I am SOOOOOO Allergic

Mama Sandra took me to the vet once already, and now I heard her tell Lee I'm going to go tomorrow. I hate the vet. The last time, she and the vet sat on the floor with me while the vet looked at my eyes and mouth. They have been giving me eye drops since we went, but now I'm itching all over and scratching myself raw. Mama Sandra says I will probably have to have a cortisone shot.

Everyone is sneezing and itching right now. They say this stuff called pollen count is higher than it's ever been. I am having to wear this cone thing made of fabric on my head so I can't scratch my chin and bit my front legs where I itch. Mama Sandra says my eyes look very asian because they are so swelled up. I don't think it's funny, but to be fair, no one really seems to think it's funny. Everyone seems to be maybe trying to make jokes but no one really laughs. Auntie Jo had to be taken to the hospital a couple of weeks ago because she couldn't breath because of the pollen, and Mama Sandra is sneezing all the time, and itching. I am taking Benedryl, but Mama Sandra can't even take Benedryl which is for allergies because she's allergic to it. Benedryl makes me sleepy.

I do not like this feeling.

I even growled for real at Toby the other day because he wanted to play and I didn't feel good. And I love Toby.

Mama Mary is at a retreat (she's a Buddhist) but she never takes me to the vet, anyway. She gets stuck giving me baths and eyedrops. Mama Sandra takes me to the vet and buys me cheeseburgers. I'd rather not itch and miss the cheeseburger, though. I really don't feel good right now.

Strangers Wrecked Our House!!!!!!

Well, I guess not really. Mama Sandra invited them in. They pulled all the windows and doors out and put new ones in. I've never heard of such a thing, but they did it. It took them six hours. There were a lot of them. They came in and ripped all the windows and doors out with crowbars and hammers. It was scary and exciting. Toby and I barked and growled.

I shut up pretty much when Mama Sandra told me to, but Toby wouldn't shut up for awhile. And Mama Sandra turned off the furnace. It got cold, so they put my coat on me, and wrapped Toby in a blanket and held him. I guess it was down to 57 degrees today in the house.

Everyone thinks it looks great, and it will be much warmer in the winter, they say. The new windows are insulated. It has something to do with taxes in Sonoma County. I guess my family has to pay higher taxes to pay for the windows. It's some kind of government plan for energy saving.

Alaric and Tamurlain got under the Christmas tree and cuddled together. Alaric likes his space, but maybe the cold got him. Morgan ran around screeching at everyone. She finally hit me (I was just standing there.) and Mama Sandra told her to "knock it off." I don't know what she wanted knocked off, but Morgan sat on the steps and glared at everyone for awhile.

I got very interested in the sliding doors off the kitchen. I watched very closely while they put them in.

We got some treats after everyone left. Mama Sandra said I was VERY good. And Toby was good, though they had to put his bark collar on and turn it on to get him to be quiet.

Daddy Lee got home and said he bet that the windows made the house worth at least $20,000 more. And he bets our fuel bills will go down a lot.

Yesterday, I Chewed a Slipper...

Yesterday, Jo noticed I was chewing one of Mama Sandra's slippers. Mama Sandra got my hippo toy and tried to trade it for the slipper, but I didn't seem to get the trade. Mama Sandra took her slippers away, anyway. Toby grabbed the hippo and tore it's leg off. Then I tore up a paper towel Toby had been ripping up, and then I chewed the hippo a little. Mama Sandra said Terror is right for Toby AND me. Jo pointed out that I was doing exactly what Toby had just done. (Except the slippers. Apparently that was my own idea.) Jo has to sew my hippo toy up again.

We also have baby gates on certain rooms where there are cat litter boxes. This is because Toby and I ate a bunch of cat litter and Toby had to go to the vet. (Well, it wasn't exactly the LITTER we were eating. It was those kitty "leftovers.") Mama Sandra has tripped over them a couple of times. (They are high) But it seemed like the only way to keep us out of the cat box. Toby is pretty naughty and pretty determined when he wants something, and I tend to follow his lead.

Mama Sandra was pruning the wisteria a few days ago and she let Toby and me be in the front yard with her without a leash. But Toby kept running across the street. I'm very good. I know when she does this, it means not to go off the grass. But Toby wouldn't mind. Then he ate dog doo that some other dog left in our grass and she made us go back in the house. I had to go, too, even though I didn't do it.

She and Jo are going to train me and Toby to use only one corner of the back yard to potty because she wants to landscape back there and have a garden. I hope it still means we get to play back there.

A pit bull named Maia has moved in next door, too. Mama Sandra is going to set up a play date with us and her. I think that will be fun!

It's Been Awhile!!!

And so much has happened.

Mama Sandra is very busy with her business in the summer, so she wasn't taking time to help me with my diary.

It's been a very exciting time!!

First, I have a live in buddy!! My friend Toby (who is Mama Sandra's niece Jo's dog) lives right next door in an RV. Jo needed to move and so my Mamas said she could park by our house. I haven't seen her cat, Bug, but Toby comes in to play with me almost all the time!!! We are in love!! We kiss each other all the time.

