Mom, the Pit Bull and a Scared Parrot

Classes have started up again and like usual, the first time the dogs come, some are knuckleheads. They are coming to training so that's part of it. We trainers' dogs hang out by the fence and watch. It can be funny.

People bring their wacky, out-of-control dogs to JoAnn who fits them with a training collar, then hands them over to Lisa or Mom. One of them gets the dog under control, demonstrates "heel" and "sit", then goes on to the next dog. Lisa and Mom speak "dog," so it takes only a couple of minutes to get the dogs heeling with them while translating for their humans. Then they hand the dogs to the humans who start to practice. This week was different.

JoAnn handed a medium sized black dog over to Lisa and immediately, the dog went into a tantrum--full blown flopping like a fish and trying to bite anything within reach. Lisa took the dog to the side and let it do what it did until it tired itself out.

The next dog was a pit bull mix, maybe with bulldog or something. He was huge and strong. I cringed as JoAnn handed him to Mom. I don't think Mom was feeling so good about it either, but she didn't show it. The pit was a knucklehead, too.

Mom took him with authority, gave him some good positive words and started walking with him. He did not like that so he bucked and tried to crawl up Mom's back. I didn't want to look, but I wanted to make sure Mom was okay. She just kept walking and kept her stern "I'm in charge" voice. When he showed some manners, she praised him and patted him letting him know he was doing well as she kept walking. After he settled into a heel, she would stop every once in awhile to teach him sit which involves leaning over his back and tucking his outside leg underneath. Hoo boy, I couldn't believe she was doing that! She was being careful to hold his face away from hers, but like I said, he was really big. I guess she figured that since she had been able to pat his side and praise him, it would be okay.

She also had to teach him "leave it" with other dogs because he really wanted to go after them. All of this took awhile. She was out of breath from moving and handling him. Finally, she handed him over to his owners and told them what to do. I was relieved and also proud of her. She did a good job even though he was a tough customer, not anything like me or Belle. We're mellow go along kind of gals.

On the way home, in dog language I said, "What the heck were you thinking?" She didn't answer, but I suspect she was thinking the same thing.

On another subject, Mom noticed this morning that Kermit hadn't been eating his food. Uh-oh. He's not picky like I am, so it didn't make any sense. Mom looked around and realized that the back of the swamp cooler is the perfect spot for a cat to sit and fantasize about a fat little parrot for a meal. I try to keep the cats out of the yard but I'm not there all the time. A dog can only have so many jobs. Belle doesn't pay attention to the cats, besides, she's old and would rather lie on her bed than patrol the perimeter of the house.

Mom is looking around to see where she can move Kermit so he has a window but doesn't get stalked by kitties on the prowl. If I spoke "cat" I would tell them to knock it off and stick with the mice. After all, mice are outdoors and they don't fly.

Baths and Shopping with Masochists

Now that Mom can go to JoAnn's shop and give me a bath whenever, rolling in mud is no longer fun. Sunday we went to Breeze's house. Art worked on Mom's car while Mom and JoAnn sat over a puzzle and tried to put pieces together. Evidently Art and JoAnn enjoy this activity. Breeze says it is the most boring thing a dog can watch. I asked if it was more boring than watching humans on computers and she said most definitely.

It was a nice day, so we stayed outside, playing chase and whatnot. When Breeze gets too rambunctious, I herd her into her pool to roll around. Yesterday, she decided to herd me into the mud as payback. I did the usual thing and dropped to the ground, rolled and let her dominate. Problem is, that led directly to JoAnn's shop and into the bathtub with me. Breeze only got her paws muddy...one leap into the pool and that was gone. I had to go through the whole routine. I'm getting used to it, but I don't have to like it.

Yesterday, Mom took me for a brief ball chase then for a long drive. When we stopped, there was Zeus' car. He is starting to really like Mom, maybe because he has been in our house. Mom gave him some big cuddles.

Then we went on another long drive in Zeus' car to go shopping. Mom won't go in the big stores by herself, but she is getting so much better at wandering around and not getting all freaked out.

One thing that happens when you are with Zeus is you hear the following things over and over and over again:
What kind of dog is THAT? --Old English Mastiff
Wow THAT'S a big dog! *duh*
That's not a dog, it's a HORSE! *person needs a visit to a ranch*
That's the BIGGEST dog I've ever seen! *so what?*

Yesterday, someone asked Zeus' mom if he was an "English masochist". The humans were stunned for a moment, Zeus' Mom said "he's an English Mastiff." The rest of the day, they busted up every time one of them pointed out that Zeus was a masochist.

