Happy Howl-oween!

The devil costume won the vote, so I sewed it up for Sam on Friday. He wore it to the Riverside Arts Market yesterday (I attempted to dress like an angel to match but wasn't very convincing).

I'm not a convincing angel but Sam's a great devil


Sammy's always a hit at the market


Sam meets his first werewolf


Sam's costume--a little crooked after the market


What a goofy devil dog


And of course Sam managed to get his horns off his head and eat them


Rawr! Devil dog strikes again!

Happy Halloween everyone!

Incoming!

I was outside with Sam this afternoon, playing his favorite game of chase. Essentially, he picks up a stick or rock or toy, I pretend like I want it and run at him, then he scrambles past me like a looney toon. I pivot in place, and Sam runs back past me like a bull. It's a great game because I only have to move in about a ten-foot circle while Sam runs back and forth past me and gets all his energy out.

The problem with the chase game is that Sam is more rhinoceros than he is coordinated. So when I feint at him, sometimes he gets ahead of himself and trips and runs his face into the ground. Which, I'll admit, is pretty funny to watch, especially if he makes a disgruntled growl/cough while doing it. But then sometimes, instead of tripping, Sam just 86es the brakes and plows straight into you.

This is what he did this afternoon. He had a bit of stump he'd dug up from the dirt pile, and aimed his pass a little too close to me. He ran into my right leg and knocked it out from under me, and we both fell to the ground. His bony little forelegs had hit me square on the shin, which hurt, and I was concerned I'd hurt his legs, too. But no, while I'm rolling on the ground Sam circles back around and jumps on my back, knocks my head with the stump he's carrying, then tramples me as he makes his get away. Sorry thing.

Now I've got a goose egg the size of a grape on the front of my right shin, and Sam seems no worse for the wear. Granted, Sam is currently tipping the scales at 94 pounds, but I've still got some weight on him. So how did I lose in the collision? How is he perfectly fine while I narrowly avoided amputation?

I'm telling you, for Halloween next year Sam is going to be a rhinoceros. Or maybe a shark, because he's a biter and he loves the pool. Maybe a rhino-shark. Wouldn't that be frightening? A great white shark with fins and teeth and then this massive horn sprouting out of its nose?

Brrr. Gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about Sam as a rhino-shark. Maybe I'll just make him a ladybug or something next year and hope he takes the hint.

The Parakeet Conspiracy

Mom has two parakeets, Pippin and Poppin. They sit by the window in the kitchen. Once Sam was tall enough to discover them, he began to sniff at their cage and generally worry them, although he's never jumped up at them or tried to eat them. Mostly he's just curious about them. The birds, however, take offense at having a large canine's slobbery head thrust against the bars of their cage every couple of days, and so they have finally exacted their revenge.

The birds have a mirror hanging in their cage, which is a favorite toy of theirs. In the early morning, when the sun comes in through that window, it reflects off the mirror. The birds have discovered that by pecking the mirror, they can make that reflected light dance on the wall, which in turns drives Sam nuts as he tries to get at it. That was how this morning was spent while I ate my cereal in sad resignation.

(Note: Click the pictures for a larger view if it's tough to make out.)

Must...get...light...


Mo-om! I'm doing important work here!


Sam goes nuts as the birds cackle to themselves in wicked glee...

I finally had to move the counter chairs over so Sam couldn't get at the light. I was worried he'd scratch up the wood like he's done on the door. I'm sure it'll be only a temporary setback for those plotting birds, though. They've got mischievous minds.

An Unspeakable Fate

Sam has a habit of stopping for potty breaks in the middle of playing or fetching toys. Sometimes he'll hold the toy in his mouth for the duration of his business, but more often he'll drop the toy, walk forward a couple steps, and then end up peeing on his toy. Most of his outdoor toys have been anointed this way.

Today marked a new first, though. I had just gotten home and had thrown a tennis ball for Sam, and he was taking his time bringing it back (he likes to chew it and shake it and generally be a goofball). Since he was being slow, I turned away for a moment to get some things out of my car, and when I looked back, Sam was squatting in the side yard, having his afternoon constitutional. Not unusual, but where was the tennis ball? Wait... no... could it... NO, SAM!!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Sam pooped on his tennis ball. I did NOT take a picture of this, since I felt it was too gross. Instead, I have offered another one of my artist's renditions, this one of the tennis ball moments before it met its demise:


Needless to say, that ball got thrown away. Poor tennis ball!

