Gradual Introduction to Disneyland

January 18 and March 8, 2008 -- Truman is old enough now to go to Disneyland (and other theme parks and major large-crowd locations and events), but knowing his historic tendency toward getting overwhelmed with excitement, I've decided to introduce him slowly.

In January, I took him with me when I upgraded my Disneyland annual passport, where he let me know what he thinks of the current park admission price:



We didn't actually enter the park, even though it seemed like a light attendance day. Instead, we spent a little time walking around Downtown Disney and taking photos in the area between the two parks. We did briefly go into California Adventure just to sit in the ice cream place (well, okay, HE just sat...I had a waffle cone), but that was just like taking him to a restaurant, so it was no big deal.

Then in March, a friend of mine from high school was in town with his family, so Truman and I met them at the Magic Kingdom for a few hours. As it was Saturday around Spring Break time, the place was packed. But Truman navigated the crowds with little concern, and behaved like a gentleman while we ate lunch outside during a very rowdy game of musical chairs, hosted by the Mad Hatter.

We only tackled a few of the rides, but he even seemed to handle the Haunted Mansion with a reasonable amount of calm (you just never know about the end of the elevator ride where the lights go out and everyone screams). He seemed to enjoy the train, too, or at least the view from there....

But I think Truman's favorite part of the day was making a new friend -- while he liked Steve and his wife Michael and little Kennon, he and Shaughnassy hit it off the best, right from the moment they met. Maybe it's because she's smart and funny and very good at remembering the etiquette about how to act around a service dog! Or maybe it's because she was wearing a Cheshire Cat on her head....

Why We Love a Nice Long Kennel Stay

March 1, 2008 -- The good folks at GDA encourage us to kennel our dogs at the school as often as we can, so they get used to being in that environment and will be less likely to stress out when they go to live there for six months or so of formal training.

It's never been tough for me to take rambunctious Truman up to the school for several days. I know he's in good hands, and the people there know him, and it gives me a nice break every once in a while. However, as Truman gets older -- and therefore closer to the day I will take him up there and not get to pick him up a week later -- it's been harder to make myself schedule those visits.

But as a dog owner, you just can't beat this deal: free room and board for your dog for as long as you like, and at the end of his stay you get to take home a worn-out, freshly bathed canine who's had a vet exam and a good time with his friends.

Truman came home this time and put himself to bed almost immediately, cuddling up with his blankets and his Nylabone. They're awfully cute when they're sleeping, aren't they?

Whatsamatter?

Cat got your tongue?



This is one of Truman's silliest toys: a little rubber ball with a huge rubber tongue attached to it. My mom and dad (who sent it to us for Christmas) had asked me for a picture of him playing with it, but it's been a challenge getting one...because Truman usually picks it up and chews on it from the wrong end!

Not Exactly Truman Cottontail...

...though there was plenty of hippity-hoppity happening this lovely Easter morning.

This time last year, Truman was still a small and feisty pup who hadn't yet had all his shots OR mastered the art of appropriately-timed piddling. Consequently, I didn't get to attend my favorite sunrise service on Will Rogers State Beach. But this year I was determined to take him!

Last week, I realized he hadn't ever been to the beach, and I wondered how he would do walking on the sand. So at our obedience class, where there is a sand pit full of playground equipment, I tested him. Two steps in, and I had a dog spinning in circles at the end of the leash, butt tucked in and shuffling madly. Then he peed.

Okay then.

We did a bit more walking for practice, until I was confident he'd be able to handle the service. And this morning, he did well! We arrived in the dark, made our way to an open spot and sat down on some beach towels. He was a little antsy for a bit, ears on high alert and fidgeting to get comfortable, watching birds and children, sniffing the salty air and snorting up sand, but he eventually settled in for the sermon. Good dog! It was a fine test of his self control.

This is not to say he was not right on the verge of shuffling his way back to the parking lot after the service, back legs hopping wildly in the sand as I gripped the leash with both hands and ushered him quickly back up the walkway...but we take what we can get, especially for a first time.

And now, after some time at a friend's house for post-church breakfast and fellowship (thanks again, Kristy & Emily -- and Truman would like seconds on the belly rub, please), we are filled with joy and pancakes, sleepy from a day well spent. Happy Easter, everyone!

Happy Trumanversary

One year ago today, I was outside the puppy nursery at GDA, meeting this little blank slate of a canine who would be my charge for the next year and a half or so. So cute, so sharp-toothed, so moody:



As of today, we've written a year's worth of experience on that slate, and I can hardly believe so much time has passed. Truman is still cute, and still moody. Thankfully, though, his angry little shark mouth has been replaced with a more mature face full of big-dog teeth. Here we are now:



And here he is with his Amy:



Happy Anniversary, Roo! Smile!

