Raw Food Diet, Day 560- It's That Time of Year

To all our feaster friends: Your beastly buds,
Stanislaw and Big Pupi

Raw Food Diet, Day 591- Beasts and Their Boats

***
Big Pupi talks about his big day:

I had SUCH AN EXCITING day today! But before I get into that, I'll give you a little update on my brother~
Stanley has been on his medication for over a week now, and boy-oh-boy is it helping! The intense snoozely side effects passed after only 2 days, and since then he's been steadily climbing uphill. Mom hasn't caught him doing one single fly-biting twitch, and although he still whines a lot he doesn't really scream anymore when outside. Also, when we are out for our runs about town my people are able to get Stanley to "watch me" and "sit, wait" when we're stuck at a red light. It's fairly easy to get his attention now! He'll even "come, sit" during our potty walks outside! (All for cheese and beefy jerky, of course.)

My bro is still a wild and wacky, hyperactive cocker spaniel, but that dark, manic part of his personality is fading. He just seems happier - lighter, almost. Furthermore, Stan will begin a compulsive behavior and then never follow through with it. For example, he'll look into the TV to see the reflection, and instead of getting all crazed and obsessed he'll just sniff and walk away. Same goes with his bark park patterns - he'll go to one of his "stations" out of what looks like habit, and the compulsion to run his pattern never actually kicks in. He'll stand there for a moment before turning and looking for a fellow party animal to thrash with. Normally we'll lose him to one of his triggers and patterns, and never really get him back for the rest of the day. It's AMAZING! My folks are so proud of him.
He's been getting extra squenches and snugs for being so Good Boy-ish. I'm jealous! My people are going to try their best to keep from pushing him too far too fast, and we still have another 2 weeks before the Prozac builds up in his body. They will develop a training plan once they see where he's at then.

Now onto his more intelligent and gracious older brother ... ahem, ME.

Today I got to go on a doggy boat cruise with my fellow therapy dog friends! Mom and I got up nice and early to make it to the ticket booth on time, then I got to shake my tail feathers at these awesome canines while we waited to board.
There were SO MANY lady chihuahuas also in line that were not with our group. I was in HEAVEN!! I LOVE wee lady chihuahua doggettes! I made sure to flex my rippling muscles and prance all manly-like to convince them of my beastliness.

I was determined to snag a seat at the front of the boat so that I could get first dibs on any stinks and smells. But first, I made sure to ask mom if it was okay with her that I sit on her lap for the ENTIRETY of the 90-minute trip.
I didn't like this dog too much because he kept trying to break into mom's bag and eat all my Good Boy cheese bit treats, but I have to admit - dude could pose for some good photo ops.It was gloriously sunny and I relaxed under the toastiness of the sun's rays.On our exit from the river in to the lake, we saw these crazy bee-hive buildings. Can you imagine the size of those bees!! I've eaten a few bees in my lifetime and let me tell you... those guys are SPICY!!Once in the lake we saw my aquarium and stadium (I have weebled on the lawns and therefore they belong to me.) I prefer to call them the Underwater Feasting Center and Supreme Dog Park.
I became very interested in this crazy ball/balloon thingy and wondered what king of fetch is played with something that large. I figured it was probably Great Dane sized but didn't smell any horse dogs on the horizon. I was confused.
The ball got even bigger the closer we got to Navy Pier (also mine).
Our human boat speaker guy said that this lighthouse was once rented to a human for $1 a year as long as he took care of the lighthouse. He lived there for a few years before being evicted for being too much of a party animal. I wonder if he ever met Stanley.
These onlookers were all juicy and delicious. I took much interested in both of them, but they honked at me in mocking since I couldn't actually give chase.
This is Merchandise Mart. It was built by Marshall Fields as a place for all Chicago merchants to sell their wares. Its grand opening took place about 90 hours before Black Friday, after which the building went bankrupt. Fields had to sell the building to the Kennedy family for about $12 million in cheese money. They held the building for over 60 years before selling it to another company for over $700 million. I wonder how many chickens and goats you can buy with that...
This building was the famous Sears Tower, but now it's called the Willis Tower. I hope my name never gets changed like that! There are also rumors that it will be turned silver. Remind me to weeble on this one later.Towards the end of our visit I spotted the most important and well-named landmark of all~~ this boat!!Our boat eventually docked and I said bye to my buddies. Mom and I headed home and I did a little of this:That is... until I saw her giving some unearned attention to Stanislaw. So I grabbed a piece of cardboard from the rubbish and pranced about trying to steal her attention away.
It worked! I was so Good Boy today that I DESERVE all of the attention!
We hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

