My Top 10: Trinity

I write a lot about my pets on my blog but today I'm going to start focusing on things that interest me. Well, maybe I'll do both. I'll do a top 10 things about a certain subject. First, I'll start with something that is really easy to write about...Trinity. So here goes.

The top ten reasons why (in no particular order) I love Trinity...

She loves to sit pretty for the camera.

1) She's super cute. Of course because that's the reason I got her.
2) She's quiet calm at home. She's really calmed down since she's left her puppy hood stage.
3) She's non-destructive. I've never had to worry if she's chewing on the walls, pulling apart the trash or clawing at something.
4) She likes to go around in circles in the back yard at random times. It's super cute!
5) She's very smart. She learned how to 'shake' when she was 4 months old and learned the voice command after only saying it 5 times. (BTW I'm not exaggerating on this one) She also knows a bunch more tricks but I've run out of tricks to teach her :(
6) She love's people and other dogs. She will play with any type of dog, big or small! Her best friend's a 20lb terrier mix!
7) She gives the best kisses!
8) When she goes to get a drink her chin beard gets all wet & drips her water all over the place.
9) She hogs Zach's pillow at night.
10) She's become quite a well behaved dog. She's been listening to my voice commands and I love that! Hey she should be after 3 obedience classes!

And of course here's a few pictures of her tricks.

Here is 'beg'

'Beg' going into 'put 'em up'

'Put 'em up'

The Truth About Trinity: Her 1st Day Home

The last time I left off was with Trinity being placed in my arms for the very first time. It was such a wonderful moment that I will cherish forever. She was a scared little pup. She didn't want to walk on the leash so I had to carry her to the car. I was super excited to have my puppy, she even sat on my lap the whole way home. It was March and we still had snow on the ground so needless to say my lap was soaked. We took her home and the first thing she did was go into our bedroom and climb under the bed. Here she is coming out. She was so tiny back then (18lbs at 10weeks) that she could fit.

We took a lot of pictures of her. Here she is playing with Zach.

 Here's her big nose!

 Posing for the camera. She loves to do that!

 Cookie Dough didn't know what to think out of this 'big' thing running around the house. She wasn't used to something else chasing her. So, what did she do? She ran underneath the T.V stand so Trinity wouldn't get to her. Here's a picture of Cookie coming out from hiding while Trinity naps. She was very careful not to wake her.

 Finally we had a sleeping puppy. Here she is all passed out with her ducky.

We should have known that she loves to dig because she was digging in the snow on her first few days home.

That night she slept in between us. She was still uneasy from being away from her mom that she wined if I didn't have my arm around her. The next day I had to go to work and Zach said she was trying to look for me all day. She's such a sweetheart! That's MY puppy!

Cookie Dough: The Reasons Why I Love This Cat

Cookie Dough. What a crazy name for a cat! Well, yes it is. But there's a reason for that. She is a crazy cat. These are the reasons why I love her.

1. She'll eat anything, anything eatable that is.
2. She loves to run and jump all over the place. Any time she hears the noise of a window being opened, she runs right where she thinks it's being opened. This means even if the window hasn't been opened yet. Yes, she has fallen off of window ledges before.
3. She's such a good playmate for Star. Star was the only cat before we took in Cookie Dough last year. She was lonely for awhile, but now they play all night long. Believe me, we can here them running back and forth in the hall outside our room.
4. She loves to lay on you, but only when it's cold out. I can definitely tell when the weather is getting cooler because she will curl on my lap when I'm on the couch. But she doesn't do it during the summer, it's to hot for her.
5. I'm always reminded that she once was an outside cat. She likes water and being in the bathroom. It's her favorite place in the house.
6. She's always following me around the house. Until we got Trinity she was at my side all day long. 
7. She's good at taking pictures. As seen above.
8. She's got crazy cat eyes when she hears something odd.
9. Her beautiful coloring.
10. Even though she's two she still acts like a kitten. Enough said! 

I love my cats just as much as I love Trinity. Cookie Dough is no exception. I feel like she's got a little bit of my personality in her, the wacky, crazy side. Not the stupid side. (We tend to call Cookie stupid a lot.)

My future blog posts about Cookie Dough: Why we took her in & Cookie Dough's first night inside!

Dog Training

I am and have always been an animal lover. As a child I dreamed of working part time and running a animal rescue out of my home. I foresaw a nice house, on a few acres of land, with a custom built dog house for the dogs I would rescue. But as I grew older my child hood dream fell to the way-side. I do not work part time as I hoped (I also saw myself married to a rich man who would make all the money. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?). I also do not run nor manage a dog rescue group. But I did do my part for animal rescue. I adopted this adorable little pooch

And I rescued these precious ones as kittens.

Maybe in time my dream will surface but for now I will advocate for the animals in need.

Now on to my purpose for this post. When we adopted Miss. Trinity I had in mind that we would train her ourselves. Then, I thought to myself. Well I've never trained a dog before and Zach was young when he first got his golden, Goldrush (Mr. Goldrush to be more exact) so therefore he has never formally trained a dog. Mr Goldrush did know some stuff like "Hurry up if you want treats" and  "nose-level" but I'll get to his 'tricks' at a later time. But here's a sneak peek at him. What a handsome little senior he was!

