Life With The Boys

Yesterday was a great day. It was kind of interesting getting used to having two very large dogs, but we had fun. Hobbs and Patriot are getting more used to each other, and no longer feel the need to wrestle all the time. They are still having some trouble sharing toys, but we are working on it.

The Boys

We went for an hour long walk in the morning with both dogs. I say we because Robert had the day off work and came with me. It was great to be out as a family! Patriot did great even though he was really tired by the end of it. Needless to say he is a bit out of shape. We even shortened the walk a bit.

and as you can see Patriot is tired Hobbs is still raring to go afterwards.

There was a reason for the short walk, we had puppy meeting that night, so I didn't mind much. After about three hours back at the house, I decided that it would be better to take Patriot to the dog park for the first time when he was tired than if he had way too much energy. So we went to the park for about 45 minutes and Patriot did fabulously. I didn't take any pictures (sorry) but there will eventually be some. My only complaint was that he is a little rough with the smaller dogs. He was overjoyed when another lab showed up though. It was cute.

Hobbs got to stay home with dad and have some one on one time. I want to give them each some of that to stave off the jealousy. Also I wanted him to have some energy for puppy meeting that evening....I know I am weird to WANT extra energy for the meeting.

Sorry about the crazy eyes

Both dogs got their nails clipped, ears cleaned, and teeth brushed, and they loved the attention. Patriot has the tiniest hint of an ear infection, so we will be medicating that ASAP. Hobbs was not satisfied with his tooth brushing and wanted to help Patriot with his....so he went on tie-down.

While they were both relaxed and kind of tired, I decided to introduce the kittens (three of which we have to keep for another month!!!) to Patriot. I played it safe and left Momma Kitty (who is taking suggestions for a real name) in her room.

Here is a picture of her coloring to help the name suggestions

Because they have been almost tormenting Hobbs I figured they would be more than happy to have another victim in the household. How wrong I was! They were soooo afraid of him! I have scratches all over one hand from the kitten I was holding.

It makes me look like I tried to kill myself!!

After a while two of them got used to him, but the other two want nothing to do with him. I am pretty sure it is his size because even momma kitty, kinda hissed at him at one point (after the kittens were put away)telling him to back off.

That night Robert Hobbs and I left Patriot at home, and went to our puppy meeting. The whole meeting was tailored to Hobbs' issues with dogs, so we went on a neighborhood walk. A few people brought their pet dogs and a couple of them were non GDB breeds, so Hobbs could be around them. He was wonderful! Even on the walk when a couple dogs barked he was interested but didn't show any of the extreme fear that he has. That being said we really didn't get into a situation where that fear really becomes apparent. I am happy though with the way it went. We decided not to bring Patriot because he does have some dog issues (fear as well as super distractability) and this was supposed to be a mentor walk.

The new people in our club (Robert's ex-girlfriend and his husband) are getting a puppy on the April 11th puppy truck! I am super excited to see who they get, and how they react to it. I always think the first puppy is kind of a baptism-by-fire kind of experience and it is interesting to see how different people take it. After they get their puppy we will be meeting at people's houses until it is old enough to go out. I can't wait to have one at our house! Well I can....and have to wait until the kittens are gone for my and Momma Kitty's sanity.

No that is NOT an exaggeration of how big Patriot's paws are!

Well that is about all for today! Quite the update for just one day though.

Weekend Away

Hobbs spent the weekend at Sherman's house and from what I have heard and read he had a wonderful time. Saturday was my husband and my 1 year anniversary so we had him puppysat so he wouldn't be neglected during our weekend. We had a wonderful time at the same hotel as our wedding night. We went to a movie and dinner friday night then spent saturday at the zoo (another reason we had him puppysat) and went to an amazing Italian restaurant. I had escargot for the second time and loved it!

Hobbs was very happy to be home on sunday and immediatly ran around grabing each of his toys and playing with them for a second before going on to get another one. Now he is sleeping soundly as he has been all day! Hopefully he wakes up in time for tonights puppy meeting! He seems to be recovered from his attack and now only jumps if the cat runs towards him.

I think the cat is going into season because she is walking around the house calling and she almost attacked me on Thursday. I was sitting there doing nothing with the kittens and one of them got it's claw caught in one of the little holes in the waste basket and started screeming its head off. Momma Kitty came flying over at me and poor Hobbs went from lying on the floor in a dead sleep to on the couch and trying to climb on top of me in about a second! Luckly neather of us got attacked, but she is banned to her room for a while.

Cat Attack

Hobbs was just attacked by our momma cat! He is ok physically, no scratches or punctures (amazingly), but is rather traumatized by theincident. Our cat is usually very good with him and even cuddles up with him to sleep. She has never even hissed at him, even with her kittens around him all the time.

I think what happened (it was very fast) was that he accidently stepped on one of the baby kitten's legs/toes and then went to sniff it when it yowled. That is when momma kitty attacked him. It was full on attack too, with her hanging onto his neck/shoulder and poor Hobbs screaming his head off. She let go and would have gone after him again had I not grabbed her and tossed her in her room. I tried to stay calm and not coddle him even though it scared me to death. Needless to say Hobbs is terrified of her now....all he wants to do is hide in his kennel.

