tails Your Pets Horoscope By Madame Neah Let us talk about the ducks. Their names are Alabaster, Speck, Bed Head, Two Tone, Fawn and Clutsy. However, they all go by the name of Hey Boys and will come running if they hear it. The first five respectively were only a few days old back in March 2012, when I got them. They were raised at my house in a bin with a heat lamp for the first month. After that they moved out to a pen. We would carry them in daily and give them a bath in our tub.at first, they weren t quite sure what to do with that. However they learned very quickly and began to enjoy it. We would sprinkle some cheerios, which is still their favorite treat, in the water with them. In early June, they came to live at Cottonwood. They began life here living in the barn, getting used to their new environs and fellow barn yarders. A couple of months later, in the fall, Clutsy showed up on the scene. He was raised by another staff member, Keira, Clutsy started out life living with her bunny. Circumstances though caused him to have to move out of that situation. At first they did not get along and Clutsy had a nice indoor/outdoor area in the barn. However, he decided he was going get into the group. He did! Now they are all one big happy family. All our ducks in a row. Aries (3/21-4/19) Time to let your hair down. Go out for a guys/ girls day out. Get your favorite friends, the brainy Border Collie, the gossipy Golden, the partying Papillion, the laugh out loud funny Labrador and have an adventure. Taurus (4/20-5/20) New years resolutions are so hard to keep. Keep this one! Keep up on your appearance. Go for a Mani/pedi, a teeth brushing. Go ahead, get the full groom! You will feel great because of it. Gemini (5/21-6/20) Didn t get everything you wanted for Christmas? Treat yourself. Go pick out a new toy, bone or treat. For you, the sky is the limit. Cancer (6/21-7/22) Take advantage of life's simple pleasures. Chase a squirrel up a tree, check out a butterfly, or just put your face in the wind while riding in the car. Let the crisp air flow through your lips, you ll be refreshed and rejuvenated. Leo (7/23-8/22) On the cold days, just find your favorite spot, relax and enjoy. It might be next to the fireplace, on the heater vent or snuggled up with your favorite someone. Warmer days are coming! Virgo (8/23-9/22).Remember that you are needed. Be there to help your family through a tough time. Use your strengths of love, joy and loyalty. Libra (9/23-10/22) Look for fun, it s there. Play hard! Hide and seek is best. Let your favorite someone hide your favorite toy. Then the hunt begins. Though they hid it, they will find the greatest joy in your finding it. Scorpio (10/23-11/22) Look forward to outdoor times. Don t live inside the 4 walls. Wide open spaces beckon you into their embracing arms. There are plenty of times we must stay inside, so when the opportunity arises to break free, go for it! Sagittarius (11/22-12/21) Spread the love, you do it so well. You love your people, your friends and your toys. You love the sunshine, the snow, the wind and the rain. Keep spreading the love. Capricorn (12/22-1/19) Work on your voice, sing, speak, bark and howl. Let the world hear you. You don t have to be loud, you just need to be heard. We display our emotions, ideas and thoughts best through our voices, use yours. Aquarius (1/20-2/18) Don t always give in to the chase. Squirrels, bunnies and birds can torment you. Use restraint and learn to respect your adversaries. You can more esily beat them when they realize they do not have power over you. Pisces (2/19-3/20) Steer clear of that yellow snow, blue toilet water and anything else that doesn t look clear and clean. Stick to your own water bowl. It will always be there for you. Be grateful for what you have. ************************************************************************* "The greatest pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself, too." ~ Samuel Butler