Tag Archives: Oinkies

Shih Tzu Day 86: Will Dance For Food

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The Breakfast Dance

breakfast dance 1The shih tzus didn’t want to let me sleep in today. They barked until I tumbled out of bed at 6. I needed to get up early anyway, because I had to finish up some work before I left for a morning appointment. The little dogs did their usual breakfast dance, which begins once I pick up their dog bowls and head for the back door, and ends once I put the bowls down.

breakfast dance 2I was gone for probably five hours, so they were very excited to see me when I got home. I put groceries away and got them outside, but Flower ran back in because of loud machine noises next door, so I gave her a treat inside.

breakfast dance 3The Canyon Creek apple and chicken wrap bag is almost empty, so I have to be making another PetSmart trip soon. That’s the only place I know that carries a big enough bag to last a while for three, small, food-loving dogs. They each got a small piece and then I gave them all a small sweet potato treat on the couch.

breakfast dance 4Flower jumped right up, then she sat there for a while. When I started to pet her, she rolled over on her side and then on her back.

breakfast dance 5I still haven’t been able to get the dogs’ mouths open to put the Tropiclean teeth gel on their teeth, so I have been experimenting with different so-called dental products. This time I bought something from Walmart that looks like a rawhide Flip. I passed them out, and they all chewed on them for awhile.

When they got bored, Candy and Flower took turns taking an Oinkies roll from each other. Candy would be chewing on one on the carpet and lay it down. Flower would trot over, grab it, and head back to Shih Tzu Central. It seemed unnecessary to me, since there are always several half-eaten Oinkies on the floor. I think they just like taking things from each other.

Wrong Truck

breakfast dance 6breakfast dance 7The girls are pretty good at recognizing sounds. For instance, they know when I am up, because they know every sound from when I go into the bathroom until I open the door. They bark once they know I am up, but they don’t start barking crazily until the electric toothbrush goes on, because they know the bathroom door will open shortly.

breakfast dance 8They know when I am home because they hear the garage door opening and then closing. When I get out of the Jeep I hear frantic barking. However, then they stop, waiting to see if it’s really going to be me or if it might be that Man. Once I walk in the backdoor and say hi, they go crazy, dancing around.

When John comes home from work, they hear the rumble of his truck and start barking.

Today, however, they heard another truck an hour earlier than John would be getting up and started barking. They acted very confused when they waited a while and then the door didn’t open.

breakfast dance 9I got down on the floor and told them they were silly. Then, I started making noises. Flower kept running up to me and then running off again, doing her “ruff” thing. Dottie just looked puzzled. When John did get home, Candy started to get excited, but then she checked herself. After all, if Flower and Dottie aren’t excited, should she be? However, once John told her hello, she ran up to him, shaking her little butt in greeting.

Shih Tzu Day 75: The Lion Dog Queen

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Who Do You Think You Are? The Queen of Sheba?

I have started calling Dottie the “Queen of Sheba.” I do think she has signalled to her half sisters, through growling or just dirty looks, that the couch, and for that matter, Mom, is hers.

two shih tzusI love that she always wants to be by me, especially when I sit on the couch, but I would like the other girls to come up and join us. I don’t know why Flower comes up several times during the day, puts her paws up on the couch, stretches, stares at me and then goes back to the rug or Shih Tzu Central. But I do think Dottie has something to do with it.

Dottie usually leaves several inches between us, but today, she was very close to me, wiggling and squirming on her back, and even putting her head on my leg for a few minutes. She probably was just scratching herself on the blanket, but it was cute.

shih tzu on red blanket.Later, Candy spent a lot of time near my feet, playing with her Oinkies. Dottie remained by me. For some reason, instead of sleeping, like she sometimes does, she just kept staring at me. I started singing “Charmer,” the Kings of Leon song to her: “She’s such a charmer … She’s always looking at me.” We actually sing that to the girls quite often. Flower casually hung over the edge of her couch, making sure she didn’t miss anything.

