Delayed Picnic

We planned a picnic for my mother this week - she loves picnics on my deck.  I suggested that she make arrangement with Metro Mobility to bring her here and I would take her home. Normally I pick her up, but there's no way to get out to her place and back during rush hour in a reasonable amount of time, since I work until 4:30.  She made arrangements to be picked up at 3:45, and just about the time I was expecting her, about 4:30, she called to say she had not been picked up yet.  Oops,  When she called in was assured the driver would be there by 4:45.  He was, so we figured all was well.  Mom called about 5:15 to tell me the driver was dropping off someone else first, and later to tell me that they were somewhere in Minneapolis.  I live in St. Paul.  At 6:15 they were on James Street in Minneapolis.  I live on James Avenue in St. Paul!  FINALLY, at 6:40 they arrived, poor mom having been in the backseat of the car for two hours.

Hard to know if the problem was with the person who originally took the reservation, or a driver who did not know the Twin Cities.  The driver was very apologetic, but still had OTHER people to pick up after he dropped mom off - wonder how long THEY had been waiting?

While services like Metro Mobility are certainly invaluable to seniors, they obviously are not withoutglitches.  I'd like to file a complaint, but I don't know where the blame should be placed, and my mother has used the service for medical appointments and never had a problem other than some reasonably long waits.  This was not reasonable, but she did arrive safely.

Burgers on the grill, grandma's potato salad, spinach salad, fresh pineapple and beer cheered us all up, and Letty enjoyed the company as well.

My Puppy Is A Brat

If I were one of the older Dals, I would pin Letty to the floor, grab her head in my mouth and threaten her with dire consequences.  Unfortunately, everyone is still putting up with her obnoxious behavior.  Shouldn't be too much longer before Argus, Watson & Coral lose their tempers, grab her, slime her and make her scream.  Poor Josie, who believes in permissive puppy raising, will patiently tolerate Letty leaping at her face, biting her ears, pinching her paws and grabbing her by the tail.  She'll cry out for help, but won't discipline the pup, and may in fact step in between Letty and any adult who want to teach her a lesson.  If the late "Uncle Sid" were still with us, Letty would already have started to learn what a growled warning means, and what happens if you don't pay attention.

She's rolling on the floor with Argus right now and he is endlessly patient.  Watson plays with her too, but gets tired of her shenanigans a lot more quickly.  Although she goes out to the dog yard with the others now, and LOVES being outside, she also has the run of the "people yard" so she can do laps.  I've been working outdoors when I get home from the office, assisted by Letty who loves racing around, dragging things including plant clippings, bits of fencing, sticks, and my pruning shears.

Housetraining is going well, as long as Ron & I are paying attention.  She'll always pee when taken outdoors, but occasionally slips up and pees on the rug if we are not watching.  Hurls herself at the door when she needs to poop, so the concept is there, just not total control.  She's good in a crate, fine in the car, and has become a toy fanatic like her housemates.  Reebok was not much into toys, but Argus & Josie, and even 13 year old Coral and 11 year old Watson still play with toys from time to time.

Puppy training starts on the 20th, but we're working a bit at home every evening on stacking, baiting, sits, downs and stays, as well as walking on lead.  She's smart and willing and loves the attention of course.  Still carries her tail higher than I would like, but looks terrific otherwise.  But what a brat!

New Computer ,No Time, 'Nuff Said!

Eric gets things up and running while Lisa keeps him company.

Eric installed my new computer last night.  He designed & assembled it for me, plus moved everything I needed off the old one and got the Internet connection going as well.  Saved me SO MUCH time and aggravation.  I've always purchased "package deals" from big box stores, so having one built for me was a new experience!

Everything seems to be running well, and it suuuurre is faster.  Now I have no excuse for not blogging - except that I will be playing with all the bells and whistles, and trying to find my way around.

Gone To The Dogs

A busy, doggy weekend.  Left Friday after work for Ohio for a quick trip to see Nati's pups.  Nati is a sister to Chs. Bennett, Rita, Sam, & Can. Ch. Lucy, and this was her first litter.  This picture only shows the three black pups and one of the livers, but there were actually NINE pups, although one spent the weekend at the emergency clinic because she had a freak accident during BAER testing.   We stopped down to see her Saturday afternoon, and she went home Sunday afternoon after my departure, so my litter pictures don't show her, and she's a beauty.