We had a lot of fun with Zeus' human brother, Sam and his girlfriend, Annie. They laugh a lot. Zeus' human brother dips french fries into chocolate frosty shakes. Mom tried it. She prefers ketchup.

We went to lots of stores looking for a safety belt like mine for Breeze. We didn't get home until after dark and Belle had to sniff Mom and me all over because she smelled Zeus--the masochist.

Running AGAIN!

ArrrOOOOOOOOO! I got to run today! Last night I told Mom I was fine, enough with the boring stuff already. She said, well, we'll see.

Since Saturdays are agility days, Mom decided to let me off leash while she and Lisa set up the course. Breeze stayed in her little yard so I wouldn't run too hard at first. I followed Mom around, ran a little, sniffed a little. It felt so good to be off-leash back to normal. JoAnn and Lisa and Mom all watched me walk and run. I wasn't limping. Duh! My leg doesn't hurt. Mom was just being cautious.

Only a few dogs came for agility today. We mostly watched. Mom is teaching me to go through the course without barking so that means really SLOW and on leash. I don't get to run or get excited. She also wanted to make sure my leg was okay. We went slowly through stuff, kept the jumps low and so on. Then I got paraded in front of the humans to check for limping. Nope! I felt great! I just wanted to cut loose and run the course like usual, but Mom still wants me under control. I have to prove to her I won't bark before she will let me off-leash for agility again. The good news is if I'm patient, Mom eventually gives me what I want. It's just hard for a little dog to be patient.

After most everybody left, Mom paraded me again to check for limping--I got paraded a lot today. No limp. Then JoAnn let Breeze go and I got to run with my buddy again! WAHOOOOO! We only ran for a couple of minutes and Lisa let Cammy loose, too. That means running is pretty much over, which is fine. The humans started putting away agility equipment. I just trotted along behind Mom as she carried stuff to the shed. Following Mom is fine with me, better than rough-housing. Plus, I wanted to let her know that she can let me loose and I won't overdo it. I'm fine. Mom is so relieved.

Out and About but no Ball Chase

Every time Mom opens the gate and calls me toward the car, I think, YAY! we're headed to the park! This morning we left early, right after breakfast. Mom drove to the fairgrounds where we go for walks, but no ball chasing. We got out of the car and guess who was there? Breeze! YAY! Maybe we won't chase, but we'll play right?

JoAnn and Mom walked us around the fairgrounds practicing our obedience lessons. Mom worked with Breeze some and I had to sit still and watch. That's hard for me. We got to do some "all done" happy happy and some regular walking, but no running and playing.

JoAnn wanted to go to the Foothill Mercantile to get candles. Going places with Breeze is almost as good as going places with Zeus. Everybody notices her instead of me because she has such striking good looks. Women especially get all high-pitched with their "Ooooo! What a BEEUUTiful puppy! OH! She's SO cute!" I tell Breeze they'll keep doing that...you just gotta get used to it or hang out with some dog that gets more attention than you so they'll leave you alone.

After the Mercantile, we all went to Summer Thyme's. They have a patio under a huge tree so Breeze could hang out while JoAnn and Mom yacked. Breeze watched me settle onto my mat and got it that we wouldn't be playing here, either. She stretched out and we both napped. Humans yack and yack and yack. Breeze just lay there and snoozed like me--like a grown up. JoAnn says I'm a good mentor. Hey, it doesn't take much to get a puppy to nap, but I'm not going to tell her that.

After JoAnn and Breeze left, Mom and I headed over to KMart. Mom got a bag of dirt that smelled really good and a small bag of seed. Then we went to the grocery store and finally headed home. Belle asked where the heck we had been and I said, you know, the usual.

Mom opened the bag of seed and sprinkled it into spots around the yard. I kept bringing her my ball. I figured she just forgot to take me for ball chasing. She walked right by like she didn't see it. Then she got the bag of dirt and started sprinkling that everywhere. I put the ball directly in front of her foot so maybe she would at least kick it for me, but NO. She stepped over it. What do I need to do? How do I get my mom to throw the ball for me? She says I still need to rest my leg. This makes me sad. Is Mom ever going to play ball with me?

SO Not Fair

What's up with this? Mom hasn't taken me to chase my ball since we came back from visiting my friends Jolanda and Becker. Every time I get in the car, I think, NOW! We are going to go NOW! No such luck. Instead she takes me to the fairgrounds and we walk around. WALK! Can someone please tell Mom I'm made to run, not WALK?

