Reminder to self: NEVER buy the fish-flavored dog food again. Results in some stanky-ass dog breath (yes, worse than usual). Gag.

It is most definitely in shedding season here. It’s been a very strange year, weather-wise, and I guess it was all late getting started. But the warm weather is here, and Zoe’s coat is leaving in bucketfulls. I went outside with the undercoat rake again today and brushed the heck out of her. Our front lawn looks like a 50-cat-fight took place. Zoe is looking much slimmer than she did. I just hate seeing her look so scruffy with clumps of white undercoat sticking out all over, as if I haven’t brushed her in a year! She’s usually so sleek and shiny.

I also clipped her nails today. It’s one of those things I keep saying I need to do, but don’t do nearly often enough. It went fine. She would much rather have been running wildly around the yard, but she sat still okay for me. No whining or pulling away, just some argument when I wanted her to face my right and she wanted to look at something to my left and kept turning around. But honestly she’s very good. Oreo always obeyed fine when clipping her nails, but she always looked like I was torturing her and was surely going to use those clippers to remove her tail next. I don’t even know why she always behaved like that, as the only time I ever nicked a nail quick was when she was about 5 years old!

Having only previously ever clipped Oreo’s nails - all of which are black - I never really concerned myself with being able to see the quick. Black nails are pretty much proceed at your own risk - I’d err on the side of caution and trust that I would do just fine. And like I said, I only got the quick once. (And of course, it was right after I was explaining to Dad that cutting her nails was really easy and I’d never cut the quick. I think I scared him off from ever trying it himself.) But Zoe now, she has white and black nails. And you know, I prefer those white ones. Much less stressful, I must say.

Behavior-wise Zoe has been acting… well, not terrible. But not great either. I don’t know where my perfect little princess has gone, but I’m not so sure she’s coming back. Zoe is 2 now, and apparently somewhere along the way she picked up a little bit of confidence - which is a good thing! Unfortunately she also picked up some mommy doesn’t exist. She’s been frustrating lately. Outside on leash she behaves just horribly. It doesn’t seem to matter to her how many times she hits the end of the leash, she just keeps doing it! In fact I was injured last week by her and Zeeke (but mostly her). She clotheslined me with her leash across the back of the knees, while I was yelling at her to STOP! STOP! STOP!!!! I have two huge very PURPLE bruises now. So she and I are working on the commands such as STOP (which is supposed to mean STOP MOVING) and HEEL (which is supposed to mean STAY NEAR MOMMY). Right now I think she hears everything as “blah blah blah”.

She’s just very frustrating because she’s very hyper and yet very sensitive. She’s either over-stimulated and doesn’t listen to anything, or she shuts down completely and doesn’t listen to anything. You really have to be very firm, very calm, and very, very patient. I’m finding it difficult to find that balance.

But she is still the sweet, happy-go-lucky dog she’s ever been. In fact, she just brought me a very disfigured goose toy. I think she knew I was writing about her.

I need to take more photos soon, I’m afraid I’ve been direly slacking. We just haven’t been doing anything at all of interest around here.