gotcha!

three years ago, dash rescued me. happy gotcha day my love.


3-15-2009 with his warthog toof!


3-15-2010


3-15-2011


3-15-2012 in need of a trim and a bath.

winnie's wish

winnie would like to take this wednesday to wish her big brothers HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! today is riley's 12th birthday, and we also celebrate dash's on the same day since his is unknown. dash is 10 today. my little old men! i <3 you both so much. and so does winnie.

we'll be celebrating with frosty paws this weekend. yum!

paws in the park

this weekend was the annual paws in the park fundraising walk for the spca of central florida. and also the coldest weekend in months, as always seems to be the case for paws in the park. anywho, we all bundled up in our sweaters and strutted our stuff for homeless pets - raising $180! go weens!

they started getting antsy in the car.


we saw lots of fellow weens. i could always tell when one was near because riley would pull his leash.


it's a pretty long walk for little legs, so some crossed the finish line with a little help.


i bet this guy didn't take a single step.


some rolled...


in total style...


and some came just to hang out.


lots and lots of dogs. big...


and small.


thick...


and thin.


young...


and old.


beautiful...


oh who am i kidding, they're all adorable.


there were costumes. like a german shepherd in a tutu.


a steampunk gang...


and their dog.


paws in the park isn't reserved just for dogs either.


or even the pawwed.


and of course, there's always the swans.

well hello there

it's been quite a while. we moved over the holidays and are pretty settled now, just haven't been taking many pictures or in the blogging mood. but everyone is well. we went to the park last weekend, and i got zero pictures of winnie since she never left my lap. but the boys had fun running around. dash wandered off several times with some other dogs. it's so good to see him socializing. riley was socializing a little too much, if you catch my drift, the little pervert, so we finally had to leave.

someone needs a hair cut.


dash and his adorable poodle friend on an adventure.


riley barking at the german shepherd puppy.


riley still barking at the big dogs who'd like to have him as a snack. so bad.


who, me?

the happiest winnie wednesday of all

it's a special day today.


what is on my head?

happy 3rd birthday miss win!!!


what does that mean?

riley knows what it means.



frosty paws!



frosty tongues.

what makes me happy

okay, okay, so EVERYTHING about dash makes me happy (except the turd snacking, but we've all got our flaws). but what makes me REALLY happy is seeing dash happy, knowing what a long journey it was to get here.

if you're not familiar with dash's history, he was a puppy mill stud, locked in a cage for five years or so. when he got rescued, he was so anxious that'd he'd pace in tiny circles, and he was terrified of people and being touched. over time, the circles got bigger, and he learned that people weren't all that bad. when he came to me, he still had a long way to go, and my motto for him became "all touching is good touching." and i cuddled and petted him every chance i got. now he loves cuddling with me and will beg for pets, and i never turn him down.

at our halloween party, dash wandered into the crowds of people, and twice he got petted. by strangers! and he didn't flinch or run. he LIKED it. he seeked out attention. from STRANGERS! my little boy! *sniffle*

i know these aren't the best photos, but i had to get them while i could.

happy howl-o-ween

halloween, what a great holiday. what's more fun than dressing up and getting free candy? we went to the annual dachshund meetup group costume party, and of course the dogs enjoyed every minute of it. we stayed pretty simple with the costumes this year, enhancing each dog's natural features and unique characteristics.

riley was a bee. he even attempted a little pollinating.

buzz bitches.

winnie was a rescue dog.

someone over here need *hic* rescuing?

and dash, with his spotted coat and girlish figure, was a cow.

oh the moo-miliation.

a dash of pep

i think dash is enjoying this cooler weather. he was positively peppy on tonight's walk. usually he's dragging behind as far and as slowly as he can.

the other night he got the post-bath zoomies big time. so big that he BARKED. understand, dash doesn't bark. ever. except when he's in the car with a distressed cat. i've taken riley, dash and nephthys all together for their annual exams the last couple years. and as soon as nephthys starts meowing in the crate, dash is there, barking and pawing at the door. the first time it happened, i was dumbfounded. i didn't know what to do, and he wouldn't stop. i tried pulling him away and distracting him, but he was on a mission! so i let nephthys out to see what would happen. she crept out and stopped meowing, and dash was fine. then she crept back into the safety of her crate, and as long as the door was open, she didn't meow, and dash didn't stress. and then he slept right in front of her crate, all the way to the vet. it was one of the sweetest and most amazing things i've ever seen an animal do. when the same thing happened the next year, i just opened her crate, and all was well. but first i had to hear his gruff little bark again.

