Smarty Pants

I guess LEO is a little bit annoyed with me lately. Since I've been preoccupied with the release of my new book, "Minivans, Meltdowns & Merlot", he's been having more meltdowns than ever. This morning, he gave me the dirtiest look while I patted our tiger cat, BOO! And he wasn't especially happy when the kids opened their Advent box and pulled out Smarties & Dum Dums! He paced around a bit, turned his nose up at his home made dog food and made a loud groaning sound as he flopped down by the fire.  A few minutes went by, he watched the cat jump up in my lap, and he stood up and stared me down. He then walked straight to the coffee table, grabbed a package of smarties and ran off. He devoured the pack leaving sugar dust all over the floor. It's a good thing my daughter was already at school, because she would NOT be HAPPY with him. I guess maybe I better throw a few doggie treats into the Advent box and give him a few extra cuddles today when I get home from work! Poor Baby!

Dog Food is Disgusting!

So this is what Leo's been eating these days: I threw together a little boiled chicken, some cream of cheddar soup, white rice and mixed vegies! He's been having this chicken pot pie concoction now for a couple of weeks. I started doing this because he's always been so picky about his food. I've tried so many dog foods over the years and he turns his nose up at it as if to say, "I'm not a dog, why the heck would I want to eat THAT?" He's also taking a liking to eating the cat's food lately! I figured maybe It would be more appealing to his picky palette if I made him some homemade food! Naturally he loved it! The problem is, when things get busy and I have to throw down some of the old dog food that he used to reluctantly eat, now he is EVEN more insulted than ever. He gives me the DIRTIEST look and walks away with a huge chip on his shoulder! At least before, I could get away with sprinkling a little Parmesan cheese on the dog food or mixing an egg into it, BUT not now that he's had a taste of the real food, he's having none of that! Even my kids tasted the chicken mixture and couldn't stop eating it. I found them fighting with LEO over his breakfast! :)  I'd say I created a monster, but god knows he already was a monster long before this latest excursion! Luckily for him, I love him enough to be heading out to Market Basket to restock the ingredients necessary to make another weeks' worth of his preferred meals! He may not be the smartest dog in the world, but he IS smart enough to know that he's really NOT a DOG so why should he eat DOG FOOD?!?

My Dog ate my homework!

My 9 year older daughter was very angry at LEO yesterday! She happened to walk into the living room and found him chewing up her homework~ Although this is behavior I would more expect to find in a puppy NOT an 8 year old Basset Hound, I'm not surprised! After all, LEO is notorious for turning our household upside down. He was probably just bored hanging out here in the house while the rest of us went about our busy lives. Since he sleeps 23 out 24 hours a day,what else does he have to do? A little homework destruction was probably the highlight of his lazy afternoon! :)

Working Like a Dog!

As I was getting ready to head out the door to work, I couldn't help but feel a little envious of LEO!
He was passed out on the couch, ON A PILLOW of course, getting ready for a hard day of NAPPING!

HAPPY BASSY

LEO actually had a GREAT day today,(for LEO!) He didn't misbehave at all! We went for a long walk and then upon return, he dug himself a nice little bed in a beautiful shady spot under the trees in the front yard! Since his 8th birthday is about a week away, I decided to make him a batch of home made dog food! He ate every single bite of it, including the peas & carrots! He is now curled up in bed with his head on my feet and I can hear him SNORING! He is one very happy content Basset Tonight! LIFE IS GOOD when you're LEO!

Caught Cheating!

I don't know what I was thinking when I decided to hold not one but two of my friend's dogs tonight. I was just picking up my son when the dogs came running out to greet me! They are so cute, I couldn't help myself. I even got a few wet kisses from the Jack Russel, "Timmy"! I loved every minute of it too, UNTIL....I got home and remembered I had my insecure, neurotic, and overly sensitive BASSET! I momentarily forgot what offense I had committed, and happily greeted him with a big HUG...when suddenly my HUG was rejected with a dirty look! He sniffed me with a vengeance. Nothing would ever get by that SNOUT! He was NOT A HAPPY BOY! Who were these mysterious dogs that I had been hanging out with?It was bad enough that he had been left home alone much too his disappointment, but now, his Mommy was out CHEATING?!? That was the last straw! He walked away with a scorned look, and hasn't talked to me since! I feel like I should be wearing the Scarlet Letter right about now! Just call me Hester Prynne! :)

Not Tonight!

Took my Basset Brat out for what I thought was going to be a glorious evening walk tonight! It was the most perfect summer evening. The air was cool and the full moon was AMAZING up over the tall trees. He looked so bored that I figured a nice walk down to the end of the road and back would do him some good. I guess he had something different in mind because after only half way to the end, he sat down and refused to MOVE! I pulled and pulled on his leash and he was having none of it. Finally I had to let my husband give the leash a yank, low and behold, he was able to get LEO to stand up. We walked a few minutes more, when that bratty basset sauntered right on over into somebody's yard. I'll admit the grass did look plush and cozy, but I was surprised to see LEO make a nice bed for himself right there on their front lawn. He stretched out, yawned and started a power nap. I know his stubborness all too well, and unless I had a firecracker in my pocket, I wasn't getting him to move!  So, we waited it out....Eventually, when he was good and ready, he got up and managed to make the journey back home. He didn't seem thrilled at all to have been out enjoying this beautiful night with us, but he IS very happily snoring under my feet right now.( LOUDLY SNORING I might add!)

"Following Atticus"

I was honored to attend the "Following Atticus" book signing and Author talk by Tom Ryan at Kennebooks in Kennebunk, Maine this past Thursday. It was amazing to hear Tom speak of his heartfelt life changing adventures in person. Since this book is my all time favorite book, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet Tom and Atticus in person. I was also so excited to meet Will, Tom's new yet very old rescue schnauzzer. I was so touched by the way each of these dogs would cuddle into Tom's neck when he held them. One could actually feel the love between them. Tom's talk was so captivating that my 9 and 12 year old children sat quietly and attentive throughout the entire event. Listening to Tom speak about his life journey was so emotional that I found myself continually wiping away the tears that were streaming down my face. It was a true honor to attend this event and anybody who reads this incredibly moving memoir will find themselves SO happy they did.  For those readers who may shy away because they are not into dog stories, I promise you this is more a tale of the human soul aspiring to uncover itself against all odds. This book will not only inspire you to take stalk of your own life, but it may even leave you feeling like you can uncover your own greatest potentials and reach for what you may have previously thought unattainable! And, I promise, when you finish the book, you will find yourself telling everybody you know to read it!!!

