major puppy developments...

so it's obviously been a long time since we posted. many things have occurred in the way of bowser... some good, some questionable... but please let me bring you up to speed on the life and times of bowser. he'd tell you himself, but he has short term memory issues... and, well, he'd rather play with his fleece-y than type a long message. :) bowser has really made great progress with his overnight and "while mom and dad are at work" crate sessions. it's honestly been at least two months or more since bowser had his last accident in his cage (well, *real* accident... excited pee dribbles don't count). this is absolutely amazing considering when we first got him it was literally overflowing with pee and poo. it makes my life so much easier! :) aside from that though, he's also learned where to go pee and poo. before, he would really just go at random all through the rocks in the driveway and even on our porch. however, he's been trained to go over by the bulkhead and for the most part, he keeps to that area. occasionally, I'll find some poo in the rocks, but hey, when you're only six months... you gotta go when you gotta go. at least he's showing promise at being taught basic things, which I was getting frustrated with... that he wasn't going to really take to anything. he still doesn't know "no" very well (though we do say it *all* the time), and we haven't really taken the time to practice "sit", "stay", or "lay down"... so I'm not expecting miracles with that. overall though, I'm so ridiculously proud of my baby boy. he's growing up! I was so proud of him, that I thought it was time for him to have a dogbed. I got him a small round blue fleece dogbed with his name embroidered in red. it's so awesomely comfortable... and it's small enough that we can fit it into his crate for the time being. my logic is that he will associate the dogbed with sleep, so that we will be able to take it out of the crate in the future and he will want to sleep on it rather than rip it apart and play with it. bowsie has begun to really associate the bed and his crate with sleep which is another amazing development. just last night, he was upstairs with us (his crate is temporarily upstairs while grandpa elijah stays over)... and he voluntarily went into his crate, on his bed, and started to go to sleep. of course, I got up and then he woke up, but hey, he's a puppy... what do you want out of life. oh... and I can't possibly forget the world's cutest and most hysterically funny thing that bowsie is doing... he is learning to pee "like a real man dog"... and so he's beginning to learn to lift his leg (with help from 'lijah, I'm sure). however, bowsie doesn't quite have it down... so he'll lean to the right but lift his right leg... so he kind of pees on himself. it's much funnier to see in person... but you can imagine what it would look like. :) he's such a cutie.

also on the forefront in bowser's life... his big "snip snip" surgery. :( I feel so badly about putting him through it... but at least he didn't get to... have a taste. so he really doesn't know what he's missing! :) at least that's how I make myself feel better about it. he's scheduled for november 4 for his rabies and distemper vaccines... plus his pre-surgery physical... which I expect he'll pass with flying colors. then the following tuesday, november 4, he will go in in the morning... and then have surgery that afternoon... and my bowsie will be able to come home with me and rest (thought knowing him... he will run around and around and around and around and around...). just as soon as my little baby became a man... he becomes and un-man. [sigh] that's the life of a dog I guess.

well, hopefully I'll be more consistent with the updating of bowsie's life. I know that I've been slacking... and some major milestones have passed. but... he's only 6.5 months old... he's got a lot left! :)