If only our backyard was a little bit bigger…
The only problem though is that Pongo has absolutely no fear, and that often gets him into trouble. I can just see him becoming a projectile ACD trying to jump off the thing! Pet emergency, here we come…again.
Pongo loves to chew and he’s very good about only chewing appropriate things. He has a toy basket full of Galileo Bones for him to chew at his leisure but his all-time favorite chew object is a raw beef marrow bone.
He gets to indulge in these while Steve and I eat dinner. We are very careful about watching him so he doesn’t break off large pieces or partake in too much of a good thing and end up with an upset tummy. It’s pure ecstasy for him to dive into his raw bone.
As you can tell, Pongo can be a total little brother when it comes to flaunting his bone in front of Reid. Reid does get a bone too but spends a few minutes licking them and then she’s done. I think it hurts her deteriorating teeth to chew on something so hard. We end up putting her bone away when she’s done because Pongo will be greedy and want both bones.
We are always on the look out for chews that aren’t going to cause intestinal blockage (rawhides) or break off into big pieces that will have to be surgically extracted later (some raw bones). I had seen these Himalayan Dog Chews at our local Mill & Feed store but always bypassed them because they were made out of Yak and Cow’s milk.
With ingredients like those, I assumed they were soft and would be devoured within minutes. Then I read a post on the Notes From A Dog Walker blog about these dog chews. The author was raving about them and how long they lasted, even with her most powerful chewer. So, I picked some up the next time I was at Alaska Mill & Feed.
Pongo loves his new cheesy sticks! I love that they break off in small pieces and if he does happen to break off a larger piece, he’s able and pretty good about chewing them down into smaller pieces. The only drawback the Himalayan Dog Chews have is they give Pongo some pretty horrendous gas. Oh well…I guess that’s the price you pay for some peace of mind.
Kona, our 9 year old male Siamese has been battling Chronic Renal Failure the past couple of months. We’ve tried to make him as comfortable as possible but came to the realization his condition was not stabilizing. Steve and I had to make a very difficult decision: it was time to let Kona run free at the Rainbow Bridge. I have never had to make life decisions like this; it’s absolutely heart-wrenching and to be honest: it SUCKS!
I decided to write this very difficult blog before we let him go because I knew there was no way I was going to be able to write the tribute Kona deserves, once we came home.
Kona was one very special kitty…
He had pizazz and personality.
He could make you laugh with his inquisitiveness or as he was zipping around the house, with the kitty zoomies.
He was a love bug who would sit on your lap or by you for hours, just enjoying your company.
He would drool all over you as you stroked his velvety fur.
He terrorized his sister…
and loved on Reid like she was his Mama.
He tolerated Pongo and if he had more time, they probably would have become friends.
After a holiday hiatus, we are back into our Nose Work classes. Pongo has sniffed his way to Advanced Nose Work and is preparing for a trial in May. Our instructor Liz, at Alaska Dog Sports made today’s class especially challenging for the dogs. Instead of using the usual small, metal tins to hide the scents, she put the scented q-tips into empty pens. That means the scent could only travel through the very small opening at the end of the pen.
I love watching Pongo take on a challenge but felt for him today when he struggled a bit to find the hides.
We also had a chance to practice box drills. Pongo is working really hard on alerting with a sit instead of becoming the Smash-O-Nator and destroying the hide or the box. All of these small details matter in a trial. He can find the hide no problem but if he disturbs the hide area, it’s a fault. So, practice, practice, practice!
Exercising outside when it’s 7 below zero is not really my cup of tea. I’ll do it if I have to but I’d prefer not to. Pongo and I went for a 40 minute walk today. And while it was a brisk walk in attempt to stay warm, I don’t really call that a workout. So, I hopped on the treadmill this afternoon. In the past, we’ve tried to get Pongo to walk on the treadmill by himself but in order for him to walk on it, you have to be walking on it with treats. I wasn’t too worried about him getting his exercise today as we walked this morning and played frisbee out in the yard a couple of different times. But when he decided to jump on the treadmill with me, I took advantage.
(I apologize for the poor video quality but walking, while videoing and feeding treats to Pongo was a task in itself!)
Winter in Anchorage is pretty predictable: snow, Chinook winds (warm winds), ice, and then more snow. But, this year has been one weird phenomenon after another. Our average snowfall for Anchorage is 74.5 inches. Right now, we’re sitting at 88.8 inches and still have at least 3 1/2 more months of Winter. We’re having a hard time figuring out where to put all that snow!