Snoozeling with my cardboard,
Big Pupi

Raw Food Diet, Day 560- Celebratory Feasting!

***
Big Pupi is PUMPED!!!

DUDES!!!!! It's my birthday today! This national holiday totally snuck up on me, but fear not... I didn't waste a moment of this super day of beasting.

For starters, Stanislaw and I were exploring the crazy fun possibilities of things known as "wedding presents." I used to think they were totally lame and could not comprehend why my people wanted things like plates and lamps. I mean... all they need is ONE bowl the feast out of all the time. DUH!! But all this stink-o stuff comes wrapped in a mountain-sized pile of shreddable goodness! Finally I understand my folks' reasoning behind this so-called "gift giving." They want some rad ripping materials!

To help our folks get started, Stan and I emptied one entire box full of paper and packing and decorated the office while my people weren't home. Mom was so surprised! She LOVES and ADMIRES our interior design skillz. I have to admit... Stan and I were rather impressed by our handiwork. It looks FABULOUS!! I did a thrashing of my pelican stuffy to celebrate our great success.
Then Stan gave me a few birthday face-smacking bum-slaps and we play bowed and growly-wrastled a little in our gorgeous pile of confetti.

Next up came my birthday feast. WOOHOO! Mom got some DELISH plain frozen yogurt and crunchy dehydrated salmon pieces.
Stan and I watched in anticipation. How would she do it? Salmon on top? On the bottom? Mixed in? Oh, we could hardly do our Sit Like Good Boy long enough to earn our treats!
Salmon crunchies on TOP!! Fishy sprinkles! This just so happens to be my FAVORITE!!! How did she know??
No time for singing birthday songs. Lets feast! Feast! FEAST!
Stanislaw sported a fancy schmancy ice cream beard. He tried to slurp it all off before dad attacked him with a paper towel. Paper towels must be hungry creatures - they're always taking food from my brother's schnozzle.
These were my thoughts on the meal:
After all that shredding, human crate thrashing (video to come soon), brotherly wrastling, hard-core frozen fishy delight feasting and general party animalness, I was one POOPED little man. And what's a tired boy to do?
Yup. Sit on the Good Boy Sofa Spot (I can't be naughty while my people are home!) and grip my sleepy-time Nylabone in my feasting hole. Ahhh.

'Twas a good day, folks. And all your birthday well-wishes made it even better.
This 6-year old is checking OUT.

Big Pupi

Raw Food Diet, Day 462- Polish Constitution Day!

***
Big Pupi reports on his event:

Oh my feasting, my fellow canines. Thursday was a big day for me!

The day started off a little iffy, as it was raining cats outside and mom was none too happy since my yellow-ish fur had been scrubbed and groomed to fluffy white perfection. As we geared up for a wet walk to the AwesomeMobile, mom snuck up behind me and slipped this horrible, rubbery contraption over my head~I've seen this so-called "rain coat" hanging in the closet, but I've never had to actually put it on. It was a little embarrassing for us both to be seen about town with me in that ridiculous get-up, but it kept my back and neck dry and clean for my therapy show debut.

