B4 Afta

Sometimes human language confuses me. I hear so much of it all day long, you’d think I’d be fluent in it, but unfortunately, I’m not. But I am learning how powerful human words can be even if I don’t always understand them.

I’m not feeling particularly serious tonight, so I’ll save the meatier discussion of powerful words for another time. For now, I’ll focus on two words I have yet to wrap my canine head around.

B4

Since human spelling is as difficult as human language, this is the best I can do with the spelling of a word I hear every time someone (including me) goes to the groomer. I love our groomer, but I’ll be perfectly honest; I also hate her. She’s nice one minute then clipping my nails the next. She gives me treats and speaks to me in Spanish (my favorite language) and then runs a comb through my tail (something I particularly disdain!).

Every pre-grooming visit the B4 word gets thrown around a lot, so when I heard Gretchen use it this morning, I instantly thought about the groomer. Lucky for me, Gretchen wasn’t referring to me when she used the word B4; she was thinking of Oshi and Perrito. Poor guys.  They spent the day at the groomers and Gretchen snapped this picture of them with their mom as they made their way to the shop.

I got left at home with my buddy Monty. Whew. We dodged a bullet there, didn’t we? We had a great walk earlier that morning, so leaving us behind while Oshi and Perrito went to visit the groomer was just fine by us.  When Gretchen returned, she fed us and then headed out the door again. I was a little miffed, but when she returned with Gemma, I was a happy puppy once more. Only Gretchen came through the back gate and the back door was locked. Oh that made me very upset because I couldn’t say hello to Gretchen or play with Gemma!

I howled!

Gemma was pretty upset too and Monty stood by me and wondered why no one opened the door.

It was locked so there we stood, stuck and upset.

Luckily, Ann was in the front yard, heard our desperate pleas, and opened up the back door.

Let the games begin!

First game? Gemma wants my purple rubber ball. She tried everything from asking nicely, stealing it from underneath, and ignoring it. Let’s just say, she never got it, so she had to appease her playfulness by romping it up with Monty!

Normally, Monty finds Gemma a tad bit annoying. He’s like that with puppies. He was like that with me early on, but once I reached a certain age, we were playmates for life!  I guess Gemma reached the right age because, while I played with my purple rubber ball, Monty and Gemma had a field day!

I got a little jealous, it’s true, so I tried to entice Gemma with my purple rubber ball. It didn’t work. She was beat from her Monty games and laid against the stone wall to cool off.

I was kind of beat, too, so Gretchen left Monty and me at home, while she took Gemma back to her house. When Gretchen returned, Monty and I were loaded into the car to visit Teabiscuit! What a treat!  Okay, so she wasn’t too thrilled at first, being shy and all, but once we hit the road, she was happy to see us!  Can you see it in her face?

Okay, maybe not in this picture, but after we walked a ways, she was all excited for a rest in the shade. It was hot today and all of us, Gretchen included, needed a short breather. I used the opportunity for a good roll in the grass. Ahhhh….

And that’s when Teasbiscuit decided to rest next to the big guy. Now you can see she’s happy!

I was tired once we returned Teabiscuit back home and Monty was too, so when Gretchen took off on her bicycle with Ann, I was happy for the rest in the cool house.  When they got home, that’s when another word that shows up on spa days surfaced — AFTA. We all walked out on the porch and there were Oshi and Perrito in their mom’s arms all gussied up and sporting new doos. Gretchen got so excited and said, “I need to get an AFTA by the apple tree, too!”

What?

Yep, that’s Oshi and Perrito. Can’t tell the difference?

Here’s Oshi…

Clean shaven and looking good, isn’t he?

And then there’s Perrito…yep, with a mohawk!  Totally fits him.  Totally!

Is that what they mean by AFTA?  Your hair rises up out of the middle of your head?  Humans. It’s so hard to figure them out. No matter, the boys looked good, I had a fun-filled day, and now I get to go to sleep on my nice cushy bed. Life doesn’t get any better than this!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

A Wednesday in Chapters

Chapter One: Cecilia’s Operation

We went for a walk this morning and on our way we picked up Monty and continued on north toward the park. We passed the house of my dog friend Lulu and her mom, Cecilia who was dressed in what can only be described as a surgical outfit.

Turns out she was performing surgery. On her garage.

At first, she was kind of scary, but then when I heard her laugh I realized she was the same Cecilia I’ve always known and despite her outfit, was my friend. Because she’s my friend, I begged Gretchen (and Ann, who came with us again now that she’s on summer break) to ask if Lulu could go on our morning walk, which is exactly what ended up happening. So while Cecilia performed surgery, Lulu, Monty, and I had a lovely morning stroll up to Powell Burnett Park, along the ridge, and back home to Cecilia’s Operation.

Gretchen posed us all in the park…first Monty with me (because Lulu wouldn’t sit still) and then Lulu with Ann reassuring her that the camera was a good thing (though I have my doubts these days!).

By the time we got back to Cecilia’s house, well the garage was still under anesthetic and Cecilia was up to her elbows in the bowels of the garage. It was going to be a very long surgery indeed.

Chapter Two: The Difficulty of Posing

Monty and I got to hang out at home after that while Ann worked on some house projects. She organized all the “stuff” going to Goodwill, she got some things ready for our camping trip this weekend, and she wiped the counters in the kitchen.  Gretchen took care of some billing, gave me a brushing (yuck!), and packed up her bag for a walk with the boys next door — Oshi and Perrito. 

