Is this wierd behavior?

Okay, I realize that is probably a loaded question. A better question might be, “On a rising scale of 1 to 10, how weird is this behavior?” This is possibly the only time in my life I might be considered a 10! But only by non-dog people, of course. From a dog person’s point of view, I am absolutely normal.

I just spent some quality time with the AKC Web site, checking trial dates, sites, judges, etc. for places I’d like to show Phoenix the rest of this year. I confirmed all the “standard” trials I always go to and added a few new potential “maybe” trial weekends. In other words, I’ve planned our show schedule for the rest of the year. And it’s still April.

I found so many excellent trials this fall that I even questioned the sanity of entering seven weekends in a row during September and October but decided against it. I did that a few years back with Jamie and learned my lesson. Showing seven weekends in a row is only fun for about the first three weekends, then it’s just dog show hell and you can’t wait for it to be over so you can wake up in your own bed on a Saturday morning and not do anything more complicated that day than make toast. How do those people who trial EVERY weekend do it???

It freaks out the non-dog members of my family (that would be pretty much ALL of my family and the Farmer’s, too) that I know what I’m doing on any given weekend a minimum of six months in advance. Most non-dog people don’t even know what they’re doing this weekend but I can tell you exactly what I’m doing every weekend for the next two months and probably more. I’ve discovered that scares people. Non-dog people, of course. All my dog friends have this same ability to keep a running calendar in their head with trial dates filled in neatly. In ink, of course.

Any “free” weekends quickly fill up with local matches (planned, of course, not to conflict with trial weekends) and plans for lessons or training group get-togethers. I honestly can’t remember the last time I had a weekend “at home” that didn’t involve at least one trip to a training building to meet friends or just work my dogs by myself.

In other words, no, I don’t have any “free” weekends. So don’t get hurt feelings when I don’t come to your baby shower, bridal shower, graduation party, confirmation brunch, anniversary open house, wedding or some other silly thing. I’ll be happy to stick $20 in a card and mail it to you with my best wishes. We’ll both be happier that way, trust me.

Have a great weekend, whatever you’re doing. Phoenix and I are off to the Heart of Iowa shows to play in Graduate Open. Our class won’t start until after noon so no need to get up at the butt crack of dawn for a change. How nice is that!

Remember this?

Today the temps are pushing 80 degrees and the wind is absolutely howling at up to 45 mph. The sun is shining brightly, the grass is green, the trees are pollinating (so is every other freaking pollen-producing plant in a seven state region) and there are severe thunderstorms predicted for tomorrow afternoon. Ahh . . . spring in Iowa.

Remember this?

Here's Phoenix floundering around the snow back in January. I think he was looking for a toy but I'm not sure. He might have been doing it for no apparent reason.

Now Jamie has the toy and Phoenix is left eating snow. Whatever. He seems happy enough.

At least there wasn't any pollen outdoors then.

Wednesday thoughts

Susan Garrett has had some really great stuff on her blog lately. It’s like she’s been in my mind, reflecting my own thoughts and expressing them much better than I could. So I’m cannibalizing two of my favorite posts.

First, she writes about not creating self-limiting beliefs for yourself and your dog. You know, stuff like saying, “He’ll pop out at the 10th pole, he always does” or “My dog can’t heel outdoors, he’ll be too distracted.” Another word for this is "self-fulfilling prophecies." Sometimes we make things happen simply by believing they will happen. Why do we always pick BAD things to believe!

Instead, Susan writes:

“ . . . when I look at my dogs I can only see greatness.

“I don’t focus on what isn’t there with my dogs, I focus on what is. I take up ownership of anything that can be made better and I spend that dog’s career trying to make it better . . . Why, because we want to do agility, must these dogs suffer us acting, talking or joking about them as if they have failed us some how?”

