Bad to the Bone Contest

By now you know, Tucker is having a Bad to the Bone Contest.

I thought you all might want to see my entry since you probably all think I am cute, and adorable, and have a snuggly little puppy face.

Don't be fooled.  I am bad.  To the bone.

This is how I described my bad behavior to Tucker:

See, my Pops is a contractor.  And sometimes Momma lets him eat his dinner in front of the tv cause she knows he's been working hard all day.

I however, do not care how hard he works.

And, I want a piece of his dinner.

You see here, I start out just watching him.

Then I move in a little closer.

Then I jump on him to get a quick lick of what he's eating.

Bad I tell you.  Real bad.

Tucker's accepting entries until September 21st.  You gotta email him your badness.

You Know What Drives Momma CRAZY?!?!

The perfect lighting....

The perfect setting....

And ME, NOT PAYING ANY ATTENTION.  

Isn't it grand?

Don't forget - states M-Z send your info to my momma for the Christmas card exchange!!

For all the details, check out her blog post here!  Deadline is on November 19th.

She's A Faker!

This is almost too funny to share! Sometimes, with great urgency, Finn will jump at our back door, and I had always thought that it was because she really, really needed to go out. Alas, I have found out that I have been duped! Many, many times! It seems as though Finn has been fake-squatting! She jumps at the door, not because she needs to go out, but because she just wants to go out. And sometimes I am just thinking she needs to go out, and so I say over and over "wee wee" and she squats. Well, I have been checking the area of said squats, and it seems that she HAS BEEN FAKING IT for at least a week! And I know there has been no wee wee because I am feeling the earth!

Crazy dog! Anyone else encounter a faker from time to time? There haven't been any accidents in the house, so it's not like she's been neglected, she just really wants to go out! and I don't give her treats for going wee wee outside anymore, so she isn't looking for a treat. I guess to just be outside and sniff the air or something? To look at the birds and squirrels?

Oh, Finn!

Separation, Part II

I wanted to let you know how Finn was doing with her separation anxiety.  I had posted about some several failed attempts here.  She was munching on our poor little carpet, and throughout the summer, the state of our carpet had gotten worse and worse.  Several people had told us to crate her, since she hadn't really been punished in her crate, and from time to time she wanders in there.  But leaving her home alone in the crate for upwards of 8 hours a day just didn't seem fair, in our eyes.  Throughout the summer, Finn would have some good days, where she didn't touch anything, and then some bad days, where she actually starting munching on our molding!  We went and bought some sour apple spray to deter her from this and it was just diluted rubbing alcohol.  I could smell it when I even just sprayed it.  No wonder why Finn stopped munching on it.

Then, we went away for a couple of weeks and left her with the dog sitter.  Before we brought her home, I bought this pink bin to keep all of her toys in.  Either at night or first thing in the morning, I pick up all of her toys and put them back in there.  I told myself it was because I wanted her to know where everything was, but really I was tired of stepping on the random pig's foot while I was barefoot!

It's been a couple of weeks now, and I thought for sure she would have taken a crack at the plastic bin, since it's new and colorful and crunchy, but she hasn't.

I can't separate her behavior from my imagination, but I think she kind of grew up while we were away.  We've left her for a nice chunk of time several times now since we've been back, and she seems to be doing fine!  When we return, she's been sleeping or playing.

We still use that spider web toy, I put it down before we leave and I pick it up the instant I walk through the door.  The funny thing is that she never ever ever plays with it, even though it's awesome and rubbery and sqeaky!  It's always in the same spot where I put it down.  So I think she knows it's not really a toy but just something that signals this "we're coming back" idea.

So...maybe she just learned we are coming back.  And I try my hardest not to make a big deal for a few minutes before and a few minutes after I leave and come back.  Could it be...she's *gulp* maturing???  Could it be...that I am getting less anxious about leaving her and she senses that it's ok to be alone?

Either way, that molding by the door is getting replaced this weekend, and we're hoping to put down the new carpet within a month!

We'll either be going a walk somewhere new this morning or taking Finn back to the very beautiful Prosser Pines, and we'll let you know how that goes!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Finn has multiple personalities.  There's sweet, 

fun,

loving Finn.

