Diesel the Dog: I am what I am

The other day at the park there was a dog doing all sorts of tricks; she was rolling over, turning, jumping on command, and even waiting a long time after a ball was thrown to chase it. What a show off. I could do that if I wanted to. But, I don’t. I am not a circus dog.

When I was a puppy, Crazy Blonde decided to teach me all sorts of things. First she taught me to sit, stay and lie down. Easy. Then Crazy Blonde got it into her head to teach me tricks. I heard her tell a friend she is like a dog whisperer because she was able to get my good buddy Bogart to do all sorts of funny things. She was determined to get me to do them too.

Crazy Blonde took a big bag of my favorite treats and started to teach me how to shake and give a high five. It was fun to learn and apparently it is really endearing because every time I do it people make cooing noises.

After a while, though, I got really bored. I really don’t want to learn how to roll over, or speak, or crawl. I especially hate it when Crazy Blonde puts a treat on my snout and expects me to wait until she gives the command for me to eat it. Really? You know you are going to eventually give me the treat, so why wait?

I overheard Crazy Blonde lamenting that she can’t teach me tricks. But, I can do lots of other cool things. I can jump really high and catch a Frisbee. I am an excellent running companion and go really far without getting tired. I can out maneuver all of the other dogs. And, I am super cute.

Also, I am very smart. I understand lots of words and phrases. If Crazy Blonde or Deep Voice asks if I want to go the park, I jump up and down because I know they are taking me to my favorite place. When I am napping on my bed and someone says, “do you need to go to the bathroom”, I hop right up and walk to the back door. I understand what it means when I am asked if I want a treat – duh, of course I do. I know the difference between my running leash and my walking leash. I can eat an apple off the core like an ear of corn. When I run with Crazy Blonde, I always look over my shoulder for cars before we cross the road. I know I shouldn’t bark so much, but I do it anyway.

So, Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice:  I know what I am good at and I am going to stick to it. If you want a circus dog, go get a Golden Retriever.

Diesel the Dog: Snowshoeing

I love winter! Crazy Blonde doesn’t like the snow and the cold, but I do. It is so much fun to jump around in it and eat it and make it yellow.

They say not to eat the yellow snow, but I think it tastes just fine.

Imagine my incredible surprise when I woke up the other morning and I went outside to do my business and the white fluffy stuff was up to my stomach. Yippee!

My good buddy Bogart was over for the weekend, so we had lots of fun playing around. One afternoon, Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice packed up the car with these weird looking objects called snow shoes and drove us up to the mountains. I hate being in the car, it makes me feel funny. But, this time, I managed not to puke. Deep Voice drove the whole way with the window open so I could put my head outside. It was really cold, but it made me feel better.

Finally, we got to a place called Brainard Lake. My friend Riley was there so I knew it would be a fun time.

It took a while to decide which trail to go on.

What are we waiting for? We're ready to go!

The group decided to hike up to Left Hand Reservoir. They had to find a trail that allowed dogs and snowshoeing.

Look at all of this snow. It is so much fun to go underneath it.

Even the trees were covered with it! I wonder if they are cold?

We hiked up this big hill for a long time. There were lots of people sliding down on these narrow sticks. Some of them went really fast and almost took me out and some of them were wobbly and fell.

Crazy Blonde looks really happy here. This is before she got really cold and bitchy.

Deep Voice with us doggies

Poor Bogart got lots of snow stuck on his face and in his paws. He had to stop a lot to bite the snowballs off of his feet. Deep Voice even stopped a couple of times to help out.

See all the snow on his face? Well, it melted in the car on the way home and he smelled terrible.

When we got to the top, Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice oohed and ahhed over the view.

I was so happy I gave Crazy Blonde a big kiss. I think she was a little grossed out.

The snow in background is a big lake in the summer.

 What a super fun day! I was so tired when I got home, I took a big nap.

Bogart made the best pillow.

Diesel the Dog: Aspen weekend

Ever since I was little, car drives on windy roads make my stomach feel weird. Sometimes I start to feel so bad all of my food comes back up. You would think that Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice would stop taking me on their mountain adventures, but, no. They pack up the car, throw my bed in the back seat and make me go with them. 

This time they gave me a pill in a glop of peanut butter, but it did not help. We went over this really big mountain on this really curvy road. I was feeling terrible. Finally, we got out of the car and I thought we were done. They marveled at the view, took a picture, and made me get back in the car. 

Whoever took this picture is a crappy photographer.

