And here we go again

It's storming.  Again.  Thunder, lightening, horizontal rain -- the whole thing.  And the dogs are exactly the same each time.  Actually that's not entirely true.  Poly has gotten SO much calmer when there are storms.  She still shakes sometimes, though not all the time.  At least one of us is with her, as best as our schedules allow.  At this moment she's curled up in a ball, breathing somewhat deeply but no shaking.  I keep praying that this means she feels safe here... with us.  It's been a few years since she and her brother arrived.  I'm glad to know that after all she's been through, she considers this her HOME!

 I may have told these stories before and if I have, please forgive me.

Poly's life started in Georgia where she somehow wound up in a "high-kill" shelter.  Actually she spent her entire life in a shelter.  She never had a home.  Never had someone to let her sleep on the sofa.  Never had people care for her, and snuggle with her.  It makes me sad just to write that.  Fortunately, after her traumatic beginnings, a rescue picked her up and brought her up North.  She was fostered for about a millisecond before we grabbed her.

Actually we were hooking up with someone from the rescue to meet Casey!  He was in a high-kill shelter as well.  We know little about his history other than that he was adopted with his brother.  That adoptive family felt overwhelmed loving both of them.  I can't imagine how, but they gave Casey (then known as Wesley) back.  Again, this was our blessing and we have the privilege of loving him - and spoiling him!  So, we went to meet Casey and Poly (then, "Wendy").  She hadn't been up North very long but seemed to have bonded with Casey.  The two of them were romping around and playing together like they'd shared their entire lives together.  Then Poly snuggled up to MrB and that was that.  We'd been sucked in.  We were now the parents of TWO dogs....

So we are in the midst of a pretty awful storm.  Casey is just hanging out.  Poly plopped herself on the ottoman next to me after Daddy left for just a minute.  She remains there... here:

Now is that adorable or what?  I guess I'm taking advantage of her storm snuggles since she usually pays the most attention to Daddy.  She's doing ok now.  Deep breaths and snuggling against my leg.  I'll take it!

Before I end with the poem below, please remember

ADOPT DON’T

SHOP

I have absolutely no idea where I got this and apologize that I don't have a name to reference:

Tail tucked between your legs,

Confusion in your eyes -

I know it's hard to understand

That someone heard your cries.

When loneliness is all you know

And pain is all you feel

And no one can be trusted,

And hunger's all too real...

That's the time the Lord sees you

And lets you know He's there

That's when He sends His messengers

The hearts that love and care.

Yes, rescuers are angels

You cannot see their wings, 

They keep them neatly folded

As they do their caring things.

The medicine to make you well

Good food to make you strong,

And finally to help you learn

That hugs are never wrong.

The perfect place then must be found

The home where you can live

Secure and safe and happy

With joy to get and give.

When you reach your Forever Home,

Your place to feel whole,

The Angels smile, and off they go

To save another soul.

Storms

It has been storming a lot here in the Mid-Atlantic.  I mean a lot!  There are flood watches and warnings as well as actual flooding.  Many of the storms have had thunder and lightening.  I think I've mentioned before that Poly is not a fan of "thunder-boomers" (as they were called when I was a scared little one).  Firstly, our little Princess doesn't like to get her paws wet.  Heaven forbid.  You have to time it just right where she actually has to go, the grass isn't wet, there is no mud AND right before the storm starts.  She is one high-maintenance pup.  We love her a lot.  I mean a lot!

Poly could be a weather-dog if we taught her to use the green screen.  She shakes with storms.  Often she senses they are coming before we're even aware of an impending storm.  Poor little girl wants to be cuddled up next to something -- usually someone.  We've tried the ThunderShirt (which I know to be very successful with other pups, just not our Poly) as well as some holistic remedies.  Nothing works for our little girl except some love and cuddling.  No problem!  I read one article about how you shouldn't give your pet extra attention when they're shaking during storms because it just teaches them to shake more.  Ok, hold on just one minute!  I have a degree in psychology and behavior modification was my favorite topic (I'll have you know I got an "A" in training my mouse, but I digress).  I understand "Classical Conditioning" where you give a reward with a desired behavior occurs.  I just don't think this applies to FEAR!  C'mon, would you do that to a baby who's afraid of something?  Yes, you would totally give the baby love and attention.  Why on earth would someone say you shouldn't do as much.  Argh!  People frustrate me!

Storms: Casey.

That's basically the extent of it.  Or he'll snuggle with us, but that's what he does a lot of the time.  While he can be a bully, not wanting his sister to get attention unless he is -- or instead of her, he's a big lover.  We love him back... happily!  Well, that's the extent of our big kids and storms.

 The little ones (our two kitties), well, unless they are here (see left) they are under the bed or in the tub.  Ok, so Bert might be in the tub; he's the one on top.  Tori will likely be hiding under the bed or in the spare bedroom.  They're pretty "chill" when it comes to thunder storms.  Thankfully.


Here's hoping praying the basement is dry!

Long Overdue

There is no excuse.  None.  At all.

However, I'm going to offer one up anyway.

Life.

Life is crazy busy.  You know it.  It's true for you, too.  It seems to be true for everyone these days, doesn't it?  Work.  Cooking.  Shopping.  Movies.  Dinner out.  Family Visits.  Friend visits.  Cooking for said visits.  Phone calls.  Life.

The dogs are loving life right about now!  They are sound asleep.  Poly spent most of the day outside, getting annoyed when I would force her to come in, cool off, and get some water.  Poly was in quite a "place" where she loved what was going on, but it totally set off her ADD.  Wishes (at least that's what we call them here in the Mid-Atlantic) were flying by and Poly couldn't help but chase after them, either with her eyes or by running after them.  At the same time, she was on the lookout for birds to fly overhead so she could chase after their shadows.  Meanwhile, Casey couldn't decide if he wanted to stay outside, where he could periodically eat some branches/grass/dirt or he stays inside with his people - or person, as it were.

Sir Groundhog has reared his ugly head.  There has been quite a raucous around here.  I've taken a few videos and I'll share one with you.  Oh, by the way, it seems Sir Groundhog has developed a relationship and they are both eating the clover taking over our backyard.  Ugh!

Here is where I tried to load a video of the pups going crazy over Sir Groundhog.  Casey definitely provides great entertainment.  However, I'm sure you noticed the word "tried" and that gets the idea across.  I thought I finally had it... the box with the first screen and the arrow.  I was so excited (the dogs were sleeping at the time).  Then I clicked on it and nothing.  Noth-ing!  Perhaps I'll figure it out for another video entry.

We've taken oodles of pictures of these big guys.  Unfortunately I can't  post them right now.  I promise I'll get them up as soon as possible.

MrB and I had several engagements the weekend before last.  This meant that the dogs were alone.  I was feeling incredibly guilty about that.. I can't imagine I'm alone in that, right?  So, I grabbed my jammies and slept on the sofa.  Two nights in a row.  Now that makes for a couple of happy dogs!

