Would "The Nose" Lie?

Charlie says "Listen to Meeshka"!

Quick!! Grab your human and take them over to your food closet right away. Make them check your canned or pouched food to make sure it's not involved in this terrible recall!! And have them check your kitty siblings' food too, while they're at it.

Lots of pet food in the US, Canada, and Mexico is affected, because it's a big contract manufacturer called Menu Foods that seems to be having the problem. If you go to this website, you can get a list of all the 40 or 50 brands affected and how to tell if you're ok. And if that main link is too slow, here are some more direct links:
      Dog foods affected
      Cat foods affected

And just because you haven't bought food in awhile doesn't mean you're safe - - the recall spans Dec - March!

So don't accept "No" or "Later, Charlie..."; make them do it now!

Woo Hoo!

If you like Charlie's Nose Pose enough, head on over to Dogs with Blogs' Bone Zone this week and put your Photo of the Month vote where that nose is!

You have to be registered there to vote, but consider the rewards! Not only can you log in and vote for Li'l Charlie and The Nose, but you can post to your heart's content. It's a great site for dog (and hamsterrier) lovers. Sniff it out!!

The Nose Pose

Charlie has the silliest way of lying half-in and half-out of the kitchen, forelegs extended, and face resting on the floor. It doesn't look very comfortable, but it seems to be his position of choice in that location (and only that location).

Often he'll lie like that, eyes open, just watching.





Other times he'll fall fast asleep in the position.



Perhaps he discovered this pose when he found his elbows slipping out from under him on the smooth kitchen floor. Or maybe he likes the feel of the cool linoleum under his neck and chin. Or maybe he's just conserving energy for those all-important play sessions.

I don't know. And he's not telling!

Happy Birthday and Thanks, Aunt Karen!

It all began 10/26/2004 with email from our good friend, Karen, in Indiana: "Look! I am going to call about this litter. I don't know how old they are now, but there are 4F and 4M. They said the father was the same color as the mother (whose name is Abby). :-)"

Many years ago Karen, a vet in Indiana, had saved the life of our golden retriever, Lindsey. Karen had loved Lindsey's "you are my slave, give me what I want" personality so much that Lindsey made a litter just for her. We had each kept a puppy, but after long and wonderful lives, they had both passed on, and it was time for another.

                        Charlie (Bailey) on top of the pile

So we'd previously enjoyed having golden siblings, and when Karen sent her email, you could just feel where things were headed. She liked the looks of the new litter and selected a puppy (Sophie) herself. We asked her to pick out a Lindsey-like one for us, too. There was one puppy (called Bailey at the time) that stood out to her: "Wasn't it cute that Bailey was always on the top of the pile?"

From there things progressed pretty quickly: "I told the puppy people that you have dibs on Bailey". The puppy people's response was: "We won't have to mark his nails, his personality says it all; he tried another escape after we raised the board." And as they grew: "Bailey, aka. Charlie Jr. is starting to 'pounce' when he plays...very cute. He is the first to eat and the last to sleep. Get ready... ;-) "

So Karen is the reason we have Charlie. And on her special day, all of us here want to wish her a very Happy Birthday and say a big
Thanks! Karen's Sophie (L) with brother Charlie (R)

Bits 'O Honey

Like MJ, Texas, and Big Charlie, our Charlie has some great bits. Here are some particular favorites.

The Ridge. Like his predecessor, Husker, Charlie has a a slight ridge of fur down the center of his face. A spot where the fur angling from one side of his face meets the fur angling in from the other; in humans, I guess we'd call it a cowlick.

In some dogs it's wild and crazy. In Charlie it's understated and perfect; in some lights you almost can't see it. But it's there. And it earns him the endearment "my ridge-faced boy."

The Featherdusters. I suppose I should clip them, I know many people do, but I just like the look of these little wisps of fur sticking out between Charlie's toes. Not to mention they help keep the floors dusted. And then of course, there's that whole bitey, keep-away-from-my-feet, get-away-from-me-with-those-clippers aspect.

The Eyes. Big, brown, expressive, and ringed in permanent mascara, Charlie achieves effortlessly a look that human women daily slave to imitate.

The Nose. Often encrusted with kitty food or the remnants of a licked pan, Charlie's nose is a very well-used part. It not only smells out good things, but is used in smooshing (that's where the food encrustments are particularly useful), and is key to a really good sneeze-in-mom's-face.

It's turned slightly dudley over the winter, but I expect it'll be back to fighting form this spring.

