Life with a tri-pug

Barney came to visit us in Livermore, California from Gerry in Madison Wisconsin.  Read the whole story in the official Blog of KILLBARNEY:

http://killbarney.tripawds.com/

Since Maggie has not been her usual energetic self (for a pug),  Barney’s visit turned into him just hanging out as part of the pug pack.

He had dinner with us, and took naps

He went to the park with us

He arrived in time to watch the  Super Bowl (yea Saints!)

He checked out the toy box

He met the wabbit of video fame

Maggie has always been very gentle with her toys- she showed Barney her first Beany-Baby pug she got when she was a few weeks old.  We have to put it away now because little sis Tani’s mission in life is to find out what is inside toys…

Mag thought it would be fun to see Barney in the angel wings that Caira Sue’s dad Adam gave her-

Mag says too bad they won’t fit in the box…. but what would fit is Maggie’s new harness.  She couldn’t wear it until the stitches from the last tumor removal came out.  Now she can wear it but doesn’t like it very much.  I think it looks great on her (my dad calls it her handle)

Mag tried to give it to Cemil at the last Tripawds Nor Cal meet up:   http://cemil.tripawds.com/

But that didn’t work.  She really wanted Barney to have it, as her parting gift to him…

But we already got Barney a parting gift- something he will need where he is going next…

Barney was here through President’s day weekend, and we got some really good early spring weather.

Here is Barney in the fountain at my parent’s house (the pug girls second home)

And looking west waiting for the sunset-

But no trip to California would be complete without some pool time.  So at the risk of perpetuating the stereotype of California in the winter, here is Barney soaking up some rays-

And yes that is SPF 30 sunscreen for his delicate purple skin.

I hope Barney enjoyed his California vacation.  I have a feeling that the next stop will get him back into the KILLBARNEY scene where he will have to fear for his little purple limbs!!

One thing about pugs- they are usually always hungry, and they will usually eat just about anything.

So there is another unique thing about Maggie the tri-pug.  She has always been a bit more picky about food than any pug I have met.  And now, with her new issues she had become picky to the point of loosing weight.  Now I know that there have been some stomach issues in the last couple of months.  She is eating OK now, but still refuses some of her favorites.

This video shows Mag and her sis Tani in true pug form.  Waiting patiently for lunch (a hold over from the chemo days when she had to have pills, and now sometimes one of the main meals she will eat), and for ‘School’, where my dad has them do a few tricks for additional snacks.  You will see school is a little loose, and Tani anticipates which tricks she is supposed to do.

We attended our third NOR CAL Tripawds party on Saturday January 9, 2010, at the Mill Valley Dog Park in CA.  For the second month in a row we had seven tripawds playing at the park.  While not a very warm day we still enjoyed each others company and celebrated birthdays, ampuversaries, and meeting new friends.  We got to meet Max (and Linda) who were up with their pack from SO CAL, and Montana, who is in NOR CAL but we had not met before.   We also got to meet Bob and Emily who recently had to say goodbye to Angel Cherry.  It was so great to meet them in person, and hopefully we provided some amount of relief for them, if only for the afternoon.

I think I have heard everyone say at one time or another that this meet up is one of the highlights of the month- that is definitely true for me.

I am still working on my video skills.  One thing you will notice is that I cut off almost every one’s head, unless they were sitting or kneeling.  As I said earlier- when you have pugs you learn to aim low!!

Oh well, this is about our tripawds anyway.

When I first got Maggie we lived in a small house that had a couple of acres of open space behind us inhabited by all kinds of creatures including quail, cottontail rabbits, squirrels, foxes, and feral cats.  The rabbits lived in a bush pile near the back fence.  Maggie liked to chase the rabbits although she usually couldn’t see them if they were more than 20 yards away and sitting still.  I would say “rabbit” and Mag would just start running toward the brush pile.  Eventually the rabbit or rabbits would take off running and Mag would catch site of them and give chase.  I don’t think she ever got closer than about 10 yards from one.  She would lose interest pretty fast and find something else to sniff.

Now that she is nearing 11 years old her interest in chasing things has diminished a bit, but she still has that hunter instinct.   That is what remains of the instinct after  1000 years of breeding pugs as lap dogs.  We have a wabbit that is almost as big as her that she likes to put in its place once in awhile.  It is not clear to me why it sounds like a duck when you squeeze it, but Mag doesn’t care because she doesn’t hear that well anyway.

With apologies to Spirit Yoda here is Mag’s version of a Wabbit hunt:

My girls have always LOVED opening presents- especially those in bags.  We have to be careful about what we put on the floor, as both of them might try to open something early if no one is watching. For Christmas we always bag up a few new toys to watch the girls open them, and to entertain ourselves.

Tani seems to be really interested in the contents, while Maggie likes the process and like most little kids, she is happier playing with the wrapping than the toy.

Here is the first ever Pug Girls video:

Pug Girls Christmas 2009

We have been very busy lately- the time of year I guess.  With everything going on its hard sometimes to remember what is important in life.

Well leave it to the pug girls to remind me.  Not only do they make me laugh everyday, but they provide daily examples of how you should conduct yourself and live your life… as Jerry says  “be more dog”  (was that Jerry?).

Pugs have a hidden spiritual side (hidden by snorting and snoring) that they occasionally let out.