And then there's rough-housing, 

up-to-no-good, 

I'm-going-to-jump-on-you-til-you-play-with-me Finn.

Who is going to tell you quite frankly how annoyed she is with you.

You never know what you're gonna get!

Dad Tries to Fold the Tarps

Finn thinks otherwise!  New pillows for her to explore!

Hope everyone has a great weekend - it's getting a little cooler here and we're so excited about that!

Those Doors

I've been working for the same non-profit for about six years now, and it is literally housed in a house that was built in the early 1900s.  When I first began working in the house, I always felt that the building was creepy, and I had some experiences with creaks and noises and seeing lights, but I brushed them aside.  Then I had an experience where I saw, right before my eyes, a set of doors close, swing shut, and click together with no apparent reason.  No wind, no other person, no nothing.  I told a co-worker, who had replied that she had always gotten an odd feeling at that end of the house too.

Well, fast forward to this summer.  Fast forward through more flashes of light out of the corner of my eyes, more things moving or swinging in front of me, more creepy feelings.  Fast forward through rooms and hallways getting painted, a new roof going up, new construction projects going on through the building.  Fast forward through six years of visitors to the building and fast forward to me having to put up an exhibit in that end of the house this summer.

In the mornings, sometimes I will walk Finn through the building with me, and since I have been working on this exhibit, I have been going down that hallway and walking through those doors, which once closed in front of me, more and more often.  Four times out of five, when I bring Finn down that way, she will stop dead in her tracks - all four paws digging into the floor, all of her body pulling back away from me.  Some coaxing, some "it's all right" and "good girl," some pulling and pushing on my part, and we are slowly back on our way.  But the minute I am ready to leave that end, she is right behind me to get out of there.

Makes me wonder - I've read that dogs can see things we can't.  What do you think?

Sock Attack

I'd like to thank everyone for their insight on my separation issues with Finn!  You all had some interesting points, and I appreciate you taking the time to read my super long post and share your thoughts with me.  I'll keep you all posted on my $7 replacement toy effectiveness as time goes on!

On a lighter note, we have always had some problems with Finn munching on our clothes.  Usually she'll help me bring down my pjs in the morning after I take them off, she finds our baseball caps and carries them around, and she's always up for a round of eat-the-shoe.

She took it to a new level yesterday when she proceeded to undress her dad for her most favorite piece of clothing of all...the socks!!  I heard an "OW" from the other room and knew she was up to trouble!  I know it's hard to tell from these pics, but she was literally trying to pull the socks off the foot.  Oh Finn!

Separation

Sometimes I think that since I am able to bring Finn to work with me, and since she is with me then most days, all day, that she doesn't understand that there are times when she can't be with me.  We had been having some problems with leaving her alone in the house.  This could range from us being outside watering the plants for 20 minutes to us leaving her alone while we run errands for a couple of hours.  That's why I was super anxious when I left her for my mom's birthday tea, if you remember.  Really, the only thing she attacks, and I knock on wood as I type, is my rug.

It started in one corner, and she progressed to the others.  We have other rugs that she ignores, but for some reason, when we left her, this became her new dental floss.  As you can see, she's attacked three of the four corners.  Oh, Finn!!

So, I started to use this trick I read where you leave a toy the minute you walk out the door and then pick it up the minute you walk in the door.  The dog is supposed to somehow equate the toy to you coming home.  Well, I didn't want to believe it at first, but it's been working for a while now, so I thought I would share the toy which I think in my head is my replacement.

That's right.  A $7 orange squeaky with black spiderweb over it.  That's what she equates with me coming home.  Can you believe it?  I seriously can't!  It's odd too, I don't think she even plays with it while I am gone because I find it in the same place from where I put it when I left.  I also think it's a little strange that Finn generally gives me a harder time than my husband.  If I am already out, and he leaves her, she's an angel.  Whereas I had to use this trick to get her to be good.  Any thoughts or suggestions on this?  I've been using it with some success for a couple of weeks now, but I am curious as to what other peeps are doing for the same challenge.  Thank you for any suggestions or advice!