Here's what's worse. Last night, we went to school. Breeze, Cammy and Blitzen were all there. At last, I thought. We made it through the class called "orientation" when there are no dogs. I had to "settle" and so did Breeze. We can't get excited about seeing each other until class is over. I'm used to that. What I'm not used to is class being over and Mom taking me to the car and bringing me home without letting me play. Is there a place where a little dog can file a complaint?

Even worse? Mom has been putting this REALLY cold, crackly thing on my leg. What's the point of that? Then she rubs my leg which actually feels good until that crackly cold thing goes back on it.

She says all of this is about my limping. I don't limp. She even had JoAnn and Lisa watch me walk and I did that perfectly. You know who started this don't you? Jolanda's mom. Both she and my mom noticed that I was resting my leg after playing with Jolanda. They called it "limping". Hey, I have four legs. You can rest one now and again, right? They say Jolanda's sister got a very serious injury and had to have surgery after her leg got hurt. Mom says she doesn't want to risk that. So who gets the raw end of that deal? ME!

Like everything else, I just go along with this. Mom is not mean on purpose. She is probably being careful with me. I just want to chase a ball. Okay? Puhleeeze! Pretty Puhleeeze?

My Big Trip to the Big City

What a fun couple of days I had. Mom and I took a very long drive and wound up at this motel where we have stayed before. It smells like the ocean there which means a good time is about to start.

After Mom unloaded our stuff she brought me out to the porch in front of our room and waited. Guess who drove up? JOLANDA! Well, her dad drove, but there she was! She gives me the "what up?" sniff and acts like it's no big deal, but we are both happy to see each other.

We rode in their car for a long time with awful noises under the tires. Mom had me on the floor between her feet so I heard AND felt everything. Finally, we got to a coffee shop and guess who was there? Becker! I met him before, but we are just getting to know each other. Becker's mom, Mom, Becker and I all went to a park where the humans yacked and ate. They picked this place just to torment me. There were ground squirrels EVERYWHERE. I wanted one. Well, no, I just wanted to chase one...not sure what I'd do with it if I caught it.

I watched them for awhile, but couldn't resist and took off after one, but forgot I was on a leash. That wasn't good. So I decided to lie down and try to ignore them. Then Becker's mom said, "look out!" One of those nasty squirrels was stalking me! What the heck?

After awhile we drove over to where Jolanda was. We all paraded into a coliseum where there were SO MANY PEOPLE. Becker, Jolanda and I all scrunched in under our humans seats and lay on our mats while they watched a game. At one point, Mom held me on her lap and I noticed that this game involved a ball! It was too far away to chase though and I lost interest.

The next day, we met Jolanda and her humans for breakfast, then went to the Golden Gate Park. Jolanda's mom noticed that there were some ladies' handbags on a log, there. She went through them and picked out two. She doesn't carry handbags, but liked these, especially the one that said "Prada" on it. Jolanda's dad said it had probably been snatched by somebody. It was a lot of blah blah blah.

Finally, we got to a place where we could play. Jolanda and I played with a ball. Here's a movie.
Rethy and Jolanda Play Ball


Last night, we had gone to Japan Town which is a big mall and buildings around it. The humans had Japanese food, then walked around the mall. Jolanda's mom was carrying her "Prada bag." All the humans said "Prada bag" after just about everything. Wouldn't you know they would have to take pictures of Jolanda and me acting like Japanese characters, including a Samurai warrior carrying, you guessed it, the Prada bag. *insert eye rolling here*

It seems like most of what we did was go to cafes. Our humans like coffee and stuff that has crumbs. Have I told you pups that Mom and I are matching wits on my floor-surfing problem? Mostly she wins. At breakfast this morning, she finally caught me...it was only because she had an almond croissant and almond slivers tend to stick on your nose. Pups, make a note, do NOT go after almond slivers, you know the ones sliced really thin.

The humans seemed to have lots of fun, but Mom doesn't do well in the city. After breakfast, she drove to Dolores Park, but couldn't find a place to park. You'd think that you could "park" at a "park", but NO, she just drove around and around. Eventually, she found a spot. We played a little with Jolanda's humans. Jolanda was resting up from yesterday. Mom noticed I had a limp. The humans all agreed I was favoring my back right leg. Darn it. You know what that means. No more running for a few days.

I know Mom wants me to be okay, but when they talked about "leash walks" only for a few days, my heart sank. Mom has massaged my leg and says she's going to "ice" it before bed. We'll see what that does.

