Shih Tzu Week 44: April 26 (Day 302) – May 2 (Day 308), 2012

Shih Tzu Day 302: April 26 (Thursday)

Shih tzu with red stuffed animal.Flower has still been sitting on her couch a lot, mainly, I think, because Dottie is mean to her. They were squabbling tonight and it was really getting on my nerves. It’s just like having bratty, little kids sometimes.

Every time Nigel comes up to the couch, he drags up a toy or treat with him. He’s the only one who seems to love toys.

Shih Tzu Day 303: April 27 (Friday)

I went to pick up Dottie today and Flower growled her disapproval. Her bark is definitely worth than her bite.

Shih Tzu Day 304: April 28 (Saturday)

Nigel Shih Tzu asks Candy Shih Tzu to share her birthday presents. I made chicken jerky for Candy’s birthday, which is Monday. We took Flower for a walk again behind the Wal-Mart. I thought she was secure in her harness, but she pulled out of it again. This time, I just sat down on the grass and put my hand out, with cheese in it. She came up to me and I grabbed her collar. The next time I attempt to take her for a walk, I am going to put a leash on her collar and one on her harness.

Shih Tzu Day 305: April 29 (Sunday)

Flower Shih Tzu in her camouflage peace skirt. Flower is such a funny, little thing. Today, she was lying on her back, wagging her front paws at me. I was trying to work on the computer, so I didn’t stop to pet her, but when I looked again, she wagged her paws again. I finally gave up and gave her some petting time.

Shih Tzu Day 306: April 30 (Monday)

Happy 3rd Birthday, Candy!

Today is Candy’s third birthday! We celebrated with the chicken jerky I made over the weekend and the Frosty Paws that was leftover from Flower’s. I also made dog and people treats again this morning. I dehydrated some diced apples for John for oatmeal, and I made more chicken and apple and chicken and sweet potato treats. Candy didn’t eat the Frosty Paws, but the other three loved it. They all love the other treats.

A shih tzu with her face in a cup.Of course, Candy, Flower and Dottie didn’t want to wear the birthday crowns, but they had to wear it long enough for pictures. The peace sign top and skirt I bought her (Ross Dress for Less) was too big, so I passed the outfit on to Flower. I thought they could be twins and I found a size small, but that was too small. I ended up putting her in the Girly Girl dress I had bought Flower.

Shih Tzu Day 307: May 1 (Tuesday)

Restless Shih Tzus

I made up a batch of Sadie Shih Tzu food. It doesn’t last long with four shih tzus. I dragged out my old FoodSaver unit to seal the individual bags. When I came back into the living room, Flower was lying on her couch, with her front paws hanging over, watching over everyone, and wagging her tail. She has so much character. All four of the shih tzus got restless later and started wandering around. I don’t know how they can be bored, when they should be able to just play with each other. Since they do get bored though, it would be great if I could just hand them some coloring books to keep them busy.

They have a big backyard and lots of toys. They aren’t to the point where they like walks, so I know that’s not what they want. My guess is when they start wandering around, they are looking for food, but I can’t feed them all day. I did hold Candy for a while, because she looked like she wanted some loving.

Shih Tzu Day 308: May 2 (Wednesday)

Dog food storage

I was disappointed that there was ice inside the dog food bags I froze, so I decided to invest in a new unit. I cut open the bag of dog food and rinsed the ice away so I could try again. My unit was probably seven years old, so I would imagine technology is better these days. When I read the instructions on the new unit though, I realized one thing I did wrong. They advise that you freeze “wet” food first, and then vacuum seal it, so I will try that next time.

Flower is being ornery again today. Dottie came up to the couch for me to help her up, and Flower growled at her. I guess turnabout is fair play. Dottie always sounds more serious when she growls.

Shih Tzu Week 42: April 12 (Day 288) – 18 (Day 294)

Shih Tzu Day 288: April 12 (Thursday)

Release the Kraken!

