Saturday, December 25, 2010

Dear Santa

Dear Santa,
Thank you for my cool new Stunt Puppy StuntRunner leash in the custom size for a big guy like me






and I really liked my Wonky Dog, it was great fun ripping it apart.




I had a great Christmas! I got a bear and a stocking full of toys to shred from Nala
and an awesome Christmas collar from Bertha


 


For breakfast CM made me my own little pancake.


I hope everyone had a Very Merry Christmas!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Ouch 2

Talk about Deja Vu: http://blinddogsrule.blogspot.com/2010/01/10510.html
If you read the post from January it is exactly what happened tonight but instead of Dr. Gerity I saw Dr. Phillips and it was early enough that I got an appointment so it didn't have to be an emergency visit. AP says I am not allowed to play on that field with Nala when the weather is cold and the ground is so hard. Everyone was so nice and fussed over me and fed me cookies but 3 Dr. visits in 2 days is too much for me so I am going to bed.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

9 Month Checkup and What is That on My Butt?

I got to see Dr. Weigt at Animal Eye Care Associates today and she checked my Bionic Eye and was really happy at how it is doing. She checked the pressure in my good/bad eye and it was up a little but nothing to worry about. She said my eye is stable and should not cause me any problems. I still have to get a drop of medicine in it every night which I don't like much but I can deal with it if it keeps my eye in check. Everyone fussed over me and I got some treats so it was all good!
Next up was Dr. Daher at Greater Annapolis Veterinary Hospital to check out this cyst thing on my left hind end, right before my tail. It has been there for a long time but lately I am very interested in it. To get to it I have to twist myself like a pretzel and then I walk around and around in a circle bouncing off the walls and the sofa. I almost fell down the steps so AP said we had to come get it checked out. Dr. Daher gave me some numbing medicine and then flushed it out and packed it with some other numbing stuff and some medicine to help it heal. Everyone fussed over me and I got some more treats but I was ready to be done with Dr.'s for the day.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Whew What a Weekend

I was so busy this weekend.
Saturday morning I played with Nala at the park and later when I went out for my afternoon walk I ran into Santa Claus. The fire department was driving him through the neighborhood so that the reindeer can rest up for the big night. He was right down the street with all my kids handing out candy canes. I got to say hi and see my kids which was very cool. I told him I was sorry about my temper tantrum the other night and I would be good the rest of the week.




On Sunday morning I ran into my friend Jim who always has treats in his pocket and he gave me 2. When I got to the park Cooper was there. I haven't played with Cooper in a long time and we had so much fun.When I got home I wrestled with CM and followed her around the house for most of the morning. Around 2 I wanted to go for another walk so AP and I went out for about an hour or so. None of my friends were out and I didn't want to go home so I kept trying to back track and go down streets we don't normally go down.AP finally caught on that I was stalling and made me go home. She reminded me that I had told Santa I would be good.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Polar Dog

AP here: If you follow the blog regularly you know that Tonka and I walk everyday, twice a day, pretty much no matter what. The only things that can stop us are illness, injury or major weather event. We are like the postal service! Usually the illness or injury if on my side and our awesome support team of friends and family make sure that Tonka still gets his walks. Tonka considers major weather events to be things like tornado, flash flood or heavy rain (Tonka hates the rain). We don't walk in tornado's or flash floods but we do walk in rain and in a downpour I have a golf umbrella that I hold over the Tonka Man and a great raincoat for me.  If you share your life with a polar Pyrenees then you also know that they think bitter cold windy days are the best with only one thing that can top temperatures in the teens- SNOW! My first Pyr Myatuk would go out and dance when the snow first starting falling. Just the sight of the wonderful white flakes falling would set her into the happy dance. With Tonka it has to actually be on the ground otherwise it's just cold rain falling since he can't see the difference. Yesterday was the first snow here and he was beside himself. He ran and pranced, head and tail as high as he could get them unfortuantely it was too dark to get a picture of us running down the street to get to the field to play but believe me he was one happy boy.

