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For Limoncello’s 9th birthday, she took a hike through Camp Ockanikon!
We are lucky enough to have a YMCA Camp Ockanickon in our “back yard.” This 800 acres csmp is located in the heart of the South Jersey Pinelands.
This is alsp were I took Lager for first hike on March 31, 2016, where he was accompanied by his 2-legged cousin, James.
Rita’s first hike was also at Camp Ockanickon on July 11, 2016. We took the same route as we did on Lager’s first hike!
Each Thursday during June through October, The Old Oar House Irish Pub hosts a “Doggie Date Night, ” where dogs are welcomed to join you as you dine in their outdoor seating area. A portion of the proceeds from your food bill goes to the Cumberland County SPCA. This particular Doggie Date Night was a very special (and rainy!) one… Margarita and her heart-throb and fellow English Pointer, Mr. Spock, helped out the Cumberland County SPCA, and got engaged!
Margarita got Mr. Spock some special engagement gifts!
And Mr. Spock had a good friend make Margarita the most perfect and beautiful engagement necklace!
There were lots of party decorations and favors!
All our 4-legged friends go dressed up for the PAWty!
And lots of people and pups came to the PAWty even though it was raining – I bet you they came for this yummy homemade cake!
We’re Engaged!
Margarita showing off her new necklace:
The happy couple enjoying some of their engagement cake together:
What a fun night with good food, friends and pups! Best of all, we were able to help out the Cumberland County SPCA!
This was our first time at Iron Plow Vineyards. This is a newer winery to our area, and they have some really different tasting wines.
We enjoyed a wine tasting, then a glass of wine…and Rita enjoyed the air conditioning!
The rescue we volunteer for, GSP Rescue of NJ, covers all of New Jersey, parts of New York, and assist other recognized out-of-state GSP rescues in urgent situations. In addition to rehoming GSPs, they also work with owners to help them with any issues they may have with them. In emergency situations, the rescue will also reach out to help English Pointers.
GSP Rescue of NJ offered to help a female English Pointer, known as Penelope. Although the rescue was willing to help this poor girl who was found as a stray, our foster homes were full, and there was no one available to foster her. This meant that Penelope could find herself in a shelter. Although we do not usually foster, we decided that we just couldn’t let this skinny pretty girl end up in a shelter. On March 3, 2016, we committed to fostering Penelope so that she could begin her road to recovery.
She was transported to the rescue’s vet, and was examined. Penelope was emaciated, appeared to have had many litters, had a lump on her neck, and severely damaged and rotted teeth. She also had a cut on her tail and her belly. While at the vet, she was supposed to have dental work done, and also be spayed. The dental work took so long, that not all needed teeth could be pulled, and the spay could not be performed due to the length of time she was under anesthesia. She had a total of 6 teeth pulled. The vet set her up with a future appointment for continuation of dental, her spay, and removal and biopsy of the lump on her neck.
Another rescue volunteer, Mandy, was nice enough to pick Penelope up from the vet and meet me half way to cut down on my 2 hour drive-time.
Penelope was a great passenger, and rested calmly for her ride to our home.
Once home, we introduced her to each of our fur-kids individually on lead by meeting out on the street and taking a short walk together. After the initial greetings were over, we gave her some time to explore the yard on her own before we settled her down in a crate.
In just the first night and day that we spent with Penelope, we got her to sit for a treat, and sit-stay for a picture. She does not appear to know basic commands, but is very food-driven and eager to please. She did wonderfully in her crate, ate well, and slept soundly.
We introduced her to our cat, Loki, and she seemed to be just fine with him.
We also introduced her to fellow rescue friends Jen and Grace’s male English Pointer (Penelope LOVED him!) as well as our friends’ two GSP puppies. She did amazing with all the dogs, and had a very fun-filled, exhausting day!
We will be fostering Penelope until she has her vetting complete, and can be adopted.
Click HERE to view a public photo album of Penelope!
Update! Penelope has been adopted – by US! Meet Señorita Margarita!
The Ocean County Decoy and Gunning Show is one of our favorite competitions to attend. This event was the first DockDogs event in which Brian and Cello competed in 2013, when we met Annie, Matt, and Bailey from The Little GSP! Not only is it very close to our home, but the GSP Rescue of NJ also sets up a table here – and they are one of just many REALLY cool vendors at this large festival. We especially love that we can compete, and still volunteer the pups as donation dogs in between their jumps! This was also an especially thrilling event, because Lager won First Place in Senior Division Big Air finals! Another exciting part of this event, is that a friend and fellow GSP Rescue of NJ volunteer, Jen C. , as well as Jenny’s sister Dana, both jumped Cello… AND got medals!
