30 January 2011

Chapter 5. New encounters

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Inside, I saw a lot of things of various shapes and sizes that I'd never seen before. And up on one of those things was an animal, almost as big as me. It had a small head and pointy ears and an unfriendly look on its face. When it saw me, it got up, arched its back until it was twice as big and started making a low growling noise.

This scared me so badly, I struggled to get down from the huge creature's arms to run away. But its grip was too strong and I couldn't go anywhere. My instinct was telling me I was in a lot of danger and I somehow hoped Mother would come and save me.

I squeaked as loudly as I could "Mother, Mother, help me!", but that earned me a light slap on the muzzle from the creature. I shut up, barely whimpering.

The animal with pointy ears calmed down, sat and started to lick its paws. "They don't tolerate cry babies here, runt." it said.

"Do you know Mother? What are you?" I tried to sound as brave as possible, taking care not to get a new slap on the nose. But the animal with pointy ears turned its back and lay down to sleep. "I am a Cat, runt. Don't you forget that."

I was about to ask about Mother again, when another creature, almost as big as the one that was carrying me, came in from behind us. It had different fur and smelled like food and its voice was higher. It started talking to the other creature in a barking voice; I couldn't understand anything. Eventually, the voice changed, cooing and humming and it pet me on the head. I flinched at first, expecting another hit, but calmed down a bit and licked the hand. The creature barked in a cheerful way and that made me think it wouldn't hit me.

The first monster put me down on the ground. The sudden change of perspective made all the big objects in the room look even bigger. The ground was hard, but there was no grass, nor dust. It was like a coloured rock. I began sniffing and exploring left and right. Maybe I could find a way of getting back to Mother. She must have been worried about me.

29 January 2011

Danger in the grass

Remember my old posts, The doggie hits the road and Of booboos and stings? I said I would tell you more about Aschiuta's first trip to Brasov, especially our little medical problem.

Wrong way

Since Brasov is in a valley surrounded by mountains, we took Aschiuta and walked along the old city walls, at the foot of a smaller mountain, covered in grassy slopes and shady trees.
Tag! You're it!
We stopped at a bench and Scorp suggested we let Aschiuta run around without the leash, since she is very fast and loves to run in the grass. She took off like a bullet, prancing in zig-zag, like a rabbit. We ran with her and it was great exercise for everyone. Until we heard noise of broken glass. There was a pile of shards hidden in the grass. Aschiuta dashed away without care and went over the shards a second time before we were able to catch her.

Look mom, no pain!

Since Aschiuta didn't seem hurt, nor did she limp, we decided to go back. On the road we discovered that her hind paws were red and, after we looked closer, we realised she was bleeding from glass cuts. She hadn't even whimpered once. We took her in a taxi and rushed home.

At home, there were three of us washing Aschiuta's cuts, trying to stop the bleeding and worrying about the dumb pooch. We called the vet, but they said it's ok for a doggie's pad to bleed a lot, since there are a lot of blood vessels in there. One of her toe pads was split and bled for a few minutes. We bandaged her paw as well as we could and tried to get Aschiuta to calm down and go to sleep.

Aschiuta calm down? It's like telling a tornado to calm down. She kept trying to take the bandage off to lick her wounds and a couple of times the wound reopened and we had to bandage it all over again.

The next day, we went to the vet, who also bandaged the paw, but with such a sturdy adhesive plaster, that some parts of it were still stuck to her fur a couple of weeks after that.

Little Paw - Brave Pooch

Aschiuta eventually got all better, but she had to wear her little "sock" all the time and it was a bit uncomfortable for her. But she was a very brave little dog, although maybe if she had felt any pain at first, she would have stopped running. Although, would that have stopped her from enjoying a green sunny field of grass?

Did I step in something?

24 January 2011

Chapter 4. Beyond the horizon

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I can't really describe all I saw and felt while being carried by that creature. The world was so high, I sometimes got dizzy looking down.

