Monday, May 31, 2010

Amen bow wow


wendyfrancisco.com
A very talented lady named Wendy Francisco wrote, sang and animated a wonderful video called GoD and DoG. I think I need to watch it at least once a day, and I suggest that you do, too.
Wendy's book by the same title is available on amazon, barnes & noble, and borders.


Sunday, May 30, 2010

In training for the X-Treme Napping Olympics


There's a new event in the Winter Olympics: X-Treme Napping. The 9 Dogs gang is now in intense training to prepare for tryouts for the USA Team. Here we interview 9 Dogs Captain Berry:

Jean: I see you're hard at work. How long as this particular training session lasted?

Berry: Actually, this is just short prep session.
Jean: How is a prep session different from a training session?
Berry: First, I walk around in circles on the chair three times until I find just the right spot. Then I lie down. Then I close my eyes and check the inside of my eyelids for cracks.
Jean: Cracks?
Berry: Yes, cracks. They're very serious, because they let in light that might keep me awake.
Jean: OK, go on.
Berry: Then I do some deep breathing exercises, pausing only to lick my nuts if it seems indicated.
Jean: You don't have nuts anymore, Berry.
Berry: I don't? Hmmm, musta slept through that. Anyway, after 3 minutes of deep breathing, I proceed into Deep Nap Mode.
Jean: And how long does that last?
Berry: Until supper. Or breakfast. Whichever comes first.
Jean: So you do stop for meals?
Berry: Oh yes, that's essential. Gotta keep up my strength, you know? Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to get on with the training.
Jean: By all means. And good luck at the tryouts. Where will the tryouts be held, by the way?
Berry: At King Koil House of Mattresses.
Jean: Where is that located?
Berry: You'll have to ask my manager, Miss Polly.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Where's Reiki?

Remember Where's Waldo? This isn't as crazily cluttered as a typical Where's Waldo picture, but as with Waldo, you must look carefully in order to find Miss Reiki. Yes, that little white butt behind the big blue ball belongs to Reiki. And so does the big blue ball. Reiki was very happy that her mom finally let her out into the yard to play with the new ball, but hasn't yet figured out how to hold the ball in her mouth. Which is probably a good thing, because as we all know, dog teeth and balls are not a lasting combination. Somewhere in my archives I have a photo of a puzzled Georgie with a deflated beach ball hanging out of his mouth.

Where are you going, Reiki?

My friend Nina sent me this photo of her little Reiki. When the photo was taken, Reiki was on a mission. She had places to go, people to see, things to do. I can only guess that she, like many dogs, was hoping that if she stared at the doorknob long enough and hard enough, the door would open.

Where are you going, Reiki?

Friday, May 21, 2010

Eating goober peas

I have absolutely no memory of learning the goober peas song, but somehow I did, probably from my mother, who was interested in the Civil War, anything military, and anything southern. For those who don't know, goobers are boiled peanuts. Our own Goober doesn't look much like a peanut, but I've been singing him this song:

Sitting by the roadside on a summer's day
Chatting with my mess-mates, passing time away
Lying in the shadows underneath the trees
Goodness, how delicious, eating goober peas.

Peas, peas, peas, peas
Eating goober peas
Goodness, how delicious,
Eating goober peas.

Postcard from the 9 Dogs Resort


So I heard about this exclusive resort where all the cool dogs go and decided to check it out. It didn't look like much at first and you needed a secret password to get in. I didn't even know how to bark, never mind a password, but after a few days of persistence, I finally got in. Man oh man is it ever fabulous, like beyond my wildest dreams. Lots of other dogs to hang with, a nice yard where you can dig holes and eat poop all day long, a big deck for sunbathing, cats to chase, all the food and bugs you can eat, hugs and kisses whenever you want, all kinds of events and activities all day long, our own bedroom, and inside the main house is all this furniture to play and sleep on and windows to look out of and the kitchen trash can to lick.

At first, Jinx had to tell me over and over again that he's the Alpha Dog. I'm like, hey, dude, I got it the first time. No big deal to put up with his bossiness when there's so much good stuff to enjoy here. I'm never going to leave here, ever ever. And I'm not telling where it is, because it's up to full capacity and no new guests are being admitted.