Casey is a champ when it comes to behavior, paying attention to us about 99% of the time.  Poly, on the other hand, still thinks it's ok to pee in the house.  Really?  She's 3 yrs old!  We've tried everything!  For a long time now I've taken her outside myself and stayed with her (she was on a leash) until she finally went and then she was free to romp, run, and play to her heart's desire.  It was working for a while.  That "while" came to an end.  Just this week, while she was barking her head off, she was presumably barking at one point to go outside.  I do hope that's what happened because I stepped in a wet spot on an area rug in our foyer.  At other times she'll go 16 hours without going (like during Hurricane Sandy).  She's a very confusing dog.  She has gotten really good at coming in when she's called from outside.  She's usually in front of the shed, happy as a clam.  It's almost a straight line from the shed to the back door.  She's a tricky little thing, though because she'll head towards the door and then veer off to the right, heading back towards the door at the last minute.  Now that we know she does that, it makes us laugh.  She really is one smart cookie!

I'll get quiet now.  Hopefully not for too long.  There are plenty more antics here with the "B" critters.

Thanks for reading!

Our Babies

Wow, I cannot  believe it's been since JULY that I've written!  I knew it had been awhile, but 9 months?  Now that's just neglectful!

What have the kids been up to since I last posted?  Well, they stayed with "Mr. Jim" twice while we went away.  The husband and I went away twice.  Once was to Disney World for to Night of Joy.  The other was for a relaxing and (mandatory) un-plugged anniversary (18th) away.  Hub's job was super stressful, to the extreme that he was angry, yes ANGRY at not being able to reach Keith for that long weekend... 3 days of which he was already off for holiday time and the other day was vacation time.  I could easily go off about this, but I'd rather talk about my birthday trip.

We are HUGE Disney fans and we are Christians who love contemporary Christian music.  Night of Joy is the perfect combination of these things.  It sounds like a Christmas celebration, but it's in September...every year.  We got to see concerts from Stephen Curtis Chapman, Michael W. Smith, MercyMe, Matthew West, The Newsboys (others performed, too)...  AWESOME lineup for 2013.  Ok, I got off a little bit and I apologize.  Back to the pups!

While it is boarding when they stay at Mr. Jim's, he is incredible and takes such good care of them!  They come home exhausted!  It takes every ounce of energy, after their rush of seeing us, to get in the car.  They are happy to see him when we drop them off.  I had surgery in December (the day after our "un-plug" trip) and wasn't able to properly care for the dogs.  Rather than worrying, Mr. Jim was more than happy to accept a couple of last minute daycare friends.  He has told us that he never lets any dog on his chair.  Poly, however, stole his heart and she is permitted on the chair.  Poly and only Poly!  She steals hearts pretty easily.  Casey is darn good at this himself.  He is a big lover if ever there was one.  He jumps all 4 legs in the air with a vertical jump because he is so excited to see someone he knows.  Kisses.  He LOVES kisses and will give them to you, even if he doesn't know you.  He will sit next to you and hand you his paw, or both paws, and wants you to pet under them until he slides down the sofa and wants belly rubs.  Such a lover!

As I've written before, Casey and Poly are rescue dogs.  We completed an application with interest in Casey.  They accepted our application, did a home-study and interview and checked references - adopting a human doesn't seem so extensive (kidding...just kidding!).  We'd gone through a different rescue to adopt our kitties, Victoria and Albert (aka Tori and Bert).  So, Casey seemed to be a good match for us so we met him with his foster Mom.  Immediately we knew he had to be part of our family!

I mean really -- look at those eyes (even though they're half closed) and those ears - oh my goodness!  He had us at "hello!"

Well it turns out that the foster Mom was also caring for a dog, a Vizsla (what? you ask, what is that?).  Well, we had no idea either, we just knew she was a cute, sly little thing!

She knew how to work the situation.  "Hmmmm, if I curl up in a tight little ball right between the two of them and let them feel how soft I am, maybe, just maybe they'll take me home."  And while we're at it, big guy, let's play together and then take a nap right at their feet.  That'll really suck 'em in!

Well, she was right.  A few days later Wesley and Wendy because Casey and Poly and were deemed members of our family forever.

Ok, so, Poly...a vizsla.  The video will show you how beautiful this breed is.  She is not pure vizsla, of course, but she sure does have many (MANY) of the qualities of them.  Basically what I tell people when they ask is that hubby and I had never heard of the breed before Poly and that she's a Hungarian hunting dog.  That pretty much sums it up from this end.  This dog can dig like nobody's business and regularly tries to get under the fence on both sides of the yard.  Yep, she's a digger!

We've had a rough winter here in the Northeast//MidAtlantic.  These guys were not so sure about all of the snow.  Poly tries to catch snow flakes and gets upset when they fall to the ground, getting lost in the inches of snow on the ground.  Casey had it when the snow reached as high as his belly.  Neither were very fond of this after a while.  Prancing through the snow with their legs sinking it at every step got old pretty fast.  Fortunately, hubster and I took video I can now share it with you so we have it for prosperity. (dumb upload)

Mr. Casey has had a hard time this winter.  He seems very depressed and has started licking one of his paws to the point of being red and raw.  We have a spray meant to help it clear up; he licks that off almost immediately despite our best efforts.  He's also taking a med with the thinking that he's doing it due to stress.  There has been a great deal of stress here, but with hubby starting a new job, some of that should be relieved.

I guess that pretty much sums up what's going on with us.  I know I say this every time, but I'll try to keep on top of "Two Dogs" better!

Thunder Boomers

Well, that's what we called them in my house growing up.

Recently, we saw this sky:

It was so beautiful yet so powerful at the same time.  Some intense storms followed this amazing photo.

For the most part, I really love thunder storms!  While this was not the case when I was younger (a lot younger if I'm going to be honest), I now think they are sort of romantic.  You may think I'm being weird, but when it gets all dark-ish, maybe the electricity goes out, it's quiet - the thunder can't be too loud or this whole thing goes out the window, so to say - it's a great time to snuggle with your loved one.  Of course this isn't so easy to do when you're alone.  But when hubby is home, I sure do like these times!  I've loved thunder storms since I started dating!  Anyway, back to the topic at hand...

Poly, however, could have done without the whole thing!  The lightening was striking, the thunder was booming... Poly was shaking.  :(   Poor baby does NOT like thunder storms!  We've tried the Thunder Shirt and some all-natural remedies with no success.  (friends have tried each of these products with success; I am not saying that these products are defective or a waste).

I would take video of her, but was too busy trying to comfort her.  While I was doing that, my husband kept busy trying to search for new ideas.  Well, the internet is a dangerous place!  He had heard about giving dogs a very small amount of Benadryl and wanted to check it out, especially since it's not all-natural.  Well as you can imagine he found sites which suggested it was the best thing ever and other ones which said it was evil.  As is the case with many things, I fall somewhere in the middle.  Evil?  No.  Best thing ever?  Sure not.

