Dirty Paws

All the dawgs went for a walk and our lovely cement walkways have that wonderful dirt and salt all over them.

Every so often I had to clean out between their pads so they could go a little further.

It used to be only the main streets were dirt strewn but now even ours is. We thought after the dusting that we would have a blanket of snow for a small window but we didn't. I think with less snow this year, they are keeping extra busy salting and sanding. I hate it. The dawgs hate it too.

So we came back and the crew ran around like banshees enjoying the salt free/dirt free environment. You can't win. Then we will complain about the rain. :-)

I rinsed feet and then just let them air dry then did afternoon grooming vs. morning.

Well, Abigail is feeling queasy these days so we are trying to feed her small meals throughout. If she is pregnant (she's showing signs she is) then this would be morning sickness. She has no fever - no other ailments. Our usual play monkey is playing much less. I miss the fun Abigail. Wasabi didn't have to deal with morning sickness last time so we await the ultrasound in February. Wasabi tends to always be more laid back unless she has puppies and then she plays up a storm with them. Life is a bunch of wait and sees, isn't it!

How are you dealing with salt and dirt or are you?

Big Dogs Count Too

We made the trek into Colborne to take Terra in for her 2nd cruciate operation. She had been limping and we were concerned. Did she blow out her other knee totally? Was it this or that?

Terra is a very important equation (excellent socialization) in boarding, puppies and part of the pack. She is a gentle soul who plays with abandonment. She has bad hips. Her other cruciate gave out and we were told by the time her first leg was healed, the next one had to get done.

But all we are seeing is arthritis. That can be managed with pain relieving meds. So, she can't run on ice or we have to manage the off the deck romp when it is slippery and we need to continue to walk her 3 times a day to continue to build up the muscles but we are on a wait and see and must swim all spring/summer/fall.

We have a very honest vet. We were also told her hair is in excellent condition thanks to wild salmon oil and Missing Link. We are seeing a difference with all with the addition of wild salmon oil.

Do Havanese also have cruciate issues? Not many but they can and do. If you do a search in google, you will find stories.

What is the Cause?

Not all cruciate ligament injuries in dogs are due to degeneration of the ligaments, that is just the most common cause in dogs. Traumatic injuries can occur in dogs just like in humans and are probably more common in very active, athletic dogs.

Does this mean you should never allow your dawg to do agility or a sports related activity? No. I truly believe that a dawg needs to enjoy his passion but your dawg is yours so the decision is yours, not mine. Enjoyment of life has to be a factor.

Does it mean that you should keep your dawg lean vs. fat? YES! Extra weight can be an issue with the entire knee area from the patella to the cruciate ligaments.

We have never had an issue with our Havanese despite their activity. They have a huge passion for running, playing etc. I wouldn't have it any other way.

But today..I am glad our Terra - our resident big dawg socializer to boarders and puppies is going to be able to play with puppies.

Crazy Dawg Play

Rocky's fave gal is Abigail.

Each dawg that comes to visit tends to like Abigail.

I think it's that balanced thing she has going on making sure everyone counts.

She played a bit with him as he was following her around till she did.

But Abigail we believe is preggie so she is sleeping more than playing.

She's not herself but she likes Rocky and when she was up to it, she danced and played then slept. heh

So, when Abigail was snoozing, Treasure and Fiona enjoyed the play.

As you can see, they all got tuckered out running and jumping - tongues hanging out in a real fun play.

I wish I had more photos but they play a mad rush from one room to the next and back on the couch and off the couch and off and running they went. It was fun to watch.

Rocky really had fun and our crew did as well.

The trick today was keeping Rocky dry and clean before his mom came to get him. Now that was interesting but I think we succeeded.

The snow is melting. It's raining and the grass area is wet and muddy. All I can say is arrgh how many feet have you washed today? hahahaha

We are going to miss Rocky. He is a wonderful kisser. He's in love with Abigail but thinks Fiona and Treasure is fun.