Nine bilateral hearing pups, no blue eyes, no patches.  Nice numbers indeed!  We spent Saturday evaluating puppies, taking puppy pictures and talking dogs.  Ann's family bred and showed Dals when she was a teenager, and when she decided to get back into the hobby she contacted a longtime Dal person who she remembered from back then.  Carol put her in touch with me, and the rest is history.  Delighted that Nati finished her Grand Championship handled by Ann, and then produced such a lovely litter for her.  Several nice show potential boys and a some absolutely stunning girls.  Could easily have brought a brown girl home - good thing they were too young!

Ann lives in the town she grew up in, in a 200 year old farmhouse that her family has owned for generations.  We had a lovely Italian meal sitting at the bar in a local restaurant, and the people on the next stools recognized her from church, although they had never met before.  Interesting people, and we had a very nice time, along with an excellent meal - except for the chocolate chips in the Tiramisu!   Whose idea was that, I wonder?

My flight was an adventure, starting with a serious pat down at the Minnesota airport - heightened security, or just chance?  The TSA people were all very nice, so it was no big deal.  Return flight left late, and when we were almost to Minnesota I could feel us doing a big U-turn and the Captain came on an announced that due to engine problems we were being rerouted to Madison.  Ron was tracking the flight on the computer and thought we were closer to MSP than Madison, but who knows the reasoning behind the decision.

We were met by fire trucks, and three guys dressed in HazMat suits and looking like space creatures.  They came up with sensors and checked the engine on my side of the plane (for temperature? was it overheating?).   There was only one later flight to Minnesota scheduled for Sunday, and there were no rental cars available, so our options were few.  Fix the plane, take a shuttle bus to Minnesota or wait and fly out on Monday - if there were seats available.  Ugh.  The mechanic took over an hour to arrive, and we all wondered around the airport or sat in the bars.  A lunch voucher for $6.00 does not even buy a sandwich at airport prices. Three hours later it was announced that things were fixed, and we were soon back in the air and on the way home.

I hate flying.  Never scares me as I figure if we crash, we die, and that's that.  Just hate all the waiting around, the lines and how long it takes to get anything done.  I don't resent the security procedures, since the reason for them is valid, but I do hate how long we often have to wait to endure them.  At least the Cincy airport was practically empty on Sunday morning and things went quickly.

The puppy pictures are on a flash drive so hopefully I can get the new computer figured out quickly and put up a page of puppy pictures.  Eric assures me that he will arrive with the new computer tonight.  We'll see.

Preparations

Why does it take so long for me to prepare to leave town for two days?  Lack of practice?  For three years I was often gone for 2 - 3 weekends a month.  After sitting home since May it seems to require an amazing amount of effort to prepare for a quick trip to Ohio.  And I'm flying, taking no dogs.  Guess I am out of practice.  Hopefully I will have less trouble getting ready for 3 days in Kansas City next month!

I always make a list for Ron, what to feed the dogs, supplements if any, and what needs to be done with the fish.  The fish will all be fine for a couple of days as there are no new babies right now, BUT the Marmorkrebs will need feeding, especially the hundreds of new babies.

Marmorkrebs are self-cloning crayfish, not a natural species apparently, but something that turned up in the pet trade in Germany.  Lots of unanswered questions about their heritage, but they're here to stay.  I had received 6 youngsters when I purchased fish last summer, but had no idea they were old enough to produce offspring until I discovered some in a tank - tiny miniature crayfish.  Once I started looking I discovered that one of the other females (they are all females) had hundreds of tiny babies attached to her abdomen.  Oh my!  So algae wafers will need to be dispensed to the 5 tanks that have crayfish inhabitants.

Had to remember to charge everything, including cell phone, camera battery, Nook reader, and iPOD.  How did I survive without them?  Computer, iTunes and iPOD were not communicating last night so I could not download a book I purchased for the trip.  I'll solve that issue next week, I guess.  Technology can drive you nuts!

Laundry done, things ready to pack, but decided that I need a new carry on as mine might not measure in - as happened to Jess coming back from Westminster.  The size is correct but the wheels make it too long.  Drat.  Let's see, I can pick one up on my way home from work.  Assuming I remember.  Add it to the list.  Because I am used to having a mini van and quite a bit of room, I have trouble packing a small suitcase.  Now I can learn to pack an even smaller one.