It’s okay to admit your dog isn’t working up to your criteria but put a positive spin on it, don’t focus on the negative. For example, “Phoenix and I are making great progress on his out-of-sight stays” instead of “He hates those out-of-sight stays and doesn’t want to do them.” (By the way, it’s true, we ARE making great progress!)

Then, Susan writes about believing that our dogs are with us for a reason, that some cosmic hand of fate placed them with US, not a different owner, because they have something special and specific to bring to us. So many of us say, “My dog would be great if only he had a better handler.” I admit to thinking that, too, sometimes. But no more!

Susan believes we have the dogs we have for a reason. In other words, regardless of “achievement” as measured by superficial stuff like titles, scores, ribbons, etc., they belong with us JUST BECAUSE! She writes:

“Regardless of how it may appear to any of us watching, every dog’s life is always one of great intention. The odyssey is unique to each dog and their person. Those of us on the outside looking in may never be privy to all that is being fulfilled during the time you have together but the impact is likely more than any world championship ever could provide.”

For the complete posts, visit http://susangarrettdogagility.com/

What beautiful thoughts. Go home from work today and hug your beautiful dogs.

Two basic food groups: chocolate & peanut butter

I haven't done a recipe for a while so thought I'd share this one for Crunchy Marshmallow Bars. It combines two of my favorite food groups: chocolate and peanut butter. It also contains Rice Krispies so technically, it could be called a breakfast bar. They're awesome with a big glass of cold milk.


CRUNCHY MARSHMALLOW BARS
1/2 C. margarine
3/4 C. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 C. flour
2 T. cocoa
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2-3 C. miniature marshmallows
1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 C. peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
2 C. Rice Krispies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 x 13 baking pan. Cream margarine and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix dry ingredients together and add to creamed ingredients. Stir until just blended. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle with enough miniature marshmallows to cover surface (more is better). Return to oven for 3 minutes. Remove and cool.

Melt together the chocolate chips and peanut butter. Stir in Rice Krispies and spread over top of cooled bars. Cool before cutting.

Okay, you can live on the edge and not cool them before cutting. They're very drippy and gooey and I wouldn't recommend trying to eat one while wearing a white shirt but other than that, if you're an instant gratification kind of person, go for it.

Weekend work and a new toy

“Staying at home” weekends are such a rare and valuable commodity, I always end up exhausted and sore by Monday because I tried to catch up on a month of projects in two days. Last weekend was no exception.

First, “staying at home” is open to interpretation. Saturday morning Phoenix and I went to an obedience match at 4RK9s, followed by stops at a couple of garden centers, Dairy Queen and then an afternoon outdoors at home, weeding, planting and mulching.

I bought another new coleus (really, I can stop any time I want). It’s called Dipt In Wine. I love the name. And I don’t even like wine.


As if spreading thousands of yards of mulch wasn't enough Saturday, I decided it was time to do something with the lilac bush. We’ve lived in our house for 19 years this spring and I’ve never done a thing to this lilac bush. If I understand the Master Gardeners correctly, in order to get maximum growth and bloom from a lilac, you should remove 1/3 of the branches or stems or whatever they’re called every year when it’s done blooming. Ours was still blooming so I decided to just cut out all the dead branches. There were a lot of them. An awful lot. I think I took out about half the plant in just dead wood. Phoenix helped by dragging the branches off and running amok with them.

I worked right up to the first raindrops, which turned into 2 inches of rain that evening. This brought the Farmer grumbling in from the field. He was within 50 acres of finishing corn planting. On the bright side, I actually cooked supper for us (Real hot food! Off the stove! Not leftovers or cold ham sandwiches!) and we ate together for the first time in about two weeks. After that it was a hot shower, ibuprofen and bed. We lead such exciting lives.

Sunday morning I cleaned our basement. I’m happy to report the basement threat level is back to a standard code yellow. It was a definite code red when I started. I restocked my emergency storm kit with fresh gallons of water, canine and people meds, a small bag of dog food, dried fruit, nuts and a package of Snickers (yeah, how long are those going to stay there?) Sunday afternoon, Phoenix and I met Michele, Jill and Sheryl for some group training in CR. We had a lot of fun proofing stays.