He also found one site which said that we shouldn't pay attention to her because it teaches her we'll love on her.  Ok, I have to let the cat out of the bag here... I have a degree in psychology and excelled in my behavior modification classes.  I'm no expert but I get that giving a dog attention when he/she is doing something bad they will learn that if they are misbehaving they someone will pay attention to them; that's super-basic, day one Intro to Psych thinking; it's called positive reinforcement.  However, I don't believe for a minute that Poly is doing this on purpose or that she had any control over it.  My heart goes out to her and I will not, I repeat will NOT ignore her her body language proves she is scared!

The storm passed and Poly returned to her usual nighttime position, asleep on the couch:

Casey remains unaffected by the loud bangs and follows Poly's lead:

I'd love to hear your experiences with thunder storms - both as a human and how your dog responds, plus what you've done which helps or doesn't help your canine kid(s).

The Groundhog Strikes Back

So, my husband is a huge Star Wars fan, hence the geeky title of this post.  But I digress (before even getting started).

Yes, it feels like this is all I write about, but it's what our lives have become centered on lately.  The groundhog seems to have taken over here at the Brown household.  Poly will see the little rodent and bark incessantly for hours on end - no exaggeration!  She has a specific bark and Casey knows what it means, jumping up and going into the kitchen to catch a view of this thing.  He will stand at the back door, doing his horizontal jump, and groaning.  "LET US OUT!"  I still figure that the pups are quicker than the groundhog so refuse to let them out while it's in sight.

Yesterday brought our Groundhog Adventures to a new level.  Casey squeezed himself under the neighbor's fence and into their yard.  The Great Escape!  I must explain that Sir Groundhog (as he defines himself, best I can tell from his behavior) not only lives under our shed, but himself goes under the fence, into our neighbors' yards and under their sheds.  I presume that Casey wanted to follow a scent to catch the thing once and for all... for lunch.  Fortunately Keith realized it before too long and went to get him, no less hungry.

Later, after Casey's adventure Mr. Groundhog thought he'd (yes, it's a male - LOL) test the waters, as it were, and see how close he could get to the house without the dogs ramming through the glass door.  They had already seen the thing (from inside the house) once that day but stubborn (see, male) Mr. Groundhog wanted to play games.  Keith looks out and sees him inching closer and closer to the porch.  Fortunately the dogs were unaware.  The next thing Keith knows, the rodent is on our porch, only a few feet from the back door.  Again, we are thankful they were completely oblivious to the groundhog's latest attempt to presumably make new friends.

This creature will move for nothing!  When the dogs see it, and even when only the humans in the house see it, nothing makes him move.  We know Poly's bark is audible through to the outdoors - nothing; we know that our banging on the door gains attention from the dogs, but with the rodent? nothing; we have yelled and screamed and stomped our feet - nothing.  One of these days Poly and Casey are going to have quite a meal when Sir Groundhog doesn't make it out of our yard quickly enough.  When that day comes, rest assured, you'll know about it.

I do pray that day never comes...

Groundhog Day

Ok, so it's technically not Groundhog Day, but it is at our house.  I woke up this morning to two dogs barking - constantly and loudly - and Casey hardly ever barks.  They were both in their crates, but the barking was non-stop.  I figured either they saw something in the back yard or there was someone robbing our house... likely the former.

I showered and after I got downstairs I let them out of their crates.  Needless to say, the barking continued.  I didn't see a thing in the yard... not a thing!  But the barking persisted.  As you can imagine, I was starting to lose it.  At one point, I looked into the yard again and there it was - a groundhog running under the turkey wire into the neighbor's yard!  Well, now I knew the reason for the barking but couldn't stop it.

Not being able to think clearly after an hour (or more) of barking I called my husband.  He suggested that I let them outside so they could sniff where the groundhog was.  I figured it couldn't hurt and let them out.  I have to say, it was not an easy task.  Poly gets a training collar and a leash and she was having none of it.  She kept running away from me.  I finally got it on her - whew!  Now to get them to sit before I open the door (they always have to sit before going out).  Again, Poly was having none of it.  Casey is pretty good about it, but Poly usually needs a little encouragement.  With the presence of the groundhog, Casey spent a little time doing his vertical jump and Poly spent time running back and forth, in and out of the kitchen (where the door to the yard is).

I finally got them hooked up and ready and I opened the door.  I don't think I've ever seen them run that fast!  They took off to the corners of the yard and sniffed their little noses off.  When it was time to come in, they did so without issue and then both went to lay down in their spots.  Thank you, dear husband!

Believe it or not, Poly has begun barking again so I must go and figure out if the groundhog has returned.  I do have to say, he's not a very intelligent groundhog - there are two fairly good sized dogs in our yard... why run around in it?  I guess he's about as bright as Punxatawney Phil -- did Spring actually come early for you??  I've said enough!

The Easter Bunny

Yes, you read that right - we have the Easter Bunny living in our backyard (well, ours and the neighbor's)!  Poly and Casey went berserk!  I just thought they wanted to go out since it was a nice day yesterday.  When I went towards the back door Casey did his "jump" where he jumps 100% vertical into the air.  He only does this when he is excited - like when Daddy comes home.  Poly was barking, but that's nothing new.

I let them out, having to be gone for a few hours and wanting them to enjoy themselves first.  Before I knew it, Casey had his head under the turkey wire into the neighbor's yard and Poly just stood there and barked.  A minute or two pass and suddenly I see this movement, this... bouncing... and voila - a bunny.  Given the recent Easter holiday, I think that the only logical conclusion is that it IS the actual Easter Bunny.

Now, I am left with several questions here, like why does such a prominent creature live under a shed, and how does this little critter carry all the goodies that go in Easter baskets?  I mean even Punxsutawney Phil has a virtual mansion and he doesn't travel the world giving out gifts and candy.  Heck, he's rarely even accurate on the one day a year he has to work.  Anyway, if you have answers to these questions, please post them!

;-)

New Toy and Stuff...

I got a new toy.  I know, I know, you thought I meant the kids got something, but they have plenty of toys!  I got a new camera!  My coveting of this camera has not been a secret and we finally saved enough money to get it.  What am I photographing, you ask yourself?  Well, the dogs, of course!  They like to run towards it and check it out when I try to take pictures of them, though, so getting good ones is harder than it may seem.  I haven't yet connected the camera to my computer so cannot show you any of the pictures I've taken because I have gotten a few pretty adorable pictures!  In fact, all the pictures I've taken with this camera are of the dogs, minus a couple of exceptions of Keith pix.

Now to the "stuff" part of the post:  It is muddy outside today.  We're talking really muddy!  It's also not super cold (or the ground would be frozen - duh!) so the doggies are happy being out there.  I just can't leave them unattended while in the back yard (fenced in, btw) because of their inclination to dig.  Now, this is bad enough in dirt, but in mud, well, it's a downright nightmare!  I got Casey to come (literally) running towards the back door and inside.  Poly, on the other hand decided not to acknowledge my existence and continued to dig and sit in the mud.  I went and got her, brought her in and got a towel.  They both had to have their paws (and her entire legs) cleaned off.  They do not exactly enjoy this process, to say the least.

