A little dose of Me.

Look out for the advertisment on the screening!!!!

Daily dialogues at home while we are watching TV.

Scene1

Rusty : Woof….grrrrrrr..woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! (tail wagging)……

Me: shut up!!!! just shut up!!! haiyo paaaaa ask him to keep quite la…

Rusty: Woof! Woof! Woof!!woooooof!oof!oof!oof!

Pa: he’s your dog rite?

Me: Please la pa…he listens to you…

Pa: deeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiii You wanna go to your room ar????HA? HA? HA?

Rusty: Wooou woouuu wooof woof!

Pa: Deeiii! You dare bark at me ar!!!!! (jerking up from his armchair)

Rusty:(scrambles, picks up his bone and runs)

Pa: (smiles gleefully)

Rusty: (comes back drops his toy/bone infront of Pa and barks)

Pa: (Picks up toy/bone and throws it to the dining area)

Rusty:(Runs fast grabs toy/bone, runs on full speed and jumps on me!)

Me: Haiyooooooo Gundu!!! off the couch!!!

Rusty: (tries to lift his back leg on the couch, as if climbing)

Me: Off I said!! (Pushing Rusty off the couch)

Rusty: (Immediately tries to climb the couch again!)

Me: i said ooooooooooooooffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffa!

Rusty: (looks at amma with the toy/bone in his mouth…runs to her..and jumps)

Amma:eeeeehhhh ahhhhhh kaadikeran la sivaaaaa…deiii suma iruda deii! Videda! Giiithaaaaaa!

(translation: eeehhhh aaaaahhh he’s biting la sivaaaaa…deiii be quite deiiii leave me la! Githaaaaaa!)

Me: Rusty stop it!

Repeat Scene1 four times before moving on to Scene2

Scene2

Pa: Githa. Please put him in his room..

Rusty:Woof!!!

Pa: (gets up and moves close to rusty pointing his finger at his face) I tell you to be quite ha..never listen now you will go to your room!! You want to go to your room now???? (high tone)

Rusty: woooo…..(quitely walks to where amma is sitting..**for support -looks at amma. Amma looks away** …sits and finally lies down. His chin touches the floor but his eyes will move from me to dad) wooo..rrrrr….(grumbles)

Pa: Deiiiii

Rusty: (silence)(eyebrows move up and down)

Rusty’s birthday was last Sunday the 3^rd of September 2006. His first birthday!! I decided to have a small get together with a few friends to celebrate his birthday and this is how the story goes…

The day before 02.09.2006

In the morning, mom and I went for yoga class as usual…it was great…but i was interrupted by my sister at about 11.00 saying that she was reaching the sungei besi toll…(from JB) It was pretty weird because i was in weird positions when i had to answer my sisters calls..heheeh…i was lying face down with my right hand and left foot lifted of the ground ..at the same time holding my mobile with my left hand and speaking to her…..well at the end I left the hall to speak to her because she couldnt hear my whispers. I asked her to take the LRT to the Bangsar station so that mom and I need not walk out of our class to pick her up from pudu. Our yoga classes are held in the Bangsar Sai Center excellent teacher!! Anyway we left to pick her up at approximately 12pm.

We quickly stopped at Saluga Rajes in Bangsar to get our eyebrows done…they do excellent work too!! We then dropped mom off at home and came back to a shop in bangsar, ‘Balloons Bouquets’ to blow up one of the ‘Scooby Doo’ balloons I bought from the shop couple of weeks ago with helium. Right after that, we did a bit of shopping in giant to get the ingredients for Rusty’s Peanut Butter Carrot cake. For those who would love to make a cake for your dog…I’ve decided to make dog cakes during my free time….so just give me a buzz k….hehe..anyway…..ordered the cake for us to eat as well….I didnt make the cake for us because I knew there will not be enough time to make both cakes.

Mom was busy doing the final touches to Rusty’s black bow. The bow is made out of velvet material and so is the strap. Mom attached blue Swarovski stones and bluish purple sequins to the strap. As soon as we got home, I started on the cake….Mom decided to do the icing the following day in the morning….so she just cut the cake into the shape of a bone and let it cool.

