Updates, and School and Stuff

First, Mom wants to let everyone know that TaiChi actually ate real food today. Mom roasted a chicken for dinner, and TaiChi mooched chicken off Dad and Mom. (And Mom's tough. Dad's a softie when it comes to getting parts of his dinner, but Mom's a bit of a hard-ass when it comes to feeding us off her plate. But even Mom fed TaiChi, and she snarfed it right up.) Needless to say, Mom and Dad are both thrilled. Not wanting to upset her stomach, Mom's going easy, she'll give TaiChi more real food tomorrow once she's certain that TaiChi's stomach is okay. Mom will keep supplementing TaiChi's diet with the Nutri-Cal because TaiChi can use all the calories she can get, but for now, Mom and Dad are thrilled that The Little Old Lady is interested in food again. She's also up and moving around a little bit more (hey, it's all relative), which is cool.

Next. Yesterday was The Little Monster's first Puppy Class. I am not sure why Abby is going school to learn to be a puppy, because it seems to me that Abby already has the puppy thing down, but what do I know? I mean, I didn't get to go to Puppy School.... I learned the old fashioned way...

Here's me. I totally had the puppy thing down at an early age!

And then here's the Little Monster, who clearly needs to learn how to be a puppy.

Mom says she sees a family resemblance, but not me. I don't see it At All. Nope. Not at all!

*ahem*

Anyhoo, Abby's first day of Puppy Class was Saturday, and Mom was kind of bummed that Abby was the only puppy there. However, I guess they have other puppy classes, and they will set up a group "play date" once a week so Abby can get socialized. Mom is threatening to bring me to this, as well. Just because I'm a wee bit anti-social, she's going to inflict a mess of puppies on me?!? I don't know about this...

Sorry, kiddo, but you need to learn how to be around other dogs. Oh, and if you didn't know, you are starting obedience classes tomorrow. Because not only are you anti-social, but you lack some, ah, basic skills.

MOM! You are kidding, right?!?

Nope. Buck up. You are both going to school. Time for you both to become edjumacated!

Hmm. I'm not so sure about this. But I guess I'll keep you posted. School. Me. Hmphh.

And double hmphh. But... When Abby came home from Puppy School, Mom brought home some new treats, so maybe I could live with the school thing if it means more treats for me.... The classes are through PetCo, so, of course, it's awfully easy to pick up more treats/toys after class....

Okay, since this school thing now has me all worried, I'm going to have to console myself with playing tug-of-war with The Little Monster.


Heehee. I may be a goofball, but I'll still bigger than she is!

And finally, a comfortably resting TaiChi. Notice how she has "borrowed" one of our toys as a pillow. She is clearly still In Charge. :-)

*kissey face*
-Fiona

My Cracker Dog Sister, and an Update

The Little Monster My darling little sister Abby is a cracker dog. Mango warned me, but I couldn't get Mom to listen, so now I've got this crazy cracker dog little sister.

I know this picture is out of focus, but I think it pretty much says it all.

If that's not a cracker dog, I don't know what is.

And another thing about this little monster. She totally works the whole "cute puppy" angle. I mean, she's got our (it should be mine, but since we play tug-of-war with it, I'll call it ours, to be generous) rope toy, and is trying convince me that I don't want it.

Like I would be a bully if I took it away from her or something. *sheesh*

So she's all innocent-looking, and yet, she does this:

If you can't tell, her hind feet are in the air, and she is in mid-pounce on my poor unsuspecting self. I'm telling you, she's crazy.

Do you need more proof? Look at this:

Cracker dog. I'm telling ya!

And the worst part about this cracker dog I've been saddled with? Mom and Dad are so easily suckered by this:

And this:

*sigh*

At least she's good at tugging.

I guess I'll keep her for now.

*kissey face*
-Fiona, the Plagued.

Oh, yeah. Mom wants to add something.


Thanks for all the comments regarding TaiChi. TaiChi was spitting out every food option I was giving her, and so I had resorted to the peanut butter because it was the only thing I could think of that she couldn't spit out. I know that heavy protein isn't optimal for kidney disease, but I figured that too much protein was a better alternative than her not getting any calories. As soon as Twinkie's Mom told me (and others followed up) about Nutri-Cal, I tracked some down, and started to give it to TaiChi today. It is perfect because she can't spit it out, and is certainly better for her than peanut butter. She's not "actively" eating it (i.e. licking it off my finger when it is in front of her nose), but she'll eat it when I put it in her mouth. Knowing that she's getting "good" calories is a huge relief for me. I know it won't cure her long-term issues, but I feel better knowing that she's not starving. Thanks for all the comments and suggestions, and thank you for helping me find something that works. And thank you for the support; TaiChi was my husband's dog long before I met him, but (I joke - mostly!) I married him for his dogs, and TaiChi adopted me very quickly and has been my "little girl" ever since. She was even my de facto bride's maid.




