Proper Kong Toy Management

Nickel is now 1.5 years old and still has an abundance of energy. We know from experience that he won't slow down at all until he's at least 3 years old. Our survival strategy can be summarized in a single phrase:  a tired puppy is a good puppy.

Fortunately, Nickel loves to retrieve his red kong toy so we stand on the deck outside the back door and throw the toy as far as we can into the woods. Nickel will joyfully retrieve the toy many, many, many times before he is even slightly winded. Frankie however, almost 10 years his senior, loves the kong toy too but is more interested in chewing it than endlessly retrieving.

Frankie waits for the next throw

Frankie, being the senior nose sniffer, is more accomplished at locating the toy but Nickel often lunges more quickly once Frankie finds it or he simply takes it from Frankie ... until Frankie holds his ground and refuses to give it up. Then Frankie settles in for a nice long chew. Nearby sticks work well for variety.

That red speck is the kong toy.

 

Mine!

 

After 12 or 15 retrieves, Nickel needs a bit of a breather.

The problem with a brief respite is the kong toy tends to roll off the deck. Thus, the need for proper kong toy management. One day, after fetching the kong toy from beneath the deck, the straw broke the camel's back. Nickel discovered something very exciting while getting a drink of water:

Now stay put!

Safe and secure

These days, our smart boy secures the kong toy then gets his drink of water.

Gotta go!

The Nagging Ritual

At our house, play time as well as dinner often begins with a robust nagging ritual. Here, Nickel has gotten bored and would very much like someone ... anyone ... to take him outside and throw his kong toy so he can run like the wind and retrieve it ... over and over and over and over. Is there any chance Harry can be convinced?

Please ... I'm BEGGING you!

But there's always time for a good scratch! Nickel, while a haunt if he doesn't get the exercise he needs, can be very sweet and affectionate. As you can see here, he adores Harry.

Oh that's the spot!

When breakfast or dinner time approaches, Frankie typically takes the lead in proactively reminding Harry ... aka nagging ... that the goldens are absolutely, completely, totally and utterly starving. STARVING! He begins with an adoring stare while sitting beside Harry:

I love you so much ... did I mention I'm a tad hungry?

A few minutes go by ...

I'm definitely hungry now ... can you see me?

 Tick tock tick tock ... a little more in the lap ...

Can you see me NOW?

 A few more minutes pass ...

I NEED FOOD!

Now I will get in his lap. He will definitely see me and maybe even hear my tummy growling.

Oh geez ... is he STILL reading?

Trust me when I say that going on daylight savings time is sublime while going off, in a word, sucks.

Old Paws and New Paws

Let's begin with some background info. There are three sets of "old paws" in our house (not counting us):

Frankie is on the left, Benny on the right

• Benny is a golden retriever, 11 going on 12 years old. Benny loves Frankie, food and me but not in that order.
• Frankie is also a golden retriever, 9 going on 10. They are inseparable but not related. Frankie loves swimming, eating and Benny ... in that order.
• ZZ is a kitty, adopted from our local humane society a year and a half ago. He's about 2 years old and is very proud of his beautiful blue eyes and magnificent fluffy tail.

ZZ

Last December (2010), Benny was diagnosed with oral melanoma. The tumor was small and successfully removed by the OSU Veterinary Teaching hospital. When we went for the post-surgery re-check, one of Benny's lymph nodes was enlarged and found to be metastasis from the melanoma. We removed that and thought we were home free. Benny now has a small tumor in his lung that awaits further diagnostics.

Meanwhile, we discovered a lump on Frankie's face about 6 weeks ago. That turns out to be a fibro-sarcoma tumor that was successfully removed by our local vet. To be thorough, the oncology team at OSU did a second surgery to remove additional margin. Frankie has recovered and is doing fine. He especially appreciated getting to eat soft food for 3 weeks.

These events got us to thinking ... our boys are getting older ... maybe we should get a puppy for many, many happy days. More on "new paws" later ...