Visitors...nothing like them.

Terra goes in for her operation tomorrow.

We have a lull of no visitors and we will be dealing with Nathan's aching back from picking up a 70lb golden all so she can sleep where she does each night - upstairs in our bedroom. Ah..the things we do for love. :-)

The Grooming Dance

The dance between when to clean and pickup can always be interesting.

We don't use crates unless owners ask us to. We respect what they want but unless requested, they have free reign, inside and outside though we are always there. I want to know things about bowels. I want to pick up. I want to take photos and I just believe in always supervising the crew just like we did our kids.

The Coco Beans and the Zack will be going home today. They will be sorely missed but we will see them soon.

It's supposed to rain today so it may get interesting keeping them clean.

They are freshly bathed and I intend on keeping them that way till their humans come to get them. It's why I ask what time they are being picked up. I usually do it just before to keep them fresh but in this instance, it was impossible. Nathan is out for a class and I will not bathe without the kid being up or Nathan being here.

One has to stay focused on the bathing dog(s) and that means the rest could get into trouble and we actively avoid trouble. :-)

I do manage to brush and comb out daily but I do it in the main room so I can watch.

So, we do a dance of keeping them clean. It's much work with the state of things outside and rain coming. But maybe the rain will stay away till later, I much prefer white wet snow. hehehe

Soon Rocky will be here. Val's TT is here till this afternoon and Monday evening we will be back to our own just in time for Terra's operation.

Who Me? Couldn't Be

Teaching your dog to 'come' when he is called is the most important lesson you will ever teach them.

When a dog is running loose, he faces many dangers. Cars are the most obvious. Drivers cannot always stop if they see your dog running across the street and a massive metal object coming at high speeds is not going to do well when it impacts with your puppy.

Even the most behaved dawg may see a bird flying by while you have the door open and off and running your dawg may go not thinking about traffic. It's all about the bird.

This is when a loud 'come' could work to distract him from his focus, interrupt his goal and come back to you and safety.

You will be amazed at how small a space a dawg can get through when motivated. We practice, it's better safe than sorry.

Treasure, even though she is the youngest around here has an excellent 'recall'. This photo was taken today after I yelled, Treasure, come! and as you can see, she did. What you can't see is she did it immediately and I have stopped treating her for such but I give her praise, hugs and get way excited when she does come. I want 'come' to always be a fun thing for her.

Here at Talemaker we actually have a gate about 3 feet from the door to offer a separation from the door and the dawgs. This way if that bird flies by when you are answering the door, we have something that gets in the way.

Of course Wasabi can clear any gate in a single bound but it makes them think and gives you time to react.

We often join in on 'Total Recall' seminars held at Whos Walking Who even on those that have been through it before. It is always smart to reinforce and simply spend one on one time having fun with your dawg.

If you can't teach your dawg anything else, consider the important command of 'come'.

What an Amazing Time Filled With Fun

I am a little under the weather so Nathan got to entertain and I got some needed sleep to try to get rid of whatever has a hold on me.

We had Chico who went home tonight, Mia who goes home tomorrow, Saki who goes home the end of the week, Chewy who came to visit and Holly and Missy who boards with us - all came for a visit today or was here boarding.

Check out some of the photos from today.

Until I got sick, I was having a blast but sweating and sleeping and all that fun has to go, I tell you so I opted to do the right thing and just enjoy the moments via photos like you.

I also put up a video of a Havanese being groomed by Pure Paws and offered why I don't like portions of it. Check it out and see what I mean. The video is excellent - just don't agree with certain things for good reason.

Lots of Visitors

I can't believe I posted this in the wrong area - but I just moved it and deleted it on Havanese Life. No, we didn't forget a day - I just ooopsed on where. Sorry about that!

Today we did a marathon with visitors. Some were potential boarders, others were puppy people.

Wasabi tolerated her son trying to play dominance games on her until she had enough and corrected him. Treasure tried it out with Risa and Risa being the queen of this establishment said, "I don't think so," All is quite normal when puppies are trying to climb to the boss seat.

