Taking Your Labrador Retriever Fishing

The first year I had my johnboat, I took Libby, my black Labrador retriever, fishing with me at Lake Musconetcong. 

Fortunately, I was not too serious about fishing that day because Libby took to the lake like she had canvasback in her A.K.C. lineage. 

All Labrador retrievers, Libby included, have webbed feet and what is described as an otter tail that acts like a rudder to help them swim. 

I should have realized Libby would enjoy the water and mud, after all, Labradors are used to retrieve ducks from half frozen marshes in winter. 

Libby was having the time of her young life. 

I regretted showing her, or, I admit, throwing her, out of the boat and into the water. 

I tried to row away from her but she swam faster than I rowed. 

When she climbed into the boat, she got even with me for trying to leave her behind. 

I remember seeing a doggy boat ramp in a catalog, but I hadn’t ordered it. 

Libby got her monstrous front paws on the side of the boat and looked at me to help get the rest of her seventy pounds of fat, smelly, wet dog into the boat. 

How could I resist that look? It was the same look she used on me at the puppy store to make me pick her out above all the other pups.

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Zamboni moves towards 11th birthday

How many dogs besides Zamboni, our chocolate Labrador retriever, have their own web pages? 


He may have slowed down for the most part, but his heart is as full of love as ever. He even wants to be friends with cats!


But he's sweet and he's smart and there will never be another Zamboni. 


Happy 10th birthday, chooch, and many more.

Anthony's Still Married to a Christmas Nut

For long-time fans who are familiar with Anthony's essay Married To A Christmas Nut, first published in 1977, you may want to read the follow-up, Still Married To A Christmas Nut, to that first Christmas in that tiny apartment in Belleville, N.J.

Christmas Cowboy!

Read all about it here at NJ Voices.

The original essay, Married To A Christmas Nut is inclued in A FATHER'S PLACE: An Eclectic Collection, and No Christmas is included in Sister Dressed Me Funny, which, by the way, you may still order in time for gift exchanges on Dec. 25.

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Blog copyright © 2009 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.
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Check out Anthony Buccino's latest poetry and essay collections as ebooks and on Kindle.

LINKS SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Zamboni Chooses Cheerios Over Family

Family pet faces Cheerios rehab

Our 100-pound Labrador retriever is apparently no match for the drugs hidden in Big G, little O Cheerios.

Until recently, Zamboni, our 6 1/2 year-old chocolate Lab, was considered a 100-pound cushion-mush-on who changed cushions every few hours to obtain his perfect level of rest for the perfect length of time on the perfect soft, softer and softest of his various cushions.



But new information from the Federal Drug Administration indicates that our hapless puppy may be a victim of a cruel hoax where a cereal conglomerate has been selling a drug inside their cereal without proper notice on the packaging.

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Copyright © 2009 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

A Hare-Raising Story

That old tale of Murphy the Easter bunny ...

I bought Murphy the Rabbit for my wife last year just before Easter.

That Murphy made it a full year with us is a great achievement in a house where the average pet fish lasts about three months. To tell the truth, I never really expected my wife to take care of the rabbit even if, theoretically, it was hers.

Every Easter for the six years we’ve been married, Dawn has talked about getting a pet rabbit like the little white bunny she had as a child. Another dependent was just what I needed. Of course, my wife, clever English teacher that she is, had her arguments all ready. This rabbit would save us money.



“If we got a bunny, we could keep it in fat Libby’s (our dog’s) old crate,” she reasoned. “Anyway, the crate’s just rusting away in the garage, so we wouldn’t have to buy anything new - except the rabbit and some food.”

That is the usual selling point of everything w: buy: Once bought we are done paying. It never works out that way, though.

In the pet store my wife told me, “I tested all the bunnies like we did the dog. You know, make a little noise and see which one sneaks up to investigate. This brown one here looks like Murphy.”




This Murphy had milk chocolate fluff for fur and looked as if it had been somewhere it shouldn’t have, because the tips of its fur were a smoky, dirty gray.

“Why not get a traditional white bunny? They’re the kind that deliver the eggs -and the chocolates,” I suggested. The look in her eyes told me it was not a discussion. This was Murphy.

from A Father's Place, An Eclectic Collection
by Anthony Buccino

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Copyright © 2009 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

Evening of Confetti

CONFETTI

Late evening when the snow has fallen
and before plows roll round untrod streets,
I tread, my dog and I.
The only sound is the silent snow
falling upon snow.
It’s the sound every poet hears
when he opens up his ears.
In the street lights’ glare
flakes stream in sparkling white confetti
celebrating the beauty of this cold, cold night.

By Anthony Buccino
from the forthcoming collection AMERICAN BOY

Stormi and her snowman

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Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.
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It's beginning to look a lot like Zamboni in a tree

Just a quick walk around the living room
and you can see things are different
around the house ... it must be December.

