Pictures!

I meant to take them last night and upload them early or earlier than now. He's a doll. We took him to the vet this morning as he had a little bit of runny (nonfirm) poo and was throwing up bile - which could essentially be stress from changing locations or from hunger. At the vet, they offered him baby food which he readily took and has been gulping it down ever since. I just feed him a little bit every hour.

He hasn't thrown up since about 11:20 which is great. However, he hasn't pooped either and we need some poo from him to take to the doctor.

I did give him a little (less than 1/4) of these little stomach settling pills, Pliva something, I don't feel like getting up to check.

Also, the vets are like "Well we need to revaccinate him!" So I offered the idea of taking a titer test in three weeks to see if his immunity is low and if so, I will probably get the shots for him. If they are high, then of course not.

Picture time <3

HE'S HERE!

Little Harvest (who is now going to be called Titus) is home. He yapped the entire way down and it took a task to get Puppy used to him. She now politely ignores him (avoids him) when she follows after her. She's better outside, of course, because in the house is her territory.

Right now, he's asleep and she's chewing on the chew that was designated for his ride back. She's really enjoying it, too.

Tomorrow, he has a doctors appointment and we start the new feeding regime. There's soft boneless chicken in the fridge for his breakfast.

Yay <3

Pictures tomorrow, probably.

Yeasty Ears.

Well. Puppy has awkwardly clean ears (I haven't cleaned them since last summer when she got an annual and I always check them but they're fine) but they were smelling pretty rough. Which probably comes from me bathing her and not drying them out well or when she goes outside in heavy rain and what not. Just water in hear ears since they're flopped over. Anyway, they weren't smelling too hot so I tried to find a home remedy for helping it because she scratches the hell out of them.

The home remedy I found:

50% vinegar 50% water.

The vinegar can be white or apple cider but I can never find apple cider so I just used white.

I've been doing it for about three days now and her ears smell a lot better. I'm not wrinkling my nose. But I haven't seen a difference in her scratching just yet because I'm not home all day but I do think it's better. She scratches for a shorter time.

My boyfriend is coming tomorrow so hopefully he can help me clean and puppy proof because I have so much to do because I didn't get a chance to do anything today. I was called in to work for four hours and I'm always dead after that so I slept the entire afternoon. I'm going to clean for awhile now but I'll only probably finish my room tonight, unfortunately.

Why yes, I do feed my dog raw meat.

ZOMG! I feed my dog raw chicken!


No shit I do. Why?

1. She's allergic to something in most dog foods (corn, more than likely, or wheat). By allergic I mean, she has diarrhea and she's very itchy among other things.

2. Dogs are descendants from wolves. Meaning.... dogs and wolves share 99.8 percent mitochondrial DNA and about 98 percent of their DNA. Dogs and wolves can also interbreed and produce fertile offspring. What does that mean? They're nearly exactly alike. Can dogs handle raw meat? Definitely - what do you think feral dogs eat, hamburgers? Science diet? No, sorry, they do not get 2 cups of science diet twice daily.

Vitamins that Dogs Need:

Vitamin A –eggs, oily fish, liver

Vitamin D – No foods, ultraviolet light

Vitamin E –Apple, Pumpkin, greens, liver, chicken, turkey

Vitamin K – greens, cabbage, broccoli, organ meats, bananas, eggs, cheese, meat

Vitamin C – broccoli, greens

Vitamin B1 – oatmeal, liver, eggs, potatos

Vitamin B6 – potato, banana, chicken, oatmeal, trout, salmon, tuna, peanut butter

Riboflavin – oatmeal, broccoli, sweet potato, chicken, lamb, liver, turkey, veal, mackerel

Vitamin B12 – meat, eggs

Niacin – chicken, liver, flounder, salmon, swordfish

Pantothenic Acid – Broccoli, rice, coldwater fish (ovaries? Seriously)

