Yo. Blog readers. Elroy here. On an easy-going sunny Spring Friday.

Not a lot of exciting news around here. Other than our lawn excavation project. The imp and I are working on creating a lawn filled with booby traps. It all started when we saw a chipmunk go down a hole in the lawn. So of course we had to try to dig him out. Unsuccessfully. Then we decided to dig other holes – but those are randomly placed – just for fun. You should see the lawn…

The imp has 150% the energy that I do, but we do enjoy the same things. Her Highness is actually wondering whether the imp and I should be taking agility classes. It seems that both of us have started a new little routine on our morning walks. Neither of us is prompted or encouraged to do our new trick. And neither of us has seen the other do it – because we go for separate walks. So it’s not a case of monkey see – monkey do. I prefer to think it’s that great minds think alike. And you can stop laughing about the great minds part.

You see, when we go for our walks on the golf course, there is a particular pond/swampy area that is surrounded by giant rocks. And all the rocks are different shapes. But in the past few days, both of us have started this little game of running and jumping from rock to rock. Like a natural agility course! Sometimes I just stop and stand there – like in the photo. The imp loves doing it too – but he can be trusted off leash. Me? I’m tethered. Probably because I would end up in the water. Or off chasing bunnies. The little cottontails have almost changed in color from white back to brown. They’re kinda bold – probably because they know I’m on a leash. They literally run through the woods – parallel to us on the path. All the while I’m increasing Her Highness’ arm length..

Speaking of wildlife, something knocked over our green bin the other night. Actually twice in the past week. The first time Her Highness thought it was the wind. Which it might have been. But the second time – there was no wind. I hear stuff in the woods around the house and let out my best Cujo impression. Her Highness thinks it’s a bit early for bears – so she suspects raccoons. I think we need one of those night time cameras that are triggered by motion. Yup. We need one of those – and a GoPro to take footage of the Imp as he races around the house each morning when he is let out of his crate. I really don’t think you folks can TRULY appreciate what the whirlwind looks like racing around furniture, jumping over me and the Boss and ricocheting off walls, the front door and Her Highness. I’m not joking. At all. You all used to think I was crazy?! I don’t hold a candle to that blowtorch. Who would EVER believe I would be called “the good quiet boy.” I’m liking my new title! Just don’t let me off leash…

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

Greetings blog readers. Frodo here for your reading pleasure today.

We have all survived the dreaded rabbit ears and the dusty old pussywillows for our holiday photo shoots. While I do not mind taking photos, the Imp and the Beatnik make every photo-taking experience a memorable fiasco. If they are not refusing to sit still, or they are refusing to look at the camera, they are destroying the holiday props. The only ones who are happy at the end of each photo shoot are the Dollar Stores. They can thank us for an uptick in business whenever the holidays roll around.

Today, according to the crazy calendar, is something called National No Housework Day. A truly fitting holiday for anyone owned by a canine. Or two. Or three….

It is said that on this day, one should put off cleaning and organizing and should order in meals – so even cooking is not on the agenda. One is supposed to relax and spend the day carrying out fun and enjoyable tasks – rather than the drudgery involved in daily housework.

I think the idea of housework is rather a waste of time in dog households. How unrewarding it must be when one toils on hands and knees to wash the kitchen floor, only to have us canines walk in with muddy paws once the floor has dried. And yet humans continue to repeat the cleaning tasks, as if it will truly make a difference for more than a few moments. Kind of like slaving over a hot stove to prepare a scrumptious meal- only to see it disappear within minutes. Perhaps the joy is in the task itself? I’m not so sure Her Highness looks particularly joyful while cleaning the toilet.

And speaking of cleaning, I have a rather short but entertaining video to share with all of you. As you may recall, “Santa” granted Her Highness’ wish for a new vacuum at Christmas time. For some reason, we go through vacuum cleaners in this household like we do poop bags.

