Squirrel!

Tonsillitis?

We had a real scare last month. One dayI noticed that Guinness was not her usually perky inquisitive self. She stopped eating and just lay there looking sad. Her ears felt a little hot so straight to the vet we went. He confirmed that she had a slight fever, prescribed antibiotics and gave her a shot  for possible dehydration. She was very interested in the KFC we stopped to get and seemed better after the visit. The vet didn't know what was wrong with her. She perked up the next day. One day she perked up, the next day she was down again.

She was so pathetic after the next weekend. She just lay in the laundry room on a pile of towels. We didn't have the heart to take them out from under her to wash them. Nothing we gave her would tempt her to eat. You could tell she wanted to when she went up the the bowl of special rice and chicken. We took her back in. I had noticed that she was gagging and asked the vet to look down her throat. She had to stay for the day and be sedated for them to run their tests. When he called he reported tonsillitis! He said that there are some people that don't believe dogs get tonsillitis but he had the proof right in front of him. I made her chicken mush in the cuisinart and put it on the back of ther throat so she would take one of her small pills. I even made her home made Frosty Paws with plain yogurt and peanut butter -made in my ice cream maker. Hey, I got icecream when I had tonsillitis. After a round of cat (we didn't tell her) antibiotics squirted down her throat  because she wouldn't eat, steriods, and another two types of antibiotics she is bouncing again. It's good to have the perky puppy back.

The Face of a Mouser

Guinness caught a mouse last week. I think she was as surprised as we were. She was very interested in a tarp out back at the cabin and when we moved it a mouse ran out. She grabbed it and we immediately told her to drop it, which she did. It didn't move and my SO tossed it into the woods. He said it was alive. Guinness was rewarded profusely.

I feel bad for the furry little things, but we really don't want them in the house. After the mouse incident Guinness was sniffing along the wall to the kitchen and acting very interested. We set traps there for the first time and found them full when we got back.

As a true mountain woman I realize that mice can be a problem if not kept under control. Our terrier is now an official working dog and living up to her Irish farmdog heritage.

Rainy Day Puppy

Have I mentioned that Guinness hates clothes? We live in Southern California so, unless there's a blizzard in Big Bear, she really doesn't need them often. It's been drizzling all weekend so I deemed it time to break out her raincoat. Usually she runs and hides when I take it out, but I think she wanted a walk bad enough to tolerate it.

I'm not really that lady who dresses up her dog, but the rain makes her fur/hair really curly and matted so I was glad I had the raincoat in the closet.

Normally she'll just stand there, not moving, playing doggie statue. Today she was willing to work with me, although she's doing a good statue in this picture.

Trail Blazing and Duck Hunting

Guinness is very good about staying close to us while we hike. We discovered a nice easy trail in Moonridge and she got to explore along with us. There was plenty of shade for her. She will run from shady spot to shady spot if we are hiking when it's warm out.

We also took a walk along Juniper Point in Big Bear last weekend. Since it was almost sunset there was no one around so we took the leash off to let Guinness run a bit. She loved it and got to smell everything along the trail. On the way back she spotted some ducks minding their own business. She got that look in her eye. I told my siginicant other to put her back on the leash - mostly because I knew she'd get all muddy. The ducks were in no danger. My request was vetoed and Guinness got to plunge into the lake, looking slightly disappointed when the ducks, in a very leisurely manner, swam just a little further out.

Winter Adventure for Guinness

Guinness has never encountered deep snow. Thursday morning we were able to get in the back yard and she was up to her neck in snow. She likes the snow but hates her snowsuit so I let her play. I must say it was fun to watch her trying to figure out what the white stuff was. She usually goes nose first and that didn't change in the snow.

Her fur is so fine that little snowballs accumulate after a very short time in the powder. Short of a full body snowsuit, for which she would never forgive me, there's not much to be done. What do snowy weather wheaten owners do? She hid from from the inevitable bath.

She helped me dig out after the storms, and much preferred to be running free without the much hated snow suit.

Guinness Likes the Snow

Guinness is with me in the mountains this week. Last November when there was a foot of snow she came back from a walk with snowballs all over her, especially her tummy. These things were not easy to brush off and necessitated putting her in the tub to melt them off.