But Risa is the boss around here and she has yet to relinquish her role. We are glad as Treasure has much to learn before she gets mature enough to be the 'right' role model/protector.

WE really enjoyed the company but we must admit after the last one went, we all climbed into bed, dawgs and all and had a snooze for a half hour and Treasure laid in my arms the entire time - a rarity. Saki laid up against my leg, Chico up against Saki, Wasabi at my feet and Nathan had a selection of dawgs all over him. Fiona decided to check out long before the last guest went home and crawled into a bed in Nathan's office to take a snooze.

Yes, the dawgs get tired from so much activity.

Then we woke up, (I never actually slept but rested watching and enjoying) and then food time came and now I am typing away at the computer telling you about our day.

I did manage to break up some ice today and got several messages from our friends in Florida telling us about the weather. Must be nice but hey we have the ice, the snow and the dawgs so life is good.

Tomorrow I will cover washing dawgs. Some are under the opinion I wash mine all the time but when you have so many, you do 2 or 3 here and there to get them all done.

Jazzy Goes Home

Jazzy has been with us for 12 days and we truly enjoyed him.

This is a photo of him on my grooming table.

Jazzy fits in really well here playing mostly with Treasure but also with Abigail, Kat and Fiona. He was also very smitten with Wasabi.

But today he was playing up a storm with Saki. He also loves Kit Kat and thought she was quite fun.

Jazzy is a great boy and his human parents do an amazing job with him. He is quite lucky.

But when I washed Jazzy and had him perfect for his photo, he decided to mix his hair up, as you can see.

I just had to laugh and laugh. Anyone who hasn't had a Havanese, well you missed something as this is one of the moments of pure joy that you see a Havanese display.

They go from one thing to another rustling up their hair in grand Havanese style. I just LOVE it!!

Saki was really enjoying Jazzy and something about his smell after his bath got her playing and smelling and playing. It was a delight.

Tomorrow Chico comes for a weekend and the siblings get to play together. We can't wait to watch that!!

Silly Games

Saki was trying to get Jazzy and Treasure playing and they soon joined in and kept running in and out of all the paths, under the deck and anywhere she could gain an advantage but Jazzy would cut her off and Treasure would just play pounce. It was all so silly.

The games of Havanese are quite a fun thing to watch.

Jazzy is heading home tomorrow and will be getting a bath. He's no longer running the other way when Nathan uses his spray to keep his teeth clean. We have also been testing out this addition to the water to help tartar. It's still too early to figure out if it works. We know some of you find brushing not a fun thing to do so we are looking at ways to help you still keep those teeth clean in an easier and quicker manner. Of course Jazzy doesn't seem to mind the toothbrush but wasn't crazy about the spray till he finally got that it was quick, easy and no issues. It's called slow conditioning.

If you are a puppy owner and are getting your dog spayed or neutered, check out if any of their 1st teeth need removing and if they need some cleanup, this is the perfect time.

So - regarding teeth and what works - well we really like Leba III, that spray we are talking about. We will let you know about the rest.

We will post Jazzy pix tomorrow after his bath. We will miss him bigtime.

Night Time Games

Last night Shoshi decided to nest in the bed. What does that mean? She crawled under the covers and moved all over while Treasure tried to pounce on her.

It was a riot!

Shoshi has come a long way with the pack. She's proactive for herself, playful and an important member of the pack.

But she's not the only one who has her part in the scheme of things at Talemaker Havanese.

Terra is one of our resident big dawgs that give our puppies exposure so they get 'slow conditioning' to bigger dawgs that aren't Havanese and Terra is amazing at this.

She gets right down at their level to play and is as gentle as anything. She is also one of the funniest dawgs teaching them snow angels.

When we have puppies, it's the pack and us that teaches life lessons along with canine mom.

Personally, we can't wait till we have puppies from birth till they are no longer ours but that love, well it is always there.