See ya.  I promise to take pictures of Nati's pups, Argus's grandpups.

Out Of Time

Spent my free time fighting with my computer this morning.  Good news is that the new one is supposed to arrive with Eric next Monday.  Could have gotten it Friday, but I'll be on my way to Cincinnati to see Nati's pups!

Letty has a new toy and not even Josie can steal it from her.  Think I may have to remove the squeaker to keep my sanity! 

Rare Golden Dalmatians?

Still no computer and no word from my nephew.  Would be nice if he'd let me know what's happening here.  Guess I should have stuck to my original plan and bought my computer at Best Buy.  Oh well, this one is still clunking along.  Hopefully it holds out a bit longer.

Off to Ohio this weekend, a quick down and back to visit "Nati" and her pups.  Really looking forward to seeing them, and spending a bit of time with Ann & Dave.  Anyone still looking for a puppy?  Nati has 9 of them and I understand a couple may still be available.  Let me know what you're looking for and I'll keep you in mind when I evaluate the babies.  Two black parents, but lots of livers and a few blacks.

Speaking of color, here's an interesting one.  I have a number of pictures of Bailey on my computer.  She's a liver-nosed lemon - nope that's not light liver spotting, that's lemon.  Or perhaps it's orange, but we normally refer to all of these dogs as lemons, with either black or liver noses.  Some lemons are a rich deep shade of orange, sort of a pumpkin color, while others are so pale you can barely see their spots.   Bailey has interesting two-tone spots with a darker edge and a lighter center.  Very unusual.

Lemons are much more common than tris and long-coats, but most show lines do not produce them.  An English dog who produced lemons came to the US about 30 years ago and lemons were more common in show lines for awhile, and we saw quite a few of them during the popularity boom in the 80s as some of the commercial breeders were coming up with them.   Again, this is not an exceptable color for the show ring, but some people really like them.  There's a simple cheek swab DNA test available that can be used to see if a dog carries the genes that produce lemon.

Years ago we saw an ad in the classifieds for "Rare Golden Dalmatians".  Now that's marketing!

Doodling

My new computer did not arrive yesterday. . .  I'm so disappointed, but Eric is sick, and everything is on hold.  Hopefully this one holds up just a bit longer, but it's getting increasingly hard to boot up in the morning.  It's normally left on most of the time, but has taken to shutting itself down at night.

Like most people these days, my pictures are on my computer and never get printed, but what a treasure trove!  I've been looking through the ones that were on my previous computer that crashed.  I had them switched over to this computer by the Geek Squad, but have not gone through them in years.  Forgot all about some of them - like this tattooed fellow!

The pictures also include quite a few long coated, odd colored and interestingly patched dogs, pictures sent to me by people who know my interest in such things or found the color pages on my website.  I'll start using them in my blogs.

This handsome fellow is a real tri-colored Dalmatian.  A tri is not black and liver spots on the same dog, but rather  black & tan or liver & tan spots in the same areas they would show up on a black & tan non-spotted breed like a Doberman.  Note the tan spots on his cheeks and lower legs.  This is not common in Dalmatians, and is not an accepted color, but well marked tris are very handsome dogs!

Is It Monday Already?

What a fun weekend, and lovely fall weather too.  This is the best time of the year with cool nights and brisk sunny days.  Wish it could last forever, but will settle for a couple of months before winter attacks.

Laurie arrived on Saturday to spend the weekend, just as Jess arrived with the Cruise/Penny pups on their way back from BAER testing.  We got some lovely pictures of the pups, especially Amery who will go home with Laurie and come back in the spring to be shown if she is ready then.  Really like the boy Ellsworth too, who will be a fine mover and has a particularly appealing personality. 

Letty went home with Jess for an overnight, so she could meet the German Shepherd girls Simmie and Pepper who are very good with puppies.  Being the snooty sort she was NOT impressed with being thrown in with her little nieces and nephews.  She met Jess's puppy visitors, was thrilled to see Don again (what a memory she has for friends), and spent some time in the indoor/outdoor run.  Meeting the Shepherds and Penny was very good for her.  We call it Puppy Camping, and need to make arrangement for her to stay with friends in the near future.  Camping makes a dog more adaptable and self confident, and makes it easier for them to accept any future changes.

