Smile!

Look at my smile! 

I am now 5 months old and I weigh 37 pounds. 

Note from Mom: he is growing so fast! Let me brag on my little guy. He now goes to the door and barks when he needs a potty break. He was so easy to crate train and he sleeps from 9 p.m. -  6 a.m. In his kennel. 

I'm Going To School!

I started school today! It was so much fun. I get to go every Sunday afternoon for 6 weeks and then mom and dad say I will go to the next school. There are 5 other pups in my class. A chi, schnauzer, lab, mastiff and springer spaniel.  Everyone says I'm the class clown because I'm cute and funny. 

I was so tired when I got home. I crashed on the kitchen floor.

Note from Mom: he was pretty funny.  He and the schaunzer kept interrupting class with their talking. 

I think this will really be good for Opie. We are taking classes at Petsmart and we really like our trainer.

Vote For Me!

Mom put my photo in a contest for Modern Dog magazine. I hope you will vote for me! 

http://moderndogmagazine.com/photocontest/entry/opie-15

This is the photo she used. You can vote once every 12 hours!

Note from Mom: this is one of my favorite photos. I hope he wins dog of the week! Thanks for voting!! 

Homemade Puppy Treats For Me

Look what mom made for me! Homemade yummies and they look like little teddy bears. They sure are good, too! 

Note From Mom: I love making Opie special treats. These are super easy. I used junior baby food and whole wheat flour. I didn't really measure,I just added the flour until it was the consistency of cookie dough then rolled it out and used the cookie cutters. Bake @ 350 for about 15 minutes and store in a paper bag for up to 2 weeks. These are sweet potato flavor. 

Today I Had Surgery OUCH

When Mom and I went to Petsmart this morning, I was so excited to see all my friends at pet hospital. I didn't know she was going to leave me there!! 

Note from Mom: Opie had his neuter surgery. He did very well. In fact, it hasn't slowed him down on bit. Problem: he can get the cone off within seconds. We tried taping over the snaps, didn't work. I bought a size 24 months onesie. Didn't work. So now we are using Bitter Apple around the site. Not 100% effective but the best we can do. Little stinker! 

My Very Own Water Fountain

I don't have to wait for someone to bring me a bowl of water. I can do fine all by myself, thank you very much! This is a fun way to quench my thirst!

 

Note from Mom: since we use a sprayer on the hose it keeps a good trickle going when it's on. He has learned when the hose is in my hand, it's time to fill up! Now if he will just realize the pool is not his personal water bowl! 

Why Can't He Play?

Thats my neighbor in the treehouse. I think his name is Hooch. Mom says she  feels sorry for him. He has a boy that belongs to him but he doesn't  come outside much. He is always sitting in the tree house watching me but mom say he can't come play with me. He barks a lot, too.

Note from Mom: I do feel sorry for the poor dog. He is a Lab. He gets little attention and has to stay out in the heat all day. The little boy is only about 5 and very seldom is outside. Before we got Opie we had a lot of trouble with him digging and getting into our backyard. We finally got all of that taken are of. He does bark a lot and I'm hoping Opie doesn't start barking back. 

Quit It

Mom has been using this spray stuff to stop me from doing things she doesn't think I should be doing. 

Note from Mom:

I found this at petsmart for $10 and didn't have a lot of hope in it doing anything but thought for that price,why not try it. Sometimes we have a little issue with digging and we have new grass. Believe it or not, he stops every time. I have used it in the house when he gets a little too rowdy and he will promptly sit down. It is just air and sound really loud. Like an air hose. Apparently it gets his attention! I use it  sparingly because I don't want him to become desensitized to it.   

Me and My Dad

This is my dad. He has never been a "dog person" - that is, not until I came into his life. He couldn't help but fall in love with me. 

Note from Mom: I have always had small dogs. I never wanted a big dog. When we decided to get another dog after being dog-less for over a year - Brad told me that IF we got another dog - he would like to get a BIG dog. No more "wimpy" dogs. He wanted one that could hang out in the backyard with him sometimes. So after doing all my research on "big" dogs - I chose the American Bulldog - and he really does like him - I am not sure we can say "love" just yet  - but we won't tell Opie that.

To Dress or Not to Dress

Mom put a shirt on me! Can't say that I was too happy about it. I let her put it on but it didn't take long until I felt something funny and just didn't like it. 

Note from Mom: I just wanted to see how he would do with a shirt on. Actually he let me put it on without a problem but he started tugging at it after about 2 minutes. Since it isn't his shirt - it is one I bought for my 3 year old grandson - I took it off before he could rip it. Maybe in the winter time we will give a sweater a try.

Car Rides

Even though I like to ride in the car - I am not always very excited about getting into the car. I can't jump up by myself yet. Mom and Dad have a SUV. Mom bought a nice seat cover especially for me. I ride much nicer now.

Note from Mom: It has been a long time since I have had a puppy so some things I am still trying to get used to. When we are ready to go some where, I was used to my dog getting excited and couldn't wait to get in the car. Opie runs! lol the opposite direction. I have to just pick him up and put him in the car. I am hoping that when we start our daily walks and he has to go out the door with a leash that he will see that it is a good thing to go. I LOVE the seat cover. It is the same color as the seats and made from soft washable fabric that is also water resistant. 