Flower has been spending more time on “her” couch again, instead of with us. So far so good; as long as she doesn’t pee on it, she can have her space. I assume she has been spending more time there because Dottie growls and tries to hiss her away when she comes to our couch. When she does that, John says, “Release the Kraken!” Nobody seems very afraid of her, so I don’t think her acting ferocious is working.

Come out and play

The shih tzus loved the homemade chicken jerky.Around 4 o’clock, Candy decided it was time for something other than napping and started prancing around the living room. I think she’s a little disappointed these days with her playmate choices. Nigel used to go play with her instantly, but lately he’s been as lazy as Dottie, and lies on the couch next to Mom a lot of the time. Flower finally joined her for a tap dance across the floor. And Nigel eventually got up and romped around with both of them. When they took it outside, he grabbed Candy’s tail in his mouth and wouldn’t let go, so she couldn’t get very far. He finally turned his attention to Flower to play the bitey face game.

Shih Tzu Day 289: April 13 (Friday)

Happy Birthday, Flower!

Flower shih tzu wearing a birthday crown. Today is Flower’s birthday! She is now 3 years old. I made up a batch of chicken jerky for her treat. One of my friends suggested Frosty Paws and I couldn’t find any at the closest Wal-Mart, so I found a homemade Frosty Paws recipe:

Directions:

  1. Blend all ingredients together and freeze in 3-ounce paper cupsShih tzus eating homemade Frosty Paws. .
  2. Microwave just a few seconds before serving.

The dogs loved the treats, once they found a way to get their tongues in the cups. When I make it again, I think I’ll use shorter containers. One of the fun parts of making dog treats is you can try them without feeling you are eating dog food! I actually thought the Frosty Paws  treat was good! I had a few bites myself.

Candy shih tzu wears a birthday crown in Flower's honor.I dressed the girls up, with Flower in a new dress that says Girly Girls. And I bought them Happy Birthday crows from the Dollar Tree. I gave her a stuffed animal and rubber chicken from the Dollar Tree, too, but she ignored them. She was far more fascinated with the cardboard insert I took out of the wine box. She carried it to Shih Tzu Central and spent probably 20 minutes seeing how much of it she could tear apart.

The shih tzus investigate the homemade chicken jerky.Dottie didn’t care if it was Flower’s special day. She was sitting beside me, with Mom to herself, when her shih tzu half-sister came up to the couch this morning, Dottie didn’t want to give up her Mom time and did her growly fixation thing.  I think she particularly doesn’t like it because Flower wants to be petted when she jumps up.

Indoor mess

This shih tzu loves cardboard!Someone pooped on the floor near the training pad and on the mat I have under the pad. It was the runny kind, and I hope it’s not from my homemade treats. They shouldn’t have anything in them that would cause that.

Shih Tzu Day 290 – 292: April 14 – 16 (Saturday – Monday)

I didn’t realize it, but I neglected to record any information in my journal for three days! I guess that means nothing exciting happened.

 Shih Tzu Day 293: April 17 (Tuesday)

Celery treats

I passed out celery today. Candy doesn’t normally take it, but she did this time and chewed on it for a while. Dottie is the only one that wouldn’t take any.

Not so close

The shih tzus wait for the party to begin.Dottie was scratching the sofa arm this afternoon, so to stop her, I reached over and picked her up and sat her on my chest facing me. She wasn’t sure what to do, but she stayed there for several minutes staring at me. She finally moved off, but stayed next to me instead of retreating to her corner.

Shih Tzu Day 294: April 18 (Wednesday)

I was gone most of the day, so I didn’t have very much shih tzu time. Someone seems to be having tummy problems, because I found more poop on the floor.

Back it up

Dottie was peacefully sitting in her corner this afternoon when Flower jumped up, right next to her. Instead of sitting down, she started backing her butt up into Dottie. I’m not sure what the purpose was, but Dottie started making her Kraken sound. Flower seemed oblivious to it. I guess she knows Dottie’s growl is worse than her bite.