COOKIES!!! (Part I)

Many of you have met our good friend Courtney.  We hang out with her quite a bit these days, as she is our #1 roadie and a co-competitor in CPE agility.  She's one of Brutus' favorite people,  part of a select few who can hold him as I walk away without a full blown Frenchie temper-tantrum.  It's no wonder - she looks like me (we've been said to have been separated at birth..), is great with doggies (she has a pack of 9 that Brutus loves to run with), and it turns out she knows the way to Brutus' heart (through his stomach)!  

Not only has Brutus got Courtney wrapped around his paw, apparently he's won over her mom, MJ, by association (perhaps some free dental advice from me may have helped with this too...). Turns out MJ is a fabulous cook, and made some special yummy doggy cookies for my boys as thanks for my help (or maybe because Brutus is just too darn cute?  You decide...).  I brought home a baggie from her a few weeks ago, just haven't had time to post about it.  She sent another last weekend (see, root canals aren't so bad), so Part II will be of that goodie bag.

So on with Part I, Thanksgiving cookies.  Here's the the home-made treasure.  In case you can't read it in the photo, the bag says "Happy Thanksgiving to the 2 doggies at Brutus' house" (sorry MJ, it got a little wrinkled on the way home...).  Poor Mason - his name apparently isn't as memorable, she keeps calling him "Maury"....

Said bag placed on the table:

Voila!!  Landsharks appear!!

Did someone say cookies?

 

Now sit back and enjoy what ensues.  They almost don't need captions!

Mason might be looking at Mom lovingly with those labradork eyes, but if she's just gonna sit there snapping pictures, I'm taking this matter into my own paws!!

Hey!  Mason!  It's MY name on the bag - get your labradrool away from my cookie!

That's more like it!  What a nice cookie - sprinkles even!!!

Ohhh...  So close I can almost taste it...

Here little turkey...  Come to Brutus!!!

Gotcha!!!!!!

This turkey & I am outta here.  

Nothing left but a few telltale sprinkles!

Don't worry Mason got his cookie too!!

Thanks MJ!!  We LOOOOOOVE your cookies!!!

And in case you are wondering, all the ingredients in these cookies are dog-friendly, MJ makes them special just for pooches.  The only splurge is the sprinkly part, so we're not breaking the rules by much!!  Tune in next week for part II - sprinkly pretzel cookies!!  The boys think you're A#1, MJ!!

My lips are... pink???

Hey everyone.  You are bound to notice sooner or later, so I might as well get this out in the open...  Brutus is having a bit of a depigmentation issue on his lips.  The good news is it doesn't bother him.  The bad news is that I don't have the slightest idea what's causing it.  Brutus tried to tell me it was from wearing out his lips smooching his girl Stella, but unless he's secretly flying to CA and back every night, don't think that's the case!

Started with some little pink spots about 2 weeks ago & is spreading across his lips.  Actually looks worse in photos than it appears in real life, must have something to do with the way the flash reflects off the pink parts. No sign of inflammation, or any other trouble anywhere else on his body.  There is actually hair there in the pink parts, so it's not alopecia. Could it be some sort of allergic reaction?  Autoimmune disease (vitiligo)? Snow nose (like what yellow labs get)?  Hormonal change (liek an adreal problem)?  This phenomena is not a common in Frenchies, so none of my experts in that department have had any insight into what might be the cause.

Your guess is as good as mine, since as far as I know nothing else has changed.  I switched Brutus to a stainless steel food & water bowl last weekend, since I read that plastic/ceramic can cause a contact dermatitis. He is on a very high-quality, restricted diet, absolutely no people food, and eating the same kibble he has for months.  Only other thing I can think is that this started with the onset of really cold weather here, so maybe that is a factor.  The depigmented parts are only where his tongue can reach, so perhaps that has some bearing on things (although his lips do not look chapped) as Brutus is a bit of a lip-licker.  Could it be related to added stress from all our recent activity with showing?  I'm really reaching here, but he got a distemper/parvo vaccine about two weeks before I noticed the depigmentation, so maybe that triggered something.  Who knows??