Tomorrow we get Saki-sized. What does that mean? Well the Saki is about to visit us (one of Wasabi/Kat's) pups from her last litter and we can't wait! I can't help but wonder will her next pups be like her last? They were such a joy.

I also wonder what type of a mom will Abigail be? I was worried about Fiona and she was AMAZING. With Abigail, she is a loving soul so it will be a joy when she has her pups just to watch her first time.

You see what they say about pups...nothing like them..even as they get older...be still my heart!

PS: Jazzy is playing up a storm with that Treasured one. It's wonderful to watch!

Visitors and Fun

Today we had Kit Kat and Hannah and Val over for a visit. She is a genuine friend and helped me clean up the pads of the dawgs and clean up Jazzy's hairdo. You can check out Jazzy in today's photos.

It was a joy to have Hannah and Kit Kat here and Jazzy well he is a dream dawg that was playing up a storm with the crew as you can see in this photo and in the slide show.

Well, we hear Twiggy is now fondly called Jazzy and how cool is that to know of two Jazzys now.
Check out today's photos.

If you haven't cleaned up the pads of your dawgs, do so now. It's painful to have snowballs stuck in their pads or slip and slide due to excess hair.

If you are anywhere near the downtown area of Toronto, well check Val's Dawg Salon out called 'Simply the Best' and you will be glad you did. You can find the info in the right hand column. Plus you will get to see Kit Kat - another Havanese. How fun will that be?

Well Saki is coming this week and Chico will be visiting at the same time as his sister. Now that is exciting. Can't wait to laugh with these two.

Jazzy will be going home and we will miss him greatly. I think he is smitten with Treasure...hehe

Well Balanced

Jazzy is a well balanced boy and that's what you want to achieve. It comes with training, conditioning and trust.

His parents board him so he gains exposure to other dawgs and they have a fab clothing store called 'Eye on Fashion' in Richmond Hill where many a buyer of their merchandise comes in and says hello to Jazzy and sometimes they bring their own Havanese to say hello to him.

This is great socialization.

Jazzy has been hanging out at Talemaker and this will be the first day he won't be walking. The wind chill is sitting at -25 and we take the dawgs out for short stints and have to get them in right away after doing their business.

This winter we have had really cold weather so we have had to watch the dawgs closely. I put bag balm on the feet to make sure their pads do not crack and we watch them closely. Sometimes the dawgs think it's okay to hang out longer than it is safe.

It's called the crazy kid mentality - called having too much fun.

Many of you have probably experienced it if you have kids. They think they can stay out despite they are shivering cause it's fun mom and dad... Well some dawgs will do the same.

Treasure is one of those types of dawgs. She climbs all over Jazzy and he tries to climb back but she doesn't let him.

For her it is partly dominance games as she is a young thing trying everything but Jazzy just placates her as he knows she's a youngster and besides, he rather likes her. She likes him too.

That's what we mean about well balanced - an understanding of other dawgs allowing them to play in such a way to have patience and enjoyment all in one.

Today we are playing games inside. Dawgs are all groomed and snuggling and enjoying warmth.

The key is slow conditioning your dawgs always throughout their lives to get them to be all they are meant to be. Plus love them...as we do with our hearts and souls.

Emotion and the Havanese

So is a dawg's sense of smell so keen that it can detect emotions?

When you walk in your front door and your dawg is sniffing your hands, pants or shoes, he's greeting you and investigating the unique scents you brushed against that day.

Dawgs smell each other and their secretions to monitor physiological and emotional changes. It's like getting the morning paper or a hot-off-the-press tabloid.

Tips for Taming the Psychotic Smeller

If sniffing becomes excessive for your dog, you may want to try these tips to keep his snout in sync:

•Offer a distraction, like a chew toy or an awesome-smelling dog treat.

•Teach him to use the crate, especially if smelling visitors is of high entertainment value to him.

•Clap your hands and take charge with your leash when he sniffs other dogs inappropriately or excessively. Not all dawgs appreciate this sort of greeting to that degree.

