ReadLarryPowell.com

THE FACE THAT CHARMS FROM THE ARM OF THE COUCH

My sweetspouse Martha and I were watching some British mystery together one night last week and she snapped a photo of me because I’d nodded off in her alternate recliner. She was in her other recliner. I have no recliner but I do have a spot on the couch if the dogs will let me sit there.
Anyway, in the photo, my eyes are shut, I’ve turned my body sideways, I’m not reclIned and my mouth is open wide enough to trap flying beasts if I’d nodded off outside.
And when I saw the photo I've posted here, I was envious of our dog Dudley the Angel. That is the picture that I wish had been me. What a face! Thus Dudley, a dog who wandered into our animal kingdom, is this weekend’s featured canine in Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. 
Isn’t that quite a slumbermug! 
You can see why he’s using the arm of the couch as a pillow — he had to make sure he left enough room for Martha’s dog, Wendy (Wedneday Louise Wagstaff Arden). They’re pals, Wendy and Dudley.

He loves for me to ruffle his thick coat —it’s the result of Border Collie and Chocolate Lab cross-breeding -- probably by accident. He has four white paws, a white blaze and a white tip on his tail. Plus there’s this white strip on his handsome muzzle. And his hair looks black at first glance, but then, in the sun, you see the brown coming through — and as his first vet, Dr. Vladi deJong, announced while hugging him, “Look at that — Border Collie and Chocolate Lab! This is a pretty dog!”

We cherish all our dogs and cats and I deeply envy those Earth creatures who can drop off and snooze on a whim. I have to plan sleeping. These mutts and cats look up at me when I’m and just shut down happily.
That’s something to envy.
Martha can do it when I’m talking. But, of course, I hang on her every word. I don’t want to nod off because she may be on the brink of saying something funny — or important.
I’ve noticed that the dogs and cats tend to listen to her, too. For me to hold their attention, I have to open  cookies packed in a bag that oughta carry a label warning “CAUTION DOG PEOPLE: EXTRA LOUD PLASTIC BAG.
Yes, I love dog faces and cat faces. I’m iffy on photos of my own face. Not as charming as a dog’s face -- awake or sleeping.
[DEAR READERS:That is my cat Stevie Ray demonstrating dignified and stylish cat-napping. If your cat can nap or your dog can sleep or any critter in your household or barn or pasture can nod off, send a photo and the story of that family member to [email protected] and we’ll post it in our long-running weekend feature, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. Remember, you’ll be inspiring other people to open their homes to an animal. You’ll also be helping insomniacs in their quest for sleep — for example, they’ll try to bend their heads from their necks at a 45 degree angle while flopping on the couch. Insomniacs will try anything legal and some things that aren’t to get a full night’s restful sleep. And that last photo looks like Dudley is listening to me, but the woman he adores -- must I say "Martha"? -- was standing behind me and talking and he was as "all ears" as a flop-eared dog can be!]
— Offer sleeping tips or pillow advice by clicking on ‘comment’ or by emailing [email protected] and put FEAR OF HELL IS THE INSOMNIAC’S BED PARTNER in the subject line. It’s not, but that’s scary enough to keep you awake. —-

ANIMALS TO HELP AS THE WEEKEND ARRIVES; PLUS, THE MILLS BROTHERS

[EDITION OF FRIDAY PM, JUNE 10, 2022] Good afternoon, Dear Readers. I’m back from a happy visit with the general practitioner and I’d turn handsprings if it wouldn’t put me in a hospital. Now, we’ve got some work to do on behalf of dogs and cats. I’ll try to make this quick so you can work on helping save ‘em all between Friday afternoon and Monday morning.
What else could a weekend be made for? That’s my dog Porche giving us a hint on her Transcendental Rug of Tranquilization — rescue dog, you know. But, let’s move on. We’ve got some dogs in bad spots and the weekend might be when human hearts can help.