Monday, December 13, 2010

Temper Tantrum

AP here: Tonka decided that he wanted the empty coffee cup from the recycling bag in the kitchen. He picked it out of the bag and walked into the living room with it. I took it away from him and he disappeared back into the kitchen. There he proceeded to throw a fit until he wore himself out. This is what CM and I found when we went into the kitchen.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Happy Birthday Tonka

AP here: Today Tonka is approximately 3 years old. When I adopted him he was about 4 months old so the staff at Greater Annapolis gave him Pearl Harbor Day as his birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TONKA MAN!

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Stick Fu

I love sticks and have become quite good at a form of martial arts known to dogs as Stick Fu. I spent this morning practicing at the field.






AP gets mad when I accidently hit her in the legs with the stick!

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Middleburg Christmas Parade 2010

I had a great time today at the parade. All my friends were there both human and Pyrenees. I walked with AP and CM walked my first girlfriend Bertha.
Thats Bertha with her mom Nancy in the red coat.
There were 54 of us big white dogs in the parade including Mr. Bean in his cart.

I was very tired at the end of the day since AP and I had already went for a walk at 5:00am so I fell asleep in the Wylie Wagg store using some of my new friends as a pillow.
You can see more pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonka_dog/sets





 

Thursday, November 25, 2010

LIAM

Our buddy Liam is here for a visit and we are having lots of fun.

He loves playing with my toys


It took him a little while to remember how to go up and down all the steps and out the doggie door.



Nala comes by and we wrestle in the back yard and today we met her at the park and spent some quality sniffing time.


Liam waiting to go for a walk



Saturday, November 20, 2010

Thanksgiving Day Parade

I was in the Montgomery County Thanksgiving Parade in Silver Spring today with my AGPR friends.
We had to wait in a parking garage to line up and we had a dance troupe in front of us and they gave us lots of attention.
Sylvie

Bertha and Art


Hanging out


SugarBear




Ready to Roll

We were on TV.....

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Count Tonkula at Alphatechpet

Our dear friend Donna at http://www.goldenretreat4k9s.com/ entered Tonka into a Halloween Contest at Alphatechpet.com (they specialize in environmentally safe disinfecting & cleaning products for the animal care industry) and he won. If you are on Facebook you can see him and all the other great contestants at their page. The two other Pyrs in the pictures are his friends Charlemagne and Kaiser also from Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Upcoming Events for AGPR

Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue is going to be in a Thanksgiving Parade and a Christmas Parade.
Please join us!

Click to see our events!

Monday, November 15, 2010

"Beef" It's what I stole for Dinner!

AP  here: Tonka was at the beach this weekend and we took him to Concord Pet Supply to do a little shopping. We were coming up an aisle with lots of good treats like freeze dried liver and sweet potato fries when all of a sudden he grabbed a container off the shelf (knocking over quite a few other containers in the process). He thn proceeded to beeline to the front of the store up the aisle with the container in his jaws. The store clerks were all laughing at him trotting to the checkout carrying his prize. When I got it out of his mouth I saw that it was freeze dried beef steak pieces. Tonka does not get much beef but I figured I would go ahead and get it for him since he had picked it out on his own. When we got to the truck I gave him a piece and he devoured it and stuck his head up looking for more. He really likes beef! The next day we were outside working at cleaning up the place with the hose going. Tonka hates water especially from a garden hose. Tonka was sleeping inside and I did here him bark once or twice and opened the door to tell him we were still cleaning and he settld back down- or so I thought. When we were finished I opened the door and went inside and what do you think I found? The rotten boy had taken the container off the counter and opened it, he ate all 8 ounces and licked it clean. So while everyone was working hard Tonka was having an 8oz steak dinner.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Canine Good Citizenship

Today AP and I went to a park in the truck. I had never been there before but it was really nice and had lots of people and a few dogs to meet. We met a CGC Evaluator there and I had to do a bunch of stuff and get evaluated. I passed and am now a Canine Good Citizen. http://www.akc.org/events/cgc/training_testing.cfm

My evaluator Joy Freedman is a Dog Behaviorist and Obedience instructor and has been on local radio programs and writes for magazines like the Baltimore Dog Magazine

http://www.4pawspetservices.com/

Now I have to keep training to pass another test and become a therapy dog. Then I can go visit people in places where they don't get to keep dogs all the time like hospitals and nursing homes.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Canine Good Citizenship

