Wags n’ Words

Vacation as a human construct

Do I live here?

I haven’t spent a long time among the human population, but long enough to know they create things out of air and then their whole lives spin around it.  Take, for instance, the concept of vacation.  As Gretchen explains it to me, a vacation is when you take time off of work and go somewhere (though not always), but the point is you don’t work.  I suppose I should step back a bit because the concept of work is also a complicated human construct.  Work, according to humans, is doing something that you may or may not enjoy that allows you to earn money (another construct) so you can purchase things like food, a house, a pet, and yes, a vacation.

As a dog, the concepts of work, money, and a vacation seem silly to me. I suppose that’s because I don’t need any of it — I have no need of money and therefore no need for work and therefore no need for a vacation from my work.

The most difficult thing to watch as my family prepares for vacation is how long their To Do list is.  On top of all the regular, day-t0-day duties, there’s now the duty of packing, cleaning up the house, cleaning out the fridge, preparing for the house-sitter. What this means for me as a dog dog walker is that we are behind on our blog AND we are short of photographs because the camera is packed (number 3 on the check-off list!).  So this post reviews quickly the past two days of dog walking and comes with a barrel of apologies for not keeping up with our duties (are duties like work?)

Yesterday was an Ollie day followed by Oshi and Perrito (their human parents are on vacation too!).  Oh and remember Quillette was still here on Thursday though went home today for a short while.  But I digress.  Here is yesterday in pictures…

Why hello there!

Ball, what ball?

My ball is better than yours!

I got it, I got it, I got it!

Nope, I've got it!

Come back here!

Make it stop!

This is so tasty!

After our Ollie and Quillette play date, we walked in the rain with Oshi and Perrito. They came back to our house after that and hung out a bit, though they don’t really know how to just relax and hang out in the backyard!

This thing opens, I think though it looks like a window!

Can you open the door?

It smells different in their backyard!

And there are so many visitors on this side of the fence.

That’s all we have for now. A packed camera limited our activities today though I am spending the day with Monty, had some time this morning with Quillette, and we took Oshi and Perrito out again for a long romp and walk.

Since the parental lock is on the computer, I shan’t be writing on my blog next week, but look for a blazing return on April 6 when we go back to doing what we do best — something humans call work, but I call a vacation!

Rubin

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.”

Thich Nhat Hanh

Right this minute there is sun in the sky. It’s so warm and bright, I have to squint while my clumsy paws work the keyboard.  Sunshine has not been the main ingredient of the day…well, until now.  Rather, we’ve had enough rain to keep Noah in business.  No matter. In between the drops we’ve had plenty of joy.  It started with a romp at the small field — just me, Quillette, and Monty.  Quillette’s not much for fetch. She likes to chase the ball, but she rarely brings it back. Often, as the picture above illustrates, she just lies down and tosses the ball around refusing to bring it back to Gretchen.

Monty, on the other hand, is rock solid in the game of fetch!

In this picture, though, it looks like he left his ears behind. He’s got some big ears, Monty does and when he runs full out, those ears flop around like umbrellas in a windstorm.

Monty does have a fetching quirk, though. He never comes all the way back to Gretchen.  Instead, he gets within 5 feet, turns his back, and chews on the ball. Or, if he’s feeling particularly goofy, he’ll wander over to Gretchen’s pack (generally on the ground) and toss his ball on top of the pack then claw around to get it.

Quillette’s claim to fame may not be fetch, but that girl knows how to beg.  Just check out those beggin’ eyes!

Meanwhile, I’m a good boy. I neither beg nor keep my distance and while I’m not always certain I want to give up my ball, I LOVE to play fetch again and again and again!

"See, this is how you do it!"

Next up? Gemma! Gretchen dropped us all off back at the house because Gemma is enough of a dog without all the rest of us tagging along. She took Gemma for a walk through the park to try and burn off some of her excitement and then came back around to the house to pick us up.  Well, me and Monty, that is. Quillette wanted to nap so she stayed at home and curled up on my bed. We headed to the tennis courts and yes, it was still raining.

"What doin?"

Gemma never knows which one of us to play with first. She has a thing for Monty, but then everyone does and the older she gets, the more willing Monty is to tolerate her.  I, on the other hand, am a bit tired of Gemma jumping on me and pulling my ears so today I got a little testy with her. Kind of like how Monty does it, but I sound a bit more fierce (Monty begs to differ!).

