Ignore this post if you want. It's a general layout of Conker's diet and whatnot.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
Boring lasts forever
There is NOTIHNG FUN to do around here. I now remember why I didn't like Grant's Pass when I was here last year. Very boring, less to do than Vancouver Washington.
We found another snake yesterday. That makes three snakes in the backyard and one elsewhere. All have been Northwest Garters, harmless little dudes that look pretty neat.
I knew a snake was near when I looked over at Conker and saw him doing this.
Conker was determined to find a snake even though I took it and released it on the other side of the bottom chain-link fence. He found an old wood thing and dug out a hole in it and found some holes that he dug out even more. But no snake appeared.
And today I spotted him sitting near the ivy where the snakes usually are. He would get up and sniff through the bushes a bit then return to the concrete by the pool and wait. I guess he wants to get the fourth backyard snake before I do.
And...
We found another snake yesterday. That makes three snakes in the backyard and one elsewhere. All have been Northwest Garters, harmless little dudes that look pretty neat.
I knew a snake was near when I looked over at Conker and saw him doing this.
Hunting Shiba is hunting.
Like all the times before I have gotten the snake before the Shiba hunter has. And every time he thinks I'm going to give it to him. These little snakes have only been about a foot to a foot and a half long and aren't very fast. I don't know why Conker hasn't gotten any of them first, but the general rule is if I get it before he does it goes free. If he happens to catch one, I'm gonna let him kill it since I wouldn't want to take it away only to see it's got bite wounds and would suffer if I let it go.
And today I spotted him sitting near the ivy where the snakes usually are. He would get up and sniff through the bushes a bit then return to the concrete by the pool and wait. I guess he wants to get the fourth backyard snake before I do.
And...
Finding Nemo sheets!
Conker got beef meat and kidney, chicken leg, heart, gizzard and liver. And he again demonstrated today why I want to get a meat grinder. Conker decided to crunch up the bone in the chicken leg but not to chew the meat apart and attempted to swallow the whole thing mostly-whole. I said no to that and pulled it out of his throat so he could at least chew it in half first instead of gag on it.
For a while I'd forgotten why I wanted a meat grinder then today I was reminded of the very reason. Because my dog is a dumbass.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
June 16th
Ugh man, there's something I really want to write about but I'm not going to unless I actually do it.
In other news...
Today Conker got:
Pork meat with beef scraps, liver and kidney, turkey neck half and gizzard (turkey gizzards are HUGE!) and a chicken heart.
Since it's basically the middle of the month...
Conker's doing great with all his body stuff. Fur is great, breath is great, poop is... normal, eye boogies have reduced a bit, don't know why, but everything is generally good.
Surprisingly Conker's LP has gotten better. When I first posted about it the right knee would go out every day, usually more than once. Now it only goes out once or twice a week and goes right back into place after a few seconds. Before Conker would have to move it around a lot or I'd have to put it back in for him and it made the worst click sound if he did it wrong.
I wonder if this has anything to do with the joint supplement I'm giving him? I know it doesn't treat LP but can it make it... betterish? Since the joint is getting more lubricant than before is it holding it in place better or makes it able to slide back in more easily? I have no idea, but whatever it is I hope it sticks around for a while.
In other news...
Today Conker got:
Since it's basically the middle of the month...
Conker's doing great with all his body stuff. Fur is great, breath is great, poop is... normal, eye boogies have reduced a bit, don't know why, but everything is generally good.
Surprisingly Conker's LP has gotten better. When I first posted about it the right knee would go out every day, usually more than once. Now it only goes out once or twice a week and goes right back into place after a few seconds. Before Conker would have to move it around a lot or I'd have to put it back in for him and it made the worst click sound if he did it wrong.
I wonder if this has anything to do with the joint supplement I'm giving him? I know it doesn't treat LP but can it make it... betterish? Since the joint is getting more lubricant than before is it holding it in place better or makes it able to slide back in more easily? I have no idea, but whatever it is I hope it sticks around for a while.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Sasha's progress
Conker got: Pork meat with piece of turkey back, chicken wingtip, heart and liver, beef kidney.
Sasha is beginning to get a bit of a waistline. It's not much, but at least you can see it now. Hopefully she'll continue to be good with other dogs at the dog park so I can bring her along more often. That will help her loose weight more quickly since she would be going on more and longer walks. Plus she can run around and go swim in the creek before we go in and after exiting the park.
It was sooo good.
Sasha has been making some slow progress. She weighed 70 pounds when I got here in February, but I didn't put her on any serious diet regime until they were switched to Taste of the Wild some weeks back. Sasha now weighs 65 pounds, so she's lost 5. She needs to loose at least another 10 for me to be happy, preferably 15, but I'll take what I can get right now.
