Trucker
Our Tri-Colored Beagle......
We did not take the above two pictures his previous family did when he was very little.
We thank them for letting us get a copy of our little fellow.....
He is still as cute as can be....
Here is a picture of when we brought him home after he went to PetSmart for an overall cleaning....
That duckie right next to him he chewed up in about two hours....He really likes to chew. He was around 9 months old when we got him the end of May 04.
About a month later he was having fun and just seconds after we took this picture he wriggled out of his 1stHarness we got him. He went three blocks and thankfully there was another Beagle and owner out....Trucker likes to say Hi.....he is a very social doggie. Needless to say we got a new great Harness and a Tag and he was registered with the County the following week.....
Andrew and Trucker......
Andy and Trucker on my Birthday camping in Upstate NY. We had to get Vaccine certificate and a Health Certificate just to cross the boarder. Oh well another visit to the Vet. Trucker gets car sick don't ask me how I know...oh and he loves cheese he just shouldn't eat it......again don't ask me how I know....
He's sitting on my lap and Andy took the picture...You see Trucker is a dog that gets along great with guys, according to the Vet most hound dogs prefer the company of men...hum....so it's a rare treat when he crawls into my lap or looks up at me with some form of affection....he did well in the night but once the fireworks started he had to be taken in and held because he doesn't do well with fireworks.... this picture July2nd
Trucker even went to Boy Scout Summer Camp with us. Andy and I shared a cabin so that we could take him to summer camp with us so we could be a family together instead of Trucker and I all alone 9 hours away. Trucker got to play with all the boys and had a really good time....
I reviewed a art exhibition in Kalamazoo and Trucker would have either had to spend a night in the kennel something we just didn't want to do yet with him or take him with us which meant that Andy would have to sit out in the car with him - not fair to Andy who wanted to see the exhibit, so We took him with us and let him go to a doggie day spa....It was sooo cool there.
http://www.derspinnakennels.com/
Check it out. We paid extra to have Trucker socialized with other dogs of his size and above. He loved being there soo much he had a indoor outdoor Kennel and apparently spent much of his time outside. They said he would just sit there and look around, watch the birdies and sniff everything. Also when he socialized he had soo much fun he didn't want to come home. He was only there for a couple of hours and it was so worth the 18 dollars we paid because not only did he have fun but we did too. The exhibit we went and saw was from Millet to Matisse. It only hits six North American museums and then goes back to Glasglow. We went the week before it closed and it was packed at the KIA. It was well worth the ticket price and Truckers Kennel cost. Check it out.
(We plan on going back to the KIA to see the Chihuly stuff in Sept of 05)
http://www.glasgowmuseums.com/venue/showExhibition.cfm?venueid=4&itemid=16
Well what can I say...hum we where in the process of closing on our first house when Andy forgot to put up his chew toy, I mean shoe.....I did mention that he likes to chew.....This picture was taken in Late August of 04. I forgot to mention this couch is Truckers....It's got the cushion on backwards since he chewed a hole in it. Good thing the couch is 15 years old...Since it's in my den now I bought a denim couch cover - Luckily one that Trucker likes and he has claimed this particular couch as his own....
Since this picture he has gotten to a healthy size of around 32pounds and the Vet says we are all doing great. Trucker got very sick just as we got our house in late Sept and had to have Stomach x-ray. Luckily the Vet said he was fine just a stomach bug...but it still scared us.
We decided to try PetSmart out for Vaccines, to be honest it can very expensive to go to the Vet - you have to pay for the vaccine and the Vet also a dodo disposal fee even though he may not go...hum....
PetSmart was very cost effective we saw a Vet and he got his 3 yr Rabies all for around 15 bucks...not bad really. I took the above picture on the 17th of Nov. He looked so cute and was truly being photogenic.
As for now he loves his new back yard- it is a fully Fenced in Privacy Fence that he can't even try to jump over....all except for one corner is Privacy Fenced something we plan on rectifying soon as this opening distracts him from playing and doing his business. He loves to play fetch, we got him a fetching stick. He doesn't always remember to bring it back but then again he is a stubborn Beagle. He's not leashed - however you may notice his black long leash on the ground. We find it easier for him to run around with out a leash but he doesn't want to come in so we leave a long leash on him so we can get a hold when it is time to come back inside.