the only other time (until last week) that i'd heard dash bark was when my complex was being repainted. the men crawled up on the garage roofs to get into the backyards, and dash saw them through the backdoor and barked. i was laying on the couch and he was sitting on the floor next to me. riley had been barking his head off, because that's what he does, but then i started hearing barks that didn't sound like his. bark. and a few seconds later, bark. i looked down, and there was dash, as casual as can be. bark. he wasn't stressed in the least, but he knew those men shouldn't have been up there, and he was letting me know.

luckily i had my phone handy to catch his frisky barks last week. it may not seem like much, but trust me when i say this footage you're about to see is rare and so very special.

winnie wednesday

i went out of town for a long weekend and had a friend dog-sit the boys. but i wasn't comfortable leaving winnie with a "stranger" who isn't too familiar with animals, so i boarded her at the v-e-t. it was the scenario i was most comfortable with, and i knew it was the best for everyone to leave such a high maintenance dog with professionals. but i had no idea how much it would change her.

when i went to pick her up, she walked up front on her leash, looking nervously at everyone. but she didn't seem to recognize me, even though i was calling her name. as she got closer, i knelt down and let her sniff me, and as soon as she realized mom was there, she tucked herself into my lap. she was saaaaaaved! she was so calm in the car, no longer nervously pacing. and when we walked in the front door, she sniffed for half a second, then skipped off happily, realizing she was home for good. she bounced all over the boys, and they were happy to see her too. but the biggest change is that she is so much calmer all the time, and it's stuck. she runs at a normal pace, not a frantic flee. and she's going outside on her own, rather than me having to corner her on the couch and carry her to the door. she doesn't bolt off the couch when i sit up or reach over to pet her. big, big progress. the biggest since she first crawled into my lap at the dog park.

dash always seemed to make noticeable progress whenever something "eventful" happened, like a meetup or trip to the groomer, but these didn't do much for winnie's progress. it took me leaving her alone for four days and then coming to her rescue, and now she's a new dog. she's finally realized that she's safe, she's home.

my special dash

another reminder, i moved the blog and messed up everything, including the rss feed, so please update any bookmarks, links, subscriptions, etc. to weenoids.com!

i like to compare dash to an autistic child, because it's the best way to describe his special personality. he doesn't bark, doesn't play, doesn't really seem to be aware or interested in much of the world around him (unless it involves me or food). but every now and then, the dog in him comes out. and nothing makes me happier than seeing dash act like a normal, happy dog.

winnie likes to chew on an elk antler (from the daily coyote) while i'm getting ready for bed, and after months of not paying any attention, dash has taken an interest. i found him gumming it one night and practically had to fight him to take it away. and again the next night. and the next morning, he found it on the floor next to the bed and went to town. and then he PLAYED with it. i almost cried. my sweet, special dash is a real boy.

weenoids

just a quick note - the blog name and url have changed. please update your links and subscriptions! cause i'm a dummy and changed the blogger url too, so everything broke.

weenoids.com

don't look over there, we're over here now!

who's a dummy? you are!

riley vs. the mega-squeak

riley has a thing for certain toys. if it's tennis ball felt, he must kill it. if it's stuffed, he must kill it. if it squeaks, he must kill it. i gave up on buying stuffy and squeaky toys, because i was tired of picking up the innards all the time. then some genius thought of skineeez stuff-less toys, and riley lurves them!

then, someone created the mega-squeak - a toy with 16 squeakers. just like the giant tennis ball, i couldn't resist the novelty. and, of course, i had to buy the dachshund shaped one.

i love dash and winnie in this one, their faces are priceless.

surprisingly, it still has half its squeakers! riley's getting less dedicated in his old age. though he did finally succeed in ripping the head off, and it's become one of winnie's favorite toys to whip around. they're a bunch of cannibals.

twitchy whisker

dash had one whisker twitching to his pulse.



one of these days i'll learn how to focus in video mode.

dash has no manners

ooh, treats??


like i always say, at least he's cute.

winner wednesday

saturday, the meetup group had wiener races. and there were winners. just not us. not even close. as in, these dummies barely made it out of the box. winnie actually got the furthest, because when someone (human) started running behind her, she hauled booty running from him. but then she veered off the track and got disqualified. oh well, there's always next year.

to see an example of my weentards in action, here's video from last year's races with riley and dash. i had to set the camera and then walk around, so skip to about 2 minutes in to get to the races.

oh, and look, winnie's under the table.

yappy hour

i took the boys to our local yappy hour.

they met their first horses.


they checked out the treats.


they were confused by the fire hydrant. to use or not to use...


they gazed longingly out the window. they're not the most sociable.


the ride home was a gem though. i do love these faces.