Here's her certificate from puppy kindergarten!

I looked online for a place to take Trinity to for puppy kindergarten. I knew I didn't want to take her to Petsmart or Petco for training. I wanted to be able to have her go into agility and those places are not equipped to do it. Plus, those places take in people and give them a quick course to go threw and bam! your a "dog trainer". Well, that's not exactly how it works. I finally came across a dog training place in Franklin, which is not too far from our house.

So in May we took her for a drop in class on a Saturday to see if we liked it. We didn't just like it, we loved it! We signed her up for the next available class and now I'm hooked. We've done Puppy Kindergarten, 2 courses graduate puppy & 2 courses of puppy agility. Were going onto our third graduate puppy class in December, the dogs are allowed to be in it up to a year old and she still gets to have play time.


We're holding off on her agility for now (I'll let you know why at a later date) but eventually I would like her to get her Canine Good Citizen and I want to start her in some beginner competition obedience classes. We have a long road ahead of us but I know she can do it. She's done great so far!

The Truth About Trinity: Transport Pick Up

Getting Trinity was a very short and easy process. As I have previously said we adopted her through P.S I Love You Animal Rescue located in Arkansas. This is where her mom still lives with her family.


The weekend prior to getting Trinity, Zach and I went on a puppy shopping spree. We got all of the essentials for her. We bought her a collar, leash, food, toys, treats, bones, and her meal dishes. I did set it up to get a pre-puppy photo shoot. Thank goodness we got a mat for her bowls because she does like to dribble her water all over the place.

Trinity was placed on the transport on Thursday, March 3, 2011. She took the 1,400 mile, 2 day drive from the south all the way up to Connecticut. I was very nervous about her going on the transport. This was going to be the first time she was away from her mom and siblings. It was her first time in a vehicle. She was going to be in a crate and surrounded by other dogs she did not know. But I try not to think of it like that. I think of the wonderful people at Alpha Dog Transport who stayed with the dogs on the trailer and who gave each dog a short walk every four hours.

I took the day off of work so Zach and I could pick her up. We decided to go a little early to check out where the pick up was. But instead we went to Target and bought her more stuff. I just couldn't resist, I was going to be a new mommy!

We got to the rest stop and walked up to the trailer. I was both nervous and excited all at the same time. I was wondering, how will she be? Is she as sweet as she looks? Will she be the perfect pet that I have been imagining her to be? But most of all I was wondering, will she get along with our cats? Then, I handed the staff my license. I told them we were there to pick up Dot from P.S I Love You. They went back into the trailer and out they came with the most precious puppy I had ever seen. They came out with MY puppy! All of the wondering went out the door as the man said, "I've been doing this for a while. You (Zach) get the paper work. And you (me) get the puppy." I was smitten from that very moment.

Of course I forgot to take pictures of picking her up at the transport. But I did take many pictures of her at home. I have the rest of her life to take pictures of her. My precious baby!

Stay tuned for: Trinity's first day home & Meeting her adopted human and doggy family!

The Truth About Trinity: Her Mommy's Story

Well, for anyone who doesn't know Trinity was adopted. I love a good adoption story and hers is a good one. I promise.

Trinity's mom Daisy

Trinity's mom's family was looking for a second dog for their family. They decided to get a dog for Christmas. So, they went to their local animal shelter in Arkansas and picked out the cutest black dog. Trinity's mom was fairly young at the time, probably a year old. Well, a few weeks after having her she had puppies! Yes, that's right she was pregnant in the shelter. Now, the shelter that she was at was a kill shelter. If you don't know what that is, it means they will euthanise a dog for aggression, overpopulation or pregnancy. It was very lucky that she was adopted because if they found out that she was pregnant they would have killed her and her 3 little puppies inside her. So Trinity's mommy is a very lucky dog. Not only to be adopted by such wonderful people who went to there local shelter and adopted, but because she is a BLACK dog. In the south they have a stereotype for a black dog called "black dog syndrome" where many dark dog's are overlooked because of their appearance. Trinity's mom was 6 weeks into her pregnancy when she was adopted. She had no signs of pregnancy because of her thin, frail state. But despite all of that on December 28, 2010 little Trinity, Indiana & Jackson were born. Look how small and pudgy they were

From top to bottom: Trinity, Jackson & Indiana

She's my little miracle baby and she doesn't even know it. She has always had a family to protect her and love her. So, even though she's not technically a rescued shelter dog she was 2 weeks away from it. I thank the Lord every day for such wonderful people who opened up their home so I could open up mine for such a happy, loving dog.

Me and my Trinity

P.S You can find Trinity's adoption story here on Petfinder.com!

Summer Activities

Now that the summer has passed and fall is here in New England. I want to share some things that Trinity, Zach & I have done during the hot summer months.

In May we went to our Niece/Goddaughter's birthday party in western Mass. She turned the big 3! Isn't she cute? Apparently I never got a good picture of Trinity.

In June she got spayed. This was her still waking up from being under anesthesia.