Her Highness requested a stick vacuum so as not to contend with cumbersome cords. And Santa was kind enough to bring her something called the Dyson Animal. This machine comes by its name quite honestly. In fact, the vacuum gets such a “warm” reception – like no other vacuum in this household before, that we canines are usually sequestered outdoors while vacuuming is being carried out. Here you will see why:

https://youtu.be/agqwCFW0kNU

I will bark when the suction task begins and will then stop, but the other two stooges will continue their barking and semi- attack mode so that they must be removed from the war zone. And yours truly is forced to join them.

Her Highness is unsure as to why this particular machine elicits such a frenzied reaction. The machine does have a bit of a higher whirring sound, which may be the reason why it brings out such an animalistic response. One thing for certain- it is aptly named.

So today, put away the vacuum cleaner and don’t turn on the washing machine filled with dog-slime-covered clothing. Don’t wash those dishes in the sink, and simply step over those dust balls floating across the floor. Don’t bother to wash our olfactory art off the windows. Spend time with your dog(s). Play a game of fetch being careful not the throw the toy near any muddy spots. Have a second cup of coffee. Relax. Unwind. Breathe deeply. Inhale all that dust and dog hair….Don’t worry about the mess – trust me – it will be there tomorrow.

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

Hey hey hey everybody! Crank up the polka music, heat up those perogies, pour the vodka and get your pussywillows ready! It’s Dyngus Day!!!!!

If you’re a long time blog reader then you know all about Dyngus Day. But if you don’t- here’s a quick lesson. Dyngus Day (which sounds like ding-goose) is the Monday after Easter – and it’s a Polish celebration. It marks the end of Lent – where everybody lets loose after being good for 40 days. Not only is it a celebration in Poland, but many cities in North America celebrate the holiday too. In fact, My Enforcer’s hometown of Buffalo, NY is said to be the Dyngus Day Capital of the World. Check it out:

https://www.dyngusday.com/

There’s lots of merrymaking associated with the holiday- and even some courting. Legend has it that after Lent, boys would flirt with girls by sprinkling them with water and by hitting their legs with pussywillows. Really. I didn’t make this up. And on Easter Tuesday, the girls would repay the gesture by throwing plates at the boys. Yup – a solemn holiday.

Anyway, today there are parades and gatherings- although they are toned down because of COVID. Last year they were canceled all together. I’m still not sure the gatherings will be QUITE the same as usual…..Still I’m thinking there will be some accordion playing going on – and the odd bottle of vodka will be opened. On St. Patrick’s Day they say everyone is Irish and on Dyngus Day everyone is Polish! I think it would be fun to go to the Dyngus Day celebrations in Buffalo. I mean being Polish and all. Plus I like kielbasa.

So, in honor of Dyngus Day, of course My Enforcer had to try and get some photos of us PONs with pussywillows. Here’s a shot of the French guy finding some…

Unfortunately My Enforcer didn’t have any clippers to cut them while they were out walking the other day. And since then, it’s been raining like crazy so they haven’t been back to that spot.

Soooooo….she had these old pussywillows in a container in the garage….The top photo is the best shot of many taken. The problem with old pussywillows is that they LOOK OK. Until you touch them. And then – well they self-destruct.

Here I am with kitty cat bits stuck on me and pieces all over…

Here I’m looking kind of stunned and the branches are looking kinda bare…Note my nice hairdo…

The sticks are looking really bad here…

This one is kinda cute – but you can see that those feline wonders aren’t so wonderful any more….

My Enforcer kept plying us with cheese but of course neither one of us wanted to stay in place. And every time we moved – kitty catastrophe. I kinda moved more than the Boss. Plus I was drooling for the cheese – so the bits were sticking to my face. And branches were breaking. That happens when you bite them.

Anyway I hope everyone has a Happy Dyngus Day wherever you live!!! And good luck with your pussywillows!

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

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy Wormy here. I’m excited to let you know that we all survived our bunny ears photo shoots. And oooooo-eeeeee- My Enforcer pulled out the GOOD stuff for these shots. Cheese. I don’t REALLY care what the treats are, but cheese does make me sit and stay a nanosecond longer. And the Coyote likes cheese – so he’ll sit and look slightly less miserable. Plus he doesn’t spit out cheese. Seriously- during these photo things if he isn’t happy (which is usually the case) he’ll spit out biscuits. And then I get to search for them.

