it's official

in the new gazebo
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Sam is officially feeling better. This afternoon, he had a nap with Mark. After the nap, he started chewing on stuff and barking at nothing again. He's back!!

He's been really quiet and sleepy for the past few days and I know that part of that was the drugs working their way out of his system. I expect that he'll still be a little less than normal for a few more days but he's up to his old tricks again so I think the worst is over.

Speaking of worst, this was a very cold weekend. Today was particularly chilly. It got damp in the house to the point where I had to turn the furnace on for a few minutes. Bananas!

Fortunately, we were able to get the yard cleaned up and put back together (for the most part) yesterday. Things are really lush and green after all of the rain we've had and honestly, we probably would not have accomplished as much as we did if it had been really warm outside but still, I shouldn't have had to wear woolly socks and three sweatshirts outside this weekend.

on the leash

on the leash
Originally uploaded by Julep67

and on the mend!

For a guy who never had a leash on before we picked him up at the end of March, he's been wonderfully patient and very obedient all weekend. From the time we picked him up on Friday morning until this morning, he was wearing his harness and leash (well we took the leash off when he was sleeping but all waking time was with leash).

He's been sleeping a lot since his surgery but his incision looks good. Nice and clean actually. So long as we can keep him from licking it too much it's pretty good.

While I've been playing doggie nurse-maid, Mark and Andy constructed our new gazebo-holding-platform in the back yard. It looks great. We were able to sit out in it this afternoon during the rain and we didn't get one drop on us.

It sort of feels, sounds and smells like being at the cottage so we're really enjoying it. Given how chilly and wet the weekend has been so far, we have been able to get a surprising amount of outside stuff done. Most importantly though, Sam's healing nicely and should be back to his old tricks (although hopefully with less chewing on furniture) later on next week!

easty westy

easty westy
Originally uploaded by Julep67

According to the vet's office, our boy is doing very well.

I called the office just shortly after 3 this afternoon and he got through the surgery and came out of the anesthetic without any problems. He was going to have his dinner at 5 and we can pick him up after 9:30 tomorrow morning.

We're so anxious to see him that we are literally counting down the hours. I cannot believe how weird the house feels without him in it. It actually feels quite empty. I will, however, take advantage of his absence tomorrow morning to get some housework done. It's a lot easier to clean and stuff when he's not around.

It'll also mean that I will have that sort of thing done early and I can have the whole rest of the day to hang out with my puppy.

hello dad I'm in jail

hello dad I'm in jail
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I'm feeling nervous and guilty at the moment.

In an hour or so, we'll be taking Sam to the vet's for his surgery. He's not had anything to eat since last night and he was looking at us both with a really confused look this morning. It was like, "hey, I have breakfast when you have breakfast - where's my breakfast?"

So that's the guilty.

The nervous is just about the whole surgery thing. It'll be weird to be away from him tonight. I have tomorrow off so we'll pick him up in the morning and then I'll be home with him all day. Still, it's going to be a really long 24 hours. I miss him already.

tuckered out

tuckered out
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Mark has been doing the majority of the leash training with Sam. I'll help put the harness on and I'll take control of the leash when we are going to the van but Mark's been the patient one. Mark's worked with Sam, slowly coaxing him off of the steps and down the driveway. On his own with the puppy though, he wasn't able to get that far.

Tonight, after dinner, we decided to go out as a "family" and try to get all the way to the "far corner" of the street. See, our house is closer to one end of the block than the other. Our goal tonight was to get to the far corner and back. Mark was putting out the recycling and I had Sam's harness on him. Sam was absolutely vibrating at the door, whimpering a little and very keen to go see Mark. I stepped out onto the porch with him but was a little nervous when I saw a neighbour out with her gorgeous (and fast growing) Klee Kai puppy.

Sam was so well behaved though. He didn't bark or growl or whimper at the puppy. I led him down the driveway and we stood with Mark and I spoke to the woman from across the road. We talked about the dogs and training and both puppies were really well behaved.

