Dogs

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Twelve and more!

Lots has happened these past few weeks, so it’s time for an update. Our CCI visitor is gone with the wind again, more on that subject later. We also celebrated Ms. Zulu’s 12th birthday. That’s a lot of years! We don’t know her exact birthday as she, just like me, was adopted from the shelter but we celebrate it around the beginning of August. And guess what we found in our mailbox yesterday: an email from Belén Soto with photos of the clay figurines of Ms. Zulu and me that she is working on.

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Photo credits: © Belén Soto 2017

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The first draft

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Ms. Zulu

This is based on the modeling work Ms. Zulu and I did last year. Belén said that she will show more photos on her website Arcilla Fuego soon. We are really excited about it and just couldn’t wait any longer to show you so we asked Belén for permission. Aren’t the figurines gorgeous?! You can see that Ms. Zulu and I are waiting for treats. On that note let’s walk to our doggie pantry to see if we can get some yummies in our real tummies.

 

Benji

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AWOL

We have a Canine Companion for Independence (CCI) visitor so we will be AWOL for a little while as we will be busy showing him around town. Our visitor is about seven months old and has an out of jail card for seven days.

The little guy who is actually quite a big guy already is a service dog in training and being trained by inmates at a correctional institute for women. He needs some real world experience such as shopping, riding in a car, going to the doctor etc., hence the out of jail card. The women who take care of these puppies are doing a fabulous job so it’s always a joy to have these guys around.

I promise to catch up with you later,
Benji

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Joy is…

Jumping up

High in the air

With ears flapping

See
I can jump
high!

Wishing you a wagnificent weekend with lots of treats and cuddles,

Benji

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Cool Hot Summer Fun: 9

Remember I told you that I love to play indoor soccer with my stuffed buddies? Well, today I played it to celebrate that my dear friend Octopus finally made it out of the ICU. He went AWOL for a very long time after I had chewed off more than I could handle. When I saw him again he was called Septopus. After a successful surgery and speedy recovery,  Octopus is back in the game, up and running on all his legs.

THE GAME

Prerequisites: First, I had to learn the names of my stuffed animals. This sounds more complicated than it is. Every single time a new fellow joins my herd, I’m taught his/ her name.

Octopus in the ICU
You have to be fast
Got two!

The rules:

  1. My human kicks one of my stuffed friends. This really sounds worse than it is. My friends sometimes squeak but I’m sure this is from delight. Let’s say it is Mr. Crocodile that gets the boot. And yes, boots can hurt us canines so we only play this game barefoot.
  2. As my human kicks Mr. Crocodile, she says “get Crocodile” and then we both run after him.
  3. If my human gets to my friend first, she kicks it again. If I’m first, I grab my friend and we go to step 4. I make sure that I run very fast. I don’t want my friends to be kicked in the butt twice in a row.
  4. Next, my human says the name of another friend and kicks it. We then run as fast as we can after that fellow. Repeat steps 3 and 4 as many times as you like. You can include all your friends in this game or just one or two, it’s up to you and your friends. I can now hold up to three stuffed fellows in my mouth. That’s why we play the game with more than three friends. My favorite friend right now is Mr. Crocodile. He has an ultrasonic squeaker. I hear it but humans cannot! It’s a win-win for all.

Happy days, 

Benji

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Cool Hot Summer Fun: 8

What to do on one of those lazy Sunny Days? Make new friends! This one was technically speaking not a new one as he had been hiding in our doggie pantry since November 2016. Yes, you read that right. That’s when a V.I.P. stayed with us and we did the coastal tour. Oh, those were the days. Cool temps, excellent company, what else could one want.

I love Mr. Crocodile
He fits in well with my other friends

From l. to r.: Ducky, Crab, Moose, Rabbit, Rhino, Rope, Wallie, and Mr. Crocodile

I’m glad we found Mr. Crocodile. We hope he can stay and play with us for a long time to come. It all depends on his heart a.k.a. squeaker. Sometimes I have to do CPR on my friends. In the past, I have experienced some losses (see R.I.P. Ducky I). I guess I have to practice more. I also hope that Mr. Crocodile is a good soccer player. I love to play that game. More about that later; it’s getting pretty close to dinner time!

