Adopt a Shelter Pet Day

Today is April 30 and it's also Adopt a Shelter Pet Day.  Now none of us came from a shelter - although my human often threatens that we could end up there.  But there are many wonderful dogs who, due to NO fault of their own, end up in shelters.  And they deserve a good home.  The key with shelter pets is matching them to the right homes.  Some shelter pets come with baggage - and I'm not talking dog toys and leashes.  I'm talking about a start in life that may not have been good - so they may have behavior problems.  The crucial point is in knowing what those problems ARE and whether the prospective human can tackle them.   There is probably nothing more sad than seeing a dog go to a home, only to be returned a short time later.  So matching dogs and homes is CRITICAL.  Now not ALL shelter dogs have behavior problems - some may have ended up there due to their human becoming ill.  No matter what the reason though, a good match is very important.

My human's first dog (as an adult), who I have probably written about before, was Barney.  He was a terrier-something cross.  Pretty darn cute to look at, but his nick-name at the shelter was "The Biter." For good reason.  But my human, being somewhat naive,  judged a book by it's cover, and took Mr. Sweet-looking, home.  And probably within an hour of arriving home, he bit her.  She learned QUICKLY that Barney didn't like to "give things up" and he was somewhat "protective" of his belongings.  He also did not particularly care for other dogs - he would look all sweet and waggy tailed and then promptly attempt to bite them.  Obedience classes for him BEGAN but never finished - because it was too much of a challenge holding onto the whirling, snapping machine.  My human simply learned to avoid other dogs when walking him.  Barney also had a "thing" for large trucks.  He would go into a frenzy - and one time put a hole in my human's boot (while she was wearing it) in his frustration at not being able to "catch" one.

Every now and then, he loved to get into the garbage, not to EAT the contents, but rather to HIDE them.  There was that turkey carcass he hid under the cushion on the sofa - and the chicken bones in the suitcase of my human's sister, who was visiting. 

When my human traveled to visit her parents and their Golden Retriever, Barney tried to take over Midas' food bowl- with Midas standing right there.  Midas was a pretty laid back dog - but it was the first and only time they saw him lose his cool.  Barney learned quickly that "size matters."  Not that it totally deterred him throughout the whole visit - he was just more cautious - and he certainly didn't try to challenge Midas again!

When Barney was about 10 years old, my human decided to take a chance and add a new dog to the household - a Bernese Mountain Dog puppy.  She had wanted a Bernese for a number of years - and while she initially THOUGHT she should wait until - well until Barney was no longer around - she came to realize that Barney was one hardy little dog.  So she took a chance - KNOWING that Barney was not all that fond of other dogs. But Barney surprised my human - as he often did - and he didn't mind Schubert at all.  Barney outlived Schubert, and went on to live with two other dogs as well - another Bernese, named Guinness and a yellow lab named, Beamish.  Throughout his life, Barney WAS in charge of the household - and everyone respected his status!

Barney and Schubert

My human owned Barney back in the day when vaccinating almost EVERY year was common protocol.  He also ate cheap dog food - the kind that LOOKS like meat but is probably 95% fillers and plastic.  It was actually probably mostly chemicals and preservatives.  Barney lived to the ripe old age of 17 1/2.   And besides his yearly vaccination visit, she can't recall him being sick.   Maybe it was all those chemicals that preserved him!  Go figure. 

Barney liked to run away, if let off leash, but he usually came back.   When he felt like it.  My human often said that even at age 17, if the door was left open, he would have said  "see ya later - I've got places to go. Not sure when I'll be home."

When he went to the Rainbow Bridge it was a sad day indeed...  

But my human often wonders if she had not taken Barney, where he MIGHT have ended up.  He clearly wasn't a "family dog" - and NOT a dog for everyone - but just like every dog she has been owned by - he was just perfect for her.  

So today we think about those dogs who have still not found a home - and are living in shelters.  We hope that they find their loving, forever homes SOON!!!!  




***One final thing to note...most dogs in shelters are not purebred.  Two probable reasons why - IF you get a purebred dog from a RESPONSIBLE breeder, that breeder will take the dog back at any point in his/her life and will find a good home.  Those breeders will ALSO insist when you get a puppy that he/she be neutered - and NOT bred.  The other reason you don't find as many purebreds in shelters - IF a purebred DOES end up in a shelter, most purebred breed clubs will rescue the dog, and find a good home.  Dogs in shelters MOST likely did NOT come from responsible breeders.  That is not to say they don't deserve a great life - and being there is not their fault.  But sometimes people WANT an older dog - and they may not be aware that breed clubs can often HELP them find a dog of a desired breed - who also NEED loving homes.  So when you are ready to take a dog into your home and heart - please know that there are a NUMBER of ways to do so!

Viktionary Part 2

Saturday.  A day to let our human sleep in until 6AM.  Isn't she lucky?! 

Today I am sharing more Viktionary entries - as my human is feeling a BIT tired and since today's holidays, according to the crazy calendar, aren't anything NEARLY as exciting as Hairball Awareness Day.  Seriously - who celebrates World Zipper Day?  

