How does she do that?

Jaida here.

Moms tell me that some people are wondering how a fabulously-bendy-footed and gorgeous gal like me can do stuff like go down stairs, chew STICKS or chase my sister Gracie around, when I only have ONE GOOD LEG. Mom Crystal used to wonder if I walked "normally" for a pup with only ONE GOOD LEG (normal, sheesh, the nerve, I am TOO SPECIAL for normal-ness) and says other people might have questions about their own pups that I could, in my cleverness, answer here.

For starters, technically I have THREE GOOD LEGS, which are all fabulous in their own right, and they help me do what I need to do just fine. So here is how I do stuff with my own variety of special-ness.

How do I chew bones or STICKS? Well, sometimes I cheat and use my boo-boo foot to prop up my STICK, but mostly I just wedge my STICK under my ONE GOOD foot and hold it upright with my crafty teeth. Sometimes I poke the end of my STICK into the grass or carpet (heh, I sometimes sneak my STICKS inside...shhhh, don't tell moms...) to hold it in place, then my crafty teeth can go to work.


How do I rest my chin on my paw when I'm lying down? My boo-boo leg doesn't bend very well. Actually, it doesn't bend at all, so I can only put my head on my ONE GOOD LEG. I kinda crook my elbow under my chest so it's right in the middle and supporting me, stick my foot out, and then I can rest my chin on my foot. Moms sometimes snicker at me and say it makes my cheek all smooshy, how rude, but I'm comfy like that.

How do I go up and down stairs? Pretty easily. No, really. Down is very simple for a gal of my cleverness, and I can go FAST... I do it differently from miss Gracie, who zooms down headfirst in a straight line. I just hold my boo-boo leg up and out to the side (no need for it to be bonking on every step), and I go down with my body on a diagonal with my ONE GOOD LEG leading the way. Two hops for each step: GOOD LEG, back legs.
Going up stairs is slower, but still pretty easy, and I don't have to go diagonally. I pop up my ONE GOOD LEG fast, and step up with my back legs. There are lots of stairs in my house, too, and I do them all. TA-DA!


How do I walk and run? My nice vet Dr. Sparling says I bunny-hop, and he's right. It's a good way to move if you're a gorgeous gal with legs like mine. It's basically two steps: my ONE GOOD LEG goes first, then my two back legs hop up to join it.
Walking is harder than running. When I zoom around the yard or run in crazy puppy circles, I can really move. I can turn fast in any direction, and jump. I look a lot more bunny-ish and hoppy when I have to move slow. I try to tell mom Crystal this when she takes me for "walks", of all foolish things. She puts a THING around my neck that I don't like, because it's hard for me to run with that THING on. So my crafty teeth and I bite her ankles as we "walk". This makes mom call me a "jerk", which I'm pretty sure is another way of telling me I'm frickin' cute and clever.



How do I dig holes? With my mighty strongness and fastness of my ONE GOOD LEG, I can dig holes in snow, dirt, mud, and make "nests" in my bed with my blankies. Moms say its kinda like doing a "clapping push-up": I just gotta go fast and strong. I dig extra-good holes in the mud-pits in the yard, which is useful for getting dirty.

How do I jump into the car or up onto the bed? I don't. At least not yet. I haven't made up my mind why I don't, if it's because I don't feel like it, or I just like to be lifted, or I can't because I'm still just a baby. Moms tell me that lots of fabulous three-leggers do these things just fine, so I'll think about it a bit and let you know what I decide.

So, that's it for now. If you have any questions about how a clever, crafty gal like me does other kinds of stuff, send an email to moms here.