As you can imagine, these two paragraphs are NOT related -- I did not take pictures of my muddy "puppies."  Nor do I intend to take pictures of the muddy foot prints left in the kitchen before I got to their little paws.  Hmmmm, I wonder if we can make the entire back yard a wooden deck with a little corner for grass.  Hey, it's less digging space, right?

Why No (Human) Kids?

I thought maybe I'd spend a post talking about why Keith and I are childless... or at least have no 2-legged kids.

Keith and I tried for quite some time to become pregnant, both naturally and with treatments.  Not only did I take medications, but he had surgery.  Even considering those treatments we did not become pregnant.  At one point Clomid had me sporting four (yep, you read that right), four eggs.  We could have had quadruplets!  Looking back I can't even imagine what life would have been like.  We are both totally anti-abortion and I would have carried all four to the best of my ability had we become pregnant with all four eggs.  As we discovered later, I had endometriosis and adenomyosis.  The names aren't really important.  What is important is that there is treatment out there, we tried it, and decided - a conscious decision - to stop trying.

We chose to finish with treatments in 2000.  It's still painful to talk about pregnancy, to see a pregnant woman, to hear children laugh, etc.  Even seeing babies is painful - but to those of you whose babies we love (and you know who you are), we don't love them any less!  I promise!  I love to look at babies, albeit painful.  I love to see babies when we're out or pictures of little ones!  While it is a reminder that we were never given that gift, someone else was and even through the hard times parents have, I pray that those little miracles grow up loved and happy.

For us, though, the decision to end our seemingly constant trips to the fertility specialist was the best decision we could have made.  Not only are treatments expensive financially but they take an enormous toll on our emotions.  The roller coaster we went through each month was more intense than the most intense roller coaster imaginable.

So now we are blessed with our four-legged kids!  We believe that it was God's plan all along.  Of course He knew that I'd never carry a baby and that we'd save the lives of 5 critters - so far!  For any of you who know someone going through infertility or who is childless, this post will help you further understand.  I encourage you to read it!

As always, ask questions, make comments, link to my post - it's all appreciated!

Chicken and Toys and Naps... Oh My!

Sleeping in a circle - Casey will make himself fit in the
smallest of spots.

These kids are funny - so very funny!  For one thing, they get chicken with their kibble at dinnertime; they do not get it with breakfast.  Well, each and every morning, Poly will finish with her bowl and check to make sure Casey didn't get any chicken with his breakfast!  At dinnertime, she will check to make sure he's finished it.  They love them some chicken!  They can smell it when it's baking (summertime it gets grilled so they don't have that "privilege") and will go in and out of the kitchen - I guess to make sure that they aren't missing anything.

Toys.  We have to be very careful what toys they have because they LOVE to chew.  We discovered antlers, which we get from an online company (a reputable one) and there are frozen bones at the pet store which they adore!  Anything cloth or soft will be obliterated in a matter of seconds.  What else do we use, well, Kong (a great company) makes a line of black toys, as opposed to their usual red, which are more sturdy and bite resistant.  We sometimes fill them with peanut butter (sometimes not) and give them to the kids and they have still not decimated those Kongs.  We have many of these things in a crate, along with a couple of other toys ("Mr. Green Man" who remains intact - he's a green plastic ball with feet and a couple of other toys they can only play with when we're around to watch them).  It's hysterical to watch them (more Poly than Casey) dig for a specific toy they want and sometimes pull out a couple before they get just the right one.

Sleep is big for both kids.  They play HARD and sleep hard!  I love it when they snore or when it's obvious they are chasing something and barking at it.  I swear the groundhog living under our fence is in for it because these guys both have a good repertoire of chasing critters in their sleep... practice makes perfect.  They also like to sleep with their tongues out sometimes which is incredibly funny as well.  Casey is the more "people-person/dog" of the two of them.  As you can see in the picture, he likes to curl up next to us, even in the tiniest of spaces.  Poly... well, she dug herself underneath the blanket we have on the sofa and took a nap one day; I was fortunate enough to catch it on my cell's camera.  Enjoy!

Casey and his Daddy napping

Poly under the covers

Poly sporting her new sweater!  She doesn't have much fur to keep her warm.  Neither Keith nor I thought we'd ever put our dog in a sweater, let alone a pink, argyle one, but when she's shivering, love takes over and we do what we have to!

Casey - I love his left ear and yes, I *am* silly!














Poly sleeping with her tongue out







So, I added a few random pictures for your enjoyment.  I know I enjoy looking at them!  I guess that's all for now.  I'd love to hear your thoughts!

The Great Escape

I apologize for ignoring this blog for so long!  The kids have been a handful and I simply haven't taken the time to write about their lives.  It's not as if anything major has happened, just the day-to-day stuff.  The kids do like to play and play rough!  Sometimes Poly initiates, sometimes Casey is the instigator.  But every time they have to be separated so they don't kill each other or cause permanent bodily harm.  It is funny to watch them jump from sofa to sofa as they chase one another, it's like some sort of gymnastic leap.  LOL

Adventures of late?  Well, they went to the vet.  And got shots.  That was fun - NOT!  Poly went to Dog's Nite Out at the park, compliments of our pet store, Perk Valley Pet Eatery.  Casey is a little too aggressive to be put in a situation where there are so many other people and dogs.  There were vendors and rescues and just lots of other people.  Well, Casey did NOT like that Poly went out without him - and in the car no less!  So, we got home to find Casey looking out the window next to the door.  Hmmmm, how did this happen?  Casey had to break out of his kennel and then open the baby gate!  Now that's one talented dog!  We have not since left him alone and taken her out.  She didn't enjoy herself anyway - she's too guarded and tentative.

Upcoming adventures?  Well, who knows...  What I do  know is that I'll do my best to keep up with this blog :)

"Mousie"

As you all may know, our Poly is a great hunting dog, who has only barked through the fence and under the shed at the animals that were in the yard. This all changed this morning on the dogs first trip outside to do their "business".  Poly did her normal policing of the fence line around the whole yard and her customary trip around the shed just to make sure that the groundhogs and bunnies were in their rightful places. On one of her trips to the corner of the yard, where we have had to place bricks to keep her from digging a hole under the fence, something caught her eyes (or nose).  All I could see from my vantage point at the back door was her fiercely digging in the ground and poking her nose into the corner of the yard. She then went under the tree, which is also in the corner, to pick something up.  She then trotted over to the middle of the yard, proudly holding in her mouth the prize.  She dropped it near our patio, and then went to do her business.  Casey meandered over to investigate and ceremonially "marked" the area for himself after sniffing what it was.  At this point, I walked outside to see what prize she had so lovingly captured for us, and I discovered it was a recently deceased mouse.  What a good hunter we have!  She then picked it up again (by the tail) and did a victory lap in a small circle before dropping it again.  I let them enjoy their fun for a few minutes and then quietly deposited the catch in the trash when they were not looking any longer.