I have been practicing and AP thinks I am ready to test and get my Canine Good Citizen Certificate
http://www.akc.org/events/cgc/index.cfm. This is the first step in becoming a therapy dog http://www.tdi-dog.org/ -wish me luck!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Tonka and Auggie

I got to play with Auggie at the beach and his humans Lorri and Linds. We had a great time but it was very windy. Then we had breakfast at the bandstand and walked around window shopping until it started raining really hard. hopefully we can get together again soon.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Christmas Parade

I just found out I am going to be in the Middleburg Christmas Parade on December 4th. This is the parade that AGPR participates in every year. Last year we had 40 Pyrenees walking down the main street of Middelburg. This year we are shooting for 60 which will be an amazing sight to behold. It is even more amazing that all the dogs are rescues that AGPR has saved and adopted out. Middleburg is a very quaint small town and a great place to visit year round but at Christmas they really do it up. So if you want to see 3 tons of Pyrs (which is what 60 dogs would roughly work out to) in a great parade and enjoy a day in small town America then join us in Middelburg on the 4th.

From the Middleburg Calendar of Events:
http://www.middleburgonline.com/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=789

At 11:00 a.m. the Middleburg Hunt takes to the streets creating a spectacular site as horses, riders in red coats and dozens of hounds come through the town. Immediately following the Hunt, the Middleburg Christmas Parade features a unique assortment of floats, marching bands, local community groups, antique fire trucks, and a variety of animals including horses, llamas and dogs. Santa brings up the rear riding on a beautiful horse drawn coach. Throughout the day there are hayrides, choir performances, the Garden Club's Christmas Flower & Greens Show and the Craft Show. Visitors enjoy shopping and dining in Middleburg's shops and restaurants.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Daily Tip

If your human is sleeping in and keeping you waiting for your morning walk and you have pulled out all the tricks:


licking face

whining

barking

Try chewing very loudly on the doorframe outside the bedroom. I guarantee that will get them up! Just make sure to belly up and look real cute when they come to scold you for being such a brat.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Count Tonkula

From the castle in "Pyrsylvania" Count Tonkula arrives:




Pretty Scary Looking Isn't He?

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Peanut

I met a new friend at the beach. His name is Peanut and I got down really low so that he would know I was a dog and not a bear because he is a little guy.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

FUN!

I started off today playing on the beach wearing my new visor that Carolyn from http://carolynsoriginals.weebly.com/ made for me. It's really awesome an AP made me wear my sunglasses because it was really windy.
I had a great time chasing and attacking CM we played 1, 2, 3 and duck, duck, goose.

Then we had breakfast at the bandstand and went shopping. It is CM's birthday so we went to Silver Works because that is her favorite jewelry store. I like it there since I get to go in the store and hang out.
Then we went to Odysea to find me a new beach collar to go with my new visor. Rick was working and he and I are great friends. I always stop by to see him and say hello (and get a treat or 2).

I was so tired when we got home I didn't want to get out of the truck.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

A Look Back

AP here.
Tonka has been very busy traveling quite a bit this summer. You can read all about traveling with your dog and get some great tips from our friend Raja's blog at http://www.traveldogbooks.com/
Raja was even nice enough to let us tell Tonka's story on his blog to perhaps help others dealing with canine blindness.

Thanks to all of you that are voting to help us win money for the rescue that Tonka came from. They are such a wonderful organization with truely awesome volunteers. If you need a daily reminder you can email me at bigdog@myatuk.info and I will send you a daily email and if you need a quick shortcut to the page to vote it can be found here: http://www.petfinder.com/best-pet-parent-contest/gallery/finalists?entry_index=13&offset=16&limit=16

It has been a great 2 1/2 years with the Tonk Man and here are some of my favorite pictures from when he was just a little guy.
Master of the Doggie Door - thanks to Cathy with the chicken strip in her back pocket crawling in and out repeatedly.


Master of the Stairs - thanks to Cathy cheering the little guy on everytime he attempted and completed a step down.


