November 2007 - Posts

• First day of doggy school for Rex tomorrow!!

  Well, Rex starts beginning obedience classes tomorrow night.  I'm looking forward to it. It will be very good for Rex - he needs socialization. We got him when he was 6 months old and he hadn't been socialized much at all.  He was scared of everything and everybody.  Still is, although he's getting better.  He is my velcro dog - stays by me constantly and listens well, so that works in my favor. But I'd like to see him gain some confidence and enjoy new experiences.  As I said, he is much better than he was and continues to improve. He has such a nice personality and is so sweet. He gets very exhuberant though, and we need to rein him in a bit sometimes.  I'm very excited to see how he does in class.  He is so prancy and bouncy - he has beautiful movement. I have high hopes for showing him so I'm very anxious to hear the instructor's opinion of Rex - she showed Standards and she knows the breed well.  My fingers are crossed that she'll think Rex is a good show prospect.  I think I will concentrate on Obedience and possible Rally and Agility. I would love to try Conformation but I don't want to have to do the show clip. There's so much upkeep and you have to be so careful of their hair. My dogs run and romp and wrestle around - to keep his hair the way it would need to be kept, he would have to have a major lifestyle change.   We live in the woods and they have a blast in their fenced-in area.  I just don't know that I want that for him. Or for me.  I enjoy watching my spoos out there tearing around, playing with each other, and just being free to enjoy life.    Okay - my biggest worry for tomorrow night??  That I will have to carry him up the stairs!!   The class is on the 2nd floor. He does not do well with new situations or new places, and he doesn't particularly love stairs.  I can just see my lugging my 8 month old, 60 pound boy up the stairs, while all the other owners follow their cute 'little' puppies as they trot on up there on their own!!  As I said, class will be good for Rex. Within a week or two he will be trotting up those stairs and will be fine.  But until then.....  Posted Nov 28 2007, 11:15 PM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• time to relax

  Wow - it's been another LONG week. I worked 15 hours yesterday - not usual for me. I am not a workaholic but just had to finish up a project. I was so tired this morning. I planned to work for 2 hours and then go home but the lab I'm working with needed more info and I ended up staying until 1. Then I came home, let the happy dogs outside to run, fed the horses, and took a short snooze on the couch. Then my daughter came home from school and my older daughter came over to drop our granson off for a few hours.  We've been making cookies! He is just 3 years old and is having a ball, rolling out the dough and using the cookie cutters. He's so much fun. Just got a call from my son.  He and his wife took in 2 very young pups - they are in bad shape. They have worms so bad that the one is throwing them up. I got them some Strongid from the vet today but I wonder if the smallest one will even make it.  Breaks my heart.  They really shouldn't even have pups - they have 2 very young daughters (1 and 2) who are just way too little to be handling pups, especially such sick ones.  I would take them here but I have my own 3 pups and I don't want them getting sick. It's just so sad. Better run - I want to get on the Forums to check out some advice on worms.   Posted Nov 16 2007, 07:19 PM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• Lazy fall day

  Well, the book won out - I did absolutely nothing last night. No one got groomed. Lacie still has a knot, Keisha still has long hair on her feet, Rex needs his face shaved. Oh well.  I fed the horses and filled the water tanks - then plopped down with a good book and that was that. The poodles did not complain - they were very content to chew on their toys (or each other) all evening long. It was nice - my husband, daughter and I just sat in the living room with the 4 dogs, watched tv, talked, read, dozed. Nice night. Today I am home and as of now (almost 10:30am) I have not done one thing that I had wanted to do today. I wrote up estimates and bills for my husband and that's about all I've done.  He's heading out shortly, as am I.  I have some running to do, grocery shopping and such. It's a dreary day out there - cloudy, windy, damp. The temperature really isn't all that cold, but the wind sure makes it feel a lot colder than it is. I have to admit that I'm looking forward to some snow on the ground... Uh-oh, just got an offer I can't refuse! Husband wants to take me out to lunch!!  I'm outta here!!   Posted Nov 14 2007, 10:19 AM by Poodle_luvr

• Happy Dogs!

