Feeling Froggy

Most likely this was mentioned previously in a post, but to remind you, the reader, Molly is by design, a ratter. Her dominant breed (Miniature Schnauzer) was bred to live in the barn and handle small vermin. Thus, when she is out for walks, she gives chase to rabbits, squirrels, other dogs and cats. She loves to catch and eat, flies, crickets, bees and almost anything else. Not slugs..no slugs. Every time she goes for a walk, there is a check of the house perimeter before leaving and when returning to the house.

Here is another trait that Molly possesses; she has a mind like an elephant. Almost never forgets anything. This is very true when she finds a bone on a lawn and we have to stop her from getting it or wrestle it from her jaws. Without missing a beat the next time she is on that walk she will be looking for that prize that got away.

So one day daddy (me) is taking Molly for a walk and she is following her usual pattern of checking out the perimeter of the house only this time she is checking out the shed with passion. I finally get her attention away from the check and we continue our walk. Upon returning, again she was poking her nose under the shed and I could not for the life of me figure what is was that she was after so badly. I thought nothing of it that day until the next day she was at it again. This is where the remembering things like an elephant comes into play. This time, she was trampling through Mommy's flowers to get different angles under the shed. So now I had to mention this strange and funny behavior to Mommy and told her that Molly was trampling through her flowers to get under the shed.

"Oh, yeah, she found a frog and chased it under there", Mommy says.

And now for a week, she has been on that shed like white on rice. One day we were walking Molly and we decided to take her through the backyard at the end of her stroll and away she went to the shed area. This time rummaging under the pallet alongside the shed looking for the frog. Truly, if she was not as chunky, Molly would have gotten completely under that pallet to get that frog. That is assuming that the frog is even there. She has been pursuing it for a week, one would think that the frog has moved on. Molly hasn't. Rest assured, Molly will continue this pursuit until she is totally satisfied that there is no longer a threat to the shed by a frog.

Midday at the Oasis

We have wanted a deck for a long, long time. In fact, we've wanted a deck for longer than Molly has even been around. But Molly was a definite factor in the the deck decision process. You see where we live, we cannot have fenced yards so you can't just open a door and let your fur babies run free. So by having a deck, we can install a gate and Molly can at least come out sans leash and enjoy the outdoors.

Along the way, I (daddy) was hesitant. I mean I was excited that Molly would have new horizons with a deck but at the same time worried that she would not take to it because frankly Molly is not good with change. 

What was interesting is that after the main portion of the deck was completed it was another three days before the gate would be done so we had to use a child gate to keep Molly in. But like we always brag about, Molly being the smart cookie she is would not come out on the deck unless and until the child gate was put up. Truly amazing. 

Now that the deck is complete Molly is loving it. It has become the perfect extension for her as she gets to come outside more often and bark at everybody and everything that comes by her path. She also has her own pool on the deck so she can take a quick cool dip after a long summer's day walk or just come outside to cool her belly for a bit. 

So if you are looking for Molly this summer you will probably find her deck-side with Mommy taking in some pool time and guarding the ole homestead. 

The Doctor's Visit

First an apology for not writing in a while, it has been very busy.

Last weekend, Molly had to go to the doctor's for her yearly checkup and some shots. What was pretty cool about this visit is that I do not usually get to accompany Mommy and Molly because of work. But this year we got ourselves a Saturday appointment and we also got to see Dr. Richard, which is always a treat.

Molly has been bugging to get outdoors and go bye-byes a lot lately and that is because she was able to go with us to a few places in the car and now she is all excited about that and it was no problem getting her to go. After all, in the past week she took a car ride to Uncle Paul and Aunt Jen's house, she took a ride to the groomers and she took a ride or two to her favorite little walking parks. That is a lot of car trips for one week, eh?

OK, so we had a good visit with the doctor. Molly is doing very well and she passed all of her tests that she had and that is super-duper! No flea issues, no parasite issues and she was real good for her blood draw and her shot plus she has to do this nasal mist for Kennel Cough and Dr. Richard says that she takes it textbook-style. Of course, she is OUR MOLLY!

I was glad to have gone because I wanted to talk to the doctor about Molly's diet. Because she had bladder stone surgery when she was one year old, she is on a special diet of Royal Canin SO and then of course her treats for going outside. I thought that because, like every other dog, she eats cat poo if/when she can get away with it that maybe we should supplement her diet with some fruits or vegetables. But sad to say that Dr. Richard said for maximum effect of the dog food prescription, that it was recommended that nothing else be given. We only want what is best for our girl and not have her or us go through that pain again.

But for now, we can report a straight A report card for Molly!