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A Blog Year In Review

2017 was fun year here on the blog!

I’m proud to say that I wrote about 2 dozen more posts than I did in 2016 and that the blog survived a major move over to a new framework and theme.

We began our first newsletter and gained a lot of new readers which leads me to believe that the blog continues to grow and is well worth the amount of time and effort that it takes to maintain it.

I also feel that we’ve gained a lot more interaction with people who read the blog and that is a goal that all bloggers strive for, so thank you!

Welcome to everyone who is new here and my continued gratitude to those of you that have been with us for many years. Here’s to many more laughs in the new year!

 

As far as the health status of the boy it remains basically uneventful which is the best I could ask for at this age.

Sherman continues to age gracefully. He’s slowed down but he’s still living a good and comfortable life. Over the past few months I can see that he gets confused sometimes but he is still very much with us mentally. As far as mobility, his joints are old but they are still carrying him well. He’s had a few slips lately, but walks to the mailbox like a champ.

Leroy is doing well. We haven’t had an issue with his albumin since very early in the year and no obvious IBD flare-ups. He had a few ear infections and some issues with his neck but overall he’s still very much my goofy newfie.

Now let’s take a look at some of our STATS for the year:

Top 5 Blog Posts of 2017

5 Easy Ways To Stop a Dog’s Bleeding Nail. Eeeeeeekkkk! This shows me that a lot of pet owners are taking on the sometimes scary task of cutting their dog’s nails and many of them are taking a little too much off. The good news is that as far as I’m aware, no dog has ever bled to death from a bleeding nail. The bad news is that I feel like 90,000+ dogs suffered from an ouchie toe this year.

9 Tips on How to Help Your Dog Drink More Water. For a Newfoundland, I always thought that Sherman didn’t drink enough water. He’s picky about his water but he’s never been dehydrated which is good. I think it’s good that people are concerned and aware of their dog’s water intake.

So You Think You Want a Newfoundland, Here’s 9 Things You Should Know. I’m super excited that this made it into the top 5 posts this year. I believe this post is what brought a lot of new readers here because I received a large amount of emails in regards to it.  Quite a few of the emails were from people thanking me because after they read the post they realized they weren’t quite ready for the Newfie lifestyle.

5 Tips For Taking Your Dog’s Poop Sample to the Vet. This post remains one of my most viewed posts over the years making it clear that many pet owners are unsure how to transport their dog’s poop to the vet. I guess if I didn’t work in a veterinarian office for several years I would be just as perplexed.

If Your Dog Eats Rocks, You Should Probably Read This. This was one of the hardest posts that I ever wrote and it saddens me that it made it into the top 5. While many of the hits on this posts could have come from people worried about their dog eating 1 rock, my fear is that a lot of dogs  have an addiction to eating rocks like Leroy did. I can only hope that maybe one person read this post and it scared them enough into taking their dog eating rocks seriously.

 

Memorable moments 

I have 2 senior Newfoundlands!

Sherman turned 11 this year!

Leroy turned 9 this year!

I’m blessed for every day I have with these boys!

This year Leroy and I traveled from Ohio to South Carolina to attend the BlogPaws Conference. This was the first long trip that Leroy and I have ever taken together and it was a trip that I’ll never forget! We got lost, we made a lot of new friends and we got to be on stage together when this blog won in the catagory of Best Pet Humor Blog!

 

Results of our survey.

Earlier in the week I asked someone of you to fill out a survey if you had a free minute to spare. This was to help me plan out blog goals for the new year. Here are the results of that:

50% of you said that it doesn’t matter what I post because you read them all. Thanks so much guys. I love you!

15.52% of you said that you want to see stories about Sherman and Leroy

10.34% want to see Newfie related posts

8.62% had other suggestions that included stories about senior dogs, puppies and health. Traveling with your Newfie. How to find a reputable breeder and puppy-which you can find right here and here 🙂 Owning giant breed dogs-the ups and downs and what a family needs to know when having 2 Newfs. And anything as long as you have lots of pictures!

6.9% want to see DIY posts

5.7% are interested in giant breed posts

1.72% dog health related posts

1.72% senior dog posts

0% puppy posts

Thank you to everyone who took the survey. It’s still open if you missed it and want to add your vote.

I’m looking forward to the year ahead and I hope that you’ll continue to read along with us.

Wishing all of you love, good health, peace and prosperity in 2018.

 

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Shadow & Ducky's Mom

Friday 5th of January 2018

Thanks for another great year, Jen! Your help when I was struggling with the early days of my externship was invaluable! And you always made me smile as I read your posts. The post about the rock eating came about a week after our vet shared with me that one of his hounds is/was a rock eater, so I forwarded him a copy of the post.

Monika & Sam

Sunday 31st of December 2017

Thanks for another year of great posts and adorable photos. We love reading about Sherman & Leroy's adventures. Keep up the good work in 2018!

M. K. Clinton

Friday 29th of December 2017

We hope you have a very Happy Newf Year! You know I love your blog and your boys.

Jen

Saturday 30th of December 2017

Wishing you the same my friend!

Jrnny

Friday 29th of December 2017

Thanks for ALL of your posts, Jen. They’re very informative and interesting and hilarious. You’ve brought many smiles to my face over the last few years thanks to you. Happy New Year and give those boys a kiss from me. ❤️

Jen

Saturday 30th of December 2017

Thanks so much for the kind words Jenny! Wishing you a very happy New Year also and I will pass on the kiss for the boys!

Emma

Friday 29th of December 2017

Trimming nails is always an issue. Mom uses the clipper and the dremel for our nails. Thankfully, no bleeding incidents, but she is pretty careful and tries to use the dremel more than clippers. We are not surprised that was a big post as our friends, and sometimes neighbors are always asking us what to do because their dogs nail is bleeding.

Jen

Saturday 30th of December 2017

I agree. I always have the quick stop near by when I take on the task of trimming nails!

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