So here are a few terms that dog owners can probably appreciate - and maybe one or two JUST for humans who are owned by PONs!  

We will try our best to stay out of trouble today to give our human a break.  Bwhahahahahaha.  Who am I kidding?! 

Have a good one!

Tricoliths. Really.

Well it's Friday.  And I must say, my human is very happy it is.  VERY happy.  Let's just say it has been a challenging week in many ways - so let's just be glad it's over and let the weekend begin!  Although she DID say something about all of us being overdue for a good grooming - so it may not be as joyful a weekend as I'm hoping for!

Today is actually National Hairball Awareness Day - and frankly it's not a topic I REALLY feel like writing about.  I mean really, who wants to talk about tricholiths or trichobezoars?  That's the "technical" term for hairballs.  One thing I did learn - that although people think of the hairball problem as a cat thing, dogs CAN get them too.  We tend to get them if we lick ourselves a lot - like if we are itchy or bored, if we are shedding and not well groomed, or if we eat other animals - like that bunny in the yard.  Hairballs CAN cause an obstruction in our gastrointestinal tract and the symptoms may include repeated attempts to cough or vomit, constipation, diarrhea, or a loss of appetite.  If our stomach appears bloated, we have a significant problem.  Sometimes hairballs can be "helped along" by giving us petroleum jelly or pumpkin.  In some cases, the problem COULD actually require surgery.  Luckily it's not a COMMON problem in dogs - but I guess it's important to know it CAN happen.

There.  I can't believe I just had a blog about hairballs.  Well I guess I've talked about poop enough times, that hairballs aren't THAT far a stretch!

Wishing all of you a happy - non-hairy weekend! 

Pay it Forward

So today is something called Pay it Forward Day.  It's basically a day when humans are supposed to be nice to other humans and perform random acts of kindness.  Buy someone a coffee, help the neighbor carry out the trash or rake the yard, visit or call someone who is ill, let someone into traffic ahead of you...nice little things that the other person will appreciate, and will make you feel better too!  Isn't it kind of ODD though, that humans need to have a "day" to be reminded to be nice to one another?  To treat others with respect and kindness?  I always say - humans need to take a lesson from us canines - we always treat others with unconditional love and respect.  Unless it's a delivery person.  Then we may not be exactly respectful and all lovey dovey.  Or suspicious strangers.  But then, that's our JOB.  We are ALWAYS loving and respectful of our human.  OK, maybe not ALWAYS respectful when we take off into the woods and pretend we don't know our names.  Or when we eat the dining room rug.  Or steal bananas off the counter...But we DO always love her.  And we can't WAIT for her to come home from work.  Our excitement is too hard to contain. I dare say, most humans don't greet other humans with the same amount of enthusiasm.  Humans need to pay attention to us dogs - and really, be more like us.  I think they should change the name from Pay it Forward Day to Be Like a Dog Day.  Who do I see about getting this changed?

Have a good one.  And be nice.

And in the news...

So let's check on news from the Wonderful World of dogs...

Well, the city of Waterloo, Ontario has come up with a way to turn dog poop into energy.  Humans can put their dog droppings into special receptacles, and the organic waste is collected and put into big underground vats.  It eventually breaks down creating a biogas which can be used for energy.  I figure my human is sitting on a gold mine.  We collect enough poop at our place to power a small village.  I can see it now - we'll be selling the stuff.  I want my picture in the ads.  Then again, maybe not.

So I tried to  convince my human to get a subscription to DOGTV.  It's a station FOR dogs.  Apparently it's available in 13 countries - and you can even view it on the net.  It was apparently developed by a host of pet "experts" and has been tested by some Professor at Tufts University.  The content is supposedly designed to pique the interest of us canines.  So we decided to check it out.  My human figured if she could find a way to entertain us while she is eating her dinner, it would curb the staring and pawing that goes on.   She wanted to test it with us- before she signed up for the "free trial".  But the "free trial" isn't REALLY free because as far as I could tell you had to buy at LEAST a one month subscription and that included an additional "free" month.  Which would be automatically renewed.  Read that small print.  Anyway, she went to YouTube and found these two examples to try out with us.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn4vD5eKKHE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crD20ZnOpAg

She put her laptop on a chair, opened the video to full screen and watched to see what would happen. The park video resulted in a couple of ear raises - but that was about it.  Nobody cared about what was on the screen.  I was too busy looking to see if there were any dinner leftovers, the FG squeaked and wanted to go out and Einstein just rolled his eyes.  As for the "relaxation" video, my human sure wasn't relaxed and was more tense than ever because by this point we were REALLY bored and she figured that it was only a matter of time before somebody pounced on her laptop.  End of the experiment.  So it doesn't look like we'll be getting a "free" subscription any time soon.  Unless I can get a hold of her credit card.   Just for fun....

Have a good one!

The bounty hunter

So my human is starting a very busy time at work. The good news - her mother is home from the hospital.  She has a journey ahead of her which will involve another test, but for now things are stable. She was happy to be sprung from the hospital.  Thank you for your prayers and good wishes - they are very much appreciated- and needed.