Because I was out of dog food, Gretchen hiked the boys to the top of the hill to Dog Mania (one of the places where we shop) and along the way did her best to pose the boys. If you think Lulu has a hard time sitting and staying, the boys are worse. They want to pee on everything and they want to venture off despite the lack of accompaniment by an adult…mainly Gretchen. But at the top of the stairs where Gretchen likes to take photos, she got a few good ones of Oshi and Perrito, but only a few as the boys were anxious to get going. You can tell that Perrito is anxious because he lies down. Seems oxymoronic, but that’s what he does. Lies down and looks at you with those plaintive eyes.

Oshi’s a bit more cooperative, but not too terribly much so Gretchen has to be quick about it or she’ll miss the opportunity to snap some expressive photos of the boys next door.

Once posed, they all headed up to Dog Mania where they bought my dog food (yummy) and then headed back home. Oshi and Perrito got a drink at their house right away because it’s a hot one today.  I watched Gretchen from our window and I thought she would come get us for another walk, but no. While she came into the house, she did not leave with Monty and me in tow.

Chapter Three: Swallowing Disappointment

Gretchen dropped off the cans of food she hauled down from the hill in her backpack, gave Monty and me a pat on the head and then, much to my disappointment, walked out the door to fetch Gemma. Wait…why don’t I get to go?

“It’s a big day, Rube,” she explained. “You played very hard yesterday and there are lots of dogs to walk today. Rest and I’ll be back soon.”

REST? What is she kidding?

But I was forced to slumber in the living room while she took Gemma through the park, around the Judkins loop, and then finally back to our house for a visit.

Gemma’s a funny girl. She’s recently realized how fun birds are and on her walk with Gretchen, she focused on the crows and swallows hanging out in the open field.

She particularly likes swallows and if you look closely in this next picture, you’ll see them. Gemma certainly sees them!

Watching for birds makes Gemma very, very happy.

But it also makes her very hot so Gretchen brought her by the house to cool off a bit and I showed Gemma exactly how cooling off should be done! First you fill up the pool and then you dig in it. Digging makes the water splash up on your belly and that is very cooling indeed!

Try it, Gemma!

Yep, that’s the way…play bow in the water just like this!

And then, because now you’re all cooled off, race around the yard, get wild, and tackle each other!

Whew, that’s exhausting but oh so much fun!  Gemma went home after that — exhausted and refreshed — and Monty and I continued our rest.

Chapter Four: A Long Farewell to Teabiscuit

While we’ve been walking Teabiscuit now for over a month, she is not really one of our clients. We’re covering for another dog walker who’s been out on the road, but soon he will return and so today was our last time with the ‘Biscuit for awhile. Because of that, Gretchen went to her house, let her out to play some fetch in the park, and then brought her home so we could spend some time with her.

First, the game of fetch was fun but short-lived as it is very hot today.

Teabiscuit seems very demure, I know, but when the ball comes out, she can get demanding. She often barks to have the ball thrown and Gretchen is very obliging…

Eventually though, that ball got too hot to carry and the shade looked mighty appealing…

…so Gretchen packed up the camera and the balls, loaded Teabiscuit into the car, and headed to our place where Monty, Ann, Teabiscuit, Gretchen, and I all went for a walk through the park, but boy did we get hot!  So we came home for a cool drink and some time in the shade.

Until we meet again, Teabiscuit!

Chapter Five: Skinny Dipping with Wilson

You wouldn’t know it by this picture, but Wilson, Gretchen, and I headed to the lake this evening. Because of the hill behind us, the sun no longer casts light on the part of the lake where we swim, though off in the distance, the sunshine is still visible…and warm. It was a warm one today. It’s now 8:15 pm and it’s still 75 degrees outside, so it seemed important that on our evening walk with Wilson we walked to the lake.

Wilson is, if anything, ball obsessed. He, too, has a passion for the squishy orange and blue ball and he brought his along today. Gretchen actually uses it as a motivator to keep Wilson moving forward since he likes to walk all over the place and occasionally lie down and not get up. She keeps a ball in her hip pocket and Wilson gets the ball when he walks calmly and by her side. But once we get to the lake, Wilson has no limits to his ball and let me tell you, a limitless Wilson is a sight to watch.

First, let me explain that it’s hard to distinguish one orange and blue ball from another so when Gretchen threw one out for Wilson and the other out for me, we had a moment of panic on our hands.

She threw Wilson’s first and then mine, but once I saw Wilson going for both of them, I didn’t see the point of my getting in to get the one thrown for me. Only Wilson apparently can’t hold two balls in his mouth (nor can I) so instead he kept pushing the balls farther and farther out into the lake.

“Great,” were the words that came out of Gretchen’s mouth and then she sat on the bench, took off her shoes and socks, emptied her pockets and started wading into the water.

“We’re ALL going in?” I asked. Who needed an invitation…I jumped right in, swam right out to Wilson, snatched one of the balls (he snatched the other) and into shore we swam.

“Good God!” were Gretchen’s last words. Her feet wet, her hands thrown in the air, she could only praise us for being good dogs.

Oh, and throw the balls again and again and again (and again, in Wilson’s case!)

Talk about fun. Gretchen laughed at us because while Wilson is three times my size, he’s probably about the same weight — all skinny especially when wet.  She said we were skinny dipping at dusk and if that’s what it’s called, I’m all for it! So is Wilson!