The top photo was our best group shot. Although after it was all over and My Enforcer looked at the photos – she noted that The Boss and I don’t even look like we had baths the other day. But what did she expect- it’s been raining pretty much non-stop for the last day or two – and she’s just lucky some of the mud had come off our paws before this shoot.

Each of us did solo shots – you saw some of mine the other day. Here’s one of my favorites…

And the Coyote did manage to get a good one too…

Note he is not wearing the bunny ears. Because THIS is what happens with the ears…

It’s like he lost his favorite sheep….

Of course The Boss takes great photos…

But My Enforcer decided to get some fun shots with him… Here she told him to give her a goofy smile..

And I like this one. She told him to give her a suspicious look….

And then if course we have the classic wardrobe malfunction….

The group shots include me trying to make my ears fall off…..and I was successful. Note the happy Coyote…

Here the Coyote looks like he is about to cry….

Here I’m looking for the possibility that a tiny piece of cheese fell on the floor…

Here the Coyote decides he just won’t look at the camera anymore. Despite all the noises My Enforcer is making – including the incessant smushing sound of the plastic wrapper that the cheese is in…

And as usual, the Boss looks like he is photoshopped in.

So that’s it for this holiday round. Oh and those paper eggs used as props? Yeah – they don’t look like that anymore. Easter egg confetti. Good thing I’m cute…

Have a very Happy Easter.

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

Hey hey hey everybody! It’s me – Squirmy. Here to tell you about my big adventure yesterday AND about a secret.

So yesterday was a beautiful day and My Enforcer announced that we were going visiting. Sounded good to me – I’m up for anything.

So she loaded me in the car after a very quick brushing. She said I needed to look presentable. Well we know that could mean we’re going anywhere from a rally class to a vet visit. But nope – we were going to visit my girlfriend, Pola. Remember Pola? She’s a cute Polish Lowland Sheepdog girl who lives with Frodo’s breeders – Marie-France and Lary. I went to visit them once before- quite a few months ago.

It was great to see everyone again. Although Pola did remind me that it’s not polite to get overly pushy when sniffing her butt. Point well taken. After I got my manners in line, all was right with the world and we had a GREAT visit.

Now I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but there are two other PONs who live in their household : Katia, a girl, and Inuck, a boy. I didn’t see those guys but I heard them. Because they ARE PONs after all. And the big news – which we have known for some time, is that any day now, Katia will be having puppies. Which was another reason for our visit…

You see, since My Enforcer learned that Katia was going to have puppies- she got to thinking. She’s surprisingly not getting any younger. And well, she has always dreamed of having a girl dog – and MAYBE having a litter of puppies one day. And now she’s retired, so she has the time to do it! And we even have a fenced yard now too. Sure, it could be dicey with two male dogs who have all their “parts” and a female dog who comes into her “season” (whatever that means) – but heck, other people do it. Sooooo…. IF Katia has a nice girl puppy, guess who might be getting a little sister?! I can teach her all my best tricks! Like how to ricochet off furniture, walls and humans. I can teach her to counter surf with me. And I’ll show her how to behave momentarily in order to get treats. How awesome is this going to be?

So now we wait to see how many puppies Katia has – and if there is a pretty girl girl for us. Yeah, yeah – 4 dogs sounds like a lot, but really, what else does My Enforcer have to spend her money on? Plus let’s face it – the love of a dog is PRICELESS- and the love of 4 is four times priceless!!!!! I might even share some toys with her. And I’m sure the other guys will be happy to share too. One big happy, crazy, barky, wild dysfunctional family. Just THINK of the blog stories ahead. I can hardly WAIT.

Oh yeah – and there is one other thing……

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

⬇️

April fools!! Did I get ya?! We know My Enforcer is crazy about dogs – but one more dog in this household and the guys in the white coats would be coming for her. Besides- I have enough energy and life for TWO dogs, and I’m a bit like Jekyll and Hyde – so it’s already like she has 4 dogs!

