We were having an uneventful walk until Miss M made a discovery. She was doing her normal archaeological activities (i.e. digging big holes in the sand), jumping, digging, spinning, digging some more, when all of a sudden she started shaking something.
Today, the weather was nice again, but we opted to just go to the beach instead of pulling out the hammock. The weather is supposed to get colder in the next few days, so we wanted to make the most of the warm weather before it goes away for three or four days. Ah, Texas winters... The puppies are always eager to go to the beach and we had no trouble getting them into their harnesses and into the car. We fooled them a little by taking them all outside before bringing out the harness bag and bringing them in one by one to put their harnesses on. When they are in their crates and see the bag, they go nuts, and we wanted to avoid the squealing. We were having an uneventful walk until Miss M made a discovery. She was doing her normal archaeological activities (i.e. digging big holes in the sand), jumping, digging, spinning, digging some more, when all of a sudden she started shaking something. I think Mr. Crab was just as shocked as we were that Miss M found him. There weren't even any crab holes around that we saw. As it turns out, Miss M has serious crab hunting skills. The hole that she dug to get him was about 2 feet deep! We are convinced that she could totally be trained as a search and rescue dog. Apparently, crabs play dead too. I thought for sure the puppies had killed him when I saw him laying on his back not moving. Then, just as a curious puppy nose got within range of his claws, he sprang to life. This proved very effective as the puppies took turns investigating and having their noses pinched. After a few minutes, we decided to quit torturing the crab and let him go on his merry way. Miss B was the voice of reason here. She was concerned that if we didn't leave him alone, he would tell the rest of his crabby friends that pitbulls were mean dogs. She didn't want that kind of stigma within the crab community. The rest of the walk was pleasant. Miss M found an empty crab carapace that she then carried around and Miss S checked out some birds- they didn't want to be friends with her.
Apparently winter decided to go on vacation here in Texas. It was 80 degrees at our house today with no clouds in the sky. Seriously, how could you possibly be expected to stay indoors on a day like this? (Paraphrasing Ferris Bueller). So, we did a few things around the house, and let the dogs wear themselves out in the yard for a while. Then we just couldn't take it anymore and decided to go to the beach again. Yes. That's two days in a row. But seriously. How could you not? They need exercise. We need exercise. It's a win-win. So, this is what an evening at the beach looks like when you get there early enough to still take pictures. This is how an evening at the beach looks after we get home.
What do you do when there are blizzard warnings all over the place for people up north but you live in the south where it is 75 degrees? Go to the beach of course. Miss M is finally past her waiting period on her last set of shots, so we decided to take advantage of the nice weather and head to the beach. She absolutely loved it. It was her first time on a walk that long since she wasn't allowed in public areas before all of her shots were finished. It was also her first time at the beach. She tried to pick up various bits and pieces of seaweed to carry along with her until she found the next piece of seaweed. When we stopped for a rest midway through the walk, she discovered that she could dig and that not only was the sand super soft, but also she didn't get into trouble for digging- unlike in the yard at home. The bigger puppies already knew about the beach and love it. They get excited just driving down the road to the beach. The only thing we heard coming from the back of the car on the way home after this was snoring. It was a good trip.
Saturday after Thanksgiving we decided to take the puppies to the beach for a walk and to see about getting some cute pictures with Christmas decorations in the background. The historic district is really cool normally with gas lit street lamps and Victorian style buildings that have been around since the 1800's, but at Christmas time, it is even prettier. The pups don't have any experience walking around in large crowds yet, so we decided to walk on the beach instead and then just drive through the historic area to see how many decorations were already out. We learned a hard lesson on the way to the beach. We discovered that if we leave the leashes on and don't give the puppies something more interesting to chew on, they have a tendency to chew the leashes. So before heading to the beach, we made a pit stop at Petsmart for two new leashes and some bones to chew on. Once we finally made it to the beach, Dad was totally stressed out and ready to just turn around and go home. Mom was worried that the puppies would need a potty break before making the long trip back home and convinced Dad to walk a little anyway since they were already there. As luck would have it, during our walk, we came across a family trying to take Christmas pictures on the beach. They had a little Christmas tree decorated with starfish set up as a back drop for their two girls. While the girls were playing at the water's edge, we asked if we could take some pictures in front of their tree too. The mom was more than happy to oblige and even took a few pictures of the puppies using her camera and a few of us all with our camera. Trying to get the puppies to sit still for a picture with an interesting tree and two kids playing nearby was not as easy as it sounds. We loved the little Christmas tree was an excellent idea, and we loved the little white starfish. We were really glad they let us take pictures and were super happy when she offered to take pictures of us. I didn't catch her name, but mystery Christmas Tree Lady, if you find this, Thank you!! Even though the trip got off to a rocky start, we were really glad we went for our walk when we did. We were also glad we went to that area of the beach. That's not where we normally go, but if we had gone to our usual spot, we would have missed the Christmas tree. It's funny how things work out sometimes.
