Paper Airedale Blue

My mum goes nuts over paper Airedales.  She has a huge collection of 'em she keeps in a book.  I told her she should start posting her paper 'dales because I still don't like being in pictures (just sometimes I let her take one).

She found this one in Sunday's newspaper.  It was part of an advertisement for Pet Cancer Awareness.  She's sure that puppy is an Airedale.  I think it is, too, because we Airedales are the biggest terriers (we're the King of Terriers, or in my case, the Queen, you know) and that puppy is way bigger than that cat.

So maybe I'll persuade my mum to keep on posting her paper 'dales.  (As much as she loves her paper 'dales, she loves me lots, lots, lots more than them.)

I love my mum, too.  For Mother's Day I let her play with my favorite toy for two minutes.

Bye for now,
from Hannah
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Me and My Nephew

My nephew, Malachi - or Mali for short, came to visit for a few days.  He sits up now so he didn't have to lean against me or lay on me and he didn't want to ride me this time, either. 

My mum says I look like a towser in this photo. Her dad used to call dogs who looked a little unkempt towsers.  I don't think I look so bad just because my hair's grown a little long.  My mum clips me in the breezeway and it's too cold for a clip right now - both for her to clip and for me to have so little hair in this cold weather. 

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and got all the presents you wanted.  I hope you get lots of nice things in the new year, too.  Happy New Year.

--from Hannah.
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Thankful Me!

My whole family was here this weekend:  both of my sisters, my brother-in-law, and my 5-month-old nephew, Malachi.  You remember that I thought he was a squeak toy when he was tiny?

I was very interested in all the little toys my mum bought but they were for Mali.  I think she will buy some for me soon.

Mali pulled my beard and some of my other hairs.

He rolled all over me.

Then he got on me like I was a horse!

But you see what I got? It was a wipes wrapper.

I loved it because it made a fun, crinkly sound.

My mum didn't let me keep it too long, though,

because she thought I would try to eat it.

Mali and I might become best buddies when he's a little older.

And I like that Mum said I was a Very-Good-and-Patient-Girl.

But the very best part of Thanksgiving was turkey

with my dinner four days in a row!

(Maybe mum will give me some tomorrow, too!)

I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving. 

--from Hannah.

Tuckbuttrunning

Do you see me doing a tuckbuttrun?

I was so fast Mum couldn't catch me with her camera.

Now look at this one below.  There I am!

Tuckbuttruns are so fun.

Mum tries to tag me when I run past her.

I love this one. She almost didn't catch me!

After I race around the yard a hundred times

I rest and survey my kingdom - er, queendom.

I hope you have fun tuckbuttrunning!

Sunday School Dogs

Two little Airedale pups are we 

Shaggy of coat and of gender "she."

I just discovered these two Airedale puppies which Christine of The Daily Postcard shared a while ago in her post Sunday School Dogs.  In the post she explains that a Sunday School teacher used the postcard to invite one of her students to a meeting.  The teacher had crossed out the writing on the front.

When I asked Christine if I could use the postcard image here she sent it to me almost immediately.  She also shared the following story:

I used to have an Airedale mix. She was a gem. Years ago when I had the dog, I also had a room mate who had a landscaping business. She would take Chloe to work with her, which was much better than leaving her at home by herself. Chloe loved to dig, so it was a perfect partnership. My room mate would point to a spot on the ground and tell Chloe to dig. That dog would dig until someone told her to stop. Then, my roommate would tell her to dig in another spot...and another. In the meantime, my room mate would be getting all of the plants ready to place in the ready-made holes.

When my room mate and I parted ways, I realized that if Chloe came with me she would be cooped up at home all day while I was at the office. As much as it broke my heart, we agreed that she would be much happier spending the days outdoors, digging holes and getting lots of attention. She was the best dog ever. Sniff sniff.

Gotta love those Airedales!  And generous Christine to think first of Chloe's needs!

Thanks for visiting!
--Nancy.

The Bad Dog Chocolate Caper

I don't know why my mum gave this post that title.  It wasn't really such a big deal.

My mum's been laid up after foot surgery and my pop had to take her for a doctor's appointment.  While they were gone I found 3 Symphony milk chocolate with toffee bars and a bag of Reese's peanut butter cups that Mum had hidden behind a bunch of other stuff.  It was work to get them but I succeeded and they were very yummy.  Except maybe the foil on the Reese's wasn't so great.

