So we tried a new dog park today. It was a great place. When we go t there I met a dog named Brutus. He greeted me with a big ol sloppy tongue up my face. At first I didn’t know what to think of him, then after a bit, I decided he was ok…..just a little fresh…

We ran and played until my buddy Murphy showed up. Then the fun really started. Murphy and I chase balls for almost an hour. I could pretty much keep up with the Murp and a few times I even beat him to the ball.

I always bring the ball back to Vickie when I get it but Murphy just slobbers on it for a minute, then drops it and goes off to see or smell something else. He has a short attention span….

Soon Vickie’s mom and KC came. KC loves to chase the birds and the butterflies. I would have liked to join in but Vickie says I can’t play with butterflies anymore, and in truth, birds move too fast for me, so I am fine with the ball.

Tristy got to come along with us too. Before we came to the park, Vickie stopped at the veterinarians office and took Tristy in for a few minutes. Not to long later, out they came and Vickie told me that Tristy has lost 15 pounds since she came to stay with us. That is really great for Tristy. I can tell she is feeling a lot better with the weight loss.

She comes outside all the time now, she loves to go for walks with me and Vickie and she was even playing with the other dogs today. At the park, she just followed people around and she seemed really happy to be somewhere that she didn’t have to have a leash on.

I have decided that Dog Parks, at least this one, are really really neat.

The dog park trip was on Monday. WE didn’t do much Tuesday but Wednesday I got to go to the Fort. I was so excited, I just knew it meant that I would get to go swimming, but to my surprise, Vickie make me walk all the way around behind the Fort itself and then we just sat there.

Murhpy and Paulette joined us but then they left. We just sat there and sat there, and when I was beginning to wonder what Vickie was thinking of, I heard talking, laughing and screaming coming from the trail. I looked over and guess what??? Kids, Kids and more kids. It was like Kid heaven and they were coming towards me.

Wow there was so many and they all wanted to pet me and play with me and hug me. So for two and half hours I got to entertain KIDS. Sometimes Vickie would have one of them help me to sit and stay calm while she and Paulette talked a bit, then after they were through droning on and on, Murphy and I got to show the kids what a search dog does.

I admit, Murphy was pretty cool on his problem, he just put his nose to the ground and tracked the little feller to the surrounding woods and voila…….Finished.

I got a little confused on my kid. He was hiding right by this big wooden fence and I was so excited to show the kids how well I jump that I didn’t even notice him. Then I climbed all the way up the mountain looking for him. It was really steep but I am pretty good on steep slopes. Just as I was almost to the top though, Vickie called me back down and as I jumped back over the fence to go to her, I smelled the kid again and whipped over to his hiding place.

After we were through showing them how cool we were, the petted us again and started to leave. I was a little sad to see them go, but just when I thought it was time to go on home, another group of kids came. We did the whole thing all over for them and then another group came and two more groups came after that.

About half way through all of this Tucker and Ken came and joined us and all the kids got to see Tucker do his thing too. Tucker, Murphy and I were pretty impressive.

By the time they were all gone, I was really exhausted. I was grateful when Vickie and Paulette picked up their packs and gear and started heading back to the cars. However, I got my second wind when we stopped at the lake and Vickie said I could go swimming.

Yahooeee……What a great great day…

Abby and Scrappy want to send you a Howling Good Day video.

Love
Bert

Abby & Tristy

Guess what, today for the second time in all the years Abby has been with Vickie, she got to go somewhere fun. Abby got to leave Canine Country Club and go to a dog park. She was really scared at first. Vickie had to carry her in to the truck and when Vickie started the motor Abby started shaking all over.

See, as Vickie tells it, Abby was found running in traffic on the highway when she was about 8 months old. Somebody called Vickie and told her about this dog running scared and asked if Vickie could help so she went to the place where they had seen her and sure enough, there was this frightened young dog running from one side of the road, through traffic and onto the other side of the road.

Vickie parked her car and another man who had just came along, tried to stop the fast moving cars or at least get them to slow down a bit so they wouldn’t hurt Abby. Vickie then sat on the side of the road with a treat and a rope hidden behind her back and coaxed Abby over to her.

It took about 15 minutes but finally Abby came close enough for Vickie to throw the rope around her and pull her in. Sweet Abby was so scared she pooped all over herself and Vickie. She even tried to scare Vickie by acting vicious and snarling at her and knocking her in the face with her nose but Vickie wouldn’t let go.

Since that day, Abby has gone catatonic every time you try to confine her, leash her, make loud noises, move too quickly, stare her in the eyes or corner her for any reason. It is sad really. I asked her what the problem was but she doesn’t know for sure. She just knows that she gets really really scared.

Vickie has always been worried that if she took Abby somewhere that wasn’t completely fenced in and something scared her, that no one would ever be able to get close to her again.

