Professionally Spotted at PetsWalk 2015!

I just wanted to share this picture of Ruby and I (mostly Ruby), taken by Four Foot Photography at The Kitsap Humane Society's PetsWalk this year. Here is Miss Ruby strutting her stuff during the costume contest parade.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Time!

So I went to Walmart and got more peanut butter since Ruby's supply was running out. That's right, her must have pill hiding peanut butter stash was dwindling. Before I gave over the big tub of peanut butter to become all Ruby's, I made myself 2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Of course, she was there in case my knife needed to be licked clean of the peanut butter.

Sunday Thunderstorm

On Sunday Ruby had her first thunderstorm with us. Her safety place inside is the bath tub, so I immediately prepped that for her. She was playing outside with Garrett and his parents' two dogs Max and Susy. Max and Susy are used to the noise and kept playing. When the first clap hit, she ran to the front porch (her first safety zone). No one was there to immediately let her in so she ran into the garage (her second safety zone). Each time there was a break from the noise she would venture out as she wanted to play with Susy and Max. Well, a super loud one hit and back by the garage door she goes.

So this all happened around dinner time so I made it so that she could eat her dinner in her comfort area. Ruby gulped it down! Thank goodness!

Not Taking After Mommy

It has been especially hot so I decided to make Ruby more than a giant ice cube. I added coconut oil and strawberries to the mix. I really like strawberries, however, apparently it is not Ruby's fruit of choice....yet.
Ruby seemed to be more interested in playing ice hockey than anything else. I think she will come around to the strawberries. She just needs some time.

Emmy Takes Over

So it was time for me to clean the bedding. This included the blanket in Ruby's kennel and the blanket on her chair. Well, Emmy decided to take over her chair for awhile. For a long time Ruby just stared at her. Eventually Emmy went back to her bed on top of Ruby's kennel.

Happy Belated Birthday Emmy!

I admit, it has been awhile since I posted. Garrett had just arrived home from being at sea and so things got a bit busy. Anyway, Emmy turned 6 on July 16th. It is crazy to believe that she has been apart of this crazy family for 6 years.

I had planned on making her a cake or some kind of treats as I had just received my animal cookbooks in the mail, but as I said, things got busy. So instead they got some extra wet food of a brand they have not had before and Ruby got some treats.
I promise, I did say happy birthday many times to her on her birthday but I did not do any pinching. I don't want the pinch to grow an inch around her waist.

Sorry Deer, Three's a Crowd

Ruby and I were doing our usual last potty break/laser tag fun outside. Suddenly I noticed a deer walking towards where the laser pointer dot was. The deer had crossed our neighbor's yard and was walking, I thought, straight towards the dot. Ruby, the good dot hunter that she is, didn't realize the deer was there. Using the laser pointer, I slowly moved Ruby closer to the house.

I guess the deer got the hint because, shortly after she quickly ran off into the woods.

PetsWalk 2015

Ruby and I before the walk

Yesterday Ruby and I participated in PetsWalk, a fundraiser put on by the Kitsap Humane Society, with all of the proceeds going to them. I have participated for 3 years: the first year by myself, the second with Benjamin, and now the third with Ruby.

Benjamin and I last year

Yesterday was her first day wearing all four of her booties and she didn't mind them at all. I was pleasantly surprised.

On our way to registration, Ruby did something that she has only done once before, poop on concrete. Right there, on the sidewalk, for all to see or not see, and perhaps step on. I got up all that I could but man, that poop gets all in the cracks and crevices. Ruby did great being around all of the dogs and people. She hasn't really been around a lot of people, especially people and dogs before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. 

Ruby and I did the 1k walk and I think she enjoyed all of the smells and of course, being outside.

Who done it?

After the walk we explored all of the vendors. She got so many samples of food, treats, and toys... I could not keep her out of the goodie bag!

At the vendor event, while waiting for the award ceremony and costume and talent costume to begin, so many came up and asked to take a picture of her in her shoes.

Her complete costume

I entered Ruby in the costume contest and she did a wonderful job keeping her bows on...until the actual contest that is. When it was costume contest time, she was flinging them everywhere. Plus, the skirt was a bit big and kept slipping. I am going to do more planning and not just throw a costume together for her the night before.

I had a blast and I think she did too. We then proceeded to PetsMart to go food shopping and saw many people from the PetsWalk there. Too funny.

Until next year.....

Ruby Counts!

I know it might sound strange but Ruby can totally count. Say we are outside playing ball and I have to go to work or go do something, I tell her how many throws she has left. For instance I might say "Alright in 5 throws Ruby we have to go inside." Each time I'll be like "Okay Ruby, four throws left." Then I throw the ball again and say, "Alright Ruby, you have three throws left." And so on. I let her know when I am throwing the last throw. After the 5 throws I say, "Okay Ruby, your 5 throws are done, time to go inside." Ruby then runs to the front door and drops her ball on the porch.

Wait! There's more!!! Ruby also knows "Mississippis".

When we play laser tag at night, I can't tell Ruby that she has a certain amount of throws left. I can't throw a laser pointer dot for her if you get my drift. So instead, I give her 10 Mississippis. I start at 10 Mississippi and work my way down while I move the laser pointer around. At the end I say that the 10 Mississippis are up and it is time to go inside. Ruby then runs to the front door and waits for me there.

I have one smart puppy.