Dinner with mom on Saturday at her favorite Olive Garden.  We went early and didn't have to wait quite as long as we usually do.  Nice meal and lots of laughs, and a particularly good drink called an Italian Margarita - highly recommended!

Laurie and I took Argus to the Dog Park on Sunday morning and he had such a good time with his friends.  Totally blew us off though, other than checking in from time to time.  Think we need to work on our recalls!  Am so glad I found this place, and have thoroughly enjoyed watching the dogs interact.  Lots of sporting breeds yesterday, so lots of hard running which pleases Argus.  Breakfast at White Castle on the way home.

Later we went to visit Jess & Don, enjoy the dogs, and retrieve Letty, but also to collect on my Mother's Day Gift.  Wine tasting and excellent appetizers at a nice little restaurant in St. Croix Falls.  Again, lots of laughter and a good time had by all.  The leaves were just beginning to color - it's going to be gorgeous in another week or two.  "They" say we will have excellent fall color.

Such a fun weekend!  Thanks Ron, Laurie, Jess & Don, mom and assorted dogs.  I had a great time. 

Weekends are too short, but really looking forward to my new computer arriving tonight.  I spent some time going through all the old photos and documents on my computer and found some great stuff for this blog.  Stay tuned!

New Computer Soon

My new computer should arrive on Monday and in preparation for the changeover I've been going through all the junk that's accumulated on the current computer.  Thousands of email addresses!  Who are these people, and how many of these addresses are actually still valid?  Just amazing how large my address book is/was, and how many multiple addresses I have.  How do I know which address to use?  I deleted hundreds (thousands?) of addresses and it still needs more pruning.

Because I want to move my Word documents to my new computer, I went through those too.  Why did I save some of this stuff?  Why did I even write it?  What did I use it for?  Turns out that over half of the documents are Ron's but at least his are prefaced with his name so easily identifiable.   Hopefully he'll go through his documents tonight.

And my emails, oh my.  Why did I save some of these things?  Just amazing.  I deleted many of the folders and their contents, but still have to go through those containing emails, articles and information about stoneformers, LUA issues, deafness and allergies.  There's some good stuff in those folders, but mixed in with a lot of trash.

Because I rarely print pictures, my computer hosts thousands of pictures.  Show photos, pictures I've taken, pictures that have been sent to me, and pictures that I have found and saved.  They are all backed up on my little Click Free, so I can find them if I need them, but I might as well just have the ones on this computer moved over to the new one.  Or not?  Maybe I should start fresh, but I often use pictures for this blog or for Facebook, and it's nice having them handy.

My understanding of what can be moved and what needs to be re-installed is sketchy, so I'll let Eric advise me on those issues. Willmaker, iTunes, Audible downloads, things like that.

OK, enough of this.  I finished this blog, selected Publish Post, and the screen went blank.  Blogspot had not saved the whole thing, but at least part of it was available as a draft.  Do I blame Blogspot or my computer?  Or both?

Time to go feed dogs.





Eric was loading the software including Windows 7 last night and will be bringing the computer over on Monday night. I'm really looking forward to the 23 inch monitor too. I have dual 23 inchers at work, and this one seems so primitive - even though when I purchased this flat screen monitor it seemed very "state of the art". But that was 4 1/2 years ago and things have changed so much!

Fussing About Facebook

Much of the evening was spent cursing the changes that just showed up on Facebook.  Facebook Junkies really hate changes, fuss and fume whenever they happen, and threaten to leave.  They don't of course, being hooked on Facebook.  These changes are pretty significant, but I'm sure we'll adjust.  Grudgingly, of course.  In the meantime, creativity was out in full force!

Pups Are Such Fun

Missed my blogging yesterday, but the computer is being so difficult that sometimes it's just not worth the fight.  It's a 4 1/2 year old Gateway and has given me good service, but is coming to the end of its usable life, I suspect.  All my stuff if backed up in case of a crash, but the biggest problem right now is when it shuts itself off and is almost impossible to turn it back on.

Letty is doing very well as an only pup.  She's moved to a crate in the kitchen and we'll take down the puppy pen this weekend.  She's been in the pen at night up until last night, but moved upstairs for the whole night and did just fine, no fussing at all.  House training is going extremely well, with only a couple of accidents, and those were our fault because someone was not paying attention.  She's very good about doing her business outdoors, and it catching on to using the dog yard rather than the lawn.

