My dog blows (her coat) June 22, 2014
Posted by mareserinitatis in pets, photography.Tags: dogs, Gigadog, newf, newfoundlands, pets, pictures, teradog
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Newfoundland dogs have this funny habit of losing their undercoats a couple times a year, something people refer to as “blowing coat.” I suspect this is because fur ends up everywhere: it’s not unlike blowing insulation into your attic. Teradog doesn’t do it so much, but Gigadog definitely does. She seems to do this twice a year: once in summer and once in winter. (I don’t understand why she loses undercoat in January, but I suspect it’s because she’s inside an awful lot.) Anyway, to get an idea of what this looks like, I’ve included a picture. This is one of about a dozen groomings she’s had in the past 3-4 days.
As you may be able to tell, she’s pretty relaxed. She seems to enjoy being brushed (I think this losing of the undercoat makes her itch). Teradog, on the other hand, hates being groomed. I suspect it’s because he wasn’t groomed much before we got him. He also has a much more cottony coat which is prone to clumping and tangling, and he’s had problems with skin infections in the past. Because we simply can’t get him to cooperate with regular grooming, he gets a shave in the beginning of every summer. I do keep trying to get him acclimatized to regular brushing, but we’ve not had much luck. It’s too bad, though, because I really enjoy brushing the pups. Either way, I think it looks funny because even though he’s about 40 pounds heavier than Gigadog, she looks bigger with a full coat.
Macrocat bows (or sits) to peer pressure June 9, 2014
Posted by mareserinitatis in pets, photography.Tags: Gigadog, macrocat, pictures, teradog
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I’m sure that my name in dog language can be translated as “giver of tasty treats.” While Mike is “provider of kibble,” the dogs know that when I’m in the kitchen, something tasty is likely to magically appear on the floor. (While this is usually voluntary, there have been a lot of occasions where it was not.)
The down side of this is that any time I have food in my hands, they flank me until I stop moving, and then they show off their awesome sitting and laying down skills. Gigadog is particularly bad when I have bananas. We think she’s really a gorilla in a dog suit: she can hear a banana peeling through closed doors.
This morning, I had a banana and they immediately implemented their “immobilize and beg” routine. However, Macrocat saw them sitting and decided he would help. You see, he’s realized the dogs do this when there is food nearby, and sometimes that food might be tuna. Unfortunately, he wasn’t impressed with his piece of banana as he just attempted to bury it with imaginary hardwood flooring-derived sand, but the dogs were happy to take care of it for him.
Not so wordless wednesday October 9, 2013
Posted by mareserinitatis in pets, photography.Tags: macrocat, monorail, pets, pictures, teradog, wordless wednesday
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I know the premise behind wordless wednesday: just post a picture! If there’s any text, it should be in the title, right?
I couldn’t do it today because this picture was so doggone (ha!) cute. I had a couple possible titles, so I will give both to you as well as give you the opportunity to provide your own.
Here’s the picture:
I was originally going to title it, “The Grumpy Old Men club.” Both Teradog and Macrocat are ‘old men’ and we frequently make jokes about Teradog’s barking being the equivalent of, “Get off my lawn, you kids!” And Macrocat is slowly becoming senile, though we love him very much.
But looking at the picture again, I thought of a funnier title: “Macrocat teaches Teradog how to become Monorail Dog.” But maybe that’s only funny if you like cat memes.
Anyway…if you have a better suggestion for a caption, I’d love to hear it. In the meantime, I think that look means I better go scratch behind some fuzzy ears. It’s funny how a mournful look and a scowl can mean exactly the same thing…
Wordless Wednesday: In honor of national dog day August 28, 2013
Posted by mareserinitatis in family, pets, photography.Tags: dogs, Gigadog, Mike, newfoundlands, pictures, teradog, wordless wednesday
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Happy Gotcha Day, Teradog! July 7, 2013
Posted by mareserinitatis in pets, photography.Tags: dogs, drool, Gigadog, pictures, teradog
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Yesterday was Teradog’s Gotcha Day. For those of you who aren’t dog parents, that’s the day you adopt a rescue dog. On the other hand, we don’t actually have a formal adoption day as he was supposed to stick around for a couple days and then go to a longer-term foster home. Problem is…he never left. Yep. We became foster failures (as many of my friends predicted as soon as I posted pictures of Teradog on Facebook). And here we are, one year later…with a lovely pair of super drooly puppies waiting to eat their vegetable-starch porcupines because no one sells puppy birthday cakes any more in Fargo. Somehow, I doubt the dogs noticed.
Officially Teradog September 16, 2012
Posted by mareserinitatis in family, older son, pets, younger son.Tags: newfoundlands, Rainier, teradog
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Most of you know that we were asked to foster a Newfoundland from our local pound a couple months ago. We were supposed to just keep him for two days and then hand him off to someone else for a more long-term foster home. After two days, we decided he could stay longer. I was supposed to work with the local Newf Rescue group to find him a new home.
I just never seemed to be able to make the call.
The first 24 hours with him were rough. He howled almost all night long. The next morning, however, he was SO happy to see me when I came to let him out of the kennel. He was perfectly silent the next night. He and Gigadog got along wonderfully, and it was obvious that having another dog around calmed her immensely. He’s sticky: if I leave unexpectedly, especially if I take Gigadog with, he’ll howl, sometimes until I come back, even if Mike is home.
He’s so incredibly sweet and mellow. He lets Macrocat eat out of his food dish, and his morning routine involves running up to Macrocat and giving him a big lick first thing after he’s out of his kennel. The younger son can walk him even though pup is nearly three times as big as the younger son. Even the teenager likes him. And the teenager doesn’t like dogs.
How do you let go of a dog like that, even when you know he’ll go into a good home?
Today, therefore, Rainier is officially staying with us, and he will be henceforth referred to as Teradog on the blog.
How could you say no to a face like that?
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