First Snowshoe Outing

We gave each other snowshoes and boots for Christmas and decided we should test them out with a short trip to Mt. Spokane before the new year. Yesterday afternoon, we gathered our cold weather gear, Nisbet's fancy 16' leash, and some water and piled into the SUV.

As usual, Nisbet whined when we first started rolling, and was finally riding like a "big dog" when we made our first stop 10 minutes later at Alpine Haus to get the required Sno-Park pass. They don't carry the passes, so we headed to Mountain Gear on the other side of downtown. Mountain Gear had sold out, but they were kind enough to give us directions to the on-site Sno-Park pass sellers at the park. After nearly two hours of driving (for a trip that's normally 1 hour), we purchased the pass, parked the car and started off for Nisbet's first snowshoe experience.

She LOVED it! There was snow to bound in, trails to sprint on, lots of good smells, two new dogs to meet (the giant male Rottweiler was scared of her), and many people to give her extra pets for being so darn cute. After 45 minutes of fun, we decided to call it a day. It was only 15 minutes or so before sunset, and we wanted to get down from the mountain before it was too dark.

Once we started driving, we decided to join several other parties and pull over to take some photos of the sun peaking through and highlighting the snow-covered trees. The scenery was even prettier than any postcard or calendar photo, and the opportunity was too good to pass.

Merry Christmas 2007

Nisbet had her first Christmas today. Thanks to a puppy kong stuffed with a "ziggy" (puppy edible chew treat), all of our gifts are intact and no wrapping paper, gift tags or bows were ingested. She loved all of the gifts our generous relatives sent and has now settled down for a long winter's nap.

Double the Fun!

Playing fetch early this morning.

One Expensive Sock!

I threw out a $125 sock last night.

It was Nisbet's bath night, and she always gets crazy afterwards with her routine of zooms (running wildly) around the house and other obnoxious puppy behavior. This night was no different, as Nisbet managed to steal a sock that I was about to put on. She ran down the stairs and behind the Christmas tree with her prize. The sock was hers, and she was not going to give it up. I went to the kitchen to get her jar of peanut butter as a bribe.

Nisbet would not come out from behind the tree for several minutes. Finally, the lure of irresistible peanut butter won. I looked behind the tree for the dropped sock, but there was nothing. The little booger had swallowed my sock! There were several moments of intense worry (I cried), because a swallowed sock may cause a very bad intestinal block and result in a big surgery.

Bryan called the vet for advice, and we went in to the puppy ER. Of course, Nisbet was her normal over-friendly self the entire time. She made friends with everyone at the emergency vet hospital and didn't seem too phased from the drug-induced vomiting to retrieve the sock. Fortunately, the procedure worked. I refused the vet's nice offer to have the sock returned to me, and $125 later we took home a happy, healthy, tired puppy.

Two Months with Nisbet - Highlights

Nisbet joins the family
We drove to Idaho early the afternoon of October 13 to pick our puppy from a litter of Golden Retrievers bred for hunting. After much deliberation, we chose our beautiful 9-pound female pup, signed a bunch of paperwork, and piled in the car to take Nisbet home. It is said that hunting Goldens are a "wee" more energetic than those bred for show, and after two months living with Nisbet, we sincerely agree. There is nothing that can truly prepare you for adding your first pup to the family. After two months of joy, laughter, worry, lost sleep and a few tears, we now have a little extra time to share some of our experiences.

Conquering Mt. Everest
The first day Nisbet was home, she was not sure what to do about the step leading from our family room to the kitchen, let alone how to get up the seemingly impossible 14 steps to our bedroom. Nisbet is very determined and managed to conquer her "Everest" ascent by the end of her first week with us. By the end of her third week, nothing was safe (including our wits) when she mastered the descent.

She Ate What?

Our dog has a strange addiction to wood pulp in all its forms. From the bark bits that decorate our yard to all kinds of tissues, tags, cards and labels, nothing is left untested. In addition to her occasional snotty Kleenex, she also managed to eat an entire sock last night (see the "expensive sock" entry).

Visiting the Vet
Nisbet loves visiting the vet. No matter whether she's poked, prodded or forced to vomit, she never seems to mind going back. Between puppy shots every three weeks (they're finally done!), a visit to rule out a UTI because Michelle panicked, another real visit for a GI infection while Bryan was out of town and our most recent visit to the puppy ER to retrieve a sock, we seem to be at the vet at least every other week.

Puppy Class
I was so embarrassed the first night of puppy pre-school with Nisbet. She spent the entire hour either trying to steal the spotlight by begging for treats or barking at the other puppies. Needless to say, I doubt anyone learned much that night and we were all shocked when we discovered she was a champ at sit-stay.

Things She Barks At
In addition to the normal barking at other dogs, joggers and doorbells, Nisbet also barks at some unusual objects. The first time I heard her bark was at 5:30AM when she was playing with Bryan. It turns out she was barking at a cutting board that was hanging slightly over the edge of a counter. A few weeks later, she went up to the bedroom and started barking - at a Kleenex box. This morning, she barked at an empty toilet paper roll in the bathroom. Nisbet also routinely barks at brooms, shovels and rakes.

Escape Artist
We have yet to find a "safe" place for the puppy to stay when we have to be gone for more than a few hours. Both times we came up with a good idea for a Puppy Containment Area, she managed to Houdini her way out. Fortunately, no furniture was ruined.