-Keith

Bully

Casey is a bully.  Period.  If Poly is sitting somewhere and Casey wants to be there, he will go and plop himself down, often sitting on her head.  He weighs about twice as much as her and knows it.  She gets her own "bully-ish" time in.  I often catch her biting at his legs.  They play rough and she regularly instigates.  He returns the favor by biting at her legs, too.  When she is feeling playful and he is not, he will go and seek refuge in his crate.  However, more often than not, he is the bully.

Groundhog

I've mentioned before that there is a groundhog which lives under our shed (along with a bunny).  Well this week, the groundhog has been taunting Casey and Poly.  It has been coming out from beneath the fence and wandering around the yard.  Poly sees this and barks her little head off, begging to go outside.  Casey recognizes her "there is a creature in our yard" bard and joins her at the back door.  Once, Casey jumped a good 4+ feet in the air out of excitement.  I've never seen him jump so high.


Before they go outside, they must first sit.  Poly is famous for putting her rear on the ground for a milli-second and looking at us, as if to say "what?  I sat!"  I then open and close the sliding door a few inches to let the critter know that it needs to return under the shed or slide under the turkey wire into the neighbor's yard.  So, Casey and Poly then race each other, taking off at full speed, for the shed.  They both try to fit as much of their bodies underneath as they can; they also like to dig at the rocks on which the shed sits and kick them into the yard.


It is difficult to get them both to come inside after they have spotted the groundhog or bunny.  This continues for several trips outside, sometimes into the next day.  They become totally obsessed!  If left inside, Poly will continue to bark, sometimes for more than an hour... even if she is locked out of the kitchen where the sliding glass door is.  She is one determined little thing!  Casey isn't totally innocent in this adventure.  He will also bark, but is more apt to quiet down when distracted from the door.  He does run from me if I attempt to grab him and bring him inside.  Poly does as well, but we have her dragging around a leash so she has become far easier to catch.


I have to wonder if the groundhog and bunny will ever get the point that there are crazy dogs living in our home and that they need to find someplace else to  reside rather than under our shed.  I can keep wishing...!

Mud

I took the dogs out bright and early this morning to find the ground wet.  This didn't bother Casey or Poly.  They both took off in the mud for the shed, to further investigate the bunny or groundhog living underneath it.  Poly proceeded to kick the stones out from under and onto the grass; we all learned that she fits between the shed and one side of the railroad tie walls surrounding it on 3 sides.  Casey took some of his time out there to DIG!  In the mud!!  It was right next to the door, too, so he didn't walk on the grass, so no opportunity to wipe it off onto the grass.


When he came inside, Casey was very good about sitting down on a towel and letting me wipe all 4 of his paws off.  I was surprised, since usually he is more interested in getting his muddy toes all over the living room carpet.  Yay Casey!  Poly was slightly less cooperative, yet still allowed Keith to clean off her paws.


Keith and I went to the pet store today and got a bag of treats for them - a kind they had never tried.  It was chicken jerky.  These guys love -- LOVE chicken!  Sometimes they get cut up breasts on top of their dog food.  Well, this jerky was no different.  It disappeared in no time at all!!  Casey ate the crumbs which fell from Poly's; she went over to where he was eating his, but there were no crumbs left on the floor, much to her disappointment.


Now, they are sound asleep, tired from another jaunt outside.  Oh, the life of our pups...

Bunny

There is a bunny (or several) living under the shed in our back yard.  Poly knows this and often spends her time outside trying to "befriend"  the little creature.  It's especially fun at 6:30 in the morning as she barks her little head off, running away from me in circles around the shed.  This morning Casey also wanted to "play" with the bunny.  My neighbors are going to turn us in for disturbing the peace.


Later in the morning, after Casey and Poly had finally come inside, they started barking again.  I went into the kitchen to check it out and saw that the bunny was in our neighbor's yard.  The pups saw it, too.  One morning I saw the little thing run across our yard with Poly chasing after him.  How is he possibly faster than she is?  I'm just glad to not get a "gift" from Poly!


Anyone out there interested in a bunny or two?  How about a possum?  Keith has seen one of those come from under the shed, too.  If I can catch Poly, I can catch the little rodent.

Fireworks

Yesterday was the 4th of July.  This is NOT Poly's favorite holiday.  While she loves having her Daddy home, she is certainly less than a fan of what this day means: fireworks.  Sure it's not as if we live next door to a fireworks location, we're close enough to a couple that she hears the BANG, BOOM and CRASH that they make.


We give her an all-natural remedy, albeit not exciting to her.  Last night, Keith gave it to her in a plate of pepperoni (I know, I know, an all-natural product in a very processed food); of course he had to give Casey a plate of pepperoni, too!  She wound up falling asleep during the displays.  Later, after Keith had come to bed, there was a thunderstorm and the noise of the storm affects her in the same way as fireworks.  She didn't bark or anything and made it through ok.  Let's hope she slept through the storm, too.  It's awful to see her when she's so scared by loud noises.  She just sits and trembles.  Sleep is good, sleep is very good.

Heat Wave

Today it was 99 degrees.  99 flipping degrees.  And muggy!  What did Poly and Casey want to do?  Lay in the grass... especially with the heat of the afternoon sun in the back yard.  Now, I was about dying standing out there for 5 mins and I'm not wearing a fur coat.  Casey even refused to come in a couple of times.  Even when they did come in, I couldn't get them to drink some water to try to alleviate some of that panting.  They both did spend some time on the non-carpeted floor, so I hope that was cool for them.


Once cooling off, both were sure to hop right onto the sofa/love seat to nap for hours on end.  It's just too hot for anything else.  They did finally drink some water, too.  It's as if they are being defiant teenagers; "No, I won't drink the water.  You can't make me!"


We got them one of those hard plastic kiddie pools.  Casey peed on (and in) it and Poly has NO interest.  We bought a couple of dog water toys, both made by Kong.  

Casey would go in to "rescue" the water Wubba, but climbed right back out after saving it.  I had hoped the pool would offer them some relief from the heat, but can't - won't - force them into it.


We were away for about a week last month and the pups went to stay at a Day Care/Boarding place.  Mr. Jim, the owner of this place, told us that he had introduced Casey and Poly to the kiddie pool with the same results... Casey hesitantly put his front toes in and Poly steered clear.  Today, Poly was slightly intrigued when I was "knocking" on the pool, but never got closer than about a foot away.  Maybe by the end of summer the two of them will realize the advantages of refreshing pool water.

Bones are Better Than Bones

Ok, alright, so I've been neglectful of this blog.  Forgive me?


We LOVE the Perk Valley Pet Eatery.  We get all of our food and toys there for all four kids. They sell only the best quality, all-natural, organic foods and their toys are of the highest quality.  They also have a bakery and they sell collars, leashes, harnesses, etc.  Not only that, but the owners, Gordon and Sue, and all of the employees are super knowledgeable.  I can't tell you the number of times I've gone to them with questions.  Not only all of that, but it's where we met Tori and Bert (the kitties) and adopted them from a rescue with whom Perk Valley works.