•Give him plenty of exercise and positive attention.

Jazzy is visiting us and as you can see, he's blowing in the breeze - well his hair is.

He's rather smitten with Wasabi but we are keeping them away from each other till her heat is done. jazzy is neutered but no reason to get his heart a pitter patter with excitement, is there?

Treasure also loves Jazzy and is found jumping on him and playing up a storm. He's not quite sure what to make of her at times but he's growing to be charmed. :-) The first time she jumped on him he sort of looked at her as if to say - what are you up to but now I swear he is smiling.

The dawgs all went on their walks today as usual. Nathan has been doing the daily walks with all 2 at a time. They go on a fair walk so its a marathon for Nathan but the dawgs love it and I think Nathan does too.

It's actually quiet around here with only one boarder. Quiet you say...actually yes. :-)

A Little Slice of Cesar

Cesar goes home tomorrow morning after a long visit with us and I bathed him tonight. Why tonight vs. tomorrow? He was out for a walk and got rather grungy and well - he needed it. If I have to touch him up tomorrow - well that's the chances we take. heh

He's now snuggly soft and we will miss this guy.

Cesar knows how to party hearty and his attitude has been infectious for our guys and visitors alike.

We will be down to our guys and Jazzy and then when Jazzy is about to go, the Saki comes to visit.

We just heard that Saki got the snip snip (spaying) yesterday. We hope for a fast recovery and can't wait to see her.

Wasabi is getting to the last week of her heat. She has approximately 5 days to go and Abigail has 7. Then we go back to normal - whatever normal is.

Wasabi gets rather tired during this phase but Abigail doesn't seem to be affected thus far.

Jazzy, we have known forever since he was a little guy and we adore him. He is hanging out and was caught playing hard with Treasure on their walk.

Tomorrow Yvonne and her crew comes in for a visit and it will surely be fun. More tomorrow...stay tuned!

Countdown to puppies - booking an ultrasound tomorrow for an appointment for Feb 8th.

Sensing Your Emotions

Almost every Havanese owner has found out that when they are really sad, their dog acts differently toward them.

A Havanese may approach its disturbed owner with a concerned look and, quite out of character, hunker down next to them as if to provide some emotional support. It is as if they are saying, I know there's something wrong, I don't know what it is but I'm here for you, anyway.

Are there other explanations? Of course, there are, but none make as much sense. You could argue that your Havanese observes your posture and appearance as submissive and, almost reflexively, approaches to investigate or respond to the new situation. Perhaps, seeing you in a submissive posture, the dog feels it has to grovel to remain below you in rank. YEAH - RIGHT!

Most likely your Havanese is in tune to your emotions. The old line that your emotions follow down your lead appears to be correct. Anyone who is stressed out and shows their dawg will tell you that when they aren't together - neither is their dawg.

Pay attention to your mood when attempting training.

Well, here at Talemaker Havanese we have had a number of breedings with our Wasabi and Abigail. We are hoping to have fun with 2 litters at the same time. Seeing Abigail is my dawg, I guess Nathan gets Wasabi and I get Abigail. Let's see if I get away with that...nah - selfish me.

We are exciting counting the days in hopes of having pups come 2 months time. Nothing like puppies.

Visitors are Going Home

This photo shows two of the dawgs that went home today, Remy and Bailey. Both played up a storm. As you can see, Remy is going in for the front and Fiona has Treasure's tail and Bailey is saying - are you crazy? But Bailey joined in. You will see in the slide show. You will have to go day by day to see all the photos.

Tomorrow we have Louis, Oreo and Benny going home and then we will be down to ours and 1 new one that came today and that play demon Cesar.

We have had a lot of visitors. We did walks, play sessions - I groomed all. I even moved my grooming table into my family room so I could watch TV and groom. Nails got clipped. There were a to of snuggles and lots of body warmth at bedtime.

