Pittsburgh or Bust

Well, mom said we were going on an Adventure, and she wasn't kidding....at all. She had gotten a spot at the Hello Bully christmas craft show to try selling her book.  It was all the way in Pittsburgh and no one could go with her except me...darn "work" excuse, as usual.  But I was all for it.  Say "adventure" to me, and I'm all about the leash!!  You betcha!

We left about 10:30 at night so we could be there in plenty of time the next morning.  Dad helped lift the show trunk into mom's little S10 pick-up.  It takes two strong people, and I've got no thumbs.  I tried tellin mom if she made ramps and put a cotton tug rope on the front handle, I'd pull it into the truck by myself, but she hasn't gone for that, yet.  I was sleeping pretty good by the time we stopped for gas and a sniff.  There had been dogs from Georgia state there last and they marked with a southern slang that made me huff my lips, I tell ya....good 'ol boy hounds I'd like to meet some day for a run in the pines....

And then it happened.  We were cruisin along, with my head on mom's leg and her stroking my ears when the motor sound of the truck stopped and the stick thingy wouldn't move at all.  Mom could get the motor to run, but the "shifter" never did work again, so far as I know.  We sat in the ditch while mom talked on the phone.  Then we sniffed the ditch, but there hadn't been any other dogs stop there and it wasn't all that interesting to me....the sky was clear and plenty of stars were glittering in the night.  Finally, a big truck came backwards down the ramp and stopped in front of mom's little truck.  The guy liked dogs and had a couple.  One was a pit bull and the other one was a Aussie.  He let me ride in his big truck and I got the whole back seat to myself.  It was three am before we found a place to sleep and they wanted extra money for letting me sleep there too.  Mom wouldn't let me sleep on the bed, but I had my own crate bed which is comfy enough.

We got a phone call early in the morning but mom didn't talk at all.  Just groaned and got up.  I was too nervous to let her out of my sight.  Things were strange, but mom was also upset and nervous, so I scratched the bathroom door until she thought I was going to dig a hole in it.  Plus, I was making puppy sounds and she didn't want me to wake up the other people.  I smelled a million smells, but didn't see any other people.  Then we went to a resturant inside the hotel.  I had to be tied to the door knob and couldn't come in, but a mean woman still said, "Unsanitary." like I had germs.  Mom just got one cup of coffee and a box of dry cereal which shouldn't count as breakfast if you ask me.  They did give us a ride to the airport, but we got a car instead of a airplane.  Mom was calm with me standing watching her back.  Some man tried to sneak up behind her, but I gave him the low growl and he got in a different line.  Mom said, "Sorry.  He's such a bone-head" which means that I am a good dog.

more tomorrow, since mom is all about getting to work and I have to play ball outside while she is gone.  When dad gets home, I come in and Gretchen and Sally go out.  The girls are fat and lazy....I heard something about a diet for all the females starting soon......if they'd just play ball more, they wouldn't need to die.   L8r G8rs, Yuke-a-yule

Unhappy Hound

Well, mama's going crazy this time of year, but not like other years....I got my Annual Big Dig going on, so I need to spend as much time outside as possible.  The open-pit coal mine I have in the back yard will hit coal any day now and then mama can be warm all winter without going away for money....but that's just the problem....She's not waiting for me to find coal.

Mama is going away every night almost and coming home smelling funky, like plastic and chemicals and dust, not to mention the mama-smells of hard work in a hot place....and she thinks I smell rank?  Ha! But still, I'm joyous to finally see her come dragging her no-wag tail home in the morning.   I'm like, "Hi!  Hello!  Where ya Been?" and I just get a wimpy hug before she falls into bed with her shoes on....I don't give up though.  I really want her to know how much I love her (and how hungry I am for my breakfast.)  After a few minutes, she drags her sorry carcass off the bed and gives us a scoop of food, then feeds the bunnies and takes a shower.  Then she lets me out for a long day at the mine-shrine.

I will find coal eventually, just maybe not this year.

Yerz, Yukon the Miner

Short post on Pet Expo

I tell you what, that first day wore me out. I didn't get any nap at all! Today, I just had to take a snooze. Good thing mama thought ahead and brought the little travel crate. I can't sit up in it without banging my head, but I can curl up incredibly small, so it's okay for a quick couple winks. Mom promised me a mastadon bone at the end of the show and she pulled through. I will protect this bone with my life! I worked so hard to get it and NO BODY is taking it back, including mama....so sorry for her luck.


My pal Annushka stopped by our booth and I must say her jazzed up jag looks too cool for school with the top down! Did her mama take Daphne the special head rubbing I put on her lap? She said she would. I was awfully disappointed not to see Daphne indogson at the show. I would have pawdegraffed her copy of the book with all 4 feet!

I'm still whipped, so off to the great crate and will snooze with my head over the new bone so no one tries to snatch it when my guard is down. More in the morning.....Yerz, Yukanuba...

off topic---grandparent scam succeeds

Monday, My parents got a hysterical phone call, supposedly from Martin, stating he was at a wedding in Mexico City.  He desperately needed money to get home.  They wired him $4,000 US.  Then they got a second call, requesting more, and the bank intervened before they sent him $10,000.  My brother John called us on Dave's cell to ask what was going on.  Since Martin has no phone, I called his sweet girlfriend, who said Marty's car had been burglarized Sunday night and the police already caught the guys who did it.

I thought the two incidents might be connected, but Martin told me later that the burglars had been caught in the act and had no time to use his information.  Mom felt really foolish, but relieved that Marty was safely in Bloomington during mid-terms, taking care of business.  I was really furious at the scum that would upset my parents and take advantage of them, but also very touched that they were willing to bankrupt themselves of their life savings to rescue my son.  