Without any bother or fuss or coaxing (or treats) we took off on our walk. I walked ahead of Mark and Sam and Sam just followed me, all the way to the corner. Now, he did stop and sniff every car that was parked along the road but he didn't get distracted by kids on bikes or people walking. He was so well behaved I couldn't believe it. I think it conked him out though because he's sleeping at my feet right now. I don't care what other folks might think, I know that he's the most awesome dog around!!

dental mental

I went to the dentist this morning for a routine cleaning. About an hour after I got back to work, I got a dental related headache which has not gone away. It does suck but at least my teeth are now very clean and all fluorided.

Fluorided is not a word but I'm using it anyway. Today's fluoride treatment seemed pretty fancy to me. I got to choose a flavour (I chose mint) and they squirted some foaming stuff into a blue plastic tooth guard thing that I had to bite down on. The foaming stuff was oozing out all over my face and the hygienist was cleaning it up as it spilled over. It was all very classy. It was also very different from "swish and spit" which is what we did when I was in elementary school. Do they still make kids do this?

They would make us gargle with some putrid "berry" flavoured pink liquid which was in a little paper cup. We'd have to put it in our mouth and swish it around while we walked the hallways at school. At the end of the route, we could spit it out back into the cup and throw it out. Also not very classy. I guess it's good though, I still have all of my teeth. Just not sure why fluoride must be administered with some kind of weird ritual.

Sam tidbit: Sam loves applause. If he does something good, he gets a "good boy" but if he does something really good - like let me put his harness on, or get into the van on his own, we applaud and say good boy and cheer. He totally digs it. Sam is a natural performer and is a complete applause whore.

Dancing Sam

Dancing Sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Mark's Birthday Weekend flew by in a snap.

I snap my fingers a lot lately so I've got "snap" on the brain. It actually works to get Sam's attention so I'm using that as part of our training.

Saturday was sort of a lazy day. I was up early and Mark slept in a bit. I got up and hung out on the sofa in my pj's with the dog. It was awesome. Early in the afternoon we went out and did a bunch of errands which included going to costco at zero hour. All of the looky-loos were out lining up, 10 people deep for a one inch piece of cheese bread. Seriously people, it costs $6. Just buy it.

Yesterday I was not feeling good. I had some sort of weird cold all last week and I think it finally caught up with me yesterday. I'd not slept well on Friday or Saturday and I think that part of it was that I was overtired. I had a nap in the afternoon and then a really hot shower and felt much better. Mark and I went out for sushi rolls last night as part of the birthday celebration weekend.

Today, we both had the day off from work. We booked it off because it was Mark's birthday and also so that we could take Sam to the vet together. He needed to get his shots and meet the vet. I was quite nervous about the visit for a lot of reasons. Sam's still learning about the leash and I was deathly afraid that he'd somehow get out of it and run into the street (the Vet is on a really busy corner). Last night, we took him out in the van for his second drive in it. We did not want him to associate the van with going to the vet. He was really awesome in the van, he seems to be more comfortable there each time we go out.

When we got to the clinic, didn't he wiggle out of his harness (we didn't have it tight enough). Fortunately, when he did this, Sam pushed himself flat down onto his stomach on the pavement. Mark was able to pick him up and carry him inside. Once we got inside, he was pretty good. He's not had a lot of time around strange people or other animals so he barked a couple of times but overall was very well behaved.

He had 3 shots today and we are going back in 3 weeks for boosters. After that, he'll go back for his operation (yes, he's getting snipped!) and he and Mark will go to obedience school. By the time summer arrives, he'll be really ready to get out and do things with us without having any anxiety.

That's the plan anyway!

discovery

Comfortably Numb is uncomfortably loud for Sam.

