Elphie had a good Christmas

Elphie is one spoiled dog, let me tell you. For Christmas Santa brought her two...count them TWO...rawhide bones: one was peanut butter flavored the size of her head and the other was plain and bigger than her entire body! Santa didn't even bother wrapping them, either. I'm sure he knew she'd sniff them out anyway.

Elphie + Camp = Love

Elphie loves camp. It gives me such pleasure to walk her through those glass doors and hand her off to the caring people of Pet Smart because I know she's in good hands. When she gets in the car, it's like she knows where she's going. She'll hop around in the backseat during the ride and when we pull into the parking lot her ears go back and she's locked, loaded and ready to play. She LOVES it. And they love her. There's love all around!

Jinx!

So I jinxed myself last post by saying that Elphie was feeling better...because she's not. Or if she was, she's not anymore. The Giardia is back (or never left?) and she may have an additional parasite. Sheesh! When is this thing going to go away? She doesn't seem to be hurting at all, just a little sleepier than usual, but she's still playing and eating like before. The situation is more frustrating for me than it is for her. A literal mess!

Elphie's Feeling Better!

I’m afraid to say it in the case of jinxing us, but I think Elphie’s feeling better. I brought her back to the vet two weeks ago because it seemed as if her illness was progressing. I was afraid that she was developing another infection on top of the Giardia. When I mentioned to both the vet tech and the doctor that Elphie was snacking on her own stuff (if you catch my drift), they told me that that was the reason why she wasn’t getting any better because she was just re-infecting herself. They sent us home with more medication which included a box of pills that you put in her food which causes her poop to smell bad enough that she won’t want to eat it (as if it could smell even worse). For the most part it’s worked. I still have to keep an eye on her when she goes out on her own, but I think we’re doing well. She even seems like she’s gotten the pep in her step back. Every morning she bounces out of her crate ready to play. It’s good to have my pup back.

Hubby and I are going on vacation next week so we’re going to have to board Elphie at PetSmart. Although we have friends and family willing to stop by to visit her at home, I just don’t feel right asking them to come by twice a day for a week and a half. It wouldn’t be fair to them or to the dog. The people at PetSmart take such great care of the animals they board so I’m not worried about leaving her there. We may even pay to have her in camp for a couple of days during her stay. I’m sure she won’t even realize we’re gone. I have asked my sister to stop by every other day to check on the cats, though. Cats are easier to handle whilst away. Just as long as they have enough food, water and a clean litter box, they’re happy as clams. They, too, won’t even know we’re gone.

Today I am working from home for the first half because there are some workmen in our home. It’s great being home during the work week, especially when there’s a kitty keeping you company. Nessa, our 4-year-old Orange Tabby, is helping me work by checking my notes. Boq (our 3-year-old Manx), on the other hand, has been hiding underneath the couch ever since the workmen arrived. He doesn’t react kindly to strangers. And miss Elphie is enjoying her day at camp. Now that you all know the whereabouts of my animals, I can sleep well tonight :)

Love That Dirty Water

Although Boston isn't Elphie's home, she still loves dirty water. Her upset tummy has been connected to her love for lapping puddles. I brought her to the vet on Saturday and they called on Tuesday to give me the results of the stool culture: she tested positive for Giardia. I did a little research and learned that Giardia is "an infection of the small intestine caused by a microscopic organism (protozoa)" (definition courtesy of http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov). Apparently it affects both humans and animals, usually caught by drinking stagnant and/or dirty water. I'm told that people who drink the water from Half Dome without filtration suffer from this ailment. Ick. I also read that it is undetermined whether the infection can be transferred between species. With that being said, you can bet your booty that I'm washing my hands every time I take her for a walk! That does not sound fun. I've seen, first hand, what it can do to the body and I'm not going to be signing up for that. Luckily it is easily treated with a combination of medication in various forms. I was sent home with pills for the diarrhea, powder to act as a vitamin supplement and liquid to treat the infection. I'm hoping she'll start to feel like herself again really soon.

