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Shih Tzu Week 37: March 8 (Day 253) – 14 (Day 259)

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Shih Tzu Day 253: March 8 (Thursday)

Nigel fights me over a sock he's claimed.My three little followers — Nigel, Dottie, and Flower — followed me up and down the stairs this morning while I tried to organize the spare room. Later on, the youngest shih tzu kids spent sometime outside sitting on the porch or playing, while Dottie kept Mom company on the couch.

I’m not sure why, but while I was on the phone this after, Dottie went off on Flower. I heard this snarling and growling, and looked over to see her doing what I call her “two-headed mean monster routine.” It usually has something to do with possessiveness. Flower stands up to her sometimes, but today, she ran back to Shih Tzu Central until Dottie got back to normal.

Shih Tzu Day 254: March 9 (Friday)

All is calm on the Shih Tzu Front.

Shih Tzu Day 255: March 10 (Saturday)

Flower can't wait to get her morning chew stick.We were gone quite a while today. I have been organizing the kitchen, the spare room, my file system, etc., so I was looking for containers, and John needed a new Nuvi for week. I always feel bad when we have to leave the dogs for too many hours. They are always so excited when we get home.

Shih Tzu Day 256: March 11 (Sunday)

Candy “knocked” to get in this morning, which is very rare. Flower stayed outside earlier for a while with her. She was sniffing around the grass, including around the fence. I am always cautious when they are too fixated with one area. I have these fears of someone throwing something poisoned into our yard. It doesn’t help that I just read about the guy that had videotaped himself tormenting his dogs. I don’t understand people like that at all.

Shih Tzu Day 257: March 12 (Monday)

John was very proud of Flower this evening. She came and stood in front of John, staring at him, and he assumed she might need to go out and go potty. When he opened the door, she ran out and pooped. I was a proud mommy too.

It has been so nice lately. I very rarely smell that urine aroma wafting through the air. When they don’t go outside, for example, when I don’t get up early enough, they pee on the training pad. As soon as I see it, I fold it up, stick it up in a plastic grocery bag, tie the ends and either put it in the training pad trash can, or throw it in the trash in the garage, and out down a new one. It is also very nice that I spend a lot less money on training pads these days.

Shih Tzu Day 258: March 13 (Tuesday)

I gave the dogs jicama and they all seemed to like it. I have also been giving them hard boiled eggs and celery, which are staples of our recent low-carb diet. Every time I attempt to give them something new, I check to see if it’s acceptable. I was surprised to find out that they shouldn’t have avocados. I thought they would be good for them. I did give Flower and Dottie a bite before I read that I shouldn’t, and they liked it. I am a little confused about dairy products. I have read that they shouldn’t have dairy products because they don’t have an enzyme needed to digest them, but then I have also been told to give them yogurt for their digestive systems. So, for now, when I have it, I will give them a little yogurt.

I have stopped completely giving the dogs some of the other chicken jerky made in China, but I have still been giving them the Dentley’s chew sticks. They like them so much. I know it’s a highlight of their morning. I only saw one negative comment about Dentley’s online, so I am crossing my fingers. But I will try to find something else. Sadie Shih Tzu’s mom sent us a recipe for homemade dog treats, so I will try that. However, nothing seems to replace a good chew stick when it comes to my shih tzu tribe!

Shih Tzu Day 259: March 14 (Wednesday)

Flower climbs on Dottie to get to her perch on the couch arm.Today I gave Flower and Nigel celery and broccoli. They gobbled down the broccoli. Nigel ate the celery, but Flower chewed on it and then left it lying around. Dottie and Candy wouldn’t try it.

John was delivering in the area, so he came home for lunch. The shih tzus heard the big truck in the cul de sac and started barking crazily. They definitely are good guard dogs, though I don’t think they could protect me much. They would give me time to call someone for help or find a weapon with which to defend myself.

I gave the shih tzus some yogurt when he was here. They all love it.

