Category Archives: weather weimaraner

June Gloom, Fireworks and Earthquakes

It’s June gloom in Santa Monica, I’m still headache hungover from the July 4th cacophony of noise and to top it off I’m queasy due to 2 earthquakes we had in the last 24 hours. Dad put my Thundershirt on me which helped a smidge. I’m sorry I’ve been MIA for a while. Mom has been crazy busy with trainings, patients and book writing and Dad has been taking some classes – hence less overall time with ME.

I’m not saying I’m that neglected but since it should be about ME all the time this has been a bit disconcerting.  To top it off I’ve developed a sore on my leg and I might have to go to the vet next week.  So things are pretty status quo around here unless you think earthquakes are exciting. Last might it was 7.1 and the house shook a LOT. We are thankful nothing happened or was broken. Dad has been praying.

Besides that all is well in the Dopart-Batchelor household.  We will try to write more often and hope all of you are having a nonevent summer – safer that way.

Much Love,

Perry
The Weather Weimaraner

It’s ALMOST Christmas!

It’s getting more interesting around Casa de Perry as we have this large plant in the middle of the living room with lots of interesting things hanging on it. It also glows and I’m fascinated by it all.  However, better than that Dad is cooking up all these fun foods and of course I get to sample MOST of what he cooks – I say most since not all – which I am bummed about but at least the scoobie snacks are more prevalent.

I’ve decided to calm down in my older days and sleep in since it’s been cold – even for Santa Monica. However, I am known as the “heater hog” as I put my face and eyes into whatever is warm. Dad keeps warning me that I’m going to burn my eye sockets out but I don’t think he realizes how us Weims are infallible – at least with respect to most things.

I have this thing on my body that keeps me warm but it’s a pain and I’m not loving it.  I am loving that the parentals have been around more than usual over the holidays and I’ve gotten TWO whole walks a day.  Besides the gentle-leader that I have a distaste for it’s great since people yell out the window of their car how beautiful I am as I prance by.

Hope you all have a Happy Holiday or Hanukkah – whichever you celebrate.  I celebrate all holidays as long as they involve treats.

Love Perry

Almost 7 Year Report Card

Hello Everyone,

It’s getting close to my 7 year birthday – well almost.  I’ll be 7 years old in January and sometimes I act my age but most of the time NOT! It drives the parentals crazy but it keeps me young. Mom has to have headshots in 2 weeks for her new website so she was practicing on me. I don’t like to have my picture taken as opposed to William Wegman’s Weims so she had to do a little convincing for this shot.

So in honor of my almost birthday my report card is as follows:

The things I am better at:

  1. I sleep in till 6:30 or 7 – this is a huge improvement from my 5-5:30 days of young
  2. Walking Mom to the door when she leaves in the am – I give her a sad look but she tells me her patients need her – what about me?
  3. I’m much more cuddly than I used to be but I still choose which days I want to be close or distant
  4. I’m great at communicating my needs!  Mom says it is not in a Motivational Interviewing way since I am not subtle when I want to be fed, covered, etc.

Things I still need improvement on:

  1. Pulling on the leash – I’m not sure this can get better especially if I see a squirrel
  2. Barking at dogs that do their business on my lawn – they are NOT being neighborly and I tell them so
  3. When I want to be covered up with a blanket in the middle of the night I go to one of the parentals and breathe hot panting air in their faces till they get up and cover me
  4. I am still the famous RELOCATOR of items. If I’m mad at Mom I’ll take her shoes in the backyard and hide them; I’ve been known to hide Dad’s wallet on occasion on the patio. I don’t damage anything – I just change the location and of course since I’m “just a dog” I can’t seem to remember where the item was relocated to!

So that’s the report. If you want to know more you’ll have to come for a visit. The weather in Santa Monica has finally become more temperate after our HOT summer weather and fall is finally in the air. Hope you all have a great fall and I’ll be in touch soon!