When we arrived at the school I was CRAZY pumped and wiggling like a mad man. I saw my therapy lady friend Daisy and we said our bum-sniffing Hello's and made our way to the library. It was going to be a smaller crowd than we had geared up for, but that was okay... I hadn't figured out how I was going to get belly rubs from 200 people! Boggles the mind.

Here was our set-up:
Mom and I walked a few laps around the room so I could sniff EVERYTHING and get into the right mindset for the event. Then we did a few practice tricks and before we knew it, the room was flooded with people all speaking in high voices to me and getting me all snarzely and crazed again.

Once the room was full (very full - there were humans in the seats, humans on the floor... people everywhere!), we made our introductions and took some volunteers to the front of the room. We had a mock therapy session with the volunteers and explained the purpose behind certain tricks and how different types of interaction help people with different illnesses and special needs. We were even able to slip in some real therapy work, and had 3 girls take part that were TERRIFIED of dogs. They each said that they were bitten or attacked by large-breed dogs and haven't been near another canine since. I focused a lot of time on them, and by the end of our 30 minute presentations one girl was walking me around the room on my leash and another was letting me take treats from her hand. At the very end of a session, the first girl even snuck in and gave me head scritches! It was a very successful day.

Daisy and I did two 30-minute presentations and each time the room was overflowing with humans. We both were very good dogs and earned lots of treats and even more pets and belly rubs. At the end of each show, every single human rushed the front of the room and I was drowning in hands and pets. It was SO AWESOME! At one point I jumped on to a chair so the folks in the back of the pack could reach me too. That was the BEST reward of all.

Although we weren't able to get photos during the event, I can tell you that my tail was waggling at super sonic speeds - so fast the camera couldn't catch it!After the event I was POOPED and snoozeled in the car on the way home. All together we were at the event for 4 hours, and it's EXHAUSTING having to be 100% Good Boy for that long! I snored like a beast in the AwesomeMobile, and was so happy to see my comfy sofa snoozel spot when we got home. Stanislaw was kind enough to keep it warm for me while I way away, and I kicked his skinny bum out of it and went down for nappies. I needed my rest for Friday's fast hunt and the big event on Saturday. I'll let my bro fill you in on that one.

Later Feasters,
Big Pupi

***
Stanislaw chomping on pierogies:

Yesterday was a big day for me - Polish Constitution Day! It's a day for celebrating my namesake and the co-author of the Constitution, Stanislaw, and the day the document was adopted - May 3, 1791. There's a huge parade in honor of that event, and folks fill my territory wearing red and white and speaking a language that I don't understand. But I love it!

Big Pupi - the Irish son (note the freckles and greying hair) - donned his festive harness and a blinking red light for the parade~
~while I got to wear my totally awesome Polish Eagle shirt with my name written in bright red letters underneath. My bro and I couldn't wait to hit the streets and be the center of attention like we were last year.
It was a gorgeous sunny day. Absolutely perfect for parading. Big Pupi really enjoyed the show and lots of people on the parade floats called out to us and got us really excited.
We saw the Flag of Poland everywhere~
~and there were tons of human puppies performing dances and wearing the country's colors. I even got to wipe my slobbery tongue all over one of the kids when she was done parading and she laughed and spoke to me in Polish. She tasted just like human puppy!
Eventually we had to leave the parade because the horsiffers (police officer horses) came in and made Big Pupi get all Naughty Boy and start screaming. He really HATES those stinky beasts!
But before we left I got to see the awesome Feasting Goat of Poland (I'm almost positive that's what it was there to represent)~
So many people took photos of me and got crazy excited when they heard my name. More often than not the humans would point to a man in the crowd and say "He is Stanislaw too!" I had no idea that people liked my name so much! The whole day made me really hot but really happy.
As if my day couldn't get any better, on the way home I found what I'm certain would have been my new BEST BESTEST BETTEREST friend in the whole wide world!!!!
I became possessed by his awesomeness and couldn't move or take my eyes off his fuzzy face. My annoying parents said that I wasn't allowed to hold him in my mouth (he told me he wanted me to hold him!) or even get close enough to give him a good sniff. NOT FAIR! I could tell he was lonely lying on the streets and I would have taken such good care of him if I were only allowed to bring him home. Parents just don't get it. I LOVE animals and I just wanted to play with Mr. Ratbutt for a little while. They dragged me away and I will never forgive them for it.

