Dixie

Meet Dixie!

Things have changed around here a bit! My roommate has been looking for a new dog after the passing of Sam. I say 'looking', but really, we pass time by looking at puppy pictures… we never SERIOUSLY looked. It so happened though that a 15 month old female border collie fell into our laps. Dixie is a failed cattle dog, in that she was supposed to be able to go into a cattle herd and instinctively know what to do with no real training. While she has the instinct for it, her herding abilities were not being harnessed and she was spending her life on a tie-out. So Dixie has waltzed into our lives as our new little foster girl.

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Unfortunately, Dixie isn't going to be the next forever dog in this house. She is truly lovely, but she needs a home that is willing to work her to her full potential. Right now she'd like to herd the little dogs in the house, and that's something we're unable to put up with. Although she's mostly fine with Epic, poor Bailey seems to draw her wrath. She does respect Tucker, the large dog, and would no doubt be fine in a home with larger dogs. She would be a great agility prospect, but is probably a bit drive-y for flyball. She is very toy motivated, and is as cuddly as can be. Dixie is truly a people dog, and although she does like to romp with Tucker, she is most happy cuddling up on the couch or running around the yard playing fetch.

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Since Dixie came to us, she has learned to 'sit' and 'down', and is learning about her crate. She settles VERY nicely in her crate, and sleeps there peacefully at night. She is also working on housetraining, as she was previously an outdoor dog. She is also scheduled for a spay on January 5^th.

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So, if you know of anyone interested in a beautiful, sweet, lovely little sports or working prospect… give me a shout!

Merry Christmas!

*Why did I only get coal Mommies?*

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"Because you ate my bank card Epic."

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*Oh.*

Bad Puppy!

The other day my sister commented that I rarely have any pictures of Epic being bad on this blog. She thought all the good puppy pictures were an unfair representation and she wanted to see some of the REAL Epic.

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I can rectify this.

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For instance, Epic likes to chew. He likes to chew things he shouldn't chew. In the back room we have a table and two chairs. Epic likes to use the chairs to get onto the table, so one of them sits on the other side of the room, and one is turned towards the wall with the inside door leaning against it. Epic has figured out how to get onto this chair, but doesn't have the room to get off once he's up there.

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So he finds fun ways to pass time during his self-imprisonment. You'll notice that in the above picture he is chewing on the door. He SEES me standing there... but he KEEPS CHEWING! Brat.

*Oh hi mommies. Wasn't doin' anything. Could I get a lift out? Kthx.*

*Uh, mommies? You gonna help me? Why you so mad? ...maybe I don't want to come out...*

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You should see the chew marks on the chair from when I DON'T catch him in time.

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I've been able to control the chewing pretty well recently, as I made a fabulous discovery! I started out by trying Bitter Apple spray, but Epic just took that as a challenge... and undoubtably I would be the one getting the stuff in my mouth. One day, by chance, my roommate and I stumbled across the answer... VICKS! He HATES it! All of his favorite chew spots get a healthy slathering of the stuff, and we're good for a few days.

8 Month Portrait

8 months old today! He looks like such a big boy now. There's no puppy fat to be seen, his face has filled out, and he has one heck of a beard.

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He's also being neutered early in January. Everyone wave 'bye bye' to Epic's boy bits!

What -49 feels like

*Cold out there*

*Frosty... not much snow though*

*No cats even*

*Orange cat? You out there orange cat?*

*Wonder what's for supper?*

*Once I choked on a potato thiiiiiiis big*

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It's true. He did. We tried and tried to get it out while he panicked, and he had just fallen over when my roommate managed to grab the damn chunk of potato out of his throat. His mom may have shed some tears over that one.

Epic Notes

Sometimes I make really bad smells. Mommy gags.

Random Owner Interlude

Just Plain Weird

I've always known that Benny doesn't handle cold well. And it gets REALLY cold here. Putting Ben out in the yard generally ends up with someone having to suit up and go outside to retrieve him, as he just 'gives up' when he gets cold. Seriously. Even on the shortest pee break Ben starts holding up feet and eventually sits down or falls over, refusing to go any farther. The safe warmth of the house is mere feet away, but the old boy just.can't.make it. He simply shuts down in the face of extreme cold. So the boots and coat go on, and Ben gets carried inside. Weird guy, huh?

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It hit -40 here today and I made a discovery.

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Epic does the very same thing.

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How is it that my fiesty, ferocious terriers are two of the wimpiest dogs ever? And what's Ben's excuse!? At least he has an undercoat!

Every now and then I stop and reflect on how un-terrier-ish Epic is. He behaves well at the park, he likes to lay around and nap, and he's pretty darn snuggly. In many other ways he's ALL Jack. He gets too wound up when he plays, he gets pushy with the other dogs when it comes to treats, and he gets into EVERYTHING.

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The other day, Epic showed off his terrier prowess, and found himself a hole. I'm not going to tell him that it wasn't an actual hole. In truth, Epic found a clump of foliage that he pretended was a hole and proceeded to dig his way in. I ended up having to grab the fiesty little guy by the tail to drag him out. His face was covered in dirt, and he was very VERY proud of himself.