Love Perry

I’ve Graduated to a Shirt

I still have my licking problem with my incisions so now I’ve graduated to a shirt.  It’s not my friend since it’s TOO hot. What is this with the parentals trying to dress me up like a cabbage-patch doll?  However, one thing happened that was quite exciting and worth reporting. It was becoming dusk outside and Mom and Dad were talking about something and I saw noticed an unusual movement that captured my eye in the thick brush in MY backyard. Before they knew it I nearly knocked Mom over and dove deep into the bush, and captured whatever it was and NOW it was in my mouth.

I was a bit unsure what it was and tried to show the parentals my achievement. All I got from Mom was “crate, crate” and Dad saying “No, NOT in the house.”  I panicked and got mixed parenting signals so I dropped my trophy and ran into the house into my crate. I heard them later saying it was a possum and apparently it was playing dead, which they do, and then escaped since it was magically gone the next time I went outside. I think that was enough excitement for the week for everyone.

Life in the Dopart-Batchelor household has been nonstop with trainings, and projects but we wish you all well in the first half of the year and hope you are staying cool and safe.  The weather has been a bit more temperate thank goodness since our 100 year old house has NO AC.  Please still bring ice-cubes if you come – just sneak them to me so I don’t get in trouble.

Love Perry

I Had a Broken Tooth

My fragile tooth finally gave way and got infected from my brick chewing days.  Apparently I have CCD, also known as Canine Compulsive Disorder. In humans it’s known as OCD.  I don’t chase my tail like little dogs do but I do chew bricks and lick my skin which leads to things that are not good for me.  However, the licking sound makes Dad CRAZY so I am one up on that.

The day finally arrived to have my tooth fixed. I knew I was having dental surgery but I did NOT know I was having both of my armpits operated on since I had some growths that were getting bigger.  I realized all this when I woke up and had the cone of shame on again. I had a lot of bleeding the first day and I kept bumping into the walls with this piece of plastic they put around my head. I wasn’t feeling very good, even to the point that Dad slept with me on the floor.  I had to be hydrated with a syringe that was apparently left over from George days – a cat that I could have done some damage to if I had the chance.

There were complications with my stitches and I had to wear these appliances for a LONG TIME! I’ve been irritated and it’s been super hot in LA and that has made everyone in the Dopart-Batchelor household on edge – please bring ice cubes if you decide to visit.  Oops – I forgot I’m not allowed to have ice cubes because of my fragile teeth – it’s no fun getting older!

Love Perry

I’m SIX Years OLD!

I’m SIX: I’m finally at the “supposed to be” calming stage that most dogs hit at two but somehow it just hasn’t quite happened yet. I LOVE to exercise and get in my walks and still have lots of energy to spare. I’m way more energetic than the parentals but that’s not saying much since they are both almost a 1/2 a decade old.

My birthday was coming and I was feeling a little down and all of a sudden I smelt something or should I say I HEARD something and then I knew “the Tutu” was coming.  For most of you that don’t know this girl she is sort of this bossy gal who makes a lot of noise and steals my toys. I do secretly kind of like her, but I heard her coming and braced myself for the unexpected.  She came bearing birthday gifts from Beverly Hills so I must have done something right. These cookies were SO fancy that Dad even tried to eat one.  But we had to make sure that these fancy show cookies from Pussy Pooch were gluten-free as I am SENSITIVE and had a bad reaction in the past. But Tutu’s Mom made sure they were okay – she hooked me up with some birthday fun so I’m feeling better now.

Once we got the okay I was able to have a pre-birthday cookie in sheer SIX year old fashion – I chose the pretty blue star and here I am anticipating the deliciousness I am about to experience in my mouth. Life has been good in the Dopart-Batchelor house and I’ve missed all of you. As usual lots going on with books, trainings and work but I’m just glad to be a part of it all.

Happy New Year to all of you in 2018!

Love,

Perry

P.S. – I almost forgot my weather report. After only .12 inches of rain all year we are about to get a deluge of 2 inches so hopefully my back yard will start to turn from brown to green!

Hello Holiday People!

img_5431Yep, I am slowly getting into the mood of the holidays even with getting a late start. First the parental units decided to explore India and I did NOT get to go. They sent me to camp which meant no Thanksgiving treats. So I am late to the party of healthy holiday snacks.

