Dog-Ma: The Zen of Slobber Book Tour and Giveaway

Thank you for stopping at my spot on Dog-Ma: The Zen of Slobber Book Tour. This Online Book Tour is brought to you by Virtual  Book Tours Cafe. I will provide you with a synopsis of the book, review, excerpt and a small bio from Barbara Brunner. Visit the other blogs on this Book Tour to learn more about this book.

THE STORY:

Barbara's vivid and dramatic stories, told with a wicked sense of humor, will make you laugh out loud. She definitely gets what living with rescued dogs (nine of them!) is all about.

When Barbara meets her future husband, Ray, it is love-and dog-at first sight. Over the course of thirty-two years, seventeen relocations and nine dogs, their mutual love of dogs guides them on their unconventional path. The love that Barbara and Ray get in return is literally lifesaving, with one dog attacking a lethal intruder and another discovering Barbara’s cancer. Her own survival story underscores the story of how her dogs become survivors themselves.

Each new dog adds its own dynamic to the family, sometimes upending it. From Turbo (whose Spock-like ears may have provided super powers), Barbara learns about the will to live; Lexington demonstrates incredible patience and an inexplicable love of golf; Madison teaches that laughter is truly the best medicine and that the whole “nine lives thing” is not reserved just for cats; Morgan should be sainted for tolerating Izzy, who is as cute as she is bad. Barbara is certain that somewhere in doggie heaven there is a poster that says “If you are sick, injured or in need of really expensive medical care, FIND THESE HUMANS!”

 Excerpt:

Houdini in a Dog Suit

At six months old, Madison got her first Invisible Fence collar.  It was huge on such a tiny little girl; a box three inches long and two inches square.  I think it weighed as much as her head.  She had been very good staying by Lexi’s side but we knew that would not last forever.  My office was in our guest wing and I had a wonderful view of the yard from my windows.  I had no hesitation leaving the three dogs free to roam their yard during the day.  One day I noticed Madison getting closer and closer to the fence limit and with a twenty-five-foot head start, ran at full speed and jumped at exactly the right moment to jump OVER the fence’s radio field.  Off she went.  By the time I got out to the yard she was gone.

We had a runner.

An hour later I found her at a home almost a mile away, standing in front of the kennels for their hunting dogs.  She was trying to break them out.  She was her father’s daughter. Once a hoodlum, always a hoodlum.

Kennel breaking was a skill Madison would become famous for.  When we traveled, we would board the dogs with our veterinarian.  In the morning they would arrive and find all of the boarded dogs running loose in the building.  This occurred every night and only when Madison boarded.  She could open a simple gate latch with her nose.  The hoop catches took a little more skill, needing both nose and paws.  She figured them all out quickly.  She even learned to open a peg latch with a twist bolt.  Madison had issues with confinement.  They finally had to put a combination lock on her kennel and retired it with fanfare the day we moved away.  Their nickname for her was:

“Houdini in a Dog Suit.”

 

Barbara grew up in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with her parents, sister and always a dog, or two or three. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from a small women's college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Meeting her husband in Washington, DC, they continued together on a journey as self-proclaimed dog addicts. In the ensuing years, she founded three successful businesses in the Pacific Northwest and is a prolific fundraiser for breast cancer research. She and her husband are retired and now reside in Southwest Florida with two dogs and copious amounts of dog fur. She is currently working on indulging her well known flip flop addiction.

Author Links:

Website | Blog |  Email

Purchase Links: Amazon Print | Amazon Kindle | Barnes and Noble | iTunes

For more information about DOG-MA, THE ZEN OF SLOBBER,

please contact the author at barbarabrunner@me.com  or 941-347-8269.

Review:

I am normally not a dog person or do I read much about dogs.  When I read about Dog-Ma I thought what a cute story.  I really did enjoy reading Dog-Ma: The Zen of Slobber.  Barbara told the story in short little chapters that were easy and very entertaining to read.  

My favorite stories were of Kashi and how she found who the next dog was to be adopted.  How she always found the dog that was the underdog, and how she played with them as they were getting sick and invented games for them so they could still play but not run around as much.

I think anyone who loves animals would find this as a good and quick read.  You will find yourself laughing  and crying with each chapter.

Giveaway:

One e-book.  Must be 13+ and follow Kaisy Daisy's Corner in at least one way.  Contest ends Oct 31st.

 

I received a Copy of this book from the author for purpose of honest review for the Virtual Book Tour Cafe Tours. I was not compensated for the review, and the review is honest and my responsibility.