Malibu wants a cookie!

Nana brought oatmeal cookies. The doggies love Nana's oatmeal cookies. Malibu thought she did not get enough oatmeal cookies, so she worried about everybody else's oatmeal cookies. Finally, Miss Julie gave Malibu a boost so she could see who at the table actually had a cookie. As you can tell from this picture, Malibu discovered that Nana still had a cookie!

Malibu was very, very serious about watching Nana's cookie to make sure that she received another treat from Nana. Nothing could distract Malibu from her cookie guard duty.

Freddy and the girls' yearly checkup.

Freddy and the girls went to the vet's office for their yearly checkup. As usual, all three were not happy to be there. Of course, no one is as frightened as Malibu...poor baby. 

The first thing we did was weigh the doggies. Freddy is still at a healthy 12 lbs., thin yet solid. Malibu moved up the scale a little and weighed in at 10 lbs. Mommy definitely has to start walking them three times a day again. Not necessary for Malibu, but for Luna. She weighed in at a whopping 17.5 lbs.! She does not seem to eat that much, yet she is still packing on pounds. Mommy laid down the law and said no more human food...okay, okay, unless it's a protein. Otherwise, no carbs! Of course, she is a German girl. She is probably just big-boned.

Secondly, we took the doggies into the examination room. They're unhappy enough to stand on the cold, stainless steel table. But, then they each get a turn getting blood drawn and a stool sample. The vet arrives. He is a very nice man. He is good with the doggies and he listens to their parents' concerns. Freddy is in good shape, but it is time for his teeth cleaning. Mommy refused to allow Freddy to undergo anesthesia last year, but reluctantly agrees this year. Malibu is also in good health except for a couple of rear molars. He said Malibu's teeth cleaning will be more difficult than Freddy's, so we agreed for Freddy to go first. We're still trying to figure out her hair loss. He thinks we need to take her to an endocrinology vet in Gainesville, Fla. We'll see. We do not want to put Malibu under a lot of stress. It's just hair..... Luna is also healthy. The vet was extremely pleased with the condition of her teeth. He was very surprised that they had stayed so white since the cleaning. It wasn't until we were home later that we realized she keeps her teeth clean by chewing on all those plastic lids!

Freddy and Malibu needed their annual distemper shots. Luna was not due for any shots. But, she's felt the worst. She's been moody and exhausted since the appointment. Mommy is worried for her Luna. Maybe it was too stressful, although she didn't seem that upset at the time. Of course, there has been lots of napping since then.

P.S. I nearly forgot!! After the vet's examination of Malibu, he said, "What a weird little dog." I always said Dachshunds are aliens.

Malibu's first snake

The puppies had a long playtime in the front yard - two hours! I guess the lizards think it is still winter because we don't have very many out and about yet, so the doggies don't have anything to chase. Freddy and Malibu still love to check all the bushes looking for lizards and, for Malibu, frogs too. 

Well, Daddy has cleared the underbrush from a large plant and the puppies were finally able to search underneath it. Freddy and Malibu spent quite a bit of time searching underneath the plant. Then, Malibu came running out with a snake - a little, black harmless garden snake. She was so happy to have a "giant lizard." Freddy was interested too, but Malibu was definitely not going to share.

Malibu played with the snake like she does the frogs. She runs around with it in her mouth. She smacks it around with a paw. It was funny to watch this little doggie run around with this snake hanging down. The snake must have thought it was winter too because it never hissed or tried to strike. Malibu played with it until she got bored and then left it. She went back a few minutes later and it was already gone.

Malibu visits The Land of the Giant Dogs

Meet Gigantor a/k/a Apollo

My goodness! Time does fly around the holidays. I can't believe it's been a month without a Freddy, the wiener dog update. Freddy and the girls enjoyed a lovely Christmas holiday. Then, Mommy and the human boys went to visit Mommy's younger sister in Delaware. Mommy only took Malibu with them.

