Class Withdrawal

Our most recent obedience classes ended a few weeks ago, and Jade is SOOOO BORED and depressed. Poor guy. We've been taking him out a lot and over to Patrick's to play with Ruby, but it's just not the same as class. It's great timing that we're moving into our apartment this weekend so we'll be able to go for lots of walks every day. He'll be a happy pup. Our next session (rally obedience!) starts up in two weeks, so I'm super excited for that!

Here are some photos from the other day. My mom and Kat came out to move some more stuff to the new house (Jade and I have been staying here until we move into the new apartment), and when they left, Jade wanted to go with them really badly. He scooted out the door and hopped right up into the driver's seat next to my sister, haha.

(PS. I know the coloring of these photos is weird.)

Despite the worried look on his face in the photo to the right (I know, he always looks worried), Jade (and I!) had fun today! Early this morning, our house was being shown so we brought him over to Patrick's parents' house with us around 9:30am. We made the very short walk to the playground at the nearby elementary school where we ran around and rolled in the grass. There were a bunch of little kids on the playground (it's a very cute park-like neighborhood), and they all came over and loved Jade up. I call him "The Love Sponge" because that's seriously what he is. He just soaks it up! :)

After our time in the schoolyard, we walked back to Patrick's where we layed in the grass some more while Patrick mowed the lawn for his mom, and then we went for a ride and came home.

Jade is so funny when we're in town because all the sights and sounds are so new to him, even though he has been visiting Patrick's house for five years now. He's always completely alert and has a difficult time relaxing.

Our new apartment is a block from the lake in Oswego (HUGE with two bedrooms, hardwoods, dining room and front porch! super cute!), and we have a gorgeous lakeside park (Breitbeck Park) on the North side of us, and we have the beautiful West Park on the South side of us! I can't WAIT to take him for lots of walks every day. It should help him become a lot more comfortable in the city. :)

Jade is officially a Canine Good Citizen! :)

Jade passed his CGC test last night! For those who do not know, CGC stands for Canine Good Citizen, which is a program run by the American Kennel Club promoting good manners, etc in dogs. It's a really fun program, and it's so great for dogs and their people to accomplish it together, so you should definitely check it out!

http://www.akc.org/events/cgc/index.cfm

Not only did Jade pass, but our whole class passed!

Congratulations to Liz and Blue, Kit and Cinder and Lynda and Dottie! :) :)

Granted, there were only four of us, but still! It was really exciting! We are all so proud of each other and our dogs. It's very rewarding. After we had all tested and passed, we had a little party. The doggies played and bounced around and had fun. Linda (our amazingly awesome and sweet trainer) had brought some yummy cookies for us and some tasty treats for the doggies. She also surprised each pup with their own new big stuffed animal squeaky toy! I never buy stuffed animals for Jade because he tears them to shreds within a few minutes (he only has bones and hard rubber toys that last a long time), but last night when we got home, Patrick and I tried to help him understand that it's fun to just chew on the toy and squeak it rather then "killing it." He learned so quickly, and he has been carrying it around like his own little baby doll ever since. It's so cute. He brought it to bed last night and even brought it in the car with us this afternoon when we went for a ride, hehe. He's so cute.

Linda, thank you so much for the wonderful toy. Jade is so attached to it already! :)

Toby and Jade

Here are my wicked cute puppies enjoying the breeze and cool air after the rain this afternoon. :)

Classes and Digestive Discomfort

Last week was our last agility class of the session. Jade finally did the dog walks all on his own for the first time all session! He did it, like, four times, too! I was so proud of him.

Last week was also the start of our new session of obedience classes, and I love it even more than before because our class is so small! There are just three of us and Linda, and it's awesome. I never thought about how much I would enjoy a small class, but it is FABULOUS. :)

While on the topic of obedience class...

Monday (as in, two days ago), Jade would NOT sit during class. That is very unlike him, and I actually had to get very stern in my voice in order to get him to sit. Patrick and I had noticed on our way to class that he was being funny in the Jeep - he just would not sit still or get comfortable. As soon as we got home from class, though, he ran right into the back yard and pooped! Poor pup! Here I was making him sit in class when all he wanted to do was poop - I bet he was so uncomfortable! :(

Jade's Eyes and Ears

Sorry I forgot to update you all on Jade's little eye emergency we had last weekend!

