Tuesday, September 27th, 2016

Max and Sadie always know how to have fun. They were waiting patiently in their kennel when I went to get them and burst out as soon as I opened the gate. We put their collars on and headed outside to find their friends. Max instantly ran into Rosie and raced off to the grass yard wrestling and bouncing the whole way there. Sadie followed close behind and trotted over to the picnic table to climb up and watch her brother play from a safer distance. Kyah noticed her buddy sitting on the table and climbed right on up beside her. Sadie started nuzzling Kyah’s face and ears really wanting her attention. She can be such a sweet girl. Max and Rosie continued to tumble around the yard together with Percy hot on their heels. Percy joined in on the fun throwing a hip check and adding his two cents to the play. Sadie couldn’t resist not playing with her brother and friends. She bounced her way over to the fun and followed along as they all raced around the yard. Everyone took a break to cool off in the shade and relax before going back for round two! They will be tired dogs tonight!

Percy is always up from some good action during playtime. He loves to watch his friends play and tell them what to do from the side lines. Every now and again he will hop into the middle of it and join in. Percy managed to get Max away from Rosie for a little bit to chase him before Rosie and Sadie joined back in on the fun. Percy took a break from playing by checking out the tunnel and doing his laps inside of it. He went from one side to the other and back again, over and over again. He is such a silly boy in the tunnel. Justice was curious as to what Percy was doing and followed him in to the tunnel, he quickly realized Percy turned right around at the end and Justice had to back out of the tunnel to make way for Percy! I stole Percy’s attention away from the tunnel with a rope toy. He was super excited for me to throw it and would leap high in to the air to catch it, he would grab it in his mouth and instantly drop it. We finished off group time by playing a bit of Frisbee

Fez is such a perky old guy. He has a huge crush on a younger female yellow lab named Cascabelle. Fez followed her around the yard like a lost puppy dog it was so sweet. Nothing slows him down, Cascabelle was playing Frisbee with me and Fez wanted so badly to join in. He would watch me take the Frisbee and throw it across the yard and then follow his new friend. He thought this game was great, as Cascabelle brought the Frisbee back he would turn around back to me and bark until I threw it again. He is always in such good spirits. He sauntered around the yard for the remainder of the group saying hello to his group mates. He made sure to show Emma around since today was her first day of her stay. He checked out the tunnel and decided that was for younger dogs and came over to me for a few cuddles.

Dexter is a funny little guy, with a quirky personality. He started his day off with a walk with his friends Rex and Kodiak. These three boys know their way around the trail like the back of their paw. The lead me around the loop stopping to sniff the odd thing before getting back to their main task, walking. After morning walks Dexter headed out for groups to do some exploring. He is definitely an independent little guy keeping to himself while he searches the yard in hopes of some lost treasures. He wasn’t too keen on the camera so instead I started running around the yard to get him to chase me. The whole group thought this was great and joined in following me around. A whole new side of Dexter came out and he started acting like a puppy hopping after me with me side steps and play bows. After doing this for a while we settled down to have a few more sniffs around the yard before heading inside to relax for the afternoon.

Pelley was so excited to meet her new group mate Rhodri that she didn’t want to leave his side! Rhodri is an independent kind of guy and prefers to keep to himself. Pelley on the other hand insisted and trying to get him to be her friend and follow her around the yard. I noticed Pelley didn’t want to come play with her other friends so I popped Rhodri back in at the end of group time so she could have some fun with the others. We headed out to the grass yard where she found an awesome bone to chew on. Miko realized his buddy had joined him in the yard and started woofing at her to play with him. Pelley tried to ignore him by picking her bone up and finding somewhere else to chew on it, but she couldn’t resist him. She put her bone down and started chasing Miko around the yard and stopping to wrestle with him before heading inside.