Must you?

As a defense, I instigated a game of chase. What did everyone chase?  ME!!!!!

I'm it!!!

Can't touch this!

Neener neener neener

Juke, baby!

Is the chase over? Okay!

Soon, Monty got kind of tired and Gretchen turned around to find him here…

What you doing, Monty?

After his rest, we decided to wrestle. Despite how this photograph looks, we’re not tossing Gemma back and forth!

Hot potato!

Let's toss Monty!

Whew!  We were definitely tired after all of this so we just hung out for awhile in the rain!

Can I use your ears as an umbrella, Monty?

Meanwhile, guess who was still begging?  You guessed it!

Got food?

The day isn’t over yet, either. In between all this fun, we walked Oshi and Perrito, but the rain was too fierce for photos. They’re parents are out of town, so now we’re about to go over again and take them for another walk.  We’ll try to take pictures now because there’s still sunshine out there. Imagine that!

Sun = Joy = Smiles = Joy = Sun!!!

More later,

Rubin

House Guest and Nymph in the Woods

This looks like a great place for a nap

I can’t remember the exact quote, but it goes something like this:

“You invite guests into your home, but friends into your kitchen.”

Our kitchen has been a hubbub of friends lately.  I love it. Jessica stayed with us for a few days while her parents visited from out of town.  Jessica staying here means Quillette stays here, which is a good thing because she’s just as talkative as I am.

She likes to steal my bed though, so Gretchen went out and bought another bed for Quillette (who is getting on in years).  Quillette loves her bed and even when it’s not night time, she sleeps all curled up in it during the day.  She’s a napper that Quillette, but when it’s time to announce the arrival of any new guests, she howls and woofs her happiness right next to me.

Apparently, Quillette will be with me for quite some time. I haven’t yet figured it out, but I think there are some travel plans in the works and I’m not included. What does this mean?  Gretchen’s tried to explain it to me, but I get all confused. “You’re not going to be here? For a week?” I ask, amazed. “Well, who is going to take care of me and better yet, who’s going to run the business?”  The answers are unfamiliar: “Jessica and Quillette will stay with you,” I’m told, “and all the clients have been notified. It’s all taken care of?”

All taken care of?

Perhaps it looks like this…

Don't worry, Rubin. I'll be here!

Somehow “vacation” sounds like a disease. I have yet to be convinced.

In the mean time, we walk dogs in the day and lately, watch basketball in the evenings. There’s a whole other topic I could write about.  Why do they throw the ball away? Don’t they want to keep it forever and ever?

Today, we only spent time with Lucy.  Quillette didn’t go with us because, well, sometimes Q can be a bit of a bully to female dogs and truth be told, Lucy can get a bit persnickety, too.  Best to keep them apart.

When we picked Lucy up, she was hesitant to go with us and a bit limpy so instead of playing fetch (Lucy’s preferred activity), we just went for a walk through all the wooded trails in the neighborhood.

But Lucy, who loves a game of fetch, focused her attention not on racing through the woods (something I enjoy doing), but in finding sticks to chew on. Okay, I can dig that!

Walk softly and carry a big, curved stick!

So we walked along the wooded paths and searched for just the right sticks.  Lucy and I both like our sticks BIG and we love to rip them apart with our teeth.  It’s been so rainy lately that all the sticks crumbled quickly with our gnashing, but that just meant we had to find more to rip up.

In between the gnashing and ripping, we explored the woods much like wild dogs deep in the jungle. Or, in Lucy’s case, a nymph in the woods!

Deep in the jungle, ferocious Lucy waits for her prey!

I tried to engage Lucy in a game of chase, but she wasn’t that interested. I even used a stick to entice her, but she was much more interested in exploring…oh, and posing.

We had a fun time smelling the dirt, sniffing the leaves, ripping up sticks, and walking through the trails.  I sure hope Lucy’s leg feels better though because a good game of fetch is calling me!  I know it’s making her itchy, too.

Eventually, all good walks must end…

We live this way, Rubin. Follow me!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin (and my house guest, Quillette)

Blowin’ In the Wind

She's a nutcase, I tell ya!

