Rosie of the Nervous Disposition

Rosie the Crazy in a moment of stillness

Fingers crossed, but Rosie seems to have mellowed a bit in her old age. Or perhaps she is simply biding her time before her next rash of Disobedience comes along.

I've noticed over the last few weeks she's gotten a lot more cuddly. She'll lick my face for no good reason and will tend to follow me around sometimes, just like Fred does. Although no one can do a better Shadow than Fred.

Having said all this, I'm pretty sure her nervous disposition is something ingrained in her. You watch her twitch in excitement and do loop-the-loops jumps around Fred when either dinner, permission to come inside or a walk is on offering, and you know that that is just the way she is.

I guess everyone's gotta have some personal quirks right?

Rosie and the heater

Here is Rosie staring puzzedly at the heater. That, or she's considering wearing my boots. It's getting cold here, and everyone needs warm tooshies.

The more I look at this picture, the funnier it gets.

What is she thinking?

"Where were you last night when I was shivering in the cold dog house?"

"Gosh I love you"

"I wonder if I can sneak these boots out while mum's not looking. They look just my size and the perfect colour too..."

And here is a pic of the dastardly duo. The dogs are taking it in turns to look at the camera.

Rosie looks at the camera, while Fred sulks

Freddie looks up at the camera hoping for a cuddle while Rosie looks away

Rosie looks up as she notices me taking a picture. The flash really
does something crazy to their eyes though. Freddie's looking as morose
as ever - mainly I think due to the lack of cuddling/tickling. The
other night I joked to him about coming over for a cuddle. He
immediately perked up at the word 'cuddle'. I think he's learnt a new
word.

My what big dogs you have, Mister!

It's hard to believe that we've had our doggies for close to 2 years now. I was going through some old photos online the other day and came across this: 

The picture that tore at the Husband's heart strings

This was Freddie's mugshot at the Pound. They had it up on the Pound website, warning that he was on deathrow.

This was the first pic I ever saw of Fred. And I recall me looking at it nonplussed, reading the description and thinking "wolfhound? What on earth is a wolfhound??" Famous Last Words

Now compare that sad little face to:

What'cha doin, Mum?

Fred: "Ok mum, what are you doing now?"

He's not as thin in the face now, and he's certainly filled out a bit. I don't think he'll get any taller, but he's certainly long and solid.

Below is a pic of Fred eating his breakfast. He actually doesn't look as intimidating eating as he does when he's lying on the ground, all stretched out. You tend to forget sometimes what a big mass of a dog he is. But that certainly doesn't stop me from loving him. Big dogs are the best, I reckon. You can thump them to your heart's content. You can be as rough as you like, and he they just don't feel it. If anything, they look at you asking for more.

Eating breakfast so he can become a Big Boy

I got these two pics today from a cd of pictures that my cousins took when they came over to stay.

Oh go away so I can eat my breakfast in peace!

My, what big fangs you have Freddie!

They get fed the same amount of food once in the morning and once in the evening.

They usually get a walk when we come home from work, and by the time we have dinner and settle down, it's long enough between exercise and meals for the doggies to have their dinner.

After which, if they are lucky, they get to come inside to spend some quality time with the Human Boss.

Below is a pic I snapped of them in the study. This is still their favourite room. If I'm the only one at home and am busy with other things (i.e. not in front of the tv) the dogs will wander into the study and sleep in there. I think perhaps it might be because it's the only room they are allowed access to that has carpet - i.e. it's comfortable for them to sleep/lie on.

Chilling out in the study

Rosie sniffing Fred's butt

Before the dogs are let in, they are required to do a sit. I do this to encourage them to recognise that being let inside is considered a privilege that they must be polite about. One night as the husband went to let the dogs in, Freddie had been busy chewing on his bone. Apparently when he realised that he was being allowed in, he did a double take and spat out his bone before hurriedly going into a spit. I can just imagine how comical it would have been to see a big 40kg dog spit out his bone in order to get inside.

Freddie's not as fastidious with me though. When I went to let him in the other night, he wanted to take his smelly bone which was covered in dirt inside with him. I had to make him drop it, but it still took two goes before he understood and came inside without the bone.