Neither will Mr. Ratbutt - I'm sure of it.

But at least I got my parade and chance to party with the Polish humans. That was pretty awesome! And boy was I a tired beast when I got home. I joined Big Pupi on the sofa and dreamt of feasting on pierogies with Mr. Ratbutt. I had mine with cheese on top, but he ate his with a nice garbage sauce. That's my kind of guy!

I am planning a parade in Mr. Ratbutt's honor.
Stanislaw

Raw Food Diet, Day 443- The Feaster Party Continues

Hey bloggerini dudes! Ready for my (F)Easter Extravaganza part deux? I totally am. Let's rock.

Dad rolled out of bed at the crack of noon and I greeted him in my usual mom- and dad-greeting way~~which, according to Niamh's human, means I'm being a polite little man. Heck yeah! Although I don't know why humans think I'm being so nice. I'm just hoisting my little bum into the air for some butt-scritches. It works every time! I have my folks SO well trained.

Notice my summer shaved belly? It feels SO GOOD! I even helped mom get the clippers into my leg pits to remove all that knotty fuzz. I feel like a beast and can run like the wind! Everything was taken down on us except for our legs because dad says we have chicken legs without that fur on them and he doesn't like the way that it looks. NO WAY dad. I don't have bird legs! And you KNOW what I do to bird parts! This is 100%, Grade-A Beast!

Speaking of bird parts, Big Pupi and I got an Easter package in the mail from our grandhumans. It included a massive dark chocolate bunny which my people put way up high on a shelf in the pantry. Hey folks... how am I supposed to get it there? That package was for BEASTS, not for you! Anyway, I forgot all about that feasting bunny when these 2 squeaky stuffies appeared:
Dangly stuffiness! I LOVE dangly stuffies! They're perfect for tuggin' with dad~
And they offer awesome grabbage opportunities for stealing them from my brother. But if I manage to pull that off, he always thrashes me and takes the toy back. For the most part I've learned my lesson and don't usually try to steal stuffies from him anymore, but sometimes when I've got an extra snarzle in my bum I can get a little wild. I pooble on Consequence!

(Notice my dad's FABULOUS stinky sock in the background? I STOLE it from the hamper!)

My dorkus bro got a sweater from mom on Easter, and despite the fact that it was 50 degrees outside she made him try it on. HA! What a nerd-bomb!
Mom liked the way Paisley's sweater turned out so much, that she made a dude version for my bro. It fits him like a glove, which means that he can never get it dirty because it'll probably shrink a little when it's washed. Bad planning mom! We're ALWAYS dirty! She also forgot to put any collar or harness holes in it so it's pretty much useless for any outdoor, leash-required activities. Maybe he can wear it to a party or something. AS IF people would invite that nerd to a party! Ha! Everyone knows that I'm the party animal in this house. I mean, just look at the depth of his dweebiness~
There's another sweater in the works for me that has a squirrel and acorn pattern going on. I think it sounds delicious. Then mom might make ANOTHER one for Big Pupi that will be a bit more useful (read: looser in the body with a harness hole). Right! She ALWAYS finds a way to screw these things up!

Does anyone have any pattern ideas for Big Pupi's next sweater? Right now we're thinking of another black number with white lightening bolts on it. But we're excited to see what you think!

Feast hard, fellas.
Stanislaw

A funny faux-article for all you dog bloggers!

