Did you know dogs are most likely to run away from home on the 4th of July weekend? Between July 4th and 6th, animal control officials report a 30-60% increase in lost pets due to fear and panic caused by fireworks. I thought I knew all I needed to know about finding a lost dog. That all changed when my beloved rescue dog, Grace, ran away from her sitter while we were on vacation. Grace was lost in the New Mexico wilderness, an area populated by bears and mountain lions….Read the full story on Substack Here! Stay Healthy & Stay Pawsitive, Carlyn MDO  PS…. Do you know someone wh ..read more

On June 2, 2024, I was asked to be a speaker at the annual National Animal Rights Day (NARD) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. NARD aims to give a voice to all animals and raise awareness for their rights. The event takes place simultaneously in over 50 countries around the world. Here is the transcript of the short presentation that I gave. __________________ Hi Everyone. I’m grateful to be here with you today, united in our common cause, which is our great love and deep concern for the animal world. I’ve been thinking a lot about heroes lately…. Read the full story on Substack Here! Stay Hea ..read more

We’re Back! And settling in to our daily Santa Fe life, after a chaotic month that began when my Aunt Lucy became a centenarian by turning 100 years old. We flew to her birthday celebration in San Juan Capistrano and celebrated with dozens of family members. The next afternoon, while we were waiting at LAX for our flight to New Mexico, we received news that Grace had escaped from her sitter and had gone missing in the Glorietta wilderness, a remote area inhabited by bears and mountain lions. Twenty-four harrowing hours later, we found Grace and got her back in the most unexpected way ..read more

From an article in the Santa Fe, New Mexican Apologies for the lateness of my post! Life was not the usual status quo at the Montes De Oca household. Read this post and you will learn why! Expect the Unexpected A week ago, moments before boarding a plane from Los Angeles to Albuquerque, Ken and I received the call every animal guardian dreads. “Grace ran away, and she hasn’t come back.” We adopted our beloved dog Grace four years ago from a horrendous hoarding situation in Rowe, New Mexico just before the pandemic. In all that time, we had never taken a vacation without her. Montana, Californi ..read more

Boy, was I in a funk last week. You know how it goes. You get snippy with your partner for looking at you sideways. You see every wrinkle and feel every ache. You start noticing everything that’s wrong with the world, rather than what’s lovely. In my early years I used to run rampant with this kind of thinking. I never realized that although thoughts are hard to control, my reaction to them is something well within my power. At age 63, I now know better…. Read the full story on Substack Here! Stay Healthy & Stay Pawsitive, Carlyn MDO  ..read more

“Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” –Mark Twain A few days ago, I celebrated my 63rd birthday. Sixty-three years old? Me? Did someone make a mistake? How did I get here? When my father was in his nineties, he’d say that although he might look old on the outside, he still felt like a young man of twenty-three on the inside. Now I understand what he meant. Despite my biological age ticking upward… Read full story on Substack -> Here ..read more

“How’s your writing going?” asked my friend Stephanie. “Good. Oh, so good,” the words felt wonderful to say…and feel. That doesn’t happen every day. Feeling satisfied about the the first draft of my new novel came after four days of insecurity. Is this idea any good? Am I fooling myself that I can write? Was the success of my memoir Junkyard Girl a fluke? What kept me in a perpetual state of writer’s block for many years was my inner critic nagging me that I was not perfect. When I learned that most writers grapple with self-doubt, I considered myself in good company ..read more

Today is My Anniversary Five years ago, I learned I was adopted at birth. Most people learn this at a very young age. I was 57. This DNA discovery triggered a wide range of emotions, from shock to disbelief, to grief and loss. As a consequence, I was filled me with an urgent need to unearth my origin story and the reason behind the secrecy. Eventually this led me to write my memoir, Junkyard Girl. The revelation also helped me uncover an inner dragon-like resilience I didn’t expect to find so late in life. February 10, 2024 marks the first day of the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese ..read more

For twenty years I worked as part of the editorial crew on movies like, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, Three Men and a Little Lady and Christmas Vacation. Because acupuncture saved my health during my 12+++ hour long work days I decided to go back to school and get my master’s degree in Chinese Medicine. In my private practice, I not only had the fortune of helping others challenged with a wide variety of health issues, but the guiding principles of this medicine seeped into my bones and became a part of my philosophy of life. In particular, the idea of aligning myself with ..read more

A few years ago, I was walking with my dog, Roxy Fischer, when I had a powerful aha moment! The words Dog as My Doctor came to mind. When I got home, I lay down for a nap, an invitation which my two cats, Jester and Cody Fischer, used to pounce on my back. Cat as My Nurse, whispered my mind as my cats settled into their respective spots along my spine. These moments gave birth the title of my book about how our animal friends can powerfully benefit our health and wellness – Dog as My Doctor, Cat as My Nurse. That day with Roxy helped me realize how walking can create new ideas and generate sp ..read more