Author: frodopon

Blessings….

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The pre -Halloween photo shoots have begun . Heaven help us.

This is the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend.  And I am thankful for many things.  But one thing I am NOT thankful for is the Dollar Store.  Mind you I SHOULD be thankful they don’t carry turkey costumes.
Today is going to be interesting.  The priest at my human’s church announced that he will be doing Blessing of the Pets – in honor of St Francis of Assissi – whose feast day was this past week. St. Francis is the patron Saint of animals. 
Now this is the first time, that my human is aware, that they have done this at her parish.  So.  If she takes all three of us, it would likely be the last.  
If one of us goes, I am the OBVIOUS choice.  Hello?  I have the most health issues so clearly I need all the help I can get.  Mind you, Einstein is the oldest.  So he needs blessings for a long life.  And then the FG needs blessings so he starts being less picky with food, and he puts on some weight.  Decisions.  Decisions.
Maybe we could all stay in the vehicle and the priest could walk over to us.  Bad idea.  Picture Einstein throwing himself at the window and the FG howling from in his crate.  The priest would go to get his exorcism kit.
Well this will be interesting.  Check in tomorrow to see if my human has been excommunicated.
Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 23

I’m guilty of fake news….

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Well I stand corrected.  I can’t BELIEVE I actually posted fake news.  My reputation as a credible news source is shattered. There go my ratings. 

What news did I convey erroneously?  The Ozzie news.  My story about Harry and Meghan’s new dog.  I reported (as did MANY other news sources) that their new dog was named Oz.  And I rambled on about it.  All wrong. APPARENTLY, he is a she – and her name is a secret. I think they just read my blog and changed the name.  
So the real name is a mystery.  Here are some obvious choices: Queenie, Princess, Lady, Sparlke, and Jewel.  I personally like Tori ( short for Viktor….or Victoria). That’s what I really hope it is.
As I was researching info for this blog, I have come to realize that Harry is truly a dog lover.  Here’s a short video of Harry and dogs.  Lots of dogs…
Whether or not you are a Royalty fan, you have to admit – this guy clearly likes us canines!  
Now let’s hope he and Meghan chose the right name…
Have a good one!  Peace and paws up!
Seizure free days: 22

Plaidurday

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October 5.  And accotdingto the crazy calendar, it is something called Plaidurday.  It is supposedly a world wide celebration of plaid.  Who knew.  And it started in 2011 in Lansing Michigan.

Well as SOON as my human saw this celebration, you KNOW what she HAD to do.  She had to get out those tartan scarves she bought for us on her road trip this summer to Cape Breton.  Because tartans are essentially plaids.  Although… in Scotland a tartan is a tartan and a plaid refers to a tartan cloth used as a kilt accessory or a cloth for a bed.  According to Wikipedia.  But for most people, in North America anyway, the two are kind of synonymous.

So once those scarves came out, of course, we HAD to have the obligatory photo shoot.
As usual, Einstein was the most cooperative.  He knows the drill.  He sits and smiles. He is wearing the Nova Scotia tartan because we PONs were born here.  I don’t think there is a Polish tartan.

The FG always starts out serious and after a few minutes starts to smile.  He is modeling the Quebec tartan – where he was born.

Now yours truly was the worst subject.  We do this in the garage- and the FG’s food bowl, with all the leftovers he didn’t eat at mealtime, was in the garage.  And I KNEW it. Getting me to sit and stay required handfuls of treats and toys to make me pay attention.  Still, she managed to snap one or two good ones.  Out of the 63 taken.  I’m modeling the Cape Breton tartan. There is no good reason why.  Other than the fact that my human loves Cape Breton.  She should have worn it.

