Job Inquiry

I received an email last week:

Will you hire me? I don't have an extensive resume but I like chewing things and having my belly rubbed. Plus I have cute pictures attached.

Oscar the puppy.

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

Bad Omen? or Just like Daddy?

Oscar is turning 13 weeks old on Halloween. Chris was born on Friday the 13th in October.

Hmmmm...

Anyways, last Sunday, Oscar had his first puppy play date with Rory, the Golden Retriever. Rory is such a great dog! And so soft (like Cashmere) as Chris pointed out.

Here are some pics:

From Diary of Oscar

Usually Oscar is rolled onto his back by Rory.

From Diary of Oscar

Crazee eyes Oscar here...

From Diary of Oscar

Some more wiggling...

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

Lots of kisses...

From Diary of Oscar

Rory finds Oscar's ears reallly tasty

From Diary of Oscar

Doing the puppy walk about...

From Diary of Oscar

Oscar's down again!

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

Nice Oscar.... :o

A few days later, chewing on the bits of his bully stick:

From Diary of Oscar

(I just noticed that his red rocket is coming out... totally makes sense. Bully stick makes Oscar happy = Oscar's O face)

Oscar was better at Puppy Kindergarten on Monday. He first worked with him with the gentle leader one, and he was great. But since he was pulling a lot, his nose was turning red, so we took it off. Then it became REALLY difficult to control him, but he was much better than last week. We spent most of the class on the floor with Oscar. Of course he got a chance to play with Rory, and they do a great job of doing back and forth; great puppy etiquette.

Over the weekend, we had Wil and Liz over for poker Friday night. He was great while we were out having sushi, and came back and he was so happy to see them again. He was really good about the chewing, and was very well behaved. He did scratch Liz on the lip by accident, but he really wanted to get on the couch. He slept in the crate while we played in the living room.

Saturday, we took Oscar over to Wil and Liz's house for more poker.
Here's pic of Oscar in the car:

From Diary of Oscar

He was kinda frantic in the beginning, but started to relax, and fall asleep. Hopefully by Christmas time, he'll be a pro in the car and sleep well.

Everyone at the house loved Oscar. He came out to play for a bit during our breaks, and when back in the crate, he cried and cried because he loves being with people.

We've noticed recently that Oscar LOVES the couch. He loves sleeping on it, chewing on his toys on it, and cuddling up with us (if he's in that mood). I haven't seen him jump up on the couch yet, but Chris said he already witnessed it.

Here's one last random picture of Oscar:

From Diary of Oscar

12 Weeks Old!

I cannot believe our pup pup Oscar is already 12 weeks old! Starting next week, the dog walkers are only coming once a day... so hopefully Oscar's bladder is ready for that.

Today, Oscar was a sweet heart. Mornings are hit or miss. Sometimes he's very calm and loving. Other days, he refuses to venture out in the cold (backyard) and tries to eat my legs, pants, and shoes. This morning was one of the better mornings.

I've been having Oscar play in the kitchen now that we have gates, while I make lunch and chat with Chris in the morning. Yesterday, he had some shark spine, this morning, he had a big braided bullystick.

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

This is of course following an intense breakfast of training, kibble by kibble. Usually he's usually pretty beat and just wants to be lazy and chew on something. So that's his reward. Then we go outside for another pee (after a good chew, usually is followed by a good pee) and play around for a bit if he wants. Then, we RUN to the crate, and within 5 minutes, he's down, snoring, and cuddled up.

A few days ago, I bought him a big stuffed blue bone. It's pretty big. And sometimes he lightly chews on it, but mainly uses it as his pillow:

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

These are photos from yesterday morning. About 15 minutes before I need to leave for work, I open up the crate and take him outside for his final morning pee. But lately, this is what I see.... sleepyhead:

From Diary of Oscar

Eye crust and everything.

From Diary of Oscar

Oscar's first puppy kindergarten class

Oh boy oh boy... what a ruckus!