Thursday, we had our emergency follow-up exam, and we received a clean diagnosis! There was no sign of scratching or ulcers or anything, and his eye had completely come back out to where it normally is. Yay! No more NSAIDs, either. He's all good, thank goodness!

His ears are also doing REALLY well. We're finally kicking the butts of those nasty yeast infections. His left ear is almost completely cleared up, and his right ear is 100 times better than it was - just a little bit gunky. We are just finishing up a bottle of the Mometamax, and then we'll be on to our last bottle. He gets 8 drops in his right ear every day, and 8 drops in his left ear every other day. That seems to be working really well for him as he is not tilting or shaking his head or scratching at his ears at all anymore! The only times he shakes is after I put the drops in his ears and massage the fluid into them.

So, yeah, he's a happy, healthy puppy!

I kind of have a feeling, though, that if we can't kick the ear infection by the time we're done with our next bottle of Mometamax (which will last about a month) that they may have become chronic. Hmm.

Stone Quarry Hill Art Park

Sunday morning, my mom, Patrick and I took Jade for a ride down to the amazingly beautiful Stone Quarry Hill Art Park in Cazenovia. We had such a nice time, and Jade was able to enjoy a large part of our visit off-leash! :)

To view more photos from our little outing, visit my blog!

My handsome boys

Jade kept retreating to this shady spot in the field.

A very large piece of art that actually moved very subtly with the wind! So neat. You have to see it in person.

Here, we are sitting on a piece of artwork called "Nature's Ear".

Appointment and Agility

Jade and Bruiser were doing a pretty good job of keeping cool yesterday - sprawled out right under the ceiling fan. ;)

I just scheduled Jade's eye check-up.

We can't get in Tuesday or Wednesday like Dr. Kulow at the emergency clinic suggested, but we are scheduled for Thursday at 5pm, so I imagine Jade will be fine until then, haha. His eye is a teeny bit watery, but that's it! If you didn't know he had been hit in the eye with a toy, you'd never know there was anything wrong with him at all!

He's such a trooper.

It works out well that we don't have agility this week. If we did, I think we would probably not be going because I just don't want him out and about, taking a greater chance of hitting his eye or getting foreign objects in it. By the time class rolls around next week, I'm sure he'll be as good as new! :)

Patrick and I are going to an agility trial in Cato on Sunday! I'm planning on taking pictures, and we're going to bring Jade, too! The experience will be good for him. My friend, Jovi, will be there with her Beagle, and Linda will be there, too, with her Shelties! The weather is supposed to be beautiful this weekend, too. Fun! :)

Quick update on Jade...

I've been at my dad's house since around 2pm, but my mom has been here all day with Jade to make sure he didn't have any adverse reactions (excessive thirst, upset stomach...) to the anti-inflammatory medication. He's been perfectly fine. :)

I got home around 8:30...

I can tell his right eye is still sore because he's sucking it back a wee little bit, but it's noticeably further out than it was last night and this morning. Nice and bright and open, too. No third eyelid visible at all.

I feel like I should be giving him something else, but I've done all I can until tomorrow around 11am when I give him his next dose of the anti-inflammatory.

Tomorrow morning, I also have to make the appointment for his follow-up with our vet.

Jade's Eye

Jade's eye is already doing so much better. I'm so thankful!

I purposely slept really late this morning (except I was awake the whole time just lying there) so he'd rest his eye for a long time...

I don't mean for this to sound the wrong way, but I wish I had taken a picture of it so you guys could have seen what it looked like last night. His right eye was noticeably sucked back into his head, which TERRIFIED me until the doctor at the emergency clinic said that dogs do it on purpose when their eye is in pain. I had honestly thought that, maybe, his eye had been hit so hard that it literally got pushed back! (Stupid, I know...) Also, his third eyelid was completely protruding over his right eye which was tightly squinted, and it was partially covering his left eye, too, though it wasn't as bad. It made me so sad to see, though, and just gave me a really weird feeling. My poor puppy. :( :(

This morning, both eyes are open and beautiful, even though his right eye is still sucked back a little bit.

