Weekend Adventures: Deep Cleaning

This weekend was pretty laid back. It was pretty hot, so I didn't want to bring Luna out for too long on an adventure. Plus the last couple weekends have been quite crazy, therefore, I wanted to just relax and do stuff around the apartment...Lots of cleaning. 

But on the bright side, Luna decided to help. When I vacuumed she watched my every move, making sure I did not miss a single spot, or that I vacuumed up any of her toys. After finishing vacuuming the entire 896 square feet of our apartment, the vacuum was filled to the brim with fur. I swear, every time I vacuum I could make a new dog with the amount of fur that gets sucked up!

I also cleaned the bathroom, specifically the bathtub that needed a deep clean. I put some Comet down in the tub and let it sit there as I cleaned the rest of the apartment. When I came back to the tub, I noticed little footprints in the tub that lead out to the hallway. Clearly, Luna wanted to make sure she was helping me out. (Don't worry, I checked her to make sure she didn't have any more Comet on her paws and kept an eye on her after that to make sure she didn't consume anything she wasn't supposed to. Luna is healthy and fine.)

After cleaning the apartment, I decided to treat myself to a spa day (aka a fresh pedicure). And if you have ever tried to paint your nails with dogs around, you will know that nail polish is a magnet for dog hair. It is a serious struggle sometimes. I feel like that Lays commercial where the woman eats some potato chips after a fresh mani, and the chips are all over her fingers. Disgusting. Well, imagine that, except with fur. But today's pedi was a success, not too much fur around after vacuuming. 

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Now, I didn't just stay inside the whole weekend. Luna and I went to the lake (Lake Borris--the one we like) for a couple hours. She had a great time, as usual, but was happy to go home and sleep. What I've noticed with Luna is that no matter how tired she is, if there are other dogs or people around she can not settle down and chill out. She is just too stimulated and too excited. The only way she can actually lay down and chill out is if we are at home. So that's what we did, we went home so Luna could sleep (and I could nap). And she chose to sleep in her crate with the door wide open! 

A good relaxing weekend for both of us.

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Summer Treats: Frozen Applesauce

After I made the Oatmeal Peanut Butter Dog Treats I had a lot of applesauce left over. I didn't want it to go to waste (since I hardly ever eat applesauce). The easiest thing I could think of was making homemade treats for Luna. And hey it's summer so why not make little frozen treats!

All you need for this dog friendly "recipe" is:

• Applesauce
• Ice tray
• Freezer
• Gallon Size Ziplock bag

Directions:

1. Use a spoon to plop applesauce into the ice tray. 
2. After filling all of the ice molds, put the tray in the freezer 
3. Once frozen, use a fork or spoon to help pop the frozen applesauce out of the tray.
4. Place frozen treats in a ziplock bag and keep in freezer for storage.
5. Give "Fido" a yummy frozen treat on a hot day.

Piece of cake! Do you have any other recipes that you like to make for your dogs? Send them my way, I'd love to try them out.

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American Weekend

This 3 day weekend was action packed and huge for Luna!

1. OFF LEASH!

Friday, Drew and I experimented with off-leash potties with Luna. Last time we did this it turned into us chasing after her for an hour, the whole time I was having a heart attack. The Husky in Luna makes her BOLT, and the Lab in her makes her have ADD which makes it hard to get her to "come" when she sees a squirrel. But we have been working on it...slowly. So we decided to take a "leap of faith" and we took off her leash, grabbed a couple motivational treats and opened the door (dun, dun, DUNNNNN)! 

At first she was a little hyper to be off leash but stayed within 15 feet of us and just ran circles and peed. Then we told her to "come" and she did (so we gave her a treat), then told her to "go home" and straight up the stairs she went! SUCCESS!!! Happy parents for sure.

This is a video of Luna when told to "Go Home" after doing her business. (She gets ahead of me but looks back a couple times to see if I'm following).

2. Playing with 5lb Teddy

We went over to Drew's parents' house for Independence Day and Luna got to play with Teddy. I swear, every time we go over there, Luna and Teddy get better and better about playing together. The two got a little crazy when Moxie came around (3 dogs at G-ma and G-pas house can get exciting at first), but then settled down. They went outside and played with bubbles. Teddy was all about them and definitely won first place at popping the most bubbles. Then after a long play day the 3 were exhausted, and fell asleep. 

3. FIREWORKS!

This was the first time Luna would be experiencing fireworks with us. We didn't know how she'd react but seeing that the garbage truck that sounds like a plane crashing into our apartment never phases her, we weren't too worried. And when we walked to Downtown Livermore where they were setting off the fireworks, Luna was intrigued by the lights in the sky. She was staring at them just like she stares at flies, questioning how they got there and how in the world is she gonna get them! All in all a very successful, non-freak-out experience, which is a HUGE relief.