Fred exposing himself as he goes to scratch his ear

Looking away from the camera pretending that he doesn't know anything abt his exposure

He's squinting a bit in the flash, but he loves putting his head in my lap, all the same

Lately we have started letting both dogs stay in our bedroom at night. It's interesting watching the dog power play.

It used to be Fred was the only one allowed in, and he would sleep beside me.

When Rosie was also allowed in, for the first few nights I noticed she would sleep at the foot of the bed guarding the door. However she soon began inching into Fred's territory. I'd wake up one morning and Rosie would be curled closest to me, and poor Fred would be pushed up against the wall. Don't get me wrong - there's plenty of floor space for both of them. Yet I found it amusing that Rosie decided that the best spot (since she is top dog) is nearest me, and hence pushed Fred out of the way.

Last night Rosie wasn't let in to sleep with us. I have no idea why - as I was already fast asleep before the dogs were. But after the alarm went off I went to put the alarm on snooze only to be woken up properly by Freddie sitting up and licking my arm.

He then watched him, with his tail wagging back and forth. When I indicated that I was going back to sleep he dutifully stretched out and slumped back on the floor.

When I finally did get up, I noted with amusement that he sat there watching me with his little adoring eyes. I like to pretend/think that he enjoyed the privilege of being with us without Rosie interfering.

I find it amazing how easily Fred relinquishes his life to Rosie. Be it best spot next to his Boss or letting her eat his meal.

I think I was reading something the other day about how when it comes to dogs, the female dog will always be Top Dog. That is certainly the case when it comes to Freddie. Poor ol' Freddie.

Thinking back though if nothing else we have managed to mellow Rosie down. Lately she has been a lot more affectionate, and whereas it used to be only Freddie would follow me around the house, I notice that sometimes when I get up to do something both dogs will get up and follow me.

Rosie of now is a far cry from Rosie of Yesteryear

Curious!Rosie inspecting the door that seperatesher from the humans

naughty rosie.. tsk tsk tsk

It's all starting to sound a bit like a broken record.

I finally got around to getting some balloons on the weekend. I had read that one way to discourage dogs from digging was to put balloons full of water into their holes. I filled up about 5 balloons and dumped them into the deepest holes. We'll see if anything happens.

I spent the evening craning my ears to see if I could hear a splosh of water and a yelp of surprise. No such luck yet...

On the weekend I also noticed, that since the garden was now fence free, the dogs went wandering to their heart's content. This meant more dog poo on my veggies, and some very deep holes along the fence..

*sigh*

A fence was dutifully put back up, and restrengthened. We shall see if she manages to get over this time. And of course there are balloons in those holes now... *holds breath in anticipation*

On Saturday night, I noticed Rosie was getting quite antsy. Kept on moving around the living room. I called her over to encourage her to just chill out with the humans. She'd come over in my direction, never looking me in the eye, do a semi circle, before turning away to wander again. I'd call her back and she'd do the same thing. It was like she was refusing to come when called. Husband ended up sending her back outside. Although I'm not sure she knew it was for her insolence of refusing to acknowledge me.

Last night after I let them in, I caught her craning her neck over the coffee table in order to sneak some food off the table. If there's one big no no in our household is that you don't beg for food or steal it off tables. She got immediately reprimanded and sent back outside again. She hasn't done that in a while, or at least gotten caught for eating off the table in a while. I had actually thought she'd learnt that particular lesson.

The husband is getting a little short tempered at Rosie, and it's not foreboding very well for her stay with us. He's been mentioning quite often lately that he wasn't sure getting her was the right thing. I'm half and half about it. Her antics don't impact me as much, mainly because 1. I don't do much in the garden so don't really appreciate all the mess and damage she creates, and 2. she has yet to run away from me on a walk. I've had her not respond, but never to the point where she just ran off into the bush and I couldn't find her. Then again, I don't do 'exciting' walks with her. We just do a few laps of the oval. Whereas the husband takes the dogs out to roaming the countryside.

As a result of Rosie's antics, Freddie got to spend the night with us again. Boy that boy sheds a lot of hair... I only just vacuumed that bedroom floor the other week.Not that you would know it, looking at that floor.. *shudder*

Fred's in the Dog House

In a weird twist of fate Freddie spent the night outside while Rosie got to stay with the Humans last night.