The mountain, better known as Mt. Rainier was still bright in the sun while we swam in the shadows of the lake.  It made for a nice backdrop and a great way to end my little novella on Wednesday…

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Take Your Dog To Work? Come on!

Today is apparently Take Your Dog to Work Day. For me it’s Take Your Human to Work Day. For both of us it’s Take YOUR Dogs to Our Work Day. Whatever. It was a day and we were surrounded by dogs starting with a fun frolic with our dear friend, Richard who is also a dog walker (among many other things!).

We all LOVE Richard. He always has treats in his bag and a variety of balls like tennis balls, soccer balls, baseballs, and more.  He’s the pied-piper and wherever he goes, we’re sure to follow!  Ginger, the dog on the far left, is his wild and crazy dog. She just turned 10, but she doesn’t look a day over 5. Next to her in the photo is Quillette who also just turned 10. She doesn’t look a day over 5 either. Then there is Richard and me and a very happy Monty with his ears flat against his head. We’re all smiling in this photo because, as I’ve said, WE ALL LOVE RICHARD!

He throws the ball for us, he gives us treats, he scratches our backs…he’s a such a good guy.

But in between it all we had lots of fun…Quillette stood by Richard the whole time and asked for treats. She’s quite a talker!

Monty, Ginger, and I played fetch…a lot!

As you can see, I love the soccer ball and Richard brought a new one today. Oh, I love bouncing that ball around and chasing it!

We got tired pretty quickly and then sat around posing for the camera…

What a good way to start the day! Monty, Quillette, and I headed back to my house for a little snack and a little rest. Then Gretchen took Monty home to be with his mom (who has the day off) and took Quillette with her so that on the way back, she could pick up Oshi and Perrito who enjoy Quillette very much. They headed back to the little field and did their own playing and posing.

Oshi poses the most and today Gretchen spent time trying to get a close up of the weeds stuck on Oshi’s face. Silly guy. That’s what you get for always having your nose to the ground!

Meanwhile, Perrito chased Quillette who chased the ball…

But as we are all prone to do, everyone got tired and rested in the shade. Here’s Perrito with his paw on the beloved orange and blue ball…

While Quillette demonstrates the best way to relax…yawn, stretch, and sprawl…

What a full day already, but it wasn’t over yet!  Gretchen dropped of Oshi and Perrito back at their house, left Quillette at ours, and she and I headed over to Gemma’s house for a long walk up to Madrona to pick up Teabiscuit. For those of you who don’t know, Madrona is  pretty far away so while I got to rest some today, Gretchen didn’t. She put in about 10 miles of walking and I suppose that’s appropriate on Take Your Dog(s) to Work Day.

Gemma and I got to pose by the Leschi Park and Teabiscuit and Quillette got to pose by a tribute to Michael Jackson at the local barbershop.

Take YOUR Dog to Our Work Day was long, but very fun. We hope all of you got to take you dogs to your work as well.

Have a great weekend,

Rubin

The End of a Long Week

I should have known it was going to be a long day to mark a long week when we woke up to rain today. The rain smelled good, but it was that summer kind of rain that gets you wet 30 steps out the door. And we got wet. The house still kind of smells like wet dogs even though it’s no longer raining and Gretchen’s opened the windows to bring in some fresh air.

But today was uneventful, compared to yesterday, though it was still very long. It started with a walk with Captain and Argo. Captain is the dog we just finished boarding and Argo is next.  They got along fine, but I think Captain was really happy to go home. He seemed happy when his family arrived to pick him up.  We had fun, didn’t we Captain? Hope you come stay with us again, though next time, no ear biting!

Speaking of ear biting…how’s this for an ear-ristable picture?

Gemma looks like she has two ears, doesn’t she? Well, don’t be fooled. That’s her tail sticking up like an ear…what she really looks like is this…

I always knew Gemma was “fearless” but now she’s “earless”….though only temporarily. After Captain nipped at her yesterday, Gemma had to have some minor surgery with the vet stitching up her ear and then bandaging it like the Egyptians bandaged a mummy. Needless to say, I didn’t get to play with Gemma today. Gretchen met up with Gemma and her human dad and they walked through the park and then played some fetch and ran around a lot. Apparently, Gemma had lots of energy after her groggy Thursday afternoon and evening.

Speaking of fetch, I think Gemma looks kind of fetching in her orange bandage…it looks like a designer necklace!

Get well soon, Gemma. I can hardly wait to play with you again… and you can chew on my ears just like you always do!

But I’m retelling the day all out of order. After Captain went home, we fetched Monty for a short walk and then Gretchen played with Gemma while we all rested.  After Gemma, Gretchen took Argo to meet Oshi and Perrito. Talk about a hit. Gretchen told me all about it, but I think the photographs tell the best story!

As you can see, Argo and Perrito hit it off. They played like crazy, with Argo racing around the tennis courts and Perrito doing his best to catch him.  He only caught up to Argo when Argo took a rest after all the circling around at lightning speed.

Gretchen tells me that Argo is really fast. I’ve only had hints of his speed when he races around the house inviting me to chase him. We’re going to go out this afternoon to play so maybe I’ll get to see for myself just how fast he is.

Oh and Oshi you may wonder, was at the tennis courts, too, but he had no interesting in playing. Instead, he watched.

And hung out with Gretchen as close as he could get so he didn’t get run over by the crazed dogs…

And Argo and Perrito did a lot of wrestling, too. They got quite the workout!

