Friday, April 13, 2007
The boys turned 5-years-old a few weeks ago. They are a week apart in age, so we had back-to-back birthday celebrations. Nothing fancy, they each just got a day of their favorite things.
With the boys turning 5 it really got me thinking about when they were puppies and how they have changed, and have not changed over the years. After 5 years there are some things that really surprise me about them.
How Benjamin surprises me:
- Benny and his puffy are still best buds. Well, actually what I more surprised about is the fact that we have been able to keep the puffy for 5 years. It has needed to be washed countless times, but it is still holding up very well.
- To this day, I still can’t believe Benjamin is potty trained. It took forever for him to learn and even once he learned I thought it was just a fluke. It has been years since we have had an accident *knock wood* in the house and for that I am ever so thankful.
- Benny has turned into a lap dog. When he was younger, Benjamin never cared much for sitting on your lap. Instead he would curl up beside you and he would only sit next to you for a few moments. But, in his older age, Benny has become a real lap dog. Every time I turn around it seems like he is jumping up on my lap.
- Benjamin is still terrified of sewers. The first day we brought Benny home we found out about his fear of sewers. To this day, Benjamin will drop to the ground and claw his way from any sewer. Beyond that he knows exactly where every sewer is in the neighborhood and he avoids them like the plaque.
How Henry surprises me:
- Henry’s hips and knee have not given us any trouble over the years, *knock wook again*. When Henry was around a year old, we found out that he had hip dysplasia. We were told that as long as we kept Henry at a healthy weight he should never need surgery on his hips and so far that has proven to be true. Unfortunately, Henry did need to have surgery on his knee to fix his luxating patella problem when he was about a year old. I have always worried that he would have ongoing issue with his hips or knee and over the last few years he has been fine. Granted he can’t jump up as well as Benjamin & Luna, but other than that you would never know he has hip problems.
- Henry uses his smarts for evil. When Henry was a puppy he was so eager to please and learn new things. Now, Henry uses his smarts to con his brother out of bones and get extra treats.
- Henry is no longer a big fan of baths. When he was a puppy he loved to get a bath. But now, he really doesn’t liked to be bathed. This just strikes me as odd because Henry loves to swim and he loves to play in sprinklers.
And even though Luna hasn’t been with us for quite as long, I have still been thinking about how she has changed over the last year since she has been part of the family.
How Luna surprises me:
- Luna came to us potty trained! At first, I thought it was just a fluke that we managed to take her out before she really needed to go potty, but after a year there have been plenty of times when Luna has done her little potty dance by the door letting us know that she needs to go out. Since she came to live with us, the girl has not had an accident in the house! Now, that calls for an extra treat!
- Luna is closer to Henry than Benjamin. When we first adopted Luna, I was a little nervous with how she would fit in with the boys since they were very tight. I thought for sure that her and Ben would get along the best and I was worried because I didn’t want Henry to feel left out. Well, it turns out I was completely wrong. Luna hangs out with Henry more than she does with Benny. Now don’t get me wrong, Benjamin and Luna are best of friends, but when it comes time to settle down for a nap, Luna always looks for her old pal Hank.
- Luna likes her crate. When we first adopted Luna she was not crate trained. Crate training her was quite hard because anytime she was in the crate she pitched a fit. We have video tapes to prove it. But one day she just realized that the crate was not too bad and that she actually liked it. It was a space she could call her own. Now she retreats to her crate every morning after breakfast to catch a few more hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Monday, April 9, 2007
I am very happy to report that after a few good days of rest, Baby Benny is feeling much better! He is not 100%, but he is darn close. He is feeling so much better that he wants to get out and play with Henry and Luna and when he doesn’t get his way he pouts on the couch. I tried to explain to him that it was for his own good, but he wouldn’t listen and he mentioned something about the quickest way for him to recover was to feed his herniated disc. You know the old pug saying, feed a cold, a herniated disc and all other ailments, starve nothing.
Many thanks to everyone for all their well wishes!
Friday, April 6, 2007
On Wednesday morning, Benny did a really odd thing. I poured the Cheerios into my bowl and Benny did not get out of bed. Now, Benny loves Cheerios and as soon as he hears the sound of Cheerios hitting my bowl he comes running.
