Not a good sign for Santa

I kind of lost it last night and tore into some catnip Mum purchased for friends as a Christmas present. I also took hold of the wool Mum is using to knit a Special Olympics scarf and sent it on its own trip. Mum said it will be a cold day "you-know-where" before Santa stops by my stocking. It would help if Cooper would stop snickering.

It's the Corgi Express!

From the 35th Sisters (Oregon) Christmas parade. We found this at The Daily Corgi and they think Oregon has really cool Corgi doings...well, yes actually we do! LOL!

Finally We Post Our Christmas Pictures!

We won't go into the graphic description of Mum's stomach flu, but suffice to say, it was not pretty. Dad was in Seattle so it was up to Coop and me to take care of Mum. We got the big Coke bottle out and poured that down her and it helped settle her tummy. Then we spent about three days of napping, watching telly and napping some more.

Before Mum's demise we did have a nice Christmas and I have the pictures to prove it.

The Christmas mantle. We aren't allowed to have a tree since a rather bad incident when I was a pup. (There were no witnesses so it is their word against mine).

I bought Mum a humungous, giganormous box of dog cookies. She was delighted with my gift. As was I.

Mum and Dad opening presents while Coop and I circle them.

Coop is such a lap hog..

Dad inspecting his gifts. He got a bunch of DVD's of old shows that are no longer on television. (big sigh) So boring if you ask me.

Oh look, who's the lap hog again?

The heck with this Christmas business, let's tear up some cardboard!

Whooo hooo! I got the box, I got the box!

Die box, die, die, die!

Just have to get a purchase on this box and it is history!

Hope you had a nice Christmas and we send our best wishes for the New Year!

The Santa Dance with Dozer

I tried to give this video as much holiday
flare as possible, but ultimately
it is Dozer's moment with his
Santa toy and its untimely demise.

Brrrr! It is verwey cold here! - Dozer

The temperature has dropped dramactically here and we are only going outside for minimal doodies. Brrrr! Here is that picture Mum took of Dottie with the Christmas hat on - see? She won't even look at the camera!

Finally Christmas Starts! - Dozer

It was no mean feat but I finally got Mum to get the Christmas cards ordered. We missed being in the DWB's Christmas card exchange but there are still family and friends who depend on a visual reminder of us each year. Mum sat on the bed with her laptop last night watching The Librarian while I helped her look at pictures and decide which showcased my stunning good looks best. Oh yeah, and Cooper and Dottie as well. Mum took pictures of each of us in Christmas hats but Dottie wouldn't let herself be photographed - she'd wear the hat but then she just looked down at the floor. Mum said a dejected elf was not going to work so we went with portraits instead. Mum had some sort of snowflake design for the background but I nixed that. Come on! Men do not do snowflakes. We compromised on the plaid which reminds us of our Scottish roots and which really set off my eyes quite nicely. If you would like a card you have to send us your mailing address. You can contact us through out blog and then we will send you our real email address - Mum really hates programs that harvest email addresses. Someone did that last week and her Spam box had over 2,750 emails, none of which had any redeeming qualities or mentioned dog food. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

Need Christmas Help - from Cooper

Mum would like to use this picture for our annual Christmas card but it needs a funny saying to go with it? Do you have an idea? Please send us a comment if you do. The sooner the better says Mum!

Thank Goodness That's Over With!

Dozer here. Well, Thanksgiving is over and I must tell you I am exhausted. Mum packed much too much into my social calendar and I simply need a good rest. Coop was no help and Dottie is blowing fluff so much that she is a massive hair ball with legs. So it was up to me to hold up the family honor over the holiday.

Mum and Dad (and my cousin Anthony) had a quiet Thanksgiving at home with turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and salad. No one seemed to get the message that they should be dropping food on the floor for me and the best I got was a new bone to chew. It was thoroughly disappointing.

Friday night Mum and I walked in the annual Corvallis Christmas Parade with our Willamette Corgi Group (Corgi Picnic). My Auntie DeeDee sent money for Mum to buy me my very own Flexible Flyer Wagon with red, wood sides. Mum and I went to Robinett's Hardware Store, which is a really nice old fashioned hardware store with wood floors and all the neat stuff you need. We picked out my wagon and Mum paid for it and then we put it in the car.

Mum had to spend most of the afternoon putting lights and garlands on the wagon so it looked just right for me. But before that we went to Animal Crackers to find a plaid coat for me. I tried on a couple of different colors and we decided the red and white suited me best.