Kenai's Corner in the Village had snowsuits that covered the tummy area so I talked myself into getting one for her. This is her first winter in the mountains. For some reason she is not terribly thankful for the extra protection from the elements and gives me a look and is all draggy-tailed. I tried reasoning with her but she still hates clothes. I let her out after this picture without the snowsuit and she romped and enjoyed the snow much more. It's still easier to take off the suit than those snowballs so she'll just have to deal.

Guinness Loves Ducks

We all went boating over Labor Day weekend. Luckily I had picked up a little life vest for Guinness earlier this summer. She could probably swim but I don't want to worry about her if she winds up in the water. She hates clothes of any kind and I thought she'd really hate the life vest, especially since Potter didn't have to wear one. She was amazingly fine with it. It brought me great peace of mind while we ate lunch and she eyed the nearby ducks as she ran from side to side of the boat trying to figure out how to get one. The handle was very, well, handy. It was pretty funny to everyone (except Guinness) when I picked her up by it to keep her from jumping in after the ducks.

Here's a story of another wheaten with the same life vest. Guinness spent most of the time huddled under a towel. She didn't care for the wind or the noise of the boat.

Guinness of the Mountains

We've been heading up to the mountains a lot for the last couple of months. Guinness loves to explore the trails we hike along up there. She's good about staying close. I just read an article about the animals that frequent the area and don't think she'd win a contest with a bear - even if she thinks she tough.

Our last trip included a stay at a dog friendly place that had llamas! She was not at all sure what to make of them. They were a lot bigger than she was. She also was slighly intimidated by a pair of boxers that were very rampunctious. Her alpha status was on hold for a while.

We travel with Guinness all the time and Dog Friendly.com is a great source for information on dog friendly places to stay and things to do. California is getting more and more dog friendly but it's not always easy to find a restaurant or a hotel she can go to. Dog Friendly has been so helpful in traveling with Guinness and we were even able to take her to San Francisco and Mendocino.

Guinness is FAMOUS!

Well, sort of. She's featured on Daily Puppy as today's grown up puppy of the day! We're so proud. The photographs submitted on that site all look so professional, and the site has rules. I finally managed to get a few good shots of her. I've been looking at dailypuppy.com since before I got Guinness. There are soooo many cute wheaten puppy pictures on that site I even printed some for her scrapbook... yes I have a scrapbook for her and no it's not pathetic - at all.

Wheaten Puppy Cam!

Here's the link to the puppycam at the Wheaten Rescue site. Kate, the mom, is a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier who was rescued with 4 other Wheatens by S'Wheat Rescues. Kate was pregnant when she was rescued and had these lovely babies. Learn more about the Rescue and see all the dogs they have available for adoption at http://www.wheatenterrierrescue.org

Surfer Chick

We took Guinness to a secluded beach and let her run. She was curious about the motion of the ocean and was surprisingly cautious. Her favorite part was just running and running along the tideline. We thought that since she loves the moving water of the hose so much that she'd go crazy. I think it's a bit bigger so she didn't know what to make of it.


She was very dirty and happy by the end of the trip.

Party Dogs

Yes, I know, giving a party for your dog is a bit pathetic. I've had people look askance when I tell them about it. Too bad. It was fun and I'll make no apologies. Actually it was really an excuse to make these uber cute pupcakes. I altered the schnauzer a bit to make a wheaten. The link above shows a detailed how-to from Family Circle. As I was contemplating who I could con into taking part in this silliness I thought of Mia . . . and then it occured to me that since they were litter mates they shared a birthday, so it was her party too.

Of course the pupcakes above are for people. The birthday dogs deserved a cake for their first birthday afterall. Here's the recipe from Two Dog Press

1 large apple

1/2 cups wheat flour

1/4 cup oatmeal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoons honey
2 eggs

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

For the Frosting

8 oz Neufchatel Cheese (lowfat cream cheese)

2 tablespoons plain yogurt

2 tablespoons honey

2-3 tablespoons flour

grated carrots

Directions:Preheat oven to 400 ° F (200 ° C). Grease muffin tins.