We listen to a lot of folk music around our house and so I’m quite well-versed in classics like “Farewell, Angelina,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “If I Were a Carpenter,” and then of course, Bob Dylan (among others) singing “Blowin’ in the Wind.”  This probably wasn’t the soundtrack I would have chosen for my life, but the more I listen, the more I gain perspective on life and the more I gain perspective on the enigma I call Gretchen.

She is a goofball and rarely does she allow me a chance to show off her goofy side, but today she handed me the camera for a moment and these were the photos I snapped as quickly as I could. (Photography is NOT as easy as it looks!)

Our first clients of the day were Oshi and Perrito. While Perrito raced around after me while I raced around after my ball, Oshi snuggled close to Gretchen.  It is cold out there and as we know from previous posts, Oshi is not a foul weather dog.  He likes it warm and dry and preferrably close to home so today, in the frigid wind they call Spring, he got as close to Gretchen as he could.

Romeo aka Perrito

Perrito eventually got into the act, but he’s not much for being held and when he allows himself to snuggle, he gets all kissy.  Gretchen had to move away from his wet, slobbery tongue any number of times. I was just lucky enough to catch the photo!

But we didn’t sit around all day snapping pictures. No, we played.  Well, Perrito and I played.  That Perrito, he’s so small and gets underneath me all the time. I do my best to avoid him, but as you can tell, he’s quick and comes at me like a furry torpedo.

I’m pretty agile though and avoid slamming into him, though he slams into me often!

Oshi? Yeah, he’s pretty mellow and only occasionally gets into the chase. Can you see him?

Mostly, though, he just stands around and watches.

Of course, Perrito can get easily distracted.  He’s kind of a funny one that Perrito.  On our walks he picks up things off the ground — leaves, wrappers, and orange peels. The orange peels are a regular occurrence because our path is right past a school and someone must eat an orange on their way there. We find the peelings all the time and Perrito is like a magnet to those peels. He doesn’t eat them, he just carries them around as proud as proud can be.

Today’s “pick up” was a pine cone.  He amused himself for quite a time playing with that thing. I know. The photo looks like Pine Cone Still Life with Fur, but you get the idea.

Our next adventure was with Ollie.  We went for a walk first and then headed to the small field by the tunnel to play chase and fetch.  Ollie’s getting the hang of fetch, but mostly he likes to chase me and then steal my ball.

Okay, I’ll admit it…I sometimes tease him with my ball, but he doesn’t seem to mind and trust me, that little guy can defend himself!

Ollie is a really attentive boy, though. Not just with me, but with Gretchen as well. When he’s done tackling, dodging, and chasing me, he always returns to her side for some love.  On his way back to her side, he practices his art of levitation. Pretty astounding!

Gretchen even got another of those jumping photos only the light was kind of bad. Still, it’s pretty impressive how much that boy can catch some air!

By the end of our hour together, Ollie successfully stole my ball and slobbered it up but good.

That’s okay.  If I miss him tonight I can always go and smell the ball he played with today.

Despite the first day of spring coming and going, the wind was chilly and strong.

“How many balls must a dog chase down before you can call him a dog?

The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.”

Til Tomorrow,

Rubin

At Play in the Fields of the Forest

Can I be off-leash, too?

One of my favorite places to walk and play is Seward Park.  It’s a big circle of a forest with a trail that goes around and lots and lots of trails that weave through it.  Gretchen had to do a few errands today, so we walked up to get Ollie, walked back to load up in the car, and then headed out to run the errands and then play at Seward Park.

Ollie has been there with me before, but he’s never been on the trails with us. While I get to run off-leash, Ollie stayed on-leash until we got way into the woods. While we played chase for a bit, Ollie was glued to Gretchen’s side…well actually, her back end. She’d be walking and I’d be up ahead in my usual investigative position, and she’d look around to see where Ollie was. And where was he?  Right behind her! I mean RIGHT BEHIND HER!

Gretchen would move to the right and Ollie would move, too. Gretchen would walk to the left, and like a shadow, Ollie followed.  It took a lot of cajoling on my part to get him to chase me, but he did for a bit and then he’d head right back for that place closest to Gretchen.

