Tag Archives: bella

Hot blooded…

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Check it and see… Mother Nature has a temperature of a hundred and three.

If only the title of this post was not inspired by the fact that my car told me it was 103 degrees yesterday.

And today.

With that in mind… make sure to take care of your furry friend during these sweltering summer days.  If you must go outside (or if your pal gets cabin fever), there are many options you can explore.  Get your pup a cooling vest or cooling bandana.  Let him splash around in the kiddie pool. Cool your feline friend down with a spray bottle.

In any event, I advise you to check out these helpful tips to keep your pet cool and safe in the summer.  Sunburns and overheating aren’t just for humans, after all.  Unfortunately, the heat’s not the only thing to watch out for – check out a few other dangers lurking during the summer season.

One final tip, and then I will get off my (rapidly melting) soapbox… please don’t ever leave your poor pooch in a hot car.  It’s a terrible idea and is extremely dangerous.  Think you know just how dangerous?  Take this quiz and find out.

Keep cool out there!

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Supplemental Saturday

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Technically, my Friday was yesterday because I will not be heading into the office today.  Whenever those wonderfully short work weeks arise, I tend to refer to the pre-weekend Thursday as my Functional Friday.  Until today, I’d never considered what to call actual Friday under these circumstances.  After a few attempts (Second Friday and First Saturday are in the reject pile), I’ve decided to go with Supplemental Saturday.  Never fear, your No Frown Friday is still being delivered as scheduled:

  1. It’s Take Your Dog to Work Day.  Thus, today’s punny pet name is office-related:  Bill Lumbfurg.  Better make sure you use the right cover sheet on your TPS reports.
  2. If you start taking your dog to work, then does your dog start to accrue vacation time?  If so, then I guess you better plan to take your pup with you on vacation.  I’m sure he’d appreciate visiting one of these dog-friendly beaches.
  3. If it only takes a few of the sun’s rays to send you on a one-way trip to sunburn city, I do have other suggestions.  Check out a winery with your dog – some wineries actually encourage you to bring your real hound in addition to your inner booze hound.  In addition, some wineries take their love of dog to the next level – for example, Chateau Morrisette, a winery in Virginia, has an entire line of wines called Dogs 4 a Cause.  (Apparently, Virginia is for dog lovers.)

 

Need me to do any work?

(Dug out of the Bella archives just for TYDTWDay)

Finally, I do feel a little bad for only giving you one punny pet name this week.  Luckily, it was apparently a punny week out there on the Interwebs… so if I didn’t meet your pun quotient this week, I urge you to check out these canine literary luminaries. (My personal favorite?  Kurt Vonnemutt.)  The puns don’t stop there – not all of these unusual pet names are puns, but I think Bing Clawsby deserves a mention.  Have a puptastic weekend!

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Working like… a human?

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This Friday is Take Your Dog to Work Day!  Will your pup be digging out his best business casual attire and accompanying you to the office on Friday?  (Some dogs have taken full advantage of this opportunity in the past – check out the photographic evidence here.)  If you are interested in participating, I urge you to check out the TYDTWDay website to learn more about how you and your company can help shelter dogs by participating.

As you may already know, Ms. Bella is not really… portable.  Her tendency to get carsick from the gentle sway of the breeze outside means that she will not be hopping in the car to join us on our daily commute.  However, I like to think that we take her to work on those days when one of us works from home.  After all, when I work from home she tends to hang out under the desk in case her assistance is needed.

If you do decide to take your furry friend to the office with you, I recommend checking out this list of tips on how to make the day a success for you, your pup, and your colleagues.  Before your puppy punches his first time card, it’s important to be prepared.

Still not sure?  The video below provides some adorable and funny reasons you should consider participating:

(via TYDTWDay)

If your pup gets his W-2 this Friday, consider entering your photo in the TYDTWDay photo contest.  Also, if you do participate, feel free to tell us all about it in the comments… stories and pictures are always welcome!

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Happy Father’s Day!

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A few quick links for Father’s Day:

  • Has your pet been asking you what to get their person for Father’s Day?
    Here are some guidelines for your furry friend – Bella has already taken care of the first item on this list. She woke me up today instead of making her way to the other side of the bed.
  • If you’re missing your dad today, I’m sending you a big hug.  I was touched by these two sweet Father’s Day tributes, both with an animal connection.
  • Looking for a unique Father’s Day gift?  Here are a few gift ideas that also help our furry (or feathered) friends.  (I realize it might be a bit late for gift ideas for this Father’s Day… but you could always bookmark these ideas for a future gift for dear ol’ dad.)
  • Is your dad a pet lover?  For a unique gift, you could commission a portrait of his beloved companion.  Might I recommend JoeyTheDog Artworks?  (Also, sending a congrats to JoeyTheDog – the awesome portrait of my very own Bella made PetSugar’s home page today!)
  • I think a bit of humor is the perfect way to conclude this list – these Father’s Day cake wrecks are sure to provide a chuckle.

