2016 was evidently the last time I posted about our boy. Life turned on a dime and now we're in Ohio, having gone through North Caroline first from Georgia. And in all the movement, our little one has gone with the flow and adjusted beautifully. In a month he will be seven years old. He still holds my heart as much now as the day I brought him home, no, actually even more so. I love love love this little being...

Most recent of Boney

Trying to help Papa play

True love

Not a fan of the vet's

Do I really have to wear this?

What did I do wrong? Why am I being punished?

My friend Scully

My other friend Worf...

Papa loves me

I help Mama write...

Happy First Birthday Bonaparte!

Boney with his "lion" look going on

Bonaparte is One Year Old! On May 15^th of this year our little love turned one year old! We had a wonderful celebration that evening with new friends coming for dinner and Boney was the star of the party. We took him in to the vet for a weigh in and he’d actually lost some weight since March! He weighs 7.4 right now.

He got a happy birthday text and photo from one of his brothers, Livingston, who we are going to see next week!

Brother Livingston on their birthday!

Boney's "Gandolf" look

On a boat ride!

With new friend Nolwen, who he adores

Okay, enough already. Time for a nap...

 

Yeah, you only think you're driving!

 Boney loves to travel, loves his friends Ruben and Frank, loves to be in the yard with us, and is learning to stay with me whenever we go out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BONAPARTE!! We love you dearly.

Happy Fifth "Month-iversary" Bonaparte!

My day today!

Bonaparte is five months old today!!! And look how fuzzy he’s gotten. He always was fuzzy, but is even more so now without being a total fur ball. 

Last weight on the 8^th of this month was 4.8 pounds. He hasn’t yet hit the big 5, but will in the next month or so I’m sure. He is making great progress on house breaking. He’s responding well to the training we’re taking at PetsMart and we are considering signing up for the next level, intermediate. I think it would be beneficial for both/all of us if we continue. He likes it (well, really likes the treats!) and I feel it will make our life together much easier if he listens and obeys.

Day we brought him home at 10 weeks

 Bonaparte loves it when ‘Papa’ gets home and spends about 15 to 20 minutes playing with him. They have bonded quite well now. He loves cuddling, chewing on his ‘bones,’ and his new ramp and play area outside. He also likes eating dirt, so we have to watch his diet outside!

 

Today five months old!

Not three months old yet

I am trying to make sure we spend an hour or so apart every day to try and help with the separation anxiety he seems to have a bit of. He’ll really have to get over it at the end of this week when I head off for a writer’s conference in Florida. He’ll be staying with Rubin and Frank, his schnauzer pals down the way for the majority of four days. Good luck dear friends and thanks for taking him on!

Outside on the deck loving the sun, but not in my eyes.

 

Bonaparte News in September

So, it’s over time for an update on our little-getting-bigger (sort of) Bonaparte puppy, who is cuter than real life expects to be. Boney is now four months old and at last weigh-in had reached 4.2 pounds! That means he’s gained half a pound since I picked him up on July 31. He has a clean bill of health from Dr. McCall so we are happy.

 

News is: 

Louis

We went to NC for Labor Day and Boney traveled like a pro. No problems whatsoever, and once we arrived, he met a new friend and found a bevvy of admirers! 

He played well with Louis (our other family dog, a Shih tzu) and not only adapted well but enjoyed living at the Buie-Jennings household. 

                                                 

He loved meeting his "brother and sister" Tristan and Marjorie, and making them fall head over for him...

 

 

I finally braved up and clipped his nails by myself for the first time, and didn’t hurt him!

 We have found a food he LOVES and he’s now eating like he actually likes to instead of because he must. Cleans his bowl every time. This magical food is Blue Buffalo “Wilderness” puppy food. http://www.bluebuffalo.com/dog-food/wilderness-puppy

I wonder how much he’ll weigh next time since he's decided to really partake of food!

We are taking Puppy Training classes at PetsMart! http://pets.petsmart.com/services/training/

This is exciting for me because Boney is starting to respond (especially when treats are involved!) and it’s making life so much easier for all of us. Plus it’s so fun to see his little self in there with the monster (big but gorgeous and gentle) long-haired German Sheppard and the sweet natured Bloodhound. Boney looks like a toy dog next to them! We’ve learned “Watch me”, “Leave it (or ‘Laisse le’, which is the same thing in French, yes he’s a bilingual dog!)”, “Sit”, and “With me (which is how I tell him to walk with me)”. He had already learned to go to his crate when I say “In the Crate” to him since I started that almost right away. Our next class is this coming Monday. We’ve been practicing every day, so our trainer will be happy with us.

