Christmas

Merry Christmas to you and yours everyone! The presents are unwrapped, and Torean has thoroughly exhausted himself shredding wrapping paper and playing with his new chewie toys. All in all I would say that he is thoroughly satisfied with this Christmas business, and now he is waiting impatiently to go outside and play in the fresh snow. Hope you all have a terrific day.

The five month old terror hound

Happy five month old birthday Torean. How you have changed since we brought you home. You are the ruler of the SBD's (silent but deadly farts), you are cocky, you are mouthy, you are bratty, and you are maddening, but how much we love you.  You teach us patience, you teach us to be firm, and you make us melt with every wiggle of your bun tail. You make me laugh when you pin your ears back so tight they are almost touching because you are so happy to see us, you make me want to cry when you find something new to destroy, and you make us marvel at your determination. Your nose is something else, usually getting you in trouble while your doggie smile makes us wonder why we were upset with you in the first place. You have been one of the greatest things we have ever done, and all the waiting we had to do to get you was worth it. Happy five month birthday you farting little monstrosity. <3

Happy Birthday Puppy

Today is Torean's four month birthday and I would say he was pretty pleased with how today went. It was nice enough outside that he got to play longer in the kennel with his toys, then he got to go for a car ride so he could stick his head out the window and be super dog! Now he is enjoying some wet food with his puppy food, and he has a nice new bone to help his overactive teething problem. Pretty soon he goes to the vet for his next appointment and all of us are curious to see how much weight he has gained since his last visit during which he weighed in at 29.5 pounds. Our boy is getting bigger, and he has made so much progress, even though we are still working on the rock chewing thing. Happy Four Month birthday, Torean! We love you, you little troublemaker :)

Torean puppy

Torean, the attention hound love puppy. He has been so snuggly the past few days that it makes me smile. Even though we have had some setbacks in his training, he is still such a little bundle of personality that it is impossible not to love him. Today as a reward for being good in Petco he got a perpetual squeaking caterpillar toy. Oh what have we done???? It is fun though to see him running around with it in his mouth, the tail dragging along behind him. His second favorite toy is his snake, that also has a perpetual squeak. Seeing the joy he takes in those toys make us hope that he will find as much joy in Christmas when he sees all of his toys, and the wrapping paper. Love this sweet, troublemaking little puppy.

Torean, torean, torean...

Our fluffy son is now thirteen weeks old, and a very solid 29.5 pounds according to the vet. His little quirks can either make us wince, or make us laugh, but each day with him is still something to admire. His ears have finally come up and are staying up nicely. Some days with his ears up and the way he barks when he wants attention make me think of a jackal. He has a lot of growing to do before he fits those ears of his, but we all are slightly sad to see him leaving his puppyhood behind. He has come along so much since the day we brought our six week old fuzz ball home from Ohio. Walking with him is still a challenge but he is getting better about walking beside us, not trying to take the lead from us. He is obsessed with grass, and dirt, and worms, he has accumulated quite the hole in his kennel to play in often coming inside looking like a wild dirt clod ready to play some more. He loves chasing my husband around the yard, especially now that he has grown, and he can catch my husband almost every time. Torean is still not sure about the cats, he wags his tail like crazy when he sees the cats, but he has not quite learned boundaries. The cats are being remarkably tolerant with him, and hopefully they can be together in the future without hisses, and scratched noses. Each day he can still amaze us with his antics, make us angry, make us laugh and make us melt when he is so excited to see us. We brag about him like he is our own flesh and blood child, and we already have a ridiculous amount of pictures of him. If this is what puppy love is, it truly is wonderful. HAPPY HALLOWEEN TO ALL OF YOU, FROM ME, MY HUSBAND, AND OUR TROUBLEMAKER!

Adventures in brushing an Elkhound, a bitey one at that!

Torean finally got an overdue grooming this afternoon, and I must admit that after grooming and grooming, Torean has claimed the victory. An elkhound coat is a marvel to me. After pulling five packed clumps off the brush I turn around to watch our bouncing fuzzball and find even more fur ready to come out. I am not used to having a dog with such a coat as his. Our first dog was a dalmation, the second was a retriever mix, neither of them were as challenging to groom as Torean is. Torean must be feeling better though, our defuzzed little angel found his second  wind when he realized his grooming was done, and now he is sliding across the floor chasing his favorite toy, a stuffed hedgehog. He took his grooming well, seemingly more interested in trying to bite the brush more than anything else, but then he settled down when he realized it actually felt kind of good to be rid of his itchy fur. Tomorrow is bound to be a thrill for him with cold weather blowing in, it will probably be a good time to get him out for another long walk. Torean has decided that he does not want to walk on his harness now, trying a comical combination of plunking down, trying to make me carry him, and if all else fails looking pathetic at anyone who might be watching. His biting problem is improving, and with time, so will his attempts to get out of walking. All in all he is still one hysterical puppy and he made his eleven week birthday a special one.

Fun times

Torean went to the park today, and he got plenty of chances to stalk his beloved leaves. He also gave me plenty of chances to take photos, most of which just got uploaded on to the website. It is www.teamtorean.com! Check it out to see the new pictures!