Elphie has an upset tummy, although you never would know it with the way she goes about her day. She's just a tad lazier than usual but for the most part she's rather peppy. We put her on a 24-hr fast on Sunday and have been and will be feeding her boiled chicken, rice and cottage cheese for the next couple of days to help regulate her system. By the way she scarfed her dinner down yesterday, it seems like she thinks it's the best food in the world. I bet she's going to be upset when we switch her back to her regular food.

Camp has been going well and each day Elphie acts like it's her very first day. She always comes home with a shining paw-gress report and we learn that she loves to play with toys (we could've told them that) and that she's the life of the party. She's always making friends and she rarely rests during break time. I'm a-OK with the latter because that means she's not a bother when she gets home. It makes for an easy evening for mom and dad.

Doggie Day Camp - Day 3

Day 2 was a success so why wouldn't we bring her back for day 3? Although I have a feeling this getting up early in order to bring her stuff is going to get old fast. She was tuckered out after the second day and passed out on our bed while I watched TV in my lounge chair. She went out like a light and didn't even wake when the cat jumped on the bed to hiss and swat at her. Those are signs of a tired pup!

Doggie Day Camp - Day 2

Today is Elphie's second day at doggie day camp. I was actually considering not bringing her today to give her an additional day to rest, but she was peppy yesterday and back to her old self and I remembered the joy her exhaustion gave Hubby and I so I sacrificed my own sleep to get up early and bring her in.

PetsHotel was pretty packed this morning. There was a family of women dropping off their pooch to be boarded and I overheard the mother complaining about the price of it all. I couldn't help but wonder what in the world she was expecting. Unless you have a friend or relative to visit with your pet while you're away, and if you can't bring him wherever you're going, you would have to resort to boarding. But I still think PetSmart's prices are reasonable for the amount of care they give your pet. It's not like they keep your dog locked up in a cage all day - at the very least they take him out for a "walk" twice a day. You can also choose to add on a session of doggie day camp and/or individual play time for an additional cost. And have I mentioned the dog ice cream? For an extra $4, you can request your pooch receive a treat of either a Kong toy filled with peanut butter or soft serve dairy free bacon ice cream! How cool is that?! They get a free ice cream on their birthday, too! If I were a dog I'd love to hang out there!

I feel bad cutting back on our dog walker because they're really cool. They do an outstanding job and you can tell that they really care about animals. But the truth of the matter is, Elphie needs hours of stimulation and it just makes the most sense to bring her to camp. And let's face it - when Elphie is pooped it makes for a relaxing evening for Hubby and me. I understand now why parents force summer camp upon their children. Lots of play makes them sleepy and sleeping children = happy parents. You can bet your bottom dollar we'll be picking up that practice when we have kids! Does newborn camp even exist?

Doggie Day Camp ROCKS!

I think the excitement of Doggie Day Camp was a little too much for Elphie yesterday. Hubby picked her up last night and he said that they got in the house and she plopped down on the tile floor and wouldn’t move for 10 minutes. She was a big blob of BT all night and all she wanted to do was sleep. This morning, however, I came downstairs to find three small vomit piles in her crate. She only threw up liquid and it seemed rather fresh so she must’ve done it shortly before I came downstairs. She looked scared and ashamed but I didn’t yell at her because I wouldn’t want to be yelled at if I had to throw up in bed because of an upset tummy (well, at least one that wasn’t caused by extreme drinking the night before). We had a rather calm walk this morning when she did her business and even got a little excited when she saw another dog. We decided to give her a day to rest so we’re leaving her home today to sleep while the dog walker comes and visits. I’m sure she’ll be back to her old self by tomorrow and ready for another fun day at camp!

Busy Weekend

Elphie with a ball at the dog park.