I don't know why Mum and Pop were unhappy with me when they came home saw the wrappers on the floor.  (I knew I should have eaten those wrappers.  Get rid of all the evidence.  I'm learning that!)  My mum loves chocolate, I love chocolate.  They seemed worried about me.  Mum said chocolate is bad for dogs even though it's never hurt me before.  Anyway, they called the vet and took me in to have me checked out.  Hooray!  I got to go somewhere!

What we all found out is that before milk chocolate is really dangerous, an Airedale can eat one ounce -- that's 1 ounce -- for every pound she weights.  So that 24 ounces of milk chocolate I ate was nearly nothin'.  I could have eaten 60 ounces!  My mum says she can't understand why I wasn't sick.  She said she could eat a lot of chocolate and not get sick but she couldn't eat 24 ounces.  And, she said, I'm littler than her.

I had to eat special dog food that was really yummy but I didn't get very much of it at a time.  And I'm out of luck now because they're hiding the chocolate even better than before and in higher places.  They won't even let me look at it or sniff it!  I knew I should've eaten those wrappers.

Remember, Airedale friends, eat just a little less ounces of chocolate than pounds you weight and you'll be fine.

from Hannah

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from Nancy, Hannah's mum:
Airedale moms and dads, hide your chocolate!  Once your Airedale gets a taste for it, it's all over.  She will climb ladders, jump through hoops, and dig to the ocean to get it.  She may even learn to open cupboard doors!

The Dog Breed Guessing Game with the Airedale

There was this little dog quiz online...

It says, "Known as the dog that can 'do it all,' this well-rounded pooch started as a guard dog, messenger, pest controller, and hunter.  Active and smart, this mid-sized, wiry-haired canine is recognized as a good police dog and family pet."

My mum read it to me and I knew exactly which breed was the answer, and I didn't have to look at the pictures or hear the choices.  It's US!  See:

It says, "Airedales, known as the 'King of Terriers,' are bold, brave dogs, bright, and often stubborn.  Not afraid to stand up for themselves, they make good family pets, and high-spirited, protective companions.  Airedales can get bored easily and need vigorous exercise daily, like a rousing game, a long walk, or a chance to run and romp."

That's me!  (Except I'm a Queen of Terriers instead of a king.)

from Hannah

Patricia McConnell Online

Do you know about Patricia McConnell? She is a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist.  You might think she'd use lots of fancy words to tell people what she does, but her books are very readable and easily understood.  She teaches about interactions between dogs and dogs, and dogs and their people.  I read, loved, and learned a lot from her book, The Other End of the Leash.  I was thrilled to learn that she has a blog, The Other End of the Leash.  It, too, is very readable - actually a joy to read - even to the non-scientific among us.  

At her blog I learned that she is presenting an ASPCA webinar on December 6.  (For those who don't know, a webinar is an online seminar.  You register to attend, then receive a link to the webinar website.  You're able to listen (and possibly watch) and ask questions (sometimes online or sometimes via a phone call).)  This particular webinar is for animal welfare professionals, volunteers, and foster parents.

I volunteer with ATRA and I hope to be able to listen to the webinar.  I'm all for anything that helps me improve Hannah's life and my relationship for her.  It should be interesting and fun.

Registration for the webinar is not yet open but I'm sure it will be soon.

posted by Nancy.

Watch Me Surprise My Mum

This is the frog I was playin' with when she took the video below this one.

She liked to watch me playin' -- and then I really surprised her.

She laughed after she was finished being surprised!

I hope you're havin' a fun autumn.

from Hannah

My Favorite Toy

I have a basket of toys that I can play with any time I want.  Sometimes I spread them all over the floor.

But some toys my mum puts up high and says I can only play with them under supervision - whatever that is.

When I want to play with those toys I have to ask her to get them down for me.  I stare at the toy I want, then go to Mum and try to get her to go back to the toy I want.  She finally figures it out.

One of my favorites is the toy she calls Frances.  (It's the stretchy pink one up there.)  I first got Frances last Christmas time.  My sister bought Francis for my brother-in-law and then they let me play with her for a little while.  They saw how much I loved her and they gave her to me.  I've had 3 Franceses so far.

I like to flip Frances up and down, toss her around, and chew on her.  She is so much fun.  Sometimes my mum and I play tug with her.

My mum and I played tug with the last one and my mum broke her in two.  She had to buy me a new Frances. I wish my mum would let me have her all the time but she says she has to protect me, so she puts Frances back up high until she can watch me play with her.  Mum usually gets her down whenever I ask.  I think Frances is my Very Best Toy. 

What's one of your favorite toys?
from Hannah