Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Hi everyone! Sorry I am so bad about posting this year. But I wanted to drop a quick 'Hello!' and say Happy Holidays!

Dobby is doing well; he and Gracie watched my mom and me fill their Christmas stockings... it was pretty adorable. They were so excited! Dob just got some edible treats since he already has SO many toys. He did wear his Christmas sweater for part of the day though :)

Hope you're all well, and have a great New Year!

Monday, August 29, 2011

Family Camping Trip

Boy, I told you there were lots of fun things happening! Last weekend Dobby and I went camping with my family and Gracie. My sister was even back from her summer job in Maine, so we were all together and it was wonderful. Here is our little camp site, which actually did stay pretty dry despite the rain!

And here are some pictures of us hanging around:


But the highlight of Saturday was a canoe trip on the lake! Mom and dad took Gracie for a hike because we wouldn't all fit in our canoe, but Dobby got to ride along because he's nice and light weight :) He had a great time! We stopped at a little inlet and got out to swim for a while. I didn't get any pictures because I was busy making sure he was safe, but Dobby did swim for a while! It was so cute. His little tail spins around like a silly propeller. Here we are on the lake!




When he got tired of sitting on my lap, Dobby found the softest spot around (of course!) and curled up:


It was a fun ride!

Later, we went back to the camp site. Gracie was not a big fan of camping and was very happy when we just let her in the tent to have a nice nap (besides, it was raining then, and it kept her long hair relatively clean and dry).

Dobby napped for a while, too, but I think those pictures are on my sister's camera. The whole family was giggling and teasing him because where he was sleeping was deep in a pile of sleeping bags and you couldn't see him unless you called his name and his little head poked up, with his big ears. "Dobby!" we'd say, then his head would appear, then we'd giggle, then he'd realize we were just being silly and put his head back down. Then we'd do it again. After 5 or 6 times, he figured out the game and just went to sleep. Later, he (once again!) found the softest thing around and made a nice seat, although we teased him a little by taking pictures of it:

It was so much fun, and very beautiful :)


(We camped at Rocky Gap State Park in MD, which has several options for pet-friendly camping.)

Monday, August 22, 2011

The Big Move and Our New Neighborhood

The move was complicated. Thank goodness my parents came all the way down to NC to help me. Dobby did not like all of our things being in boxes and was really unhappy when we were loading the moving truck. Once we got things settled in WV though, he adjusted quickly. There was a lot of stuff!

It took about a week to unpack. Meanwhile, I made friends with my new neighbor and she showed me a good place to walk Dobby. Here is our new walk route!
Our friend the lion:

The beautiful view:

A really great garden along the way:

These guys always bark at us:

...And Dobby likes to bark at these:

It is a kind of run-down neighborhood but everyone seems friendly. Living in the mountains is really beautiful, but it makes going for long walks difficult because there are always a lot of very steep hills. Luckily, this walk is about a mile long and only has small hills. One of the most popular things to do here is to go hiking and I want to start doing that, too! I know that Dobby will love it (since we have gone hiking before) but this is a good little walk for everyday use :)

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Saying Goodbye

We had to say goodbye to a lot of people. On the Saturday before I moved, my neighbors had a cookout, so we got to spend some good time with them and all the dogs played on the patio.
Dobby and Harper ate some grass together

And then the dogs all got home-made frosty paws while we ate dinner!

Goodbye, awesome neighbors. We will miss you!!


We also had to say goodbye to my best friend L, who was always my sushi date and who doesn't like to have her picture taken...



And we had to say goodbye to our favorite person of all, Dobby's "Aunt Boo," my best friend R.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Dobby Goes to a Baseball Game!

One of the great fun things we did just before moving away from Greensboro was a Grasshoppers game! Twice per season, they offer "Bark in the Park", a special game where you can sit on the hill with your dog. All the money from the dog tickets go to a local shelter, Red Dog Farm. The Hoppers have a special love for dogs. You might have heard of the owner's dogs, Miss Babe Ruth and Master Yogi, black labs that are trained to get bats and are allowed to run on the field after the games. They made the national news not too long ago. I love baseball, and I talked my friend L into coming to Greensboro from Raleigh with her new puppy. Not Grizzly (from the beach trip)--no, she got ANOTHER new puppy!! Here we all are at the game:

L's puppy, Starbuck, is probably a lab / Australian shepherd mix

There was a nice crowd!

Dobby didn't win the Smallest Dog competition, though, this little girl did! (And although she wasn't very friendly, we did get to say hello to the big guy behind her!)

It was a lovely evening :)

Friday, August 19, 2011

Updates Left and Right!

Hi all! Dobby and I have had a super busy two months since my last post. We moved 400 miles away from our home in North Carolina so that I can start my PhD program at WVU this fall. Since we moved about 3 weeks ago, I have been in intensive workshops preparing to teach English 101 to freshmen :) I'm excited and a little nervous.

Dobby has been having a great time! Although he did NOT like moving AT ALL he settled in quickly at our new house, which has a much larger, fenced in back yard. Yay! Our neighborhood is super dog friendly (almost every home has a pet!) and fairly walkable. Here are some of the fun things we've been doing.

I bought a new chair for our new house! I call it the "old man chair" because it looks like something a grandpa would love sitting in. It rocks and swivels. Here is Dob checking it out when I brought it home:


We went to a Chihuahua Rescue and Transport picnic and met a lot of chihuahua friends!
Sadly I don't remember anyone's name. There were a lot of cute new doggies to say hi to!


