Here’s a Mixed Up Tale…

Gemma has always been a very active dog. From the moment I met her, about 10 months ago, she’s been a go-getter from the get-go. It’s true, she fell in love with me the moment I met her and Gemma will always have a warm place in my heart.

Why? Because she’s tenacious. She’s steely. She’s lovable and she never, ever gives up. She enjoys a good joke and has an innate sense of playfulness unmatched by any dog I know. Yes, even Bella or Saber or any other puppy I’ve come across. Gemma is almost a year old and what I hope for her birthday is that she can be cast free. Yep, she’s still in her cast and after admonishments from the vet, she’s now under house arrest.

What this means is that she must only go out in her backyard. No walks. No romping around. No play times at our house, the little field, and for dog’s sake, not the tennis courts.  Instead, she must continue to be lifted up and down the stairs, stay on a leash while in her own yard, and not be allowed to frolic in any way.

For me, this would be difficult. For Gemma, it must be pure torture. I can’t even imagine. Worse, I can’t even see her nor she me because, well, we’d start right in with our wrestling and romping and that would make her doctor even more upset.

Gemma wasn’t our first walk of the day, but because she’s feeling down, she’s going to be our first blog of the day. Gretchen had to go by herself to visit little Gemma. She was happy to see her, but really bummed when all they did was hang out in the back yard. She stood close to Gretchen the whole time hoping that the leash on meant they’d eventually go for a walk. Poor girl!

Gemma did a lot of stretching and even some barking in hopes that Gretchen would take pity on her.

Finally, Gretchen pulled out some treats and started to teach Gemma a trick. They’re working on “shake” or shaking paws and so far, Gemma is doing really well. We’ll see how she does tomorrow. Can she retain the trick? Stay tuned.

Our day started with Monty and Saber. In fact, we had two walks together – one in the morning and the other this afternoon. My leg is a little sore (too much playing) and Monty’s leg is still a little stiff, so we decided to go for just a walk — no romping, no fetch, and no wrestling. Saber was cool with that! Saber’s pretty much cool with anything. So’s Monty. In fact, he was more cool with getting his picture taken for the umpteenth time on the steps overlooking the trees all started to turn to their fall colors.

As you can see, I was not so patient. I wanted to get a move one, but Gretchen feels this need to capture the changing of the seasons with her camera so we must wait patiently while she gets the shot just right!

After Saber, Monty and I hung out at our house while Gretchen took out Oshi and Perrito. Perrito just had his SURGERY and yes, that should be capitalized because IT’S THE YOU-KNOW-WHAT surgery and that deserves all caps! Because he had the SURGERY he had to go for short outing, but once Gretchen put him back in the house, Oshi was reluctant to go anywhere. In fact, after he did his business, Oshi laid right down and refused to go anywhere except back to his house. No time for photos…though Gretchen went back later in the day to take the boys out one more time (for which they were eternal grateful) and got a few photos of them in their own backyard (after their short and slow walk around the block!)

While Oshi rolled around on the cement patio, Perrito sat by the leashes hoping for a longer walk.

Okay, now I’m all mixed up. Walking Saber twice and Oshi and Perrito twice has got me thrown for a loop. In between all of these tales, Gretchen walked Bella. They went over to the park with the big open field and played tug. Apparently Bella loves tug and particularly loved my red tug toy!

Bella will do anything to play tug. She’ll sit, she’ll lie down, she’ll stay…and Gretchen’s working on roll over, but regardless, if the tug toy is out, Bella is alert and ready for action.

In fact, Gretchen laughed a lot with Bella who throws herself down on the ground when Gretchen gives the “down” command.  She tried to capture it on film, but it looks like Bella’s lunging forward. In actuality, she’s throwing herself on the ground!

And then they practiced “stay” and Gretchen said that Bella did really well, but kept staring at the tug toy, obsessed with it’s tattered red fabric and squeezed out squeaky sound.

Even in that last photo, Bella’s not quite looking up. She knows where the tug toy is and has no intention of letting her sights wander too far. Eventually Gretchen held up the tug toy so Bella would, in turn, look up. And then they played tug and Bella was extremely happy to be reunited with the toy!

I just realized that Gretchen didn’t take a lot of photos today. Um. I wonder why? Probably because she had her hands full with two walks for three dogs, an injured and disappointed terrier, and the shenanigans of Monty and me.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Wonders of the Dog World

Some days are just like this. You have it all planned out — which dogs to walk when, how long it takes to get from one place to the next, you even take into account unforeseen circumstances. But on days like this one, when the wind kicks up and your tail flies in the breeze, all those plans just blow right out the window.

Okay, it wasn’t that bad. We did alright meeting up with our clients when we said we would, but in the end, we’re the ones who pay for it, who pay for all that hustling around trying to make it up the block or down the block fast enough to rescue said dog clients from any unnecessary accidents (if you know what I mean). It can take a lot out of you all this running around, so much so that often you forget to appreciate what a sweet little gig we have. I mean, who else gets to play with dogs all day AND get paid for it?

Yes indeed. We are a rare and lucky breed the dog dog walkers of the world, but today I earned my kibble.  Actually, I don’t really like kibble so let me rephrase. Today I earned my canned food and fresh chicken!

The day started out at school. I accompanied Gretchen to her teaching job and was met by some very enthusiastic students.  They were all very happy to see me and I, too, was pretty excited.  They like to love me and being the good dog that I am, I let them. It might sound like an easy job, but let’s just say, all those grimy 10 year old hands coming at you can get a bit overwhelming. I, of course, handle it all with my best canine graces. It’s exhausting, I tell you, but I couldn’t complain lying there getting belly rubs all morning. 

The real work began when we high-tailed it down the street to pick up Saber. Yep, Saber in the morning. We’re trying to help out the tired parents so some days we walk Saber twice a day. Today was the first day and he was very surprised to see us. But we didn’t come alone! Nope, we brought Ollie with us and for Saber, that was a really treat. The two of them walked me home so I could rest up a bit (after my morning as a teacher dog) and they headed off to the tennis courts for fun and games. Actually, for fun and tricks. Ollie practiced leaping (as you can see from the photo above) and Saber practiced balancing the ball on his nose.

It looks like they had fun and given the rest of the day we had, I wasn’t the least bit jealous that they got to play without me!

Saber walked Ollie home and then headed back to his house to rest up for the afternoon walk.  Gretchen hoofed it back up the street to pick up Rosie who was thrilled and delighted to see her. She has this way of curling her very short tail around when she sees Gretchen that Gretchen particularly likes. Hope one day she can get a picture of it. The two of them walked back towards Ollie’s house because Gretchen realized she’d dropped one of her leashes there. Of course, it afforded her the perfect opportunity to get some Rosie in the Flower shots as well as spend some time trying to teach Rosie to shake paws.

