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.

Now I gotcha.

The brash impunity of youth. Every single time I let Bess and Ruff out in the backyard I warn her, Stay Off The Pool Cover. Yeah, sure. But the excitement and the temptation seem to overcome the fear of punishment. Ha! What punishment, all you do is remind me once again. The warrior queen is immune to fear. Ruff taught me that.

What appeared to be some fear in slipping on the snow covered slope of the pool cover yesterday apparently was only short-lived. I saw the hundreds of footprints in the snow this morning so I know Bessie was all over the pool cover last night in the dark. But what amazed me was when I caught her casually trotting down and across the cover this afternoon with not a care in the world.

The weatherman has predicted above freezing temperatures for Sunday thru Wednesday so the ice on the cover will probably melt. I will have to keep an eye on the little queen to make sure she doesn't try to go swimming.

I'm only guessing what Ruff had in mind when he raised this little girl. I jokingly referred to her as his Warrior Queen but in the absence of not being raised by a female, little Bess has turned into a Tomboy.

  

Seen through the kitchen window

Our first snow last week, all 1/2 inch of it came and went. And Mother Nature gave us a nice, brand new, replacement last night. This time we got a full 2-inches and the Rottweilers were in their glory once again. But the weather has turned very cold, hovering between 0-degrees F. and in the mid-20's and one thing out back has changed. The foot-deep puddle in the middle of the pool cover has frozen solid. Now Bessie loves to explore and do wild and crazy things, because she is young, has been using the pool cover as an exciting trampoline, running across it, bouncing with every step and leap. And occasionally running through the puddle or at least at the shallow edge of it. I know this because I saw her do it twice but also because she frequently comes in the house soaking wet from her belly down to her toes.

The frozen puddle is something new to her and it also had to be checked out.

For several days I have looked out the kitchen window and noticed skid marks in the thin snow cover on top of the frozen puddle. This told me that Bess has been sliding across it. Then a few days ago I actually spotted her attempt to walk across the ice. She didn't do it too well and I was determined to capture her comical, legs flailing efforts with the camera. So I brought the camera out and left it on the counter top near the kitchen window.

In between our two snow days I captured Bessie standing at the rear of the pool with the setting sun behind her. When I uploaded it to the computer this afternoon it looked so pretty. She was glowing in the sunlight.

And earlier today after the snow stopped, I got some nice shots of Bessie and her ever-present protector Ruff also out behind the pool. And the last picture I took was Bessie's attempt to walk on the pool cover. All she managed to do was step on it and when she began to slide in the snow she leaped back on to the sidewalk.

I'll keep the camera in the kitchen until I get to see her try to cross the ice. It will be worth the wait.

Postscript: the next day.
I couldn't see what was going on in the backyard last night but this morning it was quite evident from all the footprints that little Bessie has been having lots of fun running across the pool cover. And I got two photos this morning of her doing it but because of the thickness of the snow she doesn't seem to be sliding when she runs across the ice.

 

Cold days, warm nights

Winter has arrived in Northern Kentucky. I knew it had to eventually. You can get used to Spring-like temperatures in December like we had here this season. So yesterday we had our first snow, all of 1-inch, but still enough to get the Rottweilers excited. So it was decided they had to go for a walk down to the backyard. Well, two out three made the trip. The old guy stayed indoors, something about a need to take care of his Mom. Whatever, he looked very comfortable laying on his couch so I left him there.

An inch of snow is just as pretty to look at as a foot of snow. It would have looked prettier if the Sun was out but the sky was still overcast with clouds. The overcast was so bad that I had to boost the exposure on these photos to lighten them up before I posted them - which made them look a bit washed out. Besides that, this was Bessie's first chance to run wild, off leash and attack every snowflake she encountered. And Ruff was not too far behind her.

And back where we started.

Later that night after everyone had dinner, Bess and Ruff decided to entertain us. I am never sure what the objective is with some of their games so I often just let the photo(s) tell the story. I've seen the things they do in the leather chair and sometimes it looks like the game we used to call King of the Hill. But anyway, I talk too much.

