Friday, March 23, 2007

Lean On Me

Luna just loves to snuggle with her big brother Henry.  He is about twice her size and Luna thinks he makes the perfect pillow.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Pampering

This weekend, Benjamin, Henry & Luna got a good zoom grooming to get rid of a lot of their extra fur.  All three are typical pugs and they shed a ton, but I find that brushing them takes a lot of fur off in one clip.  It doesn’t stop the shedding, but it at least helps to manage it a bit.

Zoom Grooming the boys lulls them into a very calm state and after their brushing they are so cute because they looks so sleepy.

For Luna, Zoom Grooming has the opposite effect.  She gets very fired up when she gets brushed.  She then runs around the yard like a crazy woman doing her very best to get the boys interested in playing.  Despite her best efforts, she can never seem to get the boys riled up.  So instead, she just runs as fast as she can, not really knowing if she is coming or going.  It is quite a sight!

Monday, March 19, 2007

The Look

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.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Henry’s Vices

In general, Henry isn’t much of a beggar.  When we are eating he usually just sits quietly at your feet.  However, there are a few meals that Henry really likes and during those meals he shows a little bit more interest.  One of those meals is Grilled Chicken Salad.  Henry just loves the chicken!  The best part about that meal is that Henry may just get a little bacon bit stuck to his chicken piece and he just loves that!

Another one of Henry’s favorite meals is spaghetti.  And guess what Hank?  You are one lucky pug because guess what we are having for dinner tonight.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Learning to Walk

Benny, Henry & Luna love to go on walks and I think we generally do a great job, considering hectic schedules, making sure they get their fill of walking.  During the week they go for at least one walk a day (usually a 1/2 mile).  And at least once during the week, we go for the super long walk (2 miles).  On the weekends, is when the boys and Luna get most of their exercise.  We almost always do a long walk and if the weather permits we go to the beach or a local park so they can just go have fun.

In Florida, we are lucky.  The Winter, Spring and Fall is perfect walking weather.  Summer is stifling hot and the pugs just can’t go for the usual walks during the day, so we can only get out to walk during the very early morning hours and late at night.  Pretty soon summer will be here and our walking routine will drastically change.

One of the main reasons we walk with the pugs is to keep everyone fit.  Not just the pugs but also us.  But I have to admit, that sometimes our walks are so slow that I think we might be burning more calories if we were sitting on the couch.  With two boys and a girl that marks like a boy, there are some nights that we have to stop at every tree, pole or weed that happens to be sticking out of the grass.

So last week, I had just had enough of the constant stopping on the walks, and before we left for our walk, I explained to Benjamin, Henry & Luna that once everyone had done their business, we were walking.  Every time one of them took a little detour, I just gave them a little tug on the leash to correct them.  The walk went spectacular.  I thought they were going to fight me at every turn and just pull their way to whatever they wanted to mark, but the little correction work.  And while they weren’t perfect, the walk was so much better.  We were able to settle into a nice little pace and everyone got a good little workout.

We have been walking like this for a week and I find the walks so much more enjoyable.  The funny things is I think Benjamin, Henry and Luna are enjoying them more, too.  Granted, I am no Dog Whisperer, with three perfectly behaved pugs all waking at my side, but they are doing a terrific job and their urge to mark every vertical object they see on their walk has greatly diminished.

I thought it was going to be impossible to break the boys and Luna of their bad walking habits, but it turns out, as soon as I changed my habits the pugs happily followed.  That really surprised me.  I guess you can teach old pugs new tricks.

Monday, March 12, 2007

What do you mean I’m not a cat?

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

Morning

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.