Hilde's weekend

Hilde had a good week-end. She conquered the stairs, went swimming, went to the community farm in Marine on St. Croix and lots of other fun things!! Here are some pictures documenting the goings on around here.

Here she is halfway down the stairs.


This is Hilde in a picture. Her personality that is. She is wrestling Larry the Lobster.
Here is Hilde's new leash holder. So cute!

Big Day!

Today was a big day for Hilde. Not only can she go down the stairs, but she also went for her longest walk to date. We walked all the way to the woods (about 1/4 mile) and then down the path to the lake! Get this...

Hilde swam today!!! Ray threw a stick in and she got in a little deeper than we thought she would go and she swam! It was pretty cute. When she came out of the water she looked so funny. She is such a fluffy dog, she looks so funny with that fur all wet. The lake has a teeny hill by it which is all dirt and sand. Hilde thought it was great fun to slide down the dirt/sand/mud hill on her tummy. She was a horrible, dirty, filthy mess-- but in a good way.

SO Hilde got a bath this evening. She was not pleased with it. She stayed in the tub like a good girl, but she clearly was not enjoying the bath. Stay tuned for pictures of the bath. As I type now she is sound asleep. Thank goodness.

Proof of Hildebeast...

We took the beast to Chuck and Don's this evening as she was out of kibble. The "girls" (really they are) at the store FAWNED over her. She got cookies from every person who worked there. It was pretty funny. She got some dog food and a new chew toy. It is a spongy bone that you freeze and then she can chew. A puppy teether I guess. ANYWAY- we weighed the beast. When we last went to Dr. Goodell she was either 10 or 12 pounds. I can't remember. She is now 17 1/2 pounds!! What the heck!

Also- today we taught Hilde to go down the stairs on her own. She really doesn't like it, but she is willing to do it to get to a kitty... I am not sure teaching her that was a good idea.

Hildebeast!!

HOLY COW! Hilde is getting HUGE! She isn't able to go down the stairs yet, so I have to carry her down. I hurt my shoulder sometime this week and I am pretty sure it is from hauling the Hildebeast around. She pretty much grew out of her puppy kennel, although we put her in it for about an hour in the morning. That won't last much longer though.

She continues to be very BITEY and chompy. She is learning how to be gentle. I am hopeful the nipping and biting will slow down when she loses her baby teeth.

Hilde is an early bird and consistently gets up between 4 and 5 am. At 4 if she can go outside she will go back to sleep until about 5. 5 am is her wake-up time for now while I still work in Eden Prairie. Once I start working in Shoreview (in 7 weeks) I am hoping she will sleep a little bit later. I am pretty tired getting up so early with her. My fitness program has been hit hard by the new schedule! The blog sure hasn't been getting the same attention either!

This weekend we will take lots of pictures. We have lots of fun planned, including a road trip to Marine on St. Croix to pick up our farm share chickens. Nothing like country sniffs for a pup!

Weekend Fun

So sad-- I have to go back to work. No more staying at home all day with Hilde. Hilde was really sleepy this weekend. Here are some pictures of our weekend activities!





Hilde is very helpful in the garden...
She is an equal opportunity greenery eater.

Willy the cat REALLY is not pleased with the puppy. He is finding many new places to get away. The napkin/garbage bag drawer seemed like a good option.

Hilde and the orange bone- she thinks it is just ok.

Heading to the beach!

Here is one of Hilde's first day at the beach!


She got in the water with some coaxing...
Her fur sure holds a LOT of sand!

The buoy, rope and seaweed held the most interest for Hilde.

ummm... Tasty buoy!

Even more photos!

We gave up on Nylabones. The one above is probably an hour old!

More lounging on the "don't chew the door" system.
This bone is just not her favorite!
Sometimes she calms down and snuggles!

A whole bunch of new photos

I know how to shrink photos now, so here are a bunch of photos from the last week or so. I don't have to wait for Ray to shrink them anymore!


Here is Hilde chewing something she is supposed to chew!!
Ray rigged up this "don't chew the door system" which has turned into a comfy nap spot.

Here is Larry the Lobster. Hilde's go to toy when she is feeling crazy. He also offers us good protection when she is nutty.
Here is Hilde with a new bone I got her in Michigan. Like a nylabone but MUCH sturdier and organic. It is a Zuke's bone I think. See the websites below...
Here is Hilde with her puppy Nylabone... I think she is wondring why I am taking so many pictures.

Old photos

Here are some pictures my brother took. These are from the first weekend we had Hilde. She has gotten much bigger!

Hilde barking and growling

Sorry there haven't been new posts. I have been trying to catch up after being out of town and Hilde is keeping some odd hours right now which is making Ray and I pretty tired! Here is a video of Hilde and her kennel. There is a latch on it that drives her nuts. I have no idea why... The lighting is bad, but the sound is pretty funny!

I love this quote!

“Whoever said you can’t buy happiness forgot about little puppies. ”
- Gene Hill

She is huge!