Anyway, pups, I had great big fun this week-end, saw my first baseball game and got to play with my friend Jolanda a lot. Now it's ice, rest and back to my regular life.

Bath Day and I Graduated!

After my ball chase today, Mom took me to JoAnn's shop. There were lots of dogs there, so Mom put me in a kennel. Mom got a cute little dog named Tiffany out of a different kennel, blow dried and combed her out. I was glad she was the one getting the dryer, not me. I thought, cool, no bath for me today. No such luck. Before I knew it I was whooshed in the tub and getting sprayed down. Mom REALLY scrubbed me today with a rubber thing that has little fingers on it. That part kind of felt good. She told me I was stinky.

Today when Mom dried me, I had to stand on a table and Julie brought over yet another dryer and pointed it under my belly. SHEESH enough with the dryers already! Wouldn't you know while I was getting dried, Breeze was just wandering around, loose. She would look up at me and say, "neener, neener, neener...." as if she doesn't get baths, too.

When Mom put me back in the kennel, I thought I was all done, but NO! In a few minutes, she pulled me out and put me up on JoAnn's table...foot trimming time. JoAnn is so picky. Now you can see each individual toe. She also thinned my coat under my ears to "give me a neck." What's wrong with humans, anyway? Just because they can't see a neck doesn't mean you don't have one.

Tonight we went to school for our advanced class. It was graduation night. Honestly, I just wasn't into it. I'm happy to heel around, heck, I'll do that all day. Mom had to say things twice a few times. She doesn't like that. What can I say, I was spaced out--call it post-bath syndrome. Then there were a few times when I just wanted to go to Mom, all happy and everything. That's when someone else was calling their dog and I thought what the heck, I'll go to Mom now, too. I just wound up getting put back where I was. I got my graduation certificate, regardless, because even though I did it my way tonight, I know how to do all that stuff.

Also, Blitzen came to school for the first time in a few weeks. His hind end is really bad. Lisa got him a ramp to get in and out of her car. Everybody was so happy to see him. I followed him around the yard while he played. He has such a hard time keeping his balance, but he says he doesn't hurt and still wants to chase a ball. Lisa let him play with a ball but won't throw it for him anymore. I was happy to see my buddy.

Well, pups, I'm tuckered out. Mom says we're taking another trip in a day or two. Can't wait to see where we're going!

Dog Show and Mom's Birthday

Whooo-weee, what a big day! Really, Mom and I should both be going to bed, but I told her it would be okay to stay up to write about our day.

We went to the fairgrounds to a dog show today. Mom wore her training work shirt, so I knew we would be working. Sure enough, we were helping with the CGC testing. Mom was the "crowd"--well, ONE person in the crowd. I got to be the "friendly" dog. Some of my other dog pals were there and sometimes Nugget or Ruby played "friendly dog". Lots of dog took their tests and most of them passed.

It quieted down for awhile and the test lady asked JoAnn if she wanted to practice the test with Breeze. Breeze hasn't yet finished basic obedience. She is with JoAnn all the time, though, so she is a really good girl. JoAnn said what the heck and took Breeze through the whole test. None of our humans who train with JoAnn could help because Breeze knows everybody, so they called in people around to be a "crowd" and Ruby, who Breeze doesn't really know, played "friendly dog." Breeze PASSED her CGC!!!!!! She is only 5 months old. The humans got all excited about it. Breeze looked at me and said, these silly humans. We do what they ask us to do and they act like it's such a big deal. Sheesh. I whispered, just go along and they won't figure out we are smarter than they are. We both snickered.

Mom got away as much as possible to look at the other dogs. My sister Belle is a cattle dog and I'm a sort of Australian Shepherd, just small. Mom had to see as much of whatever involved dogs like us as possible. She took some pictures and video:
Dog Show Movies and Pics

For lunch, all the humans working the CGC and the judges and stewards went into a big building where they had a buffet of sandwiches and salads. The humans loaded up and we all sat down. Mom caught me floor surfing. Uh oh. I'm in BIG trouble.

When we got back to the CGC area, Mom took little pieces of yummy, yummy smelling food and put it all around my head. I had to lie there and ignore it. Uchh! Then she picked it up before I could sneak any of it. About the time I forgot about the whole thing, she sprinkled some more stinky food around my head. It only smells yummy when you can sneak it. It's stinky if you have to leave it alone. Trust me on this.