LIMONCELLO:
Big Air:
21’9″ 22’3″
Finals: 22’5 22’2″ 4th Place Elite
Extreme Vertical:
5’2″ 3rd Place Cadet
Speed Retrieve:
7.972 seconds 5th Place Turbo
**FIRST PLACE WARRIOR IRON DOG!
HOOCH:
Big Air:
23’3″ 20’11” 2nd Place Elite
22’0″ 21’9″
22’2″ 22’5″
Finals: 22′ 7″ 23’4″ Third Place Elite
LAGER:
Big Air:
16′ 19’0″ 2nd Place Senior
18’6″ 18’11” 2nd Place Senior
18’2″ 18’6″ 1st Place Senior
Finals: 19’8″ 19’5″ 1st Place Senior
Extreme Vertical:
5’10” 1st Place Cadet
We were extremely proud of all 3 of our pups! They earned several awesome ribbons and medals!
The Liver Killers were pretty exhausted after performing so well, and slept in a Pointer Pile the whole way home!
Hooch had never been to a dog park yet, so we took Cello and Hooch to John Connolly Memorial Park, in Voorhees, NJ.
Hooch was having a blast chasing Cello and the Chuck-It ball – UNTIL a huge male Great Dane puppy decided Hooch looked like a cool dude to play with. The Great Dane wanted nothing but to run with and chase Hooch – but the size of this immense pup scared poor Hooch to death! He ran away barking like mad, and ended up running to his mommy for safety! The poor Great Dane had no idea why Hooch did not want to play with him! Hooch was pretty spooked at that point, so we left the dog park.
Hopefully visit #2 will go a bit smoother for the Hoochie Coochie Man!
Hooch and Cello in action:
Of course Cello wanted nothing but to chase her ball, so nothing or no one phased our ball-crazy gal!
We tried very hard to get Santa Photos that would benefit a local shelter. We have always done this with Cello in the past. However, this year, we just couldn’t find any that would work with our schedule. I began to search online – and found that the Moorestown Mall in Moorestown, NJ, allows dogs in the mall for Santa photos on Monday nights!
When we got to the entrance of the mall, there was a red carpet leading all the way to Santa in his chair! Boy was it crowded!
Cello waiting patiently:
Cello and Hooch waited in line on the red carpet waiting to see Santa and made friends along the way!
This Santa was GREAT! He was patient, and extremely good with the all of the dogs! He even stayed past 9pm (closing time) in order for all dogs to be seen!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all!
After our wonderful experience at The Green Leaf Pet Resort and Hotel, we decided to enjoy a glass of wine at Cream Ridge Winery, which was only 10 minutes down the road.
Dogs are allowed inside the tasting room!
Cello and Hooch did well on their “Place” mats, and we enjoyed a tasty glass of Sauvignon Blanc !
The wine was great, and the staff couldn’t have been more friendly to both us – and the dogs.
Each person working stopped what they were doing to come over to say hello to Cello and Hooch!
Margarita visited here on July 24, 2016
We camped at Atlantic City North Campground for Cello’s second dock diving contest ever held at the Ocean County Gunning and Decoy Festival. We chose to camp here again for the same event in 2014.
Our campsite (#107) in 2013:
Same campsite (#107) in 2014:
…This time with Hooch!
…With our 5th Wheel in 2015 (now with Lager!) and 2016 (now with Margarita!)…our last trip with our 5th Wheel before trading it in! 
Margarita enjoyed her walks at Atlantic City North Campground:
Margarita is learning to “adapt” to the GLAMping life:
Whiskey stayed here in 2018 for the first time!
After helping us complete a home visit for potential adopters for the GSP Rescue of NJ, Cello and Hooch enjoyed some vanilla ice cream at a local favorite spot…
The Sand Stand!
Cello enjoys her vanilla ice cream reward for helping us with the home visit:
Hooch tries his first taste ever of ice cream (vanilla!) and loves it:
Brian and Cello enjoyed sitting on the bench outside The Sand Stand:
Rita visited the Sand Stand for the first time as well in May 2016!
The Rusty Nail (“The Nail”, as it’s known by the locals) is a well-known legendary surfer bar that dates back to the 70’s. They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner at The Nail, and of course, host an incredible happy hour with live music. Kids meals are served on a souvenir Beach Shack Frisbee, creating something for the little ones to do after they finish their meal and are waiting for the adults. There is indoor seating, outdoor picnic table seating, a fire pit, sand pit, and shuffleboard – this place has it all! Even the four-legged kids are welcome here!…and not only are dogs welcome, they have their very own Doggie Menu!