And with this out of their system (whatever this was) it was time for some love and kisses. That's my favorite time because I was also in the middle of it and managed to avoid getting the camera slobbered.

What you see in this last picture may look like a three-way but what actually happened was a four-way. And yours truly got kissed by everyone.

We have made a new friend in Finland

There is one thing we can all agree on, every Rottweiler puppy is the cutest ball of fur you can imagine. And I just met one living in Finland that reminds me of the fur balls I have lived with here in Kentucky.

Meet Roki. http://rokitherottweiler.blogspot.fi/

This new blog is different from other Rottweiler sites I've visited. It has been written from a "first-person viewpoint" from the perspective of the Rottie pup himself. It is about his adventures seen through his eyes and very entertaining. And, I must admit, I am a bit jealous, whoever created this blog has managed to include video, something that I always wanted to do but couldn't figure out how to do it.

Go pay them a visit and have a good time.

 

Some very strange sleeping habits

I do know one thing for a fact about my big boy Ruffin, he does not stay out late partying. But in spite of appearing like he came home drunk he does have a strange habit of seemingly falling off his bed or any other bed he happens to sleep on. I know he does come into my bedroom and plop himself down on his fancy bed. I hear him at night, but he gets up and moves around a lot. Sometimes I find him wrapped around the toilet bowl sound asleep. I told the Vet about it and he said its because Ruff probably likes to sleep on a cold floor, even though no one else does. That makes sense in the summertime but not all year round. I also know he curls up and sleeps next to my bed on the hardwood floor because I have had to tip-toe over him in the middle of the night. One does not want to accidentally step on a sleeping Rottweiler.

But then there is this:

I posted the picture on the left a few days ago and then I spotted Ruff sleeping on Bessie's bed that I moved from my den into the family room. And once again I have to admit, of all the seven Rottweilers who I have lived with, Ruff is the only one who sleeps like this. Other than this, old man Axl will sleep for hours on the couch but won't go near a dog bed on the floor. And when Axl lays down it sounds like dropping a sack of potatoes on the floor.

Gotta love 'em.

Something to start the new year. Pray for Peace on Earth

Something old and something new to end the year.

We went shopping today and stopped by the drive-thru at our favorite pharmacy to wish everyone a Happy New Year. As usual Ruff gets all the attention. The lady at the pharmacy thanked me for the Christmas card I dropped off and while we were talking she was joined by a few other girls who work there. Everyone was smiling at Ruff and Bess hanging out the window. I happened to mention that when we go into stores Ruff is the hugable one, especially when girls see him. So then we stopped in the pet store to pick up some dog food and Ruff did his thing once again. It must be his eyes and the way he looks at people. Or maybe his smiley happy face.

And I enjoy it when people come up to us and ask "Are they friendly? Can I pet them?" all the while their little stubby tails are wagging a mile-a-minute. But most of all, I really enjoy it when they say "They're beautiful".

Just looking back to a small sample of my favorite photos, in no particular order, here they are.

Didn't you know that Rottweilers could dance?

I often wondered where some people get their inspiration for depicting the normal lives of dogs. Two of my favorite cartoon strips used to be Dennis the Menace (and his dog Ruff) and also Marmaduke. So one day I found some cartoons that actually seemed like normal every day stuff around here and I put them together.

I took this next picture a few nights ago. It struck me as being funny because I spent $100 on that fancy dog bed and this is how Ruff sleeps on it. And as far as dog beds go, In all the years that old man Axl has been living here I have never been able to get him to sleep on one after he got to old to jump on his Mom's bed. It almost looks like Ruff came in late after some party and fell off his bed.

And just one final word

HAPPY NEW YEAR

from all of us

Ruff, Bess, me, Jacqueline and Axl

 

My second attempt to get my Christmas card photo.

Either I am getting old and losing my touch or the Rottweilers are getting bored having their picture taken. I have had another failed attempt to get this year's Christmas card photo. Without further comment here are the photos. Enjoy them anyway. I think I'll try an work with what I have.

And the winner is.... our 2015 Rottweiler Christmas card.