Well, I gotta go now. Jinx says the mail carrier lady is on her way down the driveway and we have to supervise. And what Jinx says, goes. But that's cool. I'm down with that. I wanna be big and strong like Jinx one day. He's my bud, you know?

TTYL,

Goober

A Well Puppy Doctor Visit


Parents of infants talk about taking their child to the doctor for a "well baby" visit, or checkup.


Goofy (whose name seems to have become Goober) had his first well puppy visit yesterday morning. He's 5 months old, 27 lbs, a pit-bull/Heinz 57 mix, and destined to grow to about 50 lbs. When he came home from the vet, he spent the rest of the day getting to know the rest of the brood while romping around in the house and fenced-in yard. The intro went even better than we had hoped. Jinx spent some time emphasizing that he is Alpha Dog while Goober said, "OK, fine by me" and went on trying to hump him. Even Georgie (the resident crochety old man) tolerated the newcomer. Meg was so energized that she actually jumped a few times. All the dogs played with Goober, but Teddy seems to be his special friend, possibly because he actually enjoys being humped.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Getting to know Goofy

Georgie is extremely curious about Goofy, so much so that he balances delicately on the arm of the chair next to the front window. He reminds me of a circus elephant in that pose.

Polly, Patch, Teddy, and Jinx all went out (one at a time, on a leash) to meet Goofy today. Polly worked hard to explain to him and demonstrate the correct Doggy Hello (i.e., butt-sniffing). After Goofy got tired of trying to hump her, he finally got around to sniffing her hinie. Patch wanted absolutely nothing to do with him and ignored his humping altogether. Jinx tolerated the humping good-naturedly, while Teddy seemed to quite enjoy it (no surprise there).
We'll introduce Goofy to the rest of the dogs tomorrow, and on Thursday will put Goofy in the fenced-in yard with the gang and hope for the best.

Monkeying around in the monkey grass


Toy of the Month


The research team here at 9 Dogs Howling recently completed an exhaustive study of chewy toys, comparing a basic bone-shaped chewy, a very large dildo-shaped chewy, and a Y-shaped chewy. They selected the Y-shape (seen here on the incredibly dirty rug in my study) for the great honor of Toy of the Month.

I'm sorry!


Goldie apologizes profusely for getting knocked up again.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Here to stay

The new puppy is here to stay. We compromised and are calling him Goofy (he does kind of look like the Disney Goofy). This morning I called the vet's office, identified myself, and said, "We seem to have acquired another dog." The woman laughed, so I said, "If people would just stop dropping off animals here..."

She said, "I know, I know." I described Goofy to her and she laughed again when I told her his name. He has an appointment for a checkup and shots on Thursday morning. Mr. P. is taking that day off and can ferry the Goofster to the vet while I labor in the Marts of Trade (as my mom used to call it.)

I had to go to Memphis today for a doctor appointment. When I got home at 7:30 pm, Goofy, Blackie, and Miss Kitty all clamored for my attention. I sat down on the gently-inclined sit-up board Mr. P. has in the garage and let Goofy climb into my lap for hugs and kisses. Blackie was not happy about sharing my attention, but I managed to pet them both for several minutes. Then Goofy jumped down, rushed around to Blackie's hefty rear end, and started humping her. She was NOT amused by that (despite my laughter) and growled at him. He retreated for a few minutes, then jumped on her again, with similar results. I told him, "Wait until I tell your daddy about that. He'll be so proud!"

Inside the house, I had to greet and pet the 7 indoor dogs, plus Mr. P., while unpacking all the paraphenalia I had taken to Memphis. While chatting with Mr. P., I somehow found a way to say, "I'd kind of like to incorporate Goofy into the rest of the indoor dogs, but I'm not sure if there'd be room for him in the doghouse (the outdoor shed where the pups sleep), and who knows how big he'll get?"

I thought for sure Mr. P. would say no way, he's going to weigh 90 lbs. one day and we cannot have one more dog in this house. But he said, "I don't think he's going to get that big."

