It's my birthday!

Can you believe it? I'm an adult now. Yep, all of three years old; there's a saying for us Berners, "Three years a young dog, three years a good dog, three years an old dog, and all else is a gift". So I guess I am a good dog now.

Truth be told however, I think that Christine and Richie would say that I have been a good dog for quite some time now. It's been so long since I've eaten a pair of socks or gloves that I can't even remember. And digging in the lawn or garden? That's all but a thing of the past. Yep, I've matured into the model Berner - if a little bit on the couch-potato side. Yep, I can hold down the floor with the best of them, and sometimes getting me to go out for my afternoon walk can be a bit of a struggle. But when I do go, I rarely get skittish around new people (especially men), and can't wait to get pets from the kids in the neighbourhood. I rarely bark, and if I do, it's usually to make my presence known to those strange humans poking around in the alley. Squirrels, kitty-cats and the mailman are all safe from me. I do play once in a while, usually when I have something that I'm not supposed to have, and we play keep-away for a few mins. Or it's when I get together with my brother Cooper, who can be a bit relentless when it comes to tussling. But other than that, it's a calm, care-free lifestyle for me over here in Cambie. Let's see what adulthood has to offer!

Buddy

Update from Cambie

Wow, long time no post... you try using a keyboard with these big mitts! Anyhow, not a lot has been going on around here since my last post where I had hurt my paw. You will be happy to hear that everything healed up fine, which is great, because I hated wearing that silly rubber thing on my paw all of the time.

There is this thing called "Instagram" where you can keep up on my antics a little more often, as Richie is usually better at posting things for me on there - Check me out at https://www.instagram.com/chin.rich/. He might have to give you permission, but he usually takes care of that within a day or so. Meanwhile, here are some good pics over the last 6 months.

The obligatory Christmas photo

"Cold? What's cold?"

I love it when it snows!

This is my pizza face

Playing at the beach in Kamloops earlier this Spring

Posing

Racing with my brother, Cooper

Hugs for my buddy Robin

Keep watching Instagram for more!

Buddy

I hurt my paw

We went on another road trip recently. It seemed like a long time - longer than it takes for us to go see Richie's parents. But when we got to our destination, there was snow there! We were at Christine's sister's place, and that puppy Rufus was there. It was so fun up there, even though there was only a little bit of snow.

We took a nice walk in the neighbourhood, and ended up at this spot by a lake. It was pretty cold out, so I decided not to go wading in the water... that made Richie happy for some reason. But there was lots of hanging out inside the cabin, and when Rufus would calm down, we could both get a little bit of a nap in.

On our second day there, we went for another walk along a trail. I was having fun exploring, when I fell through a deep patch of snow. But something poked me on the bottom of my paw, and when I got out of there, I was holding it up for Christine to see. There was this stuff dripping from my paw, and when I licked it, it tasted like the bar stool that I often lick at home.

Anyhow, we rushed back to the cabin, where everyone was hovering over me and Richie held my paw tight until that stuff was no longer coming out. Then they wrapped up my paw and part of my leg  with some stuff, and then put a silly rubber glove over top, so I could still go out in the snow. It seemed like a lot of drama, but I didn't put up much of a fuss. I didn't even try to get the glove off, but it sure was hard to walk with.

Anyhow, we've been home now for what seems like a week, and I keep getting new bandages put on my paw. Apparently, there is still more healing to do, as I'm getting limited access to the backyard, and have to put on a rubber bootie each time I do. I am so ready for this to be over.

Buddy

More Cooper time

Yet again, we went for a car ride to my brother Cooper's place, and much to my dismay, I got left behind! Ok, once I got over Richie leaving, Cooper and I played hard. But we are pretty used to each other now, and sometimes I'm the instigator of the wrestling, sometimes it's Cooper. After a while, we calm down, and we resume our positions, holding the floor down.