Master of the Rodeo!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Pen Pals

This is my pen pal Auggie - well we dont actually write but our humans can type!
He lives in another State and hopefully one day we will get to meet and play.
He's a Goldendoddle and this picture was when he was real little.
Such a cute little guy

Now 4 months later he is getting taller

I wonder if he will be as tall as me someday?

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Petfinder Contest Part 2

Voting has started again for the Petfinder Best Pet Parent Contest. New rules this time around state that you can only vote once a day so every vote from every person is a huge deal. Please help us win some $$ for the Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue. You can vote for us at
http://www.petfinder.com/best-pet-parent-contest/gallery/finalists?entry_index=13&offset=16&limit=16

Thanks for all your help!

Tonka and the Councilman

When we were at the beach I met a really nice guy and his wife. AP says that he is a Councilman for New Castle County in Wilmington Delaware and he is a friend to all dogs. His name was Robert S. Weiner and he was key in getting a dog park called the Bark Park built and we are going to go visit it next time we are going to the beach http://www.bobweiner.com/photo_bark_park.asp
He was also talking to AP and CM about legislation to help stop puppy mills. I really liked him because he was scratching my head and petting me :)

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Big Headed Handsome Boy and The Swimmer

One of the greatest swimmers in the world called me handsome today. AP said Diana Nyad posted on Facebook that I was a handsome dog. She is getting ready to be the first person to swim the 103 miles from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. That is very brave. I don't like to swim and I don't think I would like sharks either.We have little sharks in the fish tank downstairs and sometimes they make splashing noises and I try to lick the glass on the tank. I don't think that is the same as big sharks in the ocean though. Anyway AP says I shouldn't get a big head over being called handsome by someone famous, she says my head is already big enough.
Help support Diana in her Extreme Dream and learn more about it at http://diananyad.com/about-diana/

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Just Beachy!

I had a great fun at the beach yesterday.
I was running in the surf


And rolling in the sand!



All in all a good day!

Friday, August 20, 2010

Petfinder Contest Ends and Begins Again

AP and I  entered the "Worlds Best Pet Parent Contest" at Petfinder last month see http://blinddogsrule.blogspot.com/2010/07/ap-and-i-need-your-help.html   We entered to win money for Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue (AGPR) where I came from and we made it to the final 50. Everyone was voting really hard for us and we were at number 7 when the contest was ended.
This is the email AP got from them:

Congratulations! You have won an Honorable Mention prize, a $1,000 donation to the rescue group you designated, in the World's Best Pet Parent Contest.
The adoption group you selected will be receiving verification paperwork via e-mail or regular mail from our contest administrator, Promotion Mechanics. They will be asked to submit 501(c)(3) paperwork or, if they don't have that, a completed W9 form providing a tax ID number in order to receive the donation.
Please note that you still have a chance to win even more money for your chosen adoption group. We have ended the World's Best Pet Parent Contest early due to voting issues and will be starting a new contest on Aug. 27. You, along with all the other finalists from the first contest -- with the exception of the top two winners -- will be automatically entered as finalists in the second contest. You will be receiving an e-mail about this shortly.
Once again, congratulations on winning this donation to help homeless pets.
Sincerely,

Petfinder

Thanks to all my friends and all the great voluteers at AGPR who spent every evening voting for us. We will be starting back up on August 27th and hope you will support the rescue once again.
Hugs and Licks
Tonka

Itchy Ears and Weepy Eyes

I went to the vet today and I have allergies. My eyes have been weepy and I have been digging at my ears. AP says my sense of smell is off and Dr. Woodburn says I have allergies. He also checked out my lumpy head and my lump by my tail and they are still nothing to worry about but my hip has an issue. AP noticed that when I lift my leg to mark on things I loose my footing on one side. Dr. Woodburn did a little test and I have great knees and ankles but I dont like it when he pulls on my one hip. When I was real little I had a problem with my shoulder and my hip and I guess I didn't grow out of the hip one... I am going to start taking adequan shots to try and make it better. AP says the shots can relievs the pain of osteoarthritis and stimulate cartilage repair while soothing and lubricating the joint whatever that means.

