THIS PUPPY MUST HAVE NOT BEEN LISTENING

I was sure that as M.O.M. threw the new ball for me she said "Here Mistaya, Chew this ball". So of course I immediately did just that.
So suddenly there was M.O.M., standing near me with her hands on her hips and a frown on her face. Of course I looked up at her with the sweetest face I could come up with and tried to look totally innocent about the whole thing.
Much to my relief she started laughing and came over and gave me a hug. She said "Okay little girl, now that you have the nice outer covering chewed off of your new ball would you like to play chase with what's left of it?"
Of course I do!!! So we spent lot's of fun time playing chase with the chewed up ball.

And as you can guess, it wasn't long before the entire outer coating fell off and then I could run real fast without worrying about tripping over that silly piece of leather that I worked so hard to get rid of.

M.O.M., M.O.D. and I are leaving on a weekend get-away this afternoon. We will spend some time in the neighboring state and just relax for a bit. So I will not be posting until sometime on Monday as I am sure I will need some time to rest up from all our travels. Have a great dogie weekend!

I AM NOW THE "LOOKOUT" PUPPY..GEEZ I 'M BUSY!!

I went on the group hike with M.O.M. and her hiking group today and had such a good time. I did keep stopping in the trail to make sure M.O.M. and her friends were okay and still following me and the trail.

And of course I was the designated "Lookout" for this hike so I climbed up on as many big boulders as I could. I needed the height so I could see as far down the trail as possible. After all, I am a miniature breed dog!

And of course the boulders made a excellent post to watch out for those pesky little squirrels and chipmunks that like to chatter at me as I go by on the trail. I did take out after one of them but I just can't seem to figure out how to climb a tree after them. I will work on that.

I must have done a good job of being a "Lookout" because there was no one else coming along this trail so I guess I lead the group in the right direction.

This is my last lookout as we are now heading back down the trail to the parking lot to drive back home. I did get several mosquito bites on my cute little muzzle but I really didn't mind it to much because I had such a wonderful time running through all the creeks and even the muddy parts of the trail.

NOW I AM A "WATCH DOG"!

This has become one of my favorite places to sit in my front yard. From here I can see cars coming or going down our little country road. And I can see any birds that fly into my yard. I need to make sure those pesky birds don't gather in to large a group cause, after all, this is my yard!
I am healing nicely since my encounter with that mean dog down the road. M.O.M. and I have ventured back down that way but we were both a little nervous and we kept looking into the woods just to make sure we were alone. But it did feel good to go on a nice easy walk and see all the little creatures and smell all the wonderful scents out in this beautiful forest. Hopefully my little life is back to normal again.

I THINK I JUST LIVED MY 2ND LIFE

Yes, I must have 9 lives or something---like a cat, because I know I have already used up 2 of them. One was when I was thrown out of my car at the lake when I was very young. And the 2nd one happened yesterday while M.O.M. and I were on our walk.....
About half way down our road we move into the forest and the road travels through it for about another mile or so. It is actually a tree farm and the people who own it have given us permission to walk through it and enjoy the joy of the forest.
The owner has also told us where we can view the elusive BitterRoot flower that Lewis and Clark discovered on their journey through this beautiful valley.
So M.O.M. and I visit this site almost everyday to see if the flower is in bloom yet. We had just stepped away from the site when we heard the neighbors small dog barking at us. I have met this little guy several times on our walks through here so I didn't worry much about him. He often leaves his property and comes through the fence that surrounds this tree farm. Then suddenly, almost at the same moment, M.O.M. and I both notice a giant, growling, mean looking Pit Bull dog lunging out the door of the house.
He came at us so fast we didn't have any time to run. I tried very hard to posture to show him that I am just a little girl puppy. He stopped an inch in front of my nose and M.O.M. and I didn't know what to do. We stood very still hoping the people in the house would come out quickly and remove this beast from our path.
Just as the lady appeared and shouted at the dog, the dog lunged for me and caught me by the shoulder. Fortunately I was wearing my harness and my special heavier collar and I was able to spin around and break free of him. Then I heard M.O.M. screaming " Run Mistaya, Run!" as loud as she could and I knew just what she meant and took off into the trees.
I was frightened to hear that he was not far behind me as I tried to duck and weave among the trees. When we both made it to the road I realized why M.O.M. told me to run, as I was able to stay ahead of him as I can run very fast.
I swung around in the forest in a large circle and made it back to M.O.M. and got as close to her as I could. But the dog came at me again and caught me by the side of my neck. M.O.M. crashed a very big stick across his back which gave me the chance to escape again. The dogs man owner had finally appeared and made several attempts to grab the dogs collar before finally gets both hands on him. He pulled the mean dog back toward his house and M.O.M. hurried us out to the road.
When we felt we were finally safe, M.O.M. knelt down and pulled me close to her. She was shaking as hard as I was. She kept whispering "I'm sorry Mistaya, I'm so sorry." She ran her gentle hands all over my little body to check for cuts and blood. We were both astounded that I was not bleeding anywhere on my sore body. So we headed home, looking constantly over our shoulders, in fear of another attack from this very mean dog.
When we returned home and M.O.M. was telling M.O.D. about the attack she said that what mad her so angry was the fact that the dog owner blamed us for the attack. So M.O.M. called the Sheriff to report the incident in case the dog and owner had let this happen before or if it should happen again. And fortunately we do have a no loose dog policy in this county so maybe this will never happen again after the Sheriff makes his visit.
We never thought I would be attacked on my own road. And I am so lucky to be blessed with many dogs lives! And thank you M.O.M. for teaching me what "run" meant when we play together in the yard. I love to race in circles so she took that opportunity to teach me the word "run" every time I made big, fast circles. I think she just saved my short life!!!