In closing, I’d like to send happy Father’s Day wishes to my own wonderful dad.  His grandpuppy would like to join in, and has requested I post this photo in his honor:

That’s Bella, wearing Dad’s trademark hat.  She wants to be just like you!  (Apologies for the green eye – my attempts at photo editing were unsuccessful.)

Happy Father’s Day!

 

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Bella’s back… tell a friend

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This week’s No Frown Friday is brought to you without commercial interruption by Bella.  Bella: your number one source for cute since 2002.

Moving on:

  1. Today’s punny pet names were inspired by some of the nominees (and one honoree) for this year’s Tony Awards:  Jude Paw, Sean Jayes (for your feathered friend who seems like he’d make a good awards show host), Catherine Zeta-Bones, and David Rawhide Pierce.
  2. Will you be watching the Tony Awards on Sunday?  (As both an awards show addict and a theater fan, I can’t wait.)  If you’re not up on the theater scene, the Washington Post has come up with five reasons you should watch the Tony Awards anyway.  If you’re a Glee fan, you should know that Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison (who were Broadway vets before they became our very own Rachel and Mr. Schue) will be performing on Sunday’s telecast.
  3. Speaking of Glee, the season finale aired on Tuesday.  I have to say, I loved it – it was funny, touching, and hit all of the right notes.  (Pun actually not intended.)  Anyway, if you’re not quite ready to say goodbye for the summer, TWOP has put together a list of the best musical moments from the first season.  While I agree with the moments that made the list, there are a few others that I loved.  (Expect those moments to appear on this blog in the near future.)
  4. Okay, that’s enough about how I love shows that allow me to pretend it is totally acceptable to break into song at any given moment.  Let’s shift our focus… it’s time for some cute!  These photos from the Dachshund U.N. illustrate what it would be like if walking hot dogs ran the world.  I have a feeling that calling them “wiener dogs” would be a punishable offense.  Show some respect.  (Link courtesy of my favorite globe-trotting librarian.  Thanks for the tip!)

Finally, Bella informed me that she’s a bit disappointed in her lack of face time on this blog lately.  I’ve promised to remedy that problem, starting now:

Bella also wanted me to tell you to have a great weekend.  She’s thoughtful like that.

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Thunderbolts (with or without lightning)… very, very frightening

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We had a thunderstorm on Saturday night. Thunder and lightning seem to give Bella magical powers. Bella usually needs to get a running start in order to jump on our bed – however, during a storm she develops some sort of super jumping power in which she effortlessly lands somewhere in the middle of the bed. And then she paces. And jumps down. And paces some more.

As you have probably guessed, Ms. Bella is not exactly a fan of thunder. Poor pup – it’s only gotten worse over the years. We’ve tried many of the traditional suggestions to help her get over her fear (distraction, desensitization and the like), but nothing really works.

I recently saw a new product designed to help combat noise anxiety, but I’m not sure how I feel about it. Behold, the puppy earmuff.  Aside from making your pet look like a DJ, the Mutt Muff (more info here) is supposed to protect sensitive puppy ears from loud noises, including thunder.  I’m tempted to give it a try – though I am afraid we’d still need some sort of light-canceling goggles to keep Bella from seeing the lightning.  These earmuffs would only work if the noise is what’s really upsetting her.

The other option we’ve considered is the Storm Defender Cape.  This product appears to be more appropriate for dogs who are scared of the storm itself, instead of the noise.  I saw a few articles about this cape, and was intrigued by the idea.  At the first sign of a storm, you are supposed to put the cape on your dog – it’s lined with metallic fabric, which is supposed to disperse the static electricity from the storm and calm your dog.  (More info available here.)

So the question is… what is it about these storms that scares Bella?  Maybe I could just combine the cape and the earmuffs and Bella could moonlight as a superhero DJ.  (Kidding… though that does make for a funny mental picture.)  If we decide to give either of these products a shot, I’ll report back – and if anyone else has tried these or other solutions, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Keep your fingers crossed for no thunderstorms this week (or ever again)!

UPDATE:  There’s a discussion over at PetSugar on this very question, if you’re interested.

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The weekend in Bella

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It’s Bella… unleashed!  Our friend Bella is quite the escape artist, so before she was allowed to go in the backyard off-leash, we had to make a few modifications.  This week, we put in a new gate, shored up a few places in the fence, and added railroad ties to deter Bella from attempting to dig an escape tunnel.  This week, Bella left the leash behind and I think she really enjoyed it.

 

 

 

After her first foray into the backyard as a free pup, she then had to take that bath I told you about last week.  Needless to say, she was not pleased (as I think her look in the photo at right demonstrates).
Extreme paw closeup!

