Hello all :o)

Spring is sooner recognized by plants than by men.  ~ Chinese Proverb

  Meee is so pumped about springtime arriving soon. 
Cannot complain about having a harsh winter this year but still, cabin fever is inevitable in the cold winter months when everything around us is gray. So at my house everybody is ready for the pawsome greenery that springtime brings along.

Speaking of greenery, Meee has an interesting and educational story...
My Mommy posted awhile back on Yorkiespice, a picture of my Bro, Ray resting comfortable on the couch. In the background of that picture, one could see this healthy looking houseplant spreading its leaves on the back of the couch. 
Well, a very observant Lady who happens to be Miss Tink and Miss Buff's Mommy, asked about that plant and if we were aware that it was toxic for furbabies. When my Mommy saw her comment, her first reaction was, No way! Needless to say that she dropped everything she was doing at that moment which just so happened to be getting our dinners ready, Argh! got on her computer and to her shock that beautiful houseplant named Golden Pothos was on the list of poisonous houseplants.

Immediately, she relocated all those plants up high and out of our reach even though, Meee and my siblings never paid attention to them before. She vacuumed the room thoroughly and an hour later that evening we finally got our dinners. Sigh...

We are all so thankful to Miss Tink and Miss Buff's Mommy for catching the danger living among us. 
On that note, we should all be aware now with springtime just around the corner, of all the hazardous indoor and outdoor plants. Meee thought that the following link is very informative of such dangers:

http://www.denverplants.com/foliage/html/Poisonous_Plants.htm 

Another important thing to keep in mind this time of the year, are the lawn chemicals many Humans do not think twice before applying. Our Pawrents use only the organic weed control and when we go for our walks, we always stay away from the lawns that have those flags saying that pesticides were applied.

Wishing you all a Blessed Spring and Meee would like to conclude with Robin Williams' quote: ~ Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!"

Love to all,

Neeko ♥      

This month Missy came to us with a hernia the size of a small watermelon she had lived like this for over six years.  Please read her story and thanks to all who are supporting this effort. 

This month we also had Zoe, Chanel and Willow please look for them on our special needs pages also.  We couldn't do it without you.

February

Contributions to General Fund for Missy

Paula Fonseca

Jennifer Carnahan

Gail McLarnon

Lois LeBleu

MaryElizabeth Dugmore

Julie Klushnik

Marguerite Mobley

Karen Fratesi

Kathryn Schuller

Sandra Flolo

Toni Lowery

Cheryl Rohder

Michele Dawn

Janis Kuykendall

Patricia Blackmon

Helen Tompkins

Vicki Gilfix

Amalia Spaulding

Brenda Jasper

Jackie Barone

Darlene Kanuch

Diane Cuomo

Pricilla Byars

Patricia Kushnir

Deborah Lindbery

Candice Cambra

Corrine Ellison

Daianara Laureano

Elaine Leshnower

Betty DeAcetis

Karen Whinnery

Contribution of Dinks Memorial Fund

Sondra Dulaney

Contribution to General Fund in Memory of MaryElizabeth's Mother

Michele Dawn

Contribution to Liver Shunt Fund in Memory of MaryElizabeth's Mother

Corrine Ellison

Contribution to General Fund for Zoey

Diane Cuomo

Contributions to General Fund - unrestricted

Lana McClure

Leigh Cambra

Elaine Widner

Carla York

Peggy Munke

Stephanie Schulz

Kevin Michael Barba

Alan & Karin Nakashima

Tiymesha Maggini

MaryElizabeth Dugmore

Margaret Brown

Contribution to General Fund for Willow

Pamela Mindt

The CONTEST
Well, Ruby came in 2nd place! We are proud, and so thankful to so many of our friends, especially from YTNR who voted, and asked their friends and groups to vote! I think we had the most votes, but there were other standards to meet, as well! We got a million "YOU WAS ROBBED" messages from kind friends, but we are good sports, and knew it was for a good cause! BUT, I will have to say it was a nice way for more of our friends to get to know Ruby, and see her talents and sweetness! She LOVES to make people smile, just like Jilli and Spidey! She is indeed a blessing... :) 

We are soooo looking forward to the YTNR Gala in the Fall, in upstate NY!!! I look forward to seeing so many of you there, and hope that many more can catch it! It is a wonderful time!!! So much interesting and fun stuff to do, and soooo many people and their Yorkies to schmooze with... :)  I love the hospitality suite that MaryElizabeth and others puts together, where we can all drop i all day and into the night, to hang out, chat, have snacks, and just feel like it is a 'Yorkster Place To Be'... And of course, me and the pups will be doing a show, at the Sat night dinner, and I hope that the Dugmore family will do their wonderful musical show!? Last year, the whole event was sent out, LIVE, over the internet! So, COME ON DOWN!-) (or is it 'up', or 'over'?-) 