Folic Acid – Grains, broccoli, peas, greens, egg, liver

Calcium - broccoli

Chromium - broccoli

Iodine – Egg, fish

Magnesium – Brown rice, lima beans

Phosphorus – oatmeal, chicken, lamb, liver, pork, turkey, veal, catfish, mackerel, salmon, lima beans

Potassium – bananas, fish, salmon, turkey, beas, greens, apricots

Zinc – pork, baked beans, chicken, kidney beans, oatmeal

Biotin – liver, eggs, oats

Choline – egg, broccoli, salmon, peanut butter

Inositol – oatmeal, veal, pork

I decided to make a list because while it's pretty easy to feed one dog, making sure two dogs have a good balance is a bit harder, I'll have to get on more of a schedule than I am now.

I try to vary the types of vegetables t hat I give my baby but I could definitely increase the amount of beans that she gets because it's slim to none. I'm a big fan of the canned mixed vegetables, really. I definitely need to get more broccoli because while I try to give her a good variety, I like to have the easiest foods around. Which are obviously oatmeal, chicken, eggs, and broccoli.

Some dogs have allergies with oats and oatmeal but my dog is fine with it.

(If I left out anything, please please let me know)

Ahllo.

Still fairly frustrated with work but I can't not be excited because I'm going to see the pup on Thursday - Friday at the latest. I want to get it on Thursday (if I approve of her area, I'm not getting it if it just seems... weird). I'm driving down there and checking him out and then coming back either with or without a puppy - one of the two. Hopefully the first one. Also, I scheduled him a quick check up on Friday. That's another reason why I really want to go see/get him on Thursday.

---

As for work, I'm still pretty frustrated.

I went in today and even though I'm still in training, I got there before the actual worker. I was pissed 'cause I don't like it when people are late. And then she started going on about how "she" does things. But I'm like- well I can't DO anything because I'm still in training and you'll bitch anyway.

Needless to say, that was the beginning of a rough shift.

I put up with her complaining about the way I was taught to do things up until a point. And she whined about everything and did nothing - seriously. I power washed (the most horrible thing in the world - takes about two hours, seriously), I medicated the difficult dog, I basically walked them all for their am walk. What did she do? Follow behind me saying how SHE does things. Well, that's fine and dandy how YOU do things but we could have been out of here at 10 if you would have shut the hell up and actually DID something. I also met all of the clients, too. She met one, I think. Just one.

Also, she thinks she knows everything about dogs, seriously. Which was probably the worst part of it all. I could block out all of her whining but I couldn't block out her "Oh I'm the most knowledgeable person concerning dogs here." Like... we had this bulldog boarding. And she says "Well - why can't we put it out with other dogs?"
"Because it's not fixed."
"What else?"
"Because....?"
"Because it's a bull dog. It's a bully breed and it doesn't play well with other dogs." (Not all bulldogs are aggressive, it just so happens that this one is considered a red light case -meaning she is dog aggressive)
"Well... what about the french bulldog that comes to daycare everyday."
"I don't know.. "
"What about the boxers that we put in play groups?"
WHAT'S YOUR FUCKING POINT, ESSENTIALLY. So English and American bulldogs are bully breeds. So are Frenchies and Boston terriers and boxers. And the only ones that aren't allowed to socialize are the English and American.

Wtf ever.

Also, we have to be certified to handle these two staffordshire terriers and a pit bull. The pit bull I handled perfectly the first day someone watched me. I know, right. They didn't even let me handle the staffordshire male until today and we have to pass or fail and I passed. First time. Earlier that day, my lovely coworker bitched about how I don't handle him right. But apparently... I do.

I can handle dogs. What I can't handle is people breathing down my neck acting as if I'm an R-tard.

*sigh*

And now she wants me to help her with last walks. Which I don't mind doing, really. Because it's pretty easy when I do it with the other two workers. We have three places we can put dogs.. and I handle the small dogs and they handle the big dogs just because the big dogs are easier to walk. They get two fields and I just use one. It takes about the same amount of time

But we'll see what happens tonight.

