Petey's Christmas - 2009

Petey made it to the morning without opening any gifts. He knew right away which stack of gifts was his, so he guarded them until he was able to open them.

He got a dog snuggi, to hopefully end the battle for the human one. We also wrapped up a few pouches of his dog food and some treats because he likes opening gifts so much.

The suggies came in small, medium and large. According to the package, Petey would need a medium. It was too big, but we put it on him anyway. He didn't like it at all. He got on his pillow and wouldn't open any more gifts until we took it off of him. I'll have to take it back, but I'm not sure if I will trade for a small or just get our money back. He might like a dog snuggi just fine if it fits, or he might not like it any better than the too big version. You never know with Petey. I got a few shots of him wearing/pouting the snuggi.


Once we got Petey out of the offending garment, he was ready to open gifts again, and definitely not ready to stop when the gifts were all opened. He dug through the paper and the gift bags again, just to make sure nothing had been over looked. He had tissue hanging out of his mouth, which was hilarious. I tried to get a shot of that, but this was the best I could do.
If you zoom in on the picture you can see it. This picture tells the story much better than I can.

Merry Christmas to all!!!

Christmas Eve!!!!

I don't know how Petey knows it is Christmas Eve, but he does. He is so excited, he doesn't know what to do with himself. He keeps galloping up and down the hall wanting something to happen. He's been in the wrapping paper rooting around like there is something important to be found there. And I've had to get him out from under the Christmas tree. He's had all he can take. I don't know if he'll last until tomorrow for the gift opening.

Gifts!!

The master bedroom in our house has become gift wrap central, and it may be competing with the laundry room as Petey's favorite room. I have a tote that stores wrapping paper, bows, ribbons, name tags, etc. It is zippered and when it is completely unzipped it opens flat. It is in the floor because I use the bed as the wrapping table. Petey is determined to lay in the wrapping paper tote. So far, I've allowed him to try because he can't quite get comfortable on the rolls of paper. He'll walk on to the tote and circle like he is going to lay down, but can't quite make it happen. He might have actually made it all the way into a laying position once, but it didn't last long. He just loves gifts so much he has to be right in the midst of it.

Then...this morning a couple of dear friends gave me gifts in gift bags. I opened them, but put them back in the bag for easy carrying. I put the gift bags in a chair in the bedroom. If you follow me on facebook, you know that I had to take a hot, hot bath to thaw from sitting out in the cold at the Titan's game. While I was steaming, I heard the distinct sound of paper rustling. Petey had got up in the chair and had his head down in one of the bags.

The good news is that Petey really doesn't care what is in the package. He obviously likes it when it is a bacon treat, but for the most part, all he really cares about is the opening!

Holiday Memories with Petey

One Thanksgiving several years ago, long before we had given thought to blogging about Petey, our family decided to go to the mountains for Thanksgiving. My mother, both my sisters & their families along with John, me & Pete, made the trek to the mountains in North Carolina. It was great. Except for getting there.

This was also before we began drugging Petey before a long car ride. We didn't know how bad it could get. It was a drizzly night on a dark and curvy mountain road, with which we were not familiar. There was a little tension in the car due to that. I don't know if Petey sensed that and decided to add to the level of tension or just realized on his own that this was not a good situation. Don't misunderstand, we were never in any sort of danger. We were just looking for an unknown place, on an unknown road, in less than ideal driving conditions. Petey decided the thing to do would be to pace back & forth around the car - back seat, my lap, paws on the dash, back set, my lap, back seat, look out the back windshield, and on and on and on. It did not help the situation.

As stated previously we all got there and had a nice visit. Most of us stayed through Sunday but John could not. We had planned all along that he would leave early and take Petey with him. Needless to say, John was less than enthused about being alone in the car for all those hours with Petey, even before the fiasco of getting there. He would be leaving in the daylight hours, and driving on more familiar roads after dark, but still Petey can be quite demanding.

So, John came up with the bright idea to feed Petey turkey scraps before they left, hoping that it would have the same sedating effect on dogs as it does humans. Petey gobbled the turkey right up. (Get it?) John fed him a little while before leaving so that he could get nice & sleepy before the trip began. He bagged up a few extras and took a paper plate to feed him again along the way is the need arose.

Let's just say that we'll never know if the turkey made Petey drowsy or not because of the distress it caused his digestive system. The biggest problem was gas. Get the full picture here - John is in the mountains of North Carolina on a late November weekend - it was cold, with a capital C-O-L-D. We hardly left the warm, cozy cabin. John was in the car with the heat on and a gassy dog - serious gas. Besides the SBD's there were belches. I don't think either one of us had realized that dogs burped. Petey does - really stinky burps too.

John had no choice. If he was going to continue to breathe, he had to let the window down. He started by cracking the back ones hoping that a little ventilation would help. It didn't. The emissions came in waves, like time bombs. Just when he thought it was safe to breathe again, Petey cut loose. Before the poor man got off the mountain, he had the driver's window down and his head stuck out gasping for fresh air. Petey didn't care. He continued to befoul the air without a bit of concern for John's olfactory system.

We checked with the vet about medication for future trips for Petey, not us. Although, now that I think of it a little Xanax wouldn't hurt me...hmmm...

Where is Petey?

Petey the Tattle Tale, Again

Last night John got the Christmas tree lights out. Even though they are the type that are supposed to burn even if a light is out, they don't. So, John strung them through the kitchen, dining room and living room, so he could methodically check each and every bulb. They are worth the extra trouble, because they have several settings where they blink in different patterns.

While he was involved in that little task, I went to the bathroom. While I was taking care of business, Petey burst in to the room, with his best "Timmy's in the Well" look on his face. I was fairly sure that Petey was somehow upset with something John was doing, and John was not in any grave danger so I continued to do what I was doing. This caused Petey to have to run in and out of the bathroom several times a top speed, since I was not following him. I started asking him what the problem was in a very distressed sort of way which resulted in the poor dog just about turning circles in the bathroom. When I finally, followed him down the hall, him at top speed and me at my normal pace, requiring him to run back & forth to between me and the disaster, he looked at the lights and then me. It was as if he was saying "See what is going on here!"