Morning…..03.09.2006

First thing in the morning i wished Rusty a very happy birthday. He seemed more excited than the usual..hehe….anyway we started cleaning up the house and arranging the chairs and tables…Mom did a lot of work cleaning up…..Rusty wasnt very helpful..he just sat on his big bum and watched.

Gowri akka and I decided to blow up all the balloons and get all the decorations done.

Meanwhile dad decided to take Rusty out for a walk just to tire him out. Dad took him on a 30 minute walk, which really tired him out. This was done to ensure he is not too hyper during his party… After he returned from his walk, I gave him a nice good scrub. Towel dried him and put him in his room to rest for awhile.

Everything was done by 10.30am. Mom used creamy cheese instead of icing for the cake!! oooo how he lovesssss cheeeseeee!!!!

I decided to have my bath early because my darling sis wanted to go to the saloon….So we popped by to see if we could get our hair done on time…. the hair stylist said it would take only 10 mins!!! i could see the big smile on my sisters face…hahahha… I told her if she finishes blowing her hair first,she can take the car and collect the cake….yup her hair was done pretty fast…so i gave her the keys and she left …a minute later my hair was done!!! So i decided to wait for her…she didnt not bring her mobile along so it was impossible for me to contact her. I wasnt sure at that point of time if i had made the right decision by giving her the car keys..since she is hopeless with directions!! hahaha..sorry akka…heheh…well I thought I’d give a call to my best best friend Diva to see where she was…..and her sister Navina answers her mobile and tells me that she with my sis!!! Next thing i know i see my car pulling up infront of the saloon with Diva in the drivers seat!!! turns out my sis was trying to figure out how to get back to the saloon to pick me up and diva happen to be near Giant and she spotted my sis in the state of confusion..hahah..so she tried explaining to her how the get to the saloon but my sis was still not too sure…so darling Diva told her sister to wait in the car while she drove my car to the saloon. I then dropped Diva in front of Giant where her sister was waiting. It was already 11.45am. We rushed back home.

Afternoon….03.09.2006

Mom was anxious because it was time for guests to start coming and we were not home yet. There was a sign of relief on her face as she saw us match into the house…

I put Rusty’s bow on and he looked so handsome:) I would like to thank Diva for taking me to the place where I managed to get a ready made bow!!! Thanks babesss..muahhh!

I catered food from Sakuntala Restaurant in Klang…Anyone need a caterer.?.. please have Sakuntala Restaurant in mind..you can get the contact details from me….the food was good….mutton paratel, chicken sambal and 3 vege dishes. The food was delivered by Palani at around 12.15pm. Only then i realised….oh gosh i forgot to cook the rice!!!! I got nice scolding from mom because she had told me to order the rice from Sakuntala Restaurant as well but I think I got it the other way round. Thank god for Diva…she rushed me to a restaurant where we bought the rice..heheh…Thanks heaps babe!! what would I do without you??? muax!!! Then…..we rushed back and neelima, suri, susi, sharmila and Param where already there..hehe…..my uncle and aunty where there too… so we decided to have lunch first since some other guests had not arrived yet…

At around 2.15pm we decided to bring out Rusty’s cake. We sang happy birthday……but the poor fella was scared of the candle…hehe… he then slowly approached the cake and started eating the cake….he loved it!!!! he wanted to carry the cake away at one point! Hahha was funny….

My uncle mentioned that this is a memorable day because its the first dog birthday he has attended…hehe. Well there’s always a first for everything..right?

Ps: I managed to paint Rusty’s room as his birthday present. The 2 walls are painted with a stone colour and the feature wall is a light blue. I painted paw prints on the wall to give it more of a doggie room touch. The light blue wall had stone coloured prints and the stone coloured wall had light blue prints. It turned out pretty cute..

I would like to thank those who made Rusty’s birthday a memorable day..especially my mom, sister, dad and Diva. Muax!!!! Thank you Neelu for taking the video and wonderful photographs as well.. muahhh!

Looking for a gift??? Having a hard time deciding? A gift for a birthday? Anniversary? Valentines? or any special occasion…Bandhura has it all!!!

As i promised before here are some of the pictures of the bracelets… My mom has now ventured into using semi precious stones and pearls as well… I will soon come up with a brochure for those….