So, yesterday we asked how we can keep the big kids busy with something that doesn't require constant observation, while they're in the backyard.  We'd really prefer NO more holes be dug.  So, after some discussion we decided on fresh (but frozen), raw buffalo bones.  Given that Poly is a vizsla (Hungarian hunting dog), our guess was that she'd be ecstatic over this thing.  We also assumed that Casey would be happy -- that's not too hard.


We got the camera ready to take a video, went out back, and gave them each a bone.  He couldn't have been thrilled and began chomping away at it.  She sniffed it and left it be, wandering aimlessly around the yard.  After much encouragement, she finally took it.  Did she play with it?  No.  Chew on it?  No.  She went behind the shed and buried it!  She then sat next to Casey and watched him enjoy his bone.  It was too funny.  Well, it gets better.  Later, she went out and dug it up to play with the thing.  She did bury it again, but Daddy dug it up for her so she could play.  Later, she buried Casey's.  She is one unique little critter.  We love them both bunches and bunches!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Yes, I know we need rain and that we couldn't survive without it.  Try telling that to Poly!  She is a bit, ummmm, prissy.  She doesn't like to get wet, nor does she like to step on wet grass.  Last week we got a LOT of rain and it turned our backyard into a marsh because the ground was just saturated.  It was to the point where the kids were drinking out of puddles.  Gross!  Poly wound up having an accident due to refusing to go outside.  Honestly, I can't say I blame her; I sure prefer to take care of dry dogs.

It seems the ground hasn't fully dried out because puddles have already formed, making "going out" quite the chore with her.  He'll gladly go out and stay there.  He LOVES it outside - happy as a clam!  He just shakes off the water and goes along with whatever he was doing.  She shakes the water off in her little OCD way, incessantly.  She won't even do her business outside, even though she stands with me.... ok, ok, she's on the leash and can't go too far, but she walks in circles and never does anything.  I keep praying this doesn't result in another accident.

So, yeah, rain, rain go away!!!!  Poly has to pee some day!

(written weeks ago, but never published -- sorry)

Thunderstorm

We've had a number of thunderstorms in the past 24 hours.  While Casey isn't bothered by it, Ms. Poly shakes like crazy.  We feel horrible for her.  Keith and I have gotten her a "thundershirt" which we put on her during storms, but it only helps to a certain degree.  We're open for ideas. though <hint, hint>.  We will be asking the best pet store around, a local, family-owned store, for their suggestions.  If you live near me and want to know what the store is, drop me a line; I'll be more than happy to let you know about them because they really are amazing!

Sorry it's been so long since I've written, but life has gotten a little crazy around here.


Casey and Poly seem to be getting the hang of NOT destroying thing like furniture and blankets, which is a good thing.  They like to lay on the "people" furniture and sleep there for as long as possible.  They are, in fact, there right now as I type.


They are very fond of running around the back yard and digging holes.  Ok, the digging isn't our favorite thing, but there are a lot worse things they could be doing.  They love to chew on their bones.  Casey even took his out back last night, which made us laugh.  Any soft toys don't last very long... they get eaten into many pieces in no time.


Mr. Casey is very jealous.  The neighbor met Poly at the fence and Casey had to go running over, envious of not getting any attention.  He's a funny guy.

Casey Plays With Mr. Green Man

Casey's favorite toy was "Mr. Green Man."  He was (we thought) indestructible.  I've written about him before.  Well, Mr. Green Man went the way of the other toys this morning and he no longer squeaks.  In memorium, I thought I'd post a video of the fun.

Snow!!!

We had snow yesterday - a first for the pups.  Poly doesn't like the rain - at all - so we were pretty certain something wet AND cold on the ground was going to be the end of her being outside for the day.  She was very hesitant at first, but soon started playing with Casey (who also took his time putting his paws in the white stuff).  They ran around, chasing each other; they also made yellow and brown snow, in case you were worried  ;-)   Before we knew it, not an inch of the back yard was doggie footprint-less.

Enjoy some photos of their fun!

 Poly

 Casey (don't you just love his ears?)

 Poly

 Poly

 Casey looking for Poly

 Let the games begin...

 Yes, they play rough - but she holds her own and sometimes even instigates!

Casey

So that was our Saturday.  I hope you enjoyed seeing our cutie pies!

Good Doggies

Ok, well it may not start out sounding like they're so good, but trust me, it gets better!

Yesterday I had a couple of doctor appointments so the kids were left alone twice, the longest being 2-1/2 hours.  The first time, I came home and one of them (I believe it to be Casey) had an accident on one of the towels on the kitchen floor which we have by the door for muddy paws.  I also found that they had chewed the corner off of "their" cabinet.  Yes, we have a special hutch in our kitchen just to hold critter treats, toys, accessories, and gear.  I found a good number of pieces, though, so don't think they ingested much, if any of the wood shards.  Keith was the first one to come home from their second "alone" experience of the day.  He found everything to be in one piece and dry!!

Today has been a better day all around.  I am so excited with them.  They have been very good outside.  I was surprised that Casey wanted to come in so quickly on our last trip out back, but he climbed up the stairs and stood at the door staring at me as if to say "well, are you gonna let me in?"  He typically loves being outside and would stay out there for hours at a time.  Sadly for him, Keith and I are pretty emphatic that a human be out there with them at all times and we can't usually stay out there for hours.  Poly doesn't know a ton of commands and "come" wasn't working when she didn't want to follow Casey in.  The minute I came in and grabbed her leash, putting it on her, she followed me right inside.  Oh, that's another thing - we can sometimes let her out without a leash on and she isn't trying to climb under the fence to escape into the neighbor's yard (she only does it on the one side; makes me wonder what's going on that she doesn't want to go to the other side, except that they have two dogs of their own -- I would tend to think she'd rather be on the side with the dogs, but what do I know, I'm only human!).  It's been fun watching her run and see how fast she is... like a bullet!

Alright, scatterbrain, back to the topic.  When we came inside, I decided to do a few minutes of play/training with them.  Poly is still mastering "sit" while Casey is seeming to re-learn "come" (since he was either ignoring me or had forgotten the command when it was time to come in earlier in the day).  They both did SO great.  Poly does like to sit only until we reach for the treat; I guess she figures her "work" is done and she can do what *she* wants now.  Baby steps.  Casey will "wait" for me to take two steps back (I worked up from one to two today) and then come when I ask him to.  It was awesome!  It's hard training two dogs at the same time, but it seemed to work today and nobody got frustrated.  SUCCESS!

