Year-in-Review (2013 edition)

Being that this blog has only been around for two months, I'm not sure what there is to review and say, other than:

"I got a puppy!!!"

Okay, so we can review what's happened in two months:

-- Artemis has had her 9-week and 12-week puppy shots. One last parvo booster and rabies vaccine at 16 weeks, and she will be a Real Dog. She adores the vet (who even sends us a nice Christmas card) and the entire experience has been a positive one.

-- We've been through four collars to find one she tolerates. If you're interested, I ended up with a beta biothane collar from the The Distance Depot. It's the same material I use for my horse tack, and it has the benefit of being easy to clean and not getting stinky the way leather does.

-- As far as I can tell, she's about doubled in size, going from 5 pounds when I got her to about 10 pounds now. Based on her parents, suspect that she will still probably double in size again.

-- She went on her first overnight camping trip.

-- She's been the first dog to make me bend the "no dogs in bed/on furniture" rule. It has now been amended to allow such behavior on camping trips.

-- She reliably sits on command.

-- She is completely ADD when it comes to toys. Also, the more the better. As much as she loves them, she's surprisingly not that hard on them, and has only semi-killed two toys to date. (Both of which just need some extra stitchery and they'll be good as new.)

-- We're still working on the concept of feet, ankles, and pants legs not being acceptable chew toys.

-- She still tries to eat her little coat, but will wear it semi-peacefully when it's cold enough out.

-- She's really enjoying going out for walks, especially after her Catalina trip, which really boosted her confidence.

We're already planning our next overnight trip in the middle of January. So here's to 2014 being a great year for Good Puppies!

An Adventure

Artemis experienced her first steps towards her ultimate day job: Being my ridecamp dog that will accompany me to endurance rides with the horses. Seeing as the breeder I got her from is also an endurance rider, and the ridecamp environment was how I first encountered these dogs, I figured it should be right up her alley.

I was right.

We did her first overnight camping trip this weekend, and she did wonderful. I loaded up my pony and puppy and drove down to Catalina State Park, about two hours away on the north side of the Catalina Mountains on the north side of Tucson.

Small Puppy goes on An Adventure
(with apologies to Bilbo Baggins and
'The Hobbit')

The most challenging part was getting ready -- she was a bit overwhelmed down at the barn with all of the strange new sights and smells, and lots of loud noises from all around. I eventually put her in her kennel in the shade where she could see me as I finished loading the trailer, and that made it easier for all involved.

She travels in her kennel, and once she was in the truck, all was well and she snoozed most of the way down.

First introduction to the camp site

Being a between-holidays weekend, it was quite crowded at the park. Fortunately, I was joining friends who had been there since the beginning of the week, and had saved me a camping spot as well as a corral for Mimi-the-pony. It was a great setting for socialization -- lots of new people to meet, controlled dogs on leashes to meet, interesting happenings like children on bicycles, and of course, horses.

Friends Lucy and Patrick also brought with them Finn-the-poodle, a year-and-half old standard poodle of infinite playfulness and fun, and Artemis had a new best friend.

Her first challenge was doing her business on leash. She's a rather private dog, and prefers to take care of her after-meal business in the most private corner of the backyard. Considering that: 1) it was park rules, 2) there were coyotes and javelina wandering around near the camp site, and 3) she has no recall, she was on leash the entire time. She whined about it the first couple of times ("Why are you watching me?") but by the end of the trip, it was no big deal.

It got quite cold overnight (by desert rat standards), and although we had a portable propane heater, it ran through one canister partway through the night, and at the time I figured it would be colder to get out of the sleeping bag nest to install a new canister than to just add another sleeping bag. Not sure if i was right or not.

I also broke one of my cardinal rules, which is "no dogs on the bed." I figured with as cold as it was, and as much as she hates the cold, even her little coats and fleece blankets might not be enough to keep her warm. So I let her sleep in my sleeping bag. That was one program she could happily embrace, as she snuggled right up to me and stayed there all night.

Of course, it was a slightly less than restful for me, since I was worried about squishing her during the night or something.

Our typical 5:30 wake-up rolled around, she poked her head out of the sleeping bag, and burrowed right back down in. Okay, no complaints here...we slept for another couple of hours, until the sun was peeking up over the mountains and it was slightly less frigid. She got bundled in her coats and outside we went. She very quickly took care of business, then went scuttling back into the trailer, where she proceeded to whine and stare longingly at the bed of the gooseneck trailer and out sleeping bag nest.

