Coral Reef Photos » Pets + Domestic Animals

Ferel Dogs, Street Dogs, Stray Dogs, Curacao Dogs

barry — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:47:13 +0000

Good morning everyone, here’s my new favorite photo of my best friend, Indi. This is a great shot that Barry took this weekend at St. Joris. The dogs love going here because it has so many different and unique areas. For instance; there are the mud flats with tons of crabs to chase, areas of beautiful dry grass to lay in (as you see here), sandy areas to race across and shallow water to leap though, it is a dog’s paradise. I guess you can see Indi is pretty content. If you recall, Indi is now about 3 years old and was just a little puppy when I found her. Inca and I were on a walk and driving back home and saw a car beside a very busy road. A small black puppy was running around the car. I knew either the people were trying to catch the puppy or dropping it off. I pulled off up the road to wait and see, and sure enough the car pulled away and left the cutest little black thing with big ears sitting 10 feet away from the road. I turned the car around, parked, and walked up to her, she never even moved a muscle as I picked her up. I sat her in the seat next to me and she looked around and seemed to own the place, pretty funny. Next I called Barry and told him I had found a puppy and was headed home. This was only the second time we had picked up a street dog and he wanted to know what I was going to do with it, I said I did not know, but I could not leave her there. I actually did find a home for her quickly but before they picked her up she got sick. I did not want to send a sick puppy home with people, so I told them I wanted to take her to the vet first. It turned out she had parvo and it was a difficult week where we almost lost her several times. I spent most of the week sleeping with her in my lap, maybe that is when we bonded so strongly. Well, she made it though, which is a miracle, and several other possible homes fell through. I soon named her Indi (because she is so independent) and Barry then said, “well I guess we are keeping her!” Yup. She has turned out to be the best dog ever, she loves to play, nap and just be in the same room. I recently taught her to turn the lights on and off and to close the door behind her (because she pushes herself in to all the rooms). So, that is my Indi story. We sure are lucky she fell into our lives that day.

Barry stayed home from work yesterday felling a bit sick but mostly just drained and wiped out, he needed a whole day of rest! Not much else to report, sure looking forward to having our friend Emily here with us in a few weeks, we always enjoy her company!!

Have a wonderful day, Aimee

Happy Easter From Curacao! Dogs Wearing Bunny Ears

barry — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 11:06:51 +0000

Best wishes from Curacao! We had a fun morning with the Indi Bunny! Happy Easter, Barry and Aimee

Lucky Dogs, Island Dogs, Ferral Dogs, CARF Curacao

barry — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 00:47:10 +0000

Ahhhhh, isn’t this the best? Aimee here, of course once again talking up our puppies. Well, here is our little “lucky puppy” and you probably won’t even recognize her as being the same one we took in a couple of months ago. I have to remind myself what she looked like and how scared she was when she first came into our lives. Obviously, it is a dog’s life, at least here in this household…. this evening Barry, Inca, Indi and little Lucky went for a walk to the beach. You can tell, one of us had the best time ever! I am not sure who won the fight, Puppy or the sand? She of course believes life is made up of walks on the trails, swims at the beach and kongs filled with peanut butter. Ahh, it is truly a dog’s life. Tonight’s biggest surprise ever was an e-mail we received from a friend of ours that another generous donation was made to CARF, it was an unbelievable amount and we are truly humbled by their giving hearts and want to thank them for our little one and the others that his donation will be helping in the future. It is because of the giving nature of these individuals that the lost and forgotten animals here in Curacao will have a fighting chance at having a new and different life. Our little one is just one example of what people can do. So, never believe that you cannot make a difference, you can in many different ways. I think our motto is ” you can’t do everything, but you can do something; and what you can do, you should do”. So, here’s to our little one that will be going to go to her new home in the next week. We sure have enjoyed her through the laughs and struggles; we learn something from each one that crosses our path.