THE FERRIS CHALLENGE:
JORDAN’S SAD STORY
[LARRY NOTE: Dear Readers, before you read this one, I’ll confess to you that I’m mad enough for the both of us. But I applaud your justifiable ire! And we’re not the only ones who’d like to lecture a certain person with, apparently, a poorly designed heart. Read on.]
This guy Jordan is in the Ferris Shelter on the southern side of Dallas.
The note from the 4-Legged Helpers says he’s an “available now” Hound/Beagle mix.
And it reads, "OMG. HEARTBREAKING - TRULY…!! This little guy has the saddest story ever.  Someone saw a car pull up. A lady git out with food and she sat the food dish and pup down and he ran to the dish.  She then grabbed the food, jumped in the car and sped off.  Leaving him by himself.”
 [LARRY NOTE: I’ll pause here so you can regather control of your anger. Honestly, if anyone knows Jordan’s dumping human, let us know. We have brain-correcting lectures we can give at no charge.]

Jordan is, the note reads, “young, probably a year or so but is not big at all and appears to be full grown.  Nice medium size and only about 28 pounds. Sweet and cute as can be.  AND SO DESERVING. Please help save him  Please.  He deserves a better life than whatever apparently he went through with the horrible person that ditched him in such a horrific way.”

Call or text the Helpers at 214-949-2726 or email [email protected]
Same contact points for these next two dumplings, i.e. foundlings who were dumped. Dumplings. 
Also waiting at Ferris are these two abandoned kittens. The Helper’s note about the young females cites Skyler’s black and white coat and Taffy, the Tiger Tabby’s expressive eyes. The note reads: “Check out the cute little black nose on Skyler and the beautiful eyes on Taffy!  If you are looking for the most cuddly, sweetest, affectionate little kitties ever, look no further.  This pair appears to be sisters and they are young snd perfect for absolutely anyone.  THEY ADORE people.  Clearly they have been in a home before but were brought in by someone who apparently found them  They are wonderful. Would do great at adoption events or really in any type of home.  Please help!  AVAILABLE TOGETHER OR INDIVIDUALLY.”
And the helpers note that “transport can be arranged” for 501c3 rescues.
REMINDER: The Helpers have many more dogs they’re trying to help. We’ve cited Chad (right), Chance (left) and Precious and (lower left) Ranger previously. Either scroll down to find ‘em on readlarrypowell.com or go to the 4-Legged Helpers Inc. Facebook page. 
[LARRY ASIDE: I know dogs — personal experience with those who are found, those who wander up and those who are dumped; even some who were birthed in the garage! These 4 are dogs you’d want to have at your primary residence. Just a thought to help someone benefit from rescuing some dogs — our house is full or we’d have 3 new dogs and 2 new cats. And we’d try to save some of your rotten in-laws, too. But we’d give the dogs and cats first rights to the sofas and beds.]
THIS RESCUE-ONLY GUY
MAY ALREADY BE HELPED
But, maybe not. We got word of his plight from the volunteer dog biographer Debra Chisholm at the Mesquite Animal Services. You can guess from the photo that he has a genuine front-leg problem. 
Debra wrote, “This very handsome boy is Hendrix, an American Staffordshire/  American Pit Bull, Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix that was picked up as a stray by one of our officers on 5/20.  Hendrix weighs 66 pounds, is approx 1 1/2-years-old and is not neutered.  

“The back story on this precious boy is that he arrived at the shelter with an injury--a swollen right front leg--and was taken to the vet.  It was determined that the leg is broken and he had a splint and a cast placed on the leg with the hopes that it will heal without having to resort to surgery."
Friday he was scheduled to get his cast changed. We haven’t heard how that went, but he has a great face, so he was probably jake with the whole procedure. 
Debra says that he “hobbles and gets around quite well.  In spite of the injury, Hendrix has maintained a positive attitude!  He walks nicely on a leash, is kennel trained, house-trained and is a friendly and sweet-natured youngster.  He is confident, trusting and has a moderate activity level.  He was tested with another unaltered male and they did fine together.  He is low-maintenance and is content laying next to his person.  This would be a great dog for someone who works from home.”