It's always something around here.  Brutus keeps me on my toes, and I'll admit I'm a worrywart.  Between problems with his pee, eating things, miscellaneous lumps/bumps, and now this - yikes!  But that's the way Frenchies are - never a dull moment!  Don't worry, my vet has seen Brutus (we are "frequent flyers" there, I'm sure they think I'm nuts), and will be seeing him again next week - she's not particularly concerned at this point, just wants to follow him & see if it might resolve on its own.

Anyways, thanks for letting me vent. Frustrating when something like this goes on where we humans have no idea why, and no control over what is happening.  If it's just cosmetic, than I can live with that (Brutus' self image is apparently better than mine, since it seems unscathed by this change).  Brutus is his happy, vibrantly energetic self in all other ways, so hopefully it's nothing significant & will go back to normal soon.  If anyone has any thoughts, we're all ears (some of which are bigger than others)!

(almost) Wordless Wednesday: Holiday Spirit edition

For some reason this year I've been slow to get into the holiday spirit.  Brutus, however, jumped right in (quite literally) and was up to his ears in decorating!

Here he is all wrapped up in the process...

Now if you'll lean a ramp against the tree, I can get started with this ribbon.

Stuffie Infirmary

As you have seen in recent posts, the boys can be hard on stuffies.  Actually, it's specifically Brutus that is hard on them.  Mason had lots of toys that had lived peacefully with us for many years, needing no more than an occasional trip through the washing machine. Then Brutus came along...

The young Brutus was pretty easy on the toys, never tore them apart as many puppies might. But recently he has developed a fascination with chewing parts of them, gnawing relentlessly on an appendage or some other protruding part until it just falls off.  Then there is the tug-of-war that frequently occurs between Brutus and Mason - resulting in open seams and stuffing everywhere.  Combine that with Brutus' propensity for eating random things, and you'll understand how the stuffie infirmary has recently overflowed.

I need to get on this lot so that I can clear the craft room for christmas wrapping!  Think I'll have to do some triage, as there are some stuffies that are in more dire need for repair than others.  For instance: the alien frog that is scheduled for removal of his 2nd eye.  Brutus happily offered to do this for me, but based on recent events (aka the "eyeball incident"), I declined.   Also pictured are various toys in need of seam closure, amputation, or just put indefinitely in the I/R due to having large & Brutus-prone eyeballs!!

I have set aside and afternoon to work with the needle & thread later this week.  Some stuffies will be permanently retired if deemed unfit for Brutus.  Hopefully most can go back into the rotation.  One way or another, I have to clear some space for wrapping presents...  Wish me luck!!

Crown Classic Show

Hi there!  I feel like it's been an eternity since I posted, having been busy for the last 4 days at our biggest show.  I'll try not to bore you all with the details, include just the juicy bits and some fun things from the weekend!

I'm so happy to say that Brutus completely redeemed himself from last weekend's antics, conducting himself admirably amidst the most hectic environment he's ever been in.  To make what could easily become a long story as short as possible, Brutus competed in 3 rally events and came away with 3 Q's, winning our large class one day and coming in second the next. Better yet, that perfect track record earned our first title, Rally Novice (RN)!!

To our left is our new friend Lilly, the English Bulldog; she took second, so the bulldogs went 1,2 in the class!!  

Enough with the technical details, I'll try to show some other more interesting things we saw at the Crown Classic.  It is one of the largest shows in the country with almost 3,000 dogs there competing in conformation, obedience & agility.  With almost 30 rings, it is a big spectator event as well, actually charging general admission to the public.  The only venue big enough to hold the event is the IX Center, a large convention facility located next to Hopkins International Airport.  And it took up the whole building!!!

The show attracts dogs from all over the country, many of whom arrived in big trailers and RVs (too bad Big Earl is already hibernating for winter!!)