Thanks to Marie-France for my photos with Pola. I was EXTREMELY well behaved during our visit. They said I was a really good boy. If they only knew….

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

Howdy blogaroos. Squirmy here to brighten your day and make you say “better her than me” – with reference to My Enforcer- and living with us three stooges.

If you’ve looked at the calendar, you know that Easter is right around the corner. But even though it’s a happy celebration, it can be a dangerous time for us dogs. This article reviews the things that are bad news for us dogs – describing everything from the dangers of chocolate (which we all pretty much know) to the dangers of hot cross buns (if they contain raisins they are toxic to us dogs) to the dangers of eating spring bulbs and fake grass.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/easter-can-dangerous-dogs-13-23806722

But in all the dangers described, there is a BIG one missing. A huge one – and yet it is very common. And we dogs generally try to avoid it at all costs. I actually didn’t know about it – but the other guys warned me about it. Here I thought the dreaded Dollar store Christmas reindeer antlers were bad. But I think these are almost worse. You know what I’m talking about. The oh-so-festive rabbit ears.

I KNEW something was up when I was called into the garage/grooming torture palace. I was still relatively fluffy and clean, given that I just had a bath on Friday – so something seemed fishy. Imagine my shock when she pulled out the giant ears. My initial reaction was to protest.

But you KNOW I can’t resist treats – headband or no headband. So I agreed to a few shots. And THEN she pulls out some “props.”

What on EARTH was she thinking with big paper eggs?! I mean REALLY – me and PAPER eggs?! That cracked me up – pun intended. Get it? Eggs? Cracked me up? Never mind. Anyway, getting me not to shred them was QUITE the adventure….

Anyway, we just did round 1 of the photo shoots. I’ll save the good results for later. That’s all My Enforcer could endure for the day. We still have the other guys to shoot and then the infamous trio shots. Good luck with that. Better pull out some sirloin steaks for those photos. AND a big bottle of wine for afterward. For her. Of course.

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

Hey hey hey blogaroos. Squirmy no-ribbons-for-you Wormy – here to tell you all about my very first beauty pageant practice match. Well as The Boss would say, I got dumped. I doubt it had anything to do with the fact that I spun in circles when the judge tried to examine me and was a little bit shy. And I sat down when she tried to touch my orbs. But I quickly got over my shyness and I did attempt to ricochet off her on the diagonal. So, I was clearly happy. And I ran around like crazy. But my athletic prowess didn’t get me any ribbons. And there were no other PONs there. So needless to say, we didn’t get any Group ribbons.

BUT BUT BUT- MY GIRLFRIEND GENA WON THE WHOLE MATCH!!!!!!! So I got to travel with the winner! I KNEW she could win! She looked really pretty.

I think I brought her good luck. She has to take me along to all future shows as her good luck charm. I’m more fun than a rabbit foot.

Here’s a shot taken of me working the crowd during the Group judging. She had good treats! But I’m not sure that’s how you are supposed to be standing….

Here’s a shot that’s a bit better and looking more dog showish. Not a perfect pose but given that it’s hard for me to even keep my feet still, it’s not too bad.

My Enforcer said we need to practice more. Ya think? How’s a guy supposed to know what to do when he’s never even seen a dog show before? My Enforcer said she’s going to haul out old videos of Westminster and Crufts for me to watch. I think we should just watch the movie “Best in Show”. It’s a comedy – which is closer to how I approach most things.

So that’s my first intro to beauty pageants. I’m so happy for my girlfriend. I can’t wait to see her in a real show! And maybe if I practice more, I can go someday too!