Also he has a giant area for digging - something we try to dissuade him from doing since it means another bath for him.....and he loves walks at the park to chase the birds and the hunt down the bunnies in the bunny warren. He could spend an hour sniffing each and every hole...we warn him though not to stick his nose down the holes.....but again he is very stubborn.
I know I'm cute!
I think I was born in this white fluffy stuff....I love to play, run, and romp in this wet cold stuff...I especially like to eat fresh snow. 12.12.04
Paddy Cake, Paddy Cake....Training him to sit up on his rear-end....not bad huh.
Picture taken 12.18.04
Our one eyed Pirate....Likes to sniff the Candy Canes....Such a cute winker...
Did Someone Say Candy Canes......We don't believe in cutting a tree for Christmas so a fake one does nicely and this is the first year in several we put up a big one. Trucker loves to go up to the Bubble lights and watch them and then sniff the Candy Canes. He has such a sweet tooth. He also enjoys walking underneath behind the tree. We've had some close calls with the tree falling and the Beagle running....
I swear he sees the camera and becomes the most photogenic thing, he actually stands still for a couple seconds.
Okay for some bad news....We almost got another Beagle last week. We'd like another for not only Trucker to have another doggie friend and playmate but so I'm not constantly keeping him occuppied...He can be a time hog - I'm not complaining really but I'd like to go to the Bathroom without the paw at the door...The other Beagle Plucky is still available at the Humane Society because she and Trucker just couldn't settle down together, she was constantly trying to be dominant and he Trucker was constantly trying to get away from her trying to hump him....LOL. Anyway he got Kennel Cough even though he is current with all of his shots. Bordetella is not a guarantee that your dog will not get Kennel Cough - think like the flue shot for humans it doesn't guarantee that you will not get it but if you do it will not be as bad. The Vet stated there are many urban legends about what Kennel Cough is and why, and how dogs really get Kennel Cough. Dogs don't have colds they get a Bacterial infection known as Kennel Cough. It's not just due to unsanitary conditions, nor is just a Kennel issue. It can be caused by cold cold weather, other sick dogs, close proximity to other dogs etc. Here is a great page about what Kennel Cough is, how to treat it, what it is etc.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_kennel_cough.html
Quick notes on Kennel Cough
- it will clear up in
7-14 days
- can be treated with cough syrup
Robitussun DM or Vicks 44 suggested by our Vet (Check with your own Vet)
- cold temps is one cause
- anti-biotics can be used to kill the
bacteria, but no guarantee it will quicken the recovery
My cough is gone...Mommy has stopped freaking because everytime I coughed she went around after me saying....Is he alright......oh my gosh...It's a blizzard out...there's a puppy in the house and I've pulled the chair cover off....I'm in dreamy dream land.....If you look close enough you'll see his nose twitch and his paws move and maybe even hear him bark in his sleep.... Oh Rabbits, squirrels, Kitties.....Cute huh....1.22.05
Ok I've been bad and not updated this like I wanted to but here are some pictures over the last 5 months of my babies...
Unfortunately we didn't take very good pictures from the end of Jan to May 30th!
Can anyone tell he is blowing raspberries at us.......This picture made us LOL it's so not Trucker.....
and then just so we knew he loved us he then....
Told us with a great big smile how much he loves us and the sun......
and last but not least Truckers favorite thing to do .....
Eat, Eat and Eat......um smells good...and I've undone the couch.....Bet mommy is going to just put it back on ...So I can take it off again.....You got to love mommy.....(picture taken 7.19.05- the day before my 2nd Bday.)
His new thing is to eat pears that fall from our pear tree - must taste good but gives him the runs. I'm having to pick them up the pears as much as possible but the squirrels just tease him in the tree and drop them on him - our squirrels are dangerous.....
These two are pear bombing menaces! I mean they run the lines at the back of the property jump into the pear tree and then jump to one of the other three trees on our property. They enjoy especially running the lines at 7 am when it's Truckers 1st time out for the day. I swear they must sit there and wait till he comes out to torture him. He wakes the entire neighborhood up because he doesn't bark noo he bays and it's one heck of a bay. A neighbor across the street came over and asked me if he was ok and I had to explain that he wanted to catch the squirrels man it was so embarrassing.....
Oh and we've got several Bunnies....UGH! We woke up to hair raising baying because they- Yes both of them had a bunny cornered in the back yard. How it got in and How it got out I will never figure.....But then as we look down the drive one goes into the garage under the garage door.....
So if it's not the pear bombing squirrels its the fast jack rabbits....oh and it could also be - here's a sad thought...
