Photoblog: Dog Tired

Recently, Stitch has been enjoying some time at home with Aunt Nin. That means he gets to go on walks before it gets dark (which is when Mama usually gets home). On one recent adventure, they took a "lengthier-than-usual" walk, which pretty much did Stitch in.

Here he is, post-walk, napping on his favorite papasan.

Zzzzzz...z.zz..z.z...

Photoblog: Yogini Stitch

Hello, everyone!

Stitch has been quite the busy young dog lately, but I (his mama) have been even busier, hence the lack of blog posts.

That's not to say that Stitch hasn't had the time to pose regularly for pictures. He is, after all, a favorite muse at our house. Over the next few days (weeks?) I will share some of Stitch's adventures via pictures.

Today we start with this: Yogini Stitch - my favorite shih-tzu doing a modified (and seemingly more difficult sideway variety) downward dog. Look at that form!

photo courtesy of Tita Nin

The Sound of Music

Stitch and I have been "together" now for a little over 7 months and I enjoy getting to know him. He loves treats and will do all his tricks for his favorite snacks. He also loves squeaky toys. I also know he likes the outdoors. On warm days, he often sits outside and just sunbathes or watches birds. Most recently, I discovered that Stitch loves music!

The other night, I finally pulled out my bongo drums, a gift from my BFF, from its box and started to play a little bit. Next thing I knew, Stitch was by my side, watching me intently. At first, I thought he was just curious about this new item that he had never seen before. But, no - he was being entertained! His body was relaxed, his tongue was hanging out, and his eyes were focused (yes, his eyes do focus despite his exotropia). To test my hypothesis, I passed the drums to my sister, and sure enough Stitch switched his focus on to her.

He sniffs.

He gets close.

He is pleased!

Time for his solo.

 So I did a little march around the house with the drums, a la the Pied Piper. To my amusement, Stitch followed me as if I was an ice cream vendor on a hot summer day.

I was so tickled by my discovery of Stitch's new found love that I pulled out my ukulele and started playing. No fail; Stitch sat at my feet and looked up at me like I was Jake Shimabukuro at a live concert.

Aloha Stitch

Now, he could be in another part of the house but as soon as he hears the bongo drums or the ukulele, he will go running to the source of the music. (Works better than calling out, "Stitch, come!") Who knew that this little Shih-tzu would have an ear for music?

Drummer Stitch

Craaaazzzzy Drummer Stitch

Athlete Stitch

Stitch's aunt is training for a half-marathon. So to show our support, we went with Auntie while she did a run last Saturday at Crissy Field.

This was Stitch's first "5K" (mostly walking) and he had a really good time! He sniffed and played nice with other dog-joggers, and got a couple of compliments on how he was such a cute and happy dog. *proud mama beaming*

Here are some shots from our walk.

A shot with the GG Bridge, but he's distracted by other runners

Watching other doggies jog by

"Watching" me as I try to get him to pose

Finally - a good shot!

After the 3 miles, Stitch is worn out...

... but musters the energy to say hi to a little fellow (he loves kids!)

Red stains around his snout = stolen licks of a red  M&M on the ground

The ride home, and he's going down...

And he's out before we even exit the parking lot

The Great Escape

We've had a series of summer-like weather here lately (finally!) Because of the heat, my front lawn has started looking a little ... "less green" if you will (not quite brown yet).

As I have yet to install my sprinkler system, I thought I would water my lawn yesterday evening. I pulled the hose from the side of my house and under my front gate. Not wanting to have to juggle a hose and a very active doggie, I thought it best to leave Stitch in the backyard, with the gate closed. Within seconds, this was what ensued:

Good thing his fat head didn't get stuck!

Of course he would wedge his head under the side of the gate door that opened, so that if I tried to open it, I would break his neck. I also tried to push his head back in, but he's got quite the cranium so that was impossible, too.

Fortunately, our neighbor-dog next door started to bark. This distracted Stitch enough that he pulled himself from under the gate. *sigh*

And for all those concerned, yes, I did block that hole under the gate so he does not put himself in the same predicament again. ;)

Welcome Back, Stitcher!

It's been a couple of months since I've blogged about Stitch. He's had so many adventures since then that I'd love to share soon!

For now, here's a teaser pic of what my little guy has been up to. More to come!

Construction Stitch, buying lumber

bosom buddies

Every dog needs a best friend (aside from their people). Someone they can frolick and play with or just be lazy with. In Stitch's case, we thought his best friend would be Boo, BFF's, 8-year old Pomeranian. While Boo (now) mostly tolerates Stitch, my pup has really taken to Aslan, BFF's Birman mix cat. Throughout the day, they can be be seen together, playing or napping. Or as is sometimes the case, with Stitch annoying the meow out of Aslan. They do play very gently with each other, although you will hear the very rare "yip" from Stitch when Aslan's claw gets caught on his fur. Or Aslan meowing in annoyance when Stitch gets in his face too much. Trainer Ally suggested an easy "enough" command coupled with the clicker to get Stitch to back down a bit, which I have been trying lately.

In honor of this awesome duo, I present to you the Stitch and Aslan collection.

*cue The Turtles' "Happy Together"*

they nap together

they shoot the breeze together

they hang out on grandpa's chair together

they goof around together (well, mainly Stitch)

they...um, they... roll around together?

Stitch Adventure: going for a ride

I was vacuuming my room the other day using my handy dandy Roomba. Curious little Stitch watched intently as the cleaning robot zipped around my room.

A few minutes later, I switched the vacuum off and placed it back near its base for a recharge. Seconds later, I hear the familiar jingle of the Roomba as it comes to life -- "tana-nana!"

Stitch was sitting on top of the vacuum, conveniently where the "on" switch was and inadvertently turned it on. As I turned around,  I see my little dog zipping off the vacuum as it started whirring to do it's job.

My poor illustration of Stitch on the Roomba.

I've since used the Roomba again, but have not seen Stitch go for another ride. Maybe it's not his thing after all.