An Open Letter to Pedigree

Dear Pedigree,

Let me start off by saying I've been a loyal customer for fifteen years. Our old dogs, Bud and Thor, ate Pedigree dog food their entire lives. My current dog, Sam, can't eat your dry dog food because it upsets his tummy, but he does eat your wet dog food and he eats several Pedigree brand treats.

I'm writing about Pedigree Dentastix, your oral care product for dogs. These chews are supposed to clean your dog's teeth and help reduce tartar buildup and prevent gum disease. They're even shaped so they clean your dog's gums while he chews them. They come in large dog sizes, which I've been getting for Sam. So no problems, right? Not quite.


I'm assuming to get the oral care benefits, a dog would have to spend a few minutes chewing the treat. I've been timing Sam. He finishes one of your large Dentastix in an average time of 47 seconds. This is about the same time it takes him to eat two medium Milkbones, given separately. Somehow I don't feel this is an adequate amount of time to address Sam's dental needs.

I see that your efficacy trial was conducted on Beagles. I'm sure that accurately reflected the mini and small/medium sizes, but I don't think the results can be applied to larger dogs. Bigger dogs have stronger jaws, so they can chew through treats much more quickly. Perhaps the Dentastix for large dogs should be made a bit more sturdy as well as larger in size. If the Dentastix themselves were a bit more durable, they'd last a little longer and be able to perform their dental duties more effectively.

Just some thoughts. Keep up the great work, Pedigree.

Your friends,
Brandy and Sam

How to Tell If Your Dog Is a Massive Goofball

Step one: Establish massive status. Usually if visitors think you've got a wolf on the loose, you're on the right track.

My hand vs Sam's pawprint

Step two: Establish goofball status. One of the easiest ways is for your dog to dunk himself in the pool, then start rolling around on the grass, randomly growling at barking.

Flip!
Grrr....


A ha!


Huh?

Once you've completed both steps, congratulations! Your dog is a MASSIVE GOOFBALL.

Sticks Galore

In the ongoing septic tank saga, we've finally reached the dirt/sod stage. A quick recap: our sump pump broke, when it was fixed we discovered our dosing tank needed replacing, that got replaced, but because of new ordinances, our septic tank mound has to be built up before the inspector will approve the new tank. So now, as I said, we are in the dirt/sod stage.

Today we got four loads of dirt dumped in our yard. Now, Sam is a good watchdog--when he sees you. His normal post is my old blue camping chair in the garage, from which he can see the street and the main driveway. The dirt, however, was brought in via the second driveway, which Sam didn't see. How he missed the sounds of the dump truck backing up and depositing four separate loads of dirt, I have no idea.

Anyway, I came out with him and Dad into the yard a few minutes ago, and Sam was stunned by the magic transformation of the yard. At first he growled at the invading dirt, but quickly realized these lumpy hills were 1) dirt and 2) full of sticks. Both bonuses in Sam's world. He wasn't even phased when the big backhoe/front-end loader thingy came to spread the dirt. (Note: it's amazing how one big "toy" like that magically draws all the men of the neighborhood to it. There's like four or five guys in my yard right now spreading dirt, hoping for a turn to drive the backhoe.)

Thankfully I'm spared the task of helping to spread the dirt (although there'll be no getting out of laying the sod tomorrow) because I'm making dinner, so while I do that, I leave you all with a sort of photographic representation of Sam's train of thought over the past half hour. Click on the pictures for a larger view.

Intruder alert! Grrr!


Hey! This stuff has STICKS in!


Oooh look at this stick I found


And this stick!


This one's a good chewing stick


Oooh look I found another one!


Wow look at this big one!


Hey! That one was mine! Finders keepers!


I dunno what this is but I LIKE IT!


How are you 'posed to get in this thing?

I Know, I Know...

Yes, yes, I realize it's almost been a week and no new posts. This week I've volunteered at a Wildlife Rehab center, prepared and given a presentation in my ecology class, read through, summarized, and analyzed five books for a different project, gone to see Daniel Tosh live, and just come back from a wedding. Sorry. This week has been silly busy.