As you can see, Rosie’s all about the treats. She’s still working on the shaking part! Still, she’s really cute!

After Rosie went home, Gretchen picked up Bella who is, apparently, very excited about the wind. They walked some, but Bella was very energetic so to burn some of that off, they came by to pick up me. We played for a bit in the backyard, but then headed to the tennis courts so we could really stretch our legs!

Once Bella had her tongue hanging out, Gretchen and I worked with her on heel as we walked through the park watching the dark clouds race across the sky.  Hey, I just realized, Bella’s kind of like a gray cloud on a windy day. Whoosh!

Bella went home tired and flopped right into her crate where she sucked on her peanut butter toy while Gretchen and I headed back down the street to pick up Saber.  He was as thrilled to see us this afternoon as he was in the morning. We walked the long way home (around the park) and then played in the backyard with wild abandon. I’m not sure what got into me, but I felt it necessary to teach Saber to do laps around the yard. He loved it. Heck, I loved it!

Then it was time for Saber to go to his next job while I stayed home and rested. Yep, Saber has a new job (and he’s so young). Every afternoon he goes to the local elementary school to hopefully meet up with a young boy who is having a few difficulties in school.  If the boy has had a good day, he gets to walk Saber and teach him tricks. If it’s not such a good day, well, he just gets to say hello to Saber and then head back to class. Yesterday was a good day and the two of them played and had fun. The boy taught Saber how to roll over and Saber taught the boy how to wrestle.

Today, unfortunately, wasn’t a good day so the boy had to explain what went wrong, while Saber listened. “I got frustrated,” said the boy, “and slammed my fist down.”

“Oh,” said Saber. “Maybe next time take 5 deep breaths. It works for me!”

“Good idea,” said the boy. “I’m going to try that tomorrow!”

“Yippee, yippee, yippee,” Saber danced around as he sang. “Then I’ll get to play with you! Yippee!”

It appears the two of them have become fast friends. I hope we get to see the boy tomorrow. He’s very sweet.

But today Gretchen had to walk Saber home after our short visit and then walk home to get me so we could up to pick up Alice for our last walk of the day. Alice barks at us when we first arrive, but then she totally gets excited that we’re there to see her. Today we went for an extra long walk partly because those dark clouds I mentioned earlier were now threatening and Gretchen had a feeling that neither Alice nor I would get a walk later in the evening.

So up to the ridge we went where we sat pretty while Gretchen tried different settings on her still rather new camera. Can you see the clouds moving in? Of course, the really dark, threatening ones aren’t in the picture, but trust me, they’re there.

In fact, they opened up about an hour ago and have been pouring down on us like steel hammers ever since. Yes, a mighty full day. Tomorrow is even busier, if you can imagine. The wonders of the dog world will continue, I suppose and we’ll be there to capture them in both words and pictures as best we can.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

The Wind Began to Switch, The House to Pitch and Suddenly the Hinges Started to Unhitch…

Not sure this picture does the wind justice, but today was windy. The kind of wind that made Gretchen’s cheeks red and my hair blow all around. We haven’t had this much air moving in a long, long time and while it bothered me when my tail would swoosh around, it was kind of fun to feel the energy in the windy day.

Everyone felt it. Everyone. One dog after the next was full of excitement and uncontainable (is that a word?) energy. We were all frisky and wired. We chased after leaves blowing by and threw our heads up to watch the clouds chase each other across the sky.

It made me think of the Wizard of Oz and when we got done with the day, I asked Gretchen to put in the tape while she ran to the store to get both my dinner and one for her and Ann. While she was shopping, I replayed the house whirling around in the twister over and over and knew exactly how Toto felt being whisked up and up and up. That’s exactly how I felt today. Luckily, the little munchkins I spend my time with don’t break into song, but if they did, I imagine they would have sung something from one of my favorite movies. “We represent the lolliPUP guild…”

There wasn’t any wind in the beginning of the day when Gretchen took me for my own walk this morning. Nope, it was sunny and cold, but by the time she picked up Tyson and Rosie for their walk, the sun was getting pushed around by a stiff breeze.

They headed up to Bradner Gardens for a photo shoot by the tractor in the last bit of blue sky-sunlight. Rosie, apparently, was feeling clownish and hung close to her brother, Tyson.  Can you see her under Tyson’s barrel chest? Too cute.

They had a nice walk and smiled their delight every time Gretchen pointed the camera in their direction.

While the wind was picking up, it was still enough to get these two excited and Gretchen tells me they pranced around like two models on the runway. The only way she could get any photos of them was to bribe them with cookies, which of course, works like a charm for these two!

After she dropped them off at home, she picked up Ms. Gimp…I mean, Ms. Gemma who was thrilled the second Gretchen headed back to our house. Gemma really wanted to roughhouse, but Gretchen said absolutely not since she still has her back leg in a cast…Gemma, that is! So we posed. In the wind. If you look closely, my hair is blowing around. Gemma’s isn’t, but she showed some signs of discomfort with the wind in her eyes!

Gemma goes to the vet tomorrow and we all have our paws crossed that the green ball and chain (aka – the cast) comes off and Gemma can run like the wind!

We dropped Gemma off and then headed up to get Bella. Oh boy! She’s usually a little more energetic on a Monday, but with the wind, she was about ready to take flight! Gretchen took us right to the tennis courts so I could help Bella burn off some of her excess energy before we worked on her training!

On her walk home from school today, Gretchen found a lacrosse ball. She let me play with it at the courts, but then you-know-who stole it! Oh, I had to be so, so patient!

By this time the wind was really swirling and though Bella didn’t take flight, her ears sure did! And she got so frisky she violated a very important dog rule — be careful where you put your nose!!!

The racing around helped Bella focus a bit more, but every time the leaves blew past her, she thought it was an invitation to scurry ahead! Whew!

Bella headed home and then Gretchen and I picked up the newly groomed neighbors — Oshi and Perrito! The wind got under their skin too, so we headed back to the courts to let them run around. Even Oshi took part in the frolicking! Yes, he’s running in this picture…not as fast as Perrito, but he’s still running!

We ate some lunch after dropping the boys back home and then we picked up Saber who was, by far, the most wound up by the wind than any other dog we walked today. And…he grew taller and heavier over the weekend. He’s as tall as me now and really knows how to throw his weight around!

As you can see from the photos, we brought him back to our house because we wanted Jessica to meet him. Yep, Jessica’s back from India and I, for one, am very happy about it! She LOVES to play tug with me and I love it, too!