I explained to Petey that I understood what was happening, and that it was really OK. By this time, Petey was near hysterics, so he had to go out. I don't know if he was giving himself a chance to calm down, punishing us, or just getting the heck out, since we'd been warned of the grave danger and were to silly to leave. Anyway, he went out briefly and then came back in a little calmer, but still quite upset.

I asked John if he'd been fussing at the lights or done anything to upset Petey. He said he had not said anything that might have been upsetting to the dog. He was quite calm (John that is) but clearly he had done something, neither of us knew exactly what.

When Petey came back in, he got on the couch, where he could see the lights all the way back in to the kitchen, and he sighed... repeatedly... great heaving, heavy sighs. For the life of me, I don't know what the problem was with the lights. I finally covered up Petey's head where he couldn't see the lights. He sighed a few more times, but then I'm pretty sure he dozed off.

The lights are on the tree now. That seems to be perfectly fine with him.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!

Living with Petey is a lot like living with a toddler. He's a lot smaller than us, he doesn't speak the language yet finds ways to communicate and understands a lot of what we say, he takes naps and he loves Christmas!!

He's not to keen on the chaos created by getting out the decorations each year. He enjoys them once they are up, but his most favorite part is the presents!! He loves it when we come in the house after shopping. He wants to see each and every time brought it in. I'm not kidding, he'll get all the way inside the bag to make sure that he's seen everything in it. Much like a toddler, we have to make sure he doesn't suffocate in there. He loves gift wrapping and loves unwrapping even more. OK, so I'm not so sure if he really likes the wrapping so much as he knows the unwrapping is on the way!!

He is quite good to leave the gifts alone once they are under the tree, but if he gets any indication whatsoever that it is time to open the gifts, he's Johnny on the Spot. He is ready, willing and able to assist anyone at any time unwrap a gift.

If he could write I'm sure he'd be marking the days off on the calendar until gift opening time.

Merry Christmas from Petey!!

Petey was a Good Boy

Petey was a very good boy yesterday. After he got through barking because people knocked on the door, he relaxed and tolerated everyone just fine. He was so good, I fed him a little turkey from the table and put some leftovers in his bowl. That was good, but the best part for him was when his blankets and beds got put back in the living room.

I had just left everything in the dryer on Wednesday because I knew I wouldn't be needing the dryer and it was as good a place as any to keep the stuff. Yesterday afternoon after everyone left, I got the blankets & snuggi out of the dryer. A happier dog has never been seen. I dumped them all on the love seat with the intention of putting each blanket in the proper place, but Petey was up in the middle of them the second they hit the seat. Rather than pulling them out from under him, I let him enjoy the moment. After a little while, about 2 hours probably, I was able to string the blankets back out across the living room in the normal state of disarray that Petey likes so well.

He's on the couch now up against his pillows, under the blue blanket and the snuggi close at hand in case he needs more softness & warmth.

Happy Thanksgiving from Petey

Petey has been very busy lately conning us out of treat, peeing in the floor, taking rides in the car, and shaking from the bitter, bitter cold. John and I have been busy too, and haven't had a chance to record his antics here.

One of the things John & I have been doing, is preparing for the family Thanksgiving feast at our house this year. The humans are hustling & bustling around getting the house clean and turkey ready. Petey does not like it one bit. He knows the signs of company and they do not make him happy. First and foremost, his blankets & beds get washed. Some of them are even removed from their sacred positions until the company has left. This does not make Petey want company. Right now, he's under the computer table shaking. He has no better place to be. All but two of his living room beds are not there, and the snuggi is gone too!!

Petey Goes to Work

Due to way too many circumstances to explain, I had to work late tonight, so Petey went with me. He didn't like it much. There were too many people there that wanted to pet him. Here we are at my desk. As you can tell, I was able to get a lot of work done with him there!

Happy Halloween from Petey - NOT

Petey does not like Halloween. He does not like people knocking on the door and he does not like little people. The two of those combined sends him into a real tizzy. He's probably scarred some children for life!

Petey's Favorite Room

I think the laundry room is beginning to be Petey's favorite room. That is where all the best stuff is kept - treats, wrapping paper, and warm clothes. That is where that fabulous machine is that heats up the clothes so they are perfect to wriggle down in, especially in cool weather.

Petey knows the sound of the buzzer the dryer makes when it is finished. He'll follow me in to the laundry room while I gather the dry clothes from the dryer. He wants to see where I put them so he can snuggle in them before I put them away. Needless to say I don't really want Petey shedding little white hair all in the fresh laundry, so getting the dry clothes from the dryer and put away is becoming a challenge!!

BTW, if you are keeping score in the Snuggi Wars, Petey is winning. I don't have an exact score but it is something like Petey 487,291 Lori 1.

Petey the Tattle Tale

Petey has gone back to his persnickety way of eating. I doubt he's eaten a full bowl of food in three days. We've run through the litany of tricks we have to get him to eat, but to no avail.

Yesterday while I was in the laundry room, doing laundry, Petey came in and insisted on a treat. He would jump on me and run to his treat bag and look at it since it is on a shelf too high for him to get himself. As has already been discussed in this blog, Petey is quite persistent. I wasn't able to concentrate on the laundry with all of the activity around my legs. I really did not want to give him a treat because he hadn't eaten. In my mind, it was like giving a child dessert, when they haven't eaten dinner in three days.

But because I needed to get him to go away, I gave him a treat that was not his favorite bacon treat. In fact, the last time I'd offered him one, he turned it down. He took the treat and trotted off. I figured I'd find it in the house someplace later, but picking up an uneaten treat was a small price to pay to finish the clothes.

