Pupdate February 2024

 Happy "Heavenly" birthday to Grandpa Couch Crew.   He's hanging out over the rainbow bridge with all the puppers in our lives who have since left us.

Sooo which story to begin with??  This past Wednesday it was Valentines day. Our favorite puppy photographer along with her trusty assistant (moi) attempted to get some photos of the crew for Valentines day.  
If you regularly check out the FB page, you know we posted a gorgeous banner of those photos. I was even able to share a behind the scenes collage of those photos.     
As always a very big Thank You to Jen! for her holiday inspired photos and the patience of a Saint when it comes to getting them to pose!

Stop! Thief!!

Our Thief has struck again!  If you read at least the last post, you know the story of the stolen roll at Thanksgiving & the stolen mashed potatoes last month.   

On Friday, we ordered pizza for dinner.   We usually do something like this as the leftovers last us the weekend for a meal or two.   

I ordered a wrong pizza. It didn't really impress us much, kind of bland.   So the box along with a remaining handful of slices was placed on the island. There was a small bag of garbage placed on top of that.   We usually place things to be thrown out there until someone walks to the garage or near the garage door. 

Last night, I was in bed first as usual. Rich stayed up and was on his PC playing his games.   He got up to get ready for bed, walked into the living room to find the empty box in the middle of the doggy bed. The bag of garbage, strewn around the living room & not a sign of a leftover.   

That big oaf pulled an entire pizza box off the island, carried it to the living room, & proceeded to enjoy the remaining piece of pizza.   

We think he did this in part because he was pissed at us.

We're Gorgeous!!

For various reasons or another, Ziva has been taken to another groomer than the one we used for years. So she had an appointment on Wed.  She really needed it as her hair was stringy, longer, & she was shedding tufts. OH & the mats behind the ears. 

Ever since we took them to the park at the beginning of the month and they had gotten muddy & bathed, the fur has been ...they were looking worse for wear. 

Ziva had her appointment on Wednesday and as usual they did a phenomenal job.  Cleaned up her ears & got rid of more mats that they found.   She looks absolutely adorable!!  Rich loved the way she looked the last time we took her, but he loves this look just the same if not more. 

Before

After

Khors was unable to get in at the usual spot & I could NOT WAIT ANY longer, I got him a last minute appointment somewhere else. 

He had a full on spa experience.  He was cut & cleaned up, bathed in high quality shampoos, nails trimmed, facial, balm on his nose & paws, teeth brushed & all that.    I was nervous because saying "I want him trimmed/cleaned up" isn't giving a specific razor height or anything. 
Plus it was our first time here. 

I had nothing to worry about. He came out looking quite gorgeous.  I'm so happy with the work they did. Debating about taking him to Ziva's groomer or bring him back to this place.    Decisions. Decisions.

Isn't he just so handsome?

Lada & Peryn.....
These two are doing well.  They've been left alone on the days I'm required to go into the office.
They are a little more than excited, more like UBER enthusiastic to greet me when I do get home. 
I actually don't look forward to it as it's painful at times.    

But it's the affordable alternative and they can be trusted at home alone.   They may get hyper, but their overall energy level doesn't lead to them destroying anything when left at home. 
Besides, they've always been good dogs when left alone. 
Lada has really taken to joining in the shenanigans when Khors & Ziva are wrestling. She doesn't necessarily wrestle with Khors, she focuses on Ziva so in a sense Ziva is being double teamed with Khors in one direction & Lada in another.

Peryn is getting closer & closer to joining them.    He's slowly adapted to wanting to wrestle with Ziva. 
He started his attempts when Volos was still here & has continued.  He's more so gotten her to respond.    For awhile she was weary of him because he is a Jerk & has snapped at her more times than we can count.  
However she's finally recognizing that he does want to play.   It's real progress.

With Volos he had both sisters adore him. They would lick him & interact in their own ways.  Lada would groom him & mouth fence with him.     Ziva was his companion. They often were found next to each other & would play tug all the time.   Ziva LOVED playing tug with him. She would be glued to his side at home.
Peryn, he had his weird relationship with Volos. They missed each other when separated. Peryn would groom Volos on occasion & Peryn still loved to taunt him with Volos' toys.

I find he's much more engaged these days. I don't know if it's because Khors is much more active & responsive --or-- if Peryn's personality is shifting again.   All we do know is there is more group involvement of the 4 than previously.   
Probably why I am so tired. I have to go downstairs more often & be more engaged than before.     

SO that's pretty much it with the pups to date.   I was in the basement with them before I began typing this & left the phone upstairs.  And yet again, I missed some great /new moments.   I really need to look into wearing a go pro all the time with these guys .....

