pondering a pup

estela I might have to start a special neko thread just for you bbc I've been posting so many updates and pics but mookz and tza have seen them already!

she took a big dump inside the workshop today and found a dead mouse in a trap

I love these updates!

The first time i took basil for a work visit she puked on the doormat :)

i want a dog

our office manager fosters dogs and there were a couple she brought in i wanted to take home but i decided not to. they were puggle/german shepherd mix. normally i would not be interested in anything with any pug in it but they were only pug colored with curly tails. they had normal noses and more german shepherd-like proportions. they're going to be big dogs, not useless tiny dogs. they slept under my desk at work and farted a lot.

omg pugs are the WORST farters!!

you should definitely get a dog, harbl!

i want a dog

can't believe you are dissing your kitty like this

unless the dog is harry

Harry, Basil, and Neko are all such excellent dogs. I spent my free moments at work yesterday looking longingly at beautiful dogs on petfinder, plotting our post-cat existence.

oh no post-cat? i'm sorry

Well, we're not post-cat yet. But I do think about the cat-free future more than I probably should.

Soon we will have enough of a pack for a dogs of sandbox calendar

i love my cat so much. i really can't get a dog though. i'm already late for work all the time due to commute. my cat poops in a box.

can i just say that having a dog is hard hard hard work

i went into this knowing that huskies in particular are hard work (so fucking stubborn! also crazy!) but we got one of the "chill" ones and she is STILL fucking hard work!!!! i spend all day at work either praising her for doing the right thing or "UH-UH!!"-ing her for being naughty. she eats anything on the ground (except not actual things like books or shoes, just anything that is rubbish, like bits of paper, scraps of fabric, other animals' shit) and i live in a constant state that she is going to be sick or choke.

but i love her to bits and she is the cutest <3

Training class!!! Especially since she's not a puppy, sooner is better (yes i know it's only been a few days). Also you could try using a high value treat to redirect her - if she's going for shit or fabric get her attention with something really tasty instead. Leave it and drop it are commands you can teach really easily yourself, too (and you will impress the class!).

I need to refresh basil's drop it. She is terrible at it.

mmm high value traets

pupdate por favor

― t. silaviver, Saturday, January 12, 2013 12:39 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i hope every sandboxer and his or her dog is doing well.

amend to 'and his or her cat/s' where appropriate.

my cat is so rambunctious

basil had an amazing breakthrough this morning! the little dog upstairs that barks at every other dog encountered us while b was playing with bear, three most zen dog in the neighborhood. Apparently milo likes bear a lot, and somehow his presence made B and Milo get along! I hope this continues even when bear isn't there!!!

for estela:

http://youtu.be/gNWl4aNDxdI

(neko going crazy with her new toy)

Awww.

Basil just fell off the couch cause she got too comfy rolling on her back!

ha, neko has done that a bunch of times!! our couch is a t-shape, because we have the ottoman part in the middle, and when she lies on it, she gets to close to the edge, then tries to roll on her back and falls right off. i shouldn't laugh but it's sooooo funny. she is generally quite klutzy, it's adorable.

i do worry though, bc of her previous broken back injury.

Aww, poor girl!

Basil once flipped herself into the air and then onto the ground because she tried to chase a squirrel up a tree while on leash! After i was sure she was ok i laughed hysterically.she wasn't phased at all but she hasn't done it again.

thank you justin3, I love her!

More pics!

I have to get out the decent camera this weekend -I keep taking cell ph pics and they're terrible!

First obedience class tonight!

She peed at my work again today, but in a new spot which us :/ BUT she's green really well behaved otherwise.

Does Basil like bully sticks? Neko LOVES them, they keep her 100% occupied, but she devours them within an hour and the vet said they're too hard for her teeth :(

I have never given her one because I'm nervous about her eating it too fast! I don't give her rawhide either because i am paranoid. My neighbor's dog got pretty sick from it. Try Nylabones! Very safe. I once bought some beef marrow bones at the grocery store cause i read they are ok and they were cheap. Lots of people say to give raw but i read if they're not used to it you can boil a little to kill off bacteria without them becoming too hard (hard bones splinter) but after a few minutes and a few chips i got too nervous. I am a worry wart! :(

we got nylabones but apparently they're too hard for her? i can't remember, jordan did some research after we bought them and it turned out they were no good for her. she has missing teeth :(

we also got naturally-shed antlers which she LOVED but those are too hard for her as well, totally sucks. apparently we are only supposed to give her rubber toys. she likes the kong bionic stuffed with frozen peanutbutter.

