15 weeks old, and 7 weeks in!

[Kevin Poole, Penny & Ozzy]

What a week! I promised that I'd be taking some action shots of Penny this week....wrong, wrong, wrong! We're currently experiencing record temperatures here in the Pacific North West, 106 yesterday, with a forecast of 107 today....Phoenix we're not! Penny hates the hot weather, and subsequently hasn't done a lot of moving about, thank goodness for air conditioning, and I pity the so many folks up here who don't have it....Sheesh! It was even 100 degrees at 7.00pm last night....freakin' miserable....and I like hot weather, but you can have too much of a good thing. Penny is only going out to pee and poop, and then it's a quick about turn and back inside. On Monday I let her out after she asked, and she must have decided it wasn't that urgent, as she walked out on the deck, turned to look at me and gave me an expression that looked like she was thinking "F@#k this!" and just came back inside and went back to sleep.

Poor ol' Penny is suffering from allergies too, we weren't sure whether it was the laying on the all the dead grass or food related, her tummy is all pink and hot and she's been scratching and nibbling constantly this last few days. I don't know who felt worse, her with the itching, or us just watching her imaging what it must feel like....poor thing. Anyway, we'd already decided it was probably food related, and during her visit to the vets yesterday for her last set of shots, he agreed with us as when we picked her up from Kerry the breeder, she was using Kirkland puppy food from Costco, but when we went to get some, none in stock. So we tried Pedigree puppy food, that's when she first started scratching, then a lady at PetSmart recommended their own brand (of course, ha ha), which is wheat based rather than corn based as the Pedigree is, but the itching got worse. The vet told us to give her a teaspoon of Benadryl twice a day to calm the itching down, so we are doing and she loves it, hope all medications are going to be that easy to administer, then I went to Costco yesterday, got some Kirkland, and she seems much better already, but that could be just the effect of the Benadryl...I'll keep you posted.

Otherwise she's in perfect health, strong heart etc, growing nicely, currently weighing in at 24lbs! Now looking forward to it cooling down a bit so we can go out and play in the parks and around the reservoirs etc.

Those of you who have been regular readers of my weekly blogs already know that Penny is a big fan of sleeping on the AC vents which are set in the floor. 2 or 3 times in the past, we have heard this clatter and found her sitting by a vent that has come out of its housing, and we thought she'd worked them loose with her teeth or claws, On Monday we found out that is not the case....she has a metal name tag attached to her collar and we heard the familiar clatter, looked to see what was wrong and Penny was sitting there with the vent dangling from her collar....wished I'd been quick enough with the camera, she lays down, her tag drops through the slot and hey presto, when she sits up, the vent comes with her....She did look funny...and forlorn, hee hee. We might have to get one of those collars that the name tag is attached to the band.

I've just switched channels on the TV, the 700 Club was on, that show drives me crazy! Anyway, where was I? Oh yes...this next bit should make all the male readers wince. Most evenings while watching the TV, Penny and I like to play with one of those rope tug toys, I sit in my chair, she plops her front paws and face in my lap with the toy in her mouth, we wrestle for a while with it until I get possession, then I throw it to the other end of the room and she goes and gets it and we start all over again. Nice lazy amusement for me, and Penny gets exercise, perfect! Well after about 4 or 5 go arounds, I threw the toy, she looks at where the toy landed, then looks back at me as if to say "What the hell did you do that for?", then plunged her face into my crotch with her jaws clamped around the favorite part of my anatomy. The shorts I had on are made of thin fabric, she wasn't putting any pressure on the area, was just looking into my eyes with a look that said "What now?". Normally when she gets mouthy, I just give her a sharp but not heavy tap on the muzzle, say "No bite!" and she lets go...that wasn't gonna happen in this scenario, just in case. Mmy wife came to the rescue, picked up one of Penny's squeaky toys, squeaked it and she let go of me to get the toy...Phew! My deep voice is still intact!

Talking of squeaky toys, I've mentioned before that her favorite toy is a 'Skineez', a stuffed animal, a skunk in this case, we call Stinky, original I know, no stuffing at all, looks like road kill, with a squeaker in the head and tail. The squeakers are very hardy, they haven't given up on us yet. Anyway, Penny likes to get both squeakers in her mouth and just munches away with lots of very fast squeaking getting sounds out of the thing that I can't replicate with my hands. A few days ago, she was laying at my feet squeaking away, and produced a flawless tune, Jeri and I looked at each other and said in unison "The William Tell Overture!" (The Lone Ranger theme tune for those of you not into classical music). It was spot on, wish I'd got that on video that would have been a sure fire bet for winning ten grand on America's Funniest Videos!

Now I've got a question for everyone, as Penny is coming into that time when she's going to start teething soon, does anybody have any recommendations for chew toys that she can chew indoors without producing a smell like a wet fart? Any ideas will be well received! She already has a Nylabone, but to her it's a fetch toy, not something she chooses to chew on.

That's it for this week folks, as I haven't got any new and interesting photos taken this week, I'm going to leave you with this shot...How much fun is getting out of a recliner without putting the footrest down?

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Maybe they are elk antlers...can't remember. Google them if you can't find them in a store near you. Petsmart does not have them (at least one near me).

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Love your stories, Kevin. I remember my parents telling me about the year I was born in Portland, Or. Their house didn't have a/c even and record temps were happening! I know you are not used to it! It is 85ish in Nashville today and I feel like that is so cool for July.
Best chew toy: try to find an upscale pet store and buy an antler. Yes, I have found two stores near me that sell antelope antlers. They are much better than bones. Peri has had hers for almost a month and barely put a dent in it. They do not smell AT ALL and are not messy. give that a try. They are pricey ($15+ based on size) but worth the money.

[Penny, Comiskey & Beemer]

I love your stories....Penny must be a VERY GOOD dog because in the photo above...those slippers look completely intact!....Now, on to the teething...I am no expert...and a first time dog owner....but with both Comiskey and Beemer we used washcloths dipped in water, wrung out, twisted and frozen.....it kept them very busy...and it helped their teething...and best of all it was real cheap!.....as for the hot weather, we live outside of Chicago...not so hot this summer...but you never know....we use those bandanna coolers that you dip in water and tie around the dogs neck (now this is just for walks or supervised playing, as I would never trust the dogs not to destroy them)...anyway...they get real cool and stay cool for a while....hope this helps.....p.s. love your little pups name....!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

P.S. Hope she feels better soon. You need to rush to the food group. GREAT INFO on what to feed that puppy.
Speaking of teenager--as I was typing this, Spud was on the kitchen table eating all the cat food. Gotta go Now

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Usually the funniest things are those we can relate with You crack me up. Have you pulled your back out yet getting out that chair??? I be thinking of you tonight as I crawl out of my chair. That is if he falls asleep. Few and far between these days. Be happy and remember this picture. It won't be long until sweet Penny will be a teenager--one who never sleeps, never listens, forgets all those sweet commands she knows, and jumps on you in that chair instead of sleeping underneath like a good puppy. I will read your post then and remember when my dog was being an absolute BRAT like the teenager he is today :)