Swarovski Watches

An interview with Rick Warren (after his award winning book "Purpose Driven Life")

by Paul Bradshaw.

Rick Warren said:

"People ask me, what is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.

One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body - but not the end of me.  I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillion of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act, the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.

We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn’t going to make sense. Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort.

God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in  making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that’s not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ-likeness.

This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go  through a dark time, then you got to the mountaintop,  back and forth. I don’t believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it’s kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.

No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always  something good you can thank God for.

You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. If you focus on your problems, you’re going into self-centeredness, which is my problem, my issues, my pain. But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.

We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds  of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or  make it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a  testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people…

You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance this past year, all of a  sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me  instantly very wealthy. It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don’t think God gives you money or notoriety for you to own ego or for you to live a life of ease. So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.

First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.

Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church. 

Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan - to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
 
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for  free.
 
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions?  Popularity?  Am I going to be driven by pressures?  Guilt? Bitterness?  Materialism?  Or am I going to be driven by God’s purposes (for my life)?

When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and  say, God, if I don’t get anything else done today, I  want to know You more and love You better. God didn’t put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He’s more interested in what I am than what I do.
That’s why we’re called human beings, not human doings."

"If you want to see the world change, start it with you;   DON’T CHANGE, IMPROVE!!! Be nice to strangers….because you’re sometimes a stranger too…..;   

Never mistake knowledge for wisdom, one helps you make a living, the other helps you make a life"

Courtesy of SYBCportal

Our perception of the traits and characteristics that make us who we are is often tightly intertwined with how we live our life. We define ourselves in terms of the roles we adopt, our actions and inactions, our triumphs, and what we think are failures. As a result it is easy to identify so strongly with a decision that has resulted in unexpected negative consequences that we actually become that "wrong" decision.

The disappointment and shame we feel when we make what we perceive as a mistake grows until it becomes a dominant part of our identities. We rationalise our "poor" decisions by labelling ourselves as incompetent decision-makers.

However, your true identity cannot be defined by your choices. Your essence-what makes you a unique entity-exists independently of your decision-making process.

There are no truly right or wrong decisions. All decisions contribute to your development and are an integral part of your evolving existence yet they are still separate from the self.

A decision that does not result in its intended outcome is in no way an illustration of character. Still, it can have dire effects on our ability to trust ourselves and our self-esteem. You can avoid becoming your decisions by affirming that a "bad decision" was just an experience, and next time you can choose differently.

Try to avoid lingering in the past and mulling over the circumstances that led to your perceived error in judgment. Instead, adapt to the new circumstances you must face by considering how you can use your intelligence, inner strength, and intuition to aid you in moving forward more mindfully.

Try not to entirely avoid thinking about the choices you have made, but reflect on the consequences of your decision from a rational rather than an emotional standpoint. Strive to understand why you made the choice you did, forgive yourself, and then move forward.

Courtesy of SYBCportal

My mother has a passion for art, craft….basically anything that looks beautiful…

She has learnt many different crafts…Quilting, cross stitch, painting, ceramic work, wood work…the list goes on. She has been interested in craft since she was young. Her latest craze is bead work. She just loves doing it. So she has decided to start a small business doing bead work on clothes, bags…anything which needs bead work on it. I will update this blog with some pictures of her bead work soon hopefully.

She has decided to turn her passion into a small business. So if anyone is interested in getting any of your plain blouses, baju kurung, gowns, punjabi suits, sarees, skirts…or anything else beaded, pls contact me and I can guarantee the results will be just stunning. She charges based on the workmanship (design). You can supply your own beads or she can buy them for you. She can even make bracelets or neclaces to match any of your clothing.

I took this pic with a phone camera. This pattern is one a blouse.

close up

09/01/2006

Every morning the first greeting I receive as soon as i get out of bed and head downstairs, is that of my puppy Rusty Boy @Chelam, darling, etc. He is an english cocker spaniel, tan coloured and 5months old. He greets me enthusiastically with his tail wagging frantically as he jumps up at me. His long nails never fail to leave scratch marks on my thighs. "Good Boy!" with this statement he starts licking me like crazy. What a feeling to wake up in the morning and be greeted so joyously! oh what bliss!. I know the first thing he waits for in the morning is meeting me, my mom and dad. He waits in the room with his eyes glued to the door, listening and waiting impatiently for the kitchen door to squeak and his room door to finally open…( i’ve watched him through the back window! ). If his meal is given, he jumps and wags his tail profusely but if i were to walk out of the room, he would rather follow me than eat his food.He would get confused as to which he should attend to first.