We came home to discover not only did Fred destroy his bed (again), but that he chewed up the hose.

That's the second hose that has succumbed to wolfhound teeth. *sigh*

Welcome to my household which consists of one Chewer, and one Digger.

The consequences of his actions meant that Fred wasn't allowed inside the house (a huge privilege) after dinner. Although I don't think Fred really understood why he was left outside. I mean, shaking a mangled hose thing without the hose isn't exactly revealing to a dog. It's not like we caught him chewing it. In which case, maybe he'd understand.

I think the reason why he did it was because we've been quite busy lately at work, getting home fairly late at night, and haven't had time to walk him. 3 days without a walk makes a dog very bored indeed.

At least I managed to give him a quick walk around the block before we ostracised him.

All my reading of dogs (in forums and dog training books) suggest that our choice to do so probably would've made no impact. It would've been a punishment and not a correctment/learning behaviour technique. But I think leaving Fred out there made the hubby feel better at least. After all it was his hose. Fred ate the one I bought a long time ago.

After we let Rosie in, I don't think she really knew what to do with herself.

She came in and after realising Fred wasn't behind us, wandered around to check and then gave us both a look of shock and awe, as if to say:

"I'm the favourite tonight? Really? Are you sure?"

It's funny because the night before, she knew that she wasn't going to be let in after her shooting range escapade. In fact, she didn't even bother getting up after dinner. Dogs sure get used to routine. Although it says a lot that she already knows that she won't get let in if she's done a runner the day before.

Anyway, let's hope no more nasty surprises greet us when we get home tonight.

what on earth is going on in the world of fred and rosie??

"Where have all the updates gone?" I hear you ask.

Well, see, Fred and Rosie were privy to a special event a few months back. Their parents finally decided to make their doggies legitimate, and tied the knot in January. This was followed by a month of absence as they cavorted around Europe, while the dogs spent time busily getting buzzed by their grandparent's electric wire fence.

Lots of stories to tell you, but not much in terms of photos.

Freddie is still as adorable as ever, and due to Rosie's constant misbehaviour gets to spend most of his nights in our room.

While we were away on honeymoon, the puppies were placed at the inlaws, who live on 1 acre. This meant there was plenty of room for the dogs to run around. I don't know about you, but I'm not a big fan of kennels.

When we went to find doggies, we went to lots of dog shelters, which sometimes also doubled as kennels (i.e. places for doggies to stay while the owners went away). And I must say, no matter how often they get walked, the little piece of concrete that they could call their own just seemed way too small for my liking.

So it was to the in-laws they went. And while they had plenty of space to roam, there was concern that Rosie would dig herself out, or Freddie would jump the fence in search of their parents.

So an electric fence was erected. I am told that Rosie was the first Victim, having run to the fence to greet visitors, only to yelp in surprise. It took a while for her to warm back up to the inlaws for dinner. Which is a feat for a dog who adores food.

When we ended up picking them up a month later both dogs were neither distressed or overjoyed to see us.

Our own backyard is fenced in half, in an attempt to stop Rosie from digging up too much of the established rose bushes and fruit trees in our yard. The night we got back, Rosie managed to figure out how to jump onto the other side of the fence.

And so began Groundhog Day for Rosie. She had figured a way to get onto the other side of the garden, but couldn't seem to get back. This happened almost every night. Rather than just go all the way to the bottom of the garden and let her out, we decided to leave her there, each time a little longer, in an attempt to teach her that it really was silly to do what she was doing. After all, once she got over there, she'd start to whine and howl in despair.

Especially forlorn were the whimpers as she watched Fred get fed, or Fred get taken for a walk.

Rosie is Top Dog in the backyard and has always made a point of eating before Fred. Initially Freddie wouldn't eat whenever she jumped over. But soon doggie hunger instincts took the best of him, and he started eating regardless of her enraged barks.

After a few weeks of this constant jumping we began to realise that:

1. Rosie would never learn to make sure she had an escape route before jumping over the fence

and

2. She was really only doing it for attention.

It was starting to get a little irritating.

Not to mention the fact that she was POOING in my VEGETABLE PATCH! GRRRRRRrrrr

Eventually we relented and took down the fence, just to see if she would still go over, and of course we wondered what was so fascinating abt the other side of the fence.