Monday, August 16, 2010

A Very Angry AP

AP is big animal lover and will go out of her way to help any kind of animal but today she was really mad at a dog in the neighborhood. There are 2 cocker spaniels that are kept chained in a yard and occasionally escape. AP and I had been at the park and we were walking home, we turned the corner of our street and stopped to talk to the neighbor that lives across the street from the cockers. Usually if one of them is loose it will come rushing across the street barking and snapping. Today AP was talking and the golden one came sneaking around the back of the car in front of us and was getting ready to snap at my hind leg. AP caught sight of it and yanked me forward and behind her. She kicked at it and started yelling really loud and the next thing I knew I was being dragged behind her as she chased it back across the street to its yard. She was really mad and I think she scared the neighbor he said "remind me not to try and hurt your dog". I think she scared the dog as well......

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Exhausted from the Adoption Day in Virginia

I got to  help out today at the AGPR adoption event in Warrenton VA and had a great time with my new friends, Lucy, Casper and Caleb. I hope they all get great homes. I loved meeting all the people and especially the kids. My rescue peeps were there as well, Nancy and Gina and my new friend Donna who was such a help in rescuing Nelson see Nelson in the country at http://blinddogsrule.blogspot.com/2010/07/nelson-in-country.html. It was a long day and I missed my naptime so I went to bed early.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Diggin the Beach

Tonka loves to dig:

Cool Dog

AP here: Tonka and I were on the way home from the beach and a big truck with a really cool dog drove by. He had his whole head out the window sniffing the breezes with his DOGGLES on!

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Flying (Falling) Squirrel

Nala and I were walking in the park this morning with AP and Carol when there was a loud sound behind Carol like a tree branch coming down. Everyone turned just in time to see a big fat squirrel crash down to the ground right behind Carol. I didn't see it of course but I could hear it and smell it as it ran away from us really fast. Its not the trees you have to worry about coming down its the critters.....

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

AP and I Need Your Help

AP entered a contest with a few thousand other people on Petfinder.com. It is the Best Pet Parent Contest and the people are all competing for rescue groups. AP is competing for the Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue where I came from. They always have so many dogs to care for and every day there are more coming in. Well AP was selected as one of the 50 finalists and competing to win one of the following prizes for the Appalachian Great Pyrenees Rescue:

-Grand Prize - $10,000
-Runner-Up - $5,000
-Honorable Mention (10 winners) - $1,000
We could use your help:
All you need to do is create an account on PetFinder and cast your vote for us. This is the official word on the number of times you may vote:
"There is no limit to the number of times you may vote during the Voting Period, however votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be void. You will be required to refresh your browser after placing your vote in order to vote again. Also, you may need to clear your cache periodically so you can view the most recent votes and status."
The contest runs until September 28th so please vote often.

Please share this link with your friends and encourage them to vote for us and help AGPR save more Pyrs!
Best Pet Parent

If that is not working use this tinyurl
http://tinyurl.com/23jlkmr

Thanks for your help!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Tonka and the Bone

AP here:
I thought today would be a good day to give Tonka a frozen marrow bone as a treat since he had a busy day. Busy meaning he walked for 1 1/2 hours this morning, ate breakfast and then napped for 7 hours.

It has been so hot that I have been leaving the Doggie Door closed which is also necessary when giving him high value treats like bones or big cookies. High value treats always end up being buried for later and the blind dog is not real smart about choosing soft spots to bury things. The reason his nose is reddish on the tip and not all black is from him burying things under rocks. He is also not the best at ever finding the treats again, it is usually a visiting dog that digs up something vile looking from a year ago and ends with me chasing them to get it and throw it away. With the door closed I figured he would stay in the house and enjoy the bone - NOT! He licked it a little then took it off to the bedroom to bury it by the chest of drawers. Not wanting thawed marrow bone on the carpet I snuck (or at least I thought I was sneaky) in to the room and put one of his blankets under it. I came back out and sat down to read some emails and up the steps he came and scurried down the hall to the bedroom. Luckily I had the Flip camcorder right next to me so I turned it on as he came down the hall with the bone. Rule number 1 is humans cannot touch a bone that has been "buried" even if it is "buried" in the middle of the room. What follows is footage of Tonka trying to find a spot to re-bury the bone I touched...