Credit Card Update.

It's here. My limit is 1,000 dollars which is a lot more than I thought it would be so perfect. All I need to do is put like 50 dollars on my paypal credit. But I'm going to do more than that, probably try to put at least half or more. Hopefully more.

I need to activate it but I haven't yet. I'll do it soon.

I'm still going to finish applying for others but this one is completely for the pups. I'm happy with that <3

----

I was also called in to work today. I took Puppy with me but she totally doesn't enjoy it in the least. It's 8 dollars a day per dog so it's hardly bad at all. When I do all day working I'm definitely going to take them both.

I'm happy right now.

Huston, we have lift off!

First, let me start by saying that my dog has a chew problem. No, she doesn't destroy socks and shoes like most dogs but when she gets a chew, she eats it so fast that it's just like a snack to her. She's a 10lbs chew machine. Then, also, she's pretty picky with her toys. She loves rawhides but she's not very fond of actual dog toys (I hope that the new puppy will help her realize how FUN toys can be).

She has a kong and she loves her kong but only when it's filled. And she likes those dingo rawhides. She's definitely a thinker. If there's nothing to be figured out, then it is no fun.

However, I figured out something.

I was thinking about making some homemade dog chews just because that would at least be cheaper than buying them (I may try some banana chips as she likes those) but I was reading online and a suggestion was putting peanut butter on a rope toy. While putting peanut butter on a regular rope toy wouldn't last but a second (and that's all it lasted), I have this one rope toy with two pig feet on it that she likes but never really plays with - she's weird, if I pick it up she's totally interested in it, but if it's just on the ground she doesn't care.

Anyway, I put bits of peanut butter on the inside of the pig foot rawhides and a bit on the rope just to get her started, and she's been going for awhile now. I'm highly surprised. By while, I mean like.. ten minutes is pretty good. I will probably freeze the peanut butter on the toy next time, but for now, she's having a pretty good time.

The credit card that I was approved for should arrive before the coming monday. And my boyfriend "doesn't know" if he'll be able to come pick up the dog with me. I can easily do it but I really wanted him to come with me because I don't like going by myself. If it gets to like.... the 28th and he still has no idea, I may just tell her that I'm going to fly him. I really don't want to fly him but my boyfriend is flaky and retarded. He's just going to be sitting at home otherwise, probably. Or "moving out" of his apartment - even though he's been doing that for about a month now. It takes me two days to move out. It takes him a month. AND I'M THE WOMAN. (with a dog, no less) My parents are expert movers, that's what it is. Though we did take three cars. It was still one day.

Oh well. Two weeks! June 1st! They'll be ready! I get the pick of the litter, the best boy tricolor. I'm still wondering about how I name him but that doesn't matter too much.

I'm hoping that I can possibly pick him up the 31st and have two-three days with Will and the puppy, because I'm pretty sure I'll be working the 4th or so. Depends on if I'm working by myself or not. I can't really set up a time until I get my work schedule which will be given on the 28th, then I can email her and really talk. Otherwise there's a high chance that I won't even get the day off. Also, I still have seven days to get down there despite the day that I say I'm coming. So I'm sure I can figure something out with all of those open days. Even though I don't have a lot of readily available friends :/

Edit to the title.

We have decided, just now, to - if I am allowed to give the dog both his official name and his call name - to call him:

Pignot Grigio (official name) - Harvest (call name)

It was a joke entirely because we had first been joking around with calling him something from a video game, like my roommate named a bunch of star wars shit (no offense honey) and I was like "Hell F- no." And then, she got all sad like and I didn't want her to be offended so I was like "Why don't we name him Harvest?" to get her to smile.

Then I kind of liked it.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins.

This is one of my dog's all time favorite recipes. She loves them. And they do not make her sick. However, this recipe is designed for humans and at most I only give her half of a muffin per day as she only weighs 10lbs.