Pearl started her day off with a walk with her best friend Miko and other daycare buddy Rocky. These three like to take their time around the trail stopping to sniff and explore as much as they can. When we headed outside Pearl went straight to the picnic table and hopped up for some bum scratches. She danced around on the table tapping her toes before hopping off to do some exploring around the yard. Lola joined Julie this morning for her walk. We headed out the front door to mosey around in the grass and try to convince Julie to come with us. Julie had no interest in going for a walk today so Lola and I continued on without her. We got about half way down the driveway before Lola realized Julie didn’t have to walk so why should she. She put on the brakes and wouldn’t take another step, so we headed back inside with Julie for a few treats. During groups Lola strolled over to her favorite spot in the yard that gets the BEST sun. I carried Lola out to the grassy yard to socialize with her groups mates. She puttered around for a bit before heading back to her sunny spot to bask in the warm sun.

Miko is always so full of beans and excited to go outside for his group. He headed outside with his friends and Miko took up some very important exploring out in the yard. He wandered around with his nose to the ground before I could get his attention. He always seems to have springs in his feet and bounced over towards me. Now as we all know, he didn’t get close enough for me to catch him in case I made him go inside. He noticed Pearl wandering around the yard and pounced on her to play with him. Pearl shot off like a little rocket with Miko chasing after her. They darted around the yard like puppies and even got Resa and Shelby(Mimi) to try and join in on the fun. Pearl soon got tired and went back to her exploring leaving Miko with no one to play with, or so he thought. When I convinced Pelley to join us out on the grass Miko was super excited and followed her around trying to convince her to play. He can be quite charming and relentless and soon had his friend Pelley chasing after him.

Maya switched it up a bit today and went for a walk without Rocky this morning. She joined Finnigan on her walk and trotted around the trail with him. These two are so cute together and would stop to sniff everything together. When one would stop the other would be right behind them making sure they didn’t miss a thing. We put Maya out with the playful small dogs in hope she would find a friend and burn off some of her energy. She wasn’t too sure what to do without her brother by her side and just her group safely from the sidelines for the first part. I convinced her to join us on the grass and Taylor noticed she had no one to play with. Taylor loves to play and bounced around Maya, giving her kisses and play bowing until she finally convinced Maya to play. They raced off together, ripping and tearing around the yard and soon had the whole group joining in on the fun! Maya can be such a happy playful girl with the right puppy to convince her she should play!

Rocky tried something a little new today, which was a group without his sister Maya. I was pleased to spend some time with Rocky in the yard today. I convinced him to come into the grassy yard with me, and by convinced I mean I carried him. He didn’t mind the cuddles in my arms at all. I set him down on the picnic table where he was very thrilled to bask in the warm sun while being right in the midst of all the action. Occasionally some of his group mates would visit him on the picnic table and then hop off. Once he realized he could get down on his own he jumped down step by step and began to explore the grassy yard. Once Rocky was content with his investigating he made his way to the gravel yard and found his favourite spot to sit and relax.

 Issy and Mocha were very pleased to spend the day in the kitchen, where they were constantly getting love and attention from the staff. Issy was very pleased to be in there during lunch hour, where she kindly begged at our feet for anything we had to offer. The only thing she won from me was a strawberry, which she wasn’t too sure of at first, but to no surprise she ate it anyway. Mocha was also offered a strawberry, but she stuck her nose up at it. Mocha was pleased to receive a treat with peanut butter on it a little later (what a great disguise for medication). Mocha and Issy got to walk with Vega this morning, which was very cute to watch. Vega loves any and every husky, as she seems to thing they’re all her mom. Issy stuck her nose up to Vega for the majority of the walk, occasionally giving her a nudge letting her know that she can’t jump. Mocha watched Issy’s behaviour closesly and learned to treat Vega the same way. Both Mocha and Issy trotted along the trail without a care in the world for the little devil dashing and darting around them. Come group time, the duo was ready to motor down the hall and out the doors into the yard. Mocha and Issy were very pleased to be a part of a small, quieter group today. Without all the commotion going on, they were much more enticed to head into the yard and explore without hesitation. Issy spent most of the group time zipping around with her nose to the ground. She was very interested in the long grass at the back of the yard which kept her quite busy. When I brought Oban, a new friend, into the yard on a leash Issy began to act very smitten with him. She danced around him with her tail wagging and gave him a couple kisses on the nose. Oban wasn’t interested in her love so he carried on. This didn’t hurt Issy’s feelings at all, as she made her way in to the gravel yard to find Mocha. Mocha had spent the majority of her time outdoors sniffing and exploring too. She was very interested in the boulders in the yard today, for some reason. After doing a couple of laps with her nose to the ground she head into the gravel yard to bask in the sun before returning indoors.

