The Zim Family Cocker Spaniel Forum

Hi, I'm Ashley! Max is our 5 y/o chocolate/tan cocker. He came home with me when I worked in a large animal shelter in Kansas City. I first met him during my first weeks on the job when I was helping with morning potty breaks. He was in the shelter for the second time in his short life just waiting to find his human. His big brown eyes melted me, but he had (has) issues. I also knew we had two cats at home and weren't in a position to have another four-leg. So, I did what rescuer's do when they fall in love and can't adopt. He lived in my office all day. We learned behaviors. I wrote a petfinder description with his great points and his requirements, vetted his adopter and followed up. All seemed perfect...until it wasn't. Max came back to the shelter 4 months later for dog reactivity and some health issues that his owner couldn't handle and then, knowing all his issues, he came home with me. That was two and a half years ago. We have a long way to go but he's come miles from where he started.

Dog stuff I'm into includes nutrition, homeopathic/holistic care, TCVM, Agility, Feisty Fido, training silly tricks, cooking for Max, doggie clothing (which he's mortified by, I think) mediating cat/dog disputes and snuggling with the "Mr. Wiggles".

Non-dog stuff includes murder mysteries, random knowledge acquisition, techno music, sewing and pattern design, cooking, crime drama's on tv and taking on new projects with the hope of finishing them someday.

I look forward to learning a lot from these forums since the collective is always more well-rounded than I can ever hope to be on my own.

Below is pic of Max and me right after he got back from the groomer.

I'm so glad you saw the good in that handsome boy. Welcome to the forum

Hello All,

I am Vickie's husband, Bob. Had read some of the posts from time to time but never registered (although Vickie urged me to do so quite regularly). Since we lost Miss Maxine, I was just overwhelmed by the wonderfull support, testimonials and affection given by forum members. I really wanted to say thank you! It really made dealing with the loss much easier. Was like a virtual wake in the nicest sense with everybody retelling stories and giving comfort.

So thank you again and bye for now,
Bob O.

Hi Bob (Vickie's husband and Miss Maxine's daddy) It's so nice you decided to log on to the website. Your entire family of furkids and wife Vickie are very special and we all learned so much through Maxine's stories and adventures. So thank you and Vickie for sharing her with us.

Maxine would have been just another rescued dog if it was not for Vickie's writing abilities. I'm sure that by now, it's well known that Vickie has some disabilities of her own. Much as we love all the furkids, Maxine with her disabilities and loads of spirit (to get into mischief), was very extra special to Vickie. Gave her lots of good material to work with.

I usually walked the dogs and used a retractable leash for Maxine. Found that the constant tension helpd her to guide her in the right direction. After a week though, she had memorized the sounds and smells of walking around the block... and often would lead the pack. I would have never expected that.
Having written that, I'm gettng a late start to work and will give Teddy, Annie and Cody a quick walk.

Bob

[quote="Bob O
Maxine would have been just another rescued dog if it was not for Vickie's writing abilities. I'm sure that by now, it's well known that Vickie has some disabilities of her own. Much as we love all the furkids, Maxine with her disabilities and loads of spirit (to get into mischief), was very extra special to Vickie. Gave her lots of good material to work with....

Having written that, I'm gettng a late start to work and will give Teddy, Annie and Cody a quick walk.

Bob[/quote]

Are you going to take them out or sit around posting all day?

Yeah Bob the puppers are waiting

You can post later......we all know how adictive this is but don't keep Cody, Annie and Teddy waiting

Have a nice day...

Beau here...

Hi Uncle Bob... ... I do read all the new introductions and must admit yours was...hmmmmm...Well, I can surly tell Auntie Vickie didn't write it for you...Love always, Beau.

uwncle bwob, u gwonna ware dose fwunny shwort pwants awgain?...SeBbY

Uncle Bob, I respect you, after all I am the The Princess and do respect royalty...Love Fred

Welcome, Bob. It's great you joined us.

You and Vickie gave Maxine a life she only could have dreamed of. You took her in her latter years and let her live life to the fullest. Then, of course, you shared those moments with us - via Vickie's wonderful posts. We keep telling Vickie there is a book in those posts.

Thanks for taking such good care of a very special pup!

Hi Ashley! Hi Bob! Glad to have both of you join us.

Ashley, I can't wait to hear more about your handsome Max;

and Bob, I can't wait to hear more about your life with Vickie, er, I mean, Cody, Annie and Teddy. You're a lucky man to have all of that happiness in one house.

My name is Maximillion Bearamus, but you can call me Max.

Max is the newest addition to our family (of which there is myself and my wife Lindsay). He's a three and a half month old buff, and boy is he amazing. It's been only a short while that we've had him as part of our family and he's already secured himself firmly into our hearts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXYhWZZNBvA
Max is Legen -- wait for it -- dary! [NPH reference]

Joseph

welcome, your boy is very handsome I am Susan and I am owned by two cockers Sam(blk and tan) and Chase (Sable and White parti). Welcome to the forum, you will find alot of people here, that are very informded about everything you could ever want to know,(and some you dont lol) about our breed of dog. Cant wait to see more pics of your boy.

Joseph, Max has a face to die for. He's a dollbaby. Welcome to the forum

I have been visiting this forum since April 2011, and thought it was time that I introduce myself.

I got my first cocker spaniel back in 1989; his name was Freckles (a buff). We had him for ten years. The day that we lost him, my mother and I were so torn up that we determined that we needed to replace him. We went out that very day and got Alex (another buff).

Alex was particularly close to my father who we lost in 2008 due to complications from Alzheimer's. He was a daddy's boy. We lost Alex in February 2009; he was blind, deaf, and had congestive heart failure.

