Summertime and the Dals are lazy... PLUS Yorkie news!!

Summertime has arrived here in the mountains and it's gorgeous. Average daily temp around 80. All the Doos are into the season and that means taking a lot of naps. If there was any square footage left on the screened in porch I'd be tempted to join them. Those of you familiar with dogs you know that a 10 pound dog can take up to a 3'x3' space. So knowing that, I am here to tell you that the average sized Dalmatian can use up a 4'x4' space. God forbid that one dog should touch another dog when sprawled out. When you have 6 of these critters that's more than the size of a porch So picture this, you know that Sunny and Sunfire can't be out at the same time so there are usually only 4 or 5 out on the porch and the other one or two sprawled out on my bed. They like to take as much room as possible. That includes laying full length (sometimes on back) with legs spread out in four directions, head extended as far as possible with tongue hanging out (hey that extra inch or two is important). In addition in an effort to use every square inch possible, both ears are extended to the sides, this is a favorite especially when laying on their backs. Of course I guess I could prevent this if I closed the doors and turned on the AC but the weather is beautiful, the porch is in the shade and screened and I have ceiling fans. I have found one way to get some porch space is go out there with cookies. This immediately gets their attention. Take a few cookie pieces and toss them inside which will get most if not all of them in frenzy to get a cookie. The first time I tried this, I didn't think it through very well, because now that I was out their in my chair, they came running back in and proceeded to mob me in my chair before going and spreading out like the swine flu. Okay, second time I did a little better, I opened the gate, so that when they went out they could just go and run for awhile. Well, that worked for about 10 minutes after which they decided that it was too hot and Hey, look their is mama!! So again I got mugged but this time by wet dogs. I finally gave up. They say that you have to be smarter than the dogs and I haven't mastered that one yet. I've concluded that I'll just be cranky and walk over them giving solid nudges and a lot of "Hey you, move!(s)". That actually works some time.

Okay, there is some Yorkie news. There is a new Yorkie! He came to live with the other 3 because his mom went to live in an apartment. This one is different, he is small like the littlest one, but he is a pure cinnamon color. He moved in thinking that he was going to rule the roost and the other 3 took care of that in a matter of minutes, Especially the big blond one! I also have to admit that one of them has fallen in love with me. It's hard to dislike anything that small that loves you. This affair started slowly by me going to visit the neighbors and of course all the Yorkies were raising hell. After I had been there a few minutes the littlest one, his name is Tate, came sniffing around and I just picked him up and started to idly pet him. I looked down and I saw a look of pure love in this dogs eyes. That is what I could see of his eyes with all that hair in front of his face. I should have quit there because when I got home all the Doos surrounded me and I got  thorough sniff. Kind of like a fire hydrant in Central Park. A couple of them thought about peeing on me to mark me again but they got "the look" and decided it wasn't worth dying over. The next time I went out to pick up the mail, there was Tate on the porch, jumping up and down and wagging his tail as is to say "Hi, hi, I'm over here, come pick me up". Of course as I already admitted to not being smarter than a dog, I'd like to think I'm as smart as a dog but if you asked the Doos they would probably tell you "just go ahead and humor her, we go through this all the time". Anyway, the next time I was over at the neighbors, I just sat down and here was this furry little thing sitting on my foot and giving me adoring looks. I couldn't refuse so I picked him up again and he proceeded to snuggle under my neck and look at his daddy and mama is if to say, "look where I am". He even gave me a kiss, a little Yorkie kiss. His mama said that she was amazed, because he is the one who is very standoffish and more likely to bite. I think he realized I'm a kindred spirit, I'm very cranky and likely to bite also.

The new Yorkie tried to test me too. He is the same size as Tate but his face hair is clipped. Kind of giving him a little rat like face (with a big mouth!) I picked him up and he almost shit all over himself. I was holding him with one hand and had him face to face. Now as I've told ya'll

Talking about biting dogs, I mean you biting them, not the other way around. It's really important that dogs be taught that a kiss is a sign of affection. Your other alternative is to lick them, they understand that. That is usually going to leave you with a furry tongue and a dog who expects you to lick them. Kissing them is a much better choice. To a dog who hasn't been kissed they think you are trying to eat them. Can you imagine if you were swimming in the ocean and a Blue Whale swims up to you and opens it's mouth just as it gets to you. I guarantee that you will be all asshole and elbows trying to get away. It's not going to dawn on you that it is trying to kiss you. That's what dogs think when you first go to kiss them, "shit, this big thing is trying to eat me!!!!" Even tiny puppies will pull back the first couple of times it is kissed. Not being eaten is one of those instinct things I guess. The other thing that goes through their tiny puppy brains is that their mother is just sitting there and not protecting them. I know what they think, "hey mom, pay attention this huge fur less thing is trying to eat me and you're just sitting there". Of course you can do a huge amount of damage to a dogs trust if you approach them smiling and then bite them. My guess is the next person that goes to kiss them is in for a huge surprise!