Baby has come so far in four days. He’s just blossoming into a sweet puppy who only wants to snuggle. He’s putting on weight, learning house rules (and potty rules, oh, boy). Cats are still a no-no. But with the progress he’s made in four days, I have no doubts he’ll master any challenge. He’s almost ready for his forever home.
There is a full update and more photos here.
You guys get bonus Bixby because he is so over this and can’t wait to have this interloper on his way.
He never wants his picture taken, but he came and stood in front of the camera for equal time tonight. LOL
Open thread
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
Baby is adorable, and so, of course is BIXBY! Scout is ever the lady, so does not demand her own picture. We need more ducks, however.
TaMara (HFG)
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho: OMG, the poor ducks. It’s been a challenge with Baby running around. They, too, will be grateful when he finds his forever home.
TaMara (HFG)
@TaMara (HFG): Speaking of…we may have a potential match. Fingers-crossed.
??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??
What breed is Bixby, by the way, TaMara?
TaMara (HFG)
@??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??: He is a half European, half American Great Dane. They started bringing in European Danes to help save the breed in America – they had become so badly bred with such horrible health issues they had to do something. It produces these beautiful and healthy dogs. I think once Baby fills out he’ll look just like Scout – not as big as Bixby, but still the Euro-American mix.
And as one who rescued my share of unhealthy American Danes, I’m happy for these healthy dogs.
Pogonip
How old do you think Baby is?
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
@TaMara (HFG): Exciting! Everything crossed here.
@??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??: Not TaMara (as you know); Bixby, Scout, and Baby are Great Danes.
Joy in FL
I love this update. I’m so glad Baby is safe and warm and has a future.
Dan B
It’s a tough time of year for our furry masters.. Your puppies would not enjoy our freezing rain on 14 inches of snowpack but at least you’d be able to find your puppies. Our kittehs disappear and go neurotic.
On the bright side our neighbors know one of the best donut makers in the city. We got three boxes of donuts cause the stores weren’t selling them. Everyone is hiding. We gave away two boxes to surprised neighbors. Took wading through some major mounds of snow that slid off their roofs… Our kittehs were not pleased that we didn’t find the gourmet Kitteh food surplus.
Steeplejack
What the hell?! The D.C. CBS affiliate (WUSA) is doing a suspiciously fluffy “one on one” piece with Maryland Governor Larry Hogan (Republican). Very positive and very long (for the 30-minute news slot). Even talking about “talk of a run for president,” which I have heard exactly nowhere.
Colbert and/or Perry Mason cannot arrive soon enough.
ETA: I think that piece (with anchor emeritus Bruce Johnson) ran almost 10 minutes. Very weird.
Amir Khalid
@??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??:
He’s the same breed as Scooby-Doo.
Duane
@Dan B: First read that as, “and slid off their roofs.” All I could think was what a great neighbor!
TaMara (HFG)
@Pogonip: I go back and forth. His teeth are terrible, but his spirit is young and bright. So I doubt more than 3 or 4 and he may be younger but with bad teeth.
NotMax
@Amir Khalid
Canis Hannabarberae?
TaMara (HFG)
@NotMax: ?? You probably know this, but his creator actually had Great Danes, so he understood they really do talk.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Hey trump! Beto’s is bigger
I hope that’s the big talking point when The Beast is watching Morning Joe tomorrow and pretending not to
Peale
So I have a choice. Do I just give up and pay the fraudsters and Comenity Bank to make them go away or stick to my guns because they have taken payments from me that they have conveniently lost and have sent me to collections. I will, however, never shop at any store that uses them for consumer credit. I’ve already spent 4 hours today trying to resolve this issue and looking at the complaints online, the issues never go away. They apparently exist as a company only on the weight of the “late fees” they charge when they “lose” payments because they can’t handle electronic payments. All disputes need to handled by regular mail. They make robocalls to threaten me, but there is no way to contact a customer service representative. This is the worst experience with a “bank” that I have ever had. I’m so pissed off right now and I have to vent somewhere. Apologies. I just feel stupid for taking out a store card to get an additional 20% at Christmas for a purchase I had the cash for. I never do that as I knew most store financing is a fraud, but I never knew how much fraud it is. Not only will I need to pay the late fees, have lost the 20% discount, my existing payments have been stolen and there doesn’t seem to be anything I can do about it. Arghhhh.
Dan B
@Duane: Earler today our neighbor across the street came out, walked down the drive to photograph his house in the blizzard wearing an Alaska type parka. My partner took a pic and posted it to his wife’s Facebook: SASQUATCH!