He has got a different approach when greeting my dad. Dad just has to say "Come here Rusty Boyyyy..Goooooooooood Boooy" and he just melts. I mean he really melts, his cute bum and short tail just gets on to the floor and he slowly crawls forward towards my dad. He then lies down and just keeps wagging that short tail of his.

Well, all this last only for a short while. Then the ‘doggie’ drama starts. He gives me a michevious look and struts away. I know he is up to no good but i ignore him. he then goes to the bathroom grabs the slippers he has slightly chewed the day before, and purposely carries it with his small sharp teeth infront of me, looks at me then struts around me before running off to the living area. Then he awaits for me to come after him..which i always do. I say "No Rusty, Leave" with a stern voice. He does not give two hoots. I say it louder, he gets a better grib of the slipper. I smack his mouth, he tries to bite my hand. I then resort to opening his mouth by force. Then he immediately goes for something else which i do not approve of him biting. like the sofa frills. yes his sharp teeth has made a hole in the frills and yes my mom is very upset. This is when i start to scream. Now did i say ‘what Bliss’ earlier??? hmmmm…..

If he bites anything i disapprove of i say "No! Don’t" He will then stop what he is doin and start barking at me. He has even biten me several times when he gets too excited playing… leaving a small mark on my skin but i still love him dearly. He now pees and poos on newspaper i have laid in his room. He will run into the room to pee and poo. It’s very cute. We have removed the matt from the living area as he found it quite convenient to pee on it.

He also vacuums the floor everyday without fail. The floor is spotless especially the kitchen!!! Frm rubber bands, plastic to even coins!! I will have to dig it out of my little walking vacuum cleaner.

Apart from everything, he brings much joy and laughter to my family and he has never made me regret my decision to bring him into our lifes.

Ps: He is a good in posing for cameras too..hahahha… 

Since I had tough time deciding whether I should castrate Rusty, taking into account all those people out there who consider it cruel, I’ve done some research to help me make my decision without blindly following what some people have to say. I came across this acrticle and I’ve finally made my decision.

So I would like to share the article below with pet owners who are contemplating whether to go ahead with spaying /castration. This should ease the decision making process It includes the pros, cons and myths of spaying/ castration. Hope it helps

Written by : Ione L. Smith, DVM

Many people wonder about whether to spay or neuter their dogs. There are many points to consider, both for and against performing the procedures, and even more so for owners of dobermans because of the special needs of the breed. I hope this file will aid you in your decision.

People often use the term "spay" for females and "neuter" or "castrate" for males. However, technically speaking "neuter" or "alter" is proper for both sexes. For simplicity and clarity, I’ll use the words "sterilize" or "alter" throughout this document when I am referring to both spaying AND castration. "Intact" means that the dog has not been sterilized. Also, "bitch" is simply a term for a female dog and not an insult!

POINTS FOR STERILIZATION

1. Spaying a young bitch prevents most mammary cancers.

Spaying a bitch before her first heat reduces her chances of contracting mammary cancer *200 times* compared to intact females. Spaying after the first heat, but before the second heat, will reduce a dog’s chance of contracting mammary cancer 13 times compared to intact females (Schneinder 1969, Schneinder 1970). Mammary cancer is the MOST common single type of cancer in intact bitches (Bastianello 1983, Kusch 1985).

2. Spaying completely prevents problems with the uterus, such as pyometra and uterine cancer.

Pyometra is a serious infection of the uterus, which is usually expensive to treat and can often be fatal. It is a relatively common problem in intact bitches, especially after their heat cycles. Uterine cancer is relatively rare in dogs, but is also expensive to treat and often fatal. If the uterus is removed, these diseases will be prevented. Other diseases such as transmissible venereal tumor, cystic ovaries, mastitis, ovarian cancer, uterine torsion, and vaginal prolapse will also be eliminated.