Stranger at the Door

Tonight when John got home, none of them — even Candy — acted like they knew him. It probably was because he took the Jeep to work and came in through the garage door instead of the front door. I guess they really are creatures of habit.

Dottie wouldn’t take treats from him outside, although Flower and Candy had no problem with that. Once inside, though, Candy sat near his feet on the rug, watching him. Later, he opened the door and she and Flower went outside. When John went outside, Candy was very playful, running back and forth on the porch, being cute and doing her circular paw thing, which John calls her “wax on wax off” move.

Shih Tzu Day 71: Country Dog, Shake It For Me

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the shih tzus and the unwelcome guest

John went downstairs at about 4:30 to let the shih tzus out, but Candy was the only one that would go outside. After that, they were perfectly quiet. Their sharp doggie ears heard me get up at 6:45 and go in the bathroom, and the shih tzus started barking. When I opened the door, they rushed me excitedly.

<em srcset=shih tzu on dog bed looking bored.” width=”300″ height=”199″ />After I fed them and brought them inside, the shih tzus sat on the carpet staring at me, as if to say, “What now?” I usually leave them to themselves after they come inside, and start my work. This morning, I sat on the carpet with Candy and Flower for a while, rubbing those cute little shih tzu faces between my hands. I am trying to follow a Twitter friend’s website advice and give them daily, planned “love time.”

<u srcset=shih tzu eying a treat” width=”300″ height=”199″ />two shih tzus watch another get a treat.My stepdaughter Candace came over mid-morning to help me organize some papers. The dogs didn’t immediately growl at her, because she didn’t stop at Shih Tzu Central to say hi. The shih tzus did growl at her later, however, when she walked too close to them. After she’d been here about an hour, I ushered Candy, Flower and Dottie outside to see if they would let Candace give them a treat. I am starting to think Dottie will take food from anyone; she eagerly approached her. Candy and Flower stayed in the yard, staring at the treat and at Candace, but only taking a few steps towards her, then moving back. She ended up throwing them some chicken jerky, which they picked up and ate.

shih tzu getting jerky from porchAfter we came inside, Candy went up to her room to hide. When Candace and I left for lunch, I put the gate across the door, to prevent Candace from going in there and peeing on the floor, not knowing that she was already in the room. When we came back, I looked around the dining room and living room and couldn’t find her. I looked in the spare room, just in case, and found her sitting in the closet, resting on a purse.

shih tzu hiding in closet.Flower jumped up on the couch to see me several times in the afternoon. On one of the occasions, she brought her Oinkies pigskin treat with her. I thought I’d try the Hartz brand this time, because it has a sweet potato center. They seem to like it better than the other brands of that type of treat.

shake It, country dog

shih tzu shaking her buttI realized that we have been lazy this week — no grooming, no trying to get them on a leash. The only training I have been doing is still trying to get them to pee on the training pad and not on the carpet.

shih tzu shaking her butt in excitementWhen I came down this morning, there were three yellow spots on the two pads I put down, and even some poop, so someone is trying. Candy continues her habit of napping on it and chewing on treats on it, so I doubt if she is using the training pads for their intended purpose.

shih tzu shaking her butt in excitementBut good news. It’s official. Candy now gets excited when John gets home. Country singer Luke Bryan has a song called “Country Girl (Shake It For Me).” That is my theme song for Candy, only I sing to her, “Country Dog (Shake It For Me).” She is just so adorable when she shakes her little bootie.

Flower is getting better. She isn’t where Candy is, but when John got home tonight, she did act halfway excited. They now know that treats quickly follow after he comes home.

Although Dottie hung back, not one of the dogs growled. Outside, all three of them came up to him for treats readily, with Flower not giving a second thought to putting her paw on his knee. John held Candy for a while later. She seemed content. He also pet Dottie, and she let him, but she looked the other way the entire time.