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I wish there were more Go-to-Ground opportunities around here. It's not a very active sport in this area anymore. I think Epic might be fantastic at it. He's certainly tenacious, and he's certainly brave... although he appears to have trouble seeing in low light conditions. That would certainly hinder things.

Boundin'

Epic and I have considerable amount of trouble with hawks at the offleash park. One of the bushes near the start of our walk had a (I assume) nesting pair. They spent a lot of time following us as we walked, circling above Epic. This concerned Mommy greatly.

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The hawks have left now that the weather is colder, so Epic is free to go into the tall grass and do what he loves best. Jumping.

And I wonder why we get chased by hawks.

*Whys you laughin' so hard Mommy?*

A Beautiful November

I complained a while ago about having snow for Halloween. I was right... it was miserable that day. The freezing rain stopped just in time for trick-or-treating, but it still sucked. So far, November has made up for this. This is Saskatchewan, we expect to see a couple feet of snow by now, and temperatures around -20.

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Today in Saskatoon, it is 9 above. Yesterday, at 11:00pm it was STILL 10 degrees out. We have been having BEAUTIFUL weather. The dogs are enjoying spending time outside, and when I go out and play with them I don't need to put on a sweater, or even shoes! Gah! Gorgeous!

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The beautiful weather means that Saskatoon's offleash parks are ridiculously packed. My roommate and I don't like crowds so we stay away from the more popular 'yuppie' parks. I have a bit of a thing about people who think "Hey, it's so nice out... why don't we take 'Joe-unsocialized' out of the backyard and hit the park?", and then stand around texting while their rammy and rude labs run around bullying everyone. I'd rather have a peaceful walk where our dogs can run around and explore, enjoy their outing, and maybe meet a dog or two.

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All you REALLY need for a good walk is nice weather, a beautiful blue sky, and your 'brothers'.

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*Sure is nice out. Mommy says I shouldn't get used to it.*

All Growed Up

7 MONTHS!

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I wish he were little bittle again.

*Hmmm... could almost reach the cookies from here...*

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The big little man has done a lot this last seven months. We're on our third set of obedience classes (counting puppy class), and he's doing very well. We're also well on our way in flyball, and are working on putting the pieces together now. We have a bit of a resource guarding issue to clean up, otherwise, he's a gem!

Time OUT!

Sometimes Mom needs a break from the busy puppy... so I pop him in his crate with a nice chew and breathe a puppy free sigh. He never sits there for more than a half hour, but sometimes this leads to the ...

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Puppy Pouts:

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More maximum pout-age, one must give your best hang-dog expression and refuse to leave the crate when it is opened. You must also resist any attempts to forcibly remove you from the crate, as this is YOUR space, and hell, you'll pout if you wanna.

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Bath Time

*What is this 'baff time' she keeps speaking of? What's she doin' over there? Why CAN'T I eat that bottle? Mommy?*

*Oh yes. I 'members now. I 'members that I HATES you Mommy!*

*For this, you shall die.*

*But dis shampoo for apples! See! See! Says 'Green Apple' right here. Is not for puppy dogs.*

Bath time is so dramatic for us. It involves a whole bunch of sulking in the tub, and then a rip roarin' round of drying off and post-bath zoomies. Puppies.

Dress up!

I know, I know... Halloween was last week. I just had to throw these Halloween collages up here though, as I'm still giggling everytime I look at them.

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*I don't put OUT fires Mommy... I start them!*

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Angel Epic. Funny, eh?
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That's the end of the Halloween photos for this year, but you know what that means... CHRISTMAS IS ALMOST HERE!
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What will we come up with next, I wonder...

Eight!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN!

My big boy has reached another milestone today... 8 years old! Holy. I guess he's all grown up now. Here's to another 8 great years Benny!

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Halloween Horrors

*'scuse me. Could you help me find the way back to my own blog, I appear to be lost.*

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No worries Romeo! I'm just going to borrow you for this post, then I'll send you home. Yesterday my roomie and I went out to the birthplace of Life is Better with Sheltie Hair for a little Halloween fun.

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To start with:

Treats! Aw, thanks boys!

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And for the two-leggers:

Scary!

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After settling in, it was time for the main event... pumpkin carving. In the name of decadence, the three of us each decided to carve two pumpkins... which has translated into many pumpkin related aches and pains this morning. Who knew!?

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But, we ended up with such masterpieces as this:

My roomies tribute to Where the Wild Things Are... a fantastic Carol!

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And a rockin' crow.
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Sheltie Hair came up with a wonderful:

Sheltie! Surprise! Didn't see that coming right?
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As well, she did a funky howling wolf backlit by a multicolor pumpkin light. Too perfect.

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Next, my creations:

EPIC! No really... I made the transfer from one of his pictures. It isn't that easy to see, but I'm still proud.

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And then there's:

Creepy little dolls! They turned out nice. A few mishaps here and there, but all in all not too bad.

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Epic also decided to dress up for Halloween this year, only he didn't like the dressing up part very much. So he simply stood and looked cute.

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*Oh hai! I'm a Halloweeny monster! What? Shut up Mom, is not true.*

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Bailey, however, wore Epic's costume with pride. A fantastic vampire! Not exactly scary though Bailey!

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HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!