jokes

Question = What did the puppy say to the shoe?
Answer =  It's been nice gnawing you...get it.... knowing you?  gnawing you?  get it yet?

Appropriate because my nice but older and only good pair of Asics running shoes is now missing part of it's tongue.     Leader looked out the window and saw my shoe in Mattie's mouth and shouted ..What do you have in your mouth?   Upon which she dropped the shoe and looked dumb.

I needed new shoes anyway.

Christmas Cards

Taking pics of dogs is a challenge.    Taking pics of a blind dog, a grumpy dog and a scared dog is pretty much impossible.    The plan was a group shot of all with Xmas sweater, collar and antlers.    I thought the green wall would be festive but instead it looks like the color of mashed peas.   In reality the color is call Lucky Bamboo.     Here are the results.

by the end...he was the only one left.  

 

Thanksgiving highlights!

Thanksgiving had 7 other people in the house and Mattie was unsure what to do.   In and out and finally...on the couch next to a blanket (her blanket now)...use to be my cashmere shawl before it had holes....anyone else letting their doggie sleep on cashmere?  Currently there is a little battle going on over who gets the soft shawl.   I took it away to give to Bart..the rightful owner ...and for my effort had a nip on the arm and a pull at my sleeve to give it back  Next day a trip to ZILKER!!!
No words here ...the pictures tell it all.

If you are noticing the pretty pink harness...it had a pupose.    Keep Mattie.    That was the goal of the day.   Harness the dog.   Drive the dog to park.  Walk the dog.  Drive the dog back home.  Keep the dog.

It worked...and she was kind enough at the end to sort of pose for me with the lake in the background.  

Girls rule boys drool? (sorry Bart)

First...Bart is the dog love of my life.   He beats Greta my childhood weimareiner and I didn't think any dog could do that.    With that in mind I am going to say...our boys are gross and our girl is not.    I tried to spin it as they are old seniors and things happen when you get old and we just have to deal.    I tried to remember if there was a time when they did not have gross habits.    I've only known Mattie about 8 weeks...but she is the most "girl" of any dog I know (this would not be a large group)...not paint your nails or  sprakle collar..just "girl".   She grooms.    Chomps the nails, licks the legs and tummy, chomps the nails and chews the bones to maintain shiny teeth.      She has had 0  ZERO potty accidents....ZERO...and   she doesn't smell.   My boys both smell. And  burp..and pass really awful smells...then walk away because THEY don't like the smell.    Mattie  tries to groom the boys.    Our first "dog fights" were because she would not quit licking them and apparently they like their bad smells well enough to fight off or growl away a nice little clean girl who was just trying to be helpful.   Her only flaw so far?   Besides chewing the outdoor stuff....she can jump on furniture with muddy paws.....but we planned ahead.    The furniture is leather and the pillows and throws wash.  Other flaw....I still think she would race away if she was off leash outside.  Call of the wild..maybe?      We're going to try Zilker over the holiday to  meet some new doggies.   On leash...with assistance of college girl who comes home in 2 days.  YEA!
Boy dog baths this weekend if the sun comes out.   

Corny...

Ya just might miss the point

Try’n to win the race
Life’s not the breaths you take
But the moments that take your breath away

                                               George Strait

Dogs and kindergartners...pretty much the same.   Under stress they are totally unpredictable.
Today in Kindergarten we will paint.
Today in the backyard there will be bones, blankets and sun and squirrels.
 
Here is old dog trying to play with new dog.....lasted less than a minute and then he needed a nap.

Ears

I don't have a picture so I hit google "ear".   13 pages and more of diagrams and Mr. Holyfield with his chewed off and a pretty girl with  multiple objects...hard to find a nice looking ear on google so you get an ear diagram and if you choose a review of ear parts.   
Ears are important.    Mattie nipped her pack leader when he quit scratching,playing with her.    She sat down beside him on the couch like a human....leaned over and nip nip.    He bent over laughing and she went for a nip on the back of his seat.    She was GOING to get him to keep playing with her.   I told him he should scold her...I told him he should firmly say NO!   Nope...he didn't.     Cesar would be disappointed.

Sunday Naps

I found her on the couch...on my new pillow and throw.....she won't look at the camera.   She thinks I'll go away if she doesn't look at the camera.

Here she said bad words to me with her eyes.   I could hear them.   And I felt bad for what I had done.

You know....let sleeping dogs lie..lay?  That one.

.I am forgiven here.    But only because I provided her  a nicely coordinated mustard pillow and rust throw with burgundy threads running through.     She doesn't smell doggy so the turkey day company might not notice the pillow they are resting their bodies on is also bedding for our  dog.  :)   The dog who now owns my couch, three throws and 5 pillows.    So far she doesn't chew the indoor finery.

I would like to try to get more than sleeping dog pictures....but that is what lives here.   Sleeping dogs. 2 out of 3 sleep all day and all night waking only for feeding and peeing.   It's not the best of role models for a young girl from the woods of Austin....but it's her fate.    She is a rester...in Kindergarten that is a good thing...and at the senior centers I bet it's a good thing too.   
Outdoors she has found a new chew.   My garden hose.