Shih Tzu Day 44: The Rest After Grooming School

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grooming school is over

So, maybe I can see a little better without hair in my eyes.And I think my paws feel better too!It feels nice to have the grooming school over. Granted, John and I still have to go through the grooming school videos, and Flower still needs a lot of grooming, but it’s still a relief, and I feel like I’ve accomplished something. My plan is to work on Flower little by little. During grooming school, Lia at the Gentle Groomer advised that I groom Candy and Dottie once every two weeks or so, to get them used to it, but that I groom Flower more often than that. I have to figure out what to do about a grooming table. Amazon and PetEdge sell several types, including some small ones that rotate. However, they look a little too small for the shih tzus. We’ll have to give that a little more thought. I also have to figure out if I want to keep the refurbished clippers I bought for the grooming school, or if I want to try to buy some that have a good case and are a little quieter. I know it will save money in the long run, but getting all the equipment definitely is an investment.

As soon as that is under my belt, I have to figure out how to get the girls, especially Flower, some training and some “people skills.” I enjoy our little shih tzus, but it would definitely be nice if others could see why I love them so much.

pumpkin for breakfast

I need to get as far away from that pumpkin as possible. Ick. Maybe the grooming school tired out the shih tzu sisters, because they didn’t come upstairs until John got up at 5:30 to use the bathroom. I played with them a little from the bed and they left, but then came back. I think I got up about 6:30.

Can you hear me now?

 

I am trying something new with the dogs’ breakfast today. I haven’t bought any more Natural Balance or cottage cheese, so I have been supplementing their dry food with yogurt. When Lia was discussing expressing dog glands during grooming school, she also said we needed to give Dottie pumpkin for her leaky anal glands, so I bought some at the store. My thought was that the dogs would like its taste and the fact that it was colorful. Hmmm. I added a heaping tablespoon into their dry food and mixed it up a little. The shih tzus sniffed it disdainfully, took a few bites and backed away from their plates. Shiloh went ahead and ate his, but he didn’t steal it from the girls’ bowls, like he normally would. I ended up throwing it out and giving them their yogurt and dry food mixture.

the scary vacuum cleaner

Candy continues to be more sociable. She came up to me on the porch to be petted. However, she flew up the stairs quickly when John got the Bissell Proheat vacuum cleaner out to box up (we opted for the Hoover SteamVac instead). It doesn’t even need to be on to scare her.

Shih Tzu Day 3: Yum, Yum, Yogurt

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Say pretty please, and I might eat some more yogurt.

You're not fooling me. I know all people are BAD!

Flower hasn’t decided to be friendly yet. She had a fit when I walked into her pen to guide her outside, but she finally went.

When John went outside, she started barking and growling. I was sitting at the edge of the steps, and she tore towards me and flew up them and beyond me, squeezing herself through the narrow door opening into the kitchen and into her play yard.

Her attitude frightened Dottie, who started shaking again. None of it affects Candy.

About an hour later, I gave the three shih tzus a little bit of Noosa Yoghurt. All of them gathered around the container and eagerly licked it up. At dinnertime, I picked pieces of chicken off chicken wings and fed it to them.

Candy continues to come out and roam around the living room and dining room. I sat her on the couch with me and fed her a small piece of chicken jerky. She let us pet her ears for a while before jumping off. Flower’s eyes still get huge when I pet her, but she doesn’t act startled.

If this is yogurt, I guess we like it!

I have nicknames for all of the girls. I call Candy “Candy Mandy,” which is what we used to call my stepdaughter, Candace. I also call her Skittle, because she is skittish. Dottie is Dippin’ Dots and Polka Dots, and Flower is Flower Child. Collectively they are the little Ewoks or Furbies, and sometimes even “Children of the Corn,” or “Cujo,” depending on how they are acting. Of course, the last two references are exaggerations. They never act that bad, although Flower tries to be scary when she growls and barks.

Candy is getting more and more bold. She came up and put her paws on the couch, looking for more Milo’s Kitchen chicken jerky, I assume. I had some, but didn’t want to make it too easy for her to get, so I held it away, hoping she would jump up on the couch. She started barking and wouldn’t stop. I thought earlier that she might be too short to jump up, but I found out that isn’t the case.

After I went up to the bedroom, John came downstairs and found Candy on the couch, searching for the jerky. So, I guess she can jump that high. The next time he came downstairs, Candy and Dottie were wandering around the living room and ran back into their pen. That’s the first time Dottie ventured out into the living room on her own.