The Perfect Dog

 

To see why senior dogs are awesome, check out Mahalia's info from the Buddy Dog website:

"My name is Mahalia! I am very friendly and mellow. I just arrived from Puerto Rico. I am a mature lady so I am calm, well behaved and housetrained. I am good with other dogs and cats too! I am super gentle and sweet! For more information, please call, visit, or email the shelter. Buddy Dog Humane Society, Inc. Sudbury, MA (978) 443-6990 or info@buddydoghs.com".

Introducing Thor as crazy puppy!

We just met Thor, my brother & his girlfriend's new puppy at Thanksgiving. He's a 6 month old chocolate Lab/Rottie mix from a rescue down south. He's a great puppy, doesn't jump on people and is fairly well behaved. He still gets into everything! 

Thor: I chew dis!

The Short List:

• Grabbed kids' toys to chew. Luckily could be redirected to squeaky chew toys.
• Grabbed shoes to chew. (Redirected to squeaky chew toys.)
• Chewed dropped napkin into clump of slime. (Redirected to squeaky chew toys.)
• Squeaked his way through dinner. (Needed to be checked at least 10 times when squeaking stopped. Their food was definitely cold.)
• Peed on my sister's new rug after 4 trips outside. (Really? Out of all the rugs, that's the one?)
• Wouldn't stop trying to play with Bailey, who WANTED TO KILL HIM! It was much easier to keep them separated than risk injury.  (Not an exaggeration, Bailey once severed the ear of a neighbors' dog that didn't stay out of the yard. Luckily sister and neighbor are both nurses with lots of supplies. Still meant a trip to the ER vet.)

Nothing major, just usual puppy behavior. It's just exhausting to keep track of a puppy every minute, which is why senior dogs are such a great option. Especially pretty much perfect ones like Mahalia!

Bailey agrees. Also agrees that other dogs should stay home when old enough to hold it through dinner.

Did you say sweet potato?

Sweet Potato!

You're going to give us that, right?

Maggie's allergies and her extreme pickiness limit what she can have for treats. She stopped eating breakfast when I heated up a leftover baked sweet potato; it's one of her favorites. (They're great with maple syrup!) Duke had to come see what was better than breakfast.

Twister!

 They both love their turkey and potato limited ingredient food, but not as much as warm sweet potato.

Maggie rolled on a sweet potato once and it stuck to her head, earning her the nickname "Potato Head" or Tate".

 It's weird how Maggie will shove Duke out of the way to eat his breakfast, but doesn't mind him sharing something even better. She needs to gain a few pounds and he needs to lose a few, so it works out.

Moving too fast!

Excuse me...

Duke: I think our work here is done.

Sweet Dreams

Dog in Socks

 Maggie is not amused. She thought we didn't dress dogs.

 That was before her allergic chewing progressed to a lick granuloma on her left front leg. 

The vet suggested an anti-fungal cream for the yeast infection on her pads and socks or or a cone to let the cream have time to work.

 We've tried socks before, but decided to give them another shot before the dreaded cone. 

Electrical tape stuck to itself helps keep them on, though it's hard to keep them up over the leg spot.

Socks are slippery on the wood floors, so Maggie tends to stay on the rugs. 

We're still not sure if we should get booties with grip or go with a cone.

Maggie doesn't like any of these ideas. What would you recommend?