The minute the fence went down she stopped going over.

Obviously the novelty of the jumping was simply because she was jumping into the forbidden.

But does Rosie's little defiances stop there? Oh no.

The dogs went for a walk on the weekend. Husband came home with only one dog. *sigh*

Rosie wandered off during her walk, and couldn't be found no matter how hard he looked. Good thing I got those dog tags, right?

I got a call yesterday morning to discover that she had wandered off to the shooting range.

We ended up driving down a 7km winding dirt road with lots of potholes last night in pitch black through state forest to pick her up. The guy who found her lived out in the middle of woop woop, and to be honest, I wasn't really appreciative of having to spend an extra 30 mins to pick her up. It had been a LOOONG day.

There was no contrition as we went to pick her up. She had been chained up, and the minute I took her collar, she was intent on running away. Husband grabbed hold of her and made sure she got in the car safely.

We dropped her off at home, and I was amazed to watch as she pranced, yes, pranced to the gate, wagging her whipping tail up high as Freddie watched from the other side of the gate. As if to say, 'check me out. aren't I clever? i made them drive out to get me". Usually whenever she wanders off on a walk, she comes home, covered in cobwebs and stinking of some unknown animal poo. But not this time. This time she was smart enough to get US to get HER.

Anyhow, we're kind of at our tether in terms of Rosie. Not only does she wander off on walks, refusing to come when told, but she's a helluva digger. There are craters the size of a moon in our backyard the husband just does not appreciate. Refilling the holes do nothing. She's cleared out entire garden beds. We even went to such desperate measures as putting dog poo in the holes. Which seems to stop her a little, but all she does is find another place to dig.

The other day our next door neighbour came knocking, warning us that Rosie was digging another Escape Route at the fence.

I'm starting to think I might need the assistance of a dog behaviouralist. Because at this rate, I'm not sure if we can really keep her. Her constant disappearing act makes me think that

1. our yard is too small for her, and
2. we don't have enough time for her.

We had hoped that the dogs would keep each other company, but the more we watch them together, the more it looks like that Rosie isn't really interested in Fred. If anything, they pretty much ignore each other until dinner time, when Rosie starts up her growl at Fred to make sure that he remembers she eats first.

And I'm sorry to say that she doesn't really endear herself to anyone. Sure, she's the prettiest dog you'll ever meet. But affection? Sure, give it to me if you want, but don't expect me to want it or ask for it. She's more like a cat in that regard. And I'm sorry, but I signed up for a dog, not a cat.

If you give her a cuddle or a scratch she will accept it. But the minute you stop she just wanders away. Goes and sits under the table, or wanders off into the study, curls up in a ball and sleeps.

Fred, on the other hand, if you give him a cuddle and stop? God forbid. He'll put his head on your lap and look up at you begging for more. If you're tickling his tummy and stop, his paws will start waving in the air, trying to grab hold of you to try and encourage you to keep tickling.

Maybe if we had Rosie on her own, we would never really think twice of her behaviour. But when you put her beside the affectionate and docile Fred who only ever needs to be told once not to do something before he stops, it's a different kettle of fish.

I know it's bad to compare dogs - each personality is different. But when he is just so .... doggie.... he just makes Rosie look all the more worse for what she is.

You may consider me petty, and perhaps her 'crimes' so to speak arent' all that bad on their own in isolation. But trust me, this has been a buildup of over a year or so. It's not the first time she's run away on a walk. It's not the first time she has refused to come when called, and it's not the first time she's dug the backyard into oblivion or done things she knows she's not allowed to do (eg, go over the fence).

There are moments when I feel like a very bad dog owner. I guess I'm just despairing at ever being able to get through to her. Let's just hope that a dog behaviouralist is all I need to get Rosie back on track.

The Fred Swim and other interesting chronicles

As promised, here are pictures commemorating Freddie's First Swim.

C'mon Freddie, It won't be as bad as you think y'know...

Yeah Dad, I guess you're right...

Whoa... water's cold, dad!

Fred: Ok, I don't like this, I wanna go back to shore now. Dad: "NOT. SO. FAST. FRED."

C'mon, little boy...

Fred: I'm not too sure, Dad. That shore really looks beckoning..

