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Thanksgiving #2 with the Shih Tzus (What a difference)

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When I started to put together my post about this Thanksgiving, I went back to see how our first Thanksgiving with Candy, Dottie, Flower and Nigel was. I was amazed. We have definitely seen a lot of progress with our puppy mill shih tzus, although Nigel was as friendly to everyone as usual.

Dottie Flower Nigel Shih Tzu Thanksgiving 2012

I had to leave to pick up Mom at about 9:45. Before I did, I put a green sweater on Nigel, a pink and white dress on Candy, an animal print sweater on Flower, and Dottie’s birthday dress on her. When I started getting my boots on, Flower, Dottie and Nigel thought we were going for a walk, so they rushed me. (That wouldn’t have happened last year, since I couldn’t get them to go on walks.) I didn’t put their harnesses on them. I just opened the door and they all scrambled out behind me. I’m sure they were a little disappointed to find out they were only picking up Grandma and coming right back.

Flower Shih Tzu eating Thanksgiving dinner.

Leticia and the kids arrived about 30 minutes later. The female shih tzus went to their corner. Once the dinner was ready, I fixed them plates of turkey, sweet potatoes and a little bit of mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce, and then I set all four bowls outside. None of them hesitated from rushing outside and digging in. The girls went back to their corner but then couldn’t resist the smells and one by one, wandered up to the table, looking for scraps.

When it was time to take Mom back home, I asked Cea and Evita if they wanted to come along for the ride. It didn’t prevent Nigel, Flower and Dottie from once again trotting out to the car and getting in. Nigel sat on my mom’s lap until we dropped her off. I put one of the seats down, so Cea and Evita sat together and Flower and Dottie went between the other seat and the back of the car. Once I dropped off Mom, the girls came up front and Nigel sat with them. Flower got comfortable enough to sit on the console, sometimes facing frontward, and sometimes turning around.

Dottie Shih Tzu eating Thanksgiving dinner.

They were a little put off when Gabe, Crystal, Avi and Samuel showed up. Samuel is nearly one year old, and he wanted to play in the dog area. They didn’t seem to mind it very much, and they eventually did come out and start wandering around.

Candy Shih Tzu Thanksgiving 2012

On Saturday night, Aunt Betty and a friend came over. The females once again retired to their corner, but about two hours later, they came out, with Candy even doing her “I want something but can’t tell you what” dance. John reached down to pick up Flower, and she let him! He held her on his lap at the table for about 15 minutes. They have come such a long way with him that I think he is now Dad and not the Man.

 

Be sure to check out last year’s Thanksgiving blog to see what a dramatic difference one year makes!

Shih Tzu Day 65: Shih Tzus All Alone

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Mom’s up!

When Flower and I went to wake up Mom this morning, a little before 6 a.m., she didn’t make us wait too long before she got up. My shih tzu sisters and I thought that was a very good sign. We followed her downstairs, and Dottie was at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for us to join in our dance with her.

Why does the Treat Man and Mom think it's so cute when Candy jumps for treats?

We danced and danced and danced, grabbing Mom’s hands in our teeth playfully. Flower and I can’t help it, because we’re bigger, but we knocked Candy over a few times. Oops. She got back up and got back in the game okay.

Mom gave us our food, and then she didn’t sit back down on the couch with me right away. She was cleaning up in the kitchen and then she took a shower. When she came back downstairs, it looked like she was dressed to go somewhere. However, she sat down on the couch for a while, typing on the computer. Flower jumped up and sat with us for awhile. Usually, Mom takes the time to pet us shih tzus a lot. She did pet us, but not very much.

A <strong srcset=shih tzu on a couch.” width=”300″ height=”225″ />shih tzus home alone 

A little later, I heard Mom tell the Treat Man that she had to drive across town to meet with this man, because she is editing his life story and she had to go over things with him. She also said that she had to learn to balance her career with her life as shih tzu Mama. Sigh. I knew what the conversation meant: no telling how long she would be gone.

Mom left when the Treat Man left, telling us good-bye and kissing us on the head before she walked out the door. At first, it was fun. We ran around looking to see if she’d left any food where we could reach it. When we didn’t find any, we went upstairs to investigate Mom and the Treat Man’s bedroom. That wasn’t much fun, so we came back downstairs. Finally, we just got in our dog beds at Shih Tzu Central and took a nap.

Three shih tzus on a dog bed.Mom comes home

Mom finally came home eight hours later! We were really happy to see her, but we weren’t happy that she had been gone so long. She took us out for a treat, and then she rushed inside and started making dinner for her and the Treat Man. Speaking of the Treat Man, if I am right, I think he will be home soon. Candy gets excited when he comes home, but Flower barks like crazy, acting as if she had never met him, so I never know what to do. I usually start barking too, and then Mom says, “You silly shih tzus! That’s your Daddy! Why do you still do that?” Is the Treat Man our Daddy?

 

Shih Tzu Day 7: The Doggy Circus is in Town

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You'd be having a bad hair day too!The shih tzu sisters have been doing great. We had Leticia and the grandchildren over all day Sunday. The dogs weren’t thrilled, but they didn’t seem traumatized.

We ate outside in the garage and let the children come in one by one to meet them. They behaved when Rema, Junior and Evita came in to meet them. They even came out into the room when Oriana was inside, but Flower did growl at Dulcea.

We were afraid how they would react badly to the Fourth of July activities, but they came through with flying colors. We tried to get them to go outside to do their business early in the evening, but fireworks went off and they scurried back inside. After that, we stayed inside and watched movies. They handled the gunshots and loud noises from “The Mechanic” well, so action movies shouldn’t be a problem. I think the noise on the TV blended in with the fireworks outside, so they were fine.

I saw you hide the chicken jerky!Candy did a little dance across the carpet last night that was adorable. I don’t know what it meant, but she sure is entertaining. They all dance around when I come downstairs in the morning, although they get serious when John appears. I know they will warm up to him, as soon as they realize he won’t hurt them.

When they continue to be most excited, however, is when they hear the Milo’s Kitchen bag rattling. Flower jumps around like a dancing horse and they all rush me. I’m not sure if that’s acceptable behavior, but I prefer them to be rambunctious over shaking in the corner of their exercise pen.

Don't even think you can jump higher than I can!Candy is pretty good about going outside willingly, but the other two still think they should do their business in the pen or on the carpet. I bought some training pads for them, but as soon as I put one down, Flower began wrestling with it.