Roy City has a pretty cool fenced in park for dogs and during the day there are hardly any other dogs there so it was worth a try. Paulette and Murphy joined us and me, Jamie and Murphy ran and played while Abby explored. She was having a great time. One time I looked over and she was just sitting there with her head high, sniffing the air and looking all around. She looked so happy.

I think this means, we will be taking Abby to the Roy park more and more often.

And of course I found a huge mud puddle in the middle of the park to cool off in. Jamie even joined me in this one.

And here is some good news. Tristy is loosing weight pretty fast. She gets to go walking with me a lot and yesterday she got to swim in the lake. She thought that was wonderful. She is not hiding in the house any more and has come out to join us all the time. She really is bonding fast to Vickie and sometimes I have to remind Vickie that "It is all about me" and that Tristy is just a guest.

But I am happy to see her getting so active and happy.

Green Green Green

My life is just so much fun. I mean, who do you know that gets to play with bunches of different dogs all day long, go for endless walks, swim almost daily in their own private lake, (I did have to share the lake with a bunch of school kids today but I don’t really mind sharing) have their own personal lazy boy chair, and gets to play hide and seek with friends and family all the time.

I mean, who…..Its just the best ever life.



Like this weekend Vickie and I met with Paulette, Murphy, Chase and her dog Rosco up by the mountains above Layton. We played hide and seek games for about an hour and then Rosco and I played tug of war for the rest of the time.

Murphy did a couple of hide and seek games to show us beginners how its done, then he had to go. Rosco got his chance next. He is part bloodhound so they have to keep him on a long lead.

I have to say, for a beginner, he did an amazing job, but come on…..He is part blood hound after all.


Vickie and I got a good laugh though when Rosco came back from one of his games dragging poor Chase behind him. Her legs were flying in all different directions as she tried to keep running. He is really strong and fast.

When we were playing tug of war, I had to use my whole body to keep him from winning. We pulled and pulled and finally I just sat down so he had to drag my whole body when he tugged.

He is a really fun guy and I look forward to playing with him lots more.

Sunday was kind of a quiet day. Vickie’s long time friend Laurel was passing through and stopped to visit. She went with us for our evening walk. Vickie took Jamie and me and Laurel walked Tristy. It was a very nice evening with perfect temperatures. I got to walk off lead for part of the walk but Tristy and Jamie had to stay on lead all the way.

I guess I am the better walker……(truth is, Jamie is deaf and blind now so Vickie is worried about letting her run free, but I am a really good walker and I listen really well.)

Then came today (Monday) and it was full of excitement and new experiences. Vickie pulled out this machine that roles on four wheels. It makes lots of noise but it is really fun because it blows out a strong wind from its side and when she puts it on the grass it sprays wet, sweet smelling green clumps of grass into the air.

Oh my, there is nothing like the smell of fresh mowed grass, and next to the smell is the fascinating experience of rolling, rubbing, sliding and spinning your body in the stuff. And to add to all of that, it is like putting on a whole new layer of colorful fur. Yep, Now I am no longer a blond……..I am green……pretty, pastel green.





I went in to show Vickie how handsomely summerish I looked and she quickly grabbed the camera and made me pose for a picture, then off to the lake we went.

So this is a win win thing, this beautiful new experience. First I get to romp in the sweet smelling stuff, then I get to go to the lake for a swim in hopes of washing it off so I can come home and roll in it again.

Really, who has a life as good as mine????





Oh yah and Vickie got me this cool pool with little critters in it and now I can lay in the cool water then run through the house any time I like. I LOVE WATER....did I already tell you that?


Night now, hope you enjoy this video of me in my pool as much as I enjoyed making it.


Love
Bert

Green Days a comin

I have had such a good day. I was a little worried at first, when after the day care dogs arrived, Vickie loaded Tristy into the car instead of me. She took off and was gone for an hour and I smelled PARK all over Tristy when she came back.

I guess before I go on with what happened I should introduce Tristy to you. Vickie tried to get a picture for you, but Tristy is very shy and very conscientious about her weight and doesn’t want her picture taken for a few more weeks. here is a side shot, don't tell Tristy that we showed you.

Tristy is a golden retriever like me and she has come to stay with us for about six months. She has a lovely lady who doesn’t’ want to let her go but has decided it is best for Tristy. You see Tristy is being picked on by the other two dogs at the house where she came from. One time they picked on her so bad she had to go to the emergency room to save her life.

From that time forward, she has been very afraid to show her face and so she has always hid in the bushes or in a corner. There was a lot of name calling and poking fun at her and as time went on, she just never got any exercise and she gained a lot of weight.

She should weigh about 60 pounds but when she went to the vet last week, they said she was over 120 pounds. So off to the Fat Farm she went. Which is us. Yep, Vickie says we will help her so she becomes sleek and beautiful and healthy again.