We got Beauty (brown & white parti) and Angel (another buff) in April 2008; Mom kept looking in the paper for another dog since she lonely with Alex spending all of his time with Dad. I received an email at work where a woman was needing to get rid of her dogs. The woman was raising her grandson who had ADHD, and he was abusing the dogs. The grandson would take Angel by her tail (it is not docked) or a leg, swing her around, and then throw her against the wall. We also found out that he threw pieces of wood at the dogs. We later found out that both of Beauty's eardrums were burst. Beauty and Angel are the two dogs in the avatar picture.

In October 2010, we got Jimmie to replace Alex (red/buff). From the pictures on the forum, he was four weeks old. He has grown into our gorgeous boy (and does he know it!!).

In September 2010, we noticed that Beauty was having health and behavior issues. She would chew wires in two, tear sheets and blankets, break lamps, etc. She had surgery to remove two large bloody masses under her tongue that she was chewing on. At the post surgery visit, the vet informed us that he thought there were other issues but could not put his finger on what the problem was. In January 2011, Beauty went totally blind, started walking into cabinets and other items in the kitchen, and was dragging her hind quarters behind her. It was with broken hearts that we assisted Beauty in her trip to the Rainbow Bridge.

Soon after we lost Beauty, my mom informed me that she needed a new Beauty. We look at rescue websites, but ended up getting Beauty (2) from a private breeder. We put down our deposit; when we went back to pick her up, the breeder asked if we would consider taking her litter-mate (red & white parti). It didn't take much arm-twisting; we took home two seven-week-old puppies. The red & white parti is named Freckles.

On Maundy Thursday, we had a service at church. My mom suggested that I check my mailbox; I'm the church treasurer. In the mailbox was a picture of a black cocker with white markings. I went back into the sanctuary to find out who had put the picture in my mailbox. The church secretary stated that she did; the dog was in a kill shelter, and she hoped that I would be able to rescue the dog. On April 22, we got Oreo.

I found out about the forum on Zim's Family Cockers when I was looking for grooming information. I haven't done anything with grooming, but I have been lurking on the forum just about every day. I have learned about the best food to feed our furbabies. I have enjoyed reading the exploits of Rosey, Solo, and Star. I have learned how to handle any health problems that my mom and I might encounter.

I have enjoyed reading about your dogs. I particularly enjoyed reading about Isabel and Miss Maxine. When Miss Maxine passed on to the Rainbow Bridge, my mom and I cried as if she were one of our own. Vickie and Bob, blessings and best wishes with your new Jennie.

Here are pictures of our babies.

I couldn't get the last two dogs in my other email, so here's Freckles and Oreo!

Welcome,,,I love all the pictures of your babies,,,and I agree with you on how great this site and all the wonderful babies that are here. I am Susan and I live in NC and have two furbabies,,,Sam(blk and tan) and Chase(Sable and white parti). I loved reading your story and seeing all the wonderful pictures.

How wonderful! Welcome.

to the forum Joseph...Max is absolutely adorable

Julie Welcome to the fourm.....your furbabies are very cute Thanks for sharing!!!
You just about have one of every color.....LUCKY YOU I have 3 furbabies and thats my limit

Hi, I'm new to this board! I'm Taryn ... and I'm a SoCal transplant to Maine (BRR) ! My dog Bristol turned 1 a week or to ago ... and boy, is she a circus of color! I'm even unsure to tell people what color she really is; primarily a black/white parti ... but she does have blue merle markings on her hindquarters.

Bristol's favorite activites include chasing a ball, napping, eating ... and playing around with agility -- hopefully ready for her first Novice trial in the spring!

Welcome Taryn! Bristol is very unique looking. Love the half face. We have a few of the half-faces around here.

Hi and welcome,,I am Susan and from NC I have two cockers named sam(blk,tan) and Chase(sable,white parti),,,your girl and beautiful.

Hello! I'm Brandy from Mansfield / Grand Prairie, Texas. We're on the far south edge of the Dallas / Fort Worth metro-mess.

I had joined the forum back in 2009 when I first got my beautiful girl Vaquita and was trying to learn how to groom her.

Well, 2 years later, I'm happy to report a very much loved and well groomed puppy.



And I'm realizing that I have no good side shots of her. Argh.



Anyway, pictures aside, We're members of the http://dogscouts.org/About_Us.html Dog scouts, and love to go everywhere.

I work from home, and when she's not here with me, she's at work with my husband Jacob.

Basically rejoined because I was running into a wall with grooming and while her coat is about 2.5" long, its a fight to keep it from tying itself into knots and matting. When I first started, I got a set of Wahl clippers, and one clipper guard 1/2" length, and have been doing all her trimming with that and a pair of scissors. I didn't see any difference using the whitening shampoos from the pet stores so gave up and have been a bad mama and using my shampoo and conditioner on her.

So, I've been reading and reading and reading about how y'all take care of their coats, and am thrilled with the thought of the Coat Handler stuff. Maybe, Hopefully, that'll get her white bits bright white, and I'd love to see what I can do about taking my beautiful baby to the next level of pretty since she's an ambassador for good behavior as well.

Katelyn, welcome back!

Brandy looks so pretty. Looks like you are doing a good job of grooming. I was never that brave.

Hello Terry and thank you!

My name is Brandy, my cocker's name is Vaquita (pronounced Va-key-ta) We also have a new 5 month old mixed breed shepherd - something named Huyana (pronounced Hoo-yah-nah) They're both curled up asleep next to me at the moment.

Slightly older pic of Vaquita, her coat has grown out a lot since then.


Huyana - we've had her for 5 days.


I've got so many pics of Vaquita out and about... one out on a hike just last sunday.


Both of the girls napping in the back seat.