Howdy blogaroos!!! Squirmy here on this Sunday of the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. A weekend to reflect on all the things in life to be thankful for – many of which we don’t even think about!

But first a bad news – great news story…. And really – it’s a story about thankfulness too…

Some of you who are regular readers may remember our buddy Connor, the Old English Sheepdog who was in some conformation classes with the Coyote and me many moons ago. Now the Coyote did a BIT of conformation beauty pageant showing – and he even had a group placement ( which is kinda a big deal), but his beauty pageant career didn’t go much past his first two years. He didn’t really LOVE running around a ring – and the Boss figured she wouldn’t force him to do something he wasn’t really into. I haven’t tried it yet – I still have lots of practice to do. On the other hand, our buddy Connor went on to get BIG ribbons – AND he even won a Best in Show!!! Then of course came COVID, and dog shows were cancelled – just like the rest of fun stuff. Anyway, now that the plague is…manageable… shows have started up again. And Connor was ready to strut his stuff. But sometimes life doesn’t go as planned….

Connor became ill a few weeks ago . Very ill. And literally within a week or two – he went from being a happy go lucky boy to one who was extremely sick. He was diagnosed with cancer….

Connor’s humans had to make the most horrible, but loving decision that you humans who are owned by pets – have to make. They were shattered. Completely shatttered. Connor was the perfect boy who got along with everyone- human and canine. He even tolerated his “brothers” Jerome and Leroy – two Boston Terriers. Jerome has a reputation as being particularly “spunky” – but Connor tolerated the little Napoleon very well.

As humans know, losing a treasured canine companion is devastating. Add to that- this was the first time in several decades that the house had been without an Old English. To say the mood was somber is an understatement.

But then….something happened. It was meant to be…A breeder of Old English in another province, happened to have a litter of puppies. Which included several boys…I think you can guess where this is going….

Some people lose a beloved dog and can’t face the idea of a “replacement.” Because really – one dog cannot replace another. Ever. And some people wait a long time to find a new soulmate to fill part of that hole in their hearts. In fact, some can never even think of getting another dog – because the pain of the loss is so great…

But others feel that longing for a new start. A fresh chapter. And Connor’s humans wanted that….

Within days of learning about the puppies, Connor’s peeps were on the road. And ta da – welcome to Nova Scotia – Declan!

So you KNOW the Warden HAD to go and meet him. Here she is trying to teach the little guy to sit.

She of course showed up with a pocket full of treats.

Here he is telling her how happy he is in his new home…

The Warden tried to get photos of the little guy, but a lot turned out like this.

Reportedly the little guy likes to stay on the move. BUT – get this- he doesn’t act like a shark – AND he likes to snuggle! I think his humans must have drugged him. Here he is with one of his humans looking pretty darn relaxed….

The Warden did get a few photos of him but she wants to go back to get more. Here are a couple…

He is reportedly the perfect puppy. No biting. No barking. No whining. AND Napoleon, I mean Jerome, LIKES him!!! He sounds too good to be true. I’m calling it the honeymoon phase. No dog can be that good – although the Warden said he was that good and she was pretty smitten.

Of course when she came home from her visit we gave her the complete olfactory exam. And we could tell all she had left were treat crumbs in her pocket. The nerve.

Despite our ranging jealousy, we ARE very happy and THANKFUL that Declan and his humans have found each other. Sometimes things are just meant to be. And this is one of them. We think Connor would approve….

Time to go and count our blessings. Which include every one of you reading this! Our treat jar is full, we have a roof over our heads – and there is sun in the forecast. And a new puppy chapter being written – which we get to watch and enjoy. We have much to be thankful for!

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

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy here on a fabulous Friday. Ready to roll on into the weekend.

Well we finished boot camp yesterday- and in typical “unpredictable” me fashion – I went out with a bing. Not a bang. A bing. The first three days of camp the Warden was sooooooo pleased with my behavior. I actually looked like I was obedient. And then there was yesterday. Now I wasn’t BAD – but I decided to test the Warden’s consistency with giving rewards. I wanted just to see if I did an exercise a bit “off” if she would reward me. Everyone else was doing the exercise at the same time – and I figured she wanted to keep the pace so I might be able to get away with a reduced effort. The first time I did my own freestyle heeling, she kinda let me get away with it – and big mistake- gave me a treat. So you know us PONs – we’re smart – if you can do less work and still get the reward- go for it. Problem is, she’s smarter than she looks. Second time I tried the half- effort- she said “nope- no treat this time.” We did it again. I still tried the half-effort. No treat. We tried again. I pretended I didn’t know what to do. On the fourth attempt she showed me the treat and basically said “the treat is right here. Do it and it’s yours.” I did it. Does she not understand the principles of intermittent reinforcement? If I did it correctly EVERY time – I know what happens. The treats are eventually spread out more. If you pretend you don’t understand, you’re back into basic mode – so you get more treats. I totally get it.

We had lots of fun with camp and today I get to go back to my regular class too. I missed two weeks because the Warden had the plague. But we’re back to our regularly scheduled programming. Can’t wait to see my peeps.

