Unusual Behavior

Hi Blog Friends! Momma Heartbeat here.

I have a question for all of you out there!

Most of you remember my post about McIver and his serious behavior. If not, here and here is a refresher.

Since McIver's injury he has been receiving special attention of course. He has become a WILD MAN!!! He is hilarious! Serious McIver comes out very infrequently now. He jumps around like a goofball. By the way, his stitches are unaffected by this activity. If I get up, he follows me. His tail doesn't stop wagging. He constantly has a gigantic grin on his face. I have never seen him quite this happy!

I am just not sure what to make of it. I think he's lost his mind!! Did the V-E-T give him a lobotomy?

Have any of you experienced anything like this before?

Sneaky Shot and McIver Update

Daddy got dis shot of Momma! I can't believe she lets dat ratty cat sleep on her head AND I have to sleep on da floor on my bed! She says he feels warm and comforts her with his purring!! Whatever! How about my tootin'? That'll keep you warm too!

Anyway, McIver looks like a big doofus wif dis hat on his head! He got like 8 or 10 stitches. Daddy thinks me or Nikki scratched him even though our nails are trimmed. Lalalalala I'll never tell. Daddy said he tried to eat the V-E-T at first. Then Daddy made him wear a muzzle (what a baby). After they stitched him up, he jumped off the table wif tail wags and tried to love everybody!

Unfortunately wif dis cone, nothing in the house is safe. McIver keeps running into stuff! Nikki, Lucy and me are terrified by it so we run from McIver but he doesn't get it. Oh well, we's having fun wif it!

Momma tried to get pictures of his ouchie BUT McIver wouldn't lay still. It doesn't show up too well anyway AND it's GROSS!

In summary people, McIver is doing just fine and taking his meds as prescribed. I am feeling very much jealous of all the special attention dat he is receiving. I tried limping yesterday but den I forgots I was supposed to be limping and my cover was blown!

I didn't even do it long enough to get yogurt. ARGH!

Licks and Love,

Calhoun

Tongues and a Plea for Happy Thoughts

Here are our entries for Twinkie's Tongue Contest ...

It was kind of embarrassing cuz apparently we keep our tongues out all da time!!!

Dis is Nikki on her way to class. She is a very smart student... with a very long tongue.

Dis is Lucy. She has a licking addiction so her tongue is always in action. She's a rescue so we thinks her licking soothed her when she was tied to a gas meter when she was a baby.

Dis my furiends is me, Calhoun. I am 4.5 now but on my first birthday we had a huge party cuz it was a LONG year. Mommy says I was a wild puppy. Anyways, she made me dis yummy cake and well dis is me enjoying it. It was so good, I didn't even notice the silly hat! We still have bday parties but they are in the park.

Dis is McIver. He is very dignified but I like him anyways. He keeps his tongue to himself. Mommy and Daddy are so happy to get a sugar from him because he is SOOO stingy with dems.

Unfortunately, McIver gashed his side open last night in the yard. We aren't real sure what happened. He was so stoic about it that no one even knew it happened until several hours later. At first we thought it looked like a puncture wound or even a gunshot!!

After further examination, we discovered it was, in fact, a gash. Mommy and Daddy were able to administer some first aid last night and Daddy is taking him to the Vet this morning. As you all know, McIver is very selective about who he is makes friends with. So a trip to the Vet is quite stressful for him and Mommy and Daddy.

So PLEASE think good thoughts today about McIver and the Vet office. Oh yeah and Daddy cuz he's takin' him.

Calhoun: The Teacup Mango...

Silly people have always asked if Calhoun is a Mastiff. They are silly because while Calhoun is a big boy, he's only 80 lbs and only eats 1.5 cups of food twice a day. So I jokingly started calling him a "Teacup Mastiff". That usually gets a giggle.

Calhoun has many Mango-like features. I think we all recognize this look...

and this one...

and don't forget this one...

And now we get to the action shots....

All that action makes for one BUFF dog...

He exhibits his buffness in suitable sportwear when neccesary.

And he's very manly with his Mangoness except for two things...;-)

But that hasn't stopped him from doing this...

The picture below says alot about my friend, Calhoun. I mean besides the fact that he's really not a hat kinda guy. He likes to show off his buff manliness at the lake beach and the girls really like it until they get close up and notice his *gasp* lipstick!!! CALHOUN!!! PUT THAT AWAY!!!

Hats off to my little Bubba who puts up with Momma's foolishness everyday! He is a good sport!!

OH MY DOG

WHAT HAS THE WORLD COME TO????

Please click on this link for... um... a laugh?

http://www.reargearstore.com/

Sad Times

It's been a rough past couple of days here at the Heartbeat house. Please forgive my somber post but I need to share.

On September 9th, I received a call from our DFA director. She was sobbing to me that we'd "lost Sherry". She'd found her dear friend on her kitchen floor. Her dogs waiting faithfully by her side.