Now “Tartan Day” is supposedly celebrated in April. Maybe she’ll get a shot with the three of us.  Good luck with that.  Those scarves would be great fun to play tug with….
Have a happy Plaidurday!
Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 21

Jewelry

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So today we have a plug and a helpful hint.  And both have to do with dog jewelry.
Now I’m not talking about the fancy tags or collars  that we dogs can wear.  I’m talking about the dog jewelry that humans wear.  Humans LOVE to sport jewelry showing off their breed.  I think we dogs should wear tiny human jewelry.  Anyway, the first jewelry I’ll talk about is a birthday gift that my human got back in August.  She bought it for herself.  She actually saw an ad on Facebook for jewelry made from dog photos.  Or any photo really- but she was interested in the dogs.  She saw that a friend in the UK – Nikki – ordered a piece of the jewelry and she was happy with the product.  So really, this is all Nikki’s fault.  Nikki ordered a pendant, and it looked just like her two PONs.  So my human, being the copycat – she actually calls Nikki her shopping mentor- had to order something.  But she decided on a ring.  And here is the result:

It has our names etched on the sides:

So now we get to go everywhere with her.  Figuratively anyway.  

I am going to include the link – but this is a plug based on OUR experience.  Look carefully at the size of the pendants- they are small.  And I’m not sure if they will maintain their nice look- my human has only had her ring for just over a month. But so far – she likes it!
OK. The next jewelry tidbit is a helpful hint.  When my human was last at Crufts a few years ago, she bought a pewter pendant of a PON head. And the other day she went to take it out to wear it.  Imagine the horror (humans are so dramatic) when she saw it was covered in green tarnish!!! She obviously couldn’t wear it like that, and had to wear a DIFFERENT dog pendant to work instead. Cough. Cough.
Anyway when she got home she wanted to figure out how to clean the pendant. And here is the hint. Do you know what you can use to clean pewter?!  Ketchup! Yup. The vinegar in the ketchup apparently is the key. I am attaching the cleaned photo which is really crazy because I don’t have a “before” photo.  You have to trust me that is was green and crusty before the ketchup.

So those are your dog jewelry tips for today. Really, the photo jewelry COULD be something other than a dog, and the cleaning tip is for any pewter object.  But does anyone actually have jewelry that ISN’T dog themed?!

Have a good one. Peace and paws up!
Seizure free days:  20

Research. Schme-search.

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Some rather depressing, controversial news coming out of a study in the UK.  The study published was a review of 300 research papers on animal “smarts” comparing us canines with other animals.  And while you humans and we dogs LIKE to think we are absolutely brilliant – it appears that we are no smarter than “pigeons, sheep, or goats.”  Hmmmm…..

For example, other animals can do just as well we dogs at using their noses to identify humans (e.g.: pigs)  while sheep and chimps can identify humans by their faces.  They say that we dogs can’t even identify ourselves in the mirror – while chimps and dolphins CAN.  Who knew?  How many dolphins have mirrors underwater, I want to know…

They say that “Cats do at least as well as dogs at identifying humans by their voices.”  Sure.  But do they respond?!  Mind you, we don’t always either…

The study basically said that humans like to think that dogs are exceptional when it comes to our smarts – but we are probably NOT all that different or better at figuring things out than many other animals.

But.  But. BUT.  I don’t see any Seach and Rescue chimps out there.  And it’s a little difficult to have a therapy dolphin.  Show me a Seeing Eye Pigeon.  

Mind you….I did find an article that talks about Seeing Eye Pigs.  And mini horses.  And while I joked about pigeons – apparently they can train hawks and RACCOONS.

https://www.stronggo.com/Seeing-Eye-Service-Animals-You-Didnt-Know-About

So.  While we MAY not be THE smartest animals out there, we dogs hold the record as the earliest domesticated animals.  We’ve been around the longest – and have longest held a special place in human hearts.   And really, who is more happy to see you when you get home?  Who will love you SO unconditionally and faithfully?

Besides, who wants to share their bed with a dolphin?

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 19

Cleaning

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October 2. And according to the crazy calendar, it is Name your Car Day.  We already have a name for our car.  It’s Ludwig.  Ludwig is not big – but he is mighty and he is big enough to hold all three of us canines.  With one in a crate.  Ludwig is a VW Golf.

