A little search of the net revealed that there is such a thing as a dog umbrella.  Here ya go:

OK.  I must say we laughed hysterically in this house when we saw this.  Clearly this is for smallish dogs.  Imagine walking a Great Dane with one.  You would need really long arms.  But the better vision is of my human walking us two PONs – with one for each of us. The walking alone would be a challenge- but picture stopping to pick up poop.  On a windy day.  Oh the image…. She’s big on trying new things – but we are definitely giving this one a pass.  Mind you – it COULD make an entertaining video….

Umbrellas and dogs have another link because they are actually used as part of canine Temperament Testing.  Temperament testing gives insight into a dog’s behavior and measures things like shyness, aggressiveness, and friendliness.  During the test, the dog is exposed to a variety of situations- and the dog is evaluated on his reaction to each one.  Situations include greeting a friendly stranger, reacting to loud sounds (like someone banging on a pot), walking on uneven footing, encountering an unfriendly, threatening stranger and reacting to a surprising stimulus – which is an umbrella opening before the dog.  The test looks at the dog’s reaction to these things and his ability to recover without excessive shyness or aggression.  Depending on the breed, the evaluators may  have slightly different expectations- but the bottom line is that all dogs must be under control at all times.  Here’s a link that tells you about testing and even has a video of a dog being tested. 

When we searched for other Temperament Testing videos, we found one that was labeled as Failed.  Can you imagine having your failed video on-line for all the world to see?  And here it is (I know – I’m sharing their embarrassment too).  But REALLY – he isn’t that bad.  He needs some work, and practice.  He failed because he wouldn’t walk over the uneven surface.  He also had no reaction to the threatening individual- who you can’t see in the video.  The dog was more interested in the water.  He didn’t shy away from the umbrella at all.

I’m not sure how we would do in the test.  We would probably be fine with the umbrella.  But pull out a lint roller – and we would be GONE.  We all have a dislike for the lint roller.  And not because my human has used it on us.  It started with one of us sniffing it, not liking the sticky feeling, jumping away – and now we ALL have that reaction!  Hold up the lint roller and it’s a bark-a-thon.  Give us an umbrella any day!

Have a good one. Peace and paws up!

Seizure free days: 0

Sadly the counter has again returned to zero.  I have an appointment with my Vet on Monday morning.   We have to figure this out…

February 9.  And on this day in 1895, a guy by the name of William G. Morgan created a game called Mintonette.  It soon became known as volleyball.

Now while I couldn’t find any dogs actually PLAYING a game on their own, I did find this guy who is assisting on a team:

Then I found these guys playing with a balloon.  They certainly have the moves:

But probably the most notable when it comes to the moves, is this dog.  Or as someone said in a post yesterday, it’s not a dog.  It’s a Border Collie!

Now that’s determination.  Or obsessiveness.  And I bet he wasn’t even a LITTLE bit tired at the end.

My human would like to try it with us – with a balloon.  How long before it breaks?  I’m betting 3.8 seconds.  

We had a rainy day yesterday.  But that didn’t stop us from getting up at 5:30.  To say that this was one of the worst icy days so far is an understatement. When we went out at that point, it was freezing rain.  And the driveway and lawn were the worst yet.  Where’s a guy supposed to poop?  And HOW do you poop when you can’t stand still. It was a case of G&P.  Glide and poop.  It could be a new sport. How long can your poop trail be as you glide along ?  And try peeing with three legs on ice.  Deadly.

 My human attempted to drive up to get the newspaper.  Big mistake.  She didn’t even get 1/4 of the way up the hill and she couldn’t move forward.  The car started sliding backwards down the hill.  We were all barking out “Turn the wheel!!!” As we watched from in the house.  Luckily she did – or she would havs smashed into the island in the middle of the driveway.  She couldn’t get the paper until around noon after the real rain started.  Good times.

Today is Saturday.  But every day is Saturday now.  I’ll have to tell you about the new trick my human played on us to get a few more minutes of sleep….

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.

Seizure free days: 7

February 8.  And it’s Boy Scouts Day.  The Scouting movement originated in England in 1907, founded by a man named Robert Baden-Powell.  By 1910, the Boys Scouts of America was formed and two years later, the Girl Scouts of America was founded. Today, over 200 countries and territories have scouting programs for boys and girls.