I try to take Sasha on a walk at least every other day. Today she got to go to the dog park (Juneau didn't come) and with the exception of a couple small growls and rushes, she did very well with the other dogs. She only got riled up when Conker was being chased by a superfast red merle Border Collie.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Conker the Almost Hunter
Today I was chilling with Conker in the backyard since there is a great lack of anything else interesting to do. First we chilled by the pool, then on the diving board, then in the shade and lastly by some ivy-bush things.
Conker suddenly dove into the ivy, nose going a mile a minute, his eyes glued to the twisting vines under the leaves. He jumped around rapidly, ears alert, in a stiff but limber stance. He was hunting.
What was Conker hunting? I asked myself as I parted some of the vines. Then I saw it. The slick black body, slightly kneeled scales, bright yellow and red stripes. Another Northwest Garter Snake. This snake was a crafty one and eluded both Conker and I as we searched the ivy for it. I with the intention to remove it and place it in safety on the other side of the chain-link fence and Conker with the intention to kill and eat.
I spotted the snake several more times as I combed the brush for it. Conker, much to my surprise, was actually very responsive to me while we were searching. I thought for sure if he got the snake first there would be no stopping him. But instead he listened to every command I gave and went where I pointed. (I directed him away from the snake.) I guess since we were both hunting the snake we were a team. If he was the only one doing it he might not have listened to me.
After a while of not seeing the crafty snake (I grabbed him several times but I don't like pulling on them when they are tangled) I was about to give up. Conker was off sniffing another set of ivy that snakes are known to hide in. But alas, the snake re-appeared and I was able to snatch him before he could hide again and before the now alerted Shiba did.
I carried the angry snake down to the lower yard and to the chain-link fence where I have released the other snakes I've caught. Conker kept trying to jump and grab the snake and chased it when I put it down near the fence. But the snake was too quick for him and he didn't get it.
As awesome as Conker catching a snake would have been, I do not want him to think snakes are fun to chase. There are rattlers up here, though somewhat rare, and while Conker was very fast I don't think he is faster than one of them.
Today Conker got:
Halved turkey neck and scraps, beef meat and kidney, chicken liver, heart and gizzard.
Conker suddenly dove into the ivy, nose going a mile a minute, his eyes glued to the twisting vines under the leaves. He jumped around rapidly, ears alert, in a stiff but limber stance. He was hunting.
What was Conker hunting? I asked myself as I parted some of the vines. Then I saw it. The slick black body, slightly kneeled scales, bright yellow and red stripes. Another Northwest Garter Snake. This snake was a crafty one and eluded both Conker and I as we searched the ivy for it. I with the intention to remove it and place it in safety on the other side of the chain-link fence and Conker with the intention to kill and eat.
I spotted the snake several more times as I combed the brush for it. Conker, much to my surprise, was actually very responsive to me while we were searching. I thought for sure if he got the snake first there would be no stopping him. But instead he listened to every command I gave and went where I pointed. (I directed him away from the snake.) I guess since we were both hunting the snake we were a team. If he was the only one doing it he might not have listened to me.
After a while of not seeing the crafty snake (I grabbed him several times but I don't like pulling on them when they are tangled) I was about to give up. Conker was off sniffing another set of ivy that snakes are known to hide in. But alas, the snake re-appeared and I was able to snatch him before he could hide again and before the now alerted Shiba did.
I carried the angry snake down to the lower yard and to the chain-link fence where I have released the other snakes I've caught. Conker kept trying to jump and grab the snake and chased it when I put it down near the fence. But the snake was too quick for him and he didn't get it.
As awesome as Conker catching a snake would have been, I do not want him to think snakes are fun to chase. There are rattlers up here, though somewhat rare, and while Conker was very fast I don't think he is faster than one of them.
Today Conker got:
Monday, June 13, 2011
Fancy Beagle
So today at the dog park I saw a Fancy Beagle! Buckley over at Inu-Baka is a Fancy Beagle, and this pup was the exact same mix of Beagle/Bichon. He was a very nice dog and his name was either Travis or Tucker, I can't remember exactly but I know it started with a T. I think it was Tucker... I didn't get any good photos but I did get some. Here they are.
The owner was kinda surprised when I asked if he was a Beagle/Bichon mix and that I got it right. I might see him again since the owner says they come more often in the summer and now that the dog park isn't a marsh he'll be dropping by more. He also knows the Westies who come to the park almost every day.
Fancy Beagle from above.
Fancy Beagle in background while Conker and Midnight mingle.
Conker and Fancy Beagle look at Midnight.
This picture looks kinda wrong... Sorry.
Fancy Beagle is tired.
The owner was kinda surprised when I asked if he was a Beagle/Bichon mix and that I got it right. I might see him again since the owner says they come more often in the summer and now that the dog park isn't a marsh he'll be dropping by more. He also knows the Westies who come to the park almost every day.
Homecookin
Today Conker got:
Turkey back scraps (meat and bone) with pork meat, beef kidney and liver and a chicken heart.
Some while ago when I was still in St. Louis I made some lard. Then I made chicken lard. I like to call the chicken lard schmaltz even though I technically don't make it correctly and it's just rendered chicken fat, but schmaltz sounds a lot better.
Anyways, I made some more chicken lardfat last night. It took a couple hours but the end result was good. I probably used something like 3+ pounds of chicken fat and skin I've accumilated over a period of months since I strip off half of it from Conker's chicken.
I didn't take any pictures during the rendering since I was busy watching Band of Brothers with my bro, and because I was lazy. But I do have a couple pictures of the end product.
The rendered fatlard is on the bottom, the "fried" chicken skins on top.
For those of you who've never made lard and think it's gross, tell me that after you've had some fresh trout cooked in pork lard, or some crispy veggies sauteed in chicken fat. Amazing.
The chicken fatlard slowly cooks off the skins and it simmers in a bit of water that eventually steams off and leaves just the lard. You are left with two products, lard and skins. The lard I use instead of cooking oil when I make veggies, meat or whatever in a pan.
The skins, some people just throw out. I eat them as a snack fresh from the pan, cold or after they've been nuked for a couple seconds. They are also great additions to salads or dishes like a veggie and meat mix I saute in a pan.
Although the chicken schmaltzfat isn't of use to my dog since I wouldn't feed a dog rendered chicken skins or lard, the dogs wouldn't leave the kitchen or immediate area while it was being made. They all wanted it so bad, so I imagine if you had to give them a pill just coat it in lard and they'll slurp it up right away.
Some while ago when I was still in St. Louis I made some lard. Then I made chicken lard. I like to call the chicken lard schmaltz even though I technically don't make it correctly and it's just rendered chicken fat, but schmaltz sounds a lot better.
Anyways, I made some more chicken lardfat last night. It took a couple hours but the end result was good. I probably used something like 3+ pounds of chicken fat and skin I've accumilated over a period of months since I strip off half of it from Conker's chicken.
I didn't take any pictures during the rendering since I was busy watching Band of Brothers with my bro, and because I was lazy. But I do have a couple pictures of the end product.
For those of you who've never made lard and think it's gross, tell me that after you've had some fresh trout cooked in pork lard, or some crispy veggies sauteed in chicken fat. Amazing.
Although the chicken schmaltzfat isn't of use to my dog since I wouldn't feed a dog rendered chicken skins or lard, the dogs wouldn't leave the kitchen or immediate area while it was being made. They all wanted it so bad, so I imagine if you had to give them a pill just coat it in lard and they'll slurp it up right away.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Grooming Tools: Furminator
I figured I'd write about my experience with the Furminator since I lack anything else interesting to write about that is dog related.
The Furminator is a type of undercoat rake. It's actually a shaving blade attached to a handle believe it or not. The blade is the exact same as one that you'd use on a clipper to shave a dog's (or human's) fur off with. I guess someone discovered that it could be used to get out that nasty undercoat quite easily.
While I don't own the "Furminator" brand Furminator, I've got a knock-off made by Bamboo called the Furbuster. It cost me $20 and has an easily replaceable blade unlike the Furminator which needs to be completely replaced if something happens to the blade. And things do happen, I've seen one that was dropped and the blade was bent out of shape.
This is my Furbuster. It's blue, but comes in red, purple or green and maybe yellow but I'm not exactly sure. It's not a sharp as the Furminator which I find is a plus and works just as well.
My weekly grooming routine during shedding season is to only use the Furminator on the weekend and the curry and slicker every or every other day. Why don't I use the Furminator every day? While my Shiba's undercoat continues to shed those days I'm not using the Furminator, it can actually damage the coat if you brush with it too often, which happens a LOT.
The Furminator is very sharp and can easily damage the dog's skin. If you've got one drag it along your arm with the same pressure you use on your dog. You won't do it again, trust me, unless you've got feathertouch.
The Furminator can also completely strip out the undercoat which is bad and can damage the overcoat. This is caused by excessive or very hard brushing. Dogs with Furminator-damaged coats and skin aren't very happy so please don't overuse your Furminator.
Anyways, when I use the Furminator I do one side of Conker on Saturday then the other on Sunday, or whatever parts of him that happen to be shedding at the time. I get out about a softball-sized amount of fur (when bundled up) with each of these brushings and they only last 10 minutes. I stop when I've brushed Conker for 10 minutes even if I can still get out large clumps of fur to avoid skin and coat damage.
Besides, whatever I miss with the Furminator I can keep under control with the curry and slicker throughout the week until the next weekend rolls around.
The Furminator is a great tool, but used incorrectly can do more harm than good. Remember that when you brush your dog with one. They are also very pricey so don't buy one in a pet store. Instead go online and find one, they can be bought for $25 or less. If you go with a knock-off brand try to find one that's gotten good reviews. I personally prefer my Furbuster to the Furminator due to it's replaceable and not-as-sharp blade and generally cheaper price.
The Furminator should only be used on dogs with undercoats since it does nothing for overcoats, stiff-hair coats or wooly/curly/wire coats. It will work on Lab-type coats for the soft fluffy crap that gets everywhere, but don't buy one if you've got a dog like a Whippet unless you also own a German Shepherd Dog.
Today Conker got: Turkey back with egg, turkey liver and turkey heart. Took him 20 minutes to eat.
The Furminator is a type of undercoat rake. It's actually a shaving blade attached to a handle believe it or not. The blade is the exact same as one that you'd use on a clipper to shave a dog's (or human's) fur off with. I guess someone discovered that it could be used to get out that nasty undercoat quite easily.
While I don't own the "Furminator" brand Furminator, I've got a knock-off made by Bamboo called the Furbuster. It cost me $20 and has an easily replaceable blade unlike the Furminator which needs to be completely replaced if something happens to the blade. And things do happen, I've seen one that was dropped and the blade was bent out of shape.
My weekly grooming routine during shedding season is to only use the Furminator on the weekend and the curry and slicker every or every other day. Why don't I use the Furminator every day? While my Shiba's undercoat continues to shed those days I'm not using the Furminator, it can actually damage the coat if you brush with it too often, which happens a LOT.
The Furminator is very sharp and can easily damage the dog's skin. If you've got one drag it along your arm with the same pressure you use on your dog. You won't do it again, trust me, unless you've got feathertouch.
The Furminator can also completely strip out the undercoat which is bad and can damage the overcoat. This is caused by excessive or very hard brushing. Dogs with Furminator-damaged coats and skin aren't very happy so please don't overuse your Furminator.
Besides, whatever I miss with the Furminator I can keep under control with the curry and slicker throughout the week until the next weekend rolls around.
The Furminator is a great tool, but used incorrectly can do more harm than good. Remember that when you brush your dog with one. They are also very pricey so don't buy one in a pet store. Instead go online and find one, they can be bought for $25 or less. If you go with a knock-off brand try to find one that's gotten good reviews. I personally prefer my Furbuster to the Furminator due to it's replaceable and not-as-sharp blade and generally cheaper price.
The Furminator should only be used on dogs with undercoats since it does nothing for overcoats, stiff-hair coats or wooly/curly/wire coats. It will work on Lab-type coats for the soft fluffy crap that gets everywhere, but don't buy one if you've got a dog like a Whippet unless you also own a German Shepherd Dog.
Today Conker got: Turkey back with egg, turkey liver and turkey heart. Took him 20 minutes to eat.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Fire!
So a few weeks ago little sister built a fire pit in the backyard. It is a very nice fire pit, and last night we had a fire and made smores and all that.
I like taking pictures of fire. It's pretty fun. Especially when you do stuff like this.
Whoop. I don't have any idea how to make it a different color other than orange/yellow though or I'd do red and make it look cooler.
Today Conker got:
Pork meat slices with most of a chicken wing, heart and liver and beef kidney. Yummers.
Today Conker got:
Friday, June 10, 2011
Summer is coming
Lately for the past few days it's been on the 70's. "Nice" weather most would say, a tad chilly in my opinion, way too hot Conker says. So Conker and I give the creek a visit before popping into the dog park. He will go in on his own but still won't willingly go into water deeper than his chest. Gotta keep working on that, since it's supposed to get into the 80's later this upcoming week.
I brush Conker just about every day so I'm keeping his shedding at bay, but he still has a TON of undercoat that needs to come out before the hot temperatures that I'm looking forwards to finally get here.
I also try to brush Juneau and Sasha every day but not because they need it. They're shedding like mad right now and Conker eats the furballs they leave all over the house. Right now I get more fur off Juneau's butt than I do Conker's whole body in one brushing.
Onwards!
Conker got beef slices with a chicken thigh and wingtip, beef organs and a chicken heart. He ate outside my room again today, this time off-leash.
In other news...
I brush Conker just about every day so I'm keeping his shedding at bay, but he still has a TON of undercoat that needs to come out before the hot temperatures that I'm looking forwards to finally get here.
I also try to brush Juneau and Sasha every day but not because they need it. They're shedding like mad right now and Conker eats the furballs they leave all over the house. Right now I get more fur off Juneau's butt than I do Conker's whole body in one brushing.
Onwards!
"Can I have it? Can I? I'm sitting nicely like you always make me do so... can I eat now?"
"Seriously, this is getting old. I'm hungry and I want to eat."
Look at how huge his ears are. His ears are seriously huge.In other news...
OMG ROCK POUNCE ON THE ROCK!
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