Core, slice and mince the apple (use a food processor if you have one). Set aside. In a large bowl, mix together flour, oatmeal, baking powder, and baking soda. In a medium bowl, blend together the yogurt, water, oil, honey, and eggs, then stir in the apple and cheese. Add to the flour mixture and stir until mixed.

Spoon into the muffin tins, filling each cup about three-quarters full. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let rest in the muffin tins for a few minutes, then remove and set aside to cool.
For the frosting, combine the Neufchatel cheese (at room temperature), honey, and yogurt until smooth. Add enough flour to thicken the frosting to a good spreading consistency. Frost the pupcakes, sprinkle them with finely shredded carrots as garnish, and you're ready for a doggone good party!

Makes 16-18 pupcakes. If you prefer a single-layer cake, spoon the batter into a sheet pan and bake for an extra 15-20 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean). (I used 6 inch springform pans for small cakes) Let the cake cool, then frost and decorate with carrot shavings.

Both dogs really liked their cakes. They got slices as good dog goodies all week. Yes, I made hats for them. Guinness (left) enjoyed chewing it to smitherines shortly after this picture.

The Park Bench Cafe

We took Guinness the wheaten on another trip to Orange County and visited Potter and his humans. Potter had a special request to have brunch at a restaurant called The Park Bench Cafe in Huntington Beach. This is a special eatery that caters to canines. The plastic tables are all outside and judging from the number of dogs it's a very popular spot. There's a little lake where puppy enjoyed looking longingly at the ducks.



We were there on a perfect day. Dog watching was especially fun because there were all kinds enjoying the menu and the park.

Water bowls are even furnished. They have a human menu and a doggie menu that included hot diggety dogs, hamburger and even kibble for the dog who doesn't eat people food. Guinness wasn't sure what to do with a whole basket of hot dog pieces so we wound up feeding them to her a piece at a time - no she's not spoiled! Potter had no such misgivings and gobbled his hamburger brunch right down.

Puppy Class

Guinness is a pretty smart dog. We taught her how to sit as soon as we got her. Coming when she's called is a whole other story however. We were strolling through PetSmart one day when we came upon a puppy class graduation. With all the dogs I've had before I've done the class with parks and rec, in the park. Obedience class in the store is nice.

She made friends with the trainer and with all the other dogs. Guinness likes the big dogs best and has a new friend who's a lab/ridgeback. We were very proud of her sitting ability!
As the class progressed she learned a lot. We learned to tempt her with a treat to get her to lay down and the "walk . . . walk" command helped keep her from tugging on the leash on walks.
There were two labs. One big black one that Guinness thought was Hank for a while and another super cute chocolate lab puppy. The labs and the border collie learned a little bit quicker than she did - being higher on the smart dog list than wheatens. - Smarty pants doggies!

My SO comes home early and practices the skills puppy learned that week. He calls it "cheese time!" Guinness loves cheese. It's been hard to find something that inspires her. She graduated after learning to come most of the time when she's called. She can lay down, shake, stay, walk and can still sit. Leave it comes in really handy too. The trainer make home made doggie biscuits with yogurt frosting for graduation day. We even got graduation caps to pose in.

We went on to the intermediate class where she's learning to heal and bow and stay with distraction. I think she likes the play breaks best.

First Furcut

The weather was getting hot and I know wheatens don't do well in the heat. She also had that not so attractive patch on her side from surgery. I deemed it time for her first furcut. There is a place in town that had been owned by a person who is big in the wheaten world in Southern California. She's since sold it but the groomers were trained by her. I've been to PetSmarts where they didn't even know what a wheaten cut looked like, even though they had a big poster on the wall with an actual wheaten listed.

A previous attempt at grooming at PetSmart didn't go so well and they wound up just doing a little trimming in the hindquarters. I trimmed her ears and topknot so she's look more wheateny. Bruce said she looked like she was wearing a big racoon coat. This was her first grooming and she was uncooperative.

So I made the appointment at the wheateny place and dropped her off. OK, I really need to work with her. She hates having her face and feet messed with so they had to muzzle her. The owner was very nice and told me that wheatens have strong personalities and I need to show her who's boss and work on her face and feet frequently.

