A Dog's Work Is Never Done

Rob is digging our fish pond by hand. The ground is very rocky here and it's slow, difficult digging. He sometimes gets up early and goes out to dig before it gets too hot and lately he's been digging just before dark when it's a little cooler. All the dogs go with him and help, but Morgan is the most faithful. The others go off to play ball or chase each other, but Morgan keeps on task.


Tonight I put the others in and went to check on the digging. Here's what I found. Rob sat down to take a break and Morgan moved over next to him.



She stays by him until he's finished for the night, then follows him inside.



He says that she occasionally digs along with him, but most of the time she either lies in the dirt or sits on a rock to watch.


Note the dirty feet.


She's always on the alert for anyone approaching.


The neighbors had just driven into their driveway and she had to greet them.


She loves being with Rob and helping him with whatever job he's doing.


When they finished in the pond, we did some work on the library. There will be sliding doors under the window seat so tonight we installed the hardware. And Morgan was there watching.
In the morning she'll be rewarded with a trip to the lake.

I Just Can't Wait

OK, I know you've probably seen all the pictures of dogs swimming that you want to see. Too bad. I'm a proud dog mother and I have to pull out my wallet and show everyone a few more pictures.


These are some of the photos taken last week when we took Samba, Noah and Morgan to the lake. I was totally blown away with the way they just went in and started swimming like they'd been doing it all their lives.


It still amazes me that the genes overcome the fact that they've never seen a lake before.


I think Noah is one cool looking dude in his life jacket.


Orange is definitely his color.


I'll never forget seeing Samba and Morgan racing to get to the frisbee.


If you're still reading this far, let me warn you that tomorrow we're taking Lola and Bailey to the lake for the first time. Oh no, more swimming pictures!

Well, for a little change of pace, let me now ruin a Christmas surprise. Chan, you may not want to read any farther.

I made a Christmas gift the other night for Miss Gretchen. I didn't want to send it to her not knowing if it would fit, so I called my friend Linda who also has a Jack Russell Terrier names Chesney. Linda agreed to bring Chesney to work so I could try the gift on her.

Of course we took pictures and I can't wait till December to show them. So don't anybody tell Gretchen what she's getting for Christmas.


This is Chesney modeling the hat and scarf combo.


Isn't she an adorable model. Can you blame me for wanting to show these shots? Thank you Chesney, for helping me out.

Be sure to check out the poll about toys on Dogs-N-More. While you're there scroll down and read about Ellie, a dog that lives in prison all week, then gets to do cool stuff on the weekends, like going to the new Harry Potter movie.

Silly Stuff

When I first started blogging last year, I decided I wanted it to be sort of my journal with pictures. I've tried to stick to that and have resisted responding when I've been tagged. Most of the times when someone has tagged me it's been to pick a certain picture from a certain file and explain it or to list a certain number of facts about myself.

Norma Jean up close.


So far I have avoided doing either of those things, but I decided today to do it in my own way. I keep my photos everywhere. I have albums of printed photos. I have cds full of unprinted photos and I have photos on both my computers. I'm not sure which would be my fifth or sixth file, so I'm just posting some random photos that I find amusing.


Samba waiting for something.

Now for some things about me.

1. I want to live in New England even though I've never been there.

2. I am attracted to the colors pink and purple and my favorite color is fuchsia.

3. At one time when I lived in Myrtle Beach, SC I owned thirty swimsuits.

4. I have driven boats in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.


Samba wearing the hat I knit for her last night.

5. I have never had a driver's license.

6. I am a chocoholic.


Samba in her new hat that matches her jacket.


Morgan tries on Samba's hat.

7. My dream was to be a veterinarian.

8. I worked in accounting for years, although I hated it.


Tess checking out the shower tower.

9. I prefer the company of animals to most people.

10. I learned to knit when I was five years old.

11. At one time I made most of my own clothes.


Sky having a bad hair day.

12. I have traveled to Canada, Mexico, Trinidad, Tobago, Aruba, Finland, Denmark and the USSR.

13. I have recently developed a fear of flying.

14. I taught myself to play the piano.


What's for lunch?

15. I love to read and wish I had more time to do it.

16. I don't swim.

17. I have a collection of windchimes.

18. I love shopping, but do most of mine online.

19. Amazon.com is my favorite online store.

20. I am a member of The Society of the Daughters of the Founders and Patriots.

21. I am a member of The Descendants of the Founders of Hartford, Connecticut.

22. I am a Mac by choice and a PC by necessity.

23. (The next couple of tags are from Robert the gray one you sometimes see in the background)

24. Our best man picked her out for me.

25. One of those bathing suits is my favorite.

26. We met in Acapulco, Mexico and married in Mexico, New York.

27. I am not the same person she married.


Vroom, vroom!