But now I am home and hanging out with Sam, so don't worry, he hasn't been nearly as neglected as you poor readers have. He is currently in a state of terror, though, because he accidentally knocked over the baby gate and it made a clatter and now he won't go within ten feet of it. He's in full-on crouching, ears back, tail tucked, slow-motion mode. After it fell down I took him to the other side of the kitchen and he jumped up and gave me a "hug" and wouldn't let go. Now he's lying under my chair, keeping one eye on that sinister baby gate and the other one on me to make sure his guardian doesn't abandon him to its evil clutches.

In other news, the poll on the left is closed, and it looks like the Devil costume won out. I'll be making it sometime next week and dressing him in it, so look forward to that! Also, the surprise I hinted about in the last post should be happening sometime in early November, so I'll let you know then. No spoilers!

Now, because I've been busy this week, I don't have much in the way of pictures for you, except for this pair I took two nights ago. The second one is now my desktop background on my computer. So hopefully Sam's massive adorableness will help make up for the recent blog-drought. Enjoy!

Trying to see if Sam has the tongue-rolling gene


Hey there, handsome!

Playtime

It's looking like there's going to be some big news come early November... but I'm not spilling the beans yet! You'll just have to wait and see, same as us!

In other, less vague news, Sam is a goofball. Of course, you already knew that. Even if you're a first-time reader, you'll figure it out pretty darn quick. Yesterday Sam managed to chew off one end of his rawhide bone, abandoning the rest of the bone for this tennis-ball sized loop of rawhide he could bat around the kitchen floor. When he's playful and he's got a toy, he tends to fling it out of his mouth into walls and under tables, then scramble after it. And was he ever in peak form last night.

He tossed the rawhide around. He got it stuck in corners and under chairs. He sat and barked at it when it got tangled in the TV cord. And of course, he tried to get anyone in the kitchen to chase him or play tug of war with him. Since it's impossible to play tug with a circular hunk of rawhide, I humored him by fake-chasing him around the kitchen. Here are the goofy results:





Sam's technique hasn't changed much in five months. He's pretty consistent, as proven by this video of him at 4 months old, playing with the ends of some carrots I was peeling:



Hope the videos brighten your day! Smile, it's playtime!

Sam Made the Paper!

Today's paper had an article about Dogtoberfest, and Sam was mentioned! Not by name, but there's still no doubt it was him:


In the space of a week Sam's been on TV and in the paper. I've got an up-and-coming celebrity on my hands!

Here's the link to the full article if you'd care to read: http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-10-09/story/dogtoberfest-draws-costumed-canines-downtown-jacksonville

In the article there's a link to some photos of the event, including The Hulk French Bulldog and the little pirate pug I thought was adorable.

Now if you'll excuse me, my little starlet has gotten his rawhide stuck in a corner and is barking at it, and I've got to go get it out for him.

Dogtoberfest

Today First-Coast-No-More-Homeless-Pets held their annual fundraiser at Metropolitan Park: Dogtoberfest! Of course Sam and I went, along with a couple friends of mine who wanted to meet the infamous dogger.

Sam didn't wear the banana hat this time
because he kept trying to paw it off

The event had costume contests and a trick-or-treat walk with a bunch of booths set up sponsored by pet stores, grooming boutiques, adoption agencies, and the like. Sam trick-or-treated and picked up a ton of loot. In addition to the bandanna and T-shirt (for me) he picked up for donating, he got six or seven goodie bags of different dog treat samples, some green dental treats, a bunch of coupons for dog supplies, and of course the free treats people gave him as he walked by. (As for me, I scored some lollipops and caramel creams. And a promotional pen.)

I had a checkered bowtie, but evidently it fell off at some point...

I dressed up as a soda jerk/fountain girl to match Sam's chocolate sundae costume. (And I am very proud that my entire get-up was under five dollars because I made it myself. Thank you, burgeoning sewing skills!) Most everyone who saw us thought we made a great pair. Even though we didn't win the costume contest, we still had fun dressing up and meeting all the other costumed doggers.

