Hiking!

I went hiking and splashed in the creek and got all wet and muddy and then I had to have a bath. At least there was chicken.

New daycare!

Mom found me a daycare with a fountain! It is the best thing ever. I had the best first day with lots of chase!

Recycling

The cats get canned food now and I get to clean the cans afterwards. It's definitely tastier than my food. I also get less food than normal because last time I went to the vet she said I was a little pudgy. I also get fruit on walks for treats which isn't nearly as tasty. I think I should get the same food as the cats cause it smells better than my food which is boring. Mom is so nice to the cats and so mean to me.

Dinner

Sometimes dinner does not come in a bowl.

Sometimes it comes in a Kong.

I like dinner this way, too.

Waiting

I don't think it's fair that I have to wait twice for dinner.

First I have to wait while Mom makes dinner.

Then I have to wait so I can eat my dinner.

Mom says that all dogs have to wait for dinner but I don't think that's a real rule.

Day of Rest

Ball and couch. The best.

Ball!

I've been with Mom and Dad for over a year now! To celebrate, Mom got me a new ball. It's red and bouncy and rolly and just the right kind of chewy. It's solid so I can chew on it for a long time without making holes in it, which Mom likes because she doesn't want to buy me new toys every week. She also plays fetch with me a lot, because she likes to play fetch more than she likes to play tug. I think tug is the best game in the world. Maybe even better than chase. Mom says they're trying to get me a foster brother or sister to play with, and I'd like that a lot. I play bow to the cat but he doesn't play and it's not very fun at all. I just want to play all day!

Nom Nom

Carrots are a tasty snack.

Nom nom nom

My Job

I have lots of jobs here. I warn everyone if someone strange is at the door, because that's very important. I lick the water off of Mom after she gets wet in the shower. I clean Dad's face because it needs to be clean. My favorite job, though, is kitchen duty. That's where I watch Mom whenever she's cooking anything to make sure she does it right, and that the floor stays clean. If she drops anything, I have to make sure to clean the floor by eating what she drops, or at least taking it to the other room if I don't want it.

Today, Mom made carrot salad, which meant she had to grate a lot of carrots. Sometimes pieces of carrot go flying from the grater onto the floor, so I had to clean those up. It was a Very Important Job. She also had little pieces of carrot she couldn't grate anymore, so I took care of those for her because letting them go to waste would be bad.

I am very focused on my job.

Sometimes I even get called in to the job. If Mom is cooking and I'm too busy to watch her, she'll call me in when she needs me. I don't know what she did without me, because I do all sorts of jobs. I am such a useful Koby!

My Blue Period

Resting with all my toys

Mom had to go to the human vet the other day that was far away so she could see better. She was gone FOREVER. Like, DAYS. I was so sad, and so happy when she came home. Dad gave me food and took me on walks but it's just not the same. Mom got a little upset that I didn't eat very much when she was gone. But I was so sad! How was I supposed to eat all my dinner if I was so sad? She's a little worried that I'm so slow eating my food now because when I first came here she had to give it to me a little at a time because I'd eat it all at once. It's just that no one steals my food now, except the cat sometimes but he doesn't worry me. I don't really worry about people stealing things from me anymore. I grumble at Dad sometimes, but I do what he says. Usually there are treats involved.

Mom was looking over my "paperwork" today because I think she wants to take me to the V-E-T again. She says that if my papers are right, then I'm gonna be three in May! We're celebrating my homecoming day instead, though, which is June 26. Maybe I'll get a cake?

It got really hot today and I went for a run with Mom and I got really hot. But then she put ice cubes in my water bowl and those are awesome. I even got a frozen Kong to cool off. She said something about moving so I could have "air conditioning." Sometimes I think she only wants to move for dog things, like being able to foster and letting me have more room, but I'm not sure. I think if she could, she'd take in all sorts of dogs and then we could all play and it'd be awesome. But right now I'm the only dog (and the best dog!) so I get all the treats. That's pretty cool, too.

Art

Sometimes I make art. I like using found objects and deconstructing them down to their elements. Mom and Dad don't approve of my art, but I think they just don't appreciate the time and work that goes into it. Mom says tennis balls are now only for "supervised play," which means I can't have them all the time anymore. Before, I couldn't figure out how to deconstruct these special tennis balls so I could chew on them all the time, but since I got the hang of it I went through and chewed all the ones we had that Mom didn't rescue. I think it's silly that Mom won't let me have them alone anymore. Now we can only play fetch with them and I have to bring them back to her when we're done. Where's the fun in that?

Training has been a blast, though, because now I get cheese while training. Mom gets cheese in a can and I get to lick it whenever she clicks. Right now we're working on retrieving and "presenting," which I guess means I have to drop what I bring back in front of Mom. I would much rather play keep-away or tug, though, so this isn't much fun, except for the cheese. The cheese makes it great. When I remember there's cheese involved, I get very good at this game. I guess I should be, being a Labrador RETRIEVER and all, even if Mom calls me a Labramutt instead.

