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.