Mute Monday Topic: Spirits

Mute Monday: Places Revealed

Here are the answers. Because inquiring minds want to know.

Destin, Florida

(A.K.A. my family's vacation destination every year and in a couple weeks!)

Black Hills, South Dakota

(A little "burrito" walked up to our Jeep on the side of the road and said hi. I freaking WANT one.)

Kauai, Hawaii

(There are feral chickens ALL OVER the island; some with the most beautiful, bright colors)

Natural Waterfall ~ Kauai, Hawaii

(We got to swim and cliff-dive --only Jake took the plunge; I swam -- at the waterfall where the beginning of the first Indiana Jones movie was filmed. We also saw the cave where that big-ass rock came rolling out after Indy.)

Kauai, Hawaii

(Mom and I horseback riding on the beach. ABsolutely incredible experience.)

Mute Monday Topic: "Guess the Place(s)"

Mute Monday Topic: Clean

[Requires explanation not-so-mute: my first semi-foray into feeding my dog the Raw Diet. On today's menu... leftover steak scraps, pumpkin, baby peas and California Natural kibble. The result, a clean bowl and a doggie licking his chops for any remaining punkin. He LOVED the punkin.]

River's Sister, Emma

This is Liz's other baby girl, Emma.

Here's Emma's story, too...

From Liz:

I have been a lifelong dog owner, and after I married my husband, we lived in apartments that were too tiny to keep a dog of the size I wanted. Finally, in 2003 we moved to a house with a yard. I had been doing research on dog breeds for 5 years, and had come to the conclusion that I wanted an American Pit Bull Terrier. Their wonderful personalities, which combine equal parts nobility and goofiness, attracted me, as well as their "underdog" plight and the fact that they're so commonly misunderstood and misrepresented. I found out that a local dog trainer was also a very responsible pit bull breeder, and I contacted her to see if she had any adult dogs. She introduced me to Emma, the finest dog and most loving canine companion I've ever known. Emma was adopted out as a purebreed puppy from show stock, but was abused in her first placement, having been confined to a puppy-sized crate almost exclusively for the first 6 months of her life. When the breeder found out about the owner's irresponsibility, she took Emma back and rehabilitated her. Emma had rampant skin infections from lying in her own excrement and urine, and was bloody from elbows to paws after trying to dig out of her crate. Emma was nearly 2 when I adopted her, and she's been my constant companion ever since. She embodies all the best of the APBT: loyalty, gentleness, playfulness and a capacity for love that humbles everyone she meets. She transformed my husband, who had been attacked by a dog (German Shepherd) when he was a child, into a lifelong dog lover.

Mute Monday Topic: Outrage

[Warning: Graphic Images]

River's Story

Tomorrow's Mute Monday post, the subject of which is "Outrage," will feature photos of my friend Liz's pit bull, River. I wanted to give you her story and the happy ending complete with pictures before I post the "mute" portion. You'll see why. Tomorrow's photos will likely render you speechless, apropos of Mute Monday, and I promise you that you'll want to know there was a happily ever after. So here goes...

From Liz:

My husband and I were looking for another dog in early 2006 when we stumbled upon River's story. We had been the proud and happy owners of Emma, a rescued American Pit Bull Terrier, for nearly 3 years, and had grown to love the "Pibble" personality: equal parts goofball and steadfast friend and companion. Emma loves other dogs, and has no dog-aggressiveness, so we wanted another APBT.

I was cruising PetFinder.com when I saw a listing for a dog at a nearby shelter who had "special needs." My husband is an ordained minister, and I'm a clinical social worker who frequently works with "special needs" people, so I wondered what a "special needs" dog would be. I clicked on her profile and saw the photos of River, taken when she was first rescued in June 2005.

River was found chained to a street sign in Wilmington, North Carolina. She had been doused with gasoline or another accelerant and set on fire. When the good Samaritan who found her brought her to the animal hospital, she was a bloody mess, missing most of the fur and skin from her face and one side of her body. She was underweight and terrified, but showed no aggressiveness to the staff who tended her painful injuries. The Norman P. Wiggle Home for Wayward Dogs, a privately-owned no-kill shelter in the area, raised funds to pay for the surgeries River needed. After one eye was removed and her wounds healed sufficiently, River was sent to her temporary home. There she was re-socialized and given basic obedience and housetraining.

River's first two home placements didn't work out—she's a skilled escape artist, and can easily jump 4-foot fences. As soon as I read her story, I spoke with my husband, and Adrian and I scheduled an appointment to meet River. After socializing with our other dog, Emma, ensuring that they got on well with no dominance struggles, River came home with us.

River and Emma bring joy to the lives of everyone they meet. They have both completed beginning and intermediate obedience courses; my husband and I believe it is essential that River and Emma be good ambassadors of their breed. River shows a special intuitiveness toward people: when my husband and I return from a long day of emotionally exhausting work, she rests her head on our legs and gives us that one-eyed look that just melts us. "You're not alone," she seems to say; "I love you, and we're going to be okay." In my work with survivors of abuse and neglect, I use River's story to illustrate that our success in the painful process of working our way through woundedness lies in our ability to continue loving ourselves and others despite our pain. River's unconditional and enthusiastic acceptance of every new person and experience is the best testimony to the true nature of the American Pit Bull Terrier: no abuse, no matter how horrific, has the power to destroy their ability to love.

Please note: Tomorrow's post will have a graphic image warning. If you are squeamish, proceed with caution.

Mute Monday Topic: Food/Beverages

RIP, BarNone : (

Mute Monday Topic: MYTHS

This week's Mute Monday Topic is "Myths." I immediately thought of all the pit bull myths that are so popular these days. Examples: pit bulls have locking jaws, pit bulls have 2,000 psi bite pressure, pit bulls are eveeeel, etc. You've heard them all. I couldn't figure out an appropriate way to represent any of them visually and mutely (I get a bit soapboxy about this stuff) so I'll devote a future post to the subject. In lieu of a traditional mute posting, I'm going to show you my favorite destroyer of pibble myths.

From this month's Highlights magazine...

Can you find the pit bull in this picture? Look closely. There is one!

Do you see me?

Hm... I think my camouflage is working...

Hay! I'm right here! Does you see me nao?

Mute Monday Topic: Secretariat

You couldn't just give me 5 minutes to change into some jeans and a t-shirt before you carried me off?

Looking at all of that old B-movie art for yesterday’s Mute Monday post, I started noticing that an awful lot of them had something in common. See if you can pick up on the similar visual theme depicted on these sci-fi posters…

And finally, a slight change of pace...

And me in my karate pants. How embarrassing...