Mama Mary says that Toby is teaching me to be a dog, but my teacher, Margie says that Toby is teaching me to be a terrier. Mama Sandra said that it's not "terrier" but "terror."

Toby and I play very roughly. He is much smaller than me, but he's VERY rough. And he barks. A lot. Mama Sandra has headaches, so sometimes Toby must wear a bark collar. He's a lot quieter with it on, even though I heard Jo say it's not turned on.

And I'm eating better. Toby and I get fed at the same time, and he just gobbles his food. Then he has to sit and wait for me. I'm starting to eat faster and not be so picky. I've found out that a lot of the stuff humans want me to eat isn't too bad. I still love rice, though.

Alaric, Toby, and I beg together. Toby gets lectured a lot, though because he grabs food from Alaric. Alaric smacks him. Mama Sandra lectured him and explains he can't have Alaric's food unless Alaric walks away. Mama Sandra does the cooking and she's good about giving us treats, but she does lecture!! She explains to us what we're doing wrong. She talks to us a lot. She just LOVES Alaric, but he's been her cat for 18 years. Still, Alaric is a good ally. Mama Sandra is more likely to give us all food when he's around.

Morgan still mostly ignores me, but she just HATES Toby. She spits and hisses at him all the time. My Mama's and Jo laugh at her. But she slaps Toby when she is close to him. She's probably not going to join our begging alliance.

I'm Starting to Like the Food...

I know that I said the food here wasn't great, but it seems to grow on you. When we started classes, my mom's had a hard time finding treats that I would eat. Then they came up with the liver. But you know, after seeing that other dogs ate some of the weird things that humans fed them, I realized that they must not be as bad as I thought. So I tried a few. I am so cute, that all I have to do is to go up to the other humans at class, during free play time, and sit. My sad eyes do the rest, and they will give me a treat. It worked until my moms noticed I was doing it. (Well, they usually talk to other dog's people during free play time.) Mama Sandra won't let me do it. She says I am not a begger.

But they found that I would eat certain treats.

So now, when we are out, Mama Sandra lets strange humans at Home Depot and other places give me treats. And I usually eat them. Mama Sandra makes me "sit" for treats because she says I don't get treats for just nothing. She told Mama Mary that she figures that I understood that right away because now, when someone says, "Want a cookie?" I just sit down.

I am very popular because I don't look like most of the other dogs around here. Everyone comments on my eyes. I'm still a little shy about being petted, but if someone has a treat, I'm less shy.

Mama Sandra does things for the Sonoma County Aids Food Bank, and she took me there yesterday to deliver a truck load of vegetables that she and Mama Mary got from the Farmer's market the night before. I stayed in the truck while the guys there were unloading it, and they told Mama Sandra that they'd never seen such a good dog. They were surprised that I didn't bark or growl or jump around in the truck. I just stayed very still and watched. I didn't get any cookies, though.

But then we went to Home Depot and I scored!!! Two people gave me biscuits. And several people asked to pet me. And I got another biscuit at Forty-Niner Pets. Forty-Niner pets has such interesting smells that I almost didn't want to leave!

Mama Sandra is in a little bit of trouble with Mama Mary, however. She had coffee and some cakes called Zingers from 7-11. And I whined, so she gave me a piece and I liked it! So she gave me more. And she told Mama Mary that I'm starting to like wheat. Mama Mary told her that she shouldn't feed me junk food. She doesn't want me to be a junk food junkie. But they were LITTLE pieces and they had whipped cream in them.

And there is a really cute dog in my class named Hakuna. We saw them at the dog park this week just before class. Hakuna is very small, but very enthusiastic and we played and played. I had a lot of fun. I had wanted to play with a little poodle, but the poodle's human didn't like me. Before she came in the park, she pointed at me and said, "Is that dog dangerous!?!" And then, when I chased her poodle, she said, "That dog is too rough!" So my Mamas called me whenever I got near the poodle. And Mama Sandra would say, "Leave it!" which in our class means "don't pick up garbage" just to make that woman mad. And then Hakuna came in, and she was smaller than the poodle and her human didn't mind us playing at all. We were VERY rough.

Just before we left, there was a dog who came in who looked so much like me we could have been brother and sister. His name was Enzo and he came from Taiwan, too. I hope we see him again!

Back in School AGAIN!

Well, I'm back in classes again. And my moms are making me do stuff that isn't part of school, too.

This is a bigger class with some seriously bigger dogs. I mean, SERIOUSLY bigger. Peaches, for instance is probably 150 lbs of dog. Mama Sandra says she thinks Peaches is a german shepherd, but she's never seen one that big. Peaches human has a hard time holding on to her. And of course, there are huge ones like Jack. Big dogs make me very nervous.

I'm still the star. I do everything correctly. And my Mamas can put me in a stay and walk away from me. No one else does that. They all hang on to the leashes. We are practicing "Stay with Distractions." So we have to stay next to other dogs, and stay when Margie pretends to shop around us.