I wasn’t the only one who was happy. Jessica was just as happy to play with me as she was to meet Saber. She, like Gretchen, loves Saber’s skin, which at this point is in excess. He’s growing into it. He also showed off all his tricks by sitting when she asked, lying down when commanded, and Jessica’s personal favorite – shaking paws!

But once the love-fest was over, Saber and I got down to business and played until we couldn’t stand any more!

Yes indeed. It was a windy start to the week. I’m one tuckered pooch having to entertain the wild and wiggy pups who breezed through our day. So off to bed for me. Looks like rain tomorrow. Who knows how that will play out!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Uh, Wait Just One Minute!

It’s Friday. I work on Fridays. Okay, I got to work this morning when I went to Gretchen’s school and met all of her students. And, I might add, I was a really good boy. But then…THEN I was marched up to Dog Mania with Oshi and Perrito to get groomed!!!!

Do you know what that means? That means that I didn’t get to work today. Sure, I hung out with Oshi and Perrito while we got clipped and shampooed and combed and spruced up, but I didn’t get to do all the fun stuff I normally get to do.

Bummer. I better call in Gretchen to see what happened today. Hey Gretchen?

Yeah, buddy?

Can you come here a minute?

Sure thing. What’s up?

Well, that’s kind of what I wanted to ask you. What did you do today, since I was left at the “spaw.”

I know buddy, but now you’re all clean and clipped and good to go for another six weeks. So, after I dropped you off, Monty and I walked up to get Woobie.

Woobie was on the schedule?

Yep, sorry, I know how much you like seeing her.

I bet she was happy to see Monty, though.

Thrilled! We went for a walk back to our house and along the way, they sat for a photograph at the library. Monty asked Woobie which way she normally went on walks and she pointed in the opposite direction.

Is that the library behind them?

Yep, the one with all the windows.

We’ve passed by there a few times, but I’ve never had my photo taken there.

Well, next week when we walk Woobie, I’ll be sure to get a shot of you two by the windows.

Did Woobie even ask about me?

Oh yeah. In fact, when we got to the house, she raced up the front steps to see if you would be on the other side of the door.

But I wasn’t.

Nope. Quillette was there and you know how grumpy she can be when she meets new dogs….

Especially girl dogs…

Right, so I sent Woobie around the side yard and she raced back there to try and find you.

Wish I’d been there.

I know, Rubin, but I know you had fun with Liliana today.

Yeah, I like her a lot…except when she has the clippers in her hand or that comb! Oh well. Did Monty play with Woobie?

Somewhat. Mostly they just hung out together in the backyard with Monty looking up the back steps to the forbidden zone!

Did Q ever get to meet Woobie?

Eventually. Take a look at these…

I see Quillette still has her leash on.

Yes, well, she knows I mean business about being nice when she has her leash on.

What next?

Well, Woobie and I walked over to Bella’s house.

You’re kidding?

No, and along the way we ran into Gemma and her dad.

Don’t tell me you all walked together — Bella, Woobie, and Gemma?

Okay, I won’t tell you, but that’s what we did.

Do you have photographic proof?

Sorry. My hands were full even though Gemma was being walked by her dad, but I did take these photos when we got to Woobie’s house.

Why’s Woobie looking at the door in that last shot?

I think she’d had enough of Bella’s energy.

She looks like she’s behaving herself quite nicely, though.

Yes, it took some doing, but she did very well today with all the doggie distractions. In fact, she did so well, I took her to the park to play some fetch on the long line.

It looks like she had fun. Did she ask about me?

What do you think she’s saying in these pictures?

Uh, “do you have the treats?”

Nope, she’s asking where you are.

What did you tell her?

The truth.

Was she shocked?

No, she goes to the groomer, too, you know.

No way. What’s there to groom?

She needs to get her fur washed and her nails clipped just like you?

Wow, I never thought about that before. I’m glad she asked about me, though because I haven’t been able to see her as much lately and I kind of miss her.

That’s sweet.

Okay, who was next?

Well, I had a bit of a break after I dropped Bella off so I went back home and spent some time with Monty and Quillette.

I bet they missed me.

Terribly. They both kind of moped around not sure what to do with themselves, but then they went with me to get Saber.

You played fetch, didn’t you?

Yeah, sorry, but Monty really wanted to and Saber really wanted to do what Monty did.

I see Monty did what he likes to do the most…

Roll around?

It does feel good.

Especially after you’ve had a bath and a day at the groomers, huh Rubin?

Yeah, that’s kind of what I was thinking.

Well, maybe tomorrow you can roll around somewhere fun.

Maybe. You better tell me more, though, about the day I missed.

It was kind of funny, actually because Saber found a frisbee at the park and he really liked it.

Lucky guy. I LOVE frisbees, too.  What did he do?

Got super silly!

What was Quillette doing all this time?

Laughing at Saber and begging for treats.

And then they all posed for one last picture, but Monty turned his head just at that moment and said, “I miss Rubin!”

Really, he said that?

He’s your best friend, Rubin. Of course he missed you.

But I was next, wasn’t I?

Yep, after we took Saber home and we got back to the house, there was a message on the phone that you and the boys were ready to be picked at the groomers.

Yippee! But you forgot to take “before” pictures.

Yeah, I did, but I didn’t forget the “after” photos even though I had the hardest time getting the boys to look at the camera.

They’re very good at ignoring you.

You didn’t do such a great job of paying attention yourself.

I just wanted to go home.

So did the boys!

Sorry you missed the work day, buddy.

It’s okay. I understand and I do look kind of handsome.

Yes indeed! Yes indeed.

On with the weekend then?

On with the weekend then!

Have fun everyone!

Rubin

You Don’t Get the Dog You Want, You Get the Dog You Need

I am not a perfect fellow. Dog knows I’ve put some of the gray hairs on Gretchen’s head all by myself. I bark too much, I chase things I shouldn’t chase like cats, squirrels, and sometimes bicycles, and at times, I get possessive of my toys.

Face it, being good all the time is hard work and frankly, it’s just not in me to be good all the time.

That’s hard for Gretchen. She wanted a perfect dog, I think, and so I test her patience. I try to tell her that really my job is to help her develop her patience, to practice relaxation techniques in the most stressful moments, and to laugh a little more about the absurdities of life. Dog bless her, she’s trying and so am I.

Today, I was a good boy, so good in fact, I get to meet her students tomorrow. I’m excited. Gretchen says they are more excited. This will be a real test of her ability to stay calm in the middle of chaos, though I doubt it will be chaos. It will just be a lot of squealing and tail wagging. Oh, and treats. The students always give me a lot of treats!

I was good today because I played well with others. I got to play with Ollie, Quillette, and a surprise play time with Saber who as at the tennis courts this morning when we three arrived. Ollie and Saber really hit it off, while I played with Saber’s blue ball and Quillette barked a lot.