We walked a while through the field I had lived in with Mother, covered in tall grass and with a bush and tree here and there. We left the river behind and got to a river of dirt and dust where there was no grass. The big monster carried me further on that dry river, walking in a funny way with those long legs, bouncing up and down with each step.

It wasn't hurting me, so I had soon stopped wriggling and biting. I sniffed the strange animal's fur and the smell was strong and sour, I didn't like it much. It had oddly coloured fur too: the chest, back and front legs, except for the paws, were the colour of the sky and the hind legs had the colour of dirt. Its hind paws were bigger than the front ones and also the colour of dry grass. Not to mention that it had dry grass on its head, made into a flat leaf of sorts. All in all, it was nothing I had ever seen before.

Of course, I'd seen little animals in the sky. Mother told me they were birds and that they could fly. The creature's front paws looked a lot like birds' wings. I was slightly worried that it would fly away with me. Then I would really have a hard time getting back to Mother. I couldn't fly, of course. Another thing that made me believe this animal could be a bird was the sound it made, like a long chirp.

After a while of walking like that, I started to see a group of little rocks of various colours in the distance. As we got closer, they got bigger and bigger, until they became a lot bigger than the creature, some were bigger than trees and wide as well.
 
Suddenly, the creature turns to one of those big things, pulls a piece of it to the side and goes inside. I thought I had been through the scariest and strangest day of my life, but what I saw in there topped it all.

23 January 2011

Did you hear that whisper?

You know the "whisperers", people who claim they are in tune with a less understood type of creature and are able to understand their language. They had the Ghost Whisperer and the Dog Whisperer and somehow it has become quite a fad.

I've had someone say "oh, I'm a dog whisperer" and, a little later on, suggest using a shock collar on Aschiuta. What dog whispered that to them?
 
What did you say pooch? You like the new dress?

It makes me wonder just how much of the "whispering" is real understanding between the human and the animal (let's be serious, ghosts?) and what is misconception. I've heard of a lot of crazy esoteric things about humans and animals.

The truth is, we don't speak the same language. We don't understand barking and, when a dog learns commands, it's the sequence of sounds they learn and an action to perform and maybe even the reward involved. They do not understand the meaning of the words themselves.
There is this nonverbal communication that is truly important. We have to interpret signs and try to understand what each other needs. You know, the usual scratching at the door to go out or whining when something hurts.

It's more than just the dress...

Apart from these obvious signs, people and dogs can have a deeper connection, based on mutual trust and respect. And it's not just dogs, it's also other animals we keep as pets. They are intelligent creatures and they have their own personalities. I tend to sympathise with Aschiuta when she rebels and barks if I don't let her chew on the furniture or steal our socks (she has her own socks to play with).
"No, I don't want to stop chewing the table."

Pets aren't objects you put in a corner to look nice. I'd also argue about unnecessarily dressing up pets, but if it doesn't bring harm or discomfort to them, eh, why not?

I'd like to add one more thing: how you treat your pet and what relationship you have with it. It's based on common sense and respect. I believe that when you have that with your pet, that's the empathy they all talk about.

I read two wonderful posts today that made me realise that some people already have that close bond with their pets. Here they are for you to read them, at 24 PAWS OF LOVE and Paw Print City Times.

Take care and remember, stop "whispering" and start "listening".

21 January 2011

Girl talk

First of all, a small warning: if you're squeamish about dog heat cycles or any cycles (except for bicycles maybe) at all, I suggest you skip reading this post. It is however important, if your pet is a female dog, to know about these things.

I'm still learning myself.

Heat? When? Now?

Soon after I found out Aschiuta was a female dog, I started looking up information about heat cycles and spaying. That is how I found out that the first cycle usually happens when the dog is about 6 months old.

You see, when we first found her, we asked the vet how old she was and they answered "oh, about 3 months". Then came a lot of health issues and after they were all finally gone, we went to get her vaccinated.
I asked the vet again when the best time for spaying would be and he answered some time would have to pass after the shots. When I also asked for more information about the first heat cycle, he said the same thing I'd seen in the internet: "6 months". The interesting thing is that she was, to our knowledge, 6 months old. But the doctor decided to check again and, after he looked at her teeth, decided "this dog still has her baby teeth; she can't be older than 3-4 months". Wow, what a difference...