Jess will be driving the Crupens (Cruise/Penny pups) down for BAER testing on Saturday, then stop by so we can do another set of puppy pictures.   Letty will enjoy having someone her own size to play with, although she's doing well with Argus and Josie.

Another adventure coming up on Sunday when Letty goes along to Jess and Don's and stays in the outdoor run with her little cousins while we go for lunch and wine tasting.  It will be good for her to be a dog for a few hours, and I want her to meet the Shepherds as she has very little experience with other breeds and is pretty intimidated.  The Shepherd girls have been very good with Jess's pups, so they'll be perfect for introducing Letty to strange dogs - or wolves!

Pups are such fun!
 

And Then There Was One

Lucas left for his new home on Saturday, and Letty became an only child.  She's managed it well and I'm trying to find the right balance between enjoying her and spoiling her!  Not always easy, as she is so incredibly cute I am often tempted to pick her up and carry her around!

Training is going well, and she understands that "hurry, hurry" means she should pee outside.  Now, if she would only do it in the dog yard rather than holding out for grass.  Only one accident, and that was my fault for not paying attention.  Now, to work on the rest of it.  Ron is pretty good at house training and he does the "day shift", so as long as he remembers to watch her we should continue to make good progress.

I wish Letty was a bit more outgoing with strangers.  It sometimes takes her awhile to warm up to new people, although once she is comfortable she remembers her "friends".  She really doesn't care to be handled by people she doesn't know, but because she is so incredibly cute everyone wants to pick her up and hold her.  Most of our pups love everyone, so this is a new experience for me, and I have to remember to work on it.  Letty needs to go to "camp" soon, to stay with friends for a few days to break some of the dependency she has on me.  We also need to work on meeting new dogs.  Time to check out a Puppy Kindergarten for her, a "nursery school" for puppies.

Training is going well and Letty quickly caught on to "Sit", "Down", "Come". "Watch" and "Stand".  Amazing how fast pups pick things up at this age.    It just takes a few minutes at a time, but of course I have to either crate the adults, or take her outdoors by herself, as everyone wants to share in the training treats!

Growing Up In Pieces

The Arboks & I met up with Rosie & Weather last night.  Interesting to see how the pups are developing, each following a different pattern.  Letty is still pretty much together, still moving quite well, and her tail is looking somewhat better.  Lucas is starting to look like a string bean but still moves pretty well, a bit loose-jointed but not bad.  Weather has grown the most and is lovely to look at but her beautiful gait is gone for now as she has started developing in pieces and her proportions are off. 

Argus at 4 months

It's interesting to watch pups develop, each of them a bit differently.  We always joke that once you make your selection, it's better not to to re-evaluate the pup again for quite awhile, as most pups go through some ugly stages.  Best to just enjoy and train the pup, and hope that eventually the pieces will fit together again!

Argus was a rubber band as a youngster, no body, no chest, as rubbery as can be.  But cute!  Watson grew up all in "one piece" and always looked good, but that's the exception.  As Letty goes through her growing stages, I will have to remind myself to admire the cute, and not worry too much about the finer points!

Lucas goes off tomorrow to his new home.  Rather than going to Jessica, as Don wants to keep one of the Crupens, he'll be placed locally and we will keep show rights.  Lucas is a handsome pup, happy and sweet, and will be fun to show, and we know that Eloise and her family will do a great job of raising him to be a good citizen.  He will be their 3rd Paisley boy.  We'll take a look at Lucas occasionally to see how he's coming along, but mostly just let him enjoy his puppyhood as a well-raised pet.  When he's ready to show, we'll borrow him back on weekends.

Now it will be MY job to keep Miss Letty entertained, and house-training begins seriously tomorrow as she moves to a crate in the kitchen.  I'll make the pen much smaller, but leave it up for awhile so if I am going to be gone for more than half a day she can be in her pen rather than in a crate.

Next Comes Winter

Frost on the deck rails, already! Ugh.  Unfortunately the forecast was correct and it did indeed freeze last night.  It's 34 degrees now, so it must have been light.  Hopefully the uncovered plants survived here, but outside the heat island of the Twin Cities the veggie farms will have suffered severe casualties.  My daughter says it's 28 degrees in Osceola.  Hope this does not hurt the apples, as many varieties are just now ripening and coming to market.   What a strange year we have had weather wise.