Pupdate: Khors Jan 2024 Three Months in....

 

Khors.... Dude needs his own post

I don't even know where to begin. 

This dude has adapted very well since the moment he stepped inside our home.   Nothing seems to phase this dog. Seriously, he just goes with the flow. Seems to like EVERYTHING and is the BIGGEST HAM.

I guess I'll start first with home.  He LOVES his family, especially Ziva. They are found playing often around the house. Either playing tug, wrestling, or just running around with the others.   He instigates play as much as she does.   
They don't care where or when, if they're in the mood-they play. 

Lada & Peryn are a bit "leery" of him.  Not that they don't engage with him, they do to an extent.  When they're all playing with the big ball, they back off when it's his turn. They don't wrestle with him, but they sure do chase him when he gets the zoomies outside. 
There has been some tug with Lada (maybe with Peryn too). 

He has a BFF at daycare as well.  Killian, an Aussie. The two of them are often at play when he's not going at it with Ziva.  
Khors absolutely loves activities.  Playcare? Definitely.  Going on a walk? Heck Yeah! Car ride? Roll down that window baby! Basement? Outside? Dog farm? Dog park?  He's for it all.

He loves the herding ball with the cattle dogs. He loves tug or wrestling with Z.  When he's not doing either of those in the basement, his next favorite thing is to cuddle with Momma.  He will come up to where I am sitting and expect some hugs & kisses.   He's a sweet gentlemen.    A big lover.

Oh and he's a talker.   It's most definitely the collie because Galen used to talk like Khors does.  We see a lot of Galen's "spirit" in Khors.  It makes us smile. I love his little talks. I'm trying to capture enough on vid to share.   

Khors also likes to push buttons. Not literal, figuratively.   Dude ALWAYS wants to be outside. He will pound at the curtain/door to see if it's open.  He's quite loud about it so you have no doubt what he wants. 
He's nosey as all get out & has to be in our neighbors business. So he will watch them in the backyard or if nothing is going on back there, he's decided he doesn't care what we say, he goes up front to lie down on the front porch to watch all those walk by.   
We had to purchase a new camera to monitor him at the front of the house.

He hates being warm & insists on lying out in the yard.   Yesterday with 14 degree temperatures didn't mean a thing to him. He was lying out in the yard like it was any other day.

He loves toys. When he gets them, he's usually gentle with them & loves to press the squeaky on them.  They of course get ruined because Ziva must play tug with all toys he loves.  She did that with Volos all the time as well.  

Took him to Petsmart to pick out a toy. First time in the store & it drove me crazy as he peed EVERYWHERE & it was A LOT!!  I spent more time cleaning that shopping. However, we found a toy he liked & he happily carried it to the car.   

I told Rich we would not do it again by myself.   Holding him & trying to clean up a giant bladder was not fun.   Everyone said it was because it was his first time. Regardless, precautions will be taken for next time.

Shower is cool

not hot here

Khors has filled out & grown.  Since he was only a year & a half-ish, we expected the growth.  However the filling out...he is such a handsome boy.

He's also a pig.  He eats A LOT. He raids trash cans.  He raids the counters.  He raids & he eats. The boy is a bottomless pit. 

At Thanksgiving he stole a roll right from the container of the island.  Right in front of everyone-no remorse. 

He goes through my trash every chance he gets looking for something.     Yesterday the stinker stole a container of mashed potatoes off the counter & ate them up long before anyone knew they were gone.  We discovered it when I was helping Rich make his dinner plate.  We couldn't find the container & Rich mentioned seeing Khors with one when he came in. 
Sure enough, emptied container on the dog bed.   

When Gramma was here for a visit, he stole 2 different pieces of banana bread.   Now to be fair, it was completely Gramma's fault as she did not appropriately put them up.   
The first time he stole it off the coffee table where she had wrapped up the piece she did not get to, to save for later.   Of course that's in easy reach and he ate it.

The next day, she had a few bites in the morning, wrapped it up, & placed it in her tote bag.  The tote bag sitting on the office chair--within reach.

Khors proceeded to help release the piece from it's confines & ate the rest.   If this dog is going to steal from a counter top, anything lower is fair game. 

He is a happy & healthy dog.  He loves everything about his life & has helped the pack overcome their grief.   

As for me, I'm still struggling . With Volos I lost my cuddle buddy. I lost my faithful boy. The boy that loved to climb up in my lap for snuggles. The boy that would plop down next to me when I took a break from work to lie on the floor with them.  The boy that climbed into bed and would either sleep on my & help me sleep through the night or cuddle next to me so I would want to stay in bed.   
The boy that would be so happy to come stand by me & let me hug him to death.     