Another Life Lesson from a Neurotic Basset

Sometimes the most simple solutions have a way of eluding me...who would have thought I could simply mix Leo's meds into his breakfast & dinner! I've killed myself trying every other possible scenario and finally I decided to throw the stupid pills into his food and mix it around with the wet & dry (of course I didn't let him see me do it) he ate them without ever knowing he did ...I guess I was trying way too hard! This method has worked perfectly for the past five days! Guess I need to remember to Keep it Simple! Another Life Lesson from a Neurotic Basset!

WHAT A FACE!!!

BASSET MADDNESS

I am SO ready to kill this basset! I guess he's still holding a grudge toward me after being left out of the family camping trip but STILL! He's been worse than ever with taking his anxiety medication and I am at my witt's end! I think he got off his schedule a little bit between the summer craziness and my frustration with him spitting them out on the floor all the time. I admit, I have been slacking off on the regimen because it's so much work. He takes 2 St. John's Wort in the morning and 2 at night and then a Melatonin just before bedtime! He has been so good when the meds are consistent but now due to the past several SLEEPLESS nights, I'm realizing what damage my slacking off has done. Mr. LEO has been waking up again randomly at 2am having panic attacks. I have been rudely awakened in the middle of a dead sleep with a drooling shaking basset hound on top of my HEAD! He doesn't just snuggle up beside me drooling and shaking, he feels the need to stand on top of my head. He will do this all night long and no matter how many times I push him off the bed, he is back up on top of my head. Eventually as terrible as it is, I have no other choice but to put him in the bathroom with a giant towel on the floor to sop up the drool puddles. This recent suffering has been a good lesson for me to get back on track with his meds. The only problem is that whatever new and creative way I think I've come up with to get those pills into his system, does not work. He has become a master at faking a swallow and storing the pills under his jowels for up to 15 minutes only to spit them out in a different room. He has chewed half of the pill at times and spit the rest out so that the powder in the capsule is all over my floor as the kitty is trying to lap it up. I have rolled the pills in meat, he has eaten the meat, extracted the pill and spit it right out on the floor. I have rolled it into cheese, he has done the same thing. I have opened the capsule, taken out the powder and dumped it into the inside of some deli meat or cheese and he spits it right out and licks all around the powder. I have shoved the pill all the way down to his tonsils, held his nose shut and rubbed his throat. This is when he fakes another swallow and sneakily slides the pill back up and somehow hides it under his gum or tongue? Last night I became so desperate that I opened his mouth WIDE and opened up a capsule inside of his mouth and dumped the powder down his throat! Boy did he HATE that. I have tried giving him his favorite treats right afterward, even sometimes before and during the pill nightmare, NOTHING has worked! My friend suggested peanut butter, she was so sure that would work wonders, well he HATES peanut butter! This has become my dreaded daily task. Given the fact that he has two pills in the morning and two at night, in addition to the quick dissolve melatonin, this is 5 times a day, I am going through this maddness. I guess when they say Basset Hounds are notorious for their stubborness, that may be the greatest understatement there is! OH LEO!!!!

Leo gets voted out of the family vacation!

Poor Leo! He's feeling so depressed these past couple of days. He was excluded from the family camping trip to Amish Country over this last weekend. He was voted out of the trip since the majority ruled and many in our family are not so keen on dealing with a basset with special needs. I, being his basset mommy, would have put up with all of his anxieties because I believed that the amish way of life would have been very soothing for LEO! I think he would have loved hanging out with the horses behind our camp site and he would have been a big fan of the amish chicken pot pie! Although he was home with his 2 kitty brothers and a wonderful aunt to care for him, he was still missing the rest of his family. His auntie told me that whenever the answering machine picked up with my voice, he would wimper and cry! When we first got back from the trip, he was hesitant to speak to me! It was very obvious that he was angry. He gave me the cold shoulder for several hours and it broke my heart. Eventually he did come around and when he did, he planted himself in my lap refusing to get down for anything. He's been glued to my side ever since. He wasn't too thrilled with the Pennsylvania T Shirt we brought home to him but he did like the Amish made dog biscuits! He has been passed out on my bed this morning while I fold all the laundry left over from the trip! He's still  a little mad at his papa for not letting him try out the new family pop up, but he says he will forgive him if he is allowed on the next great adventure! He promises to be a good boy and not pee in the pop up!

Happy Independence Day!!!

Run Away Basset

A few weeks ago, we came home to find LEO gone! We had just replaced our sliding doors in the family room, and he figured out how to open them and hit the road! And he didn't even bother stopping to close the door on his way out. This was great news for the cat, who is usually not allowed out after dark due to coyotes. He was thrilled to follow right behind LEO. Even more scary was the fact that our new little kitten was sitting right in front of the open door staring out into the blackness.   We drove all over town looking for LEO and I shed more than a few tears thinking the worst. When we finally returned home, I had a message that THANKFULLY he was safe and sound down the road at a friend's house.

When we went to retrieve our little run away, he was relaxing on their arm chair seemingly without a care in the world! He was completely unphased by our sudden appearance and acted as though I was disturbing his nap. He looked irritated when I called him a bad dog and attempted to put his leash on him. He was not the slightest bit remorseful and I almost felt like he would have been happy to stay right there never to return home again. He appeared to have already moved on, forgetting that his family ever existed. The funny thing is, the beautiful golden retriever, Bailey who lives there, was on a leash outside, yet here is LEO sprawled out on their arm chair like he owns the place! What a nerve! I can imagine that Bailey must have been pretty annoyed. I laughed when I came home to find pictures of Leo's night out posted on my facebook page. As you can see, he even left a little basset drool as a parting gift!

Morning Bath

This dynamic DUO is just the cutest pair I've ever seen, they really have become best friends!

Leo doesn't seem to mind getting a morning bath at all!

A rare back massage given by a kitten

Who would have guessed that adding a new little kitten into our already crazy household would be so good for LEO. I thought for sure that getting this kitten for my daughter's 9th birthday was gonna be the thing that put me over the edge but it's been quite the opposite. In fact, while our big tiger cat remains less than thrilled with the new addition, LEO couldn't be happier. I think it's actually helping him with all of his anxieties and issues. He is more calm and seems to really enjoy the kitten's company and playfulness. He is so tolerant of the antics of this spirited little guy named Panther. Most days I find Panther swinging from LEO'S big floppy ears or grabbing onto LEO's tail to take a ride. Today, I came across a rare sight. Panther was giving LEO a back scratching and LEO was lovin every minute of it. LEO has had massage therapy in the past and it worked pretty good for his nerves, but this old fashioned back scratching seemed to put him right into a state of heaven, as you can see by his pose.

