Brinkley Turns One

I had been planning Brinkley’s 1^st Birthday since the day I got him. Probably before that. There was a blog post about it. He was going to have a Star Wars themed birthday and him and his friends would dress up as characters. He, of course, would be Han Solo. There would be Star Wars themed food. It was going to be great.

Well, that didn’t work out.

It turns out that dogs probably don’t want to wear costumes when it’s Texas Summer. It also turns out that coming up with an elaborate themed menu for lots of people probably wouldn’t work with a girl on a very tight budget. So that plan was scratched.

Instead, Brinkley had a Luau. My mom and I came up with this plan when digging through my dress up stash I had while growing up. While going through it, we put the dogs in ensembles. Beau was more into it than Brinkley.

Proof:

Both Brinkley and Beau seemed to enjoy the Leis so the Luau it was. We didn’t roast a pig but we DID have hot dogs. I headed to the dollar store to pick up some more leis for all the dogs. They only had packs that had leis for the neck, ankles and head. That actually worked out since Roxie’s neck is the size of an ankle. While there, I grabbed a pack of party hats with the hope to get some hilarious pictures.

The party was at my parents house. They have a pool and Brinkley’s absolute most favorite thing to do is swim. He doesn’t even have to be fetching anything. He will just swim in circles. He does love to play fetch with pool noodles though, even if that’s not your intention. You can just be relaxing on one and he will immediately take it from you. It’s probably best for you to not look relaxed at all in the pool. If you looked relax it’s probably because you are floating. There is no floating when Brinkley’s in the pool. He thinks floating is drowning and he will swim after you, grab your wrist and drag you back to the steps. In fact, it’s probably just best if you just stand in waist deep. That’s your only guarantee that you won’t get “saved”.

Brinkley swam for hours on his birthday. The party started at 5 but just like a little kid, he wanted it to start early so he grabbed his Lady and they began swimming. His 4 doggie friends joined around 5. None of them particularly enjoyed the pool, but their parentals sure did enjoy making them try.

After swimming, the humans and pups both ate. The dogs enjoyed cupcakes made with yogurt frostings and Brinkley’s favorite food, bacon, as the topping.  The doggy cupcake part of the party lasted a whole 30 seconds.

The last part of the party was presents. My mom and I had picked up a few toys for Brink but I had NO idea that everyone else would have the same plan. At first Brinkley wasn’t so into the whole opening presents thing. He was afraid of the tissue paper. Seriously, I wish I was joking. When he realized that bones, chew toys, and Frisbees were underneath the tissue paper he manned up.

The dog has never had so many toys in his life. And the best part is it seems like he wants them all to be sure that they are equally loved. I will throw the fake branch and he will come back with the cookie Frisbee. I will throw the cookie Frisbee he will bring back the water bottle cow. I’ll throw the water bottle cow and he will bring back the green dog.

It probably seems insane to throw a birthday party for a dog. It might be. But anyone who is a true dog lover knows the happiness a dog can bring to their life. To see something get so excited to see you after a long day can’t help but put a smile on your face. If having a birthday party for your dog to pay them back for being the most loyal living thing in your life is crazy, I’m okay with being crazy. 

More photos of the fun:

Time for School

Brinkley is a great dog. He sits. He stays. He fetches. However, about a month ago, he began getting restless during the night.

Weekends are Brinkley’s fun days. He goes on lots of car rides and hangs out on patios. He also gets to go to the dog park and go swimming. He loves the weekends and they tire him out. But by Wednesday, all the weekday time in his crate starts making him antsy. He simply doesn’t want to sleep anymore. And he makes that very clear. I would wake up constantly to this:

It makes sense. Goldens love interaction. Giving him a bone to chew on through the night couldn’t cut it anymore. So I started looking into daycare.

The problem with most daycares is that they aren’t as great as they crack them up to be. I don’t want to pay $25 for my dog to get to hang out in a “luxury suite” for 7 hours a day and get 10 minute play times every 2 hours. No thanks.

When a few people at work started talking about Benny’s Dog Resort, I tried to not get optimistic about this place being any different. I checked their website to see what Benny’s was about. FINALLY. A place where dogs get to play all day. At Benny’s the dogs arrive and immediately go outside. They play all day except from 11-1, which is lunch and naptime. At 1 pm, they go back outside until you pick them up. More perks? They have play sets specifically built for dogs. They have play pools filled with water and tennis balls. They have covered play areas for when it’s hot. They get treats called Pup Cakes.