She is incredibly sickly so anyone can understand why I try not to overhaul her with new foods. But she ADORES these muffins.

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (sometimes we use whole wheat)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled.
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
15-ounce can pumpkin puree
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1. preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin tin and a 6 cup muffin tin with paper liners or coat them with cooking spray. (If you're not going to try one - trust me, they're amazing and you should - you could make 24 mini muffins)

2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg into a mixing bowl.

3. Whisk together the cooled melted butter, sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour mixture until just combined.

4. Fill each muffin cup about three-quarters full. Bake the muffins until they are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 22-25 minutes. Let the muffins cool for about 5 minutes, invert them onto a wire rack, and then turn them right side up on the rack to cool completely.



Sadly, I also go absolutely insane over this recipe too; my roommate makes it constantly (or used to until we both started getting fat - now we're on a diet but we're having them for the homecoming of the new puppy).

About the Title.

Penne (Pronounced "Pin") is going to be the call name for the new pup. His full name, if I'm allowed to give him that, is going to be Pignot Grigio <3

I like naming my animals after drinks:

Chardonnay (Current dog) Call name: Puppy

Black Jack Daniels (cat) Call name: Jack

Pignot Grigio (Soon to be new puppy) Call name: Penne

Excitement.

I am getting extremely excited about the new pup now even though I'm still somewhat uneasy about it because it is a huge undertaking. I'm getting it in about three weeks and I paid my 1/2 payment just now. The breeder is sending me pics of the one she picked out for me. I am getting the best of the tricolor boys in the litter.

Oh... and I'm feeding him raw. I already cleared it with the breeder and she doesn't care as long as I give him these health cookies which I need to go ahead and order. I'm going to get a bunch and probably feed my dog them, they can't hurt, I'm sure.

I've been feeding puppy mostly eggs lately because we have extras and I wanted to get rid of them. They're pretty high in protein though.. but it's all she gets in the day. One egg and then she chews rawhide or maybe apple sauce. I'm going to increase her fiber though because her anal glands get full way too fast. I need to try to express them again but I have a hard time with it and I think I make her butt sore when I try. Poor baby.

I'm nervous because: what if they don't get along? That's my biggest question but I feel like I'm being ridiculous because my dog loves almost all dogs. She's started to get nervous around large or rough playing dogs because she's pretty fragile but as far as pups, she's like mommy to them all. However, she doesn't get to socialize with a lot of big or adult dogs but when she does, she is okay as long as they're around her weight, a tad bigger or smaller. I think I'm worrying for no reason - and everyone even tells me that.

Right now my baby is chowing down on a rawhide bone.

In other news. I applied for my first credit card. I know I know - why get one? But I'm approaching my senior year of college and "I have bank" (especially if I can afford to get another cavalier). I'm basically going to use it to improve my credit score. You know, like buy gas on it here and there just to go home and pay the balance off within 25 days so it doesn't collect interest. I think interest is where you get caught. I'm also excited and equally nervous about that because I don't want to get "caught up" and fuck myself over because my parents ARE NOT going to help me pay it off. They said so already. I am going to use it to pay the remaining balance on the dog, if I can, just because I don't feel comfortable having my actual bank account on paypal and it is also the only thing costly enough to matter on my statement. I may use it as an organization technique though, and start putting vet bills and all important dog things - including food and treats - on the card because I am beginning to get kind of curious as to how much dogs really cost. I never think about it because I have developed the habit of saving money regardless but I am curious to see just how much money I spend on my dogs.

I'm also getting my parents dog.. or the dog that lives at my parents house but is still mine.. heartworm treatment sometime this summer if my job holds up. I'm probably going to get that done in late July, early August. I want some time just to the puppy to get him straightened out before I take on three dogs, even if it is going to be a short period of time. That will go on the credit card too, just for organization purposes.