Martin is scurrying everywhere, trying to figure out who hacked his information and make sure it doesn't happen again.  Dave's theory is that it was just someone phishing with random phone numbers who got lucky.  (Hearing an elderly male voice the caller just said, "Grandpa?" and Dad said "Marty?  What's wrong?" and the caller had all the information he needed.)  Either way, it's being investigated.  I so hope they catch the eel-scum that is responsible.  Too much excitement.

Crash! Bang! Boom!

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Yukon here~  As you well know, I'm a big feller....and sometimes things near me just seem to fall down, even when I don't think I even touched them....well, today it was mom's big bunny cage with the little bunny cage inside it.  I was just playing ball on the porch, since it was rainy, pushing the ball into and out of the dog house and up the outside wall, like I generally do.  But this morning, the ball got stuck between the doghouse roof and the new big pen.  When I tried to get the ball un-stuck, mom's cage fell down all by itself....it just collapsed.

I got out of there as quick as I could, but Gretchen was still sniffing the damage when mom came running....Gretchen caught the blame for that one, but I'm not so sure mom was right.....but hey, looks like I got a break in the "who's fault is it" game.  I'll take that!!!!  Anyway, mom was just happy that the new rabbit didn't get hurt.  Once she calmed down and started fixing the wreckage, she sort of told dad that it was a good thing this happened when the humans were there to fix it.  I tried to come out and help, but they said no and closed the bathroom window.  Dad also told me "NO" about coming out through the closed office window.  Sheesh!  I thought the whole point of fixing the window with plexi-glass was so it wouldn't cut me the next time I used the office window for an escape hatch....but it seems the humans have other ideas.  Dunno why.

When they finally let me out, there was nothing left for me to help them with, so I offered to let them play ball with me.  I got the "not now, Yukon" excuse.  Anyhoo, the rabbit is loose in the big pen with the door to her cage open so she can hop back inside whenever she wants to.  I don't mind trading sniffs with the bunny, but she doesn't run, so there's no sense in trying to chase her.  How Boring!  What good is a rabbit that doesn't run?  Still, mom likes to hold her, says Stella is velvety.  At least she's got a cool name, Miss Stella.  Better than Honey-Bunny, I guess.

Yerz, Yukon C. Jack

idiot free to roam at ARBA

(off topic--ARBA is the National Bunny Convention--held here in Indy this year)
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 Gosh, it was like being in bunny disneyland!!! The sensation of being in the midst of all these fantabulous rabbits was sensory overload. I just wandered in a daze glancing at random rabbits in various rows, not really knowing what I was looking at. I mostly got vague impressions of body shape and activity levels, a blur of colors, shifting patterns. So much energy and people talking. Tension. Excitement.

Of course I didn't know anyone, until I got to the Angora section. There was Betty Chu's name on a cage card! Wow! a Rabbit Rock Star! I even glimpsed her getting one of her rabbits and taking it off to the grooming area. She was all business and I didn't feel like bothering her. I did chat with a few tourists. There was an English Angora that had everyone's attention because she was playing with a set of plastic keys, throwing them, digging them with her front paws and flinging them behind her. The owner had written a phone number on the cage card, so I impulsively called it. She was only a few feet away, returning one rabbit from the grooming area and taking another.

I asked if I could watch her groom the rabbit, which surprised her but she said okay. Donna was very patient with my questions and showed me how to groom the little oily area behind the ears with cornstarch and how to use corn starch to remove webs. Seeing how powerful the blower was and how strong it had to be to get through 6 inch fur was amazing....all the bands of color on each hair shaft made a sort of bulls-eye wherever the blower was parting the fur. Even though she'd finished with the blow out, Donna let me touch the coat, feel how soft it was. I felt like crying, it was so soft, so beautiful. My husband joined up about then, eager to talk about toys and tools of the trade, making suggestions on where to get surgical scissors, and what-not. 

We wandered over to the junior's area and I eavesdropped on all the show advice that people were just thrilled to give each other and the kids. A lot of the competition edge was reduced in favor of education and improvement....I was finally where I fit in!!!!

Oh, the reason I called myself an idiot in the title.....there were some guys with a Checkered Giant letting it run back and forth along an empty judging table. I suggested to them that their rabbit really had a secret ambition to be an agility rabbit. They looked at me like I was from Mars and said they'd keep it in mind. (Bad enough) But then I noticed it had identical patches on both sides!!! Wow! That was so cool....now the guys looked around, hoping I had a handler near-by to come haul me away. That was when I noticed a whole row of Giant Checkers who ALL had identical patches on both sides.....uhm, never-mind......do you think "that's" why they are called Checkers?


Later, I discovered that part of Checker judging involves watching them hop 3X down the judges table.  Those guys were just pre-judging a rabbit, possibly talking sale....and I interrupted.  Sorry, folks.

Somethin's Up!

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~Yukon here~
Somethin is UP and I don't like it.  Mom didn't give Sal any breakfast....or let her have a drink after watching Sal do her business.  After a while, mom jumped up, grabbed her keys and a leash, then was out the door with Sal and didn't let me come along for the ride!  Well, that's just not right.  If anybody takes a ride, I'm the first one in the truck.