Wishing you a happy 4th of July weekend,

please keep your furry and not-so-furry ones safe,

Benji

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Happiness is …

Going to your favorite place where you can play, and play, and play, and have fun with your buddies.

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Guess what I did today!

I crashed after dinner at home.

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Crashed Subject

Benji

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You’ve Got Mail: 4

As a real retriever, I got the mail yesterday.  Ms. Zulu helped me as she herded me to the mailbox like a true herding dog. We forgot to empty the mailbox on Saturday. When we finally got around it on Sunday, we found this beautiful card from Kosmo and his mom in faraway Finland! If we would have known what was in the mailbox, we would have run with Mach 2+ speed.

We got mail!
Let’s see what they write
I wanna dream about faraway Finland

Kosmo and mom wrote that the photo on the postcard is from their area. Isn’t that something? Can you imagine living in such a beautiful place? Kosmo and his mom are very lucky. If you want to read more about life in Finland, follow the blog Photofinland by Rantasalot.  Kosmo’s mom writes it and it’s wagnificent.

P.S. I hope to report tomorrow on what we saw when we admired the postcard. You won’t believe us.

Happy Tails,

Benji

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Cool Hot Summer Fun: 3A

OK, I tried to postpone this watery post as long as possible for reasons that you are probably well aware of by now.  However, higher authorities ruled differently and I was bound to get WET as part of the Cool Hot Summer Fun series. Yes, you read that right. Don’t get me wrong, I do love to DRINK water. However, do not soak me in the stuff. It’s wasteful you know. And it certainly isn’t fun.

There are many ways to get wet and all are bad: in the bathtub (not a good idea for the interior of your bathtub; I do have nails), a pool (are you nuts, I would drown!), on a wet towel (ok this one isn’t too bad), … Anyhowls, you get my drift. The other day headquarters decided that we had to try something else. Ms. Zulu and I both love to drink from a hose, so the thinking was that we would enjoy playing under a lawn sprinkler. Hmmm, in what kind of universe does that not totally soak you?

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This is not gonna work you guys

Of course Ms. Zulu and I are always a good sport so we did try this new game. The first attempt was with a spray nozzle attached to a water hose. The nozzle was quite rude. He was quick to point the finger, or whatever part it was, at us. I’m happy to report that the end score was: Spray Nozzle 00 – Benji 11. I even stayed dry and got all the treats. Ms. Zulu didn’t stay completely dry but she didn’t get wet to the bone either. Nor did she get any treats now I come to think of it. She can have some of my treats. Oh, I guess I inhaled them all. Well, I’m sure there are more wherever they came from. Look in the pantry.

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Ms. Zulu got a bit wet and was still smiling 

Since both Ms. Zulu and I didn’t really seem to cool down from this game, some more serious looking equipment was pulled out of the shed-with-one-hundred-and- thousand-plus-tools and a real sprinkler was attached to the hose. I will give you an update on that later.

In the meantime stay dry,

Benji

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You’ve Got Mail: 3

Yeah, our postcard made it to our dear northern friends Doug, Dougy, and Andy! You can read all about it on Weggieboy’s blog.  Happy Tuesday!

What a wonderful post card! Ms. Zulu (on the left) and Benji are well known to Andy and Dougy because the four did interviews with each other, and found that dogs are nice and so are cats! They became friends and are now old buddies. (Check out these interview links if you’ve not read them.) If only […]

via Post 1387: old buddies write… — weggieboy’s blog

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The Forbidden Fruit

The forbidden fruit is oh so tempting. This is the first year our apple tree is producing apples. The name of the apples is promising: Joy Apples. Last year I was too small to help myself to the Fuyu Persimmons; believe me, I tried.  The apple tree will be so much easier as I have grown and the apple tree is still a youngin. Supposedly the apples will even get bigger. I am not sure if I want to wait to see that theory come to fruition. I can wait a little bit but hey where is the joy in waiting much longer?

Have a great weekend, and may the rewards be big for those who wait,

Benji

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You’ve Got Mail

Yahoo, we got mail from Doug, Andy, and Dougy! The postcard shows Mona Lisa with a kitty; isn’t that cute?! We were all very excited to read the card. We have put our heads together to send them a reply via snail mail. Stay tuned for the update.

