The adoring public...

just can't get enough of Mickey. (remember, Mickey is wearing his red sweatshirt at doggy day care this week)

Everybody wants a sniff of me

The strategy for getting the best view at daycare

Its been chilly here in New Jersey. The room at doggy daycare is heated, but not very much. They also keep the doors open most of the time to let the dogs get outside whenever they need to do their business. As a result, I have put Mickey in his red sweatshirt so he can stay cozy. It is quickly getting filthy and covered in other dog's hair, but at least he's staying warm.

I logged onto the webcam this evening to check on how he was getting along. It seems he's moved away from the walls!

Hey! down in front! Doesn't this always happen?

You get to the parade route early and stake your claim ...

and all the late comers arrive last minute and just set up in front of you.

Whatever, I'm avoiding that scene, maybe something exciting will happen over here at this end of the room...

Letters from Camp Bow Wow

Where is my family? Where are my friends? Why am I trapped in this cold cold cage?

What are they doing? Why don't they want to play with me? Why don't I want to play with them?

:(

Mickey in New Jersey

That's right, I'm living the dream. Mickey is traveling with me this week. We drove from DC to New Jersey last night. The road trip was uneventful, but Mickey is a pro at riding in the car. We just lounged around in our room last night sniffing all the new wonderful hotel smells and checking the place out.

Today I took Mickey to doggy daycare for the first time. He passed his interview and I left him sitting inside the small dog area, nose against the fencing, whining at me to come back. The daycare has a web cam, so I am able to check in on him during the day. (or keep it open for constant monitoring)

It breaks my heart, but Mickey doesn't seem to be having much fun.

Luckily one of the workers came in and held him for a few minutes.

Once she left, he went back to the corner though :(

I hope he settles in and starts to somewhat enjoy himself today...

Duck Hunt

Mickey took down some big game this weekend. These ducks are over half his size, but that doesn't stop Mickey from shaking the stuffing out of them.

Watching over his prize catch...

Mine.

Taking down the big birds is tough work!

Happy Holloween!

It was a dark and rainy night....

....when out of the shadows....

...came a (not so) frightful sight....

No... not a big yankee's fan...

I'm Mickey Mantle!

Bad Mommy

This weekend it was rainy and cold outside. Not very dog-walk friendly. As a result we had a pretty active Mickey on our hands. He wanted our attention and playtime in the adorable yet insistent way of his.

He barks once. Then lays down. Then, unsure if you got the message, barks again. He hasn't quite learned to bring you a toy, he just sits there and waits for one to magically appear... usually they do.

This time I picked up his Nylabone (a dog bone made from plastic) and gave it a good throw.

Unfortunately the trajectory was more down than across the room. It hit the floor under Mickey's face and bounced up and hit him in the eye.

Guess which eye?

This picture was taken today, a whole three days after the bone-in-eye incident. He keeps rubbing it with his paw (which is adorable, looks like he just woke up and is rubbing his eyes awake) and his eye area is losing its hair. Bad Mommy :(

Sun Spot Revisited

We have had Mickey as a member of our family for 7 and a half months now. He still loves his sun spot, but there are noticeable differences in his appearance.

Then:

floppy ears, so small his tags are near the ground, long tail, adorable face

Now:

ears "on alert" all the time, tags well off the ground, an even longer tail, still an adorable face

Wolverine

This weekend we had a movie night at our house. Mickey tried to go to sleep, but was soon enthralled by the action on the screen.

What was so captivating? What sounds and images held his attention like a peanut butter covered rawhide?

X-Men Origins:Wolverine

I just can't. pull. my. eyes. off. of. him.

Dog Park

Mickey and I took Snickers and Rosie to the dog park the other week. We had a lovely time walking along the path, watching two Great Danes jump all over a woman that wasn't their owner, and looking at the dogs playing in the stream.

While standing there, Mickey found a better vantage point. He got up on his own little Pride Rock and looked quite happy with himself.

Majestically looking over his kingdom...

Actual size of rock...

He was pretty proud of himself when a pack of dogs came running through. He was above their little sniffing noses..or so he thought. Within moments a dog had jumped up on the rock to join Mickey and he quickly abdicated his throne.

After that excitement Rosie and I decided it was time to head home. The two dogs knew how to do that, and very confidently ran ahead of us, back to the gate..

yay! we're going home...

Awwww

So, as a black dog, it is hard to take a picture of Mickey, especially using a cell phone. This was the best shot before Mickey got tired of all the attention his nap was attracting and moved.

In case you can't make it out, Mickey is on the back of the couch and is sleeping on Jamal's shoulder. awwww.

Off Week

I haven't been home to take pictures and spend time with our favorite little puppy for over a week. Now I can't travel home until Friday, so that will be one more day without Mickey for both you, dear reader, and me.