Some time later I was back in the laundry room and Petey came in again demanding a treat. I offered him the lesser treat again, thinking he might not fall for it twice, but he took it and trotted off again. This time I decided to follow him so that I would know where to find the uneaten treats later. Much to my surprise Petey was eating the treat, and I found no evidence of the first one. It had been eaten as well.

I told John of Petey's ruse, and we chuckled at how clever he was and went on.

Later, I decided to reward myself with a nice hot bath. We have a garden tub in our master bathroom that will easily fit two adults. It is built up from the floor, so that you have to go up a step to get in it. I was alone in the tub, but taking up the whole space because I was laying in the water with only my face showing and that was only because I needed to keep breathing.

I was enjoying my time of relaxation when felt some one staring at me. I opened my eyes to see Petey staring at me. He had climbed up the step so that his back paws were on the top of the step and his front paws were on the edge of the tub. I explained to Petey that I was fine, since he doesn't like water (baths, pools, etc.) and sent him on his way. He left but came back about every 20 seconds until the calm serenity of the bath was destroyed and I got out.

I dressed and followed Petey in to the living room where I found John enjoying his man type relaxation. He was in the recliner switching the TV between NASCAR and Alabama football. I asked what he'd done to Petey. He said he refused to give him a treat..

This was apparently such a serious offense to the poor dog, that he had to come tattle on him. He didn't get a treat out of me either, but he got us back. He peed in the floor last night.

Snuggie Wars - Battle I

I put the Snuggi on the loveseat in the living room, since none of us usually sits there. John has the recliner, I have one end of the couch and Petey has five other places he has claimed:

• jammed up with John in the recliner
• right up against me on the couch
• a bed by the fireplace
• a bed by the recliner
• the opposite end of the couch from me

So...John & I went out for a couple of hours last night. When we got home, it appeared that the snuggi had been mushed down where someone might have curled up on it. I didn't investigate however, I gave Petey the benefit of the doubt. Then this morning, as I walked in to the living room, I heard him jump down from someplace, but I didn't get to the doorway in time to see. I could only surmise by his position in the room that he'd jumped off the loveseat. I gave him the eye, but didn't say anything.

Apparently, these are the wrong tactics. Petey is on the snuggi right now. I told him that it was mine and not his. He raised his head and looked at me, then put it back down, while keeping his eyes on me. I think he was saying that possession is 9/10 of the law.

Score:
Lori 1 - Petey 1

Let The Snuggi Wars Begin!

It has been cold enough, long enough here, that I decided today was the day to get the Snuggi out. I explained to Petey that it was mine and not his, but since he rarely listens, I've already had to take drastic action. I buried Petey under a pile of blankets on the couch, then I snuck the Snuggi from the closet. We'll see how long it takes him to stake his claim. This is one battle I am not giving up!!

Petey's Eating

Petey is a picky eater, as has already been discussed on this blog. John generally feeds him and goes to great lengths to entice him to eat. Once he starts eating, it takes very little to disturb him so much that he stops. Then there are times when he just won't eat. Sometimes we know why - see previous blog entry below. Sometimes, we have no idea. So, we have this mindset that we must some how, some way get the dog to eat.

Last night John was out at Petey's usual eating time, so it was my job to feed him. I don't often go to the extremes John does to get Petey to eat. Last night was no exception, as far as my plans went. But when I got out the pouch of food Petey appeared immediately and began prancing around his bowl in eager anticipation. I hardly got the pouch emptied before he dove in. I took note of the fact that this was unusual and went on about my business.

About a half an hour later Petey kept coming to me and walking to the laundry room, where is food is kept. He can be quite persistent when he really wants something. I finally figured out that he wanted some food. I didn't think he needed another pouch of food since his stomach had been upset earlier in the week, so I got a scoop of plain old dry dog food. I didn't think he'd eat it, but didn't care since I knew he'd eaten a whole pouch of food earlier. He dove in again like he hadn't eaten in a month. I began to look more closely at this dog to make sure it was actually Petey. It was.

He gobbled up all of that and asked for more. I put a little bit more dry food in his bowl. I decided he must be empty because of the aforementioned stomach issues during the week. He ate most, but not all of that then. During the night he ate the rest. I'd like to think that Petey is morphing in to a normal dog with regard to eating, but I think this is just another anomaly. We have a lot of those with him.

Petey's on a Hunger Strike

This afternoon I wrapped a birthday present which was not for Petey. Petey knows right where the wrapping paper is kept, and watches rather impatiently as gifts are wrapped. Knowing this, I tried to hurry and wrap the gift while he was outside. Alas, I was not fast enough. Petey busted me right in the middle of the process. He pranced around and prodded me with his paws the whole time I was working. I explained repeatedly that it was not his gift, but he didn't care. I tried to distract him with food. Real food, meat even, not his food or even a bacon treat. He would have nothing to do with it. John fixed him some of his food, which was a silly idea to begin with, further insulting the poor, pitiful, put upon, pooch. He's pouting on the couch now.

Happy Labor Day

Petey would wish everyone a happy Labor Day, but he isn't very happy. Most mammals, those are warm blooded creatures, are pleased when there is a little nip in the air this time of year, bringing a welcome reprieve from the summer heat & humidity. It really hasn't cooled off here, very much just yet, but there has been a bit of a break. Petey is most unhappy about all of this. The mercury in the thermometer has plummeted down below 70 on a couple of evenings, down right frigid for a Petey-dog. John has said more than once that Petey's perfect owner would live in Miami and never leave. We know that Petey loves (tolerates) us, but would love (tolerate) us more if we lived closer to the equator and retired. That is not possible, so we did the next best thing we got him a sweater. Briefly, he hated it.

The first sweater Petey got was actually a gift. It fit him nicely around his midsection but was too short. It barely came halfway down his back. He wore it some, and didn't seem to mind one way or the other if he had it on or not. He hadn't been living with us long and was doing a lot of shaking. He didn't have beds and blankets scattered throughout the house yet. We thought a sweater was a good solution.

