a Taj MuttHall Dog Diary: July 2015

Thursday, July 30, 2015

OK, Puppy, When Did THIS Happen?

SUMMARY: I really have no idea.

But I'm glad that he appears to still be alive and unburnt.

And the lightbulb still worked. Until I squeezed it too hard trying to put it back together. THAT was another disaster but fortunately it was in the front hallway where cleaning up broken glass was easy. Ish.


Do you have any idea how long it took me to find that kind of lampshade the last time I needed to replace it?

Sleeping Together

SUMMARY: A small Luke milestone.

To date, I've been unable to take a nap or go to bed at night before first putting Lukers in his crate. Otherwise, he's all over me and/or Chip.  I've tried it occasionally, with no success.



Last night before I got into bed, he had hopped up there and was lying so quietly and sweetly (I've seen it before, mind you) that I thought I'd try it again. Worked very well for about an hour an a half, until I needed to get up again for a brief couple of minutes, and then it was all over.

So into the crate he went again. But, still, that's progress on that front. (Assuming that I want to eventually let him sleep on the bed, too, which I think I want.)

That's all.


Monday, July 20, 2015

Half And Half, a photo challenge.

SUMMARY: Yep, photography.

I don't usually do these, but I've been waiting for a chance to use this photo. I love the contrast between the two architectural styles (at Madonna Inn, if you're curious).


Here's the friend's post that alerted me to it with her interpretation, and here's the source of the challenge.

Don't Throw Your Pup In My Back Yard

SUMMARY: I have so much to talk about, so instead I'll do this.

There's this round. It goes like this:
First: One bottle of pop, two bottle of pop, 3 bottle of pop, 4 bottle of pop, 5 bottle of pop, 6 bottle of pop, 7 bottle of pop, pop.
Second: Fish and chips and vinegar, vinegar, vinegar. Fish and chips and vinegar, vinegar and pop.
Third: Don't throw your junk in my back yard, my back yard, my back yard, don't throw your junk in my back yard, my back yard's full.

Hard to find a good version online, as it's basically a kid's and camp song. But this one is fun: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_je-rbBgOLo

So, when feeding my beasts the other day, I became inspired.  Sing along with the new lyrics:

First: One kibble for pup, two kibble for pup, 3 kibble for pup, 4 kibble for pup, 5 kibble for pup, 6 kibble for pup, 7 kibble for pup, pup.
Second: Balls and bones and tugging toys, tugging toys, tugging toys. Balls and bones and tugging toys, tugging toys for pup.
Third: Don't throw your pup in my back yard, my back yard, my back yard, don't throw your pup in my back yard, my back yard's full.

Hee hee.

Friday, July 03, 2015

Home Alone!

SUMMARY: A bit of a milestone.

OK, a big milestone.

I wanted to be gone longer today than I wanted to leave Luke in his crate. Soooooo I didn't put him in his crate.

I had to close my bedroom door, and for now he's gated out of my office (which I'm not usually in anyway), but otherwise he had run of the house (kitchen & living room) and yard, and yayyyy! success.

Unless you count the bit of chewing he did on the liner for one of my garden Sloggers, because although I hid all the rest of my shoes in my bedroom (shoes are becoming a big problem), I forgot about those.

Lots led up to this point, but happy that I can do that now. With still a little trepidation...

That's all for today.

Thursday, July 02, 2015

So Many Things To Compare

SUMMARY: Comparing and contrasting. In a general sort of way.

I seem to spent a lot of mental energy--not at the forefront of my mind, but right behind it--comparing my various dogs and their behaviors before or after this that or the other thing.

Greeting me at the door:

  • Tika, excited shrieking at the garage door
  • Boost, barking and wagging like crazy at the garage door
  • Chip, happy and wagging but no noise at the garage door as far as I can tell
  • Chip after the other two are gone, wagging gently  at the garage door
  • Chip after Luke arrived and is kept in his crate, standing at the top of the stairs near Luke's crate and watching me come in from the garage.
Stuff like that.

I sat on the glider in my yard briefly today. Poor thing, the wood is wearing out and probably should be replaced, but I'm not likely to do it. I used to sit on it all the time back at the previous house with a nice view of my garden and things going by in the street.  

Way back then, the late great Remington liked it, too, for sitting next to me or hunting—feet on the seat, paws on the back, scouting for squirrels (or barking at them if they were in the tree overhead). He remained oblivious to the rocking and shaking of the glider—scared the heck out of me, though, every time he'd see a squirrel in the distance and explode off of the glider, sending it reeling and crashing from side to side.


Chip--doesn't like things moving under him. Took weeks for him to finally get all 4 feet onto a wobble board (wouldn't stay there long or move much), and months for him to walk across a very low teeter.

But today, while I sat on the glider, he came on up next to me, one careful foot and one careful rebalance at a time. Stood there, legs shaking to try to stay balanced, then leaped off again. For a moment I had a flashback!