Then, to make matters even odder, mom came back by herself.  What did she do to Sally?  Why didn't she bring Sally home?  If there's a cone involved, I'm outta here.  Yerz, Yukon-no-kone

Bunny show

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Mom came home last night, almost too tired to dump kibble in the bowl.  She had been walking around bunnies all day....some big deal rabbit show, I guess.  She talked nice to the bun brothers, but she didn't touch them until she washed her hands three times with different soaps.  I sniffed her.  Her hands weren't even dirty!  They just smelled like a million and one rabbits.

Anyhow, she DIDN'T bring home any new bunnies!  I'm so proud of my mom....I know she wanted to bring home everyone that talked to her.  That's just how our mom is....if it looks at her "just so" she wants to bring it home for forever.  Same thing with puppies at the shelter.  and dogs in the alley.

Barking of which, there's a new dog trolling the alley and I DO NOT LIKE HIM< Sam-I-AM.  He's a tall collie-type dog with cream colored fur, a real fancy-boy....not to mention he's still got his gonads, and proud of it.  He's all trying to tell me I'm the lesser dog, just cause I'm inside a fence and neutered!  Ha!  Wait until Animal Care and Control gets ahold of HIM!  He'll be whistlin Dixie out of the other side of his muzzle!
 Yerz, but growlin, Yukon

4 PAWs Forum order page

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https://www.createspace.com/3643053

Pit Bull Awareness Day Exstravaganza

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Well, all, Yukon here~
Yesterday was Pit Bull Awareness Day with a big parade and photo op in Indy.  I helped mom at her booth.  We were parked right beside the parade starting point.  Mom had me sit beside her and be still while all those interesting dogs and people walked by.  There were some really cool costumes, like a Scooby Do-dog, and a couple Count Dracula-dogs, not to mention the Cat Fish Hunter....my personal fav.  I only did a soft warning to a few people who were crowding me and hovering over my head, but I did let a boat-load of people pet me.

There were a few people that I really liked and gave full-body hugs.  Mom was afraid I was gonna hug one lady into falling over, but I didn't hug her that hard.  Some nice men helped mom with the show trunk and setting up the little tent-thingy, but it blew down two times.  The first time, the tent knocked moms coffee cup over and got the edge of one book wet.  A little girl who was a Girl Scout helped mom put the tent back, so mom gave her the copy of the book with the wet edge and told her thanks like a million times for helping with the tent.  A couple of times, I got so high energy that I had to play a new game we invented.

New Game:  4 Foot Fetch.  It is played with a dog on a 4 foot leash and a human, and a soft toy that is not a ball....in our case, a bone shaped firehose.  Momma would give the little toy a toss, high and short.  Then I would pounce on it and give it back.  This was a fast action game with only a little bit of tug.  I got so I could catch it in the air and hand it right back, so mom would throw it again.  She got tricky, throwing it over her shoulder sometimes!  But I still got it in a hurry.  It was too simple, really, and I was tired of playing in about 5 minutes but it helped me break the tension of being a "world famous" co-author on display....and on my best behavior.  I was really happy to get my Tuxedo off before mom started taking down the display and tent.

Mom seemed pretty happy even though we didn't sell any books.  She talked a lot, which always makes her happy and met some people.  The Girl Scout helped keep me company while mom carried stuff back to the truck and a very nice man helped mama put the show trunk back in the pick-up truck.  I let the Girl Scout pet me on top of the head through the bars of my crate, which sometimes I tell even mama not to do....but then, I didn't have any food in my crate, so it was okay.

When we got home I went straight to the yard and did a big pile of business which I had been too tense to do at the parade with all those strange dogs around--although I did leave some pretty lengthy p-mail messages on the concrete flower urns and lamp posts.  After that, I took a long nap with Gretchen, Sally and Mama all on the big bed, which was super soft since mama just got a new blankie with velvet on the top and sherpa-wool on the bottom.  We were very tired and I kept dreaming and twitching, but no sleep-barking that I know of.

Yerz, Yuk-Van-Winkle

3rd day of rain and outside ugliness

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Yukon here~
Mom is upto something and I have to wonder what.  Not only has she been moving stuff around, she's also been cleaning house with the radio blasting.  She baked two apple pies last week.  Maybe it's the weather....but that is the opposite of sensible, since all this weather is good for is sleep, nap, sleep.  Why does she have all this energy?

I heard her say to dad, on the phone, that Emma's mom might stop by "any minute" and she wanted the shock to be gradual...whatever.  Silly humans.  It's obvious that three rowdy dogs live here.  Nothing is going to change that!  She even tried to get the dog hair off the velvet love-seat, my favorite spot!  What a joke!  Tape does not fix dog hair on velvet.  Finally, she gave up and just threw a new sheet over it.  When she was tucking the big soft blankie on the main couch, she also pulled the rug out from under...well, when we get to rough housin scatter rugs scatter.  What can I say, the slide is a hoot, and who minds a little body slam into the couch?  It's a soft landing.  Anyhoo, she yanked the scatter rug out from under the couch as she was tucking the newly washed blankie under and out popped a pair of dad's clean underpants that had been tangled in the blankie.

At first, mom was baffled.  Where did these underwear come from?  Then she shook her head and mumbled something about it happening in front of company,...oh, that she was glad it DIDN'T happen in front of company.  I don't get why that would be a big deal.  It's not like they were smelling good or anything.  They were still warm from the dryer.

Oh yeah, I remember why Miss Sandy, Emma's mom, is coming over.  It's to drop off some neck scarves for mom to decorate.  The Adopt-A-Bulls at Saturdays Parade are going to wear them.  She did two red ones with glued on ribbon that say "Adopt" and "Pick Me" so far.