The mother robin hatched 4 chicks....However one of them due to a bad storm was lost to our smiling helpful Beagle Boy Trucker.....He decided to play with it and well it died.....as he was trotting it over to us to show what he got for us....couldn't really chide him, it's what he was meant to do well kind off anyway.
Trucker has a way of getting sick...He eats something and gets sick....He ate or possibly drank something that made something irritated and when he went pooh he crapped blood....I about freaked! off to the Vet and thank god we have a great vet because it was just a stomach thing. No throwing up just a pooh problem. So another 300 hundred spent on him but it's worth it, he's part of our family.
Hope you enjoy till the next time I'm able to post pictures of our babies......
7.24.05
Here are some things that Trucker has that I would suggest to
everyone......
Trucker was on proplan Weight Management and just wasn't doing well- he threw up alot and he didn't like it....
But Pro Plan is a good food just not right for a fussy eater.
http://www.proplan.com/product_detail.aspx?pid=92
Now we use Merrick - Grammy's Pot Pie. All natural and no preservatives or fillers.
http://www.merrickpetcare.com/
Ok it's like way way expensive. Try 25 bucks for 15 measly pounds and then if you want to give them a real treat their canned food smells better then what I sometimes cook for dinner.... soooo
Merrick also have some great treats!
But his favorite treat is when I fix Chicken and Rice.
Trucker is a picky eater and would snub his nose at regular dog biscuits....so we decided to try the Pro Plan Chicken and Rice dog biscuits...he ate them up like nothing. They are very expensive but he likes them and that is really all that counts
Another suggestion is a Port-A-Crate, however only if your dog is really crate trained. We learned the hard way that if left and a dog is truly determined to get out he or she will. So my suggestion is too only use if your dog will not try to get out or you don't leave them for more then a hour......Even so a replacement cover is 40 dollars not bad....except you've already spent 100 bucks on the original thing...hum....
http://www.firstrax.net/petnation/pseries.html
We fixed his crate cover ourselves. When we decided to change all the screens in the house to petsafe screen it appeared to be something that would hold up for our windows (it's a plastic polymer like the crate already not the fiberglass type) so we replaced all the damage he did last summer. Didn't cost us 40 dollars we had pieces big enough to take care of everything. We just put the sewing machine to good use of course we pulled out all the stuff he chewed up before we started sewing.....
So if your dog is like ours....then only use the Port-A-Crate when your home for time outs and then use this one for trips etc......
Yes this is a crate and his is really big for him a 36" crate. The Vet told us he needed a bigger crate because he grew another inch at the withers and that he obviously was 30 plus pounds. Beagles like to lay on their sides too so....this one we got is just like this expect it doesn't have the handles and is a much thicker style of metal. We know he can't eat his way through this crate. Pet Smart has nice ones but so does Wal-Mart (That's where we got his).
He has gone through a number of toys. I would suggest a thick rubber ball, and a hard rubber ball. We found out that Trucker is allergic to peanut butter but loves cheese whiz. So instead of filling his Kong or football with Peanut Butter we use cheese whiz. Also a great no calorie treat is ice cubes....They crunch and he loves them. Another great treat that I know our hound doggie likes is carrots especially baby carrots..... For a real treat we get sweet baby carrots and he chows on them....especially if they have ranch dip on them.
We have a new toy that every dog owner should buy....
They are called Orbees check out Planet Dog for them. You can buy them at PetSmart and online. A Orbee is really cool it tastes and smells like Peppermint...and there are other flavors available too.
One toy that Trucker absolutely loves as he got it for his 3rd bday is his alligator.....I'll try to get a picture of him with it....
http://www.fatcatinc.com/html_site/dogbrands.shtml
http://fatcatinc.stores.yahoo.net/instyadogtoy.html
Perhaps for Mid Year gift we'll get him the fish or snake.
Since Beagles are know to have bottomless stomachs we watch how much he eats because if he eats to much of a good thing he gets wicked killer gas......By the way dogs can have Beano.....
Well for now that's the story of little doggie with a big big smile.....
Nikki
This Beagle-Boy page was updated on 7.24.05
Trucker 2006 Trucker page 2
His little brothers page is
Rex page Rex Pictures
(Due credit is due to the person who did the animated gifs...however finding the correct person to credit is difficult. If the annimated gifs are yours Please let me know and I 'll give due credit where it belongs.)