Snickers Can't Find a Place to Pee

We just got our second blizzard of the season. It is still snowing outside, but it rained earlier in the day. It sure made the snow we got last night wet and heavy and sloppy. The deck was covered with snow and there was no path for Snickers to get out onto the lawn to go potty. She made do by finding a spot on the deck. That worked until dad got out there to shovel a trail for Snickers.
There are lots of bunnies hopping around looking for food. I think they are hiding under the deck to protect themselves from the snow and wind. Snickers is finding the bunny poop and bunny tracks and following the trail. Good thing for the bunnies that the snow is too deep for our three legged Snickers. I think she would be a very good hunter.

Elephant Baby

Snickers has a new Elephant. She still plays with the unstuffed baby elephant and carries it around the house. I thought she would enjoy a new stuffed elephant and thought that she treat is a a new baby.
Was I ever wrong. She pounced on this new toy and shook it until she felt it was dead. Then she started tearing pieces off. I had to take this one away because she was so aggressive at tearing it apart, that I was afraid she would choke on pieces. Back to the unstuffed baby elephant for Snickers!

Melting Snow

Snickers is enjoying the warm weather today. As the snow melts, it forms a crust. Every bunny print and twig and turd is catching the focus of the sun and melting holes through the snow.













All the snow melt spots give Snickers a chance to hunt mice and ground squirrels. We're back in business!

Snickers Loves Yellowstone

Here is another link to an article speaking of Roosevelt's contribution to Yellowstone. It is interesting to note that his experiences and friendships developed as a young man strongly influenced his decisions later in life. Although he was considered an environmentalist, he didn't have many of the tools available to him that we have today. Many of his decisions were necessarily based on personal experience and the word of the experts of the day. He is an example of having a vision for the future, setting a goal, and working toward the reality of the goal. We all can work to help conserve and protect, no matter how young or old. Go here to to view the "Old Faithful" webcam.

Snickers and President's Day

When I was growing up, we celebrated Washington's Birthday, Lincoln's Birthday and there was talk of celebrating other President's birthdays. Finally, it was decided that we should celebrate all the President's birthdays on a single day, President's Day. Snicker's is going to Honor President Roosevelt this year. She even dressed up in costume for the occasion. President Roosevelt loved the outdoors. He is responsible for setting aside the National Parkland that makes up Yellowstone Park. When you visit the park, as you enter the northern gate, you will cross through the Roosevelt archway marking his contribution. I have added a link to the National Parkservice so you can visit this extraordinary park. We were lucky enough to visit this park two years ago and I count this as one of the highlights of my life.

Valentine Birthday Adoption Day

Snickers has a new love. (Sorry Boo)! Ben Benjamin is wonderful. What a guy, sending pink roses and babies breath to Snickers! You have won her over.







Snickers received so many thoughtful good wishes from her puppy friends. We celebrated two years with Snickers by having a wonderful salad and fresh ham chunks. Yum Yum.













Snickers loves salad, but you can see what she likes best. The ham is the first to go.









Happy Valentine's Day everyone!!! May all your dreams come true.

Snickers Gets Snowed In

Brrrrr...... Enough already! We're just glad we're on the west side of the Great Lakes instead of the East side. Here we are getting "inches" of snow and there they are getting "feet" of snow.













Snickers is pretty mad at me for making her wear this jacket. She likes to think she is the boss and tougher than anybody else. She's really not. She ran and hid behind the couch when she saw me pull out this penguin suit. I think she looks cute in it.













Good thing the snow was light and fluffy. We are on our third day of it and we expect to wake up to more shoveling in the morning. I had to bribe Snickers with a shot and a beer to get her to go out and help shovel.

Happiness is a New Bone

There's nothing like a warm quilt and a new bone after a cold winter walk.

Parakeet Teasing Rat Terrier

Buddy loves to do tricks. One of her favorite games is to sit on the bow of my glasses, then I take them off and swing her. She will sit and swing until she is bored.












Then she drops herself and hangs upside down and chatters at Snickers. I think Snickers would love to catch her and eat her.













Look at Snickers watching Buddy play on the table. Sometimes I wonder who is watching who?

Parakeet Dream Catcher

Snickers is part Cherokee. Not really, but I am. Buddy is my second parakeet. She is a female and doesn't talk very much, but loves to snuggle. My first parakeet was a male and he spoke over 35 words. Once I was having a meeting at my house with a volunteer group. Hank wouldn't stop talking, he was so excited to have all the company. Finally, one lady leaned over to shush him. Hank walked over to her side of his cage and said, "Hey Baby. How about a kiss." That bird was the talk of the town! I had saved Hanks tail feathers as he dropped them over the years. When he died, my sister made a beautiful dream catcher out of his feathers. I have it hanging in my office. It reminds me what a wonderful sister I have and what a special gift Hank was to me.

Bird Watching

What's a girl to do when it's 8 below with a -22 degree wind chill? Hmmm... How about bird watching?