Gigantor a/k/a Apollo

Freddy and Luna were c-r-u-s-h-e-d that they were left behind. They had Daddy here all week, but they were unhappy. Freddy gets even by peeing on all the wall corners and furniture legs. Then, Luna has to pee everywhere because she's nervous and upset that she was left behind. Mommy really hated leaving Freddy and Luna behind, but she had to. Freddy is so territorial over all that he can see that Mommy didn't want Freddy into the fray of The Land of the Giant Dogs. Malibu created enough chaos all on her own. 

Where's Malibu?

Miss Ruthie has four dogs - Sunny, an ancient Golden Labrador; Bandit - an old Black Labrador (hunting dog), Frankie, a young Black Labrador/Boxer mix; and Apollo, an 180-lb. deaf Great Dane puppy. After a couple days, Malibu decided the pack order should be Sunny, Bandit, Malibu, Frankie, and Apollo. Because of her self-prescribed pack order, Malibu would take Frankie's toys away from him. When Apollo got too close to Mommy, Malibu would run out from behind Mommy's legs, run a circle around Apollo snapping at his feet, and then run back behind Mommy. Apollo never did figure out what that crazy little doggie was doing. Of course, every played nicely when it was snacktime!

His paws are bigger than her head.

Malibu didn't sleep soundly while we in The Land of the Giant Dogs. But, she zonked out on the car ride back to Central Florida. Of course, now she's sleeping like an angel. In fact, most mornings she stays in bed instead of getting up when Mommy's up. Malibu need the extra recuperation.

Luna's first kill.

"Where is my lizard?"

Freddy the wiener dog and the girls were searching the plants in the front yard for lizards. Okay, Freddy and Malibu were hunting lizards; Luna was trying to sneak across the front yard after the neighbor's cat. 

I decided to move a patio chair to another spot on the porch so I had a better view of the yard and street. As usual, I banged the chair around and lifted the cushion checking for hidden lizards. Sure enough, there were two rather large lizards hiding underneath the cushion. Of course, I dropped the cushion and started screaming "lizard!" {That's always my natural reaction. I'm 100% girly-girl.} That brought Freddy running over and, interestingly, it brought Luna. Freddy chased one lizard into the bushes; Luna caught the other! Luna kept trying to get into the front door with her lizard, but I refuse to allow playmates inside, so I blocked Luna and shut the door. By now Malibu had shown up and wanted Luna's lizard, but Luna wasn't going to share. Instead, Luna used her front teeth to check the lizard out. She didn't seem sure what to do with it. But, she eventually bit it's head off. Malibu still wanted the lizard, but Luna was going to keep her kill. Luna stood guard over her lizard.

Now, when I finally sat down on the patio chair, I kicked off my flip flops and put my feet up on the chair. When I saw Luna protecting her lizard, I wanted to grab the camera from inside the house. Unfortunately, I didn't look before I leaped. I just put my feet down into my flip-flops. Luna had put her dead lizard on top of my flip flops for additional protection. {Or, perhaps she was trying to share?} After I felt cold, squishy lizard, I shrieked and kicked them off. Of course, I had goo between my toes that I had to remove. Ew!!!!! Luna did not understanding my screaming; she just wanted her lizard back.

I ran into the house for the camera. Luna wasn't sure if she was supposed to follow, so I shut the front door so she couldn't bring her dead lizard into the house. This time I put on a pair of tennis shoes and ran back outside to take the picture. Unfortunately, right as I got there, Malibu ran over and grabbed Luna's dead lizard and ran off with it! So, I have no picture to show Luna's first kill. Now, she's back to staring at the neighbor's cat. I guess catching lizards isn't what she thought it would be......

Happy Thanksgiving 2012!

Freddy the wiener dog and the girls had a very enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday here in the USA. They had plenty of food to eat and lots of napping.Then, it took an army to get all the three doggies together for a Thanksgiving photo!

Freddy, Malibu and Luna wish all their readers a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Freddy likes 68º F (20º C) with a slight breeze.

Freddy the wiener dog really enjoyed our early evening walk. It was 68º F (20º C) with a slight breeze. Freddy was frisky! He either racewalked or jogged the whole way. In fact, he was so happy that it looked like he was skipping.

Malibu seemed happy enough, but she stayed close to Freddy the entire way. Steven walked Freddy, so I walked Bu. Unfortunately, Freddy wanted to walk so fast that I had to jog now and then to keep up. I wasn't in my running shoes, but at least I had tennis shoes on. It's really tough jogging in flip-flops.