Sometimes he’s such a good dog it’s upsetting.  He makes me look bad! I’m not a good follower much to Gretchen’s annoyance.

But that Ollie, he’s like the good dog to my bad.

Coming back to the safe spot!

Lately, we’ve had a lot of rain.  The trails weren’t exactly dry so as you can see from Ollie’s black boots, we got a tad bit muddy. Good thing Gretchen carries a towel with her every where she goes!

I did my best to be a bad influence…but instead, I think he influenced me. I showed him how to wait up ahead of the trail and look out into the thick forest watching for squirrels.

Do you see anything?

I even showed him my agility tricks using the downed trees as impromptu jumps…

First you jump over...

...and then you jump back.

But eventually, after all my attempts, Ollie had me following right behind Gretchen too and you know what he did? He followed me.

The view never changes from here!

Despite the fact that I ended up behaving myself, we had lots of fun at the park.  We got back to the car just as it started to rain and after we got our feet wiped off, we headed back to Ollie’s house.

He’s really funny when he gets home. He’s a creature of habit. He races through the backyard, up the back steps, slams through his dog door, and a few minutes later, right when we’re securing the gate to leave, he races back out through the dog door and stands on the porch to say goodbye and thank us for a fun play date.

I’m a pretty lucky dog to have such great friends even if they are well-behaved.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Under the Weather

Despite the title of today’s blog, the weather was warm, dry, and fairly spring-like. Alas, the title refers to my tummy.  I woke up numerous times last night and urgently needed to go outside. I don’t like being sick, but as the day progresses, I’m feeling better and better.  Maybe it’s the mushed up pumpkin Gretchen keeps feeding me, but I think it’s hanging with my dog-friends that’s been the best remedy!

First up, the boys next door — Oshi and Perrito.  Since they live next door, they love to look out the window at our house laying a guilt trip on us with their sad eyes and lonely barks.  Gretchen had to work away from home this morning, so I watched the boys through the window and they watched me. When Gretchen came home, we were all happy to see her and off on a walk we went!

The boys next door

Oh, and the best thing?  Ann took the day off and after her massage this morning (lucky her) she joined us on our walk.

All of us were itching to play so we headed straight to the tennis courts for a frolic.  The only problem with having Ann join us is that Oshi just wants to hang out with her.  He loves to be loved and since there were extra hands around, he was all over that!

Scratch me right there!

Don’t let Ann’s down vest and warm gloves fool you. It was actually pretty warm out and all that hint of spring, made me want to play. Perrito thought that was a great idea, too, so he followed me around leaping up on me to nudge my shoulder and squeal in my ear…”Isn’t this fun?

Isn't this fun?

Perrito flies across the courts when he’s in a frisky mood like this and then, just like that he gets tired.  His little tongue wiggles madly after awhile and Gretchen does her best to capture it with her camera.

"I like love, too!"

But today, it was difficult to capture because every time Gretchen focused on Perrito, he raced over to Ann (and Oshi) and say, “Hey, I like loving too!”

In between the loving session, though, we had a great romp.

We headed back home and as I write, I can see my buddy Oshi staring at me from his kitchen window. Oh by the way, he’s standing on top of the kitchen table looking at me.

Gretchen finally got a picture of herself though, thanks to Ann.  It turned out pretty well, don’t you think?

My swiffer dogs!

Next up, a special treat. We got to visit Chloe. She’s an occasional client, but it’s always wonderful when her mom calls and we set a date.  Chloe was happy to see us and howled her happiness all the way out the door.

Chloe may not seem happy in her pictures, but she sure loves her walks. We headed down to the lake and Chloe posed for some serious photos. Can you see the sort of blue sky behind her?

Ms. Serious

Uh, I'm not much for water...

Chloe, as you can tell from her expression, is not as into water as I am.  Once we arrived at the lake, I jumped right in and waited patiently for Gretchen to fetch my ball from her bag of toys. Good thing it was warm today because that lake is still pretty cold. Chloe, on the other hand, watched from the shore, unimpressed with my swimming abilities.

It's warm, come on in!

Unimpressed, buddy!

Swimming is sooo boring...

Can we go yet?

Nope, one more picture!