Thanks, Doug, Andy, and Dougy!

The ZAB team

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Dogtors with Borders

As promised, here is the new addition to my uniform. Ms. Zulu assisted me while I posed for the first time with the new scarf. So this time it was Dogtors with Borders. Yes, Ms. Zulu is at least 50% Border Collie as far as we can tell. If you would like to know more about my Dogtors without Borders work then go to my resume page. We updated it recently.
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As you can see Ms. Zulu and I took our job very seriously and we were very focused throughout the photo session. This may or may not have anything to do with the treats in front of us. You be the judge.

OK, gotta run, I have a farewell party to attend to say goodbye to my best buddy Capone and hello to a new CCI friend in training. Yeah, Capone is leaving us in 1.5 weeks to start professional service dog training in South Florida. We will miss him for sure. I (well maybe one of my dedicated assistants) will try to capture some nice photos so you can see Capone one more time and to introduce the new CCI puppy. I’m sure you will get to see more of the newbie because when Capone is traveling to South Florida we get to babysit the new 9-week old pup for four days. That oughta be fun.

And remember, be dedicated and thou shall be rewarded,

Benji

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Interviews

A bit later than promised but here is an update on the interviews Ms. Zulu and I did with Bacon.  Mine will be published on 05/25/2017 and Ms. Zulu’s will be published on 06/01/2017. See Piglove’s Blog for all the great interviewees that went before us. We will let you know as soon as the interviews are published. 

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Just hang in there a little bit longer; soon enough you will get to know us even better,

Benji

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Good Morning Sunshine

Wake-up, Wake-up! It’s another beautiful morning and Earth Day! We had a nice walk in the woods. As you can see the Pinecone Forest in our neck of the woods is recovering nicely from a dangerous affair. Hope you get to enjoy the outdoors today too.

Rest

Reflect and

Relish the sounds of nature

The ZAB team

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MP-6

Wow, another mission accomplished.  I visited the emergency center again. This time I went with another Dogtor. Her name is Katrina. She graduated at the same time I did and she is already 15 years old.  That is 3+ years older than my big sis and 10 times older than me! Isn’t that something?! Katrina is very calm. She loves to lie down whenever there is a chance. I rather sit and smile at people.

I’ve noticed that people seem to recognize me more and more. They call my name and want to say hi. They even want to take pictures of me. I got lots of practice at headquarters sitting still for a photo plus treat, so I always say “no problemo” [ed. as long as there are treats].

At the embroidery place
Me supervising
Unloading the car at home

When we were done with all the Dogtoring, M and I went to an embroidery place. I went inside to say hi and gave them my blue bandana that will be embroidered with our logo. I will try to remember to show you the result as soon as it’s done.

Next on our agenda was the Pet Supermarket.  Yeah, we needed more treats and another bag of food. M says that’s because one being in our household eats at least for two three. I can tell you that ain’t me because my tummy always feels like it could hold lots more yummies.

More pictures were taken at the Pet Supermarket too. This was nicely balanced out with treats. Thanks to the friendly lady assistant at the store who did notice that I could use some more. At the cash register, one of the shoppers asked if I was up for adoption. M didn’t know how fast to say no, pay, and practically drag me outside. I guess that’s an affirmative NO.

To sum things up, it was a productive day and I can rest assured that my forever home will be forever, ever after.  How’s that for a good ending?!

Night, night and sleep tight,

Benji

 

 

 

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Happy Sunny Day

Here are some flowers to brighten your Easter Day. Next week will be busy so we are taking it easy today. Tuesday is MI-6 day and we are finalizing two big interviews with Bacon over at hotel Thompson for Spotlight Thursday.  Stay tuned for an update later this week. Wishing you a lazy and happy Sunny Day.

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Hmmm, not so sure what to think of them. Can you play with them or better yet, eat them?

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A close-up

The ZAB team

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My Sis

Upon special request, here a picture of my big sis. Since she often has to stay home while I go on my secret missions, she gets to bicycle more with M. M says she still runs like a five-year-old although she will be twelve in August and had an ACL repair more than a year ago.