Luna was naughty (what's new, huh?). She hid when it was time to put on their harnesses. So, she was left behind. Of course, she was very upset about this. Too bad. She either listens to her Mommy or she gets left out of the fun.

Yay! Daddy's home!! Daddy's home!!

Freddy the wiener dog really missed his Daddy. A couple of times a year, Daddy takes 4- to 5-day business trip/meetings, usually in Galveston, Texas. Freddy knows what it means when Daddy takes out a suitcase.Freddy did pretty well this time. He was a little moppy, but he spent most of his time pestering Mommy. "What'cha doin', Mom? Huh? Huh? Huh?" Freddy gave Daddy a very quick hello, and then he wanted Daddy to chase him and throw woobies around the backyard.

Luna the wiener dog was depressed while Daddy was gone. She didn't want to play with any toys. She followed Mommy from room to room, just making sure she knew what Mommy was doing and that Mommy wasn't going anywhere too. Luna, however, had the biggest "welcome home" greeting for Daddy. She couldn't have twiggled that rear-end or tail any faster than she did. If you hear of any earthquake tremors in the Central Florida area, no worries. It's just Luna shaking the house and everything else loose in her welcome to Daddy.

Malibu the wiener dog was a little different. She handled herself the usual ways --- Run around the house like crazy, keep track of Mommy, dig for frogs...... Routine stuff. Malibu gave Daddy a quick, little greeting when she saw him, but she couldn't be slowed down. She was chasing frogs and digging dirt when he arrived home. Malibu did give him a better greeting later. When she completed her frog hunt, she came back inside, ran over to Daddy, and frantically scratched his knee. This is the universal symbol for "pick me up."

Now, all three are piled together with Daddy, sleeping. Freddy started off between Mommy and Daddy's pillows. Now, he's on Daddy's pillow with his front paws resting on Daddy's shoulder. Malibu is also on Daddy's pillow, but she has her paws on Freddy. Finally, Luna is stretched down the length of Daddy. Luna's a l-o-n-g girl. She wants Daddy's warmth, but she also must unkink her back with a good stretch.

I'll post some pictures tomorrow.

"Ew, what is that?"

Early this morning Luna, the wiener dog, and I were crossing the kitchen when we spotted a big pile of poo. Actually, Luna saw it first and I saw Luna's reaction. Luna was almost upon it when she stopped, took a brief sniff, jumped back a little, and then took the long way around the poo. Yeah, Luna, I agree.

So, I let Luna outside for a pee break while I went back to pick up the doggie poo. Thankfully, t-h-a-n-k-f-u-l-l-y, I turned the light on first. When I went back over to the poo I saw that it was actually a huge toad. Ew!!!!! {*shudders*} Malibu!!!!!!!

Luckily, there was a rather large bowl sitting on the kitchen counter. I quickly emptied it and with shaking hands managed to get the bowl over the huge toad without screaming.....My screaming that is, not the toad. I'm still freaked out imaging reaching down - with toilet paper and not bare-handed - to pick up the big, squishy, living toad! Ew!!!!! {*shudders*} In the dark!! Can you just imagine!?!

Now, if Malibu had brought it inside last night, she would have brought it to the bed. But, if Malibu had brought it in this morning, then she would have been spastic, running around the house in circles and barking at me. {She actually had a "come and see my toad" bark.} Neither happened, so I have no idea when Malibu brought the big, nasty toad into the kitchen.

Anyway, I did what any SANE woman would do..... I woke my husband at 5:00 a.m. to remove the toad from the kitchen. Hey, if I'm on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, then hubby can join along too. {Our neighbors must be wondering why their toad population has risen exponentially.}

I'd like to give a big "thank you" to Luna for notifying me of the foreign object on the floor.

Snuggling with Luna.

Luna, the wiener dog, loves to cuddle...when she wants to. Mommy is trying to get Luna to cuddle when Mommy wants to. Luna's not so sure about that. When Mommy puts Luna in her lap, Luna remains all stiff-legged, every muscle tight, and her spine stiff as a board. Gee, relax Luna. Mommy gives Luna extra attention trying to loosen her up. So far, this has only made Luna want more of her cuddle time. But, she still stiffens when Mommy wants cuddle time.