This Thanksgiving we had dinner at the beach, which the puppies all thought was a great idea. Mr. C felt that if we dressed them all in festive banadas, his chances of getting turkey would be higher. Mom was happy that he was so eager to get into the holiday spirit and picked out some harvest looking material. Originally, we were going to make them all fleece jackets, but the forecast called for temperatures in the upper 60's, which seemed a little too warm for fleece. After getting to ride in the car for a while- one of their favorite activities- the puppies got to get out and visit with tons of people they had never met and three other dogs. Miss S really really wanted to play with the miniature pinscher, Minny, but Minny disagreed. Miss S can't figure out why all of the little dogs she meets are scared of her and don't want to play. Her two-legged cousin tried to help her out by holding up the little dog for her to smell, but the little dog still didn't want to play. By the time we left, Minny was more comfortable with the puppies, but wasn't quite comfortable enough to play. By late afternoon, the shade and breeze on the balcony started getting a little too chilly and the littles started shaking. So we held them on our laps to warm them up. The older puppies stayed in the sun a little more and were too interested in what everyone else was doing to notice the cooler temperatures. At that point, we were wishing we had gone ahead and made the fleece jackets. Texas weather is so unpredictable. It was a very good Thanksgiving. The puppies were thoroughly worn out by the time we left and slept almost all the way home.
Being on a leash is not the same as being on a leash with a person on the other end of it. I firmly believe that as a pit bull owner, you should keep your dog on a leash at all times if you are not in your own yard. I say this not because I think pit bulls are inherently vicious or that they cannot be trusted off-leash. I say this because I think that there are a lot of people who can't be trusted around pit bulls and who are just looking for an excuse to take out their own aggression on your unsuspecting dog.
That being said, sometimes you can have one of those moments where you just shake your head and ask yourself what just happened. We had one of those moments last time we took the puppies to the beach. Mr. C and Miss B love the beach. They had been there about three times already and know the smells and sounds of it. So, when we arrived at the beach, they were ready to go. We got the littles out of the middle row seat and were standing there with them on their leashes getting everything put away in the car so that we could take the big puppies out and head over to the water. Normally, when we open the back, we are both standing there to get them out, but Dad opened the back without making sure that Mom was right there. Before he even knew what had happened, both of them flew out of the SUV and started running toward the beach. Mom turned around just in time to see them running through the parking lot toward the path over to the beach, dragging their leashes behind them. Apparently, we haven't worked with them enough on coming when called with distractions present. We watched in horror as they trotted quickly away from us. We followed them, but they knew right where they wanted to go- and it wasn't the parking lot. We watched as they trotted together out of the parking lot, across the street, down the boardwalk and over the dunes. Once we got across the street with the littles, Mom handed their leashes to Dad and took off running after the big puppies. By the time she got over the dunes and through the vegetation, she saw them all the down at the water's edge. There was a group of people gathered on the beach for a nature lesson, but Miss B and Mr. C weren't interested in them. They wanted to go to the beach. Mom called them and they both came running with big pit bull smiles on their faces. They came running over, tails wagging, as if to say, "Look, Mom. We did it all by ourselves." As soon as they got to her, Mom quickly grabbed hold of their leashes. The park ranger who had been leading the nature lesson came over, and Mom apologized profusely for them running around without a person on the other end of their leashes- which were still firmly attached to their harnesses. The park ranger was very understanding of their high energy nature and was just glad that Mom and Dad were there. The whole experience was a wake up call. You can't get complacent. Miss B and Mr. C are very sheltered. Mom and Dad work hard to keep them out of situations that have the potential of not ending well. The people that they get to visit with are people who Mom and Dad think won't hurt them or try to trick them into doing something that will get them in trouble. As a result, Mr. C and Miss B think that everyone they see wants to say hi to them and get puppy kisses. They think that the beach is really just a separate part of their own back yard. They know all about the beach, so of course Mom and Dad would let them run free- just like the regular back yard, right? Mom was tempted to load them back into the car and drive them straight home, but the innocent, happy look on their faces changed her mind. They seemed truly proud of themselves for going right where Mom and Dad wanted them to go. We've decided that we need to change how we get them out of the car. Opening up the back without having them sit and stay first is apparently a bad idea. Usually, we tell them several times to sit-stay as we open the car and then grab their leashes right away. Not doing this was a mistake. We have also decided that we have to work harder on their training. We were training quite a bit at first, but somehow the training kind of slowed down. So we need to pick that back up again. Having a leash on is not the same as being on a leash with a person on the other end. Even the most diligent puppy parent can have lapses in judgement or moments in which they aren't paying as much attention as they should be. It has to be an ongoing campaign to stay focused. Puppies are full of energy and are curious and mischievous by nature. You have to be one step ahead of them and be quick to intervene when they look like they may get out of hand. Last time we went to the beach, we didn't get any good shots of the puppies from the front. So it was a perfect justification to go to the beach again. After running a few errands- like getting Miss S