I love a good party....

I almost forgot to tell you...a few weeks ago, the Boss Lady threw a huge party, just for me! Wasn't that nice of her? She called it "the Town's Independence Day Celebration". I don't know what that means, but it was still a nice party. There seemed to be a lot of people in our neighborhood that day, so I knew something was up. And then the Boss Lady put my fancy Easy Walk Harness on me and took me to that big open field a few blocks from our house. She calls it a "park".

When we got to the park there were hundreds, maybe even a thousand people, all there to see me! I was so surprised! There were people of all sizes there, even some little humans in their own little chairs on wheel (strollers I think the Boss Lady called them). I didn't know humans came so tiny. They were fun to look at for a while, but they didn't throw any toys or do anything too exciting, so I soon lost interest. I had my best "hostess hat" on though, so I smiled politely at the little humans and made all the appropriate comments to the little humans' parents (I was a mother myself, you know, so I know how important that is).

I walked among the crowd, meeting and greeting everyone I could. I particularly liked the mid-sized humans as they loved to give pets and toss toys for me. And the adult humans were pretty nice too! They were thrilled to see me (as would be expected, I guess, as I was the guest of honor.)

We stayed for about an hour or so and then the Boss Lady took me back to the house so I could have a nap. Being a hostess is really hard work, I discovered.

I hope my guests didn't mind that I retired early, but a girl needs her beauty sleep...


~Anya

You make one tiny mistake...

For all you dogs out there who have the misfortune of living with cats that are...um..shall we say, "less than tolerant" of dogs, have you ever wondered how those cats get so deadly accurate with their claws?

Well, my friends, the mystery has been solved! Evidently cats start their training at a young age by attending fighting camps!

What were you doing as a young pup? Bet you weren't doing anything more challenging than chasing your tail, were you? Now, don't be embarrassed - I wasn't doing anything more challenging either.

No wonder we are at such a disadvantage when it comes to avoiding those left hooks! They may look cute and fluffy but they are trained feline weapon machines!

Hmmm...if they are running boxing camps, maybe we should start our own "bob and weave" camps so we'd have a fighting chance....


~Anya
The good dog...with a slightly sore nose because she didn't see the cat when she poked her nose under the couch...

When Good Dogs Go Bad...

So the other morning, the Boss Lady lets us out for our last pee-break before she leaves for that thing she calls her job. We had already been out earlier to do the "sniff everything, chase the squirrels routine" and this was just a last chance "to do what you need to do" outing.

The Boss Lady was busy doing the weird ritual she goes through every morning where she walks around frantically looking for her purse, briefcase, etc. I don't know why she doesn't use her nose to sniff these things out like us dogs do - it would save her a lot of time.

Anyway, she called us in and I immediately came bounding up the porch steps (because I'm the good dog). Then came Limerick, a little slower than I think the Boss Lady would have liked, but he did at least come on the first call. We'll take what progress we can get.

But Dublin? Well, he completely blew off the Boss Lady's call and ran out to the cherry tree to look for squirrels. I was appalled! That was the type of behavior I had come to expect from Limerick, but Dublin should have known better. What kind of example was this to set for Limerick? It is hard enough keeping the little guy on the straight and narrow as it is, without Dublin setting such a bad example.

The Boss Lady called again, but Dublin appeared to have developed a case of Sudden Hearing Loss.

The Boss Lady let us two good dogs (who would have thought the little guy would have ever been put in that category, huh?) in the house and headed out to get Dublin. She didn't want to go too far out in the yard because it was really muddy from all the rain we had been getting and the Boss Lady was in her nice "going to her job" shoes. But Dublin was still ignoring her calls.

I knew I had to do something - back in my wild and crazy youth when I had whelped a few litters of my own, I knew I would have never tolerated such nonsense from one of my boys! And Dublin, well his attitude this morning just went to show that boys are never too old for a motherly scolding.

The Boss Lady was about halfway out into the muddy yard when I burst through the back door. She turned at the sound of the door slamming and, expecting it to be Limerick, was surprised to see me standing there (I'm the good dog, remember?)

The Boss Lady told me to go back to the house, so I turned like I was going to run back up to the house and she turned back to Dublin. I hated to trick the Boss Lady like that. She never questioned that I wasn't going to go running back up to the house, trusting soul that she is. But desperate times call for desperate measures (and it was really muddy out by the cherry tree). My disobedience was for the greater good. I took a wide path around the Boss Lady and ran up to Dublin. I gave him a quick scolding ("Didn't you hear her? She said come back to the house! What kind of example are you setting for Limerick? You should know better!") Then I gave him a quick lick to the cheek to let him know there were no hard feelings and told him to come with me "right now!" to go back to the house. Dublin dutifully followed me back up.

The Boss Lady was just standing there in shock but finally she walked back up to the house, too. I got a quick belly rub and a cookie for a "job well done!".

~Anya (the good dog)

I feel pretty, oh so pretty...

So the Boss Lady said I am a very popular girl. She's been inundated with applications from wonderful people (with excellent taste, obviously) who want me to live with them. She's been very busy going through the applications, trying to find the absolute best home for me to go to.

She said it is a very difficult decision - I should think so! It must be one of the most important decisions of her life. It is a wonder she doesn't crack under the weight of this awesome responsibility.