We even had 2 gals in heat and a male brought in to mate with Wasabi. Kat mated with Abigail.

I do believe the dawgs know we love them immensely and it comes through. The play - the fun - the interactions and the snuggles - well what a holiday we had.

Looking forward to Saki coming near the end of the month. Lots of changes and fun around Talemaker Havanese. May the new year be filled with puppies that we can love and ooh and ahhh over.

It's Way Fun & Crazy Around Here

I am Fiona and they say sometime in February, I am going to have a new beau and have more puppies. My human mom and dad was going to wait but my new boyfriend is getting the snip, snip so it's Feb/March or never. ROFL That means I could be having pups at the beginning of the summer. Maybe they will swim?

Well, we are having a great time around here. Unfortunately, Fred went home and so did Zack, Coco, Holly and Missy. But Remy came and he's way fun too! Check out today's photos.

We are ringing in the New Year's with a few pals that really know how to have fun. It's wet. That crazy human keeps brushing us and we are hoping for white stuff tomorrow.

We had a roaring great game of retrieve and as you will see, Benny came in from his walk soaking wet and then one after another wet, wet, wet. Ah - but it was fun....

Hope you all ring in the New Year right. We are doing it right with the dawgs. May 2010 be a better year for us all...

Hugs to all the Havanese and dawgs all over the world. They deserve hugs and kisses!

CU next year (tomorrow)

Cold Alert

We are under a cold winter alert and as we walked dawgs, we could feel it was coming on. Feet was starting to lift. It's way too cold to have your dawgs out for any length of time except a quick pee break. Please be careful when bringing your dawgs out in this cold - short visits only.

We had a real busy day today. All the dawgs have been playing well but I think they want the outside to more of a degree than they are getting so we are playing retrieve and all sorts of fun games inside just to expel some energy.

They are also playing with each other. Tomorrow Nathan has to take Terra in for her rehab then take 4 dogs in for eye tests - our usual that we do on all breeding dawgs.

Mia went home today so no puppy snuggle time with her. But Holly gives amazing snuggles so I rather like that!

Relationships are going strong. The dawgs are enjoying each other. Check out some photos from today, here.

Abigail and Wasabi are being bred. Hoping for puppies in late February, early March. Fiona we are hoping to come into heat in February and due to who we are mating her with, we will be doing so in February/March. This particular male we really want to use won't be available after that. So - puppies - puppies and puppies then a break. :-) If all works out - it's going to be a really fun filled puppy house around this place. Can you imagine?

PS: Remy is coming for New Years and we have several of our dawgs that are boarding going home before the New Year to celebrate at home. We are going to miss them - BIGTIME!

Sunday Fun at Talemaker Havanese

Well we are a full dawg house at the moment. There's never a dull moment.

The dawgs all got thoroughly groomed as usual but I did it in my office/family room so I got to watch TV while I did my marathon. They liked it too as they were able to look out the window.

Mia came for an overnight visit. Nathan's father and wife came over too. He must really think we went to the dawgs.

It's still mucky sandy so the dawgs undersides gets dirty. We had snow flurries but not enough to make a difference - for shame.
Per request, we had Joker, Holly and Cesar in crates all lined up against each other so they were close in the bedroom with me. Holly hardly slept a wink and has been trying to catch up during the day. I tried too with a couple of dawgs but that didn't work. Tonight's a new night and maybe we will get a full night set of zzzs.

Mia will be in bed with me and I am looking forward to that as she snuggles into my neck. Bailey no longer sleeps in her bed next to my head but instead up against my body. That's been going on for quite a few days now - nice.

Louis has been here so many times that he just settled right in on the top pillow and Risa just allowed. She is rather fond of Louis.

Nathan is in the other room. We do this during the times when we have a lot of visitors or gals are in heat. We prefer one bedroom but we do what works temporarily. He got Fred, Abigail, Kat and a few more while I got the rest. It all worked except Holly wasn't crazy about crate time.

