First Impressions and Walking Woes

My friend Caitlyn, who recently got a job at the farm I work at, is finally here! I am very excited to have a friend close by, especially one who loves and understands dogs. I've decided that Keena has an issue with first impressions; she makes really bad ones! Most dogs don't know what to do with her, partly because of size and partly because she is a very "in your face" type of dog. She is very confident in herself and thinks she is the queen! Well, Caitlyn has three dogs, only two of which has Keena met so far. Shelby is a small rottweiler mix who is very timid; they rescued her and suspect that she was abused. Mannii is an alsakan malamute mix puppy who is a ball of fur and fun! They are both very sweet and active. The first time I took Keena over to their house she walked in and claimed the place as her own. She has never cared about dog beds at all but she stretched out on their dog's bed because they were on it. Long story short, I kicked Keena out of the kitchen because she was sniffing Caitlyn and Logan's food too intently for my liking. Aparently that did not make her happy because as Shelby tried to walk past her into the kitchen Keena attacked her! It was short lived and not injuries occurred. Needless to say, Shelby was a little more on edge after that. Later, Keena startled Shelby (not intentionally she was just walking past as Shelby had her eyes closed) and Shelby snapped at her. My hopes were not completely dashed at Keena having doggy friends, I knew we needed to try again. This evening I went over to visit before I took her on a walk and it was a different story! Keena was a little tense at first but it went off without a hitch! Shelby and Mannii LOVED her and were sniffing, climbing on, playing bitey face and play bowing left and right. They even started playing! Unfortunately, no house is big enough (ok, no house that I have access to) for Keena to really play without doing some serious damage. We decided it would be best to take them all on a walk in the park and they loved it. I am so glad we didn't give up; it just goes to show you that dogs don't hold grudges. They are truly beautiful creatures in that way. I believe even more that Keena is a blessing in my life and know I can learn many things from her.

Exhausted after I got her to go up the stairs.

It's tough getting into shape!

   On another note Keena and I have been walking a lot lately. I'm loving every minute of it! I feel so good and it invigorates me. Keena, on the other hand, loves the walks but is even more out of shape than I am! Knowing that giant breed dogs are even more proned to overheating so I try to walk her later in the evening. It's been getting up in the 90's lately so I've been waiting until about 7 or 8 since its still light outside. We walk about a mile and by the end she is EXHAUSTED! One evening I actually was dragging her back to the car and when we got to the house she came in the door and laid on the floor before I could even get her leash and halti off of her! I am loving this time with her and thinking I can probably get myself into better shape with the help of my walking buddy. I have a few pictures above of the after effects of walking but none of Keena with the other dogs yet. I plan on getting a camera soon so that will help!

New Adventures

Today was a very good and eventful day for Miss Keena.  After she had been feeling ill the past few days I was instructed by the vet to make her chicken and rice for a few meals. I have never cooked for her and felt kind of weird for doing it. I know that the raw diet is really healthy for dogs and I know there are lots of people food that is really good for dogs like fruits and veggies but some things are too expensive to give to her and the few fruits and veggies we have tried she has snubbed. The chicken and rice was a hit and worked! She seemed to get her energy back and now I have my healthy pooch back again! Since she felt much better today I decided to bring her with me to visit my friends Caitlyn and Logan. Caitlyn recently got hired at the farm that I work at and will be starting soon. She and Logan started moving into their new place today here in my little town! They have three dogs and I cannot wait for them to meet Keena; I hope they can be good friends! Their dogs weren't with them today because moving with three active dogs would be much too complicated. Keena had a good time checking out their new digs and getting lots of love from some good friends. I am so happy to have friends live close by, especially ones with dogs. I didn't get any pictures today but when she meets their dogs there will be LOTS of pictures taken. She really enjoyed herself and I did as well!

Under the Weather

Last night was a rough night for Keena, therefore, me as well. She woke me up around three and was pacing back and forth and panting heavily. Not knowing what else to do, I asked her if she wanted to "go potty" and she practically ran through my bedroom door. Once outside, she had a massive episode of diarrhea; poor thing had done all she could to hold it in! I felt so bad for her and that I had not gotten her out sooner. Unfortunately, I had to work today so I spent my whole day worrying about her and hoping that my bathroom would remain in one piece. She did have an accident but I'm sure that it could not be helped. She is still under the weather but is acting completely normally and was interested in eating. I took her with me to resign my apartment lease and she was more than happy to be loved on and doted upon by the "land ladys"! If she is not better by tomorrow a visit to the vet will be in store. Hopefully a night of rest will bring Miss Thang back to health! She was good enough to let me take some pictures of her; sometimes I think she thinks I am crazy.

So pathetic on her favorite sofa.

Beautiful, even when she is sick.

Fruits of My Labor

I went to "tend" my garden the other day and noticed that there were a few yellowish-green strawberries growing on one of my plants! I was so excited because this is my first time planting anything and I know strawberries can be finicky, not to mention I've only had the plants for about a week. We have had some storms so I went out to check on my plants this evening and I found small red strawberries! They are really growing! I'm kind of in shock actually; I was pretty sure this gardening thing would be a slight disaster. Who knows, I just might have a green thumb ater all.

