Drive-by barkings and a new puppy in the complex

This morning as I left to bike into work, I heard some awful barking. On investigation I discovered that someone was taking his dog for a drive, letting him bark at various things, be it people at the bus stop, other cars, etc. He didn't seem to have any particular destination, as he just went up a dead end street, turned around and slowly proceeded back down. (Dog barking the whole time.)

But that was just this morning. A few days ago we discovered that there is another dog in our condo complex - a Basset hound, of all things. His name is Barkley and he certainly is friendly enough. He played with Louise for a while - he's just the right speed for her - playful, but not too fast. Louise hopes to see more of Barkley.

Speaking of puppies, we encountered another one while at the dog park yesterday. This one was a Blue Heeler/Shepherd/Lab mix, and was less than a year old, so it had lots of spunk. On top of that, it was about four times as fast as Louise. She had trouble keeping up, but that didn't stop her from trying. After about twenty minutes I had to pull her out and head home. Not that she wanted to, but I could tell she was starting to get exhausted.

Of course, this meant she settled down very easily when we got home, which meant we could go out for dinner without hearing any protests from Louise. That's what I call a win-win situation.

Walking in the rain

The other night on our walk, I tried to time it so that we were out between rain showers. Well, my timing was not so good, because both Louise and I got completely soaked after about 5 minutes outside. Luckily, it was also a warm night, so it didn't really bother us. In fact, it seemed to invigorate Louise, who had more energy when walking up the hill.

Last night's walk had better weather and we met up with Jacks at the dogpark. I'm not sure what kind of dog Jacks is, but he sort of looks like a German Shepherd, but with much longer, shaggier hair. The hair also has red streaks and looks like it might be teased. I'm pretty sure it's all natural, and Jacks is friendly enough so Louise doesn't tease him much. Besides, she's just happy to run around with him for a few minutes. It's not every day that she can run with the big dogs. Sorry, I couldn't resist typing that one.

Anyway, with the weekend upon us, I'm pretty sure that we will try to make it to the lake again, especially if the weather holds up and stays warm. I'll posta detailed report of anything interesting that happens.

Somebody was having a good old time

I'm pretty sure that Louise had a good weekend. With Saturday being Canada Day, we had her out that night to see the fireworks. Last year she saw some fireworks but didn't really understand what was going on. This year was a little different - when the show got started, I held up Louise so she could see what was going on over the trees. This is because we were able to watch them from just outside our place, without having to drive anywhere.

She didn't really notice them at first (which is kind of understandable, since fireworks shows in Canada do tend to be much smaller than shows in the US) so we started playing a game with her where we would 'bark' when we heard the explosions. It didn't take her very long to join in, at first with the puggy 'lazy half bark' and then with more and more enthusiasm as the show went on. About halfway through the show, she noticed the fireworks and from then on, she was bravely barking at these strange things in the sky. It was entertainment for the whole family.

Then on Sunday, it was back to the lake. More good times, and the water was very nice. The walk to the beach seemed shorter than we remembered and Louise must have met about twenty other dogs. I think she slept better than all of us that night.

Going to the lake

It's a nice and sunny Sunday afternoon, so we are all going to the lake. Louise hasn't figured it out yet, but once she does I expect she will get pretty excited. It's getting so hot now that we have to take strategic rest stops in shaded parts for Louise to catch her breath and cool down. So I suspect she will run right into the water today, as will I.

If all goes well, we will be going to the dog beach at Kalamalka lake, which is very scenic and clean. It's one of my favorite beaches. Another nice part is that it is a pebble beach, so someone's little paws don't get quite so dirty when it is time to leave.

Old dog toy plus peanut butter equals new toy

When we first got Louise a couple years ago, we got a bunch of dog toys for her. Some she liked, others she had no interest in at all. One was a hollow plastic chew toy that she all but completely ignored, even if we put treats inside it. She would eat the treat, discard the toy and look to us for more. Not exactly working as advertised.

We didn't mind much, since there were plenty of other toys that Louise did enjoy. Then, my wife discovered this post on Owned by Pugs that mentioned filling the toy with peanut butter. What was once old is new again my friends. While I have been at work and have yet to witness this for myself, apparently Louise can't get enough of her new nutty flavoured toy. So thanks, OBP! I think you made Louise's day!

Pug Picnic

So yesterday was the highly anticipated pug picnic for Vernon.

I didn't manage to sort out my camera woes, so I don't have pictures of the event. In some ways, that was okay though, as I was able to interact with some of the other pug owners more. Last year, I was pretty busy trying to capture as much of it on the camera as possible. But this year both Holly and I were able to be there, so the pressure was off.

Somehow, I think my wife managed to pet each and every pug that was there. To say she had a good time would be an understatement.

As for Louise, well she had a fantastic time also. She was even friendly to the other dogs (most of the time) and managed to hop into the laps of several strangers during the afternoon. This year was different from last in that there was a BBQ, with hamburgers being served. This was a HUGE improvement in my mind, and Louise heartily agreed, since she managed to eat my wife's burger for her. So much for reducing our cholesterol.

Overall, the event was another success. Should I happen to get some pictures from some of the others who were there, I will be happy to post them here.

Late night warden

Summer is fast approaching, and last night was one of the first nights where it was a little too warm to sleep comfortably. So when we went to bed, we left the bedroom door open for Louise. This gave her the option of wandering into the living room if she wanted, which she did. It was a little cooler there and well, let's face it - she's not a fan of too much heat.

Anyhow, as we were settling down, my wife and I were chatting a bit before we fell asleep. After a few minutes of talk, we heard the clickety-clack of Louise's paws on the wood floor as she wandered into the bedroom. At first we thought she was checking on us, but after the third or fourth time we got the hint. She was coming in to quiet us down. We would talk, she would come in, we would go quiet and she would return to the living room. If we got too noisy again later, in would wander Louise - until we were ready to settle down. My wife and I got a chuckle out of this and decided we would call it a night - to sleep soundly while under watch by our new 'warden'.

Oh yeah - this morning the warden was dropped off at the doggie spa. She is getting the total treatment today - nails trimmed, hair shampooed and trimmed, ears cleaned, 'other places' cleaned, etc. She wanted to be sure she was looking good for the pug picnic, which is coming up on the 28th.

Sunday at the lake

At the moment, Louise is asleep on the sofa as I type this in next to her. She's resting up before we head out for an afternoon at the lake. This is the first official lake visit for the year, and Louise felt it really needed a blog entry, even if that meant using a picture from last year.

She was also quick to point out the camera on sale in this week's flyer for 'only' $179.00. She said something about it being a small investment in her web presence before I stopped listening.

Yesterday we were at a friend's yard sale, trying to sell stuff of our own. We did okay, and Louise got to meet lots of dogs and dog-friendly people. It was a long day for her though, so she slept well last night.

Anyway, we're off to the lake. Happy Mother's day to all you mothers out there