I have been out of town since Sunday for work. When I got home Hilde seemed huge!! She has gotten really, really long. She has also gotten more chompy-- could she get more chompy? As soon as I can I will add some pictures from before I left and some new pictures of giant puppy Hilde!

In the meanwhile here are some links of organic and natural items for dogs. We are trying to be really careful about what Hilde eats, chews and sleeps on!

www.zukes.com for natural treats and bones.

www.onlynaturalpet.com for a variety of items.

www.westpawdesign.com for toys and beds.

www.planetdog.com for all sorts of supplies.

www.earthdoggy.com has great stuff! I love the bella bed, but I haven't bought anything in terms of bedding until Hilde stops chewing.

www.globaldognaturalpetproducts.com - the site name kind of speaks for itself.

www.belladogga.com has some really cute beds!

I am currently looking for a big girl collar for Hilde. At first I thought she would be a pink kind of girl. Now I am leaning more towards a green or chocolate brown.

A big day for Hilde!

Today was a big, big day for Hilde. This morning we went to the beach to see what she would think of that. The first sniff out of the car appeared to be doggy heaven. There was so much to do and see we had a hard time getting her to the sand and water. Once we got her to the sand she was transfixed! When she stepped the sand would move and make her nuts. Then she would dig at that sand, which started the whole process over, but then she would get even crazier! It took her a good fifteen minutes to figure out beyond the sand was water. I got in the water first and convinced her to follow me in. She thought it was ok, but not great. She wasn't scared at all. She was much more interested in the sand. Eventually a buoy marking off the swimming area caught her interest and she then waded in and stayed for a few minutes. She never swam though. As she was running back to the beach she did a face plant into the water. It didn't faze her at all. Then she played in the sand some more and rolled and rolled in it. We quickly learned that her thick coat holds a LOT of dirt and sand. She even had sand up her nose. We put her in the car and she promptly passed out and slept for a good 2 plus hours.

In other "big steps" (ha!) Hilde learned to climb the stairs at home today. I am not sure if that is good or not...

A whole bunch of new pictures!

Here is Hilde getting used to the vacuum. It didn't really faze her.

Hilde loves sticks. Big, big, big girl sticks.

Ummmmm dinner time!
More of the vacuum. Still unfazed....

Here is Hilde sniffing out her basket that she chews on. I sprayed it with bitter apple.
Well that didn't work did it.

Here is Hilde chewing on her bee toy. She hasn't figured out that they hide in the hive yet.

More fun with the bee hive.
The squeaky bees sure are fun to bite!

This looks gross, but it is what remains of a puppy nylabone after two days with it.

I LOVE this picture of Ray and Hilde!!

Here is Hilde on her first independent car ride. In the back seat all alone.
Here we are at Pet Junction! The car seems to put her to sleep.
Here is Hilde shopping at Pet Junction. Any of these look good?

This octopus looks ok...

Back to the bee toy which is good fun!

Reinforcements!

Today I had an appointment in the morning so Serena came by to offer reinforcement. It was nice to leave Hilde in good hands and go out and do some stuff! Serena romped and played with her until she fell asleep mid-run! We continue to work on commands and it seems that Hilde is getting the hang of "sit". "Come" and "down" are a little harder. She is doing great with potty training. Today we also worked on new noises. I played the Kazoo, but that didn't faze her at all. She hard a leaf blower and a garbage truck. No problem. The neighbors kids were driving a kid sized monster truck around, that did bother her. Funny... More pictures to come.

More Hilde video!

Hilde the chomper has gone through three nylabones since Friday. Here is a video of her new chew "toy". She will get to chew on this for limited times... I think she could become obsessed!

Video of Hilde

Wednesday with Hilde

Hilde is SO chewy! She almost demolished her second nylabone! That is two in less than a week. It is not like she isn't chewing on other stuff either! Atleast she is mostly chewing on what she can chew rather than what she shouldn't chew. As I write that she started to chew on her toy box!!

Today we are staying close to home. Sears (boo) is coming to fix our lawn tractor. Their estimated time of arrival--- "between 8 and 5". You couldn't narrow that down at all? Anyway- as a result we will be staying home. It is supposed to storm and rain all day. I wonder how she will do without all the outside time she loves. We did go for a walk this morning and Hilde romped with Cole next door, but compared to other days that isn't much play time at all.

Today we started formally working on commands. We are working on "sit", "come", "down" and "stay". We did this before at meal time, but now it is part of the day's routine. She has gotten sit a few times. I wonder if it is a coincidence. I am using liverwurst cut into tiny cubes for a reinforcement. She gets to lick a little of the liver off for doing a good job.

Today Hilde is very sleepy. She is also very chewy when she is awake!!

Updated Hilde pictures!

Here are some updated Hilde pictures! We are taking a ton everyday, we just aren't posting them as quickly as we take them.







Hilde takes a long time to wake up. She is really groggy after sleeping. We set her outside after she gets up and she "noodles" right down and catches a few more zzzzzzs before she is ready to roll.