Big tip - do not leave a SD photo card in your port in your computer with a puppy around. All it took was one quick bite and a 4 GB has bit the dust. It happens. Live and learn and I should know better.

Let's see - my observations today - Fred has become such a lovee. He listens really well. I tell him no and he stops. Way nice.

Zack, Cesar, Bailey and always some of ours tends to play up a storm. Cocoa gets into it when she wants. She is so much like Fiona before Fiona had pups. She plays hard when she wants and watches when she just wants to observe.

Missy had a grand amount of fun playing with Oreo today. She also is quite nice with her pack mate Holly - making sure she is okay.

Joker has fit in here nicely. He is a lovee to the max. He also lays on his back so nice letting you groom him.

Everyone played hard today despite it being too icy. We find that they are settling for running up paths where it isn't slippery when it comes to big play. The pool cover is a bear to get up and out of at the moment but they manage to without issue. I even found the deck slippery but they seem to be more sure footed than us.

As I type this the crew is all splayed out all over the place catching some zzzs after another round of going out. With all this outside time, I find I am also getting conditioned to this cold.

Snuggles - the dawgs are getting them - each and everyone a number of times a day. As someone who had a brother who thought his sisters (2 of us) got all the attention - well we make sure we distribute it equally.

Here's a few photos from today's fun.

Off to snuggle with a dawg or two or three or four. 6 fit on the recliner with me and the rest all over the couch while we watch TV and I rotate dawgs. It's a crazy way of living but fun!

2 COMMENTS:
Claire said...
darlah,
who is on slide 55? the little black and white hav? reminds me so much of my Petey!
enjoyed the pics, as usual!
Wish we lived closer so our dogs could play!

December 27, 2009 9:21 PM
Darlah & Nathan Potechin said...
Claire - that is Joker from Paula who did so well in the ring. He's a small boy and he's getting mated to Wasabi. With both of their attributes, I am hoping for outstanding pups. We shall see.

Yes, wish we lived closer. It's always a crazy dawg house here and I am sure you would enjoy that! If we ever win the lottery, we will have to send you a ticket to come play with your dawgs.

December 28, 2009 10:28 AM

Wet and Rainy Fun

Well, per usual, I started grooming and got all but 3 dogs done.

Then the crew had to go out and it is pouring rain.
Nathan was also out dripping wet making sure he does the poo patrol. It's the usual here - not the rain but the grooming and pickup after the dogs.

It's about time that the old snow goes and hopefully we will get new this afternoon.

Problem is, everyone I groomed is getting groomed again. I think I will either do it last thing before bed or when the snow hits. After the rain turns to snow, it will be easier.

As you can see, Treasure is soaking wet. We used towels to dry and a light brushing and a very warm house with warm bed and blankets till we get them all dry and then it begins again.

The crew is not doing their usual heavy play as it's simply too wet. They are playing in the house but not to the degree that they do outside. I can't wait for the snow to begin.

We have Oreo, Missy and Holly coming today plus Nathan is picking up Joker. Joker is getting mated to Wasabi who is in heat. Abigail is also in heat and getting mated to Kat. That's the plan. It means puppies late spring.

A number of you asked me to burn all the photos I do while your loved one is with us. I thought about it and if I was to include all the photos I take, that's a lot of weeding out of photos of just yours and others. I would have to go through each day, separate yours to a single folder and burn a few DVDs. The photos would be printable quality up to a huge size. You could also edit them etc. but it takes me hours to do a video and the photos daily. If you are interested, I would have to charge $25 and, at a conservative rate, that would be about 6 bucks an hour. That's not much but I would do it if you are seriously interested. I just have to get a note asking.

Most of you probably know that I got laid off from my daytime job which I did from my home along with the dogs and I am looking for ways to make $$ and still manage to keep our dawgs well taken care of - groomed, walked, loved and be able to do boarding and daycare. But I am not going to make any real $$ from the photo route. It takes a lot of work but it will be my pleasure if it is a service you desire. Just let us know.