My face!

So, when I posted on The Joys of Dog Ownership last Monday, I didn't quite expect to have another entry of the same tone quite so soon. Maybe it's just my luck.

But, here we are.

I've probably mentioned here at least once, and I know I've occasionally wryly said, that I wish we'd been able to teach Elka "paw inhibition" just as well as her bite inhibition. She's never laid a deliberate tooth to anybody, not since she was an itty bitty puppy. She'll kind of "nibble" somebody occasionally, but I'm not even sure what the behavior is trying to express; perhaps it's an affection thing? It seems to be in moments of joy, anyway.

Another issue with Elka is that she'll occasionally head butt somebody. It's not really on purpose, it's just because of the way that she kind of plows through the world. Comically, it's sometimes in the hand, which is a "why are you hitting yourself?" sort of situation. Sometimes it's a leg. However, this past Saturday, it was my face (which puts me in mind of a joke some of us had in college, in which we would exclaim "My face!" because of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark.")

I mean, I guess I'm lucky. Some owners on Doberman Talk have related broken noses and black eyes; we haven't had that issue. But, we had people over and Elka was pacing back and forth because there was no room for her on the couch. I finally got her up on the recliner behind me, and figured she'd quiet down. And she did, for a little while. But somehow, a single fly was in the room, and Elka has a fascination for all things flying. It buzzed past at one point, and she whipped her head around to watch it and laid the length of her muzzle right across my cheekbone. I'm confident that she almost knocked me out; she certainly made my eyes water.

I don't have a bruise yet, and I might not, which would be nice. It certainly aches, though. I made her get off of the chair and do a down-stay on her bed after that, because holy smokes, I can only take so many hits!

Buddy book giveaway winner!

I know you've all been waiting with bated breath to see who the winner is of Buddy (How a Rooster Made me a Family Man), by Brian McGrory. Well, wait no longer!

Witty Title Here

So, I didn't really know what to post about. It's rare that I'm at a loss for doggie words, but there it is.

So, a couple of random things (that I suppose I could have/should have saved for This 'n' That Thursday with 2 Brown Dawgs et al, but, well, it's Tuesday and I'm stalling for a "real" post come Thursday. Dreams really do come true, right?)

An article about BPA leech and dog toys. I can't be the only one who wishes we didn't have to worry about stuff like this. But, with big industry comes big problems. Clearly. And the pet industry is a big 'un nowadays. At least they've finally outlawed it in baby bottles?

Let's see....

Dogs I've known (part 2, the family chapter)

I asked for a lot of things as a kid. A horse, for one. A dog, as I've mentioned exhaustively. I can see how it seemed improbable that I would properly care for a dog; my ability to reliably carry out responsible tasks was not great.

It's interesting, though, to think of a family's history of pets, and responsibility, and mindsets. My grandparents are not who I would consider "pet people". On occasion, they've been the designated cat sitters when various households went on vacation, but once their kids grew up and moved out, they didn't have pets of their own anymore. My grandfather clearly loves Elka when she visits, but does not want a dog of his own, to my grandmother's relief.

(sorry for the Christmas picture. It's Elka in my grandparents' living room)