8 Feb 2009

This was another really good Doggie Day.  Right from the start I got to play the GET THE PAPER game.  But that only takes a few minutes.  Then dad let me snuggle on the bed with him while mom read the paper.  Pretty soon mom got up to cook some food.  Oh-boy... BREAKFAST - My FAVORITE!  all the dogs got a good breakfast.  Then I got to play.  Right away I got into big trouble.  When dad wasn't watching I grabbed mom's knitting and ran with it.  I must have broken some of it, because dad said mom wold be angry.  And was she ever!  I got time-out in my crate again.  A little later dad let me out.  Dad has a toy called a Buster-Cube.  I like it.  First, dad fills it with treats.  Then I have to push it around on the floor.  When I spin it the right way, a few treats fall out.  I gobble them up of course.  I don't know exactly which way works best, so I just bat it around and watch carefully for the treats to fall on the floor.  Dad told mom it was broken or he would have let me play with it instead of he knitting.  Dad said too many treats come out too fast.  I don't think so.  I think more treats should fall out faster.  But mom said we should get a new one.  Mom said I owed her a new knitting needle too.

Anyway... so before lunch Daisy and I loaded up in the dog-show van with mom and dad.  Oh-boy... another great adventure - My FAVORITE!  First, we got mom a new knitting needle.  Then - we went to PETCO where mom bought one bag of dog food and some more treats.  Only one bag mom???  Dad was looking for a new Buster-Cube.  They didn't have one.  So dad said we would check PetSmart.  And so we did.  PetSmart had one, it was red.  My old one was blue.  Mom said we had lots of time left, and we should all go to the dog-park.  Oh-boy... the DOG-PARK - My FAVORITE!  It only took a few minutes to get there.  But when we got there, there were no dogs to play with.  NONE!  Daisy and I were the only dogs in the park.  There were a few tennis balls laying on the ground, and dad threw them for us.  We raced around chasing the tennis balls a bit, but that got boring pretty quick.  Then mom said it was time to go so we loaded up.

We went to another park called Sue Young Park.  It was a dog training class, but it was for Daisy, not me.  So dad took me for a walk around the park.  There was a pond in the middle with some big birds about the size of a turkey sitting on the water.  Dad called them geese.  Whatever.... I just wanted to run across the water and catch one.  Dad says I can't run across the water.  Just let me go and watch me dad, I'll show you.  So we kept walking.  There were some little humans there.  They each had a funny stick with a string on it.  They would whip the stick and make the string fly out over the water.  Then they would wait a while.  Then they would pull up on the stick and it would bend.  Shouting - they would pull and pull until the string came out.  And there was some kind of strange creature stuck on the string.  It was really interesting.  That creature was on the ground, but it kept flopping around while the little humans shouted and tried to grab it.  I wanted to help, but dad wouldn't let me.  So we kept walking.  We were really enjoying the park when mom came to get us.  Time to go home.  When we got home Daisy and I took a nap.

Later that evening after dinner, dad started another fire in the window.  Dad calls it a fire-place.  I like it cause it keeps me warm.  So mom sat in her special chair and dad sat on the floor with me.  I was extra careful to be a nice calm puppy, I didn't want mom to remember I was bad this morning.  So we sat by the fire listing to radio until bed-time.  It was another fine doggie-day.

9 Feb 2009

OH-BOY.... Dog Training... My FAVORITE.  When dad came home he started getting ready.  I remember a while back dad said when I see him get the training bag I should get ready for training.  So when dad got the training bag I knew we were getting ready for training.  Soon enough we were loaded up in the dog-show van and headed for training.  We got to the training center early - as usual.  Dad got some toys out and we played a while.  Then other dogs started showing up.  First one, then a second.  By class time there were only 3 other dogs.  Soon the Alpha-human asked where all the other dogs were.  My dad said "They are 5 minutes late.  The world is run by those who show up - so lets get started".  The Alpha-human said "Yes.  By week 5 only the strong survive!  Lets start".  I was really happy.  I survived to week 5, so I must be one of the strong ones.

