Doggy Day Care

We're now officially "those jerks." You know, the ones that take their dog to doggy day care. This is something I never would have considered doing in the past - it just wasn't necessary. Maxwell was a well behaved dog, for the most part, and did fine without supervision. Andy on the other hand has way too much puppy exuberance at the moment and doesn't handle being alone very well. Taking him to doggy day care once a week is the only real option that makes sense at this point. 

I'll be the first to admit we haven't done enough to deal with Andy's separation issues. Part of me is hoping he'll just grow out it...but the other part of me has a feeling it's not going to be that easy. Doggy day care is a temporary fix, one that we're going to experiment with this semester, but I know we need to address the situation more aggressively. It sucks being a prisoner to the pup and never knowing what we'll come home to when he is left to his own devices.

Game of Shadows

Simon's Sister's Dog 'Fed Up'

That's a Lot of Sausage!

I just read this article on Yahoo about a 70 pound dachshund. Wow. According to this article the average dachshund tops out at 32 pounds - Obie, the pup in question, weighed 77 pounds at his heaviest. To put things into perspective: Andy weighs approximately 32 pounds. Obie is now on a calorie restricted diet and his new vet tech owner hopes to ensure he will lose weight through proper diet and exercise. Just as for humans there are many heath risks associated with obesity in canines: diabetes, stress and strain on bones and joints, heart disease, and a decrease in the quality and length of a dog's life to name a few. 

I've read that calorie intake is key in preventing obesity in dogs. This means ignoring the "serving" instructions for most brands of dog food and figuring out the actual number of calories that is optimal for your dogs breed and size and feeding accordingly. Calories from treats and snacks should also be taken into consideration. One thing that I committed to when we adopted Andy was to not feed him table scraps or processed human food (raw fruit and vegetables are ok) right from the get go. I had a bad habit of doing this with Maxwell and because he got used to it I found it really difficult to resist sharing my meals with him. He ended up overweight at some point and had to go on a calorie restricted diet. So far Andy is pretty good about not begging for food...human food that is. He still sits impatiently by his bowl and begs for kibble when he knows it's chow time.

Sunrise | Sunset

Fall is right around the corner. Saturday, September 22 to be exact. The days are already getting shorter. I love the fall - the cool, crisp air, the changing of the leaves, the smell of the earth. I don't love waking up at 6:00 am and having it be dark outside. The dark makes it that much harder to get out of bed...and Andy demands we get out of bed promptly at 6:00 am to be taken outside to do his business. To be fed the minute we walk back in the door. We think Andy was born around January 1 of last year. This will be his first fall, followed by his first full winter. I'm looking forward to seeing how he'll react to snow. He doesn't have a lot of fur on his belly so I'm a little worried his under carriage will be too cold or get chapped. My husband jokes we should get Andy a tin of "udder cream." Do dogs get seasonal affective disorder?

Weekend Encounters

1 Northern water snake
1 tree trunk covered in moss and mushrooms
1 butterfly (unidentified)
1 bird of prey (unidentified)
1 water pup