Sheyenne River Valley

The girls and I went camping for Memorial Day weekend at Fort Ransom State Park in North Dakota. It's a quiet, peaceful place nestled in the Sheyenne River Valley, which is quite pretty. We hit a weekend of record-setting heat though (97 degrees yesterday!) so came home a day early. I turned on the air conditioner and all three of us crashed!  

Fortunately, the air was dry so it cooled down at night which made the evenings quite pleasant and comfortable for sleeping. Early mornings were lovely as well, and we did a little exploring. We even saw a bald eagle - a rare treat. The entire area is a bird sanctuary, and I enjoying the chorus of brown thrashers, western meadowlarks and morning doves as I awoke each morning.

The girls enjoy camping and love to sleep in the tent, but the first night we were there Dee Dee was clearly frightened of something and wouldn't get out of the car. At first it seemed to be the tent, as she wouldn't walk in that direction, even to get her supper. But when I carried her to the tent, she eagerly went inside. The only thing between the car and the tent was the firepit and a lawn chair, and to my knowledge, she's never had a bad experience with either of those before. Oh, to get inside her little head sometimes! I never figured it out, but after that first night, she was fine.

North Dakota doesn't have mountains, canyons or coastline, but there are some hidden treasures waiting to be explored, and you don't have to contend with crowds. The Sheyenne River Valley is one of them.

Selective Hearing and Slow-beying

Mothers Day has come and gone, and I got my free sundae from our local Dairy Queen which offers dog-dish treats and recognizes dog-mamas.  Taking my girls to the park, breaking up squabbles, comforting them during a thunderstorm are just a few of the things that make me a 'real Mom'.    A few years ago we had some friends from out of town spend the night.   They were intrigued - and quite amused - as they observed me interacting with the girls throughout the evening, particularly when the neighbor dog showed up on our doorstep wanting Princess and Dee Dee to come out and play.  Later on, when Dee Dee started getting out of sorts, I told her to go to her kennel.  My friends exclaimed,  "They're just like a couple of kids!" 

Yes, they are like a couple of kids - in many ways.  Just like kids, they have selective hearing and often slow-bey when I tell them to do something they don't really want to do.   That's especially true of Princess.   If she's outside and I tell her to 'come', she will walk verrrry slowly towards me, stopping to sniff every blade of grass and go potty several times along the way.    She reminds me of a toddler who comes up with reasons why they shouldn’t go to bed yet and then – once in bed – needs several drinks of water followed by a couple more bathroom visits.  Anything to delay the dreaded bedtime!

A few days ago the girls were playing in the back yard when I went in the house for something.   I came back a few minutes later and called them.   Dee Dee came running, but Princess was no where in sight.   I stood on the back deck and called her name over and over.   Nothing.   The thought crossed my mind, 'Well she is getting pretty old.  She probably can't hear me - poor girl.'    Just as I turned to go back inside and grab my keys to go look for her, I happened to glance down.    This is what I saw.     She was hiding under the steps, obviously hoping I wouldn't blow her cover.  I gave her a little poke in her furry 'behind', and she made a mad dash to the house as if to say, "I'm coming!  I'm coming!"  

Bedtime Routine

Dogs love routine, and so do I.  That makes us particularly well suited for each other.  But I do laugh at how little it takes to create a routine with dogs.   Do it twice, and it's a routine.   That's assuming it's something they like, of course.   Like a bedtime snack.  I often have a glass of skim milk before I go to bed, and one night, a few years ago, I gave the girls some too.   I'm sure it wasn't more than 1/3 of a cup.   They liked it.  So (and this was my mistake) the following night I did the same.   The next night I was brushing my teeth and noticed that they were both out in the kitchen, quietly waiting by their bowls.   I decided to ignore them, but they didn't move.    They weren't barking or whining or anything, but they were persistent and I finally caved and gave them some milk.  Wellllll .... that sealed the routine, and now they expect (and get) their drink of milk every night.

But then came the night when Princess wasn't feeling well.   I can't remember what had happened, but she was limping for some reason and had crawled into her bed early.   Dee Dee, however, waited by her bowl as usual.   So I poured a little in her bowl, and - not wanting to show favoritism - poured a little in Princess' bowl too.    I could see her out of the corner of my eye, and she was in a dilemma.   She wanted her milk, but she didn't want to get out of bed.   So ... (now, please don't think I spoil my girls when I say this) .... I brought her milk to her.    The next night she still was having some pain, so I brought the milk to her again.   And ... you guessed it ... we had a new routine!     Dee Dee gets her bedtime drink of milk in her bowl in the kitchen, while Princess gets her milk in bed - brought to her by me.    Last night, just for fun, I decided to put her milk down next to Dee Dee's and see if she'd come get it.   I peaked around the corner and there she was, in bed, with her head arched way up - towards the kitchen - waiting for her milk to be delivered.   And of course it was.    Sigh.  I do wonder sometimes who the alpha member of the family is.   I'm pretty sure it's not me.

The Many Faces of Dee Dee

It's Friday .... which means that Princess got to go to work with me today.   That started about three years ago when we had a turnover in staff at the radio station where I work.   Dee Dee comes occasionally, but not often, since she barks at whoever comes through the door .... UPS man, FedEx, listeners coming to pick up a prize, etc.    Princess rarely barks, unless you provoke her with something like the the vacuum cleaner, a rolled up newspaper or by blowing soap bubbles at her.  She barks when we're playing outside.    But she doesn't bark at other people, and so she is a perfect 'office dog'.   My co-workers love her.   When I come home from work on Thursday, I will say, "Princess, do you want to go to work with me tomorrow?" She lights up, and the next morning when I let them outside to go potty, instead of coming back inside with Dee Dee, she goes and stands by the car, smiling expectantly.    Dee Dee really isn't too upset by the fact that she doesn't get to go.   She's a homebody and likes the security of our home and her kennel.   On the rare occasion that she does go to work, she sleeps under my desk, by my feet all day.   The girls have very, very different personalities.    Princess is pretty even-tempered and stoic, while Dee Dee is much more moody and wears her feelings on her sleeve ... uh ... I mean, lip.    Even at almost 10 years old, she still looks - and acts, in many ways - like a puppy.   She's full of playful energy, and very affectionate.   She loves attention and once she deems you 'safe', she will roll over to have her tummy rubbed.  