So far we have learned CONTROLLED DOWN, HEEL, ABOUT-TURN, LEFT & RIGHT TURN, RECALL, SIT, STAND, DOWN, CHANGE OF PACE, AUTOMATIC SIT, SIT-STAY, STAND-STAY, and DOWN-STAY.  Whew - that's a lot.  Today the Alpha-human taught us Spiral Right, Spiral Left, and Zig-Zag.  In the Spiral Right we start with a gradual right turn and make it tighter as we circle.  In Spiral Left we start out with a very tight left turn and get larger as we circle.  I got dizzy doing it too many times.  I think dad got a little dizzy too.  One of the other humans fell over - Ha ha ha.  The Zig-Zag is easy.  I just have to stay close to dad while he darts left and right.  The mom-collar didn't bite me once!  Then we started playing with another toy.  It was called the TUNNEL.  The little dogs tried it, and it was not a problem for them.  But I couldn't fit.  The tunnel was too little for me.  I was sooooo disappointed!  So dad took me aside and we played with a toy while the little dogs did Tunnel.  Then the Alpha-human put the tunnel away and brought out something called JUMPS.  We were supposed to run up to it and jump over.  That CORGI dog with no legs had a bit of a time with it.  When it was my turn I just walked over it.  No challenge at all!  So the Alpha-human put some higher bars across the jumps.  Now it was a challenge.  But I would show her.  She said go, and dad said go.  So I went.  I took off pretty fast.  Dad stayed with me over the first three jumps.  But by the fourth jump I was flying along.  As I jumped I hit the end of the leash.  The mom-collar bit me, I got jerked short and knocked the bar down, and dad yelled Ouch!  Guess I was going too fast for dad.  But I sure liked the jumps!  Then training was over.  Darn!  So we loaded up in the dog-show van and headed home.

When I got home, we all had a great dinner before going to bed.  Another fine doggie day. 

 
10 Feb 2009

Today I have a problem.  Mi legs hurt.  Mom says it is because I am growing too fast.  Mom might be right, but all I know is that I hurt.  When dad came home mom told him.  So dad spent most of the evening with me.  We snuggled together watching TV and then when dad went to bed we snuggled on the bed for a while.  Then mom gave me something called White Willow Bark.  I thought it would make me bark like my older sister Willow.  But my bark didn't change.  What did happen was that after a while I didn't hurt so much.  So dad put me in my bed and I went to sleep.  I hope I am better soon.

 
11 Feb 2009

Uh-oh.... I am in big trouble again.  Dad was gone.  Mom let me be out in the house for a while.  I was a good puppy and went to Uncle Parker's bed in dad's radio room.  I got a few toys and I laid on the bed quietly playing.  Soon mom forgot I was there.  She went to her room to click on that box on the desk some more.  No problem.  But then the toys got boring.  So I just kinda wandered around a bit.  Mom left her knitting out.  I like knitting stuff.  When you chew on it - it is so soft and chewy.  But I remembered how mom scolded me and gave me time-out in my crate when I chewed on her knitting needle.  So I just sorta "sniffed" the knitting stuff a little.  It smelled good.  So I took a little nibble.  Just a little because I like how it feels.  Well - that knitting stuff got mad then, because it jumped on me.  It wrapped itself around my little neck.  The more I tried to get away the more it came after me, trying to tie up my feet and legs.  I was violently trying to fight my way clear and get away when mom came around the corner and saw it all.  I thought "Mom will save me".  But no... mom got mad at me instead.  I didn't do anything - the knitting attacked ME! But I got scolded and mom gave me more time out in my crate.  Sigh.  I get blamed for EVERYTHING.

When dad came home mom told him about it right away.  So dad tried to scold me too, but I could tell secretly he was happy to see me.  So I wagged my tail and showed dad I was happy he was home too.  Dad let me out for a while.  Then dad made a fire in the fire-place and we sat together a long time until we went to bed.  Overall, another fine doggie-day.  Even if mom didn't understand what really happened. 

13 Feb 2009

This morning dad was sick.  He got up and let me out, but his voice was different.  Then when I came back in dad let me snuggle on the bed.  So I stayed on the bed real still and kept dad warm.  Dad got up much later, but we didn't do much the whole day.  I hope dad gets better soon.