Howllo Fellow Hound and kid activity needers: Well, I have the pawfect suggestion for you today, this July the 4th. This will really come in handy if it is raining in your town, like it is in basset hound town. OK. Here it is, our newest fund-raiser! Susan and I are working on this together!

Have a child who loves drawing–especially drawing dogs? Want to help the senior hounds of HOP and have your budding artist’s masterpiece displayed in an online charity art exhibit?

Cat and I are seeking as many kids as possible under the age of 17 to create pup-portraits of the House of Puddles bassets and donate their creations to our charity exhibit & raffle (an idea inspired by the recent artwork created by our very own Limber Lou’s kids).

Kids are free to choose the HOPper they wish to draw as well as the medium they prefer to work in (crayon, marker, paint, colored pencilsit’s entirely up to them). Each original will be displayed in our online “Barkwork” gallery, and raffle tickets will be sold for chances to win these one-of-a-kind treasures (with all proceeds going directly to House of Puddles to support the senior bassets in Marilyn’s care). Only one entry per child please.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

1. Just visit the HOP Houndie Pages at http://houseofpuddles.org/HoundiePages.htm and have your kid(s) select the HOPper they’d like to draw. Remember, if you click on the name, there are more inspirational photos to spark the imagination. They are also welcome to choose one of the sweet hounds who have gone to the Bridge; their photos and stories are included on the Rainbow Pages: http://houseofpuddles.org/rainbow.htm.
2. Please e-mail us at barkwork@verizon.net with the name of your child, their age and which HOP pup they have chosen to draw (so we can keep track and know how many wonderful artworks to expect).
3. If possible, please have them use standard size (8.5 x 11) paper (card stock or construction paper is ideal) since we will be scanning these treasures for our online exhibit and they need to fit atop a standard scanner.
4. When finished, please make sure the masterwork has dried completely (if necessary) before mailing, and package it carefully. It’s best to place a clean sheet of paper on either side and sandwich the artwork between cardboard so it is not damaged or creased in transit.
5. Be sure to include a note with each artwork indicating the artist’s name, age and address and the name of the HOP dog they’ve immortalized (please avoid writing on the back of the artwork itself since the impression and lettering can sometimes bleed through to the front–and we don’t want anything spoiling these wonderful pup-portraits!). Only one entry per child please–so we can showcase as many kids’ art as pawsible.
6. Send to: Barkwork, 228 North St NE, Leesburg VA 20176–to arrive no later than July 25.
7. Important note: All submissions become the property of HOP and will be raffled to benefit the rescue. Some designs may be used by Marilyn for fun notecards or other promotional purposes, and by donating the artwork you are granting permission for these uses.
8. Join us for an online gallery opening on Friday, August 1, and see each child’s unique creation on display! All kids will receive a special Artist’s Certificate thanking them for their contribution.

Raffle ticket information and online exhibit links to follow!

COME ONE COME ALL AND CELEBRATE THE 4TH WITH THE HOPPERS IN MIND! THEY MAY NOT BE FIRE-CRACKERS ANY MORE BUT THEY CAN STILL EAT BURGERS! LOL

More Later about this special fund-raiser….Love, Cat, Chaps and Emma

P.S. I wish I could enter! Here is a drawing I did in 1998 of Lily Pad Serina VonFirstenburg Child, sleeping! I remember drawing it like it was yesterday. Sleep tight sweet girl and happy 4th of July. Love Mommy

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Howllo Fellow Hound and love at first sight lovers: Well, here is the moment I fell in love. It was October the 10th, 1994. That was the day I went to our local pound and found Natalie. She was the first dog in the first cage. I peeked my head in the room and we looked at each other and I knew she was mine. “I’ll take her, that hound in the first cage”. My life forever changed that moment. I will always cherish that memory and the time I had with her. Thank you Natalie, hound angel. You made me a much better person.

This is her and I right after I named her, pulling into my driveway. I wanted her name to rhyme with mine. Nat and Cat! We were a team.

My sister Caryn was waiting with her Great Dane so we could have a play date. They became best friends in short order.

More about falling in love later…Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and 4th of July Burger Lovers: Haha!

This is just a blast from the Burger past.

Every summer and some winter breaks from the time I was 10 through 16 years of age my family was lucky enough to travel the Northern and Southern Hemisphere in our VW Bus.

We took off the minute school was out and did not come back until the minute school was in.