3. A sterilized animal will never produce an unwanted litter.

Millions of healthy dogs are killed every year in animal shelters across the nation. In 1991, approximately one THIRD of ALL dog and cat deaths in the country were due to healthy dogs being killed in shelters (Koltveit 1991, Olson 1991). Millions of healthy dogs are killed every year, simply because there are too many dogs and not enough homes. Roughly 11-19 MILLION cats and dogs are killed in shelters every year (National Council 1994).

Let’s face it. There are WAY too many unwanted dogs out there. Sterilized dogs will never add to the overpopulation problem! Sure, many people think of themselves as being responsible owners who would never accidentally let their dogs have a litter of puppies — but the shelters are full of puppies produced by other people who thought the very same thing. Accidents will happen. Bitches in heat will dig under fences, jump over them, scratch their way through doors, or even breed THROUGH fences if necessary; and male dogs will go to the same extremes to reach a female in heat.

4. Intact females are in heat for two or three weeks at a time, usually twice a year.

During the time a bitch is in heat, it may be difficult to even walk her on a leash. Intact males will be seeking her out, and may even try to mate with her while you are on your walks. It will not be safe to even leave her inside a fenced yard during these times, since both intact males and females have been known to dig under or jump over fences, or even to breed through them.

While an intact female is in heat, she will be spotting blood all over the house unless she wears special protective garments. She may also be anxious, and frustrated during this time. Females will have to be separated from intact male playmates at these times, and will not be able to participate in obedience classes or competitions, play in the park, or take part in any of the other outdoor activities she usually enjoys.

5. Castration prevents most prostatic diseases in male dogs.

The prostate gland often becomes enlarged or infected in older intact male dogs. Diseases such as benign prostatic hyperplasia, acute or chronic prostatitis, perianal gland adenomas, and prostatic abscesses are common. Most of these diseases are eliminated if the dog is castrated (Cowan 1991, Krawiec 1992, 1994).

6. Castration decreases aggression problems.

Aggression problems are most common in intact male dogs, including dominance aggression (Line 1986, Crowell-Davis 1991) as well as fear-related aggression (Galac 1997), aggression between males (Hopkins 1976), and other types of aggression (Neilson 1997). Castration is a valuable part of the treatment for aggression problems, and is helpful in preventing problems from occurring in the first place. Roughly 50%-75% of the dogs who are castrated because of aggression problems will show signicant improvements or complete disappearance of their aggression. Of course, training is also an important aid in preventing and/or treating these problems! (Askew 1992, Beaver 1983, Blackshaw 1991, Crowell-Davis 1991, Fry 1987, Knol 1989, Line 1986, Neilson 1997)

7. Castrated males are less likely to roam, to mark furniture, or to practice other objectionable sexual behaviors.

Major behavioral benefits of castration have been known for many years, including decreases in aggression, roaming, mounting behavior, and "mischievous" behavior (Combemale 1929, Hart 1976, Heidenberger 1990, Hopkins 1976, Maarschalkerweerd, Neilson 1997, etc).

8. Castration completely prevents testicular cancer in male dogs.

Testicular cancer is the most common cancer of the male reproductive tract, and is one of the most common cancers of intact males overall (Bastianello 1983, Kusch 1985). Once the testicles are removed during the castration procedure, the dog is free from the risk of this disease.

9. Sterilization may help to prevent or treat other diseases, both infectious and non-infectious.

Some intact male dogs go through a "feminizing syndrome", which is related to sex hormone production. This disease can not occur in dogs which were castrated at younger ages (Dorn 1985). Older intact males also tend to suffer from perineal hernias, which are also prevent by castration (Dorn 1985). Several other sex-hormone related diseases occur in both intact males and females, and these are also prevented by sterilization (Heider 1990).

Some breeds of dogs tend to suffer from skin problems which are prevented or treated by sterilization (Albanese 1997, Kunz). Altered dogs also have a lower risk of contracting some serious infectious diseases, such as echinococcosis (Bessonov 1986, Shal’menov, 1984), brucellosis (a disease which is transmitted in the dog by sexual contact), intestinal parasites (Coggins), and parvovirus (Houston 1992).