Is that our chocolate Labrador retriever, Zamboni, wearing a red ribbon and wreath collar sitting in the Christmas tree?

Like dogs and trees

"What's on TV, hon?"

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Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.
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Dog hair everywhere

"Here's something about dog hair, it's like pollen. You don't ever see it moving on a breeze until it gangs up on you and forces an explosion in your nose.

Sometimes you can move a piece of furniture and find yourself asking your dog, "Is there another dog in here? One that's been vaporized except for his fur?"

Don't expect your dog to answer you unless you say one of the magic words such as cookie, treat, knot chewy, walk or ride in the car. And of course, no matter how smart your dog is, he won't be answering your question. All he wants is another biscuit.

There are ways to deal with dog hair here, there and everywhere..."

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Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

Discreet drug-sniffing dogs make house calls

" ... The annual high school ratings issue, a prominent New Jersey magazine has an advertisement for drug sniffing dogs. Maybe that's just a coincidence?

For a fee, this company will bring a dog to your house and search for drugs.

It's "discreet, affordable and confidential home drug detection by certified dogs and professional handlers."

The service is marketed to "caring parents and others who need to know."

What happens if the pooch during the visit "identifies a scent"? Well, what you do with what you know is up to you. The company's web site says "the handler will provide you with resources for dealing with the findings." ...

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Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

FiOS rids house of annoying shopping channels

"She blames me. I blame the dog. The dog blames the baby squirrel running around the basement rafters in the middle of the night.

Well, it had to be one of us who deleted all the home shopping channels, and only the home shopping channels, from the hundreds and hundreds we get on our fiber optics TV.

My wife figured I came down in the middle of the night, grabbed the remote, quietly turned on the TV and surreptitiously deleted half her TV shopping channels. That would include two of the four channels in 130s and the four in the 540s. ..."

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The Northern New Jersy Channel Lineup changed at the end of July ... and despite having more and more FiOs channels to view, or delete if you don't have HD, the shopping channels continue to appear and disappear from our Favorites.

Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

Three collections of essays by Anthony Buccino are now available on Kindle.
A Father's Place, An Eclectic Collection;
Sister Dressed Me Funny;
Rambling Round, Inside and Outside at the Same Time

Zamboni, the chocolate Lab, update

Zamboni turns six years old this month. 

He is still the happiest dog in the world. You can see him smiling here.

He loves to go for a ride in the car. When you say balony on rye, to him, it sounds like go for a ride and he gets so excited. You know, he wants to drive. Heck, he has a license.

If only he had opposable thumbs, he could write this blog for me. You know he KNOWS he could do it.



Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

Can we make it any easier for the dog to find the pole

There, on the ground, is the clue to where the new utility pole has been place for Zamboni's sniffing pleasure.

Dawg Heaven

Whose woods these are ...?






Copyright © 2007 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

THANKSGIVING = Self-service IAMS

Zamboni, our chocolate Labrador retriever, found something to be thankful for recently when he discovered the lid to Mr. Food-Can misplaced and the IAMS chow within easy reach of a big, strong, sweet dog such as himself.

He'd take a mouthful of food from the bag, spit it on the floor and then eat the pieces. Repeat.

Copyright © 2007 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission. Support artists and don't steal.

ZAMBONI, OUR CHOCOLATE LABRADOR RETRIEVER

Zamboni!

OK, you can stop sending in the emails, here is a current photo of Zamboni, our chocolate Labrador Retriever.

He loves to eat peanut butter, and vaseline, and paper products.

He loves to run around with my shoes.

He loves to have his belly rubbed in the morning. And anytime you've got the time.

He loves to sit under the desk as I type things like this.

His favorite trick is to slam the keyboard tray shut so I have to stop typing and play with him.

Zamboni will be five years old in July.

I'd let him say hello to you, but he has no idea how big he is.

He loves to sit in your lap and rest his head on your lap.

A Silly Hat

More Posts on Zamboni
Zamboni Sono Buoni

Copyright © 2007 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

Zamboni's Schedule

How Zamboni spends his days
Now that all kids - and their teachers - are back to school, Zamboni, our chocolate Labrador retriever, spends his days dreaming of Dogfest - just THREE weeks away!

Dog Fest 2005

Copyright © 2005 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

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Happy, shiny puppy

Zamboni soaks up the sun.
Copyright © 2005 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved.

Zamboni's Ready

Bring on the season!

Zamboni was born ready for hockey ... so, let the season begin!

Link: Zamboni's World

Copyright © 2005 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved

Summer Time Goals

Somewhere in Nutley, N.J.

... I'm going to sit by the water, kick off my shoes and write bad
poetry ...

''New Jersey's Garrison Keillor ...*''

"* ... or something to that effect" (LOL)
(no more comparison to Garrison ... see judge's comments )


Copyright © 2005 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved.