Cedar Meets the Fair Weather Cardigan

Several years back, I lucked out and got this neat garden statue in a very realistic Cardigan Corgi. In the winter time, it hangs out in the basement as freezing temps are not great for it. Spring is finally trying to make an appearance, so I dragged it out (it's very heavy!), curious to see Cedar's reaction.....

Hmmmm...It looks like a dog, but it stands SO still!

Why isn't it looking at me?

Jimmy came out to help solve the mystery....

Funny faces on all three!

When in doubt....Sniff some butt!

Does he taste good? Can I eat him?

Once Cedar overcame his qualms and
 decided it made a good teething ring, I put it out of reach.

They're Leave-ing!

Sorry! Couldn't resist the bad pun!

Silly Saturday - Jimmy Finds a Frisbee

I think we could all use a laugh these days. It truly is the best medicine. Jimmy is more than happy to provide it! Here he is "playing" with a frisbee we found on the beach.

He's just not normal!!!

A Popular Mailbox

When we are just walking the neighborhood sidewalks, we often pass what is obviously a very popular p-mail box for all the local dogs!

What gives it away, do you think?

The Three Muskateers!

Now that I am working again, it seems I can never find enough hours in the day to keep this blog going! It is so frustrating. I've got a bunch of ideas stacked up and no time to execute them. Grrrrrr! But this photo is just too cute to not get posted.......

Here are the boys...all three of them!

He Must Be Part Cat !!!!!

I've always felt Cardigan Corgis had a feline side to them. You can often find them sitting with their front feet tucked under just like a cat will sit. I've even found one of mine perched on the back of the sofa!

So it really didn't surprise me when we dragged out the artificial Christmas tree box to get ready for decorating, and saw this a few minutes later.....

If I ever need to ship Jimmy somewhere (like maybe Tulsa, OK for the Nationals!), I know what box will fit. Just add some bubble wrap and he'll be good to go!

Signed By The Artist Even!

We all know how our dogs often leave nose print art on our car windows. It easy to tell who has a dog that way, just check out the car for "art work". Well, similar art work often appears on my back  storm door. It is made of glass that slides up/down to provide a screened portion. When Jimmy is in the yard and decides he really, really, really needs to come in NOW, he paws at the storm door with his front feet while standing on his hind feet. It sort of looks like he's digging to get in. After having been in the yard his feet are usually dirty and all that pawing to get in leaves more art work. Well, I guess Jimmy was especially proud of his handy work (or would that be paw work?) because he actually signed his masterpiece. It was very hard to get a sharp photo of the plane of the glass so after about 20 tries this was the best I got......

What do you think? Will we be seeing this hang in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC? And to think, I knew Jimmy when he was just a nose print artist!

And Now We Know Why......

......He's called Grumpy Cat!

Try not to let anything make you grumpy this weekend!

I Think Somebody Needs a Breath Mint!

I'm Going For It!

The perfectionist in me wishes these photos had been in a bit better focus but I just couldn't pass up this comic strip sequence!

Going for it!

Going for it!

GOT IT!

Shit!

 What the hell happened?!
 (click to enlarge for Wilson's face!)

MINE!!!!!

The Easy Way to Brush Your Dog's Teeth

When it comes to cleaning Jimmy's and Wilson's teeth, I have to confess I don't brush them. I know I should, but I don't. It doesn't help that the vet always comments on how good their teeth look. I credit a primarily raw diet for keeping the plaque build-up to a minimum, as well as a weekly treat of a raw marrow bone.....

Cleaning those tiny front teeth and his big ol' canine.

Jimmy goes for those hard to reach molars.

This keeps them happy and Zen-like for about an hour. Of course, as with any chewing activity, I keep a close eye on them to prevent any choking hazards. Jimmy usually finishes first, and I know it, because he loudly protests the fact the Wilson is still gnawing away!

Oh, and one other bonus to using the marrow bone method of tooth brushing....the boys definitely don't run when they see me coming with their "toothbrushes" :-)

Have a great weekend, Everyone!

A New Titling Sport for Dogs?

There's always something new coming down the pike when it comes to games you can play with your dog. First there was herding, but then for the city-folk with little access to sheep came Treibball. Your dog could have fun moving large balls similar to herding. First there was Tracking, where dogs learned to follow a scent over varied surfaces, then there was Nosework. All are fun things to do with your canine best friend. And, for the human half of the team, these games give the opportunity to earn pretty ribbons, letters after your dogs' names, and burn through tons of cash. Oooooh!

Today, Jimmy and Wilson tried something new. Maybe it's an offshoot of extreme hiking.......I'll call it Canine Rock Climbing. Let me illustrate......


Here we see the boys reviewing the climb, and deciding on a strategy....

Wilson: I'm thinking just go for it and reach up high!
Jimmy: I'm gonna play it safe and use this low support.

Wilson takes the first try, with Jimmy in place as the mandatory spotter.....

Wilson: This looks do-able
Jimmy: You'd better not fall on me!

Jimmy, with his usual anything Wilson can do, I can do better attitude, rushes in for a try.....

An immediate disqualification for Jimmy!
He didn't wait for his spotter to be in place.

Jimmy re-attempts his climb, this time waiting for his spotter to be in place!

Wilson contemplates his next try while spotting Jimmy.

I'm sure it will be quite a while before the American Kennel Club will pick this up as a titling sport. I suggest they let the dogs earn the Rock Climbing Novice (RCN), Rock Climbing Advanced(RCA), and Rock Climbing Master(RCM) titles with a championship title (ROCK) achieved by reaching the top of one of these....

