Dog Days of Winter

In case you've been wondering how Rascal has been getting through the winter.............He loves to lay on the cold stone tiles underneath the wood stove.  In case you wonder if I ever brush or trim him, yes I do, he has so much hair that it's almost a full time job.  He just tickles me when he lays upside down like that, totally vulnerable.  Hope you're getting through these winter days well.                   Diane

Panic!

Rascal had been sleeping last evening and when I went to take him out for the last time he couldn't walk across the floor.  He would take a step and then sit down and look guilty. 

Leonard and I went into panic mode.  We just didn't want to deal with something awful. We picked him up and started looking him over.  I discovered a cockleburr which had stuck in his tail hairs and then it had stuck to the back of his foot! 

  After trimming out the burr we all let out a sigh of relief, even Rascal!       

Busy Time of the Year

Just like you I have so many things that I'm trying to do right now that it

just makes Rascal worn out.  Here he is trying to catch a little dog nap. 

Diane

Oh My Darling Pet

 Don't you just love this face?  It's been sucked on, chewed on, cuddled, ran through the washer and dryer for a few years now and it's one of Rascal's favorite toys.  It was once a rabbit, now it looks more like ......well, a very sad rabbit. 

As soon as someone comes to the door Rascal goes tearing through the house and brings it to them.  But it's not for them to keep, of course he wants them to throw it for him but I think he's also showing them his best toy in the world.  Well, there's the pheasant, too, but that's another story.                  Diane

Good Dog!

We had to go to the vet today and Rascal was a good dog!  This is saying a lot.  He is funny about other people touching him and he doesn't know how to socialize with other dogs.  I was very proud of him, he didn't bite anybody and let the girls pet him and even let the vet carry him around.  But he was VERY glad to leave anyway.  He's getting better as he gets older.  I'm glad it's behind me though.  Diane

Best Friend

Rascal and I love our walks together.  It's hard telling which one of us look forward to it the most. 

The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself, too.
                                                        Samuel Butler, Notebooks, 1912
If you get to thinking you're a person of influence, try ordering somebody else's dog around. - Will Rogers

Are You Coming?

Very occasionally I let Rascal off his leash when we're walking.  He loves it, even though he doesn't mind his leash.  Here he is waiting for me to catch up with him.  Rascal's the perfect companion and friend.  I look forward to his walk even more than he does.                           Diane

Furry Friends Friday

Just doggone tired. For a dog as skittish as Rascal is, to see him lying in the middle of the living room in this position is heartwarming. He seems so vulnerable and relaxed. The slightest suspicious noise and he'll be on his feet in a flash. Diane

Furry Friends Friday on Saturday

This isn't the best haircut but he has SO much hair! He's very patient while I cut his hair but I don't want to push it. I think it turned out O.K. By next week it's going to start sprouting long hairs again. We do the best we can.

It's a little harder to get him to sit for his portrait sometimes. Diane

Furry Friends Friday - A song for you

Rascal.......would you like to sing a song for our friends?You would? O.K. What do you want to sing?

Oh, you want to sing the meatball song!

That's great ! GOOD BOY! Brought to you today by Diane and Rascal for Furry Friends Friday

Someplace Else

I did spend some time outside today as well as messing around on the computer. Rascal and I went someplace different instead of our usual walk. We walked down along the creek, crawled through a barbed wire fence and then came out a different way and crossed the bridge and came on home. He loved exploring new territory and he's such a little gentleman, waiting for me to go through the gate ahead of him and listening to what I talked about with him. He's just wonderful company! Diane

Getting There

I'm not going to go through the details but I had one hard time working with Rascal, when he was a puppy. Housebreaking was one of the hard things. When I could not think of anything else I put a little diaper on him, I used old wash cloths and fastened them just like a baby. He didn't like to have them wet. He found out that I would take them off when we went outside to go potty and he had to wear them in the house. It didn't take long and he got the point. That was just one aspect of life when he was a little guy.

One thing I found about him is that he's very headstrong. He has to think it's his idea. (Talk about having to use your brain!)

Today I'm so proud of him. He lifts his leg. That's right. When I put his harness on him to go for a walk he has to put one of his front legs through it and then I fasten it on his back. Now when I say "OK, now your leg" he lifts up his front leg and puts it through the harness - by himself. I could just cry, it's such a big accomplishment for both of us. Diane

Rascal Doing What He Does Best

Today I turned Rascal off his leash when we got over by the south 40. Sometimes it just seems fair to let him be a dog and snoop around when I can watch him closely. What he likes to do more than anything else is smell things.