It was cold, windy & snowing, so luckily the competitors had a special entrance to go in...

... and once inside the grooming and crating areas seemed to go on forever!  With so many rings, we literally needed a map to find the rally competition area!!

When we weren't competing ourselves, there were plenty of other things to take in. Brutus & I watched the conformation Frenchie classes, cheering on our friend Lori as she showed two of her dogs. 

I made sure Brutus paid attention to how nicely all these Frenchies behaved!!

Every size and color of Frenchie was represented!

That's Lori showing Neil...

... and here she is with Biwa, who had a great weekend, winning her first Major!

There were tons of vendors, selling everything imaginable you or your dog might desire. Brutus took the opportunity to do a little holiday shopping for his sweetie Stella!

We met lots of new dogs, even a mastiff that looked like Mango (only smaller since he was still a pup, at a mere 180 pounds !!!)

Wait a minute!  You are only peculiarly huge, not relentlessly....  Impostor!!!

We made sure to take plenty of time to relax, as it was just so much to take in!  The bullystick that Stella sent once came in handy (notice it's gotten shorter!).

 

When all was said and done, we had lots of good times with friends, 5 new ribbons, a title, 6 sore feet, and one very tired Frenchie!  Yep, that's Brutus out cold in my arms!! 

After a very successful conclusion to three weekends of showing, it's now time to rest our weary heads!  No more shows until 2010, thank goodness!! 

Think I'm going to go join Brutus, who is already snoring away contentedly!!  Hope you all enjoyed a little taste of our weekend!  

(not really) Wordless Wednesday: Holiday edition

I finally got all the decorations up!  The house feels so nice & cozy, just in time for some forecasted snowfall this weekend.  It's really beginning to look a lot like Chistmas!  We have several trees, but here's what you see if you look on our "fun" tree.  Lots of ornaments from our childhoods, as well as some neat ones we've found more recently.

Mason has an ornament

And of course Brutus has several...

This is my favorite, a new one from some friends with good taste :)

Here's Duncan, my JR terrier that crossed the Rainbow Bridge earlier this year.  Hanging his ornament was bittersweet.

And my friends even found me a girl Frenchie (hopefully I'll have the dog to represent her some day).

There you have it.  We're off to a (huge) show for the next few days, will try to post if we can.  Keep your fingers crossed that the "good" Brutus is the one who comes with me!!

My Girl Stella

Hey everybody!!  Brutus, here!  

Want to introduce you all to my girl, Stella.  She is the most beautiful puggirl ever!  Get a look at those eye, that coat, the adorable markings....  Ahhh...  If only she didn't live in the land of California....

I fell in love with her the second mom showed me her blog. and we have become quite the item. Stella has a lovely family too, her mom having just flown all the way to Hawaii in order to unite fellow pug & rescue El Guapo with his forever family!  And to make things even better, Stella is about to have a Frenchie sister, Roxy.  Her mom is coming all the way to Ohio to pick Roxy up from her FBRN foster parents!!

Back to my girl, Stella.  She certainly knows the way to a man's heart: through his stomach!!!  Last week mom told me she sent a package - my VERY OWN package!!  It was addressed to me!!  It arrived last weekend, I could hardly contain myself...

Mom helped me just a little with the envelope, but nothing could stand in the way of seeing what it was that Stella had sent for me!

RRrrrrrr.... Maybe I should ask Santa for some thumbs...

So what DO we have here????

Could it be????

OK, Mom....  Get the photo op....  Got it????  Good.

Wait for it.....

YESSSSS!!!!  OMD!!  

My very own bully stick!!  

Stella, how did you know??

I don't even know where to begin.  So wonderful!

Here's lookin' at ya, girlfriend!!  This is one happy Frenchie!!

Now to find a place to enjoy my treat undisturbed!

Thanks a million, Stella!!  

You are THE BEST!!  Hope you and Henrietta & Bernice have the grrrrreatest holiday season ever with your new sister Roxy!!  

Love ya, girl!!

Brutus