..and off they go. look at that huge wake that Fred leaves behind him...

As I turn around, guess what swims past my camera lens?

Harry: "wait for me, guys!!!"

"Hurry up then, Harry!" Dad says with a bemused smile

and a little while later....

See the red circle? They're allll the way over there...

So this is a huge thing, because in the last 18 months that we've owned Freddie, he has stayed away from the water. The last few times we tried, he just stood on the shore and refused to go in. And his weight and size being what it is, we couldn't convince him otherwise. But somehow or other we managed to trick him in, and since it was such a hot day, it ended up that I think he rather enjoyed his little swim.

Here are some earlier pics taken before the Freddie Swim.

Here he is with my nephew-to-be.

I like the second pic when Fred is getting patted, and he looks up as if to say 'Oh gee, that's really nice! Thanks!'

That or he's asking if he can have a sip of that glass of champagne on the bench.

OOooo.. pebbles....

All these pics of Fred's tongue hanging out makes me wonder if he's just super thirsty.

Fred-a-goin-a-huntin'

 

I really like this pic too, because his fur just kinda blends into the grass.

And finally, here is Freddie wishing you a very good Seasons Greetings*:

Fred: "I look so stupid..."

* NB: I am not held responsible for this pic.

Long time no update, doggies!

With a little more time on my hands during the Christmas/New Year break, I got around to getting my camera out more often to show you guys what my little beloveds have been up to.

Fred and Rosie had a fairly quiet Christmas, although we spent the day after Boxing Day down on the South Coast.

In typical fashion, I've left half my photos at home so I can only show you some of the pics I took. However, I must tell you some super exciting news - Freddie finally went swimming!!! I will post up pics soon. Promise!

The pic below is after Freddie went swimming. Sitting on the back deck he certainly looks like a big mass of a dog.

Freddie the Big Dog

As you can see, he's slowly growing into his looks. To me he looks more like a teenager now. Here is a full body shot:

What a handsome boy!

Here is Rosie ignoring us again:

Rosie: "I wonder where all my minions are"

And here is a pic of the dog pack...

Rosie: "can we come in yet, mum?"
"

The little jack russell is called Harry. He is the fiance's mum's dog.
You may (or may not) recognise him from other posts. Harry's a very
sweet and brave doggie. Harry's only small, but he is always wanting to
play with our dogs. In the pic below, Harry is showing doggie affection
by whispering sweet nothings into Freddie's ear. Or maybe he's just
giving Freddie a little lick.

Harry: I wish I was strong enough to open this door...

Rosie: "Gosh, rolling under the house into cobwebs was fun"

Can you see the cobwebs around her face and on her shoulders?

Fred: "So I was thinking, my right side is my Best Side. What do you think?"

Here is Fred on the way home from the Coast. I happened to look over, and got some of The Cutest pictures...

Below is my absolute favourite:

Fred: "I wuv you mum"

Back at home, I was greeted with two very exhausted puppies:

Rosie: "Oh gosh I'm SO BORED"

Rosie: "Is there a fly on my head? Can you get rid of it for me? I'm too tired..."

Fred: "Hey Rosie?" Rosie:" Ssh, sleepy time now Fred"

Fred: "mum, what you doing?" Rosie: "man, I'm sooo bored"

Now this is a really sweet pic of Rosie:

Hiding Rosie

Overexposing Rosie

She's been super affectionate lately. I've been trying to give her a bit more attention, since I usually just lavish attention on Fred. Fred was actually quite put out the other night when I gave Rosie lots of cuddles. He just lay there on the carpet looking confused. As if to say "what on earth are you doing mum? Rosie NEVER gets cuddles. Only *I* do. That's the RULE."

And on the right here is just a pretty artistic shot of Rosie. Since she's so black when you overexpose the picture the effect is pretty cool. You get to see all her markings a lot clearer. These closeups just make you think she must've been SUCH a cutie when she was a puppy.

Fred: "Huh? I think I just heard something!"

And here are some very cute actions shots:

"oh"

Fred: "Ok mum, what are you doing now?"

Mum: "Now stick your tongue out..."Fred: [obliges] This is silly, mum"

I promise to put up the rest of the pics soon. Meanwhile, here's something to keep you entertained while you wait:

I am a Lion - hear me roar!