In the USA, today is National Love Your Pet Day

Just happened in to our favorite place for dog food, Pet Supplies Plus, a few days ago and when I checked out at the register the young lady handed me a flyer that said February 20th is National Love Your Pet Day. Stop in for free nail trims. This Pet Supplies Plus store is brand new in our neighborhood. And it is the best stocked pet store I've ever been in. But we have never been to the beauty salon in the back so this was a new experience for all of us.

So what is the best way to show your pets how much you love them? Take them to a beauty parlor. OK, that works for Bessie, because she's a girl (don't tell her that, she thinks she is really a Tomboy) but I had to tell a different story to Ruff. I said, Ruff, how would you like to have some pretty girls give you a toenail trim? If you know Ruff then you would know how much he is attracted to girls. I haven't had too many opportunities to take pictures of his encounters but there are a few dozen photos posted here on this blog over the years. So when I asked Ruff about the toenail trim I'm sure his mind stopped working as soon as I mentioned girls and he never heard me say toenail trim. So off we went, but one at a time. And along came the camera.

This was a totally new experience for Bess.  She likes to visit this store when we buy dog food but has never had this done here before. This was also only the second time she has had her toenails trimmed and I think she was glad when it was over. So off we went back home to pick up the big guy and leave Bess behind. No way this would have worked if I had them there together.

There was one sound that went along with this picture. It didn't come from Ruff. It sounded like a loud Ummph as the woman in blue tried to pick up Ruff's hind foot. And I heard her say, "He is a strong one." Ruff wasn't complaining but he also wasn't cooperating. But the ladies were dedicated and went on to finish the job.

Time for everyone to catch their breath and smile for the camera.

And while Ruff never took his eyes off the young blonde girl during the whole ordeal, I am sure he was very happy when this was over. It is worth noting that this was all accomplished without a single word of discontent. Neither Bess nor Ruff voiced any complaints. On the way out we bought two bags of Milo's Kitchen dog treats just because they were so good today.

Winter Games, part 2

What a difference a sunny day makes. There is one big problem taking outdoor photographs on overcast days, there just isn't enough light to use the high-speed shutter to capture all the action.

Yesterday morning we has clear skies and a brilliant Sun and two frisky Rottweilers that had nothing else in mind but play. And I was having so much fun taking the pictures I lost count of how many I had. When I uploaded them into my computer I discovered there were 119 photos taken in just in this brief half-hour romp. So without further word, let the games begin.

 At 1/1000 of a second Bessie's ears make her look like a Doberman Pinscher.

By the look on his face I'm guessing Grumpy Grandpa Axl does not approve of this behavior.

  Hey guys, I think its time for some breakfast.

 

Winter Games, part 1.

Being retired gives me some advantages in the Winter. I don't have to battle the snow or the icy roads if I don't want to. For all intents and purposes, a thin layer of ice is just as bad as 2 feet of snow. So Winter time here at our house is an excuse to turn into hermits. As far as the three Rottweilers go, Winter time is also the best time of the year to be outside. The cold air is exhilarating and if you happen to get thirsty outside you can just eat some snow.

Most of all, what I like best is seeing the excitement in the Rottweilers when they are young and experience the snow for the first time. There's nothing funnier than watching them try to catch some falling snowflakes. And this year it was our little girl Bess's first time. A year ago Bess was only 6 months old and too little to be allowed to run free and play. Now she is 18 months old and everything is different. She has grown up to be a real Tomboy thanks to Ruffin, and she runs and plays as hard as the boys and she has no fear exploring dangerous places.

Every Winter here in Northern Kentucky seems to be a little different. Some years we get lots of snow and once in awhile we get almost nothing. This year we got several days of snow in a single week but each snowfall brought us only an inch or less making it a quick job cleaning the sidewalk and the driveway with the shovel. While that big snow storm dumped several feet of snow on the northeast last month, we got only 3 inches. And while the northeast began to suffer thru days of clean up, our snow quickly melted after we had over a week of 60-degree Spring-like weather. 

Winter is not always filled with days of fun and play outdoors. Sometimes it rains and then we all must stay inside. That means the Rotts enjoy a different kind of play.

While we get to enjoy a large back yard for our long walks, the fenced area around the swimming pool is most convenient for letting Ruff and Bess go out without supervision. 

I have already written about how Bess loves to run across the pool cover, bouncing like it was a trampoline. I used to worry that she would rip the pool cover and fall through but then I realized there is hundreds of gallons of water on top of it and that's pretty heavy. And that large puddle of water in the middle of the cover is fun to run through. Yeah, I have seen her come back in the house soaking wet up to her chest so I know how deep she went in. The freezing cold has added a new experience for her when it froze the puddle and she discovered what ice skating was about when she tried to run across it.

But the puddle doesn't stay frozen all the time. And from my view through the kitchen window I can see the evidence of what Bessie has been doing.

The broken ice was proof that someone tried to walk across it. Also, those black trays were once filled with water to weigh down the pool cover but Bessie has managed to knock several of them into the pool. And it is a good thing that I don't let them stay out for long periods of time. It is not good to be soaking wet outside on a cold Winter day.

While I was writing this post Axl woke up and came in to tell me he had to got out to pee. So I took everyone along and brought the camera, too. It was a crystal-clear morning with lots of Sun and I took many pictures. This post is getting a bit long so I'll go though the photos and post them tomorrow.

A funny thing happened last night.

Last night around 11 PM I took the three Rottweilers out front to go pee before bedtime just as I do every night. Last night was a night I'll never forget because I witnessed the funniest thing I've ever seen. Actually, it was an accident but thankfully no one was injured. I have to illustrate the story with a few pictures so you can fully appreciate the comedy of errors.

Bess has several Kong toys that she plays with. One of them is rather large and heavy and I don't let her bring it in the house because she loves to do pick up and drop, pick up and drop, and it just makes a lot of noise. So I make her leave it outside where we often play catch or I throw it and she runs and gets it. I can say this about Bess, she is as fast as lightening and when the Kong ball is thrown it always bounces in unpredictable directions because it has an odd shape yet she can often track it in the dark and catch it on the first bounce. So after we finish playing and they all finish their business I take the toy and lay it on the chair outside the front door before we go back inside.

This is where the ball stays outside. You can see it inside the red circle.

Last night as soon as we all got outside Bessie goes over to the chair and grabs the ball to play with it. This time as soon as she leaned over to pick up the ball the tags on her collar got wedged in one of the slots in the brown chair. Just as quickly as she pulled back on the ball the chair lifted off the ground and she went into a panic mode and leaped back to get away from the flying chair. The chair is plastic and doesn't weigh more than a pound or two and it really went flying over her head. And so did Bess.

Her instinctive reaction to escape from the danger from this large object that was suddenly attacking here sent her flying head over heals, as they say, and she literally landed on her back on top of the bush on the far side of the patio.

As I said, Bess wasn't hurt, physically, but she was terribly frightened. And I was laughing so much I had to compose myself first before I could make sure Bess was okay because I was standing right next to her when it happened.

As far as damage goes, the chair is almost unbreakable but the bush that Bess landed on now has a large hole in it. But I'm sure it will fill out next summer.

This was certainly a moment that should have been captured on video. A million-dollar moment and if you ever heard of the American TV show, America's Funniest Home Videos you'll know why.