She looks so proud of herself doesn't she? She's much happier without the heavy fur in the heat and she's as soft as those new super soft chenielle robes they've come out with.

My Quest

I have seen the other dog blogs. They have wonderful photos of cuddly puppies all dewey eyed with fluffy fur. The only pictures I seem to be able to get of Guinness are blurred or else she is scroungy looking.

I tried once again when the morning was fresh and the hills were covered with mustard flowers. It's easy to be full of optimism in that weather. The scenery was nice but there's more scenery than puppy here:

It's a bit hard to handle a lunging pupppy (even though she's getting much better with her obedience training) and a camera.

The stickey monkey flower picture did not come out great and I had about given up and was heading toward the car when she posed on a rock next to a nice patch of PPFs.

The next day I tried again. She actually sat still in the shade for one shot.

I tried to get a shot of her in some yellow flowers. Not likely. A family was getting into their car nearby and felt sorry for me offering me their help.

I was determined to get her amongst some poppies while they were blooming and had spotted a patch nearby. By the time I had finished the walk it was getting a bit warm. Although it looks like she's sweltering she was carried into the poppies for the final photo op. I actually like this picture even though you can see the decorative fence in back - nothing a little Photoshopping can't eventually fix.

Too Much Water

We took a trip to the ocean one Saturday a while back. Guinness needed to meet the owner of the doggie day care she wants to go to near my work and it's right by the beach. She was a good dog and got approved for a half day. I found out from the owner that she had to send a wheaten away one time - resource guarding. I'm finding out that sometimes wheatens have . . . issues.

Anyway the beach was right there and I couldn't turn down an opportunity to introduce puppy to the ocean. She looooooves water and I thought she'd enjoy the waves. She's still not coming when she's called so I resisted the temptation to take her off leash and just walked her along the shore for a while letting her pounce on the waves rolling in. She loved it. I had heard, but never read, that salt water is bad for wheatens so I wanted to make sure it got rinsed off. How handy that there was a fountain at the plaza by the beach?

She also played in the hose when she got home. It's so fun to watch her run around and chase it and she's never happier than when in the water, plus there was that rinsing thing I was worried about.

This is a cautionary tale because I don't think she got all the way dry. It was into the 80s but not really hot enough and she wound up with an ear infection even though I used the hair drier on her. She was a sad puppy shaking her head and scratching the next day and had to go to the vet. She had a week's worth of ear medicine and antibiotics before she was roo rooing and back to her old self.

As soon as she'd let me I trimmed the hair that is under her ears so it would stay dry. I also cut her little top pouf. My SO called her mullet head - which we both took offense to.

Fur Blur

We had a dog party for Easter! Guinness' sister Mia and nephew Potter attended the festivities and even joined in the spirit by donning appropriate headgear.

Guinness had the best time running around the yard with them. One of the (human) guests who had been tasked with taking pictures said all she could get was a fur blur.

It's so exciting to have friends over. We're working on being polite to guests, but it's a challenge. She has a tough time letting them catch their breath because she wants to play and play and play.

Springtime with Puppy

Springtime brought some beautiful blossoms to our neighborhood. I would have loved to have some nice pictures of her with the blossoms. It's hard to do on a walk alone with her. I managed to get a shot of her admiring the beautiful blossoms.

Another walk took us by a local lake where we saw our first swan. Since you coulndn't see her eyes at this point the front and the back of her head kinda looked the same.

A trip to Fresno gave me an opportunity to have a friend with actual photographic ability and a smokin' hot camera take some pictures of her amid the nectarine blossoms in a surviving orchard.

My sister helped me trim Guinness so that we could see her eyes, but I took this shot of her before hand and it's one of my favorites.

You can see the patch where she was shaved for hernia surgery she had at the same time she was spayed.

She had a great time in Fresno playing with Hank the black lab and having close encounters with a curious desert tortoise and a disdainful kitty.

She would have loved the waterfall in the yard if she could have gotten to it but my sister did let her play in the hose. We had to lock her outside while she dried off and she got to practice her jumps. She definitely catches air.

Soaking wet and happy. You can finally see her eyes. My sister said her eyelashes look like Who eyelashes.