More Brother Time

February 16, 2008 -- There is something in this litter...a freaky telepathic connection, at the very least between Truman and his brother Tai.

I know this, because every time Truman is driving me nuts with a multiple-day burst of uncontrollable energy that seems to refuse to be worked or played out of him by any normal means, I get a phone call from Matt and Amy:

"Is your dog on crack right now? Because our dog is on crack right now. Brother shuffle time is available in our yard, effective immediately."

So off we go to visit. Truman, predictably, knows which exit I have taken off the freeway and springs up to look out the window. How. Does. He. Always. KNOW?!?

The running commences. The wrestling, the chasing, the springing, the teeth-rattling. We are in the Doofus Zone for the next few hours until they're both manageable once again. Boys will be boys.

Truman Tours the U.S.S. Midway

February 8, 2008 -- With a title like that, how could I not have him wear his American flag collar?

A day-long outing in unfamiliar territory is an excellent test of a dog's ability to tolerate stress. I'm happy to report that Truman did well on today's adventure! Our first trip by rail went smoothly; Truman settled nicely onto the Amtrak train for the ride down to San Diego, home of the U.S.S. Midway museum. I guess he figured that after being folded up in the back of a Kia Sorrento on the way to and from Mammoth, this was luxurious travel.

Then came our tour of the Midway, and Truman's first brush with military accommodations. I think he's decided enlisted life is not for him. His closet at home is bigger than these measly lockers....



He does, however, want to steer. This is nothing new.



The ship was full of interesting smells and noises, and we even managed to find some unusual surfaces to walk on. Not too bad for a floor you can see through:



And here, Truman hopes the "remain very still until it goes away" snake avoidance principle also holds true for bombs:



Truman and me, all squinty on the flight deck at the end of the day:



We exited the ship a couple times during the day so Truman could relieve and have a bit of out-of-jacket time, which he seemed to appreciate. He's a confident dog, seemingly unafraid of anything, but he still has a tendency to get overwhelmed with excitement in new places, and it was nice to let him have a little on-leash shuffle time on the grassy area adjacent to the dock, to let off some steam.

After our tour, we had a quick bite to eat at a nearby deli, then boarded the train at about sunset for the enjoyable trip back home. He was more than happy to sleep the whole way.

Puppy Valentine's Day

For Valentine's Day, Truman enjoys a reunion with an old love...Mr. Banana.

And How Did YOU Get Here?

Today's winning search query that led someone to the Beastie blog:

"yellow lab wild in evening time"

Yeah. Tell me about it, man.

The Secret to Exhaustion

December 29, 2007 -- When they weren't running and wrestling and shuffling in the snow, they were running and wrestling and shuffling in the house. We had to separate them and make them lie down. And if they made eye contact, the epic battle raged on all over again. This is a rare moment: the two of them, in one place, touching, and not engaged in hound-to-hound combat:



When they weren't rolling around on each other, snorting like little bulls and knocking down knick-knacks with the swoosh of a mighty tail, they were busy starting their own quality assurance business: Tai & Truman's Toy Testing ("You Make 'Em, We'll Break 'Em!"). The end of our trip saw us packing a bag full of alleged indestructibles, in various states of disrepair, dysfunction, or disembowelment. The braided-fleece tug toy may be the only thing they were unable to vanquish (though in his defense, Truman did prove most adept at pulling out individual strands, which I think shows some excellent fine motor skills).



He was as good a passenger on the way home as on the way there, though there was an unfortunate incident in freezing wind-whipped Mojave, where the gales were such that he basically peed on his own legs. Neither of us was particularly thrilled about that.

We got home just fine on the 30th, and I sent him for a puppysitting visit to play with his sister on New Year's Eve.

There is, apparently, a magic combination of factors involved in making Truman tired beyond a one-day stretch. I believe we have finally stumbled upon this combination:

3 days in Mammoth with brother Tai + 1 overnight stay at sister Tia's house = 2.5 days of sleepy, sleepy Truman

I have never seen him so motionless. I had to keep checking to see if he was breathing.

Snow Dogs Allowed

Tell me they're not brothers.

There's No Shuffle Like A Snow Shuffle

December 27, 2007 -- Black dogs show up better in the snow. Here, Truman's brother Tai demonstrates how the boys spent their time in Mammoth:

Truman of the North

I realize I've been remiss (again...) in posting lately. It occurred to me today that I owe you some photos of our trip to Mammoth.