Argo got to come back to the house and rest with Monty who was digesting his lunch before going out again.  I got to go visit Teabiscuit and she was very happy to see me!

We got to play fetch and though Teabiscuit was a little uncertain about playing fetch at the same time I did, she eventually warmed up to it!

After we walked and played with Teabiscuit, Monty, Argo and I went for a walk up to the pet store to pick up some food for me. Yummy!  We had to stop, of course, at the scary grate lookout where Argo showed how fearless he is.

We made our way along the ridge and then headed back home to be posed, one more time, on the back porch.

Do I look tired? Well, I am. I think Argo is, too. He had a full day. I had a full week. There’s a joke in here somewhere about a full Monty, but I’m to tired to tease it out (Gretchen said that would be “strip tease” it out! She must not be as tired as I am!).

Have a great weekend everyone. Argo and I get to go to Grandma and Grandpa’s house!  Yippee!!!

Rubin

PS — And if that weren’t enough…we finished the day off with a game of fetch and a walk with Quillette and Teabiscuit!

Oh Crap!

Gretchen says not to worry. Some days are like this, but I’m still a bit upset. Everything started out normally. It always does, doesn’t it? Captain and I went for a walk through Volunteer Park early this morning where Gretchen posed us in front of one of her favorite spots…the resevoir.

Then Captain ate his breakfast. I passed.  I wasn’t hungry yet and so I didn’t force myself.  We rested as we are always required to do after eating, and then set out to pick up Ollie. He was happy to see us. He is always happy and we headed up over the hill to the park to play some fetch. That’s always fun and very much a normal part of our normal work.

Ollie tried to get Captain to play wrestling with him, but Captain was more interested in playing fetch…and so was I…for awhile…

And then I decided to play with Ollie…or should I say, he decided to play with me!

And then Luke showed up. I’ve met him before and he’s as focused on his orange and blue ball as I am…as Captain is…

We all had a great time…even Ollie, even Captain…even Luke!

We were all very exercised and as we walked back up the hill and through the wooded park, our tongues hung low in contentment and exhaustion.  At Ollie’s house we had some water fresh from the hose…best kind…and then headed down the street to pick up Gemma.

It all sounds normal, doesn’t it?  It was normal when Gretchen left Captain and me in the car while she went to retrieve Gemma. Gemma gets really excited when she sees us and Gretchen decided our meeting should take place outside the house, not inside. Gemma roared out the door, down the steps, and toward the car. She knew I was there, but she didn’t know that Captain was there. She also didn’t know that Captain looks a lot like me, so when he jumped out of the back of the car first, Gemma greeted him like she greets me.

She threw herself at him…awhole body slam down.

Captain is a gentle fellow and he, kind of like me, isn’t fond of dogs forcing themselves into his personal space. In human terms, his bubble was violated and Captain let Gemma know. Now when dogs say, “Back off!” they often say it loudly. There is more noise than anything else, so when Gretchen and all of us headed down the road, it took a moment for her to notice that Gemma was bleeding.

Yikes. This is not normal.

Ears, Gretchen tells me, have lots of blood veins right on the surface. When scraped or torn or as in this case, nipped, they bleed like crazy. Gretchen grabbed a towel from her backpack, gently grabbed Gemma’s ear and held tight trying to stop the flow of blood. After about 5 minutes, the compression seemed to have worked, but then Gemma shook her head. Oh my. Blood went every where again.

Gemma doesn’t live too far from us, so we headed over to our house to find hydrogen peroxide, sterile gauze and a wet towel (to clean up Gemma and also Gretchen..she was covered in blood). But it just wouldn’t stop bleeding.

That’s when Gretchen called the vet and that’s when I hid under the desk.

I hate the vet.

Gretchen piled Gemma and Captain…who were friends now (go figure)…into the car and headed to the dreaded hospital. I stayed home.

This is where we must give a Woof Out to Four Paws Animal Hospital because the doctor gave up her lunch to see little Ms. Gemma…the bloody girl.  Captain, if you can believe it, waited for Gemma in the clinic as well. I think he felt bad that his harsh words had turned into an injury.

In the end, Gemma got stitches. Her parents were incredibly gracious stating that “…these things happen…” but I’m still overwhelmed. These things happen?  Really?  Not to me. Not to us, usually. This is when our normal day went a little haywire.

And this is why we have no photographs of Gemma. We contemplated taking a photograph of Gretchen’s bloody shirt and shoes, of the bathtub where she tried to clean Gemma up and the hallway of the vet’s office splattered like a crime scene, but we decided to forgo the gore and just tell the tale…or is that tell the ear?

No matter. Once Gemma was in the safe hands of the doctor, Gretchen raced back to pick up me and then raced to  pick up Teabiscuit, fearing we’d be late. We were not and thankfully, a contrite Captain was on his best behavior with Teabiscuit…and she truly appreciated it!

Then we walked by one of our least favorite signs and Gretchen quietly posed us in front of it.  I ask you…in front of your beautiful house would you rather have an occasional pile of doo or this permanent signage? I think I’d choose the poo…

I sure hope tomorrow goes back to normal!