We still had a long way to go. Deep Voice would open the window for me every few minutes and I would stick my nose out and take big breaths of air. I thought I was ok, but suddenly this mushy stuff came out of my mouth. It was yucky and stinky; I didn't even try to eat it. Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice stopped the car and cleaned it all up. I felt much better. That’ll teach them to take me on those types of roads.

Finally, we got to this place called Aspen where Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice had dinner and I napped in the car. It was dark so I could not really see too much. Then, we went to the place where we were staying, Aspen Boy’s house in a town called Snowmass Village. 

I was so happy when Muffin Top showed up with my good friend Riley. Riley and I like to wrestle. I like to bite Riley’s ears and Riley likes to bite my neck. It is so much fun. Usually we only get to play for a few hours, but this time we had two whole days. 

Riley and I like to play. We make a mess.

The next morning, Muffin Top and Crazy Blonde went for a run. I got to run just a little bit.

I'm kicking Crazy Blonde's ass

Deep Voice and Aspen Boy took me and Riley for a hike. There were lots of really big animals with people on their back. The big animals left hot biscuits on the trail which Riley really enjoyed. I tried one, but it was not my favorite flavor.

This is the trail that had the hot biscuits.

In the afternoon we went to a farmer’s market in Aspen. There were so many dogs there, I had lots of sniffing and hello’s to do. The dogs were big and little and fat and thin. I saw one dog with a very silly haircut; Crazy Blonde said it was a poodle. I don’t think that prissy dog can chase a ball!

We got back in the car and drove for a while until we got to this place with tall mountains and a big lake. I heard Crazy Blonde call it Maroon Bells. Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice were very impressed with the scenery. I really didn’t care as long as I could run around. I tried to get into the lake, but it was way too cold. 

I never knew water could be so cold!

We hiked on a trail. I was very excited by all the new smells. I got to bark at a few people, but I think I scared them because they kind of cowered. 

Check me out! I am the King of the Mountain.

 Everyone went for a run the next day, so Riley and I had lots of time to play. We also got to chase a ball up a very steep mountain that had these funny looking chairs hanging from the sky. 

I love being outside.

We went on one more hike and then I got another glop of peanut butter with the funny white thing in it: uh oh, back in the car. This time we didn’t go on the windy mountain road though. We went another way so I could see Uncle Don. What a pleasant surprise!

Wow. I had such a fun weekend. I guess driving in the car really isn’t that bad.

Diesel the Dog: The Athlete

Will someone please play with me?

It has been one year since Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice brought me home from the place I was kept with my two brothers after we were found on the street in Oklahoma. I’m so happy they picked me. I have the best life! I eat, sleep, poop, fetch, swim, run, play with my doggie friends and sleep some more. I am really lucky, because I have A LOT of energy and Crazy Blonde and Deep Voice make sure I get plenty of exercise.

We started with playing Frisbee. I am really good at it. I run really fast after the Frisbee and then jump high in the air and grab it with my mouth. Sometimes I like to show off and do some tricks while I am in the air. Everyone ooh’s and ahh’s and I get yummy treats. You know what I really hate though? When Crazy Blonde pretends to the throw the Frisbee and I go running after it and look around and it is still in her hand. I feel so foolish and everyone laughs. Stop doing that, I do not find it amusing.

I'm a jumper!

When I got old enough, Crazy Blonde started taking me for runs. She attached my leash around her waist and off we went. At first we only ran a little bit. It felt like we just went around the block. Then I got to run longer. It is the best. We go to really cool trails with lots of things to smell and see. The other day I saw this big animal that Crazy Blonde called a deer. I really wanted to chase after it, but Crazy Blonde wouldn’t let me. I can just run and run forever, with my ears flopping in the wind and my tongue hanging out of my mouth. I get to run several days a week with Crazy Blonde. Sometimes Deep Voice takes me out for a run. He is much slower, so those are my recovery days.

For a long time I would not chase a ball. But then, it was really windy every day for a long time and my Frisbee wouldn’t fly in the air very well.  One windy day, Deep Voice threw me a ball and I went after it. I had no choice; I needed to run after something. Oh my goodness, it was much more fun than I thought it would be! Deep Voice got this funny looking object to throw the ball and it goes really far, almost across the park. Then Deep Voice got this bright orange ball that bounces really high. I can jump in the air like I do with my Frisbee, or I can chase after it at full speed.

Why do you tease me so? Just throw it already.