The serious case of Rubin and Chloe

So, despite my queasy stomach and my lack of sleep, I got to do some of my favorite things (cue Julie Andrews, please!) — walk, swim, play fetch, and hang out with my friends.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Praying for Wind on St. Paddy’s Day

Red dogs can jump!

When you live in the Pacific Northwest like I do you do a lot of praying for wind. Wind keeps those heavy rainclouds at bay not allowing them to hover over our fair city and dump their wetness upon us.  It rained like the devil this morning and then came the steady breeze blowing away the clouds and making way for a cold, crisp blue.  We saw our chance and headed out to pick up our three clients for the day.

First up, Monty. This isn’t his usual day, but his mom needed to switch so he got to go with us as we fetched both Lucy and Ollie.  He was very happy about that because he has a thing for Lucy. And I think Lucy has a thing for him though she’s much more elusive in her feelings.

Generally four dogs is Gretchen’s limit and she prefers to walk three at a time, but with the weather threatening floods, she decided to pack us all in at once. Lo and behold, the weather held and as I write, it’s still holding.

But now I must explain this first photo. For months Gretchen’s been trying to capture Ollie’s leaping ability. She’s often got a shot of him just about to jump or on his way down, but today she scored the pinnacle of his abilities. Well actually, he was a tad bit higher than this, but it’s pretty astounding, isn’t it?  That boy can jump and he does it all the time. ALL THE TIME! So much so it’s hard to keep him in the frame…

Not much you can do, but join him!

Lucy, as she is want, played fetch with Monty.  While he isn’t as obsessive, I think he was trying to impress Lucy.

More than one time today, Monty would lose sight of his ball and Lucy would herd the two tennis balls right next to her. Monty would look around and Lucy would worry herself silly over which ball to have thrown.

At one point she dropped her ball and it rolled underneath me.

That didn’t stop her though, she dove right for it and could care less about my legs almost stepping on her.

Obsessed =Lucy…

Uh, my ball is under your legs there, Rubin.

Don't mind me...I'll be done in a minute.

Once she got her ball, she was off and running!

Visitors stopped by, too. Oso (hope I spelled your name right) and his family — Nicole and Jillian.  Jillian’s a dog-kid and giggled at the sight of all of us playing in the wet sun. Oso stood by her side to make sure we didn’t hurt her.

Look at those silly dogs

She belongs to me, just in case you were wondering.

We all found Oso pretty fascinating. Monty and Ollie liked him the most. I was more interested in playing, as was Lucy!

You're a big fella, aren't ya?

Wow, you are a big guy!

It was so nice after all that rain this morning, we had fun just hanging out together.

Hey, I can see my reflection. Can you?

Of course, Lucy wanted to play and I joined in for a few more rounds of fetch. That girl NEVER gets tired.

Gotta fetch, gotta fetch, gotta fetch...

Even at the end of our fun, when Gretchen gives us a treat, Lucy was torn between playing fetch or wolfing down the snack.  She shoved the ball into Gretchen’s lap while she got the treats just to keep an eye on it.

I'm going to watch the ball while you fetch the treats. Did someone say fetch?

I mean a close eye on my ball!

I've got a ball, too. Isn't that groovy?

Of course, Ollie was still bouncing away even at the end of the play date.

The sun is still shining, surprisingly, and Gretchen claims that once she’s done making  chili and the cornbread, we’ll go out again.  I shouldn’t complain. Monty and I got some of the ground chicken in our meals today, but I sure hope the rain doesn’t return before she’s done.

Happy Leaping (like those little green men I’ve been reading about!)

Rubin

Avoiding the Soggy Doggy Syndrome

I was born in the high desert, the land of hot, dry summers and crisp, clear, snowy winters. As a young boy I was adopted and moved to the Pacific Northwest best described as wet, windy, gray, and cold (except on days of glorious exception when it’s too beautiful to describe).

Today was a typical Seattle day (not of the glorious kind). My friend Jessica calls it ADHD weather.  Right now there is sun reflecting on the house next door, but earlier it was rain and wind and frigid temperatures.

And the day is only half over.

This is a picture through Gretchen’s glasses. This is what she sees on a day like this.  She does her best to make us (me and the dogs she walks) feel like it’s just a normal day in paradise, but we can tell this isn’t the most fun we could possibly be having.