10. Sterilization tends to increase an animal’s overall lifespan.

Altered animals are known to have a longer lifespan than intact animals overall. Sterilization appears to add approximately 2 years onto an animal’s life (Bronson 1981, Kraft 1996).

POINTS AGAINST STERILIZATION

1. Dogs may gain weight after being altered.

It is true that some animals may tend to gain weight after they are sterilized (Fettman 1997, Root 1995). The removal of the sex hormones may tend to slow an animal’s metabolism somewhat (Flynn 1996), although some studies have found no differences in weight between intact and sterilized animals (Salmeri 1991a).

However, many dogs are altered just as they are reaching maturity. At this time in their lives, even dogs who are NOT altered will be gaining weight and slowing down a bit, so any change you see in your pet may not have anything to do with being sterilized. If you DO notice a weight gain after your dog is altered, simply decrease the amount of food you are feeding and increase the exercise your dog gets every day.

2. Altered dogs may be taller than intact dogs.

It is true that dogs who are sterilized before they have reached full maturity may be slightly taller than they would be if they had been left intact. Sex hormones influence the end of bone growth after puberty. Since the sex hormones never arrive in dogs which are altered before maturity, the bones tend to continue growing for longer than they would in the intact dog. However, this difference is very slight overall — and the dogs being altered are NOT show dogs, so a little extra height is of little significance. Also, there does not appear to be any difference in size between puppies sterilized very early (6-10 weeks) and those altered later (7 months) (Crenshaw 1995, Lieberman 1987).

3. Sterilized dogs may become incontinent.

Some altered dogs may develop a problem with controlling their urine output. This is especially likely in females, but may also happen in males (Aaron 1996, Arnold 1997a). It is thought that this problem arises because the loss of sex hormones affects the strength of the urinary sphincter muscle (Gregory 1994). One researcher has claimed that incontinence may occur in as many as 20% of all spayed dogs (Arnold 1997a), but other vets believe this rate is much lower (Thrusfield 1993).

Fortunately, the problem may be as minor as a few drops here and there, and it is usually easy to control with inexpensive drugs such as phenylpropanolamine (Arnold 1997b, Heughebaert 1988). Sometimes estrogen replacement may be necessary. Incontinence problems may last for the rest of the dog’s life. However, incontinence may also disappear after a few months or a few years (Heughebaert 1988, Arnold 1989). Also, keep in mind that older dogs will sometimes develop incontinence even if they are left intact, so incontinence is not always related to sterilization.

4. Sterilized dogs are more likely to have problems with hypothyroidism.

A few dogs, especially bitches, may be more likely to have problems with decreased thyroid function after they are altered (Panciera 1994). Fortunately, thyroid problems are easy to treat with inexpensive thyroid supplements. Also, some intact dogs will also experience hypothyroidism, so most cases of hypothyroidism are not actually due to being sterilized.

5. Bitches who are aggressive before being spayed may become more aggressive after being spayed.

This appears to be a valid concern for owners of aggressive bitches (O’Farrell 1990). However, it’s an easy problem to avoid. If you have an intact bitch who is already aggressive, think seriously about letting her remain intact. If your intact bitch is NOT aggressive, spaying her is not likely to MAKE her aggressive.

6. Sterilization, especially spaying, is an invasive surgical procedure.

There are risks involved with any surgery, both from the surgery itself and from the anesthetic agent. However, the rate of complications is very low, and serious complications are especially rare. Especially with newer anesthetic agents like isofluorane and newer suture materials, there are rarely any serious problems. Significant complications of sterilization surgeries occur in roughly only 1-4% of surgeries (Pollari 1995, 1996). Also, the surgical procedure actually appears to be *safer* when performed in younger puppies, with less serious complications occurring overall in young puppies than in puppies altered at later ages (Fagella 1994).

7. Sterilization is expensive.

Surgical costs may be as low as $25 or as high as $300, depending on the size and age of the dog, whether the dog is male or female, and the area of the country in which you live. There are low cost spay/neuter clinics in many areas these days for people who can’t otherwise afford the procedures. And in some areas you will actually SAVE money by sterilizing your dog, if licensing fees are lower for altered pets.