Thanks again for the donations, you guys are wonderful!! Aimee and Barry

CARF Animal Rescue, Curacao Local Dogs, Ferel Dogs

barry — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 22:58:34 +0000

Hello everyone! Guess who this is? Don’t recognize her? It might be a little tough, to tell you the truth. It is our little “Lucky dog”! You will have to look back in the blog to about mid January to see the first photo we had of her. At that time she had so little hair I was not even sure what color dog she was supposed to be. Ok, a little re-cap. Around Jan 7th a neighbor of ours came to the door saying there was a street puppy down by the workman’s area under a pile of wood. She said the pup was tiny and thin and had no hair and was super scared. Well, I tried for one night to not think about it and then went the next day and tried to find her and give food and water. She was so tiny and had no hair that she looked like a little rat, with teeth growling at me! The local workers caught her and I took upon myself and Barry a new puppy project. It has been a long trail with lots of work, but if you see the change, it has all been worth it. She has really gained weight; she started at 2 kilo and is now 9 kilo. She has had 2 types of mites and we are mostly through treating that, although the baths will continue for a while. She has had two vaccinations and her socialization has become a priority of mine. That means we go on lots of walks around the neighborhood so she can see, hear and sniff lots of things and we take along a bag of treats so that every dog person we meet gets to give her a nice goodie. That makes her like people very much. She is coming along very well. She loves to play with Indi (I call Indi “super-nanny), the two are hard to separate and she has now met several other dogs on the trail and it has gone very well. And the best news of all: we had a wonderful Dutch lady come by last week and she fell in love with our little black puppy. She is going to her new home in a couple of weeks. This lady is getting her house and yard in order and waiting on the arrival of her dog from Holland and wanted a companion for her. So, although the day out little one will be a bit sad and I am sure I will shed a tear or two, it will also be another wonderful ending for a little one that would not have had a chance in the world of surviving without a bit of help. It has definitely taken both Barry and I to do this, with each of us getting up and coming home to help with potty training and both of us chasing after her trying to keep our things out of her mouth! But still, it has been worth it. I encourage all of you to do what you can, when you can to help the local dogs with sterilizing or volunteering for an organization such as CARF. Thanks to all our friends for their encouragement and we had some incredible people who made amazing donations to CARF after we first presented our puppy. A special thanks to them, you know who you are.

Everyone have a great day. Aimee

Dalmations, Caribbean Dogs, Island Dogs, Curacao

barry — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 11:19:52 +0000

What’s the good word this morning folks! I think most of you know that if I send a photo of Indi out that Inca has to follow, I mean it just isn’t fair. Inca or as Aimee says; “Daddy’s Girl” is much more calm and reserved than Indi, in fact we believe she thinks she is a dog princess and must at all times be treated like one, you know, you can look but don’t touch. She’s just spoiled you say?? Yes, that’s also most likely true but it sure is fun!! Inca was also very funny to watch during our dog torture photo shoot, she didn’t really seem to care at all and continued to do what she does so well, guard the beach. She always is in her alert mode when we are out walking the trails and for the most part gives us a little peace of mind knowing she’s on duty. On the other hand Indi is always chasing things or exploring and even with her big ears is sometimes the last to know we have company. As far as we know Inca is the only pure-breed Dalmatian on Curacao. We have seen others but they are mixed making her even more special with her gleaming white and black spotted fur coat, lets hope she never sees herself in a mirror!

Busy day yesterday, one sub dive and a bike ride with Super-Stijn at 5:30, all was going great until he got a flat!! I am off today with Aimee for once although she came home at midnight from an employee party then got up at 1:30am till 2:30am and had to go to work and she is up now again at 7:00! That’s not much sleep!!

See you soon, Barry

Funny Dog Photos, Island Dogs, Caribbean Dogs

barry — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 00:16:35 +0000

What’s shakin friends?? Oh yeah I forgot, it’s winter everywhere but here so that’s probably a bad way to start off our conversation. So being that your all locked in the cold we figured a nice picture from the beach would warm your spirits this evening. This is our pride and joy Indi relaxing this evening in her favorite chair, soaking up the warm sun setting rays down at our private little beach. I think I once told you all that Aimee is an unbelievable animal trainer, she can train a dog or dolphin to do anything! The funny thing about this photo is that Indi actually enjoyed it and just sat there and sat there just looking out into the ocean, I was laughing so hard I could barely take the photo. After we shot Indi we tried with Inca. She also did pretty well although she was much more serious, while Indi had a smile on her face the whole time and seemed to love the extra attention! Who would have ever guessed we would end up getting so much enjoyment out of a puppy we found abandoned on the road, she is so great!

Aimee just pulled one of our Christmas hams out of the oven and the house smells great, I am going to go check it out. Be back tomorrow, stay warm, Barry

Lost Puppies, Wild Dogs, Dogs of the Caribbean

barry — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 11:28:15 +0000

Good morning all, meet our new little resident who we consider lucky to be alive! Maybe “Lucky” should be her name? She was found one week ago living under a big woodpile down at the end of our street. Some neighbors had been helping to leave milk, food and water which most likely saved her from starving in the beginning. Days later Aimee got involved and drove our big dog crate down and helped to catch her, she is so afraid and scared of everything and I believe Aimee was bitten the first day during this activity. The day after bringing her home Aimee immediately rushed her to the CARF hospital were she received multiple shots, and all kinds of medications. Her skin is the worst problem from laying in the dirt, she has something called, Sarcoptic Mange which she is being treated for by shots, good food and mainly by keeping her out of the dirt. She also has worms, and fleas and is so shy and scared. Aimee is working with her non-stop by holding her in a towel and letting her know everything is better now and by golly every day she seems to be improving and letting Aimee hold her more and more. This little thing is so tiny and skinny, all her ribs are showing on the side and spends all day crying because her skin hurts her so much, Aimee says it will be yet another week before we start to see any healing. Remember Bart the Air-Ring maker? Well when he was here this week a friend of his left us $100 for such emergencies which we gave to the organization called CARF www.carf.an For any of you wanting to help with this little thing or others like her please let me know, we can arrange anything! I built a new “Puppy Palace” in my computer room for her to live in, there she has a big box to hide in with a blanket, air-co, chewies, food and water and daily love, stay tuned for more!