Add in roof sliding and it’s the makings of urban legend.
sgrAstar
TaMara, you are doing such a great job with Baby! Love big dogs, love Great Danes. I hope he’ll find his forever home soon…and that we can continue to follow his progress.
Yarrow
So glad Baby is coming along so well. Everyone needs to click through to TaMara’s site (link in post) and see the photo of Baby looking at the camera. He looks so sweet! A little unsure of everything but it’s clear he’s A Very Good Boy!
B.B.A.
Since it’s an open thread, I’ll just reiterate that Ilhan Omar has nothing to apologize for. I saw someone on right-wing Twitter saying she’s a harbinger, and within 10 years we’ll have BDS in the Democratic platform… I sure hope so.
debbie
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
No commentary needed, other than this was posted at about 8 or 9 pm.
NotMax
@debbie
Guess that full physical last week skipped over the vision test.
;)
Patricia Kayden
Baby is looking so relaxed. Lovely doggy. Hioe he finds a forever home very soon.
Aleta
Greatest post ever. Happy.
CaseyL
TaMara, your animal reports are among my favorite things in the world. Watching Baby blossom under your loving, patient, and very wise care fills my heart.
And you might have found a forever home for him?? Fabulous news! I hope it works out!
MomSense
@Peale:
Tweet at them. I just looked them up on twitter and they have an active page and seem to take questions every day. Companies respond quickly to complaints on social media. If they don’t fix the problem call your State office of the Attorney General.
They are @askcomenity on twitter.
piratedan
@Peale: BBB may be your first stop, also too, some local TV stations have investigative reporters that expose this kind of behavior and many stores don;t enjoy the scrutiny. Also, you may check and see if your state has an office of consumer affairs… you may also want to go to your own bank statements and check on when those payments were actually cashed, because if they “lost” them, then who the hell is cashing the checks? Or if they are electronic payments, your online banking app should have a record when they were deposited.
Aleta
Our dog had (has) worn down front teeth and at leat one cracked back one. Probably from gnawing on the wire pen when hungry. He’s 12 and needs another round of dental care but I’m not sure it will happen. On the other hand he’s well fed now; is passionate about vegetables so he has some every day. Today he had brussels sprouts and a large “broccoli bone.” (We had to keep him away from chewing on bones or anything too hard.) We don’t think he was physically abused either, but emotionally neglected. It took 11 months before he got how to play. He’s sweet and joyous every day. Watching him learn about this house dog world with the brain of an adult is hard to explain, how interesting and beautiful it’s been. He loves his neighborhood and has a zillion friends.
hervevillechaizelounge
@Peale:
This isn’t especially helpful but I think the main issue is whether your time or your money is more valuable to you.
If you’re flush with cash but pressed for time you should just pay the ransom; then create a Comenity google alert so you can join in the inevitable class action when their usury bullshit hits the tipping point.
But if you’ve got the time to spare—even if you have the money to pay—you should fight those fuckers for every nickle. We all have an obligation to fight injustice when we see it and every minute they spend dealing with you is coming out of their bottom line.
Of course, if like most people you’re dead-ass broke AND stressed for time I have no advice, just sympathy: welcome to late-stage capitalism;)
TaMara (HFG)
@Aleta: This makes me so happy and hopeful for Baby.
Steeplejack
@Aleta:
How long have you had him? Not the whole 12 years, I presume.
Jay
@Peale:
Send them a redacted transcript of your bank statement showing the payments you have made,
That they “lost”,
And a nice letter referencing Consumer Fraud Bureau.
Scuffletuffle
@Peale: complain to your state’s attorney general and banking commission.
Kent
Betty Cracker…are you there?
Sounds like Florida actually needed its own wall back in the early 1800s. According to Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida
rikyrah
Oh Bixby??
Baby is looking better already????
You are good people, TaMara??
opiejeanne
@Peale: Talk to your regular bank. The “missing” payments should show up on your statements. When you’re done with this ugliness, find a good credit union and join it. We really like the Boeing-affiliated one we’re with now, didn’t like another Boeing-affiliated one we had a few years ago. They don’t limit membership to Boeing employees, it just started with them. Ours is BECU. YMMV, depending on state laws and the CU itself.
Jay
@B.B.A.:
Nope, she used poor phrasing when she could have used Israel, Addelson and AIPAC.
One needs to be specific.
opiejeanne
@MomSense: Good advice. I hadn’t thought about it. Meanwhile, I’m wondering if I misunderstood and Commenity isn’t just the CC company. If Peale has a bank account with a halfway decent bank, they should be able to help him/her resolve this pretty quickly. I do 95% of our banking and bill-paying online with our Credit Union, and they’re good about disputes like this, but so was B of A when we were with them, despite it being B of A.