So yesterday my human got up extra early to get to work early.  She's kind of the "boss" of her team, so she wanted to be sure everything was well prepared for the first team meeting.

We all got to go for long walks and had our breakfasts.  Just before she left, she took the FG for one more pee. She brought him inside and went to take me out on a leash- while Einstein was free.  She no sooner got the door part way open, then she was hip checked from behind by the FG.  He burst out the door. My human immediately began to panic - she knew he would think this was a great game and would take off.  Initially, she waved a treat which Einstein and I tried to grab- all the time the FG was circling around barking and trying the grab Einstein's tail.  Once he became bored - and my human was sufficiently dizzy, he raced off. She quickly put us in the house and while she implored him to stop, the gazelle was answering the call of the wild.  Off into the woods - with my human wearing ballet style shoes in hot pursuit.  Over stumps, through mud and puddles - she HAD to get him.  He raced down our trail to the lake.  She saw him stopping to poop but couldn't get close enough to grab him - I think he took off mid poop.  Finally she got to the lake.  She took a deep breath, said nothing to him and began to toss some sticks into the water.  She piqued his attention.  He got closer.  She began to splash some sticks floating in the water.  He stood by her to see more closely what she was doing.  She slowly moved her hand to get his collar - without making any sudden movements.  GOT IT!! Then she slowly clipped on the long line she had been dragging through the woods.  Click.  She just about passed out.  The escapee was once again in custody.  She slowly guided him back the other trail to the house.  With wet feet.  And muddy pants.  But the bounty hunter was successful.  All before 8 AM.

So.  The new rule.  The FG stays OUT of the hallway if we are going out.  And yes- they are seriously going to continue their work on recall.  

And you guys thought I was bad!!! Never a dull moment!

Have a good one.

Egg-ceptional new toys

Well it's official.  Einstein is cracked.  He thinks he is a chicken and MUST guard those new Dog Eggs I mentioned the other day.  He is egg-stra vigilant about making sure that NO one else can have one - so we are all walking around on egg shells.  When the eggs first came out, we all scrambled to get one.  Now if we want to get near Einstein while he is guarding his nest, we have to go over easy.  I mean we must have a dozen other toys lying around, and he doesn't care if we take them - we just can't poach the new eggs.  The FG and I have been hatching a plan to get them, but no luck yet. OK, enough of the egg-cellent egg puns.   But it IS all true.

Remember the awesome dog toy that Jackson has?  The one that he and the FG pull on and tug on and race around with? Well my human found the same one - it's made by Chuckit. 

https://www.amazon.com/Chuck-It-33028-CHUCKIT-Rugged/dp/B01CCGKBOY

So she bought two.  The idea being that you toss one, we go to get it, start heading back and she throws the next one.  OR - she throws one for me and one for Einstein.  We are both great at retrieving.  So she brought them home and we had a blast getting them.  We played until we were starting to slow down, and then my human put us in the house and brought out the FG.  He was SOOOOOOO excited.  He waited and waited until she threw it.  He raced out to get it, grabbed it, looked at her as she tried in vain to entice him to come back to get the other one,  turned and raced off into the woods.  Chuckit - no Luckit.  He was G-O-N-E.  She could spy the bright orange color as he darted around the woods.  And she followed in hot pursuit.  There was NO WAY she was going to loose that toy within the first hour.  She finally found it - and watched as the FG took off down the trail.  She finally managed to catch up with him and grab him by the collar and put him on a leash.  NOW he wanted to play fetch.  Too late.  Game over.

Well it's Monday.  A new day,  full of opportunity and the potential for adventure.  I hope yours is sunny side up!

Power.

Sometimes when tough things in life happen, humans have to draw strength from powers outside themselves.  In our household,  that power comes from faith and prayer.  And we truly believe that faith can move mountains.  For others, that power comes from a belief in the mysteries of the universe.  For others, that power comes from other humans.  A perfect example of this was the story of Cooper, a goldendoodle from Halifax who made headlines this week.  Cooper was taking a little vacation - his humans were going south - so they were flying Cooper to Newfoundland to stay with family there.  Guess he was going to see the icebergs.  Anyway, somebody at the airport goofed - and Cooper ended up flying the opposite direction - to Hamilton, Ontario.  And if that wasn't bad enough, some well-intentioned  airline employee took Cooper out for a pee - and Cooper escaped.  Sounds familiar.   We certainly know about escapees in this household.  Anyway, Cooper was missing for more than 24 hours!  The airline flew his humans to Hamilton to join in the search.  And they were not alone.  Scores of searches and several rescue groups came out to help.  They scoured the area around the airport.  A rescue group armed with drones was on the way - when Cooper was found.  It was the power of those humans working together - and no doubt, lots of prayers as well - that resulted in a happy ending to this story.

So we have the power of faith, the power of the universe, the power of other humans - and one other huge one - that we can't forget.  And you, of course, know what THAT is.  Think about it.  What is God - spelled backward?