She has taken very good care of me over the years, and the least I can do is take the best care of her that I can.

Again, thanks for all the advice and support.

-Dr. Liz

Snow and Stuff

Yay!!! We are finally getting some snow!!!

The Little Monster My dear little sister Abby is even starting to get the snow thing down.


(Obligatory cute puppy picture.)

Now, on to some less exciting news.

Mom’s been having a hard time posting about this, so I’ll try for her. After several days of eating quite well on her steak-added diet, TaiChi’s appetite dropped off to one meal a day, and then went down to just being hand-fed yummies, and then yesterday and today she hasn’t wanted to eat anything, so Mom has been sticking peanut butter in her mouth, so that she’ll eat something. In all other aspects, TaiChi is comfortable, she’s going outside (well, on the porch) when she needs to, she drinks water, she takes on fluids, she’s not throwing up, but she’s just not interested in food. Needless to say, the long-term prognosis for this isn’t good, but for the moment, TaiChi sleeps comfortably, and seems to be happy being next to Mom. We’ll keep you posted on things, and as Mom keeps reminding herself, TaiChi has had a very long life (she could be 19 or older – her age is a bit of a question; she’s 18 at the minimum), and has had kidney problems for several years; it’s Mom’s good care of her that has kept her as healthy as she has been for so long. I know that Mom feels very lucky for having known TaiChi for as long as she has, and I agree with her; Abby and I are very lucky to have TaiChi as a big sister.

Sometimes TaiChi uses me as a pillow! :-)

*kissey face*
-Fiona

Wordless Wednesday (kinda)

I love The Little Monster my dear little sister Abby. Really. I do.

Why do you ask? Teehee!

*kissey face*
-Fiona

PeeEss: Mom says I should note that no puppy ears were seriously damaged in the making of this post!

At least the Little Monster is Good For SOMETHING!

Something other than bitey-face, that is....


The Little Monster is FINALLY learning how to play tug-of-war! Maybe she'll turn out to be okay, after all. And, I've heard rumors that Mom has signed her up to go to Puppy School - I guess so she can learn how to be a puppy rather than the miniature dog she is pretending to be right now. (I mean, she's climbing up and down stairs now, and she's only 10 weeks old. Who does she think she is?!?)

More later. I'm tired; the beast is wearing me out.

*kissey face*
-Fiona

Mom has really been slacking

*sheesh* I know that I have mentioned how tough it is to find good help around here, but since Mom and Dad are "skiing" more, Mom is getting behinder and behinder. I mean, they leave in the morning, locking up the two little dogs, and leaving me in charge (note from Fi's Mom: both Abby and TaiChi are crated - separately - because Abby is too little to be trusted, and TaiChi seems to have lost 'reverse' and so she will walk into a corner and stay there until she is rescued; by crating her she can't get into situations that she can't get out of). Which is fine, because I can totally run this house. Bark at the UPS guy? Got that covered. Bark at the racoons? Yep. Totally. Bark at the girls in crates? Yep. Hide in the other room when Abby starts to make too much noise? All over that! (Luckily TaiChi is kind of deaf, and sleeps a lot, so she can ignore Abby's drama queen ways pitiful cries...)


So Being In Charge is totally cool, especially since I've got complete run of the house. But once Mom and Dad get back, Mom has "things to do". Like getting the little Abby-Monster outside so she can piddle. And getting TaiChi outside, so she can piddle. And feeding TaiChi (more on this...), and finally getting around to getting me outside. (Having the best bladder in the household seems to be a bit of a curse, if you ask me. But I'm a Good Dog, so I'm not going to protest in some unhygienic way.) And then Mom has other Things To Do, like ROTEs (which I sometimes get to go on), and taking TaiChi to the vet, and on and on and on. And at the end of the day, she wants to watch teevee with people doing wintery sports in Canada.

Eh. Thinking about this, I guess I'd rather that she be refereeing me and Abby than helping me type. But still. You'd think she could do all of that and help me type. But whatever.

So.... Enough griping. First, we received our awards from the Relentlessly Huge, for our wins at MangoMinster. Wow. Even I'm impressed at how well we did. Totally cool. Thanks to everyone who voted for us, and to the judges, and to Mango and his Momma for putting the whole thing on! (Oh, and thanks to Moose for the pre-competition partying; that was So Much Fun!!!)

Thanks to everyone for honoring my Fallen Comrade, Mr. Bufus. We miss him every day. Mom is going to print off a copy of this to go by his picture in the the living room.