"You Joking.....Right?!"

Ruby loves her puzzles! I rotate when I use treats or dry food for the prizes. I use dry food to see if she likes it, especially if it might be a healthier alternative than a treat. As you may remember I am trying to switch her over to grain free food as much as possible. So if she likes it... a lot... then I buy it.

Clearly she does not like this type of dry food. I say this due to her expression and the fact that the puzzles had been solved but the prizes were still available. I am sure that after seeing the pictures, you agree with my belief. I felt guilty so I gave her an actual treat.

Good thing it was a sample bag!

Join the Blog Hop! Click below to see the other bloggers and join:


Powered by Linky Tools
Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list...

Study Buddy and Balloon Hunter Sydney

So as I was working on reading my textbook that was putting me to sleep, Sydney came and joined me. It didn't help that I now have this warm, purring, furry child next to me, helping me not stay awake.

I take my Sydney hugs when I can get them.

Then when I sat up she decided to check out the balloons like Ben did.

Be Careful for Firework Discards

I was outside playing with Ruby and found a bunch of the discarded things that come off of the fireworks when they shoot in the air in our yard.

So be on the lookout to make sure that you get to the discarded fireworks outside before your pet does.

Ruby Pees After 14 1/2 Hours

The 4th of July was definitely loud around our house, though we refrained from doing any fireworks ourselves. So Ruby went poop at around 930am and last went pee at 11am. At 1:20am (the next day a.k.a. the 5th a.k.a. Sunday) she went pee and poop again. That is 14 1/2 hours of not peeing. Believe me, we tried many times but with the fireworks, she was not having it.

At midnight I tried again. I had her on the leash and was accompanied by a jar of peanut butter. (No, I didn't bribe her....just kidding...I totally did). Just as she got comfortable with being outside again.

*BOOM*

Snit!

And she runs off to her safety zone and I begrudgly head inside.

At 1:15am I headed out with her and a laser pointer. So I didn't have her on a leash. Yes I know, even well behaved and trained dogs run off during fireworks but...

1. I hadn't heard anything in forever

2. We stayed right near the porch

And

3. She has two permanent safety zones and another one in the making.

So as you might remember her previous owners abused her so she has many fears. Her safety zones consist of the front door's porch and a garage door. If anything scares her, she runs and waits there for me to let her in. Since we use the front door the most, she usually runs there. In the back of the house in her play pen is the one I am working on. That way she has one in the back of the house to run to. It connects to the sliding door so I can let her in that way.

Back to the story.

So I start moving around the laser pointer. She started chasing it immediately. I keep forgetting we have it so we don't play with it that often during our late night/last chance potty breaks. Clearly, she was thrilled.

After 5 or so minutes she did her long awaiting pee. Yay!

We played some more since she hadn't been able to play today and wonderfully enough, she did her second poop for the day.

Yes, I get excited when she poops.
And yes, I know... Technically that was her first poop of the day but boo-hoo. I decided that it was her second one. She usually poops twice a day, sometimes three times so I was thrilled that she was on track.

So now we are inside. She drank a bunch of water and is resting right in front of a giant fan.

Now I better get to bed!

Ruby's New Shoes!!

So Ruby and I go on fundraiser walks and many of them require us to either walk on the road or sidewalks. Because of the heat I decided to get her some shoes so she wouldn't burn her pads.

I like that the Pawz Dog Boots are 100% Biodegradable. I originally was going to buy her the medium size but after Google searching, I found a size chart that listed some breeds and what sizes they would need. I didn't feel like measuring her feet so this was a great thing to find. The back of the packaging has a paw measure chart too. It is kind of like the mats you find in the shoe stores where you just put your foot on it to get an idea.

Large was the way to go! When I first got them earlier today, I only put one on to begin with and she did not want to use that paw at all. It was kind of funny seeing her get around and chase the ball hopping around trying to only use 3 legs.

This evening I put the two front ones on and she was a lot happier and actually played with them on. She likes going in her swimming pool... but not while having her shoes on. I think she will go in her swimming pool once she is used to them some more.

Since tomorrow is the 4th of July, I am not going to put them all on. This coming week I will since on Saturday we are doing a fundraiser walk that requires us to walk on the road. With it being 70+ degrees outside, I don't want to have to worry about her getting enough water, heatstroke, and her pads. Now I can just focus on keeping her cool and watching for signs that she is getting too hot.

Benjamin- The Balloon Watcher

So I caught Benjamin staring at my graduation balloons. It was quite funny and cute.


Don't worry, the strings are out of reach. I moved them up even higher once Sydney discovered them.

Babies Sleepover

So I had today off from work so I got to sleep in. Throughout the course of the night and morning all 4 of the furchildren slept with me. Sometimes I even had two at the same time. Ruby definitely took the cake when it comes to waking me up.

Nothing gets you up like having a puppy on your pillow and your face being smothered by Ruby kisses.

Best Buddies On A Sleepover

I just love these two. They are quite a pair. That is all that I have to say. ;)
....not like I need to....

A Different Morning

Garrett went off to Alaska for work yesterday. So this morning was different for us obviously. Here is Ruby and Benjamin looking out of the window.

Benjamin on Wordless Wednesday- Belated

So this is belated. On June 10th, Benjamin appeared on Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop by BlogPaws.

I was, and still am, thrilled to see Benjamin in an article. Check it out!

Benjamin on Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop