October 31, 2009

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!

I finally found out what is going to happen tonight for Howl-oween! The tall guy said he had 2 very special jobs for me. I don't get to dress up, but that is ok. He said he didn't tell me earlier because he knew I would be TOO EXCITED!

My first (and most important) job is to let him know when the doorbell rings! When I hear the doorbell, I am supposed to start barking and go running toward the living room. (I can't get into the living room because of the gate, but that's ok.) That will be my signal to him that there are some scary things outside the door and he needs to go throw candy at them to make them go away. I told him to aim for their head.

My second (and most fun) job is to go to the door with the tall guy and bark like crazy so that the scary things will run away and never come back to our house again! For some reason, a lot of scary things (especially the little ones) get really scared themselves when I go running toward them barking. As you can see in the picture above, I'm even going to practice my 'scary eyeballs', so they will be even more scared. Scary eyeballs are pretty easy to do. Sometimes I can do it without even thinking about it because the tall guy has a LOT of pictures of me with the scary eyeballs!

So if you come by my house tonight, be prepared. The tall guy bought a lot of stuff called 'chocolate'. I'll tell him not to throw it at your head! Happy Howl-oweens!

October 30, 2009

Some Rejected Howl-oween Costumes

Evidently MY costume ideas aren't good enough for a certain someone.

'Jack' of Hearts

Ball and 'Jacks'

Tire 'Jack'

And, of course,
'Jack'-o-lantern

So, I told someone that if he didn't like any of MY ideas,
maybe he could come up with something better.
We'll see!

What are YOU going to be this Howl-oween?

October 29, 2009

A Horrible FRIGHT!!!

I don't know what it is about this Howl-oween thing, but there are some scary things out there! Remington, a very big and brave puppy, has been protecting his mom and dad from something that comes to their house in the middle of the night! But he is SO big and brave, whatever it is runs away before it can eat his mom and dad! So he should get a reward - like a big steak or even a Quarter Pounder with Cheese (no onions) or a car!

I woke up this morning and saw SOMETHING staring at me! It was big and yellow and had HUGE eyes and a lot of teeth. SO, I started barking at it. Well, for some reason, my barking woke up the tall guy (I just happened to be laying on the foot of his bed) and he looked to see what it was. Every time I would bark, the THING just looked at me and made fun of me, so it made me bark harder. For some reason, the tall guy decided it was more important to get a picture of me than to try and find out what the THING was. I'm telling you, it was really scary! So after I barked at the THING for like 14 hours (according to the tall guy), he finally told me that I could stop barking. He said I was barking at (I'm almost scared to say its name)...

A MIRROR!!

Even the name sounds scary! Evidently, these MIRROR things just sneak into your house whenever they want to and hide in your bathroom! The tall guys says when he sees the mirror after he wakes up in the morning, it's one of the scariest things he's ever seen! So, if YOU ever see a MIRROR, make sure you tell your mom and dad so they can run away! And be very careful this Howl-oween. There may be more even scarier things out there we don't know about yet!

October 28, 2009

In Honor of the World Serious

Everybody sing:
"Take me out to the ball park,
Let me off of my leash.
Buy me some cookies and hot dogs and snacks,
I'll give you two kisses when you get back,
Let me woof, woof, woof at the puppies,
And run around on the field.
For it's one, two, three barks, you're out,
'Til Dad's ears have healed."

October 27, 2009

This is the one that gets me in trouble!

After I did my puppy park puppy rules the other day, some of the puppies asked me why I didn't put up some rules for peoples. After all, the peoples are the ones who do most of the reading! So, I asked the tall guy to help me come up with some things to talk about with the peoples who go to the puppy park! The tall guy said something about 'preaching to the choir' and I said not to drag religion into this or we would REALLY get into trouble and he said that's not what that meant and I said well what DO you mean and he said it meant that he knows that all the people who read my blog are very good parents so we don't need to explain things to them and then I said well why didn't you just say that in the first place? Needless to say (once again), I don't think I'll be getting any extra cookies today!

So here are some of the things that stick in my craw (along with appropriate commentary by the tall guy, who I love very very much! Now maybe I'll get some extra cookies!!)