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

Howdy blogaroos! Squirmy Wormy here. Or I should say CLEAN Squirmy Wormy. Because I had a bath yesterday! The first full spa treatment since Christmas. And you know why? I’m in a beauty pageant match today!!!! I don’t really know what that entails- but I think it’s when you run around as fast as you can chasing other dogs. And then you stand like a statue. I was going to pageant classes before I hurt my leg. And then I couldn’t go to classes because My Enforcer was wearing the splint thingy on her hand which I thought was like a Schutzhund sleeve when she would try to place my feet. So we couldn’t go to classes while she was recovering. So we haven’t had much practice lately…

We’re not really ready for a REAL show – but we can go to the match to see how unready we are. Anyway, I guess you have to be clean for a beauty pageant. So I had a bath. And when I was done, My Enforcer wanted to take pictures of me. But it was raining out. Plus it’s supposed to rain tomorrow too. I’m not sure what she has planned to keep me dry and fluffy.

Plus I’m going to the show with my girlfriend Gena. In fact, Gena came over to our spa to get a bath yesterday too! My Enforcer said Gena is well behaved. She didn’t require the pound of dog treats that I got while I was being groomed. Maybe I need to give her lessons….

Gena knows how to stand all pretty and she knows where her feet should go. I hope she wins a pretty ribbon because I have a crush on her. We’ll see what happens.

We had a thunder storm last night. I never heard one before! So when it started, I felt it was my duty to bark out a warning. My Enforcer told me that when she was little (back in the days of Caesar), she was told that thunder was angels bowling in heaven. Well they bowled some big strikes last night! But before it was even over, I was sleeping. All that grooming takes a lot of energy.

I just hope they don’t ask any hard questions in the beauty pageant today. Like “What’s your favorite food?” My response “ Everything.” “Who’s your role model?” “Cujo. No Frodo.” “What celebrity do you idolize?” “Cujo. No Lassie.” “Why did you decide to compete in this pageant?” “Good treats.” “Where do you see yourself in 10 years?” “Eating treats whenever I want, training my human and living the good life. Kind of like my life right now!”

I’m sure I’ll require some fluffing and puffing before we go today. And something tells me that my walk this morning will be kinda short – so I don’t get TOO dirty. Good luck with that.

Anyway, I’ll let you know how Gena and I do. I wonder if you get points if you ricochet off the judge….

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

Greetings blog readers. Frodo here for your reading pleasure today.

Today is the 25th of March and the birthday of the singer, Elton John. Apparently the celebrity is a huge animal lover and he has been owned by a number of dogs in his life. In 2018, he was saddened by the loss of his 14 year old Cocker Spaniel, Arthur. And reportedly, last summer during the pandemic, he decided to add not one but two pandemic puppies to his family. Two German Shepherds. Good for him and happy birthday. In this household, one pandemic puppy was quite enough. Speaking of whom, today is the imp’s 11th month birthday. Heaven help us all in living through to his first birthday. He is no doubt already sending out invitations to his party. The lad is in a continual state of frenzy and his middle name should be chaos.

Even yesterday, after a momentary state of what appeared to be sanity, he almost knocked out a guest…

Her Highness’ friend Marg came by to kindly help Her Highness with some garden work. Because Her Highness’ hand is still in recovery mode- and she really should not be doing heavy lifting or excessive actions with that hand, Marg came by to help dig up a section of a garden bed. The bed has been partly taken over by weeds and an overly obnoxious perennial. Even dog pee has not been effective at eradicating the unwanted plants. The top layer of soil needed to be removed along with the weeds, so that different plants can be put in that area. Again.

Marg was digging and Her Highness was emptying the wheelbarrow. Meanwhile, the imp and I were shouting out instructions from in the house. I finally gave up, but the imp felt it was his duty to share his opinion. Nonstop. Continually.

Finally Her Highness decided she would simply let him out so he could see Marg, and then perhaps he could stop proving his ongoing commentary.

Her Highness let him out and he went right to Marg. He shouted his greetings and then sat right next to her while she gave him a good pat on the head. He then decided he should lie down right where Marg was digging to supervise her work.

Her Highness instructed him to move and he ran off to roll in whatever remaining small snow piles that he could find. So all in all- he was very well behaved. When he began cruising the garage, looking to access the dog food bins, he was ushered back into the house.