This weekend was a big one for Ms. Elphie. On Saturday she had her first grooming appointment. We were told she did pretty well but that she wasn’t a big fan of the dryer so the groomer had to let her air dry. Honestly, how many dogs are big fans of the blow dryer? Maybe I should stop tormenting her with mine when I do my own hair. I’m pretty sure that doesn’t help matters. Then Sunday rolled around and Saturday became pretty much a moot point. We met some friends at the dog park and Elphie spent two hours chasing other pups and rolling around in the dirt and mud. We literally had to hose her down before going home, so that was $35 down the drain. It was worth it, though, because she highly enjoyed herself and she was out of commission for the rest of the night. Hubby had to literally drag her down the street on her walk last night before bed. She was even a little sore this morning when I took her out.

Elphie pooped after running around all day.

While we were at the groomers on Saturday (we brought her to PetSmart) we stopped by the PetsHotel lobby and spoke with a representative about their offers for doggie day camp. Now I never thought I would be *that* person who would bring her dog to camp during the day but it’s really a great deal. A half day (up to 6hrs) costs $15 and a full day costs $20. The camp runs from 9a-5p with a couple of breaks in between but you can drop off your “baby”, as your dog is referred, as early as 7a and pick up before 9p. They’ll even give a feeding! So this morning I got up early and brought Elphie and her baggie of food to PetSmart at 7:00 and Hubby will pick her up on his way home at 7:00 tonight. Luckily we’re not spending any more money because it’s the same price as our dog walker. We’re hoping this opportunity will help Elphie socialize more with other dogs and quite possibly calm down a bit. She’s so excitable and LOVES people and other animals so this will give her a way to release all of that energy. We’re going to see how this week goes (we’re aiming to bring her to camp 3x this week) and see if it improves her behavior. I’ll keep you posted on how it all goes!

I give up...

I've resigned to the fact that Elphie just may be a little too young and excitable to learn how to walk on a leash. We've spent most of our "lessons" tugging each other back and forth so I've decided to give it a rest for a few months until she gets more adjusted to leash life and less distracted. I know she's smart enough to learn, but she's defiant and stubborn, too. Typical woman :)

The reason why I know she's smart enough to learn is because I've been able to teach her other tricks. She now knows how to sit, stay, down, shake, up, come (when she feels like it), give high fives (granted she uses both paws for that, but she's got the gist of it), and roll over. I was the most proud of roll over because she was more interested in the treat than she was in the trick.

Maybe she's a rebel and will never walk beside me on a leash. Maybe she's a social butterfly and would prefer to run off with her puppy buddies than to go on a relaxing stroll. Maybe she was born as the wrong breed and should've been a blood hound. Who knows! All I know is that if she had a middle finger she would learn quickly how to flip me the bird.

And I do my little turn on the dogwalk

Hubby dusted off his camera and I commandeered it to do what I do best - take pictures of the animals. Elphie made a fantastic photography subject. 

Sit, Elphie, sit. Good dog.

Dog Day Afternoons

I know I've been remiss in updating. A lot of stuff was going on and I kinda got caught up in everything. But I'm back and ready to start posting again!

This weekend was rather lazy for Elphie. Well, for me, too. Yesterday especially. Elphie spent the majority of the day sleeping on the couch, either under my legs or on top of my chest. Hey, I wasn't complaining! Her snorty self was keeping me warm! I guess there's a reason why they call them dog day afternoons.

I've come to the realization that I need to start getting Elphie more durable toys. The last time I went to Petco I picked her up two stuffed toys with squeakers. I'm that annoying person in pet stores who roam the aisles squeaking every toy she can get her mitts on. It's not for my own pleasure mind you, it's mostly so I can decipher which sounds I'll be able to stand if I had to listen to them all day. They were having a sale on toys so I got a stuffed squeaking owl and a stuffed squeaking blue dog for $5. Neither of them lasted more than a day when I brought them home. Elphie really knows how to sink her teeth into the things. I gotta remember that no matter how cute these things are, I'm not buying them for me. I'm kinda addicted to stuffed animals. It's sad, really.

Speaking of toys, I flew home last weekend to host a bridal shower for a friend and I spent the weekend in my old room in my parents' house. My parents have three animals, two dogs and a cat. I grew up with the cat and one of the dogs, and after not being home for about two years, it was good to see them. It was a little sad, too, because they're old. I realize that since I'm no longer a spring chicken myself that would make my animals old fogies as well, but it's always hard to see. Max, our rat terrier, has become blind and deaf and has grown a gray hair or two around his snout. He still has his sense of smell and appetite, though, so I suppose he's still got some life in him after all.

