Category Archives: Affection

Shih Tzu Day 116: Squirrel!

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squirrels and dogs

a squirrel running on a fence.The shih tzus have discovered squirrels. They remind me so much of the scene from Up! where the dog is talking and gets distracted and says, “Squirrel!” Candy is usually pretty quiet when she is outside, except when Nigel is getting a little too rough. However, this morning my guard shih tzu started barking and wouldn’t stop.

two shih tzus after spotting a squirrel.two <strong srcset=shih tzu puppies after spotting a squirrel.” width=”300″ height=”225″ />When I went outside to find out why Her Royal Furriness was barking, she was at the far end of the backyard, looking up at the fence. A squirrel was running away. Fifteen minutes after I went inside, she started barking again. It was another squirrel alert. Nigel wasn’t interested in the squirrel, but he wanted to play, so he ran up and nuzzled Candy. She yapped at him to leave her alone and went back to watching the squirrel, who, this time, was frozen in place. Nigel ran back to the porch, but Flower heard the barks and came running as backup. Nigel changed his mind and ran back to bug Candy some more, but she snapped at him, sending him back to the porch. He doesn’t realize that squirrel alert takes a lot of shih tzu concentration.

When the squirrel finally ran off, I went back inside, but Candy chose to stay out back. It was good she did, because the squirrel tried to sneak back, but Candy spied him and sounded the alert one last time for the day.

shih tzu petting zoo

Candy actually came up to me and allowed me to pet her twice today. I thought she looked like she was considering coming up on the couch, but the ogre shih tzu, Dottie, growled at her and she walked away. Interesting that none of the female shih tzus ever consider going to the male side of the couch.

Dottie wanted Mom time today too, beyond the regular time of just sitting together. I petted her for a while and when I went to move my hand, she bit at it to stop me. I gave her a few more minutes.

Flower, too, needed her special time today. She came to the couch a few times, giving me that “come hither and pet me” look. She is the funniest shih tzu when I pet her, especially her haunches. She stretches her neck and looks up and around, swiveling her head up and then from side to side, looking away and than at me with her eyes big. Of course, she jumped back down when I had to stop petting her and get other things done.

On those occasions when Flower does stay on the couch, she always acts like she is waiting for something to happen, such as for me to pet her again or for food to appear. She doesn’t really relax like Dottie and Nigel do.

musical shih tzu beds

a <strong srcset=shih tzu excited about her male human being home. ” width=”300″ height=”225″ />It is good that the shih tzu sisters have three beds. Candy started out in the new pink one this morning, went to the blue one for her afternoon nap and then took over the communal dog bed, later releasing it to Flower.

two shih tzu puppies greet their male human.Sometimes, though, dog beds aren’t necessary. Flower chose the floor for her afternoon nap. Nigel lay down on one side of me and Dottie on another. After searching for Candy later, I found her lounging by the dining room table.

The treat man caused as big of a stir as the squirrel when he got home. His shih tzu committee, Candy and Nigel, showed a lot of enthusiasm when they greeted him and even more when he produced the evening treats.

Shih Tzu Day 62: Candy Wags Her Tail for Daddy

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tail-wagging Candy

Shih tzu on carpet.I think we had a major victory last night. When John got home from work, Flower forgot that she had spent the whole week with him and barked ferociously, as if he was an intruder. Dottie just hung back, but Candy greeted him with a wagging tail. That’s pretty good, since Candy’s tail rarely wags. Flower didn’t bark for very long, however, especially after John passed out the Milo’s chicken jerky.

Dottie’s turn on the table

Dottie was patient on the grooming table, but wouldn't walk on the leash.We are going to try to either put one sister on the leash or do some type of grooming every day. This morning, we put Dottie on the table. We trimmed around her paws and a little on the bottom of her feet, gave her her treat and put her back down. Flower is always too nervous to eat a treat on the table, put Dottie did.

panic mode

Shortly after John left, I was messing around with my blog site, trying to figure out why I couldn’t set up email subscriptions correctly. Right after that, it showed an error. I panicked, since I hadn’t backed it up for a while. It turned out that Fatcow was having a problem. Thank goodness. I did back up the site as soon as it came back up.

Candy’s turn with the harness

Candy took a few steps in the harness, following a Vienna sausage.The girls all seemed so bored today, languishing on the carpet, floor or in the doggie beds. I decided they should get a little fresh air, and while they were at it, Dottie could have another leash and harness lesson. Dottie was stubborn, and didn’t want to budge, though, so I targeted Candy.

I tried to do what Cesar recommended, introducing the harness to her, and giving her a bite of the chosen treat, Vienna sausage again. She took the bite and didn’t seem too disturbed by the walk-in harness, so I put it on her. I didFlower was relieved to avoid the grooming table and leash. have to carry her out to the middle of the grass. She didn’t walk as much as Flower did the other day, but she did take a few tentative steps. She’d stop, I’d offer a small bite of the sausage, and she would take a few more steps. I didn’t want to push her too far, so I made it a short session. I split the last sausage between the three of them.

Candy went upstairs for a short time after we came in, but then she came down and spent most of the afternoon with us. I think that’s another good sign.

Shih Tzu Day 29: Black and White Dogs, Black and White Dreams

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Candy, help me! He's out of control.

Dreaming in Black and White

You did too lead me on, Flower.John got up at 4:30 a.m. with a headache, signaling all the dogs to come and try to lure me out of bed an hour earlier than usual. I lay in bed lazily, trying to ignore them, but gave up and hung my hand over the side for them to play with. Of course, Shiloh jumped in clumsily, so I had to keep trying to get him to play gently.