Well, maybe bird hunting??













Okay, maybe we can be friends.













Better yet, how about dinner?

















I'll catch you tomorrow. Time for my nap.

Too Cold for a Walk

Today is a good day for staying inside,curled up in the master's lap with the new baby. Yep, Snickers is taking good care of her new toy, but still has the remains of the baby elephant. I think I will add new stuffing and give it back to her. She had it for so long and took such good care of it, it will be fun to see what happens with the elephant now that she has adopted a new baby. It is only 1 degree outside today and we expect 10 below zero tonight. That's weather you need to plan for. All the beer and brandy has gone into the basement from the garage. All the cupboard doors that have plumbing have been opened to the house to keep the pipes from freezing. Snickers needs to wear her coat when she steps outside and even she is leaving her baby at the door and not taking her out. If we need to go out, the cell phone rides along so help can be summoned if needed.

Brrrr, Cold Dogs

You can't call us "hot dogs" now! It's only 1 degree outside and it's going to get even colder this weekend. The snow that is out side is just crackling. Snickers runs outside, does her business, turns and looks surprised at what she's done, sniffs, and runs back inside. No barking for Harley, or chasing rabbits for this little terrier. Let's get back inside and curl up on Master's lap.

Dogs Love Peanut Butter

Dogs love peanut butter, and I love to feed it to them! It is so much fun to watch them lick their lips and the roof of their mouth. It sure keeps them busy for a while. Plus they will love you forever. Haha, isn't she funny to watch? Her face looks all crooked and silly.

More New Puppies

I work at the best place. People try to be supportive of each other and encourage each other's interests. Today when I got to work, I had two little surprises looking up at me from my keyboard. Aren't they adorable? I need to find names for them. I think one looks like Snickers and the other looks like Boo Casanova. Click on my link and see what you think.

Snickers couldn't wait to meet the new additions to the family.

I.thought for sure she would want the one that looked like herself. It could have been another new baby.

First she sniffed the two new puppies.

But look, it's the Boo Casanova look alike that turned out to be her favorite! Look how gently she picks it up.

New Puppy for Snickers

We went to the pet store this afternoon and surprised Snickers with a new toy. I had it in the bag and before I could get my coat hung up Snickers pulled it out and claimed it as her own.












Bob had to work to try to get the toy away and cut the tag off.














It squeeks as though it were alive! I wonder how long that will last? This one came a spare squeeker just in case.














Off Snickers runs to hide her new baby! Catch me if you can!

Dog Rings

Snickers loves to play. You could almost say she lived to play, except she also lives to eat, to be petted, to snuggle, to hunt.....

Snickers could pull your arm off with these ring toys. Bob loves to just tug on them with her. I won't tug because it hurts my hands. I hold my hand down the way Bob is, but I won't take the ring. I wait for Snickers to place it in my fingers. Once I have it, she lets go and I throw it for her. She plays with each of us differently depending on how we like to play. She doesn't care who plays or how, she just wants to play. Isn't it amazing how much strength she has in her legs?

Snickers Takes Care of Mom

Yep, mom's got a sore nose from yesterday's clunk. Snickers is keeping a close eye on me. She seems to be able to sense the bruise. She likes to put her paws up on my shoulder and lick my face. When she isn't doing that, she is curled up in my lap either watching for intruders or watching me.













Don't worry, Snickers. I'll be fine.














Can you get any cozier than this? Happiness really is a warm puppy.

Snickers Lands a Knockout Punch

I learned a lesson today. Don't bend over your dog to give them a kiss on the top of the head while they are still excited to see you. OUCH!! Snickers jumped and moved her head up at the same time.
Mom got nailed right in the nose. No pictures today, I'm busy with an ice pack trying to get the bleeding to stop.
I guess every winning fighter earns a prize. Snickers will get a chicken chew strip to get her out of my hair for awhile.

A Death in the Family

This was a very sad day. Snickers decided to kill her baby. That's right, she figured out it was a stuffed elephant and not a real baby and tore a hole in it's head. Then she pulled all the stuffing out. I found bits of the filling all over the parlor. I can't believe she finally did this.
She had eviscerated every one of her toys within a month of getting them. But the elephant, she has had for almost a year. She has taken this baby outside to go potty, to the food and water dishes to eat and drink, and even to bed when it is time to sleep.
What happened to make her turn on her baby? I think it is my fault. I put the baby in the washer and dryer and made it all sweet smelling and soft. She no longer recognized her scent on the toy. Could it be she no longer recognized it as her own? Bad me. Too bad, so sad. We need to shop for a new baby.
I always thought that if you found a baby bird outside a nest that you shouldn't touch it, but instead should leave it for the mother. I learned that this is not true. Birds will keep their young if returned to the nest quickly enough without injury. But if the baby is left too long and the body temperature is too low or the baby bird is injured, the mother recognizes that the baby will die and will push it out again to make room for the surviving young.
Nature will win, if we let it.