Here is their demonstration of the Yin / Yang principal:

One of my aunt’s is staying with me tonight, she lives in Chico and came down to have Thanksgiving with the family (21 people yesterday at my parent’s house!!).  She is recovering from a stroke suffered last spring.  I had a pretty invasive knee surgery last winter so we have been re-hab buddies.  Last spring we both set a goal to be able to walk farther than a ten year old, 3 legged pug!!  It took me six months but I finally was able to walk farther than Mag last summer.  It took my aunt a little longer- but she got there today!!

This afternoon we drove over to the park with the dogs.  My aunt still uses her walker on longer walks, and it allows her to do her other leg exercises during her stroll.  Well Maggie heard and saw the wheels and I think she thought it was her stroller!! So she kept sitting down by the wheels (which is how she tells me she wants to ride in the stroller).  So we put Maggie on the seat of the walker- and she was happy as can be.  My aunt pushed her all around the park and finally met the rehab goal of walking farther than a now 10.5 year old, 3 legged pug!

Of course I didn’t have my camera at the park, but we took a picture in the driveway when we got home.

I was playing with my camera on Sunday  trying to capture how much gray Maggie has on her face.  Most of these I took without really looking, sort of a point and shoot.  One of the great things about digital- take 100 pictures for a couple of good shots.

Anyway we were just sitting on the floor playing with some of her toys and wrestling around.

This is the classic pug ‘head cock’ expression for “whhhaaattt???”

What did you say?

Then just some face close ups- she has so many expressions!

This is getting old...

Happy Girl

Then I was laying on my back with Mag laying on my chest, she loves to do that.  Sometimes she was chewing on the camera strap.  I just pointed at her face and snapped a bunch of pictures.  I might use one of these for Mag’s avatar:

Yum... nylon strap

You lookin at me?

What are you looking at?

I really like the last one.  It captures a big part of her personality.

I took a bunch of other pics that I have to edit- some with little sister Tani who needs some pub too!!

Maggie attended her first tripawd party yesterday and had a great time.  At her age her idea of fun is to smell new smells, lay in the sun, and have people tell her how cute she is while petting her.  She got lots of all three yesterday.

Mag was a bit nervous after we dropped her little sister off with my parents, usually the only place she goes without Tani is to the vet.  Maybe next time I’ll bring Tani too- she is not too good around big dogs, but maybe Cemil can convince her that not all big dogs are evil and need to be attacked!

We got to meet four other tripawds, and lots of other dogs and people at a really cool dog park on a spectacular fall day in California. We met Travis Ray who is a German Shepard pup looking for a home.  He is very calm and composed and did really well around all the dogs. We also met Caira Sue who made us tired just watching her run. Shelby was there with her little red wagon. She is a beautiful little Golden Retriever who was also tiring to watch. We also saw Cemil who we met last week. He is much more our speed, but he is so big that all Mag can see are feet (unless he is laying down).

It was fun to meet everyone and enjoy a nice afternoon watching the doggies play or lay.

Shelby chillin

Maggie hanging with Travis Ray

Travis Ray and Caira Sue say hey

Maggie with the big boys, Cemil and Travis Ray

He's not that big...

An attempt at a group photo... where did Shelby go?

Maggie exploring

Shelby and Maggie checking it out

Where is everyone going?

Lap dog

Shelby sits still

Oh Yea...

Caira in a rare moment of inactivity

Use this to throw the ball again...please?

There goes Caira again!

Maggie takes it all in

Ball, grass, sun...

Cemil chillin

Maggie scored a cool tripawds bandanna too, but it is a bit too big for her to wear.  So after an exhausting day she did the next best thing to wearing it- she fell asleep on it!

What a day!

I spent part of the afternoon building a small stair unit to make it easier for Maggie’s younger sister Tani to get up on the bed.  I don’t think it will work for Mag,  still a bit too steep.  Tani has diligently ignored it since I put it by the bed, insisting on getting up on the chest, then the bed like always.  Usually later in the evening Tani won’t try anymore because the arthritis in her back bothers her, so I’m hoping she will try it tonight.  Most likely it will sit there unused and I will forget about it and when I get up to use the bathroom tonight I will wreck and the girls will be treated to words I’m glad they can’t repeat!

While I was building I was thinking about some of the accomodations I have made over the years for the pug girls. Of course since Maggie became a tri-pug many of them center around her.  I had to lower the dog door so she could just step through (and yes it still has the temporary patch with wood and duct tape, it has only been three years!).  When I built my deck I made the one step up tri-pug hight and width.  The step also has a piece of carpet for traction.  I just built a paver walkway through some loose rock so Mag can get to the far side of the yard.  Where ever there is tile in the house the throw rugs aren’t more than about 4 feet apart.  I have stroller for her- which brings a a laugh to almost everyone we meet on the street.  There are many more tri-pug accomodations- including some that didn’t work.  I tried to raise her food dish- but she didn’t like it.  She is pretty low to the ground so it’s OK.  I put a ramp on the side of my bed- no way would she use that.

Then I was thinking about the stuff I do just because I have the pugs. They spend a lot of time with my parents- so their house is equipped with toys, beds, leashes, and a supply of  food and dishes.  I have a crew cab truck (4 or 5 seater), but the back seat is always folded down for the girls.  Here is the one that cracks me up- the number of dog beds I have in my house.  Now keep in mind that  I live in a small two bedroom house, about 1400 ft2, and the girls sleep with me at night.  I have SIX dog beds in my house, five of which they can sleep in together!

I like to pretend I am the one in charge around here, but I’m not sure the evidence supports it…