Hey everybody! Squirmy don’t-pee-on-the- pumpkin Wormy here on a super Saturday! And it’s the day before Halloween! Yee haw. The Warden bought enough treats for at least 50 kids. Our average is 6. In a good year. So you can guess what happens with the rest. She’s already been sampling stuff – she said to make sure it’s “fresh”. She sure has sampled a large pool. I almost started wondering if she was going to have to go back to the store to buy more.

This is just my second year experiencing the whole Halloween dress up phenomenon. Well. We don’t really wear full costumes. The Warden knows she can only push the dress up thing so much. So it’s generally limited to some neck wear and the dreaded head gear. She starts taking photos in like August. Just joking. Sort of. Anyway, she starts with individual shots and some of the best results of those are seen above.

Now you’ll note there was no head gear in that round. I had a number of acceptable images, and of course, the Boss also did. But then there is the Coyote. Remember, this is without head gear. This is JUST with a little garland around his neck. And THIS is what she had to deal with…

Boredom…

Indignancy…

Disdain…

She finally got the shot you see above and she quit. She didn’t even TRY to get his ears up. He was NOT in a modeling mood. He’s temperamental when it comes to photography.

Several days later, she attempted individual shots with head gear. Personally, I’m not sure what the head gear was. I guess little pumpkins? I’m not quite sure why anyone would wear pumpkins on their head – but you only get so many choices at the Dollar store. It was that or angel halos. Clearly that would not have been appropriate.

Here’s my serious pumpkin head shot. I look like I was told there would be no treats…Those pumpkins look like another set of ears…

Here’s my happy pumpkin head shot…

The Boss always looks happy. No matter what he is wearing…although personally, I think his hair is a mess…

And then we have the Coyote….first the mug shot version…

Then the look that says “I am going to pee in your slippers”…“get me the number for Animal Control”…

At one point he went down and refused to get up….

But THEN… miracle of miracles (actually he just conceded defeat) and he gave her this charmer. Not bad! Although the caption would not exactly be “Happy Go Lucky.” More like, “Looking for new home….”

So with the individual shots finished, the next round is the group shot…

This was a good one…

And this was pretty cute…

This wasn’t tragic…

But then… out came the head gear. Note the response by the Coyote…

Here the Coyote agrees to look at the camera, but he has no ears. And really, could he look any more sad?

In this one, we thought the Warden dropped a treat…

I was SURE there was a treat under those leaves…Note the Boss has gone back into character…

I DID find…something…

Here the Coyote is praying “if I close my eyes, maybe this nightmare will all disappear”…

Then the Coyote and I hear something. Or we pretend to. And the Boss has a wardrobe malfunction…

And FINALLY we got THIS one…

I believe it was at this point that the Warden started jumping up and down, blowing the assorted whistles she had hanging around her neck to get our attention, and she ran over doling out dozens of treats. She quickly plucked the offensive head gear from the Coyote’s head, at which point he joyfully jumped up; I shook off my head gear and proceeded to rip off the pumpkins from the head band, and the Boss just stayed there smiling, waiting for more treats.

Needless to say, we don’t dress up when the 6 kids who are brave enough to come down the driveway, arrive for their treats….

Happy Halloween!!! Canines – stay away from the chocolate. And big two-leggeds- be sure to save some for the kids.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy get-back-here Wormy today. Here for your dose of better her than me.

Yesterday we had kind of a rainy blustery day – which meant short walks. The Warden complained that it was miserable out – and we all agreed, so we all did our business pretty promptly. Especially the Boss. We KNOW how much he loves the rain. Not.

The day before that, the Warden announced that she was going to do the final mow of the year. The objective was to mow until the mower ran out of gas. Which would mean it would be empty for the winter which is apparently a good idea. Don’t ask me why- I don’t know anything about small engines- and frankly neither does she. She probably read it on Facebook, so she does it. She didn’t bother raking the carpet of leaves, because she also read somewhere that mulched leaves are good for your lawn. Or in our case, good for the weeds. Anyway, she decided to do it – in what I think is similar to military landmine operations. Why? Well because it’s that joyful time of the year for playing a game of Where’s Poopy. Like Where’s Wojtek – only the object of the search is not nearly as cute.