Give your dog a big hug today - because we have very special power that can give you strength.  Very special indeed.  Even when we steal bananas...

Dog psychic abilities. And prayers...

So it appears the worst of the poop issues is over.  Although last night my human DID hear some unsavory sounds when she took me out before bed - and I did have a few remnants on my butt.  Again.  But overall, or should I say, BUTT overall, I am much better and things are moving along beautifully. 

We have come to the conclusion this week that I am my human's overt stress barometer.  I know when she is stressed - and as a result, I start doing strange things.  Like eating whole bananas and then having the poops.  Or perhaps - even having seizures.

As some of you may recall, last fall when I was having my initial period of seizures, my human's mother was in the hospital.   My human was stressed - and frankly, I was stressed.   They have actually done studies that show we dogs pay attention to humans' feelings and we may actually exhibit empathy.  They wonder if we dogs can pick up on the cortisol levels of humans who are feeling stressed.

This week, my human's mother has again been in the hospital.  And honestly - she needs every prayer, good thought and positive wish that she can get.  And isn't it interesting that I have picked up on this whole thing.  So I stole the bananas.  And while I seem to be the most in tune to the situation, Einstein and the FG also realize there is something going on.  We just react differently.  I'm reactive, Einstein is cranky and the FG is EXTRA cuddly.  We dogs are like psychics. We should start doing fortune telling as a sideline.

So today I ask you for prayers and positive thoughts.  And I promise NOT to eat any more bananas or steal anything off the counter.  For a least a day.  Or maybe two.  At most.  OK three.  But that's it.  Maybe.

Thanks.

POOP. POOP. AND MORE POOP.

OK. OK.  So the pillowcase caused some gastric issues.  Resulting in many half baths.  Or so my human thought...

So the other day, my human came home from work to again find that someone, namely me, had an "accident" in the house.  Well,  a trail in the house.  She's had a few rough days of late - with work and some other things - so coming home to poop was not a great sight.  In a moment of madness, she opened the door and let all of us out to run around.  She went to get a mop and bucket but before she started the clean up job, she came outside to get us.  Gone.  All three of us.  She had a sinking feeling where we had gone - to the new neighbors' place.  She trudged through another neighbors' property and sure enough - there we all were. I was pooping in the flower garden bed.  The FG was racing through the beds, and Einstein was doubled over trying to poop.  And clearly having problems.  He was even squeaking as things were not "moving" as he wanted.  The neighbor came out and said Einstein had been standing and struggling for some time.  WHAT could HE have gotten into?  My human apologized profusely, and by now had captured Elroy who was on a long line and she had put me on a leash.  She had to drag Einstein along because he was suspended in poop purgatory.  She was also trying to pick up any poop she thought was ours - I'm not sure how she grew that extra arm.  Anyway, we all managed to go back to the house.  Because she knew Einstein was going to require some major poop excision from his coat, for some ODD reason, she tied me and the FG to the front post...

Cleaning Einstein was NO easy task.  He had sat down in his effort to rid himself of the load and in the process, smashed a fist sized amount of poop into the hair on his butt.  The excision in the dog bath tub with rubber gloves took about 20 minutes.  Keep in mind, she STILL had poop in the house to clean up, and I had a few cling-ons still as well.  So she put Einstein in the front hall and came out to get me and the FG.  She found me.  And a leash that had been chewed in half.   The FG was racing wildly around the yard.  It was at that point that she screamed into the heavens "PLEASE - ENOUGH!!!"   She whisked me in and I got a QUICK cleaning, and she then went out to capture the FG.  Who was bolting around having a ball.  She finally did and marched him into the hall.  She then proceeded to clean the floor.  And area carpet.

The next day she noticed something on the carpet.  It appeared to be kind of "woody" but she didn't know where it came from.  I was still having gastric issues so she called the vet who was going to prescribe something for me.  She THOUGHT it was still from the pillowcase...

Anyway, yesterday morning,  I think we solved the reason for my gastric issues...My human went to have a banana for breakfast.  And mysteriously, 3 or was it 4, ENTIRE bananas were G-O-N-E.   Yup.  I helped myself.  Peels and all.   Oh.  And I DID share one with Einstein.  So that explains his poop fiasco...

Sometimes you might as well laugh - because sometimes poop just happens.

Have a good one.

A Vik-Advisor Review

Well guess what?  The Easter bunny came - again. We got a package in the mail yesterday - and it was these cool eggs.  One for each of us.  Yes, these are not ordinary eggs.  They are Dog Eggs.  Not chicken eggs.  Dog Eggs.  They are basically white egg shaped rubber toys.  They wobble and roll - but the best part (although some might consider the most annoying part), they make all kinds of squeaky noises when you chew them.  Here is the link to the site:

https://barkshop.com/items/dogegg-s
And here is my Vik-advisor review...