After that, I reminded them of their Kongs (which still have residue from the peanut butter/Kong peanut butter flavored squeeze stuff... Casey is the only dog alive who doesn't bend over backwards for human peanut butter) in the living room from earlier in the day and I grabbed a toy, lovingly known as "Mr. Green Man" which Casey had pulled out of the toy box this afternoon.  He's basically a neon green, round squeaking head with feet.  Round things are about the only toys Casey doesn't destroy and Mr. Green Man was a favorite of Kilter's.  We haven't yet suggested to Casey that Mr. Green Man has feet and are not going to encourage him to discover that one for himself; those feet will only last so long before Mr. Green Man has a double amputation.

Now they are relaxing... Casey is sunning at the back door and Poly has planted herself smack dab in the middle of the love seat, using nearly the entire thing.  Who knew 35 lbs could take up so much space?  Something tells me the bones and deer antlers are going to be next on the play list, but they can decide that for themselves... everything is in the toy box (a regular size crate) and they can just pull out what they want on their own.  I love to see what they chose and how they are so intentional once they decide what they want, just going right in for it!

The Bark

The other day, Poly was sound asleep and presumably dreaming about chasing some sort of prey (she is a hunting dog after all).  She began to bark and bark and bark to the point where she woke herself up.  Then, she started barking again having been awakened by a bark - no doubt she had to find out the source of that bark.  She was very confused, but I admit it was really funny to watch!  Is that wrong?  LOL

Escape Artists

Well, they somehow broke out of the kitchen!  Keith came home to find that the locked gate was open and they had meandered their way through and into the living room.  We still haven't figured out how they did that, unless it wasn't fully latched.  That, or they are the smartest dogs on earth.

Given that, we had them in their crates one night.  Poly was having none of that and with 2 hours of constant barking, by 1:30am, Keith and I had enough and, in order to get some sleep ourselves, let them into the kitchen.  Last night they woke Keith up 3 different times with barking (we're pretty sure it's her; he rarely barks).  Their crates are arranged in the kitchen such that one of them is up against a tension gate and the other is a couple of feet away.  Poly's has a side door, so when we put it in the doorway with the tension gate, there is only a matter of a couple inches of empty space.

We ran some errands today and, as always, left them in the kitchen.  When we returned home, the dogs were running free on the first floor.  What?!?  Evidently, Keith had switched and put Casey's crate against the tension gate.  This leaves more space between the crate and the wall.  There are towels on the floor for when they come inside all muddy.  It appears that they used the towels to pull the crate away from the gate and then knocked through it.

These guys are too, too smart!  They also crack us up!

The Innocent Look

I came down to Casey and Poly in the kitchen (thankful they were still there), but with their bed in close to a million pieces.  It was totally decimated!  After cleaning up most of the mess, I saw the following and had to take a picture.  It definitely says "I didn't do it, Mom."

Now, I have to be honest, we believe Poly to be the one who did this, or at least started it.  She is the one who is more destructive when we're around.  Don't get me wrong, I don't see Mr. Casey as innocent in this whole thing.  I can envision him thinking "wow, that looks fun, I think I'll join in" although he did once destroy his bed at his foster Mom's.  We have also lost 3-4 pairs of shoes (lost count), cookbooks have been eaten, the couch has a hole in it -- you know.

I went to lean the bed up against the house in the backyard and guess who snuck out?  Well, I saw Casey sneak out, but all of the sudden I saw Poly - outside.  I think she got out first and I just didn't know it, what with fighting with the bed and all.  Our backyard is a swamp after a storm yesterday and she is running around as fast as a bullet.  It took me a long time to catch her, during which time she tried to get under the fence more than once.  I wish I knew her real age - Vizslas are known to have a lot of energy, but is some of this because she's young?  Ugh!

We're just not sure we can keep both of them.  She can't have most toys because he will take them and destroy them; he can't play with one of the deer antlers because she will take it right out of his mouth (it's a darn good thing he's so easy-going!).  We just don't know what to do.  I want them to both be happy and she is so affectionate with us and he is so calm and smart...  I wish someone else could make this decision for us, or that we'd go back in time and do it differently........

<pouting>

Leash Adventures

When we take the kids out in the backyard, Poly MUST be on a leash (or she will sneak under the fence into the neighbor's yard); Casey will not do any "business" unless he is off-leash.  While they are outside, they like to play, and they can play hard and rough sometimes.  Well, Poly has been known to get the leash (30') around the table on the patio.  I will walk around the table to un-tangle the leash.  What happens?  She follows me, so it stays tangled.  It's actually pretty funny (even though it doesn't sound that from the way I'm telling it).

Both dogs are strong and can pull.  It is something that's improving, but Keith is the one who has to take them for walks because I am simply not strong enough to control them and keep them safe on a walk (in addition to some personal physical reasons).  The other day Keith comes and tells me that the 30 footer broke... snapped right in two.  He tied it together, but it isn't going to stay that way for long; she just pulls too hard.

With Casey off-leash and Poly on-leash, it has been known to happen that Poly wraps Casey all up in her leash.  I can't figure out if she's trying to get a leg-up on him or if it's an accident.  Surely she doesn't need to cheat to win their play-fights...

Drama King

Mr. Casey, drama king.  When Poly is getting attention, he HAS to come over and stick his nose in the middle of it (and fear not, he isn't lacking for attention).  We have a bone for each of them and a deer antler for each of them.  Well, specifically tonight, Poly got one and took it up onto the sofa.  Casey was having none of that.  He came over, sat on the floor with his nose right next to Poly's -- and more importantly, the antler.

He did, of course, move away a little bit when I got my phone out to take a picture, but you get the idea.  You'd think we never played with him or let him gnaw on a bone!

When we go outside in the backyard, Poly still has to be on a leash - she likes to dig and has a little too much interest in both getting into the neighbor's yard and tracking a phantom bunny - right under one of the gates in the fence.  Casey always comes from wherever he is and assumes that since my face is at his level, it's there for him to lick and he proceeds to do so.  It's quite distracting when trying to hook the collar to the leash.  It's even more interesting at night when we put their harnesses on.  Add his usual level of eagerness to pure out excitement and, well, we have one hyper pup.

Earlier today, they had their Kongs filled with yogurt (and frozen overnight).  Hers is the standard red; he requires the more sturdy one and it's black.  Of course they decided they wanted each others'.  I'll never understand.  They do, however, continue to crack me up!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Yes, I know we need rain and that we couldn't survive without it.  Try telling that to Poly!  She is a bit, ummmm, prissy.  She doesn't like to get wet, nor does she like to step on wet grass.  Last week we got a LOT of rain and it turned our backyard into a marsh because the ground was just saturated.  It was to the point where the kids were drinking out of puddles.  Gross!  Poly wound up having an accident due to refusing to go outside.  Honestly, I can't say I blame her; I sure prefer to take care of business indoors!

It seems the ground hasn't fully dried out because puddles have already formed, making "going out" quite the chore with her.  He'll gladly go out and stay there.  He LOVES it outside - happy as a clam!  He just shakes off the water and goes along with whatever he was doing.  She shakes the water off in her little OCD way, incessantly.  This is only after I've carried her to the area she usually uses, but she won't even do her business outside, even though she stands with me.... ok, ok, she's on the leash and can't go too far, but she walks in circles and never does anything.  I keep praying this doesn't result in another accident.