She is going to narrow down all my suitors to a select few and then I get the final say, of course. It is nice to have humans to do this for us as we dogs have much more pressings things to do, like making sure that pesky squirrel doesn't steal all the apples from our tree. Why, if it weren't for the Boss Lady, I'd be stuck wading through the millions (hey, she said I was popular, remember?) of applications myself .

Off on squirrel patrol now...

~Anya

Holy Mackerel!

Yesterday we had a big treat...the Boss Lady came home from where ever she goes during the day - that place she calls her "job" whatever that means - and went into the garage and started banging around in the magic white box. The most delicious things come out of the magic box and today was no exception. It took her longer than normal to bring out our supper. The Boss Lady was banging and mumbling the whole time - something about 25 pounds of mackerel being frozen together in a block of ice. I wasn't sure what a "mackerel" was, but it sure sounded like it put up a big fight.

Dublin and Limerick obviously knew what was in store though, because they sat at the garage door, drooling the whole time. It was undignified.

When the Boss Lady appeared again - she evidently won the fight, but honestly, I wasn't sure she would from the sounds of things - she tossed us each the most magnificent treat. We each got one of the mackerel! They are delicious! Just the thing to hit the spot on a hot day.

I sat licking mine for a while, just enjoying the coolness. This was a miscalculation on my part, however, because the Bottomless Pit, aka Limerick, finished his and came looking to steal mine! Can you believe it? The nerve of him.

I was having nothing of it - I gave him my fiercest stare and lifted my lip - but he came closer. Then I let loose my fiercest growl, but the little juvenile delinquent walked right up to me and stole my mackerel!

That was it. I decided to teach him who was boss! I stood up and walked over to him while he was eating MY mackerel...and started barking for the Boss Lady. That'd fix 'im.

The Boss Lady came out of the garage where she had been continuing the struggle in the magic white box, and immediately saw what the problem was. She walked toward Limerick and the little scoundrel knew the game was up. He left my fish and walked away. I swooped in and rescued my dinner and promptly started to eat it. I wasn't going to give Limerick a chance to steal it again!

Dog Heaven

Well my friends, sorry I haven't posted earlier, but I was still recovering from my weekend at dog heaven, aka Sugar Bush Farm. We got to sleep in a people crate - the Boss Lady called it a "tent". Whatever it was called, I thought it was pretty neat. I didn't know humans slept in crates, too.


There was a DOCNA agility trial going on at Sugar Bush this weekend and our good buddies at NEBCR were manning the food booth.

While the humans were busy, the dogs were having the time of our lives. We got to run around and go swimming. And there was always a human around willing to toss a toy. What could be better?

Well, I'll tell you. I got to meet the love of my life. He's the strong, silent type.


I was smitten, I followed him everywhere. The Boss Lady mumbled something about playing hard to get, but I didn't have time for that.

Eventually, I wore him down.







Alas, my hero didn't seem quite as enamored of me. Such is life. Maybe I'll have better luck next time.


I also got to find out what the Boss Lady meant when she said I might get a chance on sheep. It turns out that it was a lot of work. I watched Dublin and Limerick go first.




It sure seemed like a lot of effort just to get some lamb chops. Then the Boss Lady mentioned that I wouldn't get to eat the sheep! Why bother? I thought - and promptly took myself off to the pond for a cooling swim.

I also got to meet a bunch of other NEBCR foster dogs. There was this guy:



He was pretty cool - he liked to hang out and chill. I think the Boss Lady was trying to figure out how she could smuggle him out of there without anyone noticing. I suggested she leave Limerick behind so she would have room to fit him in the car but she wasn't going for it.


I also got to meet this gal:





She was a bit of a show-off and kept returning the frisbee right to the feet of the person who threw it. I think she did it just to make me look bad.

She's got some cool frisbee catching moves though, I have to admit.








Well, that's it for now. Off to get my beauty sleep.

~Anya

Sheep

So the Boss Lady said we are going to be hanging out at Sugar Bush Farm this weekend. I love that place; it is truly doggie heaven. I will even get to hang out with another NEBCR foster named Henry. He is pretty cool, if I do say so myself.



The Boss Lady said if I am lucky, I will also get a chance to "experience sheep". I think she's getting forgetful...I've already experienced sheep. It was tasty. She called it lamb.



Mmm-mmm, I can't wait to have sheep again.....

The Joys of Fetch

So today, the Boss Lady tried once again to get me to understand the "joys of fetch". She said it was a lot of fun and I should try it.

I'm still not buying it.

I mean, what's the point? I love to chase the frisbee or ball. I can even catch it out of the air. But once it stops moving, who cares?

The Boss Lady said I am supposed to bring it back to her. Isn't that why we keep Limerick around? He just loves to do grunt work like that. I did the important work - I stopped the frisbee from escaping the yard. Shouldn't she be happy with that?

Besides, if I did everything, there'd be nothing left for the little guy to do and he is good at returning things to the Boss Lady. There's not much he can do well, so let's leave him this one thing.

During our "fetch lesson" as the Boss Lady likes to call it, Limerick actually tried to get to the frisbee before me. Silly pup, I don't know what he was thinking. He was running, looking at the frisbee and wasn't watching where he was going....and ran right into the practice agility tunnel. He got all tangled up in it and rolled for a good 15 feet before he figured out how to get back out. It was like watching a train wreck - I was so stunned I forgot to let go of the frisbee.

Limerick is...well...he's......how shall I put this delicately? ...he's just not the brightest bulb....

Dublin says it's because he's young and he'll eventually smarten up, but I just don't know....