She is actually much more obedient than Princess; she wants nothing more than to please me and loves being told she's a 'good girl'.   Princess couldn't care less.    But Dee Dee has a short fuse, and can be a bully - especially towards Princess.   I can read her body language pretty well, and so can Princess.   When I see Dee Dee steal a 'look' in Princess' direction and/or Princess turning to face the wall, I know what's coming - and it isn't going to be pretty.    I practice 'early intervention' and send Dee Dee to her kennel before it escalates.  Sometimes all I have to do is say, "Dee Dee" in a stern voice and she trots off to her kennel.   She knows it's a safe place to escape from whatever it is that is bothering her and everyone else feels safer too!    There isn't a more loveable dog in the world than Dee Dee, but other people don't always get to see that side of her and that makes me sad.

A missed opportunity?

Something I've observed over the years is that often times, the bigger the opportunity, the smaller the window for seizing it.  And that may have proven true in the case of Elvis being on the CBS Morning Show.   They wanted Tim and Elvis to fly to New York right in the middle of their speaking tour on the East Coast,  and it just didn't work out.   They indicated that they would probably be calling the following week to arrange a date, but now - two weeks later - that hasn't happened.   So it may have been a missed opportunity. 

Tim really isn't too sad about it, as he doesn't like having to 'ship' Elvis through the baggage department.   I don't blame him.  I can't imagine either of my girls handling it very well either.  Anyway - here are a few pictures of them on the East Coast, being interviewed for FOX news and with a special cake just for Elvis.

Elvis on FOX News

It is spring break week for  Hope College, and my brother Tim and his corgi Elvis are on a speaking tour up the East Coast.   They were on FOX News last night and will probably be flying to NY next week to be on the CBS Early Show.  Here is the direct link to the FOX news story.

http://www.comcast.net/video/dog-does-calculus/1449285442

http://www.hope.edu/hopetoday/ has additional links to the CNN Story that ran in 2008 (now on YouTube), the FOX story above, a longer version of that story on local FOX television in Virginia and an interview on Public Radio in VA.

A Look Back .....October 21, 2000

Today is Princess' 11th birthday, and I thought I would post my journal entry from October 21, 2000 - the day she came to live with me.   She was a year and a half old, a little thinner, a little more spry but with the same confident, feisty personality she has today.   Little did I know, eleven years ago today, that in Sarasota, Florida a litter of puppies was being born - one of whom would change - and enrich - my life with more joy than I could have ever imagined.   Happy birthday, sweet Princess!

October 21, 2000

Princess' and my first day together could not have gone better if I'd ordered it straight from heaven. She really seems happy here, and Barb says we are a perfect match. I think we are. I picked her up about 9:00 and ran a few short errands so she would get used to riding in my car and having me disappear for a few minutes and come back. After the first time, she didn't seem to mind. Never barked or whined at all. Then we came home and she was happy in the house for about 1/2 hour - just as she was the other evening. I fed her, she ate well and then suddenly got very skittish on me - wouldn't let me approach her, ran and hid behind furniture. I felt so bad for her - could tell she was just very bewildered and scared. I finally lay down on the carpet and gingerly she approached me. When I could reach out my hand to rub her neck and tummy, she relaxed and lay down beside me. Ever since then, she's been fine. We were outside most of the afternoon. It was a perfect autumn day - sunny, in the 60's and I had a lot of raking to do. Laurie came over for a while to help me and she thought Princess was the cutest dog she'd ever seen. My next door neighbor has a black lab and when she came out, she (Sadie) barked at Princess but Princess just looked at her and didn't bark. However, Sadie kept barking so I finally went over to pet Sadie and Princess got very agitated. She barked at me (she has a high pitched irritating bark but fortunately rarely uses it) and when I came back over into my yard she was jumping at me and obviously very upset. It was kind of funny. My neighbor thinks she is beautiful and she said "Mike will be so jealous." The rest of the afternoon we raked and Princess had so much fun romping in the leaves. Denise Larson and her girls stopped by to meet her and the girls enjoyed playing ball with her. After a few minutes she was retrieving the ball. When we're outside she loves to romp and play but when we come in, she is pretty mellow. She loves to lay next to you on her back and have her tummy rubbed. She cuddles right up to you.  Princess is alert and responsive - comes when you call her. She does jump in the bathtub if she gets a chance. I was told that she LOVES to have a bath. She barked at the vacuum cleaner (I decided she might as well get used to it because I vacuum every day) and when I ran the mop over the floor she got behind and tried to "herd it". FUNNY!! She likes to be with me, but she doesn't follow me everywhere now that she is used to the house. I am setting down a few ground rules - no begging at the table, and she must stay on the passenger side of the car. I have signed up for six weeks of training with her, beginning November 1st (more for my sake than hers). She was pretty tired by tonight. It was a big day - lots of new places and new people. I have her little travel kennel, and when I opened the door she went right in, lay down and went to sleep!! I couldn't have hoped for anything better.  I was told to have her sleep in there and stay in there when I'm at work. Even though the space seems confining, they feel secure in there and do better if you leave them in there. Gradually, after a few weeks, I can try letting her have the run of the house for short periods while I'm gone.  All it all, it's been a great day.