Golf cart, nets and cages..oh my!

Those who travel in golf carts netting wild dogs...might be slow to gain  wild dog love.  

Or not.

Bart the Badass

I'm sorry, but I think if you don't have eyeballs and you have a disease, you might ought to not go around starting fights with your brother and sister.   I took a picture, now gone, of a standoff he had with Ollie over O's food bowl...it ended with O on top  and Bart flailing his head around, mouth open in a possessed sort of way.    Funny and kind of sad.     I broke it up  and  neither was willing to end it first.   No teeth vs no eyes.
Then he wanted to check out Mattie's crate.   M kept running up to him to see what he wanted and then he jumped up at her,  fur up, mouth open, but I mean seriously...she's two pugs taller than he is.    No way he could land more than an ankle bite, but he really couldn't find her and then  she backed up ... ran to pack leader for cover and love.

When is their birthday?

Birthdays are on my brain.    Everyone has one and they come very year at the same time so why is it I can't remember Ollie's?    He's the only animal we own where we actually did know at one point many years ago...his true and honest day of birth.     He was purchased from a bug eyed lady in Lancaster  Texas and brought home to Pflugerville when college girl was 5.   So he's now 14?  because she is now 19 and born on Nov. 2 1990.  Yesterday was her birthday...hence...birthday on the brain.    Or is he 13 because it was in Feb when we brought him home and she is Nov?
Bartie was an adoptee as is Mattie.    So do you go by their adoption days/months?
To solve my problem I am giving every pet a new birthday.   I think it will help me as they and I age. Beginning this year...every pet in my house gets one year older on Thanksgiving.   I am thankful always for my doggies.     They make me smile and laugh and cry sometimes too...(really cool chewed up Bolle shades).

So on Nov. 26...Thanksgiving Day... Mattie will be 1, Bartie will be 12 and Ollie will be 14.    It's simple, easy and they really don't care as long as the snacks keep coming and their tummy gets a rub.   AND it's easy to celebrate.   There's a table full of possible treats and snacks already prepared.

Happy Birthday College girl.   You can keep Nov. 2 'cuz I was there ( with eye shadow  and good hair) and it's a day I won't ever forget!

Good dogs

See the tiny white whiskers and doggie hair?   The white hair on her chin almost makes her look old but when you see her leap two pugs and a set of stairs to come inside, you know she's not.

And speaking of old

how bout these old boys...

despite the new doggie door, B can't always find it and has some accidents.   Here he is sleeping in the kitchen...but when O was given the chance to make a break before the gate went up....he sat down by old B and stayed put.   Brought tears to their mommy's eyes.

13 and 11.....they've shared some pretty good years together.

my home

                         

Is there such a thing as TOO comfortable?

I spent most of today here.    I had to fight her to get my spot back every time I was up.

Either she is a very visual learner or she has had experience with pillows.   I still wonder what her life was like before she was a wild dog...and the Hospira doggie...and now our girl.

Naughty or Nice

Naughty:  she's on the sofa and probably should get down

Nice:  she feels at home and comfortable in her new place

It's good to have goals

Don't get excited...it's not Mattie.  But one day maybe?   Currently if a ball is tossed her way...she picks it up and walks away.    This is an improvement actually.   Just weeks ago anything tossed her way sent her tail ducked running in the opposite direction to hide.   There's one other problem too.We'll have to master the not running away from your mom or dad before we can get to this.   But, it's good to have goals. 

More importantly...pack leader is in love.   He won't admit it, but it's true.   He's in love.

Mattie's other brother Ollie!

This is Ollie.   Hey.."I'm not gonna look at you" and I'm always aloof Ollie!

"Ok..I'll look.:

"I'm done and you're boring." 

Just so you know...his most exciting event of the day is changing his nap from the front sunny window to back sun by the back door in the afternoon. 

This is his plea for help.  "help"

The grout doesn't even look dirty in this pic..just tan.

Ollie is a victim of stalking.   Food stalking.

He eats slowly.  Some days he doesn't finish he eats so slowly.

Bart knows this and waits quietly still until he hears Ollie move...then he approaches quietly( like no one sees or hears the blind baby when he hits the wall or a chair) he's not subtle.   He wants the leftovers Ollie leaves.

Ollie always leaves leftovers because as I said he eats slow and sometimes he gets tired from eating and needs to nap or lay down somewhere immediately.    This use to be a fun game for Ollie and Bart but now he needs help.  "help".     Mattie has figured out Ollie leaves food.   She has figured out it will take my blind baby a little bit of time to find the leftover food and now she is also a stalker.    Poor Ollie...he eats and looks around and then gobbles and coughs and looks around.    He jumped Bart this morning and Bart wasn't EVEN close just because he knew someone was coming for his food bowl and this morning he wanted his food.  "help"