From the Doggie Menu, Cello enjoyed a Bowser Beer for starters, and a Nail Burger for dinner!
From the regular menu, Brian and I ordered the Baja Grilled Fish Tacos and the Jersey Style Lobster Hoagie to share. 🙂
Jessie Creek Winery was such a pleasant surprise! A couple who we ran into at a winery earlier in the day had told us that they did not like the wine here, nor was the staff friendly. Luckily, we decided to form our own opinion, and stop at this winery for a tasting. At Jessie Creek, the vineyard is harvested and processed on site by hand.
Not only was the girl presenting the tasting extremely nice, but the owner (seen far right in the above picture) was super friendly, and very interesting to speak with. He gave us lots of information on all of the wines we were tasting, and was a joy to converse with. The wine tasting was only $5, and included a taste of all of their wines, and a souvenir Jessie Creek wine glass to take home!
After our tasting, we enjoyed a glass of our favorite wine from the tasting on their porch with friends, Brandi and Stan.
The property also has a beautiful farm house built in 1846 that has been converted into a bed and breakfast.
I am so glad we all decided to stop at this vineyard despite what we were told!
Again, a recommended winery to stop at while in the Cape May area!
Cello visited Natali Vineyards during our stay in Cape May.
The winery was setting up for a festival when we were arriving.
Even through they were getting ready for a big event later that day, everyone at the winery was helpful, friendly, and laid-back! The people here are super-friendly (very dog-friendly too!), and very knowledgeable about their wines and what foods to pair them with. Natali offers a variety of wines – some really unique, such as strawberry, plum, cherry, peach, blueberry, cranberry, and banana wine!
We learned a lot about their wines as we participated in their wine tasting, before enjoying a glass of wine on their outdoor patio with friends, Brandi and Stan.
We would definitely recommend a visit to this winery if you are ever in the Cape May area!
CHEERS!
Willow Creek Winery is a 50 acre vineyard located in Cape May, NJ. They offer a variety of wines, including red and white sangria.
The grounds are gorgeous!
We enjoyed a glass of the sangria with friends, Brandi and Stan, out on the patio at Willow Creek.
Light fare and tapas are offered here for purchasing and enjoying either in the tasting room, or out on the patio. An outdoor bar at the patio is almost completed, where they plan to serve wine slushies… YUM!
After a hard-days-work of being a donation dog at Working Dog Winery, Cello made a stop for some dinner…we were all hungry!! PJ Whelihan’s was the perfect place to grab a bite to eat!
PJ Whelihan’s is located in Medford Lakes, NJ, a 1.2 square mile town with 22 lakes, and over 150 log cabins!
PJ’s has outdoor seating that is dog friendly. Cello was so well behaved, and enjoyed lots of attention from everyone!
Cello was very interested in my sangria!
Rita visited PJ Whelihans in May of 2016!
Check out PJ Whelihan’s events if you are ever in the area… it’s a fun place to relax and enjoy some food and drinks!
Meet Bob!
Today we did a transport for Pointer Rescue, Org (PRO). We picked up an English Pointer named Bob in South Jersey, and drove him to an airport in North Jersey for a private flight! Bob started out in Tennessee and is in transport to his foster home in Maine!
We had the pleasure of spending an hour with him in the car as we drove him to an airport in North Jersey, to meet Sam the Pilot. During our ride, Bob was an absolute angel…he played with his chew toys, enjoyed looking out the window, and snoozed on my lap for over a half-hour!
We picked up Bob from PRO volunteer, Kelsey:
Look at this face!…
Catching a snooze…
Soaking up the lovin’…
PRO volunteers Sam and Jaya offered to do a leg of this transport by AIR in Sam’s plane! (How cool is that?!) Sam and Jaya flew Bob to Connecticut, for Bob to catch his next car ride closer to his foster home.
Bob going out to the plane with Sam and Jaya:
Sam boarding the plane (look closely – Sam is lifting Bob in to the plane in this picture):
Bye Bye, Bob, Jaya, and Sam! (Video of Bob taking flight!)
Views from Bob’s flight:
…and thanks to Sam and Jaya, Bob safely landed in Connecticut:
Best wishes to Sam on the rest of his car rides to Maine…and to finding a forever home and family to start his new life with !