Actually, it went okay. He didn't hurt anyone, maybe just himself! So the night started off really well. Good sniffing of the butt of a baby pug (Sadie, so cute!). He met some kiddies, but I wasn't sure how he would do with babies, so told the parents to be careful. In hindsight, I should've given some food to the kid to feed Oscar, but I forgot (That is the hardest thing about being a puppeh mama- having treats on you, clicking all the time, and/or remembering to treat).

The first 20 minutes was great. Oscar was distracted by the baby bichon frise (Summer) but for the most part, he was very receptive. My thoughts are that maybe Oscar was still hungry, but after all those treats (click and treating for being calm, all 4 legs on ground, lying down, sitting, paying attention to us, etc) must've gotten full since Chris fed him 3/4 of a cup of dinner (he forgot). Next time, hungry Oscar will hopefully be better behaved Oscar.

I then took him out for a pee break, and he did eventually, after he sniffed everything in the front lawn. When I brought him back... oh it was tough. Suddenly he was like, "OOH friends~!!!!" I didn't want to pull back on his leash, but I also didn't want to him to get access to other dogs without my permission. It was really hard. I was sweating. It was very difficult.

Eventually, we got to play, and Oscar had a ball of a time with the baby golden (Rory) and Rory and Oscar fell in love! Rory was a bit rougher and more rambunctious, so it worked out well. What Ruth taught us was to call them again after a few minutes of play, distract them, then reintroduce them. When we didn't, we saw it get escalated too much. The play became too rough and when they were separated, Oscar growled.

We also finally met Normal, the American Mastiff. What a cutie she is! She's still shy and a big afraid of dogs, but I think they'll eventually become friends.

So in sum, Puppy Kindergarten was hard, but it was good. Hopefully it will get better each week... and in the meantime, Rory and Normal can come over and meet Oscar some more. Also, I think Chris and I should take Oscar to more public places, like the grocery store, BowWowMeow store, or Library (plus I want to get the next Twilight book!).

I also think Ruth will be coming by this Thursday evening to do the final lesson with the gentle leader. I was able to put the GL on Oscar by myself this morning! I was so excited. I couldn't use the clicker, but it was good. I did some "walk by me" with his GL on (no leash) but eventually he started pawing, so I took it off and stopped the treats. I think the GL was a bit too loose, so maybe that's why he started pawing (which he rarely does).

Chris trainged Oscar to walk on our left side, which Oscar did great with the regular collar and leash in the kitchen.

So finally, here's a picture of Oscar eating the remainder of his breakfast with pumpkin with his GL still on...

From Diary of Oscar

A busy weekend!

Sometimes handling Oscar alone is a huge task, and it usually takes two people. I was gone all day Saturday night to work a wedding, so I know Chris was overwhelmed at certain points throughout the day.
I came home around 11:45 pm, and I saw Chris sleeping on the couch and Oscar sleeping in the crate, while the baseball game was on TV. I took Oscar out for a quick pee and put him on top of Chris for another nap. This is what they looked like:

Both completely pooped from the day.... so cute!

Today I went to Target to get more stuff for Oscar (I'm like a money dispenser when it comes to my baby!):

The old stuffed soccer ball was falling apart - mainly from the rolling around sticks and getting chewed up by his teeth when the thrashes it around. So I got him this ball in Red, since he loves a big ball to play around with:

I also got him another big stuffed toy (also to bring for puppy kindergarten tonight) and also because Christ mentioned that we should have more stuffed toys for Oscar. Sometimes he loves the feeling of something soft in his mouth, as opposed to a bone or a raw hide.

This morning, it was about 30 degrees, and Oscar definitely got cold. He did his business and sat by the door. He did not want to stay out there. Yesterday, he sat in the sun and ignored all our commands because he was too cold. On Friday, I bought him a vest thingy from Old Navy, in cool blue, so he can be warm.

Lastly, Adina brought over a baby gate for us last week, and we put it up this morning. Then I saw Oscar climb up the kitchen steps to come around to the living room! So I had to buy another gate for that stair well. I hope Chris and I don't trip over one!