One day in mid-January we were at a store looking through the leftover Christmas stuff for bargains and found a nice brown/tan plaid sweater. It was much longer than the first one, so we thought this would be just the thing. It was even a little masculine, which is hard to find with small dog clothes. It was only about $0.75 since it was with the Christmas stuff, so we made the investment and proudly presented the gift to Pete. It was not well received.

We put it on him and he immediately retreated to his perch on the couch atop the pillows, with his back to us. He shook terribly, and would look around periodically to make sure we knew he was upset. We took it off. We donated it to Goodwill, so some underprivileged dog could stay warm.

Petey's New Toy

Have you seen those balls that you put in the dryer to keep you clothes from getting static cling? I'd post a picture but I'm still having technical difficulties. I purchased a set several months ago on a whim. They were on the "As Seen On TV" section of a local drug store, they seemed neat, and weren't too expensive, so I took a gamble. For the record, they are pretty much useless. So, what does this have to do with Petey?

Last night John was sorting through some laundry which was on the bed, and the ball rolled out. He picked it up and was messing with it as we talked. I was in a nearby chair. Petey was on the bed. He loves fresh laundry. He'll follow us from the laundry room when we have a load of freshly dried, warm clothes, so that he can burrow down in them.

Petey, we thought, was waiting for a good chance to burrow. We noticed though, that he was grabbing for the ball as John was tossing it around. When John realized that, he tossed the ball to me. Petey jumped off the bed in an attempt to catch it, as though we were playing Keep Away. As we have already established, I am the softie, so I tossed it to him. He promptly trotted out of the room with it. John commented that we'd never see that ball again.

We went to see where Petey had gone with the ball. He had deposited it on the hearth near one of his beds, where he keeps the rest of his toys. I walked over to his bed, Petey grabbed another toy and ran over to me with it, as if to distract me from the laundry ball. John was right. He thought that ball was his. We won't be using it in the laundry any more. That is unless Petey wants it warmed up to keep with him while he's burrowed in to the fresh, clean laundry.

Petey, the Drama Dog

John and I have noticed signs of aging on poor, pitiful Petey in the week since we've been home. He lost a tooth, his muzzle seems to have gotten grayer and he doesn't seem jump and run so much. One afternoon when I got home from work he didn't run down to the car to get a ride to the back door. He didn't even come down the steps to greet me. He wasn't mad, because he stood up and wagged his little stubby tail. He met me with enthusiasm, just not at the usual Petey level.

We think he has arthritis in his back legs (hips if dogs have hips) that bothers him from time to time so that he doesn't jump so much. We give him baby aspirin to take the edge off. That usually only lasts a day or two then he's jumping and running like crazy again. Initially we thought that was the problem this time as well. Only this time it seemed to last longer.

On Thursday, John had an all day faculty meeting and was up and gone before my alarm went off. When I got up, Petey didn't rush in to the room as usual. Generally, he gets in the bed as soon as I get up. He'll stay there until I'm about to leave and walk me to the back door. He knows just the sad, pitiful look to give me so that I'll give him a treat.

On Thursday, none of this happened. When he didn't come to the bed, I went looking for him. I found him on one of his living room beds all curled up. He raised his head slightly and looked up at me with his most pitiful face. I asked if he wanted to get in the bed and he just let his head flop back down. I asked if he wanted to go out and he didn't respond at all. I thought that maybe he'd come back to the bed once he realized that I was up, but he didn't. I got ready for work and walked through the living room to see if he'd escort me to the back door. He didn't. He just laid there motionless. I went and got him a treat - a whole one - and brought back to him. He raised his head up enough to take the treat and flopped his head back down.

I wondered if my employer would allow a family sick day for a dog. I decided probably not, and went to work. Since John was in the meeting all day, he could not get email, cell phone calls, or texts. I could not discuss Petey's condition with him. I didn't know what he'd been like earlier in the day, but I suspected he'd been asleep when John left. So, I was left to wonder all day. I even wondered how I'd tell Petey's faithful fans what had happened.

When I got home that night, Petey came tearing to the back door and greeted me with enough enthusiasm to make up for all of the missed opportunities earlier in the week. I was shocked. I filled John in on what had happened in the morning. He was surprised. Petey had been up with him, gone out and been his perky little self while John was home. John hadn't given Petey a second thought all day because he was just fine when he left!!!

We are now beginning to wonder if Petey just has my number. He knows I'm the one that gives him the baby aspirins, or benadryl. Maybe he was faking it, thinking I would stay home like a child faking a stomach ache to stay home from school. He almost had me. He did get a whole bacon treat out of it.

Vacation but not for Petey

John and I just got back from 5 glorious days in Miami. The worst part was that we had to leave Petey behind with a 'sitter'. We called and checked on both of them regularly. We had been gone about 36 hours when we learned that Petey had taken up residence in the master bedroom. Initially, I was sad, thinking the poor dog missed us so much that he had to be in the bedroom thinking we'd come back home to go to sleep eventually. I had some evidence to think that might be the case because any time John or I happen to be out, he really ratchets up the search for us after dark. He has somehow decided that our curfew is dark.

Anyway, I didn't feel bad long. One, it is hard to feel bad with all the sand, sun & sea. Two, and much more importantly, I realized that Petey had decided that he was in charge. John often says that to him when we leave together. He believed it and moved in to the master bedroom.

Now, not only did we have to anticipate the wrath of Petey for being left the better part of a week. We had to concern ourselves with the transfer of power!! We discussed and prepared all the way home.

Much to our surprise Petey met us at the airport. He was thrilled we had returned. He was not at all angry and eager to transfer the power back to us. The one thing we know for sure about Petey is that you never know!!