Two awards for TaiChi!!! I can't believe how she just dominated the 'Bad Sport' group. Oh. Wait. I totally can. Especially when I tell you about her latest visit to the vet. You Will Not Believe This. But more on that in a bit.


And me!!! Sporty Dog!!! I am so thrilled with this!!! Because I LOVE everything sporty (except for maybe "skiing" since I can't do it with Mom and Dad). Thank you So Much!!!

We are very honored to have been a part of MangoMinster 2010, and very flattered to have done so well! Thanks EVERYONE!!!

Now, on to TaiChi. Wow. You cannot believe the latest. Mom took her to the V-E-T yesterday to have a check-up, since she's a million years old. They checked her blood pressure, and her eyes, and stuck her with a few needles, and did all sorts of other Old Dog Check-Up things. And then Mom talks to the vet about how TaiChi is losing weight. And he says that yes, because of her kidney problems, she will likely continue to lose weight, but if Mom can get her to eat as much as possible that might help a little. So then Mom says that the night before they had had some grilled sirloin, and she drizzled the juices in TaiChi's dish, and TaiChi was Very Happy about it (which she was). So then, the vet says, "If TaiChi likes steak, and it doesn't cause problems with her digestion, then you could probably give her a little with each meal. It will give her more calories, and it will be something that she really enjoys."

Steak. At every meal?!? You cannot be serious!!!! And what does Mom do? She stops by the store on the way home, and buys some steak, because Mom and Dad don't eat it that often. Top sirloin (because the vet said it should be lean beef). For TaiChi!!! None for me or Abby.

*sheesh*

However, I guess I would expect no less from a Champion Bad Sport! (Lucky dog!!!)

And now Mom says I have to end this because she and Dad are going to go do this skiing stuff again. But Mom promises that she'll get some more pictures of me in the snow. Soon. (Uh-huh. I'll be holding my breath on that one!)

*kissey face*
-Fiona

Note From Fi's Mom: The vet did indeed say that TaiChi can have a little steak at each meal. She doesn't get a lot; just enough to make her food more interesting to her, and steak is one of the things that she truly enjoys. Her kidneys are what they are, and a little extra protein isn't going to effect them much. Besides, I think TaiChi would rather have the steak than be on a totally bland diet that she hates. And at 18+ years old, I'm not going to deny her any little bit of pleasure that she can get out of life.

TaiChi's Two Cents*

TaiChi here. Because I have a few things to say about my little sisters.

*sigh*

Seriously. All I can do is sigh. The youth of today is, well, going to the dogs. I can't believe that my parents have inflicted two crazy beasts on me in my golden years. I am perfectly happy to nap the day away, but as of late, I've had to put up with this:

Fi may be naked after her latest haircut, but she still manages to look like the Wolfman.

And I've also had to put up with this:

Great, another Wolfman in training....

And really, how is a girl supposed to get her beauty rest when this is going on?

I think I might go on vacation...

Will no one rid me of these meddlesome youngsters?!?

And sorry, Dennis, but that naked doggie is Most Definitely my big little sister Fiona. After all, here is only one Flying Fiona. Even if she is only half the dog she used to be! :-D


But trust me. She's still a goofball, naked or not. But between you, me, and the lamppost, I'm glad that Mom and Dad aren't going to take ME to that groomer! Teehee!

*zzzzz*
-TaiChi

*Not to be confused with Tank's Two Cents ; I just liked the sound of it!

My New 'Do, or Yes, Sir, I'm Ready To Enlist In the Marines, Sir

Yesterday was my haircut. My old groomers (who had this very handsome white standard poodle named Basil) have vanished, and Mom was forced to take me to this place called 'Doginhaus'. Uh-huh. Even Mom was skeptical. But I was in desperate need of a haircut. I was so woolly that Mom and Dad would have to open the windows so I wouldn't overheat.

Here is my before picture:

I am Most Woolly here. Not quite as long haired as my buddy Clive but Very Woolly for me.

Anyway, Mom wasn't super impressed with the groomers; she told them she wanted me to have a "poodle sport cut", and they said, "what's that", which concerned Mom a bit, and then the woman couldn't believe that I wanted a clean face like a poodle, and thought that Mom didn't know what she was asking for. Which frustrated Mom a bit. But since I was in desperate need for a haircut (not only was I Very Woolly, but I was quite matted from the snow, and my matted ears were making the perfect chew toy for my darling little sister) and Mom figured that unless they cut me or did something heinous like that, it would be tough to screw up my hair too badly, she decided to go through with it. Figuring that anything will grow out over time. Thanks, Mom. I think.