I give them 2/3 stars.  Because 2/3 dogs in this house LOVED them.  Elroy thought they were THE best thing around.  No wonder - he likes anything that rolls.  And that he can toss.  He had a blast with his.  Einstein picked his up, walked around with it and guarded it like it was a sirloin steak.  If Elroy got too close, he jumped up and warned him that this was HIS egg.  Even though they are all identical.  He liked chewing it and hearing the squeaky sounds.  As for me?  Nah.  It's just like a rubber ball - which makes noises - and I have no real love for rubber Kongs or rubber balls.  I'd rather a pillowcase.  For which I have paid a price. 

So that's my quick review for today.  I hope you have a egg-stra special Day!!!!

Humor. And the Viktionary.

According to the crazy calendar, today is humorous day.  A day to have a good laugh and to smile.  Laughter is good for humans - it boosts the immune system, relaxes the body, burns calories, helps the heart and is even said to help people live longer!  And did you know we dogs laugh?  It is seen when we dogs play with you humans -  we begin panting and we make a tiny sound that is us laughing.  As opposed to us yelling - which Einstein is so good at doing.  Or should I say "barking out orders." 

Anyway,  to provide a bit of humor for your day,  I'm sharing some of the terms from my Viktionary.  Now I KNOW some of you who are long-time blog readers have read these - but personally, I think they bear repeating!   And these terms generally apply to ANY dogs - not just PONs.  Or Picards.  I hope you will find the humor in them!  There are more to come...

Cheers and have a great day!!!

Yak attack

OK.  So here is the moral of the story.  Do not eat human pillowcases. Actually even just pieces of pillowcases.  Because it may necessitate numerous meetings between ones butt end and the shower head in the doggie bathtub.  Not to mention a few unsightly accidents while my human was out.  One would think I would learn my lesson from this experience, but don't count on it...

And speaking of eating things, the Easter Bunny brought us some other cool  treats. They are Himalayan, and made of yak's milk.   Really.  They look like sticks and are basically very hard cheese. Super hard.  So we each got one to chew on. And who do you think has to be watched every second because he tries to eat the thing as fast as he can? Nope not Jaws - which one would expect with his carpet chewing, furniture gnawing behaviour.  Just like carrots, he savours his Yak cheese.  Nope- not me with my ravenous appetite.   I nibble and gnaw away - in a very civilized way.  No - Einstein is the KING when it comes to new edible chew toys.  He managed to chew off 3 inches - while Jaws and I only worked through about .5 inch.  We all loved it, but Einstein was in a frenzy.  My human had to take them away and save them for another day because Einstein was getting out of breath.  OK maybe not that bad - but he was in a munching trance.  An all-out Yak attack.  My human kept hearing cracks and was praying it was the Yak stick and not his teeth.  I suppose that IS the danger in these things,  But we all had a grand time - and can't wait for round two!  Frankly, I enjoyed mine even better than the pillowcase.  Now if I can just figure out where my human hid them...

Have a good one!

Happy Dyngus Day!!!!!!!!!!

Well it's the day after Easter - so you know what that means!  It's DYNGUS day!!!!!  Dyngus is pronounced  kind of like ding-goose.  It's a big celebration in Poland and in many large cities in the US - at least those that have large Polish populations.  But ANYONE can celebrate Dyngus Day - and really, the more the merrier.  In my human's home town of Buffalo, NY, Dyngus day is A BIG deal.  In fact, some say Buffalo is the world capital for Dyngus Day.  It's a post-lent bash - where there are parades, dancing, eating and no doubt a BIT of drinking. According to tradition, on Dyngus Day, boys would hit girls with pussy willows and douse them with water - in what was said to be some kind of weird courtship ritual.  And the next day, the girls would throw plates at the boys.  Yes - a very calm, solemn celebration.  Someone gave a good analogy: Dyngus Day is to the END of lent what Mardi Gras is to the beginning.  We collected our pussy willows this week and intend to hit my human.  Just kidding - if given the option, we would no doubt just chew them.

Easter was a fantastic day.  We played "egg" hunt with pieces of treats hidden throughout the house.  And we all did brilliantly with that game. And then my human tried another game.  She had three plastic eggs that all looked the same.  And she would put a piece of bacon in ONE of them.  And we had to find the right egg...

Einstein went first.  After a couple of attempts, he finally got the hang of it.  I also figured it out, but nearly crushed the egg in my attempt to extract the bacon before my human could grab the egg I had selected.  And then it was the FG's turn.  He saw the bacon - even got a taste.  He watched my human put it in the egg and shake it.  He watched her put the egg with the other two eggs.  He SEEMED to get the concept on the first try - but that may have been beginner's luck.  On the second attempt, he decided that the eggs look an awful lot like balls.  And he LOVES to toss balls, hit balls, knock balls and watch them roll.  So whether the egg had bacon in it or not, it just became too much fun to watch the eggs roll.  So that was the end of THAT game.

We ALL got Easter bunny treats that my human bought for us at that Doggie Expo a few weeks back.  Here are the yummy treats.   

And here they are sans bows.

And JUST out of reach so she could take the photo.  She then snatched up the bunnies and gave them to us bit by bit - so we could savor them rather than chug them back like beer at a Dyngus Day party.  But not the FG.  He took the head from his bunny and it must have taken him 3 minutes to eat it.  In that time, Einstein and I devoured a whole rabbit.  We also got another yummy treat - more on that tomorrow!