Oh yeah, and then Ollie stole the blue ball. It was a hot commodity and I was a good boy because I didn’t take it from him. I just stalked him with beady eyes!

The temptation to be a bad dog was great especially when Ollie taunted me with the blue ball.

Then Saber got the ball and I had to practice more patience.

Then Saber got distracted by watching my orange and blue ball bouncing high…Quillette got interested too and eventually ended up with the ball!

After our romp at the courts, Quillette and I had to go home to rest up. Nap time. I could have been a bad boy and been upset, but I wasn’t. I took the time to really rest while Gretchen went for her Thursday walk with Rosie. They walked through the park and then worked on her commands — sit, down, and shake. Rosie apparently doesn’t know the command shake and Gretchen had a hard time getting her to understand the concept. She’ll get it. Be patient.

Rosie really likes her treats, so it’s easy to get her to focus when Gretchen holds up the treat. It makes for sweet pictures of a sweet Rosie.

And my personal favorite — the reward!

Rosie and Gretchen walked passed the school and back to Rosie’s house where she raced up the stairs to receive more goodies. I’ve never met Rosie, but I can tell she can be a good dog like me though she may have challenges at time just like I do!

Still, she looks pretty cute to me!

Gretchen headed up to Bella’s house next and was greeted by an excited, tail-wagging girl. Bella really, really tries to be a good dog even more than I try and today was a Gold Star day for her! She heeled well, she listened to her commands, and only a few times did she lunge forward in excitement. As a reward, Bella got to visit with me! It was my reward too.

It’s hard to see in these photos, but Gretchen keeps Quillette in the house when Bella comes to play. Bella likes to charge new dogs (as you can see) and Quillette can be a grumpy old gal at times so generally, they don’t interact during her visits. See Quillette behind the screen door while Bella races by me on the porch?

But today, Bella was being such a good girl, Gretchen put her on a leash and they worked on having her be calm in our presence. She did really well! Good dog, Bella!

And Quillette, she’s being the best of all because usually she doesn’t like the wild puppy energy that both Saber and Bella bring to the backyard. Today though, she was fine with it.

Anything for a treat!

I got to walk Bella home and again, she was an absolute peach. That’s how Gretchen said it — an absolute peach. She doesn’t say that about me very often, though I’ve had my peachy moments throughout my life!

After Bella was dropped off, Gretchen gave me a special reward. I got to play fetch all by myself. Nobody chasing me, nobody trying to tackle me, nobody but the two of us. It was great! Of course, then I got a whiff of something in the bushes and Gretchen wondered what I was up to! Hunting!

Guess what I found? A football high up in the bushes! How fun is that!

Of course, it’s really hard to pick up a football with a dog’s mouth so I just tried to tear it apart. Gretchen took it from me after that and is going to donate it to the school. Bummer. Who thought of shaping a ball like that anyway!

So we played fetch and then walked across the street to pick up Saber. He was happy to see us again and proceeded to play fetch with me on the same grassy field!

Saber likes to lie in wait for me and then pounce when I race by…like I can’t see him! Heck, he weighs more than I do and he’s only 4 months old!

He also likes to disturb me when I’m scratching my back. That’s a lot of dog jumping on me in my moment of joy.

But Gretchen distracted him by running up and down the field and giving him his own ball to play with. He thought the leaf was more interesting!

Saber is a good boy. Probably a better boy than I am or was at his age. Still, I like this story Gretchen told me today. She said that when she told her class I was coming to visit they needed to know some of the rules. For one, I don’t like running in the hallways. Secondly, I don’t like play fighting. And finally, I’m not really fond of people I don’t know petting me on the head. A girl in her class said, “He sounds just like a teacher, well, except for the petting of the head. Oh, but I suppose teachers don’t like that either.”

That’s it, isn’t it? I’m not just a good boy most of the time, I’m a teacher, too.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

The Trouble With Squirrels

Let me just say that I think squirrels are just about the dumbest animals on this earth. I’m not trying to offend the animal world, but it amazes me day in and day out the ways they put their lives in danger. Take, for instance, today. Monty, Quillette, and I are walking along, minding our own business when a squirrel, on the right side of the street, decides to run across at the very moment we’re walking by. Are we just supposed to ignore him?

I think not. We all lunge forward, which is probably why Gretchen’s back hurts tonight and my neck hurts (from the pull back on the leash). Still, if you knew, I mean if you KNEW that three big predatory dogs were walking by would you risk your life and run right in front of them?

It’s unbelievable, and trust me, I could tell you story after story about their nonsensical escapades. It’s like they see us coming, turn to their rodent buddies and say, “Okay, watch me. I’m going to fall from the branch of this tree, right in front of those big dogs, scurry under their legs, and race up that tree right over there!”

Okay. I’m getting carried away, but that’s probably because the only sign of autumn around here is the voluminous increase in squirrel activity in our neighborhood. Gretchen tells me they’re collecting nuts and hiding them in secret places for the spring so that when they wake up from their dormancy, they’ll have food. Again, I say how stupid is that? They live in the city where food is abundant all around them all year long!

Alright. I’m stopping. But let me just say one last thing — if I ever catch a squirrel, I’m going to sit him down and have a talking to him. “What are you thinking?”

We saw a lot of squirrels today and a lot of dogs. Gretchen came back from teaching with Monty and we all went for a walk (Monty, Quillette and me).  Yesterday was hot, but today was hotter even though it didn’t say so on the thermometer. I think it was because of the humidity, so while we usually average about 6.5 miles a day, today we only walked 4. Well, Gretchen walked 4. What with my running and playing chase, I most likely did double that, but I’m not complaining.

Well, I’m not complaining about the play time. I will complain about the heat. Gretchen promises it will be cooler tomorrow, but I’m not going to hold my breath.

So let me begin. After our walk, the three of us stayed home while Gretchen walked over to pick up Gemma who, if you look closely at the photos, got a new cast on her broken toe. No more orange, this new cast is green and it looks mighty fine. Because Gretchen felt sorry for Gemma, she walked Gemma back over toward our house (though they didn’t stop by) and picked up the boys (Oshi and Perrito) next door. Gemma was happy to see some canine friends, but once again, those squirrels made for some serious leash macrame what with Gemma racing after the varmints and Perrito in hot on her tail. Still, they made it to the park whereupon they posed, surprisingly, for some photos.

With these three dogs, it’s really hard to get them to all look at the camera all at the same time. Oshi is always looking back toward home and Perrito is looking for new friends, while Gemma is wondering if there is something she can chase all the while knowing she really can’t chase anything with that heavy anchor on her leg.

Still, they had a nice walk albeit slow because of the humidity and heat hence the hanging tongues.