Ruth came over yesterday for a training session, and we got the gentle leader on him and fitted. We did a lot of clicker training with the gentle leader on his nose, and she gave us next instructions to prep him for the next big step (walking with the leash on the gentle leader):

1) Click and treat when he has the nose loop on and he's calm.

2) Click and treat when he's calm and we pull down on the nose loop.

3) Put the gentle leader fully on, and give him our twist and treat so he associates yummy treats and food with the gentle leader (keeps his focus away from trying to paw off the nose piece). After 3 minutes, take off the head collar and take away his twist and treat.

His diahaerra got worse this weekend. We got him some pumpkin yesterday so I put that in his kong for a snack. We'll keep an eye on his poop....

We have puppy kindergarten today, with all the other puppies and I couldn't be more excited. Oscar has no idea what fun he will have tonight!

Happy 11th Week Birthday!

Oscar turned 11 weeks old today. Yes, I will be one of those mommies who celebrates each birthday... by the week.

Lots of news, but first, I wanted to show you a picture of Oscar walking Sammy on his leash

From Diary of Oscar

Photo courtesy of Karen. You can't seem Sammy in this picture, but Oscar demonstrates how to walk a dog on a leash.

Speaking of leash... we got Oscar the Gentle Leader head collar. Chris, Adina, and I have all been working with Oscar to learn to love the collar.

Since the nose has to go through the nose loop, we treat him everytime he puts his nose through the loop. For the first time between me and Oscar, I had the loop sitting on his nose while I kept treating him, and he looked like he didn't even notice it was on! Then I talked to Adina, who actually got the collar clipped and fitted, and he did great! Then... Chris told me he got pretty far too! Either Oscar is playing dumb with me, or I'm not very good at the training thing.

I can't wait for Oscar to start wearing it... like this: We got his in bright blue, to match his regular collar and his leash. He's so color coordinated! :)

I remember seeing a guy walking his big dog (like a boxer) and he was using this head collar. I remember thinking, it's kinda like a muzzle, but it's not, but the dog looks well behaved; why is he wearing that?! Now I know! It's just for better control for walks - to keep him from sniffing every gosh darn thing on the ground. I'm very excited!

We also did a test run with the bullie stick yesterday. He loved the smell of it right away! He started chewing, but couldn't figure out how to chew efficiently on it, and it resulted him in pushing the stick through the bottom gap of the crate. Hence, we had to keep going in to get the stick for him. Finally, we decided to make sure of my old science text books.

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

It keeps him from pushing the stick through the bottom of the crate. Eventually he figured out that if he angles the stick against the books, he has a strong grip to chew. Smart dog.

Here is Oscar with the stick today:

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

I gotta say... the stick is smelly. Our living room smells like butt. But it keeps Oscar happy!

I instructed Noah to take it out when he came in the morning, and to give it back after his second session. That way, he's not chewing on it all day (it's very high in calories and protein).

As for the waggle.... I didn't stuff enough of his breakfast in it for him to associate food and the waggle. He rolled it around and was like, "Hmph, what does this do again?" and looked up at me: "Woman, stop playin' and give me my food." So I hand fed him, and did Sit and Stay again - which has been keeping him from biting my hands during the day. Ruth, the trainer, suggested we stuff almost all of the dinner in there, so that he can try to reach it with his tongue, and then he'll really associate it with the toy. Also, that we should add a few extra smelly treats with the kibble so he knows something super duper yummy is in there. (Got that Chris for tonight?)

So this might be TMI for some, but Oscar has been constipated and having diahaerra at the same time. Um... yeah, weird i know! Adina suggested giving him a spoonful of canned organic pumpkin. Even better, to freeze them into cubes and put it in his kong. Can't wait to try it!

What Oscar has in store for him later!

This morning was fun! After a quick pee, breakfast (sit and stay and hand feeding) and then some training, we got in the car and said bye bye to Daddy Chris. We watched from the other side of the train tracks, and I fed him lots of little cheese bits as the trains went by. The first train did a backfire thing, and the noise scared the crap out of Oscar, but I gave him lots of cheese.