I enclosed two pics from our weekend. Please excuse that the 1st one is blurry, but it caught just a heartwarming moment, that I thought you would appreciate it... The Yorkie Specialties Boutique, at the NY'er Hotel, gave us a place to set up the "TEAM JILLI DOG AREA!", where we did mini shows/seminars during the specialties! It was a great success and so nice to have a place we called home, where we did meet and greets, shows, interviews, and just hung out with friends! OK, the 'picture' that I was referring to: during a break time, we met and did a private show for the legendary actress, Celeste Holm, who starred in many classic movies such as 'Gentleman's Agreement' and 'All About Eve', and starred with actors like Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra. She is 95 yrs old, and since Jilli is about 14, that definitely gives them a common bond, when you figure dog years. Well, Ms Holm was at the ringside, and suddenly, Jilli stopped what  she was doing, and went right to the small fence, closest to the actress, and gently stood on hind legs, as the pictures shows, and they exchanged a beautiful, knowing glance... All you couls hear was "oooohs and ahhhhhs" from those gathered nearby... They definitely shared a bond... I will never forget it...  Then Ms Holm sat and cheerfully watched the whole show! I stopped a few times and asked if they had a schedule to keep, and she said that she loved the show, and she wanted to continue... :) She was particularly fascinated, as our new little baby, Ruby, did the Grande Finale 'Poker Game', which you just HAVE to smile at!-) 

If there is ANY event that we are appearing at in your home town, please try to get together with us, we love our YTNR friends/family, and would love to see you! And DO try to get to the Gala in NY!  :)

Much Love and Many Woofs, Rick, Judy, Jilli, Spidey, Ruby and the kitties  

ABALONE Gifts!

While awareness varies according to our life experience, a majority of us are more familiar with Abalone shells than with the creature itself. Their iridescent mother-of-pearl beauty has made these shells widely popular for jewelry and other decorative items, inlays in fine furniture and musical instruments, and simply display.

The abalone, a sea creature native to many waters around the globe, has long been a food source for many cultures. Over harvesting has greatly reduced the wild abalone population. Carbon pollution is constantly increasing acidification of our oceans, making it impossible for the species to grow a shell, so extinction is inevitable unless we humans choose to change.   In the mean time, abalone farming is growing world wide, and demand appears to be increasing. I understand that some places in California, it's even an ingredient on pizza!

OK, so what in the world does abalone have to do with Yorkies??? A fair question!

I've mentioned before that, years ago, as the number of Tellington TTouches began to grow, Linda Tellington Jones chose appropriate animals names to identify various TTouches, and assist us in remembering them.

Abalone is the inspiration for a TTouch done by placing the whole hand very softly on the receiving Being... dog, horse, child, spouse, friend, yourself. Our hand becomes Abalone, soft, flowing, flexible, with full, warm connection. Allow yourself to really relax as you do this TTouch.

To make the clockwise 1 � circle, imagine your hand resting on a clock face on dog's body. Begin your circle at 6, move all the way around, past 6 again to 9. Use just enough contact with fingers, palm and heel of your hand to push the skin in a circle, but not slide over the hair. The center of your circle is the center of your palm. Use whichever hand is most comfortable for you, and gently place the other hand somewhere on the animal, which provides support and completes the connection between you and the animal.

Keeping your hand and arm soft and relaxed, move slowly, taking two full seconds to complete your circle. Breathe softly and deeply as you work. When your circle is complete, relax even more and slowly release. Then slide your soft hand a little way and repeat.

Many times animals who are shut down, anxious, frightened, or recovering from illness or injury are not quite ready for active TTouching.   In this situation, there is another powerful way to use Abalone TTouch. Place your soft, warm hand on them as outlined above. Support them by placing your other hand somewhere on their body.   Check in with yourself to be sure you are breathing. Your slow, gentle breathing will help the animal to do the same.

As you relax into this comforting, nonthreatening connection, become aware of your intentions for this animal in need. Relaxation? Healing? Feeling safe? All those intentions and more may come to you. Continue breathing as you allow your loving intentions to flow from your heart down your arm, into your hand, and into the animal. Hold quietly. Just hold. After a while, you may want to move your hand to another place.... with Yorkies you can hold the entire tummy area gently and warmly in your hand. Again, just hold, relax, send loving intentions.

This warm, soft, noninvasive use of Abalone can be a great start for rescues, animals new to a home... and, baby humans in any kind of distress!

Happy Spring!

Penny Case

Guild Certified Tellington TTouch Practitioner

star9fish@aol.com 

Visit TTouch.com for books, DVDs, equipment, inspiring stories, workshop schedules, and to find a TTouch practitioner near you.

~ Four high school boys afflicted with spring fever skipped morning classes. After lunch they reported to the teacher that they had a flat tire.

Much to their relief she smiled and said, "Well, you missed a test today so take seats apart from one another and take out a piece of paper."

Still smiling, she waited for them to sit down.

Then she said: "First Question: Which tire was flat?"

Love to all,
Neeko :o)