Gemma dropped the boys off at their house and Gretchen walked her back home where she flopped on her bed tired from the adventure of it all.

Next up was Bella who didn’t notice the heat for the first 30 minutes. Gretchen said they had to have a serious training session as Bella was all over the place with energy. To burn some of it off, they made their way to the tennis courts where finally the heat and the endless games of fetch even got to Bella.

Gretchen said that Bella does a much better job than I do of dropping the ball once she retrieves it, but that I’m a better retriever. I didn’t take offense. I know I hold onto the ball and I shouldn’t, but a guy can’t be perfect all the time, can he?

At one point, Gretchen found another tennis ball on the court and tossed it out to see what Bella, who already had the first ball in her mouth, would do. Bella was heard to exclaim, her mouth full of ball, “Wa I do wit thith one?”

Eventually though, all the energy drained out of Bella and she flopped down in the shade and just chewed on the tennis ball for awhile. Doesn’t she look like a deer?

After their romp, Gretchen tried working on Bella’s commands again and this time she was spot on. She heeled by her side, she sat when commanded, and when a squirrel raced by, Bella ignored it.

IGNORED IT?

What was she thinking? That shows some serious restraint…restraint I certainly don’t have. Good job, Bella!

Bella was happy then to get a drink at Bradner Gardens and even happier to go back home where it was cooler and she could rest. Gretchen then moseyed on down the street to pick up Saber who was sound asleep on his back when she arrived. Funny boy. She brought him back to our house where the four of us — Monty, Q, Saber, and I — tried to muster up some energy in the ever-increasing heat.

Monty took a little while to engage in the play and once he did, he tackled me, which sent Quillette into a barking frenzy. With that, Monty was put inside and once Gretchen got Q to obey, she went inside, too. That left me the only one left to entertain Saber.

Saber may look all innocent, but trust me, the boy can be a pest. I mean look here. I’m resting in the shade and what does he do? He bite me in the bottom to see how I’d react!

Eventually, Gretchen came to the rescue and let Monty and Quillette back out after they’d settled down. Of course, by that time I was racing around getting Saber to chase me and Quillette and Monty, too tired to engage, just watched from their corners of the yard!

And then Monty and Q hung out on the deck while Saber and I rested some, too. Monty, as is his style, sniffed Quillette’s ears. You can see by the expression on Q’s face, she’s tolerant of our friend’s weird habit.

Monty and I escorted Saber home, though along the way we stopped at the school and helped a student receive a reward. The reward was walking Saber and let me tell you, this kid thought that was the absolute best reward his principal could offer him. According to Gretchen, there might be more rewards in the future and I might get to be involved. We’ll see, but for now, Saber got all the attention of an 11 year old boy and they were both very happy about the new relationship.

After Saber went home, Monty and I walked over to pick up Wilson. Thrilled to see us, Wilson, Monty and I walked through the park and met up with Lucy (the dog in the first photograph at the top of this page) and we got to do a little romping and fetching. Lucy’s kind of shy, but eventually, she got into the act!

After our visit with Lucy, we headed towards Monty’s house where we dropped him off for some cool water and a bit of rest. Along the way, we ran into Lulu who was off to the park for a romp. Wilson and I joined in. Well, I joined in the romp. Wilson enlisted anyone he could find to throw the ball for him!

But we soon all tired out — that heat, humidity, and long day finally got to us all — and that’s when Gretchen really snapped the photos.

I sure hope tomorrow is cooler. If it is and if I get to bed soon, I hope to have enough energy to catch me one of those squirrels so we can have a good talking to!

Good night!

Rubin

You’ve Got to Have Shade

The first day of fall and it’s 88 degrees. You’ve got to be kidding me! Not that I don’t like the sun, I do, but 88 degrees is hot and frankly, I’ve had enough of hot for awhile.

That’s why today has been all about the shade. When Gretchen came home from teaching with Ollie in tow, we all looked at her and said, “Take us to a shady park!” and that’s just what we did.

We walked along the lake — Quillette, Ollie, and I –and then moseyed on up through Frink Park where we leisurely spent our time smelling where the wild things are.

Along the way we met a very big dog ironically named BIG. Ollie and I got to meet him, but Quillette was all huffy (most likely from the heat) so Gretchen kept her at bay.

I’m not sure why he was called Big because he’s really not that much bigger than me, but he was cool and after a sniff, went on his way down the trail. So did we.

As you can see, Ollie stuck close to Gretchen probably because she had a pocket full of treats, though I did get him to indulge in a cool muddy drink along the way.

Ah, that tasted so good on this hot day!

After we dropped Ollie off at his house, Quillette and I rested at our house while Gretchen walked Rosie. Rosie’s like me. She doesn’t like this heat very much, so Gretchen headed straight to the shade of the park, attached Rosie to the long line and let her run, run, run!

Soon enough, she got hot and looked to Gretchen from some treats!

The finished their time together with a walk around the park and then Rosie got a cool, cold drink of water at her house. I bet that tasted good!

Next up was Bella and she got a nice long walk along the ridge. In fact, she got to visit Lillianna at Dog Mania where Gretchen needed to stock up on doggie bags (you know the kind!). Bella LOVED meeting Lillianna and her little dog Tikka, who gave Bella a lesson in manners.

After their visit, they headed over to Bradner Gardens for a photo shoot and a romp on the long line.

As you can see, there were some beautiful blue skies out there today. It made for a nice backdrop for Bella’s portrait.

And then she played and played and played avoiding the hornet’s nest the sign in the garden warned about!

But not avoiding the camera…she bumped into it a number of times in her enthusiasm!

Bella did really well today, Gretchen says, with her leash work and her heeling. She’s definitely growing up and I bet the heat of the day made her a little less rambunctious. I sure felt that way.

After Gretchen dropped Bella off, she picked up Saber and walked him to our house, but frankly, I was too hot to play. Not Saber. He was all over my toys and bugging me to play with him. I was not in the mood. Neither was Quillette, but he kept trying!

As you can see in the last photo (though you can’t hear and that’s really what you need to do to really understand the moment), Saber is howling at me. The first time he barked (the other day) I thought for sure a strange dog had entered our yard. It was such a deep, manly and throaty bark I was certain a big, bad dog had come to eat us up. But guess who it was? Yep, Saber. A 4 month old puppy with a bark like Bull Mastiff! So in this last photo, he’s using that Bull Mastiff bark and trying to get me to play. As you can see, I was having none of it much to his dismay!

So he hung his head and moved away and tried a softer approach!

This next photo is my favorite. While he’s got those sad eyes in the previous one and he’s watching me from afar in the last one, in this photo he’s getting a little miffed and you can see the ridge of anger on his back — his hackles raised — desperate to play with me!