You see, the Warden is pretty obsessive about picking up our poop. But let’s face it, sometimes we just go out on our own and deposit a load and she doesn’t see us do it. So typically, before she mows, she runs reconnaissance to find any land mines. But NOW, the lawn is covered, and I mean covered in leaves. So even though she did a walk around, it was pretty useless. I mean it’s the time of year when even if you’re standing right next to your dog while he’s making a deposit, and you turn your head for a minute and take your eyes off the prize, you may have difficulty finding it in all the leaves. Especially in the morning or at sunset, when the light isn’t good. And at night? Why you need a headlamp and you get double the points if you find the prize in the pitch dark.

We had so many leaves on the lawn, it was even clogging up the mower. At one point, the Warden thought she might have hit a land mine because of the telltale aroma. But she kept on going. I mean once you hit a mine, it’s too late to turn back…

After she mowed, she brought out the leaf blower. She was trying to blow all the leaves caught on the fence into the woods. That was entertaining. The problem with all of her efforts was that probably only half the leaves had come down. So that night, and yesterday when we had the blustery conditions, MORE came down. So the yard looks kinda like it did before she did all her work. Sigh. She’ll be at it again.

Today according to the crazy calendar is something called Plush Animal Lovers Day. Except it’s not celebrated in this house. Sure – we love stuffed toys. We just think they look better without the stuffing. The Warden is always in awe of those households where dogs have their very own basket or hamper of plush toys. Even the toys that are “indestructible” don’t have a hope in this house.

Plus did you know there are companies that can make you a plush toy that looks just like your dog? Or cat if you’re so inclined. Here’s one:

https://cuddleclones.com/

The Warden thought the slippers would be cool. But at that price, if one of us got ahold of one – well… there would be no happy feet in this house.

OK. I’m done for today. Time to get this Thursday party started.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Yo. Blog readers. Elroy here for your pleasing reading today. It’s Tuesday. Which means tonight is Her Highness’ least favorite night of the week. Why? Because Wednesday is garbage day. So that means tonight she gets to drag the cans up the driveway to the road. Such drama. Like the Boss when he has to be brushed. She avoids it until she has no other choice. I mean it’s not like one of us is going to do it. Even taking one of us on leash while she drags the cans is a challenge. The little mop tries to herd the can. Walking behind her and getting all tangled up. I RUN as fast as I can – causing her to run with the can – which often causes it to tip. Not a good scene. The Boss is the most civilized. He can actually be off leash in the procession. Unless it’s dark out. Then Her Highness worries about critters – so he has to be tethered. Yup – we each have our own garbage can behavior and our own routines. Which is also true for the newspaper…

Each morning, the paper is delivered to a little box at the end of our driveway. And just like the unique garbage can parade, the paper also has its own unique delivery routine. First off, the “good dog” – the Boss, refuses to carry it. He feels it is beneath him. Sure, he’ll fetch and carry toys-but the paper? Nada. Yours truly is totally unpredictable when comes to the paper. I won’t take it if Her Highness hands it to me. She has to throw it on the ground. Then I race to it, and stare at it like a scientist examining a specimen under a microscope. I just stand and stare. And stare. But if Her Highness tries to pick it up, I grab it. I prance with it for a few feet, toss it in the air and then stare at it when it lands. Typically, I do this three times before Her Highness grabs the paper and says “game over.” She is no fun in the morning. Meanwhile, the Imp looks at her longingly when she removes it from the box. Yet she has still not learned her lesson with him. As SOON as he has it, he drops it and starts tearing at the plastic covering. She has to fight to get it back before her morning news is confetti. Yo. We keep things interesting.