Rules for the Peoples at the Puppy Park

TG: At our puppy park, some people bring really young/small children into the puppy play area. When that happens, Jack and I leave. I'm always scared that one of the children is going to get jumped on/knocked down/chased. Puppies can run VERY fast sometimes and don't always look where they are running!
Jack: I always look where I am running - it's just that sometimes my brakes don't work too well!

TG: Some people must never get to talk on the phone until they get to the puppy park. They must be hiding something! :)
Jack: I always listen to the conversations in case I am called on to be a witness at the divorce trial!

TG: Evidently, puppy parks are a powerful natural laxative.
Jack: It's always best to go as far away from your person as possible when you have to go potty. That way they will get a lot of exercise when they come to clean it up!

TG: Far away - like outside the fence. Or maybe in your car going home.
Jack: If your puppy is sitting on me and I can not get up, you might want to tell him that I can't run around with a puppy sitting on me. If your puppy has hold of my ear (or any other part of me) and won't let go, it makes it much harder to run as well.

TG: Please ask your vet if running around at the puppy park is prescribed for a puppy with a really bad stomach virus or hacking cough. If he or she says yes, please find another vet.
Jack: And if your puppy has a hacking cough, please remind them that smoking is not good for puppies. Or peoples.
TG: I don't think many puppies smoke.
Jack: Oh, you'd be surprised at what all goes on behind the trash cans at the puppy park!

TG: OOPS! I did this one. Jack and I were working on having him come when I whistled. I would reward him with a treat when he responded. For some reason, puppies within a 20 mile range know when you have a treat. So I was being nice (I thought) and gave someone else's puppy one of Jack's treats. The puppy's mom was very nice, but asked me not to give the puppy anything as he was on a restricted diet. So I learned my lesson.
Jack: Besides, I always come when you whistle. It just might take me a bit longer than you like. And it may not be in a direct line. Or talk to some of the other puppies. And I may have to go get some water first. BUT, I will get there eventually!

So there you have some of my puppy park pet peeves. (Maybe that should be PEOPLE PEEVES! LOL!!)
See you next time at the park!

October 26, 2009

More Howl-oween!!

I'm still trying to decide what to be for Howl-oween.
Since the tall guy cut my allowance,
(long story, don't ask!)
I have to make my own costume.
Here are some of my choices:

I can go as Popeye (or maybe PUP-eye):

The puppy from the movie Alien:

(Yes, I know there wasn't a puppy in the movie,
but that's what makes it such a good costume!)

Sad puppy who didn't get to go out trick-or-treating:

(See, it's very IRONIC - I would be out trick-or-treating as a puppy
who DIDN'T GET TO GO OUT TRICK-OR-TREATING!)

or how about 'TV watching puppy' -
watching House Hunters on the teevees.
I always choose House #3!
How come they don't ever show any puppies
looking for houses on these shows?

I guess I need to decide pretty soon.
If you have any costume suggestions, please let me know!

October 25, 2009

Jack's Rules for the Puppy Park!

Evidently there are some puppies out there who haven't yet learned how to BEHAVE when they are at the puppy park. So, I've come up with some basic rules that all the puppies should learn.

Rule #1: If a puppy loses a contact lens, you should help him look for it.

But watch where you step,
well, uh, for any number of reasons.

Rule #2: Two on the back, gonna get a smack!

I know that some puppies have got it 'going on',
but that's no excuse to get frisky whenever your
hormones kick in.

Rule #3: A neat puppy park is a fun puppy park!

Pick up any trash you might find and deposit it
in the nearest trash receptacle.
However, puppies who are bothering you
are NOT to be considered to be trash.
Remember, there is a big difference between 'TRASH' and 'TRASHY'.
No puppies in the garbage!

Rule #4: Drink plenty of fluids.

And by fluids, we mean water.
We do not mean the Starbucks coffee that
one of the peoples has absent-mindedly left
sitting on the table.

Have you SEEN a puppy after he
has drunk a double-mocha-cappa-frappchino?
Trust me, it is not a pretty picture.

Now I will ask some of the other puppies
from the puppy park to share some more
RULES FOR THE PUPPY PARK!

Rule #5: Just because you have slobbered on it, does not mean it is YOUR toy.

Slobber is NOT 9/10ths of the law.
If you take someone else's toy and slobber on it,
you can go to jail for
GRAND THEFT SLOBBERY!