Mom and Dad decided to go on a research outing that consisted of cultural adventure and vegetarian eating. They are currently working on a new cookbook and wanted to research spices, ideas for recipes and diversity to peoples eating choices on this side of the world.

That’s OK cause I am not really into vegetarian food unless it has broccoli in it as the crowns are my favorite.

However, I was a little jealous when I heard about all of the animals especially the dogs. I overheard Mom talk about one friendly dog where they stayed that would follow her around in the morning.  She was bragging that he was not even on a leash and just went where she went. What! Someone moving in on my property!  I was not happy about that.

fullsizerenderI also heard that most of the animals roam around like people without being tethered to anything. Maybe I should go to India since the animals seem to be the bosses – that would be the ultimate holiday gift!

And…there was a dog on one of their flights. Now that would have made me crazy to have to hold it that long so it’s probably better I stayed home.  24 hours of travel would have been a bit much both ways but then again I would have loved to roam the aisles of Air France eating all the leftovers from everyone who did not want their meal.

The one highlight upon coming home is there is a new puppy in our neighborhood – she’s a 10 week old Great Dane and Mom and I got to play with her on our walks the last 2 days. Hmm – maybe I can coax Dad into getting me a puppy for Christmas.

Love,

Perry

Back from my Trip!

IMG_2789It has been a long time People! I almost forgot my writing stuff when I was in the country for a couple of weeks.

You may know that the parental units had a conference in Germany so while they were gone I got a vacation from THEM. It is always nice to be able to run in the country and hang out with my friends. I even lost some weight, showing how even canines can lose weight given the right amount of activity and I don’t even need a FibBit!

Speaking about loss we lost a couple of family members, Grandma Dopart and Aunt Mary within 2 weeks time. This has been a sad time so I have been giving Mom extra snuggles to comfort her.  Mom told me Grandma would always ask how the “puppy” was – little did she realize I am beyond the size of any puppy!

This week I have been doing better with my interior barking at the outside dogs. There was a couple of times that the neighbor dog, Henry, my new nemesis was peeing on my bushes in the front and I did not bark.

Dad was excited and gave me one of the Dental Bones from Mercola, which is not only tasty but healthy for my teeth. Little does he know I am really training him! WINK!  I stole the box off the counter and Mom caught me but I was disappointed there was none left so helpfully they will buy me more.

The weather continues on a schizophrenic course of being hot and humid. Maybe we will not have fall?

OK folks, have a great week and remember to be safe and responsible this Halloween. I am saying ahead of time I will not dress up this year and if Dad tries to put a costume on me again I will hide in rebellion.

Happy Fall!

Love,

 

Perry

Road Trip

IMG_4181Yep that is right folks – Dad and I took a road trip. Just us guys and boy did we have fun, a little bit of trouble and a lot of homesickness for Mom.

Every year Dad takes me on an excursion to help with training and to get me adjusted more to different situations. I think he just likes to mess with my routine. Nonetheless, I find this outings pretty cool and I am always up for an adventure.

This trip was no exception…as you can see while we were supposed to be cleaning out a Koi pond I decided to “fall” in. I was so scared I just stood there and let all the fish nibble on my long legs. It was a hot day and unfortunately I smelled like the fish after this “swim.”

This trip involved more meet and greets of different animals and lots of children. Of course I was on my bestest behavior.

I did get the chance to hang out at my SLO town club – Thousand Hills Pet Resort. They were very nice and hooked me up with an awesome bath and trimmed my nails perfectly. If you are ever in that area check them out – it helped not to smell like fish for the remainder of the trip, and yes, I do get my omega 3’s elsewhere and had no interest in the fish.

Needless to say, once I got in the car to come home I crashed and for the last few days I have been very mellow and calm. I did hear the parentals talk about how the trip was a success. This makes me glad but I still don’t like long car rides.

The weather is odd here in Santa Monica…balmy, humid, and a little rainy and today the temperature in my casa is 85 degrees, which I am not happy about, but at least I’m home where I love to be.

Peace Out,

Perry