Until then,

Rubin

The Hazards of Summer

On Thursday night, as Gretchen and I were walking through the tall grass toward the agility arena, Gretchen got stung by a bumblebee. It stung her twice before she could flick it out from under the tongue of her shoe and for the rest of the evening, while I practice my jumps and weaves, her foot throbbed.  Luckily, she didn’t have an allergic reaction, but she made a mental note to put some Benadryl in the glove compartment of the car as well as some in her dog walking backpack in case I got stung or one of the dogs we walked suffered that stinging fate.

As with most mental notes, she forgot and we headed out today on our work of walking Friday dogs without Benadryl in the backpack. Our first walk of the morning was with Monty and Quillette, two of my best friends in the whole wide world.  It was a cool morning so the plan of going swimming had to wait. Instead we headed up to one of our favorite views of the city at Bradner Gardens. You can’t really see the city in this photo, but you get a sense of the city behind the gardens. We, of course, aren’t paying the least bit of attention to the view. There was a the possibility of another dog up the street, which made Quillette and me very alert. Monty could have cared less about the distractions.

We had such a nice long walk that the next best thing to do was to nap in the sun on the back porch while Gretchen cooked in the kitchen. Eventually, though, she had to walk Oshi and Perrito so she left us in the house with sufficient treats, and retrieved the eager boys from next door.

They all went to the park and instead of playing in the grass, they hung out on the jungle gym, another hazard of summer.  It’s hard to tell, but the boys walked up a cat walk (curious name) and posed for the photograph about four feet off the ground.  Gretchen thought they were high enough to discourage any jumping.

Oh, she has much to learn.

While Perrito found his spot in the shade, Oshi contemplated the risks of finding solid ground again.

Luckily, right before Oshi decided to go for it, Gretchen put down her camera and got the little guy in midair.

There are unknown hazards in the summer, I tell you. Lots and lots of unknown, unpredictable, unforeseen hazards!

Gretchen decided to stick to the ground for photographs and walking. Perrito, for one, was quite content with that decision.

But even the ground can present hazards. For instance, on their way back home they ran into Theo and Dexter, two small but very loud dogs. At first everyone was a bit standoffish, though Theo and Dexter kept up the announcements and introductions. But then, as everyone settled down, it became a tangle of leashes and tails!

By the time everyone got untangled, it was time to go home. Both Oshi and Perrito were hot and tired and went straight for their water when they walked into their front door.

Another hazard of summer is that the days become very full. Not only is there work, but friends and family all want to visit.  Gretchen had a lunch date with some friends and so she decided to ride her bike up to Teabiscuit’s house to offer her a solo walk (without me or Monty following), but after huffing and puffing herself up to the house on the hill, Gretchen realized she’d forgotten the house keys. So she rode all the way back home, picked up the keys, and hopped on the scooter this time to high tail it to Teabiscuit’s house. Only now her time was crunched and there was no way ‘Biscuit would get an hour walk in between Gretchen’s scheduled lunch date.

While we may not see timing as a hazard, it can be for it makes you stressed and worried when you’d rather be just laid back and calm. So Gretchen decided to give two walks to ‘Biscuit — a short one before lunch and a longer one after lunch. But when she got to the house, who was there? Jessica, the Friday nanny who also happens to be Quillette’s mom. Hard to follow?  Jessica had let Teabiscuit out earlier in the day and so they decided she’d be okay until Gretchen came back after lunch to walk her, which is exactly what she did.

But here is where timing is so interlinked to fate. First, they went to the park to play fetch, Teabiscuit’s favorite game.

But why is ‘Biscuit running away from Gretchen’s camera? Because there was a young boy playing catch with his Grandpa and Teabiscuit ADORES children so she headed right over to the boy in hopes that he’d throw her ball, which he did!

But eventually, Gretchen figured Teabiscuit was hot…

…so she decided to take Teabiscuit down to the lake. Remember those twists of fate, the timing of the unpredictable? Here it comes.

Teabiscuit was really, really happy to go to the lake. She fetched the ball in the water and she fetched it on the lawn. Over and over again.

Sound like a perfect afternoon?  It was until they headed home and Teabiscuit stepped on a bumblebee. If Gretchen hadn’t forgotten the keys, if she’d headed out earlier, Teabiscuit may never have stepped on the bee. But there it is…the hazards of timing, the twists of fate.

Poor ‘Biscuit. She lifted her leg and when she walked, refused to put weight on it. Did Gretchen have Benadryl? Nope, so she lifted up Teabiscuit, carried her dripping wet all the way back up the hill, and waited to see if Teabiscuit would have an allergic reaction. Gretchen and Jessica searched for Benadryl at Teabiscuit’s home and Gretchen called the vet to get all the details straight. Still no allergic reaction so they held off on finding some Benadryl. Teabiscuit curled up on the couch under a pink blanket and slept the rest of the afternoon.

By the evening, she was back to normal, which made all of us very happy.

In the meantime, what about Quillette, Monty, and me? Well, we’re waiting for our afternoon walk, which eventually comes with a trip down to the lake for SWIMMING!!! Monty was thrilled…

Quillette got in (with me swimming like crazy in the background), but she hung out on the shore for awhile, too…

Monty loves to swim, but as I’ve reported before, he’s not very good at it.  He did really well at first…you can see him motoring out past Quillette to get the red buoy…but when he turns around, he goes under briefly freaking Gretchen out a bit…

He always pops up and he always makes it back to shore, but there are a few moments of HAZARD HAZARD HAZARD blaring in Gretchen’s mind. It all turned out well in the end. We now have Benadryl in our work backpack along with other items we might need for some emergency first aide…like falling from heights and getting water out of big poodle ears!!!