Rule #6: Some things at the puppy park are not meant to be toys!

Like the water bucket.
And the plastic bags.

Note from Jack:
And Jack's collar.
ESPECIALLY JACK'S COLLAR!!
JACK'S COLLAR IS NOT A TOY!!!!
We do NOT try to tear Jack's head off so we can play with his collar.
As a matter of fact, if you are so intent on getting Jack's collar,
you can just march yourself right out the gate you came in
and don't let it hit you on the...

Oops, sorry.
I must have gotten carried away.
If you take the water dishes to play with,
some of the puppies may get thirsty.
So don't take the water dishes, ok?

So there you have some of the basic rules for the puppy park.
Tune in next time for some of the more ADVANCED rules
for puppy park etiquette!

October 24, 2009

A note to the tall guy...

Please do not take any more pictures of me when I'm asleep! How would you like it if I took pictures of YOU when you were asleep? I've seen how your hair sticks up in the morning. Not a pretty sight by any means! You have enough pictures of me sleeping. They all look the same.

WHAT?

Now you're taking close-up pictures of me sleeping? You think that my smooshed-up face looks cute? Well, mister, wait until I figure out how to get your camera to work! Puppies aren't the only ones who drool!

October 23, 2009

Finally!!

The tall guy finally took me back to the puppy park to play. I wish he would take me every day, but some days he just wants to lay in bed until like 5AM! Sheesh!

There were some fun puppies there. This is a really pretty husky puppy that had just been to the barber!

We ran and ran and ran. This is Echo - her mom said she was only 9 months old.

We did the 'stick your butt up in the air until you can't stand it any more and then run at each other' dance.

And then some puppies and I rassled for like 2000 times:

You may notice that I am naked in the pictures above. For some reason, one of the bigger puppies at the park today decided he really, really, REALLY liked my collar and he kept trying to take it off of me. I just kept giving him the 'Are you crazy?' eyes, but evidently he was so crazy he didn't get the hint. So, the tall guy took it off of me and put it in his pocket until we were ready to go home. So, do not try to take off the other puppies collars unless you ask them first.

Here are some of the puppies who were at the park today. This is Echo again.

This was a very nice guy, although he is a bit slobbery!

Here is the husky puppy again. You can see all the fuzz that is missing!

So remember, be a good puppy and maybe your peoples will take you to the puppy park.
And go to the bathroom before you go
as some puppies do not recognize personal space!
But that's another story...

October 22, 2009

Jack Does Some Tricks!

Absolutely no water bottles were harmed during the making of this video!

Special Jack Blog Note

Here are some of the foods which all my friends said I should get the tall guy to buy for me to eat:
• Chicken
• Pizza Crust
• Ice Cubes
• Peanut Butter
• Boiled Beef with Rice
• Yogurt with Cheerios
• Merrick Lamb fillet
and
• String Cheese

Thank you for all of your suggestions. I'll see that the tall guy GETS THE MESSAGE.

I did not, however, see any of the following on the list:
• REECE'S CUPS
• Kobe Steaks
• Hamburgers and/or Onion Rings
• Banana pudding
• Blizzards from Dairy Queen
• Tacos, burritos, enchiladas or quesadillas
• Sandwiches with the good bread from the French bakery

Now how can I convince the tall guy to give me some of these if no other puppy gets to eat them.
Surely, SOMEONE gets to eat at least SOME of this.
If so, please send me a message so I can show it to the tall guy.
Thank you and I eagerly await your responses!

October 21, 2009

HOWL-oween!

A lot of the other puppies have been putting up pictures of their HOWL-oween costumes. Of course I had NO IDEA what HOWL-oween was, because SOMEONE decided he didn't want to share his big bag of candy that he bought last week. I, on the other hand, DID know that you can not buy a big bag of candy 3 weeks before you are supposed to give it out, especially if it has something called REESE'S CUPS in it. Evidently REESE'S CUPS are the most important food there is or ever was, since you have to eat 5 or 6 of them every day in order to stay alive.

Well, since I could not eat no REESE'S CUP, 1) because the tall guy would not give me any, and 2) there aren't any left to give, that gave me an idea. Since you need REESE'S CUPs to live and I didn't get any, I would be a

ZOMBIE PUPPY!