Yahoo! Bringing Goofy inside will just add to the deterioration of our home, but it will give him much-needed play and snuggle time with other dogs. Playing with Miss Kitty is good, but being with the other dogs will help the little guy mature, and being restricted to the house and fenced-in yard will keep him from becoming Road Pizza.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Ten dogs and counting

Well, we're back up to ten dogs here at the 9 Dogs Howling. When we got back from the vet with the 4 pups and a receipt for $368, Mr. P. announced, "No more critters." But later that day, another unwanted puppy was dropped off here, and made his way, quivering and crying, down our driveway, and within a matter of hours had wormed his way into our hearts.
He's painfully thin and was covered with ticks (ticks are really bad this year). He needs a LOT of attention and reassurance, but he is darling. We think he has some pit bull in him and he's a beautiful dark greyish-brown color. I call him Rocky (I'm not sure why - maybe for the same reason some people call me Curly) and Mr. P. calls him Dip Stick. We're going to have to negotiate a compromise on that subject pretty soon.
Meanwhile, Goldie is pregnant again. We should have had her spayed last fall, after her last litter, but we had just paid to spay Blackie, were short of cash, and tried to persuade our neighbor to pay for it (no luck there). She looks like she has 30 or 40 puppies in there.

Miss Meg wants Hello Kitty


Meg: Is the manicurist here yet?
Jean: Not yet, my sweet.
Meg: But I have a date at eight, and my nails look terrible.
Jean: Your nails are the least of your worriest, dearest one.
Meg: I want pink nail polish with Hello Kitty decals.
Jean: Whatever your heart desires, precious girl.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Home of the Whoppers

You thought Burger King was home of the Whopper? You were wrong. 9 Dogs Howling is the real home of the Whopper. Four of 'em.

We took the pups to the vet for their annual exam and shots today. This is a major project, along the line of dismantling the Empire State Building and reassembling it on the top of Mount Washington. We take two dogs at a time, each in a crate in the back of Mr. P.'s pickup truck, using a handtruck to wheel the loaded crates in and out of the animal hospital. When we get the first two home again, everyone has a cup of coffee or a Valium, then we do the next batch. No one enjoys the outing, but it must be done.

Thank goodness it's over for another year, and we didn't get yelled at because Meg and Berry are so fat. In fact, we had been overestimating their weights, which we were convinced were 60 pounds or more (each). These puppies who weighed under a pound when they were born 17 months ago now weigh:

Teddy: 47.4 lbs
Jinx: 51.4 lbs
Berry: 54 lbs
Meg: 55 lbs

Like I said: the whoppers.

Food

A favorite topic here at 9 Dogs Howling is food. It's a subject that has fascinated me for over 50 years (sometimes to my detriment), and it fascinates our dogs, too. The nickname Mr. P. and I use for each other (which will never be spoken or written in public) is a food name, and we call the pups "The Whoppers" or "The Whoppalators". I associate the individual dogs with foods, as follows:

Meg - pork chop (thick cut)
Teddy - deviled ham
Berry - one-pound cheeseburger
Jinx - beef jerky
Polly - Hershey's kiss
Georgie - blonde brownie

Well, I must run now. Gotta get me a Hershey's kiss.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Froggy went a courtin'

Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride, uh-huh
Frog went a courtin' and he did ride
With a sword and a pistol by his side, uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh
He rode right up to Miss Mousie's door, uh-huh
He rode right up to Miss Mousie's door, uh-huh
He rode right up to Miss Mousie's door
Gave three loud raps, and a very big roar, uh-huh uh-huh uh-huh

Monday, May 3, 2010

Box Addiction



The wonderful cuteoverload.com devotes a lot of space to the curious phenomenon of cats' attraction to boxes, and often suggests box-hab for addicted kitties. Here you see Fritz & Ziggy's shy sister Pashmina, who couldn't resist the Yahtzee box and stayed to advise the players on winning strategies.
I've posted this photo of Blackie before but will post it again to illustrate that box addiction is not limited to cats.