Sherry was a woman that would tell how it is and how it's going to be! She was dedicated to DFA, our pups and our families. Her death is nothing short of devastating to DFA. Meanwhile, my husband has been asked to fill in for Sherry as a behavioral advisor. As if anyone could replace her.

On a personal note, she is the lady who brought us McIver and allowed us to keep him on that January day almost two years ago. I am saddened when I think of all the DFA births Sherry witnessed. Our Nikki is a daughter of her beloved Jethro. My husband and I liked to sit with Sherry and our director after the dogs had run on the farm for a bit. We enjoyed her stories and her outlook on life.

She also had a fondness for terriers and had a couple of rescued terrier mixes. For those of you who have trained terriers, you know it is a love/hate relationshiop. She spoke often of her beloved Othos, the best GSD known to man! Hopefully, she has reunited with him.



And of course, the anniversary of 9-11-01. I was 21 when it happened. I had graduated college the December before so I was back at home waiting tables. I sat down with a bowl of cereal and turned on the TV just after the first plane hit. I watched. My mother called from the elementary school where she teaches. She wanted details. The towers collapsed while I was speaking with her the second time. I shook, I cried, I sobbed. My mother tried to comfort me but how do you comfort someone in that situation. Thirty 8-yr-olds needed her comfort as well. She needed comforting as well. I knew what it meant. It meant death and uncertainty.

Like a good southern girl, I called my Daddy at the local nuclear plant. I got through in the beginning but then the lockdown came. As I was driving to work Daddy told me to go to work, stay there and come straight home after my shift.

Work was somber to say the least. People tried to eat as the news anchors tried to maintain some degree of professionalism. It was silence. Waitresses with tears and tear-stained faces brought food to tables.

Then there was anger and solidarity in patriotism. Then there was war and more death. I am fairly neutral on the war. By that, I mean, I can see both sides. My husband is a war veteran from the post-Desert Storm and Bosnia time frame. I am thankful he has provided service to this country and I am thankful he is not "over there".

In the end, this time of year fills me with sadness for all of those lives lost and families left behind.

However, because of my love of dogs, I am uplifted by the stories of dogs helping soldiers and civilians with related injuries such as PTSD. I am uplifted by the care and comfort our canines provide to those serving in the desert and those who searched at Ground Zero. I am uplifted by the posts of rememberance from overseas.

I will never forget.

Entertainment: 4th installation

So below we have the patio door that screams, "LET ME IN!!!".

And yes, this door get pressure washed and repainted every year.

This...

(sorry, I can't get blogger to upload it right side up.)

Used to look like this... (which is actually a horse toy by the way)

Lucy is our chewer. She chews like a little rat, bless her heart.

Daddy's socks are specially designed with love by Lucy.

And yes, we know which of the poops in the yard are Lucy's. She makes those with love as well.

This girl has intestines made of steel.

PLEASE BEWARE>>> The picture you are about to see is pure devastation.

This is what happens when Momma and Daddy *gasp* go out for sushi on Thursday night ...

Despite his tough exterior appearance, Calhoun is not one to hide his feelings...

Entertainment: 3rd Installment

First of all I want to share my Fall "entertainment" with you. My beloved Clemson University Tigers start their football season tomorrow. I grew up ten minutes from the campus and obtained my undergrad and graduate degrees from this University. You can read about some of our traditions here.

My favorite tradition is running down “The Hill”. This has been dubbed “the most exciting 25 seconds in college football".

GOOOOOOO Tigers!!!

Below: Calhoun shares his Tiger spirit!

Now on to the doggie entertainment...

This pot used to contain...

This small palmish tree....

And the pot below used to have beautiful purple trailing flowers...

And the pups said, "We don't need no stinkin' decorations!"

__________________________________________________________

I took the picture below to prove to you that I can actually grow pretty flowers...

on the other side of the fence.

Happy Friday Friends!

Entertainment: Second Installation

For our second installation of "Entertainment",

I present to you a project that Calhoun completed all on his own...

The day that my new siding was completed. I let Calhoun out to do his business and this is what he does- to my BRAND NEW siding that I saved for forever. He had pulled this entire end cap up. Apparently he didn't like the color...

PeeS1. I just ordered more siding and we'll replace it before we eventually sell the house.

PeeS2. We just pressure washed the house last month but it is already dirty thanks to the digging habits of my little preciouses!

Oh what's that you say? Why is there a drain with no downspout?

We heard a noise and rushed out to find this...

Ummm... yeah. THIS was a team effort.

As a whole- normally- our Heartbeats are very well-behaved. Often times, we watch them from the window. They chase each other and play silly games. Bitey-face is a favorite. We spend a lot of time on our patio when it isn't 100 degrees.

They've never broken anything that couldn't be fixed so what can we do? We usually get a little ticked, shake our heads and ask,

"How did they do that?"