So, yeah, rain, rain go away!!!!  Poly has to pee some day!

Who Wants a Bone?

This evening, Poly was innocently playing with a bone.

Casey decided he wanted it, but isn't an aggressive dog, so did this little move:

He gets this pitiful look on his face and, as you can see, plops half of his body on their bed.

Poly, seemingly annoyed with him being so close to her and the precious bone, proceeds to fling the front half of her body around to gain some distance

and Casey gets an even more beggarly look on his face.

Shortly after this, Daddy took them for a 1.6 mile walk and now they're beat!

For the sake of update: Casey is now eating in his crate, door closed but not latched (which protects his food from her!).  He's super smart and comes almost all the time when called; he has "sit" down like a champ!  Poly's food is right inside the door to the crate, but she shakes some when she goes in, so we are building up to see if she can handle it.  She's really getting the hang of "sit" now and is doing it more and more quickly at mealtime.  The situation with the kitties remains the same - the first floor is "canine land" and the second floor is "feline-ville."  It works, at least for now.

'Tis The Season

Keith and the kids just came back from a walk around the neighborhood.  It seems that our big furry kids are not at all pleased with the outdoor Christmas decorations.  It was a beautiful weekend here and tons of people took advantage of the fine weather to put up their lights and lawn ornaments.

Casey is most disturbed by the lawn reindeer.  He growled each time he saw one (and there are many in our development) and even tried to chase one!  Poly, on the other hand, just paced at all of the lights.  Back and forth, back and forth.

How many days until the end of the year??  It'll be just about that time that the furkids get used to the Christmas stuff!

DOCD - Doggie OCD

If I were a clinician, I would totally diagnose Poly with this disorder.  Keith suggests medication for her; perhaps a little Abilify would help.

We have had a rabbit living under our shed for years now.  Poly discovered it this week.  Granted, she hasn't actually seen the critter, but she sure has one powerful little nose!  Rumor has it (ok, Keith told me) that she tries to "climb" the shed.  I'll believe it when I see it.  She keeps her snout to the ground and you can tell that she's following a trail.  Does she want to make a new friend OR does she think she found dinner?  She's obsessed with one corner of the yard near a gate.  Does the rabbit open up the gate and hoppity hop through?  Really, what is up with the dang gate?  Fortunately Casey is always out there at the same time and he can distract her.  Us, her parents, not so much...

We have two holes going under our porch.  When they've been filled with dirt, it lasts only a day or two before they are opened up again.  We're nearly certain that they are groundhogs, since they are pretty plentiful here.  Poly just about gets her head into these holes.  One of these days she's going to get her little nose bitten!  She also goes under a rather large holly bush and she just about gets lost under this thing.  I have to wonder if something is living under there or just visits.  Either way, Poly likes it!  She pulls for these two things any time we're out front.  Girl has quite the memory!!  If only she'd apply it to "sit."

Yep, it might be time for meds.

Turkey Day Weekend

It was a pretty quiet day for all 6 of us.  Wow, it sounds like a huge family... I guess maybe it is, especially when I start talking about us in terms of legs.  There are 20 legs in this house - yikes!

Anyway, Keith and I went to my Mom's house and the furry ones stayed home.  We returned home to the house just the way we left it!  What good kids!  The cats are even still alive...  We fed them some leftovers of turkey and stuffing on top of their regular food and they certainly enjoyed it.  We found out today that turkey isn't good for dogs.  Who knew?  This has been a public service announcement.

We went to the pet store today, sans dog.  I feel awful taking him and leaving her, so we didn't take either.  Anyway, Poly is a bit prissy and very picky when it comes to food.  We tried a few tricks, but with limited success.  She just isn't a big eater - she's not even food motivated for training!  Now, that's a challenge.  We shop at Perk Valley Pet Eatery, a local, family-owned pet store.  We figured we always shop there anyway, we might as well go on Small Business Saturday.  We had to take back the large back of food we'd gotten (when they - she - seemed to like the one type of food) and figure out something else to feed them.  We came home with a small bag of one food and the wonderful people at the shop gave us samples of a couple varieties to try.  Well, I got home and she wouldn't touch the one kind.  The second brand she ate for me, but not for Keith.  We decided that the fact that she had any interest in it at all was good enough.  Soooo, we truck back to the pet store (yes, it's us again -- although we brought Casey and Poly and only Keith went in).  He got yet another kind of food with a few cans (the Princess will gladly eat dry food covered in wet) in the hopes that she'll eat that.

Then we were off!  We thought we'd take a ride since the weather is so beautiful.  I can't believe it's nearly December!  We were going to go to the park but when we got on the highway, Poly began shaking.  She was terrified.  Keith had to carry her to the car just to get her in.  I believe she may be traumatized from spending time in a car coming up from the South; it's not even been a month.  We got to the park, but she was too scared, so we decided to come home.  Keith made a pit-stop to get his hair cut and the rest of us sat in the car.  Poly just slept, quite comfortable when we weren't moving.  Casey... well, he would love to get his license.  He's all about the front seat.  He got himself so tangled up in his car harness (which goes through the seat belt) that he could barely move.  I went to fix it and, well, let's just say he was very excited at the thought of getting out.  When we got home, he was one happy camper.  Then again, he's usually a happy camper.

Training update: he's a little too smart for his own good.  He knows to sit when he wants something (and will sit and look cute when there is something he wants that he has no chance of getting - like our lunch!); he's learning to wait rather than lunging for his food bowl and is doing a great job with waiting before going through a door or into his crate.  She's not quite as smart, although she's no dummy.  We praise her beyond belief when we see her sitting - party time!  We're working on "wait" although "sit" is more of a priority.  When she isn't motivated by food, asking things of her is difficult and we're nearly always praising her like crazy!

Funny stories:

• The first day we had them was a Monday.  Keith was at work and I was here alone with two dogs we hadn't even had for 24 hrs.  When we are outside and they have done their business, I let them off-leash to run free around the backyard.  She decided it would be fun to play in the next door neighbor's yard and wiggled herself under the turkey wire.  Mind you, she wasn't on leash at this point and doesn't yet know her new name (I'm not convinced she ever knew her former name).  I truck over to the neighbor's yard to get her and she thinks this is great fun.  Now she's on a 30 ft leash when we go outside.
• Casey is a jumper.  I don't only mean that he jumps up onto someone, though he does more than enough of that.  He jumps as if he's on a trampoline, straight up in the air.  It is one of the funniest things I've seen.  He gets so excited it's as if there is a spring that's come up from the ground, tossing him into the air.  He loves being outside so much that when he sees either the walking harness or car harness come out, he's sure to do it.

I caught another precious sleeping moment - again on our couch.  I really have to do something about that...  Anyway, I thought I'd share:

First, two similar pictures of "Doggies in a Circle" because Casey moved and the second picture is just as cute as the first  :-)

Sleeping Head-to-Head

I just can't get enough of these two!