Some of them were even up for adoption. It was tempting, but with the move coming up I just couldn't take anyone new home.

Here is Dobby with Zinnie, Zinnie's mom, and her friend:

And here is everyone all together:

This is the beautiful community garden where it was held:


We said goodbye to all our favorite people in Greensboro, like my boyfriend (we broke up since I was leaving :( )


And we had to say goodbye to Dobby's best friend Zinnie, too. It is sad to think I won't be doggy-sitting her regularly anymore. And I will miss having her mom to call when I need someone to watch Dobby. We will definitely be getting together whenever I visit Greensboro!




A lot more happened, too! I will try to update again in the next few days :)

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Dobby's Teeth are Clean!

Well today finally was the day Dob went and had his dental work. His teeth are clean and three were pulled. I just brought him home. He is doing well, considering he is pretty drugged up :) We are just going to snuggle and have a quiet evening.

Thanks to all who shared kind words!

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Dobby Gets his Teeth Cleaned

I am so nervous right now... Everyone please tell me this is a routine procedure and dogs much smaller than Dobby are just fine under anesthesia. (That's the part I'm worried about.) He needs at least one minor tooth extraction, too. :( He is so perfect just the way he is and I'm worried it will change his pretty smile and I hope it doesn't hurt too bad :(

I'm just being a worried, worried mom. I can't imagine what having human children is like! Everyone please keep Dobby in your thoughts tomorrow (Thursday) while he's at the vet. I will try not to call them every half hour to see how he's doing :) Updates to come.

UPDATE Fri. 6/3:
Well the vet had an emergency in the morning, so his day got re-arranged and it bumped Dobby off his list. So, no teeth work yet; I need to reschedule. Updates as necessary.


<3 S and D

Saturday, May 21, 2011

PSA, Product Plug, and a Visitor

We have lots to tell you about this week!

It all sort of weaves together, so I will just jump right in. Last weekend, I took in a stray dog, a minpin I called Max. I found him on Friday, so he had to spend the weekend with me since my vet was closed until Monday. He was covered in ticks and who knows what else, so he had to stay outside, but I gave him a bath, pulled off all the ticks I could find, and made him super comfy with my outdoor cushions and lots of towels. He was adorable and made himself a little nest.



Because he was roughed up a bit and my posters, craigslist ads, etc. hadn't gotten any responses from his owners, I sort of didn't want him to go back to them anyway. It didn't seem like they were taking good care of him, and didn't want to find him. So on Monday, I had mixed feelings about finding a microchip. He had a chip, but luckily the number on file was disconnected. So, I felt like I did the right thing trying to find his owner, but was also glad he didn't have to go back there! The vet called the person they know who does minpin rescue, and she came and picked him up right away. They all said how friendly he was and how easily he would be adopted. Happy ending!

So, TICKS! This is my Public Service Announcement: Finding so many ticks on little Max reminded me it is bug season. Everyone, please be careful about treating your pets for pests. Also, when I took Dobby to the park today, a tick got on my TOMS Shoes so remember to be careful even when you are in a well-kept area and stay on the paths. They can still get you!

And that is my product plug. Free advertising for TOMS! They are a fantastic business model and the shoes are beyond comfortable. Basically, for every pair you buy, they give a pair to a child in need. They're my go-to shoes. You can wear them straight out of the box (no break-in period at all), and I never get tired of wearing them.

And lastly, since this IS a blog for Dobby, here he is modeling his new froggie harness:

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Dobby's First Visit to the Beach


Dobby and I went on a grand adventure on Wednesday. My best friend from college moved to Raleigh last year, so we take turns visiting each other and for this trip, she had the great idea to go to the beach! So, I took Dobby with me and she brought Grizzly, her adopted mutt, and we made the journey to the coast. We went to a special beach that allows off-leash dogs on an island called Topsail Beach. Here's how far Dobby and I travelled on Wednesday:

We left Greensboro, drove east for almost 2 hours, then my friend L drove us all south east for another 2.5 hours. It was a long day! Breaking it up by stopping at L's house in Raleigh made all the difference, though, it would be hard to do the 4.5 hour drive alone as a one-day trip. But when we got there we had so much fun!!

It was high tide when we got there, so there was really just a narrow strip of sand between the water and the dunes. It was actually pretty great though, because it meant that the water was very shallow for quite a way out. We could walk out into the water 20 feet, and it would still only be up to our ankles! So that was great for shorty Dob. L had been to this beach with Grizz before, so she knew it was best for the dogs to stay on the sound side of the island, not the ocean side, because there were no scary waves. Once we walked a little past the few other people who were there (most of them just fishing), we let the dogs off leash.

Dobby really loves doing anything outside off leash :) So, although I was a little nervous about him being a baby about his paws in the sand or getting wet, he was a trooper. He was brave and trotted out in front of us along the sand and dunes, and then after I showed him how shallow the water was, he even went into the water by himself! I don't think he was really interesting in playing in it, but he definitely liked just exploring. And of course I took lots of pictures! (Click to make big!)

(Grizz wanted to play with Dobby but Dob thought he was just a little too energetic...)









Here are some special pictures taken by L with her fancy Nikon D80 camera (The one at the top of the post is hers too!):

Me and Dobby!

Then, when we got back to L's house in Raleigh, Dobby met her pet bunny and was fascinated.


What a great day!