As I mentioned, my hair was really matted from the snow, so they ended up shearing me like a lamb. And frankly, it didn't turn out too bad. Although Dad says I got a full-body "high and tight"... I like it because you can see my beautiful snooter, my liquid brown eyes, and my long leggies!



However, having short ears doesn't seem to have made them any less of a target for the Little Beast.

There is a plus to my new look, however. I am much more streamlined for snow zoomies.


If you can't tell, it has been snowing all day, so The Little Monster Abby and I have been forced to amuse ourselves.

Heh. Do we look like sisters to you?

Yeah, I didn't think so either.

Hopefully with this snowy weather, Mom can help me get caught up on bloggies; The Monster has been sucking up all the time that Mom and I usually spend reading bloggies. (Or she'll start to attack me just as Mom and I are settling in for some good bloggie time. Youngsters these days!)

Anyhoo, while Mom didn't like the attitude of the woman who cut my hair, and won't take TaiChi there (when the woman said that nicking warts on old poodles like TaiChi "just happens", Mom decided that TaiChi would be going elsewhere), I like my streamlined look. And Mom and Dad are happy that I'm not tracking as much snow into the bed!

Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow to all you lovebirds!

*kissey face*
-Fiona

Puppy Cuteness *sigh*

Mom and Dad seem to think that little monster, ah, my sister Abby is all cute and everything... I mean, fine, she's got the fat puppy belly, and she's good when she's sleeping.


At least she's got tasty feet....


And she seems to like snow. If you are all into "cute puppy pictures" biggify this one...



So I guess there is some hope for her beyond being a sleeping, biting, peeing machine... But this cuteness? She'd better cut it out. Because she's stealing my thunder. However... I do go to the doggie spa today, and I am fully expecting to come back with a Most Excellent coiffure... I'll keep you posted.

*kissey face*
-Fiona, the besieged

Wordless Wednesday: Bitey-Face

Biggify for best results!

*kissey/bitey-face*
-Fiona

Okay, maybe she's not THAT bad (Abby, I mean)

First, I would like to offer hearty congratulations to my friend and fellow Goldendoodle Clive for winning Best In Show at MangoMinster! It is a well-deserved win, and frankly, TaiChi and I were honored to even be in the same ring as him! Yay for Clive and Goldendoodles everywhere! *grin*

Now, on to the matter of my little sissy, Abby. Okay, maybe she’s not completely evil. But she’s not exactly MELLOW. So maybe read the last two posts and stick them together. Because even I’ll admit that she’s actually kind of cute when she’s sleeping.


But…. This little 7 lb thing has balls, ah, moxie. That’s the word. Moxie.


Look at this Dingo! Mom bought Abby some puppy-sized Dingos, because Abby has these crazy-wild puppy chewing teeth. Mom also got me some adult-sized ones. What does the little squirt do? She takes mine and has been happily chomping away on it!


The same thing with these other chewies. But Mom decided to just give Abby a normal-size-dog chewie, even though she looks ridiculous with it!

I don't know why I couldn't get this picture rotated, but it give you the idea...

She’s got her own, and yet she comes after mine!

BTW, Abby doesn't usually wear diapers, it's just when she's in the Big Bed - Mom doesn't want to have to change the sheets all the time, so the diapers are "just in case" - meaning just in case Mom isn't paying attention!


*sigh. And I’ll admit it. I’m a softie. She pretty much gets what she wants from me. I mean, she’s my little sissy. I don’t want her growing up thinking I’m a meany. Besides. Mom says that there is a possibility that Abby will be bigger than me when she is full grown, and I’d just as soon not have something bigger than me carrying a grudge, if you know what I mean!

TaiChi seems to have warmed up to the squirt, too.


Although TaiChi is not too keen when Abby tries to step on her or eat her dog tags… I guess Abby makes a good pillow.

And… Proof so that years down the road she can’t deny it, TaiChi is totally bigger than Abby right now! Abby is the littlest dog in the house!


And finally: Can you figure out where one of us stops and the next of us begins? Even Mom is a little sketchy, since we all seem to have the same hair color (especially when she uses the flash).


*kissey face*

-Fiona

PeeEss: I’ve been looking a little shaggy lately because my old groomers moved/went out of business/something, and it took Mom a while to find me a place that is up to my high standards. So, next Friday I am going to a “doggy spa”. Uh-huh. I’ll let you know how it goes!

PeePeeEss: Thanks to everyone who supported TaiChi and me in MangoMinster! We had So Much Fun and met a ton of new friends! Winning awards were pretty cool, too! Thanks everyone, and double thanks to Mango and his Mom for putting the whole ginormous thing together!!!