The vet we went to in Brasov during our first trip there also confirmed Aschiuta's "new age". Also, her teeth started changing.

Are we there yet?

Keeping in mind the "6 months old" rule, when Aschiuta reached that age, I started looking up heat symptoms on the internet again and also trying to determine whether she was in heat again. Since Aschiuta is a really friendly dog and because of the packs of strays around the parking lot, we didn't want to take any chances.

And there's also the story of Don Juan, also known as Dog Juan. He is the dog I mentioned in On the streets, the one that lives in front of the block next to ours. Well, his name comes from trying to get too friendly with Aschiuta, and that on a first date too... After we chased him off, he was so upset, he wouldn't notice Aschiuta for a while, but he didn't stay like that for long. Now they sniff and play nice when they meet.

Another funny thing Aschiuta does (which made me wonder if she might be getting in heat) is trying to hump our legs or the blanket. It's almost like a massage, but a pretty disturbing one. I still wonder why she does it.
Yes, there is someone hiding in shame under there... Bad Aschiuta!
 
Another fact that confused me was that maybe she was in heat, but we couldn't see any changes. The vet also said the first cycle might be like that. What if it had already passed? Were the dogs on the streets really that uninterested in her?
 
Surprise!

Yesterday, I managed to push a glass off the table and it shattered into a lot of shards on the floor. Scorp quickly kept Aschiuta from the glass bits, while I was cleaning them up. After a couple of hours, we see a bit of blood on the floor and on Aschiuta's hind leg. Thinking she got cut, I bring the vacuum cleaner for the second round of shard cleaning.

Another two red drops ended up on my sweater on the couch, but we thought it was from the paw. Needless to say, no more other blood that evening.

This morning though, I found a lot of red stains on the sheets, where Aschiuta had been sleeping. After a closer inspection, I realised that there had been no glass cut. Aschiuta was in heat.

After a quick bed and couch stain-proofing, I finally decided to make a little diaper for Aschiuta out of an unused pair of underwear and a pad tailored to her size... A hole in the back for a tail and poor Aschiuta has never been more humiliated. She first tried to bite it off, but has now resigned to napping with it on. We'll see how things go from here...

Swimsuit contest winner - Aschiuta
 
 I'm wonder if she's also getting hormonal-induced mood changes. Maybe doggie PMS?

16 January 2011

Chapter 3. For a little food

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Mother left me alone again and she'd been away for longer this time. I was growing impatient and hungry. I now knew that Mother went to find food for us. She always fed me first and waited until I was full, then she quickly ate the rest.

I noticed she wasn't playing with me as much lately. She was weary and snapped quickly when I would bite her to get her attention. She would take me by the back of my neck and give me a good shake. Of course I was sorry then, but later, I still tried again.

That day when she wouldn't come back was a very hot day. There was a small river next to our small shelter, so I went to have a drink. What I saw there paralysed me with fear. A huge monster, bigger than anything I've seen before, bigger than Mother even, was standing on its hind legs next to the other side of the river. It was holding some food in its front paws and eating from it. He was upwind, so I could smell the food. My stomach started making hungry noises.

My hunger and curiosity won over my fear. I came out of the tall grass to the river side and sniffed. The creature noticed me, took a little food in its paw and crossed the river to where I was, holding the food towards me. It kept making strange noises I couldn't understand, like an odd bark.

I went towards the food and stole a small piece and ran away back in the grass and ate it. The creature didn't move, so I went back and took another piece. This time I didn't run away and ate it there. When I was done, I started licking the paw that still smelled like food, happy that I got lucky to eat so soon.

But suddenly, the paw grabbed me by the back of my neck and picked me up. Just like Mother did, but this didn't give me a warm feeling of safety. My instincts screamed "danger", but even if I struggled and cried, the paw didn't let me go.