  I have happy dogs today. I worked from 6am - 9am and then came home. I haven't been feeling good and just needed to come home to try and sleep this bug, whatever it is, off. Hopefully it worked - I have to admit that I do feel somewhat better now. The dogs love it when I'm home because that means no crates! Lacie slept on my bed with me and the other two plopped down on their rugs, and we just snoozed the afternoon away. Now they are outside in their pen running around. I went out a few minutes ago to let them in because it's almost dark but they didn't want to come in - they are having a ball out there. I'm giving them a few more minutes to run around. They're so funny. They love to be outside. Lacie has a knot at the base of her neck that we need to comb out tonight. She was just groomed a couple of days ago, but I have a feeling that she and Keisha were wrestling again.  Keisha needs to have her feet cleaned up and nails trimmed.  And Rex needs a bath and a total groom.  It won't all get done tonight, that's for sure. I am still really wiped out. But I'll get Lacie all brushed out and the knot out. Might even get Keisha's feet taken care of.  Rex will have to wait until tomorrow, although I might just shave his face tonight, and maybe do his nails.  We'll see what happens.  I might just kick back with a good book and say to heck with it all!!    Posted Nov 13 2007, 04:49 PM by Poodle_luvr with 1 comment(s)

• Just kickin back

  Well, the weekend is almost over already. It was a nice couple of days. I did a lot the things that I'd hoped to do, and I also didn't do a few things that I'd hoped to do!  I talked to a few good friends, and missed talking to a couple that I'd planned on talking to!  I spent some quality time with the grandkids, saw all my kids, and went to a really neat play with my youngest today. The house is cleaner than it was, but not as clean as I'd hoped to get it. What can I say? The Packers won - things are good!  Went to town tonight because my grandson is sick - bought some Ibuprofin for him because they were out, and picked up a couple 'Thomas the Train' toys that he likes. He was so happy. I had gotten him a rug with railroad tracks printed on it, and planned on giving it to him for Christmas, but he got it tonight. He'll get so much for Christmas. He is so miserable with a fever and congestion, and that just made his night. He sat on the floor and played with his little trains and it was worth it. It's gets dark so early now. It's only just after 6pm and it feel like 9 or 10!   I hate that. But it's light at 7am now, so I guess that's a nice trade off. I just can't believe it's almost the middle of November already.  It snowed the other day and that really made me realize that winter is truly just around the cornor. It was the first time that Rex or Keisha had seen snow, so it was funny to see their reactions.  Of course, Keisha ran right out there and had to roll it in and do a thorough check of what that white stuff was.  Rex tip-toed out there, got it on his nose, and cautiously studied that mystical white stuff. He wasn't quite sure about that. It didn' t long enough to get too excited about. Hope everyone has a great start to their week!   Posted Nov 11 2007, 06:10 PM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• These puppies continue to amaze me...