Khors does not sleep in bed.  He climbs on me for no more than 2 mins and jumps off. He does not curl up against me when I get on the floor. He has helped ease the pain to an extent, but he does not fill the void.    
I also miss the "pure Bernese" look.   Volos looked all Berner.  Khors has a Berner look, but the tiny bit of collie gives him a distinct look....not so Berner.   I miss it.  I do still cry missing him I had the greatest dog for such a short amount of time.   




In 3 days we would've been celebrating his "Gotcha" Birthday. He would have been 9.    

Pupdate: Peryn, Lada, & Ziva

1.17.24-started this 1.11.24
Khors is going to need his own post 

Hey there! 
Sorry there hasn't been a lot of activity here or on the Facebook page.  I really am having a hard time finding inspiration or desire to put together something to post.   
Momma is really still having a hard time without Volos.  
Lots going on, just my heart still hurts.

Let's get to the updates:

Peryn:
Our Peryn boy just turned 8 on the 3rd. I know I suck that I didn't do a huge blog post.  I did post of FB.

I can't believe he's getting older.   

There has been some very noticeable change in him the past few months.   First we have the weight loss. Since Daddy now walks the dogs regularly on the days they do not go into daycare, he's gotten more exercise. The more exercise has trimmed off some of the extra bulk he had & that the Vet wanted him to work off. 

He's also a lot more engaged with the pack. Instead of only barking at them all, he's tried engaging in some play. He has played tug with Ziva a bit & has attempted on several occasions to wrestle with her.   
Additionally, he's more affectionate.  That's kind of big as he's always been a bit standoffish and hates being touched too much. 

He definitely is mellowing in some ways (Others-not so much).  One down side behavior that has gotten worse is that he likes to follow me around & stay RIGHT.AT.MY.FEET.  I trip over this butthead so much cause HE'S RIGHT THERE!!!!

He's also started taking to hanging out alone in the bedroom (on the bed of course) when it's too "chaotic".

His distaste for rain has diminished a bit. Before he refused to step outside if it was raining at all. Due to the walks Daddy has been providing, he's had to walk in the rain a number of times.   So he'll step outside to use the restroom if he has to.   That's a good improvement.

Not exactly sure how much is related to age or circumstances.  He has accepted Khors and they have a tentative friendship.    

Don't get me wrong.... Peryn is still very much an A$$ H0l3.   He still steals Lada's tennis balls. Still takes Khors toys to taunt him with.  Still steals bones & bed spots.    So a few tiny steps forward I guess...

I do appreciate the "softer" side of Pear Bear though.....

Lada-

Lada is Lada.   Both she & Peryn got to go on a car ride down to KY to pickup Gramma (& later drop off).  So she was in HEAVEN to see one of her favorite people.
Whenever they're together, Gramma & Lada do a bit of cuddling together. I love capturing these moments.  

Another thing that Lada got to experience was her most favorite person (aside from us) came back.   Her Jen had to be away for a few months (the entire time we've had Khors truthfully) and is back.  Lada did get to see her once during that time for a few minutes, but the day she came back.....Lada was in heaven!  
She's known Jen for practically her whole life & Jen always has taken time to play with her -as well as love on her.   So she's had her back a few times & is just as happy as can be.  

She also has taken on playing with/joining in the wrestling between Khors & Ziva.   She doesn't necessarily play with Khors, but she joins in on the ganging up on Ziva.   She loves her baby sis.

She's gotten incredibly possessive of me.  Khors comes to me often for affection & Peryn is doing so more often, so she gets up in paws about it.  I absolutely laugh & love the sounds she makes when she is unhappy with sharing me.

I love my lil girl.   She's my BFF-co-pilot.

Ziva....

Ziva is a very happy girl.   She first mourned Volos' loss more deeply than the others & it was heartbreaking.   She adored him so much.   

Khors has DEFINITELY eased that & given her a new outlook. She absolutely loves her baby brother.  She randomly comes up to him to start playing or wrestle.   I hear the two of them are non-stop at daycare. 

She is more engaged in playing of some sort at home.  She hasn't "annoyed" me as much due to boredom since she really shouldn't have any.

Just like with Volos, she & Khors are always near each other.  They definitely are BFFs.  

She too is super happy that Jen is back as she loves her too.   She also was SUPER happy to see Gramma.   Gramma was there when we picked her up. She was there at Christmas & on vacation... Gramma is the best.

Otherwise, there isn't much else new with Z.  She's just happy to have a companion again. She still adores her older sister & still follows her around in the basement when they play--she just ends up playing with Khors most of the time. 