a new harness since she already outgrew the other one- we piled the puppies into the car and off we went. Miss B and Mr. C had quite the adventure when they flew out of the car before we could grab their leashes and ran to the beach themselves, but I am going to write a separate post on that. Once all of the pups were back with us, we had a relatively uneventful and pleasant walk on the beach. They found a nice couple to visit with again, who told us that they had recently lost a male pit bull with the same coloring as the littles. It sounded like he was in their backyard and disappeared. We feel like someone probably took him but don't know that for sure. It reinforced our belief that dogs, especially pit bull type dogs, should not be left outside unsupervised. After their long beach walk, everyone was very calm. As luck would have it, this weekend was Biker Rally Weekend in Galveston. Miss B has a thing for motorcycles and was very excited by all of the motorcycles on the way to the beach. Afterwards, we decided to ride into town and check out the party. We kept the dogs in the car of course. They have never been in this big of a crowd before, and that many people with that much motion and that much noise just doesn't seem like the best time to introduce them to crowds. The big puppies were very interested in all of the people walking around and the bikes. The littles really didn't care much and slept most of the time, except when Mom or Dad got out to take a picture. It was a very exciting Saturday. After the last set of puppy shots, the littles were not allowed to go out in public areas for a week. Today that week was up... so we took them to the beach. Rather than let them run around on the 20 foot leashes like we did with Miss B and Mr. C, we decided on a little more organized approach. We decided to keep them all on the regular leashes and go for a long walk instead. It's a little too cold to play in the water right now anyway.
The older two were acting a little antsy, and the littles went to sleep as soon as we started driving. We got to talking about it, and decided that the dogs probably all thought they were going to the vet. This was actually the first time we have taken them in the car to somewhere other than the vet since we got them. When we got to the parking lot, they all started looking around. The older two had been there before and started wagging their tails. The littles just sat very still looking out the window. Once everyone was out of the car, they all got excited. Dad held the big ones and Mom held the little ones. Mom definitely got the better end of the deal on that arrangement. The little ones stayed right by Mom and Dad and didn't really pull on the leash too much. They were interested in the seaweed, and Mr. M would occasionally pick up a little piece of seaweed to carry for a little while before dropping it. We were surprised at how well they did- especially since it was their first time out in a harness, the first time on a leash and the first time on a long walk. All four of them seem very comfortable taking potty breaks on the beach, and I think Mom spent about half of the walk holding poop bags looking for the nearest trash bin. While we were out, they made friends with a nice couple sitting on the beach. Miss B spotted the lady because of the hot pink jacket she had on and kept trying to go over to meet her. She told us that they had had dogs for twenty-one years but that they had lost their last one not too long ago and just didn't have the heart to get any more yet. She was glad when the littles wanted to give her puppy kisses all over her face. I didn't get very many pictures of them from the front- I was too busy walking puppies. I guess that is a good excuse to go back to the beach. While waiting for the puppy shots to be finished, we had plenty of time to decide where to take Miss B and Mr. C. Where to take them first was a no brainer- the beach of course. So we discussed the best time to take them and how to introduce them to the water. We decided that the best time to take them would be on a day when the surf was super flat- as is often the case in the summer time along the Texas Gulf Coast. We decided that if we took them when it was calm, they wouldn't be as likely to get scared by the loud waves. Ok, good. That was decided. The vet said to wait a week after their last shots to take them in public. Yesterday, the week was up. We went grocery shopping and stayed inside for the hot part of the day, and then in the evening we excitedly loaded the puppies into the car. We had gotten 20ft training leashes for each of them so that they could run on the beach a little more, and we thought we were all set. We charted a direct course for the beach. As we were going over the bridge to the island, we realized that we hadn't checked the weather forcast at all to see what the surf conditions were. Here we had made all these plans to introduce them to the beach the right way, but when it came time, we were so excited, the plans went right out the window. Luckily, it turned out to be a relatively calm day. Going in the evening is always a good idea. Most people head to the beach in the middle of the day, when it is hottest and when the sun is harshest. As we got there, the beach had already almost cleared out, and people were streaming back to their cars. We had the beach almost to ourselves, which gave the puppies a distraction free introduction to the water. They loved it! As soon as we got to the sand, they started running and playing, their tails wagging as fast as they could wag. We picked a spot and set out our folding chairs. Then we changed them to the 20ft leashes instead of their short leads, and we set out for the water's edge. Mr. C was a little hesitant at first about running through the tidal pool on the way to the surf. Miss B decided it was a good place to do #1. Then they decided that the tidal pool was a good place to walk- not as scary as the waves. The sun started sinking over the horizon, and just like that, our first trip to the beach was over. Miss B and Mr. C were so tired from all of the running, digging and playing, that they fell asleep in the back seat of the car and slept most of the way home.
|
AuthorFirst time pitbull owners who found two pitbull puppies abandoned on the side of the road and decided to adopt them...And then loved them so much, they decided to get two wonderful mastiffs. Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|