A full on dog day

Chill'n in the coolest room in the house

Yesterday morning I was up at the crack of dawn and at the gym before 6:00 am which is early even in my books.  I'm usually there by 7 so I was an hour ahead of the game.  Before I returned from the gym I decided that instead of walking the dogs in the morning that I would give them a bath.  After a bath there is always the imminent zoom around the yard.  With Elsa still on the mend I knew that this would be more than enough exercise and it was.  For Luke the bath itself would be enough plus he would also be zooming.  But the first task at hand was a clip for Elsa.  Her hair was getting a bit long and the temperatures are just going up here in SoCal so I had to take some off.

Play time with Mom

Luke grabbed the ball after Elsa rolled it accidentally off of the bed.   Here she is trying to figure out how to get it back.

I've been trying to groom Elsa in a sort of modified trim.  Her Dad misses her beautiful hair that she had before I took it all off.  I miss the look but not the work.  She has a very thick coat that mats if you look at it.  So she has been given a new do that is much less work and cooler for her.  She is excellent while being groomed; I put hours of positive reinforcement association training into the whole grooming thing when she was little.  She didn't come liking it, in fact she hated it.  So to see her standing on the table as good as gold now makes me very happy.

After her trim it was bath time.  It was a perfect day for a bath and after the suds up and rinse off they were set free in the yard.  Dripping wet they ran around like two crazy dogs.  Elsa goes berserk, she does circles around Luke, literally.  She must have done a dozen tiny circles around Luke while he just stood and watched her go around.  Then she spun in place for a bit and the whole time she was growling and barking.  Ah a bath can do a lot for their and our moods.  There is no way that you can't smile while watching the antics of a dog fresh out of the tub.

Next was drier time; I have a forced air dryer because I have poodles.  This allows me to dry the dogs  much faster and without heat.  It is a powerful dryer and I love it.  I let them air dry for quite a while and then before they are completely dry I use the dryer to fluff.  Once they were both dry it was time for breakfast and then a nap after all the craziness.

That was the time I head out to the pet food store.  I have a favorite local pet store where they sell only good dog products and food.  They stand strong in their belief to offer only the best and have not wavered.  They are highly knowledgeable about nutrition and what is new on the market.  I grabbed a bag of what I keep on hand and then asked her about the new stuff.  This is a far different experience from asking someone at a regular pet store.  Typically at a pet food store other than the one I was at, they tell you what the dog food companies tell them.  The employees don't really know anything about their products.  So this is the only pet food store that I would ask about dog food.

She gave me lots of insight about some new stuff that was out and some of the old good stuff that is changing.    I grabbed a bag of something different to try.  After reading through many of the shelves I also got a sample size package of a dry food that you can feed as wet.  So I'll read about it all today and see what I think.  As you all know I feed my dogs real food most of the time.  I offer cooked and raw; Elsa is not much of a raw fan but I'm working on it.  Last night they had meatloaf for dinner.  But it is always good to have kibble on hand in case.  If I am going to offer kibble for a snack, treats or the occasional meal if I run out of the real stuff; it is going to be one of the best brands that there is, offering as much nutritional value as possible.

Saved the best for the last.  This may look scary but it is Elsa's typical play face. 

Back home from the pet store I immediately turned on the A/C, it was another hot one as it will be today as well.  I spent the later part of the afternoon working on book #2 while the dogs snoozed away in the office.  Mid writing I took a break to photograph both Luke and Elsa which is a good way to keep my creative juices flowing.  I find that if I write too long at one sitting I can run out of enthusiasm so a quick recess to indulge in another dog activity is all I need to be recharged.

A full day of dog, that's what I like