After that traumatic experience, I thought Bella might enjoy a new collar… she’s very possessive of her collars and gets very excited when she gets a new one.  I bought the collar below in March at the Pet Expo:

Ahoy, Bella!

 

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Corgi, P.I.

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For the first time, No Frown Friday will let one specific breed take the spotlight.  It seemed like I kept encountering Corgis this week.  It’s a fitting breed for my first breed spotlight – although we’ve been told Bella is a cross between a Beagle and a Jack Russell Terrier, we often get asked if she’s part Corgi.  She does have comically large ears and is low to the ground.  So either that combination results in a suspiciously Corgi-like creature, or there’s some Corgi in her family tree.  Anyway, on with the Corgification:

  1. While watching the Daily Show on Monday night, I saw this segment about Britain’s hung Parliament (that’s right, I keep up with non-puppy news as well).  While the Daily Show is reliably funny, this segment had a little something special – punny pet names!  Specifically, Winston Furchill (a Corgi, of course) and Margaret Scratcher.  Classic.  With that in mind, my own punny pet name this week is based upon one of the talented actresses Britain has bestowed upon us: Mischa Barkton.  (I kid, I kid… but did you know she was born in England?)
  2. If you love Corgis, there’s a cute blog out there called the Daily Corgi where  I found this picture of a Corgi rocking Bella’s signature pose.  Or maybe Bella has stolen a signature Corgi pose?  The plot thickens…
  3. Who am I kidding?  As if I could only post one new punny pet name.  In honor of today’s Corgi focus, I give you Billy Corgi-an and Corgi Cox.
  4. I just learned that a cross between a Jack Russell Terrier and a Pembroke Welsh Corgi is called a Cojack (info and plethora of adorable pictures here).  I now have an overwhelming urge to adopt one of these dogs, get him hooked on lollipops, and  train him to star in his own police drama.  It seems to me that their short stature makes them the perfect dog detective – they can sniff out clues while staying under the radar.  Also, they are short enough to simply trip bad guys when they try to make a run for it.  However, in order for this police drama to work, Cojack may need a taller dog as a sidekick so that he doesn’t miss any clues that are higher off the ground.
  5. In honor of the future interim Prime Minister, Sir Winston Furchill, here’s another noble Corgi, showing off his kibble dancing skills:

(via Cute Overload)

If you think a short and adorable dog might be for you and are interested in finding a Corgi of your very own, consider rescuing a Corgi.  I hear they are good sports and won’t be offended even if you constantly make fun of their height.  True story.

Have a good weekend, puppy pals!

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Stinky puppy, you’re the one…

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At some point this week, Bella needs a bath.  As she slumbers beneath the desk, stinky and content, little does she know that within days she will be suffering through such an ordeal (she really doesn’t like getting a bath).  Anyway, this seems to be the perfect opportunity to post one of my favorite Bella photos:

 
I haven’t attempted to take photos of Bella in the bath in quite some time – usually I’m too busy playing defense to keep her in the tub, or attempting to throw up a towel shield right before she shakes off.  We’ll see if I can get some new ones this time.

Given Bella’s impending doom (her description, not mine), I thought this would be a good time to share some tips with you.  In my family, we have always bathed the dogs at home instead of taking them to the groomer (do they even have groomers in the sticks?).  I’ve been lucky – most of my pups, Bella included, have been pretty low-maintenance.  If you are a new pet parent, or considering bathing your dog at home sometimes instead of always paying the groomer, I’ve rounded up some tips for you.  (If you’re an experienced pet parent, you still might find some new info or tips to improve bath time.  Never stop learning, right?)

  • If you’re new to this whole puppy bath thing, here are some basic tips to get you started.
  • While Bella is definitely not a bath fan, at least she isn’t scared of the bathroom.  If your dog gets really anxious around bath time, check out these tips for making bath time more fun.
  • Even when I think I’ve gotten Bella as dry as I can (or as dry as she will tolerate – after a while she has had enough), she’s still usually a little damp.  Maybe I should get her this robe so she can relax in style (and stay warm) post-bath.  I’ve also considered getting one of these Brush Buddies – it’s both a towel and a flexible brush that might help make brushing seem like a nice puppy massage.
  • Do you have a stinky dog and no desire to give him or her a bath?  Similar to dry shampoo, you can use cornstarch in a pinch if you want to clean up your dog but don’t want to fill up the tub.  Here’s how.
  • If you’re looking to make bath time more green, check out this post on how to find eco-friendly grooming products.    You can also try eco-friendly grooming wipes if you need to freshen up a stinky pet.  Also, you can find information on where to purchase a host of green grooming products via Raise a Green Dog.

Do you have any bath tips or stinky dog stories? Feel free to shake that knowledge off and leave it in the comments, like Bella will soon be leaving water droplets all over my bathroom.

 

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