4. OFF LEASH X2!

Saturday, I took Luna to Lake Borris (the off-leash dog lake/trail area in Livermore, behind Shadow Cliffs). It is by far my favorite place to bring her. She can swim, play with other dogs, and get in a nice little tiny hike at the same time. This place is COMPLETELY off leash, and quite frankly it's the best place to train your dog off leash. There's no place the dog can really go and get into any real danger (far from busy streets, and it's basically all in a large ditch). Luna is a HUGE fan of water, I mean she tries to swim in the fountains Downtown, and I don't stop her. 

I decided that this time at Lake Borris, I would try to see how she does off leash on the walk over to the beach (well more like on leash, and I just drop it on the ground and let it drag behind her). I kept treats in hand and when she would get too far I would tell her to come back, and if she listened she was rewarded. She was amazing! I told her to "stay" when I wanted her walking right next to me (which was whenever I saw a dog coming towards us). Then I would have her sit, when the dog and its owner were about 10-15 feet away, and when they passed we would keep walking. 

I'm telling you, it must be a maturity thing, that once your dog hits 1, they listen better and do what you say (for the most part). I don't think that a week ago she would have been able to do this! It's crazy!

So we get to the beach part of the lake and she's playing and swimming and having a great time. Then this 5 month old Black Lab comes around and starts playing with Luna. This was the first time this dog has gone swimming, and the best way to teach your dog something is to have another dog train it! DO NOT EVER THROW YOUR DOG INTO A POOL TO TRY TO HAVE THEM SWIM!!!! EVERRRR!!! (It's like throwing a kid who doesn't know how to swim in the pool, and then they are traumatized for the rest of their life and will refuse to go in the water.) 

When it's time to go (when mom is tired and hot and sunburnt), I decided to put her on the leash again but drop it on the ground for a little. Then a couple minutes later I thought I would try and do NO LEASH AT ALL! And usually (like I said before) she will BOLT like there's no tomorrow. This time? That was not the case. She acted the same as when the leash was on the ground! She was a little more testing her limits but it was okay, she would turn around and walk by my side when I told her to. 

I was such a proud Mama. When we were almost to our car I put her leash back on and a dog who had just arrived was pulling his (or her) owner like you see in those movies. That Lab was easily 90lbs. Big boy (or girl). Then he (or she) just starts barking and barking and BARKING! Meanwhile, I just tell Luna, sit and stay, and she's quiet, just watching this chocolate Lab go berserk. And the owner and family say "Wow! How old is your dog?" And I tell them she's one. And they are shocked since their dog is 5 and "not as well trained." (Clearly a socialization issue). Sorry, was that bitchy? 

Not going to lie, Drew and I have done a great job training Luna on how we want her to act. Of course she isn't perfect and she still makes mistakes, but she's a dog. I'm not a military sergeant training soldiers, I am just a crazy dog lady training her crazy dog. 

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Photo Friday! Happy 4th!

Again (if you didn't actually read my last post), here is a visual of exactly what I wrote. Happy 4th! Stay safe :)

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Happy 4th of July...'Murica!

With 4th of July being tomorrow, you usually are too busy thinking about where you are going to go, what you are going to eat, and what you are going to drink. But most importantly, where are you seeing FIREWORKS! But what about your dogs, what is your plan for them? Everyone knows that dogs and fireworks is like mixing water and vinegar, they do not mix well together. I recently found out that the 5th of July is the busiest day of the year for animal shelters because more dogs run away on the 4th than on any other day of the year. Why? Because the fireworks freak them out so much that they try to find somewhere safe where they can escape the fireworks. So what do you do?

1. Keep you dog inside safely secure, either in their crate or where there's no way for them to escape.

2. Turn on the T.V. or radio or some kind of constant noise that will distract them from hearing the fireworks.

3. Give your dog a long-lasting durable toy or treat (like a stuffed Kong, or Luna personally loves Bully Sticks) that will keep them distracted.

4. Make sure your dog has their collar and tags on! If they do escape somehow, and someone finds them, they can be easily returned to you. 

5. Microchip your dog, if they aren't already. And if they are Microchipped make sure their ID is up to date! Here is a good site to make sure this is up to date.

6. If you still are uneasy, stay home with your dog. They will feel so much more secure if they are with you.

Enjoy your day, and stay safe!

Luna got SUPER excited about 'Murica, couldn't contain her excited...so naturally she jumped on me.

Trying on her patriotic bandana!

And last but not least, Luna (attempt to) pledging allegiance... such a good American pup.

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