Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier Puppies!!

These are the cutest Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier pups you could ever imagine!  They are both purebred Wheaten Terriers, and they are both just babies. Gemma (in the back) is only 10 months old.  Mac, her adopted baby brother, is only 5 months old!  They might not look like they are the identical breed to you, but  Wheaten Terrier puppies look very different than the adult dogs, and these two are in different stages of their development towards adulthood.

Gemma and Mac had their first Play Group this morning, and we had a blast!  I admit to having a strong preference for the breed, and of course I can't resist a puppy of any breed - who can?  But much of my admiration and enthusiasm for Wheaten Terriers is due to the fact that my Socrates is a Wheatable, or a mixed breed that contains some Wheaten Terrier in the mix.

You can see a slight resemblance between Socrates and Gemma in this photo, even though Socrates is quite a bit smaller and he doesn't have the pure wheaten colored coat that an adult dog would have.  But the similarities go far beyond looks.  Socrates has a lot of personality traits that are wheaten-like.  He loves people and never met a stranger he didn't didn't want to kiss.  He is happy, bouncy, exuberant, and affectionate - all Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier traits.  Socrates and Gemma got along famously all day!

The most important thing about our first Puppy Play Group was that everyone enjoyed themselves, despite the pups inexperience in dog to dog socialization.  They are still young enough to adapt easily to new experiences.

Mac had an especially good time chasing after everyone, but it was clearly Lexi he favored.  She was not inclined to get romantic with him, if you know what I mean, but she let him know her boundaries and all was well between them after that.

This was a particularly funny moment.  All three dogs are riveted to the sight and sound of a helicopter flying over the yard.  I imagine it was there because of the Boston Marathon being run just a mile or two away from us, but it was clearly an astounding apparition to Gemma, Mac, and Lexi.  

By the time the Play Group was winding down, Gemma was absolutely exhausted.  It was quite an overwhelming change for her to be interacting with strange new dogs and being somewhere strange without a single one of her human family members nearby.  But being physically drained didn't stop her from covering me with kisses when she got home.  I beleive we are all going to become very good friends very soon!

Maybe Babies

Have you ever seen such darling little dogies in your life? These two Maltese mixes are adopted brothers. The older dog is on the right.  He was bitten by a tick three weeks ago and is still having troublesome symptoms. He's trembling and he's limping, which are exactly the symptoms Socrates suffered when he had a tick born illness that required weeks of antibiotics.  He was tested at the vets when they found the tick three weeks ago, but since his symptoms have not improved he was going back to the vet after he tried out his first play group at Frisky Fido.

Poor little guy also gained 5 pounds over the winter - a huge increase for a dog that weighted 9 pounds before winter started.  His owner is thinking that Play Groups and Trail Walks will get him back in shape much faster than his daily leashed walks, and she's absolutely correct.  Getting an overweight dog back into shape is one of the major reasons dog owners contact Frisky Fido.  (His owner is also going back to work, which is another major reason for needing dog walkers and pet sitters). 

This little darling is Bubbles, a two year old Maltese mixed with maybe Shih tzu and/or possibly Tibetan Terrier?  He is an absolutely irresistible little guy, as you can see.  Poor bubbles is also facing a medical trauma in the next week or two; he's getting neutered!

What's really extra wonderful about these two dogs is that they are friendly, confident, and pretty well socialized already.  They love to run and play,as you can see by Bubble's glorious grin in this photo.

Both the Maltese mixes looked amazingly like Buddy, my partner's dog. They were even similar in size.  But Buddy has no Maltese in his mix - as far as I know, anyway!

I was really taken by these two pups, but considering their health issues, a vigorous exercise program might not be in the cards at this time.  I hope they both recover quickly and that they join one of our little groups very soon.  Who wouldn't want to pal around with them, right? :)

Terrific Togo!

Togo's owner asked me to take some photos of him in action, but the results were so horrible that I'm embarrassed to show them to her.  I know what the problems are, and I should have said I'd be happy to take photos of Togo some other time.  Yesterday, the lack of a lens filter and the blinding midday sun reflecting off of a bright white dog caused all sorts of problems.  