So she and the Imp took another Where’s Wojtek photo yesterday. Actually, that’s not correct. They took SEVERAL photos. People have been asking how they do it. I’m here to reveal the secret…

Her Highness sees a spot where the Imp might be able to hide. She takes him there, bribes him to sit or lie down and then tells him to “stay.” She calls it “functional stay” practice. Then she goes and takes several shots. Sometimes if it’s a good location, she’ll move the Imp to another spot. And she repeats the process – sometimes in several spots.The best part is when she comes home and looks at the photos – and SHE can’t find him. She knows he has to be in the picture – she took it. But she takes so many versions, she really has to search for him. So it’s a game for her too. She says I’m too big to hide. Not to mention the fact that “stay” is not a preferred word in my vocabulary. That’s OK. I’d rather stare at the newspaper.

Well, probably almost time to start wrestling the Imp.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Hey everybody! Squirmy Wormy here. It’s another super Sunday – and I hope you have a great one! I’m here with a quick update about life here in the circus!

So, I had my class on Friday. I was a little nervous, but most people probably wouldn’t even notice. I did a good job with my “stays” – I think all that practice while we do those Where’s Wojtek photos probably help.

After I had my class, the Boss had his Rally Masters Match. Here’s the scoop on that one. They buzzed through that course so quickly, they weren’t even sure if they would have passed or failed. BUT- they both had a blast. The Boss prances around a course and just LOVES doing it. And because he’s so happy and having fun, the Warden has fun too! She’s stressed before they start – but once they get moving, they forget about nerves, and just GO. They may have had a few mistakes, but at 11 years 9 months, the Warden doesn’t care. They may or may not compete in a real trial – they will think about it. For now, they are just having fun – and isn’t that what it’s really all about?

We took some more group Fall photos yesterday. Well – Halloween photos. The Warden broke out the head gear. Stay tuned for the shots in a few days. As is typical, you could put a pineapple on the Boss’ head and he doesn’t care. I’m better with it, but not for long. And the Coyote? Pitiful. Absolutely pitiful. You would not believe the things the Warden has to do to get his ears up. The noises. The acrobatics. The throwing of things. Somebody should take a video of HER. Above is a shot minus head gear. One of the good ones. Of 386 taken…

OK. Time to get this party started.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Hey hey hey blogaroos. Happy fantastic Friday! And it’s not just ANY Friday – it’s back to school Friday. I finished my last term of classes and then we had a little break last week – but we’re back to class today. Since I had my private lesson last week, the Warden has been REALLY consistent in working with me in training. Like the treats don’t come just for being cute. Or entertaining. I actually have to behave. It’s a new world order. Sort of. I mean she thinks she’s training me – but trust me – I’m still in charge. But don’t tell her I said so.

And today, not only do I return to school, but get this – the Boss is in a match tonight. A practice match – like I was in a few weeks ago. But he’s at the Masters level. He’s been doing a bit of training, but really, at the Masters level, there are WAY more opportunities for the Warden to screw up. I mean the old guy generally does what he is told, if he hears the instructions over his barking, but let’s hope the Warden knows what SHE is doing. She’s been studying the signs – and she’s just hoping there are a couple that are not on the course. She’s not good with anything that involves spinning herself. So if there is a spinny sign, they are toast. And they only signed up for one run. So it’s do or die.

Yesterday the Warden spent the morning cleaning the house. Isn’t that funny?! I mean she put all of us outside so she could dust and vacuum. We had the entire back yard to run around in – and it was a beautiful day. But did we play out there very much? Nope. We all put our olfactory art all over the deck door as we stood watching her cleaning. Like inspectors.

She got the dining room all cleaned up – and there was not a speck of anything on the carpet. She shouted through the door that she didn’t want to let us in. Well, she slowly slid open the door, and in we ran, bringing in our latest leaf collection. I said it before – it’s futile.

That’s all the news here. Gotta go pack my treats for school.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Hey blogaroos! It’s Squirmy Wormy here for your mid-week entertainment. I heard that the Boss was talking about me – and I’m here to defend myself. Kinda.

