BOOMER'S PAGE

April, 1995 - November, 2010




Meet Boomer, Fearless guardian of the Royal Rude Ranch Kitties and lap warmer extraordinaire. Boomer is a Miniature Pinscher, which we have found out is a completely different breed of dog from the Doberman. Bob and Kathy never thought they would own a dog this small (Boomer weighs in at a hefty 9 pounds), let alone a pedigreed dog. However, as always, fate and animals can change your plans. Bob and Kathy ended up with Boomer the old fashioned way: we found him in the middle of the road.

In October of 1998, Bob and Kathy were driving around Harwood, Md, worrying about Cali, our foster kitten that had almost died the day before, and was still very sick. We were also still looking at land parcels to purchase for our future animal sanctuary. All of a sudden, we saw a small animal running in the road, dodging in front of other cars. Knowing that this little dog would not last long running in front of cars like this, we pulled over and tried to catch him. Eventually he came over to us. After making sure that something this small was actually a dog, we took off looking for his home, or a nearby house. That's when we realized there were no houses within a mile of were Boomer was running around, and a dog this small couldn't cover too much ground on his own, so he must have been dumped on the side of the road. Now we had two problems: What to do with a seriously ill kitten and what do we do with a small dog?

We shouldn't have worried about what to do about Boomer. He quickly worked his way into our hearts. However, winning over the cats was another story. After all, the Rude Cats are regal, spoiled rotten kitties who never have to worry about a member of another species taking their food, chewing up a toy, or worse yet, taking the sacred "blankie" away from them. Most of them had never even been in the same room as a dog, let alone live with one. We also didn't know how Boomer would react to the cats. We didn't know if he had ever been exposed to cats, and if so, had the experience been good or bad? At least we didn't have to worry too much about Boomer hurting the cats, with the exception of Maggie who was only six months and still growing, all the cats were bigger than Boomer. (The cats also had razor sharp claws on their side).

The introductions between Boomer and the cats were amusing to say the least. At first Boomer was just happy to be inside a warm house. Then he realized he was being watched from several different angles and places. Everywhere Boomer looked and went, there was a cat staring at him. The cats were also fascinated by this new furry creature. After all, he didn't look like them, he didn't act like them, he couldn't even jump into the bed on his own. They weren't sure what to make of him.

Although there were some spats at first, Boomer and the cats have seemed to work things out. Boomer has learned not to rush up to the cats to say "Hi" and the cats have learned to hide their toy mice. (Turns out Boomer has a weak spot for furry mice) We've also learned few things also: Min Pins don't like going to the vet any more than cats do, most dog toys are too big for an nine pound dog, and lastly, even small dogs can scare away the pizza delivery guy. We've also learned that Miniature Pinschers come with a built in cold sensor. When ever the temperature outside is below 35, Boomer absolutely refuses to get out of bed to go for his morning walk. We're not sure how or why Boomer ended up running up the middle of the road that day, but overall we are glad we found him.



I'm sorry about the trash, I just couldn't help it




Good to the last drop!!!

Boomer's Story: Cats O' Plenty



 Hi! I'm Boomer, Miniature Pinscher and proud of it! My mama told me its in my heritage to be bold and outgoing, and not to be intimidated by others no matter what. I try to live up to that, but sometimes its not easy. Like my first day at the Rude Ranch, I was more than a little nervous that day.

You see, these two people (Bob and Kathy) had just picked me up out of the road and put me in a car. I wasn't sure where they were taking me. Turns out they took me to their house. I had been someone's pet before, so at least I knew some of the rules. Once I got inside the house I started to look around. That's when I saw all these strange furry creatures. They were everywhere, on tables, on the sofa, on the chairs, even on the floor at my level. And they were all looking at me intently. They were all bigger than me. They were starting to surround me on all sides, I was getting a little nervous.

Now don't think that just because I was on my own outside that my mother didn't teach me any manners. I know all about doggy etiticat. So, being a proper gentlemen, I politely turned around and started to sniff one of the furry creatures' butts. It was in this instant that I learned that dog etiticat doesn't translate into cat very well. When I did my polite "get to know you" sniff, this furry creature, who I later learned was Ashley, turned around, hissed at me, and spit out several words, that although I didn't understand I'm sure weren't very nice. At that point all the other furry creatures (cats) around me started to puff up and look even bigger!! I was past nervous, I was downright scared!! I ran and hid behind Bob. That's when I found out my fate: If I stayed here, it would be my job to guard these strange furry creatures. Although it seems to me that if they are all bigger than me, they should be guarding me, but I'm still working on that one.