A FUN DAY IN THE FOREST FOR THIS LUCKY PUPPY

I went with M.O.M. on another of her group walks and I had such a wonderful time with all of them. And because I was the only dog on this adventure, I got to be the leader for all the ladies! M.O.M. kept me on my leash for just a short distance and when she realized we were the only ones on the trail she happily let me run on ahead on the trail. It was so much fun to get to explore everything and even run after a few squirrels too. It sure is a good thing I can't climb trees!
As you can see, I sometimes did get quite a ways ahead of the group. But I always stop about every 30 feet or so and look back to make sure M.O.M. is still safely on the trail. She seems to really appreciate that as it always makes her smile.
We walked about 7 miles on this fun walk and followed the lake the entire way. So I had plenty of opportunities to play in the water along the trail. We even crossed 2 creeks that didn't have bridges that were just shallow enough that I didn't have to swim. But I do love the water!

This is the bridge we came to at the end of the lake. When we stood in the middle of the bridge the water was very noisy and it did make me nervous. I stayed very close to M.O.M. and she put my leash on me before we started onto the bridge.

The trail does go on around the other side of the lake but the group decided to turn around and return back to the parking lot the same way we came. This trail is a lot smoother and less hills than that side of the lake. Of course I didn't care which was we went as long as I could continue to run free in such a beautiful forest. Another wonderful day in the life of this very lucky young puppy.

MY OWN DOG DAYS OF SUMMER

I was a bit sad when M.O.M. told me I could not play in the pond anymore but she found a fun filled solution for me! M.O.M. and M.O.D. have both shown me how much fun water can be so I took to this new activity right away. Such a simple toy but boy am I having fun! Thanks M.O.M. and M.O.D. for being creative when it comes to my play time!

I hope this goes on all summer so I can keep myself cooled off in such a fun way.

YOU'RE TESTING THIS PUPPIES PATIENCE!

M.O.M. and I went on a wonderful walk early this morning and she found another flower she wanted to take photo's of. So I sat myself down beside her at the roads edge and waited for her to finish.
I wonder if she knows how hard it is for me to contain my curiosity for such a very long time. And sitting still is not one of my favorite things to do any time we are out on a walk.
But M.O.M. has been working with me on my manners quite a bit lately. I think she is still a bit upset about last Thursday when I ran off to chase a bird. I admit that I did end up running across the big highway a short distance from our house. And yes, I did hear her calling for me but gosh, I was having so much fun! And I did run faster than I ever ran in my life! And that little bird is the kind that builds it's nest in the tall grass of the pasture I was in. So the bird was trying to lead me away from her nest and she stayed very close to the ground when she was flying. So because of that I was sure she wanted to to try and catch her. So of course I ran as fast as my little legs would carry me.
Fortunately for me the bird circled around and came back by M.O.M. but not before I had ran onto the highway again. I did hear a strange tone in M.O.M.'s voice when I came near her. It was so different that I had to stop when I could slow myself down and return to where she was standing.
It was strange, when I came to her, she knelt down and put her arms around me and I really think I could hear her crying softly. That is when she explained to me that running away and running on the highway will get me killed and she told me that would break her heart. And she said it would be even harder to have to go home and tell M.O.D. that I wasn't coming home anymore.
So now we go for walks twice a day and spend most of that time working on my sit, wait, come, and heel manners. M.O.M. says "wait" to me when she wants me to "stay" because the word "stay" is to close to my name and I was getting confused. But now I understand wait. She can even say wait real loud when I am 50 feet down the road and I sit down and wait for her to tell me what to do. She does this every time a car is coming by and I am running in the woods by the road. It's easy for me to do because she never makes me wait for very long.
Except today!!! How many pictures do you need of that little flower!! I could chew it off the plant and take it home for you faster than you are taking pictures of it. Gosh, Let's go play!!!