As I already mentioned, most of my first attempt to create this year's Rottweiler Christmas card wasn't very successful. I couldn't get old man Axl to sit up and I couldn't get any of the three Rotts to even look at the camera. OK, part of that was my fault because I shouldn't have brought the biscuits into the room. I don't know how to unlock their food radar. And my second attempt had a few different problems but I posted the working photos anyway. I think I already dropped a hint about which photo I was going to use even before the second try. So here it is, and I hope everyone enjoys it.

Merry Christmas

everyone. 

Wherever you are.

A change in the weather.

We had an unusual weather event over the past two days. At least for us it was. Heavy fog. Interestingly, our usually perceptive Rottweilers paid no attention to it. You would think that when you go outside and can't see across the street that you might wonder what's going on. None of our Rotts did. And the fog was pretty thick at times. Much more than this picture shows.

But the really unusual event was when the overnight temperatures dropped below freezing and it caused the fog to freeze on all the bushes, grass and trees. Its called hoarfrost. 

For some reason the white frosty covering remains on the trees and bushes longer than it does on the grass except when the morning sun shines on it but the effect on the grass is more dramatic. But once again it did not get anyone's interest.

I can't wait for baby Bess to enjoy her first snow. Last year she was too little to be allowed to run and play in it. I have already seen the affect the freezing cold air has on her. It makes her act crazy and run around like a nut. When she comes in the house her whole body was filled with exhilaration.

The 2015 Rottweiler Christmas card project begins

Oh what fun we had. Really! Its hard to describe the total lack of cooperation I got while trying out my new shutter remote. At least these will get a few laughs. We're going to try this again, possibly tomorrow. I didn't use any leashes today but the two big problems were Bessie didn't want to look at the camera and I was only able to get Axl to sit up for one picture.

The dry run. Checking the camera angle.

Notice that old man Axl is still laying in his favorite spot on the couch. I had thoughts of leaving him there and me squeezing in next to Jacqueline and then calling for Bess and Ruff to come site in front of us. It didn't work too well. I couldn't get Axl to move over at all and I was afraid to try and lift him.

Changed plans when Ruff and Bessie came in. I got Axl off the couch and I went to the kitchen and brought back a handful of small biscuits to bribe them with. Of course, Ruff's food radar zeroed in on the biscuits and he kept waiting for another handout. I gave one biscuit to Ruff and tossed two more on the floor for Bess and Axl hoping they would turn and look at the camera.

Then I realized that the camera wasn't picking up Axl so I had to tilt it down more. I also tried to get Bessie to site on the couch between my wife and me but all she wanted to do was lay in my lap and stare at the biscuits.

Then I got off the couch and picked up Axl so he was in a sitting position. This lasted only for one picture.

As usual the last picture always seems to be the best. Maybe its after everyone calms down, but I am going to have to refine my techniques and keep trying.

Followup: did you wonder what Bessie and Ruff were staring at in some of the above photos? Here is the answer.

They don't miss a thing.

Just another ordinary day

This first photo came with its own built-in caption. I was in the den this morning checking my email and the latest news when I heard a knock on my door. I had the door closed so as not to disturb my sleeping wife with the smell of my pipe tobacco while I was smoking. Well I knew it had to be one of my friends so I opened the door with my camera in hand and got a nice picture of Ruff and Bess coming in for a visit.

Knock, Knock. Who's there?

Being such people animals as they are they probably craved some human companionship which is something I kinda love about them. Bess has become my shadow and loves to follow me around. She spends a lot of time napping on her bed next to my office chair. Ruff is very much in love with Bess and hangs out with her a lot. Not as much as Bess hangs out with me because she wants to play with Ruff whenever they're together and Ruff likes a quieter relationship.

A few days back I found the whole crew in the family room keeping my wife company while she was taking a nap. It was either that or they were watching the TV which is always on for Jacqueline to watch. Love those 30-year old TV shows on Me-TV. Those were certainly some innocent days and they bring back fond memories.

I just noticed in this photo that old man Axl always lays on the right side of the couch while Ruff and Bess seem to take turns on the small leather chair and the other end of the couch.