Scout Got Mail!

Scout received from presents in the mail from Iowa!  My family dog, Kona, also wanted to welcome him to the family with this adorable picture!

 If Scout grows up to be half as good as Kona I'll be so proud! My dad worked really hard on training him and I constantly need his advice and reassurance.

 Scout also received a bounty of treats and toys including:

This awesome rope toy he won't let go of

 



His very own squeaky shoe (we know his feelings on shoes)



 

 

 

This soccer ball was once attached to a rope (The rope didn't survive long). But he loves to    chase the ball around the yard!

 

 

So basically, its official, Scout's spoiled! But I

won't take any credit for it. :)

Scout's First Bath

Scout has some unfortunate luck. His least favorite thing in the whole world is the rain. And he lives in Seattle.

Whenever it rains he whines and whimpers until he can come inside, so it's not exactly helping our housetraining.  However, it's been nice weather lately.  So we decided it was time for a bath. 

We started out strong. He was happiest merely standing in the water.  He was a little overwhelmed to even try and play with the multiple squeaky toys in the tub. Once water was poured down his back the whining and whimpering started. 

To add to the challenge- Scout's big enough to crawl out of the tub! It was a very wet adventure for all involved.  We got through it though. I'm just hoping it didn't scar him too much! On the plus side, his coat smells like coconut! :)

The Genius Pup

Announcement: My dog is a genius.

Okay, not really.  But I'm constantly impressed at how quickly he learns things. 

For example- walking on a leash.  This video was taken the third day we had him, his 2nd time on a leash!

We've been clicker training him and he's taken really well to it. We've had him for 2 weeks, he's only 10 weeks old and so far he can : Sit, Stay, Down, Leave it, and Roll Over!

Here's some cuteness to prove it!

What's Cooking?

Scout's Food.... of course!


As part of his action plan to get over the worms Scout is on a strict "bland diet."

It consists of 3 parts white rice 1 part boneless skinless chicken breast. Refrigerate and serve.

The result is usually this:

Rawwwrr food let me at it!

He knocks over both his food and water bowl in his excitement of eating!!

A Sick Scout

Not long after we got Scout we noticed something was off. He wasn’t eating and he wasn’t acting playful.  When he started having particularly bad diarrhea we took him to the Animal Emergency Clinic. 

 

ACCES ran a number of fecal samples, many of which were coming back negative.  This is when we started getting really nervous. The vet started throwing out words like “congenital disorder.”  Despite all of the negatives the doctors treated him for worms.  Still nervous.

Scout spent the night in the hospital hooked up to IVs to get rehydrated.  The next day we got a call saying the lab came back with 2 positives: Coronavirus and Giardia. Both are parasites very common in puppies.  It sounds like the Coronavirus quickly becomes irrelevant past 6 weeks, so that would be easy to kick.  Martin and I were familiar with Giardia, seeing as backpackers can get the parasite from unclean drinking water.  Scout was sent back home with a round of deworming medication.

Already he’s been a changed puppy! Very playful, very vocal. Which is great!  I am so thankful to all of the Vets who took such good care of him at ACCES.  I am also thankful to my friends Sarah and Kate, who have much more puppy knowledge than me, who reassured me and kept me sane!

I’ve learned a lot from this experience, so I want to pass it on!  Here are some things to keep in mind if you have a puppy:

1.       If a puppy isn’t eating (he isn’t picky) something is wrong!

2.       If they are acting docile or have foggy eyes at such a young age, it may be a problem.

3.       Bad breath in puppies can be a sign of parasites.

4.       If you think something is wrong take them to be checked out because things progress very quickly in puppies!

5.       If puppies have their first round of shots prior to 8 weeks, their immune system hasn’t been built up enough and the immunization won’t be effective. 

6.       Puppies pick up parasites very easily, so try your best to avoid common dog areas. Prior to shots avoid contact with unknown dogs, avoid standing water in dense forest areas (which may be contaminated with feces from infected wildlife,) and make sure that they don’t reinvest themselves by coming in close contact with their own excrement.

 

 

 

 

 

Scout's Favorite Things

SHOES and CUDDLING!

We have one cuddly pup on our hands. If Scout is not snuggling in your lap then he is snuggling on inanimate objects.  Enter -  Shoes.

He likes to rest his head on them......

 

Or rather, in them......

 

 

 

He even likes to snuggle up to the not so soft ones......

 

He really just wants to be buried in shoes!!!

 

What a cutie.

 

Meet Scout!

I moved to a new city.  I got a puppy.  So a blog was an obvious next step!

Follow our adventures in Seattle and watch me try to navigate the exciting (and a little confusing) word of puppy parenthood.

But more importantly.... Meet Scout!

Scout is a 9 week old male Australian Shepherd/Black Lab mix.

He is the cutest, most cuddly, and smartest pup in the whole world.  Okay, probably not. But we love him just the same!  Getting a puppy dog was really important to Martin and I, so we're really excited to get started!

Thanks for following! I promise lots of cuteness overload in the future!