Lasts, in my personal life. I'm going home to visit my boyfriend. If this visit goes well and we are interested in each other sexually, I will probably invite him to come with me to get my dog. If things go badly... then we may not even still be together. I don't want to go into detail because it makes me slightly sick to my stomach but I am packing for the trip now. It's from tonight until wednesday day. Then on Wednesday I go to my parents house and on thursday morning, early, I leave to come back.

I have to go to a staff meeting on Thursday at 1230 and then a handling class right after that. It'll be a tight fit but I can do it.

Now I'm exhausted, though. I want to nap but I'm trying not to because I know Will's going to want to go to sleep early.

Frustrations.

1. First and foremost. I AM OUT OF SCHOOL FOR THE SUMMER. ZOMG I CAN'T BELIEVE SUMMER IS FINALLY HERE. AND MY FIRST SUMMER WITH AN APARTMENT SO I DON'T HAVE TO GO HOME. YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY.

2. I am slightly frustrated with work at the moment; first because I am trying to be a certified worker and right now I'm not. And I only work on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday so it is even harder for me to get there. Also, I don't necessarily agree with how the veterinarian handles dogs. She basically says that treat rewarding some dogs is okay while it is not okay to treat reward others which I don't think is fair. Just because one dog is a fighting dog and one dog may be a cuddly chihuahua, they're both dogs. Like, we had this training yesterday and it involved one pit bull, a stafford terrier, and an abused chihuahua. We took turns holding and coddling the chihuahua but we were basically not allowed to show the same affection for the other two dogs. I did anyway though because the pit bull, Carmelia, is such a sweet dog. Also, the second thing that is frustrating me about training right now is the fact that I am being compared to others. I like to think that I can handle dogs pretty well even though I am physically pretty weak. Yesterday, I only got the chance to handle Carmelia but I think it would've at least been better if I could TRY to handle the other one. I did perfectly fine with Carmelia yesterday but considering that there are girls that have worked there for months and are not certified for both dogs, I'm sure that regardless of how well I handle the dog, I'm going to have to attend about two-thousand training sessions. I also hate how they're just watching because it makes it awkward because I just want to identify with the animals but I have to detach myself. I have to force dogs to sit because "I said so" which is something I am highly opposed to doing. I don't mind if they sit for something that they actually want, that is good, but just making them sit because I stopped walking, or because I said so or whatever is almost ridiculous to me. Like with Carmelia, I started handling her earlier and I go by the NILF (or nothing in life is free) so like when I feed her or give her water, I make her sit which I think earns more respect than walking her around in a circle and commanding that she sit for no good reason without any sort of reward.

3. This is a side track but I am SO SICK OF MY ROOMMATE. She brings her friends over like... absolutely constantly which isn't the problem. The problem is that I'm sick of seeing flabby bodies in two pieces with ugly faces. They'd be considered "but'er faces" except their bodies aren't that great either. I mean, I'm not modelesque (I'm just too short, lol) but I at least try to stay toned and cute. They just don't care. And then, she takes them to the pool like every single day. They don't even live at our complex, like seriously. I hate... lying out. Like WHY are you looking for skin cancer? I am so glad I'm african-American because I swear to god. I'd be the palest white person in the world because there's no way in hell that I'd go lie out in the sun and ask for leather skin.

4. I am getting increasingly excited about getting my new puppy. The unfortunate part is if my work doesn't pick up, I may not be able to get it until it's 12 weeks old. It doesn't matter too much though because I am guaranteed a male tricolor puppy when I pay this 1/2 payment which I'm paying Monday or Tuesday, whenever my paypal account is fully functional. I really really hope that my working picks up even though I already told my mom that I wouldn't be able to pay my rent, again. I hate telling her t hat because I feel so guilty but it's the truth so... I don't know.