Be careful out there,

Rubin

Oh, Brother!

I have spent a great deal of time on this Dog Blog talking about the differences in dogs. Many humans feel we are all the same and I’ve seen it as my mission to dispel this belief. We are very different; very, very different.

BUT…

And I feel a little awkward saying this…

Some of us are very much alike.

So it is with my brother, Captain. I had never met him until last night and though it wasn’t exactly like looking in the mirror, it was pretty spooky how alike we are!

I brought two gifts with me — a floating buoy and a extra large, squeaky tennis ball. The whole evening, Captain I played “who gets the ball now?” This is when I noticed how many of our mannerisms are the same. We even have the same bark and the same growl and the same bouncy run. Genetics are powerful things, eh?

All evening long, Captain and I played with the ball. He’d play with it for awhile and then roll it to me. I’d play with it for awhile and then roll it back to him. He stalked me while I played and I stalked him while he played.

Okay, so his nose is a little longer and his hair has more of a wave, but you have to admit, we look and even pose a lot alike!

And we know the same tricks…he can shake with both hands too!

I’ll admit, meeting my brother and playing with him made me very happy and I’m very excited that he will come for a sleepover next week. I’m sure they’ll be lots more observations about our similarities as well as our differences and lots of photographs of how happy I am to have a friend in my brother!

But that was last night. Today was a work day, but a fun one that started with a trip to the dog park with Ollie.  Usually this dog park isn’t very full, but today there were lots more dogs and people and a cute little girl all waiting to play with us!

The little girl in pink knew how to handle me. She just pulled the ball right out of my mouth and threw it into the water. Ollie was impressed; so was Gretchen. I was impressed by her brand new cowgirl boots!

The little girl with the impressive boots came to the park with two of her Grandma’s dogs (I think they were named Willy and Annie, but I can’t remember)…oh, and the little girl came with her Grandma, too.

When we weren’t playing with the little girl (or she with us) we were playing with all the other dogs both in and out of the water!

Whew! Yes, I was tired after this so it was good I got a bit of rest before we picked up Teabiscuit.

Usually Teabiscuit doesn’t acknowledge me when I show up for a walk, but today she actually kissed me!  How sweet.

Then we went for a walk and ended up at the big park where the girls from the local middle school hang out. A little background. Before I was a dog dog walker, I was a classroom dog working in Gretchen’s 5th grade room. So when we saw the girls at the park, well, I got really excited! And when I am excited, I roll in the cool grass!

Can you see how thrilled I was?  Teabiscuit had a great time too because all the girls wanted to pet and hold her. She likes that!

We both soaked up the love today and later, Biscuit thanked me for introducing her to all my girl-friends!  I told her that she was one of my girlfriends, too and she kissed me again, right before we left her at home. How sweet!

I’m off to agility class this evening, but today has already been a really fun day. I can’t imagine it getting any better, but I’ve been surprised before! Heck, I was surprised last night when I met my brother, Captain!

Have a great Thursday,

Rubin

How To Wear Out A Woobie

First, before I get started recounting a very, very busy Friday, I’d like to take a moment to wish my Grandpaw a Happy Birthday!!!! The picture to the right is of both of us in our younger years. Time flies, doesn’t it Grandpaw?  Especially when you’re having fun like we are!

Eat cake for me and don’t forget to wag your tail. It lets others know how happy you are.

Love you very much…Rubin, your faithful Granddog.

Okay, now onto a busy day. And when I say busy, I mean whopping busy.

Woobie was dropped off this morning bright and early. She’s staying with us over the weekend and while we know her family is nervous, Woobie has relaxed right into the routine of being a dog dog walker.

It started with just Woobie and me. We did a short loop, knowing how full our schedule was, through Volunteer Park with a stop at the tennis courts to play fetch…

…only Woobie doesn’t play fetch. I had to show her how…

On our walk through the park, we stopped at the reservoir, a place where dogs can’t swim (imagine!) with the tip of the Space Needle on the horizon! Hard to see in the first picture, but it’s there in the second!

Do I look bored?  I’m not, I just know how busy our day is and I can’t believe we’re already stopping for photographs!

After Volunteer Park, we picked up Monty and went for a big long walk up through the Mt. Baker neighborhood and then down through the park where we posed for yet another photo! I’m posting the sequence since Gretchen always teases me about my clownish antics. They weren’t really clownish. It’s just that, well, I wanted to play with Monty, not sit quietly for a photo so I kind of sabotaged the posing by rolling into Monty.

If you notice, Woobie ignored the whole thing. She’s an exceptionally well-behaved dog.

Monty really liked Woobie and the feeling was mutual. It’s hard to tell because she always turns away from Monty, but I could tell because they got along fabulously and did a lot of sniffing.

I don’t think Woobie really knew what she was getting herself into today. When she found out I was a dog dog walker, she cocked her head and asked, “What does that mean?”

“It means I walk with other dogs all day long,” I replied.

“That sounds like fun!” Woobie wagged.

“Well, it’s hard work, but it can be lots and lots of fun if you pace yourself right,” I sighed back.

Little did Woobie know how tired she’d be after today. I think she walked about 10 miles and that doesn’t even take into account the play sessions, which were numerous.

After walking with Monty and me, she got to walk with Marley, the boy from up the street. While she definitely liked Monty, she fell in love with Marley. The feeling was mutual.

