Roadtrippin' with Two Old Buzzards

04/06/2023

25/11/2022

Besides Thanksgiving, today I celebrate 3 months of p*eing in a bag, thanks to my enraged prostate. On 12/28 I'm scheduled for my "procedure" which should allow me to once again p*e like God intended.

02/05/2021

We've been taking Lily May out to a coffee place near the Farmer's Market each weekend to get her socialized and accustomed to new noises, smells, having people around, having other dogs around.

On 4/29 we took her to meet our daughter and her husband up in Willow Glen. It was a very successful visit and our daughter was a great playmate for Lily. In fact, she wore Lily out!!

Then, on 4/30, a good friend of John's who also enjoys flying his drone, went down to San Benito County with John, Linda and Lily May. We got up at 5:15 and left the house at 7:00. It was a 161 mile round trip!

Lily got exposed to another person (they hit it off quite well), spent a nice day out of doors in a totally new kind of landscape (farm and ranch versus suburbs). It was really good for her. She was really tired out by the time we got home.

Today, back for another couple of hours at the Coffee Guys near the Farmer's Market. Got to visit with several folks we haven't seen in quite a long time. It was nice for us, and for Lily May.

Below are some photos John shot from the drone at three locations where they flew.

04/04/2021

Lily has a new playmate! - It's her Hyper Pet Dog's Tail - motion activated with sound FX and quite active.
We first activated it across the room so as not to frighten Lily. Over time she kept getting closer. Now, she often enjoys triggering it herself. Brings out her hunter instincts.

02/04/2021

Lily vs The Sloth - This is her favorite game. We work together so she can always catch this critter.

02/04/2021

DAY WHATEVER! - Lily progressing with crate training. Much less whining & shorter duration. She's getting good at signalling to go out and potty. Just needs her humans to act on her signals. Still occasional overnight crate p**ps, but getting better.

A frozen Kong toy filled with goodies (yogurt, peanut butter and kibble) is interesting to her as shown in video below.

Her favorite chase/tug activity is with her sloth plush toy. Will post video of that soon.

Tomorrow (Saturday) going down by the Farmer's Market for more socialization.

Yes, we're keeping her.

28/03/2021

SAT, 3/26 - DAY 8 - Took Lily to Two Guys Coffee around 10 and sat outside. Were able to get a few passersby to feed her some treats. Want to help her socialize.

25/03/2021

DAY 6 AFTERNOON- Vet visit a success. Lili in good health. Vet suggest we take her out many places for socialization. Stopped by Fro Yo Yogurt and Johnson Lumber on the way home.

Fed Lily her lunch at 3 p.m. this time trying with a snuffle mat. Both interesting and fun for Lily. Video below.

25/03/2021

DAY 6 - Big day today! But first, Lily did p**p in her crate overnight. During the day she is giving us signs that she needs to go outside. That is a very good thing.

We are off to do some shopping this morning. First stop Nob Hill Foods. Linda will go in and Shop while John waits in the car with Lily May. Our second stop will be Ace Hardware where Linda has some things to purchase. She will take Lily May into Ace Hardware with her. Should be interesting.

And, our final adventure for the day will be to take Lily May to South County Animal Hospital at 1:30 p.m. to see Dr. Rick for her puppy check-up.

25/03/2021

DAY FIVE - Linda woke John about 5:25 this morning. His turn to get up and Lily was awake and complaining. No big deal as his alarm was already set for 5:50. He was downstairs and had Lily outside by 5:40. Wonder of wonders, she p*e'd then promptly p**ped! When back inside, John checked her crate...no p**p! That's a first.

John & Lily played until 6:45. Then Lily got breakfast served in a puzzle bowl that makes dogs eat more slowly. Lily had fun with it as well.

Out after breakfast for another p*e opportunity. Then, more play time and snuggle.

25/03/2021

23/03/2021

RISE AND SHINE DAY 4 - T'was Linda's turn to get up with Lily Mae. John awoke when Linda crawled out of bed. So, he grabbed his phone and started a recording on the WiFi camera pointing to Lily's crate (infrared in the dark). He let it record until Linda got downstairs and took Lily May outside. The video is below. Linda shows up just after 3 minutes.

23/03/2021

End of Day 3 - Lily is starting to get used to her new family and environment.

Seems puppies get a sharp burst of energy mid-evening. One trainer we watch calls it "the zoomies".

Watch the 3 minute video below for a sample of Lily Zoomies. Yes, it is Lily squeaking the toys!

22/03/2021

Day 3 - John's turn to get up with Lily. Lily didn't wake us up during the night...alarm clock did at 6 a.m. She had done a little "business" in her crate. John took her out a few times (two successful). Played with her. Fed her breakfast (part as training treats) and snuggled with her on the couch. She's getting more confident and has even tackled the two steps out onto the patio. All this between 6 and about 7:45.

22/03/2021

Day 2, our first full day home. Lily is still whining and crying a bit when first put into her crate. But, we know what to do (ignore it.... don't reinforce bad behavior). The time it takes for her to settle down is getting shorter.

She is playful, curious, smart and food motivated (good for training).

We spent some training time today "luring" her with treats (actually just her kibble). You get her to follow your hand (it's holding a treat) around, luring her where you want her to go. You can lure her into some useful positions (sit, down, stand, etc). After many repetitions over several days, you can eventually fade the use of the lure and associate a word, like "sit" with the hand gesture you used with a lure. The real key is to reinforce when she performs the desired action (sit) by always saying "YES" within a second or so, then paying her...a treat.

Watching training videos, we've learned dogs are very smart.

Enough about that. Below is a link to a video we shot today while Linda was working with Lily May on luring in general, as well as luring her into a "sit". It was fun for us... and Lily!

https://youtu.be/R1hHmaynFSk

We spent just a little time Day 1 getting Lily to take food from our hands (gently). Good news is that she is pretty motivated by food. Especially before mea...

21/03/2021

Immediately after picking up Lily May from the breeder, we recorded this video in the car to introduce you to Lily. The videos and photos in our earlier post were shot after we go home from the breeder's.

https://youtu.be/co3lxvA44BU

We've been anxiously waiting and preparing for this day since January 25th, Lily's whelp day! We started shooting this about 1 block from our breeder's home ...

21/03/2021