After the CGC testing was over I thought we were going home, but no. Mom took me over to the ring to watch the herding group, a couple of other groups and best in show. Like I care. I snoozed, but every few minutes she had to get up and move because the shade would go away. She talked to a few people there including a snooty lady and a lady who talked alot about "psycho" dogs--whatever that is. One nice lady said she has a mini-Aussie, too. She also said he is the "best dog" she has ever had. Mom said that about me, then whispered, "don't you dare tell Belle that!" I wouldn't. Mom also tells Belle she is "the best dog in the Western world." Whatever that means. Neither of us take that stuff personally.

Eventually, Mom stayed put, all the blah blah blah faded and I was fast asleep. Finally, Mom got up and we headed for the car.

Belle was so happy to see us. Mom loved her all up and told her how many pretty dogs we saw that looked like her.

I'm tired. It's time to go to bed. I hope you pup pals enjoy the doggy pictures and movie Mom made. Bark at you later. Rethy

That Stinky Place

Life has been going along, just like a little dog does. Ball chasing, work, school, playing with Breeze and Cammy.

Barking of that, Mom is getting frustrated with me. I'm not entirely sure why. Ever since Cammy (a 13 inch Beagle) started playing with us, the game has changed. Cammy will run a little, but mostly she and Breeze tussle. They are both tough customers. Breeze grabs Cammy's neck with her mouth and pulls. You can even see Cammy's skin stretch out. OUCH! Cammy just takes it. Then Cammy will jump on top of Breeze and toss her over. Cammy jumps on her and gives her a hard time as well--biting, even humping to tell Breeze she isn't the boss.

I don't like this play. My game is chase--well, herding. So I jump around them, try to separate them and bark at them. I bark and bark and bark. Mostly they ignore me because I'm not a tough gal. I want Cammy to go away so Breeze will run with me. Or I want Cammy to run, too, so I can herd them both. I'm good at that and it's fun!

Mom will come over, say "QUIET!" and put me on my leash. What did I do? I'm not sure. She leads me away and I have to sit with her while Breeze and Cammy play doggy World Wide Wrestling. If I could only figure out what I'm supposed to do... Mom does say, "quiet" other times, usually when I'm whining because I want attention or want to do something she doesn't want me to. Sometimes she says "quiet" when I'm chasing the kitties out of my yard. I dunno... Like I said, a little dog just has to go along.

Speaking of that, Mom took me to this really stinky place we used to go to when I was a wee pup. It didn't smell so bad then, though. Mom opened up both doors to get some good air in there. That helped a little. Mom makes pictures in there. She works away at something, then puts paper on it and hand cranks it through a thing that puts a picture on the paper. Then she hangs the picture up to dry.
Mom Making Art

Peggy, the lady who owns the room where people make art came out to see us. Mom asked, "Do we have any low odor solvent?" Peggy showed her a big can of it, but there weren't any spray bottles to put it in. Mom was having a hard time with the stinky, stinky stuff so when we left for lunch, we didn't go back.

The rest of the day, Mom was woozy and I felt a little woozy too. I don't want her to go back there. Like I said, a little dog has to go along. Mom told me we wouldn't work in there unless we could use the stuff that doesn't stink. She promised. I believe her.

Diary Pick and Presents From Pals

ARRROOOOO!!! I was the diary pick for today. Thanks dogster. Woof!

And then, to make it better, some of my pals gave me presents. Thanks pups! My pals are the best!

Today, Mom and JoAnn took me and Breeze to the fairgrounds to "practice". Breeze is in basic obedience training now, so JoAnn wants to take her all kinds of places to practice. There was an event at the fairgrounds with food and a band and some really old cars. Breeze had to do what I do and lie under a picnic table while our humans ate without looking for dropped crumbs. It was confusing though because we were on the ground with grass and hay spread around on it. You'd think anything in that kind of place would be fair game, but no. Mom even had to remind me a couple of times.

We walked around the grounds so that Breeze could experience metal bleachers and kids on bicycles and weird equipment on trucks, that sort of stuff. Breeze is like me, that stuff doesn't faze her.

Then we got to go to Breeze's house (our training school) and run. She is so funny. Because the big agility equipment is up all the time during the summer, Breeze has decided to use it during our chase games. She will run up the small dog walk and stare at me--daring me to come up and get her. I know she'll just push me off, so I sit and bark at her.

She is also using the A-frame, but she runs at that from the side and lands about 4 feet up, hanging onto the slats with her toes, just daring me to come after her. I'm no dummy. She is already bigger than I am, so I know who would be going head over stubby little tail on that one.

Anyway, we wore ourselves out running after each other, so Mom brought me home. She has been on the computer ever since. That's just what she does.

Thanks again pals for the presents! ARF and ARF ARF Reethster