Yesterday was spent entertaining our new guest Bernard. He is great, we all went on a long morning walk with the dogs down the coast, I worked on a new little trail and he practiced his photography and like a good boy asked lots of questions. Later we all went to the glass beach and then grocery shopping at then back out to the airport to pick up his girlfriend Rosa who arrived at 4:30. The evening was spent catching up on stories at the Ribs Factory and upon our arrival home we all went straight to bed!!

I better get moving, another day of fun with friends, have a great weekend, Barry

Local Curacao Puppy Needs a Home, Homeless Dogs

barry — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 01:03:23 +0000

What a day!! After dropping Aimee off at the airport and getting her checked in at 6:00am I then drove to stand in a line for 2 hours to get my island I.D. only to be told I had the wrong papers! I can’t even tell you how mad I was, and you would think where I work they would know by now what kind of papers we all need but apparently that is not the case! I ended up getting home around 8:30 and loaded the dogs and off we went over to the Sea Aquarium trails for a morning hike. Well due to more rain that didn’t last long and I took them right back home. It was so hot and humid today and the mosquitoes are everywhere now! At 3:00 I left the house for a 3 hour mountain bike ride with some local kids and then raced home grabbed the dogs again and off we went for an evening walk thru the desert. Some of our friends from work stopped over after work and fed and took care of the two puppies for me, thank you very much ladies! This day went by so fast!

By request, here is our last puppy that needs a home! He is a little male and has the sweetest personality I have ever seen, he is so calm and relaxed. Please if you know of a really good home let me know ASAP, I really wish he could stay with his sister because they love each other so much but not sure if that’s possible!

I am beat and going to bed! Bye now, Barry

Homeless Puppy Needs Your Help!!

barry — Sat, 01 May 2010 01:15:45 +0000

Good evening all and to my Dutch friends, Happy Queens Day!!! This is our third and last puppy and my personal favorite. I am temporarily calling her Blackie. She is a little smaller than the others but makes up for it in spirit and attitude!! Aimee and I are both shocked at how well these puppies have adapted to our house in the past week and amazed at how much they have grown. My dear wife is doing potty training around the clock and some times takes them outside six or seven times within an hour and unbelievably they go potty every time!! Again, please help us find them homes, someone has to know someone that needs a puppy, and these are Grade “A” top quality!!

Another busy day for me starting with trail building for two hours by myself this morning. Then I came home and picked up Bernard and Rosa and off we went to Punda to check out all the celebrating going on because of Queens Day, a major holiday for Holland!! We walked all over town in the blazing heat with thousands of other visitors, it was kind of like controlled chaos! At 1:00 Aimee called and said she couldn’t get in the house because I had the key so I left our guests there to play and went home to rescue the puppies who needed to be fed and walked. At 3:00 I went back to Punda to collect our tourists and at 5:00 I went riding for an hour. I am so tired right now, we got home late last night from the “Sully Party” and woke to the sound of restless puppies at 4:00am!

That’s about it, we did get a little rain but it’s still real hot! Bye now, Barry

Curacao Puppy Needs Adoption, Homeless Puppies

barry — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 23:18:02 +0000

Hey guys, (Aimee here) this is puppy number two. This is our little man and he is as cute and as gentle as they get!! When we first started feeding the puppies, the two others (females) would come running as fast as they could, tails wagging and jumping up to greet me. This little man however, would have his tail wagging but would keep his distance, waiting for me to leave to come and get his dinner. Occasionally he would get a bit closer and I would pick him up and pet him and then set him back down, and eventually he became a bit more relaxed. However, as soon as we got him home and cleaned up a bit and he found out I was “the dinner lady”, he is now also as affectionate and fun loving as his sisters. So far he seems like the little gentleman, letting the girls do more of the jumping and tail-biting as he lays down with his chewie. It is really funny seeing their little personalities develop. They are each so different and so perfect in their own little ways. That being said, potty training three little ones is quite the challenge! You can bet that if I take one outside, the others are being “pee machines” inside! With time though that will get better. PLEASE help us find a home for this sweet thing I promise you will not be disappointed!! The adventure continues.

Well, today I got a big surprise! About 3 weeks ago, Barry became very secretive and asked me to get some extra days off in the coming week. I was fortunately able to do that. This afternoon he told me he was going photographing on the island and left about 1:00. To my amazement he returned about an hour later with our good friend Bernard and his girlfriend Rosa! Wow! I had no idea! What a sneaky-fun husband! Bernard and Rosa live in London and they will be here with us for about one week. Bernard has been here several times, but it has been about 3 years since the last time. Things have changed! We are now living in this great house, with much more room, and the island has grown and changed, with new buildings and business places everywhere. It will be fun touring around with them in the up and coming days.

Tonight we have dinner at the Ribs Factory planned and then to a local bar/restaurant for a “Sully Party”. Remember Sully was the pilot whale we rescued and rehabilitated and then was sent to Sea World of San Diego? This is a party to thank all the people who worked so hard during those 6 long months. So, we are going to get ready and take off, everyone have a great day tomorrow! Aimee