Ziva is a beautiful, sweet, adorable girl who is super happy with her family.

Duchess & Oscar

1/17/24 - first of at least 3 posts coming 

Long time readers (or readers that went & read old posts) may remember the tail of Duchess & Oscar.

Duchess was our 4th dog, adopted a year after Goldberg left us. She was a pretty stoic dog overall. She loved playing with our pack members (Athena, Peryn & Lada), but was pretty standoffish with all others. 

We took the dogs to the dog park rather regularly & she would always go off by herself.  She may sniff a dog or two here and there, but for the most part she ignored them. 

Even our next door dogs she would ignore.   She was overly affectionate, but she showed her devotion in other ways.  

The change began in 2017 when we made the decision to start sending her & Athena to daycare with Peryn. It was also to give Lada time to bond & other things until she was able to start attending herself.

During one pickup I was told Duchess was "flirting" with another dog.   I laughed, but brushed it off as they were joking & she had a small interaction with another dog.

After being told this again, another time, I was like "Really?" and then shown a video of her "flirting". I was shocked. Duchess rarely interacted with dogs (maybe the bigger dogs occasionally at the dog park).  However, regularly INSTIGATING play with a single dog that was not part of our pack....

And then began the regular posting of Duchess annoying the heck out of her paramour.   

I adored it. It was cute & we laughed at the tails of Lada "cock blocking" (Cause dare anyone have fun where she's not involved). 
For 2 years, I enjoyed these updates & posts.

Unfortunately we unexpectedly lost Duchess in early December of 2019.  It hurt to see pictures posted of Oscar without her, but dog-life must go on.

This past weekend the daycare posted that Oscar had crossed the rainbow bridge.    Very truly saddened by this, but know that my Duchess was eagerly awaiting to hip bump her man.

Social Media Stars

 Want to know WHO we're watching?

Layla & Luna: https://www.facebook.com/laylatheboxerr
Some of the absolutely best skits created.  My favorite hands down

Ollie & Tato: https://www.facebook.com/good.boy.ollie1
This guy (& his baby brother) are the absolute most heartwarming sweetest pups you will ever watch. The voice fits the big guy. I just want to squeeze him.  Definitely in my top 5.

MINION!! https://www.facebook.com/nateandminion
Minion is absolutely adorable & spoiled –as he should be. He also recently got a baby brother Aslan.
Nate is quite the engaging narrator of their lives on their homestead.   I enjoy watching.

Tess, Biggie Smalls, Mogwai, & Stuntman Mike: https://www.facebook.com/authorabbyjimenez
This crew definitely keeps you smiling. Tess & her “ah woos”.

Teddy!: https://www.facebook.com/Aguyandagolden
First became popular due the dog house his Dad made him.  They’ve started doing skits & the facial expressions that they “Catch” Teddy doing are PURE GOLD!  Seriously, the best part of the skits is Teddy’s expressions (& of course the comedy gold of his ‘antics’).

Want to laugh? Not a dog, but very doglike: https://www.instagram.com/jauncydev/

Cattle Dogs:

Riften the ACD: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087866032498
Those eye!!

Monty the Cuddle Dog: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088868367619
He’s so adorable. And I am totally envious of a dog. He’s traveled to some beautiful places that I only wish I could have gone.

https://www.facebook.com/Roscoesadventures
Roscoe passed last year, but I still follow for the memories. He was a character & miss seeing new vids.

Adorable & Sweet Berners:

Nash the Berner: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100095468712954
He’s one of my new faves (obviously new as he’s a pup)

The Berner Bunch (Weller!) https://www.facebook.com/thebernerbunch
Weller jumps in bushes!

Beaker & Bunsen: https://www.facebook.com/bunsenberner.bmd
Dogs are Good!

Kevin- what a darling: https://www.facebook.com/itskevintheberner
A big teddy bear

https://www.instagram.com/ramses_kingofberners

 

 

 

 

Khors Update

 Hey Everyone. 
We're two weeks short of 2 months of having Khors with us.  It's been ...easy.  

When we first agreed to bring another rescue in, I took a lot of my grief and used it to focus on getting this dog.   When we did finally bring him home, I didn't know what to do or feel about him. 
I had focused so much on getting him, I hadn't considered what to do or I would react once he's home. 

Khors though has made the process easy.  From moment one he's been a happy-silly puppy.  
Everything indicates he was someone's pet. First of all he had a collar on when he was rescued. Although he had been a stray for a little while, he was someone's dog. 
He's completely at ease with humans and other dogs. He was housetrained & he has basic manners.

