Oh, Barb! Much ~ma for the whole family. Maybe you can just skip Monday this coming week?

Recovery~ma for your dad, omnis.

Omnis, recovery-ma to your dad.

Okay, my first try administering Mooshu's insulin went smoothly. He's such an angel of a puppy dog.

Eep, Barb!

I stayed out late last night watching Wall-E with friends, and ended up sleeping in until 2pm today. Oops! I was having all sorts of crazy dreams. Then my friend called and clearly we did not go to the spa together, since there was not time, but we did go and hang out, and bravely decided against the pie place, and instead went to the healthy juice place for the first time, and had strange juice drinks. Mine had aloe vera juice, and beet juice, and ginger. But it was kinda yummy. It is supposed to detox my liver...

Here's hoping the routine becomes routinely easy Barb. Bless the pup's heart.

I observed the two dogs fighting with a fair bit of growling. I don't think I've ever seen two dogs of the same family/pack fight like that in person before. But that just confirms how out of balance the command structure is with them.

It goes this way sometimes, Andi. It's a matter of preference and temperament. Our first trainer gave me some great advice: "If you don't see blood...they're just talking."

The more relaxed we can be around the pooches, the less likely they are to escalate into actual aggression.

You aren't wrong about the command structure though. That can lead to so much confusion that things can spiral out of control.

I had a second session with a family today that has a crazed 4 year old who is spinning the puppy up into a frenzy. I was so relieved, at one point, to hear the da say, "Maybe we should use the same techniques on her" (meaning the kid) It took all I had to not respond, "Yes, please do!"

It goes this way sometimes, Andi. It's a matter of preference and temperament.

Yeah, the girls do a fair amount of roughhousing with growling and snapping jaws and grabbing at one another's necks (the backs and sides where the skin is loose). They're just playing and taking turns at establishing dominance. This was exactly why we got Pisces-- so Jasmine would have someone she could play this way with because Mooshu just wouldn't and because he wouldn't, Jasmine was really frustrated. Her walks and fetch are fun and all, but she wanted a packmate with whom she could really play.

We got Pisces and everyone is so much mellower-- the girls get to work their energy off with each other and Mooshu's tail fur has grown back because Jasmine is no longer tugging on his tail, trying to get him to play.

Oh, bite-necks! I remember that game, and how sad it was when one of the dogs got too old to want to play that anymore.

It's great when you can find dogs that really 'get' each other. That bond is powerful. But not always possible.

Just this evening, I was chatting with a man on the street who lamented that his female Jack 'just doesn't like some dogs.' All I could offer was, "Do YOU like everybody?" It's as if 'dog' equals one size fits all personality.

Calling All Calvins-at-heart:

Walmart has an online clearance on the "Snowball Blaster" gun. Shoots multiple snowballs p to 50 ft.