Emma's Blog

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Princess Emma has a Royal Advice log that you probably want to check out if you've read our book....let's see if we can post a link
http://regaladvice.blogspot.com/

HA! it seems to have worked....love her halloween costume suggestions....(For someone else, of course) Yerz, Yukon the Caveman

big day, on the way

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Mornin' All,  Yukon here,
What a grey day!  All the rain....nothin to do but sleep, then nap, then sleep again.  Outside, I just nap and sleep and nap on top of the dog house, which is on the back porch and so, stays dry.

Meanwhile, mama is trying to get ready for the big autograph party this weekend.  Last year it was called Luv-A-Bully March....but the name got changed.  It will be different this year, since Penne can't come.  The last two years, my boy has shown up to hold my leash and mom has walked with Penne's leash.  But this year we will have our own tent.  I never went camping in the city before.  It's only for a couple of hours, and I gotta be on my bestest behavior.  Mom says I get to "autograph"....

She says it involves touching my feet on the book for people, so they will like it better.  I DO NOT LIKE MY FEET TO BE TOUCHED and she knows it....we'll see. Yerz, Yukon-no-touchy

My Boy Ballerina

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Imagine for a second what a playful Herford bull calf could do whilst cavorting in your house....well, it's not a pretty sight in the aftermath, but it's entertaining as heck during the event.

Yukon has discovered the cat-like joy of chasing Miller Mothes--in the bead room, of all places. Repeted commands of "Leave IT" were to no avail....he was so intrigued! He just followed it around the room, high and low, while I imagined the resulting lunge and crash...truthfully, no damage done, but it could have been CAT-A-Strofic.....Kim 

fluffy bed

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Mom did a surprising thing today....she tossed all my blankies in the wash!  It's not like I spent a lot of time in my crate, and I hardly ever lay down in there.  Mostly, I just nom on my kibble and then bust out....and everybody knows I don't stay in my crate, which might cause a thinking dog to wonder why mom puts the latch on the door while I eat....

It's cause of Sally's diet.  If mom doesn't close my door, Sally comes and noses me out of the bowl for a few bites of non-portion controlled kibble.  Can't blame the ol gal.  Mom doesn't hardly feed her anything, and I'm not a chow-it-down-and-gone kind of guy anyhow.  I was raised as an only-dog and could snack all day long.  I got better things to do than stand around and eat for ten minutes....play ball, for one thing.

Anyhow, guess I need fresh blankies for the "show"....more on that later.  Dad just got home and I gotta do official "home from work" greeting duty.  Yerz, Yukonowits

Escape Trick

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~Yukon here~
Mom's been leaving the office window open about four inches so her Precious-cat can come and go...the joke is on her.  A 4 inch gap is big enough for me to get my snout under and then I can lift the window without help from anybody....It's not such a big deal to jump out from the office window...about a 6 foot drop.  That's two foot higher than the back porch and three foot shorter than the roof of the doghouse.

To keep mama really confused--I come back in through the bathroom window by crawling off the doghouse roof....then I ask to go out through the back door.  Silly Human!  It's too easy to really be much fun....she's so confused even without my tricks!

hYUdini~ at your service

where to order the book

As Dan has pointed out, you can get to the blog from the order page, but you can't get to the order page from the blog--yet.  That is about to change....you can order Yukon's book at www.kimmartinsite.com. if you click on the order button (and the webpage gives even more info about the dogs, including Yukon.) or you can order at https://www.createspace.com/3643053.  4 Paws Forum (the book) is also available at Amazon.com, but then Amazon gets a chunk of the sales price that could otherwise be buying Yukonooba more doggone dog food, so be a pal and order direct.
Yerz, Yukonoblast

trip to the woods.

Hi-die-Ho neighbors, Yukon here~
Spent a paw-ful of days and nights at the camper with mom and Sally.  It was just a bit nippy after dark.  Of course I had my orange ball, and Jolly Egg to play with and all the hills to chase them over.  Dad had put some water in my 14" red ball, which was different, wobble-rolling with the wave-action and heavy.  Unfortunately, when it got down in the ravine, it got between some tipped over trees and it's gonna have to stay there for a while.  Mom says I got it in there, I can get it out.....BUT I didn't, exactly..... gravity put my ball in that mess of tree trunks, and it's gonna take a dog with brains to get it out...Yep, I can do it.  Just, not today.

On the way home, mom stopped at the no-homes-doggy place and walked a couple dogs.  That always makes me a little nervous.  What if she brings another stranger home?  And she did smell like she'd been hugging on strangers.  Girl strangers, but still.....didn't bring one home last night....so far, so good.
Yerz, Yukonohug

off topic

Why would the insurance company send me a page in the middle of my bill with the words "This page left intentionally blank"?  For one thing--IT'S NOT BLANK.  And why send it at all?  Appearantly, someone was confused by the previously blank page, so they explained that it was perposefully blank to customers after that...but not WHY it's there at all.

I guess some mysteries were not ment to be solved.

The importance of being Yukon

Yukon here ~~Intruders!!!  In the middle of the night!!!  I was minding my own business when what did I discover, clinging to a flimsy branch dangling above my back yard?  A possum!!  How dare that varmint tresspass?  I know, I know, mom has us being friendly with opussums in her book, but that's just fantasy!!!

I was jumping up trying to get the furry rodent when Gretchen got in my way and I landed on her.  She was pretty riled up barking at the intruder, too, so when I landed on her she said some pretty mean things and acted like she was gonna rip off my face.  I yelled right back in her face.  Mom was yelling out the window for us to stop, but me and Gretchen don't fight the same as Gretchen and Penne used to.  I snarled and snapped in Gretchen's face until she backed off, and then I walked away.  Nothing is worth a trip to the emergency VET!!!  Besides, I don't fight with girls...it wouldn't be fair.  Mom made us come inside, saying the neighbors must all have heard us.....Well, GOOD.  They all need to know that enemy infiltrators are among us.