Well that’s where we come back to my story, because as you all know….. It is “All About Me”…..

When Vickie took her to the park instead of me, I was concerned that she would be too tired to give me my proper amount of exercise. (Which is getting more and more every day) But to my great delight, as soon as Tristy and Vickie came back from their walk at Riverdale Park, where she met up with her mom and KC, Vickie dropped Tristy off and picked me up and we got to go to Fort Bueneventura.

I LOVE Fort BUENEVENTURA…..It means, I get to swim and I LOVE SWIMMING. I know it is still a bit cold but just to make sure I got to go to the Fort, I rolled in some doo doo while Vickie and Trist were at the park. I knew if Vickie came back and smelled the stuff all over me, odds were we would go to FORT BUENEVENTURA and as I said, I LOVE FORT BUENEVENTURA.

When we got there we took the walking trail around to the west side of the river, which means we get to go over my favorite bridge. I can stand on my hind legs and look over the bridge and watch sticks floating down the river, or smell the ducks swimming by the shore. There are just a ton of things to do on the bridge over the river.




















Then into the park through the back way and I get to jump over logs and wooden fences. WE practice some of my agility moves (which, if I say so myself, are pretty smooth and graceful for a boy my age) and then…….










SWIMMING, SWIMMING, and more SWIMMING.

Then I ran through the grass and made footprints in the mud, played on the hill and finally we headed back home, where to my surprise and delight again, instead of making me get out of the car and come in, Vickie stopped, picked up Jamie and the three of us went to another park……What a day……




Jamie and I played ball and chased this silly little toy Vickie had and in general enjoyed the heck out of the morning. When we finally came home, I was pretty tired.

But not so tired that I didn’t want to go out with Vickie to play with all of my friends at the Day Care. It was such a beautiful day that a lot of them were just basking in the sunlight. Like in the pictures below. Ellie Mae, Gracie and Stockton were loving the warm sunshine and were almost perturbed when I came shooting by in my pursuit of my good friend Cooper.

























Gus or Cleo, sometimes I cannot tell them apart, but it was probably Gus, chased me around for a bit, but eventually he decided I wasn't worth the effort and went to play with someone else.

Kodiak Kenai, Jessie, Padi, Faith, Sam, Strider, Little Lizzie, Scrappy, Abby, well, just about everyone was there and having fun. A total blast of a day.



















Finally, because so many people have asked about it, Vickie got Andy to let her take a video of how he loads Sam and Strider into his truck. Now keep in mind, Andy is over six feet tall so it will give you an idea of how big Strider is. You can call it an instruction video on how to get big dogs into the back of a pick-up. Vickie says that Andy should hire the dogs out for a weight lifting class.

Night everyone. I am out of here.

Love
Bert

Indians, Soldiers and WATER, lots of WATER

Vickie did everything she could to wear me out today. And all because she was a bit mad because I beat her outside this morning and found something really juicy and fragrant to role in.

Erin came to work a few hours and the first thing Vickie did was tell her to take me for a long long long walk. Which I quite enjoyed. Then after work, she and Erin took me to a park in Ogden and Erin tried to hide from me. Of course that was useless because I AM THE BEST SEARCH DOG IN THE WORLD………….





















Of course I found some water to play in after we did the problem. What a joyful surprise for me to find lots of mud with the water.....

























I got to rest a bit while Vickie ran Erin home, then Michelle shows up. I met her last when I was just a young whippersnapper. She comes and takes the dogs that stay at Canine Country club to the park for walks during their stay.

I went a couple of times with her then but I was very little and I needed constant supervision. If you remember, I almost drowned there last fall. Anyway, I remember getting to swim in the lake for the first time on one of those walks that Michele came on. It was the beginning of my love affair with water.

Anyway, the first thing Vickie asks her to do is to take me for a long long long long walk. About half way thru that walk, I pretty much had to sit down and rest. I didn’t want to let her know I was tired, but I kinda was.

Right now she is taking Ellie and Gracie over to the Fort to walk and I am a little jealous. I hear it is the Mountain Man Rendezvous and I was kind of curious to see what that is all about. Maybe if I give Vickie my “Woe is me look” she will take me there this weekend. Or better yet, I think I’ll start being annoying and bothersome right now so she will take me tonight. That way she can get some sleep cause I will be too tired to nose her every few hours.

What I like to do is go outside around midnight, get my nose all cold and frosty then come in and stick it right on her sleeping face. Boy, she jumps right out of her sleep with a cry and a yelp. Pretty fun doings……



OK. it is 8 pm and I got what I wished for. After work, Vickie took me to the fort and I met all these kids and they played with me, petted me, threw sticks into the water for me. Man it was fun.