Anyway - I hope you have a Happy Dyngus Day and remember - today EVERYONE is Polish!  Especially after 15 shots of vodka.  Have a good one and have some kielbasa on me!

Happy Easter. Despite the dreaded ear photos....

Well happy Easter to all.  And as expected, we have the typical bunny ear photos.  Ha.  Ha.  My human started taking photos several weeks ago.  

Seriously – we will only wear the crazy things for VERY short periods of time.  

To get a shot with all three of us, like this one, is nothing short of a miracle.

But of course, she wasn’t happy with that.  Or the assorted solo shots.  No – she decided to get a photo outdoors with the three of us and the recently repaired cement rabbit.  As you may recall, the FG knocked over the heavy hare, and amputated one of his ears.  My human painstakingly repaired him in the garage, where he has been housed for the winter.  And it appears her cement repair work was successful .  It could be a new career for her.  Rabbit ear repair.  So she lugged Peter outside with some wheeled shopping bag device because the wheel on the wheelbarrow is still flat.  And she proceeded to take photos.  I was the first solo victim.  And I was quite happy to oblige – as you can see with my blog photo.  But then she brought out Einstein – who loves photos – but just solo shots.  You can do ANYTHING with him when he is on his own, but he is NOT a happy camper when he has to pose with others.  And I was now unhappy because I don't like sharing the yummy treats.  So NEITHER of us agreed to smile.  

Try as she might, she could NOT get a happy shot.  But she’s a glutton for punishment – so THEN she brought out the FG…Here’s the BEST one – in which NONE of us is happy.  Can you figure out which one is the cement rabbit?

And then we have this one.  Where the FG decided he could perhaps hide….

And one without ears.  Which STILL is not a happy crowd.

But my all time favorite blooper is THIS one.  I call it snub the bunny…

So that’s IT for the Easter shots for THIS year.  Gotta go – time for the egg hunt!!!!  Have a happy Easter – and don’t eat TOO much chocolate!!

The Titanic.

April 15.  And on this day in 1912, in the early morning hours, the Titanic sank off the coast of Newfoundland.  It struck an iceberg and more than 1500 people died making it the second largest ocean liner disaster in history.  Ships were launched from Halifax in the relief effort - and there are three cemeteries in Halifax where many of the victims were buried.  There's even an exhibit at our Maritime Museum all about the Titanic - with some artifacts from the ship.  (That's my plug for Nova Scotia tourism - the check better be in the mail.)  Anyway, three small dogs apparently survived the sinking - a Pekinese and two Pomeranians.  Nine other dogs lost their lives. Who knew the ship was reportedly dog-friendly, with an on-board dog show scheduled for the 15th! But only first class passengers could bring dogs - and they had special kennels. There are tragic tales of people having to leave their pets behind.   One woman, Ann Isham, refused to leave without her Great Dane.  They both tragically perished.  

Einstein and I are not crazy about the water, so a cruise is not on our Bucket lists.  Although Einstein has been on a ferry ride a couple of times.  He stayed in the vehicle - so said he doesn't remember much about the ride.

And then we have the FG and water... He QUITE likes it - but is still not completely sure about the "swimming" part.  He went for a run with Jackson the other morning - and Jackson LOVES to swim in the many ponds on the golf course.  The FG races in, but stops when it is getting too deep.  He DID at one point go in over his head - and did a rather awkward looking dog paddle and came back out.  He may need a life jacket.....And it was all great fun and games racing along the course, holding onto JACKSON'S retrieving toy.  My human thinks they could do commercials for that toy - it is definitely standing up to the durability test.  Anyway as soon as they started to head for home, the FG disappeared.  And was replaced by Dr. Jekyll.  He became a TASMANIAN DEVIL - trying to pull Jackson's tail, ears - just generally beating him up.  And as my human and Jackson's human tried to grab him, he raced around and around them - JUST out of reach.  My human was getting dizzy trying to catch him.  It went on for a few minutes - but felt like an hour.  FINALLY, Jackson's human GRABBED the FG's collar and my human put the snapping-turtle-on-speed back on a leash.  He pranced back home, wet, and muddy and TOTALLY happy.  This was all before 8AM....

Anyway,  I hope you have a wonderful day!  And be careful if you go out on the water!

The accomplice.

Today is April 14 and it's also Good Friday.  It's an important day in Christian religions - just before Easter Sunday.  And also this week, people of the Jewish faith are celebrating Passover, another important holiday.

I've never been in a church before.  I SHOULD be able to go to the church where my human goes - because the priest is Polish.  And how could he NOT love us PONs?!  But my human said something about the potential for peeing on church pews - and how that would be VERY strictly frowned upon.  Now I do know of at least ONE PON who goes to church regularly in California- her name is Arwen.  She CLEARLY has more manners than we do.  My human said the rafters would shake if we came inside.  Not funny.