Have a great weekend, Everyone! I hope you try something new!

Really, Officer......

......I haven't been drinking! Could I do this if I had been?

Yesterday, the big snowstorm headed our way was touted to be a doozy, even for the Washington, DC area. There was much media fanfare (of course!). Now the mountains just to the west of us (the Blue Ridge and the Shenandoah) truly did get clobbered, but here the temperatures were in the mid-30's all day. The snow melted pretty much as fast as it came down. It was a very slushy mesh. I had hopes of lots of great photos, but the boys really didn't care to be outside. And it was so wet, I didn't want my camera out in it.
And besides....isn't really time to start looking at pictures of daffodils and crocus?!

Here's a footprint shot of Wilson. There appears to be a bit of a hitch in his get-along. The shallow snow lets you really notice it. Not to worry though, Wilson was recently checked at the vet (full x-rays!), and has a tad of arthritis. There's nothing too serious going on, and they felt he was in good shape for almost ten.

One more snowy shot tomorrow and then maybe we can move on to spring!

I Just Noticed Something.........

Jimmy and Wilson like to play indoor fetch with their "Squeakies"....CUZ dog toys. All I have to say is "Go get your Squeakie!" and Jim runs to the toy basket, grabs his blue CUZ and heads for the basement. Wilson, runs for the basket, but isn't quite as definite. Sometimes he gets his Squeakie, sometimes he gets his Rat. Jimmy always has had a better command of the English language.....

Anyway.....I'll blame it on my middle-age vision...I only just recently noticed this......

Look! This toy was custom made for ..... JW

This toy was made especially for Jimmy and Wilson! It was even given their initials!

I don't know why it took me so long to notice this!

Hmmmmm....Maybe we should be collecting royalties?!!!!

Training for All Contingencies

When you start training to compete in agility with your dog, one of the points your instructor will probably make is that you need to train for possible oddities you might encounter at a trial. Obviously you can't think of all the weird stuff that might happen, but some of the more likely. An example would be that the judge might wear a flamboyant hat, or have a hood pulled up. A weirder one that lots of dogs have reacted to is at indoor soccer fields (where most agility trials in my area are held). These fields hang advertisements along the walls of the fields, or in some cases, paint them on the walls. At one facility, there is a painted life-size male soccer player running/kicking the ball. More than a few dogs have been unnerved by this, and had their runs go bad.

 I imagine the same type of training is needed in the horse world as well. Now, I've only ever trained one little western-style colt and that was when I was 15. I didn't know much about breaking a horse and just learned as I went. If you plan to compete in Hunter/Jumper events, I am sure you need to de-spook your horse as much as possible. Which leads me to ask the question.....

How the heck do you teach your horse not to fear the GIANT SEAL ???? (or whatever it is!)

This comically carved log was in a barn full of various horse jumps at the park we visited on Monday. I can only imagine a horse flying across the field, jump, jump, and then slamming to a stop with a big WTF?!


Have a great weekend, Everyone! And be sure to train for those giants seals!

We've Decided to Move...

The Washington, DC suburbs are a pricey place to live. Real Estate takes a big bite out of your budget, and you don't get much of a yard despite how much money it costs. That being said, we've decided to move a bit further out into the countryside where you get more for your money, both in land and house....

What do you think? Pretty nice, huh? The boys sure think so!

The front yard is so big, the boys are just tiny dots!

Here they are guarding the front gate:

It's going to be a BIG job keeping the front and back forty safe from intruders! All eyes are peeled!

Camouflaged for stealthier sentry duty!

The mailman won't make it past this spot......

Of course, I jest! While I would love to have a much larger yard, that house is way too big. Can you imagine keeping it clean? But the hallways would be great for indoor fetch!

Yesterday, being President's Day, meant I had the day off from work. I wanted to walk the boys someplace new, and have some good photo-ops. It was a beautiful, warmish day, so we headed out to Morven Park just outside of Leesburg, Va, and only a short drive away. The house was the home of a wealthy former Virginia governor and is now a National Register Historic Property. It sits on about a 1000 acres of land, and is a combination of historic buildings and an equestrian center. The land is used for steeplechase events and has  large horse jumps scattered throughout the fields. I've even come to the park for an outdoor agility trial a couple of times.

I have a couple more pictures to share from our day, but I'd best save them. Blog fodder is always at a premium so I had better spread them out just a bit ;-)

Standard Equipment?

Lucky for the boys....The guestroom bed comes with dual headrests as standard equipment...One is even heated!

If only this model came with the optional Treat Dispenser.......

The Last Thing You See........

......Before the Vampire gets you!

What do you get if you cross a sheep with a vampire?
- Drac-ewe-la

Sorry! That was the best I could do for herding dog vampire humor ;-)

May I Have This Dance?

Hey... It's my turn to lead....

The complicated airborn gargouillade ballet move

Get OFF my toes, you oaf!

Sigh. Wilson and Jimmy.....not the best dance partners, I guess......

They've Got It All Wrong!

Down by the large lake in my neighborhood there is a sign........

But they've got it so wrong!

MMMM! Goose Poop!

It's a smorgasbord!

Click to enlarge! See the focus and intent!

Got it!

This time of year, the geese are everywhere, and this trail is a mess! I call the walk Running the Gauntlet and usually avoid it. It's one of my favorite areas but is exhausting, what with all the "Jimmy! NO!, Wilson! Drop It!" that is required. Today I went for photo-effect and let Jimmy get in a few bites ;-)

Here's what the sign really should say......

Use your imagination to complete the sign's image. My photo editing skills aren't up to adding in a Jimmy face!

Have a great weekend, Everyone!