This is Mum and me just before the parade started. I sat in the wagon for a bit and then I marched but then I had to sit with Dad. Mum wanted to make sure my leg didn't get hurt which was disappointing since there was horse poop everywhere! All of my corgi friends like horse poop too and none of our parents would let us roll or eat it. What a bunch of losers!

This is Anthony and me. He can multi-task so well - rub my tummy, talk on Facebook, text on his cell phone.

"Are you looking at me?"

Dottie is usually totally black on her back but she is blowing so much fluff she looks like someone's Great Aunt Mary in a raccoon coat which is falling apart. You would think Mum would do something more than take pictures!
Mum tried taking pictures for our annual Christmas card but I was having no part of it. This is my "get out of my face" look.

(Yawn), time for me to lay down my paw and tak a nap.

Looks A Lot Like Christmas - Cooper

Our friend, Joan, gave Mum this card which we find hysterically funny. Of course we find anything concerning our species interesting and delightful. Mum is frantically trying to figure out what she can dress us up in for our Christmas card. She considered angel costumes but then realized the likelihood of keeping the three of us together for a picture was probably remote. But then she remembered...Photoshop! So Mum is digging through one of our Rubbermaid bins of clothing (we have two) and getting us ready for pictures. Personally I find dressing us up for a holiday picture pretty silly but it keeps Mum happy and she has the keys to the kibble can.

In Arizona and Totally Confused!

So the next thing we know, Mum has us backed into the car with our cousin, Benny, a dachsund. We picked up Benny in the morning and then we were off down the road to parts unknown. Mum spent a lot of time saying "Stay Back!" when we tried to get into the front seat. Our Uncle Anthony was co-pilot and made sure there was plenty of Red Bull to drink. It was raining in Oregon and Mum said we even had horizontal rain at times with snowflakes. The first night we made Bakersfield, California because we drove until 8:00pm. Mum seemed a bit tired and Uncle Anthony was just happy to get out of the car and move again! BOL!

The next day we set off again. Mum and Uncle Anthony were really tired because Cousin Benny and I barked our fool heads off most of the night at any little noise we heard. Coop seemed a bit tired as well and he tucked into Benny's bed and slept most of the day. We made lots of potty spots and water. Mum said we needed to drink more water than usual because of the change in temperature.

By 6:30pm we were pulling into Happy Trails where Mum and Dad have our house and we jumped all over Dad. It was a great time and we were really happy to be home, although totally confused as to where exactly we were. I tried to stay awake and play but before long I had fallen asleep on the couch with my walking vest on.

The next day, Dad and Mum took Cooper and me to the Dog Park in Surprise, Arizona. It was sooo much fun! We ran around and chased tennis balls while Mum talked to new friends, some of whom live at Happy Trails.

When we need to go outside, Mummy takes us outside and down the lane to the dog run that Happy Trails has and we sniff the tumbleweeds and leave messages. The cactus are kind of confusing, so sharp and so un-pee'd upon! Cooper is a lot of braver and barges right into the cactus but I choose to skirt the issue.

Christmas was great! Cooper waited for Santa but fell asleep before he came. Mum took us to the Dog Park again and we played with 5 West Highland Terriers who were great fun. There were three pugs, a greyhound and a bunch of other dogs too.

We will be leaving the day after tomorrow to return to Oregon which will be sad because we have to say good-bye to Dad but we will see him again soon. Mum and Uncle Anthony will try and be home by Friday so Mummy has a couple of days to get things organized before she goes back to work.

Hope everyone had a nice holiday and a Happy New Year!

Going on a Road Trip

In just a few days Mum and Cooper and I will be driving down to Arizona to spend Christmas with Dad and to learn all about the desert. Coop and I have never been out of Oregon so this will be a big driving adventure with Mum. We have to get the car ready with our toy basket, our traveling water bowl, our dog food, treats, a bed and bones to chew on. Mum says we will stop at almost every rest stop for a short walk to stretch all our legs (there are ten legs between the three of us) and have a pee-pee break.

There is a bad weather coming so we are going to leave a day early so we can get to the Siskyou Pass before the storm arrives. Once we are through the Pass, it is smooth sailing down to Arizona. We may get to stop in and see Uncle Alex in Bishop, California if he has not already left on a business trip. We sure hope so.

Tomorrow is my third birthday but Mum says we won’t celebrate until we are with Dad. I think this is a good idea. I am sure Dad will have lots of presents for me. I need to email and let him know that he does not have to wrap them, just make sure there are lots of squeaker toys to rip up.

Cooper and I have been sleeping on the bed every night with Mum. It is really nice but I am not sure we get to do that in Arizona. Mum says she is bringing beds for us because we have to sleep on the floor. Well, we will have a lot of exploring to do so I guess maybe we can sleep in our own beds.