The cat and I have been getting along a lot better. He doesn't run from me all the time and mostly is okay with me licking his ears. He plays with my feet sometimes and sometimes he runs out and bats at my face and then runs away. And then Dad gets mad at me for chasing him. He was so asking for it! The cat still isn't that much fun to play with. I'm still waiting for that friend you promised me, Mom...

Evil Baths

I don't like being clean.

I got to run lots with Mom today! It was great and we worked on "heeling without a leash" which I like, because it means I get lots of treats while running. I was very good and listened to Mom when she made me ignore a dog on the trail. I even ignored the chickens we saw. It was tons of fun, but then when we got home Mom made me take a bath. Baths are no fun. Sure, I get lots of treats, but I don't like baths.

Mom asks why I think that running face first into mud puddles is fun but taking baths is terrible. She just doesn't understand.

Office Dog

Today, I was an office dog. Mom's office is not dog-unfriendly (she says she can bring me in "once in a while") so I got to hang out with her. It was mostly boring. I got lots of pets from the other people there, though, so it wasn't all bad. But after 6 hours I was getting really really bored. I wanted to go home and sleep on the couch and Mom wouldn't take me home because she said she had to "work." She didn't look like she was working. She was just sitting in front of a computer like she does at home. I don't know why Mom goes away all the time to her office if it's so boring. I think she should stay at home with me.

Someone at her office asked how I was so well-behaved, though! He said he wants his dog to act like me! See, Mom and Dad? I AM good!

Daycare!

Mom goes away for a long time at night because she has to go to "work." I miss her a lot when she's gone, and she sleeps during the day, so she decided that I should go to "daycare." I didn't really know what that was, but she took me to a place with lots of dogs and then a lady asked lots of questions about me before letting me meet and play with a bunch of dogs. I was a little nervous because there were lots of dogs and Mom wasn't there with me, but they were mostly nice and wanted to play. I like to play, so it was good.

I got to go to my first full day of daycare and it was fun! I played a lot and even took a nap. When I got home, I was very very tired from running all day. I slept on the couch while Mom was at work. I was so tired I barely noticed when Mom came home. When Mom gets home, we watch TV together. She likes a show she found on "Netflix" called "Dogtown." It has lots of dogs in it. At first hearing the dogs bark was confusing but now I know they aren't really here. Sometimes she gets sad about the dogs in Dogtown. I get sad too, because sometimes I remember what it was like before. I'm glad that now I have a couch of my own to sleep on. And now, I get to go out and play with dogs even when Mom is busy. She tells me that one day I'll have a foster brother or sister but that right now they can't have any more animals. I don't see why not, because the couch fits me and the cat and I bet it would fit another dog too. If I had a brother we could play all the time and I could show him how to do things like sit in the elevator for treats and how to bring a Kong to Mom or Dad because sometimes they fill it when you do that. Mom says to be patient, but it's hard to be patient when you don't know how long something will take. I hope I get a brother soon.

Hello, this is cat.

Sometimes Mom puts things on my head. I'm not a fan. But I went for a long long walk today, so I guess everything is good. Mom says that if I'm good, I might get to go to "daycare." She says there's lots of other dogs there for me to play with. I'm excited about this "daycare" because I like playing with other dogs and I get sad when Mom and Dad aren't home. Mostly I sleep on the couch when they're gone, but playing with other dogs sounds like a lot more fun!

Meeting Baracus

Mom and Dad brought home a cat. He's black and white and doesn't play with me. I try to be friendly and show him that I want to play and I even lick his ears for him, but he just goes away where I can't follow him when I do that. Before, I couldn't even lick him because Mom and Dad kept us separated for forever. And then I could sniff him, but only while I was on leash. And I had to be in the bedroom a lot because I couldn't be trusted alone with the cat. It was very frustrating. I just wanted to be friends! Now we share the couch sometimes, but he still doesn't like me licking him.

For Christmas, Mom bought me a beef tendon. I didn't like it. It was chewy and not very tasty. Mom said I was the worst at being a dog. But it wasn't tasty! Who wants to eat things that aren't tasty? But a couple days later she gave me a bunch of raw meat and I loved that. Even the cat had some. I hope she does that again because meat is the best. Mom and Dad also got me a toy. It crinkled and they let me rip it apart! I had lots of fun with it. I've also been going out with Mom and Dad more and learning to be nice when they're trying to eat outside. The trick is that if I have chewies, then I don't care about all the other interesting people, because I have a much more interesting chewy. Other dogs are more interesting than whatever I'm eating, though. It'd be rude not to say hi, right?

Mom says she's taking me to school soon. I've never been to school, but I like learning things! Mom has taught me a lot but she says it'd be nice to have some formal instruction. I don't mind, because learning things means lots of treats, and treats are the best. Except maybe for belly rubs. Belly rubs are awesome, too.