Waiting to see who the costume contest winner is

Every fifty feet or so were kiddie pools filled with water for dogs to drink from, most of which were kept stocked with ice. Sam, being a Labrador, felt the need to actually get in every kiddie pool we passed. Drink the water? No! He'd rather attempt to swim in it. He pawed at the ice cubes, much to the amusement of onlookers. As he was attempting to stand in a normal-sized water bowl after having dipped into three previous kiddie pools, one of the booth proprietors called out, "You can definitely tell he's a water dog!" And boy is he.

Sam in the kiddie pool

We certainly had a lot of fun. We even got our picture taken in a photo booth. And for those of you keeping track, Sam has hit the 90-lb. mark. I should know, I had to help lift him onto the platform in the photo booth. At any rate, we will definitely be returning for Dogtoberfest next year. What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

Pretend It's Still Friday

I know it's technically Saturday morning, but I haven't gone to bed yet, so it's still Friday night for me.

Tomorrow Sam and I are going to Dogtoberfest and wearing costumes, so hopefully pictures of that will be posted once I take them. Currently they do not exist.

What does exist, however, are some random pictures I took of Sam outside today. I brought out the good camera and the long-distance lens to take some pictures of a pair of hawks circling overhead, then turned the lens on Sam once they got too far away.

There really isn't any other point to this post, other than the silly Sam pictures. Enjoy.

My favorite Sam pose. "I can juuuuust reach it....!"


Basking in his own adorableness


Ack! It's the Loch Sam Monster!


This is the face I can never resist.

Blessing of the Animals

Okay, Sam's thank you letter is in the mail (and there are inky pawprints on the kitchen floor), so now I can show you those blessing pictures I meant to post yesterday.

In observance of the feast day for St. Francis of Assisi, our church held a Blessing of the Animals Sunday afternoon. Everyone was encouraged to bring their pets--there were plenty of dogs, a couple cats, some hamsters, a guinea pig, and even a rabbit on a leash (who was terrified of all the dogs, no doubt).

The parking lot entrance

Sam had a great time meeting all these new animals. Surprisingly he didn't seem to care for anything smaller than a beagle, and gravitated instead toward the other big dogs. His favorites were a thirteen-month-old black Lab named Duke (whom he wrestled with for a bit) and a setter of some sort. He liked the big shepherd and chow mixes, and of course the pit bull mixes, and completely ignored the dachshunds, chihuahuas, hamsters, and the rabbit. Does this mean Sam is (gasp) size-ist?

Hallo there fellow big dog! Join me in ignoring
that small fellow behind us

Nah, I don't think so. After all, he did make friends with a good number of small children.

Hallo there little one. I'm just a youngster, too!

Once everyone was gathered in front of the church, the priest read the blessing and the choir sang a hymn, then the priest went around sprinkling holy water on all the animals. When Sam got sprinkled, he immediately assumed it was raining and started trying to lap up the droplets from the sidewalk. But at least he got blessed, because heaven knows he needs it!

Sam getting blessed by Father Jan

First Coast News was also on the scene, and Sam and I got interviewed. I said I came to get Sam blessed because he's been such a huge help to me in overcoming my panic disorder. He's been a blessing to me, so it only seemed fair to return the blessing to him. I was originally going to post a clip of the video, but it wasn't posted on the news' website, and it'd cost $50 to order a DVD copy. Needless to say, I didn't order a DVD copy for a roughly 10-second interview in a 30-second segment. But Sam has now been on TV!

Chocolate Banana Split

I was going to post pictures of the Blessing of the Pets today, but those will just have to wait, because Sam got mail!

Sam's got mail!

What could it be? I let Sam have a shot of opening the box, then helped him out when it became apparent that the masking tape was too much for him to handle.

Opening the box

We opened it up and found a card from my little second cousin Brooke, who lives in Texas and to whom Sam sent a letter after her Florida visit and signed with his pawprint.

Sam thought Brooke's card was very pretty

And what else was inside the box?

A costume!

An adorable Halloween costume! Presenting Sam, the Chocolate Banana Split!

Sam without his banana hat


I had to bribe Sam with milkbones to keep him
from chewing his banana hat


Sam didn't quite understand the banana hat but
it cracked me up


Chocolate Banana Split!

Thank you so much John, Jenny, and especially little Miss Brooke! I'll make sure Sam writes a thank you card and sends it to you very soon!