Raw Food Diet, Day 440- Bunny Bum-Biting Day

Raw Food Diet, Day 429- Double Feasting Points and a Triple Beast Score

***
Big Pupi is catching y'all up on the goings-on:

Heya dudes! Lots has been going on here and I'm a bit behind on my blogging. Or shall I say that my wacky, ill-trained humans are behind on typing out my dictations. I wonder if Naimh teaches a brush-up obedience class for humans?

Anyway... it's time for some PetExpo news! On March 21, my mom and I drove all the way out to Arlington Park racetrack. I was in the TakeMeToFunPlacesMobile for over an hour which was TOTALLY awesome and I got to protect my vehicle from some dangerous looking joggers as we made our way through the suburbs. We arrived at the beautiful grounds on a perfectly sunny Saturday.
Inside the pavilion there were oodles of bipeds milling about and 2 floors of non-stop animal action. There were sections of toys, treats, and lots and lots of booths filled with dogs, cats, ferrets and birds all up for adoption. Needless to say, each and every one of the humans from Cocker Spaniel Rescue came and oogled over yours truly. I found the ferret folks to smell the MOST interesting. I could pick them out of the crowd with my specialty ferret-sniffing schnozzle.
This was our booth. I saw lots of my good therapy buddies and met a couple new ones, including a gigando 140 lb great dane. I practically had to stand on my nails to get a whiff of that bum. It smelled really laid back.
I had to wear my uniform with these fancy pockets that humans used to slip me a dollar or two and make donations. I was super good at wiggling my way across the floor and earning those bills. It was a tad confusing, however, because money is NOT tasty and I was certainly NOT allowed to shred it.

Because my excitement level was at 1,000%, I got to make frequent trips to the potty zone outside which was just COATED in good smells from other Expo critters.
Whenever we'd go outside I was allowed to be all crazy-bum, but as soon as we walked through those doors it was all "Heel" and "be Have" and "Don't eat that human puppy's cookie." Whatever! I'm cute and that kid totally wanted to give me that chocolate cookie.
I was scheduled to work with my buddy Mike and together we had a really good gimmick going on. Lots of folks thought that Mike was my mom and I was his wee springer spaniel puppy. It got us some serious attention and pets which was totally sweet, but c'mon guys... we all know that Mike is MY doppelgänger. Big Pupi is an original!
Mike and I were scheduled to work for almost 4 hours, and let me tell you~
I am either at full speed or I'm asleep when it comes to these kinds of situations and I was not able to survive so many hours of that stimulation and attention. The last hour of the event was spent in mommy's arms with my legs hanging all dangly-like. Only my head was still mobile and I'd stick out the ol' mohawk for some scritches whenever some nice human folk made eye contact. I don't even remember the car ride home but I'm sure that was pretty awesome too. I'm surprised we made it back in one piece without me guarding the vehicle from bi-ped trespassers! I guess mom barked and thrashed the scary ones away so that I could get some nappies.

In the days after the event, Stanislaw and I have heard mumblings about us moving and little by little all of the silly stuff our folks crowd our apartment with is disappearing. It's great! Lots of room for games of chase and I can REALLY get into a good post-feast stuffy thrashing now. The downside is that our people are either coming and going all day long, or they're missing for hours. From what I gather, they've been spending their time smearing this stinky colored stuff on the walls. This new territory sounds GREAT! Stinky stuff on the walls?! I hope it's tasty!

To keep ourselves occupied in all this down time, Stanislaw and I have been exercising our noggins and playing some rousing games of Scrabble.
I totally kicked his bum. I had like a gazillion feasting points if I added correctly (and I always do).
Stan did well for a first time Scrabbler, but it took a while for it to sink into his head that "FEAST" is not spelled with a "Q" or a "W." And I guess when I first invited him to play the game he thought we were eating scrabbled eggs, not playing a board game. Dude needs to get out more.

We should be all done and moved by this Saturday and we'll be catching up with all our blogging beastly buddies soon!

Happy fWeastQing!
Big Pupi