Elbie, Hoover, Dodge & Friends!

[Niques]

I love the new signature, KTB. Elbie's such a suave, distinguished looking fellow - I keep thinking you could pop a fedora on his head and he could go off and be Indiana Jones.

Ziggy looks like he had a fulfilling day! Sounds like a lot of fun.

Good luck to little Ruby! I'm sure she'll be just fine. It's probably for the best that her operation is happening over a busy weekend for you - the vets will be great at keeping her quiet and a bit less stress for you whilst you have other things on your mind

[Max#1]

Poor Ruby! I'm sure she will be fine and the vet nurses will spoil her rotten!!

Thanks for the link to the K9 site too. Would you recommend going to see this guy? What more do you want to get out of Kuma?

The concept of training in drive I think is really interesting. I would definitely like to know more about that.

In terms of training, we've had some little wins the past few days! We were at the park, and two days in a row people were playing ball on the other side of the park. Normally, Max would be off like a shot, not hearing me, to run endless circles round these people chasing their ball. BUT - he didn't do it!!! He stopped when I said his name, then came when I called him. He kept wistfully looking off in the distance - so after a bit I rewarded with his own game of ball.... I was so proud!!!!

Now this one goes out to all of you who have ever videotaped themselves doing something strange with their puppies..... then posted it on the internet.....

(warning: you can see my face - I hope that's not illegal)

[koalathebear]

KTB: your furkids are too cute - I love Hoover's baleful face. He looks like a shy country kid that has a load of energy inside him

Heh you'd be right. He's very placid mostly but when he's wound up he is pretty bouncy. He's such a cuddly little dog.

;) at the poo talk. Kuma's pretty good at converting his food into energy and not poop, we don't have to pick up that much. Plus he prefers to poop on our walks - especially that grass/straw stuff (have you seen it? they mulch up hay combine it with grass seed and fertiliser and spray it around - it's awesome) Kuma likes it coz it's crunchy under foot.

You're so lucky! If Kuma pooped as much as my monsters did, you'd be wading through it within minutes.

We're hoping to make the visit to see "K9 Steve" (as OH calls him) early next year, depending on a variety of factors. He's so popular though that it's really difficult to book in to see him :D It's usually a 2-3 month waiting period and while at the time I book we're ok, we never know how things will be that far down the track.

I'm away for work on November 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18 and 19. My inlaws come for the weekend on the 19th... then I'm going to book myself into a mental institution for a melt down.

You poor, poor thing ... I hope you can have a nice relaxing time in December ... I am hoping for some chill-out time then as well ...

Niques: Thanks :D We love him to bits even though he's a bit bonkers. We can't believe what a contrast in temperaments our two doggies have.

Max#1: What a great trick - it's like you're preparing for doggy dancing! How did you teach Max that trick??? Also, showing your face is fine It is nice to 'see' you. You may enjoy

of the monsters running around the yard. They're both very fast

Finally, Zombie Kelpie Dog: "Imhotep .... Imhotep ....!" (for those of you who have seen The Mummy).

[lilli_star]

I rang the vets today to check on Roo and she was awake but alot quieter than usual ;) Hope she'll be good over the weekend. It's so quiet here, except for the cat who I can't tell if he misses Roo or is celebrating the time apart.

I have no idea what I'm going to wear to this wedding tomorrow. I bought new clothes last weekend, but they seem to be mostly black. Plus its still bloody cold here Oh well. Think I'll just wear it and be done with it.

[koalathebear]

I rang the vets today to check on Roo and she was awake but alot quieter than usual Hope she'll be good over the weekend. It's so quiet here, except for the cat who I can't tell if he misses Roo or is celebrating the time apart.

I have no idea what I'm going to wear to this wedding tomorrow. I bought new clothes last weekend, but they seem to be mostly black. Plus its still bloody cold here Oh well. Think I'll just wear it and be done with it.

Glad Roo's ok. You've got heaps of toys for her in preparation for her convalescence so I'm sure she'll be ok just chilling out in her crate and about the house ... Good luck with the wedding as well - you could dress up the black with other colours. I seem to have a wardrobe full of black as well ... :|

Monster #1 and Monster #2 waiting for a dog treat. We have decided that Hoover's ears and plaintive expression make him look like Dobby the Elf from the Harry Potter series. You be the judge.

It's been a bit cold here in Canberra these past few days so OH has taken to mollycoddling the monsters again.

Edited November 6, 2010 by koalathebear

[koalathebear]

Hoover has the dopiest eyes OH is always asking him: "Is there any intelligence in there?" Fortunately Hoover is smart, he just still has dopey puppy eyes.

Video of dopey puppy eyes

.

He has a funny way of sitting on the stairs sometimes.

of the stair-sitting.

Not sure why the little monster is so sleepy

Viciously attacking his plush monkey

[koalathebear]

Looks like Hoover and Monkey are still friends, though.

Pensive Hoover.

Overly curious Hoover

Winsome Hoover

What Hoover's doing right now.