By this time everyone was wide awake, so mom called dad at work and told him what happened. Me and Gretchen were still worked up, so we played tug-of-war for a while to get ourselves sorted out and calmed back down.  I asked mom a bunch of times if I could go back out and make sure that thing left our tree, but she didn't understand what I wanted.  Or maybe she was pretending not to know....somehow that seems more likely.  After a million times of me asking to go out and mom ignoring me, we all went back to bed and watched a stupid movie for awhile, then mom turned off the tv and we all got some shut-eye.
Yerz ever, Yukon-the-protector at your service

Dances with Squirrels

This afternoon, I looked out the office window to see Yukon prancing about on his hind legs and looking vacantly into the air with a goofy grin on his face.  If I hadn't known better, I'd have thought he was high!  But I did know better.  Yukon was actually looking at the roof above my window, where a squirrel was busily eating seeds from the rain gutter.  (I could see about three inches of squirrel tail dangling from the eaves.)  He hopped back and forth a few times, even ran up onto the porch, but decided against taking an ill informed flying leap.  To further torment my big brownie, the fur-tailed rat walked hand-over-hand across the electric lines that span my back yard, bringing Yukonski to a frothing frenzy.  That little rodent was trying to kill my dog!!!  It's over 98 degrees out there.  I called Yukon inside and he went straight to the water bowl, even though he's got two 5gallon water jugs outside on the porch.

Then my smart doggy went to lay on the linoleum floor right in front of the air conditioning vent.  I love that lunk-head boy.  KIM

Extra Snuggles

I wouldn't admit this to just everybody.....but I been suckin up to dad, lately.  It's so funny.  He doesn't know what I'm up to.  Last night in the office, I rubbed my head all over him and gave him the full weight lean-hug.  That made his office chair roll away from the desk, but he just laughed.

A lot of good it did me, though.  At bed time, it was still, "On the couch, Yukon.  Good-night."  Which I guess is better than Gretchen's flat, "Crate." and getting locked in.....but then, I just bust out anyhow.  I've taught my people that much, at least.  No sense in lockin up the big guy.  It just doesn't work!

Oh, those luscious looking rabbits have a whole room to themselves.  Mom even made a new floor for them, so their pee doesn't soak into the wood floor.  I know mom's sent-blind, but doggone them bunnies smell good.
Yerz, and behavin myself,
Yukon

Bones for me and Sal

Well, I don't know what we did so special to deserve raw beef bones, but I'd do it every day if I could.  Mom brought us big joint knuckles with lots of gristle and some meat.  Gretchen doesn't get one, because she doesn't like fresh.  If it's not ready to roll on and hatch maggots, she doesn't want any.  She burried one bone in her crate and left it until Mom started to complain....yelp, mom was steaming over that trick.

Maybe she's still mad and that's why Gretchen doesn't get a bone now.  She'll sneak and chew my bone in a few days, when I'm in the house.  That'll be about when Sal buries her bone....and forgets where she put it.  But ol' Sal generally uses one of my holes for her bury spot, so I find them later and she gets all huffy about it.  Sorry, gal.  You should hide your stuff better.
Yez, Yukon-o-sluth

spending time with MY BOY

~Yukon here~
Mom was having technical problems getting her book to publish itself....so she went to see Marty at college for some help with the computer stuff.  His friend Brandon was there also, and between the three of them, I think the problem was solved.  We'll see.  But in the meantime, I got hissed at by Theo, who thinks he owns the boys' apartment....what a wazoo!  That cat has been in the family less time than I have, but how quickly cats forget!

Just to show him "I ain't afraid of no cats" I drank all his water and cleaned his food bowl while he watched from the back of the couch!  Ha!  And what did Mr. Pussy-pus do?  Nada!  That's right.  He just watched me make myself at home and chow down on his fancy-pants cat food.  The only thing that made it sweeter, was that Martin forgot all about the cat when he was hugging on ME!  I love my boy....he takes a heavy-hitter head bump like a champ!  He even pats his shoulders for me to rear up and whack my paws on his shoulders, and the kid doesn't fold up accordion style when I do it, either.

But then he had to go to work and mom was still filling water jugs.  Marty left her the apartment key so she could lock up.  I watched mom pour pitcher after pitcher of water into the jugs until she could hardly lift them and had to have Brandon help her get the jugs into the truck.  (Which made me wonder how she planned to get them out of the truck and into the cistern by herself, but oh, well.  No one listens to the voice of reason when it comes from a dog....ever noticed that?)  Then Mom went to Marty's work--an ice cream store!!!  And she had a coupon for FREE ice cream.  She came back to the truck with Java Chip on a sugar cone!  I could hardly wait for her to get to the last bite, so I could have mine.  She was enjoying it enough that I worried she might not remember to share--but I got the last bite as our owner-contract stipulates....guess I was worried for nothing.

Yerz, Yukonobite

PS> Yes, Marty got his apartment key....even in the face of free ice cream, mom remembered.

stranger "danger"

Yukon here~
Sally was barking her fool head off this morning for no apparent reason.  Twice, mom went to the door to see if there was a stray dog on the porch, or something of interest, maybe a possum....but no.  The second time, she noticed a huge bag of dog food that Dave had set beside the door.  Since it was on an empty crate, it looked like it was big enough to be a person, peering through the side window.  Maybe Sally was loosing her eyesight?  She is getting kinda old.  (Her hearing is fine, that's for sure.)