It was a Bus Blast! Instead of calling it a camper, we called it a “cramper”! LOL See that pop up top? That was my bunk and I loved it!

These times are forever etched on my mind! As a family of 5 we had different duties. I loved to cook so, as soon as my Dad fired up the Coleman grill I was patting up the Cathy burgers for the family as they set up the camp site. Here is my continental recipe. It varied a bit from continent to continent but for the most part remains true. I have updated it with red wine which we did not have in the cramper. I cannot believe my Mom and Dad did not drink on these trips. I really feel sorry for them! hehehe

CATHY BURGERS

Saute mushrooms (optional), and garlic in butter until cooked. Add a dash (or 10) of wine and hot sauce as you like it. Simmer until the mixture is a sauce. Then dance around the campfire and make sure you have enough stuff for the family desert of pie irons.

You already have the best burger meat. You found it in the most wonderful tiny grocery story that day. Along with all your other stuff. My secret ingredient as a kid was Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix. We did not have wine so I added extra butter. When it got all soupy I added the Lipton’s Onion Soup package. Still the same today as it was in the 70s! Mostly salt!

Sometimes my Mom would spare an egg and pass it over. This really added a rich twist.

Mix all of this into that great burger meat you found! I was very diligent about picking out the meat. Only the best would do for Cathy Burgers! Sear the burgers and then cook them well. Yummy

The next thing —– buns! I always favored the rye buns. My family liked them as well. I still remember steaming them on top of the burgers. Don’t forget the best cheese in the world. Sharp Wisconsin cheddar!

The smell would drive my family wild and dinner was a delicious end to our day of adventure. As we ate as a family as the camp fire was burning waiting for our desert time. My Dad would make sweet pies in an iron that hung over the fire.

My favorite was blue berry jelly pie!

We talked about seeing Mount Rushmore that day and how wonderful it was.

we looked forward to the Golden Gate Bridge and our next journey! We all slept really good that night.

More memories and recipes later…..Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and Scully lovers. Everyone who reads this blog knows of of our Canadian girl friend Scully. I know we are a few days late dear girl, but happy Canada day! It looks like you and your family had a great time. Very touching sweetheart. We always love seeing the monster!

This video is going to be a Scully classic!

More Scully later….Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and walking Hounds Lovers: How the heck are y’all this great Wednesday morning. It has been very cool in the mornings here in KY for the past week. Very freaky but I loves it! hehehe, so do Chaps and Emma. My Mom and I call it DOG WEATHER!

We live on a street that is very near to our neighbor hood park.
So, off we go!

Here is Emmers resting at our first pit stop. We stop and have a drink of water with ice cubes. They both love it. Look how pretty our girl is!

The wind was blowing her ears and she seemed so happy.

This is Chappers resting by his favorite tree.

Opps, my lip is stuck. Sup with that? He is cute no matter what!

Can you believe how huge he looks? Chaps is one of the biggest bassets I have ever seen. He draws a crowd where ever he goes. He is wearing his lucky penny and the collar his Mommy, aka me, designed for him.

This next picture is our neighbor’s labrodoodle, Molly. Molly’s Mommy is the Mayor of Ft. Thomas. She is just as important as Chaps! Can you believe that two Mayors live next door to each other? Who would have thunk it?

I hope you enjoyed our walk as much as we did. The kids are sound asleep and dreaming of that squirrel that got away.

More antics later…Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and Fireworks Haters:

I really hate to say haters, but I do tend to hate them. My poor Chaps, Mayor of bassethoundtown is a wreak the entire night. This just came into my e-mail box from
Cesar Millan. I found it very helpful, so I am passing it along…..

START OF CESAR MILLAN NEWLETTER

More pets are lost on the 4th of July than any other day. I encourage you to take your dog’s safety seriously. Keep a keen eye on your dog during the commotion, and make sure your dog is wearing proper identification. It is natural for dogs to be afraid of loud noises. The sounds trigger their nervous system, and they can become nervous, afraid, unsure, or shy. Running away from the noise is a survival mechanism.

The best way to prevent this is to condition your dog to be comfortable with the sound of fireworks at least 3 to 4 months in advance. It’s a simple process, but it takes time. Whether or not you have prepared in advance, it is a good idea to take your dog on a very long walk before the celebration. If you normally take your dog out for thirty minutes, go for two hours instead. You want your dog to be completely exhausted; this way his brain will be so tired that he won’t even hear the fireworks! During the festivities, keep your dog on a leash to give you more control.