Aleta
@Peale: Tell them you are reporting them to your state Attorney General and to the BBB and to a national consumer help professional who works on cases like yours. And to the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau. Tell them exactly what you want back from them to end the problem.
Here are two you can write to at newspapers who help some people. The one at the Chicago Tribune has clear advice of what action you can take also. The second one is at the Boston Globe, may be worth a try.
The article at the Chicago Trib has a link to the CFPB; might as well tell your fraudsters that you’re reporting them there:
Every time they call you tell them you are/have reported them, etc.
WaterGirl
@Peale: Oh my gosh, that would be spontaneous combustion territory for me. I am so sorry.
I once paid off a store credit card early and had to pay an $874.00 penalty fee on a furniture purchase. For paying early!!! That’s when I quite credit cards; I think it was 1999.
Aleta
@Steeplejack: Five years in Jan. I think.
Reading Balloon Juice helped me w/ the courage to go check out what I’d heard (about a dog who’d maybe frozen to death) and talk the owner into giving him up.
But as it turned out, he’s made life better for several humans in this town. One person knocks on our door bringing us pie regularly, just because the dog gives her good greetings.
WaterGirl
@B.B.A.: “within 10 years we’ll have BDS in the Democratic platform…” Please let it be so! I am still mad that we don’t have taco trucks on every corner.
@TaMara (HFG): Potential match? Fingers crossed for Baby. Very happy to see him in the photos with his toys. Who’s a good boy?
Dear Bixby and the ducks and the cats: Hang in there. You won the “mom” lottery, and sometimes you have to share her, but it’s just for a little while.
Aleta
@Peale:
At the BBB site, people have left complaints like yours for Comity. They answer, saying they will look into it and respond to the person. Even if it’s false, it might be worth it to write something to have a public record of your complaint and their answer. . And the more complaints at BBB the better I guess.
https://www.bbb.org/us/oh/columbus/profile/credit-cards-and-plans/comenity-bank-0302-6558/complaints
Mary G
@Aleta: Such a sad story with happy ending. They never forget their rescuers. You are good people, as is TaMara.
Love the look on Bixby’s face in the post. So glad a possible furever home may have been found.
WaterGirl
TaMara, apropos of nothing… I just ordered the CBD oil from the person in Arvada, per your recommendation.
The brand I tried from the health food store made me cough and almost immediately made me sound like Brenda Vaccaro. It happened both times I tried it, 3 months apart. So it’s been the CBD chocolate for me, but that gets super expensive!
Jay Noble
@Jay: @Jay: This. If it came out of your bank account, your bank knows who it went to.
Jay
@WaterGirl:
Can you make your own, chocolate that is?
CaseyL
Oh! And I just noticed Bixby’s eye looks much better! Did the medication help, or the colder weather?
trollhattan
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Living the dream.
To battle stations; unleash the liars! Possum Queen and Kellyanne shall now claim Trump crowds of a size normally only encountered at Longhorn-Sooner gridiron contests. Trumpian-size triumph! You’re welcome, Texas.
trollhattan
@WaterGirl:
One simply does not anticipate a Brenda Vaccaro reference but if it is to happen, it will happen here.
BR
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I’ve been reading bad press about Beto for weeks, but damn if he isn’t impressive. He’s got a way of weaving together principles and values that I haven’t seen other than Obama in recent years. I’m trying to learn to trust my gut, and right now Warren has it from a policy perspective, but I haven’t seen anyone pack the punch Beto seems to. And I have no real dog in the fight — just been impressed at what I’ve seen.
trollhattan
Per WaPo
Hope so. One less shitshow if true.
Lalophobia
Oh hey, there’s apparently a cure for the Human Papillomavirus now?
Jay
@BR:
http://nomoremister.blogspot.com/2019/02/the-2020-presidential-election-will-be.html?m=1
Anne Laurie
@Aleta:
Probably too late for you to see this, but: If your vet approves it, and you can work out the payments, it is absolutely worth getting a senior dog’s teeth cleaned. It often improves their general health as well as their happiness, because low-level gum inflammation makes heart & joint issues worse, and a good cleaning can turn that around.
Lest you think I’m a shill for Big Dentistry… I’ve seen so many older dogs ‘turn back the clock’ after dental treatment, it reconciled me to fight past my personal dentalphobia to get my *own* teeth cleaned on a more regular basis!
Jay
@Anne Laurie:
Double yup.
We are just starting to learn some stuff about human dental health.
Insurance is also still possible.
TaMara (HFG)
@CaseyL: It’s the CBD oil. It reduced the inflammation greatly.