The biggest issue was that he was a puppy with a lot of energy.  The first two weeks were rough as he was so full of energy & we were unable to let him expend it the way he needed to.   Between the extra energy & the newness of the situation, he & Peryn did have a few altercations.  
Peryn was very leery of him & kept his distance. 

It took about 5 days before Ziva realized she could play with him the way she wanted.  Lada is indifferent. 
Rich began walking him (& Ziva /Peryn) twice a day to help expend some of the energy.  It really wasn't helping, Khors is essentially a puppy.   Once he had his check-up & was given the OK to be "released" from the constraints of only playing in the basement, he was able to go to daycare-he blossomed big time. 

He LOVES daycare. He has a buddy he plays & runs around with. He loves the farm. He absolutely loves the pond-splashing in it.   Running around the pond at full speed.   He & Ziva will run around the farm for a bit.    

All this to say, now that he's got a regular outlet to his boundless energy, he's used to the routines, & he knows his place-- he is a WELCOME addition to the Pack & the family. 

He is a huge sweetheart. He loves his Momma & Papa.  He loves his siblings, especially Ziva.  Ziva absolutely loves her baby brother.  He's her playmate (ironically while typing this, they got into it).

He loves playing with Peryn & Lada with the herding ball. He loves chasing tennis balls from the blaster. He loves tug with me or Ziva. He loves toys, especially the squeaky ones.   He LOVES the toys I specifically get him.  He has a green Dodo that I gave him, that he's treasures. Today I added to it with a carrot.  He loves it very much.  

He still has a lot of energy, but he's more under control. He knows the boundaries (with the help of the invisible fence).  He's protective of the house. He patrols via the window & back door. 

Our biggest issue is the occasional "acting out" towards Peryn & today Ziva.   Peryn's fear of him is definitely gone. He's now taken it upon himself to tease him like he used to tease Volos. Taking Khors toys & standing above him to taunt him.

He doesn't have the quirkiness of Volos. You know, Volos & his obsession of collecting all the toys at the bottom of the stairs. Volos & his box obsession.  Volos was a character & his antics made everyone love watching his antics. 

Khors is a bit of a clown, but I haven't found his "voice" yet. 

So essentially, between not knowing his voice, his personality not being as quirky as Volos, & Momma's sadness, there won't be a lot of vids.    We're still working on figuring each out. 

But know he's settling in & he's a stereotypical dog.

		2

Pupdate: 16 Days In...

 Hard to believe two weeks have already gone by with him.   
It's been different. Interesting. A challenge.    

Let's start with our biggest issues:  

He's aggressive towards Peryn.   Not all the time, but it's been  enough where Peryn does not trust him & avoids him. 

It will definitely happen if food is involved & they are in close proximity.  The bigger issue is when he's gone after him during play time.    

We've begun working on that as much as we can.   It'll take time, but we do have that. 

He's run off twice now. Once with Rich & the other with me.   We're working on that as well. I'll discuss more in detail later. 

He's a counter surfer.  Worse than Ziva.  Ziva would surf the items on the edge & steal if it took minimal effort.  He will get on his hind legs & steal off the counter.

TOO ENERGETIC.  

Good things:
He's a sweetheart to humans in the house. He's on guard against those outside. He loves Ziva. He's a cuddler. He's housebroken. He's got his basic commands.   He LOVES to be brushed.

So the big developments :

He had his vet visit yesterday.   He is indeed a "puppy" as in over 1 but not 2.   His energy is definitely puppy related. We remember Ziva a year ago & she was very energetic.  She has calmed down quite a bit. 

He still has some health issues we're working with.   He has a yeast infection in his ear, near the end of treating his dermatitis, & he may have allergies.   Plus we learned today that he has intestinal worms.   So we have loads of meds for him. 

His incision healed nicely  & he was pretty much given the go ahead.    So yesterday he went to daycare. 

During the week leading up to this, he began getting the zoomies in the house. He also bolted out of the house & hasn't really gotten to let out his energy.  There was a game of chase in the basement the other day, so we knew daycare was going to be needed. 

Our hope is once he begins having a regular outlet for his energy, he may ease up on Peryn as well as not run off. 

They all went yesterday and as of almost 3PM on Saturday, they're all passed out.   They've been like this all morning.   Hopefully this will keep up once he gets in a regular schedule. 

We're probably going to eventually only send the Berner's to playcare.   Peryn does not like it. Yesterday he was pretty traumatized between the vet, rain & being forced to go to daycare.

Peryn at the vet

At the vet

Lada can go maybe once a week.  She's got her buds, she tries to interfere in her siblings play, but ultimately her & Peryn would be best to stay home.