Birdie was just as ready to get going in the yard today as she has been every other day. There isn’t anything that can slow this little firecracker down. After her thorough investigating, she came running over to my side looking at me wondering where all the toys were. I wanted Birdie to play around with the other dogs so I kept the toys away for a little bit. She didn’t mind this one bit as she quickly spotted her friends getting up to no good in the yard. Birdie was keen to join in on the fun and games, quickly forgetting that she didn’t have a toy in her mouth. Birdie loves pouncing around with Finnigan and also enjoys light wrestling with Rex. As their games were dying down I figured it was time to now bring out some toys to keep them busy. Birdie, Finnigan, and Rex were thrilled to see me with a ball and a Frisbee. I didn’t even get a chance to throw them before these kangaroos sprung up and snatched them out of my hands. Birdie was so happy to have her favourite orange ball in her mouth. She began trotting around the yard with her head held high, showing off her treasure. Her mates were pretty busy with the Frisbee, which seemed to bother her that they weren’t giving her their attention. Therefore, she began dancing around in front of them, dropping and picking the ball back up to tease them and get them involved in her games. Finally the pair gave in to Birdie and began zipping around with her. Rex wasn’t shy at all to stick his face into her face trying to snatch it away. Birdie wasn’t even going to think of dropping her toy for him so she continued to zip around swinging her head away from him. Finally, Rex decided to pull a fast one on her and grab the Frisbee and begin flaunting it in front of her! Boy, did this ever work. Birdie instantly dropped her toy and began zipping after Rex. Rex was absolutely thrilled to have this pretty girl following him around. Finally, Rex handed the toy over to me for me to toss. Rex, Birdie and myself played a couple rounds of Frisbee until the pair was tired enough to take a break and explore. At this point, Rex was more than happy to hang out by my side and accept pats and cuddles while Birdie snatched her favourite ball, lay down, and chewed on it. It seems as though Birdie is always wagging her tail! For today’s extra attention we went out in to the yard to play some fetch. Birdie was pretty excited to get outside, and once her feet hit the grass her nose was to the ground. Birdie sniffed and sniffed all over the yard from one end to the other. I finally got her attention with the toys and tossed the toy around for a while. She was much more interested in her blue rubber bone and would chase after it until it stopped bouncing. She would stand over the bone and watch me until I would walk over to her. She would then pick up her bone and race away to do the same thing again! Near the end of our time together Birdie settled down with her bone for a good chew before heading in.

Brodie and Cara were thrilled to see me walk down the hall with leashes in my hand this morning. These two sure do enjoy their morning walk. As I head into their kennel ready to hook them up, the duo wouldn’t stop bouncing and pouncing. I had to wait for them to settle down before we could get going. As we head out onto the trail this pair was insistent on sniffing every last smell under their paws. After some encouraging, we finally got moving and began our walk along the trail. As we continued along, Brodie stopped at most of the plants to sniff while Cara would run around him asking him to get a move on. After lots of exploring, we made it back to their kennel where they happily snoozed until their group outing. During groups today the pair took a while to get playing. They both were very curious about each and every one of their group mates so they took their time getting to know them. After some enticing, Cara began to dance around with me and a rope toy. We had a great game of tug, which she is deceivingly good at. All her growling and groaning as she was tugging drew a bunch of attention to her, and next thing she knew she was dancing and prancing around with a couple of her group mates. As they broke off from the game, some head onto the picnic table, which was very interested in. She wandered up and down on the bench, sniffing her pals on the table while doing so. Brodie finally joined in on her adventuring and the pair began to sniff and explore the grass yard side by side. Brodie found the big hole which has slowly become bigger over the years. He had his whole body deep down in it, with his bum sticking up. After investigating this hole he backed himself out and met up with some group mates for a quick bounce around. Brodie can be so silly when he wants to play. I find he tends to bounce backwards while shaking his bum, then will jet forwards at his playmate. I had a good time watching him good around until it was time to head indoors.