Here, on the photo below, Ms. Zulu is trying to catch her breath on one of those outings. Like me, she loves to run. “Edible treats are not necessary, the run is my reward”, she says. Can you believe that? I can’t imagine a life without treats.

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Happy Monday guys and girls;
Treat yourself to something nice today,
You deserve it!

Benji

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Oops

sunday.JPGSunday was an oopsy kind of day. What happened? Well, it started out with one of my favorite activities: agility training. I was happily running from one obstacle to the next with Mach 3+ speed until we got to the tunnel. That tunnel was waayyy too small for me. Treats were inside the tunnel but pretty much in the middle. So I ran from one side to the other to get to the treats all the while trying not to get stuck in that tiny obstacle. Next thing I know the trainer is teasing me to enter the tunnel by swinging a great looking furry feathery thing in front of me. The thing looked like a cross between a rabbit and a squirrel. I decided to catch it and run away so I could check it out. Supposedly, that was not the idea and I was offered a tiny treat in exchange for the thing. That didn’t seem fair so I took the treat and swallowed the crossbreed as well. It turned out to be non-edible. Oops. You should have seen the look on the trainer’s and M’s face when they registered what had happened. All I can say is hey, I’m part retriever. I heard from my retriever fur-iends that you ain’t a retriever if you don’t have at least one foreign object in your stomach.

Anyhowls, out of thin air a brown bottle that said “hydrogen peroxide solution” showed up and before I could say “no sirree”, a tablespoon of said stuff was put in my throat. Yikes, that didn’t taste good. But like any good soldier, I swallowed that too.  M and the trainer were waiting for something, not sure what, but when it didn’t come the vet was consulted and I was spoonfed more of the stuff. I can tell you the second time was less fun and the third time it was just gross. And then all of a sudden I was down on my stomach and throwing up everything. Yes, that meant my breakfast, treats, and prize! M and the trainer were dancing and partying when that happened. And I was thinking “hey I am not having so much fun right here; can you pul-lease stop the racket”.

Once at home all was well; meaning no more liquidity stuff was put in my mouth. Ms. Zulu checked me out and we are now back to my regular meals and treat schedule. I even played some with my stuffed friends. This was after they had barely survived an unannounced security check. They all had to line up and were threatened with scissors or even the dump. This was not the first time either. Everyone that looks raggedy has to surrender in those instances. That’s just wrong. I thought it didn’t matter what my friends looked like but somehow it does. I like them all and care for them. Especially the shabby ones; I nibble passionately on their tattered parts. I don’t even hesitate to do heart surgery on them when needed. Lately, they have been quite healthy so there have not been any recent surgery attempts.

Have a great week, stay out of trouble and I will try to do the same,

Benji

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MP-5

Another Mission Impossible became Possible. I was called up for duty to the emergency center for the second time. As we walked from the car to the entrance an ambulance came up with its siren on. It didn’t distract me as I munched on lots of treats. It’s always nice when they show up at the right time. The need for me must have been high because lots of people were standing right at the door to greet me.  Needless to say, I did a lot of pawshaking. The youngest guy I saw was three years old. I helped him and his dad ease their stay.

When we were done we went to my favorite store. There were numerous interruptions as we walked through the petstore. People kept asking us about my Dogtor status. We were supposed to get one bag of dry food and one bag of treats. We walked out of the store with a big bag of dry food and eight different kinds of treats. I guess I had earned my keep.

My favorite aisle
A job well done

Happy Wednesday,
Benji

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Helping Out

Ms. Zulu and I are helping M out as much as we can in and around the house. The kitchen chores are our favourites but we like gardening too. Especially the digging part but we are completely happy to supervise too. Friday’s shopping spree resulted in garden items so yesterday was a yard day.

The garden supplies are supposed to beautify the garden. Not sure how though. If you ask me it looks like agility equipment. I tested it and it seemed to work well to practice jumping and balancing.

Giant Swallowtail
Flaming Azalea
Us and agility equipment

We hope you got to see our gardening collaboration with Resa for kid’s month too. It was fun to show all the healthy snacks you can dig up in a garden.

After all our hard work, we are ready to take a nap. Naps are always good before, after, during, and in between work.

Sleep tight,

Benji