Seeing that there were only two pugs at my feet, I asked Henry and Luna, “Where’s Benny?” They didn’t know and really weren’t interested in where Benny was at that moment. They just wanted some Cheerios.
I went to look for Benny and I saw that he was sitting on the edge of the bed. He looked anxious to get off the bed, but he wouldn’t jump off of it. So I picked him up and put him on the floor and mentioned something to him about being a silly pug.
We ate breakfast and then I took Benny out to go potty. The walk started normally and then when we crossed the street Benjamin would not jump up on the curb. Instead he just sat down. Now, this is nothing like Baby Benny. Benny jumps up and down just for fun. The curb is no match for Benny, he can conquer that with ease. So at this point, I was getting very worried.
Throughout the morning, I noticed that Benjamin would not jump up or down from anything. It didn’t matter how high or low the object was, he would just sit next to it instead. He was also very lethargic and not his typical self. So, I called the veterinarian. Of course, they did not have any appointments until next week, and I talked to the receptionist to see if she would deem this an emergency. Benny still had his appetite and he had not thrown up or had any diarrhea, so neither she nor I thought this was a dire emergency.
My mind could not rest, however, so I called a friend who is a veterinarian. She asked me a ton of questions and walked me through some things over the phone. By the end of the conversation, we had come to the conclusion that Benny most likely had a herniated disc. She recommended that we give him some baby aspirin and keep him very quiet. No walks, no time in the yard, no jumping, no anything. And if Benjamin was not feeling better by Friday (today) we needed to take him into the vet.
So that is what we did and fortunately, Benjamin is doing much better. He isn’t 100%, but he is acting more and more like his usual self - which is making it hard to keep him quiet.
I am very relieved that Benjamin is doing better, but ever since Wednesday morning, I had been wondering how he hurt himself. Then it hit me. The pugs get up for breakfast every morning at 5:30am. At that point, I have one hour left to sleep before it is time to get up. Rather than spend that hour having them lick my face and beg me to get out of bed to feed them, I just get up and feed them and go back to bed. It has become such a routine that I am sure I am not fully awake when I am doing it.
I do remember that on Wednesday morning before Benjamin ate that he was his normal bouncy self. He poked his head in the refrigerator and jumped up and down for his food just like any other morning. I also vaguely remember that when we were on our way back to bed that Benjamin missed landing on the bed on his first jump. So I just picked him up and put him on the bed. I think this is where he hurt himself, because he was fine before and while he was eating, but an hour later when I got up for the day, he wouldn’t leave the bed.
So, the mystery has been solved and Benjamin is well on the road to recovery. We will still have to keep him quiet for the weekend, but I am just glad that the little guy is feeling better.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Benjamin has taken a liking to the dog bed that we stumbled across in Walgreens awhile back. He never lays in it alone, though. He always makes sure that he has at least a couple of stuffed friends with him. On this occassion, he has his 2nd favorite duck and a stuffed pug toy. Notice, how the stuffed pug is missing its left ear. Benny, would you like to explain to everyone how that happened?
Monday, March 19, 2007
This is Baby Benny’s patented “Oh my goodness, you have a treat and I think you are going to give it to me” look.
The boy loves to eat and he becomes totally fixated on whatever you have in your hand.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Benny likes to watch his sister, Cupid the cat, and mimic her routines and habits. Lately he has taken to laying on the back of the sofa. The back of the sofa is the cat’s throne and while Cupid will begrudgingly share her spot, she would prefer if her brother would keep his paws off her spot. Benny on the other hand, hasn’t taken the hint and in the afternoons he has been soaking up the sun while laying in one of the cat’s favorite napping spots.
Friday, March 9, 2007
Every weekday morning, I drag myself out of bed way earlier than I would like. Benny, Henry & Luna usually follow me from room to room throughout the day, but in the morning, they don’t budge from the bed. Eventually, it comes time for me to make the bed and I have to do one of the things I hate the most, take the pugs out of the bed. Every morning, we do the same thing, but no one ever budges until I pick them up and carry them to the living room. I carry each one into the living room and pile them up on the sofa or on their favorite chair.
The other morning I stacked the gang up on a pile of pillows. They really liked having their pillow booster seat.