Still Battling Fleas

Petey has had yet another flea bath since the last post. We put two C-A-T treatments on him afterwards. He tolerates those much better. He doesn't run through the house like his tail is on fire, but is almost as though he thinks it is supposed to hurt so he gets ready for it. He shakes and lays his ears all back like we are about to chop is head off. Then he seems almost surprised when it doesn't sting. Now if it would just kill fleas...

Petey's Very Bad Week

It started a week ago yesterday. My sister came to town with her two children ages 11 and 8. As has already been established Petey does not like very many humans. Most he only tolerates. My sister is one human that he took an instant liking to, jumping in her lap the first time they met. The children on the other hand are an entirely different matter. They have good dogs that like humans in their house at home, so it is difficult for them to understand that Petey is not like that. They want to be friends, Petey does not. Our theory is that little people just move too fast for Petey. They like to skip and run and jump and often even they aren't sure which way they are going, much less a grumpy old dog. So...

I took him to Mama's thinking maybe the neutral territory would help, it didn't. Of course, I like my sister and her family and wanted to maximize my time with them so I left Petey at home from then on. That way I got in some good visiting time and no one got subjected to Petey's growls and snarls. Unfortunately for Petey, that meant I was not home. That breaks Petey rule number one. He just couldn't win.

Things got worse when my niece and I decided to make supper for our whole family. We had a fabulous time, making pizza with homemade crust and yellow cake with chocolate frosting all from scratch. Petey didn't have as good of a time as we did. He ignored her unless she was giving him treats.

Things digressed even more when the family started showing up!! There were 12 of us dining on the pizza & cake. Poor Petey had to hide under the table most of the time.

My sister and children went back home yesterday, so things were surely looking up for Pete - no so!! When I got home from work last night, I saw evidence that he'd had a bath. John confirmed that Petey had yet another bath, because John saw a flea.

Once he was dry from the bath, Petey was subjected to the further humiliation of a flea treatment. He doesn't quite know the depth of the humiliation because we did not tell him that the flea treatment was for a C-A-T. One of Petey's public suggested cat treatments thinking they were milder. He didn't react as strongly to it, so maybe we've found something workable.

Now John, his number one, is gone on a day trip. Could things get any worse for Petey? Probably.

The Flea Situation Update

One of Petey's faithful fans suggested that we try flea treatments for cats because they could be milder than the dog treatments. I thought it was a fine suggestion and mentioned it to John in front of Petey. I wish I had a video of the moment. It was as if Petey understood exactly what we were saying. He laid his ears all back and looked sad & pitiful, as if to say "Please don't put cat stuff on me." While we aren't sure that Petey knows he is a dog, he does know he is not a cat.

So far, Petey has been spared the cat treatment. There are two reasons for this. First neither one of us has been to the store to get one. And second, we haven't seen any more fleas. He was still gnawing at his backside so we decided it was residual itchiness left over from the bites, sort of like a mosquito bite. AHA!! Why not put some Benadryl lotion on his bites like we do ours. What a fine idea!!!

So I did. I rubbed Petey down good with it, and he really didn't resist very much because I think the rubbing felt good on the itchies. Suddenly, it occurred to me that it wouldn't be a very good idea to ingest that stuff. I knew Petey would immediately try to lick it off, and the bottle said contact poison control if ingested. I had killed Petey!!!

For the next hour, I diligently watched him and would not let him do anything close to licking the area where I'd slathered on the death potion. I slept fitfully that night, not knowing if I'd find Petey alive. I was so thankful to hear the little tinkle of his dog tags as he came in to greet me the next morning.

That afternoon, after returning from work, John & I both noticed that Petey was much calmer and not gnawing at himself at all. So...it didn't kill him the night before, why not try again. This time I was a little more sparing with the lotion and he didn't balk at all. I think it must be soothing to him almost immediately. Generally, Petey does not like to be bothered - about anything!! I put a little more on tonight, and he's left himself alone. We may be on to something here - as long as the fleas stay away.

Another Bath for Petey

We have thought for a day or two that Petey had picked up a flea. Any other pet owner in the world with such suspicions would just put a flea treatment on the dog and go about their business. Not us. Petey hates flea treatments, we have tried one brand after another to find one he can tolerate. So far we have been unsuccessful. Our solution is to only put a flea treatment on when an actual flea has been spotted.

I knew when Petey came tearing in to the bedroom this morning and got in his box something bad was about to go down. My knowledge was confirmed when John walked in with a flea treatment in his hand. We have no idea how Petey knew that was about to happen, but I've blogged about those sorts of mysteries before. John dragged Petey out of his box, I held him and John applied the treatment. All is well, right? Wrong!

Petey continued to gnaw at his backside and had made the skin raw back there. So it was time for a medicated bath. We have some very nice shampoo given to us by Petey's aunt, that is just the ticket for irritated skin for just about every dog in the nation, but Petey. We use it anyway. Since his previous bath was interrupted, I took advantage of this photo op. These pictures are inside...
In the shot on the left you can see how red his back parts are. Thus the bath.In the shot on the right you can see the indignity and humiliation he is suffering!!In the one above, he seems to be pleading with John to get him out! In the lower one, it is hard to tell he is in the tub, be he has stopped looking at us, hoping, I suppose, that we will go away!

I am sure that this is just the beginning rather than the end of the flea saga!!

Happy 4th!!

Petey wants to wish everyone a Happy Independence Day!! Here are a couple of flag pictures to help you celebrate. Petey didn't feel like posing this morning.

Bath Time for Petey

We are still having great weather here, so John decided to give Petey a bath outside in the big washtub. Petey has a real love/hate thing with baths. We think he really likes it but gets cold from being wet and that is very upsetting to him. John thought it would be fun to share a few pictures with Petey's faithful public so I grabbed the camera. This is what I got.

We didn't get too far with the picture taking, when two sales women came walking up our driveway. Petey barked for all he was worth to get rid of them. Here he was in the nekkid nude not only getting a bath but also having it documented for his public, then two strange women come up the driveway. By the time we were able to convince them that we did not want any of their cleaning products the moment was over. I could not get any more shots. He'll have another bath and maybe we can get some better pictures then.