In the US, the first merit badges were started in 1911. You basically had to show that you had knowledge about a certain subject – and you could demonstrate some skill in the area.  I checked back to see what the subjects were for those earliest badges – and was a bit surprised. For example, one was bugling.  And it appears to still exist.  When is the last time you saw a kid bugling?  Other early ones included horsemanship, forestry and first aid.  Which aren’t all that surprising.  But another early one was electricity.  Wonder how many wavers have to be completed for that one today…

In 1938, they added a Dog Care badge.  It was revised in 2003 and more info was made available in a pamphlet in 2008.  I decided to see what is involved- I mean HOW HARD could it be.  Well.  No wonder they call it a MERIT badge.  It involves WORK.  Check out the requirements.

In 1995 they added a Veterinary Medicine badge.  You probably have to perform surgery to get it.

Today the topics and themes range from moviemaking to programming to sustainability. I also saw that there is even a way to obtain a badge on-line.  My human could get that one.  An on-line shopping badge.

She was in the Scouts from a young age right up until she was a teenager.  It helped to have a mother who was a Scout leader for some of those years. 

I actually found a Pet Care badge on her sash. Clearly the requirements were not as stringent as the current Boy Scout requirements.  And clearly no one knew about how she dropped the gold fish bowl in the sink- with the fish still in it.  He reportedly went to the fish rainbow bridge shortly after the trauma.  And she obviously has forgotten any knowledge of dog obedience training she might have known back then.  Wonder if they can take badges back?  Wonder what the Statite of Limitations is on rescinding badges…

I could get badges- for countersurfing, paper shredding, dryer lint eating…Oh and photo modeling. Here’s a hint – Easter is coming. And my human has already begun taking pictures….

I could really get a badge for patience..

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up!

Seizure free days: 6

It’s February 7 and according to the crazy calendar, it’s Ballet Day.  A day to celebrate that elegant, classical, graceful style of dance.

Nobody in this household is THAT graceful.  Certainly not my human – who with the recent icy walking conditions looks more like Frankenstein as she plods along with us.  She’s about as far removed from a graceful ballerina as I am from being an obedience champion. 

Now when I searched for dogs and ballet, I came up with an assortment of photos and even a few videos of dogs dressed in tutus.  Thank GOODNESS they don’t sell them at the Dollar Store.  That would be a totally justifiable reason for running away.  At least until mealtime.

I searched and found the odd poodle prancing around on their hind legs dressed in appropriate attire.  Entertaining maybe. If you enjoy watching tortured dogs.

But THEN, I found THIS video.  We have talked before about the sport of canine freestyle – which is basically a human and dog, dancing together.  They always have a freestyle exhibit at Crufts- and some of the routines are amazing.  I believe I posted one last year.  

Many freestyle routines are set to fairly upbeat music.  But with  this video we have what I think is a great example of dog ballet.  Check it out – it is lovely!

I’m amazed at how the dog knew what to do without even watching her human!!! They were sometimes facing the opposite direction.  I don’t know what to do even when I can SEE my human.  Well – I do if I can see a treat.   

So that’s my cultured posting for today.  Tomorrow we’ll probably be talking about poop.  I like to mix things up.

Have a good one. Peace and paws up.

Seizure free days: 5

Heaven help us.  She has a new toy…

Yesterday we got my human up at 5.  She took us out, fed us, had her breakfast and went back to bed after I had my medication at 7.  I think we have a new routine.

She spent the better part of the day cleaning out her email.  Really.  It took hours and hours.  In dog time it was probably equivalent to three days.  She finally finished mid afternoon and then announced that she needed to get groceries.  And one of my medications.  So she abandoned us for about 2 hours. When she returned, she announced that she was taking the FG up to the golf course for a long walk.  He needed it- he was walking around squeaking.  So off they went.

Now you need to keep in mind that we had icy weather for quite a few days and then the day before yesterday, we had about an inch or two of snow to cover the ice.  Yesterday the temperature was just above freezing-so the ice was now slushy.  In spots.  Some areas were deceiving- they were solid ice- so she had to tread slowly with the FG.  Slow is not a favorite word in his vocabulary, but he IS getting better.

As they made a loop and were heading for home, you KNOW she had to take a few photos.  The FG planted himself on a rock and was surveying the surroundings as my human got down on one knee to take the above photo.  And all was FINE – until she decided to toss a branch to get his attention.  BIG mistake.  He jumped off the rock and before my human could stabilize herself, he was off.  She of course, dropped the leash.  And he was GONE.  The frenzied gazelle with the leash in his mouth ran around the bend in the path and was out of sight.