  I feel so sorry for my pups. We had company and then our granddaughters spent the night, and the poor puppies ended up in their crates WAY longer than they ever normally do. They never sleep overnight in their crates - they always sleep in our room with us on their beds on the floor. I felt bad for them last night.  They got banished.  Because the kids were here and spent the night, and the dogs were overly excited at their being here, we put them in their crates and they ended up being in there most of the evening and even over night. They went outside to go potty and for exercise, but when they were in the house, they were in the crates. And that is not the norm for them. The little girls are not used to big dogs and the poodles are young, and even though they are well behaved and don't jump, they are big, and in their exhurberance they occasionally plow the girls over. I didn't know how it was going to go over night. But those puppies are so good.  They didn't make a peep. They just slept and when they had to go out they let out a little whine. They continue to just amaze me at how easy they are. Everything about them is easy.  And they're still so young - all of them are under a year old.  No bad attitudes at all. When I let them out they were their normal, sweet selves, just happy to be with me.  So today they are getting spoiled big time. The girls have gone home and the poodles have been enjoying chasing tennis balls and sticks, and are just loving the sunshine out there today. After a cold and wet week, today is very nice. Each poodle got some one-on-one loving and petting, some special treats, and lots of hugs.  They are such affectionate dogs with such nice temperaments. Yesterday Keisha got bathed and groomed. Of course, after being out in the pen today, I'm sure she won't look like she was just groomed!!  She was such a good girl for most of it, but she just hates the drier. She has from day one, even though I try to make it a good experience each time.  But, we do what we have to do and she settles down eventually. All that is left are to do her feet and nails. Everyone gets their nails done today. I am doing them every 3rd day, as I am trying to get the quick to push back. It's also good for them - nail trimming is becoming a normal thing in their lives and they aren't too concerned about it any more.  It's been a good weekend. Really had no plans at all, and I like it that way. I ran into an old friend at Wal-Mart and we talked for quite a while, and then I talked on the phone to a couple of other friends that I haven't spoken to for a while either, so that was really nice. It's fun to hear from old friends and shoot the breeze!   One of the friends I talked to is a mom and grandma, as well as a horse/dog lover, so we always have stories to share about something!  I wanted her input on a skin condition that my mare has, and as usual she had a couple of really good ideas for me. She has a young pup as well so we swap puppy stories and ideas too.  We are both enrolling our male pups in obediance classes so we'll have those experiences to compare, which will be interesting. Another friend is a horse/cat person. We really don't know each other all that well, and we live quite a distance from each other. But I so enjoy our emailing and phone calls. She isn't into dogs at all but she patiently listens to my ramblings about my poodles.  And I reciprocate by listening ot her ramblings about her kitties!  She is the first person I told about Rex and was my sounding board as I went round and round about whether or not to get him. I really needed someone just to listen. She did that, and also offered to help in so many practical ways. The other friend I talked to is a horse buddy. She and I differ on our ideas about pretty much everything, but I just enjoy her for who she is. It's fun to talk to her.  She is not a dog person at all. She cannot understand my love for the dogs in any way, shape or form.  And that's okay. She's a good friend and she listens to me talk about them, and even offered to help me get Rex, but she just has no concept of what makes a dog special in someone's life. Maybe I'll make a convert out of her!  She probably just hasn't me that perfect pooch yet... It never quite feels like Sunday if we don't go to church, and we rarely miss going. We had intended on taking the girls to church with us and letting them play in nursery but they were up late and then woke early, so it would not have been a good idea. Instead we just hung around here until their mama came to get them. It was nice.  I better run. I have things to get done and they aren't going to get done if I'm hanging on the computer!    Posted Nov 11 2007, 11:34 AM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• FINALLY...a day off to relax!

  It has been a LONG week and I am very happily being lazy this morning, playing with my Spoos and messing around on the computer. It is a happy change from the hectic 4 days I just had. The more hectic the days are the more thankful I am for my spoo pups. They are so sweet and SO happy to see me. Hard to stay stressed or mad when you have these guys here, full of love and wiggles and kisses. Last night I decided it was top-knot night. I had bathed and groomed Lacie the other night but didn't do her top-knot. Last night we got that done and she looks so pretty. Her hair tends to twist into dread-locks if I don't brush it at least every-other night, and I have to confess to leaving it go for 5 days!  We paid for it as I painstakingly brushed and combed through it. She is such a good girl. And whoo-ie!  She's a beauty now!  We also got her tail pom fixed, and today we will do the final touch-ups on scissoring her legs. Usually I do this all at one time but there just hasn't been the time.  Well, I'll be honest.  Time wasn't the problem.  My energy level was the issue this week!! I also got Keisha's top-knot brushed out and trimmed. She needs a bath but I have to brush her out first.  That little one has hair like lamb's wool!   And she is absolutely filthy. Keisha is my rough and tumble girl, and a nice wrestling match in the dirt just can't be beat in her mind.  And of course she's the light apricot one so the dirt really shows.  And with the texture of her hair you can really feel the dirt as well.  So she's going into the tub today. It will definately be a two-suds-up day. First we'll use the Grimenator shampoo and then the conditioning shampoo. Thankfully her nails are all done and her top-knot and tail will just need a bit of a touch up. The rest will be done with the clippers and that won't take long. She is very good for her grooming.  She knows she's beautiful... And then there's Rex. Rex is also filthy. His hair seems to grow slower than the girls' does so other than a bit of touch up, he's fine. My sister-in-law, who is a groomer by trade, was giving me some helpful hints on getting a nice top-knot and we used Rex.  Unfortunately she likes a top-knot quite a bit shorter than I do so I am waiting for his to grow out.  He has a funky kind of pin-head look right now!  When I comb it out it looks great but when it kinks back down it looks too short. So, I suppose I should get going. I gave myself a time limit on this site today and it is now up! I have to limit myself because I love reading the blogs and forums and end up here for hours!  It's time to hit the shower, get to the grocery store, get supper in the crock pot, do a spot of cleaning, and start some grooming! Then my daughter will be gettng home from school, and then the kids and grandkids will be here for supper!  Will I actually get all this done?  Nah.  But it looked good!!   Have a great day, all. Posted Nov 09 2007, 08:59 AM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• One of those days...

