What happens when Sadie and Lily are alone at the Playground

Sadie is making some decisions about snow play. She does not see any of her usual friends. But there are vast amounts of snow to hop over.

Sadie sees a dog in the distance and decides to bark at the top of her lungs. Unfortunately, the snow absorbs most of the sound and the other dog does not respond to her alarm.

Lily found a big stick and she is looking around to see if someone will chase her. There are no other dogs so she patiently waits to see what will happen.

Sadie is what happens. She wants the big stick, or at least to move Lily away from the big stick. Lily wants to be chased, but Sadie refuses. Eventually they both chew the stick.

MM & RY 2009

Sadie’s Boxer Buddies Play in the Snow

Sadie is fearless. She wears her Sponge Bob hand-me-down sweater as though it was a super hero cape for mini poodles. Her magic: becoming a boxer in spirit and enthusiasm. Sadie spent yesterday intently playing, fighting for sticks, dodging the extra-hoppy Lily, and barking down her larger boxer friends. She chases them, yet avoids being trampled by them. When Lily, Bali and Cassie chase each other, they have the appearance of a boxer freight train hauling at you – or more accurately, your knees – faster than can be imagined. Sadie has learned how to heard the group. She joins in when they are at their goofiest. She steals their balls when they don’t take fetch seriously enough. She chews on their left over sticks even though she’s missing a few teeth. She jumps on Lily from time to time just to get her going. And, when we yell “go Sadie GO!” she runs as fast as she can to catch up with them on the playground. After a long day of playing, everyone curls up together on the “favorite chair” in front of the tree. MM & RY 2009

Ready!

Sadie and Lily are ready! They have been hounds of the kitchen for days now as we bake and grill. Lily, our boxer, boldly lets us know if she is dissatisfied with our kitchen activities. A mere slice of toast and jam no longer entices her to taste. Only a hearty stew or savory bullion soaked biscuit seems acceptable these days. Sadie is a little more grateful for the scraps that come her way. Generally speaking, she likes the feel and tone of the kitchen more than Lily does. She enjoys the movements, the pots clanging (although she sometimes barks to let you know she is louder), and especially the chopping. If cheese is involved, Sadie is in on the action. There are dog appropriate treats and ones that are taboo (no raisins for Sadie or Lily!). There are also the dog decadent treats – those are the ones they should not have but get anyway (home made gravy on kibbles, anyone!). We become pudding in response to their quiet requests. In return, they make fantastic cooking companions for the holiday season. MM & RY 2009

Displaced Dogs

Holiday decorating presents a lot of challenges in our space-limited row home. Every year we try to figure out where a Christmas Tree can be located. Furniture must always be moved. This year, we opted for an inexpensive, tilted tree (we are still economizing due to the great recession). The tree turned out to be both tilted and extra large around the base – meaning it could not be placed in our usual corner of the dining room. Instead, we relocated Sadie and Lily’s favorite chair and placed the tree in it’s spot. The dogs are a little confused because they can hear everything as usual but their view of the street is obstructed by the tree.  Sadie has been startled by the tree a few times as well. She responds vocally, as usual. Growls, yips, and sharp single barks are aimed exactly in its direction every time she sees it from the top of the staircase. Have we mentioned recently that she does the same thing to puppies, our elderly neighbors and – most recently – cats? Lily’s response to all of Sadie’s nonsense? Sleep and snoring.

MM & RY 2009

Everything Tastes So Good!

Sadie and Lily think the holidays are the greatest thing ever. Sadie’s birthday falls on December 26. We are anticipating with great happiness that she will turn three this year. There have been a lot of health concerns with Sadie, and we are happy she has made it this far. Lily and Sadie love the season most of all because of the food. There is always something new to smell and taste in the kitchen. Sadie is the scout, checking out what’s cooking with lightning speed. Lily takes up the rear. When she hears Sadie’s collar jingle, she knows that Sadie is nibbling something delightful: a piece of cheese, a bit of chicken skin, a lick of egg yolk, a spoonful of peanut butter, a warm cookie. This time of year the dogs agree on one thing: everything tastes so good!

