Chocolate Salty Paws

As part of our New Year's resolutions, we decided to try to drop a few extra pounds that we have acquired during the holiday season.  While we are still extremely attractive canines even with a little extra hanging from our sides, we know that if we're ever going to catch that pesky squirrel that jumps around on the tree in front of our house, we'll need to be in top physical shape.

The problem with staying in shape this time of year is that it is freaking cold outside!!  In addition to the cold, sometimes there is white stuff on the ground.  While it's fun to romp around in and eat, the white stuff is a little slick....especially for humans (the person who walks with and/or runs with us has fallen down numerous times on walks and runs for us...and we try as much as possible to increase those occurances by pulling and/or darting around while we're out as we find it funny to see people falling down in the snow and ice...even if that person is at the other end of our leash).

Since many humans are paranoid, they go to excessive measures to counter Mother Nature's weather miracles.  In this case, we're talking about salt.  While we love salt (or at least the french fries that accompany salt), the salt is torture on our paws (if you own a car that is driven in snow, you probably have noticed the rust and damage on the car from the salt...imagine how that salt feels on our paws). 

So if you're one of those people lucky enough to live in an area that celebrates all four weather seasons (and not just hot and more hot), you may want to pay attention.  After the walk or run is over, take a small bowl or bucket, fill it with warm water, and dip your dog's paws in the bucket/bowl and gently rub the pads to remove any pieces of salt.  If you don't own a bucket (or a bowl), then you can use a warmly wetted washcloth or towel to clean your dog's paws.  Do this and we will love you even more than we already do....and we may not try to make you fall down in the snow and ice the next time we're out (well, we're still probably going to make you try to fall down, but hey, we're just dogs).

Puppy Picks recap

Earlier last week, we decided to pick the winners for the NFL championship games.  How did we do?  Perfect, of course!  With the Saints OT victory, both of our winners advance to the Super Bowl.

Pup picks:

Colts 20, Jets 6

Saints 37, Vikings 27

Actual results:

Colts 30, Jets 17 (missed the margin of victory by only 1 point!)
Saints 30, Vikings 27 (even though the margin of victory was 7 points less than we predicted, we hit the Vikings score on the nose!)

The early Super Bowl line is -4.5 (Colts).  Check back on the Friday before the Super Bowl for our "toes n tails" pick (you won't be disappointed).

mmmmmm, rice

We've mentioned in past blog entries that we love, LOVE chicken broth sprinkled on our dog chow.  What we did not tell you is that we have another topping added to our food that we 'wiggle' for.  That superb topping???  Rice!

Back when we were young pups, we had a few tummy issues.  Our vet recommended boiling chicken and rice to help calm our tummies.  Of course, we devoured the C&R, so our owners were kind enough to make this special treat for us every now and then.  On top of that, our owners love to make Mexican dishes and many times (ok...every time), they make too much food and have leftovers.  Do you know a great way of reducing some of those leftovers?  GIVE THEM TO US!!!!  Well, you can give us a few of the items.  We don't really take so well to refried beans and peppers and some of the other ingredients, but the extra rice?  We can take the rice off of your hands with no hesitation at all!

Here's what you do.  Scoop out just a small amount less of our usual food portion (or the same amount if we've had a long day of exercise/playing).  Add a cup or so of cooked rice to our food dish and stir it around a bit.  The result?  A happy canine and an empty food dish!  MMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gas Leak

For some unknown reason, every so often (daily, multiple times daily, every other day, etc.) we are instantly started by some sort of loud noise.  Since we are just dogs, we're not really sure where the noise is coming from, but as soon as we hear it, we immediately turn our heads toward the rear area of our bodies and perk our ears up.  After a few seconds of making sure the noise is gone, we turn back around and resume our nap/daydream.

While we do not find this action funny (we REALLY want to know where that noise is coming from), our owners always crack up laughing at us and make dumb comments directed towards us such as "is there's a duck in the house?" or "did you eat a burrito for breakfast?" or  "another draft beer night, huh?" or our favorite, "hey gassy, quit showing off!"

While we love showing off, these situations are much more confusing to us than they are a time to strut our awesomeness.  If you have a dog with this same type of concerns, odds are that they are probably a little embarrassed as well, so cut them some slack!

Dog wash

After a nice long run yesterday, we walked into the house quite dirty.  Immediately, our owner decided to wash us.  As you know, many canines are not fond of baths at all!  We, the toes n' tails gang, are consistent with the 'baths suck' policy that many of our fellow canines follow.

However, after yesterday, we have a newfound fondness for baths.  The reason being is that our owner decided to use treats to lure us into the bathtub, gave us a treat while we were in the tub, gave us a treat right after the bath ended, and then gave us a final treat after we shook off in the basement.  If you own a dog like us (well, not as good-looking as us), he or she would probably warm up to bathtime if treats were involved.  Give the treats a chance and see if they help out and make the occasion a little easier for both of you!

We are now squeaky clean, smell fragrant, and are ready for the first mud puddle that we can find!

Puppy Picks

While we are usually only interested in the Ohio State Buckeyes games (because of awesome 'touchdown treats' after each OSU score), we do pay attention to the NFL games as well.  Yesterday, we picked the Jets over San Diego and were happy to see our pick pan out.  However, we also picked the Cowboys over the Vikings, so we ended the day 1-1.

The upcoming weekend has the Colts vs. the Jets and the Vikings vs. the Saints.  Being the smartest canine football fans in America, we already know who will win these games.  Our picks?

Colts 20, Jets 6
Saints 37, Vikings 27

Snow shoes?

We've always wondered why humans can't walk or run through the snow as well as we can?  You humans have no problem opening doors or containers, so why do you slip and slide around so much when there is a little snow on the ground???  We have a few ideas for an invention that will allow humans to move as easily through snow as we do, so if you know of any way that we can get this invention moving forward, please let us know.  In the meantime, if you see us out during our daily walk or run and our owner is slipping and sliding on the sidewalk, don't laugh at him....it's not his fault he doesn't have the moves we do.

Daily walk etiquette....according to the Toes n' Tails

Just something to consider for dog owners....

If you own a small, yappy dog and/or just a loud, excitable dog, please continue reading.  If you own one of these types of dogs, you may need to take a long look in the mirror.  While you may think these types of dogs are cute or funny, we assure you that you are 100% wrong.  While on our daily stroll around the neighborhood yesterday, we ran into both a small yappy dog as well as a medium-sized excitable dog.  In both cases, these canines caused us a high amount of stress as we tried to pass these dogs on the sidewalk because of their actions.  Allowing your dog to lunge at and or advanced quickly towards us (big, laid back, attractive dogs) is not the least bit funny to us and we are not entertained by this action.  If we were not so easy-going, we may react to your dog's actions, causing you and your dog an outcome that ends up being a no-win situation for everyone involved.  You and your dog do not want this to happen.

Do we have a solution?  Of course we do, because we are the Toes n' Tails!!  What you need to do is buy the book "The Loved Dog" by Tamar Geller and read through some of the tips and suggestions on how to train you to not act like a fool on your walk (we mean YOU, dog owner....not the dog...because face it, he's a dog, he doesn't have any reasoning skills, so he doesn't know any better!)  Working with your dog to alleviate this excitable, yappy behavior will make you, your dog, and most importantly us (the T n' T's) have a much, much, much more enjoyable experience on your daily walks.

After this morning, chicken broth on our dog food is now our favorite treat.  If you love your dog, a few tablespoons of the low sodium, fat-free chicken broth on top of the food is the canine version of 'icing on the cake.'  MMMMMM!!!