I mean I’m trying. I’m trying not to be trying. Does that make sense? But my little hormonals are going crazy right now and my behavior is totally unpredictable. The Warden noticed I seem to be “worried” when I go out. Like even on the trail we walk every day. My ears sometimes go kinda inside out, so she can tell I’m worried. At other times I’m fine. I also have a case of what Viktor would call namenesia. It’s when you forget your name when your human calls – particularly when you are in the presence of other canines, wildlife, or some super good smelling molecules (probably left by some other dog – or some rotting organic matter). I do come like a flash at mealtime, but right now, I’m not all that consistent in super smelly places like the park where the Warden took me yesterday. The place is closed for the season to vehicles, but people can walk in. We only passed one other person and her dog – but trust me, there were enough smells there to start a canine perfume factory. The Warden let me off leash to practice my recall work – and I DID come. But later, when she decided to give me some freedom, and she let me off my leash, I could literally not lift my nose from the ground. Even when she called. So as you might imagine, my leash was put back on.

I DID manage to do some successful sit-stays for the obligatory photos – including a new Where’s Wojtek shot. So I did behave a bit. As we were returning to our car, a guy came along with a German Shorthaired pointer. Off leash. The Warden had visions of the pointer bolting over to see me – and me going into a Cujo routine. But nope. His human had a Chuck-it toy – and that’s ALL that dog wanted. He didn’t even glance at the shaggy mop who was strangling himself on the leash on the other side of the road. As we walked by, the Warden looked at me and said “See how well that dog behaves? Why can’t you do that?” I looked at her, stopped and peed on another stick. What can I say? I’m in a phase. I bet that dog was just more mature….

In other news, you may have seen the group trio shot taken outdoors. The typical festive pumpkin thing. If you didn’t here it is:

Anyway, while the shot does look good, what you didn’t see, and what was thankfully not captured on camera, was when I refused to sit and jumped off the little bench and scraped one of my….ummm….orbs on a pumpkin stalk. Talk about rotten luck. I guess that’s what happens if you don’t sit and stay. Lesson learned there. That’s why I sat so well during the photos the next day. See. I am trainable.

Almost time to get this house moving. I’m the happy guy in the morning who races around joyfully, welcoming the new day. If you can’t be obedient, be entertaining. That’s my motto…

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Greetings blog readers. Frodo here today for your reading pleasure. I trust you had an enjoyable Fall weekend- the time of year when it is utterly pointless for humans to vacuum if they are owned by canines. Particularly shaggy canines. Because no sooner does one sweep up the leaves in the house, than we dogs go out and bring more in. It is a truly futile battle. Yet – Her Highness continues to stay in the fight. Sooner or later she will admit defeat.

Well the Imp had his “emergency” training session on Saturday. I would like to point out that yours truly never needed emergency training sessions. My training has always gone smoothly. Except for the odd barking, my performance has always been predictable and of course, stellar. The Imp – not so much. He is apparently in some kind of “adolescent phase” – in which he prefers to “do his own freestyle training”. He was even rather sassy with our wonderful coach – to the dismay of Her Highness. Jane was unfazed by his adolescent outburst, but Her Highness was embarrassed by his behavior. I do believe he is a BIT spoiled. You combine spoiled, with pandemic restrictions since he was a young pup, adolescent hormones, and a “brother” with whom he plays incessant Humpty Dumpty wrestling games and it is a recipe for a naughty PON. I might add that he is also quite clever, so he is adept at “pushing limits” at times. Even I have had to tell him that I don’t appreciate his roughhousing.

That being said, while there was a moment of extreme stubbornness observed, when it came to the dumbbell- he miraculously retrieved it perfectly. That was the main reason for the lesson – and as always, he liked to prove Her Highness wrong. She said he wouldn’t pick it up. And he did…

Yesterday he went for a walk and was let off leash for a short time. He decided that it was essential to go deep into a swampy area. When he emerged, he looked like some kind of swamp creature. Add to the fact that he had an unsightly cling on, and was covered in sticks and burrs- he required an “emergency bath” when he returned home. The word “emergency “ seems to follow him quite a bit. Then, no sooner was he finished with his unscheduled spa treatment, when he ran outside and began to wrestle with the Coyote, rolling in leaves and dirt. Her Highness raced down the stairs and onto the lawn in her stocking feet to break up the cyclone, and to bring the Imp in the house. I believe I saw tears in her eyes…

Yesterday, Her Highness attempted her first round of individual Halloween portraits. I gladly participated, and did not mind the required attire one bit. I’m used to it. Initially, the Imp thought the objective was to don a serious pensive expression. He quickly realized that smiles are the objective – and he complied quite well. The Coyote, on the other hand, wore his typical sad, pathetic-looking expression- whether he was wearing head gear or not. He despises head gear – but even without it, it was very difficult to get those ears up. Her Highness tried a new distracting tool – a tennis ball, which she hurled over her head and behind her. This is a dangerous maneuver, as she often ends up hitting herself in the head with the projectiles. But you did not hear that from me. After taking individual shots, she decided not to attempt the always entertaining group shot. Perhaps tomorrow.