The third time, mom was getting low on patience.  She went one step out of the house in her nightie and picked up the 50 pound bag, trying to bring it into the house, but only succeeding in making a trail of dogfood bits.  Well, she did get the bag inside, but it was only 49 pounds by the time she got it there 3 seconds later.  Sure enough, some "animal" had helped himself to a free snack.  (I suspect the porch cats, myself).  Sally was like, "see mom?  I was trying to tell you." and dancing all around, plus "helping" clean up the spilled kibble, which wasn't helping Sally's diet efforts.

So Sally eventually got a much deserved pat on the head, and mom finally got another few hours sleep.  They left it to the big brownie to clean up the mess, but hey! that's what us big brownies are for, right?
Yerz, Yureka da Hoover at your service.

Foster Cat "Fumbles"

Well, Yukon here~
That silly tux cat that mom was thinking about adopting just lost her spot, I think.  Mom caught her stalking the cockatiel!!!  Talk about a HUGE no-no!  Eating our fellow housemates is not allowed in this house.  Look at how we are supposed to let bunnies--of all things--live in our pantry, with only a baby-gate between us and them....and no problem.  Mom barely lets us trade sniffs through the gate, let alone spend time with them....and no--we don't get to  play tag.  Darn it.

I have seen the one doing laps around the pantry, and that little bugger is FAST!  He jumps over stuff and kicks his back feet.  Mom says he's happy to be out of his little cage.  Heck, I can relate, Brother Bunny.

I'm starting a betting pool on how long mom lets this bird-stalker stay....she's got a vet apointment next Thursday, so I'm betting Friday is the last.

Yerz, Yukon-the-greek

Too Cool

Yukon here~
The doggone heat wave has finally passed on.....get it?  The "wave" passed.....I crack myself up.  The weather is perfect for ball rolling all morning.  I spend a lot of time fighting with my ball in the dog house....I guess that might sound sort of goofy to folks who haven't seen our dog house.

Dad built a box out of half a sheet of plywood and walls made of the rest of the sheet of plywood.  So it's two foot deep and four foot wide by four foot long.  Then there is an arch made of steel fence from one side of the wooden wall to the other.  That is covered by two layers of bright scarlet shag carpeting.  Inside is a lot of straw and fluff from shredded stuff that us doggies have used to make our house soft, cushions, sleeping bags, pillows. Anyhow.  There is a step to help get in, from when Bonnie started with the bad arthritis.  But on the inside, there is no step to help a feller get out.  Putting the ball inside the house is easy--getting it back out is ruff.  But it's fun.

Yesterday, Mom wanted me to play with my big red ball, which is okay, but not my favorite.  She put my favorite on the roof of the doghouse and told me to get the red ball.  Now you may have heard that dogs cant tell color, but that doesn't matter to me, because mom was pointing to what she wanted.  We played for about half an hour before mom got tired and went back inside (something about 'work to do' sheesh!)  That cussed woman did not give back my favorite!

I had to climb up onto the roof of the doghouse from the couch that lives on our back porch.  Then the ball rolled sort of off the doghouse roof and got wedged between the wall of the house and the side of the doghouse.  I knelt down on my front elbows with my rump high in the air, but I couldn't roll the ball out of the crack where it was stuck.  I tried standing on the ball a little bit, but that just wedged it tighter.  Barking at it did not help, but I tried it anyway.  Mom came out to see my problem and just laughed.  But she also stayed to see how I would fix my situation.  I kept poking the ball with my nose and pushing it with my feet.  Finally, it fell off the edge of the doghouse, skipped the porch floor and went all the way down to the yard.  That would have been about a ten foot jump for me, so I played it smart and jumped onto the couch, then the porch and took the stairs to get down.  But then I was free to chase my favorite ball for the rest of the morning.

I deserved my nap that day, I tell you what!
Yukonappster

challenge met!

Hi All, Yukon here~
Mom was tossin the ol' blue ball when she decided that she didn't want to play with that toy anymore.  It's my favorite and I didn't want to quit, but she told me "NO" and put my ball on top of the doghouse roof.  So, I humored her by chasing the red ball.  It's much bigger and more trouble getting up the back porch steps, but I did my best and she kept playing, which is the important thing.

When mom wanted to stop, though, she didn't give my blue ball back to me....it was still on the roof....so I climbed up there and tried to get it down.  Unfortunately, it rolled off the side next to the people-house, and got stuck.  So there I was, with my rump up and my elbows down, and my head dangling, trying to get the ball un-stuck....it eventually worked, but the ball then rolled off the porch and into the yard while I watched from the doghouse roof.  The yard is farther from the roof than it looks when you're up there, as I know from previous experience.  I may be a big brown dog, but I'm not a big dumb dog.  I climbed off the roof onto the couch and then onto the porch floor...ran down the steps and finally got my blue ball back in the game....score!!!!

Yerz, Yukojordan

Road Trip

Yukon here~
Went on a long trip with just mama and me.  First her clock yelled before the sun was even up.  I figured she'd just tell it to go back to sleep, especially when she reached over and slapped it on the head.  But nope.  She struggled out of the sheets and actually got up.  I wasn't ready, myself, but she made all us dogs wake up and go do our business.  (Now, in what universe is this right?  If I want to get up first, she tells me to go back to sleep.)