Max and Diva (the other dog) share this rubber toy. It's a dinosaur egg with a baby dinosaur hatching out of it. I believe my dad brought it home one day and it turned out to be Max's most favorite toy. It's funny how something so simple can bring such joy to our pets. I've been trying to find that toy in the Petco stores out here to no avail. It didn't dawn on me until I went home last weekend that maybe, just maybe, these dinosaur eggs are supplied only to the east coast stores. If that's the case then how sad is that? I really want to give Elphie a toy that her aunt and uncle love so much. It would be something to bond them together from 3000 miles away. I'm going to keep looking here, but I did ask my parents to pick me up one of those eggs the next time they're in Petco.

Elphie's dog walker has hinted to us - not so subtlety - that she thinks we need to socialize Elphie more with other dogs. It's not that I don't want Elphie to make other furry friends, it's just that we don't really have the time to bring her on puppy play dates. I enjoy bringing her to the dog parks but it's been raining a lot this week and I know if I brought her now it would end like it did last time with a muddy Elphie and a stained bathtub. We have neighbors with dogs, however neither the neighbors nor the dogs seem to be up for dates. The dogs are all older and they get freaked out when Elphie comes charging at them and starts sticking her paws in their faces. Hubby and I do have friends with two dogs so maybe we can set puppy play dates with them. I still say that Elphie is still a puppy and has a lot of pep in her so you can only expect her to be a crazy nut. I'm sure there area also indoor puppy places within the LA area, too. It's just finding the time to bring her to these places that is the challenge.

TREAT me right, Mom!

Unbeknown to her, Elphie and I started our leash training this morning. I put treat pieces in a baggie last night so they were all ready this morning for our walk. It took her a moment to realize that I had treats but she caught on pretty quickly and began to behave herself. I still have to practice on when to take the treat out of the bag because she seems to anticipate my every move. We also have to work on her jumping up on my leg and begging for the treat. But despite the setbacks we experienced this morning I was pleasantly surprised with how well she behaved. Just because today’s session went well doesn’t mean it’ll go well all of the time, though, so I just have to remember that practice makes perfect and I need to stay consistent. I may even switch up the treats so she won’t get bored with what we have, although that has yet to happen.

I started the training almost immediately out of the door. I got her attention so she would focus on me and as she was walking next to me I dropped the treat on the ground in front of her and said “Yes! Good girl”. Every time she got distracted I called her name and made a clicking sound with my tongue. As soon as she was next to me again, paying me attention, I dropped the treat in front of her. We did this all the way out the door onto the sidewalk and she even stopped to do her business! She yanked me a couple of times because she got smell ADD, but when she did I called her name, clicked my tongue and changed directions. We’ve gotta work on her attention span and the rate that she gets distracted. She did OK when I told her to sit and there was a bunch of distractions around (such as dogs across the street and kids walking to school) but I could tell it was killing her by the way her ears were pulled to the back of her head. She’s still young and is amazed by what the world has to offer so you can’t blame the pup for being excited. Hell! I’d be excited too if I could tell by my nose that my Boxer friend was here before me. It would give us something to bond over. “So you like that rock too, eh Spike?” We’ll try again tonight and see if there’s any setbacks in the dark. Wish us luck!

You Dirty Dog, You!

I took Elphie to the dog park this afternoon. We've had really nice weather this weekend so the park was hopping. Coincidentally an old co-worker was there with her dog so both Elphie and I had company.