Togo is a magnificent dog, though, and the photos really don't due him justice.   A big, beautiful, pure white Shepard, Togo LOVES playing fetch. I mean, he REALLY LOVES playing fetch.  I don't think you'll see a photo of Togo without a ball in his mouth.  If you do see him without his ball, you can bet your butt he's chasing after it!

As you can see, Togo is playful and fun-loving. He's also gentle with the smaller dogs, friendly and affectionate towards people, and he seems happy all the time. Also, although you might not see it in this photo, he's soaking wet!

He is drenched because he swam across the pond to get his ball when it was thrown into the water. Boy, this dog can swim! He practically ran across the the surface of the pond in his eagerness to reach the ball, and then he swam like a duck until he caught the ball and then swam all the way back to land. And don't forget - that water was COLD! It was icy, icy cold!  If I do get another shot at photographing Togo, I definitely want to get a picture of that running on water action!

I like this photo because of the mischievousness in Togo's eyes. You can see how much fun he get out of all this running, chasing, and swimming activity.  He's just about grinning with joy - which is exactly what I like to see in a dog.  A dog's happiness is definitely contagious to humankind!  

Some Different Breeds

We saw the cutest Brussels Griffon at the park on Saturday.  She was very well behaved, very friendly, and she had the longest legs I've ever seen on the breed.  In fact, she was one of the largest Brussels Griffons I have seen!

According to the American Kennel Club, the Brussels Griffon should not exceed 12 pounds.  But as you can see, she is very close in size to my 24 pound Lexi.  

They are said to have almost human facial expressions, which certainly held true for this little dog.  You'll also notice that her tail is cropped.  I read somewhere that dogs with cropped tails often have trouble communicating with other dogs, because tail action is part of the language of dogs.  Wagging tails, tails held straight up in the air, tucked under tails, drooping tails; all are an integral part of dog-to-dog communication.  This dog didn't seem particularly affected, but in general I don't care to see a dog with it's tail cut off in order to meet some strange human concept of attractiveness or usefulness.


We also saw an absolutely gorgeous Long Haired German Shepard.   As far as I know, the long hair was once thought to be a fault for a German Shepard, one that would disqualify him from being shown or from being bred. Now, however, there are many breeders who specialize in the long haired variety of German Shepard.  I can see why.  At the same time they manage to look fiercer and larger than their short haired cousins, yet somehow they remind me of a big, cuddly stuffed toy!  

Here the two varieties of German Shepard are circling around each other to check each other out. Clearly nothing was amiss, because they peacefully parted ways and went off in different directions.

Dog Park Play

The dog park can be a carnival of fun for a Frisky Fido.  Most dogs love nothing more than romping and chasing and wrestling with other dogs.  Socrates and Lexi certainly love visiting the dog park area of Callahan State Park.   Like most terriers, Sox has no idea that he isn't a huge and mighty dog.

Socrates lives to run. He loves to be chased, and will entice other dogs to chase him by grabbing a stick or a ball. As long as he is running, he's loving it.

Socrates like hanging with the big boys.

A thousand generations of selective breeding have resulted in Socrates's love of the chase. The Wheaten terrier in him has made him a herder as well as a hunter. Wheaten terriers were the poor man's "jack-of-all-trades" kind of dog. They earned their keep by herding sheep, hunting vermin, and guarding against intruders. 

Today, these traits can can cause problems when other breeds don't want to be hunted or herded. For the most part, the dogs work it out between themselves. Occasionally, however, a timid or less socialized dog will find all the play overwhelming. He or she could end up running for their lives instead of running for fun.  When that happens, it's time for the humans to step in and call off the hounds, so to speak.  If even one dog is stressed or frightened, the dog park is no longer a haven for dogs.  For the frightened dog, its more like hell on earth.  It is always our responsibility as owners (or dog walkers!) to intervene in these situations.  Not to do so is just rude, crude, and socially unacceptable.  

The moral of this story?  You can't blame a dog for being a dog, but you can blame a humane for being inhumane.  

Introducing Lexi!