  Yesterday was definately 'one of those days' , and it unfortunately bled over into today.  You know the kind of day I'm talking about - things just sort of go wrong from start to finish, and at the end of the day you just have to shake your head, say a prayer, and go to bed. It began when I got a late start so I decided to eat my breakfast (a wonderful fried egg sandwich!) in the car on the way to work.  I got my first bite and decided it was definately the best breakfast I'd had in a long time. I was eagerly waiting to take my next bite.  I had a cornor to take and of course, my sandwich slid onto the floor of the car, came apart, and I ended up with an egg full of sand.  Then I spilled my coffee.  And because I was late, there was no chance of grabbing anything else to eat which meant a LONG morning of consults with an empty belly. [:'(] Not that this would kill me by any means - probably did me good.   But of course, that really isn't the point! As 'those days' will go, things never really got any better. I ended up working 14 hours, which is not usual for me. I was in a cranky mood and bone tired. However, the bright spot in the day was that inbetween consults I was reading a great book - one of those ones you can hardly put down.  So I was looking forward to getting home and plunking down with my book, a hot cup of tea, and some relaxation time. Alas, that was not to be.  I was not sitting down for 10 minutes when the phone rang.  Not a good phone call, and one that necessitated my getting up from my comfy chair, getting dressed again, and heading out.   By this time it was 8:30pm and so darned cold and windy.  We finally got home around 11pm and then I was too wired to sleep!!  When the alarm went off this morning at 4:45am, I have to say I was less than chipper.  I'm one of those people who is lucky enough that I usually have no problems getting my hair to look nice, but as luck would have it, today it just didn't look nice no matter what I did. And with the lack of sleep, makeup didn't really do much to make me look better either. I definately was not at my best. And then, of course, I wasn't late for work but I walked in with only 2 minutes to spare and my first consultation was walking through the door.  But on a brighter note---I did get my breakfast and coffee today!!  Other than feeling like dirt, the morning went fine. I only worked a 1/2 day and ended it by having lunch with 2 co-workers who are also good friends, and always able to make me laugh.  I am very blessed to work with friends like that.   I drove home with visions of a nap in my head, but when the poodles saw me they were so excited that I went outside with them and played ball while I waited for my daughter to get off the bus (she had a 1/2 day of school today).  Lacie, my sensitive pup, knew I was not myself. She is my caretaker - when mom isn't feeling just right, Lacie is there with those big gentle eyes, never in the way, but always 'there'. She is such a restful, peaceful puppy.  Words can't describe the love I have for this dog. And words can't describe the wonder I feel at knowing that those feelings of love are reciprocated.  She is friendly to everyone but I am her person, and there is never any doubt of that.  What a gift, to be loved and favored by a dog. My daughter and I decided to run into town to grab a bite to eat and do a bit of shopping, and that was fun. My husband worked late and had grabbed supper at our son's house, so I didn't have to cook for him. Now we are just enjoying being home. I am in the computer room working on a big presentation that I have to give tomorrow at work. My husband and daughter are watching TV.  The dogs are playing with stuffed toys.  It's a nice night.  I am only working 1/2 day tomorrow because I have so much extra time in, and I also have Friday off!    So I am looking forward to that. This weekend we will be spending time with our grand-daughters, and that will be fun too.  So things are looking up! Guess we have to have those not-so-perfect days in order to fully appreciate those really good ones!!   All I know is that whatever kind of day I'm having, my dogs are a constant source of joy.  They really only know love and they give it so freely. I am heading to bed!  Posted Nov 07 2007, 07:23 PM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• Another great day!