A batch of Stuffed Peppers was a good excuse to use the oven last night and warm up the kitchen!   Last week I found a recipe that was easy and delicious.  This week I modified the recipe to make the peppers a bit healthier, substituting brown rice for white, ground turkey for beef, and low fat cheese for regular, plus I cooked the peppers first to make them more tender.  Turkey, peppers, rice, black beans, Ro-Tel and cheese make this a fast and easy recipe to put together.

Time for the Arboks to go outside.   They will not be impressed.  Lucas leaves for his new home on Saturday morning, and Letty will be an only puppy.   Can't wait!  Lucas is a doll, but it will be nice to be able to concentrate on Letty who is so clever and eager to learn.  Best that I teach her good behavior before she figures out the bad stuff on her own!

Freeze Warning? Now?

Turn on the treadmill!

Two nights ago I taught Letty and Lucas to run on the treadmill, not for exercise but for learning a new skill.  Pups are so smart at this age and catch on so quickly.  I should be teaching sit, down, and stay, but this kind of stuff is so much more entertaining!  Whenever they are loose in the basement now, the Arboks head for the treadmill, just in case I might want to turn it on and ply them with cookies.

Time for a second vaccination too.  Has it really been a month since the first one?  One more thing on my list.  Am meeting up with Rosie on Thursday so hopefully we can get current pictures of Weather.  Am anxious to see her again. 

Dog shows this weekend, but I just can't get excited about them.  Only Argus entered and he really doesn't need to go.  He'd enjoy it of course, but he'd also enjoy going to the Dog Park instead of a dog show.  

Hard freeze warning for tonight, so it's time to bring in the houseplants and cover some of the yard plants.  If it were later in the fall I'd leave them uncovered, but some of the perennials and blooming nicely right now and I hate to lose them this early.  The 40 year old Christmas Cactus and Jade Plant will go back out after this cold snap, and this weather will insure that the former sets buds and will flower well again this year.

When I think of all the tomatoes and peppers and all the other produce not quite ripe or ready to sell, I worry about all the people whose livelihood depends on vegetable sales at the various Farmer's Markets.  What a weird year weather-wise!

Puppy Sunday

15 more minutes of outdoor time for the Arboks, then Argus and I will head off to the dog park for a good run, then on to White Castle for breakfast.  Love our Sunday routine and Argus seems to know when it's Sunday.

A most productive Saturday with lots of cleaning, rug washing, and puppy socialization.  Because Letty is not particularly outgoing, very brave about situations but not very interested in people, I'll put extra work into her as a pup.  This is not a personality type I am used to working with, and one that I have not seen before in Argus kids (who normally love everyone), although Virgil/Herbie is very similar.  Letty definitely has a mind of her own, and her life plan does not seem to include fawning over strangers the way most of my dogs do.  She'll say Hi and accept treats, but does not climb up their bodies and cover them with kisses.

Yesterday she went to a new pet store and did well, was fine about being petted, and fearless as she stalked through the store checking out the merchandise.  A small furry dog barked and her and she did not back down or panic as she had when a HUGE furry Goodedoodle loomed over her the previous week.  Need to find some small friendly dogs for her to interact with.  Where can I borrow a Cavalier?

Today is Lucas's day to go out.  He's a soft, sweet, squishy boy who loves everyone and acts just like his dad, assuming that everyone wants to meet and admire him.

Later Jess and Laurie will bring the Crupens (Cruise/Penny) pups over so we can take pictures - a bit early, but it will be good socialization for them.  Later Laurie and I will head off to Sea Salt for an awesome fish dinner. 

Ron is fine, will be back in a few days.  Coral misses him and wonders where he is.  She's his special dog and she expects to spend her evenings sitting on the sofa beside him.  I've made sure the oldsters get their daily walks, but I know they will be relieved when Ron shows up.  Me, I've had a nice vacation of sorts.  Some My Time, or maybe it's Me & The Dogs Time.  I needed that!