We Love Toys

At our house the UPS man is very popular. He sometimes brings boxes that contain toys.



We enjoy all different types of toys.


Plush stuffies are a big favorite with everyone. Some of us carry them around and play nicely, others rip them open to remove the squeaker and some of us spread their fluffy white guts all over the floor.


Stuffies are inside toys and are not supposed to be taken out the back door. Mom grabs them at the door and puts them on a shelf. Here Sky got one past her.



We love to chase toys that Mom and Dad throw for us. Everyone except Bailey brings them back to be thrown again. Bailey takes hers under a tree and lies down on them so nobody else can play with them. We all like the Wubba. It can really fly.


We have toys to chase in the water, too. These are special toys that float so we can see them.



Balls are some of our favorite toys. We have lots of different kinds, but the best are the glow balls. We can see them glow and get Mom to throw them for us even after dark.



We just got a box of them so now everyone can play.



The people who own Portuguese Water Dogs like to say that paper is one of the essential food groups. We sure do love to tear and eat paper and cardboard. We think of it as inventing our own toys.


On the Dogs-N-More blog we're talking about different types of toys, why we like them and where to buy them. We also have a new poll about toys.

There are only a couple days left to vote on the poll about collars and harnesses. Be sure to let us know what your dog wears. We'll post the results at the end.

Oreo

Yesterday Oreo crossed the bridge.


Oreo 1995 -2009

To read about Oreo's life go to Nicki's blog.

When It's Time To Say Goodbye

When a new pet has entered my life, I have made a spoken vow to each of them, to give him or her a safe, loving home. And when the time comes for them to leave, I will be there and help them, that they won't have to suffer. It's easy to make that promise when you're holding a fat healthy puppy or kitten and it looks like you have all the time in the world to be together, but we all know that pets age much too quickly and our time together is short.



Many people have asked me, "How will I know when the time has come?" My answer must seem unsatisfactory to them. I tell them to watch and listen and their pet will tell them. It might be a look, a sigh, a head in the lap along with a whimper. It may be that the dog who would eat anything, now doesn't want even special treats offered by hand. It might be a certain light that no longer is visible in the eyes. Some pets try to be alone or to hide. Whatever the signal, it'll be there and it's your job to see it.

I was there with each of my pets when they died. I held them and whispered familiar words in their ears. I felt I owed it to them to be there. They would have done the same for me, if the situation was reversed.



Then comes the almost unbearable pain and the second guessing. Did I do the right thing? Was it too soon? Should I have done it sooner? The tears start up at unexpected times and non-animal people don't understand. They brush it off as if a close friend hadn't just died. But we know better.



How do we get past the pain? Some people say they'll never have another pet, it's too painful to say goodbye. Some people say they need time before they get another pet. Both those solutions are acceptable. I handle it a bit differently. When I've lost my dog and feel depressed and sad, I need a puppy. I need to laugh at the silly, stupid antics of a puppy. A puppy demands my attention and leaves me tired at the end of the day. It makes the pain of loss feel a little less sharp. I need to feel the warmth of a small living being tucked against my neck and to smell that sweet puppy breath.



You may be wondering why I'm writing this now. My dogs are all healthy at this time and I'm not personally dealing with a loss, but two friends of mine are and it's been on my mind a lot recently. Everyone who has experienced the joy of living with an animal has to face this eventually and we all handle it in our own way. This is mine.



My thoughts are with you and what you're dealing with. You are not alone in your grief.

Look What The UPS Man Brought

The doorbell rang this afternoon. It was the UPS man with a package.


What could it be?


It was a box full of brand new glow balls.


Sky couldn't even wait to get outside. He had to grab one and carry it out.


Here they are. Who wants one?


There seems to be some interest.


We threw them all out into the yard and everyone ran to catch one.


Some brought them back to us to throw again. After all, it's the thrill of the chase.


Lola has one.


Samba got hers.


These two are comparing them to see if they want to swap.


At first Bailey took a ball and settled down to play with it.


Fudge had to show me his.


Norma Jean thinks this is a great surprise.


She is very happy with her new ball.


We were still throwing balls for those that wanted to chase them.


Tess and Sky were enjoying the chase.


Tess loves to play ball and now there are enough to go around so everyone can play.

And where is Bailey during all this activity?


Bailey is under the holly playing with the box. She enjoys taking things apart and she tore the box into pieces. It's easy to amuse her.