Still Fits!

I used to bring her back and forth to work in this, and now it just sits in the corner of my office, holding her toys, and apparently, her too!

~Happy Fourth of July~

About ten people told us if Finn didn't have a problem with thunder, she wouldn't have a problem with fireworks.  The country club that sits next to where I work has fireworks every year, and we decided we would join some other folks up on the field and view them.

So head up to work Saturday night.  I think Finn was confused as to why we were pulling in up there after dinner, but she rolled with it.  We were told the show started at 8:30.  It started at 9:15!  We had plenty of time to walk around the field and watch the sun set.  We took Finn over to a hose and splashed her down - it's getting hot in NY!

And then the show began!

Finn did pretty good.  At first she wanted to run back to the hose area, and once she got there, she laid down and looked up and watched!  I didn't catch a shot of that - Dad took her over there so I could stay and watch the show, but this is her happy face before we were about to leave.  Way to go Finn!

Have a safe and happy fourth of July!

Pooch Pass

Earlier this week, we got our Pooch Pass - the town has a great dog park and my

 neighbor clued me in to it.  So, we had to go check out - and we were really

 impressed!  Little doggies on one side (behind the fence just beyond the 

pool here); big doggies on the other.  We were the only ones 

there when we arrived, but not for long....

Our new friend Chloe

Finn doesn't want to she her pool...

Hanging out in the shade - just beyond this area here is a training course!

Beach area for the peeps and the park continues through those woods there.

Chaos at the watering hole...this is where most of the action

 was today since it's hitting 90.

What a great time - and it was the first real chance for Finn to socialize with more than one dog at a time, and to see what she'd do if we let her off the leash.  "Beach Day" is in two weeks, and we can't wait to see what that's all about!  

Dinnertime

Well, it's a nice beautiful long weekend here and like many other folks, we spent a good part of the day getting our yard straightened up.  I was making dinner inside, and I heard a little commotion outside.  I found this . . .

I am trying to find the positive in this - good balance?  At least she sat?  The fur is beginning to grow back where she had her IV from the spaying?  Help me out!

Peeps on Parade

My Peeps!

Hewwwwoww!  Finn here.  Mom decided that we're participating in the Memorial Day Peeps on Parade event, sponsored by our friend Sarge.  This is my favorite of the peeps, Dad!  Dad owns his own painting company, and always says that no matter what kind of day he's had, I am always there for him.  When he walks in through the door, he gets down on his knees, and I come over and give him a big hug.  Mom is convinced that I like Dad best because Dad's always down to PLAY!  Here we are playing tug-o-war in the front yard.  I can get some good air when he flings me around! 

I know, I know, mom says no chewing on the leash, but it is soooo much fun.  Mom's the one behind all the pictures.  She works in an arts-based non-profit, whatever that means.  She likes to take me for long, long walks.  And I love it, but then she's always asking me to sit, heel, speak, come, stay.  Whatever lady, just give me a treat!  And stop taking pictures - you're blinding me!

I'm just kidding, I love Mom too, she takes me to work almost every day.  These are my peeps!

Talk About Sleep!

The perfect excuse to put my feet up!

It's Sleepy Time...

I don't have any photographs to illustrate my point, but I have a question I could use some advice on...

Finn usually starts to doze off at about 7pm (we're up at 5am for work, so I figure this is alright).  She'll fall asleep first under the stairs or under the dining room table, then after twenty to thirty minutes, she'll get up and move into the crate we have for her in the kitchen.  Then after another twenty minutes, she'll come over and put her head on the couch to come up and sit there, (we allow her to sit on one of the cushions on the couch which has her blanket on it) and then she'll jump down and fall asleep at our feet by the couch.  When it's bed time for us humans, she follows us upstairs to her bed in our bedroom, so she's changing into five different positions!

This happens every night.

I've been trying to read about dog's sleeping habits, but I haven't found anything on this kind of moving back and forth.  Is this normal?  Advice?  Just let the sleeping dog lie?

April Showers Bring...

 

Took Finn for a little walk yesterday morning before work.  So much to sniff!