First, they had to pose on the dreaded grate on Mt. Baker overlooking the city. They didn’t seem to mind too much.

And then they came back to my house and decided it was time to really play. At first they did a lot of play bows as a way of getting to know each other. (I watched from the sidelines. Imagine, me watching!)

And then they chased each other and Woobie’s long, long hair went flying!

Did I mention how much hair Woobie has? Well, let me make a point to describe her long flowing locks. Her hair, and I mean each strand, is probably 10 inches long. Someone said she looks like a Lorax and after rereading the Dr. Seuss classic, I have to agree.

Gretchen had lots of fun taking pictures of her hair.  Not only the front view, but her feet and back end as well.

That’s a lot a hair, yes?

This is when things got a little complicated. Gretchen took Woobie and Marley back to Marley’s house where he was going to spend the rest of his day only Marley thought otherwise. Two minutes after dropping him off, he jumped two fences (yes, TWO) and came racing down the sidewalk after Gretchen and Woobie who were on their way to pick up Oshi and Perrito. What could Gretchen do?

Guess who spent the rest of the day with us? Yep, Marley, the great escape artist.

So while I rested at home, Woobie, Marley, Oshi, and Perrito tangled their leashes on a walk through the park. Photographs? Are you kidding. Gretchen would have broken something if she’d tried, so she decided, after the walk, to take everyone back to Marley’s yard to see if they wanted to play. Marley was ecstatic to have the company.

A whole lot of sniffing and introductions went on…

Until finally, little Perrito took matters into his own hands and learned how to push a big dog around…

Woobie, on the other hand, realized she was tired and found a cool, shady spot to rest up for what was ahead…

Next up, Teabiscuit. Now this was tricky. Lil’ Biscuit isn’t very fond of big dogs (except for me) and so when Gretchen arrived with two new big dogs, you could tell Teabiscuit was none too pleased. In order to get a photo of all three dogs together, Gretchen had to pose them and you can see in this first photo that Teabiscuit has learned to stick up for herself.

But soon, after a bit of positioning and wrangling, Gretchen got everyone to relax (even Teabiscuit) for a couple of nice photos.

But you’ll notice… Lil Biscuit is keeping her eye on Marley.

By this time, Woobie is pretty tuckered out. “Wow,” she said upon her return, “This is exhausting work, Rubin!”

Tell me about it. Luckily, while she worked, I got to rest. I needed it after my busy day yesterday and a night of agility practice.

Woobie’s day was not over yet, though. She and Marley drove with Gretchen to meet a new client. Wilson, an 8-month old Golden Retriever. According to Woobie, Wilson is quite a handful though she says I’ll really like him because he’s very playful. “Did you play with him?” I asked.

“No, I was very tired so I let Marley play with him,” she said.

“That was nice of you,” I responded.

By the time Woobie got back to the house, we were ready to walk Marley back to his house since his family was home. Then we all hung out in the backyard for some love…

A roll in the cool grass and a few poses on the porch!

All the while, Oshi and Perrito watched from their porch next door.

“Are we done now?” Woobie just asked me after I inserted this last photo onto our blog.  She’s sacked out on the kitchen floor, barely able to raise her head to ask me the question.

“Yep, that’ll do it for the day. Good work, Woobie!”

Until Tomorrow,

Rubin

So much heat, so little water…

90 degrees. That’s the record we broke today.

Let me say it again.

90 degrees.

Now, while you might live in Phoenix or Mexico City or Addis Ababa and think we are wimps, please remember that it’s all relative. For me, it’s hot. For my friends, it’s really hot. Even for the humans in my life, it’s hot and we are all waiting for the heatwave to break, which is supposedly going to happen later today with the arrival of thunderclouds, a strong wind, and yes, rain. Oh goodie.

Ah, rain. I kind of miss it (not so much the thunderstorms). But since we lack rain today, we had to find water in other ways. My first favorite way is at the lake. Not only do I get to go swimming, not only do I get to go with my friends, but I get to play fetch and that, my friends, is the recipe for a grand day.

Let me back up…we started our day by picking up Marley. He was very happy to see us and I’ll admit, I was a lot more friendly today. He’s really kind of fun. We walked up the road to pick up Ollie who was also happy to see us as well as ultra-happy to meet Marley (they are about the same age). Then we walked down through the cool park toward the lake where Gretchen leashed us up (Ollie on a short leash, Marley on a longer one, and me on my stretchy leash). She leashes us up to keep track of us — Ollie stays close by so he gets the shorter leash; Marley, because we are just getting to know him, wears a 30 foot leash, which allows Gretchen to really keep him under control; and well I can get a bit carried away after a refreshing swim and have been known to run around barking and not coming when called. Oops. Therefore a longer leash.

The outstanding news of today is that Ollie — who has generally been a toe-dipper when it comes to water — showed no hesitancy at all when he dove right in after me! You go Ollie! He’s quite a good swimmer. Must be the breed. Tee hee.

Marley, on the other hand, is getting braver, but lacks the water dog confidence of labs and poodles (our breed).  He tries though. I have to give him credit for that. He really, really tries AND he really, really wants to try. That’s the important point, isn’t it?

I, of course, lack no confidence when it comes to swimming. Okay, I’ll admit…I lack a little confidence right in the beginning. You know that feeling when your belly hits the cold water. Come on, you know you’re hesitant, too. But once I’m in, I’m totally in and I could swim for days and days and days.