Sometimes if he gets a chance he'll find a set of tracks and just walk along sticking his nose down in each and every print.

Then I snap his leash in place and it's time to go home.

He's a great little dog. He constantly amazes me, he was uncontrollable when he was a puppy and wouldn't eat treats so I had to use my head a lot when I was training him. He teaches me so much. Diane

Barista?

Here I am with my Starbucks apron on, what do you think?

No, I'm not taking a job there, I received the apron from Amanda who worked at one. I keep it hung in my kitchen, it's just fun to look at.

Except today I was using it for a barber apron so I could groom Rascal. He's very cooperative about his haircut, I just have to keep telling him how beautiful he is and what a good dog he is. When it's over he's just so tickled with himself. Don't you think he looks handsome?

Diane

Furry Friends Friday

On December 6 four years ago, on a night when it was 16 degrees below zero, a friend and her boys showed up on our front porch with a little bundle of fur in a basket. The little puppy was shaking so hard from the cold and crying and whining from being taken from his mama.

Just a couple months earlier we had to give up our little dog and neither one of us could even think about it without crying. My friend felt so sorry for us that she brought us this little guy and when I saw him I just broke out in tears. I didn't want to go through that again but I couldn't not take him.

The first picture is Leonard at his shop holding him shortly after we got him, the second picture is a trick taught he himself to make us laugh - a rawhide ring turned upside down on his nose. And then the last picture is when he was a tiny bit older - Mr. Smartypants.

Now I have no idea how we could get by without him. Diane

Biding His Time (Furry Friends Friday)

Rascal loves to rest or as he calls it "biding his time". He knows that something's going to happen pretty soon and he's just waiting, not really sleeping.In this pic he's waiting for breakfast. I love to have him cuddle up next to me.

Here he's waiting for our walk, you never know when you might need some extra rest for that.
In this last picture he's waiting for bedtime. This is a long wait because his "mom" spends a long time in the evening on the computer so he has to get pretty comfortable. Diane

One of the Things.....................

that's been on my list before I leave is get a rabies shot for Rascal. I have put that off something terrible. He had a bad life before we got him and is just stuck to my husband and I. I couldn't bear the thought of handing him over to someone he didn't know for something very painful like a shot. Turns out he had to have TWO shots! We got it done, I doubt I can get him to the vets so easily next time. Amanda told me to take him for ice cream afterwards. That worked so slick! We do love our pets!! Now on with the easy tasks! Diane

Best Friend

I stopped to get some pictures at the Episcopal Church, they didn't turn out. This was the best shot of the day. My co-pilot, my patient listener, my friend, Rascal. Where else could I find better. He puts up with me, he doesn't complain (much) and I just love him to pieces.

God bless you, Diane

He's My Friend

Out walking with Rascal a few days ago and I stopped to talk to one of my neighbors. She ended the conversation by saying, "Well, Diane, sometime when you don't have your little dog with you, come and see the inside of my house". I just muttered an O.K. and went on my way but I was bristling inside. First of all, this is a woman who keeps her little dog in a pen out in back and tells me that she brings him in when its below 0. I don't believe her especially after that remark. Secondly, I wouldn't bring him into someone else's home unless he was invited. And third, my little guy goes everywhere with me. He's my little shadow. I find his company way more companionable than a lot of people. Maybe I'm off base but that's the way I feel. He's my friend!!! God bless you, Diane

Co-Pilot

When Rascal was a puppy trying to take him anywhere, in the car, in a backpack, on his leash was an ordeal. He screamed bloody murder like he was being tortured. He screamed when we held him, he screamed when we put him down. He must have come from a terrible place. I think he was taken from his mother before he was old enough. I had an awful time trying to get him to ride in the car with me.

Then one day he and I were between Buffalo and home and we got caught in a monster hailstorm. He scooted over onto my lap and snuggled there until we got home. After that, he was

my partner, my co-pilot. Whenever I leave the house he wants to be with me. It's a big treat when he gets to go with my husband in his pickup, too. Our world would be so empty without him now.

Here's a picture of him when he was about 2 months old. God Bless You, Diane