UPDATE: he has gotten much better. Getting a haness for the leash instead of using his collar makes all the difference. He doesn't run any more and likes to go. 

Mom's Home For The Summer

I am sooo excited! My mom is home for the summer. Oh, we have BIG BIG plans. I am going to learn to swim in the pool. I am going to go on car rides and walks around the neighborhood. I am going to just be happy that my mom is home with me. 
I think she is happy, too.

Note from Mom: I am happy especially to be able to work on all his training on a daily and scheduled basis. I hope to start walking him early in the mornings before it gets too hot. We are going to start with walking to the end of the block and back and hopefully we will be walking all around the neighborhood without any problems before long. My mom and granddaughter will be here in July so he will be happy to have her to play with. (she is 7) My daughter and her family will be here in July, as well - and they have a 3 year old boy and a foster boy who will be about 20 months at that time. I don't know how that will work out. It is going to be a little harder controlling him around 2 little boys. I guess we will see when the time comes! 

Dog 101

Mom found this show on tv and is recording each segment. It's a great show! It's called Dog 101. They talk about different breeds and if they are a good family dog or not. Today we watched about German shepherds, corgis, bichons, but no bulldogs. We hope they do soon! 

Note from Mom: I'm sure this program has been on for a long time. It's new to us. The Dog Whisperer is hard to find any more. I have only gotten to watch 2 episodes since getting Opie. 

In this picture he is actually watching the TV. Lol I wanted to video but he stopped as soon as he saw me.

Keeping Cool in the Heat

My mom bought me this really cool (literally) pad for when we are outside. It is a big pad with foam inside and you fill it with water and when I lay on it my body temperature makes it feel cool. It is so COOL. 
Here I am sitting on it on the lounge chair with my bowl of ice. I love love love ice. My mom is SUPER MOM!

Note from Mom: This is really a great invention! Wish I had thought of it. It is made of very tough material and he has scratched at it and tried to bite on the corners a few times and so far - he hasn't torn it. It wipes off easily. I like laying on it myself! It covers the whole lounger so (right now) we can both sit on it. I bought it at Marshalls for $39 which is a good buy since I have seen them as much as $65 online. Great investment! (My hubby said "save your receipt" when he saw it because he just knew it was a waste of money. Ha Ha - he was wrong!)

Love My Yogurt Treats

My mom found these awesome yogurt treats at Walmart. They are so yummy. Yogurt is good for me. 

Bil Jac is a good company, too.

You should try them!

Note from Mom: oh he loves these. He thinks when the fridge opens he will get one. I only give him a couple a day. They are pretty smal, about the size of chex cereal or a little bit bigger maybe.

Puppy Orientation = Starbucks Reward

I made it through puppy orientation at Petsmart. There was only one other dog, a Mastiff! She was only one month older and twice my size! she was huge!!! One of her paws would make 2 of mine. She and I played and I was just as tough as she was. Size doesn't matter. I'm a boy!

The trainer talked about what we would do in actual training. She went over "sit" and showed how to teach that but I already know that one. I still got a lot of treats so that was fun anyway.

I am going to start obedience training in a couple of weeks right after my "surgery" (neutering)

After all my hard work and patience, mom and dad stopped at Starbucks and I got a Puppy Treat!! It was so yummy! 


Note from Mom:
It was a little difficult with his excitement - he has such power already. I can not wait to go through training and get him to do leash better. He can have a pretty stubborn streak. He is so much fun, tho.
I got a little upset because I was told he would not be able to group play because of his being a "bully breed". That is totally unfair because an American Bulldog is picked on for "looking like a Pit Bull" and they even agreed it was because they have too many people asking if they are a Pit when they bring their dogs in to play. It is people who are ignorant of the differences between a Pit Bull and an American Bulldog. They told me that they knew that the AmBulldog was a family dog and it was strictly because of that reason. This is a company policy and not one person there agrees with it.  BUT....we will get around that - he can still do puppy play for 2 more months and then he will also have obedience training - An American Bulldog is a hybrid from the early 1900's cross bred between an English Bulldog and Mastiff. English Bulldogs are allowed in puppy play. Sooooooo he will be listed as an English Bulldog mix. So problem solved.

Just Another Manic Monday

Hanging out with mom on a Monday evening. 

My 2nd Vet Visit at Banfield

I had my 2nd visit to see Dr. Vet at Banfield Pet Hospital. They are so nice there. I love how they fuss over me. They give me lots of treats! 

They said I am perfect - so muscular - great build. I was pretty hyper when they tried to weigh me and it went all the way to 30 pounds and that is what they put in my chart  but before I left mom put me back on the scales and I sat calmly and I was 26 pounds. I am heavy! Mom says so all the time.



Note from Mom:
He is super heavy. I wasn't too surprised at 30 pounds but I am guessing 26 is more accurate since he was sitting still at that time. We have his neuter surgery scheduled for June 23rd. He will have to be there at 7 a.m. I am so ready to get it over with.