As you can see, I gave him my special snarl telling him to back off, but then I gave in and we with the red tug while Quillette looked on.

We walked Saber home down through the park and then rested in front of the fan before heading out to pick up Wilson. Quillette decided to stay home. “It’s too hot,” she said and for her that’s so true. I mean, just look at her think coat!

Because it was so hot, Gretchen took us to the lake and for that, I must thank her profusely. It was exactly the day for a swim in the lake!

Wilson and I both swam after balls thrown way out in the lake. I’ll admit it, Wilson is a stronger swimmer than I, but sometimes things got a little confusing.

Wilson is so ball focused that sometimes he’d swim out after my ball. Gretchen would have to point out my ball, though today, Wilson got to it first only he had his ball in his mouth as well. As far as I’m concerned, that means I’m done so I swam to shore while Wilson tried to get the second ball in his mouth. Gretchen didn’t think it was going to happen so she took everything out of her pockets, ripped off her shoes and socks, and started to go in after Wilson and the two balls only guess what Wilson did for the first time? He got both balls in his mouth! Amazing!  Unfortunately, Gretchen couldn’t get a photo of it because, well, she was up to her shorts in the lake without her camera.

By the time Wilson got to his house,  I was dry. Wilson was still wet. Lucky him. We went back to our house where I spread out in front of the fan and prayed that the sun would find another place to shine besides on me. Don’t think it’s going to happen, but soon, soon.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Birthday Splash!

Yesterday was Wilson’s 1 year birthday so in tribute to him, I’m going start this blog with the end of our day and work backwards. If I could, I’d throw a birthday bash and invite all our friends.

Are you sure you want to do that, Rubin?

Why not?

Well, with humans you think it would be fun to have all your friends meet each other, but sometimes they don’t get along.

Really? Humans aren’t like dogs though, are they?

I don’t know. Think about the combinations. Would they all get along with Wilson?

Let’s see, Wilson would LOVE to play with Gemma and actually has. They rolled around wrestling together when they were younger, but now that Gemma has a broken toe, I think we’d have to keep her on a leash.

That would be hard on Gemma, don’t you think?

Yeah, but I think she’d still want to be there.

You’re probably right, but what about Bella?

Oh dog, Bella would ADORE Wilson. She’d be all over him saying, “Hi, hi, hi! You’re a fine handsome fella. Wanna play with me? Please, please, please?”

Hey, that’s what she says to you!

I know, that’s why I know the script so well. But still, they’d get along with Bella who’d be so excited to be at a party she’d probably run in circles.

And everyone would chase her!

I wouldn’t. Wilson wouldn’t. He’d want to play fetch or go swimming.

But Gemma would chase her.

Not with her broken toe. She’d want to, but we wouldn’t let her. Saber would chase her, though I doubt he could keep up!

Why not? He’s growing like a weed and he can keep you pretty busy.

I just let him think he’s keeping me busy. And he may be growing, but he’s just getting bigger and clumsier.

Now, be nice, Rubin.

I am! I’m just speaking the truth. His body is growing faster than his coordination! Have you seen him flop around our backyard. It’s like all his bones are made of Jello!

That’s pretty funny. Jello boy!

Or rubber dog.

Stop! He’s very cute and he’d definitely have fun at a Wilson birthday party. But what about Tyson and Rosie?

I haven’t met them, though I’d like to. So why haven’t I met them yet?

Well, I’m just trying to get to know them myself and their parents are a little worried that they don’t get along with other dogs.

But you said that they met Bella and that went well.

Yeah, apparently Bella’s mom ran into them in the morning and everyone got along fine.

Well, then…

Okay, but if we invited them, do you think they’d get along with all the others?

Oshi might have a problem, but that’s because Oshi thinks he’s a cat. He’d have a problem with a lot of the dogs.

He’d probably just snuggle up to any warm human body he could find. I’d worry more about Perrito. He has a thing for the ladies.

Yes, but that’s about to be taken care of, isn’t it?

That’s what they say.

Hey, Perrito’s a boy, I’m a boy. Perrito has his manhood intact. What happened to mine?

Well, when you were a wee little lad…

How wee?

Seven weeks old…

Oh my, that IS wee…

They took you to the doctor and had the deed done.

Why so early?

Well, there was no reason to keep you manly because we weren’t going to breed you.

Are you saying I’m not manly?

Absolutely not! But think about Perrito. Don’t you think he’s a little more forward with the ladies than you are?

True. I mean, I like girls and all, but I like my boy friends too.

And you have your floppy dog.

Okay, let’s not get into that, okay? This IS a family blog after all.

You’re right. I’ll keep it clean. Okay, who else would you invite to Wilson’s party?

Ollie, definitely. Monty for certain. Woobie — well, they’ve already met and it was love at first sight. I don’t know Alice very well, but I think she’d be okay once she got to know everyone. That’s it for our regulars.

What about Quillette?

Now that’s an interesting question.

How so?

Well, she can be kind of grumpy especially with other girl dogs and since she’s one of the oldest dogs, I’m not sure she’d enjoy a younger party.

I’ve seen her party with the best of them!

True. I think we’d have to really watch her. She doesn’t like it when the young ones get out of hand and wild.

True, but she’d love the treats at the party.

Wouldn’t we all!

Too bad we missed Wilson’s birthday.

Well, I bet he appreciates the thought of a virtual birthday party just as much.

Hey, you were going to talk about our day.

Oh, yeah. I got carried away. So starting at the end, we walked Wilson, which was fun because we walked down to the lake as a special birthday surprise. He sure liked that!

And before Wilson was Saber. We walked some, but he came over and hung out at the house so we could play chase and tug and fetch in the backyard.

Before Saber was your walk with Bella.

Yep, I’m trying to keep her guessing — when will I arrive, who will I bring, where will we go? It seems to be working.

Well, where did you go?

We went up on the ridge to the overlook, down the stairs to the park, and then played romp and run on the long line.

How did she handle the grate at the overlook?

Well, I picked her up and put her on the bench so I could get this shot…
…and it worked like a charm because she hated the grate so much she didn’t jump off the bench.

I can relate! But I bet she loved running on the long line in the park.

Yes, we both had a good time!

You saw Gemma before Bella, right?

Yes, she misses you and sends a big lick right in your face.

Grrrrrr!

Oh come on! You miss her too!

Okay, I’ll admit it. How was she anyway?

Frustrated with the silly caste on her leg and easily worn out from the heat and not as much exercise as usual. But I petted her head and scratched her belly while we rested in the shade and she really liked that!

It will be fun to romp with her again once she’s healed. And you walked Rosie and Tyson before Gemma, right?