Orbee makes a cool recycled rubbery bone that basil likes to chew on. Also for edible things you could try zukes. They are pricey but made of veggies and fruits rather than weird meat products. Basil likes the apple ones. She eats them fast so sometimes I'll jam one in a Kong so she has to get it out.

also my coworker with the puppy was telling me about how her dog needs a lot of training for leash walking (duh) but she doesn't want to take the time to work on it during morning walks because it's early and she's tired and doesn't want to have to get up earlier. So they are having a trainer come to work with her because she's still too young for classes. Ughhhh trainer stuff wont work unless you practice it. Also get a book and learn how to own a dog and don't get a puppy if you don't want to take the time to raise it. Ugh.

i was wrong about the nylabones, jordan says it just that neko doesn't like them all that much and loses interest really quickly.

but idk the vet isn't the be-all end-all of dog knowledge and gail at n0rsled was v pro antlers/bully sticks so i think we'll keep them around. but the bully sticks are like 10 bucks each and last less than 90mins!!!!

oh and there is dog daycare near us that is more affordable than i realized so once she has gone through classes we'll look into doing that at least one day a week - it'll be good for her (and v good for us)

I think if Gail gave her antlers/bully sticks without issue then she should be fine! I have lusted after antlers but they are $$$$! On that note: amazon prime is your friend for all things doggie!

Basil doesn't go to daycare anymore since she's developed fear of unfamiliar dogs....and I half wonder if something traumatized her at daycare but it's hard to say and was probably a mix of several things. Make sure they have a good staff to dog ratio. Ok I am going to stop telling you how to own a dog now :(

lol we buy 90% of everything on amazon prime already! it's just too easy. i think the antlers last a really long time even tho they are $$$$ - way way longer than bully sticks or himalayan chews.

her first obedience class went well, but we know now to bring a bunch of different treats bc even tho she is highly food motivated, she got bored really quickly with the same thing and got distracted. there are only two other dogs in our class which is good.

all the money we've spent on toys (many of which she destroyed in minutes)... the trainer suggested i make a thing out of fabric scraps, since moving parts will satisfy her prey drive. where do i work but a place where i constantly have bags of fabric scraps i'm always trying to get rid of. so i made her this shit-ass toy and she fuckin LOVES this stupid thing, she went crazy flinging it round.

p.s. i like advice from you, tza!!!

that's awesome :) i buy the cheapest plush toys at tj maxx etc because she can kill them pretty quickly but her trainer said it's really satisfying for her to be able to tear them apart. Amazon is awesome for having 30lb bags of food delivered to your door </lazy>

B's group class was at like 7 or 8 and she'd get bored without a lot of treat variety. Sometimes she'd just lie down and give up which was hilarious but frustrating. That may have also been a response to being in a more stressful environment.

ha yes the two other dogs were jumping round non stop, neko kept just lying down. it didn't help that every time she tried to sit, you could see her butt sliding gradually out from underneath her bc the floor was too slippery for her furry bum.

haha<3

harry was a complete dunce at obedience school, he'd be fine practising at home but when he was there he was so excited about being with all the other dogs he'd only cavort around and then line up enthusiastically for treats he hadn't earned, it was disgraceful. he has always gotten on very well with other dogs though (apart from this mean snappy little pomeranian across the street who is his arch enemy) so it did help and he also became obedient in the end.

awww, he is such a love!

basil had another good interaction with milo (her former nemesis from upstairs) today! but then we found out her friend willie the pug fell off the bed and broke his leg! poor wille :( :(

i got her an antler tonight and she lovves it.

she always steals my seat when i work from home but i love her anyway.
http://https%3A//scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/1376580_10151724856786589_694230058_n.jpg

basil slides on the parquet floor here - it's funny because she'll sit, but then her front paws will start sliding and then she's in 'down' without even trying to be good :)

boo where is my picture?!

http://https%3A//scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/1376580_10151724856786589_694230058_n.jpg

Ughhh

http://i39.tinypic.com/2ls8mx3.jpg

oh man basil

i love how endlessly disgraceful harry is

J did you give neko split or whole antler? The one i got for b was split and she made a huge dent in it in no time!

what do you mean by split? like split lengthwise? her one is whole but short, about 6 inches

Cut in half, like this
http://hungryhound.com/wp-content/uploads/antlers-splitwhole-300x199.jpg

Actually if there is worry about hardness, you could try a split one with neko. But obv it won't last as long.