Mommy doesn't get much cuddle time with Luna as it is. Malibu has no tolerance for Luna in Mommy's lap. Malibu will squeeze between Mommy and Luna until Luna is shoved off. Of course, then Mommy is in trouble because she was holding Luna. 

Freddy doesn't care as long as he's not disturbed.

Mommy's turn to be sick.

Freddy, the wiener dog, has enjoyed the last few days of complete bedrest. Mommy has been sick with a bad cold, so Freddy has been lounging next to Mommy. Tonight, Freddy is snoring...loudly.

For the most part, Malibu has enjoyed Mommy's stay in bed. But, she does get a little restless to go outside and play. Thankfully, she understands that Mommy is sick so Bu isn't fussing for Mommy to outside and play too.

Luna, however, is very lazy so she is happy to stay in bed for extended periods of time. She makes sure to never miss a meal or snack, though.

Mommy's little G.I. Joe

Malibu, the wiener dog, has many names.... Malibu, Bu, My Little Sweet Bu, Cammie, etc., etc. She is Mommy's baby. {Yes, Freddy the wiener dog is Top Dog, The Divia, Freddy Baby, but he prefers Daddy to Mommy. But, Malibu is all Mommy's little girl {except when she's Freddy's girlfriend}.

Recently, Mommy started calling Malibu "G.I. Joe," mostly "Joe." Malibu took to this name right away. She responds more quickly to "Joe" than she does to "Malibu" or "Bu." Mommy thinks it's very cute that when she yells "Joe," Malibu comes flying around the corner, or wherever she's coming from. Joe is also the name that Mommy uses she chases Bu around the house or outside. That may be why Malibu likes Joe so much.

So, Mommy finally has her little camouflaged G.I. Joe.

Update at The Toddler House

Luna protecting her toy.

Freddy, the wiener dog, and his girls have not enjoyed the last two weeks. Mommy has been helping in the band room at Eric's middle school. This leaves Freddy and the girls alone for most of the day. They are very unhappy with Mommy. But, Mommy stayed home all weekend and made them feel better.

Freddy is getting a massage. Oh, yeah, he's a Diva.

Luna is chewing on plastic, and Malibu wants to take the plastic away from Luna. {The remnants of the old chewed up plastic vitamin bottle.} Every now and then, there's a brief scuffle, but Luna refuses to let Malibu win. Oh, girlfriend!! Mommy gave Malibu a big water bottle to destroy. Malibu put on a big show in front of Luna, but it didn't work. Luna didn't want the big water bottle; she kept the chewed up plastic. {Oh, Luna just buried her chewed up plastic in a blanket and laid on top of it. She even refused doggie treats because she doesn't want to leave her nasty old plastic.}

All is normal at The Toddler House...... 

Bu.....Bu......BU!!!!!

That'a-my-Bu... That'a my Bu...
That'a my Buuuuuuu!!

Malibu, the wiener dog, had a very scary day. Tuesday, when Malibu's humans were eating dinner, Malibu ran outside {after frogs, no doubt}. She came right back in.....barely able to walk, violently trembling, pupils fixed and dilated, very shallow breathing, and unresponsive. How did Malibu crawl from outside?

Mommy picked up Malibu and called her name. Unresponsive. Mommy couldn't hear any breathing and couldn't see Malibu's tummy moving. Mommy stuck her finger down Malibu's throat; nothing there. Thankfully, Malibu gagged on the finger and spit it back - she was getting air! The entire time Mommy was calling Bu's name over and over and over, trying to get some sort of response. Nothing.

Of course, Mommy's screaming brought Daddy and the boys. Daddy couldn't figure out what was wrong either, and the boys were freaked! Steven was so upset that he ran to another room. Mommy and Daddy thought perhaps Malibu had gotten a wasp or spider bite and that Bu was in anaphylactic shock.  But, there wasn't any swelling, lump or bloody spot. Mommy and Daddy ran out the door with Malibu, but our vet's office was closed. By the time we reached his office Malibu was still trembling, but it wasn't as badly as before. Malibu's pupils were no longer completely dilated. There was slight movement when Mommy moved her fingers back and forth in front of Malibu's eyes. Bu's eyes were responsive to Mommy's voice at this point. Because the trembling was subsiding and Malibu seemed to be "returning to normal," Mommy and Daddy decided not to run Malibu across town to the emergency vet's office.