Without getting back on four legs or letting go of me, the monster started walking away. Away from my home, from my Mother. Mother, where are you?
 

15 January 2011

Adoptii Caini & Pisici. Blog the Change for Animals

Today is one of the four days when bloggers write posts supporting causes and organisations that aim to help animals. The project is called Blog the Change for Animals and was started by the Be the Change for Animals site. You will also find a list of links to everyone's posts there.

Blog the Change for Animals

Adoptii Caini (= Adopt a Dog) and Adoptii Pisici (= Adopt a Cat) are sister sites that represent databases of adoptable dogs and cats in Romania.

Adopt a Dog

Adopt a Cat
Why am I telling you about Romania? I know most of my visitors are from all over the world and even if they had the kindness of getting interested in these programs, they couldn't even read the information on the site. Still, I want to spread the word about these people who work hard to also tell people about all the dogs and cats that need homes.

You probably know Petfinder, which is a similar site with a database of adoptable animals in the USA. You can make some parallels between this site and the Romanian ones.

The two Romanian sites are a program created and maintained by volunteers throughout Romania. They are associated with Protectia Animalelor (= Animal Protection) to raise awareness of animals that need a home. They also have a lot of information about other animal care organisations in our country, shelters, vets and even pet shops and dog trainers.

They also create a community of volunteers, who help document the database and take pictures, and other animal lovers. People can share their opinions of a certain shelter or vet and post classifieds about their missing pet.

What is more important, in my opinion, is that they also have information about our famous stray dogs and cats (also see my On the streets post) posted by people who want to try to find homes for them. I've said it before, this is a serious problem in our country.

I hope this post will help those animals even the tiniest bit and that more people will adopt pets. Forget that they chew your furniture or pee on your rugs or leave hair on your clothes. Pets bring a little piece of living nature into our homes and we will have a sweet, loving friend.

Please adopt pets. If you are from Romania, now you know where to start looking.

13 January 2011

Walking, sniffing, tugging, jumping - all in one

I'll admit, I'm a lazy ass and don't take Aschiuta out as much as I should. But when I do, there's no stopping her.
 
Woo, what's that?
Living in a dirty neighbourhood and very close to the market doesn't make for very nice places to walk in. Plus, there are a lot of people and cars all around.

I'm not a very sociable person, but when you walk your dog, it's inevitable to meet other people and dogs. Here are a few approaches to meeting Aschiuta...

Other dogs

If the dogs are strays, things are quite simple. They are either protecting their territory (and we have to keep our cool and show them we're not afraid of them), or they want to know and play with Aschiuta. There is a lot of sniffing, a bit of shyness. Then we will see some dancing and jumping and there's no splitting the new playmates apart.

Some dogs walking with their owners can be a bit different though. Of course, there are the friendly dog&owner pair, when we usually exchange the "is your dog a boy or a girl?" "oh, she's so friendly!" small talk. Sometimes, the dogs are a bit grouchy and bark (I noticed Pekingese are like that... and there are a lot of Pekingese where I live), so we just go on our way. The weirdest meetings are when the owners don't want their dog meeting other dogs. The usual inexplicable paranoia (like all paranoia cases, actually).

Other people

Maybe they smell in a certain way. Maybe they also have dogs at home. Maybe they bought something yummy from the market. Maybe they're children. Whatever the reason, Aschiuta selects some people to desperately try to meet. This often implies tugging on the leash towards them or trying to jump on them happily. This behaviour is also triggered by "dog calls" (you know, whistling after a cute doggie passing by? or maybe at their cute owner) or kissie sounds or just waving hands in front of Aschiuta.

The dog-squeamish people will just hurry along the way or give a startled "oh!". But the people who want to attract Aschiuta's attention sometimes don't know what they're getting into... Aschiuta shows affection in a very jumpy, clingy way. And, like I mentioned before, our streets are often dirty and muddy. We always warn them that the dog will get them dirty, but sometimes...