Hendrix’ appeal ends with the reference to the challenges facing the animal-sensitive staff and volunteers at Mesquite.
The note reads, “Our shelter is critically overfull and every available space is being utilized to house our wonderful animals so please help Hendrix by networking or tagging at [email protected], typing in the subject line TAG, ID 50231416.  Please email [email protected] or call 972-216-6283 if you need further information.

[LARRY ASIDE: Somebody help him in honor of Apollo (right), the shelter dog who ran out of time at the age of 10. Save ‘em all, no matter what their age may be -- or what sort of medical challenges they're facing.  We live in the time of medical miracles. Sincerely, Larry.]
A NOTE WITH FOSTER HOPE

FROM THE GREYHOUND PEOPLE
As you probably know, the Greyhound Adoption League of Texas has worked hard to save the big hounds’ lives for years. Those people are totally dedicated to their mission.
A note arrived Friday from GALT. Oh, and that dog posing is Pumpkin. Read on. 
The GALT folks wrote, “Our foster team works hard to move our newly arriving hounds out of boarding and into foster homes quickly so that they can move on to finding forever families. Some of our hounds have special needs though, and the wait for the right foster home can take longer than we would like.

“For example, Pumpkin needs to move to a quiet foster home so that he can start his heartworm treatment. He is a bit of an alpha dog and will do best in a foster home without other dogs or with only female dogs. Pumpkin loves people and longs for cuddles. He will blossom with confidence once he is in a stable home environment.
"As you can probably imagine, foster homes without other dogs or with only female dogs that can also manage heartworm treatments are hard to find. Tripods Shyanne (below) and Iris (right) are in a similar situations, both needing foster homes without cats or small dogs until their forever families come along.”
Want to be a foster for these special cases? If you are “in the Dallas or Fort Worth areas and sometimes wonder if fostering would work for you,” get in touch with the GALT “foster team” at [email protected] 
Could be long-term, could be just days.
FYI: Shyanne, a rescue, isn’t really a Greyhound, but GALT has kind-hearted rules that allow for “maybe a Greyhound” to get some life-saving health. That’s the way good hearts work — Save the life and check the documents later.
And, GALT says, “If you find the fostering experience rewarding (and we think you will), you can move on to offering a place to stay for a hound like Pumpkin or Shyanne that needs a special place until their forever families find them. Read more about our foster program and complete an on-line application here.
CONTEMPLATIONS
THE WEEKEND ARRIVES

During the years that readlarrypowell.com has existed, we’ve written about thousands of dogs and cats and maybe a cruiseship-load of rescuers and advocates. We’d buy all those people an entertaining ocean cruise, except we know you can’t be away from your animals that long. So, call this a figurative award honoring the size of your darned good hearts. … 

As the weekend arrives and I’m out of medical appointments for a while, let me tell you that my powers of concentration are infinitely better than they’ve been the past month as I readied myself for all the lab tests and what they mean. My anxiety drives up my blood pressure — the BP I work daily to keep down to the national target 120/70. When I first started treatment for hypertension more than a decade ago, the goal was 140/90. I don’t know why the goal changed — maybe some pharmaceutical study involving patient help and stock prices. Oh, I’m kiddin’ those pharrmmillionaires. Thank Heavens they’re handy in the USA (and China, I guess.). …
We need a song that’ll help us all lower our BP for the weekend. I think it’ll take two numbers by the wonderful performers The Mills Brothers. Accompanied by The Boston Pops, here are The Mills Brothers with Basin Street Blues and Up A Lazy River.
— MAKE YOUR WEEKEND MATTER. Click on ‘comment’ below AND LEAVE A HAPPY NOTE. —-