I got a new toy! My set of PractiJumps from J&J turns 20 this spring and they are showing their age. They’re on their 4th generation of dogs (Jesse, Connor, Jamie and now Phoenix). They’re battered. They’re broken. They’ve been thrown outdoors in the back yard every summer since 1990 and quite frankly, they don’t look so good. I don't want to take them with me to parks to train. They really shouldn't be seen in public. Yeah, they're that scary.

So I bought this portable jump from Clean Run. It sets up in literally less than 10 seconds. How cool is that? It was expensive but I might have to buy another one. This jump will NOT be thrown out in the back yard and left to fend for itself. It will live on the porch where it can stay clean and shiny and will go in the van when we go places to train.


I figure it can double as an obedience high jump if I throw a white sheet or towel or something over it. The height goes up to 26" and folded down, it probably only weighs 5 pounds.

This is going to be another crazy busy week. I'm teaching a new Open class starting on Wednesday. Outdoor agility classes begin on Thursday. I've started the countdown to Mal Nationals: 2 1/2 weeks. The Marshalltown trials are this weekend and at some point, both Jamie and Phoenix really need a bath and a blow dry. I'm clearly too busy to deal with this thing called a full time job!

Green thumb stuff

Yesterday I left work early and spent the afternoon working on my flowerbeds. It was an absolutely perfect day for it. Today it's pouring rain.

Here is part of the cedar mulch I spread. I love mulch. It makes everything look neat and tidy. I ran out of energy before I ran out of mulch. Hate it when that happens.

This year I’m using Preen for the first time. It’s a granular that keeps seeds from germinating, so hopefully things will stay looking nice and tidy. It won’t kill any weeds that are already growing in a flower or vegetable garden but it will keep new ones from sprouting for up to three months after you apply it. I’ll let you know how it works.

Here's one of the geraniums I wintered over. I love geraniums. I cut these plants back by about half when I brought them in last fall and cut them back again by about 2/3 this spring before moving them back outdoors. They’re starting to put out a lot of sturdy new growth and will be blooming again in no time.

Here's a pot of lava rose coleus from clippings I took last fall before frost. They will go in a big container on the patio. They do really well in full sunshine and are tough enough to handle the July and August heat reflecting off the white siding on the house AND the cement patio.


These are Wizard Pineapple coleus. They’re the first “flower” I bought this spring. Pineapple coleus are a favorite and I usually have a couple of pots of them every year. Hope to make it to a local greenhouse this weekend and pick up a few more annuals for patio containers and some more perennials for bare spots in the border along the fence.

Before I started my gardening marathon, the Belgians and I went to the park to train. And play ball. And sit on stumps.

Adventures with the neighbors' dog

I am the only person in the township who doesn’t let her dogs run loose 24/7. Living in the country, this definitely puts me in the minority. I recognize every single one of the neighbors’ dogs because at one point or another, they have all taken a dump in our yard, chased my van as I’ve driven by their house or charged at me and my guys while we were out for a walk.

Through trial and error, I have learned whose houses to avoid when we go for a walk and have mapped out a long, enjoyable, carefully orchestrated route that avoids dogs whose owners believe in the sanctity of “letting their dogs run.”

But hey, we all live in the COUNTRY, right? And you’re supposed to let your dogs RUN if you live in the country, right? Because everyone knows it’s cruel not to let dogs RUN. Insert dripping sarcasm here.

Honestly, I can deal with avoiding loose, crabby, territorial dogs. Some of them weren’t even crabby. Missy the basset hound was adorable and my boys loved her. She frequently went for walks with us, galloping furiously toward us on her stubby legs if she spotted us in the distance, then mingling with my two leashed dogs as we went down the road as a Belgian/Basset pack. Jamie and Phoenix thought she was all that. The only problem was, she refused to go home when the walk was over. Then I had to call her owners to please come get their dog from our house. Fortunately for Missy, she has since gone to a new home in town where she is appreciated and has her own people to take her for a walk.