I slept most of the way with my head on mom's leg.  The sun was up pretty good by the time she stopped for pancakes.  Of course I got the last couple bites and licked syrup off the container.  Then she made a phone call and we drove out into the country-side.  I could smell cows, pigs, fresh hay.  We turned around a couple times, then mom made another phone call and drove some more.  Finally, it seemed like we were where we were going, but mom didn't let me out.  I wouldn't have minded doing a quick perimeter check, but mom left me in the truck.

Finally, she came back smelling like that wild bunny I chased the week before.  I pushed my nose in her tummy and sniffed her good.  You aren't going to believe it.  I'm not sure I do, either, but mom just got two pet boy rabbits that are going to live in our house.  What ever happened to her rule about not having connecting links of the food chain in the same house?  (Okay, she never really followed that rule, what with the cats and birds, anyway.)  She's already made it clear that us dogs are not going to play with HER bunnies.  The least she could do is share the buns, don't you think?

Oh no.  They have their own room.  With a baby-gate across the door.  Well, they share their room with the parrot, who sticks her head out of the cage and looks at them sideways calling "kittykittykitty" and meowing like a cat.  Then Doc laughs and laughs at her own joke.  Us dogs get to sniff the bunnies though the baby gate when we go outside and that's it.  Mom sits in there and brushes them every day.  They have long cat hair kinda hair.  Mom says she will make yarn out of their fur and sell it for a million dollars someday.

Wish me luck, folks, as the temptation to play with these new toys is plenty strong.  Not just for me.  Sally's inner-beagle is howling to be set free, and Gretchen's prey drive is in high gear.  Thank goodness, I got my ball and hole digging to keep me busy.

Yerz, Yukonoble

RIP ball-in-a-ball ball

Well, Yukonski's ball-in-a-ball ball is not dead yet, but it's been a long time coming, and well, it's terminal.  He chewed some last shreds of plastic, uniting two of the ever growing holes.  "What's a ball-in-a-ball ball?"  It's a hard plastic ball with four good sized holes in it, and a smaller ball inside.  Most pet stores carry them, so replacing it won't be difficult.  We've had this toy for over 2 years, but it's spent extended periods under the kitchen cabinet.  He gets so excited when he has this toy, because it's one he's been allowed to play with in the house.

With it being so hot outside, I haven't wanted Yukon to work his yard ball after 9 am.  He's a rambo 5 year-old Rotti-mix, and being bored is a sure recipe for disaster. Yesterday, I was sweeping up the shed hair that's forming tumbleweed masses in all the corners due to using the fans so much.  I had a sneaking suspicion of what I'd find under the cabinet....a pair of leather shoes, and two left crocs, and yes, the ball-in-a-ball ball.  I pulled it out and dusted it off over the trash can.  He was jumping in place before I ever set it on the floor.  Let me say, it is LOUD rolling around the hardwood floors.  But then, it wasn't rolling so much, as Yukon had it so misshapen already.

In the beginning, Yukon had gotten his lower jaw stuck in the holes, and had to use his paws to pry the ball off his chin.  (rather humorous--but we didn't dare laugh)  Now the holes have been enlarged and two of them met this morning.  He's tearing off small bits of hard plastic as I type.  Okay.  Enough.  I gotta parent, since my kid is being destructive and basically flirting with disaster.....I'm saving my vet money to get his teeth worked on.  I don't need him swallowing jagged plastic bits.

I pulled the soft green ball out of the shell ball.  Gretchen immediately began nosing it around the room!!!  She never plays with toys...(Perhaps because Yukon is a toy-hog?)  I held the shell and told him "Broken".  I doubt he gets it, although we've had this same conversation about numerous tennis balls over the years.  Then I put it in the bird room and will take it out with the trash later....of course he would retrieve the corpse from the trash if I put it there now.  Yukon is laying on the office floor, stretched out below the fan--obviously grieving...sigh.

More later.  Kim

RIP Sarge

Yukon here~
Sarge, the elderbull, has passed at almost 17 human-years.  He was such a breed ambassador and will be sorely missed.  http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fstubbydog.org%2F2011%2F08%2Fthe-power-of-the-elderbull%2F&h=_AQDuv-fW

He had touched so many lives.  The rest of us doggies can only hope to do half as much.  Hope his people are doing okay with his loss.

New toy review

Yukon here~Mom got me a yellow and black ball that is flat on the top and bottom, called the Dog Dizzy.  She puts little bits of cat food inside and then I have to roll it around to get the cat food out.  Sounds easy enough, right?  Uhm, no.  It is not easy.  The darn thing doesn't roll.  It also doesn't come apart when you chew it.  I got a bizzilion tooth marks on it but it hasn't broken at all in over 24 hours.  Very few toys can say THAT!!!

Mom here~ it's an intelligence test toy made in Sweden by the Nina Ottosson company.  He tried to break it for quite a while, but that wasn't working for him.  I was very impressed that this toy survived his first attempts.  He has gotten treats out and knows they come out of the hole in the side.  It's weighted so it almost never gives out treats, because the part with the hole is on the light side and points up.  The next method was to pick it up and drop it, which sometimes worked and sometimes didn't.  He has gotten to the point of forcing it to move with his paws and grip, even laying on his side to get the treats off the floor.  Yukon is a pretty smart doggy, if I do say so, myself.

Sucking up the Air

Yukon here~
It's still a steam bath in Indy.  There's another big car race in town this weekend....the Brickyard with Nascar.  Some of my hound buddies are howling all about it.  I don't know.  I keep my head down whenever there's a ruckus.  Just let a dog dig a hole and all is well with the world, I always say.  Well, I'd need my ball, too, if there was ever an Apocalypse.  But you know what I mean.  My world doesn't turn on any doggone car race.