Here is a picture of me practicing to be a

ZOMBIE PUPPY!

(action figure &
accessories sold seperately!)

Please notice the tongue sticking out the side of the mouth as that is a definite sign that one has become a

ZOMBIE PUPPY!

It also helps if you roll around in the dirt so you can get your stomach all dirty.
It really helps if the dirt is wet so that it sticks really good.

So there you have it.
If you do not have a costume yet, you may want to be a zombie puppy too!
And then when you go out for tricks-or-treats*,
maybe you will get some REECE'S CUPS that you can share.
Unlike some people I know!!

Oh and just so you won't be scared,
I will only be zombie puppy for one night.
The rest of the time, I will be my
usual non-zombie-fied self!

OR WILL I?????????

* From the tall guy: 'It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown' is the only time I can think of anyone saying 'tricks-or-treats' instead of 'trick-or-treat'. So in honor of Charlie Brown...

October 20, 2009

You should try to learn something new every day!

Last night, I got to eat ICE CREAMS*!

You know, I think some of you peoples out there should have told me about this stuff a long time ago because I think the tall guy was just keeping all the ice creams* for himself!!

If you have a puppy, go to the place where you get the ice cubes and see if you have some ice creams*. If you do, you should share some with your puppy. I think a lot of puppies would like ice creams*.

Now I wonder what other good eating things the tall guy is hiding from me?

I would like all the puppies to let me know what good things I should have been eating all this time, but I did not know about. Especially if it tastes as good as ICE CREAMS!* I'll make up a list and present it to the tall guy at our next weekly meeting.

*Note from the tall guy: Actually it wasn't ice creams (or even ice cream) - it was Frosty Paws (Delicious AND Nutritious) frozen treats for dogs! But don't tell Jack. He just knows that he really really REALLY likes it. It was a treat for his one year-a-versary!

October 19, 2009

Jack's Favorite Recipes

A short series in which
Jack shares his
favorite recipes.

Today: Jack's recipe for
'Cellulose with Mixed Lignans and Phenolics'

This is a very easy recipe that you should try.
Ingredients:
1 cup of 'make sure that the tall guy is not in the room'
2 tbs of 'look around to see if there are any 'papers' on the nightstand'
1/2 pinch of 'check again to REALLY make sure the tall guy is not watching you'

Once you have all of your ingredients assembled,
very quietly pick up the 'papers' on the nightstand.
Gently tear the papers
(remember, good papers are torn not cut)
until you have a bunch of little pieces
You may hear this referred to as 'dicing'
on some of the tv programs the tall guy is all the time watching.

You should then spread your small pieces of 'papers' all around
in order to make the most visually appealing presentation you can!

And there you have it.
One more quick and easy recipe for you to try at home.
But do not try this dish too often
as it may cause a 'slight' problem when
your peoples see what a good chef you are.
They may decide you are such a good chef,
you can only cook outside or in your crate for a while.

So, as Julia would say to all the puppies:
'BONE APPETITE!"

October 18, 2009

Jack's Favorite Recipes

A short series in which
Jack shares his
favorite recipes.

Today: Jack's recipe for 'SOME'

Jack: Are you eating something?
Tall Guy: Yes
Jack: Give me some.

And there you have it!
Quick and easy.
You should try 'SOME' for dinner tonight!

Note from the tall guy:
It doesn't matter what it is.
If I'm eating it, he wants it.

October 17, 2009

From the tall guy...

I'm going to take over Jack's blog today (don't tell him) because today's post is very special for me. One year ago today, I took a short drive and picked up a new part of my life. (A small, yellow, very sharp toothed part of my life!) That first night, we didn't get much sleep - someone (small, yellow, sharp teeth) decided he wanted to demonstrate his love of our indoor/outdoor bathroom facilities every thirty minutes for the entire night. 365 (!) blog posts later, here we are. I don't remember why I decided to start a blog about Jack - I thought I'd be the first person ever to start a blog about a puppy! Since then, I've come across a lot of puppy blogs (and a few kitty ones as well) which just serve to remind me how big a part our 'furry kids' play in our lives. I've found some amazing people online who share their lives and their families, both human and four-pawed, with me through their blogs. There are some great 'peoples' out there who spend a great deal of time helping animals find their forever homes and who, in a pinch, decide that the forever home they were trying to find for their 'temporary visitor' was right in their own house and heart. These are the stories which make me so very happy. There are also those who have lost their friends in this past year. It always hurts to read those blog posts. Please trust me when I say I know how you feel.