That is the update from our chaotic abode. Keep watching for those Halloween photos- they are sure to entertain.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.

Howdy doody blogaroos! Squirmy Wormy here on a super Saturday. Actually, according to the crazy calendar, today is National Fetch Day. Yup – a day to play a favorite game with us canines. And when The Warden saw that, she started laughing. She said it’s ironic that it happens to be today – because she had to set up an “emergency” training session with my coach Jane today. Because I’m having a BIT of a fetching problem!

You see, I love to play fetch. I’ll play with balls and bumpers. And I’ll fetch Tuggie wherever it is. Just say “Where’s Tuggie”, and I’ll race to find it and bring it back. So I’m a fetching machine. BUT- I DO have a fetching quirk. The UB or the unintelligent bell. More commonly and politically incorrectly known as the dumbbell. I will NOT fetch it. Let alone pick it up. The other night, the Warden tried everything in her power to get me to take that UB in my mouth. She begged. She tried to put it in my mouth for even a second. I kept my jaws clenched so tight – it was impossible. She played fetch with the Boss as I watched. She tossed the UB for him and he brought it back every time. She played tug with him and the UB. And I watched. And when it was my turn again, she revved me all up and tossed the UB. I ran right towards it, jumped over it and went to sniff the sofa. Epic fail. It was at that point that the Warden contacted the coach for help. We’ll see what happens- we go to class early this morning.

Meanwhile, I did do something amazing yesterday. The Boss and I were headed out for a game of fetch ( with bumpers) and as the Warden opened the front door, yours truly spotted a rabbit on the front lawn. I took off like a shot and off we went into the woods. The Warden shouted my name thinking it was hopeless. But guess what? I came back as quickly as I went. So I CAN be obedient. If I feel like it.

OK I had better go and get ready. The cheese is already sliced. Wish me luck!

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe!

Hey everybody- guess who? Yup. Squirmy act-like- you-will-kill-the-furnace-cleaner-guy Wormy here on a rainy Thursday. Yup – we had the furnace cleaning guy come over yesterday- and I made sure to tell him that it’s MY house, and if I wasn’t in a crate I would…bark more at him. Meanwhile, the Coyote squeaked at him from his crate and the Boss loudly ran up to him barking. That’s after the guy said we could all be free. The Warden didn’t think that was such a brilliant idea. Just the Boss was enough.

So the furnace is all ready for the winter, even though we have had temperatures in the high 60s/low 70s (for our American buddies). That’s low 20s for Celsius peeps. Mind you, that being said, we had frost one day. Go figure.

Otherwise, not much new. Oh – but today is National Dessert Day! While we canines DO longingly look at the Warden if she has dessert, she rarely, if ever caves and shares with us. She always goes on about the sugar. Hello? Like she needs it? ANY day now the big box of Halloween candy will be arriving at our door for the 3 kids who are brave enough to come down our long dark driveway with the sound of the Hounds of the Baskervilles in the distance. But the Warden HAS to be prepared- JUST in case a bus load of kids arrives. And then she eats the leftovers.

Anyway – back to dessert day. So since the Warden won’t share HER dessert, I found some that she could make for us. Here are some options…

https://www.puppyleaks.com/simple-dog-treat-recipes/

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/141949/doggie-birthday-cake/

Let me know if you make any of them. The Warden is much better at eating than cooking, so I’m not expecting any of these soon. Maybe for the Boss’ birthday. In January.

Ok. Almost time to go and try to pee on a pumpkin.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up. Stay safe.