Sunday, July 18, 2010

Extreme Mutt Makeover 2010

Many of you have followed my blog for a while but for those that have not you may not know this . . . last summer I participated in a new event called "The Extreme Mutt Makeover" where they took 10 shelter dogs and paired them with trainers for 6 weeks. During that period the dog lived with us in our home and endured our care and training for the event that took place over a weekend. You can go back to the archives and see all the blog posts I did on Harry and his adventure with me from August-September of 2009. It starts with this post.

I never thought I'd be so nervous about something that really had no bearing on anything . . . except the life of the dog I had, "Harry". Harry was absolutely a doll. He looked just like a dog on TV and he was goofy, smart and fun to be around. He was also a bit of a challenge in that he was very active, needed lots of mental stimulation and exercise. He was probably only about 7 months old when I got him, making him the youngest of the dogs in the event which did pose a little more of a challenge for me. However, he was truly a great dog and full of fun. Everyone who met him loved him and he loved everyone. Harry now has a home with a wonderful couple that is active and takes him everywhere. They were a perfect fit for him.

No one could quite understand the emotion the trainers felt during this whole process, and even we didn't see it until the final days of that competition. All the trainers actually became very close during the entire event. I had put a Yahoo! message board together just for the trainers and we all talked almost every day on that board with triumphs, tears and anything else our dogs threw at us. A couple of the trainers lived in Austin and so it was great to see the diverse group we had.

I would have instantly qualified to be a trainer in this year's event but with a toddler at home and my own dogs I felt I wouldn't be able to put what I needed to in it, as it was a bit challenging just for me last year. So, I've kept up on Facebook with their page and also this year each dog in the competition has their very own Facebook page! The event is going to be amazing and I can't wait to go watch. We have all sent emails to Oprah to see if see what we can do, yeah it's a stretch but you never know until you try!

Here is a video that Patti Colbert, the woman behind this wonderful event, had done professionally from last year's competition. Of course it really does bring back a flood of memories for me and I cry every time I watch it. . . . enjoy, and come out to see the event this year! August 13, 2010: 12:00pm - 3:00pm, Will Rogers Memorial Center, Fort Worth, Texas.

Click here to view this video

1 comment:

  1. stacy, thank you so much for sharing this. I put it on my FB page as well. The video gave me chills and tears (happy tears). Awesome job!!! Woofs and hugs!
    Lisa and her pack!

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