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Firefighter Dogs

This morning Nala and I went for an early morning walk to the park and we found a pile of smoldring leaves where someone had made a fire and didn't put it all the way out. AP called the fire department and they came in the big truck with the siren on. They were on the way to the spot where the fire was when we were leaving.

Friday, July 23, 2010

2 hot for Tonka Dogs

AP here: Went to take a little walk with Tonka at 10:00pm since the temperature dropped to 90. He is usually asleep by 10:00 but since we didn't walk earlier like normal he was wide awake. We got to the end of the driveway and he stopped and rolled his eyes up to me as if to say - "you are crazy - I'm not going anywhere". He then turned and pulled me back to the door. Smart Boy! Now he is belly up wanting a tummy rub.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Nelson in the Country

AP heard from Donna and Nelson got a clean bill of health except for a runny/sneezy nose. He is a city slicker out in the country near a Llama farm. AP says he might be allergic to them but it's probably just the clean country air. He has been busy chewing bones and barking at the llamas in the distance. He is such a sweet boy and AP is very happy he is safe. Donna sent a picture of him and he AP says he looks very happy.
Before
After        

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Nelson Goes to Foster

AP picked up Nelson today to take him to meet his foster mom Donna. She has a Doggie Resort with really awesome kennels and Nelson is going to be staying with her for awhile. He liked being in my truck but AP said he would look out the window and then would get up and try to get up front with her.
Finally he settled down and chilled out to some Jimmy Buffett - one of my favorites. AP says lots of Pyrs like Buffett and her friend Nancy calls us PYROTHEADS!



Now we just have to wait for the vet to check him for heartworm and any other nasties and if he is all good he can go to an adoption event and maybe I can hang out with him.

Monday, July 12, 2010

Nelson gets a Bath

Kirk and Heather from Maryland Mobile Grooming spent 5 hours today brushing, clipping and bathing Nelson. AP stopped by to get some pictures and said he was being such a good boy. This is a picture of him after lots of brushing and before his bath.
Kirk and Heather are awesome. Nelson was the first Pyr that Heather ever groomed and she did such a great job. Kirk did the majority of the brushing and has owned Pyrs before so he knew how handsome and what color he could be. Nelson got 2 1/2 baths before it was all over and could use some more grooming. He was one very dirty boy and had a nail that had curled under and into his pad that Heather had to carefully remove. This is Nelson after his bath isn't he handsome?

Friday, July 9, 2010

Groomers

AP found a groomer for Nelson and he used to have Pyr's. his name is Kirk and he runs Maryland Mobile Grooming and he and another groomer are going to go and wash the dirty Nelson on Tuesday. Nelson has surgery to get neutered on Wednesday and AP wants him to be clean. She is going to spring him from jail on Thursday and he will go into rescue till he finds a forever home.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Nelson

So AP got an email from Mommy V at AGPR about a stray Pyr that is in the local shelter so she went to take a look at him.She found a very dirty and matted boy that had probably been running loose for quite awhile. He has 4 inch mats trailing behind him off of his back feet and nasty black gritty dirt at the base of tail.


The shelter named him Nelson and AP says he is very sweet and knows how to sit and shake paws. They don't have a place to groom him so AP is going to find a mobile groomer to clean him up. Since he is a stray they have to keep him for 5 days in case his owner comes looking for him. AP says no one is coming for him which is sad she also said anyone that comes looking for him wouldn't deserve him because of the state he is.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Back to the Beach

We went to the beach for the Holiday weekend and AP got me a license for Dewey Beach. I can now go to the beach in the morning before 9:30 and in the afternoon after 5:30. I love the beach. The minute my paws hit the sand I go into the Tonka Dance and blippity blop all over the place - even into the surf. I hate water in all forms except for the surf - AP says I am a goof. I met all kinds of people while we were walking around and got cookies at Critter Beach and Odysea and the nice lady at Comfort Shoes let me come in the store. There were lots of kids to pet me and I got to "see" my friends Wally and Gwen. I love the beach!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Bionic Eye 3 Month Checkup