Besides the religious holidays, it is also some "holiday" called Reach As High as You Can Day.  It's a day to encourage humans to reach for their dreams - and push themselves to strive to be the best they can be.  Honestly, I thought it was a dog holiday all about counter surfing.  It would make sense.  The FG is THE best counter surfer EVER.  Probably because he is so big and agile. Einstein generally barks if the FG steals something.  He's such a tattletale.

Mind you, Einstein was quiet the other evening...  It was JUST before lights out and my human was in the bathroom brushing her teeth.  She came to bed and found Einstein in his comfy place on the end of the bed.  And there was yours truly, at the head of the bed.  Eating my human's pillow.  Yup.  Another pillowcase goes the way of the oven mitt and I actually managed to take a chunk of pillow too.  My human was not impressed.  And the first thing she did, well actually second after she said the classic "what did you do " was turn to Einstein and say "WHY didn't you call me?"  He shrugged his shoulders and rolled over.   So he was branded as an accomplice.   I owe him.  Big time.

Well, time to go for a NICE long walk.  And search for that Easter bunny - I KNOW he's out there.

Have a good one.

Escaping.

Well I always thought Einstein aka Pondini was an amazing escape artist.  But he has MET his match.  Did you hear the story about the Great Pyrenees who was being boarded at a local animal hospital - and he decided he didn't feel like staying?  The video footage of General opening door after door is truly amazing.  And the good news is that he was later found safe and sound and has been returned to his family.  Check it out - scroll down for the video footage:
 http://www.insidenova.com/headlines/general-found-after-dog-escapes-stafford-animal-hospital/article_a48fda42-1e52-11e7-b399-bb3c42e116f1.html

But you know, after watching his amazing fete, there is actually something that, personally, I think is even MORE amazing than the whole escape thing.  If you watch the video carefully you will notice General walking through the hospital and past bags and bags of dog food.  Seriously.  Einstein might be able to escape like General - but he would have cleaned out the shelves before he left. 

Well my human had the biggest scare the other night while walking the FG.  It was just after dusk, and they had a great walk up the trail and around part of the golf course at the end of our road.  And they were returning home and walking down the road and what should appear in the driveway of the home across the road but a cat.  The cat came around some trees at the end of the driveway and was about 15 ft away from my human and the FG.  The cat stopped in his tracks - and so did the FG.  They were both startled to see each other.  And my human slowly braced herself for what she quickly envisioned was going to be a Picard explosion on the end of the leash.  She held her breath...the cat slowly stepped back and dashed back into the bushes.  And the FG?  Did NOTHING!  Just looked at my human as if to say "well WHAT was THAT?"  Quite unlike Einstein and I the next morning when we spotted a bunny just as we walked out the door, and created enough double pulling power that my human HAD to let go of our leashes.  And OFF we went.  But LUCKILY, we started into the woods and came back.  Probably because we realized that escaping at 6:30AM would mean no bananas. Or MAYBE we are starting to behave.  Bwhahahahahaha.  Nah.  It was the bananas.

Tomorrow begins my human's long Easter weekend.  Long weekend.  Long walks.  Perfect.

Have a good one!

Bird watching

Somebody lied.  They said that Picards were in the Herding group.  Now I don't know if the FG is going to like all things herd-able- like sheep or cows.  But one thing I do know, he is a BIRD dog.  I swear he has some Sporting dog in him somewhere.  He is absolutely fascinated with birds.  He watches them in the bushes.  He looks overhead in the sky.  He likes little birds like chickadees and bigger birds like doves and crows.  And you SHOULD have seen his face when he spotted some Canada geese on the golf course the other night.  His brain exploded.  He was suspended.  And completely mesmerized.  You want him to behave?  Release a flock of birds and you can be sure you've got his attention.

I must say, he IS pretty comical.  My human decided to do some little obedience exercises with us as a trio the other night.  You know - the standard sit, down, stand, spin, twist, back up stuff.  The FG has the sit.  But once he goes into the down, that's it.  He just lies there and listens to the commands and watches Einstein and I acting all frenzied and doing everything like little robots.  And just TRY to get him to sit up again once he has gone down.  It got to the point my human would say "Frodo stand."  And he would do it and get his treat.  "Viktor stand" and ditto for my performance.  And then she gave up giving the FG instructions and just said "Elroy down" because he basically wasn't going to do anything else anyway.  So he would look at her and he got a treat for that.  Which in MY opinion is a bit of a rip off.  Don't kid yourself - it's not that he isn't smart.  I mean just think about it - he got rewarded for doing nothing.  Who's the smart one after all?  The moral of the story - he is better working on obedience when he does his work solo.  I'll blame it on the fact that he is in awe of our performance and just can't even move.  It's like watching birds to him.  

Well it's Wednesday and just ONE more day of work for my human after today.  And then a four day weekend - AND we get to go on an Easter Egg Hunt.  My human's mother is also coming to hang out with us - so you know what THAT means - EXTRA bananas!  Especially for her favorite grand-dog.

Have a good one!

My Christmas list has begun.