I just gave him his NSAID, and he is full of it this morning, haha. He's been teasing the kitties, and right now he's mumbling at me for the last portion of his food.

Spay and Neuter

For every dog and cat in the U.S. to have a home, each person would have to own four dogs and six cats. That's 16 dogs and 24 cats for a family of four!

SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS, PEOPLE.

Jeez.

At the veterinary emergency clinic last night, I grabbed a bunch of business cards for this awesome place.

http://www.spayandneutersyracuse.org/

(If you want to know why I had to bring Jade to the emergency clinic last night, check the previous entry.)

Emergency Vet

It's after 3am, and I am beyond exhausted.

So, Jade suffered blunt trauma to his right eye this evening (Saturday evening) when he was playing with one of his big rubber tug toys which snapped back and hit him in the face. Needless to say, that toy is in the trash.

Poor puppy.

He's now on an oral anti-inflammatory thanks very much to a 1am trip to the emergency vet.

-phew-

There are always different doctors there (not that I frequent the place, haha, but Patrick's sister used to work there and I had to bring my kitten there once about 3 years ago), many of which come up from Cornell. The doctor we had tonight was soooooo awesome! Her name was Dr. Allie Kulow. She was so cute and sweet and absolutely LOVED Jade. I mean, she fawned over him even more than people normally do, haha. He soaked it up, being the DoberSponge of Love that he is.

Like I said, we have him on an anti-inflammatory and will be making an appointment with his regular vet for Tuesday or Wednesday to do a check-up on his sad little eye.

He's been chewing happily on his bone, and he just pounced at the kitties while they were wrestling near him. Would you think we just got back from the emergency clinic? Hah.

I'm going to bed now, though. It will probably be good for him to rest and keep that eye (er, both eyes, for that matter) closed for a good 8 or 9 hours.

Dang. I seriously feel so lucky that I have the ability to care for my dogs and kitties on the spur of the moment like that... <3

Agility

Wow, I am so sleepy.

The weather tonight was absolutely fabulous for agility... The sun was shining hazily, there was a very, very light breeze, and the temperature was somewhere in the 70s. Perfect. :)

Class went well - MUCH better than our last class, that's for sure. ;)
Go back a few posts if you don't know what I'm talking about, haha.

By then end of class, we were running a 17-obstacle novice course! It was so much fun. Even though we are far from perfect, I enjoy it so much. :)

I feel like my biggest problem is Jade's speed. I haven't figured out how to keep up with him, yet. I feel like we rush to most of the obstacles, but in a way, I feel like I HAVE to rush in order to keep him from getting too far ahead of me and not listening. I don't think we're at the point where we can really work that far away from each other and still be able to communicate, if that makes any sense.. Maybe we are, though?

Jade is so smart and so aware of me that he usually does pretty well as long as I tell him which obstacle to go to, allowing plenty of time for him to look for it. I still feel like he goes too quickly for the level we're at, though. Who knows. Maybe, mentally, he is ready to work farther apart? We'll just have to keep at it and see how it goes. :)

That's my only real issue right now, I think, aside from me just becoming smoother when pointing him toward obstacles.

I also need to not say his name unless he is distracted. That's a tough habit to break, haha.

Hmmm, what else... I know there are just a few minor things that we need to work on...

Oh, he isn't very confident with the dog-walk or the teeter. I guess I'll do as Linda suggested and get some plywood to prop up on the hearth or maybe on a cement block outside or something.


Anyway, I was happy with him this class. We had a really nice time. :)


Oh, the people with the Boxer that Jade was all worked up about during our last class - They arrived to class early again tonight. This time, they waited in their truck, but wouldn't you know it... JADE SPOTTED THE DOG THROUGH THE TRUCK. He was totally staring him down, too. It's ridiculous. Poor Jade, though. I mean, he obviously holds a grudge against Boxers after what happened to him during the two separate incicents at the dog park. In a way it's kind of funny because, I mean, most people wouldn't think a dog would actually be able to tell the difference between breeds... But, boy, there is not a single doubt in my mind about why he reacted the way he did to that Boxer. It's just crazy. The Boxer is a wicked handsome dog, though. :)

Alright, I'm tired.