Abbie and Jock were pleased to accompany myself and their friend Ringo on a walk today. Ringo is a very strong, fast walker, which got Abbie and Jock moving faster than usual on the trail. This pair likes to take their time on walks, however today they were much more keen to keep up to their fast friend. In the yard Abbie was pretty content to sit back, relax, and watch her group-mates goof around. She spent a good portion of groups in the gravel yard, sniffing and exploring. She slowly made her way into the grassy yard when she realized most of her group-mates were there. Abbie briefly met up with another Westie and did some exploring by her side. She then retreated to my side at the picnic table for some pets and cuddles. Jock made his way into the grass yard the minute he got outside for group outing. Jock motored around the perimeter of the grass yard with his nose to the ground doing some serious investigating. After some convincing, Jock met up with some of the playful pups in his group. Jock briefly danced around with Brodie, before making his way to his sister’s side. He then too gladly accepted a couple pats and scratches.

I had the pleasure of walking Amber, Iris, and Darby this morning. It’s lovely to have Darby here for a change, which really helped encourage Amber even more. Amber needed a little bit of convincing to come out of her kennel attached to a leash. I carried her into the yard, and from there it was no problem at all. Amber followed Iris’s lead, as usual, and scurried along the trail right by her side. Darby kept up with them for the first part of the walk but by the end she was happier taking it slow by my side. Amber and Iris really do walk fast for their little size. We had a great time trotting along the trail, I was very impressed with Amber’s willingness to sniff and explore on her own. Come group time, Iris and Darby shot out of their kennels and motored down the hall and out the door without a worry in the world. Amber is still getting used to leaving her comfortable familiar space in the kennel. After a bit of convincing, Amber made her way into the yard where she was quick to find Iris. The duo was quick to scurry around the yard sniffing and exploring. Iris got the zoomies midway through groups today and had a fun time zipping around the yard. Amber and Darby were very aware of her every move, watching her from the outskirts of the yard. Neither of them showed any interest in joining in on her games so they hung out by my side watching. After Iris got all her energy out, she came to my side and pawed at me until I picked her up. I was glad to sit with her on the picnic table where Amber quickly met us. I had a good cuddle session with the pair before heading back into the yard to hang out with their group-mates. I found Darby digging in the grass and rolling in it, the hopping up and darting off as if she had been caught doing something bad. She wiggled her way over to me after darting off, and politely asked for a kiss and a cuddle. Overall, the trio had a wonderful day.

Abby and Dudley were feeling very ready when it came to walks this morning. These two were bouncing off their kennel walls as I entered with leashes. After calming down a little bit, they got into their harnesses and we made our way out onto the trail with their Yorkie friend, Tyson. Abby and Dudley walk very fast considering their size. They kept me moving at a brisk pace throughout the entire walk, stopping to sniff occasionally. In the yard today Abby was much keener to sniff and explore than play. She kept a couple of her quieter friends company in the gravel yard while I hung out with the more playful pups in the grass yard. Dudley was happy to head into the grass yard where he began some sniffing and exploring. As he was walking around investigating the premises, his pal Kado made a run for him looking to play. Dudley was more than happy to give in and play around with him. As usual, the duo got going on a nice boxing match, which quickly led to zooming around the yard. Their games drew lots of attention to them and soon enough a bunch of their pals were pouncing around the duo as they played. Dudley was looking or an out of all the action and spotted myself and Abby cuddling on the picnic table. He came over to my feet and nuzzled his way between my legs. Meanwhile, Abby was sprawled out on top of the warm picnic table, soaking up every last ray of this warm weather. During their extra attention this morning this pair was happy to head up to the reception area where they love to get as much attention as possible. As usual, Abby monkeyed her way around the front, climbing on everything and anything. She was happy to snack on some of her kibble which was on top of a desk. Dudley was very fascinated by our veterinarian who was standing up front talking. He barked at him a little bit, then weaved in and out of his legs. After this he retreated to me where he was pleased to be cuddled and loved.