You can make the time apart a little more bearable the same way I do...This is the picture I have up in my workspace (large conference room shared with lots of other people).

I miss home.

I'm Looking at the Mickey in the Mirror

A blog dedicated to my little pooch is proof enough that I find him irresistible. Now here is further proof that he feels the same way... about himself. I spoke many months ago about how he would stop and look at himself in the reflection of the fireplace.





Rosie brought a mirror out from Illinois for me. She brought it inside (thanks!) and put it down by the front door. After the 'excitement' of Snickers and Rosie coming inside had subsided, we spied Mickey going over to investigate the new furnishing.

mirror mirror on the floor ... who's the sweetest to the core?

He sat in front of the mirror sniffing his reflection and we even caught him giving himself a few kisses as well.

Bug Hunt!

The last bug hunt featured Mickey as the bug tracker, and myself holding the final bug kill. This time, Mickey took care of it all on his own (with a little coaching from the master).

oh man, my super senses have located a bug in the pattern of this carpet.

whoa, he's getting closer. what do I do now? He's not supposed to get closer... why isn't he fearing me?

okay, lets do this. enough stalling, its time to get 'er done.

wait. who is that in the background?

It is the champion bug killer, Snickers! walking Mickey through his first bug kill with the gentle temper of a world class mentor.

Farewell Cape Cod

After our long weekend of relaxation and fun, it was time for Mickey and I to head back to DC. We got to ride with our friends Lindsay and Precious.
At first, Mickey was made to share the backseat (with a duffel divider) with Precious.

Why am I back here again?

le sigh.

Mickey finally insisted on moving up to the front seat with me. After a few hours my lap was no longer comfortable enough for our little doggie and he insisted on getting a share of the seat.

So I took 'long arm' self portraits

This is the best one of the bunch, I am not skilled.

Our friend Precious did a lot better on the trip, snoozing like this for the majority of the 10 hour ride.
That's the end of our Cape Cod recaps!

Yellow Toy

Mickey was given a new toy here in Cape Cod, a long yellow dog. The feet, tail and ears have no stuffing and provide no access to the main stuffed body when destroyed. This gave the toy an extra 24 hours of life. Mickey finally breached through the head to get at the stuffing and one of three squeakers. It was a little disturbing to hear him grunting and chomping into the brain cavity of the toy.

I removed all the stuffing, after the hole was made large enough, so he wouldn't ingest any of it.

On Friday night I took his bed and towel into the bedroom along with some of his nylabones. He reviewed my choices for bedtime and trotted back out to the living room, located his yellow dog, and climbed into bed with it.

I love you, but I destroy you

Backyard

Victor's house has a very nice backyard.

Mickey decided to try out some new poses for the camera. Here he is trying the 'looking back over the shoulder with a sexy pout'.

Mickey is learning to enjoy his time outside and to explore the soft grass. He is working on his runway walk. Strut. Strut. Paw.

He also enjoys sitting on the deck looking out at the yard to keep the bugs in line. He pulls off the 'looking intently into the distance' well.

Beach! Part II

In the middle of the day, Victor and I took Mickey for a short walk down to the beach. Victor took us to a small kayak landing area, so we wouldn't bother anyone else. I'll tell the rest of the story with pictures:

see... the water is much warmer now than it was this morning...

I can get in to my ankles... what do you think?

not. going. to. do. it.

is this a face of someone who should be trusted with animals?

why do you do this to me?

at least I can see the 'shore' from here. I'm getting out of this weird wetness.

Beach! Part I

While in Cape Cod, we of course had to visit the beach. I had visions of taking Mickey swimming and splashing in the waves. Turns out there were a couple of problems with my fantasies:

1. It is a little chilly for open water swimming. With highs in the mid 70's it is very pleasant weather, but still a little cold for swimming in a large body of water.
2. Dogs aren't allowed on beaches until the off season, which starts after Labor Day.
3. Mickey doesn't have a strong interest in the water.

We walked down to the community beach near Victor's house in the early morning. No one was around to enforce the "No Dogs Allowed" signs so we walked onto the little sandy strip. Mickey seemed to enjoy the new smells and the feel of sand between his paws, but he always stopped exactly at the waters edge. Not even a little dew claw dipped in the water.

I was thinking: "nice picture at the beach at sunrise"
Mickey was thinking "its kinda chilly what are we doing here again?"

Up next time (Monday), what happens when we go to the same beach with Victor when its a little warmer?

Home Base - Cape Cod

Victor's house has nice hardwood floors. Most people would think this is a positive feature, but Mickey is less than impressed. He misses the wall to wall carpet of his home.

Luckily we brought an extra towel, so he uses it as his home base to work on his bones/toys/treats.

Tread softly and carry a....

Big Stick!

oh boy oh boy oh boy. Come on Vic, toss it, toss it!

Whoa, a little bigger than I realize.

Don't worry, I've got it!