MM & RY 2009

It’s Like That

Sadie and Lily have the ability to be tough. One of our favorite walking theme songs is a Run DMC classic called It’s like that. That song is good accompaniment to many Fairmount, Philadelphia days. Philly is often a no-nonsense city, home to a lot of serious people. Sadie’s silly ways and Lily’s bouncy, happy go lucky approach to life usually infuse our home atmosphere. But, when our Fairmount Dogs need to be tough, they are tough. This is especially true during night walks. Sadie, our well-known alarmist, can spot strangers a block away in the dark. If she sees someone before we do, the bark-alert goes off. Lily has a serious gaze. She does not budge from the front stoop until she has surveyed the entire block. She stares up and down the street to scope the surroundings. When she is good and ready, she will start her walk. But, she stops in her tracks when unusual smells, sounds, and sights are present. She does not move again until she thinks it is OK to go. Sadie stops when Lily stops. She waits patiently for Lily to check it all out. When Lily is squared away, the squirt moves slightly ahead of her and sets the pace. Our neighbors are tickled at the sight of them, serious and silly at the same time. That’s the way it is.

MM & RY 2009

Sadie la “P”

We used to call her Saders Taters. Lately we call her Sadie la “P.” P is short for Pataty, which is slang for Potato, from which we originally derived taters. Here are her before and after grooming photos, circa Thanksgiving. MM & RY 2009

Lily Eyes Her Pawpawty Pwize!

Lily was beside herself with excitement when her Pawpawty Pwize arrived from England on Friday. She shoved the package around the floor where it landed through the mail slot for quite a while. She obviously knew there was something she would like inside the package. When we opened it we were so thrilled to find a stuffed and stringy toy with a squeaker inside! Lily instantly started hopping around the house to play fetch and shake with her new treasure. Sadie, who is still not feeling too well, watched from Lily’s favorite chair. We were entertained all evening as Lily kept presenting us with it as though we did not remember she had just received it. Eventually Sadie got a turn. But Sadie shakes it first, then fetches. We are saving the blanket for cold nights ahead. Sadie bounces onto the floor all the time. We recently discovered that she really does use her doggie bed. So, one evening, she will have the blanket tucked under her for extra comfort. We send a special thanks to @poppy_dog for the generous gift, and we encourage all our readers to stay tuned for Pawpawty events, tweetups that raise funds for animal charities, by checking Paws Around the World (@frugaldougal’s blog) frequently.

MM & RY 2009

Sadie Helps

Sometimes Sadie helps. This summer she monitored an extensive paint job from the top landing of the staircase. Unlike Lily, who simply hid as far away from the action as possible (on top of the pillows on our bed), Sadie was in the middle of the whole activity. She kept a careful eye on the location of the paint, roller, and tray at all times. She sniffed but did not taste the paint. She barked a lot of commands to everyone involved in the project. She avoided the ladder completely. All in all, Sadie is a good companion for what can be a mundane job. As you can see, she also took over the drop cloth. Sadie thinks that every draped or bunched up fabric on the floor is actually a new bed just for her.

MM & RY 2009

 

Frisky Fairmount Dogs

Sadie is starting to feel better. Lily has lost a tiny bit of weight. The combination means that our dogs are friskier than ever. The cool, crisp Philadelphia days are energizing them further. They not only love their long walks, playground romps, and encounters with Charlie the Great Dane puppy – they also love to fetch all their stuffed toys. Fetch is a game we normally encourage as an outdoor activity. Lately, however, Lily presents her stuffed squirrel, new toy bird with the tennis ball, or one of her squeaky footballs (she has a few of them) around 10 in the evening. She is ready to start hopping around the living room to fetch the toy-de-jour. Last night was the first time in over two months that Sadie jumped into the fun. Sadie breaks out the full puppy dash – she bolts around the house as though she was a world class sprinter. She does not have the stamina of a few months ago, but it delighted us to see her back into competition mode. 

MM & RY 2009