One very funny incident happened when we were getting back from Brasov. Aschiuta was wearing her cute winter coat, but she was very muddy from the train floors and from walking most of the way from the train station. Right in front of our building, a nice young lady came and she was all "oh, such a cute doggie!" and kept patting her head. We told her "please be careful, her paws are muddy, she will get you dirty". Her only response was "aw, bad doggie, you sweetie! getting people dirty like that!" and just kept playing with her. She was wearing a cream-coloured jacket. The kind that doesn't wash easily. Only when she turned to leave, did she realise what had happened. One more inexplicable thing for you, my dear readers...

Have fun walking and remember... Doggies are cute, but they also leave a lot of pawprints...

12 January 2011

Lovable, but not to everyone

You've most likely seen it happen. Someone visiting your home or meeting you on the street. They take one look at your furry pet and they sometimes feel uncomfortable and try to stay away from the animal. If they are tactless, they will even complain that "animals are filthy and smelly" "they leave too much hair around the house" and "don't you know what germs they could carry?"
Leaving germs on the bed, eeek!

The Mom issue

I'm sad to say my mom is one of these people. When we first got Aschiuta off the street, we were living with a friend and he had no problem with the cute pup. After a month though, our friend had to move out and mom came in instead.

Now, you must know that my family policy had always been "no pets inside the flat". And I guess they had their reasons (mostly that animals belong outdoors) and they both admitted to liking animals. We actually had a rabbit for a summer and hosted a kitten for a couple of weeks. I might talk about them in a later post.

When my mom moved in, we agreed she would stay in one room and the doggie and us in the other room. She didn't have to run into Aschiuta too much, because we don't usually let her out of the room much. But when she escapes, my mom makes the "eeek, stay away, you animal!" dance and Aschiuta just wants to hug her more.

Are pets bad for you?

We've had "the talk" a lot of times, that dogs are smelly and they shed too much fur. Also, she has heard of an aunt who died because of an alleged cyst caused by an animal hair. And, there's the story she read about someone who developed asthma because of dog hair. Bottom line, she wants us to give Aschiuta away.

I'm sure she is a nice concerned mother, but I think that's a bit overreacted. I'm sure animals can cause some diseases to humans, but, apart from the common allergy and rabies, I wonder how often the others really occur. Do you guys know any cases of pet-caused illness?

We're seeing the glass half-full

Regardless of all these cons of living with a pet, I don't want to give Aschiuta away... She has grown on us and we've also watched her grow from a small puppy. I'm sure I don't have to tell the pet owners who are reading this post about how wonderful living with an animal can be. It's an emotional bond, beyond all the germs and fur and smells.
Aschiuta came to nap next to me.
So, let's enjoy that glass of life with our pets. Cheers!

10 January 2011

Pet Blogger Challenge - About the blog

Follow the link to the challenge page.

1. When did you begin your blog?

I started this blog on November 2010.

2. What was your original purpose for starting a blog?

To be honest, I first wanted to see how this whole "earn money by placing ads on your blog" thing would work. And my first niche subject was... a blog about our doggie, Aschiuta.

3. Is your current purpose the same?

If not, what’s different?

Blogging about Aschiuta has really grown on me. I like writing about her and learning about other pet owners' experiences. Even the thought that a handful of people is reading it will keep me going.

If so, how do you feel you’ve met your goals?

To be honest, I'm still trying to apply for Adsense, but till now I've had no luck.

4. Do you blog on a schedule or as the spirit moves you?

If the former, how often — and what techniques do you use to stick to it?

I tried to write a new chapter for my fictional story each weekend, but I've been a bit too busy with work. I do however mainly update during the weekend.

If the latter, do you worry about… well, whatever you might worry about (e.g. losing traffic, losing momentum)?

I sometimes write posts on a whim or for special occasions, such as Christmas. I don't think that would drive traffic away. Being spontaneous makes me write better and more interesting posts.