Boney likes to look out the window of my office while I work. I put a little box down reversed so he can use it as a step up to the windowsill and he loves it. I keep his crate in the office as well while I work and when he gets sleepy he abandons me for it and takes a nap. We have a little routine going now.

So, that is the newest news on the little tyke and his adventures.

Images from:

http://www.bluebuffalo.com/

http://stores.petsmart.com/Store/Details/1442

Benji Look Alike or Not?

I’ve had two people come up to me in the last week and say Boney looks like Benji. I remembered Benji was cute and scruffy so I went home and looked him up on the internet. To a point I can see the resemblance, cute and scruffy. Time will tell if Bonaparte will really get that hairy, but the sweet face and the “look” are there. I hope Boney keeps his cuteness because he is, to me, absolutely adorable, especially when he comes running when I call him and wants hugs!

We’ve been using the halter for a week. I tried using it only when we went out to do “business” and that was a flop. He got to the point where he didn’t want to go out to do anything like business and fought me each time we did. So, three days ago I started him wearing it all the time except at night, and voila, we are having more success! He still hates it, but is tolerating it better now and is even enjoying our little outings to get business done. I’ve also found that since he’s holding longer, I don’t have to take him out so much. It seems to defeat the purpose to take him out all the time when half the time he won’t go, just wants to explore and chew on anything he can find. So we’re going out less and that also has equaled more success. The only accidents he’s had in the last two days were my fault for not taking him out in time. My only excuse, and it is just that, is I’m still adjusting to the schedule! The other thing I’m happy about when it comes to the harness is that after three days of him wearing it all day and looking at me with a heart wrenching (yes dramatic I know) pitiful expression, he once again cuddles up to me, licks me and loves all over me like he did before. Guess he’s realizing the harness isn’t a punishment…

Crate training continues to progress amazingly well. He now loves his crate (I wouldn’t have believed that he could two weeks ago) and even goes in without me saying a word. Like right this minute, he went in while I’m here working and is passed out, even with the halter on! I thank the powers that be, and discipline, for actually working.

Boney is sleeping through the night now (hope I haven’t just jinxed myself!) and doesn’t start making sounds until after 6:30 am. I aim for at least 15 minutes to a few hours a day apart from him because I want to avoid him having separation anxiety (which I’m told he might have since we’ve bonded so completely). We have our play time after dinner. He follows me or Geoffrey almost everywhere we go. Three weeks into this, I am a very happy puppy lover! He's growing on G.

Benji image from:

 luckymojo.com

And They Called it Puppy Love…

Because I am in  LOVE with this puppy, who, by the way is on his fourth name. Well, it’s not really so much a name change as using a first name instead of a last. Napoleon is coming much easier to the lip than Bonaparte. And “Napi” or “Napo” are the two we’ve been using for shorts. So, maybe he has a real name now.

Took Napo to the vet a few days ago because he was itching so much and there were no fleas to be found, for which I am very thankful! In this heat fleas would be a total disaster. Little Bit got a clean bill of health and I got lots of information about what I can do and what I shouldn't do with him. Granted, my vet, who also has a dachshund, said that she was “one to talk” when she didn’t pay any attention to the advice she was given in taking care and training her own! But I am doing my best to pay attention not only to her advice, but also the advice my friends (from whom we got Napo) gave me as well. Nancy gave me two sheets of instructions about house breaking and crate training, both of which I am doing my best to implement. They seem very common sense-icle (There’s a Joss Whedon “Buffy-ism” for you!) and we're having varying degrees of success. He’s already well on in the house breaking category, and uses his ‘pads’ more often than not. But he still slips up, even though I’m getting better at getting him outside after he eats. So far his hardheadedness is showing when it comes to going outside. He’ll pee but the pooing not so much. I feel like I’m re-inventing the wheel!

On Laydi's bed, our previous lab/border collie. Napo is so tiny!

We’ve had a bit of a rough patch, but Napo finally slept most of the night in his crate last night! This was after two distressing nights of him howling, pooing and peeing in his crate. Yesterday he slept ALL morning long and didn’t eat anything to speak of. He was so stressed out! 

Of course we put the crate in our room last night and maybe that made a difference. We shall see if he does a repeat performance tonight. It was wonderful to have him sleep and not be miserable all night, us too!

Today he’s actually eaten well and played and slept and acted like a normal unstressed puppy. He follows me almost everywhere I go, except when he wants to play coquettish and won’t come when I want him to! We’ll be working on that as soon too. Okay, I’m off to take Napo out. Have a good one…