After seeing such great things on their website, I checked their Facebook. They update it constantly with pictures of all the dogs. Some of my favorites:

I attempted to not get excited (failed) until I saw pricing. $20 a day? 10 sessions for $140? I think I can handle that. I decided I’d take Brink every Wednesday.

When I called to fill out an application for Brinkley, Benny’s let me know that each new dog has an interview. Owners bring their dogs in for a 20-minute trial to make sure a new dog isn’t overly scared or aggressive. How great.

Brinkley passed and seeing Benny’s in person made me fall even more in love with the place.

Next thing you know, it’s Brinkley’s first day of school. People at work laughed and asked if he had a new backpack. No. Did I make him a lunch? Yes.

It’s been a month of school and Brinkley loves it more and more each time. Benny’s has brought out Brinkley’s playfulness. He now goes to the dog park and is more interactive with other dogs. On school days, I can barely handle him on his leash as he runs to the door. I pick him up and he immediately collapses in the back seat. It looks something like this:

Since Benny’s, Brinkley now has a perk in the week that makes him able to get through my workweek. I now get a full night’s sleep every night and I get to know I have a happier dog. I would take him everyday if I could, but for now, I’ll continue to sacrifice a few meals out for him to enjoy his special day.

For anyone interested, here is Benny’s website: Benny's Dog Resort

Brink's First Sleepover

One of the most memorable moments in any child’s life is their first sleepover. The same probably couldn’t be said about dogs, but God knows I tried.

One of my very best friend’s Becky recently got a puppy. I found the dog love of my life in May, and she found hers in October. She decided on a longhaired miniature dachshund and named her Roxie. I’ll refer to her from now on as Roxie Doxie.

You could say Becky and I have a lot in common. Both of our names are Rebecca. Both of our last names start with L. We went to the same college. We had the same major and minor. We were in the same sorority. We studied abroad at the same time, at the same school, stayed in the same dorm, and had all of our classes together. I mean look at this picture and try not to say we are essentially the same person except for our hair color…

We even think the same. We both needed to be somewhere but as usual, had a hard time picking something to wear. We both changed clothes and when I picked her up at her house, we found out we had the same solution. 

Anyway, we have another thing in common. We both fell in love with a picture of a dog before the dog itself. The difference is that even though our dogs are only 4 months apart in age, they are pretttttty different in size.

Roxie Doxie maybe weighs 5 pounds. Brinkley maybe weighs 80.

The first time Brinkley met Roxie Doxie, she was 2 pounds. He was confused. He knew she was a living thing, but she didn’t move. It made him nervous and he threw up.

Like all puppies, Roxie Doxie grew up fast and was all over the place before you knew it. When they were reacquainted, slowpoke Brinkley didn’t even try to keep up. He sat and watched as little bit ran around as fast as she could.

Becky came to visit at the apartment and brought Roxie Doxie for a trial run before she left Roxie Doxie for a weekend when she went out of town. With two puppies so different in size, you would be crazy to not be concerned. It’s basically leaving a rabbit with Lennie of Of Mice and Men.

Everyone was surprise when Brinkley laid down on his side, opened up his arms and Roxie ran right into them. He continued to lie down on her level and let her run all over them. She continued to be fearless and dominant. It worked out.

Roxie ended up spending a weekend with us a few weeks later. I was anticipating it all week while Brinkley remained clueless. When Roxie was dropped off, they picked up where they left off. They played for hours, not even stopping for a water break.

The sleepover was pretty similar to a child one. They “watched” movies, ate bones, and did a lot of playing. And as usual, the mom ended up tired.

Pictures of Brinkley and Roxie Doxie:

Always Busy!

Family Photo.

Playing and chewing. Multitasking at its best.

Little Bone for the Big Guy. Big Bone for the Little Girl.

Brinkley's New Pad

This may be new or old news to you, but I recently moved. I had been living with my brother since graduating college. His house was 5 minutes from work and he was an awesome roommate. But when Lindsey got a big girl job in Addison, I knew it was time to move in with my college roommate and have my own place. So on February 3^rd, Lindsey, Brinkley and I all became roommates.

Brinkley was raised with his big brother Major in a house with a backyard. Thinking about Brinkley transitioning to a 1,100 square foot apartment was a stressful thought for me. As usual though, Brinkley went with the flow. He didn’t whine, pace or pant. He just sniffed the new place out and collapsed on the floor.

But with any new place comes changes. There is a new rule of no Brinkley on the new couch. Let’s be honest, the dog sheds. A lot. Also, at the new place, when he goes outside he is (usually) on a leash. Thankfully we are on the first floor in a private area with lots of grass right outside the door.