Unfortunately, English Pointers end up as strays, abandoned, or (if lucky) in rescue because like German Shorthaired Pointers, they are very active. The English Pointer is also bred to be a hunting dog who can work in the field ALL day long. If not properly exercised, these beautiful pups can be a bit too much for people who have not researched the breed before getting that cute little puppy they fell in love with. Sometimes pointers are given up by hunters because they don’t hunt well or are gun-shy. Pointers are extremely sweet and loving and are sure to charm their way into your heart!
Thinking of a pointer? Think rescue! the Pointer Rescue, Org (PRO) is a non-profit group of coordinators and volunteers across the United States dedicated to the rescue of purebred Pointers (sometimes called English or American Field Pointers). Contact them to inquire about Bob, Pointers in general, or to find out how you can volunteer to help this wonderful breed!
Last Sunday, Brian and I drove out to Allentown, PA, to pick up one of 2 English Pointers pulled from a high-kill shelter in Kansas. The rescue in their area was full and had no foster homes available, so the German Shorthaired Pointer Rescue of NJ volunteered to help out. The female English Pointer, Amira, was being picked up by her foster parents. This is Amira:
Max was a very excitable boy, and was alert for most of his 2 hour ride to Southern NJ.
After some nice ear rubs, Max finally felt comfortable “giving in” and taking a nap!
Brian and I took Max to our house, where his foster dad was picking him up. Max’s foster dad wound up staying at our house for a good 2.5 hours while Max and Cello played their hearts out – bot inside the house and in the snow outside in the yard! I regret not taking pictures during that time to share…but I was too overwhelmed with joy watching the two play so well together, and thinking about how this wonderful dog, once discarded, is about to begin the best part of his life!
Cello was worn out from all of Max’s energy and slept like a baby that night!
It took many volunteers to transport these two English Pointer pups from Kansas to New Jersey… Thanks to everyone who helped these two cuties on their way to a better life and a forever home! If you are interested in Max or Amira, please email the German Shorthaired Rescue of New Jersey at GSPrescueNJ@hotmail.com .
UPDATE: MARCH 2014: BOTH MAX AND AMIRA HAVE BEEN ADOPTED!
Thinking of a GSP but don’t live near NJ? Think rescue! The National GSP Rescue lists regional GSP rescue groups across the United States and Canada. If you are interested in adoption, volunteering, or would like information on how to surrender your dog to rescue (Please do not surrender GSPs to a shelter or abandon them!!!!), please contact the group that covers your state or region. If there is no contact listed for your state, you can email the National GSP Rescue at rescue@gspca.org . A GSP rescue will help match you up with the perfect GSP for your family!
German Shorthaired Pointers are often discarded, given up, abandoned, and returned due to their high energy level and strong hunting drive. Some are discarded by hunters because they won’t hunt, or they may be “gun-shy.” We have fallen in love with this sometimes misunderstood breed. ..So…Cello, Brian, and I have been volunteering for the GSP Rescue of NJ. We have made phone calls to vets for background checks and references, visited GSPs in shelters to evaluate them and offer the help of the GSP rescue, called potential adopters for initial screening, and to go over their application, and have done home inspections for potential adopters. Cello has even volunteered as a donation dog, wearing a donation vest and “working the crowd” with her cuteness at events such as the Ocean County Gunning and Decoy Show in Tuckerton, NJ. We recently decided we could help out a bit more…so we signed up to pick up and/or transport GSPs to their foster homes, and to foster a dog if needed. This past weekend, we were able to help two GSPs who were on the “urgent” list in Kentucky …they were scheduled to be euthanized. Here is the story of the rescue of Penny and Perry…
Meet Penny and Perry…
About two weeks ago, A regional GSP rescue group in the Kentucky area contacted the GSP Rescue of NJ about Penny and Perry because the rescue’s foster homes were full, and they would not have been able to save Penny and Perry from a kill shelter in Kentucky. Penny and Perry were found roaming in Perryville Battlefield State Park, in Perryville, Kentucky.
Penny and Perry were brought to a kill-shelter, and held for the required amount of days to see if their owners would come forward. No one claimed them after the hold-period was over, and they were placed on the euthanization list. We received an email from the GSP Rescue of NJ to see if anyone could foster these two sweethearts, or to help pick them up from transport. Two members quickly offered to foster. When I had seen the email, no one had responded to do the pick up and transporting, so Brian and I volunteered to do this. Just after the regional GSP Rescue group in the Kentucky area contacted the GSP Rescue of NJ, a woman in Kentucky came in to the shelter and adopted both Perry and Penny.
