Category Archives: Treats & Bones

Shih Tzu Day 179: First Christmas with the Shih Tzus

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Christmas morning grooming for the shih tzus

I got up at about 6 a.m. and finished wrapping presents. I got the stockings together for Dottie, Flower, Candy and Nigel. I put a stuffed animal and a lot of treats into each one. I added a light-up ball to Candy’s stocking. I don’t know which shih tzus might play with it, but I thought it was cute.

three <u/><u>shih tzus</u> with Christmas stockings.We had quiche and mimosas for our Christmas breakfast when John got up. Then, we got prepared to groom the shih tzus. We decided that Candy and Nigel didn’t need trimming, but we gave them baths. Candy was very still and we bathed her quickly, but Nigel squirmed constantly, so he took longer. He was a little better with the blow dryer. Flower and Dottie were very good, both during the grooming, their baths and drying.

After they were dry, we put Nigel in his Grinch outfit and the female shih tzus in their dog dresses. I swapped the red and white dresses Flower and Dottie wore when Deb took their pictures, but left Candy in the one with candy canes and ornaments. I thought we had a couple of hours to take some pictures with their new collars and dog tags and stockings, and to just spend some time with the shih tzus, but my stepdaughter called to say they wanted to come over early. We ended up hurrying to get pictures done and the living room cleaned up. We did get some cute pictures of the dogs with their Christmas stockings.

To add to the chaos, Flower must have been nervous because at some point, she relieved herself on the couch. She did it on a very furry throw, and it puddled on it. I was surprised but happy that it hadn’t reached the couch, but it did when I tried to move it. I threw the throw and the cushion cover in the laundry, so when company started arriving, I had to grab a different throw and cover the foam cushion.

Christmas guests

a shih tzu and a rawhide candy cane. Candy always seems the most nervous around guests, so I took her upstairs and sat her near our closet before anyone arrived. When Candace and her family arrived, the other two female shih tzus ran to Shih Tzu Central. While we waited for the other family members to show up, we sat around the dining room table talking. Dottie and Flower eventually made their way across the room to the dining room corner where Candy’s dog bed is. They didn’t socialize with the guests, but I think they wanted to be near me. They stayed there the whole time we sat there talking.

I brought Candy back downstairs later and sat her in Shih Tzu Central. I am trying to get the shih tzus all used to people, so I picked up Flower, Candy and Dottie at different times and held them for a while as I talked to different people. Nigel is usually Mr. Sociable Shih Tzu, but he wasn’t as people friendly as normal. It could be that he is not feeling well. He was panting on the bed last night. He could have just been hot.

The female shih tzus got back to normal quickly after everyone left. I took some of the rawhide treats out of their stockings, like the lollipops and gingerbread men, and spread them around. They were all chewing on them and on the rawhide candy canes, so I guess they liked them.

 

 

Shih tzu Day Day 178: Christmas Eve

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preparing the shih tzus’ Christmas stockings

a female <strong srcset=shih tzu chewing on a steer stick. ” width=”300″ height=”225″ />Flower or Candy woke us up at 3 a.m. barking. John went down twice, but couldn’t tell what was going on. Candy was roaming around and scurried away. It might have been that she saw a mouse, a cat outside or was just barking at the falling snow. I finally gave up and got up at 4, fed them, and went back to sleep until 7, when Dottie started whining.

I came downstairs, fed the shih tzus and wrapped a few presents. The female shih tzus sat at shih tzu Central and just watched me, wondering what I was doing and why I wasn’t sitting on the couch. I also put the dogs’ names on their Christmas stockings with glitter. I had no idea how long it took the glitter to dry. The back of the package said 30 minutes, but it took a lot longer than that. I probably put it on too thick. 

a <u srcset=shih tzu on a red and white dog bed.” width=”300″ height=”199″ />I couldn’t figure out what to do with their collars and tags, but John figured out to put them around the middle of the stocking instead of the top. I bought the shih tzus stuffed animals from the Dollar Tree. I don’t like to spend too much money on their stuffed animals, because I rarely see the shih tzus playing with them. I know they do play with them at times, because I will find them on the porch or on the couch. I also bought them some treats from the Dollar Tree and some from Petco. I bought a variety of Christmas shaped rawhide treats from the rawhide treat bar. I also got them some bones from King Soopers’ meat department.

a female <strong srcset=shih tzu chewing on a steer stick. ” width=”300″ height=”225″ />John, my mom and I normally spend Christmas eve with my niece and her family, but since they moved to North Dakota this year, we celebrated Christmas with my mother this afternoon at a Mexican restaurant near her house. When I started looking for Monster High dolls for the grandchildren, I started picking extras up and selling them on eBay and Craigslist, so I delivered some of those before we came home.

a female <u srcset=shih tzu holding a steer stick. ” width=”300″ height=”225″ />We spent a few hours with the shih tzus and then went out again. We did some last minute shopping, drove through some of the areas that are the most decorated for Christmas and stopped for a hamburger before going home and spending the rest of the evening with the shih tzus. I gave the shih tzus some steer sticks to keep them happy and busy while we watched TV.

I know they won’t be excited about their Christmas stockings, but I am. I love the fact that these four little shih tzus are part of our life and that we are spending our first Christmas with them. I know that the girls probably don’t have any memory of their life at the puppy mill, or Nigel of his before he turned up at an animal shelter, but I am glad we have been able to give them all a new life.

