It’s been stupid cold. No really. Daytime temperatures in the minus thirties and overnights colder. Throw a stiff breeze into that and we were getting feels-like minus forty-five days for most of February. It finally broke into the minus teens over the last day or two, but for a puppy filled with energy who really, really, REALLY wants to go for a walk, it has resulted in three or four too short walks a day while we all hunkered down in the house and dreaded opening the doors. We made do and had lots of indoor action to keep her engaged and worn out, but even the reprieve of a backyard pee didn’t provide much opportunity to enjoy all that fresh snow, what with the stupid, stupid cold.
i big girl nowz
What? A puppy is growing, you say?! She has outgrown her first walking harness, though, so from among of the first things we bought her (and she was virtually swimming in it when she moved in) we now have an outgrown in pile. And while extended family circle of puppies is growing with my parents adopting a Schnoodle a couple weeks ago and my sister welcoming a German Shepherd cross a month or two prior to that, Cricket might still be among the smallest of the group and not bring much value for handing down her hand-me-downs.
i playz fetch
A random tennis ball became an object of fascination in our living room for long enough that I sourced out a trio of Cricket-sized versions from the pet store, by which I mean they were about half the diameter and appropriate for my pup … not used in the popular sport cricket. Those three balls have become beloved treasures, particularly in the cold weather, as we burned off a load of excess energy playing Cricket-in-the-middle and learning the fundamentals of fetch.
treeetz frum my brane box
Finally, as the bell-ringing at dinner time (ie. oh, I see you are eating and not paying attention to me so I will ring this bell at the door not for what you intended which was as an indicator I need to go outside, but rather as a way to provoke your attentions upon me) officially became annoying, we discovered a puzzle box. The pup now spends part of our dinner time trying to unlock the various compartments in which bits of her daily treat have been hidden. Flip, turn, poke, slide… it keeps her busy for five minutes so that we can have a few warm bites. I think we’re graduating to the next level quite soon, tho.