I've posted dozens of photos of Socrates, but we now have TWO Frisky little Fidos at our house.  This is Lexi, my feisty, fast, and definitely frisky little girl dog.  Lexi is a rescue from Houston, Texas.  You can probably see the Jack Russell Terrier in her, and she live up to the breed's reputation of being one of the most active dogs there is.  She's a mixed breed, but she acts like a Jack Russell.  She is friendly, fast, fearless, and funny as hell. I wake up every morning in hysterics as she licks my face frantically; desperately trying to lick inside my mouth! Lexi, like Socrates is a very active dog.  She needs at least two hours of VIGOROUS exercise every day, which is about right for terriers in general.  

Lucky for us, Lexi and Socrates get along extremely well, and they both live to run, jump, chase, and play.  Since their lives are so full and active, we have two very calm and composed dogs at home every evening.  They are both exhausted at the end of the day, but an exhausted dog is quiet, content, and trouble-free.  Can you put a price on a peaceful household and a calm dog?

There she goes - smooching me on the lips again!  That's Lexi all over! But I am not complaining; I love these two dogs to death, and I'm lucky that their active lifestyle prevents most of the behavior problems people encounter with hyperactive, terrier-type dogs.  I truly wish that more people were aware that most dogs are not getting enough exercise despite having daily walks around the block. I truly wish that more people understood that most unwanted and destructive dog behavior is easily cured with an hour or so of intense aerobic exercise every day.

These four are running like the wind for the pure joy of it.  And look who is chasing who!  Anyway, that is how I like my dogs; fearless, feisty, and tons of fun.  I can't speak for everyone, but my rescue dogs ROCK!

Mixing it up!

Who do you think would win a fight between a 70 + pound Great Dane mix and a 30 pound Terrier mix?  Most people would bet on the Great Dane, but it’s hardly a sure bet.  Why?  Well, I can give you at least three reasons why.

One: it’s not size that matters, its temperament.  Great Danes are known as Gentle Giants. They are usually sweet, friendly, steady, and sensitive.  They are not usually aggressive, although they may be protective.  Their great size tends to frighten people, but for the most part they behave more like massive lapdogs than guard dogs.  Certainly they are not aggressive towards other dogs, especially smaller dogs.

Terriers, on the other hand, can appear to be as aggressive as hell.  Usually all they’re really interested in is playing, which to a Terrier means chasing and being chased.  Terriers were bred to chase.  They were bred to chase vermin, and they were bred to kill vermin.  Terriers also have one of the highest energy levels of any breed of dog, so when they chase, they really chase hard.  Much larger breeds can find this behavior as intimidating (and as frightening) as hell.

Two: you may have noticed that I spoke of a Great Dane mix and a Terrier mix. Even with the DNA test, it’s almost impossible to know exactly what breeds are in the mix.  Knowing about dog breeds is very important when making up the ideal mix of dogs for playgroup, or when choosing walk buddies, but it’s not enough. You really have to know and observe the individual dogs, because temperaments vary so very much when you’re talking about mixed breeds.  By the way, 90% of the dogs I see are mixed breeds. Most are rescues, which brings us to the third reason that it’s nearly impossible to guess who wins in a fight between a Great Dane and a Terrier.

Three:  A dog’s temperament has as much to do with nurture as nature. Ideally, dogs are socialized to play with other dogs from puppyhood, but that’s rarely the case when you’re talking about rescue dogs.  While you should NOT make the mistake of assuming that all rescue dogs have been abused, you can pretty much bet that they were not perfectly trained since puppyhood.  Dogs that were not socialized as puppies and adolescents are usually lacking in dog-to-dog communication skills.  They may not recognize that certain behaviors and facial expressions are telling them to back off. They may not really understand where play and real aggression begins.

In this photo, Socrates is playing but Gracie is really afraid.  Eventually she’ll go belly up, and Socrates will win this play fight. Does this mean that Gracie and Socrates should not be allowed to play with each other? No, it really doesn’t.  It does mean that when they are playing together they should be carefully watched, and they should be separated (temporarily) when Gracie is really stressed.  For the most part, however, Gracie has a ball playing with Socrates.  And since Gracie’s mom is one of my best friends, these two will continue to play!