Now on Sunday, my human was going for a drive with some friends.  And she was the driver.  As usual, she was rushing to meet her friends, so didn’t really have time to clean Ludwig.  But the seats were not fur covered, so she thought Ludwig didn’t look too bad.
It was only after they had been out for about an hour when she realized that the passenger in the back had to watch the scenery through frosted glass.  Yup.  One window was covered in canine olfactory art.  
On closer inspection , it almost looked like the art took the form of letters.  She tried to get a picture of it -but you couldn’t see it with the reflection.   Of course it was letters.  We spelled “Let us out.”
Yesterday she was off so she had to do the pointless house cleaning and vacuuming.  We’ll bring in more leaves as soon as we go out -so why bother.  And as quickly as she put all the assorted bones from the dining room graveyard back into the copper boiler where they are stored, yours truly would pull them back out.
She also attempted a RIDICULOUS idea to keep the FG from chewing the carpet corners.  Along with 100 “other” things that my human collects, she has a rock collection.  Yup.  She lugs home rocks on her journeys.  If they are too big, they end up in the garden. Smaller examples end up on the kitchen window sill or in bowls.  So she took a couple of the medium sized treasures (about the size of an orange) and piled them on a corner of the carpet.  Stop laughing. She did.  How long do you think it took before the FG started playing rock hockey.  So much for THAT bright idea….
Today it’s back to guard duty.  Oh and thanks for all the suggestions about how to feed the FG.  The whole topic is just inconceivable to me – what dog doesn’t like to eat?   Besides, if he doesn’t want his meal, you KNOW two dogs who are MORE than happy to clean it up for him. We are so thoughtful…
Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days : 18

The picky Picard.

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So how does one trick a Picard into eating?  OK. My human KNOWS that he WILL eat when hungry, but she has been trying REALLY hard to get some weight on the picky Picard- so she has followed all kinds of suggestions.  She got a food for active dogs.  He liked it for a day.  She added freeze dried food.  He liked it for a couple of days. She rotated foods.  He’s on to that.  She added low sodium chicken broth to his food. Shouldn’t have bothered – because the food just gets soggy and she has to throw it away.  He watches us PONs hoovering our meals but he doesn’t care.  My human discovered that he likes bread- so out of desperation when he turned up his nose at yet another meal, my human gave him an English muffin. He tossed it around like a hockey puck and finally ate it.  While we PONs were sequestered in the hallway watching with envy.


The next day she put an English muffin torn up in with his kibble.  He stood and stared at it for two minutes, like he was waiting for it to move- and finally walked away.  This time my human went in the freezer and pulled out a striploin steak.  Yes.  We are talking a combination of desperation and insanity.  She put part of it in his bowl. He ate it.  The next morning, when offered the remainder of the steak, he walked away.  I think she started crying.  And so did I.  Along with Einstein. 

Now my human realizes she is enabling this behavior.  But as I said, she KNOWS he is skinny- and really wants to put some meat on his lean frame.  To top it off, she has him refusing to eat and the two PON vacuum cleaners trying desperately to open the French door to get into the hall where  the picky Picard is standing.  We should put a blood pressure cuff on her at mealtime.

This is the start of a new week so she has vowed not to let it bother her.  He’ll eat when he wants.  She just needs to keep repeating that phrase….Maybe she should just throw some pieces of carpet in with his kibble…

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 17

Nighttime escapades

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My human woke up in the middle of the night and the first thing that ran through her mind was a game she played as a kid – called Twister.  For those not as ancient as she is – the game involved a floor mat with different colored circles.  A wheel was spun and it would direct the players where to place their right hand and foot, left hand and foot – on a specific colored circle.  Resulting in a variety of contorted postures! 

So why was my human thinking of that childhood game in the middle of the night?  Because that’s what it’s like with us sleeping on the bed.  She sometimes can’t put her legs straight down.  She has to be curled up, or lie crosswise.  She never knows if she’ll wake up with a dog sprawled out on one of her arms, effectively pinning her down on one side. She wakes up with her neck in a weird position,  sometimes resulting in a sore kink for the rest of the day.
Contortions are one thing.  She also has to contend with one dog on the bed. Two dogs on. Three dogs on. One gets off.  Two get off. One gets back on. Everyone gets off.  You get the idea.
And the thing that actually resulted in a total bedroom eviction the other night ( which RARELY happens) was licking.  Two of us were warned that inappropriate licking needed to stop.  One warning.  Two warnings. The next thing you know, all three of us were marched OUT of the bedroom and she put up a baby gate. Seriously?!  Seriously.  At 4AM, Einstein could no longer stand it – so he started barking out his demands to come in.  She relented at 4:30.
It would be nice if we could blame these nighttime escapades on a Full Moon.  But the reality?  The phases of the moon have nothing to do with it. We are just wild at night.  Come to think of it…it’s not that different from daytime!
Ya gotta love us.  Don’t ya….
Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 16

He did it….