While I was changing the bed sheets, Hoover plonked himself by the window in the sunlight and decided to fall asleep. Very uncomfortable position but he seems to like it. OH is in there supervising him now because we still don't trust Monsieur Hoovér on his own in any rooms. That's right, Elbie is Signor Elborino and Hoover is Monsieur Hoovér.

We bought a bunch of lamb flaps, Royal Canin and treats for the monsters today.

Hope everyone's having a great weekend. It's quite overcast here and I'm worried it will rain or be wet for Dog School tomorrow ...

Edited November 6, 2010 by koalathebear

[wuffles]

Awww, I think Hoover's eyes look very thoughtful!

Doggies in the wuffles household got bathed today. Poor Ava always looks like she's being tortured in the bathtub.

Now they are both all fluffy and smell like oatmeal I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow too KTB. I'm considering taking Ava down the oval soon for a bit of practice seeing as we have been a bit (ok, very) slack lately...

[koalathebear]

Wow, Ava's eyes look stunning here:

We wash Hoover in the bathtub inside because he's still smallish but poor Elbie gets washed out in the yard. How do you dry Ava off? In the bathroom with lots of towels or do you have a hairdryer handy?

[wuffles]

Wow, Ava's eyes look stunning here:

We wash Hoover in the bathtub inside because he's still smallish but poor Elbie gets washed out in the yard. How do you dry Ava off? In the bathroom with lots of towels or do you have a hairdryer handy?

Thanks, I wish I had natural eyeliner like hers... although not the weird dots to the side

Yep Ava gets washed in the tub and Satch outside. Both are scared of the hairdryer so they generally get towelled off, put outside to bask in the sun for 15 minutes, then inside again before they get too dirty!

They have both now been brushed and Ava is so fluffy and sweet :D We bought a Furminator which doesn't work on Ava but definitely does on Satch, and it makes him look nice and smooth

[koalathebear]

Thanks, I wish I had natural eyeliner like hers... although not the weird dots to the side

Actually I meant that colour and clarity of her eyes. They look so human! Some doggies have scary eyes but Ava's eyes look very human ... We use towels for our two, too but I gosh I wish that Elbie wouldn't attack his red towel. ;)

I have ordered Kuma's birthday present today. It took me a while to decide what to buy but I have decided. :p

Also, I have two rescue dog videos to do but am completely stumped so decided to do a video for Elbie and Hoover - no, not to rehome them, just because ...

[betsy]

Awwww

Hoover is the perfect little brother for Elbie

[Clastic]

Back from a weekend near Sydney at OH's future SIL parents place. Engagement party up that way we camped on their property and the kids had a ball! Managed to get very muddy though, so they have now come home and had a bath and are both munching away on a couple of lamb shanks.

KTB - Great news about getting in Bronze next session instead of Beginners'!

betsy - Both of my pups don't catch frisbees but we haven't been trying really hard to get them to learn either. We do have to get a floppy one I think, the hard ones are a bit hard for mine to pick up unless they are upside down.

Sounds like Ziggy had a great time at the treasure hunt, I love when they come home tired sometimes.. gives me a bit of quiet in the house for a bit. LOL

wuffles - Good luck with keeping the little miss entertained and quiet! Ah.. I wish I had Ava's natural eye-liner too..

Niques - That pic of James looking up all wet is so cute, sad little puppy face..!

Well Pepper has decided now that she is done with her lamb shank and is now curled up in a ball on the bed and having a snooze. Mars is still making the most of his lamb shank.

Here is Pepper curled up having a snooze - Her fr is a bit all over the place after her bath as she hasn't had a brush yet.

This was on the trip home, Pepper was using Mars as a pillow and Mars was quite comfy, didn't even notice or care.

And last ones.. what I came home to on Friday afternoon.. I'm sure they both had something to do with them but I know for sure that Pepper dug the 2nd hole, because when I walked outside she bolted from that area of the garden and her paws were brown and it looked like someone had tipped a bucket of dirt all over her head. If only she wasn't running around like a lunatic I would have gotten a photo of her!

[koalathebear]

clastic: those photos of your two in the backseat is soooooooooo cute. Does Pepper have her tongue poking out? As always, Mars is gorgeous. I love how fluffy Pepper is right now.

Also, those holes .... They're very impressive! I have a strange request but do you mind if I use a couple of the hole photos for a rescue dog video I'm making? It's weird, I was thinking: "I need some good 'holes in the garden' photos but I couldn't use the one Hoover dug because it looked like he was digging a grave He doesn't stick to the Traditional Round Shaped hold.

As mentioned before, Hoover can't 'gate crash' the beginner classes anymore because with the good weather, students came back - but we sat on the sidelines for a bit and then wuffles showed up with Ava so the two had a bit of a play in the off-lead area. Some video is

They actually played a lot more than that, but I wasn't filming for most of the time. Hoover seems very unfussed by Ava's energy and speed and he keeps going back for more - he did have a fascination with eating the grass though which I suspect is going to haunt me tonight when he throws it all back up again.

We played Rockband 3 - we did 11 songs in a row and the two doggies were sleeping in their dog beds nearby. Elbie was baffled by the microphone at first but then went to sleep. OH accidentally released a drum stick, it flew through the area and fell on top of a slumbering Hoover - who continued to sleep ...