  Tonight my daughter hopped up on the grooming table to talk and watch me dry Lacie, and she said, "it's been a perfect day".  And I had to agree.  It was just a nice, relaxing, fun day. We slept in a bit, took care of the dogs and horses, and headed to church. The service was very interesting and the worship music was fantastic. Our older daughter and son-in-law and grandson were there, so that was nice. After church my husband headed to Menards and the rest of us headed to my mother-in-law's house for lunch.  She is such a good cook and every Sunday she has a large lunch ready for whoever drops in.  Today it was homemade beef vegetable stew, homemade biscuits, and homemade applesauce.  My husband missed out on that but he was happy with left-over meatloaf! We got home and played with the dogs a bit, and then while my husband got started on his building project, my daughter and I went out to brush horses. None of us got much done though because a couple of our friends dropped in.  Then our neighbors walked over, and then another friend dropped in!  We all stood around and talked, admired my poodles, and watched our daughter ride Tucker, the young Belgian she trained.  After everyone left she and I went riding for a couple of hours.  It was getting dark so mostly we rode in the arena, but we had a lot of fun. My horse, Star, was being a brat so we ended up trading horses so my daughter could work with her for a while. She is so good at horse training.  By the time she was done and I got back on Star, she was a different horse for me.  She really is a nice horse anyway, but she gets stubborn once in a while.  We came in the house for supper () and watched the movie "Love Comes Softly". That is such a good show.  We really enjoyed it. My husband dozed on the couch, my daughter studied for a test, and I took Lacie downstairs for a much needed bath. Before I could get her in the tub my husband came down and offered to put the new light I bought for the grooming room up.  What a difference that made!  I can see really well now.  Then my daughter asked me to help her with Jazzy - she needed her ears washed and her nails trimmed, neither of which is an easy job with Jazzy. We put her muzzle on, got her on the grooming table and got it done. She's had a horrible ear infection - yeast and bacteria both - and her ears have to be cleaned out every other day until they're completely healed and the meds are gone. The we clipped and dremled her nails. I have to say, she's getting much better for us. I don't think we'll have to use the muzzle much longer.  And then Lacie finally got her bath. I've been meaning to give her a bath for 3 days but things kept coming up. She was one dirty poodle!  I bought a new attachment for the sink - it's a sprayer with 3 different spray settings and a shampoo reservoir. You can spray the shampoo out, either full strength or diluted. It works wonderfully well!  So I was happy about that.  Then I dried, brushed, dried some more, combed and then trimmed Lacie!  She is such a good girl. She's my black poodle and she looks and feels like crushed velvet when we're done - so soft and silky and shiny.  I got her nails trimmed and dremeled, her ears cleaned, her face shaved, and I trimmed her back, sides, chest and belly. Tomorrow I will scissors her legs, topknot and tail, and touch up her feet.  I was just too tired to do any more tonight.  She looks so pretty though. Tomorrow is Keisha's turn.  That little girl is filthy too, and with that light color you can really tell. She'll be 2 shades lighter when I get done with her!!  Her coat is like lamb's wool - thick, curly and a little bit coarser.  Rex is also ready for a bath but he was just groomed so he'll be much faster to do than the girls.  He is very, very good for grooming, but he is a pain in the tub because he wants to shake all the time.  I end up almost as wet as him by the time I'm done!  I suppose I should get to bed. It's almost midnight, my poodles have been out for the last time, my hot chocolate is drank, and I have to be up at 4:30 for work!  I almost hate for days like this to end.  As my daughter said, it was a perfect day. Posted Nov 04 2007, 11:36 PM by Poodle_luvr with 8 comment(s)

• What a nice day!