Time Out

My house is so quiet, just me and the dogs.  Well, THEY are not always quiet, but you know what I mean.  Had been hoping the pups would continue to sleep until 7:00 AM, but they've moved that back to 6:30 and you can bet they will opt for a 6:00 wake up call tomorrow, Saturday.  Because they still sleep in a pen in the basement I'm not yet a puppy doorman, but that will change in another week.  Time to get serious about housetraining pretty soon.  Wonder how many puppies I have trained over the years?

After a difficult winter, a stressful spring, and an irritating summer, I decided that Ron and I needed a break.  He has a condo, but spends most of his time here.  An ever increasing amount of time.  Have always suspected that was because of the dogs, not because of me, but that's OK too.  It worked fine when I was off to dog shows every weekend, but with Argus retired and me home so much more it became way too much.  I found myself angry all the time, needing some space, some My Time.

Two days later I am so much more relaxed, sleeping better, enjoying my house and yard.  I can eat what I want and when I want - sauteed zucchini at 6:00 PM, ham salad on toast at 8:00 PM, whenever the mood strikes me.  A weekend to myself, with just my spotted friends for company sounds wonderful.  Laurie will be back Sunday afternoon and after taking puppy pictures of Jess's litter, we can go to Sea Salt for dinner, which will be fun.

Hopefully this is just a temporary situation, but it was exactly what I needed.  With all the stress at work, I do not need it at home too.  Life is so full of changes . . . 

Dog Birthdays



Which toy should we play with?


Argus seemed to enjoy his birthday! He went along when I picked up Laurie at the train station.  She had to catch a later flight, but everything fell into place, and she caught the light rail to the station closest to my house.  Handy!  Although we went out for burgers without Argus, we did bring home an Angus Deluxe for him to share with his housemates.   Everyone approved.  A trip to PetCo resulted in two new toys, although the one that quacks may drive me crazy before the dogs destroy it.

Why is it that we celebrate dog birthdays?  Is it for the dogs or for us?  Fun for all!

Laurie will spend the morning at the house which the dogs will enjoy, and Jess will pick her up later.  Laurie gets to spend the weekend at Jess & Don's, playing with Penny and the pups while Jess and Don go camping.  Jess and Laurie will be back here on Sunday afternoon so we can take puppy pictures of the Crupens (Cruise/Penny pups), then Laurie and I hope to go to Sea Salt on Sunday evening. Looking forward to seeing the Crupens again.  Busy weekend for all.  Wish I did not have to go to work this morning.

Happy Birthday, Buddy!

It's Argus's Birthday and he's 6 years old today!  How can that be?  Seems like only yesterday he arrived from California, a happy-go-lucky, flop-eared puppy.  What adventures we've had!

Before Argus, I'd lost interest in dog shows. I started showing dogs as a teenager, finished my first champion in 1968, bred many homebred champions, campaigned several successful specials, and was suffering burnout.  Time to get out of showing dogs and just keep a few Dals as pets.

But I missed my show friends and went to the National just to socialize.  Then I saw "Marlin" - what an absolutely lovely dog, and he went back to and resembled my beloved Rob.  A Marlin pup would be nice!  And I saw "Olivia" for the first time, getting an AoM from the Veteran's Class.  She went back to "Jocko" and other Paisley dogs.  I had judged and given majors to a number of her littermates, and absolutely loved her, so I asked my friend Carrie Jordan if Olivia would be bred again.  And when she was bred to Marlin I reserved a puppy.  It was to be a puppy bitch, but I really prefer brownie boys, and Argus eventually came to Minnesota.  And I went back to showing dogs never realizing how much Argus and I would be able to accomplish.  Thanks Argus!

Tonight we'll do burgers on the grill, one for each of the dogs, with ice cream for dessert, and then we'll go down to PetCo so Argus can pick out a new toy. Ever a puppy, he still enjoys his toys.  Later he can go along to the airport when we collect one of his favorite friends, Laurie who will be going to Jess's to visit Penny and her puppies.

No Time

Poor time management skills this morning.  No time to blog and I really need to write to get my mind in order as it is going to be a very busy week with the Arbok's to deal with, Laurie staying for a day or two, so much going on at work, and Ron with a nasty bug that won't go away but leaves him mopey and useless.

Why the heck won't Ron go to a doctor?  Time for a major showdown here, yet again.  I dread these confrontations but it's the only way things actually get done. He's a good guy but SO stubborn and I have run out of patience with this kind of behavior.  He has good health coverage and needs to use it.