Christmas Cards - A Time for Indoor Snow!

So Mum was being so boring tonight sitting at the kitchen table doing the family Christmas cards. I sat under her chair with my head on her foot but didn't get much attention from her. She seemed driven to get them done - she is a terrible procrastinator (not!). I kept telling her we could do it tomorrow or even next week. But she kept saying "shush!" because she was listening to The Golden Compass on her iPod. I hate it when the pawrents multi-task like that!

Eventually Mum realized it was incredibly quiet in the house...in fact, too quiet for that matter. She got up very quietly and looked down the hallway and Cooper had taken a roll of toilet paper out of the bathroom and was destroying it in the hallway. It was great! Just like snow inside the house. Mum started laughing and laughing until she cried! That was all the encouragement I needed and I took off like a rocket and grabbed the roll and brought it into the living room for a fight to the death. It was no contest and I had the toilet roll on the ropes and down for the count in no time.

Cooper meanwhile did some clean-up work in the hallway and then made his way into the living room to find the remnants of what was once the roll of toilet paper. I find once the battle is over I have no further need to the remains. Cooper, on the other hand, enjoys actually eating the enemy and leaving very little trace of the former evil alien once known as "TP". So Coop tossed a bunch of the toilet paper around and then sat and had a short snack of what was left.

The Christmas cards? Oh, Mum never did get those done! Aroooo! BOL!

One dead toilet roll 12-11-2007

Cousin Lou, A Big Cat

Mum went and visited our Uncle Andy and met his cat Lou. Uncle Andy works for the Oregon Zoo which makes him our favorite uncle. They have all sorts of wonderful poop at the Zoo and Uncle Andy has access to it all! Cooper keeps hoping that Uncle Andy will send us a kangaroo but I told Coop that packaging a roo to send is almost an impossibility. But I am pretty sure they have a lot of fish there and probably some small rodents. Anyway, Uncle Andy doesn’t actually work with all the animals but more on the Zoo Lights which is a HUGE display at Christmas and other times of the year. Uncle Andy does all the programming and design with the help of volunteers. Uncle Andy says his volunteers are great.

Anyway, Uncle Andy works out of a HUGE warehouse in NW Portland where they keep all the forms and lights. And he saw this man practically stomp this cat, Lou, to death. Fortunately Lou got away and hid in the warehouse and Uncle Andy has been taking care of him ever since. Lou eats two cans of wet fud every day and he has a lot of fur. He also has a lot of mats in his fur but in the spring Uncle Andy is going to get Lou a haircut and get rid of those mats. Right now it is too cold to do that and Lou doesn’t seem to be bothered with his mats.

We think Uncle Andy has a heart of gold to take in Lou. After all, who takes in a 14 year old stray cat that looks like a bad rug? So if we don’t get a roo for Christmas, at least we know Lou got what he wanted for the holiday, a new home where he is loved.

Check out Uncle Andy's Zoo Lights!

Christmas is Coming, Send Us Chukars!

We just found out that Pat Wray (below) is an author on how to hunt and kill chukars. We aren't sure what chukars are per se, but if they have feathers and wings, they sound tasty. So we decided we would put a link to his book here on our blog and perhaps Mr. Wray will send us some of those chukars. No need to de-feather as such, we can handle that here at home. Of course Mum will be slightly peeved if she comes in from work and the house is full of feathers, but a present is a present and we will have eaten the evidence before she rolls in.

And speaking of Christmastide, Mum finally got around to getting a Christmas card organized! Both Coop and I have been posing all over the place and Mum was not catching the hint at all! Finally I got the calendar down for Coop to chew on and Mum caught the hint. She went to Shutterfly (the photoshop of choice for Dogster groupies) and ordered a bizillion cards with my picture on it! How cool is that? Cooper doesn't really care because Mum also created a collage poster of us and he got to star in that. Check out our card below. Mum did a pretty good job if I say so myself.

Corgi Christmas Parade

The day after Thanksgiving was the annual Corvallis Christmas Parade, celebrating 150 years of Corvallis. Naturally, Mum signed me up for the Willamette Corgi Group float and she was off throughout the day helping make the float, working on my costume and attending to my needs. This is a picture of me pre-Parade before we got ready to leave the house. I was already overwhelmed with the paraphenalia I was required to wear - walking vest, 2 Christmas collars, etc.