Do Blonde Bassets have more FUN?

LEO tried on his bleach blonde wig this past weekend. He was doing a little experiment to see if Blonde Bassets really do have more FUN?

Rainy Day Nap

Just another RAINY day in New England, 3 in a row, but Leo never gets tired of NAPPING & our new kitten Panther must have thought it looked like a good idea because he cuddled right up beside him. It's so adorable to see how much these two love each other. Leo is so protective of the kitten. Our big tiger cat gets irritable with the playful and sometimes mischevious kitty but Leo just sits back and lets him do whatever he wants. Leo's tail has become Panther's favorite new toy. He discovered it about a week ago and since LEO does a lot of wagging, Panther pounces on it constantly. Never so much as a growl from my sweet tolerant Basset Hound. The big tiger, however, puts a paw out and shows the kitten whose boss. He wants no part of letting his tail become a play toy. He'd much prefer that the kitten bother LEO instead. Just a few minutes ago, Leo had to intervene when the cat and kitten were having a tiff. Leo walked right over and put his nose up to the big tiger as if to say, leave the kitty alone, he's just doing what kitties do! I LOVE MY BASSET HOUND!

No Dumping

Leo and I went for a nice long walk the other night at the baseball fields. My son was practicing little league so I decided to take LEO around the park to get some exercise and meet up with some doggie friends. He met quite a few nice dogs along the way and one not so nice one too. Lucky for him the not so nice one was attached to a leash which was attached to a young girl rollerblading really FAST and she yelled, "Leave it" and they sped right by...Leo was grateful. He peed on everything as I could imagine there were a million dogs on that path before him and it was important for him to mark his territory. On the way out, he decided to relieve himself classicly right under a sign that read, "No Dumping", I don't know if he's a rebel or he just doesn't read too well! Either way, great photo op, (for me, not him) He'd surely be mortified if he knew I was posting this! What a bad mother I am!

LEO the ATTACK BASSET

BEST PICTURE OF LEO EVER!!! He looks like an ATTACK BASSET all for the LOVE of a GOOD BURGER by my sister's great grilling skills up in Maine this past weekend! This was the funniest picture I've ever seen of him. We all laughed till we cried!!!!

A Basset & A Panther...

It's been a busy week in this house! My daughter begged and pleaded for a kitten for her 9th birthday which is coming up soon. We kept saying NO NO NO but as you can see by the photo, she got her wish and has her kitty! We welcomed our adorable new addition "Panther" the tiger kitten just 3 days ago. Leo is truly unphased by the kitty. I was a little nervous that he might get kitten phobia or anxiety with all of his other issues but so far so good. I might even dare to say that the kitty is good for his anxiety because he gets so worn out just from watching him play that he is napping even more than usual. I guess LEO looked so comfy earlier tonight, that Panther decided his belly was a good place to cuddle up and take a snooze. They are precious together! 

Be Still, My Blooming Begonias...

We just heard the news that Gramma & Papa's camp will be opening on Mother's Day weeekend! Wow, that's right around the corner. Leo has been racking his little Basset brain trying to come up with a plan to get back in Gramma's good graces. A few years ago, Gramma's beautiful Begonias got in the way of a nice cool patch of dirt that was calling LEO's name. It really wasn't his intention to hurt the pretty flowers, he just wanted to dig out a cool,comfy resting place. He dug and dug, paying no attention to the fact that Gramma's Begonias were being mutilated and flung all over the place. But in the end, I'm sure he thought he made a much nicer garden fixture than those silly Begonias anyway. As Leo lounged comfortably in his new resting place, his family was having dinner inside the camp. As the dessert was about to be served, we all heard the screams from outside. (It should be noted that Gramma is NOT a dog lover to begin with)...But much to Gramma's horror, she found LEO happily snoozing where her beautiful Begonias used to bloom! Boy did she LET HIM HAVE IT! Not only did she throw him out of her garden, but she threw him out of camp forever more. She even made Papa take his name off the family sign that hangs out front. He has never been welcomed back, but he thinks this might be the year to redeem himself. Since he's on his new medication to help with all of his neurotic issues and bad behaviors, he's really hoping Gramma will forgive him and give him another chance! Everyone else gets to have FUN at CAMP, why shouldn't he ? While very dog has it's day, LEO had his, and he promises to be a good boy this year! PLEASE GRAMMA? :)

St. John's Wort for Dog Anxiety

St. John's Wort is the BEST thing that has ever happened to Me & My Neurotic Basset!
Leo has always suffered from chronic anxiety and panic attacks. As he has grown older, the
problem has become more severe. He had gotten to the point where he was an insomniac (and therefore so was I) He was disrupting the entire household with his issues. He couldn't ever be left alone, as he would launch into a full blown panic attack, trembling, drooling to the point of dehydration and peeing everywhere. I had tried all sorts of different remedies over the course of his 6 years with us, to no avail. I was definitely starting to come unglued. Somewhere, I had read about this natural remedy, St. John's Wort, and I figured why not. I started him on 2 capsules in the morning and 2 at night. I threw in a Melatonin before bed in hopes that it would help him to sleep. This regimen ended up being a DREAM COME TRUE! He has been taking this combination for almost 2 months and his anxiety has decreased tremendosly and he is sleeping through the night every night. He used to freak out, if I just took out my picture to snap a photo. The flash of the camera petrified him. I was so happy when I pulled out my camera last week to take a picture of my daughter, and Leo just sat there calmly. He is able to stay home alone, confined to one room, but we no longer come home to an ocean of drool. He can handle rain and wind storms, which he never used to be able to do, and he has even been okay with balloons lately. (Yes he used to run and hide when he'd see a balloon come into the house) Birthday parties were a NIGHTMARE! Lots of cameras and balloons, you can imagine his horror. Poor LEO.  He still suffers from panic attacks during thunder storms but this is more in the normal realm of anxiety for dogs. And yes we tried the Thunder Coat (it gave him MORE anxiety when he wore it) but it did look good on him :) We are truly grateful that we have found something to help LEO to deal with his issues, and all we can do now is cross our fingers that it continues to do the job for him. We are all functioning a little bit better as a family now that LEO isn't turning our lives upside down as much.

LEO catches a GIANT RAT!

