Our Hearts Break

This will be the last entry in Hope's diary.

It is with a broken heart that I must announce her passing, unexpectedly and suddenly, on January 4th, 2011. One minute she was playing and happy, and the next she was gone. We can only assume she had a heart attack or stroke. My perfect, beautiful girl was only 11 years old.

Wait by the bridge for us, Hope. We love you, and miss you more than we can ever say. Play in the sun-filled meadows, chase mice and butterflies, and keep the sheep in line while you wait, for someday we will surely be reunited.

Good Dog, Hope. Good Dog.

Fuzzy Dusters--Bah

Did I ever mention that I find that new fuzzy-duster dog, the Merry thing, to be a royal pain in the fluffside? SHEESH! If he was a rodent, I'd eat him! Well, maybe not, but I wish I could catch him and give him a good thrashing once in awhile. He's the most obnoxious little brat I've ever met! Everywhere I go, he follows me, barking maniacally and biting at me! For no reason that I can figure out! The only thing I can think of is that I growled at him once when we first met--just to let him know that I consider myself the alpha female who must be obeyed--and he seems as if he may be holding a grudge or something. Geez.... are all those tiny almost-dogs as obnoxious as the Merry thing? If so, I hope no more of them come to live here. "Merry", my fluffside! He should have been called "Obnoxious Biting Barking PITFluffside Not-Quite-a-Real-Dog"....

On a lighter note, it's almost time to go outside this morning, and Rex and I will ignore Kiki, as always, and play obsessively with The Egg. My favorite at-home pastime :-). We've invited Kiki to play with the egg many, many times, btw. She just growls at us and says she wants to be left alone. She never plays, not even when she was a puppy. Doesn't seem like a fun way to live la vida doga, but, oh well! The Egg awaits, and luckily the fuzzy duster isn't allowed to come outside and ruin our fun!

See ya!
Hope

O, There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays

Yipppppppeeeeeeeeee!!! I just (and I mean JUST--as in 15 minutes ago) returned from a trip to Mom's hometown in eastern Oregon. Her and Dad and some of the human children went to see friends and family before Christmas, since they couldn't be there for Christmas day, and they brought me along. I am SO happy! No other canine person got to go on this trip, so for once I didn't have to share my people with anyone. You can't imagine how delighted I was! No Puck or Bit harassing me anytime I get close to Mom or Dad. Nobody chasing me when I want to chase the Chuckit ball. No Jasmine insulting me. No Kiki being cranky, and no one eating my food! I got all the belly rubs, all the food fed to me by hand, one bit at a time. I got all the rides in the car to parks and places to run and sniff. It was Heavenly, I tell you! Two days of my humans' undivided attention is one of those rare events a lady like myself really cherishes. Thanks Dad! Thanks Mom! I love you both, 'cause I'm a GOOD girl :-)

Happy Birthday to Me

Today is my "official" birthday. Officially, I am 5 years old, now. IRL, no one really knows for sure. What I do know for sure is that the last four years of my life have been very happy ones. Four years ago, Dad said Mom could adopt me from that horrible, cold, noisy, terrifying place where I stayed for awhile in a chain link kennel after being caught and delivered to this place with my pitbull/rottweiler/GSD "brother" while we were running loose in the streets. I went from that place, where I was frightened and cold, and where I feared for my very life, and I came home to this family, who love me very much. They taught me to play and to not be quite as frightened of things, they take me to fun places, they never abandon me, and they never, EVER put me in a kennel.

Today is my birthday, and I share it with my Mom and her oldest son (Rex's person, Dan). For our birthday, we're going out for dinner. Mom tells me I'll have a birthday present, too. I hope it's one I can chew, and that Puck Robin or Bit won't try to steal it from me! Whatever it is, I know I'll love it, because it comes from people who love me, and who think I'm a beautiful and good girl. It reminds me of yesterday, on Thanksgiving, when Mom and Dad said that they are thankful for me. Mom reminded Dad that 4 years ago, I was scheduled to be "PTS" the day after Thanksgiving. I don't know what that means, but it upset Mom, so I don't think it is a good thing. Then she gave me a hug, and told me I was the best "lovely lady, lady love" she ever had and wished me a Happy Birthday. I wished her one, too, licking her face and telling her that I love her, too :-). Birthdays are good. Happy Birthday to Me!

Unfair!

*deep sigh* I just found out that my sexy Pup Pal friend, "Lodi", the Sean Connery of the dog world, has corralled a supposedly "hot" Belgian Malnois by the name of "Naloni Roo McPaws". I admit she has a cute name. Yeah, she's a beauty, and yes, she's a younger woman, but my mom tells me I'm THE most beautiful dog in the world, so NOW what am I supposed to think?

Oh well.... I have to think about this. I mean, if I was a male dog, I suppose I _might_ want to corral her, too, so I guess I'll just have to go chew on Bit's oh-so-perfect ears for awhile while I figure this whole thing out....

I'll tell you what, though. If any of the male members of my own pack even THINK about corralling her, I'm gonna chew on ALL their ears!

Mom says I have to add this bit: "I think you're a beauty, Naloni. I knew a very intense Malnois who quickly became a Flyball Champion, once, and she was impressive! I'll bet you are, too". At this point, I must mention that that message was from MOM, not me :-P.

Hope Leslie Jealous-Canine

Beach.... Ball.... Beach....

.... but no ball. Mom and Dad couldn't find the Chuckit for our trip to the beach last weekend. I had nothing to obsess about! It was weird.

Hey, did I mention we went to Lincoln City last weekend? It was nice! The beach was clear, the weather was warm, and I got to see the parents' family from far, far away in eastern Oregon.

So, what does a girl do while in Lincoln City? She plays on the beach, of course, chasing sticks into the ocean and fetching them back for Mom and Dad's 7 year-old nephew, Jake. A girl goes shopping, of course! To replace the lost Chuckit, so that I can obsess on the ball next time we go somewhere. A good girl eats at Carl's, a family restaurant that makes the best clam chowder south of The Pelican, in Pacific City. OK, so I had to sit in the Jeep and have my food brought out to me, but still, it was great! A girl has FUN at the beach, and wishes we could go more often :-).

Hi, I'm Hope!

Day one. Mom said I can have my own diary, now. I'm excited. I'm excited about all sorts of things--belly rubs, car rides, chasing the tennis ball, harassing a cat. Today I have a new thing to get all excited about. Maybe I should wriggle a lot and pee--that's what I usually do when I'm excited (or scared)....

It's getting colder outside now. Autumn has come early. All of us love the cooler weather, and now I'm looking forward to more walks in the woods and mountains of the Cascade Range. Mom and Dad say I get to learn something new this season: How to carry a pack. We're going to Hood River this weekend to visit our favorite store. It's called Gorge Dog (because it's located in the Columbia River Gorge). Apparently I'm going to get a backpack so I can learn to carry my own water, snackies, a towel for drying me off with, and poo-bags. Since I'm so small (30 lbs), Mom says I can only carry about 5 or 6 lbs, so I shouldn't find it uncomfortable, but I wonder.... will I be able to chase a tennis ball with a pack on my back?