Chomp!

Dex has never been a fan of rawhide.  He usually drops them in his water bowl so that they get all gross and we throw them away, then give him a treat he actually likes.  So, when my friend Jen offered to give me a treat she had that were too small for her dog, I was not sure Dex would like them, because they looked like rawhide, even though they weren't.

Boy was I wrong.

Enter, the Pork Chomp.

Instead of being made with beef rawhide, these are made from pork skin.  Dexter loves the taste, and unlike rawhide, these do not cause digestive issues, which is important to dogs with small tummies like Dex.  They help clean his teeth, which is good, because these treats literally make him smile, I swear!  We have also noticed a reduction in Dexter chewing on his blankets, because now he has a better (and tastier) outlet for the chewing instinct.

Right now, he gets about 1 a day, and it keeps him occupied for about an hour, because they are just the small knotted bones.  I am sure a bigger one would take longer, but Dex can be a pig and not know when to stop, so for now, we will stick with these little ones.  Seriously though, we can bring him upstairs to our room, put on a movie, and he will lay on the bed chomping for almost the whole thing.  Everyone is happy.

So, if your dog does not like rawhide, and you need a good chewy treat for him or her, I suggest these.  In fact, I want to note, I was not asked to review these treats by the company, and I was not compensated for this review.  I just really believe in this product, because it makes my baby happy!

Dexter's Different Barks

You know how mothers get so in tune with their babies that they know what is going on just by the way the baby cries?  This is the "hungry" cry, or that cry means "I'm wet"?  Well, I am starting to get the same way with Dex.

For the first 2-3 months we had him, he never barked, I mean never ever.  The first time he barked, we laughed, because they were these wimpy little puppy squeak barks.  As time went on, he realized that barking got attention, and helped him communicate with us.  So now, he barks every day.  He as a very specific bark that says "I want attention" and another that is his "I miss mommy bark".

This morning, he was barking, and it sounded different than any other bark he has.  It sounded as though he was trying to make himself sound like a bigger dog.  The barks were resonating from deep in his chest, and they were hearty.  I never knew he could sound like that, and I wondered why he was doing it.  Then, I listened very closely.  A dog was barking outside, and from the sound of that dog, he was pretty big.  I then realized that Dex felt like that dog was threatening us, our home and our family.  And he felt the need to protect us.  So he was putting on a tough guy bark to try to intimidate the other dog.  It kind of warmed my heart that here was this adorable, bumbling, 13 pound weiner dog trying to guard his home and masters.

Thanks for protecting us buddy.  

Puppy Power

Remember when I wrote earlier this week that Dex was getting so grown up, and behaving like such a big boy?

Yeah about that.....

For the last two days, he has been in major puppy mode.  As in, this is what he is like:

He has been prancing all around, chewing on my feet, flipping and flopping.  But not really misbehaving, it is like he is going through a growth spurt, and all his puppy energy is returning.

Want to know a secret?  I kind of love it.  I want to keep him a puppy for as long as possible. I can't believe that in a little over a month, it will be his first birthday.  I really want to find a recipe for a doggie cake or something.

11 months old or 11 years old, he will always be my baby.

Take your pet to work?

We were at two different businesses today that had pets in the workplace.  It seems to be a trend among small business owners.

We were at a bookshop, and there, in all his glory among the tomes, was a handsome cat.  He posed so nicely for me that I got a great picture, but I did not catch his name.  He did let me pet him a little.

Then, later today, we stopped at an insurance agency, and in there, the owners had a beautiful dog, looked like he was an Irish Setter, at least part.  His name was Boomer, and he gave me lovely doggie kisses.

Do any of you take your pets to work, or have pets be a part of your work from home routine?  I would love to work in an office with a pet, it would be so therapeutic I think.  Who could ever have a bad day at work if you shared your cubicle with this cutie?

He even had appropriate work attire...

Finally settling down

I think Dexter is finally getting used to being around Daddy without me.  It is not that he does not adore Daddy, because he totally does.  Once Daddy gets home from work, whenever he leaves Dex's sight, Dex ignores pretty much everything until Daddy returns to the room.  But during the day, when Daddy is gone, he is used to being with me.  And when I leave, and just Daddy is here, whether in the evening or during the daytime, Dex freaks out.

It was pretty common that within 5 minutes of my departure, I would get a text from Daddy saying Dex was barking his fool head off.  Subsequent texts follow at regular intervals to confirm that Dex is still being mouthy.  But lately, he has been doing a lot better.

Granted, I try to slip out unnoticed, but he is no dummy, he knows I am gone.  He still may bark a little, or whine, but lately he has been doing really well, and then gets very excited when I get home.

He really is growing up.  Now if I could only get him to stop chewing on his blankets.

Counting Canine Calories?

Today I think I have officially seen everything.  While shopping for some new treats for Dex, I stumbled upon this:

100 calorie packs for dogs.  Really?

Right now, Dex is still technically a puppy, and our vet told us to not worry about him consuming too much food or too many calories at this point, because he is still growing and using lots of energy.  But I know at some point, we may been to tighten up his food intake a little, so that he does not get too plump.  Doxies can easily put on too much weight, and it can cause major health issues.  So I get the importance of watching intake, but come on, 100 calorie packs?

What is next, Doggie Weight Watchers?  I refuse to calculate points for my dog, I have a hard enough time remembering to do my own.

Asserting His Independence

For several months now, we have been bringing Dexter upstairs to our bedroom for a little bit each day.  He runs around on the bed, snuggles with us, watches movies with us, and generally behaves like a good dog.

We have never had any issues with him being on the bed, other than he likes to chew blankets sometimes, and if the cat is on the bed too, he will antagonize the crap out of her until she leaves.  But otherwise, it is just an explosion of cuteness.

Today, however, he decided he no longer wanted to be on the bed.  So he rolled himself off of the bed, and onto the floor.  Before I could even check to make sure he was ok, he trotted down our large staircase to the first floor, and was on his merry way.

My little boy is growing up.