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It was only a matter of time…

On Thursday, my human had a super busy morning at work.  She was actually busy until 1:00, when she finally took a break to grab a coffee.  And while she was having her beverage, she decided to check in on the homefront via Big Brother. Perhaps not the best idea- or MAYBE the timing was just right.
She turned on the camera at the exact moment that the FG just “happened “ to be doing something – just below camera view.  But she could just see the top of his head.  And it was moving in an odd way.  And she had a feeling she knew what was happening.  He was chewing on the corner of the carpet- in the one area not protected by the chair barricade.  She turned on the microphone and like during the previous carpet chewing caper, instructed him to “Stop!” whatever it was he was doing.  He sat up and looked straight up at the camera.  
She realized she was probably too late- and couldn’t bear to watch any more.  Although about 10 minutes later she did tune in again and saw he had moved.  It’s like watching a scary movie – you want to see what’s happening- but you look through your fingers.
When she got home, she immediately came in to check the rug.  Sure enough.  He had started his handiwork.  Make that teethiwork.

She looked at him and sighed. He didn’t have a clue what he had done when she uttered the infamous “What did you do?” phrase.  As IF he would say”Why I chewed the carpet. Hope it’s OK.”
After supper, we were all sequestered on the deck while she attempted to repair the binding with some black fabric.  Trust me.  The following photo looks better than the actual rug.  Her steamstress skills are NOT her forte.  But at a distance of 40 feet, it doesn’t look bad.

Yesterday she was actually off, but went out for the day.  This time, the ENTIRE edge of the rug was covered by chairs- and the repaired corner had the vacuum cleaner sitting on it. When she came home, the carpet was intact. 
Next I predict that the legs on those chairs that form the barricade may become victim to some interesting wood carving experiments.  Not that a couple haven’t already been sampled while standing upright. 
Oh.  And remind me to tell you how I chewed an ENTIRE roll of toilet paper the other night while my human was sleeping….
Thank goodness she loves us….
Have a good one. Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 15

Confucius say…

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Today is the birthday of Confucius – the famous politician, and philospher who lived a long time ago.  He was a smart guy who wrote a LOT and had many famous quotes. And, although I didn’t read ALL of the literature on this fact – it appears that “Confucius was one of the first people in Chinese histroy to be recorded as the owner of a pet dog”.*  Who knew?  If you want to read a detailed account about the role of canines in early Chinese history, I will attach an article at the end of my blog.  It’s heavy reading – but kind of interesting… Now keep in mind that the article talks about the practice of eating Fido – so BE PREPARED.  That’s OBVIOUSLY not a practice I support – but the article gives an idea of how the practice began. 
As I did a few years ago, I have taken a couple of his quotes and paired them with photos. Here they are:





And as I also did before, I have written my very own quotes.  Well, they are not entirely my own – and you may recognize parts of them….
  • Great minds think… about how to get into the treat jar.
  • Anything that can go wrong probably will… happen as my human is on the way out the door to work.  And we have probably caused it…
  • Hell hath no fury… like a PON when supper is late.
  • Ignorance is… not knowing how to counter surf.
  • A penny saved… buys more dog treats. 
  • I think, therefore I …end up in trouble.
  • I’ve never met a …treat I didn’t like. 

     

     That’s it for my philosophizing for today.  It’s hard work being a blog writer, a philosopher, 
     a guardian, and a comedian. 
    
     It is FRIDAY!!!!!!!!  Let the weekend begin!

     Have a good one!  Peace and paws up!
     Seizure free days: 14

 Here is that article…
ccsdb.ncl.edu.tw/ccs/image/01_029_004_01_10.pdf