The Teeth. Lest all these quiet pictures give you the sense of a lazy mellow dog, I give you Charlie's favorite part of himself -- the teeth! Charlie is all about teeth, more than any other part.

As a puppy, Charlie's teeth were razor sharp and usually clamped or trying to clamp onto my arm. They shredded every toy and, within the hour, put great holes in his money-back-guaranteed chew-resistant dog bed. As an adult, they're employed more selectively against me for control, yet they can put away a small retriever roll before we can eat dinner.

Despite such power however, Charlie's never chewed a shoe or piece of human furniture or anything else off-limits in the house (kleenex excepted). And considering what his puppy sister Sophie did to a kitchen floor, we're very grateful. Outdoor plants and humans watch out, though!
-------------So these are some notable parts of Charlie. What are your best bits?

Throwing Down the Gauntlet

Often, when I'm in the kitchen working, I'll be at the kitchen sink, kind of daydreaming out the window, when I hear a SMACK behind me! The sound of a ball being dropped on the floor, a gauntlet literally and figuratively thrown at my feet.

I know that when I turn, Charlie will be looking at me with an expectant look and a twinkle in his eye. And I'll have two real options, neither of which involves ignoring him, because Charlie will not be ignored.

Trying to ignore Charlie is like trying to ignore a hurricane -- a pogo-sticking, face-licking, ear-nipping hurricane. You can try, if you feel like dog wrestling. No, the better course of action is to turn, crouching, and say in a firm growl... "I'm gonna get that dog!"

And so begins the game, "Chase Charlie."

He grabs the ball, runs back to the dining room doorway, and turns to face me.

My role is to feint; to jump toward him as if to snatch the ball out of his mouth.

Charlie's role, in turn, is to run around to the other end of the kitchen, racing like a madman, where he knows I'll be waiting to "surprise" him.

And back and forth we go, feinting and racing, racing and feinting.

Kind of a silly little game, really. But one played almost every day in this household; usually more than once.

And the winners are...

Charlie and Gabbie didn't win any FIDOs on Sunday, but they did come in second against some pretty stiff competition! Here are the winning videos:
   Funniest Video - Classic Tug of War - by Joey & Tanner
   Cutest Video - Zoomies - by Charlie & Opy

Video of the Year honors went to Pappy for Do They Know It's Christmas. And while we haven't linked you to all eight categories & winners, you can see them over here at Dogs with Blogs.

Play bows and best wishes to these and all of the FIDO winners. We look forward to wrestling with you again next year!!

The FIDOs

Two of Charlie and Gabbie's videos are up for awards at Dogs with Blogs. They are:
   "Tug of War - Frisbee Style" by Li'l Charlie & Gabbie (watch here) for Funniest video (log in and vote)
and
   "Dances with Wolves" by Li'l Charlie (watch here) for Cutest video (log in and vote here)

But, whether you vote for (Li'l) Charlie and Gabbie or someone else, all the contenders are worth watching!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Consider yourself smooshed and snuzzled!
     - love, Charlie

 

Charlie-isms

smoosh [ smŏŏsh ] verb (past and past participle smooshed, present participle smoosh·ing, 3rd person present singular smoosh·es)
Definition:
1. transitive and intransitive verb push one's nose into another's face: to push one's cold wet nose into the face of a human being
· Charlie smooshed me · I've been smooshed
2. transitive and intransitive verb push one's nose at a small animal: to push one's nose into the back or side or stomach of a small animal (often a cat)
· Oh look, Charlie's smooshing Jessie; make him stop!
Jessie, about to receive a Christmas smooshing
snuz·zle [ snŭz'l ] transitive and intransitive verb (past and past participle snuz·zled, present participle snuz·zling, 3rd person present singular snuz·zles)
Definition:
a Charlie kiss: to smoosh and lick someone in and around the face (often accompanied by sneezing at close quarters)
· Oooh, I'm being snuzzled, real darn good!

Yipee!!

Charlie was born in Indiana and I grew up in Indianapolis, so to have the Indianapolis Colts playing in the SuperBowl today was really special! And to play against neighboring Chicago (the Bears)... excellent!! It's been decades since either team did so well, so we're happy for both of them, but we do have a soft spot for the Colts.







First we got our snacks together, because what's SuperBowl without some chips?














At opening kickoff, when the rival Chicago Bears immediately scored a touchdown, it looked like we were in really big trouble!