5. Are you generating income from your blog?

If so, how (e.g. sponsor ads, affiliate relationships, spokesperson opportunities)?

If not currently, do you hope to in the future — and how?

Like I said before, I hope to have my Adsense account approved, but right now it's more like a stubborn ambition. I suppose I wouldn't even make enough money to buy Aschiuta food every week.

6. What do you like most about blogging in general and your blog in particular (bragging is good!)?

I enjoy writing and Aschiuta gives me a lot of things to write about. She's also adorable, so I guess she advertises herself. I like to think I have a nice design, without overloading people's browsers. And maybe my readers also enjoy what I write, why not?

7. What do you like least?

I'm a bit upset that I don't have time to write more and also that I can't really take a lot of pictures of Aschiuta to include in the posts. Also, a lot of the stories are old and I really don't have any "footage" of those times.

One other thing I'm still not happy about is that it's taking me a while to build a network. A lot of my close friends come and read my posts now and then, but I don't have a huge crowd around...

8. How do you see your blog changing/growing in 2011?

I will definitely keep posting and following/commenting on other blogs out there. I hope to grow the network and who knows, maybe I'll have a lot more traffic too.

Of booboos and stings

Let's take a moment to go a few months back with our story. Don't worry, we're not going too far back.

Aschiuta was my first dog and even if Scorp had had a dog before, we still had a lot to learn about taking care of our new puppy. And one of the biggest problem was that she constantly seemed to have a few health issues.

Dog vaccination

You all know it's important to vaccinate your dog against common diseases they could catch from going outside and playing with other dogs. This is also why Aschiuta wasn't allowed to walk around freely outside before getting her shots done. And since I've already talked about our neignbourhood strays, you know we had to be careful.

So, because we couldn't vaccinate a dog with health issues, we had to figure out how to make her better.

The booboo problems

Remember my older post about going to the vet? How Aschiuta had a huge rash that made her itchy and caused her hair to fall? It was all a simple food allergy, but we had been afraid of things like rabies or a fungus. Little skin problems kept coming up here and there even after that...

First of all, Aschiuta got a mysterious inflammation on the right side of her belly. We went to the vet alarmed. Could it be a liver problem? Did all the wood she loved chewing on so much manage to hurt her intestines?
 
Notice the inflammation on her right side.
 
The vet gave her an anti-inflammation shot and we just waited. After a few days, it finally started to fade and then it just disappeared completely.

After she was finally ok, with all the shots done, we thought we wouldn't have to visit the vet as much. Well, other things happened that made us go again...
 
One of them was another such booboo, but under her right eye. The vet said it might be just a booboo from hitting her head against something. She had very bad brakes back then and she still slips around on our floors. She got her shot done again and we waited.
 
It did go away after some time, but sometimes it still looks like she has a little bag under her eye. We heard that an aneurysm would have popped eventually, but this one never did. I've read that some dogs just have these and it's no real problem for them. We'll see...

Beware of stingers

One sunny day, Aschiuta was out on the balcony, seemingly sniffing around, chasing the flies. The next thing we knew, she was back inside, looking gloomy and salivating. Within several minutes, we could see the front of her muzzle getting bigger and bigger. We decided to rush her to the vet.

Of course, since we don't have a car, the fastest and safest way is on foot. Aschiuta was actually allowed to walk on her own four paws, but she just stopped and was whimpering at every sudden movement or when we accidentally touched her mouth. We had to carry her, just like old times. Only now she was bigger and heavier.

Again, we didn't know what to think of it. Had she eaten some detergent from the bathroom? Was it a bug bite? At the vet's, Aschiuta had her shot and we were instructed to come back in a few hours if the inflammation wouldn't go down.

Fortunately, it did and we were relieved. Scorp even found the culprit, a dead fly on the balcony floor. Let's hope Aschiuta has learned her lesson about playing with bugs.

Also, coming up in another post, I'll be talking about Aschiuta's hurt paw. A very bloody story.
 
Take care and remember to go to the doctor or vet when you feel you have a problem.