As I sat on my love seat casually taking the first sip of my morning coffee, LEO shoved his nose under the couch and started sniffing like CRAZY! The wild sniffing was followed by a manic fit of barking. He was trying to dig his way underneath to get at something and my stomach just dropped as I realized this couldn't be good.  My 12 year old hadn't left for school yet, so like the wimp that I am, I begged him to look under the couch. He was having none of that. He said, "What are you nuts mom, YOU look under the couch!" So
I put my coffee down and gave the couch a huge shove and OUT RAN A GIANT RAT! There really are no words to express the HORROR that I experienced. I screamed so loud I think I blew out my own ear drums. I couldn't believe my eyes when the RAT ran right underneath my FAT CAT, and what did the cat do? He jumped up and let him take cover under my loveseat! I called my husband at work, in a sheer panic and DEMANDED he come home IMMEDIATELY. He couldn't get out, so he sent his friend instead. I asked him, "What exactly does your friend intend to do?" He said, "He's gonna bludgeon the thing with the broom!" He would be at my house in under ten minutes and now I found myself feeling bad for the disgusting RAT, because he was about to be MURDERED in my living room, not to mention it would make a HUGE gross mess on my rug. As much as I was petrified, I knew I had to get this thing out of my house before it met such an evil fate. I grabbed the broom myself and swatted at it. I could see it's beady little eyes staring at me. He was wedged between the back of the loveseat and the wall. When I shoved the broom at him, he took off running. I had opened all the sliders in hopes that he would head for the back yard. My plan was almost flawless as he bolted for the open door, but he was stopped dead in his tracks by LEO. Leo was at the slider waiting for him. He tried to grab him, but his nasty little bare feet took off running right up behind my wood stove. He climbed up the stones and hung there just staring at me. LEO began to bark fiercly again, scaring the RAT back down and he scurried toward my kitchen. My husband's friend showed up and helped me search all over my house. I was so distraught! NOT knowing where he was hiding, was defiitely WORSE than knowing. We searched all the dark corners and tiny crevices hoping to uncover him, but we were unsuccessful. I had locked LEO in the bathroom because I was afraid he might escape out the open sliders but I let him out after we reluctantly gave up our search. As soon as LEO came out of the bathroom, he headed straight to the recliner. He shoved his nose into the leather and started barking his head off.  I knew immediately where that RAT was hiding. I had flipped the recliner over earlier but he must have went up inside of it.  My husband's friend had already left. And here I was again, all alone, in my doggie pajamas, with LEO and my fat useless CAT. I called my husband back and frantically told him that the RAT was in his recliner. This time he came right home. (probably because it was in HIS recliner) We moved all the furniture out of the living room and he flipped the recliner over and shook it. OUT RAN THE NASTY RAT and THANK GOD this time he RAN right out the open slider. My husband ran after him, broom in hand screaming, "I'm gonna kill you, you little ****** *******!  I couldn't help but laugh when I saw my husband leap over the pool deck running as fast as he could to try to kill the thing. He didn't get him but we watched him head through the back path toward our friend's house. I felt the need to issue an Amber Alert to let our neighbors know where he was last spotted. I have NO idea how he got into our house or how long he has been living there among us. I will surely have nightmares over this for a very long time. I am still shaking hours later. We do live on a cornfield and there has been lots of construction going on, on the other side of it. We've had wild turkeys, deer, coyotes, fisher cats, foxes, all kinds of things, but NONE of them have been brazen enough to invite themselves into my home. Especially during my sacred morning coffee! The nerve of him! All I know is that LEO saved the day, because had he not discovered it under the couch, who knows how long it may have lurked there in the darkness. And my husband says he likes the cat because the cat earns his keep, but LEO is useless. Well, didn't LEO prove him wrong today. He really upstaged the cat and I'd say, the cat really should be ashamed of himself!

I swear, If he wasn't so cute, I might kill him!

Well, School Vacation is over, and the kids are back to school, but LEO is still up to his antics. I'm not really sure why he is so intent on destroying my carpet.I guess maybe he doesn't like the color I chose or maybe it feels better when pee flows onto carpet as opposed to the ground outside? It's been almost a month since I had the carpet man here and I was so happy, we were on a roll, no new pee stains for almost 3 wks. Suddenly he's started making puddles again and although he did brilliantly pee in the shape of a HEART on Valentine's day morning, these are just plain old boring smelly puddles. I'm so aggravated with him. I may never understand the method behind his madness. I used to think he peed in the house because of his chronic anxiety, but I seem to have that under control with the St. John's Wort and Melatonin regimen. I have been grateful to GOD that he hasn't been suffering from spontaneous panic attacks. He has calmly weathered several storms lately and almost even seemed oblivious. Thankfully, He's been sleeping through the night and even let me take a couple of pictures with the flash (which would have NEVER happened prior to the medications.

I guess maybe I'm just being greedy expecting that the meds will take care of ALL of his ISSUES, but I'm so sick of dealing with the PEEING. It's DISGUSTING and annoying. He really has no excuse. He goes for walks, he is taken outside constantly, he knows how to bark at us, if the need strikes out of the blue, yet despite all of this, he STILL pees on the carpet when nobody is looking! And, it never fails, every time I reprimand him, he flat out refuses to look at me. he just puts his head down and sulks like it really was an accident? Maybe it's the stubbornness of the breed, maybe he's too lazy to go outside, maybe he's mad at me for shoving pills down his throat 2x a day? the speculation could go on and on. I was so sure when I told the carpet guy that this would be the last time he would have to treat my rug for urine because LEO was on anxiety meds now and he wouldn't be peeing like that anymore. I was so convincing, I almost believed it myself. But here I sit less than a month later, frustrated and angry smelling the unmistakable and nasty smell of dog urine. Ohhhh LEO! You're LUCKY you are so damn cute!

Spiteful little Basset

LEO is so jealous that the kids have been on vacation this week. Not because they are out of school, but because they are getting more attention from mom than he is. He is not just jealous but mad as well. He's mad because they are infringing on his QUIET time. All the commotion has him feeling STRESSED out.  I know this because he has been acting like a terrible two year old even though he is 7.  He started out on Monday by sneakig into the living room and peeing a huge puddle on the newly cleaned carpet. This really made me mad. He gave me the sad basset eyes but this time it didn't work. As I soaked up the urine out of the carpet, I shot him a dirty look. He  was unphased. He just lounged on the couch refusing to look my way. On Tuesday, he jumped up on the table at least 10x and tried his hardest to steal the kid's sandwiches. On Wednesday, he was outside on his runner and decided to walk up onto the back deck and pee another huge puddle on the new pavers. On Thursday, after taking his medication, he faked a swallow, and ate his treat. An hour later, I found the pills on my living room rug hidden behind the chair. On Friday, he had such bad doggie gas after stealing the kids left over breakfast, he made a car ride to Maine torturous for all.  Finally, on Saturday night, he got into a trash bag and found some chinese spare rib bones. Luckily we were able to pull them out of his mouth before he choked. He wasn't HAPPY! Today is Sunday, and before I even had my first cup of coffee, I walked into my living room and got my sock soaked when I stepped in yet another puddle of pee. I did hear him sneak out of bed last night around midnight. I figured he was venturing down to the playroom because my son had a friend sleepover. While he may have went down there, he apparantly made a pit stop and peed on my rug. He had no problem coming back upstairs and curling up beside me to snore the rest of the night away GUILT FREE.  Tomorrow is Monday and the kids go back to school, and it's a good thing because my patience is really running thin. I've always thought with a face as cute as his, I could never stay mad, but this week has had me rethinking that theory. Basset Hounds are such a stubborn breed and he really has seemed determined to make his feelings known. Mission accomplished LEO!

