Hi, how are you today? I am glad to have you back with me again. I surveyed our street when I rolled the trash out to the curb today. Up and down the street, my neighbors have heard the call - all forms of trash were at the curb BEFORE 7:00 am. Congrats to all of the neighbors. I have been considering forming neighborhood "Trash Watch" zones similar to the Neighborhood Watch program that makes neighborhoods safer. Just an idea at the moment.
Yvette and her tech were in last week. We held some training classes on the correct usage of the French Doggie Bidet installation. My guinea pigs were Kinnick, Max and Barney. You may remember Yvette; she was the one with gorgeous blue eyes. Some of the dogs picked up the process quicker than others. Kinnick is a pretty straight shooter. He has really only two tinkling positions - the squat, tail erect and the fire hydrant leg lift. The Bidet now can easily adjust to these two positions. We introduced Kinnick and he had the process down after 3 tries. That just goes to show you how smart the Labs are. Next up was Max. Max, the younger pug, essentially tinkles the same way as a predecessor. He mimics others and doesn't have an original tinkle position that I have seen. Now pugs can be stubborn at times but Max approached the training with an open mind. He seemed relaxed as Yvette brought him into the Bidet. Once in there, Max seized up. He became stiff as a board, paralyzed with fear. Oh Boy, Max isn't going to get it. Yvette took charge. My hats off to her, she was patient, reassuring, and batted those big blue eyes at Max. He relaxed almost instantly after seeing those blue eyes. Max, you see, is a lover and can't resist a good looking woman or dog. Max passed the training after several tinkling tries. Yvette showed me some techniques to use including the soothing music with the sounds of a seashore.
Barney proved to be a project. Barney, the elder pug, is a free spirit. He does what he wants, when he wants. He isn't much of a lover. He is more like the pack bully, but in a nice way. Well Barney strutted into the Bidet, thinking there may be a treat to be had. He didn't realize that he would have to tinkle first. Again Yvette to the rescue. She gained Barney's trust and he tinkled, got squirted and blow dried then enjoyed his treat. I wish I had a photo of the look on his face after he tinkled. It was priceless. Shocked would come close to describing the look. Barney has the standard tinkling position like Kinnick and Max but Barney has another tinkling position that is rather unusual. He squats; tail curled, begins tinkling and all at once rises up on his front feet while lifting the back feet off the ground. Yes, both rear legs are of the ground while he tinkles. Never have seen that one. Hats off to the designers of the Bidet, it handled Barney's unusual posture without a problem. Barney FINALLY got the hang of it after what seemed like an eternity.
When it comes to #2, all three subscribe to the same basic posture. It is kind of a downward dog position with the back arched, rear legs become tucked under near the front legs. This posture usually is accompanied by a rather pained, intense expression on their faces. When complete they go through a simulated covering maneuver kicking up grass behind them. The Bidet worked like a champ again. When elimination, wash, and blow dry are over, they are released to the scratching area where they can "cover up" their business and get their treat. I am really impressed.
The tech was training me and the other trainers on the machine controls. We spent a considerable amount of time with the remote control. Actually, it took us longer to learn how to control the unit than it took the dogs. I think the dogs recognize how nice this will be when the weather is nasty outside. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
I had a very surprising phone call over the weekend. It was Roscoe. Oh, you don't know about Roscoe. Let me explain. My grandfather was some sort of character in his lifetime. I mean this guy was a tinkerer, an inventor, a trader and swapper with a very humorous demeanor. This guy, for instance, invented windshield wipers attached to the rear end of a billy goat. Don't know why that was important but he did invent it. He had an invisible Chihuahua puppy at one time. No idea what the animal looked like because he was invisible and all you could see was the collar and leash. I do know that this dog, Little E, had a nasty habit of walking up to you and peeing on your shoe. The little rat did it to me every time I saw him. I soon picked up on this and went the other way when I saw them coming. I was tired of getting my Converse All-Star tennis shoes soaked. Anyway, Roscoe was Grandpa's friend. Never met him though. He lived, supposedly, in western Nebraska just north of Interstate 80 around the Kearney area. Anyway, Grandpa was always talking to Roscoe. Mind you this was way before cell phones, Skype of the likes. I don't think Roscoe was very big because he would be in a shirt pocket sometimes. As I grew older, I began to doubt that Roscoe was real. Never saw him but supposedly he was always around. Well, grandpa passed away and I heard that Roscoe moved to Nebraska. Imagine my total shock when the phone rang and the caller introduces himself as Roscoe. I was stunned. He gave me his number and we chatted for quite a while but I don't really remember too much of it because I was reeling with emotions. I will regroup and share some more on this later.
I have been trying to get the Silver Paws program organized. I first tried to get the Silver Sneaker people to endorse the Silver Paws program for our dogs. They didn't really seem too interested but it may be that the person I talked to was having issues with her hearing aid. I put a bunch of information in the mail to them yesterday. I hope they can realize how important this program will be for both Silver Sneakers adults and Silver Paws dogs. Could really be a nice marriage?
Well my friends, the French Roast and Drivel for today are gone. You are probably pretty excited that you were able to stay with this blog until the end. People's resiliency never ends surprising me. I am beginning to adjust to getting beat by Iowa State last Saturday and wondering what this coming Saturday will bring. I suspect I had better enjoy the tailgating. It might be the highlight of the day. Until we next come together, my friends, TA!
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