Trail Runs!

Waiting for Mom!

Mom has been training for her mar-a-thon which means lots of running! She recently discovered that I do great off leash on the trails and that it keeps her from trying to rein me in all the time. I just get so excited! When I'm off leash, I can sniff what I want and then run past her to sniff something else until she catches up. She's so slow. I like running with Mom, but it's best when I can do it at my pace, which is fast!

We met a horse on the trail which I wasn't too sure about. I mean, horses are big. Much bigger than a Koby. I just got out of his way, because I don't want to be a trampled Koby! Mom ran over eight miles, and I must've run twice that.

I try to keep Mom in sight because she likes to get lost but I was so busy sniffing once that I let her get lost. Then I had to look around and bark for her because she might have never found me otherwise. She came back over the hill and found me and we took off again. She might try to tell you that I got lost, but really, it's the other way around.

It wasn't all good news, though. Once we got home I had to have a BATH. Mom said I was getting stinky and too dirty from the trails. Humans don't seem to understand how great it is to be dirty and dusty and have fun. Dad figured out that if he puts a bright colored towel in the tub I'm less afraid of jumping in, but still I'll only do it for a hot dog. And I don't like it once the water comes on. I like all the treats I get, though. And I get extra pets after baths because I'm extra soft. I like pets.

Mom says it's "Christmas" soon. She got a present in the mail, and it was for me! She did a "Secret Santa" and her Santa knew she lived with me so she sent me a toy! It squeaks. Well, it squeaked. I squeaked it for a while but then I started tearing into it and now it's a bunch of pieces. I liked it. It was the best toy ever. I still like playing tug and fetch with what's left of it. I guess Christmas is when you get good things. If that's true, then I want more wet food, more stuffed Kongs, more bully sticks, more hot dogs, more bones, more toys to tear apart, more out time, more time at the dog park, more running, more pets, and for the cat to love me as much as Mom and Dad love me. And for Mom to love me more than she loves the cat, forever and ever. Oh, and for Mom and Dad to play with me all the time.

But mostly I think I have it pretty good. Now if only the cat would play with me...

Best Friends

He's the chocolate lab. I'm the black one.

I made a best friend at the dog park. Well, he thought he was my best friend. I just kept going around making friends with everyone. He kept following me. We played some, then he just followed me wherever I went. It was like having a little brother, except he was bigger than me. I also played a lot of chase with lots of dogs. Chase is fun. Mom likes me playing chase because it gets me tired, even more than when she runs 8 miles with me.

I also broke my harness. I didn't mean to, but I had chewed on the front a bit and it broke when I was running around in the car. Now we have to practice not pulling when I'm walking on a collar. This isn't very fun because as soon as I try to pull to go faster, Mom stops and takes a step back. This makes me impatient and I whine because I want to go! We're working on it, though. The harness was irritating me so Mom and Dad want to walk me without it. I think we'll learn soon.

Mom caught me relaxing.

Mom and Dad's big bed is the best. Usually I sleep by Mom but when they aren't sleeping I like to stretch out. I also like curling up on their pillows. Sometimes when I sleep I get really relaxed and stretch out on my back. Mom thinks this is really cute and she always tries to get pictures, but I usually wake up when she gets the camera and roll back over.

I wish we could go to the dog park every day forever. That would be the best.

Occupy the Food Bowl

So I had an upset tummy a while ago. It's all better now but Mom and Dad insist on feeding me my "special" food which isn't very special or tasty at all. Mom says that she bought a lot of the food so I need to finish it, but I don't think I should suffer for her decisions. This food isn't very good, and Mom puts this probiotic powder on it that isn't very good either. I stopped eating as much and Mom was getting worried.

Now my food is tasty!

Well, my hunger strike has worked because now Mom is putting tasty wet food into my dry food!  This is the best. Today I ate up all my food as soon as she put it down for me. I could get used to this.

Mom is also training for a mar-a-thon where I guess she runs a lot, because she's been running with me a lot. I like running, but Mom is so slow that sometimes I grab the leash to make her run faster. She doesn't like it when I do that and makes me stop. I guess that's a game I can only play with Dad. Dad runs faster but Mom runs more. She says she has to get up to 18 miles some days which is very far. I know I can keep up, though. I like running!

Makin' Friends

I love the dog park. It's my favorite place ever. I make lots of friends there and I get to run around. Sometimes we play fetch. Mom remembered her camera this time so she has lots of pictures of me playing.

Waiting for Mom to throw the ball!

I don't know how so much water ended up on my head.

Meeting new friends.

A friend who looks just like me!

I'm the black one.

Dad says I'm going to get hooked on going to the dog park, but Mom said that she's already hooked on me not running around at night. I'm even getting better about coming when she calls me, even when I can't see her. But sometimes everything is so interesting I just have to check it out before I go back to Mom. Her treats are good, but not THAT good!