A BEACH BASSET

LEO was so excited to head up to GOOSE ROCKS BEACH Maine yesterday, for the first time since Christmas! We were opening up the beach house and although he wasn't about to wash down walls or clean floors, he was sure happy to run on the beach. I love to watch his nose when we get off the exit; he looks like he might inhale the entire windshield with his sniffing..His excitement is contagious as he wimpers and he wines,with his tail wagging wildly. Even though we're still a good 15 minutes from the beach, you can't fool a BASSET HOUND, he knows! He's a beach basset for sure!He LOVES getting his ears full of sand and smelling all the familiar & fun beach smells.  He had the best day ever yesterday. He got to get out to the island and while the kids searched for sea glass and star fish, he ROLLED in SEAWEED! He loved exploring the rocks and even met a couple of cute Jack Russell Terriers along the way.

I'll admit, I was more than a little jealous, when he finished off the perfect day, by digging himself a giant hole in the sand and settled in to soak up the  sun. I, on the other hand, had to grab the windex & paper towels and get back to work! What a LUCKY BASSET!

Easter Hangover

Although Leo seemed to be having a fine Easter Celebration yesterday with family & friends, I think he may have celebrated a little too much since he can't get out of bed this morning. He did have a good sized plate full of Easter dinner (stuffed pork, italian rice patties and mashed potatoes with gravy) and a long nap on the couch. He would have curled up in the forbidden recliner but Papa had already claimed it. Unfortunately LEO woke me up at 1am when he had an anxiety attack. I looked outside to see if there was any lightening or something going on to cause his panic but couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. He was shaking and drooling and as always right on top of my head. I brought him downstairs and he seemed to calm down with the change of scenery. I fell asleep on the couch and he slept on the floor under me. We didn't make it back up to bed until 4:30am. I had to get up with the kids to get them off to school, but LEO is still sleeping peacefully on Dad's side of the bed and NATURALLY has his head on the pillow. For the past 6 weeks, he has been doing really well on the St. John's Wort & Melatonin for his chronic anxiety. I am hoping and praying that he has not built up an immunity to it. I'm gonna chalk it up to the stress of the holiday or the possible thieving of some hidden Easter eggs. Whatever his issue, I'm sure he's not the only one feeling a little drained on the Monday morning after Easter.

A SNORING BASSET on GOOD FRIDAY morning!

Apparently as soon as my husband left for work this morning (at the crack of dawn), LEO took full advantage of the situation. He crawled up beside me and laid his head down on John's pillow (stinky basset jowels and all) He stretched right out and pressed his paws up against my back. He always sleeps at my feet and I had no idea he had crawled up to sleep beside me. I was rudely awakened by  LOUD snoring and automatically assumed that my husband had overslept and would be late for work. Before I even opened my eyes, I smacked LEO right in the chest and yelled "GET UP! You're gonna be late for work!"  well, when there was no movement, just more snoring, I opened my eyes and much to my surprise it was my SNORING BASSET snoozing away not in the least bit concerned with my yelling or the morning smack he got in the chest :)

"following atticus" by Tom Ryan

I am so in love and so inspired by the story of Tom and Atticus, in the book "Following Atticus" Such an incredible tale of the unconditional love between two best friends. What a  remarkable and life changing journey they make together in honor of a friend who lost her life to cancer. They set out on a dangerous mission of winter hiking, against all odds, to raise money for The Jimmy Fund, benefiting children fighting Cancer. The life lessons they learn & share along the way are invaluable. One of the very BEST books I have ever read. For anyone who loves dogs, nature, or just pure humanity, you will adore this book.

Good Deed of the Day

Lent can be a long and difficult journey for some, but in the end whether we choose to sacrifice something  or participate in some almsgiving, it should be a time of reflection and a time to reconnect with GOD. This year, my friend and neighbor decided that instead of giving something up like he had done in past years, he would rather try to do at least one good deed every day. Well, it turns out that doing a good deed every day isn't as easy as it sounds. Lent is a 40 day journey and sometimes those opportunities for good deeds don't always present themselves in the course of an ordinary day. I think he's found that on some days, he  actually has to search for things that are worthy of counting for a good deed.  Well, Today, he didn't have to search very hard at all. I am proud to say that LEO presented him with a "good deed of the day" opportunity. Somehow, the little Houdini managed to get himself unhooked from his chain while outside this morning and ran free. He had a nice morning jaunt out on the golf course and caused quite a ruckus with the neighborhood dogs. My friend's dog was barking like crazy which caused him to check out what all the commotion was about. He saw LEO running wild, so like a dedicated Catholic on his lenten mission, he set out to deliver his good deed of the day.  Despite the fact that he was all dressed for work, he went after LEO anyway and chanced getting muddy paw prints all over him. He caught him and brought him back to us before we ever even knew he was missing. I was so surprised & grateful to see him standing at my back door with LEO in hand. I'd say this may count as a triple good deed of the day!

What a Basset...