Meanwhile, before we go to class, I expect the Warden to pet me. Why? Because I like it. And it’s good for her. That’s what this article says:

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2022/10/06/health/petting-dogs-brain-study-wellness-scn/index.html

I love to be petted. So does the Coyote. The Boss? Nah. I mean he likes to be in the room where the Warden is – all the time. But he doesn’t beg for pets. A little ear scratch and he’s good to go. It’s interesting that I am capable of sending the Warden’s blood pressure into the Twilight Zone when I get the zoomies and I ricochet off her stomach- and at the same time, according to the article, I can also provide a positive boost to her brain. I’m just so helpful.

Well it’s almost time to take her for her morning walk. Look – I provide her with physical exercise too. Where would she be without me?

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

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy here – ready to go to day 3 of boot camp. Phew! I’ve survived the first two. We did lots of fun exercises with heeling and truth be told…I like to heel. That’s because I like action stuff. Stays? Boring. Heeling? Yee haw – I’m all over it. PLUS the Warden used a secret weapon to reward me when I did a great job. Smoked Gouda. Seriously. She was searching through the fridge for something to use for treats and she figured she’d try that. BINGO. Even better than cheese strings. Even better than freeze dried liver. What can I say – I have good taste. Plus are cheese strings really cheese? Not that I’ll turn it down – but trust me – the smoked Gouda is better.

After the first day of camp, some folks said their dogs were tired out when they went home. That’s what the Warden was hoping for. Actually- praying for. Nope. I was raring to go when we got home. She said she has yet to EVER see me really, really tired. And trust me – it’s not for lack of trying! Personally, I could go to boot camp every day!

All of my obedience practice is carried out so that one day, I’ll be able to compete. I am learning what I need to do. And I’m slowly getting there. BUT – I have one BIG problem holding me back. The Warden. She gets VERY nervous when she competes. As if her life depends on us doing well. I mean I could see if there was like a million dollar prize – but hello- no such luck.

Now this article talks about what happens when humans get stressed…

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220929133350.htm

Yup. We dogs can smell stress. So. When we step in that obedience ring and we smell stress- well guess what? It only stands to reason that we either get stressed too – or try to figure out why our human is stressed. So all that practice goes haywire.

If anyone has suggestions on how to destress the Warden – besides drugs and alcohol – let me know!

OK. Gotta go get ready. She better bring the Gouda.

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

Howdy blogaroos. Happy Monday. It’s Squirmy here – getting my uniform ready and putting on my boots. Guess what I’m doing today? Heading to bootcamp. Yup – I’m back in the army again. Remember we did a heeling bootcamp back in the early summer? Well we’re at it again! Just hope the Warden can keep up. She was slicing up some pretty aromatic cheese last night – I wondered what was going on. And then I looked at the calendar. We’re going each morning right through Thursday. Wish me luck!

Speaking of luck – the Boss’ ran out yesterday. The Warden tricked him into the garage and the next thing he knew, he was flat on his side on the grooming torture table. Holy moly he needed a brushing. Although….the Warden has been spraying this Detangling stuff on us when we’re almost finished – and she THINKS it keeps us from getting knotted as quickly. All I know is that it took 90 minutes and 639 treats to get through his full procedure. But who’s counting.

Otherwise, not much new. It was a quiet weekend, except for the Boss’ 90 minutes of moaning.

Gotta go get my boots on. I’ll let ya know how we do!

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

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy here on a super Saturday. Things are slowly returning to normal now that the Warden is feeling better. Mind you, our “normal” may be a bit different than the average household. Our “normal” would be crazy to most people. But hey – that’s what makes us so lovable. Cough.

I sure missed class yesterday- but we’ll be back next week. I have lots of remedial work to do…

The Boss is happy again because the stuffed KONGS have returned. The only bad thing about all this return to normalcy – it’s back to grooming time. I was the first victim yesterday and I must confess, I did feel better when I was all fluffed up. Today will be the Boss’ turn. Unless he can hide.

Guess what also appeared yesterday? Pumpkins!!! So now the fun begins. Want to place a bet on who will be the first to pee on them? My money is on the Coyote. He’s the Pumpkin Peeing Champ.

According to the crazy calendar, on this day in 1888, the magazine National Geographic was published for the first time. The magazine has done loads of articles on dogs, and we’ve shared some in the past. So this time, we’ll share a video from them- all about smart dogs.

https://youtu.be/zcM6xhuoQ9g

Now the video is supposed to be for kids – but the Warden found it pretty interesting herself. The only thing that seemed really weird was the story of Donnie the Doberman. After she watched it, she looked into our yard which is scattered with an assortment of toys and bones – in all states of disarray. No special patterns visible in our yard. Clearly Donnie thinks differently than we do. He likely doesn’t attempt to bury his toys or pee on them if they happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Plus stuffed toys don’t even exist in our world. I guess Donnie doesn’t have the dissection gene that we do. I’m still not so sure about that guy… See what you think.

Well, time to walk the Warden. And to check out those pumpkins!

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