Now that it is summer, we go to the lake a lot so I can swim. It is not my favorite thing to do, but it is really refreshing and I don’t get so hot like I do when I play at the park. At first I was timid and would not go out very far. We have gone a lot, though, and I have been able to practice. I can go all the way to the middle of the lake! Of course, I only go in the water when somebody throws my favorite ball and I have to get it. I really don’t see the purpose of just going in for no reason.

I totally beat that other guy to shore

I like to nap after I workout. It is really good for my recovery.

Crazy Blonde keeps joking that if I could ride a bike I would be a really good triathlete. That seems silly though. How would I get a helmet to fit my head? And, those bike shorts look ridiculous, and where would I put my tail?

Sick as a dog

This blog details the past few days in the life of Diesel the dog, as told to me by Diesel.

Here I am lying on my bed feeling sick

Saturday was the best day ever. I hiked in the morning on my favorite trail with Deep Voice. Then, in the afternoon, Deep Voice and Crazy Blonde took me to swim at the lake with my buddy Bogart. We had so much fun! I used to be scared of the water, but apparently Crazy Blonde is some kind of swimmer and she was insistent that I become a water dog. So, now I love it.

After swimming we went to see some friends of Deep Voice and Crazy Blonde. They have a huge backyard and I got to run after a ball. I love to fetch. We finally went home and I got to eat dinner. I have a habit of eating really quickly, and today I scarfed my food down. I was hungry after running around so much.

We went to Bogart’s house for some kind of food ritual in which the food was cooked outside but everyone ate inside. Suddenly, out of nowhere, all of my food from dinner reappeared on the carpet. It was a magical moment. I created more food. Of course, I started to eat it, until Deep Voice shooed me away and put it all into a bag to throw away. What a waste of a perfectly yummy second dinner.

By the time I went to sleep, I wasn’t feeling that great. In the middle of the night, I woke up and more food came out. It made me feel much better.

On Sunday, I felt just fine and got to chase my ball and play some Frisbee. I was given some strange concoction of food that was soft and white and chewy. I ate it with gusto, as I do everything, but it was not as tasty as my normal stuff.

I went to sleep feeling fine. Imagine my surprise when I woke up and more food came out. Now Deep Voice and Crazy Blonde seemed very concerned. They were talking in very serious voices.

This is where I get to play sometimes. I also go here when I am sick.

The next morning, Crazy Blonde didn’t give me any breakfast. I was so mad until she took me to the place where I go to doggie day care. I got so excited to see the nice ladies who work behind the desk. This time, though, they didn’t take me back to play with the other dogs.

I had to go to the small room and sit on the cold floor while Crazy Blonde talked to somebody for a while. Then, my privacy was rudely invaded so they could get my temperature. I had to stay at the place all day while they poked and prodded me.

They gave me some medicine and I felt better and then I got really hungry. Finally, someone gave me some food. It wasn’t very much, though. The vet said I am high strung. Well, duh. I haven’t had good meal or exercise in a while. That’s enough to make anyone antsy, especially Crazy Blonde.

 Deep Voice came to get me. I was so happy to see him; I jumped up and down and looked my cutest. I was hoping he would give me a treat, but he didn’t.

When we got home, Crazy Blonde was making dinner. Wow, it smelled good. I followed her around the kitchen giving her my best sad eyes. Usually, she sneaks me a little bit of whatever she is making, but not tonight. Boy, was I annoyed. I sniffed the floor for scraps, but there was nothing.

Today has been a very frustrating day. I am hungry, but all I get is a few spoonfuls of mushy food every few hours, and nobody will take me to play fetch. I keep giving Crazy Blonde the googly eyes, but she just laughs and pats me on the head. At least she took me for walk.

This is my favorite food.

This is the yucky mush the vet makes me eat when my tummy hurts

Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.

My advice to all of you doggies out there: if you think you might throw up, hold it down if you can.

And for all of you dog owners: get pet insurance, it helps!

Who's Your Daddy?

We adopted Diesel from the Humane Society in June. He was listed as a retriever/mix. On our first visit to the vet, she declared him a Labrador retriever/Border Collie mix, but he would be small, as she predicted he would grow to about 40 pounds (he currently weighs in at 37.5 pounds).

Ahh, that puppy smell...

Growing up we had a hamster whose name escapes me, a parakeet named Petey and a cockatiel named Raquette (in honor of Raquette Lake, NY not because he made a lot of noise). None of these animals was particularly memorable, except for the mess of seeds underneath and around their cages. In fact, my most distinct association with the birds was my father’s tireless and unsuccessful quest to teach them to speak. His patience was admirable, especially since the pay off was nil.