Still not quite ready for playing outside!

Ahhh-- finally waking up a bit.

Here is Hilde's first attempt at a walk on a leash. First of all- her leash is as wide as a shoelace. Pretty embarrassing for a big dog to walk on this leash! Secondly- She really just wants to eat it. All part of the learning process I guess!

Could she be cuter??

Tuesday with Hilde

Hilde was up at 5 am this morning. I am sad to say that with my work schedule that is probably what is going to work out best for us. She plays and romps and eats breakfast and then sacks out for about an hour. By that time Ray will be able to get up and do it all over again before he goes to work.

Yesterday Hilde went for her first independent car ride. She was in the backseat alone in her "puppy hammock". She cried a little at first, but she did ok. We went to Pet Junction to get a long lead so she can be attached to me around the house and around the yard when I am doing chores and things. She isn't to be trusted right now! At Pet Junction we signed up for puppy training. She will go once a week starting in the last week of July. She will learn basic puppy commands and some manners. She also did a little shopping and found a bee toy that her big sister Anu had and chewed to pieces.

In the afternoon we went and saw Dr. Goodell her vet. He said she was as "solid as a rock". She has gained about 2 pounds since her last vet visit with the breeder. She has some sort of parasite, but Dr. Goodell said it is quite common with dogs raised in rural areas. She will take some medicine for 7 days.

Hilde also got her heartworm medicine and some frontline. I will put the frontline on today. She is so groggy after naptime I think that will be a good time to do it. She did really well at the vet. So well she fell asleep on the exam table.

Yesterday afternoon and evening she was WILD!!! She has really gotten her running legs and she is putting them to good use, hence the lead she will be using often. I cannot believe how fast she is for such a little tiny fur ball. She is shaping up to be quite a runner. She also learned how to dig last night. She dug herself a nice little hole in the backyard. Good for her legs I guess! Little puppies need lots of stimulation and exercise. What could be better then fresh dirt.

Hilde conked out at about 9. I should have gone to bed with her, because this morning came awfully early!

Could Hilde be getting bigger?

Hilde has pretty much demolished a nylabone already. She has been happily chewing it since she got here. We got her two puppy Nylabones, but she really prefers the brown one. I am not sure what flavor that is, but we will be getting more today. It is preventing her from eating the doors!

Today Hilde looks bigger. Even our neighbor said that. I know they grow fast, but could we actually notice a size change in a day or two?

Hilde went for another walk this morning. She went a few houses farther away today. She still tries to chew on the leash, but once she gets going she sure GOES!

We discovered last night that Hilde LOVES her frisbee. She has a baby kong frisbee that makes her nutso. She growls at it and does the death shake on it.

I think this week Hilde is going to learn how to ask for outside using the windchimes. Stay tuned!

Hilde's first Sunday

Wow! Everyday seems to be a busy day with this puppy. Has it only been two full days? I guess the good news in this is that I already love this little pooch. She is a outgoing, spunky little go getter. She is curious about everything and wants to meet everyone! If she can get a nibble in, well that is even better.

Today Hilde got up really early. I think it was around 5:15. I blame us, I think we messed up her little schedule yesterday. Today Hilde was ON THE MOVE! She apparently was recharged totally after last nights sleep. She ran and ran around the yard today. It takes two of us to make sure she doesn't get into mischief.

Today Uncle Jim and cousin Cara Joy came over. They took pictures AND video. Stay tuned for that. We all decided we were pretty tired so Jim and Cara went home. Ray and I fell asleep in the living room (Hilde in her kennel). We woke up when Auntie Carla and Uncle Mark came over to meet Hilde. We sat outside for a while and Hilde was quite calm. I think because it was an afternoon visit.

After that Hilde played in the yard some more. She investigated a rake and decided to chew it. Then she investigated the push mower and guess what- she tried to chew it. She has also been working hard on the irises. A big favorite of hers.

In the house she is thinking hard about how to challenge the gate keeping her in the living room. She is trying to figure out how to gnaw on the sliding glass doors without getting in trouble. She is also trying her hardest to get onto the couch, but it is just a little too high right now.

This morning because she was so energetic we decided to introduce her leash. At first she tried to eat the leash and pull away. Once she got going she did a really good job and enjoyed going full tilt. We went about 4 houses down before we decided that was good. I think she might enjoy running when she is a little older.

She is quickly figuring out how to dig. She is already more coordinated when she runs. She is also following us around the yard more, except when she gets a little wild or distracted, by say a bug.

She is a handful, but we love her.

Our first Saturday

Here are Hilde and Ray taking a walk to meet the neighbors. Ok, Ray is walking.

Here is Hilde playing with her favorite toy so far. It is a squeaky turtle.

More squeaky turtle....
Now she is REALLY going to get that turtle.

Here is Hilde exploring the yard. She enjoys chewing sticks, eating grass and biting flowers. She has already started to dig in the yard.