Remember, maintain calm and assertive energy. Don’t feel sorry or frustrated. Don’t blame the fireworks or the people setting them off. These negative emotions will just feed your dog’s anxiety; it won’t help the situation. If you learn that your dog is afraid of fireworks this 4th of July, start working now to condition him for next year. Don’t wait until the last minute to do something about it, and next year the 4th of July will be a walk in the park!

Stay calm and assertive,

Cesar Millan

END OF CESAR MILLAN NEWSLETTER

Well, I guess the Mayor has a long walk in store for him. He will L O V E it sooooo much.

I need the extra walk as well before I grill out gourmet burgers for my Mom and Dad!
I developed the recipe for “Cathy Burgers” when I was 13 years old. I used to make them on summer family trips out West and through Canada. I can remember grilling them on the old Coleman stove in many camp site locations!

I will reveal my recipe very soon, maybe tomorrow! Stay tuned……….

More Yummy blogs later…Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and Kooky Pup Lovers:
OMG! I love David Dowbyhuz. He is the master at painting and drawing bassets. You must see the drawing he did for Slobberfest 2008. It is called ONE KOOKY PUP! What a wonderful donation!

Slobberfest is July 12, 2008 and it looks so cool!

This Kooky Pup is a great reason to attend! Thank you David. You do so much for basset hound rescue and we love you for it.

More updates about Slobberfest later….Love, Cat, Chaps and Emma

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Howllo Fellow Hound and Emma Lovers:

My Dear Friend and bassethoundtown.com poet laureate, Ken Johnson, wrote this poem for Emma back in March, right after she lost sight in her good eye. It has taken me this long to post it. I wanted to do Ken’s poem justice by adding pictures and it was just too hard until now. Ken, you are so sweet and I love you very much. I know every one of my readers will enjoy this touching tribute to our Emma.

EMMA’S SONG
A POEM WRITTEN BY KEN JOHNSON – MARCH, 2008

THOUGH THE GIFT OF SIGHT HAS COME AND GONE,

MY HEART IS FULL OF LOVE, AND THAT GIFT IS STRONG

THERE WERE MANY THINGS THAT I USED TO SEE

BUT THEY ARE NOT WHAT MATTERS TO ME

IT’S MY MOM’S SWEET VOICE, HER GENTLE TOUCH

THAT MAKES IT ALRIGHT, I LOVE HER SO MUCH

NOW I SEE WITH HEART AND MY GOOD SENSE OF SMELL

THE SOUNDS THAT I HEAR ARE FAMILIAR AS WELL

THE THINGS THAT I LOVE HAVE NOT GONE AWAY

A NAP IN THE SUN ON A WARM SUMMER’S DAY

THE TASTE OF A TREAT IS EVER SO SWEET

AND CURLING UP AT MY GRANDMA’S FEET.

THOUGH LIFE IS NOW DIFFERENT IT IS STILL GOOD TO SEE,
FOR I STILL HAVE WHAT’S IMPORTANT TO ME

BY KEN JOHNSON 2008
BASSETHOUNDTOWN.COM POET LAUREATE

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Howllo Fellow Hound and “Coonhound” lovers: Last night Chaps fell asleep on the couch. He NEVER sleeps on the couch, he always sleeps with me. The temperature was a cool 58 degrees and I had him tucked under his Martha Stewart Fleece Blankee with a nice summer breeze blowing over him.

Well, all hell broke loose around 3:45. Chaps must have smelled the baby coons through his open window. He was running around like a black and tan coonhound! Begging Emma to help him in his quest to tree some coons.

Emma and I jumped up and I turned on the light in the front potty area and sure nuff, Chaps had treed two siblings. Emma chimed in like a pro.

The babies were so scared of Chaps barking that they ran up the tree and could not get down for over an hour. One of the coons was much smarter than the other and figured out how to get both to the ground and out the slats of the front potty area! It was a wild ride and Chaps is still proud of himself for treein’ two Kentucky coons. After all the excitement was over he got into bed with me and I tucked him under his Martha Stewart blankee for some sweet coon huntin’ dreams. Emma joined him.

Ah…..Summer time and coons are hungry. Cover those garbage cans my friends. Or your basset may become part black and tan coonhound!

More KY summer excitement later….Love, Cat, Chaps and Emma

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