My FWOPs (friends without pets) never seem to understand what unconditional love is. Sometimes, when I'm tired and cranky, I don't think I understand it either, but it's always there staring me in the face. Usually wanting a cookie.

I want to thank all of you who have made this a really special year for both Jack and me, but most of all I want to thank one small puppy who has filled a big hole in my heart that I didn't even know was there.

I love you Jack!

Pictures from Jack's first day at his forever home.

October 16, 2009

On the next episode of -

flea

The series follows an optimistic teacher, who -- against all odds and a malicious cheerleading coach -- attempts to save Barkinley High's Flea Club from obscurity, while helping a group of aspiring UNDERDOGS realize their true star potential.

Rachel-dog and Finn-pup practice their duet.

Rachel-dog keeps her eyes on the prize!

Amber-pooch is in top form today!

Will Puck-hound spoil everything?

The choreography needs a little more work!

Will Finn-pup realize that he's NOT the father
(especially since he's been fixed)
or will he just choose to always be happy?

Note from the tall guy: Just in case you're wondering, the dog portraying Amber-dog (and Stella 'Bone'-asera from yesterday) is Armand, who is a boy. But I'm taking some artistic license as they were the best pictures I took at the puppy park! And if you weren't wondering, nevermind! :)

October 15, 2009

On this episode of
CSI: Puppy Park

'Jack' Taylor finds Stella 'Bone'-asera
after she was mugged for her favorite ball
at the dog park.

Jack: Stella, speak to me. Speak! Speak!
Stella: Woof.
Jack: I'll find out who did this if it's the last thing I do.
Oh wait, is that a cookie?

Starring:
Jack as 'Jack' Taylor
Armand as Stella 'Bone'-asera
A. J. 'Bark'ley as Adam Ross
with special guest star:
Remington as 'Remington' Steele

October 14, 2009

Uh...

I would really prefer NOT to have my ears cleaned right now if you don't mind.
What? You DO mind?
Well, they are MY ears, so I think we can wait a while.
How about FOR-NEVER? Is for-never a good time to clean my ears?
No?
Ok, here's my deal.
If you'll let me wait until another time to clean my ears,
I won't bark when you are watching House.
No?
Ok, here's another deal.
No?
Oh, just clean them already and get it over with!


From the tall guy:
We do this negotiation EVERY WEEK!
He always loses!

October 13, 2009

Sometimes...

Sometimes after a busy day, you just need to kick back and relax.
Take a few minutes for yourself.
But don't eat the bugs that you find in the grass. They taste yucky!

October 12, 2009

Jack's PSA
(Puppy Service Announcement)

Please play this on all the tv stations you have!

October 11, 2009

More Vacation Snapshots!

Here are some more pictures of my trip up the mountain yesterday!

As we were walking back to the car, I heard a familiar sound.
"Hark!" I cried.
(Well, it was more "BARK" than "HARK", but you get the picture!)
"COULD IT BE!?!?!"

Yes!

It was a little stream.
It wasn't as big as the one I played in last time,
but anytime I get to play in water is fine by me!

So, I made my way down to the water and had a bit of a bushwalk!
It is very fun when the water runs all over your nose.
You should try it.
(I'm talking to the peoples, not the puppies!)

Unfortunately, the tall guy wouldn't let me off the string because we were too close to the highway.
He said I might get too excited and try to jump into one of the cars as they went by and the people inside would fall in love with me and take me home with them and he might never see me again.
(Then again, after I dug up around the orange tree AGAIN this morning,
he said next time he might hang a sign around my neck and see if anyone would TAKE me.
He was, of course, kidding, as he needs me to wake him up in the morning!)

So that was my latest trip up into the mountains.
Here is one last mountain picture:

Just for Madi: These are called the CATalina Mountains, but I didn't see any cats. I did see a squirrel with a white tail. I'll have to remember to tell Tank so he can come run it away!