This is the latest picture. Taken 4/29/07 in her new backyard. Such a cute Shiba!

Long delayed update!

Wow, I had not realized how long it had been since I last posted! We've moved! Dippy has a house now with a yard and squirrels and everything. She loves it and hardly spends time indoors any more.

She is also expecting a new brother or sister in October. I'm sure she will be excited once she understands. I'm not sure how well the whole "toy sharing" thing will work out, but I'm betting they will work it out just fine between them.

OK, now I think I know why I haven't posted in a while... not much to say! I'll try to upload new pictures ASAP!

Happy Howl-o-ween from the "Fox in Socks"

Such a face!

Figured the allergy out!

Well, it's wheat. We had to undergo another eye infection but we figured it out. At least it means she can can have chicken and beef and all sorts of other things. Yum! Also means other ways in which we can spoil the little puppy.

Another new development is "Raccoon Radar." Almost every night now we are "informed" that the local troop of raccoons is on parade through the front yard. I haven't yet figured out how she hears the darn things but she goes to the window in the bedroom (standing on a chair put there for this purpose) and growls out the window at the passing ringtails. One night the two parent raccoons (we've named them Rackie and Raquel) climbed up the olive tree out front and looked in the window at her eye level. Drove her nuts! But she's such a good girl that if we get up and praise her vigilence and then go back to bed she always quiets down right away. Our little guard dog!

Hopefully it won't be as long before next time I can write.

Dippy's Mom

Play, play, play!

Chatting at the water cooler.

The Chorus!

Hi Sashi!

Serendipity strikes again! We took Dippy to the SPCA doggy dash and we met another Shiba. Her name is Sashi and she's about 4 months younger than Dippy, another little girl, and about 5 pounds heavier. Her parents (whose names I won't mention because I don't have their permission - I'm such a soon-to-be-lawyer!) are very nice as well. The last two Sundays we have met up and getting the girls together to play. I'm happy to state that it's going GREAT! It appears to be true what they say about Shiba's playing best with other Shibas. Sashi and Dippy play great together. They wrestle and chase eachother around and just generally tire eachother out. Only Shiba's know the Shiba rules. I mean really, Steve and I haven't figured them all out - how is some Labrador supposed to do it?!

OK, the first time they were together it wasn't all Evian and squeak toys. They met at Dippy's house and there was a little bit of "Hey, that's mine!" and "Hey, I'm bigger than you so guess what - not yours any more!" but we got it worked out. This weekend we learned that the only toys two Shiba's need are each other. And, in fact, anything else causes fights. We also learned that they like to fight under tables where concerned parents can't interrupt until it's settled. All's well that ends well, though, and no one was hurt in what we refer to as the "pink bone incident."

The pictures above are the girls (obviously). The "chorus" picture is really them trying to bite each other but it was so darn cute (in a coyote kinda way) that I couldn't help the title. I'm sure you'll be hearing more about Sashi in the coming weeks. As I told Dippy - boyfriends come and go but a good girlfriend is forever!

Sharon

Almost a year since we brought her home!

WOW! OK, finals are over and I can blog again guilt-free. Lots of changes in Dippy's life since her birthday.

It's been almost a year since we brought Dippy home. Who could believe it!? Memorial Day 2005... they grow up so fast!

We no longer go to Cha Cha's for daycare, for starters. They were feeding her food off of her diet, among other things. We have had to start the 8-10 week program entirely over but, on the upside, we figured out what was causing the allergies again before I spent $300 on blood tests. So we're back on fish. And we found a nanny who comes every day (for the same thing we were spending on 2 days a week at Cha Cha's) and walks her in the afternoon. Nanny Corinn has a darling 10 month old (Bella) that Dippy loves and puppies seem very happy with the arrangement. It's certainly easier for me, since I've started my new job and have to take light rail in to town, to not have to drop her off.

She's started sleeping upstairs with us at night. For whatever reason she won't come on the bed but she sleeps either under it or beside me on a little bed we have for her there. Of course, this means the cat's locked in her room all night, but it's not like she moves around a lot anyway. (That's a whole other story that will involve insulin and antibiotics, but this isn't Chess' blog anyway). She seems to like it and it seems to make her feel more like a constant pack member.

She's also given up her throne in the car. She just gets strapped in and rides. It seems to have made the anxiety better. She's still no fan, though.

Well, that's about all the news. It's been a great year and she's still the light of our lives. I will try to publish more this summer and put on more pictures.

Happy Days!

Sharon