Lots of time spent with the Arboks this weekend, taking them for individual visits to local pet stores and for individual walks.  Tried an excellent recipe for stuffed peppers - came home from the Farmers Market with so much good stuff, made a batch of veggie mix for the dogs, and the peppers for us.  Excellent!  Got the basement put back together and spent some time doing fish chores.  Took Argus to the dog park, went to the fair, took Gram out for burgers and beer and Groveland Tap, and even did a bit of house cleaning.

Now, back to work.  Laurie is coming for a few days, and I will see Penny's pups this weekend.  Need to think of things to do with the Arboks, but Laurie can put some time into them too, which will be good.

No time for proofing.  Hope the grammar is OK!  Arbok pictures tomorrow.

Good Links

Think I'll start adding links -

Dalmatian Club Of America

The Whole Dog Journal

Farewell To Virgil Arbok



Virgil and Letty

Virgil leaves for his new home tonight.  He'll be living with a couple of adult dogs, a Dal girl & a Weim girl.  He's a very handsome fellow with a mind of his own.  He's not the lap sitting sort, but is friendly and brave - and a bit stubborn.  Fortunately he's a chow hound too and will do almost anything for food!

This weekend I will make the puppy pen smaller and dig out a couple of puppy crates as it's time for Letty & Lucas to eat in dog crates rather than from a communal bowl.  I'll wait a bit longer before I start crating them at night, since that would probably mean getting up with them at night and I'm not ready to do that yet!  By ten weeks they'll be sleeping in separate crates. 

Lots to be done with them this weekend too.  Separate car trips with visits to Petco or Chuck & Don's.  Leash walks through the neighborhood.  Finding some kids for them to interact with.  We'll also work on restraint exercises and begin teaching sit and down. They both know their names, and respond quickly to the high pitched "puppy puppy" call I use when I feed them, so we will also start working on recalls.

The adult Dals have been very good with the pups, so the pups will get more free time in the family room.  Josie sometimes get a bit boisterous and the pups dive under the dog bed to avoid her dancing feet, but for the most part it works just fine.   It's too hard to work on house training three, but Lucas & Letty will start learning house manners this weekend, since I can easily tuck one pup under each arm.  At least for now!  They're growing fast though!

No Blogging Today

Yesterday was immensely stressful.  No time or energy for blogging.  Hopefully the day goes better than yesterday did.

Fun With Puppies

Playing submissive for dad

An absolutely miserable day at the office, late getting out of work, and then caught up in rush hour traffic when I finally did hit the road.  Came home to Ron sneezing and coughing with another cold or allergies (it's hay fever season with the ragweed in all it's glory), a hairy house that did not get vacuumed or dusted last weekend, and a yard that needs mowing . . .

BUT, my puppies were glad to see me and are looking so good right now.  Love the personalities on both Lucas & Letty, and they are so CUTE.  Sent off an email to Robin to be sure she is coming for Virgil this weekend, as I'm looking forward to having fun with just my two pups.   And a three-day weekend!

Because Lucas will be staying with us until Jess's pups are placed, I need to start working with both Lucas and Letty.  Time to dig out a couple of small crates and start crate training, house training and all the fun stuff that goes with pups.  We're going for short leash walks every evening, and stacking a couple of times.  Started teaching the sit-for-a-cookie, but Letty is not particularly interested in treats.  Virgil however was delighted to learn that.

The pups are doing really well on their raw diet, but will get a couple of kibble meals this week.  I bought a bag of Pro Plan Selects Turkey & Barley and have some soaking in the refrigerator. Kibble must always be fed soaked and with lots of water when it's given to Dal puppies.  Am sure they will like it just fine, although clean up will not be nearly as neat and tidy as it is with raw-fed pups.

Finally got the paperwork off to AKC, using the "whole litter option", registering each puppy with it's name and owners.  AKC has a cash flow problem and one of the reasons is that people don't bother to send in their individual registration apps.  When the breeder registers a litter, each pup gets an application for individual registration, but many people don't bother to send them in.  The whole litter option insures that each pup is registered.  Lucas is now Paisley Choco Chip Ready For Broadway, a combination of both parents names.  Am pleased with the names for both Letty and Lucas, although they will always be Letty Arbok & Lucas Arbok to me!