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.

Get over it, she's fine (And: an exciting weekend)!

Crystal here.

Kim and I took the girls to a dog park this Saturday. This was a very big deal for both dogs. For Jaida, this was her first "yay-I've-got-the-pneumonia-licked-enough-to-get-vaccines" major outing to socialize with other dogs. Of course, she got loads of attention, and everyone stared at her, because she's so frikin' cute and because she was accompanied by the fabulously gorgeous miss Gracie.

And because she hops around like a bunny and has a dangly little scrunchy leg.

There was lots of "aw, poor thing" and "oh, it was so good of you to take her on", which I guess is not necessarily a bad thing, but I'll be honest - it gets a little tired after a while. So, for all you owners of run-of-the-mill 4-legged dogs who happen to come across a dog with three legs or a bum leg or two legs or paralyzed, cart-weilding warrior legs at a dog park: the dog's people KNOW that their dog looks different and don't need to be reminded all the time. And, the dogs are fine. They are happy. They are enjoying their day at the park. If you watch the dogs veeeeerrrry closely, you might notice that they act, well, like fine happy dogs enjoying their day at the park. Hmmm ... sounds remarkably like all the non-handicapped dogs, doesn't it?

Ok, rant completed.

Next. Big deal number 2: GRACIE HUNG OUT AT A DOG PARK!!! This may not seem like a huge big exciting thing, but it sure was for Kim and I. We were super-dooper proud of our girl, yes we were. Why? Because if we had tried this last year, there would likely have been a dog fight. Probably several. The fabulously gorgeous miss Gracie, best friend to cats and all human beings everywhere, was not always the nicest with other dogs. In fact, she could be a downright jerk.

Enter Marty Walhin, dog trainer extraordinaire, and mummy Kim, expert handler. Gracie started going to "bad dog school" early this year to correct this *ahem* issue. After weeks of excellent teaching and hard work, Gracie passed her Level One Obedience class with flying colours. This weekend was proof of the value of those classes. Gracie was relaxed, happy, quite content to sniff every other object and pee on the ones in between, and met lots of dogs, with no problems. In fact, she practically threw herself at a handsome little pug (such a flirt!) It was the coolest thing to see, and Gracie provided Jaida with an excellent example of polite behaviour with other dogs. Yay, Gracie!!!

Props to Uncle Marty (he doesn't know that Gracie calls him that, hee-hee!). His website is here:
Marty Walhin
If you are looking for a dog trainer in the Ottawa area, call this guy. Seriously.