We would also go on visits to new places that I'd never been... here's a couple of pics from a farm that we went to one day to hang out. Of course, after a number of sleeps, Richie and Christine came to get me, and I greeted them with much jubilation!

On another day, we got in the car and went back to a doggie park that we had been to a long time ago. And again, Cooper was there! We ran around and sniffed so much, and then we found a big muddy puddle!

I love to lie down in the cool water and drink, but this did not make the humans very happy. Cooper came over to see what the fuss was about, but didn't lie in the puddle with me.

We eventually resumed our walking, and I got a little bit of that mud off. Regardless, when we got home, I got hosed down for some reason. But it's always fun to see my brother Cooper!

Buddy

No more summer

Today was the first full day of fall, or so they tell me. We had some visitors show up one sleep before that; humans that I had met a long time ago, when I was just getting acquainted with my new home. This time, they stayed with us, and they brought their little doggie, Zeus.

They tell me he's about 6 years old, but you'd never know it by his size... he's about the same as my stuffed toys! Anyhow, he was pretty chill, and we got along pretty well, despite our size difference. I tried a few times to get him to play (instigated with my downward dog action), but he wouldn't go for it.

We did go for a good walk this morning together, and on our way back, we came across a lawn fully covered in snow! I don't know why it was there, but we didn't care, as Zeus ran around on the crunchy white stuff, and I tried to chase after him. But he was way too fast and nimble for me, so I decided to lay down on it, and munch away at it.

I don't know how long it will be before we get to see snow again, but I hope it is very soon, as I love it! Anyhow, after we got home, our visitors packed up and went away, so I have the house to myself again.

Buddy

A little more summer fun

Dog, has it ever been a hot, dry summer - well, in my brief experience, that is. I've been hanging out with Richie in the basement and out on the cool patio, and we've been keeping our afternoon walks brief and in the shade. I don't mind, and in truth, I'm still healing up from hurting my leg. A while back, I got excited, and tried to take off from the basement too quickly. My paws lost traction on the slippery floor, and I really hurt my leg. I was scared of the floor for a little while, so Richie put down a carpet there so I won't slip anymore.

We have been eating and entertaining a lot, and we had Tyson and his humans over recently. He doesn't really like me, and when I try to play with him, he growls at me. They tell me it's because he's old, but I don't see what that has to do with anything.

Here's a fun pic of me trying to get some hugs from Christine one afternoon hanging out on the patio. I love doing this to them once in a while. Then this past weekend (or so they tell me), Richie was busy moving things around on the deck, as it finally rained! It was the one evening where they were going to have a bunch of their friends over, and so they set up to host everyone on the deck instead of the patio.

I don't know what all this stuff is for, but I like to be in the centre of all the action! There were a lot of humans that came by, and I tried my best to get snacks and paper napkins from them. Even when they weren't eating, I'd lie in the middle of the circle, hoping someone would pet me on the head or rub my belly.

Anyhow, I think summer is winding down, so I think we'll be able to get out into the trails near UBC again soon.

Buddy

Another Cooper visit

We took another car ride yesterday out to Cooper's place, for something called "Game of Thrones" night. I don't know what that is, but we spent the first part of the evening hanging out and eating pizza! Ok, so I didn't get any, but I know pizza when I smell it. Cooper would not leave me alone, and was constantly trying to take me down by grabbing my front legs in his jaws.

I mean, I didn't back down much, but when I got tired of it, I'd try to go somewhere away from him so that he couldn't bug me. At least with my head tucked between Richie's legs, he couldn't attack me from the front.

We were also hanging out on the deck, and I figured that since the blanket smelled like Cooper, that it was ok to hop up there and hang out too. But it was hot lying up there, so I didn't last too long.

After they ate, we all went downstairs and they sat and watched the moving picture thing. Cooper was relentless again, so they had to set up a barrier so that he couldn't get in and get at me... whew! But all in all, it was a fun night at Cooper's place, again.

Buddy