Besides all the snow we’ve had, we’ve also been frigidly cold. I’d much rather deal with the snow than the negative temperatures we’re experiencing. At least you can go out and enjoy the snow, without freezing your rear end off! Today, we took Pongo out for a walk on the trail that runs along Ship Creek. And as much as Pongo hates wearing his cold weather gear, he definitely needed it today.
We have never been one to allow our dogs on the furniture, let alone sleep with us. It wasn’t too hard to enforce because Reid was never really a get-up-on-the-couch type of dog, and trying to coax her on the bed causes her to go into convulsions. All this changed when Pongo came along.
At first we were really good about enforcing the “no animals on the furniture” rule but eventually we broke down and allowed him on the couch when he was 8 or 9 months. Then, things just naturally progressed to the occasional sleep in the bed with us but that meant Steve and I didn’t sleep very well because Pongo has to be right in the middle, sprawled out, and touching both of us. We both would wake up shivering, a couple millimeters from the edge and more often than not, a dog head resting on my pillow inches from my face.
We’ve been tossing around the idea of a king bed for a while but have hesitated because of space. Our bedroom is not the conventional bedroom; it’s small, opens out to the living room (I know it sounds weird but it adds “character” to the house), and everyone has to walk through it to get to the living room. So, having a ginormous bed isn’t really conducive to good feng shui.
We decided to take the plunge though this weekend and buy a king bed because having Pongo sleep with us more often than not, outweighed the lack of space, the occasional bruised knee from whacking the bed corner as you walk to the living room, and the tight squeeze Steve now has to take in order to get into bed (I’m strictly speaking for myself here-I know Steve may not feel the same way but he has commented on how he “likes all the room” he has in bed).
Here’s Papa and Pongo “helping” Mama assemble the bed.
The new bamboo king bed assembled.
This is what Steve found when he came to bed…Pongo sound asleep on Papa’s pillow.
(The big lump on the right is me having fallen asleep while reading.)
I was too comatose yesterday to even think about blogging. The past two days have been filled with wrapping, cooking, opening, eating, drinking, and just trying to maintain a calm household.
I’ve really enjoyed these past couple of days. When I have time and am not completely drained of energy, I love to cook. The prepping is soothing. The cooking and baking is fulfilling. The eating is, sometimes, outstanding. I wouldn’t call myself a good cook because I have messed up many a meal but overall, I think I do alright.
The highlight of our Christmas extravaganza was watching Pongo’s excitement rise as he realized…there were presents under the tree! I don’t know what changed for him because last year it took all we had to get him interested in opening presents.
But this year…he was OUT OF CONTROL!
The only thing that seemed to calm him down was putting on his new survey vest–a present from Papa.
Poor Reid just didn’t seem to be enjoying herself like she usually does.
I’m guessing she was annoyed at Pongo’s overly exuberant enthusiasm.
And, the fact that he kept trying to steal all of her presents, which was absolutely not allowed. As you probably can figure out, there was A LOT of redirection going on.
After the animals were satiated with opening gifts, Steve and I also enjoyed our Christmas morning.
And what was suppose to be mine…
is now his. Oh well, that’s what happens when you have a baby head.
My mother-in-law, Bev has a sign that hangs in her house. It reads: “Martha Stewart Doesn’t Live Here…It’s A Good Thing.” I chuckle every time I read that sign because both Bev and my Mom are very crafty but not in a Martha Stewart-ish type of way. I envy the creativity that comes from the brilliant craft minds of these two women. The quilting and knitting projects they create are beautiful! And, I definitely could have used their expertise last night when I was cramming in some marathon sewing of Pongo’s Christmas stocking. Nothing like procrastinating until the very last minute to get something done (voting for the holiday stocking contest at Dog Tired Doggie Daycare started today).
I’m no Martha Stewart. I know she would be appalled at the amount of time I took, all doing and re-doing I had to do, and the choice words that sometimes flew out of my mouth. Eight hours of non-stop sewing later, I think the end product turned out to be something I can be proud of hanging on our stocking chest of drawers with care (unfortunately, no mantel in this house).
Winter Break: A much needed break, just in time.
All I can say is THANK GOODNESS! I’m looking forward to sleeping in, taking my time in the morning, drinking coffee with Baileys on a weekday, walking with the dogs during low-traffic times, reading for pleasure (and not just before lights out), spending quality time with my husband, getting back onto a pilates schedule, and just plain ol’ relaxing!