This morning, in the continuation of Mark's fabulous birthday weekend, Mark decided to watch some of his "The Wall Live in Berlin" DVD over coffee. When he got to "comfortably numb" Sam disappeared and went to the kitchen, quite spooked.

We can't tell if the volume was too high or he doesn't like Van Morrison or he just didn't like the song but he wouldn't go back into the living room until Mark was finished watching the concert.

Funny that, isn't it? Dogs barking on the tv don't really make him blink but for whatever reason, Van Morrison made him bolt out of the room.

Strange huh?

caught!

If you thought that maybe a dog couldn't feel guilty about something, I think you're wrong.

It got really quiet in the kitchen a few minutes ago. Mark had gone down to the basement and Sam quietly disappeared. I had a hunch that he might be in the kitchen so I went in there.

He was in the kitchen, trying to figure out how to get up on the counter (not an easy feat) and get at the leftover barbecue that was cooling in a container.

When I spotted him, I said nothing. He turned and looked at me and started to do his "hey I'm dancing on my hind legs" dance and then sat down, smiling and wagging his tail.

I guess it just smelled too good to resist.

loving the puppy loving

smilin' sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

When you get home from work at night, does anyone come running, full-tilt, toward the door and bounce around, all smiles and so excited to see you that they can hardly stand it?

That happens to me, every night when I get home. Sam is so cool and it's such a crazy good feeling to have that kind of greeting, every night. Makes any bad thing that may have happened in the day, just fade away into oblivion.

I think that this weird cold thing that has been bugging me is starting to go away. Maybe being outside a lot more this week has helped to kill the germs. I question it not, just be happy that it seems to be clearing up. Speaking of clearing up, the last dreggs of snow finally disappeared from our lawn today, I guess it's officially spring now!

peeking sam

peeking sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I have this weird thing happening that feels like a cold only it's strange. I have been coughing a bit and blowing my nose but I'm not super congested, I just have this weird taste in my mouth. I drink gallons of water, chew gum, brush my teeth but nothing makes it go away. It's odd and I'm not happy about it. I really don't want it to erupt into a full blown cold so I'm fighting it. Last night I got almost no sleep from the cold meds I took so I am not taking those tonight. It's a weird circle.

We're still introducing Sam to our friends. He's not overly crazy about men so far. Mark, he loves. My dad, he was indifferent to. On Saturday, Mark's friend Tom came over for coffee. Now Tom is both a smoker and a cat owner. Sam barked at him for a while but eventually he stopped barking and fell asleep on the floor in the kitchen where the guys were chatting.

Tonight, our friend Andy came over to help Mark measure up some stuff for a project we're starting on our deck. Sam was in the back yard when Andy got here. He and Mark went out onto the deck and Sam went bananas. Mark brought him back into the house and nothing I could do would calm him down. I guess it was partly because Andy is also a smoker / cat owner but also because he was caught off guard by having Andy walk into his yard. Normally, Sam's in the front window, keeping a watchful eye on the door and driveway. Maybe it was just the fact that Andy just appeared. Whatever it was, hope it passes. Poor Sam really got himself worked up into a state.

It feels like I only have doggy news these days but for the past week or so, that's really all we've had going on. I'm working pretty long days right now and between that, and the cold symptoms of the past few days, playing with the dog and doing some minimal housework is about all we've been managing.

I will say this, I love my white, fluffy dog but boy howdy, it takes me twice as long to vacuum as I used to and I do it twice as often. I'm not complaining though, just saying, really.

little sweetie

little sweetie
Originally uploaded by Julep67

We had a little tea party at work on Friday and this little doll was there with her mum. Her mum is a colleague who is off on Mat leave. She's a cutie isn't she?

I worked a little bit on the weekend and spent the rest of it pretty much outside, doing stuff with Sam. This past weekend was the first really gorgeous weather we'd experienced this spring. The ice is finally almost melted on our deck and we were able to get the barbecue out of it's snowy prison yesterday. I pulled a couple of chairs from our patio set out as well. We sat in the sunshine and enjoyed the sounds of geese flying north again. Truly an amazing sign of a Canadian spring finally arrived, those geese.