My human couldn’t run after him – for fear of hitting an ice patch – so she hid, praying he would come back.  And probably 30 seconds later, he did just that.  But he knew she was hiding – so he stayed in the middle of the fairway- well out of catching distance.  He spotted her and raced across the fairway.

And then she did the only thing she could think of.  She lay down in the snow.  And just looked at him.  He in turn lay down on the other side of the fairway on a hill.  Watching her.  She pretended she was crying.  He just watched.  She could just picture what this scene looked like.  She’s watching him and he’s watching her.  It seemed like hours went by – but it was probably two minutes.  And she didn’t want to get up because she KNEW he would take off.  Her pants were starting to get wet.  But she didn’t want to move.  And he just kept watching. 

Suddenly he got up.  “Uh oh” she thought.  But he didn’t take off- he came racing at her like a freight train.  When he landed on her he nearly knocked off the new glasses she just got last week.  He jumped on her, kissed her, and was SO crazy she had a hard time getting up!  But she was THRILLED.  She would rather have a concussion from him jumping on her than one from falling as she chased him.  Go figure.  She just needs to start wearing a helmet when she walks him.

After the reunion- they continued home. Then she got to take Einstein and me out – but we just did a loop of our property- and we didn’t take off because we knew it was supper time. 

So that was our Monday.  Today Ludwig has to go in for some service because of some kind of recall.  I think she should take us with her – so the service guys do the job really quickly. We’ll see…

Oh.  And by the way.  The rodent SAW HIS SHADOW- so he raced back into his house.  Which means 6 more weeks of winter.  Meanwhile, his colleagues elsewhere forecasted an early spring.  I’m not too worried.  According to one source, these overgrown squirrels have a forecasting accuracy rate of 37%.  We PONs are MUCH better than that!

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.

Seizure free days: 3

Well the Super Bowl is over.  You know- that big day when guys play a game where they smash into each other causing concussions- and LOADS of people sit around and watch.  And people forget about their no carb no sweets diets and fill up on every junk food imaginable.  Good times.

Besides the entertainment at halftime, lots of people watch the game for the commercials- which happen like every 5 minutes.  And because we know everybody LOVES dogs – there were a number of commercials featuring canines.  Dogs sell. So here are some of those ads – leading up to my personal favorite:

A serious one.  For serious dog products.  We need these:

Then we have one where the dog is just a tiny part of the ad.  Not my favorite.

We have this one that pokes fun of dog shows – and people who resemble their dogs:

We dogs shouldn’t really EAT avocados.  We could get an obstruction if we eat the seed.  That ad was OK, but not my favorite.

Budweiser always seems to feature dogs.  And of course their horses.  I actually like this one – gotta love the song too.

But MY personal favorite is this one.  The dog steals the ad.  Make sure you watch the whole thing.  Somehow I can see my human in this ad…

It’s Monday.  My human didn’t work on Mondays so the fact that she is home with us today seems like any other Monday.  Friday was a university holiday- so that  felt typical too.  But tomorrow when she stays home – that’s when we really start to see what this retirement is all about!  It’s a concept that won’t be hard to sell to us!

On this day in 1690, the colony of Massachusetts issued the first paper money in the Americas. Apparently paper money was used in China as far back as the 7th century. Before 1690, in the Americas, people used shillings and other coins as currency. 

Paper money as we now know it, can be very appealing to us canines.  And not because want to go shopping.  Some of us find it palatable.  There are numerous stories on the net of dogs eating bills – a Golden Retriever in Colorado was reported to down 5- $100 bills.  A multi-breed dog in Florida ate 10- $100 bills.  Talk about good taste.  In both of these cases, the humans were able to get a refund.  The first family “waited” for their return, cleaned off what remained of the bills and got the money back.  If I was the telller at the bank I wouldn’t count it.  I would just trust the people and give them their cash.

In the second case, the family had a more immediate return by getting the dog to vomit with some hydrogen peroxide.  That worked well. 

One source said that in the US, if over 50% of a bill is intact, the treasury will replace it.  Some sources say that the serial number must be present.  

Beamish, the Labrador that Einstein knew as a puppy, once grabbed a $50 bill my human had left on the counter – to pay someone for some lottery tickets. Not such a good bet.  She rarely carries cash anymore these days- and given my attraction to things like rolls of toilet paper and dryer lint, she never, ever leaves money or her wallet accessible to yours truly.

We had a lazy day yesterday.  My human wanted to keep an eye on me.  Thankfully I didn’t have a cluster of seizures in a 24 hour period.  Just that one.  I must say we ARE getting a bit bored because with the ice, we haven’t gone for very long walks.  With any luck it will be better today. Oh – and just so you know, we still get my human up at 5AM.  Carpe diem!  Mind you, she does go back to bed after we have been out and fed. We just want her to enjoy EVERY minute of her newfound freedom!!!

Have a good one!  Peace and paws up!

Seizure free days: 1

Back to the drawing board.  While my human’s first day of retirement started out GREAT – she went out for breakfast with Joanie, who was in town- and they had a great time, it quickly went downhill from there…

It began with a kitchen disaster.  She decided to try making some Baileys Irish Cream – something for humans but clearly not for us dogs as it contains alcohol.   And chocolate.  She was making the recipe to celebrate her retirement. The recipe calls for some heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, chocolate syrup, whiskey, vanilla and instant coffee.  You put it in a blender and mix it up.  We watched as she created the concoction.  But here’s a hint.  Never leave a spoon, by accident in the blender and turn it on high.  There was a clunk and the side of the blender cracked and suddenly the sticky potion began pouring out everywhere.  Her first thought was to get us OUT of the kitchen – for fear we would start lapping up the chocolaty substance now pouring onto the floor. She rounded us up and put us in the front hall, while she went to clean the disaster.  And it WAS a disaster.  A sticky disaster.  On the wall, the counter, the cupboard, the floor….A total mess.

She was almost through when she heard a telltale bang and Einstein immediately began barking.  Yup.  I had a seizure.  She rushed in, but couldn’t let anyone into the kitchen as she KNEW we would continue the clean up.  That was all she needed – dogs devouring chocolate and alcohol.  She somehow managed to whisk Einstein and the FG onto the deck, while she took yours truly outside.  She then fed me because after a seizure I am 100x more hungry than I normally am.  Picture that.  While I was literally inhaling my food, she was rushing to finish the clean up.  

We are obviously disappointed with another seizure.  And there is really no explanation why.  I am getting my meds, eating the same food, and following my regular routine (although the CBD oil I am currently taking IS from a different supplier).   I think we need to increase this dosage.  It is so frustrating and disappointing. 

I almost hate to write about it – because really- who wants to read bad news?  But we share everything – so there you have it.  Please send good thoughts .  Oh – and thanks for clicking – you paid for my CBD oil for last month!

On to other news…

Today the groundhog will give us his forecast and will tell us if we will have an early spring or 6 more weeks of winter.  Given that he is not held accountable for his forecast, he can decide whatever he wants. If goes back in his house because he sees his shadow – it means more winter.  No shadow means early spring.  Honestly, he is probably just as accurate as the weather guys.  My human laughs at long range forecasts – given that their accuracy for the short term is probably 50-50.   Want a reliable forecast? PONs aren’t going out – it’s raining. Human won’t go out?  It’s icy. The FG is not a reliable forecaster- he’ll go out in anything.

If you believe in rodent forecasts, I wish you a cloudy day.   Otherwise I wish you sunshine!! But don’t put away those boots.  Just in case…

Have a good one. Peace and paws up!

Seizure free days: 0

When she got home, we ran into the garage and then out to the side yard pen to pee.  No long walks on the luge run- we had snow, then rain, then freezing temperatures and finally a dusting of snow – to cover the ice on the luge run.

 As we raced out to pee, one of us immediately noticed the new boxes and had to give everything a thorough inspection- the FG.  He had to sniff and examine everything- he could have a job working for customs.  He doesn’t miss a thing.  

Besides the boxes…she brought home “the Labrador.”  And like everything in this house- it has a story.  The Labrador is a 40×59 inch poster of a dog food ad that my human “obtained” at Crufts in 2002.  The show was over- and she had admired the yellow lab ad – because she owned a yellow lab at that time, named Beamish.  She somehow managed to get one of the posters – and somehow managed to roll it up and get it home.  She then asked her “ex” to take it to a framing place- to see if it could be mounted on a foam core backing.  There was a bit of a mix up – and somehow the poster got mounted on a huge board. – making it rather heavy, and its transport not so easy.  At that point, my human calso realized she really had no place in the house for this new lab.  So- it went to her office. And when her office was relocated twice, the movers carefully moved the lab to each location.

The lab is actually pretty cool – he’s a mosaic made of little  photos.  He proved to be an excellent conversation starter.

So now, thanks to a friend’s truck the lab is home.  In the garage.  I think he may be looking for a new home.   He may have to go into rescue….

Today we will be sure to keep the my human busy on her first day off. This is going to be such great fun!

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up:

Seizure free days : 8