Long time no see

Goodness, was my last post really about Leo’s emergency surgery last September? So much has happened since then….

First of all, an update on Simon. He turned a year old in February, and was 25″ tall and 45 pounds the last time I looked. He will continue filling out as he matures, and I expect him to be in the 55 pound range eventually. His color is really starting to clear, with lighter hair running up the back of his legs and scattered throughout his coat. He’s earned a few more titles, including his AKC Novice Trick Dog and his All Dogs Parkour Level 1. That’s the good news.

In the not so good news category, well, he just hasn’t been the same since I had to board him. He was in a fear/stranger danger period when it happened, and ever since then, he has been extremely suspicious of, and reactive to, people and other dogs when we are out an about. Add in his extreme urge to chase anything that moves (bicycles, city busses, blowing leaves, what have you), and it’s been a pretty wild ride at times. We are working on it, but it’s going to be a long process. Other than that, he is a joy to work with, and is such a happy, eager training partner.

Leo continues to do well. In fact, you’d never even know she had been in such bad shape only six months ago. She’s been retired from pretty much everything other than “lay around the house and bark at the mail carrier” and playing with Simon, although we are still dabbling a bit here and there with some parkour.

Lily is one of the few people around here who wishes Simon would just “poof” and vanish. She’s never been too thrilled about the concept of having a bouncy, pouncy puppy brother, especially since he’s now an obnoxious, hormone fueled, teenaged boy brain pest. The are either separated or strictly supervised when they are together. Her preference is separated. She is also retired most things, and shares “mail alert” duties with Leo.

As much as boarding the dogs played havoc with Simon, it was good that we went to visit when we did, since Dad died in November. Even though it was expected, it was still a bit of a shock, since he had been doing better in the weeks beforehand. Joe and Marilyn went out to California for a memorial service in December, and there will be a big family get together memorial party in Colorado this coming summer

Okay, now for the fun stuff, namely pictures and videos!

These are from the latest batch of pictures, taken last month. Simon is in a clip called the Royal Dutch.

These is Simon’s TKN submission.

This is his ADP-L1 submission.

In other pet news, all four cats, fifteen year old See-See, twelve year old Bigfoot and T-Max, and one year old Lana, are all still with us, but we lost Paigliocco, our thirty year old Senegal Parrot, suddenly and unexpectedly last week. We are still in shock.

Miscelanny

Random thoughts on random things….

First of all, Siamese kittens can be very annoying….

That was my brand new Christmas tree. It now looks rattier than the 20+ year old tree it replaced. Lana is lucky that she’s cute and adorable.

Second thought, old cars are pretty cool.

And yes, that’s a wooden oil derrick reflected in the hubcap. I was at a car show held at the Spindletop – Gladys City Boomtown Museum.

Third thought, trains can be interesting.

Fourth thought, I’m glad I finally got around to taking pictures of an old record shop, because the sign has since either fallen or been taken down.

Fifth thought… Leo turned nine in January, and Lily will be seven in April. Where did the time go?

Which brings me to my sixth thought, which is…. PUPPY! I’ve decided that it’s time to get a puppy, so I’ve found a Multi-Colored Standard Poodle breeder, and have put down a deposit for a puppy. With any luck, my little boy will be coming home in late April or early May. She has two litters due this month, and I’ve got my fingers crossed for a silver phantom.