…But not even two days later, the woman returned Penny and Perry to the kill shelter because they were “too hyper.” The regional GSP rescue in the Kentucky area got back in touch with the GSP Rescue of NJ, and foster homes in NJ and pick-up and transport was again set.
Early this past Saturday morning, Brian and I took an 1hr and 45 minute road trip to pick Penny and Perry up from their Kentucky transport. I cried as soon as I saw them – – both were skin and bones, and severely dehydrated..but as Brian brought each one out of their crate to put a slip-lead on them, each dog stood up on their hind legs, put their front paws up to Brian’s chest, and kissed Brian with appreciation. These two dogs were so sweet loving!! It was heart-wrenching to me that no one claimed them in the first place, that they were returned to a kill-shelter by someone who didn’t understand the breed – -and that these two loving dogs were close to being euthanized!
Brian and I had no crates to transport them with , so I rode in the back of our truck with Penny and Perry…for an hour and 45 minutes, these dogs smothered me in love and puppy kisses. Here are some pictures from the ride home… and then when Perry got to our house.
We arrived back to our house with Penny and Perry, and walked them around the yard and provided plenty of water for them both. Penny’s foster family picked her up right away (I bawled my eyes out, as I had already became attached to these two wonderful dogs!!) Perry’s foster parents could not pick him up until Sunday, so Cello was going to have her first sleep-over!
We bathed Perry, gave him plenty of access to water, and fed him. Although extremely affectionate, Perry knew no basic commands, and did not have leash or house manners. Brian took Perry out on the street in front of our house, and I brought Cello out to meet Perry… both Cello and Perry were very happy to see each other! We walked them together down the street, and then back to our yard. When we were back inside our fenced-in yard, we let Cello off her leash…but Perry had already tried to leap our fence while on his leash, so we were unable to let him wander the yard off-lead. Luckily we had beautiful weather and were able to spend the day and most of the night outdoors. (Perry was not house trained, and had a bad case of diarrhea!) While outside, Perry saw other dogs, people, bikes, and cars go by our yard, and he did not once bark – he was such a good boy!! My aunt and uncle came to visit, and Perry greeted them gently, without jumping, barking, or being rough. Perry’s tail did not stop wagging from the time we picked him up from transport, until we saw him leave with his foster family!!
Perry
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Perry finally settled down and took a nap out by the lake!
When we came inside, Perry got a visit from my mom, who brought him over some nice treats to enjoy.
Perry immediately became attached to Brian – and became upset if Brian was out of his sight. …So Brain loaded up a crate with nice soft fluffy quilts and blankets, and put the crate right in front of our couch. Brian slept on the couch so that Perry would not be upset or alone. Perry did very well throughout the night. He was very content sleeping next to Brian, and whimpered each time he was about to have an accident (Brian ran him outside about 6 times that night due to his loose bowl movements). Overall, Perry did great!
In the above picture, check out the bottom quilt…my mom had given us some quilts and blankets she was going to get rid of so that we had some bedding for Perry. One of the quilts she gave us was mine as a kid (and has to be over 35 years old at this point!!) It’s a Life Savers candy quilt… but how cool/coincidental is that?!?!… LIFE SAVERS, and we are using it to help this GSP who would have lost his life if it wasn’t for the volunteers at several GSP rescues! I thought the Life Savers quilt was just too cool!
Cello was a polite hostess, and Perry was a great house guest. Perry’s foster family came to pick him up Sunday morning (more tears and sobbing on my part…!)
Both Penny and Perry need some basic training, but are two beautiful and affectionate German Shorthaired Pointers, and are now in their foster homes and up for adoption through the GSP Rescue of NJ. Penny has been renamed Casey by her foster family, and Perry is now referred to as Chester (short for Winchester) by his foster family. Pray that these wonderful dogs find their forever homes quickly!!
Thinking of a GSP? Think rescue! The National GSP Rescue lists regional GSP rescue groups across the United States and Canada. If you are interested in adoption, volunteering, or would like information on how to surrender your dog to rescue (Please do not surrender GSPs to a shelter or abandon them!!!!), please contact the group that covers your state or region. If there is no contact listed for your state, you can email the National GSP Rescue at rescue@gspca.org .
A GSP rescue will help match you up with the perfect GSP for your family!
UPDATE: BOTH PENNY AND PERRY HAVE BEEN ADOPTED!! YAY!
UPDATE ON “PERRY” (NOW CHESTER) on 02/20/2014: Here are some pictures of a very happy and healthy Chester at his forever home sent to me by his loving family!