OK. I JUST saw something on Facebook that I want.  I mean I REALLY want this.  It's a remote controlled Flying Shark.  Seriously.  I WANT one.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwzluqPcG8Q&feature=youtu.be 

Can you IMAGINE what would happen in this household if one of these things appeared from another room?!  Honestly - THIS is our chance to get on Funniest Videos.  We would become famous.  Especially when we deflate the shark.   I am putting it on my Christmas list...

Well the snow is melting quickly and the monuments are appearing.  Anyone who lives in a snowy climate knows that when the snow melts, the dog poop that wasn't scooped up during the blizzards, appears.  My human was on monument patrol on Sunday.  She was also doing general garden cleanup.  We couldn't hang out in the dog run on the side of the house because there is a loose paving stone in the run - the earth underneath must have eroded - so the stone tips down when you walk on it.  My human, being the neurotic dog owner that she is, is afraid one of us would get a paw caught.  She actually moved the stone herself about two weeks ago to fix it.  There was much groaning and the odd bad word - those stones are HEAVY.  It took her about 45 minutes.  She filled the hole with gravel and rocks and then had to move the stone back.  After much heaving and jostling she managed to get the stone back in place. And it still moved.  So she needs to recruit a friend to help.  In the meantime, we were forced to watch her yard and monument cleanup from the front hall.  With a baby gate against the screen door.  It's an entertaining show.  She really needs to get pruning shears that are painted in florescent colors.  Because, she inevitably puts them down - and then can't  find them.  So she wanders around the yard looking for them. Einstein just looks at me and rolls his eyes.  She didn't even GO in the backyard - the mole mud zone was too depressing.  She's back to her idea of hiring some terriers - or ANY dog that catches moles.  The ferret poop quest has not been successful.   

Well, I have to go and start my Christmas list.  I know it's early - but I REALLY want one of those sharks!!  Admit it - the vision of it makes you chuckle.  I NEED one.

Have a good one!

Talk to the animals...

Well, well, well.  So my human is smarter than I thought.  Seems there was a new study that has come out of the University of Chicago and it claims that if you talk to your dog - you are smart.  Go figure.  Wonder how big a grant they got to look at that one!  They say that humans have the capacity to anthropomorphize pets - which basically means, giving them human-like characteristics.  So they do things like talk to them.  And supposedly, it signifies someone who has an active, socially cognizant brain.  People treat things other than pets as having human-like characteristics too,  for example  they do things like name their vehicles.  Like Ludiwg.  Or our old buddy Harry.  Who has either gone to a farm or the old car graveyard.  I prefer to think of him as living somewhere else.  Or MAYBE they were able to transplant some of his parts to another vehicle....Hey - I think I am anthropomorphising too!!!   All that to say, if you talk to your dog, you are smart.  But not necessarily as smart as us dogs.

I got the stink eye when my human came home from work on Friday - no talking was really required.  Remember when I was caught on tape destroying the red oven mitt a few weeks back?  Well now we have a matching pair.  Actually not completely matching.  This time I just took off the TIP of the thumb and the tip where the other four ringers go.  So it's still usable.  Kind of.

And remember my no-more-snow forecast.   It's looking like I was CORRECT.  Warmer temperatures forecast for the REST of the week.  Look out groundhog - the PON is taking over.

Have a good one!!!  You know I will!

Antique dogs

April 9.  And according to the crazy calendar, it is something called National Cherish an Antique Day.  I joked that it's a day to cherish my human.  My brilliant sense of humor was met with an icy glare.

My human likes antiques. And while her antique collecting tastes have changed over the years, there is still something that she cannot pass up.  Antique and vintage DOG stuff.  She has old dog books, dog bowls, lots of old dog photos, prints and paintings and all sorts of dog figurines.  So in honor of this "holiday" let's take a look at her "oldest" dog thing.  It's a series of pages from the 1793 Encyclopedia Britannica.  Who KNEW encyclopedias were around that long ago? They were actually first published in Edinburgh Scotland between 1768 and 1771!  They were around until 2012 - when the age of digital took over and they stopped printing volumes.

So here are the three pages:

Lots of modern breeds look QUITE different than the dogs we see here.  Although some DO look close to their early ancestors....

The Dalmation

The Greyhound

The lion dog (which I am thinking might be the Lowchen) and the pug

The bulldog

Then there is the King Charles dog - which actually doesn't look a whole lot like a Cavalier...

 
But the big problem -  there was no PON OR Picard listed.  I am guessing we probably both came from the Shepherds dog - which if you SQUINT from 16 feet away could look almost Picard like. But let's face it - it doesn't look anything like  PON...

Although the Great Water dog LOOKS kind of PON like, I'm thinking that's one of the sporting breeds like the Portuguese Water dog - or MAYBE even the Newfoundland.

 So we looked at all of the breeds, but none really fit.  And we then spotted a little dog in the corner that ALMOST looks PON-like.  And the name would fit. It's called a Shock dog.  How perfect is THAT?  We all know the behavior of the PONs in THIS household is FREQUENTLY shocking.  So that MUST be it.   It's our great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather,   Zap.  That's what I'll call him. 

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this peek into history - and I hope you have a great old day!