We've been having nice weather but it's come after a few days of rain. We were only at the park for about 40 minutes when Elphie's white spots were no longer white and she was starting to get a completely black coat. She was also wrestling with a rather large puppy of Huskie mix that was getting a little too rough, so I thought that it would be best to get her home and into the tub. She didn't like the tub part of the whole deal and showed me her disdain with a good shake or two in my face. She's clean now, though, and smells rather oatmeal-y. And she's asleep in a ball next to me, too. At least she's clean :-)

How to Leash Train your Dog

So I've gotten it into my head that I'm going to teach Elphie to calmly walk beside me on a leash. If you've met Elphie, you're probably laughing at me right now and telling me, "yeah, good luck with that", but I have faith. I found a couple of good videos on YouTube that describes the best way to leash train a dog. The steps seem relatively easy and it'll just take time and patience, although those are two things I'm not so sure I have.

Tip #1: Put the leash on and off the dog periodically throughout the day, in the house, when you're not going for a walk. This will teach the dog that just because the leash is on doesn't necessarily mean you're going anywhere.

Is it me, or does this sound a little mean? You get your dog all excited that they're going for a walk, pretty much the one activity that dogs live for, only to disappoint them when you don't go anywhere. Cruel and unusual punishment.

Tip #2: With your dog on the leash, go in and out of the house constantly in a row until you both get tired of the activity. This will give your dog hope that the next time he has the leash on and you go out of the door then maybe finally he'll go somewhere.

Again, doesn't this sound mean? "Let's go, Fido! Let's go for a walk! Haha! J/K, you're not going anywhere. Neener neener neener." I guess I get the point but it the whole act just sounds tedious and monotonous.

Tip #3: Once you finally get your dog out of the house for real, on his leash, start walking. The minute he starts to go in front of you, immediately switch directions and call him towards you. When he's either next to you or in back of you, reward him with a treat and the word "yes". Doing this a bunch of times will A) confuse the dog so he won't know in which direction you're actually going so he won't want to pull you anywhere and 2) will make the dog realize that he'll get rewarded if he stays next to you.

This was the tip that I tried on Friday night. I brought Elphie out to our courtyard and attempted to have her walk next to me. I got dizzy, man, because we only took two or three steps before having to switch directions. Then Elphie got smell ADD and started smelling under every gate and on every tree we encountered. I'm sure it didn't help that I didn't have treats to reward her. I should know by now that treats are key in puppy training. Mental note: bring puppy treats with you at all times.

I'll attempt to following these steps (or at least one out of the three) every day when taking her for a walk. Hopefully I won't look like an idiot to my neighbors when they see us walking back and forth down the sidewalk. Wish us luck!

Just say "No" to puppy crack

We picked up a baby gate for the downstairs bathroom this weekend. It’s not as large or extravagant as the one that we got previously and placed at the stop of the stairs, but so far it’s been doing the job :::knock on wood:::. It’s one of the cheap wooden ones made for babies 0-6 months. You know, babies who can’t stand and aren’t puppies. It’s rather short and I’m afraid that Elphie will jump over it but we’ll see how things play out. I figure if she can’t sniff too much into the bathroom she’ll lose interest. We’ll see.

Last night she was hanging out with me upstairs in our bedroom, being as crazy as normal. I’m thinking I should cut back on the amount of crack that I give her daily. (I’m kidding!) Anywho, she was running circles around the room for the 10^th time and accidentally got tangled up in a surge protector and managed to yank it out of the wall, along with both of my phones. This caused a domino effect and the wires knocked everything else from the nightstand onto the floor. I didn’t know what was happening at first until I saw Elphie running away with the surge protector and wires (because both phones had disconnected) wrapped around her collar. The poor thing was scared and I didn’t help by yelling at her, but she ran downstairs and directly into her crate, cowering the entire time.

I know I was wrong for yelling at her that much, but she scared and inconvenienced me. A few minutes later I tried to coax her out of her crate and outside for one final potty trip before bed but she wasn’t budging. Instead I gave her a pet on the head and apologized for yelling at her. She was fine this morning, though, and acted like nothing ever happened. Although she did pee quite a bit on our walk this morning. :-)

Even though she gets into everything and annoys me to no end almost every day, my puppy is a cutie pie and worth every ounce aggravation. But I still can’t wait until she’s older and has calmed down. What? A girl can have hopes, can’t she?