I've taken to sleeping on the linoleum floor in the bathroom.  There's a air vent from the air conditioner that tickles my belly fur, if I lay right.  It's good.  Lovin life, Yukonoslug

Chasin' Bunnies

Yukon here~
Went to the woods for three days.  We didn't take Sally, cause mom said it was too hot.  Well, duh!  It WAS TOO HOT.  In the mornings and late afternoons, we walked to the tadpole pool and I went in every time.  It's gettin sort of low and slimey.  Mom wouldn't let me back in the camper until I got dry, and she said she wasn't using her good towels on me, either.  So, I hadda stay out and air dry.  I had my ball and egg to play with, and the tall grass makes it more fun, so I didn't mind too much.

On our walk to the pool, we saw a real live wild bunny!!!

Anyways, I saw him about the same time as he saw me, and the run was ON!  He didn't have to go very far until he holed up.  I snuffled around for awhile, until mom called me back.  The next time I saw that rabbit, I guessed he was going the same direction, so I zigged before he zagged and the bunny had to make other plans.  That time he ran a long ways, with twisty turns tryin to dodge me.  I know I was panting like a hound, but my smile almost cracked my face when I went back to tell mama about the adventure.  It's so much more exciting when you can see what you're chasing, and not just following some scent of unknown origin.  Don't know as I've ever seen half the critters that live in the woods, but I've smelled em.  And I've followed em.  Nope, I never catch em.

As always, Yerz, Yukonogram

hot diggity

Well, me brothers at paw, either it's not quite so stiffling hot, or I'm just getting used to it.  The major dig under the maple is taking a turn.  Too many roots between the hole and the shed, so we're curving towards the back gate.  It makes me laugh to look at it.  Looks like lack of planning, but when you run into an obstical that you can't chew through, time to turn....

I just heard mom on the phone to sissy.  The magic words, "Bucca di Beppo" came from mama's lips....but she wasn't really talking to sis, because then she just said bye, without waiting for an answer.  I hope she goes.  Even though she hardly ever shares, I love to smell their garlic bread, and the chicken parmesan is drool-worthy.  Then I get to lick the pan before it goes into the recycle cans.  Ah......Bucca.

Yerz, Ykonski

After supper digging

Yukon here~ It's still hot with so much water in the air that panting doesn't even help cool a feller down.  I just lay beside the water fountain when I'm outside and take a few laps without getting up, whenever I need to.  It's the most I can do to lay on top of the doghouse and keep an eye on the yard.  Mom won't let me stay out for more than an hour.

When I come in to the AC, I have to sleep on the cold linolium floor in the bathroom near the vent.  I can't play ball.  Mom will throw it three times then makes me stop.  I would chase and fetch until I fell over and she knows it.  Now though, it's after supper and I'm digging on the hole that Gretchen started yesterday.  It's her turn to be inside the house.  Her work isn't all that bad, really.  Still kind of wide and shallow.  I tend to make deeper trench shaped holes.  Maybe she is more of a pond digger, whereas I am a canal digger.  We all have our dog-given talents, nature's wonders to perform.  The cool soil at the bottom of a hole is heaven on a hot day.

My friend Ojo has a deal with her mom.  Before Ojo is allowed to play ball, she gets sprayed with the hose so she doesn't over heat.  Then she gets ten minutes of ball before she has to go back inside.  I know Ojo's mom told everyone about their deal, so maybe mom will consider it as an option.  She broke down this morning and handed me the 6 inch ball-in-a-ball ball, inside the house.  It went under the stove first thing and I laid on my side and fished for it with my front paws, but no luck.  Maybe I can talk a cat into rolling it back?  Maybe that new cat, Sylvia....Gotta go, Yerz ever, Yukon

Gretchen the Grump

It's been un-doggly hot the last week or so, and today is just the same.  I get so rambunctious when I can't play ball outside.....and mom keeps making me come inside with the A/C.  'Course then I just try to play ball inside....which mom makes me stop....so that leaves tug-of-war. 

Sal is not a good combatant for that game.  She just follows wherever I tug her to.  It's gotta be Gretchen.  Then she goes over-board on the competition deal and turns all serious.  I try to tell her it's not that deep, but she insists on having her top-dog girly way.  She always takes the rope to her crate and chews on it by herself when we are done.  It's not sports-dog-like, if you ask me. Tug-of-war is supposed to be about give and take, not just take....but try telling her bully-ness that!  Ha!

Gretchen has applied for an intern possition as apprentice digger at the escavation site.  She shows some tallent and ambition, but seems to lack focus.  She can dig with enthusiasm for three minutes, flipping dirt behind her with a will to succeed.  Then, it's off barking at a cat, or scratching her back on the steps.  Exasperating.  Oh, but let me go check on her progress, and she's all "This MY hole" and back to digging like her life depends on it.  I miss my partner, Daphne.

Times is hard in the hole-business.  Yerz, ever, Yukon

doggone toasty, my pets

Yukon here, and I'm sad to report another drool dripping day....still in town, cause mama is afraid of the heat at the woods...sissy, girl, human.  Me and Sally from the Alley don't complain about hot, but we do love our cool.  In the truck we both suck AC.  You gotta love it when my hot breath makes fog clouds in front of the vent, right?

So, now, laying on the hardwood floor in front of the fan, stretched out so my undercarriage can get some fresh air....  Mom is threatening to strap mop heads to my feet so I can mop up my own water-bowl excess....now wouldn't that look just sweet?  Me with mops on my big ol clomppers?  Ha!  I got a laugh outa that one myself.