Shih Tzu Day 135 (Nov. 11): Shih Tzu Shopping

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in search of the perfect shih tzu treat

two shih tzus scuffling. People don’t seem to agree on rawhide and dogs. Petsmart has a whole aisle devoted to rawhide, but I know a lot of people don’t think rawhide is good for dogs. I don’t know enough about it, but I am trying new things to avoid giving them rawhide all the time. Today I bought a product called DreamBones made with dried chicken breasts and a bunch of other ingredients that might or might not be bad for them. I bought them once before, but I didn’t remember if the shih tzus liked them. Dottie and Flower liked them. I think Nigel took Candy’s.

a <em/><em>shih tzu</em> at a door.I have also been on a search for the best bully stick brand. The female shih tzus didn’t like the Cadet bully sticks I got from Costco, although I think Nigel will eat anything. They were too big anyway. They were meant for larger dogs, so John had to saw them into three pieces. I got a small package from Walmart to try again, because the girls liked them the last time I bought them. I have a feeling that in a taste test the Walmart one would win, which is too bad, since the big bag at Costco is more economical.

the shih tzu couch defiler

While I was out, Flower peed on the couch. At least I assume it was Flower. It was John’s side of the couch this time. I pulled the cushion off and soaked the spot with cleaner and the marking spray. While it was on the ground, Nigel decided it was his new dog bed and climbed up on it to chew on a bully stick.

Nigel does need a better dog bed. I guess the one from Ross doesn’t have enough stuffing. Maybe that is why he drags it around. He might be just driving to rearrange its innards. I did buy him another one from Ross to try.

shih tzu holiday clothes

two shih tzus sitting together. I also bought Nigel a grinch outfit, a red dog jacket and a red and white sweater. I bought the girls a black and pink checked dress with velcro on the neck and tummy from TJ Maxx. I wanted to dress Dottie, Candy and Flower up at triples some time during the holiday, and I found these adorable little red and green dog dresses with candy canes and other Christmas decorations and fur at the bottom at Ross. I found the same print at Target, but with extra fur, so I bought it for one of them. The red and green dress was eight dollars at Walmart but five dollars at Ross, so that extra fur really adds to the price!

Shih Tzu Day 134 (Nov. 10, 2011): More Bone Wars

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Nigel, the shih tzu bone king

a shih tzu chewing a bone on the "pee" carpet after moving the training pads.Candy and Nigel had a long romp session outside this morning. After they came back in, they were squabbling so loudly over a rawhide chew flip that it frightened me. I thought for sure they were killing each other. I yelled (bad habit!), grabbed Nigel by the scruff of his neck and pointed him towards his dog bed. The demon shih tzu worked very hard to terrorize the female shih tzus today. He finally tired himself out and crawled back up onto the couch and snuggled up next to me to get some rest, while Flower and Dottie rested on the other side and Candy wandered around. If we had a slightly bigger couch, would all four shih tzus sit up here more often? I’m not sure.

two shih tzus squabbling.After all the shih tzus had rested, Nigel was back on the prowl, growling at Flower like a ferocious  animal. I think that was over a red and white mini rawhide treat. He is under the impression that anything on the floor belongs to him, even if he has to take it out of another shih tzu’s mouth and put it on the floor. He was fixated on Flower and wouldn’t look at me when I scolded him. Either he is slightly deaf or has selective hearing. Not ever having more than one dog before, I have no idea if it’s normal for dogs to growl so often at each other over bones and couch positions. ?

a shih tzu with half of a bone.I decided to move all the treat-type bones to shih tzu Central since Nigel is being so possessive. He definitely didn’t like it. He flew outside when I opened the door, and then he flew back inside, then back out and back in again, before finally jumping up on the couch and settling down. A little later, the three youngest shih tzus roamed around the living room, glancing my way every now and then, probably wondering if I was going to break out any more treats. After a while, Flower and Candy trotted by side by side, back to Shih Tzu Central.

Candy, Flower and Nigel were very excited, as usual, when John got home. They all started running around, but again, as usual, Flower hung back while Candy and Nigel ran to the door. Nigel did it with a rawhide treat in his mouth.

Shih Tzu Day 132: Nov. 8

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Candy spent the night with us last night. She stayed in one place all night, and wagged her tail when I turned the light on in the morning. As soon as the Treat Man left, the shih tzus came alive. I can’t understand why they do that. It’s not like he is strict.

I cleaned up bile off the floor again this morning. I think this is the fourth morning. I read up on it today and it might be because they are going to bed with an empty stomach, so I will feed them a little right before we go upstairs.

Nigel decided to pull off my sock again this morning while I was petting Flower and Dottie. Later, while Nigel and Flower were scuffling, one of them bit my ankle, so now I have ankle biters. I think it was Flower. Flower and Nigel had a rough scuffling session again today. I guess she likes it that way! Flower jumped up on the couch after that and barked at Dottie when she tried to get up. Today she is Queen of the Castle.

I have been getting very frustrated with Nigel. I tried to give Dottie a pig ear and he practically took it out of her mouth.

Candy galloped across the floor and back, across and back, when John came in. Definitely a shih tzu rodeo tonight! When he came in, Flower went as far as the chair and stopped before turning back. Dottie calmly sat by me watching.