Happy Birthday Maggie!

On October 1, Maggie turned 6 years old!  We have been through a lot during that time and I've said it before and I'll say it again...I can't imagine life without her.


 
Yesterday, I attempted to bake her a doggy cake.  It was a little more difficult than I imagined as she has some food allergies...wheat and corn.  That makes finding cake ingredients a bit harder. I finally found some rice flour to substitute for normal wheat.


 
Here is the recipe:

Peanut Butter Delight Dog Birthday Cake

1 cup white or whole wheat flour  3/4 cup rice flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup honey
1 egg

Note:  Additional substitutes for regular flour are:  1-1/4 cup rye or oat flour OR 3/4 cup rice, barley, or potato flour or oats.  It is also a good idea to add 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder per cup of non-wheat flour to improve the texture of the baked goods.  

 
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C)

Mix together flour and baking soda. 

 
Add remaining ingredients and mix well. 

 
Pour into a cake pan sprayed with a nonstick spray.

 
 
Bake for 20 minutes.  (The original recipe said 40 + additional 10-20 for non-wheat flour, but mine was browning around the edges at 20, so I took it out.)

Now, I had read that when using non-wheat flour, the cake has a tendency to crumble easily and mine did upon removing it from the pan.  It looked like a mess but it smelled and tasted good.  And yes, I did try it myself as there was nothing but real, people-grade ingredients.  It was pretty good, I have to say.  Oh and Maggie thought it smelled great.  She was sniffing all around the kitchen the whole time I was mixing this up and baking it.

Now for the Cinnamon Frosting:

 
Ingredients:



12 ounces nonfat cream cheese (room temperature)
3 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp honey

 

Combine the following ingredients and blend thoroughly.

 

 I ended up mixing the crumbled cake into the frosting.  At first I gave Maggie a couple scoops in her food dish, but I guess she figures anything that comes in that bowl is just ordinary and she only ate a little bit of it.  After that, I figured out that this made a great stuffing for her Kong and she gobbled it up!


 

First, Maggie checks it out.  "What is this stuff?"

 

Then she licks her chops, and then the bowl.

 

 

The she licks the cake, and then her chops again.  

 

Happy Birthday Baby!   

Hugs & Wags, Jess

More Maggie

This is one of my favorite photos of my pretty girl.  It shows that she can (occasionally) have a serious side and her tremendous love for her tennis ball.  Her eyes are very expressive and content.  I think she looks stoic.

 

Hugs & Wags, Jess

Good News! Vick dogs are leading the way for pitbulls!

Two years ago, 51 pitbulls were confiscated from Michael Vick's Bad Newz Kennels for dog fighting.   The usual process involved putting down all the dogs, due to fears that they would be aggressive and never be rehabilitated.  In this case, 47 of 51 of the dogs have been given a second chance...and they are thriving!  Some of them have even passed the rigorous training and tests to become therapy dogs.  I think these dogs can show us much about strength, trust, and second chances.

View a news clip about the dogs here.



Hugs & Wags, Jess

GABR Waddle 2010

Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending the 2010 Guardian Angle Basset Bash.   My sister-in-law, Brandy (and her Basset Hound, Jack), invited me to head to Dwight, IL with them for the event.  I have never been to anything like it!  The event is held in their fenced in doggy area, so everyone can let their pups run off-leash.  There were Basset's everywhere and they all seemed so friendly!

There were Basset races, a pooch smooch contest (it involved peanut butter, an owner's face, and a Basset), swing dancers, and even a king & queen.  At one point Brandy, Jack and I sat down on the ground for some rest and we made several new friends.  It seems that once you get down to their level, Basset's aren't shy about requesting pets and love.  Here are a few pictures from the day:

For more photos from this event, visit the Tails of Love Event Gallery.



Hugs & Wags, Jess

Welcome to the all new Tails of Love Photography Blog!

It is only right that my first post would be a photo of my sweet girl.  Let me introduce everyone to Maggie.  She is an almost 6 year old American Staffordshire Terrier.  Maggie has more personality than any dog I've ever had.  She has been with me since she was 9 weeks old and I can't imagine life without her.

Hugs & Wags,
Jess