Not even surprised

This post is probably going to pop up on Google for those people typing in search terms such as “dog ate chocolate,” “chocolate poisoning in dogs” and “oh my god why is my dog trying to kill himself by eating chocolate?”

Ivy and Milo recently ate a 5-pound batch of brownies. I'm not kidding - it was at least 5 pounds of German chocolate cake mix, 60 caramels, a can of condensed milk, an entire bag of chocolate chips, and a bag of coconut in an already-heavy glass pan. Actually, it was about as heavy as a large chicken, so maybe 8 pounds.

I would have taken a picture, but my mind was racing trying to figure out the best way to sweep up the tiny slivers of glass from the pan while simultaneously figuring out the mathematical equation for how much hydrogen peroxide to give a 160-pound-dog.

Trust me, I understand the perils of dogs ingesting chocolate. Which would explain the copious amounts of hydrogen peroxide we were pouring down their throats. One would think that by storing the brownies in the microwave that rests way above the stove, dogs would not be able to access said brownies. Wrong. Evidently these particular dogs have opposable thumbs.

It all worked out in the end, but I would highly recommend storing chocolate comestibles way out of the reach of 6-foot-tall dogs. Maybe try suspending them a few inches from the ceiling surrounded by elaborate booby traps. I'll let you know what I come up with.

Christmas Past

Milo and Claire

We are missing Claire this year. She always had a fun time opening her presents on Christmas day. And, of course, there was the ham.

Milo always seems to get an early start on the unwrapping of gifts. He's not too particular about whose gifts he opens, but he's usually spot-on in guessing which are his. Unfortunately, one year Mike gave me a giant box of Ethiopian spices for Christmas that he wrapped like a guy (mostly tape, some wrapping paper) and put under the tree. Milo, ever the adventurer, made the mistake of trying out the berbere mix. That particular spice mix is so hot -- I think his eyes turned red and horns popped out of his head.

Milo getting an early start on opening gifts

We are looking forward to giving Ivy doggie presents this year. We are hoping to bribe her with those in exchange for a tree-chewing moratorium.

And yes, we do get treats for Charley, but lately he's not really awake enough to enjoy them. I think he suffers from narcolepsy as he often falls asleep on his feet.

The chickens are receiving the gift of life.

The Grinch

I knew this would come back to bite me some day. Ivy's pal at the dog park, Brody (sweet Doberman, same age) taught Ivy to chew on trees, shrubs and various other foliage protruding from the ground. It's one of their favorite pastimes. While other dogs romp and frolic, Ivy and Brody sit and chew. It's serious business, and many a shrub has suffered.

So how did I not realize that this would translate quite nicely to our Christmas tree? The beautiful tree that Mike and I chopped down in the National Forest to aid in fire prevention. The one we dragged what felt like 10 miles through the snow in 20 degree weather and hoisted with superhuman strength onto the top of the car. All 18 feet of it. Yeah, that one. Ivy is slowly and methodically eating it. By the time Christmas gets here, we'll be lucky if the angel still has a place to rest on the top.

I tried to tell Ivy that the baby Jesus was watching. But that just made her throw up.

Green Egg!

Our Coco laid our first green egg this morning! Very exciting. And please don't say it -- Mike doesn't like ham and I am a vegetarian.

I did have to adjust the saturation level so that you can see the green. It's green here in my hand, but my little digital camera just doesn't pick it up very well. But this is really how green it is.

Snapshots

Charley
Likes: Licking velvet, sleeping
Dislikes: Ivy

Milo
Likes: Peanut butter, sleeping
Dislikes: Ivy

Ivy
Likes: Charley, Milo
Dislikes: N/A

Coco
Likes: Being sweet
Dislikes: The phrase "tastes like chicken"

Ruthie
Likes: Attacking my boots
Dislikes: Being referred to as a "she"
Realization: Likes and dislikes may not be mutually exclusive

Calliope
Likes: Hiding under the chicken ramp
Dislikes: Feeling forced to hide under the chicken ramp

Alice
Likes: Squealing like a pig
Dislikes: Being mistaken for a pig

Mavis
Likes: Being named after my grandmother
Dislikes: Being put in the [turned off] oven for photo shoots

Polly
Likes: Laying eggs!
Dislikes: Bad hair days, David Bowie

Vivian, aka, Bitchian
Likes: Biting me
Dislikes: Me

Photos by Dan.

Finally!

Our first egg! And I have no idea who laid it. I was ecstatic when I saw it in the nesting box, but then I got a little sad when I thought of my little babies all grown up. But our first egg!

Icy Snack

Ivy likes ice. When we get ice out of the automatic dispenser on the refrigerator, she comes running from no matter where she is inside or outside the house and waits for stray pieces to drop. I guess she got a little impatient here and thus dug up a big snack in the yard.