Jade waits for a perfect 10 minutes before he starts "mumbling" to me for the next portion of his food. This "mumbling" consists of soft, throaty barks. It's so cute.

If you're wondering why he's asking for his next portion, it is because he bloats very easily. So, he gets fed in thirds with about 10 to 15 minutes between each third to give the food time to settle.

Annnnnyway...

Wednesday night was our last obedience class of the session, and we had such a good class! We completed a whole novice obedience sequence as if we were actually competing, and I was so proud of Jade. His off-leash heeling was sooo good! We need to work on straightening him out when he sits, though, hah, but that's not too big of a deal.

At the end of class, we all spread out and lined up in the center of the room for the 1-minute sit/stays and 3-minute down/stays. His sit was perfect, and for his down, all of the other dogs got up! I thought for sure he was going to last for the full three minutes, but with 15 seconds left, he got up, haha. Silly boy. I noticed when he started to wiggle his little elbow, though, so he was probably just getting uncomfortable. I need to teach him that it's okay to roll onto his hip and get comfy for long downs. Instead, he downs like he's ready to pounce, hah.

All-in-all, though, we had a really great class.

Afterward, we went to Patrick's. Jade and Ruby (Patrick's pit bull that his family adopted from the CNYSPCA) ran and played in the yard, I gave Jade his dinner that I had brought along, and then we went for a super long, lovely walk around the neighborhood.

Jade was a sleeeeeeeeepy puppy when we got home last night.

Tonight we have agility. It's going to be an absolutely beautiful evening for it, too. Hopefully Jade behaves better than he did during our last agility class. ;)

I can't wait for our next obedience session to start - two weeks! June 27th. :) :)

Last week, obedience class was cancelled on Wednesday, and on Thursday, Jade and I had no way to get to agility because we had no ride (Patrick lost track of time while he was in Syracuse with his mom and my car is currently off the road because I don't know if I'm going to buy a new one or get it fixed). So, I am really looking forward to class tonight and tomorrow night because I've missed it greatly! :)

The pictures below are from our little walk last night by my house. To see the rest, you can go to my photography blog.

My puppy and me

My mom and Toby

A couple extras...

Haha

I really love this shot that Patrick got of Jade and me. Love it.

The Birthday Boy

My little Doberboy turned 6 years old on Sunday, May 27th! I can't believe it! After all of the weight he's lost, I feel like he's still just a young man! He looks like it, too! :) :)

Monday we had a lot of fun. We met my stepmom Debbie, my brother D (who had his friend Kameron with him) and their doggies at the the river for a nice long walk. We stopped at PJs, and Debbie treated us to some delicious ice cream! When our walk was over, we went over to my dad's house where we let the dogs run and play and just have a fun time. They definitely had a lot of fun! As you will see in the very last photo, Jade slept the whole way home... and it was only 11 miles, haha.

My brother, Patrick and me

Dogs (from left): Hubble, Jade, Bambam

Patrick and Debbie walkin' the doggies along the river...

Here, Jade is running and enjoying the backyard that he hasn't visited since last Spring!

It had been too long! :)

Haha, my goofy Dobermonster

Hubble growled at Jade bunch of times, so Jade was unsure as to whether or not he was comfortable around Hubble. Can you tell?!

They allllll love the shade tree. :)

Kameron (on the left) and D under the swingset with Samantha and Bambam

Hubble looking like a cute little fawn!

Happy Hubs

Hubble and Jade wanting to come inside the pool fence...

Bambam doing her Cairn stance... ;)

Hubble sitting at the base of the wicked nice "treehouse" my dad built/is in the process of finishing...

Bambam

My little black Thoroughbred

Ahh, I'm being chased by a vicious Dobermonster!! ;)

Jade's cute Doberbutt is going after a tennis ball in this photo.

My boys

My sleepy puppy during the ride home!