Relaxing on the patio
with a chewed vitamin bottle.

Once back home, Malibu and Mommy curled up in bed together. Luna came onto the bed and curled up along side Mommy and Bu. Luna didn't even bring her tiger or try to get Mommy's attention. She just laid next to Bu. Freddy also came onto the bed. He gave Malibu a quick sniffing and then he licked her face 5-6 times. {It was so cute!} Then, Freddy also laid on the bed near her. For an hour afterward she seemed exhausted and disoriented. Later, she was romping about as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.

The next day Mommy and Daddy took Bu to her vet. He performed a thorough exam, of course. He even took blood for a workup. {Results back on Friday.} The vet's initial thoughts are that Malibu had a seizure, perhaps caused by hyperthyroidism. Hopefully there's good news tomorrow. Mommy doesn't want her baby girl to do that again.


8/17/12 Update: Bu's bloodwork came back absolutely normal. The vet said, "It's exactly the way it should be." So, Mommy and Daddy will keep an eye on Bu and hopefully this won't happen again..... Maybe she picked up a really nasty toad.

Bathtime!

Freddy, the wiener dog, got a bath tonight. He wasn't happy about it, but he was s-t-i-n-k-y! Then, when we wetted him down, he got even stinkier!! Phew! Lately, we haven't been able to stop Freddy's itchy manly-manly chest. We tried yet another shampoo. Mommy actually got it at the hair salon. If this doesn't work, then there's another to try from Amazon. It was requested by a rescue group, so maybe it will be mild, gentle yet helpful to Freddy's itchy skin. Of course, Freddy's always been high maintenance. Diva's always are.

Bu also received a bath tonight. She wasn't stinky but she had stuff stuck to her legs and chest, probably from all that dirt digging and frog chasing. Giving Freddy a bath makes him hide under a blanket. Giving Bu a bath makes her...hum, well...insane. She's has been running super-speedy circles around the house....jumping on and off furniture...stealing Luna's tiger...........

Malibu's new squeaky hedgehog.

Malibu, the wiener dog, has a new squeaky hedgehog. She loves it! Malibu has kept the hedgehog with her all day, like it's her baby....except every now and then she bites and shakes it.

Luna loves Malibu's new hedgehog too. In fact, Luna has snubbed her new tiger because she wants Malibu's hedgehog. It has caused quite a stir since it arrived this morning. These girls just love squeaky toys!

Dirty, dirty Bu!

Malibu, the wiener dog, was filthy, filthy dirty. She had more dirt on herself than any left out in the yard. She was so dirty that she couldn't open her right eye. Malibu bounced off the couch a couple of times before Mommy was able to catch her. Mommy gave Malibu a long bath, so now Bu is mad at Mommy. But, Bu! You can open your eye now!!

Malibu kills Woodstock

Malibu, the wiener dog, also received a new toy - Woodstock, as in Snoopy's Woodstock. Malibu was very, very happy to get a new woobie. She just decided to kill it. She went crazy. She'd shake it, smack it around, and then run circles around inside the house as fast as she could. And, then, she did it all over again and again. Poor Woodstock never had a chance.

"I'm going to nap with Daddy....."

Tiny Bu in Daddy's big hand.

Malibu, the wiener dog, was very jealous of the attention Mommy gave Luna when Luna returned home from her teeth cleaning. Malibu decided that Mommy must be punished. So, Malibu gave all her loving to Daddy....at least for a little while.

She climbed up into Daddy's arms, gave Mommy a couple of dirty looks, and then napped with Daddy.

Summertime Malibu

Freddy the wiener dog, doesn't care when Mommy brings home girly stuff. But, Malibu does. Mommy was going to post on Facebook her new fabulous summer wedges and hat, but Malibu insisted that she be part of this summertime photo.