Today was the 3 month checkup for my Bioinc Eye. I had to hold this little strip of paper in my surgery eye for a full minute to measure how wet my eye stays. Apparently I have good tear production and Dr. Weigt said it is looking really good and I won't have to see her again for 6 months. My right eye is still kind of junky but my pressure was OK so no worries. Dr. Weigt said I was a very good boy and I got a Pup-peroni.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

The end of the digging pit

If you have watched Tonka the Backhoe you saw my great digging spot. AP decided that I shouldn’t be digging down to the foundation of the house so she landscaped it with sand, paving stones and a solar fountain. She used over 1000lbs of sand to fill it in – I am not happy!



Friday, June 11, 2010

The Language of Tonka

AP here -People always ask me how Tonka gets around and I always answer "I tell him where to go". Now this is a true statement but Tonka also does an incredible job of navigating all on his own and once we have been somewhere he remembers it quite well. I got to thinking just how many commands we use with him and came up with this list of words that Tonka understands. I have probably left some out but it is a start....
Sit
Down
Up
Left
Right
Straight
Turn around
Come around
Hard right
Hard left
Careful
Easy
Tree
Fence
Ramp
Up hill
Down hill
Over
Big Over
Step
Big Step
Chicken
Sweet potato
Find
Come
Hurry
Duck, Duck, Goose
Ready Set Go
Get on
Blanket
Bath
Bed
Now
Uh Uh
No
Leave It
Out of There
Peanut Butter
Kitchen
Potty
Go Try
Diggy Diggy
Dinner Dinner
Egg
House
Bowl
Let me see your feet
Off
Hurry

Monday, June 7, 2010

13 weeks Post Op

Tonka Attacks

Tonka believes CM is his sibling and plays with her in a much different way than his pack leader AP. Here is a video of him attacking CM's feet.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Tonka the Backhoe Dog

I love dirt, mud is even better. AP calls me a backhoe because I can move a lot of dirt with one paw swipe like the bucket on the front of a backhoe. My favorite spot to dig is in the backyard next to the house. When I first got here it was all white river rocks and I kept tearing up my nose trying to dig so AP moved all the rocks to another part of the yard and then put down dirt and sod. Sod is fun - it has plastic mesh in it that makes a great ripping sound when you tear it with your paws. I tore it all up and have been digging for China (I think I have relatives there). AP gets really mad and fills it back in and then I have to dig it all back up again. She is very annoying with that!

Friday, May 28, 2010

Nyla Bones

I love to chew on sticks and Nylabones. I used to chew on doorframes, tablelegs, TV remotes, rugs, the fish-tank stand, porch-swings and porch-rails, but now I pretty much stick to my things. Tonight I got a little off track and took the lid to a plastic glad container off the kitchen table. I got in trouble for that but a litte while later I forgot so I took a second one off the desk... I really got in trouble for that one!
So for the rest of the night I stuck to my bones....

Monday, May 24, 2010

So Sad

This is what I had to look at this morning as I left for work....

Pitiful!

Friday, May 21, 2010

Some Bones Should Stay Buried

AP here -Tonka buries things toys, bones, cookies anything is fair game. This bone has been missing since before January. Tonka buried it before the big snowstorm and just dug it up tpday. He left it for a minute to go check out a noise so I snuck up, grabbed it and threw it away.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Tonka goes "Green Acres"

We went to the farm today and Nala went with us. She had never been so I wanted to introduce her to the sheep and goats. We had a lovely conversation with a sheep....




Nala and the goat did not get along so well, the goat actually stood up on its hind legs and told her to go away.

The rabbit and she got along fine





She rounded up a baby chicken that had escaped and the caretakers had to put it back in its pen.

My favorite is always Mama Pig, she smells awesome.




The cow and I have an uneasy relationship. I was really scared of it the first time we met last year but CM promised it can’t hurt me through the fence. I may be blind but I know the cow is way bigger than me...

AP snuck up on a groundhog and took a picture but she wouldn’t let me near it. She says they are dangerous when they feel threatened. It wasn’t like I was going to walk up and pick a fight or anything. :) 

The farm is fun becuase it is all kinds of different smells that we don't have at home or at the park.