So up she went. I put her back up there (she's very sensible and a bit scared of heights as far as getting down from things, so I wasn't worried about her trying to jump down from the gooseneck area), she snuggled into her nest, and stayed there for another couple of hours while I did pony chores.

it's like a puppy version of 'Where's Waldo'

There's the hidden puppy!

"Look how well I burrow!"

She eventually decided that it was warm enough to come out (and that I was having too much fun without her), so she whined for me to come fetch her. She did learn the concept of steps, using the solid mounting block in and out of the trailer.

Once outside, she hung around with me while we lolled about in the sunshine, and ate breakfast. And we broke another rule: No dogs on the furniture. That rule has now been amended to "No dogs on the furniture except for camping chairs." Who knew why made for perfect puppy hammocks/nests?

"I would like lap time, please."

Once I figured out how comfy she was in the chair after I vacated it, I clipped her leash off to the fence rail, left her kennel open and next to the chair should she wish to go in it, and a full water bowl for her and Finn to share. She stayed up there while we did horsey stuff, then when it was time to go ride, she was put in her kennel and went into the living quarters area of Lucy and Patrick's trailer, along with Finn. She's at the point where she can comfortably stay in her kennel during the day for 3-4 hours if need be, and that's what we kept out riding time to.

 Making sure I'm still within eyesight

Princess Puppy surveying her domain

I packed up camp once we got back from our ride, and we headed back home. It was late evening by this point, and she slept the entire way home. Once home, she was totally revved up and very happy to be back in her comfort zone, as she proceed to do puppy zoomies for about 15 minutes around the backyard while I unpacked the vehicle.

She's now basking in the sunshine in her leaf pile, and I'm plotting our next Adventure -- another horse camping trip next month. I think she's well on her way to becoming a ridecamp dog.

gratuitous scenery shot of me and the pony

Deck(er) the Halls

Seasonal penguin patrol reporting for duty.

Action Puppy

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from Squirrel Patrol land!

Hello, Jaws

Artemis's registered name from her breeder is "Chewy DW."

It fits.

She's 9 weeks (and a couple days) old now and I can't believe how much she's grown. She's so smart, and is quickly grasping the concept of 'sit'. She's also a cheap date in that she regards her normal kibble as a perfectly acceptable treat, which means I get to save $$$ on tons of fancy treats. (Instead, I spend it all on toys for the little toy hoarder.)

One of her favorite toys. It's bouncy, zig-zags
in every which direction, and best of all, is a
years-old leftover from one of the previous family
Bouviers, so probably even still smells a bit
like him. Ambitious little thing loves her
Big Dog toys.

And ironically, one of her favorite toys is a
piece of fleece I knotted on itself a ton of time
to form a big, fleecy knot-ball. 

"Deadman's Swing"
Rope toy suspended from a tree branch. She
latches on to it and can tug and pull to her heart's
content without using us as tug toys. Also known
as "pole-dancing puppy" when she gets her front
legs around it and, well, you get the idea...

Still working on convincing her mommy's boots are not
in fact the best chew toy ever.

Tree bark is also perfectly gnawable.

In-between all that manic puppy running and chewing, I do manage to sneak a few quiet moments with her here and there. Typically, they're at night when she's otherwise tired and ready to wind down. I'm getting an early start on corrupting her young mind and turning her into my tv-watching buddy. (Yeah, because I watch so. much. tv. *eyeroll*) So far, we've been watching "Supernatural" and she's completely unfazed by the noise, will watch the movement for about 10 minutes, and then fall asleep.

View from mommy's lap. Puppy life is good.

Happy One-Week Getting Day!

It's hard to believe Artemis has been here a week. We're getting a routine down, both for mealtimes and during the day, and at night. Nights are a bit sporadic: She gave me one solid night straight through on Saturday night, but other nights it's been once or twice. Last night was just once, around 11:30, then she gave me a solid 6 hours of sleep before my alarm woke both of us up around 5:30.

She's also completely unfazed by things like television noises, falling asleep within a few minutes of me turning on "Supernatural" last night.

"this is my cute face"

apologies for the bad photo, but she is so
hard to get to stay still for two seconds

in her "plant cave"

where's the puppy?

new favorite drinking bowl (birdbath) that
the birds have never managed to find or use
that she found within a few minutes

"Mommy, I don't want to get dressed for school!"

Dressing puppies is hard work.