[wuffles]

Hey, those holes are nearly on par with ours, Ava and Satch give a thumbs up to Mars and Pepper! :laugh:

Glad Hoover has had a snooze because Ava is wide awake. We went to Dogs Day Out after training where we saw lots of friends including Satch's ex-foster carer and her dog which made him very excited! Little Miss isn't being naughty but she isn't snoozing either...

[Clastic]

clastic: those photos of your two in the backseat is soooooooooo cute. Does Pepper have her tongue poking out? As always, Mars is gorgeous. I love how fluffy Pepper is right now.

Also, those holes .... They're very impressive! I have a strange request but do you mind if I use a couple of the hole photos for a rescue dog video I'm making? It's weird, I was thinking: "I need some good 'holes in the garden' photos but I couldn't use the one Hoover dug because it looked like he was digging a grave He doesn't stick to the Traditional Round Shaped hold.

As mentioned before, Hoover can't 'gate crash' the beginner classes anymore because with the good weather, students came back - but we sat on the sidelines for a bit and then wuffles showed up with Ava so the two had a bit of a play in the off-lead area. Some video is

They actually played a lot more than that, but I wasn't filming for most of the time. Hoover seems very unfussed by Ava's energy and speed and he keeps going back for more - he did have a fascination with eating the grass though which I suspect is going to haunt me tonight when he throws it all back up again.

Haha, yes.. Pepper has her tongue out in that photo. Such a silly girl!

Am happy for you to use those hole pics. If you need me to e-mail the original pics which haven't been resized yet just let me know.

Forgot to post this one aswell, OH found it.. more grave hole style though.

Speaking of classes and training, we got our info sheet on Bronze assesment.. I foresee failure for us... Ah well, 3 weeks of intense training..!! So so worried..

Hey, those holes are nearly on par with ours, Ava and Satch give a thumbs up to Mars and Pepper!

Thanks! Pepper seemed pretty impressed with herself on the day and Mars has probably been getting advice from Ava!

Our new yard will probably end up with Ava & Satchmo's Moonscape design!!

[lilli_star]

This was on the trip home, Pepper was using Mars as a pillow and Mars was quite comfy, didn't even notice or care.

Awww, I love this photo!

Those were some pretty impressive holes your kids have created, Clastic.

[Max#1]

Clastic - if there was ever an 'ad' for having two dogs. Your photos would be it........ Why have one? .... when you can have two....! Ha! They're so adorable!

Meanwhile those holes are pretty impressive!

Tonight we were at a friend's house with Max - they were curious as to his breeding and reckoned they could 'discern' - border, lab, staffy, and kelpie... Poor Max and his indeterminate heritage!

[koalathebear]

Thanks clastic! Will let you see how the holey photos are used in good time ...

Also, don't worry about the assessment - Mars has got the goods! We were reading the silver assessment sheet today. Elbie can do all the stuff there, he just can't do it consistently yet. OH and I are prepared for and ok with him repeating silver. Because of the structure of the class (eg for recall and the loose lead walking) only one dog at a time can do the tasks and the rest have to stand around waiting - this means that some classes, they do about 1 minute of heeling or not at all and some stuff is touched upon very briefly. Unless you're very conscientious and able like wuffles and ava, garden variety people (like OH and me :p) will struggle to get our dogs up to scratch in time for assessment. I am pretty certain that Elbie should be able to pass silver the second time around.

Clastic - if there was ever an 'ad' for having two dogs. Your photos would be it........ Why have one? .... when you can have two....! Ha! They're so adorable!

If you don't have a second dog in the next six months, I will eat my non-existent hat. You are so Second Puppy Clucky.

Tonight we were at a friend's house with Max - they were curious as to his breeding and reckoned they could 'discern' - border, lab, staffy, and kelpie... Poor Max and his indeterminate heritage!

Don't worry! People always look at Elbie and what they see depends on their preferred breed. Kelpie lovers say: "He is a Kelpie". Border collie people say: "He is a border collie!" I have two colleagues who are not dog people. When I showed them photos of a Kelpie, they guessed dobermann, blue heeler and border collie :p

lilli_star: how did the wedding go? What did you wear? How is Miss Roo? Inquiring minds want to know!

[lilli_star]

The wedding was nice, very simple and no frills. Bridesmaids dresses were from Big W apparently The bride was obviously very keen to get things happening- she arrived before some of the guests did! I ended up wearing a black shirt and black and white skirt and there were lots of other people wearing black too (including the bridesmaids).

The garden thing today went well too I think, although I didn't get around to any of the gardens except the one I was on. Thankfully the rain held off, so looking forward to hearing how much money we made for school.

I pick Roo up tomorrow afternoon after work. No doubt she will be full of beans. The cat is going to be very miffed- I think he thought "Yes! All my plans to get rid of the black monster have worked! Once again it is just the human and I!" Sorry, J. I did tell you it was only a temporary holiday from the doglet.

I was looking at your latest videos KTB- just gorgeous! By the way, and I hope this doesn't come out sounding stalker-ish/crazy, but every time I put a load of washing on this weekend, I thought of your doglets. My washing machine is a Hoover brand