Petey's very favorite part of the bath is when it is over. He races through the house like he's had a shot of adrenaline. He'll tear up and down the hall as fast as he can. I couldn't get any pictures of that, the shutter speed on my camera isn't fast enough!! I did get a couple of pictures of him catching his breath...
I like the one on the right, it looks like he's sticking his tongue out at me. I'm sure I deserved it!

Petey's Way or No Way

We have had gorgeous weather in Nashville the past few days. It is hard to stay inside when the sun is shining and the temperature is so moderate. It is unusual for it to be so nice this time of year. John and I decided that we would sit on the front porch for a while and just enjoy being outside. Petey, of course, had to be with us.

It is part of the Petey code - stay with your peeps regardless of how horrible it may be. This was one of those horrible times. We aren't sure why but Petey pouted or growled at the other people outside the whole time we were outside. Any time either of us made a move at all that could be interpreted in the slightest way that we might be headed indoors Petey made a beeline for the door, like we would accidentally leave him outside.

After John and I decided on our own to come back inside, Petey came in and ran directly to the back door to go out. I asked Petey why he hadn't peed when we were just outside. Clearly, I had to let him out. He trotted out and did his business, came back in and demanded a treat.

Go figure...

Growling & Traveling

So, to finish the last post...

In the evening times lately, when I go to do my bedtime routine, Petey sneaks in, gets on the bed and under the covers. I almost never see or hear him when this happens. I am not often surprised to find him the the bed because the covers are all mussed and I expect to see him.

Having established in the previous post that I am the softie, I just gently push him over because he is always in my spot. He'll get up after a bit, and I'm on all sorts of allergy medication and I take 5 shots twice a week now. I should get something out of it!! The other night I go to do my usual push and I got a growl!!! I was shocked and amused. I think it bothered Petey that I was not afraid. He got up. I was punished for my bad behavior by the absence of his presence. :)

As far as the travels go, Nanny took a little trip to see my sister in Raleigh so John & I picked up her mail and checked on the house while she was gone. Petey, as you know, loves to get in the car, but often realizes that he's made a huge mistake just a few blocks away and is nervous for the rest of the trip. We take him anyway, because sometimes that is easier than leaving him behind. So, during the time she was gone we'd ask if he wanted to go to Nanny's house. He would respond eagerly and run to the back door before we could change our minds and leave him. On the next to last trip, Petey laid in my lap for several blocks. Then he sat up in my lap and watched through the windshield as we went along. He was calm and sane, much unlike his usual car self. I pointed this out to John but neither of us had an explanation. He did this both there and back. On the last trip there and back. He laid in my lap the entire trip!! That is huge. Petey does not cede control that easily. I guess he'd learned the pattern and knew what was happening so he trusted John to get us there and back safely without having to monitor his progress continually. This is a huge breakthrough for one of them - John or Petey - I'm not sure who...

More and more and more Treats!!!

It has been a while since I blogged, but not to worry Petey has been keeping quite busy. Namely he's :

• Laid in the sun
• Conned treats from us
• Growled about getting moved in the bed
• Traveled back & forth to Nanny's

You already know how he loves the sun. You also know how much he loves treats. You don't know that he has ratcheted up his treat expectations a good bit. He expects a treat any time he returns to the house, any time some one walks in to the laundry room where they are kept, or any time something is opened that sounds the remotest bit like is treat bag being opened. I have been indulgent, and given him treats most, but not every time, he thinks he should get one.

John, on the other hand, is much smarter than me. He wants Petey to be happy as much as I do and understands that Petey shouldn't eat 7 or 8 treats a day. Since John is home a lot more now, he's had more of an opportunity to deal with the issue. He's started grabbing two or three pieces of Petey's dry dog food and handing it to him. Petey trots off in to the other room to eat it. At least we think he's eating it. So far we haven't found a stash of uneaten dog food any where in the house. I'm glad John's around to come up with creative ideas of how to deal with Petey...of course it is his fault we have him...hmmm...

I'll let you know about the growling and traveling in my next post.

A New Quirk

When John and I started this blog we came up with a long list of Petey-isms that we thought would be funny to share. I've gotten away from that some, to share some day to day life experiences with him. I've given consideration to several of his quirks as yet unmentioned on the blog like his RLS, but he has developed a new one of late. He won't scratch on the door to come in anymore.

We largely use the back door to come and go out of the house ourselves, and almost exclusively us that for letting Petey in our out. At times, when he's scratched on the back door signaling he's ready to come and and we haven't heard, he would come to the front door. We thought this was smart of him. But those occasions were rare.

Lately, we've noticed that when he comes back to the door to come back in, he just stands there. Of course, we have adapted to Petey rather than adapting Petey to us. So, most of the time we stand there and wait for him to come back, so that the scratch is not necessary. Now with the fabulous sun to lay in for hours at a time, John and I are not standing by the back door awaiting his majesty's return. A few times, I've heard Petey barking and gone to investigate, only to discover that he just wanted in, most of the time, however he just stands there. John and I try as hard as we can, but we have not yet developed mental telepathy. Now, we just go check on him from time to time.

Just now, Petey had been out sunning on the back porch, and I decided he might want to come inn so I went to see. He wasn't there. He wasn't in our driveway or the neighbor's driveway either. I came to check with John to see if he'd let him in and he had not. I went to the front door. Petey was just standing there patiently waiting for someone to notice that he wanted in. At least he isn't getting perturbed because we don't know he wants in...

Happy Memorial Day from Petey

Here Petey and John are celebrating Memorial Day Petey's favorite way - with a belly rub.

John put out the flag, so I got a couple of shots with them and the flag, but it is hard to see them. If you click on the pictures to make them bigger, they're better.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!

SUMMERTIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Petey loves the summer. He loves to soak up the sun. It can't get too hot for him. He loves any temperature over 80. We think his ideal owner would live in Miami and stay at home with him all day. He does the best he can with us.

One of his favorite summer time activities, as mentioned in a previous post is to lay in the sun in the driveway. He'll lay there forever. He'll come inside panting like he's just run 100 miles and drinks a bunch of water. Then he'll go out for more.

Right now he is still in our driveway. It is concrete so it reflects the heat nicely. Apparently the neighbors asphalt driveway has not yet soaked up enough of the summer heat to be suitable just yet.

These are a few shots of him in our driveway. They were taken through the window so as not to disturb his repose. They're not the best, but you get the idea.


I think this one is in the neighbor's driveway. John took it, so I'm not positive. He thought he'd taken several in each driveway, but there were only three on the camera. I still think he's waiting for the blacktop to get good and hot!

Petey's Public

We had a couple of birthdays this weekend, so we celebrated them Saturday night by going out to eat. After that, everyone came over here for cake. We had forewarned Petey and he was on his best behavior. One of our guests was a faithful blog reader that had not met Petey. He was very good and did not bark at her. He also demonstrated his gift un-wrapping skills for her, but didn't hog the limelight.

I was a little worried about how Petey would react when he met one of his fans in person. He did fine. Thanks for reading LE, and all three of the rest of you!!

Unpredictable Pete!

John got home from his trip yesterday about 6:00 pm. Petey met him with the greatest of enthusiasm. I really wasn't surprised by this. I was sure that Petey would be glad to see John, but in a few minutes remember that he'd been abandoned by him and the punishment would begin. Oh no!! Petey carried on like you wouldn't believe jumping and dancing around. When John sat down, Petey wedged himself in the chair beside him. He was sooooooo glad to see John! He would just gaze up at him.

John had to leave again briefly about 6:30. I thought that would be it between those two and that Petey would have nothing to do with him when he got back home. John was gone for 20 or 30 minutes. Petey spent the entire time outside on the porch looking for him. John got just as enthusiastic greeting as before. I don't think Petey has let John out of his sight since then.

I think I'm still allowed to live here, but my second place designation has fallen a great distance. I stand corrected...

Another Petey Act

John is out of town this week, leaving me to be Petey's number one and number two. It is a tiring job. Generally, John leaves for work about an hour before me and gets home about an hour before I do. So, Petey gets to go out just before I leave and then as soon as John gets home. This week he is having to wait an extra hour before going out in the afternoon. He's been a very good boy and hasn't peed in the house at all - at least not that I can find.

Yesterday, I had a late meeting at work and was going to be at least an hour and a half later than usual getting home. That would mean that Petey would have to wait an addition 2 1/2 hours before going out at the earliest. I enlisted Mama to come over during the afternoon to let him out so that he could make it the rest of the day. When I got home Petey greeted me as usual and seemed perfectly fine other than a, still unexplained black mark on his side. Everything seemed just fine until about 8:30.

Mama called then, and asked if he was OK. It was a surprising question since Petey seemed so fine. I asked why she asked and she said that he was very sick when she was here, and that he threw up outside. She stayed longer than she meant to, and was a little afraid to leave him. She even considered taking him home with her. In the end, she left him, although she was concerned the whole time.

We came to the conclusion that Petey didn't want her to leave, so he did what he could to make her stay. He knew just how to play her to make her stay. He didn't quite get what he wanted but she did stay longer than she meant to. We're really going to have to watch the little guy!!

Stay tuned for a post about how mad Petey is at John when he gets home!!!!

Petey's Paws

Petey licks his paws, much like humans bite their fingernails, just a nervous habit. Imagine that, Petey has a nervous habit!! John & I try to distract him when he really gets going, by snapping our fingers. Petey knows the snap and will quit, for a second or two.

Just now, Petey was laying beside me on the couch and was licking his paws. I snapped my fingers and he stopped, momentarily. I snapped my fingers again and he moved to the end of the couch. He put his nose and paws under the pillow and resumed licking. I could see that little head just bobbing up and down. As I snapped my fingers again, I told Petey that I could still see him. He looked at me with some surprise.

He was smart enough to try and hide, since he knew he wasn't supposed to be doing that, but not quite smart enough to hide completely. Gotta love the logic!!

Petey's Mad at John

It has been a while since I've blogged since John & I were out of town last week. You may have seen the pictures on Facebook.

While we were gone Petey stayed at the house until Saturday with Sterling. Mama came to get Petey on Saturday to keep him over night. We explained this all to Petey before we left. He didn't like it. Mama said when she came to get him on Saturday, he was eager to go. He was content at her house. He ate like a pig and she even let him sleep with her.

When we got to her house Sunday afternoon. He wouldn't have much at all to do with John, although he seemed glad to see me. On the ride home, he sat in my lap as usual. He would cut his eyes over to John to see if he was looking and then turn his head. Once we started laughing about this, he turned around, put his paws on my shoulders and began to lick my face with great gusto as if to emphasise his point!!

All week, Petey has preferred my company to John's. He won't sit in the recliner with John, and even jumped down when he went over to the couch and started to rub his belly. We've never known Petey to pass up a belly rub!!

We were on an official business trip for John, so Petey must have understood that. The ice has thawed some, but for now there has been a power shift in the house.

Happy Easter!!

Thanks to Petey's blog fans, Dan, Erin & Little E for the bunny ears!! He left them on long enough for two pictures!!

Allergic to Petey

A lot has happened in the week since I've posted, but I'm not getting in to that since this blog is about Petey not me. There was one thing, however that happened this is directly related to Petey - I am allergic to him. For the record, I'm allergic to everything the allergist tested me for, except Sycamore trees. Go figure.

The allergist is a very sympathetic and realistic doctor. He knew we'd never get rid of Petey so he suggested a few things to help with the symptoms. Some of those things are fairly easy to implement like vacuum and dust more often. It is real easy for me because he told me not to. I don't need any more exposure to the allergens. But he also said that Petey could no longer sleep with us. That, dear reader, is a much larger challenge.

