Saturday, May 29, 2010

Today's words? Hot and NO!

So mom finally returned after being gone for 5 WHOLE DAYS! 5!!!! I thought she was gone for good. Grandma and Grandpa's house is nice and all, but it's nothing compared to being home with mom. She told me it was something dealing with a new job or something where she won't have to leave as often but I'll get more treats and classes because of it. I guess I can understand as long as I get more treats, but still! How rude of her to just leave me!

It's been very VERY hot here. I just can't take the heat well anymore and anything over 75* has me looking for a cold place to lay. It's almost 90* today and has been for the past week. It's even too warm in the mornings lately to do any sort of walks or work! I've been a very sad puppy because of this but not that sad. At least not sad enough for what mom did to me today.

She calls it a "pool" I call it a massive water bowl to drink out of. I just do NOT like it! Well, let me show you instead of talking about it:
What is this?
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Nope, don't even want to look at it
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Hey there is water in it! Well, I am thirsty...
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Yum!
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You want me to sit? In this? Are you kidding me??
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SQUIRREL!!!
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Thinking... Thinking...
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NOPE! Not doing it. I'm going to go lay on the deck. I don't care how hot I am, I'm NOT getting in that thing!
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So, I refused and we ended up going inside and now I'm laying on my couch with a fan blowing on me. Life is great!

Thursday, May 20, 2010

No Need for an Alarm in this House!

Nubs is full of surprises I tell ya. I guess this morning I left the door to my bedroom open and Nubs helped himself to my room. No big deal really. In the winter to save money I keep my door shut. Since it's summer, I don't mind leaving the door ajar, but I had no clue what I was going to come home to today.

My neighbors tell me that sometimes Nubs sits in my bedroom window and watches them as they mow the lawn, or walk by. I've never seen it, but I believe my neighbors that it does happen. Today I came home to this sight:

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I actually had to stop my car before I was fully pulled into the driveway because I was laughing so hard. When I saw him though, his ears were completely back, and he looked like he was saying "Mess with me, and you'll wish you never saw the light of day!"

All I can say is if I was walking past, and saw that face in the window, I wouldn't want to come face to face with that dog. No one will mess with this house anytime soon. Not when they have that mean ol', nasty looking Pit Bull in the window!

(Honestly I thought is was beyond cute! Love this dog!!!!)

Monday, May 17, 2010

AABC Weight Pull 5/15 and 5/16/10

Wow... What a weekend. Nubs and I are both still recovering from it.

This past weekend Nubs and I traveled an hour south where the All American Bulldog Club was holding a 4 day Weight Pull/Conformation show. We could only do the Saturday and Sunday pulls, but it was well worth it. Nubs didn't place this weekend, which was expected with the club we were pulling with. The Bulldogs are in the same weight class as Nubs so for him to place, I think everyone would have been shocked. These guys are seasoned pullers. It was still fun.

Nubs ended up pulling 3,414lbs on Saturday and 3,424lbs on Sundays giving him his biggest pull yet. He ended up earning 40 points over this weekend which means he's now over 1/2 way to his Championship! How cool is that?

Saturday Morning I ended up getting up at 6:30am to get ready to head out. Nubs was up, around, and Ok with everything until I mentioned going "Bye Bye" and "Go Pulling"... This was his answer to going "Bye Bye"
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Yes... He actually went BACK to bed. It took a little motivation to get him out of bed (a treat or two) and we were off to the pull.

Videos!




I have a lot of other dogs pulling on my Youtube page: DarkDeepMoon's Youtube Page Check it out for more fun!

As for Photos of Nubs from the event, none as of yet. I know there are a few of them out there, I am just waiting for them to show up. Until then, feel free to check out AABC Album for the photos I took at the show.

Thanks for reading! I think I'm going to go curl up next to Nubs now and pass out.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Self Taught Tricks

When I first brought Nubs home with me, he was not crate trained at all. He freaked out at the look of the crate, refused to step into the crate, and fought tooth and nail to stay as far away from the crate as he could. I remember having to climb into the crate myself (it was a LARGE crate) to get Nubs to step into the crate himself. It took about a week of constant working on the crate (and a lot of yummy cheese in the very back of the crate) before one night he just walked into the crate and laid down by himself. Since that day he has enjoyed the crate (and the yummy Peanut Butter kongs that come with the crate!)

He taught himself what the word "crate" or "cage" means go get in the cage and get ready for his yummy treats. I never taught him it, he taught himself.

Now if you were around when I had my foster Little One, you may remember the funny stories of Nubs tricking Little One to go into his crate then shutting the door on the poor fellow. This happened every time Little One was just too much for Nubs to handle. Nubs would run into the crate and fake chewing on one of Little One's bones. Little one would jump into the crate and Nubs would jump out and smack the door shut, then sit against the door and give me a sharp bark to tell me to lock the door. What a funny dog.

Normally I don't have his crate sat up in the house. It is just too big and he normally doesn't need it. Today though it was raining and Nubs has a lot of issues with not wanting to go out potty in the rain. So to save myself the headache of cleaning up poop when i got off of work tonight, I decided to set up the crate and leave Nubs in it. Luckily my boyfriend was able to stop by and get Nubs to go out potty so he was only in the crate for about 3 hours. I hate leaving him in it even though he loves his crate.

Tonight Nubs figured out how to open his crate's door and it didn't take long for him to put that to a command. Here is a video of him doing so along with a new trick that he just learned called "wave hi!"