 July started our swimming lessons for Trinity. Zach's parents put in an in ground pool to much of all of our delight.  Trinity had to be carried in by her Uncle Matt. She did get the hang of swimming and learned where the exit was very fast!

After she got out of the pool, she was very wet and shook off vigorously. My niece & nephew call her 'porcupine dog'!

In May we started puppy kindergarten at Master Peace. She graduated in July.

In August we went to the beach with her cousin & Auntie Lisa. I searched for awhile for a beach to take the pup to. Unfortunately all of the beaches on the RI coast all prohibit dogs. But I did find one beach in Plymouth, MA that lets dogs on the beach. It was also much cheaper for parking & a lot less crowded than in RI. Trinity really enjoyed herself on the beach. It was also my nephew's first time at a real beach! Next year Trin & I will bring my niece!

We went on many walks in the woods this summer. Zach had a vacation and we all went for a nice long HOT walk in the woods!

She also has had MANY play dates with her Aunt Lady, cousin Calypso , and her late cousin Jewles.

Trinity & Lady after a long play session

Calypso came over our house one night

Trinity & Jewles drying off after a dip in the lake

As you can see, we have been bringing Trinity everywhere and anywhere we can. We want her to be comfortable around many situations. She still has some progress to make, but in the 8 months we have had her she has progressed so much. We look forward to bringing Trinity on some fun trips this summer.

The Truth About Trinity: The Adoption Process

Adopting a dog was one of the most wonderful and satisfying experiences I have ever done. I love the fact that I did not 'buy' a dog. I felt like I made a difference because Trinity was not 'breed' by someone. I feel that adoption is the best way to get a dog. Saving the life of a dog is wonderful. Although I'm not against responsible breeders, however you can get a pedigree dog via adoption.

Well, like I previously stated, I found "My best friend for life" just searching around on Pet Finder. I e-mailed the rescue group asking if they still had the 'German Wired Haired Pointer' puppies available. I waited that whole day for a response and the next day I finally got one. They still had all of the puppies available so I said I wanted the 'tri-colored' one. I filled out my application and then received an e-mail from the person who runs the rescue group saying that she would be in contact with me the next day.

This was wonderful news! I was ready to go and meet 'my puppy' and see how cute she was in person. Seeing as how they were 'located' in southern Connecticut an hour and a half away from me, I was ready to go the next weekend to see her.

I received a call two days later. I spoke with the woman from rescue group I had e-mailed. She told me the name of her rescue group was called P.S I Love You and they were located in Arkansas. Arkansas? I was confused. I thought they were located in CT and they were called 'Serenity in the Sun'. She explained to me that they transport there puppies to New England to provide for more adoptions to be made. She said that they transport many dogs to New England and the transport company they use has been doing it for many years. I told her I would have to think about it and talk to Zach about what we would do. On that same day I talked with the 'foster mom' of Trinity's. She told me that she's a big girl and was 8 weeks old. I then asked a bunch of questions about the puppy to see if she was the dog for me.

When I got home from work I talked with Zach about how we would get her. I was very worried about getting a puppy from another state half way across the country. I was also concerned about paying for a puppy and never getting it. There are always horror stories about that. I did research about the rescue group and I talked with some people who got there dogs from P.S I Love You. They told me great things about the group and Alpha Dog Transport. So Zach and I took a leap of faith and said YES to getting 'my puppy'.

Then a week and a half later I got my very first puppy of my own!

Blog post's to come: Trinity's first family & The day we got her from the transport!

The Truth About Trinity: How I Found My Best Friend For Life

I have always been an animal lover. I had a dog & cat at my dad's house when I was young. But my mother is allergic to them so I never had one when I lived with her. So for 14 years I never had a pet in my house.
When my husband & I bought our house we adopted 2 cats. My husband had a golden retriever that was 15 when he passed in 2009. As he is also a dog lover, we felt like our house was missing something...a PUPPY!! Well, eight months after we got married I asked Zach if we could get a puppy for the summer. He said "yes" (of course I knew he would) and the very next day I looked on pet finder.

 My criteria for a dog was:
1) A large dog, I love big dogs
2) A puppy, I wanted to raise my dog from baby to adulthood 
3) Black, my dog as a child was a black lab mix and I love a great, big black dog
4) A pointer, originally I wanted a German Short haired Pointer pedigree puppy. I had researched about them and love there overall personalities. But when I looked for a breeder in the area it was WAY to expensive. Then I realized what I really wanted to do was adopt a dog.
5) A girl, I don't know why but I wanted a girl dog.

Well, I put in my search for a baby, pointer, with in 100miles from my house. And there she was. This little cutie ---------->
My heart just melted.
I looked at Zach and said, "Do you think we could get a puppy now?" And he said, "Why did you find one?" I handed him the laptop and he said "Sure" That was it, I knew I found my best friend for life. I put in my application and waited nervously for a response. But that's a whole other blog post.

My First Blog Post

This blog is about me & my daily life. I just got married last year.

I have 2 cats Cookie Dough & Star.

I just adopted my pup in March. I'm totally obsessed with her, hence my blogs name 'Trinity's Love'. These are my adventures with the love's of my life!