I walked him quickly towards the car, and the 2nd train came, but Oscar was more excited about all the people that came off of it. Two ladies stopped by and petted him and loved him, and Oscar was great. One lady actually look a picture of him. Of course! He's gorgeous!

His car ride home was great... This was his first time sitting in the front seat all by himself. He stood watching me most of the time - and I had ran out of cheese! But I don't think he was scared. I drove really slowly with him, but hopefully, we can try to make a longer trip and see how he does. I would like to eventually take him all the way to Frazer for the occasional doggie day care trip while I'm at work.

From Diary of Oscar

From Diary of Oscar

Eventually, Oscar went to bed, after some crying, whining, barking, howling, and alleviated with some PB in his Kong toy...

I left a bit early today for some errands, but was pleasantly surprised that a dog/cat store in Narberth Pa was open at 9! So I headed over there to pick up a nonsmelly bully stick for Oscar.

At the store, I couldn't resist other things...

I saw Nello (trainer's dog) eating his dinner out of this... worked great. I think Oscar would love it, and also help with his aggressive chewing and energy in the mornings.

Bullie sticks.... made of bull... ahem... stuff.

I got the non-smelly kinda. Apparently it can also stain your carpets... I think I got the good stuff. I think Oscar will go nuts over this. Keep him realk busy in the crate, and also will love his crate even more.

My new favorite treat to give Oscar. I found these at the little gourmet doggie store in Northern Liberties, and was happy to see that they offered them at BowWowMeow. Originally I got Oscar Salmon, but this time, got chicken. Might be easier on the stomach.

I also picked up some more Nasonex from CVS... since I'm actually allergic to dogs!

Just a side note: Daddy forgot to properly lock the crate last night, so Oscar quickly slipped out, went for the extension cord by the bed, and also peed there (just a little bit)... then went and pulled out my bathing suits from my drawer (since it's broken), then went for the phone wires... which then knocked the phone over and woke us up both. Chris said Oscar's houdini... I think Chris is just bad at locking the crate.

10 Weeks Old

So Oscar turned 10 weeks old last Friday - he's approaching 11 weeks, and boy, is he getting big quick! His face is still cute and soft, but you can see that it's starting to mature a bit.

From Diary of Oscar

Taken this morning, he got up just as I was snapping a pic of him.

From Diary of Oscar

Now he's being good, but now he watches us like this because he thinks we'll drop treats in his mouth.

From Diary of Oscar

He looks like the perfect puppy here!

From Diary of Oscar

Coming closer with his sleepy eyes.

From Diary of Oscar

Stretching his neck to touch me...

He's cute. His morning, he was calmer than usual. I was able to start some of the training that we learned at Puppy Kindergarten last night.

It was our first class with Ruth. There were other owners there - owners of a mastiff, bichon, golden retriever, and pug. I like that there are two other big dogs, especially the mastiff. It sounded like the mastiff has similar training issues like Oscar does, such as eating twigs and rocks and trying to hide them in his jowls.

Ruth introduced us to the gentle leader head collar which is supposed to help us control Oscar on walks - to prevent him from sniff every goshdarn thing on the floor. I swear, one day, he will hit his head on something since he's always looking at the ground!

This morning, I started the following trainings:

1) Clicker reinforcement

2) Treated directly after every pee and poop

3) Tried the chase me game (tough one)

4) Intro to the nose loop of the gentle leader (getting there).

He only tried to grab my pant legs twice. And once he did, I ended play time and walked inside and watched him from the screen door. When I came back, he seemed good. Then later, he bit my arm and I said, "Ow!" and walked to the garage door and turned my back to him. About a minute later, he came right up to me and sat down quietly. I waited a few seconds, and then got him excited to play again.

We're getting there. I hope the gentle leader helps. Ruth likes to teach them slowly how wonderful it is, so hopefully by Sunday, she'll be able to come by and fit the collar on him, and maybe by the next class, he'll be very good and ready to use it.

Keeping our fingers crossed!

So much as happened!

Before I get started on the recap, I just wanted to say:


HAPPY BIRTHDAY, OSCAR'S DADDY!

Okay, I'm ready...