LEO has been acting up again the past couple of days. I think he's getting anxious about the Easter Bunny coming. Since he has phobias about virtually everything, it would only stand to reason that he'd be petrified at the prospect of a giant bunny hopping through our house dropping jelly beans everywhere. Not to mention, he happens to hate jelly beans, which is kinda weird because he loves skittles and licorice. Even though he's doing much better with the St. John's Wort/Melatonin regimen, he still has all kinds of anxieties just at a milder level. His separation anxiety kicked in the other night when we left him alone for a couple of hours. Since he can't tolerate a crate and hates being shut into a specific room, I decided to block him out of the living room where I had just had the carpets cleaned. Whenever he is left home alone, even if one of us is just checking the mail, he will pee. More often than not, it's on a rug because he knows its harder for us to clean. Once in awhile we get lucky and he pees on the tile floor. A little clorox cleanup, a few paper towels, and it's taken care of.  My strategy was simple: I put the kitchen bar stools across the walkway and sealed him out (or so I thought) and we left. Upon return, as soon as we pulled into the driveway I could hear his "distressed" bark.  Yes, as a mother of a new infant can detect and translate what each cry means, I can tell one bark from another. He was stress barking and I knew instantly that he was in trouble. I ran into the house unsure of what precarious situation I would find him in.Only LEO would get himself trapped in the very room that he was supposed to be blocked out of. He had somehow knocked over a barstool (he is afraid of his own shadow and usually won't even go near a cardboard box if it's in his way) but somehow he managed to knock it over and get into the living room. He would not go back through the knocked over barstool, he was just standing on the newly cleaned carpet barking his head off.  When I was in a rush to get to him, I didn't realize that I was walking through a huge puddle of pee on my kitchen floor. Therefore, even though he had thankfully NOT peed on the newly cleaned carpet, I tracked his pee onto the newly cleaned carpet with my shoe! GOTTA LOVE LEO!!!

Payback for LEO

It never fails, LEO is always under foot. No matter where I am, he can be found right under me.  It's a testament to his love, I suppose. Especially when I'm cooking, he likes to sprawl out beneath the stove, so I have to keep stepping over him. Poor thing gets stepped on a lot, mostly his toes, but lots of times it's his long basset ears. He yelps and we always feel bad. The other day, I was walking up the step from the living room to the kitchen when he got under my feet. I've gotten pretty skilled at navigating his long torso and even manage to hop over him many times; this time, I was not so lucky and I hit the floor hard. I was mad because it really hurt when my knees hit the tile, but more mad because I almost spilled my beer.  Being a good Catholic girl, I try to never take the Lord's name in vain, but inevitablty it slipped out. (Guess I better get to Confession soon) My knee started to feel better on Friday, so we decided to take a walk through the woods. This time when I fell, it really wasn't LEO's fault.  Although, he did take off running, I was doing my best to keep up with him.  It was 100% my fault, when I tripped over a prickly bush and fell right down on my knees. I thought for sure my knee was broken or at least bloody.. My jeans were so dirty and I had all I could do to dust off and pick myself back up. The kids had friends with them and I was embarrassed to have practically fallen on my face so the first thing that came to mind was to yell at LEO. I blamed him because it made sense.  After all, he was attached to the leash that I was carrying and he WAS running.  Nobody saw how it happened, and God knows anytime I've ever fallen in the past 6 years, it's been because of him. Since I'm heading to confession anyway, I may as well throw a little white lie into the mix. Maybe just this once, it was a little payback for LEO!

BURGER ENVY

2 nights ago, we were out with the kids searching for molds for melting crayons. It was an impossible mission, everywhere we went, we had no luck. To take the edge off, (or to bribe the kids to stop whining about it) we decided to drive thru McDonald's to get them icecreams. My husband is drive thru CHALLENGED, for some reason, he can't listen to what I am saying and repeat it to the speaker accurately. I have grown used to this and now I do things on purpose just to make him mess up more (mean, I know but it's really FUN) so, as he was trying to order 2 softserves one on a cone and one in a cup, I said, "Oh and can you get a double cheeseburger for LEO" (who was practically climbing out the back window inhaling all the good smells with that big basset nose of his). Well, instead of ordering the burger, my husband just glared at me, as if to say, "Yah, right, I'm gonna get the DOG a burger when I am prohibited from red meat because of cholestorol)
He must've thought I was messing around so he started to drive up to the pay window. This time I was serious, so as he was driving,  I yelled into the speaker, "and a double cheeseburger please." The kids got their icecreams and my poor meat deprived husband watched in horror as LEO polished that double cheeseburger in LITERALLY 2 gulps! I had to grab a napkin (not because he made a mess, he ate every last morsel & licked my hand clean) but to wipe the drool from my husbands chin) LEO was in doggie Heaven! He thanked me with a big wet slobbery kiss as if to say, "Who's the best basset in the world?" In hindsight I'm thinking maybe my SPOILING of this neurotic little Basset could be adding to the reasons why my husband claims to dislike him so much. This may just be a clear cut case of Jealousy :)

Caught in the Act!

I knew it all along! I have argued with my husband for years about his secret LOVE of LEO! He tells me over and over that he can't stand the dog! "The dog is a menace, he should move out, pack his bags, GET RID OF HIM, he says, take his collar off and open the door, let him run away, give him back to the basset rescue, do whatever you want with him, just get him out of my house!"These are just some of the mean and nasty things I have heard come out of my husband's mouth. I find these words so beyond OFFENSIVE. How can anyone be so mean? I always come back at him with, "I know you don't really  mean it, deep down, you really love LEO and you would be heart broken if anything ever happened to him." he just laughs and says, "Nope, I'd have clean carpets and no basset jowl stink on my pillows) At this point I usually give him a dirty look and walk out of the room. Well, the other day, I walked into the living room and CAUGHT the self professed dog loather RED HANDED giving LEO a little lovin! A sweet & generous head patting and just look at the SMILE on LEO's face. LEO is no dummy and DOGS have incredible instincts; He knows what I've known all along, Daddy can pretend, but LEO has stolen his heart too!!!

SNEAKY LITTLE BASSET

 I have been giving LEO daily doses of St.John's wort to try to treat his severe & chronic anxiety. (He's anxious about absolutely EVERYTHING) He has destroyed thousands of dollars worth of carpet by peeing all over it, but I have to laugh when I think of what the carpet cleaning man said to LEO the other day, "You're a DOG, what do YOU have to be anxious about?" Good question I thought but JUST like HUMANS, dogs get anxiety too. Poor Leo has PTSD (Post tramatic stress disorder) and we would too, if we had a shotgun pointed at our heads. His previous owner was ready to shoot him because he BARKED too much (well why was he barking you jerk? because he NEEDED love!) well thankfully a concerned brother rescued him from the man on the brink AND relinquished LEO to the Basset Rescue! I've tried a million different things to help poor LEO with his anxiety but nothing so far has worked. Currently we are doing the all natural St. John's Wort.  He is never thrilled about swallowing the pills but he always gets a treat when he does it successfully. Several times he has spit the pills back out on the kitchen floor. I have tried opening them and sprinkling into food, wrapping them in cheese, placing them way down in his throat, giving him one at a time, etc etc. it's always a struggle. Lately I have had to stand there, as much as I hate it, and hold his nose while stroking his throat. I have to watch him like a hawk and check his mouth to make sure he's not "cheeking the pills" (I feel like Nurse Wratchet on "One flew over the Cukoo's nest" Well, last night, as usual, we did the routine. He finally swallowed, I checked his mouth, pills were gone, so off he ran with his snickerdoodle (yes homemade cookies for LEO) he carried his cookie into the living room. Suddenly my daughter started yelling, "Hey, Leo spit his pills out!" I didn't believe it, I saw him swallow. That LITTLE BASSET faked me out. He pretended to swallow, yet somehow still grabbed the cookie, ran into the other room, dropped the cookie just long enough to spit the wet slimy pills on the (newly cleaned carpet) picked the cookie back up and ATE IT! followed by a BIG BASSET SMIRK!