Yep, we went on a nice walk and then ended at the tennis courts whereupon Tyson took off like a bullet and Rosie followed.

He looks like a playful guy. Big, but playful.

He surprised me, but they both had fun.

And before them we walked Oshi and Perrito, right?

No, we actually walked them after Rosie and Tyson.

Oh my, I guess I’m tired from the day and it’s only Monday.

Well, you and Wilson celebrated pretty hard at the lake today.

Yeah, that must be it. I must have worn myself out and it’s only Monday.

Then, to bed, yes?

Yes, to bed.

Until tomorrow and Happy Birthday again, Mr. Wilson!

Rubin

Abundance

Okay, enough of the serious conversations about how much is too much and overdoing it. Let’s talk about the abundance of life because I have a lot of it for which I am eternally grateful.

Friday’s are always a great time to reflect on my abundance. Reading Gretchen’s new pedometer, I was shocked to see that we’d logged 33 miles of walking this week making it abundantly clear why our legs and paws are tired by the end of the week.

But I’m not going to complain because today was really fun, marking the end of a really fun week.

Today started with a romp and run with my two best friends, Quillette and Monty.

As you can see, we had a great time in the sun not just playing fetch, but lying around on the tall, cool grass. Usually this field is well-maintained, but for some reason, they grass is growing longer every day. This means that the morning mist hangs out between the blades almost the entire morning so after a great run, when we’re feeling hot, we just lie down and get cooled off. Ahhhhhhhh, that makes for some happy buddies!

We got to rest after this while Gretchen walked with Oshi and Perrito. She’d planned on heading to the same park, but ran into three new friends and Perrito was very happy about that!

See the black little dog? Gretchen forgot her name, but she was a young whipper-snapper who ran circles around everyone. Perrito tired to catch her, but according to Gretchen, she was so fast it was almost impossible to catch her in a photo!

The other two dogs were not as lively. And Oshi, well Oshi hung out where he could find some safety and some loving. That is so Oshi!

Not as many photos of Oshi and Perrito as Gretchen would have liked, but she reports that they had a great time meeting their new friends!

Next up, the siblings — Tyson and Rosie. They were very happy to see Gretchen arrive and headed out up the hill to see if they could get a nice photo of the two dogs together with Mt. Rainier in the background. Only it didn’t really work like that.

Try as she might, she couldn’t get the dogs to just sit and wait. They knew Gretchen had treats (that’s how she got them to sit), but when she backed up to take the photo, they scooted on their butts, still in a sitting position, and got closer and closer to her.

It got to be kind of comical after awhile. While they know how to wait at the front door and not go out before given the okay, they haven’t got any idea that wait can mean to sit while Gretchen takes a photo.

No matter what she tried, she’d put them in a sit, give them a wait and even a stay command, take one step back and sure enough, they’d scoot forward saying, “But you have the treats! Why should we wait here?”

Good point.

Tyson, apparently, was the worst. While Rosie loves treats, Tyson is keenly focused on Gretchen’s pocket during the walk (where she keeps the treats) and is ever alert of when a treat might be given. “He stuck to me like glue,” Gretchen told me later, “and didn’t even show the least bit of interest in a small dog that walked by with its owner.” Wow!

Gretchen finally gave up with the Mt. Rainier shot and instead, walked across the ridge and down the steps to take a photo of the dogs with the changing fall trees in the background. That didn’t work either, so she finally decided to tie them up to a railing and get the best shot she could. Very cute, don’t you think? Though notice, they are at the ends of their leashes as Gretchen steps away from them. “Wait! You have treats!” they whined together!

After Rosie and Tyson, it was time for Bella. I didn’t get to play with Bella today because I was resting with Monty and Quillette. Did I mention how hot is was today? 82 degrees. Resting in a cool house seemed like a good idea. Poor Gretchen, though. She was one hot puppy!

Gretchen and Bella went for a nice training walk and ended up at the big field where Bella got to run around on a longer leash and play some fetch. In between, they practiced sit and down and being beautiful (a particularly easy command for Bella to achieve!)

Yes, that’s the beautiful shot, but you gotta love the clumps of dirt on her tongue. She may be a potential show dog, but she still likes being a puppy!

I also didn’t get to walk with Gemma. Not because Gemma didn’t want to play with me, but because Gemma is still in recovery with her broken toe. The broken toe is really crimping Gemma’s ambitious style. She has to walk slower, she’s not supposed to run, and when she gets to an open field, she’s not allowed to race ahead to check out the soccer players. Poor girl.

Instead, she curls up next to Gretchen and says, “This is a bummer!” whereupon Gretchen rubs her belly and behind her ears to comfort the poor little girl.

Finally, after a lot of rest, Gretchen came and got us after she got Saber. Well, she didn’t get Quillette because, as a senior citizen, Quillette was really tired after a week of dog walking work. So, Monty and I went to fetch Saber and take him on a special adventure.

Swimming!!!!!!

Since Saber had shown interest in the kiddie pool, Gretchen decided to take him to the lake. Monty and I love the lake, so we were happy to show him what to do. Saber, as a puppy, is all floppy and crazy when it’s time to play. He runs around, flops on the ground, and has very little control of his rapidly growing body. That’s when he’s on land. It doesn’t change much in the water. He flopped and frolicked and often ended up as much under water as on top, but finally, FINALLY he figured out how to use his legs to swim and swim is what we all did on this hot, hot Friday! I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves!

As you can see, it was a perfect end to a perfect week. We took a very happy Saber back home, picked up Quillette at our house, went for another short walk, ate dinner, and while Quillette fell fast asleep, I decided to finish up this blog. Now I’m ready — more than ready — to close my eyes and enter a well-deserved dreamland.

Have a great weekend!

Rubin

How Much Is Too Much?

We’ve been having long conversations at our house about quantity versus quality. The topic varies — how much we eat, how much money we spend, how much we work, how much we exercise — but the focus of these topics is always how much is too much. As a puppy, I never even considered that there could be too much. Abundance felt normal. I wanted more treats, more play time, more friends, more romping, more chasing, and more scratches on my belly. I could never get enough. Now that I’m older, though, I’ve realized I have limits.

For instance, on Monday we walked 7.5 miles. We know this because Gretchen got a pedometer just to measure exactly how much she (and therefore I) walk during our working hours. 7.5 miles is a long way and when we walked another 7.5 miles the next day, I turned to Gretchen and said, “That’s 15 miles in two days. We could be in Renton by now!”

“Who’d want to go to Renton?” she asked.

Good point, but when we walked another 6.5 miles yesterday and 5.5 today, I asked, “So do you think we’re walking too much? I mean, that’s 27 miles in four days! ”

Gretchen just smiled and said, “I wonder how long it would take us to walk across the United States?”