Hobbs and the babies

I just thought I would answer this question as a post rather than in the comments. "What is Hobbs' reaction to the Kittens?"

Hobbs has been wonderful! He was very concerned about momma kitty while she was having her kittens, but gradually relaxed and left her alone. Now the kittens are just starting to try to walk around their box. Hobbs will check in on them, by sticking his head inside the box until momma kitty comes after him. She isn't ever violent, but lets him know he is not to touch them. We have been getting the kittens out every few days to get them used to us and all the sounds in our apartment. Hobbs is then alowed to lay on the floor and sniff them. I am hoping that once they are more active his calm/carefull behavior continues. Here are a couple pictures of him and the babies

He looks pretty relaxed here.....

Then momma came over and he bolted.....plus I think they were tickling his belly

Momma Kitty

Here is just a quick note....that has nothing to do with Hobbs or Guide dogs....but I mentioned her before and decided to update a little.

So our Momma Kitty (the name kinda stuck) is most likely pregnant!! She went into heat on monday or tuesday and escaped out the front door and just returned today and is not in heat anymore. I looked it up and if she did get pregnant we will be expecting kittens around new years day! So anyone who lives in Utah or knows someone in Utah let me know if you want a kitten. Here are some pictures of momma Kitty:

Home at last

Robert, Hobbs, and I have been at a family cabin in AZ this past weekend and had a wonderful time! Hobbs was such a good boy, and is constantly proving just how amazing of a puppy he is. We went on a 2-3 hour hike which ended in us getting rained on (like raining so hard you cant see) and running back home! Hobbs loved the hike until it started raining hard and then he got really cold and wanted to go home faster than either of us could run so he was a little misserable. I have a million pictures to post but am too tired to do it tonight so maybe tomorrow morning.

I had the dreaded moment when you realize just how hard it will be to give this puppy back when the time comes. He is the first of my puppies that I really don't want to graduate because I want him back so badly! But honestly unless he has some medical issue I don't see why he wont be a breeder let alone a guide! I had a small cry session on saturday when I realised just how attached I am becoming and he is just barely 6 months old!

Look for some pictures tomorrow! Oh and our momma kitty escaped out the window somehow (the second story none the less) while we were gone and we can't find her so cross your fingers that she comes back unharmed.....if at all.

Not a momma cat :(

So I just got back from the vet and the cat we took in isn't pregnant after all. The vet said she either had kittens and they didn't survive or she abandoned them, or she had a false pregnancy. Sad because I was really looking forward to kittens.....but there still is a very small chance she is pregnant because they go back into heat like 3-7 days after they give birth! So we have our fingers crossed!

AAAGGHHHH!!! We are becoming "pet collectors"

Robert and I live above a couple who feel the need to feed all the stray cats in the city. J/K, at first there was just a momma cat with three babies (who are now big cats) then there was another momma cat (who attacks the dogs when they look at her or her three new babies), then a couple of daddy cats drop in once in a while so both momma cats are pregnant again (which makes a total of ten cats around the bottom of the stairs our dogs walk up to our house! Finally this tabby momma cat who had obviously been someone's pet started coming around and was starving to death....and is very pregnant. Soooooo.....

Robert and I adopted her!! We got all the stuff for her and plan to get her spayed as soon after she gives birth as possible and then we will keep her and give her babies away to people who are going to care for them! We don't have a name for her yet so her name is Momma Kitty for now. She already has milk coming in so the vet says she could be anywhere from one to two weeks from having her kittens! Here are some pictures:

I really like this picture! It is very rare that I like how I look in pictures.

And this is why! She was a bit upset because hobbs kept trying to nibble and lick her toes.

Hobbs is doing ok with her in the house. He has seen enough cats to be ok with them, but he wanted to play with her...as in pounce on her and race around in circles around her. She has obviously lived with dogs before and only hisses if hobbs tries to pounce on her. I don't blame her she is pregnant! She keeps trying to steal his new bed and that worries him quite a bit, but we kick her off every time. Dodge on the other hand is not a happy camper! He tried to run through the side of his kennel to get to her the first time he saw her. We are going to take it realy slow with them.

Here is an update of pictures for everyone so this post might be really long! Lol!

Hobbs and the bear he "picked out" for me. Really it was a gift from my husband.

Hobbs discovered the joy of destroying the bathroom trash and tore all the paper off the roll (not un raveling it he tore big chunks off!) he knew he was in huge trouble though and hasn't tried it since!

Ok, this one has a story behind it.

Hobbs' medium Kong got left at another raisers house quite a while ago and we bought him a large one at Fun Day. When we got back the medium one was returned and Hobbs was thrilled! He proceded to run from room to room and brought all of his kongs togeather and laid down and played with all of them! Robert and I couldn't stop laughing!

Hobbs' new bed

With the blanket on it....and Hobbs!

Lol, we covered him in his blanket and he slept like that for a couple hours!

Here is my Patriot! From when I went to Utah


The boys waiting for our walk....yes I walk them both together, one on each side

....not all the time though.

And finally Hobbs just looking cute!