Artemis still isn't a fan of her collar, and will often pause in mid-zoom to scratch at it, leading to some hilarious "Oops, lost my balance and tumbled" moments. (Serves her right, I say.) I actually switched her from the thin nylon breakaway collar because she scratched at it enough to start fraying the top layer of nylon -- and the double d-rings of the breakaway were just too fiddly when trying to leash a squirmy puppy.

So she's wearing a thin, lightweight leather collar now. I was even kind enough to remove her ID tags (for now) since she's not going anywhere other than house and yard, lest the clinking and jingling further drive her nuts. The good thing: The leather is going to be very soft and distressed by the time she's done scratching it.

This morning, I attempted to put her blanket on. Not made easier by the fact it's really a size too big, but she views it as a giant chew toy to latch onto. I imagine once it's actually on, she'll have a merry time trying to gnaw it off. Although maybe she'll surprise me once she figures out it helps keep her warm.

Oh, puppy. We haven't even hit what passes for "winter" here and you're already shivering in the morning. You are definitely going to have to get "blanket broke" and soon. In the meantime, we'll just stick with the pile of fleece blankets that is slowly taking over the playpen.

I also attempted to get her a harness. Unfortunately, a lot of harness manufacturers don't take into account puppy proportions, and what fits a "little dog" isn't necessarily the right fit for a puppy. I got a nice harness with a broad chest plate, step-in style that wasn't going to be too challenging to get on her...and it didn't fit. Measurements were all correct, but the chest plate and straps were too broad for her still-narrow chest and small shoulder, and she was able to wriggle in just the right way and partially slip out of it.

Said harness got returned to the store today. I'd love to get her a really nice leather harness once she's old enough, basically a downsized version of some of the heavy-duty, high quality ones out there for large dogs. In anticipation of this, I've been online browsing for what's out there. Let me tell you: Not much. It's almost enough to make me take up leatherworking, just so I can get what I want. (Or beta-biothane would work, too. I have the same argument as with the horse tack: I love the easy maintenance and non-smelliness of beta biothane, but nothing replaces the feel of genuine leather.)

8 Weeks

Artemis turned 8 weeks old on Saturday!

She's already grown since her arrival here -- I can't believe it's been less than a week. She immediately fit right in to the family and we're all enjoying her.

She's one smart puppy -- she's figured out where her water is, to go back to her kennel for mealtimes, and she's really grasping the potty-training/house-breaking concept. She's very good about whining when she needs to go out, especially at night -- of course, sometimes she whines not because she has to go out, but because she wants out of "puppy jail" (her ex-pen play pen). So we've had a couple of small incidents, but fortunately most of the floor in the house is tile.

Our biggest challenge right now is she's in a "nippy" phase, where she really wants to attack shoes/pants legs when she gets excited. She gets the puppy zoomies first thing in the morning, right around dusk, and more minor bouts of it after mealtimes. I've got a pair of solid, work boot-style cowboy boots that are seeing a lot of use right now, as they're pretty much imperious to her gnawing and allow me to correct her without the overly-charged pain response of trying to extract needle-sharp puppy teeth from my foot.

Training a young terrier is an interesting proposition...she gets very fixated on something, so you have to provide a good enough distraction to keep her attention, as well as out-last her stubbornness. Best example is when she gets fixated on going after feet. I keep putting her off with one of her toys, using it as both a shield and distraction item, and eventually, she decides going after my feet just isn't worth it. Most of the time. And sometimes she gets in "puppy red zone" and the best thing to do is give her quiet time in her pen until she settles and can get a hold of herself emotionally.

I can't wait until she gets her second series of puppy shots and it will be safe to take her out of the house/yard and start taking her on short walks, and trips down to the barn. We will definitely be signing up for puppy obedience classes, and I got the name of a place locally that is a canine agility school that offers basic puppy obedience classes, as well as a puppy-safe level of introduction to some of the (flat) agility obstacles. (Never mind she's already climbing rocks in the backyard and trying to jump into flowerpots. No one told her the "low-impact exercise" concept.)

Okay, enough jawing...let's get to the good stuff...puppy pictures!

interrupting her beauty sleep for a photo op

getting a preview of what she'll look like when
her ears stand up

she's the funniest sleeper that adopts some of
the strangest sleeping positions

"Mom, why are you working? Play with me!"

most action shots of her look like this -- out of
the frame before the camera can register

Introducing Artemis

Meet Artemis!