Marley tried playing fetch with my toys, but if they toy went too far out, well, his lack of confidence raised it’s ugly head.

We played for quite awhile at the beach. I kept swimming, Marley kept wading, and Ollie hung out by the toys trying to choose one to play with.

By the time we walked back to our house, we were all pretty much dry so when we got to my backyard, well, it seemed like a perfect time to play!

Then we had to rest. Ollie and Marley rested by watching me rest in the swimming pool. I tried to entice them in. I showed them how they could lie down in the pool, stretch out, and my favorite, dig at the water spraying it up on their bellies. They weren’t having any of it!

Then we played chase. This is a fun game that involves me running around the yard, up on the deck and back down again while everyone tries find me!

And then we all got tired…

Then Gretchen took Marley home and then Ollie all the while I rested up for our next outing.

And who, pray tell, was that?

TEABISCUIT!  I love going out with Teabiscuit. She loves to do all the things I love to do. She loves to play fetch and she really, really loves to swim, just like me. And darn it, if she’s not a good swimmer than I’m a cat!

Gretchen left the leash on Biscuit just for a few throws. She wasn’t quite sure if Teabiscuit would stick around, but I reassured her that nothing could pull either of us away from water and a toy.

So…off went Teabiscuit, the mighty little swimmer!

Isn’t she impressive?  I really like her and I think she really likes me, though I don’t think she’s ready to admit it yet!

I got to swim so more too and then Gretchen got in with us and we all swam around in the cool lake. She couldn’t take photographs of that…kind of difficult to swim and hold the camera at the same time!

To dry us all off a bit, Gretchen played fetch with Teabiscuit in the grass. She’s not only a good swimmer, she’s a mighty fast little fetcher!

Once again, by the time we walked back up the big hill to Teabiscuit’s house, we were all dry. Well, Gretchen wasn’t, but we were.

I got to rest when we got home a bit before we got into the car and headed to Agility Class. Though it was really hot, I had lots and lots of fun learning to perform on the A-frame (my toughest apparatus), the weave poles, and my personal favorite, the tunnel! I’m going to finish up here, eat some dinner and then fall fast asleep.

Doesn’t the heat make you sleepy? It does me.

Until tomorrow!

Rubin

PS – It’s supposed to be 20 degrees cooler tomorrow. Oh please let it be so!

Heads or Tales?

It was really, really warm today. So warm, in fact, that I’m pretty exhausted.  I debated spinning the tale of our adventures today, but instead, I think it’s going to be head shots — that is, a pictoral run through of my work today. We took lots and lots of photographs today, so with minimal description, let tell you about our work.

First, as the picture to the left portrays, we started off our day with Rufus and Riley. You can’t actually see them in this photograph though their tails and ears are right behind mine. We picked them up earlier than expected, but that was Gretchen’s plan — walk the dogs before the day got really, really hot.

So here we are at 9 in the morning and it’s already 70 degrees! Whew!

It didn’t take long for all of us to get hot. While I keep moving when I’m hot, Rufus and Riley decided smelling was much more their speed, so this morning, they did a lot of smelling. Okay, I’ll admit, I joined them!

Here’s our adventure in photographs…

After our time with the boys, we headed back home, parked the car and walked up the street to get Monty. He was very happy to see us. He was even more happy when we stopped by to pick up Lucy. The two of them pranced up the street together like lovers in Paris.  Jeez, they are goofy. We actually ended up walking back to the house so Gretchen could drop off Monty and me (for a wee rest) while she took Lucy out with the boys next door — Oshi and Perrito.  Before they left, we had some fun in the backyard first.

Soon after, Gretchen and Lucy headed out with Oshi and Perrito. The boys were happy to see her, but they were a little overwhelmed by the heat. They headed over to the field so Lucy could get her daily fix of fetch. Perrito played with her a little, but after a few chases down the field, he was bushed. Oshi was bushed from the start and just hung out in the shade while Lucy did what Lucy does best.

Next up, Gerta. Lucy came home and hung out with Monty and me while Gretchen fetched Gerta. Even before they started though, Gerta was already tired from the heat.

I guess we all complained about the heat today and never once gave a moment’s thought to how hot Gretchen must have been. She certainly got red in the face and sweated a lot, though!

Maybe that’s why, after walking Gerta, she came back to the house to pick us up with cooler ideas in mind. She took Lucy back to her mom and then Monty and I retrieved Teabiscuit.  She was happy to see me, but still a little leary of Monty. He didn’t take it personally and when we headed toward the lake, none of us worried about anything anymore!

After we dropped Teabiscuit back at her house, we rested back at my house while Gretchen ran some errands. When she returned, I expected a quiet afternoon hanging out on the back porch, but instead, Monty and I were given a very special treat! We got to go swimming at Doris and Steven’s house!!!! Glorious!

Before I show those pictures, let me just say that Monty is still healing from his pulled leg muscle. While going swimming at Doris and Steven’s is always great fun, it was also a therapeutic trip as well. We both had to wear our lifevests and Gretchen, because the pool is unheated, wore her wet suit.  She played physical swimming therapist to Monty, while I showed off my prowess in the pool!

As you can see, the day ended on a very fun note. I got to leap into the pool again and again while Monty swam around with Gretchen. It was glorious, I tell you, glorious!

And that, my friends, are the heads and tales of our Friday.

Have a great weekend!

Rubin