Petey has beds all over the house, but is preferential place to sleep is with someone, wherever they are. For the longest time John and I were strong and we didn't let Petey sleep with us. Petey would snuggle with me in the bed while I read and John did his evening routine. When John came to bed, he would put Petey in the floor and tell him to get in his box. Petey would, but not before a lot of forlorn looks and attempts to get back in the bed. Obviously, it is difficult for even the strongest of individuals to face that night after night, so for a while John would get in the bed for a little cuddle time before putting Petey in the floor. And in time, he stopped putting Petey in the floor. Petey never has stayed all night. We joke about him waiting until we go to sleep and getting up. Since we are asleep we don't know when he gets up but we both have the sense that it isn't very long after we go to sleep that he gets up. We're probably not good company asleep.

The allergist told me that letting Petey sleep in the same bed as me was like sleeping in a lawn of freshly mown grass. My body doesn't know the difference, it just reacts to the allergen at hand. So...the first night I took Petey to the middle bedroom and tucked him in the bed there. I tried to make a big deal out of Petey's special bed, that lasted maybe three minutes. John was up watching TV so he got Petey to sit in the recliner with him. The second night John took him to the middle bedroom, that worked better. John is number one right now, so he has more power!! Last night, though, Petey had apparently had his fill and would absolutely not be dissuaded from getting in the bed. I relented. What is a little sore throat and sinus pressure compared to Petey's hurt feelings? I'll be starting shots soon anyway...

UPDATE:
Petey is doing fairly well not sleeping with us every night. He does, however get on the bed during the day.

Petey in the Sun

John turned the soil in the garden yesterday and messed up Petey's warm leaf bed. Not to be deterred Petey turned to the neighbors yet again. Here he is flopped out on the mulch in a little garden bed between our driveways.

He tried the blacktop, but apparently it isn't quite ready. I'll get a shot of that soon. Maybe my shadow won't be in the corner!!

Petey Loves the Sun

Petey does not like to be cold. Temperatures below about 75, are cold to Petey. This time of year Petey really has a hard time. The sun is shining and it looks nice outside so he wants to be out in the sun, but then he gets cold and has to come back in. During the last few weeks we have had some high temps in the low 70's, so he knows it can happen. Even on those days, however, the early morning and evening hours are much cooler. This is very distressing to Petey, he really, really wants to be outside. It looks so warm and inviting, but it isn't warm - not to Petey.

John was home on spring break this week. Petey wanted to be outside with him while he's outside but it just isn't quite warm enough for him. John couldn't/wouldn't run back & forth letting Petey in and out, so Petey had to make a decision. Petey must be with his peeps, when it is at all feasible. It is part of the Petey code. He had to stay outside. So, he made himself a nest in the leaves on our little garden area. It was sunny and the leaves must have held some heat. He laid there for quite some time 'supervising' John.

Just wait until July, though, Petey will be in his prime!! Our neighbors have a blacktop driveway that gets direct sun. To the rest of the world that is hot. To Petey, it is just right. He'll lay smack dab in the sun on the driveway for hours. He gets a little perturbed with the neighbors when they need to come or go and he has to move. Luckily, they think it is funny and don't mind Petey laying smack in the middle of their driveway. The longer he lays there the flatter he seems to get. It is as if he's melting into the pavement. After a while, he'll come in the house panting like he's run a mile. He'll cool off for a while and then go right back out! I'll get a picture this summer to post.

The Smelling Game

John has two panaceas that he keeps on his bedside table. There is not a lot in this world that can go wrong with you that can’t be cured, or at least helped by either Absorbine, Jr. or Vick’s Vapo-rub. He uses the AJ for muscle aches and discovered that is also helped acne. I don’t know how; that discovery predates me. But he is often willing to suggest that AJ will help some physical ailment I have. The Vick’s is more for clearing up sinus or chest congestion. He has also tried it as an anti-snoring device. So it is important to keep these two items close at hand.

Petey was on the bed one day when John was medicating himself with one of his two favorite cure-alls, Absorbine Jr. Being the true supervisor (nosey) that he is; he went over to investigate (sniff) the situation. John pointed the bottle towards him so that he could get a good sniff. Petey started leaping around on the bed and barking like crazy. After a few moments of this, he went back over for another sniff. John let him have it. Again he jumped around, barked and dug at the sheets. John wasn’t sure if this was a happy dance or an upset dance, so he didn’t let him smell anymore that night.

A couple of nights later, John was again applying Absorbine, Jr. before bedtime and Petey came to check things out. John pointed the bottle at him thinking that if Petey didn’t like it he would remember and leave it alone. AJ has a very strong smell; you do not have to get your nose right up on it to smell it. Petey marched right up, got a good whiff and started the ‘dance’ again – lots of jumping, barking and pawing at the sheets. He would also run to the far end of the bed and back. Every time he came back, John would let him have a sniff and Petey would do the whole routine again, again, and again. Thus the smelling game was born.

Petey would get on the bed and walk to the corner where John’s bedside table was, and start sniffing. When John saw him there he would let him have a whiff of the AJ. In time, John let him smell the Vick’s, same reaction. Then he let him smell perfumes, potpourri, after shave, whatever he could find – all got the same reaction. He went around looking for things for him to smell. It didn’t matter, Petey reacted the same way.

One day John picked up a small decorative item on his night stand, and held that out for Petey to smell. I don’t know why, probably because he had trotted out every thing else in the house for him to get a whiff of. Petey did the same thing – lots of high pitched barking, jumping, and carrying on. That didn’t last very long however, after a while Petey realized there was nothing there to smell.

The best we can tell Petey is having fun. He keeps wanting to do it. He doesn’t act all strange afterwards like he’s gotten a buzz or anything like that. As long as he likes it, they’ll keep playing.