  We had such a nice day today. We got a load of hay which I didn't have to help with because my husband and son-in-law did loaded and unloaded all of it. How nice is that?!  I went to town, stopped at a friend's house to hang out for a bit, went grocery shopping, and returned some videos.  I made a meatloaf and stuck it in the crock pot to cook all day and then we hauled in 2 dump truck loads of wood and put it in the basement.  My daughter rode her horse and my husband and I sat on the porch drinking coffee and  watching her ride. It was nice to relax after doing all that wood.  My husband and daughter are done eating supper and I am leaving shortly to take one of my older daughters out to dinner. She and I haven't had time alone together for a while so I'm going to take her out to eat.  She's bringing our grandson over to hang out with Papa because daddy is going out with friends too.  And my younger daughter is going to work on her homework so she doesn't have to worry about doing it tomorrow.  The poodles played in the yard all day long.  They just ran and romped and had a good 'ole time.  They are so pooped out!  All 3 of them are sprawled out on the floor.  They'll wake up in a few minutes when I put their food out!  They're never too tired to eat.  I have to separate them now because Keisha is putting on a little too much weight, and Lacie goal tends the food bowls so Rex can't eat!  Tomorrow I am going to go on a trail ride with my daughter - it is supposed to be nice out and we haven't taken the horses out in the woods for a while.  They'll be spunky so it should be a fun ride.  Then I'm coming home to bathe and groom filthy poodles! Hope everyone had a great Saturday!  Posted Nov 03 2007, 06:05 PM by Poodle_luvr with no comments

• I'm so glad it's Friday!!

  There are those weeks when you wonder if Friday will ever get there.  This was one of them. I was so tired driving home. All I wanted to do was sit down and not move, talk, or even think for a little while.  But of course, there are the dogs to greet and let outside, horses to feed, supper to start.  Unfortunately, life doesn't stop just because I'm tired!!    My poodles were so happy to see me - they were jumping around, barking, just so excited.  I put them in their outside pen where they ran and ran and ran - they make laps around that pen and it's hilarious to watch them. Their ears are just a flapping, they're jumping and twisting and turning, chasing each other all over. The penned area is huge and it's wooded.  They just have a blast in there. Somehow it doesn't matter how tired I am - those dogs can always make me smile and I feel alive and envigorated just being out there with them.  There's alot to be said for the unconditional love of a dog and the unbridled joy and exhuberance that they exhibit! Jazzy is still suffereing with her ear infections but I do think she seems better. She was very excited to see me when I got home and eager to get outside and explore.  She doesn't go in the pen with the poodles - they tend to mow her over and then she gets mad and starts growling and snarling at them.  She really is a people dog - she doesn't much enjoy other dogs and she really doesn't know how to play nicely. Tonight we went to see a movie "Martian Child" with John Cusack.  I didn't particularly want to see that movie but I am so glad we did.  It is excellent.  The popcorn and chocolate covered raisons were great too!! And now we're home. The dogs have all been fed and now they're wrestling on the kitchen floor.  Lacie is playing with her bone and Keisha and Rex are playing tug-a-war with a knee-high nylon that I am just going over to take away from them! I think I'll head to bed. It's late and tomorrow we're getting up early to get a load of hay. Have a great day!! Posted Nov 02 2007, 11:16 PM by Poodle_luvr with 1 comment(s)

• Poor Jazzy - ear infections are miserable.

  Yesterday while I was playing on the computer, Jazzy (my daughter's German Shorthair/Lab/Boxer cross) was itching her ears and whimpering, and just seemed miserable.  I picked my daughter up from school and we headed to the vet.  Poor Jazzy has a left ear full of yeast and a right ear with both yeast and bacteria.  She was treated with drops and oral meds.  As of today she is still miserable.  They itch and then she scratches and they hurt. I feel so bad for her. Hopefully the meds will kick in soon.  Posted Nov 01 2007, 09:21 PM by Poodle_luvr with 2 comment(s)