8 January 2011

Chapter 2. A taste of adventure

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A few days passed and Mother taught me a lot of things. How to walk, how to play nicely and how to stay out of trouble. There were a lot of frightening things out in the world and she made me stay only in our little shelter and not stray away from it.

I was getting nervous... I wanted to know if there were other dogs out there, besides Mother and I. Mother wasn't very fast when we were playing and she would get tired quickly. I guess I had too much energy for her to keep up.

One day, I got bold and bit her while I was eating. She yelped, got up and left me all alone. I was very sad and a little hungry, but even if I whimpered for her, she didn't come back soon.

When it was already dark, Mother came back with something in her mouth. She dropped it in front of me and waited. I cautiously got close and sniffed it. It smelled good and I licked my lips. She seemed to wait for something, so I took the piece of food in my mouth and tasted it. I dropped it again and picked it up again. It was good, better than milk. I ate it all without delay and went to rub noses with Mother to show my thanks.

We went to sleep side by side and I felt that I had experienced something wonderful that day. Maybe Mother would bring more later?

6 January 2011

"Is Aschiuta sleeping?"

Things one can do while Aschiuta is sleeping:
  • cuddling and napping with her
  • getting some work done
  • listening to music on headphones
  • watching an episode of the current favourite series
  • looking at doggie to check up on her
  • thinking "awww, she's so cute sleeping like that" and taking a picture
  • watching a scary ghost show and getting brave thinking that, if a nasty ghost shows up, you'd be there to protect doggie
  • getting some work done
  • writing random blog entries about doggie
  • watching porn
  • updating facebook status with random links to blog posts
  • trying to grab a snack, hoping she wouldn't wake up and come begging
  • slipping out for shopping or going out with Scorp
  • cleaning or washing clothes, hoping doggie wouldn't wake up
  • singing along to the Offspring, but not too loudly
  • wondering what she's dreaming about
  • thinking "she's so good when she's asleep"
Things one can do while Aschiuta is awake:
  • all of the above, but, at the same time, shouting at her "stop chewing on that!"
She's so good when she's asleep...

2 January 2011

Happy New Year!

It's already the 2nd of January and we're back home from a very lovely trip to Brasov. We really had fun, even if we still didn't manage to go skiing or anything fancy like that. It's just being in that city that makes us feel good. And the holidays, of course.

The train ride

We had packed everything the night before leaving and I was going to meet Scorp at the train station with Aschiuta. Everyone keeps asking "you're taking her with you?". Yes, we take her with us and she even has a special ticket too.

The taxi ride was just awful... Aschiuta was sick and the driver didn't pull over when I asked him to. You can imagine the rest.

The train ride was the usual standing in the hallway with Aschiuta on her leash. This time it was very cold and wet on the floor, so she kept trembling. Scorp's mom suspects she caught a cold on the train and that's why she wet the bed... twice.

A well-dressed doggie

But no more of that now, because she got Aschiuta a Christmas gift (see, I told you she was a good girl) - a great little coat with fur on the inside. No more trembling for her and she was really pretty in it.

New Year's Eve

My own mom came for New Year's Eve and we all stayed in the kitchen and had a nice dinner. I was impressed that my mother played with the doggie and let her stay next to her without complaining. Though I'm sure she still doesn't like the dog hairs.

At midnight, we went out and lit fireworks, with the pets inside. I'm sure they got pretty scared, because, although we had quiet fireworks, there were some neighbours who bought really loud bombs. Such recklessness...

The ride back home

We went by train again, except this time it was slightly faster than the ones we usually take. Aschiuta was frightened for some reason... She kept trembling and whimpering, even with all the attention she got from everyone. So, we stayed on the hallway again.

We walked most of the way from the train station, trying to teach Aschiuta to walk beside us. Long trips like these are good for walk training. She actually caught on and didn't pull on the leash as much, so I hope to teach her some more later on.

This was our little holiday in Brasov. And even if it's a bit late, I want to wish you all a Happy New Year!