We walked around with Vickies mom and her friend Louise, looking at all the strange people. Some of them were dressed like indians and pioneers and hunters and even soldiers from 200 years ago. At first I was a little nervous. There were guns and pelts and fires going everywhere. After I settled in to the whole thing, it was kind of fun.






















Now I am home and truly tired. I am going to curl up in Vickies favorite chair and sleep for the night. I'll appologize to her in the morning for getting it all wet as my fur has not dried off from my late evening swim.


Aint Life Fine!!!!!


PS.

Today is Saturday and I am still pretty trashed. Vickie had promised Jamie a trip to the park today since she didn't get to do all the fun things I did yesterday. I may be tired, but I am not going to give up a chance to go to the park so I stuck pretty close to Jamie all morning.


True to her word, Vickie called Jamie around noon and they headed to the gate. I pushed my way through the other dogs and pretty much knocked Jamie over trying to get through the gate with them.

At first Vickie said "No Bert, this is Jamies time" but I gave her "The Look". I am getting pretty good at "The Look" check it out.


Of course she let me go too. I mean you can't help it, once I have given you "The Look" and off to the park we went.

While we were there I met three new friends. Chase, Preston and Creston. I played stick for a few minutes with Chase and then Vickie asked them if they would try and hide from me. Ha ha, hide from ME, THE GREATEST SEARCH DOG IN THE WORLD.

They did agree to try and off they went while Vickie and I waited behind the truck. I wasn't even able to see what direction they went. But of course, that matereth not.


Yep, I quickly found my missing human by smelling his shoe. They tried to trick me by messing up the track with the other two humans scent but let me tell you, once you have stuck your nose inside a boys shoe, YOU KNOW WHAT HE SMELLS LIKE. That aroma stays with you a long time. Days even weeks. Sometimes you can even smell it in your sleep.


And people think I smell.......


Anyway, I quickly found him and then we all played ball. It was another great day at the park. I came home, jumped in my swimming pool, soaked myself down good and then came in the house and jumped up into the lazy boy.


You know what? I heard Vickie tell her friend that the Lazy boy was my personal chair now....Cool, I have my own chair....



Happy Easter everyone.

I hope you enjoy the video below. When I go for a walk with Vickie and her mom, the let me take KC and walk him. I guess I am kind of "The doggy baby sitter" I should be paid.....

Love

Bert

Pepsi, the Cure All

Whoa, bad news in Vickie town today. Not sure what happened but she took off right at 10 o’clock to see someone called “taxguy”. She was gone for about two hours and when she came back she was clearly irritated. She kept mumbling something about her Uncle Sam, and how she thought he was being greedy and mean this year, then she went to the fridge and did something I only see her do very very rarely.

She pulled out this little blue can with the words PEPSI on it and she drank the whole thing. I mean, usually if she breaks down and feels bad about something I see her pull out one of these and fills a glass with ice. (By the way, I love ice) and then she will spend about two hours just sipping the stuff. This time, she just stood there and drank and drank and drank.

It must have made her feel better cause then she went outside, she got her tools and took down the gate that keeps me from getting into the grass when ever I want. It is great now because we get to lay in the stuff, graze on it and run through it. She does however, draw the line at digging, but I think I can live with that. Besides, I have already found all the rocks under the grass that I want. At least for now.

Then she came inside and made a grilled cheese sandwich. My it smelled good. My mouth was watering as she told us how her mom makes the best grilled cheese sandwiches in the world and she was very much in need of something that reminded her of the “Good Ole Days”

While it was cooking Vickie went in to the other room and I guess she forgot about the sandwich. Or maybe it is just that Vickie is the Worst Cook in the world. (you could’ve ask her husband about that, she almost killed him with her cooking, years ago. No wonder they got divorced.) Anyway, either she is forgetful or just a bad cook, when she came back into the kitchen and opened the pan to turn her sandwich over, smoke came shooting out causing the fire alarm to go off.

That really upsets Scrappy so he started shaking and trying to climb up in Vickie’s arms. Vickie was trying to take the pan off the stove and was about to put it in the sink when she remembered we have our yearly plumbing blockage and you can’t use the sink, so she headed for the back door with her smoking blackened sandwich in a pan..

Scrappy in the mean time had panicked even more and was heading for the door too. I guess to get away from the loud noise of the fire alarm and the awful smell of burned cheese. They both hit the hallway at the same time. Vickie tried not to step on Scrappy by jumping to the left, which tilted the pan and the sandwich. That grilled cheese pile of burnt offering shot out of the pan and into the curtains, then slimed its way past the curtains to the wall and onto the floor.

I haven’t’ seen Scrappy since. Vickie hurt her knee, and I had a wonderful burnt grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. Oh yea, and now I have gas.

What a day……

Actually, it got better because Becky and Ben came by to visit and there were a lot of really cool dogs that came to doggy day care. Vickie even took a video.

Love
Bert