Sunday Morning Score

Leo and my 8 yr old daughter had a battle this morning. She is no longer speaking to him. (he appears unphased) She left a 1/2 bag of donut holes on the coffee table and went upstairs for a minute. Naturally being a hound dog, he followed his NOSE. I watched him casually stroll into the living room, very nonchalent about his mission. I had no idea what he was up to.  Before anyone realized what he had done, all the donut holes were GONE and the bag was left on the floor torn to shreds. Suddenly, I heard my daughter screaming "LEO" at the top of her lungs. Leo on the other hand was already busy SNOOZING GUILT FREE on the kitchen floor. For once, my husband actually sided with LEO, as he scolded our daughter for leaving food ungaurded! It's not as if this hasn't happened a thousand times before! He congratulated LEO on his score!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRAMMA!
Even though you're NOT a dog lover,

I know you love ME (from a distance)

Doggie Drool

Unseasonably gorgous and hot weather here in New England for March 23rd.  Yesterday it was in the 80's. My kids have worn shorts to school all week. Last night I decided to take Mr. Leo for a ride to get an iced coffee. He isn't a good car rider. He drools buckets and pants a lot but I hate leaving him home with his seperation anxiety so I tend to give in to the guilt and take him with me when I can. Last night's adventure was to drop the kids off at gramma's house. When we got there, I went in to say Hello and since Gramma is not a dog lover, LEO has to stay outside. He barked his everlovin head off obnoxiously for the entire 10 minutes that I was in there. Guess I don't blame him, he was tied outside but wow is he LOUD. On our way back home, I stopped for an iced coffee. I had just taken a sip when he leaned over and DROOLED two big slime puddles right on top of the cup. He really is such a little Basset sometimes! (and yes I drank it anyway, for me, it's like kid slime, I'm immune! I pretty much live my life as the human napkin anyway.

Silly Basset

I always crack up when anyone in our family gets out the can of whipped cream whether it be for hot cocoa, milkshakes, or icecream sundaes, all LEO has to do is hear that squirting sound, and he comes RUNNING. He's got his tongue out as soon as the can points his way. He is a master at catching the cream as it squirts out and hardly ever misses a drop!

SUPER FLEAS

WELCOME SPRING!! Looking forward to the blue skies, blooming flowers, and bursting sunshine, not looking forward to the return of the SUPER FLEAS! Although, I think I'm ready for them after last fall's fiasco. When I say SUPER FLEAS, I mean, this new mutation of fleas that simply refuse to die. Just like humans have become resistant to many antibiotics from overuse, the same thing has happened with these nasty little creatures. They are no longer succumbing to death by battle with the typical flea remedies and we've been forced to step it up. Leo had never had a flea since the day we adopted him (6 yrs ago) until this past fall. God knows I have been patient with all of Leo's issues, I have put up with his phobias, anxieties, doggie insomnia, peeing on my rugs, drool, I've dealt with just about everything but one thing I draw the line at is BUGS! I nearly fainted one day, when I was giving him a good old belly rub, and spotted a little black bug running for cover. Upon further examination much to my horror, my poor basset had fleas. Granted, I only found 3, but I figured those 3 would soon turn into 33 then 333, and I needed to get rid of them fast.  I bathed him with the vet recommended flea shampoo and even mixed in some tea tree oil. I applied the Frontline and did everything the Vet told me to do, except to flea bomb. I hate chemicals and tried to remain optimistic that those fleas hadn't laid their gross little eggs in my house (ya right). Leo never smelled better, never shined so silky and I crossed my fingers thinking I might be home free. Until just a couple of days later, the fleas returned, stronger and ANGRIER than ever. Again more baths and more flea treatments, a homemade citrus lemon spray, some vinegar on the coat, even some garlic in the food. Now I was out of my mind. Meanwhile,we vacuumed our entire house twice a day, every corner every crevice.  We washed every pillow, throw blanket, all the bedding and scrubbed all the couches inside and out. We treated the carpets with flea powder and did a lot of praying. Low and behold the SUPER FLEAS returned again and now the cat had them too. I quickly found out how much cats hate water. There I stood holding the drenched rat by the neck while his claws were out and he was GROWLING (yes cat's can GROWL) and hissing like a snake. His claw caught on to the towel and it was only a matter of minutes before it too, was submerged in the soapy water. It was a couple of grueling weeks for me and I'm not sure how I survived besides lots of breathing exercises and several glasses of wine.  As I sat there watching both my dog and my cat get bitten by these super fleas while wearing their Frontline, it infuriated me. I began to research like a mad scientist. Before long I was armed with more knowledge than an Entomologist. I knew way more about the life cycle of a flea than I ever cared to know in a lifetime. I lied awake many nights analyzing how I could fight to win. I was so grossed out when I heard that they laid little salt like particles (eggs) that were designed to not stick but roll right off the animal and into my couches and carpets. I also learned that the pupae stage could be immune to flea bombing because they had a hard shell coating that could live under your carpet fibers for up to 9 months in the right temperatures. Just when I was at the point where I thought I might burn my house to the ground, I discovered the wonder pill Capstar. I got the pills from my Vet. All I had to do was give each pet a pill and within 24 hours every stage of the flea would be dead. This however would not take care of the carpets. I applied Borax and Sea Salt to all my carpets, rubbed it into the fibers and let it sit overnight. This is supposed to dry out the flea eggs and prevent them from hatching. It is also said to penetrate the flea pupae, dehydrate and kill it.  24 hours after the Capstar, I treated each pet with Vectra topical ointment which I got from my vet. Again, I hate chemicals but I was truly at my wits end and felt so bad for my pets. In the end, I won the battle and I believe I owe it all to the Capstar.  Once they had it in their system, even if a flea jumped on them, they would die upon contact. It was MAGIC! I wouldn't use the Vectra again as both my pets got chemical burns on the site.  I did decide to try Advantage and I got it from 1-800 Pet Meds. It was very inexpensive, for a 6 month supply for each pet, I think it was around $70 total. This is their 5th month on it, and both have been fine, knock on wood. No burns, no issues and most importantly NO SUPER FLEAS!