Other than working and doing a few things around the house, oh and playing with Sam, we didn't get up to much. It's good though, this life of ours. Sam has brought so much joy into the house, it's just silly. He's a giant furball of fun and we really really love him. It's soppy but it's true.

giant sleeping fur ball

giant sleeping fur ball
Originally uploaded by Julep67

it's been a busy couple of days around here.

on Thursday, poor Sam was sick. Well, not sick so much as inconvenienced. When we went out in the morning for a poo, he was constipated and was really whiney and obviously in discomfort. Eventually, with the help of some olive oil and extra food, we were able to get things moving. The culprit was a piece of string, most likely ingested during the great living room fiasco of the day before.

Mark stayed home with him during the morning and eventually everything was okay although a bath happened in the process. Mark discovered that Sam loves baths so that's something at least.

Yesterday, poor Mark was sick. His kidney stone (the last one!) is on the move again and is causing him to experience all kinds of back pain. He's on the heating pad right now and that seems to be helping.

Anyway, we're up early this morning because Sam is finally on our work routine and that means everyone is up at 5! I'm thinking that later on, it's naps for everyone!!

go to work and leave me huh?

go to work and leave me huh?
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I guess Sam was a little pissed at us this morning. When Mark got home for lunch, he discovered that Sam had destroyed an entire box of tissue, two coasters and pill bottle. Fortunately, it doesn't appear that he ate any of the pills.

He's got a real thing for tissues and we should have put them up I guess. Bella was an older dog and we didn't have to worry about stuff like this. With Sam being a puppy still, he's a little rambunctious so, this isn't entirely shocking.

A friend at work suggested that I leave out some newspapers. She did this with her dog and apparently, he would shred the papers and then go off and have his day. He got his aggression and anger out on the papers and then it was out of his system.

I also got him another kong toy and will put some peanut butter in it before we go to work. I hope that if he gets a little treat before we leave, he'll not feel like trashing the place after we leave!

giant sleeping fur ball

giant sleeping fur ball
Originally uploaded by Julep67

happy monday.

I think that half of the planet, well maybe just half of our town and most of Ottawa had today off. When I got to campus this morning, I think you could have rolled a bowling ball down the middle of University Avenue and not hit a person or car. It was spooky quiet until after 11 a.m. or so.

Today, I needed to contact some folks in Ottawa for some work related stuff but that wasn't really going to happen today. Government offices were not open today. Oh well, there's always tomorrow, right?

Sam stayed home by himself today while we went to work. After much discussion we decided to let him have the run of the living room, my office and the kitchen today. Mark came home a couple of times during the day to check on Sam and he was okay. No accidents could be found and his new favourite perch seems to be on the arm of the couch, staring out the window. He's got such a happy face, it's neat to see when you drive up the street.

When we walked in the door, he was very excited to see us. It took about 10 minutes for him to calm down. His little heart was just pounding so hard. I must admit, I was really really happy to get home to him too. I almost couldn't wait for that last 30 minutes to pass before I left the office this afternoon. I think I finally understand what puppy love is all about!

here comes the sam

introducing sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

At the end of day two with Sam in the house, things are going much better. We only had one very teensy accident this morning and we even went out for a bit.

Mark went out and did errands this morning while I stayed home with Sam. Later on, this afternoon, we went out together and left Sam in the kitchen. This is what we'll do when we're at work next week. It's a really large, sunny room and his bed and his toys and water and stuff are there. it's also probably the best place to be in case he has another accident because almost all of our house is carpeted (except for the bathrooms, kitchen and my office).

He was very good when we left and was super excited to see us when we returned. All in all, next week shouldn't be too bad. Fortunately, Mark is able to come in the middle of the day which I'm sure will help too.