8. The size of the external genitals may be smaller in dogs who are sterilized before puberty.

The penis of the male and the vagina of the female may be somewhat smaller in dogs who have been altered before puberty (Salmeri 1991a, 1991b). However, it is usually of little functional consequence to the dog. In a breed which is predisposed to urinary tract blockage, such as male dalmatians, this may be a problem; but in most breeds this is not likely to cause any medical complications. Very occasionally, bitches who were altered at very young ages may develop some skin irritation in the vulvar region (Jagoe 1988), but this also is not a common occurrence.

MYTHS ABOUT STERILIZATION

1. A bitch ought to have at least one litter, or at least one heat, before being spayed.

The chances of mammary cancer in bitches gets much lower when they are spayed before their first heat, as discussed above under "points for sterilization". Spaying a female before breeding her eliminates the chances of medical problems during a pregnancy or during birth or while rearing puppies. Also, puppies sterilized when they are very young (even as young as 7 weeks) actually have FEWER problems with the surgery than dogs who are neutered later (Faggella 1994, Howe 1997).

Before you let your dog "have just one litter", spend some time volunteering at your local shelter and see all the puppies and dogs who must be killed daily. Letting your dogs breed only adds to the death toll, and to the vast numbers of dogs already suffering from genetic diseases like hip dysplasia, von Willebrand’s disease, progressive retinal atrophy, and many other diseases which can only be avoided by careful planning BEFORE breeding.

2. Castrating male dogs makes them more likely to get prostate cancer.

No, this is not true. There is apparently NO significant difference between the incidence of prostatic adenocarcinoma in intact males vs castrated males (Obradovich 1987). The only difference is an increased spread of the cancer to the lungs of the neutered dogs (Bell 1991). And MOST types of prostatic disease are ELIMINATED by castration, as discussed above (Krawiec 1994).

3. Dogs won’t be happy after they’re altered.

Dogs are not like humans. They don’t look forward to having children, they don’t expect to raise children and worry over them for 18 years or so, they don’t dream of being grandparents some day. Male dogs don’t even realize that pups they produce are their own offspring. A dog’s reproductive urges are based solely on its hormones. Once the hormones are removed, the urges go away and the dog doesn’t miss them.

4. A bitch will become aggressive after being spayed.

This is rarely true. As mentioned above under "points against sterilization", a bitch which is ALREADY aggressive may become more aggressive after being spayed. But the vast majority of dogs — those who are NOT already aggressive — will not become aggressive simply because they have been altered.

5. Dogs who are sterilized when young will be less stable and tend to have more behavioral problems than dogs who are left intact.

There is no substantial evidence to support this myth. Dogs who are altered early in life may sometimes be more active than their intact counterparts, but it appears that there is no other significant behavioral difference between dogs neutered very young (7 weeks) and those neutered later (7 months) (Salmeri 1991a). However, it has been well known for many years that altering dogs actually helps to decrease several significant behavioral problems, as mentioned above under "points for sterilization".

Also, consider this: Service dogs, such as seeing-eye dogs, are almost always altered before being put into service. Many dogs participating in advanced obedience competitions are also sterilized. Obviously, dogs must be very mature and stable in order to fill these jobs, and the surgery is performed because it actually INCREASES their stability by removing the distractions of the sexual cycles.

6. Behavior problems can be prevented by good training and socialization, so sterilization isn’t necessary.

Good training and socialization are definitely essential to having a healthy happy companion. However, even the best-trained dogs in the world can have behavior problems. Remember, the sex hormones act on behavior at a very fundamental level, so those effects may override even the best training. Because of the effects of sex hormones, especially testosterone, intact male dogs are at the highest risk of any dogs for developing aggression problems (Beaver 1983, Blackshaw 1991, Galac 1997, Line 1986, etc ).

7. If I castrate my male dog he won’t protect me any more.

Castrated dogs may actually be more protective, because they will no longer be distracted by the temptations of breeding. Instead of roaming after dogs in heat, or fighting with other males, he will be paying attention to you and you alone. In fact, one recent study has found that castration has NO effect on aggression towards unfamiliar people (Neilson 1997).

8. Only the dominant wolves in a pack get to mate, so intact dogs in a household won’t be frustrated if they don’t get to mate.