You're not the only one who is Angry, Bird!Since I didn’t get up right away, Shiloh jumped back up on the bed to get in a few extra winks, and the girls migrated back downstairs. I thought I wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep and planned on getting up at 5:30, but then I fell back asleep and had a really weird dream about black and white dogs, black and white hamsters, black and white cats. It reminded me of a line from the movie, Sentinel: Black and white cake; black and white cat.

Flower Forgets to Be Distant

What did you want me to do with this thing?Flower forgot to play hard to get when I picked her up this time. Earlier she ran from me, and when I caught her and held her, she leaned away from me. A few hours later, I picked her up from the dog bed and she didn’t fight me at all. She didn’t lean against me, but she didn’t lean away from me. I rewarded her with lots of kisses, but I know she would have preferred treats.

Later, she let me pet her for several minutes outside and played at my feet when we came back inside. When Dottie and I were sitting on the couch this afternoon, Flower jumped up tMom says I look like Candice Bergen. Do you see the resemblance?o sit with us. It’s probably because Brutus, Shiloh’s name for today, is making weird growling noises.  I just love it when Flower comes up and puts her paws on the couch, stretches, and looks at me all loopy.How can I look like Candy Bergen and like a rabbit?

Candy might be taking her sister’s lead. She doesn’t try to escape so much when I approach her. She usually just sits still. I picked her up and held her twice today for a couple of minutes each time.

Diarrhea

Sorry I'm not trying to be cute today. My tummy is upset.I’m used to picking up the kind of poop that’s easy to pick up, but today was a different story. Somebody must have an upset stomach. Today wasn’t hamburger day, but it’s possible it could be effects from yesterday. This morning, John also hand-fed them from the Fromm salmon sample package.

Later in the day, I caught Dottie pooping next to the training pad, and the texture identified her as the dog with the upset tummy. I picked it up and pointed to the training pad, asking her to please do her business there. About an hour later, she went back to the same spot, squatted and pooped before I could get to her. When I got to the spot, I firmly asked her to use the training pad. I tried to catch her by the collar to sit her on the pad, but she pulled away and I tugged back, saying a little impatiently, “Dottie, use the pad!” and placing her on it. The poor little thing cowered before me. I guess when a doggy has an upset tummy isn’t the right time to train them where to poop.

What's wrong with Dottie, Mommy? I picked her up and held her, petting her tummy. All afternoon, whenever I approached her, she cowered down or ran and hid under the table. I felt very guilty for showing my impatience and being too forceful. I have to get on John’s iPad and start reading the “Fearful Dog” book to get some help on what to do in situations like this.

I tried to be very careful with what all the dogs ate today, to avoid any more instances.

Shih Tzu Day 25: Unsociable Shih Tzus

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harmonious shih tzus

All the shih tzus came up to get me this morning. Waldo (one of my nicknames for Shiloh) stood by while they danced, until we went into the kitchen, and then he participated in a mild fashion. I think he’s getting tired of me telling him not to scratch my legs.

John didn’t come down with me, since we had stayed up late last night with our visitors, Nikki and Clarke, watching music videos. After the shih tzus and I came in from their outdoor breakfast, they acted like they wanted to play again, instead of going right back to their corner, like they usually do.

But, company and a houseful of dogs have been slowing me down, and I needed to do a little work. I settled on the couch with my laptop, letting Dottie up when she put her paws up on the couch for assistance. Flower lay down on the floor by my feet. I thought Candy was back in their safe zone, but then I realized she was sitting in front of my feet, chewing on a Pork Chomp, but the laptop was blocking me from seeing her. Whenever I’d look at Flower, her tail would wag. The harmony and contentment made me happy. As for Shiloh, it made him bored and he bounded back upstairs.

Dottie Takes Her Second Car Ride in the Jeep

We again put Shiloh in the kennel before we went to pick up mom for breakfast in Boulder. We had to come back home and get Nikki and Clarke so I decided to take Dottie with us for the fifteen-minute car ride. She shook in the Jeep at first, but otherwise did good.Dottie on her second car ride

Our breakfast took more time than we thought it would, so we instructed my stepdaughter Leticia to have the children change into their swimsuits and swim for a while before we got there. Gabe drove up with Crystal and her daughter, Avi, when we were leaving to go to the store for lunch fixings, so we told him to go on in.

When we got back, the shih tzus were all huddled in their corner. I moved everyone to the garage, where we were going to eat, so they could have a little peace. Nikki and Clarke decided they were going to get on the road before lunch, so they said their goodbyes to us and Shiloh, leaving the shih tzus with two less people to watch warily.

I thought the shih tzus might be a little more comfortable with people, so I told Evita to come and say hi. However, Dottie growled at her, so I warned them that they should say their hellos from a distance.

Shiloh Takes a Walk — or Twenty

After we ate, we brought Shiloh out on his leash, and I brought Dottie outside to sit with me for awhile while people took turns playing ping ping and riding our bikes. Rema, Oriana, Evita, Dulcea and Avi took turns taking Shiloh for walks. Shiloh loved the attention and the walks.

Our granddaughter, Dulcea, walks ShilohThings didn’t go perfectly with Shiloh, however. He did growl at a couple of the kids, so we kept an eye on him. He also growled and barked at the neighbor’s dog when it walked by. Shiloh growled at the neighbor’s big dog, hair standing up. He is a great dog, but I think he definitely needs a watchful eye on him.

They’re Gone!

Once everyone left, the ewoks emerged from their corner. True, we lured them out with treats, which John fed them. The shih tzus will probably be very happy to know that they will be visitor free at least until next weekend, when the kids and grandchildren descend on the house again.