I take classes at Petsmart. Mama Sandra says she wants a bumper sticker that says, "My dog is smarter than your honor student."

How Come I Don't Get Treats Everytime

The other day, Mama Sandra took me for a walk. She was teaching me "Stop." That meant that I was supposed to sit down and face the same way she was whenever she stopped and said "Stop." And She gave me chicken bits every time I did it right.

Then, last Tuesday, we went to the class, and Mama Mary gave me a treat every time I did the stuff they told me to.

Then, Mama Sandra takes me out for a walk today, and she's making me "heel" and "stop." and NO TREATS!!!! She just said "Good girl" and petted me when I did it right.

Now, is that fair, I ask you? Shouldn't I get a treat every time I do one of the silly things they ask me to?

A few weeks ago, we went to some thing sponsored by Purina, and I came in second in "Musical Sits." I got $20 in dog food coupons, and Mama Sandra gave them to a lady who has three dogs because she feeds me Innova Ivo. Whats up with that????

And no treats.

Maybe I should go on strike.

I Graduated From My Class

Well, I didn't know if it would ever be over, but I guess it is. I graduated. They put a hat on me and took some pictures. I am so glad it's over!!! Margie is a very nice lady, but oh, boy, that was not my favorite place! I hear Mama Mary has signed me up for another bunch of classes, but I don't want to believe it.

Mama Sandra had to miss my graduation because she was still not able to go anywhere much. She was sad about that, but she really likes my diploma. A diploma is a piece of paper that says I am a wonderful dog. Very cool, I think.

Mama Sandra is going to put the pictures on my page here when she gets time.

Mama Sandra Was Sick

I had a great vacation at Moondoggy, but Mama Sandra went to the hospital place and had something called surgery to her back. They moved a little tiny bed that moved up and down into her bedroom, and leaned the mattress of her big bed up against the wall. We call Mama Sandra's bedroom the Cat Cave because all of those nasty, hairy, little things sleep in there. Mostly on her bed, and the meanest one, Morgan, usually sleeps on top of Mama Sandra. They also bought her a new chair that moves and a stool that moves with it. I guess it was nice for her, because she came home the day after I got back from Moondoggy, and didn't leave that room for about ten days. Daddy Lee slept on the sofa downstairs in the living room.

I didn't care a lot about going in there. I wanted to visit her, but the cats get hissy when I go in that room. It took awhile before they got used to me being in there. I'm not afraid to go in there NOW...well, not TOO much. Mama Sandra would just pet me on the head some. She slept a whole lot. Tamurlain, the biggest cat, got mad at everyone in the house. He weighs 21 lbs, and I guess the other two cats, Morgan and Alaric wouldn't let him in the little bed with Mama Sandra. I know there was a lot of hissing cat fights in there while Mama Sandra wasn't feeling good.

Mama Mary and Daddy Lee had to wait on her, and put bandages on her, and put ice on her. They even had to wash her. I didn't get nearly enough attention while this was going on, though Mama Mary took me to the dog park and to my classes. Still, it's over now. Mama Mary took her to the doctor and when they came home, Mama Sandra said, "Well, if I can start getting back to my regular schedule, then I'll start cooking. I'm tired of carry out." Mama Mary and Daddy Lee kept bringing food home for Mama Sandra. It was kind of funny when you think about it. Mama Sandra cooks a lot, but Mama Mary and Daddy Lee go away most days to do something they call work. They don't cook very often.

Mama Sandra still has to take naps and doesn't bend too well, but she is getting better all the time. She takes me on the most BORING walks, though. So far, she can only do it just up and down our street. I'm very good, though, and I don't pull on the leash, and don't do anything bad. But I have to say that our street isn't really very interesting. I like it best when we go to the dog park. I know it's supposed to make her better to walk, so I put up with the boring walks.

For the last week, all three cats have been trying to sleep with Mama Sandra in the little bitty bed. She says there isn't enough room there. As big as Tamurlain is, I can believe it. They took that little bed away yesterday, though, and so she's back in her big bed.

Chasing Gophers

This entry is very late because Mama Sandra usually helps me type, and she had to spend time away at a place called the hospital, and when she came home, she slept all the time.

But the exciting part is that when Mama Sandra was in the hospital place, *I* got to stay at Moondoggy Ranch for days. And they have gophers there.

Mama Sandra arranged it all. She was going to the hospital place on Thursday morning, and so she took me to Moondoggy on Wednesday morning and I stayed until Sunday when Mama Mary picked me up. Andrea who is in charge at Moondoggy was going to let me sleep in her room because I am shy, but I wanted to sleep in the bunkhouse with the other dogs, so that's where I stayed. And every day, I tried to dig up the gophers in the field. I ran and dug the entire time I was there. It was great. This is the most fun place!!! Mama Mary is right, I hardly wanted to come home, and I just was wore out. That place keeps you busy.

I have a scratch on my nose from the gopher digging. You should see the ones that got away. I almost had them several times!!

There is a field mouse in our yard, and it's interesting to try to dig him out, but gophers are much more fun.