Comfort with Change

Our pets are very sensitive when it comes to change in their day to day routines and habits. The slightest difference can set off a pet in the way they act, sleep, eat and even interact with others. Anytime you know as a pet parent that a major change it going to occur try to find to someway to alter the situation to allow the maximum amount of comfort for your pet. An example being a situation we see a lot at work is a new addition joining your family and a baby is now the newest funny smelling thing thing in your pets life. Sometimes we allow our pets to feel like they are 2nd place in a household to the newest "baby" in our lives. Always try to allow special attention to make Max or Bella feel like they still are #1 and possibly try to familiarize them with the baby's smell before their first meeting by laying a used baby blanket down with their dog/cat bed. When our pets start to feel hints of replacement or that they're not the center of attention to mom and/or dad they can sometimes act rebellious and act out of character. Maybe you bought a new car and now you find Felix doesn't want to willingly get in or out of the big scary moving box. Try a familiar blanket and a special treat to allow comforting smells and a positive reinforcement snack to ensure everything is OK. Try a toy or bone if they prefer these to foods. Moving to a new house? Try confining your pets to a quarter of the house first before opening them up to free roam. This can sometimes feel overwhelming and can be kind of a scary situation with a large new area. Always try to bring the same bowls, bedding and toys from the old home to show that this is their new home too and then your pet can adapt to their new castle at a more comfortable pace.Change always settles a little easier with some familiar comfort.

One on One Time

Like children, all pets in pack form feel the need for one on one attention. Any child would greatly benefit from individual time with each parent getting the attention they needed to grow. Each of our pets has certain things they love and we give that to them during individual time periods and yes, it is in front of the other dogs so that there an understanding that each of them is "our favorite". Every time each of them is pulled apart from the rest for that moment of time it shows the others all are treated with one on one attention and get that time needed. 

Nanook being the weakest of the pack gets his time above the others with special snack time. Food powers everything in a pack. Seeing him eat human food (avocado in this case) shows them he is not in fact weak but above them fore this moment. Mommy chose to give him her food. Sometimes he will be the only one for a special bone or chew toy. 

Kodak enjoys joy rides. ALl the dogs love car rides but one on one with the windows down shows the others he gets that special time doing something they all love to do. Swimming and being the only one pulled form the during during work hours shows this as well. 

August like you know is the only one who gets soft toys. During this special time she gets her toy and will participate in a ravishing game of fetch. The others would like to join in but know this is her time to shine. This is when she babies her favorite "boo".

Dublin was previously a desk dog and this was her special time. Now that she isn't at the desk and she craves the same attention, her special time focuses on one on one affection. Belly rubs, ear scratching, etc. She eats it up. 

All of these moments are important and each of these moments help keep a balance, happy pack.

Our Goofy Girl

August is quite the character and we see her little quirks non stop all day long. Lately shes been babying her newest "boos" (soft toys) which are very comical. We have a client donate some toys to our swim instructor for the pool and some were soft toys which obviously are not ideal for the water. Well, she said I could take my pick of the ones that were soft and boy did August have a hay day! They are fun food related items. 

Here she is with her "Spicy Mustard" jar. Fancy Pantsy. 

Her favorite toys so far has been a banana. How hilarious is that? My wolf loves bananas lol. 

Last but not least is her baked potato. It's supposed to look like a potato that has been cooked and cut open (hints the white fuzzy top) Comical food toys crack us up when she carries them around. We allow throwing THIS kind of food in our household ha ha, 

Here is a video of her being her plain goofy self. For some reason the video turned into a "gif" or a multi clip video with no sound but it still captures the crazy jumping, spontaneous howling and overall nuttiness of our girl. We love her. 

Hosting a Guest

So this week we've had some family over while building a frame for our newest purchase. A hot tub. Travis's dad came out to help him build the frame and his little sisters came over as well. The pups deal with guest every now and then but I cant help but laugh as how "friendly" they are to new people compared to how they are with us. 

This is the new hot tub in progress. Lots of outside work so the kids head to share the yard for a but they didn't mind! New things all over the yard to sniff at and explore. 

As his dad would sit down they all immediately want to say hello and give lots of kisses to show their affection. I guess it's better than unwelcoming them into our home. Dad was a good sport about it. :)

Natalie and Allie came over to hang out for a bit and the pups LOVE kids. Being a lap dog is in every one of their "pet" descriptions. Kisses are free in our home. 

Overall a good week hosting from the kids and their kisses warmed the hearts of many....and the faces and legs and hands...well anything they could reach to slobber on. lol.

"Oh Nanook!"

Nanook is quite the character and we finds ourselves saying it daily "Oh Nanook!" Whether he's causing mischief or being down right silly we always revert back to those words.

I groomed all 4 pups the other day and at his first chance he was rolling in the mud out back. He never he liked the small of perfume and he would much rather smell like a dog. "Oh Nanook!"

I was driving home from work and Nanook hopped in the front seat without permission to get a birds eye view of the windshield to look out. The others were quite jealous. "Oh Nanook!" 

Travis and are will be watching TV and he will jump up on the window sill to look outside. It never fails but every time he does it he toots a little making us laugh. "Oh Nanook!"

I don't know where we would be without him. We love him!

Break Time!

 I worked a long double shift this last week and instead of running out and grabbing lunch or sitting in the break room playing on my phone I spent it, well...as a dog! I decided to join the pack in their room for my hour lunch to see what it's like for them during my work shift. They staying in 2 double sided rooms each measuring out to be 4x6 feet with a guillotine door connecting each room. 

Nanook and Dublin were eager to snuggle!

Kodak was chillin' in the doorway ready to relax.

Can we play mom? Or better yet do you have cookies!?!?!

The kids were quite excited to get to spend some one on one time during work hours seeing that I never take lunches. August was ready to wake up from her nap and spend some quality time!

No lunch would be complete without some kisses!

Patiently Waiting

 While the fireworks burst above us and the thunder rolled over the last week we had to make the best of indoor playtime. The grass was sopping and the mud was overwhelming so the indoor wrestling and toy chewing began. 

Kodak was ready for his indoor softball.

Nanook was ready for a bone.

August wanted her "Boo".

And Dublin wanted her antler to grind her teeth on. 

We had a wonderful holiday and a wonderful time staying indoors. We grabbed a big old bag of rawhides and kept the pups busy while their energy overwhelmed their tiny bodies in our tiny home. With a trip to work with mommy each day and plenty of toys to choose from we had a happy tired bunch regardless of the weather.