When the work was finished, the gardeners came into the house for a snack and a beverage. And it is upon the entry of humans that the imp goes completely mad. He gets SO excited, he doesn’t know which way to turn. So he essentially turns every which way. And he leaps. Like a frog on fire. Her Highness opened the door and went to take the Coyote by the collar so he would not use the open door as an opportunity to go AWOL. Meanwhile, I was barking out my greeting to Marg. And JUST as Marg reached down to pet yours truly, the imp literally flew over me, clocking Marg right in the cheek with his head. Her Highness was mortified- it happened so quickly. And he had been SO well behaved outside. But, his multiple personality traits exploded and his Tasmanian Devil alter ego emerged. Thankfully, Marg left without any bruises but it was not a good thing to happen.

Her Highness was NOT amused, and the imp found himself sequestered in his crate. While we can laugh at his antics now, it REALLY is no laughing matter. He is officially entering sit-stay boot camp. He actually CAN sit and stay – but not when guests arrive. He will be doing some serious training – and willing participants who wish to help out will be compensated for their participation. But they won’t get to keep the armor. Should you wish to help out, contact Her Highness and bring a copy of your up to date health insurance. We are not joking…We can only hope with training AND maturity that he MAY begin to calm down. Personally, I’m skeptical.

That’s the latest imp story. He never fails to provide us with material. Now I must go on my constitutional. Alone. We all need respite from him for at least a few minutes every day. As they say, good thing he is cute….

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

Howdy blogaroos- Squirmy here. And I’m SO excited!!!!! Because guess what?!!! Somebody has been bad – and for a change – it wasn’t me!!!!

So as you may recall, My Enforcer has these boxes where she plants her vegetables each spring. Actually, she plants plants and HOPES for vegetables. Last year I thought it was great fun running through those boxes. And digging too. And really, I didn’t do too much damage as her “crops” were pretty dismal looking – even before I came along. At the end of the season she pulled out the dead plants and covered the soil in black gardening fabric. She placed rocks around the edges to hold down the fabric. That was pretty funny – because she no sooner made these lovely beds, when I jumped in and went crazy digging – sending rocks and garden fabric flying. So she tried again – and this time put lawn chairs on top of the beds. And that seemed to do the trick all winter. But – it is now spring…..

And SOMEBODY has been digging in the boxes again. He moved the chairs enough to dig around the edges. And he’s been eating something. Who knows WHAT is so delectable? Maybe a few rotten tomatoes buried in the soil? Maybe a neighborhood cat has been leaving surprises? But we do know who the culprit is – because he was caught in the act. More than once!!! Yup. The “good dog.” In the photo you can see dirt on his chin – and even on his tongue! And since HE is into this digging thing, you KNOW I had to join in!! And guess what? Even the Coyote has been inspecting our excavation work.

My Enforcer realizes that if she plans to put in a garden this year, she is going to have to put a fence around those boxes. Like the kind that people use to keep deer out. Except this will be for dogs. The alternative is to move the boxes out of our fenced area. Somewhere closer to the woods maybe – where the bunnies can eat the crop. It’s a bit of a dilemma. Don’t worry – we’ll help her figure it out!

In other news, I had another Rally class the other night. The teacher said I did really well – it’s my human who generally messes us up. But I’ll keep working with her. Yeah- the teacher said I was good, but she missed the part where My Enforcer went to pick up my leash after she had left me to walk the course, and as she bent over to pick it up, I jumped up, smacked my head into her face and gave her a fat lip. Thank goodness for masks – because no one could see my latest oopsie. She’s been looking on Amazon for those metal full body armor suits like knights used to wear. If anyone knows where we can get one, let us know. It needs the full face shield….

OK. Time for my walk. Apparently, the geese have returned – and My Enforcer spotted them on the golf course. I’m so busy running like a squirrel with his tail on fire that I didn’t even notice them. My Enforcer THOUGHT about pointing them out – but because she doesn’t know what I would do, AND she knows geese can get kinda nasty, she’s figuring that’s not a super good idea. She’ll keep me far away.

OK. Gotta go!

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