Two of my little berries. Forgive the blurry picture.

:)

Spring Cleaning....Better Late Than Never!

I'm a naturally messy person...ok...very messy. I don't know what it is about me but I wait until my place is a DISASTER and then I realize I should probably clean! I was off work today and decided I better start cleaning now. One major problem of having a giant breed dog in an apartment is that Keena is often knocking things over with her long powerful tail. Many times she goes to sniff under a table or something and ends up bumping her head on it as she comes out from underneath it; most of the time she knocks it so hard something on top of it falls over and spill or just makes a mess. I have invested in Woolite carpet cleaner that has "Oxy cleaning action" and is pretty amazing at getting stains out of your carpet. I love my dog and hope someday I have a big enough place that she can easily turn around and not hit something in the process.

Bikini Body

As you all know, sprummer (Spring/Summer) has FINALLY arrived! I combine the words because Indiana went from pretty cool and raining all the time to hot! Well, as will most people summer time means you need your "bikini body" for swim suit season and Keena is no exception! She loves to keep herself toned and shapely (gotta keep that hour glass figure!). What is her secret, you may ask? First, she gets plenty of beauty sleep....18 hours minimum! Second, she stretches her muscles out very well before beginning her excercise routine of climbing on and off the couch, playing for a few minutes with a select few toys, and pacing from window to window when she hears a noise. I probably exaggerated when I said she slept for 18 hours a day but for a young day she really does sleep a lot, even when I'm home all day she naps most of the time. I try to walk her but am not as good as I should be. I have high hopes for this summer and plan to get a pass to a dog park near by and walk her in the evenings. Owning a giant breed dog means that I have to be careful that she doesn't over heat. Sometimes a walk in 70 degree weather and she is panting in minutes. The great thing about summer is that it's light much later and we can enjoy a walk after work!

The all important beauty sleep.

More sleep...this time WHILE stretching! Multitasking at its best.

Gardening...er...on the Balcony?

Plants have never really been my thing; I have always been more of an animal lover. Last summer, however, while I was finishing up at Purdue I worked at Walmart in the Lawn and Garden center. I spent many hours of my shifts watering all the plants and actually learned stuff while I was there! I recently decided that I would like to try and grow some things of my own! So, with the help of my wonderful boyfriend, Charles, I ventured to Walmart and bought some lovely plants, pots and soil! This is my first attempt to grow anything really and am very hopeful that in a few weeks or so I will have some fresh fruits and veggies! Wish me the best of luck!

Investigating

My pepper plant

"What's this thing?"

Supervising

Banished from the balcony for trying to eat all my soil, it had manure in it.

My little balcony garden!

Battle Wounds

I had always planned on crate training my dogs before I ever even had one. I believe, if done correctly, it is a wonderful way to keep your dog safe and your house safe as well. I went out and got the giant crate to fit my new giant pooch. She did alright with it at first but seemed sad, if you will, when I would tell her to go in it. After a while she learned to escape and destroyed my blind and wrecked my apartment. After some thought I decided to put some clips on the door of her crate to prevent future escapes. Those worked for a while until one horrible evening I came home to find a horrific scene! She was panting heavily, collar missing, crate in ruins, and a blood splatter on my wall on the other side of the room! Her face was swollen two to three times its original size. I was horrified, to say the least, and called my mom. She calmed me down so that I could take care of my fur baby. I tried to ease her pain with a cool wash cloth, which she hated, and watched her throughout the night. I made an appointment with the vet the next day and luckily there was no serious damage. With some medication and love my girl came through with only my memory and the marks on her poor face to remind us of the tragic tale.

My blind...it's even worse now.

Keena, after most of the swelling went down. :(

My little Scarface

Friend Fiasco

Not long after Keena came into my life I took her to Evansville, my home town, for the first time. She does amazinly well in the car actually. I met up with my friend, Anna, for a play date with her German Shepherd mix, Oliver. The play date was less than desired, however, and ended a little on the rough side. Keena had never played with a dog before Oliver and she didn't really know what to do with herself. At first she wasn't interested in him and just wanted to sniff the new "turf" I had brought her to. Oliver, on the other hand, LOVES to play and wanted to engage in some romping with my dear Keena. Unfortunately, Keena doesn't know how much bigger she is than Oliver and things got a little out of hand. We broke up things quickly and put the dogs in neutral corners with no major injuries acquired. I think Oliver was a little shaken though; the last time we got the dogs together he didn't want much to do with Keena.  This time she wanted to play and actually knew how to. Maybe next time they can learn to be friends, even if they dont play together. :)

                                                           Oliver running to greet his new "friend".

                                                        Sharing a drink of water, playing is hard work.

                                                   Oliver, "Wanna play?"
                                                   Keena, "With you?"

  Ok, I guess this guy isn't so bad....

*These pictures are BEFORE the intense moments*