What I really have trouble with is dogs who crap in my front yard. Repeatedly. I don’t let my dogs go and take a dump in the neighbor’s yard, so why do they think it’s okay for their dogs to come over and unload in ours?

Fortunately, we only have this problem with one neighbor. Unfortunately, we are related to them. They’re the Farmer’s second cousin (or something like that) and his wife. So it would be in poor taste to scoop up all the crap their dogs have left in our yard and dump it on their front porch. But I’d really like to. But I won’t because I’m trying to take the high road here. And I don’t want to start a Hatfield and McCoys type feud right here in Iowa Township.

Besides, they only have one crapping dog now, their other crapping dog having bitten one person too many and ended up on a one-way trip to the vet’s. Yeah, it was sad but I can’t say I miss him terribly because he was the primary depositor of large, gloppy puddles of stool that made it obvious the Neighbors were probably feeding whatever was on sale at Wally World. He always managed to deposit said puddles right in the middle of my obedience and agility training area in our back yard. Being a “farm dog” he was always free go where he pleased. Literally.

Now the Neighbors just have a schnauzer. We’ll call him Fat Bastard (FB). I have never seen such a fat schnauzer. He is amazingly, incredibly obese. He is a house dog. When they turn him out of the house, he waddles across the road and craps in our yard. I have, on more than one occasion, witnessed this, grabbed the phone and politely - more or less - called the Neighbor to please come and get their dog out of our yard. It still happens regularly so apparently they don’t get it. I’m thinking about sending Jamie and Phoenix over to take their morning constitutional in the Neighbors’ front yard to see if that makes them see the light. (But I won't. I would never do that.) FB is also eating a questionable diet since nothing that he leaves behind is easily picked up with a scooper either.

When I am outdoors and witness FB on one of his missions, I have been known to chase him down the lane, screeching in my best Celtic warrior woman voice, hurling handfuls of gravel and generally making a spectacle of myself. Upon witnessing this, FB runs (waddles) back across the road. He is scared of me. I admit it, that’s okay. Of course, he’s not scared enough not to come over here in the first place. Guess I need to be scarier.

Well, what comes around, goes around. The Neighbors went to a family funeral in a distant town and asked the Farmer’s Dad, who lives nearby, if he would come over to let FB out a couple of times each day. The Farmer’s Dad did just that. FB wanted no part of him. He would not leave the house. He looked at the Farmer’s Dad and growled. So the Farmer’s Dad did the obvious thing - went and got his daughter-in-law the Brilliant Dog Expert and said, “Why don’t you go take care of him.”

Like I said, I try to take the high road whenever possible.

I went over there, armed with a handful of tasty dog cookies and my best neutral, non-threatening, let bygones by bygones voice. Hey, if ya gotta pee are ya really gonna argue with the person withe opposable thumbs who can open the door?

FB was having no part of me, either. He growled. He snarled. I decided discretion was the better part of valor and in this case, getting the heck out of dodge before I got schnauzer tooth-marks on my ankles.

I told the Farmer’s Dad I would try again later. Maybe the dog would be more willing to go outside then.

Umm. No. Not only was he not willing to go outside, one look at the floors in the house made it clear he no longer needed to go outside.

Still taking the high road. I grabbed a bag and picked up most of the poop. There is a limit, however, on how much of a high road I can take and it ends with clean up of urine and feces from someone else’s dog in someone else’s house who didn’t even care enough to A) board the dog while they were gone or B) take the time to introduce him to his temporary caregivers before they walked into his house. I left, dropping the poop in a bag on their back step and thus somewhat satisfying my childish fantasy of dumping a huge bag of dog crap on their porch.

I’m thankful I live in the country, in spite of FB.