First quarter: "Oh, woe is us! The Colts look terrible. Freda and Wally (who are Bears fans) are probably pretty happy about now, though...














Then the game turned in the Colt's favor. "Mom? Can this be happenin? Suddenly we're not lookin' so bad..."














Yippeee!! An interception and a touchdown!!!






"Ok, Mom, our little horses won; they beat those big bad bears! Now let us play some ball!"

Charlie Antics

Why is there never a camera nearby when you really need one?

Yesterday Charlie and I were working in the backyard when the zoomies hit. You know, the tuck-tail, crazed-eyes, dash-around-the-yard ZOOMIES! So we took a break and zoomed. Or, more accurately, Charlie zoomed and I encouraged him, clapping and chasing.

Charlie has an old fabric frisbee that he and Gabbie tore the middle out of this summer. It's really more of a ring now, but it still sails fine, and Charlie loves to chase it. Well, I picked up his ring and sailed it, and Charlie zoomed after it. He grabbed it in his mouth, turned to start to run, and almost (but not quite) tripped -- he had put his paw in the middle of the ring, and, as it was caught on his forearm, he couldn't get that paw to ground without letting go of the ring. Which he wasn't going to do. He wouldn't let go and he wouldn't give up trying to run with it, either!

I finally rescued him, but not before I'd laughed myself silly. Just wish I'd had a camera!

Doggie Impressions

Charlie seems to take on the expression of other dogs sometimes. I'll think "Oh, that's Freda's serious look" or "how Tin Tin" or notice generally how much Charlie looks like Hammer. So, here is Charlie performing impressions of some of his dogblog buds:

Whatever...

Bang!

a li'l Roll of Approval

Cools!

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!

Snow Feet

The fur on Charlie's feet really picks up the snow. Great globs of it!

More Snow Dog

Snow Dog

This morning we awoke to SNOW! It had accumulated overnight and was still coming down heavily when Charlie went out to explore and experience it.

This is probably the most snow Charlie's seen. We had some twice last year, but never this much. Gosh, there's almost enough for a little x-country skiing!

At first Charlie wouldn't leave the patio - he walked around and around it, trying figure out what the white fluffiness was. But with a little encouragement he ventured forth. Here are his first steps into the white stuff...

Play Day!

This morning, Charlie awoke to a wonderful surprise... Gabbie! She had come to spend the day while her mom skied.

We started them in the back yard, to play hard and work off some energy. Thus, sunrise found the duo racing and jumping and rolling and playing over the frozen ground!


By 8:30, they were tiring and quieting down a little, so we began letting them in the house. Although big, Gabbie is skittish and afraid of new things, so in and out and around she went for almost an hour, with Charlie close behind.


She had just begun to settle down, when Charlie began to pester Gabbie. First, he slowly walked over her. Then he turned to carefully drape his shaggy tail over her face, and then he leaned in to make sure she couldn't ignore him.

So back outside they went, for some more hard play.




After awhile, it was time for a little lunch and a serious indoor chew session.

Charlie finished first and then carefully watched Gabbie, waiting for an opening to move in and steal the chew. Gabbie, however, was extremely alert and careful not to give Charlie such an opportunity!

Then back outside again for a little terrace-jumping and kitty-hunting. And in again for a little doggie snooze.

So back and forth it went; sometimes outdoor play, sometimes indoor quiet time, but never leaving each other's side... all day long!


I'll bet they both sleep soundly tonight!

Hail to our Chief!

Having lived in Portland now for a little over a year, Charlie has become accustomed to rain. But it doesn't often get very cold here in the winter, so the frozen forms remain a novelty!

Chase Charlie!

Now if Charlie will just work a little harder on his New Year's resolutions... ;)

Happy New Year! - Wanna Play?

Charlie's New Year's resolutions (as suggested by Mom):

1. I will not get frantic and bite at Mom's clothing when she leaves the house
2. I will not chew on Mom when she is toweling me off or brushing me
3. I will try hard to "take it nice" when offered a treat
4. I will not "pogo stick" my favorite people
5. I will quit trying to get between Mom and the counter when she is cooking

Mom's New Year's resolutions (as suggested by Charlie):

1. I will take Charlie for a walk whenever he wants
2. I will play "Chase Charlie" every day
3. I will find more fun places to take Charlie in Portland
4. I will get rid of all the babygates ( hey, Charlie! -- NOT HAPPENING!! )
5. I will take Charlie on another camping adventure soon

Happy New Year, everyone! Hope you all have a great 2007!!