Max - I'm just a little goober!

I forget that Max is still a puppy sometimes... He plays hard with the other young dogs around here and then he just crashes like a puppy... Those deep, deep sleeping periods like most young puppies do... And in ALL positions too! Sometimes I find him upside down in the pillows on the couch with all four paws up in the air!.. Boy! That's trust if I ever saw it in a dog or puppy!... And he is ALWAYS the last to come out from underneath the warm covers in our bed each morning too! What a little goober he is!

I think because Max is already house-trained, I forget he is still a puppy... By the way, this is a standard size small dog bed that he's curled up in this morning... You can barely see him inside of it - he is that small and just a peanut!

Chloe comes a-visiting!

I'm amazed at the progress Chloe is making... truly I am! A week ago she arrived here, tail cemented between her legs and head down... Now she sees me and I should have named her "WigglyButt" instead of Chloe~!!!...

This morning she decided to come a-visiting and jumped up onto my desk from the Chihuahua penthouse... It might have been the smell of my Starbucks Frappuccino that intrigued her, but once here, she stopped long enough for me to snap a photo of her... She's already starting to fill out (must be my home cooking~!! smile)...

Next week she gets her stitches removed and by that time, the memories of being a stray and going through the shelter will have faded even more... Dogs are such situational beings... If you provide a serene and safe environment for them, they come back so much quicker than we humans do~!!!

Daisy sports a mohawk!

As she was sitting on the couch tonight, we played with her hair and some different styles, it has grown since her last grooming... She particulary liked the the mohawk look, so here it is for all to see! Being that her pack members are male toy poodles and a male beagle, she is the only girl in the house and gets that special girly treatment!

Chloe - One tired pup!

Chloe has been 'running and a gunning' as they say... She's learned her place in the pack and is showing to be a submissive temperament... As such, she's been spending her day playing with the younger ones around here (especially Frito and Max), but it just wears her out!... LOL... Only five days away from being spayed, she's still recuperating from the procedure, but you'd never know it!... She's already starting to gain a few ounces and her coat is starting to shine, leaving behind that dull look... What a pretty Chi she is!... But one TIRED pup after a long day!

A WATCH dog at that!

So now that she is comfortable and settled in, Daisy is learning that this is HER house too! Like most dogs (although not her up until now), she now barks when strangers arrive. Nothing out of the ordinary for a dog, as most alert you when a "stranger" comes to the door, but now she is on alert and in step with the rest of the pack. This began early this week, so we have worked throughout the week on stopping her when told to stop. Barking can be a great asset and deterant and is one of the perks of having a dog in the house, but the dog must know when to stop the alert as well. As most of us know, barking can be one of the hardest habits to break, but she is listening and learning when it is time to stop quite quickly. She is better than my own dogs when it comes to listening, but unfortunately they aren't learning as much from her and she is from them!!!

Daisy also got a home made bath this week in the kitchen sink. She is only 12 pounds, so bathing her in the kitchen sink is one of the perks of being small! The last time Daisy was bathed here at home was the first day she arrived, so obviously that was a unmemorable experience for her as she was already scared enough that first day - but what a difference time makes! She wasn't thrilled about the idea for the first couple of minutes, but never-the-less she put up with the ordeal. After the first minute or two, she stood in the warm water, stared into my eyes and I think she surprised even herself and enjoyed it! She didn't try to jump out and had a nice shampoo rub and massage. After her bath I wrapped her up in a towel like a baby, her nose and eyes were the only part of her exposed! She sat in my arms for about 15 minutes and tried sooo hard not to fall asleep. Because of her hair type, she was dry very quickly so she just shook herself off when I unwrapped her and that was that. Ending the event with some of her favorite treats - off to bed for the night she went!

Afternoon delights.... (Bella)

Today was such a beautiful day, I took 2 Xpens and joined them, then brought the puppies out onto the patio to enjoy the fresh air, sun and shade... I handed out cookies to all (a first for the puppies) and Bella thoroughly enjoyed hers!

She quickly found a shady space underneath the tree and got busy on that cookie (dehydrated chicken strips we get from Costco)... We could have done one of those potato chip commercials, because she 'couldn't eat just one' and came back for seconds... and thirds... LOL...

Another first - COOKIES!

One of the coolest things about puppies is watching them do things for the first time... I'm not really a 'puppy fan' in nature, preferring to do rehabilitation and training of older dogs, but today I actually enjoyed watching the puppies experience a new thing in their lives - COOKIES!

Around here I practice the 'nothing in life is free' mantra, so cookies are handed out for following through on a command usually... The puppies have been chewing on toys and chew sticks for a few days, so I could tell they were breaking in some teeth... And thought I'd give it a try to see how it goes...

A beautiful day, I put two large Xpens together on the patio and having most of the space in the shade, I brought out a bag of cookies and settled in to watch (and make sure this experiment went OK)... My guys prefer those dehydrated chicken strips you can get in the big bags from Costco and I have to admit - they do smell divine!

Handing one to each of the three puppies, Sofia left hers at one end of the Xpen and then wanted one from either Ebony or Nacho - Sofia didn't care - she just wanted on of theirs!



Patience is not one of Sofia's strong suits... She wanted one and RIGHT NOW...



Barking and mock charging had no effect on either Nacho nor Ebony, for they continued to sit in a corner and chew on their cookie, totally ignoring Sofia's repeated requests to share! Even her pitiful cries failed to move them, nor did they give theirs up either!



Nacho and Ebony must have chewed on their cookies for a good ten minutes, paying absolutely no attention at all to Sofia's plight... And then Nacho made the mistake of getting up for a drink of water, leaving his cookie behind... It was just the opportunity Sofia was looking for, and she quickly stole his and moved to another corner of the Xpen...



Nacho on the other hand, found Sofia's original cookie on his way back from the drink and it turned out to be a full cookie without any pieces missing yet...



In the end, it all worked out well... Everyone was happy and Nacho got 'seconds' on the cookies too!