And then there are the "Bloopers" that had me laughing. Nubs is just silly!



And here he is now, can't you tell he just loves his crate?
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Thursday, May 6, 2010

2 Birds, 1 Stone

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Nubs?

Having a Pit Bull (or any other "dangerous breed"), you have to develop a thicker skin, and tonight I am grateful that I've developed a nice thick one. You'll hear how "dangerous" your dog is, how they can't be nice at all, that they are a "ticking time bomb" and you'll hear stories about a neighbor's friend's wife's brother-in-law's best friend's sister who was attacked and face torn off by their "pit bull" that just "turned" one day.

On Friday I had my wisdom teeth removed, all four of them at once so Nubs hasn't been getting as much exercise as I would normally and as much as he likes. So it's been rather interesting around my house with Nubs finding his own ways to keep himself entertained. I mean who would have thought that Pit Bulls could LITERALLY walk on walls with bones in their mouths?? I didn't nor did the picture frame that now has a paw print where the glass use to be *shrugs*. Today I ended up having to go back to the dentist for a Dry Socket. If you've never dealt with Dry Socket before count yourself lucky. It was honestly the worst constant pain I've ever felt in my life.

So I ended up calling in to work today to take it easy from the lack of sleep caused by the Dry Sockets, but Nubs would have nothing to do with that. Ever tried sleeping with a 66lb dog jumping on the bed? How about one with a bone in their mouth whining? Let me save you the trouble, it doesn't work. Finally I gave up hooked Nubs up to the bike and took off for a jog.

On our biking path lives one of the Humane Society workers that worked at the shelter when Nubs was there. Very nice woman and she owns a Mini Pincher who she allows off leash in their yard *sighs*. Nubs isn't the best with off leash dogs because of all the attacks we've had and I spot Rusty (I think that's his name)and tell Nubs to "Wait" while she and her boyfriend/husband grabs Rusty and she comes over and loves on Nubs. After a bit, they put Rusty back down and him and Nubs start sniffing each other and so starts Nubs's "stiff legged walk". It's a walk that can go either way so I just have to watch his head and ears to see if he's going to play or fight. This time Nubs wants to play, and the game is on. Here is the small yet overweight Min-Pin running around and growling, biting, and snapping at this huge, 66lb Pit Bull in their front yard. It was a sight to see, and all of us were laughing, until the neighbor from hell showed up.

This Neighbor owns 2 Miniature Schnauzers and has met Nubs before but he didn't think Nubs was actually a Pit Bull the last time he loved on him. This time he knew what Nubs was and the insults started to fly. First he walks a WIDE circle around Nubs and myself talking about how he just "doesn't trust Pit Bulls" and "they are just going to snap and kill everyone". He's standing there telling me that Nubs was a "killer" and that he was just going to "Snap Rusty's head clear off". The tone the guy was saying it in was one of half-kidding half-serous. Like he wasn't trying to offend me, but yet was telling me truthfully what he thought.

Meanwhile, while this guy is saying all these things, Rusty is laying into Nubs with the snapping and growling (but every time Nubs would back off, Rusty would encourage Nubs with play bows and such so it was all in fun) while Nubs wouldn't even open his mouth toward Rusty. I pointed this out to the guy and he just started watching the play action between Nubs and Rusty laughing right along with us. In the end, He decides that Nubs can't be such a bad dog and gives Nubs a good pat on the head and a good rub down and Nubs sucks it up like Nubs does; a smile on his face and a wag in his step.

As I left, I turned to the guy and said "So, what do you think about the meanest Pit Bull in the area?" All he could do is smile and say "Well, I still have all my fingers and toes so I guess it's not all Pit Bulls that are mean". Not a perfect answer, but I'll chalk it up as a win on my board.

Nubs's actions speak louder then any words that come out of my mouth. Not only have we started to change another mind on the breed, but Nubs got some MUCH needed socialization with dogs in a positive manner.

I <3 Nubs!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Where the Red Ferns Grow

I remember reading that book back in 7th grade English, and I also remember getting yelled at by my teacher for being 4 chapters ahead of the class. I was so immersed in the book, a boy, his 2 dogs, doing what they loved to do. At that time I didn't have a dog at all only a bi-polar cat named Princess. I was so envious of Billy running around the country with Old Dan and Little Ann, winning their Championship Hunting Event, and doing things I could only dream of.

Today I pulled out my old copy of "Where the Red Ferns Grow" by Wilson Rawls and sat outside in the nice warm sun reading it. The book is worn on the edges and yellowed from time, but the book is just as good of a read as it was back then, only this time I have my own "Old Dan/Little Ann" at my side. As I read about Billy's adventures and laughed at Little Ann's antics, I couldn't help but give Nubs a good pat on the side. I remembered wanting a Red-boned Coonhound after reading the book because their coat color was stunning and the look of the dog overall was amazing. I ended up getting my red dog without even knowing.

Nubs is a dead split between Old Dan's "run into trouble head first and ask questions later" personality and Little Ann's "playful, caring, loving" ways. So as I was reading the book again, I could see Nubs doing everything these dogs did and more. I could feel the excitement of Billy's Coon Hunting Championships, and cried at the end since I know the pain that Billy felt.


I may not be a religious person but I do believe things happy for a reason. Nubs was given to me in a time where I needed him the most and has held my hand in times where I wasn't sure why I should get up the next morning. Nubs to me is my Old Dan and Little Ann. There is a reason for everything, and everything has a reason.