Coconut Oil Touted as Alzheimers Remedy

Coconut Oil Touted as Alzheimers Remedy

Beware of Squirrels

One beautiful afternoon, I decided to take LEO to the Stadium to walk around the trails. Just at the mere mention of the word "walk" he is out of his mind! He jumps all over me and practically wags his tail right off.  He was so happy to be someplace new. All the amazing smells permeated that famous basset nose of his. Everything was going along just fine, too good actually. Until he spotted a squirrel. He took off running like a crazed man and for a little short dog, he is stronger than 10 giants. He caught me off gaurd and knocked me right to the ground. I am proud to say I never let go of the leash. Not so proud to say he dragged me 20 or 30 yards on my back while my shirt was inevitably yanked up and almost wrapped around my neck. We both survived but I was a little embarrassed when I noticed that the high school football team had shown up for practice and witnessed our seemingly entertaining ordeal. There was more than a little laughter going on at my expense but in the end I guess I'd say it was worth it because I never let go of that leash! :)

Melatonin for dog anxiety

It seems that every night Leo is waking up between 2 and 3am with random panic attacks.
His usual sleeping place is at the bottom of my bed on top of my feet. I've gotten used to having him sprawled out down there by now and I've even managed to tune out his fairly loud snoring. He used to only wake up in the night if there was a thunder storm or lightening. Even before the storm started, he would sense it and suddenly jump on top of my head panting hard, shaking, and drooling profusely.
I've tried a million things over the years to deal with the storm anxiety. I used to be up in the middle of the night fighting to put drops of rescue remedy into his mouth, he hated it. Sometimes I would put him into his crate thinking he would feel safe and confined. That didn't work. He would drool and pee so much that he would be drenched all the way up to his belly and ears. What a mess that was to clean up. I gave him all natural tablets bought at the local pet shop guaranteed to work. As mean as it sounds, I've tried putting him in the basement (it's dark down there, I figured he wouldn't see or hear the storm) that also didn't work. He peed all over the floors and barked at the top of his basset lungs until I gave in and got him out. Then it was back on top of my head, panting, shaking, he even drooled inside my ear once-gross! One night it got so bad and after exhausting all of the above methods, I was dead tired half asleep and decided to try putting him in the garage which is attached to our kitchen. I opened the door and much to my HORROR someone had left the garage door open to the driveway and out he went running down the street in sheer panic. It was 1am and there I am chasing him in my pajamas, crying at this point. For some strange reason there were 4 young guys playing hacky sack out in the street and all I remember seeing is Leo in the middle of their game while they all tried to catch him. He was running from one to the other and than the other as lightening decorated the sky. Poor Leo he was so terrified, he was delirious. I felt so lucky when he spotted me running toward him he turned and came straight to me and let me take him home. Usually on a good day, when he runs away, if he sees me coming, he will only run that much faster to get away. Leo's storm anxiety has gotten worse, not better over the years and it has expanded to not only thunder and lightening but to raindrops, wind, and loud noises in the dark. I believe I have added to his anxiety by putting him into the crate, cellar, or garage when he is in panic mode. I feel like the worst basset mom in the world, but I have to draw the line at DOG DROOL in my ear. This past month he has been waking up in the middle of the night for no reason. No wind, no rain, no storm, nothing. I figure he must wake up now expecting to be suddenly thwarted to the dungeon. (being a dog, how would he know that this only happens when he has panic attacks.  This kills me. :(  So now I've really created a monster.  This past month I have tried giving him Melatonin a half hour before bed. He has grown to like pill time because he knows he gets a good treat after he swallows it. I have also given him daily doses of St. John's Wort. What I have noticed is, his panic attacks in the night, have decreased and when he does experience one like he did last night. He is able to calm himself back down in about 5 minutes time and fall back asleep. I can feel him shaking on top of my legs but he is not panting heavily or drooling. The shaking doesn't bother me, except that I feel bad for him but at least he is snoring while shaking so I know he's not too bad off. So overall, so far, my consensus is the Melatonin/St. John's Wort combo is working fairly well for now.

Jade the puggle defeats and exhausts Leo again!

POOR LEO! His best friend Jade (a crazy but sweet little puggle came over tonight for a family birthday party. Jade has tons of energy and loves to tackle Leo. She dominates him in every way. Her entire body is only about the size of his head but she is full of fury. She is non-stop and doesn't let poor Leo get a minute's rest.

I am hoping he will sleep well tonight. I debated whether or not to give him his nightly dose of Melatonin, but why risk it? I need sleep too! Just incase, better to be safe than sorry when it comes to Leo.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Green beer would have been good today if I hadn't given up alcohol for Lent. Oh well, I had enough excitement to keep me from missing it too much today. Took a little road trip to Epping NH to meet my sister so I could take my IRISH TWIN nieces for a sleepover with my daughter who is the same age. All 3 girls were born in 11 month's time. I still don't know how my sister and I did that! Well most of the credit goes to her because she's the one who had two babies in 11 months, not me. She knew they were both girls ahead by ultrasound, I wasn't so lucky, my little girl had her hand in the way. It was a long wait but so happy it was a girl. This is the year they all turn 9! They look like triplets and they are always together. Today when we returned from the ride, we tried to take LEO for a walk, but he broke FREE and took off running so fast with the leash attached that he was gone before we could blink an eye. He ran across the street like lightening. His little legs were nothing but a blur. Anyone who thinks Bassets aren't fast, is mistaken, they are ridiculously FAST! He was gone. The girls decided they needed their sneakers for this mission. They wanted to run as fast as him so they'd have a chance to catch him. He looked so funny with the long retractable leash dragging behind him. My daughter opened my front door to grab her sneakers and OUT went the INDOOR cat! Oh my god, and did he RUN. He took off in the opposite direction! Now we had two runaways. The girls went one way after LEO and I went the other after BOO.  The girls came back a few minutes later with LEO in tow and I on the other hand found myself up a tree with an open can of tuna in hand.  We have coyotes in our neighborhood and my cat is fat and lazy and would never survive a minute out in the wild. I dragged his sorry butt out of that tree and brought him back in the house. The girls brought Leo in and we all breathed a sigh of relief! This probably would have been the time I would have had my green beer but cranberry lime seltza with a lemon had to suffice :) just another day in my crazy house!