“Why the United States?” I asked. “Let’s walk across Canada!”

And soon our conversation spun out of control and we were dreaming way too much. Still, the theme has got me to thinking: Can I over do it? Can I do too much? If so, what does that look like?

This thought was with me all day, through all the miles we walked. With every dog, I was thinking how much is too much?

The day started when we walked Gretchen to school. In this city, there are a lot of hills and that was my first observation: Can there be too many hills in a dog’s life? After Gretchen went to work, Quillette and I hung out at the house and waited for her to return. Can a dog have too many naps? According to Quillette, no. I’m not so sure. I, for one, was certainly ready when Gretchen returned with Ollie in tow.

All of us — Gretchen, Quillette, Ollie, and I — went for a long walk up on the ridge. Gretchen, of course, had to stop and snap her favorite photo hoping to chronicle the changing leaves. I asked, “How many photos in this spot are too many?”

Her response? “Yeah, but Rubin, every shot is different. Different dogs, different trees, different weather. It’s never too much!”

But as you can see, Ollie had had enough. He walked right out of the picture!

We were going to play fetch, but the line up of dogs to walk was thick and the schedule was full, so we ended up playing dog tag. We walked Ollie all around the neighborhood (yes, up more hills), dropped Quillette off at home for another of her precious naps, and Ollie and I walked over to pick up Wilson.

Wilson and Ollie had never met before and they instantly hit it off. “You can’t have too many friends,” quipped Ollie. I just rolled my eyes! We walked Ollie home and he was very happy to return. I think his mom was home sick or maybe working and he felt compelled to be by her side. So we said goodbye and then Wilson and I headed off to pick up the next dog. First, though, we had to stop for an obligatory photo in the park by the beautiful mosaic pillars. Wilson, though, was more interested in the ball in Gretchen’s backpack! It was hard to get him to focus on the task at hand! “This is too much,” he whined! “Let’s get movin!”

And so we did. Off to pick up a surprise. Well, a surprise to me. It was Woobie!!!! I’ve really missed her and the way she greeted us, she really missed us! Wilson had never met Woobie and what do you know, they hit it off like you wouldn’t believe — walking as close together as too peas in a pod. It was too much, I tell ya, too much!

As you can see, Gretchen posed us in a new spot — the amphitheater by Woobie’s house — only she couldn’t get everyone to look the same way at the same time.  Hey, there was a lot to look at!

While we were waiting for Gretchen to get the picture she wanted, I asked Woobie her opinion of what’s too much. “Hey, Woobie,” I said. “Do you think you have too much hair?”

“Well, Rubin,” she cocked her head and smiled, “I’ve never really thought about it? Do you think I have too much hair?”

“No,” I said. “I kinda really like your hair, Woobie. I wish Gretchen would let my hair grow long, but then she’d have to comb it more and man, I hate that part.”

“Really? I kind of like it!”

Amazing! “What do you like about it?”

“Everyone is petting me and paying attention to me. Frankly, I can’t get enough of it!”

See! There it is again. What is too much for one, is never enough for another. This is a deep, philosophical issue. I’m telling you!

Woobie and Wilson walked side by side all the way back to Wilson’s house. Along the way, Gretchen teased us saying, “Good dogs, Woobie, Wilson and Wubin!”

Her jokes can be too much, let me tell you!

After Wilson, Gretchen dropped me off at the house so I could rest and she marched Woobie back home to her own house. Then Gretchen had to hustle to make it to Rosie’s house on time. She made it and Rosie was very happy she did!

They headed over to the park where Gretchen worked on Rosie’s recall and where she tried to get pictures of Rosie’s jowls. Gretchen thinks Rosie has the coolest cheeks. She’s always rubbing them whenever they go on a walk. When I get to meet Rosie, I’m going to ask her if it’s too much to have Gretchen so focused on her cheeks. I wonder what she’ll say?

I asked Gretchen when she got home what she liked so much about Rosie. “She’s very sweet,” is all she said, but then added, “She’s seen a lot in her and I think really appreciates the life she has now. She knows it’s enough.”

Rosie got some extra time today just because she was being so adorable, but she eventually had to go home and lucky for her, her buddy Tyson was home, too! She liked that very much.

Next up was Gemma. Now Gemma is a study in too much. She’s always into something and always paying for it. Take her current predicament — her broken toe.

Gretchen was going to bring Gemma by to see me, but after they walked awhile, Gretchen realized it would be too much for her broken foot. “She just needed to go slow and steady,” Gretchen told me later.

“I’d be gentle,” I told her.

“Yes, but it would be too much for Gemma, I’m afraid.” When Gretchen saw how sad I was she said, “Soon, buddy. You’ll get to play with Gemma soon, but for now, she needs to not overdo it.”

They didn’t go very far on their walk, Gretchen told me later, because Gemma got tired and wanted to rest in the shade.

Gretchen took the opportunity to snap some nice pictures of her as well as spend time rubbing her belly and scratching behind her ears. It’s hard to scratch behind your ears with a cast on your foot! Hang in there, Gemma! We’ll romp again one day. Heck, we’ll overdo it to the max when you’re all fixed up!

Once Gemma went home, Gretchen swung by Saber’s house, walked him back to our house, and we spent the afternoon finding the edges of how much is too much!

First with my toys…is it too much to ask that he doesn’t play with my toys?

Is it too much to ask that he doesn’t taunt me with my toys?

Is it too much to ask to at least share the toys?

When Saber visited us at our house a few days ago, he wanted nothing to do with the kiddie pool in the backyard. He stayed as far away from it as he could. Clearly, it was too much for him. Today, he stayed away until he saw how much I loved the pool. I could NEVER get enough of water, especially on a hot day!

All of the sudden, Saber decided that maybe the water wasn’t such a bad thing. First he got one of my toys out of the water and the next thing we knew, he was IN the water. Like crazy in the water!

Everything that I like to do in the water, he started to do. He dug, he splashed, he laid down, he smiled, and just like me, he raced around the yard all wet and extremely happy!

Finally, he’d had enough and he decided to sit with Quillette and me for a photo.

I was laughing in these photos because Quillette, who thinks puppies were put on this earth to annoy her, was mumbling under her breath in each shot, “Oh bother, I’ve had enough!”

Luckily, Saber didn’t hear or if he did, he didn’t care!

Saber is at that point in his puppyhood where nothing is too much. I walked him back home and he raced around beside me happy as happy can be. Puppy personified, if you will, and it reminded me of when I was a crazy young lad like that. How much is too much? I guess it all depends on your perspective. I’m lucky that I have lots of different dogs who walk many, many miles with me to offer me so many different kinds of perspectives. I can never have too much of that!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin