I am not a brave dog...

I am NOT a brave dog.

I never said I was!

I say this because while out walking today, I got scared by a leaf.

It was a big leaf, it was moving across the road towards me at a fast rate of speed and so I got spooked by it and growled at it.  When the leaf didn't stop moving and still was coming towards me, I jumped behind the Big Guy and did my scared posture.

Auntie was too busy laughing and saying that I should not be afraid of a leaf to take a picture.

I am not thrilled that she was laughing, but glad didn't get a picture of me hiding behind the Big Guy who was trying to tell me there was nothing to be afraid of and get me to stop crying.

Later in our walk I was told to try and rustle up some birds from the bushes.  Apparently, the Big Guy and Auntie were doing something called the Great Backyard Bird Count and wanted to see if they could spot some more birds.  I don't know why they think I am bird dog?

I mean really! I might be a hunting dog genetically, but I was scared of a leaf a block before this.

When we got back from our walk Little Man got a new tick and flea collar

This means I will probably be getting mine soon too, I think it is a nice accessory, and a must to keep me healthy.

The flu went around the house...

When the flu goes around the house it means two things

1) We get extra cuddles

2) We get left alone on the couch, often

Sadly, Dad, MomMom, and Auntie all had to go to Urgent Care this past week due to being sick.  The end result of that is extra cuddles for us (for the most part) and being left alone on the couch at random times.  

Dad was sick but still went to work, MomMom worked from home so Little Man cuddle on her lap, but after I saw him get picked up and placed on the floor in a rush to the bathroom I decided that laying on the bed was a better bet.

Auntie was sick and she was harder to cuddle with, because she put like three or four blankets on top of her.  With all those extra layers it was hard to snuggle, but I am resourceful when it comes to cuddling and found a way to snuggle with her.  So did Little Man, he managed to have someone pick him up and put him by her feet.  

With all of that we didn't have much time for anything interesting.  I stayed near the Big Guy, because he wasn't sick so he was the one taking us out for walks.

Hopefully everyone will be better next week and we can get back to our normal ordinary adventurous life.

When Our Humans Leave

Our humans left this morning, and we didn't realize that Auntie was here, so she got a first hand look at what Little Man and I do when people leave.  First, we bark at the door.  Next, we run around and look in all the rooms to see if someone stayed behind (that is how we found Auntie).  Finally we find a place to cuddle and fall asleep.  This morning it was on Auntie's bed while we waited for her to finish getting ready.

After Auntie was ready we moved downstairs and found nice spots on the couch that let the sun warm us as we napped.  Mom and Dad had taken us out for a walk before they left so we were tired.

Little Man decided to snuggle with Auntie.

I being a light sleeper decided that sleeping on the other couch was a better option.

Auntie was really nice and took us both for a walk, by herself, before she left for a birthday party.  She got the leashes for Little Man and I tangled once, but we will let that slide since it is when she was picking up poop and Little Man and I started sniffing and mailbox post.  After Auntie left Little Man and I ran around the house and then decided that sleeping on our dog beds in the family room was the best place to be.  Auntie came home and snapped a picture, because I didn't get out of bed fast enough...

...and I knew she was going to come and pet me.  Right after this I was jumping to try and kiss her.  My normal routine when someone comes home, is to run to the door and cry for kisses.  Little Man usually follows me, his eyesight is fading at 16 years old he usually follows me instead of leading the charge.  After crying for kisses I run to the door to see if I can get a walk.  Auntie took the bait this time :)  She walked Little Man and I together again, but only for a short walk so we could both pee and poop.  We ran out of poopy bags, so Auntie had to put a new roll on the leash when we got back home.  She told us not to poop again after we used two bags, that is all we normally use but I guess she thought she needed to say it to be safe. It was great, I was so excited that when we got back inside I played with my duck.

Auntie says I have no shame, because I roll over when playing with my duck so that I can get my belly rubbed.  Auntie being the best, rubbed my belly and took care of Little Man.  Little Man likes being wrapped up in a blanket and held, so she did that while rubbing my belly so that we would both be happy.

It was a hard day, with lots of walking.  Apparently Auntie and MomMom are doing that Fitbit Challenge thing again.  I love it when they do that on the weekends, but that means I get extra walks.

When it rains....we don't poop

Our humans have been trying to get us to go out and poop all afternoon, in the middle of a terrible rainstorm.  Let me explain something about my brother, Little Man, and I.  WE DO NOT WANT TO GO OUTSIDE AND POOP IN THE RAIN!

See this picture, we would have loved to stay like this all afternoon.  We like snow it is fun to play in the snow, but not in the rain (it is too much like a bath or shower).  Plus when it rains we get sleepy, so why would we want to go outside to poop.  The Big Guy laid down on the couch and watched movies all day, apparently The Godfather Epic was on and he watched that. Little Man and I go to the bottom of the stairs of the porch and then take a few steps and pee then run back inside.  Little Man fell over tonight trying to run back inside.
Those cute raincoats Mom got us, don't cover us completely cover us so we don't like to stick our butts out in the downpour to poop.  I don't understand why our humans haven't figured this out yet.  we spent all afternoon running away from the door, and they keep trying.

Grooming Day

It was grooming day today.  At first I thought I was being taken to a groomer, but nope Auntie has found a groomer that comes to us.  Which is great, because even with a Dog Anxiety Calming Wrap I completely panic in the car and cannot handle car rides at all.

This was a trip in December, and it didn't go well for me.  Thankfully Aussie Pet Mobile comes to the house.  The groomer was wonderful, I want to do a before and after photo.  This is a photo of me before the groomer came this morning.

You may not see much of a difference, but I smelled better (at least Mom, Dad, and Auntie said I did).  And this is me after the grooming, which took an hour.  My nails were clipped and filed, my ears were cleaned, and even my private area got a cleaning - I will not talk about that.  I got shampooed and rinsed several times.  The groomer, a very nice lady who also gave me treats, sang and danced with me the entire time.  I liked her she can cut my fur anytime she wants if she sings and dances with me.  The mud that was hard to get out of my fur and paws from all the melting snow and puddles that were created are all gone now.

I also got a very cute pink tie with hearts on it for Valentine's Day.  Auntie moved it to the side, because I kept trying to lick it.  Hey we all do strange things when we get nervous and right as I came inside, my older brother was handed off and went out the door.

In the middle of my panic of having Little Man separated from me I decided the only thing to do was sit and stare at the door from about 5 feet away.  I can tell you nothing scary or bad happened in the grooming van, other than getting wet, which I am not overly fond of, but I panicked about what it would be like for Little Man to be by himself with a stranger.  I was worried at first that I wouldn't be given back to my family, but I was able to see through the window that we didn't move.

I waited for about 30 minutes, which was less time than it took for me to be groomed, apparently him being smaller means it take less time to dry him and clean him.  Mom has washed him in the bathroom sink before, what can I say Little Man is small.  When he finally came back inside I was ready to jump all over him.  He smelled so good, we both did in fact.  Auntie said I almost smelled like a strawberry or her favorite shampoo.  Mom said Little Man looked GQ, what does that mean?

I laughed because he had a tie on, and Auntie had taken mine off.  However, Mom put it right back on so she could try and take pictures of us together, we weren't very cooperative.  Sorry, no picture of both of us in our Valentine's Day ties.

Grooming Day isn't so bad, we can do this again any time Auntie or Mom feels it is necessary.

We now share the couch

I know I started out as the youngest of the four, Mom and Dad had two cats and Little Man before I came into the picture, but for the five weeks before they all moved in with MomMom, the Big Guy, and Auntie I was the only one here.  I had full run of the house, and still do, and had a specific routine for the day and places that I liked to sleep.  One of those places was on the couch next to the Big Guy.

See, didn't we look comfortable?  Now Little Man seems to have taken that spot.  At first I felt slighted, I mean that was my spot and I thought the Big Guy stopped liking me.

With Little Man taking my spot I spent serious time on my window bench, looking at the world and trying to figure out what to do.  It took me some time, but today we figured it out.  When Auntie came home she found me on one side of the Big Guy and Little Man on the other.  I jumped off and ran to greet her before she could get a picture.  My new place to sleep was only slightly different than the one prior to everyone showing up.

I have also found that a surprising benefit of Little Man being here is that I get more walks.  The Big Guy takes Little Man and I out for a half loop of the development, because that is all Little Man can do with his arthritis and tiny legs.  Then I get a full loop, that is like one and a half walks for me :)  

We each get to use the extendable leashes when the Big Guy walks us, mom and dad use the 6 foot leashes.

With the melting snow on my multiple walks today I got mud all over my belly I was told it is a good thing the groomer is coming tomorrow.  I wonder if I can convince my humans to not send me to the groomers but to buy some tools and groom me themselves?  Auntie helped me search Amazon and I found some stuff mom and dad could buy to groom me instead of putting me in a car and taking me to a groomer.

     

We have DEER!!!!!!!!!

I have seen deer before in through the window and once I saw one while walking with the Big Guy.  Tonight it was so amazing I saw 5 deer just run out from the stream beside our house cross the street and then into the trees on the other side of the road.  I froze for a moment, I was only 10 yards away maybe less and they were so close, what should I do?  Of course my response was to run after them!
Sadly, Auntie said no she was not going into the woods so we could not follow them.  I told her she was mean and kept pulling on the leash to chase them. (picture from previous walk)

It was at the end of our walk and we were so close when they jumped out of the trees I could smell them, see them, hear them, and I wanted to play with them.  Auntie was mean and we stayed out of the woods, but she did let me go over to the trees the deer came out of and spend some serious time sniffing the air and trees.  I loved it, but after what Auntie said was enough time (it wasn't for me) we went inside because she was getting cold.
I ran inside and told Little Man, who had been sleeping, and the Big Guy all about the deer we saw on the walk.
After I told them all about this Little Man decided he needed to go back to sleep and curled back up with the Big Guy.  I usually sleep there, but lately those two have gotten close and snuggle, I am not sure how I feel about that yet.

After I wore myself telling those two about the deer, Auntie misunderstood one of my thoughts and said yes it was time to brush my teeth.  I do not love this, but I love that Auntie gives me a special goodie afterwards.  I have started liking the taste more and I don't hide my face anymore.  Unfortunately, Auntie has taken this to mean that she can spend more time brushing my teeth.  I love her, but she doesn't have to stick the toothbrush into my mouth so much.