On 10/9, Thursday night, we took Oscar for his second vet visit. Oh goodness! They didn't even try to put him on the baby/puppy scale... Oscar went on the big dog table scale! When we first brought him home, he was about 16 lbs. This time, he was a whopping 25.5 lbs! What a fatty fat! :) Just kidding. He's a growing boy, that's for sure.

You can see that his legs are getting longer too ... he has the legs that every woman wishes for: long and lean and slightly muscular.

For this vet visit, Oscar got the lepto and booster (DHPP) shot. He's due for another booster shot on 10/30. At his next visit, Oscar will also get his heartworm tablet and Front Line.

In general, Oscar was pretty good at the vets office. This time, he was very aware of the other dogs, but we kept him focused with our cheddar cheese bits (which is used for very important situations - ie. Puppy training).

Speaking of Puppy Training, we start Puppy Kindergarten with Ruth tonight. First it's just the parents, and Oscar joins in tomorrow. I'm really excited. Oscar has been a bit more mischievous and disobedient (biting skin, growling, not listening) and I think this training will help me be a better owner.


This weekend Tina came over to visit, and we all had a great time. Oscar loved her red shoes, but I think he learned to not eat them by the time she left. He was pretty good over the weekend in general, even when we had a bunch of people over.

Not much else to report, except that Oscar went on his first walk on Sunday! Chris and I "dragged" him to Joa Mart. He did great getting there - using a red bandana and lots of treats and love, but on the way back, he was much more tired. He even lied on the grass to relax!

I tried to walk him again yesterday morning. No success at all, not even remotely. Chris' success level was about the same: nonexistent.

Again, I cannot WAIT until puppy kindergarten!

New bed for Oscar

So... Oscar is finally sleeping through the night... or rather, waking up 1 hour before we do, just to mess with us! :)

During the day, Oscar sleeps and plays in his crate downstairs - which he loves. At night, he's in the upstairs crate, which is a bit smaller and also more den-like since we cover it with an Eagles fleece blanket. Early on, we worried that he might pee on the blanket, so we removed it (also to remove his associate of blankets and chewing). As a result, whenever he moves in the crate, we can hear the click clack of his nails, and it's kind of annoying!

Now that he's sleeping through most of the night and hasn't had an accident in a while, I bought him a small super soft doggie bed. It say, "Boy pup" on it. It's super cute, and it was only $25 (compared to slightly larger beds for $60. Chris complained it might be too small. I disagree. It is not small, but yes, he will grow out of it quickly... but hey, for $25, we're testing out the bedding. I want to make sure Oscar even likes sleeping on it before we invest in one that is over $50.

He tried to eat it and chew it in the crate last night, but after 10 minutes he was snoring... LOUDLY. Chris and I laughed at Oscar's snoring and then 20 minutes later, we were both snoring.

This morning, it appears that Oscar may have peed in the bed. There are two possibilities for this: 1) He peed in it last night while he got excited playing with the new bed, or 2) He peed in the morning prior to his usual 6:15am morning and slept right through it. Personally, I think it's somewhere in between... because when I took him out at 6:15, he peed for a LONG time.

Anyways, enough stalling on my part. Here are the pics!

From Diary of Oscar

Exhibit A: Oscar here is digging the bed to the edges of the bed wall. The blue bone stuff toy also came with the bed, along with a super soft blanket. Oscar is not allowed to chew blankets, so I'll hold on to it, or use it for photo opportunities when he's actually sleeping.

From Diary of Oscar

Okay, cutest picture ever! Everyone: Make it your new desktop!

Note the bone: Um... I came home at 6:45 pm with the new bone. Introduced it to Oscar at 6:50 pm in the kitchen. At 6:51, Oscar had taken it and walked right to the back door. 6:52pm, I let him out thinking he needed to pee... at 6:52:30, Oscar thrashed around with the toy and got it successfully VERY dirty.

From Diary of Oscar

It's like he knows he's posing for the camera.

From Diary of Oscar

He looks like he's sleeping, but don't be fooled. He's just resting his head for a few seconds.

From Diary of Oscar

Back to playing...