December 26, 2007 -- Truman was an excellent traveler. His first road trip, stuffed on the floor of the back seat with me and three people's luggage for several hours of traffic and bad weather, on our way up the mountain...not too shabby. He mostly just slept, with little complaint, and would occasionally raise his little yellow head to get sympathy and an ear rub from Matt & Amy in the front.

This was also Truman's first snow experience! While Tai was uncertain at first about this cold, wet stuff that made you work to move around, Truman leapt into a bank with nary a second thought. From there, it was a comic delight -- he would shove his snout into the snow to investigate, often resurfacing with a mouth full of pine needles and a springing leap into a land-dolphin maneuver over to Tai, who would meet him in the air Milli Vanilli-style to set off yet another round of brother wrestling.

I'm pretty sure he loved every minute of it.

We Needed the Rain, But....

The Dog (by Ogden Nash)

The truth I do not stretch or shove
When I state that the dog is full of love.
I've also found, by actual test,
A wet dog is the lovingest.

Alas, My Dog Is a Mama's Boy

The following is an actual IM exchange that occurred between me and my roommate, after she spent an evening watching Truman while I was out.

amy: Roo was so depressed after you left

amy: REALLY depressed

jenny: maybe he was just tired?

jenny: (i hope?)

amy: He was lying on his cushion, I went down to the laundry, came back, and he was still in exactly the same place, just staring mournfully at me--even though I came into the apartment with a key and everything

amy: Eventually he went down to your room and was lying there for a while

amy: So I finally went down and asked if he wanted to go in the kennel, and he did.

amy: That was our sad little evening

TrumanVision: Old Carrot, New Carrot

Puppy Birthday to Yooooooou

Truman is one year old today! To celebrate, I'm walking him down the street to the fancy dog wash, where they will undoubtedly lavish him with cookies and affection; taking him to our monthly puppy raiser meeting tonight; and giving him a present that I thought would be perfect for the occasion.

Do you remember Truman's favorite carrot?

Then:



Now:



I found another one, in a more big-dog-appropriate size:



Happy Birthday, Roo!

Based on Actual Events

The puppy raiser watched in disbelief as the idiot let his three dogs -- each one dragging a leash behind it -- wander along the hillside path, relieving indiscriminately and digging up the recently planted indigenous vegetation, sending a hail of dirt out onto the concrete walkway.

She was close enough to see the man, to see that he knew what his dogs were doing but didn't plan to take action. The idiot had seen the dog stopped several yards behind him, had seen the puppy raiser standing there while the dog was stopped, had seen the puppy raiser glare at him as she pulled the bag out of her pocket and picked up his dog's waste.

So when she caught up with him and handed him a small blue bag full of Pomeranian poo, with a civil but pointed "I believe this is yours," she was not surprised in the least at his response.

"Oh, huhhuh, is it?" He laughed nervously and flicked his eyes toward the offender, who was still pawing furiously at the dirt.

"Yes, perpetrated by the same one who's currently digging back there."

"Oh, uh, huhhuh, is he?" Another quick glance at the digger.

"Yes."

"Hehheh, yeah, it's tough having three dogs, y'know?"

"Yeah," she replied, letting her better judgment filter out the things she wanted to say as she maintained control of her mouth and her puppy (who, despite the understandable distraction of three very close-proximity and thankfully friendly dogs, was doing pretty well). "And it's tough having just one when other people let their dogs run around illegally off-leash."

Next time, thought the puppy raiser, she'd look at one of the dogs' ID tags, and maybe their irresponsible owner would get a nice letter or phone call from Los Angeles Parks & Rec or Animal Control.

Or maybe even someone pretending to be from Los Angeles Parks & Rec or Animal Control.

She wondered what the fine was for violating the leash law and posted signage....

Happy Roo Year

May your 2008 be joyous, prosperous, and filled with the blessings of family and dear friends. Truman and I wish you a very Happy New Year!

Going Up the Mountain

Truman and I had a great Christmas day, with presents and family and food and a little time for reflection. We hope yours was lovely as well!

And now we're headed up to Mammoth with Tai and his people for a few days in the snow! Thus, there will be no blogging until about New Year's....

In the meantime, please enjoy the billions of posts that I just put up a few days ago. I hadn't blogged since about Thanksgiving, so if you want to see everything since then, be sure to click on the archives to your right.

We'll come back with lots of good brothers-in-the-snow pictures, I'm sure. See you soon!