More good changes have come of the move. My room is bigger which means we still have space for things besides just my bed and Brinkley’s bed. My closet is massive and fits Brinkley’s crate comfortable with plenty of room for my excessive amount of clothes. Without Major around to tire out Brinkley, I now take him on runs in nearby neighborhoods to tucker him out. It was a pain at first but I think we both are enjoying it now. Check back on us in July.

Thankfully there has only been one bad day in the new place. God only knows what he ate to make that kind of mess come out of both ends. Lindsey was a good sport and lit some candles and wrapped a blanket around her head while the place aired out.

I thought there might be some ridiculous stories of Brinkley adjusting but he has proved me wrong. He loves Lindsey and has finally adjusted to her boyfriend Jesse. As soon as Brinkley finally became less scared of Jesse, he would change clothes only to scare Brinkley again. Luckily he got over that fear. Things he still fears? Blow dryers and vacuums. He refuses to be anywhere close to them, which is so sad, pathetic and hilarious all at the same time.

I’m glad to report that Brinkley and I are happy in our new home. Words can’t say how nice it is to be back with Lindsey under the same roof.

I’ll add some new pics Brinkley and of the new place.

My Room

Patio View

Dining Room

Living Room

Wreath, thanks Mom!

Brinkley decided to hang out on the top of the couch

Tired after the move

Ready for bed

On our way to the new place for the first time

Growing Pains

There comes a time in every child’s life where someone question’s their well being, and the parent instinctually wants to fight. In this case, the child is Brinkley.

It was just another day at the park. Saturday brought beautiful weather so it wasn’t a hard decision to take Brinkley on a walk through some trails to tire him out rather than deal with him constantly putting slimy toys on my shoulder.

We WERE having fun. Trails were something new for Brinkley. Brandon and I watched as Brinkley led the way through the weaving rocky trails. Every 30 seconds Brinkley would turn around, make sure we were still following, and wait in place if he thought we were too far away. He would stay on the narrow trail the whole time except to pee. His instincts chose the paths and the paths led us to a beautiful lake filled with fisherman and row boats.

Proof of fun being had:

I have to give Denton credit, I didn’t think the 50-cent-double-well-drink city could be so gorgeous.

The three of us were having a good time until we walked through the dog park before leaving. Brandon tossed the mud colored tennis ball a few more times while I watched all the dog have their play dates. All of a sudden, a lady walks up to me, and in a disturbed voice says, “Oh my, does your dog have a hip problem?”

Cue internal Becca wanting to punch someone for the first time in her life.

No. No he doesn’t. My 7-month-old puppy does not have a hip problem.

While I am trying to rationally come up with a halfway polite answer, the lady then answers herself.

“Oh yes, he definitely has a hip problem.”

This isn’t my child. I didn’t create this adorable dog out of my own genes. But that doesn’t matter. This lady was accusing MY dog of a hip problem. She was bluntly telling me what was the matter with my dog.

A lot of feelings arose once these words left her mouth.  A lot of them probably weren’t necessary. A lot of them probably weren’t her intentions. Either way, whether she meant to or not, this lady made me a crazy woman for the rest of the day.

My thought process the rest of the day:

Who does she think she is? Is she Supervet? Did she study Golden Retriever hips at Harvard? Oh honestly, she thinks she knows my dog better than me? Who wears green stretch pants anyway? Go home and organize your embarrassingly large collection of jean jackets. Believe me lady, if he had a hip problem I would know about it. Come to think of it, he has been laying on the couch for three hours without moving. Maybe he does have a hip problem. Oh my gosh, my seven month old dog has a hip problem. The stupid lady with the grown out roots was right. Will Brinkley be able to have his first birthday party? Maybe I should take him to the emergency vet. I should cook him some bacon. He loves bacon. He needs it for his bad hips. I’m going to cook bacon.

I’m sure that when this happens with an actual child, the feelings are exponentially stronger, and the mean and insane thoughts are even more severe.

After a long shower and a beer, I calmed down long enough to realize Brinkley was fine but tired. He didn’t need to go to the vet, and if he has a hip problem, the vet will let me know and we will address that issue when and if it happens.

But, as of now, Brinkley has no hip problem. He runs like a free spirited, clumsy puppy who is getting used to his rapidly growing body. The evil woman who managed to ruin half of my Saturday did teach me something though.

Whether it is because of a hip problem or something else, one day Brinkley will not be an invincible puppy. He will be slowed down or in pain for one reason or another. There’s nothing I can do to change it. All I can do is give him all the love in the world, cook countless strips of bacon, and let him sleep on my bed even if it means lint rolling my bedspread. 

More Brinkley:

Brinkley Timeline: