Favourite Thing #5

Zoë's Leash-Free Park Friends

This is the first in a two parter of all of Zoë's dog park buddies.  There quite a few of them, but the neat thing is that she's grown up with most of them. 

Madison

Maddie is 'adventurous'.  Finding Zoë and Madison is easy - just look at any stinky, muddy place in the park.  Together, they spell trouble everytime! 
Ate a dead mouse.

Gus

Has romantic interest in Madison.  Always leaves the park a lot dirtier than when he came in.  Loves rolling around in stink. 
A lover, not a fighter.

Boomer

What a character!!  This guy puts the 'great' in Great Dane! 'Booms' has a definite nose for treats and 'pocket surfs' for them.  Always in one of two moods - couch potato or galloping race horse.

Mia

The smallest of Zoë's friends, Mia is always very fashionable.  This is her velour track suit.  In winter she had a ski suit - complete with hood.  Loves playing ball.  Don't let her small size fool you - she's a real gansta'!!!

Dimitri

Originally from the Ukraine, Dimitri came to Canada when he was 9 weeks old.  He's now 6-months old and full of beans!  No dog loves playing ball more than Dimitri.  He is currently learning his 'limits' with play biting and usually gets put in his place very early!

Toby

The old man of the group.  Toby is 9 years old and likes to spend his leash-free time 'solo'.  That being said, he's a proper gentleman and will always come and to say 'hello' to everyone.  Toby has a great yellow raincoat with duck buttons. He looks very 'outdoorsy' in it.


Lola and Dré

Pictured here with Gus.  Lola (far left) is a German Shorhair Pointer with...get ready for this...more energy than Zoë!  She is always on the move and a real social butterfly.
Dré is Mia's brother and likes to play with the big dogs!

So that's basically it!  Next time I take my trusty camera, I'll get some more pictures of some of the other dogs that run with our little Blue, like Ginger, King, Rocky and Sienna.

Until next time - Gotta run!!

Guess who's 10 Months Old!!

Another month as come and gone and our little pup is now 10 months old!

Happy Birthday Zoë!!

Favourite Thing #4

Ah, the local park!  So peaceful in the early morning.....

Other than the leash-free, Zoë has some local buddies.  Every morning, very early, we head across the street to the park.  Our little Blue feels very comfy here - it's the first park she ever visited and to this day, there isn't a day goes by that she hasn't been there.  The first stop in the park is always to visit a very special friend:

Sheba

What a beautiful dog!  Sheba's yard backs on to the park.  As a result, she gets to meet and greet all who pass by.  She always runs, tail wagging to meet us and loves getting a free treat or two (or three, or four) from everyone who stops to visit.  Zoë absolutely loves visiting with Sheba. I can let go over her leash once we get in the park and off she goes, full throttle, to meet Sheba.   

Keifer

Well, what can I say about Zoë's other buddy?  Keifer is the sweetest pug you're ever likely to meet.  He is so good natured and has really taken to our little Picardy pup.  Keifer is lookin' fine as he recently completed a very successful diet and has shed just over 6lbs - a ton of weight for a dog so small.  I think he knows he's stylin' as he's always ready to have his picture taken.  Keifer is a true Rennaisance man!


Of course, no matter how charming a young Pug can be, no one gets in between Zoë and her stick!!  What else is new?

Dreams in High Park

Our blue loves investigating new places!

Since she's so much better on leash (haha!), we packed her up in the SUV and drove down to High Park in Toronto.  It was a beautiful, sunny day and Zoë couldn't be happier.  Other than a walk all around the park, we also stopped at the leash free section.  This made us a little nervous as there are sections of the leash-free that aren't fenced.  Now, our little Picardy loves us and all...but she also loves tracking squirrels (See Favourite Things).  When tracking, Zoë most definitely has selective hearing.  To our relief, she was good and managed to meet a couple of new friends.

We thought she might be interested in the pond and the local swans...well, the pond proved interesting.  The swans?  Not so much. 

I managed to get my classic "man's best friend" shot. Kypros was very pleased with the photo.....too bad he fell asleep - I didn't think it took that long to set up!! 

All in all it was a very pleasant morning and made, to our delight, a contented and sleepy puppy.

  

Picardies Invade Sonoma Wine Country!!

We've recently found out that Zoë has an Auntie in California!!  Phoenix is actually Suede's sister and now, she's the mother of an absolutely gorgeous litter.

SweetWater Kennels is located in Petaluma, California.  I've been in contact with the breeder, Christine Plociniak.  She is such a great ambassador for the Blues and hopefully, with her hard work, the breed will enjoy greater popularity south of the border.  When you're on the SweetWater website, please take a few minutes to watch the movie.  Christine has combined some great Picardy footage with music to introduce her dogs and their litter.  I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!  Cheers!!

Favourite Thing #3

Mourning Doves

Yes, our little Picardy is a bird dog- ground birds that is, for example, grouse.  But, for lack of neighbourhood grouse, Zoë focusses her attention and all birding instincts to the mourning doves. 

This time of year, we have quite a few of these lovely little birds around the 'hood.  A pair are actually building a nest in our Blue Spruce.  These doves spend a lot of time resting on ground cover and love the base of our 40 ft firs - much to Picardy delight!

Zoë is so focussed when a dove is in her sights - and let's face it, most of the time, the birds are totally oblivious to her.  She approaches so carefully and silently - very careful not to arouse attention.  She holds her position so long that she actually starts to shake!! 

Favourite Thing #2

Squirrels

Yes, shocking, isn't it?  Zoë has always taken a real interest in our tree-dwelling, nut-eating bushy-tailed friends.  Zoë's MO for squirrel huntin':

1.  Find a squirrel

2.  Stare at it from a distance

3.  S-l-o-w-l-y approach.  If the squirrel looks at you, freeze!

4.  Repeat step 3

5.  Repeat step 4

6.  S-l-o-w-l-y lift one of your legs off the ground (even a hind leg will do)

7. Hold this pose until you see something more interesting.  Like tomorrow's favourite thing.....

Now, we let Zoë do this, but we would NEVER let her even come close to actually catching one.  Although she is a hunting dog, we only encourage hunting for dog treats, old socks and other treasures.

Favourite thing #1

Gus the cat

Gus is Zoë's older and wiser cat brother.  Gus has his own list of favourite things: heated blankets, sun, sun and more sun, catnip, sleeping, yoghurt and cheese. 

You might have noticed that Zoë is not on the list!

Alas, Zoë's affection is unrequited. Being a 13 year old male tabby, Gus has very little use for a bouncy puppy.  He will greet her with what we call a 'Hee-haw Hiss'.  It's a hissing sound, following by a snort.  Then, he bats at her with his paws.  Zoë thinks that he wants to play and bats back at her, does a play bow, the whole nine yards.  Now, getting hit in the face by Gus's paw is the equivalent of getting hit with a powder puff (no offence Gus!)

Other than being the happening man he is, Gus is not impressed when Zoë chows down on his food and is appalled in a way that only a curmudgeonly old cat can be, when the pup sticks her head in his gravel box searching for a piece of poop!!  Yummy!!!!  We know when Zoë has been excavating in Gus's box when she appears with cat gravel stuck on her nose and breath that smells, well, like cat poop!  This by the way, is remedied with a 'doggy breath mint' treat.  Sometimes it's a two-treater!!

Zoë is so fascinated with Gus and desperately wants to be friends, which we hoped would happen, but nope, not right now.  Perhaps it's hard to be friends with someone who eats all of your food and rummages in your toilet!!

Together Again!

What a day for a family reunion!!  On February 27, we met up with Suede and the Ratigans.  We arrived a bit late at the Oakville Leash-free because we couldn't find the entrance (so much for the trusty GPS!!). 

Kypros and I would like to give Kim and company a big thanks for the coffees!!  They were perfect for the weather conditions.  By the way.... Ratigans - we need your coffee orders....

We couldn't have picked a worse day.  It was snowing in clumps!! It was wet and windy.  We were all soaked to the skin... the dogs, however were completely oblivious.

Zoë ran to great her dad, Suede.  After a quick sniff, they started romping and playing together.  We compared stories and discovered that both Zoë and Suede like to be chased....so that created a bit of dilemma...who would chase who???

Both Zoë and Suede absolutely love snow, so could the day be more perfect??  Both of them snowplowed their way through the park, even stopping to eat some of the white fluffy stuff.  We weren't sure if they would know each other and I guess we'll never be certain, but, if I was betting on it, I'd say that they did.  When other males would come over to Zoë, Suede would protect her - like any good dad when the boys come to call!! 

It was also agreed that Zoë does look like her mom, Nola.  That is so nice to hear as Nola was such a beautiful dog.  We had seen the resemblance, but it was nice to hear from others as well.

Unfortunately the pictures are not that great - the weather just wouldn't cooperate.  Hopefully, we'll get some better shots next time!!!

I guess all that running around in the snow makes a Picardy puppy tired.........