She is a Decker Rat Terrier, born 9/21/13. Her parents are Lil' Ranching Hercules x BriarBey's Sofie, and she came from a breeder in Moab, UT.

You've had a bit ofa preview of life, getting ready for puppy...now follow along with our adventures in surviving puppyhood and cultivating a Good Canine Citizen.

Creating (a) Monster

I'm not actually referring to the pup, either, when I say "monster." No, that would actually be myself...a creating monster. I tend towards being a right-brained, artsy-type of person, with hobbies that have, in the past, included scrapbooking, jewelry making, and a (very) tiny little bit of sewing.

So the idea of "DIY dog toys" grabbed my attention, and after a couple of evenings of fleece strips and television time, I had this:

No, she won't get them all at once. How
spoiled do you think she's going to be?
(Answer: Okay, probably very, at least in the
toys and love department.)

Most of them are a simple box plait, a craft I learned way back in my brief stint with Girl Scouts and applied to keychains. Apparently the same thing works really well with fleece strips and dog toys. I turned out toys of various lengths and plait tightness, plus a couple of standard three-strand braids.

I made multiple toys so I can rotate them out on a frequent basis, as well as wash a few at a time and never have her be without at least one. I also have a couple of puppy chewy bones, and some lovely felted wool squishy toys waiting Her Puppyness.

closeup of one of the box plait toys

And finally, I leave you with the overwhelming cuteness of Her Puppyness. These are some of the "selection photos" taken by my friend that enabled this whole transaction. She was on-site to take photos of the pups and then send them to me so I could narrow down the selection based on liking the looks of the pups, and then she would provide more details on personality and such.

Honestly? It was no contest. The first photo of her that I saw was
the one with her paw out -- "Pick me."
And I did.

Choices, Options, Decisions

I'm a research hound. (Ha.)

See, in my "other" life, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool horse girl. In fact, my horse world connections were what even brought Decker Rat Terriers to my attention, and it was one of those connections that even enabled this whole transaction and imminent arrival of Her Puppyness. 

So I'm very used to researching choices and options when it comes to things like saddles, tack, food, and pretty much everything under the sun that is equine-related.

And the same thing applies to dogs.

What food will I feed? What's an over-hyped trend versus what is backed by established, long-term, proven facts? What's over-marketed, pretty packaging consisting of nothing but bad fillers and cheesy TV commercials versus real ingredients that dogs were actually made to process?

I've still not ultimately come to a decision on food...fortunately, it will essentially come down to narrowing my options to a couple of choices, then high-tailing it ten minutes away to the nearest Pet Club.

Right now, I'm looking at far more important things: ID tags. A girl has to be properly accessorized, no? And let me tell you, Etsy is a fantastic resource for creative, handmade dog tags that are so far removed from the old school circular ID tags.

Although, I have to admit, I've been unable to narrow my choices down to just one tag, so my girlie will probably have a rotating "wardrobe" of ID tags. (TV-and-movie-loving fangirl meets doggie fashion. So far, I've found tags that are themed or relate to a number of things I like to watch and/or read. This is gonna be fun.)

So far, I've just got one tag on order that's designed as a puppy/cat tag, as most of the ones I like are a little big for a small puppy at this stage. But I'm sure she'll grow into them fast enough...

Preparing for Puppy

I've grown up with dogs since I was two years old. But this is my first dog. As in, the first one I've picked out, paid for, and will be responsible for turning into a respectable canine citizen.

What have I gotten myself into?

It'll be another week or so until I have her, but I'm slowly getting things set up. All of the dogs we've had have been big dogs -- Bouviers, all weighing it at 70+ pounds -- so to switch gears to get ready for a smaller dog has been, well, a switch. (But some of her stuff is so cute.)

She's also a short hair -- score on the "needing less grooming tools" department. But enter blanket department. (Which, to be honest, are a lot cuter and way more fun to buy than grooming tools.) While I'm not really one who gets the overly cutesy dressing up of one's dog, I do appreciate the little dog blankets that look like miniature horse blankets. Those just look downright snazzy.

Puppy-proofing has commenced, including switching the more precious of my DVD collection to a more inaccessible shelf. The ones on the lower shelves, I won't be quite as distressed if those cases end up with a couple of gnaw marks along the way.

I kind of feel like an anxious mother, just wondering when the kid is going to figure out how to jam a fork in the electrical outlet...

Coming Soon...