We joined about 29 other Corgis at the staging area at a little after 5pm and then had over 2 hours before the actual event started. It is hard to be a diva when you have to wait so long. But there were alot of butts to smell and alot of people, including our local columnist, Pat Wray, who wrote a rather un-flattering column piece about Corgis last year...something about us being short. Anyway, he has a great sense of humor and agreed to walk with us. We had young Corgis, old Corgis and even disabled Corgis. Mr. Wray met them all and was very nice to all the pawrents as well. Which was a good thing since our group won 2 awards! Best use of Lights and something else, I can't remember. So, finally, the parade starts and by this time, I am cold and tired but I put my best paw forward and march on. I let Mr. Wray walk with me for a bit but eventually he struck out on his own so I could be more accessible to the crowds.

It was all good fun but by the end of the 9 blocks I was exhausted and ready to go home. I definitely did not want any more small hands patting me or telling me how soft I was. Mum sensed my unease and moved me to the center of the pack and we nipped right over to the parking lot where we were going to take the float apart. She parked me against a pole and make sure no one could abscond with me by tying my leash securely around the post and putting my lap blanket under and around me so I wouldn't chill.

Dad found us with the car and he and Mum tucked me into the front seat with my blanket while they helped put the float to bed for the year. By the time we got home I was frapp'd out and exhausted and in a very bad mood. I attacked my brother Cooper for no reason and bit his ear which was a most unpleasant episode and earned me a very long talk outside with Dad (who never hits but can make me feel very bad by telling me what a bad boy I am while making me lie on my back with my paws in in the air). Anyway, Cooper forgave me and Mum looked at me with very sad eyes, so I just went to bed.

It is so hard being a Corgi during the holidays. I think the pressure got to me but fortunately I got a lot of hugs over the long weekend and I am improving my behavior. I am not growling at Cooper when I am jealous and I am going "down" automatically when Mum says I can have a treat. She says no "freebies", I have to earn all my treats from now on. Well, I am a Corgi, I can do this - I have to have treats, that isn't even negotiable!

Dear Santa Claws

Dear Santa Claws,

I am writing on behalf of myself and my brother Cooper this year. Coop can’t type as well as I can. (And I think he enjoys dictating to me and I definitely enjoy editing his comments.)

I have a short list of wishes I want to ask of you.

1. I would like a large jar of the Sweet Potato Treats just for me. The extra large treats would be great and if you could write “These are just for Dozer” on the jar, that would be helpful.

2. I would like a tartan walking vest, preferably in Royal Stewart, for my special walks in parades or during my club visits during the winter. I belong to the Willamette Corgi Club here in Oregon and there are about 30 of us who do the annual Christmas parade and summer picnic. The Cardigan corgis always lord it over us that they have tails and we Welsh Pembroke corgis have bunny butts. A nice walking vest would make them think twice about their bragging rights.

3. And finally, I would like a big, meaty cow bone to gnaw on. Better get one for Cooper too so we don’t fight. I would prefer a really greasy bone, with a bunch of marrow. If it smells stinky, so much the better. If it is large enough to roll on so I smell just like it, that would be perfect. If you can’t get me a bone, I would like a cow pie to roll in. A nice, steamy, smelly one would be heaven.

Here is Cooper’s list:

Hello Mr. Santa,

My name is Cooper and my brother says you bring toys and treats to animals at Christmastide each year. Last year you found me my forever family and got me out the Greenhill Shelter for good. I thought when Greenhill saved me from being euthanized at another shelter it could not get much better, but the family you found me is even more wonderful. So I don’t think I should ask for anything more but Dozer says that this is what we are supposed to do, so I have a short list of wants.

1. I would like a kangaroo to keep in the backyard. I listened to the Discovery Channel and they said that roos are fairly agreeable animals and can poop up a storm. I love to eat poop and I think kangaroo poop would be a delicacy.

2. I would enjoy a glass of wine occasionally, preferably a perky Merlot. Mum says dogs cannot drink alcohol but I love wine and sneak sips when Mum leaves her glass unattended.

3. My brother Dozer is three years old and I am eight now. Could I have a heated bed if they are not too expensive? Mum gives me vitamins and joint medicine but sometimes I think sleeping on a heated bed would feel so good on my weary bones.

4. And my last request is not something you can give but something you could do. Could you put a gold star by my pawrents’ names on your list of good people so they get presents? They have spent a lot of money on me in the last year and I am an old dog. Most folks would not have have had my teeth fixed or spent so much money having the vet get my ears well and make sure I was healthy. I do not have any money to pay my pawrents back and Mum says I am worth a million dollars to her. I don’t know why but she seems to think I am something pretty special.

Thank you Santa Claws and have a nice holiday.