We're all getting used to each other and I don't know if he's having as much as we are but I think he's enjoying his new surroundings so far.

introducing sam

introducing sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

We picked up Sam last night after dinner. We got home kind of late (for us). It was after 9:30 I think.

Last night, the first night, none of slept very well and today was busy working with the dog, doing some training and basically getting to know one another.

Of course, this meant that I got none of the things on my to do list done and the house is a bit of a disaster area but it's all good because we have a new puppy. He's sweet, basically a very good and seemingly smart dog. We've had a couple of accidents in the house which I believe are related to the transition from one house to another.

I'll write more about it later on, at the moment I'm beat and hoping to get to bed soon. The end result has been absolutely worthwhile but, if I had it to do over again, I know that there are a few things I would do differently. Having said that, I'm sure we'll all sleep better tonight than we did last night!

bella's here

We are once again dog sitting for our friends. The lovely Bella (a gorgeous and sweet natured Blue Tick Hound) is once again staying with us. This time, she'll be here for the entire month of February.

We looked after her for a couple of weeks in late November / early December. We'd never met Bella before that visit. We knew her owners' previous dog, Morgan, quite well (I'd known Morgan since she was a puppy) but Bella was a stranger to us. When she arrived in November, she was pretty nervous and it took her almost the first week to really chill into being here. It had to be odd, new people, a completely different place, city noise versus country quiet. I wasn't surprised.

Tonight though, she whimpered a tiny bit after Jamie dropped her off but it was really not long at all. Right now, she's sleeping in her basket. I placed it next to the furnace vent so she's toasty roasty warm. The house she lives in is a lovely log cabin on a remote lake north of here. They heat the house by wood stove so there are no blasting forced air hot spots to snuggle on. Her owners have gone to the Caribbean for a holiday. I guess she's sort of on one too, I joked with her owners that she's getting to spend a month in the warmth as well.

I'm so glad that she's here again, we really missed her.

spoke too soon

so Mark thinks that Butthead is actually sick.

On the weekend, I noticed that his lip was red. He'd been tossing gravel around like Roger used to and I spotted a little boo-boo on his mouth. Mark added extra salt to his water on Sunday during the tank cleaning. It's possible that he's just a little over salted.

Tonight he got some tank medicine stuff added to his water and he seems to have chilled a bit. Would you ever have thought that a little fish (well, not really so little) could cause such a ruckus!?

my officemate

For no good reason, I took this little video the other evening of our fish, Butthead. He wasn't always a butthead but we started calling him that a couple of years ago. Originally, his name was Skid and he had a buddy named Mojo. Skid had a growth spurt and started picking on the other fish in the tank so we decided to isolate him. It was either that or let him beat the living crap out of the other fish. For a while he lived down in the basement, in Mark's office. When Chocolate died in December, we moved him upstairs, into the tank she'd been in.

He's got a bit of a 'tude at times but I think he likes being upstairs. He definitely gets more attention and he is fed on a more regular schedule. That has to be good because seriously, there is not much that goldfish like more than eating.

so long chocolate

on the mend
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Our little chocolate oranda died last night. she's been really sick for a while (she caught part of whatever it was that killed Roger) but had been making some improvement since we moved her into the hospital tank.

Chocolate was a weird little fish. When we brought her home she was brown. She later turned gold then orange and then white. We kind of think she had some kind of brain tumor because she got this strange growth on her head over the past couple of weeks. It didn't seem to bother her until yesterday. She didn't move around a whole lot and at dinner time last night, she didn't eat (not like Chocolate at all!). On our way to bed last night we noticed that she was dead. I don't think that she'd been dead for very long though.

I'm pretty sure that orandas are supposed to live longer than 2.5 years but she was a little bit strange so who knows. We never know how old the fish are when we bring them home. She was a really cute fish and we'll miss her a lot but I'm glad that she's not suffering anymore.