Oshi and Perrito received a bath last night. They were all fluffy and clean as we headed out for our walk.  I even got combed out this morning! It wasn’t raining then, but by the time we got going, the rain came down in fine sheets of wetness. So much for clean and fluffy.

Can you tell we’re none-too-pleased?

I’ve just dried off and warmed up only to find out we’re about to go out again for my exercise routine before Gretchen heads off to her night job.

Oh joy.

How far away is that high desert from here?

Rubin

March Madness, Friday the 13th, Full Moons — What is it with these people?

Dogs, by nature, are pretty optimistic. We see the bright side of most situations. If your ball rolls under the table and you can’t get it, bark. Someone is always there to help you out.  You need to go outside to take care of your business? Stand at the back door and give that look of urgency. You feel queasy and you throw up on the floor, help out by eating it back up.

Humans, on the other hand, have this fascination with things going wrong. They even label these things, noting full moons as a time of calamity, Friday the 13th as a possibility of tragedy, and March Madness when they all sit in front of their TV, watch people run back and forth, back and forth, and then cheer or jeer really loudly when things either go their way or don’t.

I say, give it rest. Enjoy the moment. Put your worries in a drawer and frolic more.

That’s what we did today. We picked up Monty, headed to the trails, and ran like wildmen after smells, and shadows, and each other.  On our way back home, through the tunnel, we ran into Jessica and Quillette and after much prodding and long faces, we convinced them to keep the pack together and let us continue our rambunctious silliness at the tennis courts.  In fact, we picked up Oshi and Perrito and made it a party.  You can tell by Quillette’s picture how much she enjoyed it.

In fact, everyone got into the act. Jessica especially. It took some doing, but I got her to play keep away with me!

Meanwhile, Perrito raced around chasing Quillette, Monty and me as we played fetch.

Well, Monty and I played fetch. Quillette isn’t as good at it. She likes to chase the ball, but she doesn’t like to come back with it.

She also likes to steal balls, but that’s okay because she gets bored with them pretty quick and leaves them all around the court for me (or Monty) to pick up.

Of course today was amazingly warm. It was very chilly in the morning, but by the time we got out on our walk, the sun was in full force and Gretchen and Jessica were unzipping their many layers.  It felt great!

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery so when I laid down and Monty joined me in the shade, I felt honored. Of course, Monty did a lot of lying around. The warmth really gets to him. Still, he was happy…as was I.

Oshi laid around, too. In fact, he really didn’t want to do anything but hang out by Gretchen and get lots and lots of love.

Hard to tell from this photo, but Oshi is in the this pile of hair somewhere. He rolled around a lot so it made it hard to get a photograph of his face…

…he does have a face doesn’t he?

But we all got our fair share of exercise…well, sort of…

I feel accomplished this week. Despite all the gloom and doom of human language, we had a full week of romping, walking, and sunbathing.  Friday the 13th isn’t as bad as they make it out to be!

Have a great weekend!

Rubin

Frequent.Aromatic.Release.Team

According to Gretchen, Quillette and I have formed an Olympic team.  She’s dubbed us Team F.A.R.T.  I’m not sure why, but every once in awhile she waves her hand vigorously in front of her face and says, “PU” really loudly, her nose all crinkled and her eyes rolled back in her head.

Whatever.

There are so many pictures from today, I’m not sure where to begin.  Perhaps today’s adventures are best told pictorially. The whole website got a little funky, so just keep scrolling to get the whole story! Here we go…

We arrive at Ollie's...

...and he goes crazy jumping up on Gretchen

We head to my house to romp...

We go crazy for awhile...

...while Quillette watches

...and entertains herself with MY ball!

I rest up because I know what's coming

We leave Q at home and pick up Gemma

...who forgoes my ears for my TAIL!

She gives up on me and terrorizes Ollie

...who gives chase!

Nonstop chase...

...and then she chases him!

Will it ever end?

Still going!

They're like steam engines!

Did she stop?

Tongue tired yet?

I'm tired...

Upside down tired...

"I'm not tired!"

"Okay, maybe a wee bit tired."

"Wait! Is that Rubin's ball?

Back home in the shade...with MY ball!

Gretchen just waved her hand in front of her face again.  She’s taking Team Fart outside one last time!

Rubin