What do adolescent wolves do? They either leave the pack, start a pack of their own, challenge the dominant pack members for dominance, or help the parents to raise their future siblings. Do we want our pets to leave or to challenge us? Are we going to breed more puppies just so our intact dogs can have relatives to help raise? No. We want our pet dogs to enjoy living with us, not try to establish dominance over us.

Also, remember that our domestic dogs ARE NOT WOLVES. They act very differently than wolves do in many important ways, so we can’t count on wolves to tell us how our dogs will behave.

9. My dog would make really great puppies/I want to have another dog just like my dog, so I’m going to breed him/her.

Roughly 25-30% of all dogs in shelters are purebreds. Even if your dog is AKC registered, that doesn’t mean that the dog should be bred. Before ANY dog is bred the owner should prove that the dog will actually improve the breed. Thorough health testing, including tests for genetic diseases, should also be performed.

Also, your dog is a unique individual. There is no guarantee that puppies will resemble their parents in looks or personality, especially if the parents are mixed breed dogs.

10. Breeding dogs is a good way to make money.

The only people who make any money from breeding dogs are those who don’t care about the health of their dogs or the quality of the puppies they produce. Responsible breeding requires health testing and medical care, as well as careful consideration of the pedigrees of the parents, their temperament, and whether their puppies would actually improve their breed or merely be more fodder for the shelters.

Medical costs before breeding will include extensive health testing, which may include xrays, blood work, tests for infectious diseases like brucellosis, tests for genetic diseases like von Willebrands, ultrasound exams to check for heart problems, CERF and BAER exams to check for eye and ear problems, and other additional tests depending on the breed of the dog. Medical costs after breeding will include pregnancy tests, ultrasound to check the progress of puppies, perhaps caesarian section if the dog has trouble giving birth, vaccinations, worming, tail docking and ear cropping in cropped or docked breeds, and veterinary care if the puppies should become ill. And that doesn’t even consider stud fees, registration fees, travel costs to get to a stud, expenses to show your dog and prove that it’s worthy of breeding, or the time you must invest in the mating, pregnancy care, whelping, feeding and cleaning the puppies, visits to the veterinary hospital, or advertising and selling the puppies.

11. My children should see the miracle of birth.

First, dogs usually give birth in the middle of the night when the children aren’t going to be around, and dogs prefer to have quiet and privacy during birth. If the mother dog is disturbed by children or too many other witnesses, she may become stressed and abandon the puppies or even kill them. And, of course, there are already too many puppies dying in shelters every day.

Second, if you want your children to learn responsibility through caring for a puppy, there are many great puppies waiting for adoption at your local shelter. If you want to see the miracle of birth, you should first witness the miracle of death by volunteering at your local shelter for a few weeks. And there’s a better alternative: if you want to witness the miracle of birth, rent a video.

12. We can find good homes for the puppies.

For every puppy you breed and place in a new home, a puppy or dog in a shelter may die because it wasn’t adopted. There simply aren’t enough homes for them all. And even if we ignore the puppies in the shelters — are you SURE your puppies are going to good homes? Are you following them in their new homes throughout their lives? Are you willing to take the puppies back if their new homes don’t work out? If you produce a puppy, you are responsible for it throughout its entire life.

13. We should leave our dogs as Nature intended them.

There is nothing "natural" about today’s domesticated dogs. They have been created by many generations of human breeding. We have brought pet dogs into our homes, and we are responsible for their well-being. Dogs benefit in many ways from being sterilized, and suffer few serious consequences.

Sometimes, we think life is unfair. Sometimes we think why is this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this? I have come to realise that I have asked myself this question numerous times in my life. As time goes by, the truth unfolds and I come to know the reason why these ‘things’ happen to me.

So now, when something unpleasant happens to me, I simply accept it without any questions. Of course I hurt but I know that HE has a plan for me and I know HE will not bestow upon me something which I cannot handle. I know somehow one day, I will find happiness.

What is happiness really? Is it having family, friends, work,husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, children or a home ? Is it being spiritual? Or is it living in luxury? Do we live for the happiness of others or rather what we think will make us happy? Why are we worried all the time? Everything we do, we somehow worry…

I know I am unfulfilled..like something is missing in my life, but I just do not know what it is or why I have this feeling.

I am on the road ..in search of happiness…