5. Ultimately, I'm ready to be out of training. I'm ready to clean some dog ears and squeeze some anal glands (I've been practicing on Puppy - not to her satisfaction but she is the sweetest dog, she just stands there patiently as I torture her). I only need ten of each and I already have 1 for anal glands, two for nails, and one for ears. Hopefully over this weekend I can geta lot more. Probably by next weekend, if I'm lucky, I'll have all that training stuff completed.

Accident.

My baby had an accident today. In her crate.

Corn is a no-go for her, or maybe just freezer-burned corn. I should've tasted it first like I do with almost all of her vegetable foods. I gave her corn two days ago and it just came out today. And it looked like corn in feces. It was about the grossest thing I've seen in awhile but that was mostly the smell. It wasn't a happy smell.

She covered it with her blanket and made it where I basically I couldn't see it and then she whined up a storm when I walked in. It was like.. still fresh, meaning I know she did it within like 10 minutes before I got home. It makes me sad... but in her defense, it was pouring down rain this morning and I could easily understand how she wouldn't have wanted to pee and poo in rain.

Everything is nice and great now.

I'm preparing to put my down payment on my second job. I feel weird about paying a large sum of money for a puppy but it's basically like my graduation gift to myself - even though I graduate next year. I've never actually paid for a dog before but I really want this specific breed (the same one as my current dog) because she's still been acting a bit strange with large new dogs but she's always been fine with dogs her own size or puppies. In fact, she loves puppies.. or at least puppies that are between 5lbs-15lbs but I think she'll be dandy if the new dog maxes his weight at 20lbs. Mainly, I think she'll be okay with it just because she'll be growing up with him and he'll have a certain respect for her because she's the female and male's are usually the submissive ones.

I'm hardly worried about them getting along because I know they will. However, she is a bit iffy when it comes to what dogs she likes and which she doesn't. She tends to like or prefer dogs a little bit smaller than her or puppies, like I said, and I think that's mainly because she's so frail. She only weighs 10lbs and we have a stocky chihuahua/terrier mix (my roommates dog) and it also weighs 10lbs.

As of right now, I'm trying to take her to daycare a lot more so she can learn that it's going to be okay; though I think her big dog thing will never change unless it's Pico (she loves my black lab/german shepherd mix but that's because he's a lazy boy) but what can I say? I did get her from a shelter which almost guarantees some aggressive problems and I got lucky because she has no food aggression and no general dog aggression. She just has a problem with really hyper big dogs.

Oh well. Once I am able to get the discount at work, I will take her anytime I'm working and let her play with the other available small dogs that I think she'll get along with. Hopefully, there will be a friend that she automatically gets along with there because last time she wasn't being too friendly. I'm not sure if that was because she was freaked out by the new location or because I kept leaving her by herself. Oh well, with repetition and not being babied (even though the girls there kind of baby her when she whines), she'll be able to deal with her separation anxiety. Luckily last night, she didn't poo and pee everywhere like she used to when I left. Last night, she just whined for a little and then stopped and waited fairly patiently for me to reappear.

I think... she's okay when she knows she won't be bullied. I just wish I knew exactly what sets her off when it comes to dogs. I may ask the veterinarian again about her random large dog aggression. Hopefully we can somehow work with her when it comes to that. I'll set up an appointment probably after we get the little boy. Especially if she doesn't like him. If she shows aggression towards him as a puppy (usually she lets puppies chase after her - she even runs slowly so they won't be too far behind, it's adorable), I will schedule an appt STAT. <3

I have confidence that she'll be perfectly fine though, I feel like her aggression is a defense mechanism/fear aggression because she does constantly get trampled over and stepped on. I'm sure she's thinking, "If I bark and growl, then they won't hurt me," because she only barks and growls after she's tried tucking her tail and walking away, getting under me, and tucking her tail and running away.

But what can you expect? People are told to not let dogs that have a big weight gap socialize. I think it's something like the dog's weights must be 20lbs or less? Maybe 25, but then I think small dogs should be something more like 10lbs or less.

Ciao fer now <3