We've just been hit by a blog snowball!

Stanley's new sister, Stella's brother, a Lakey still waiting to be adopted in Florida hit us with a snowball! Check him out at: Florida Terrier Rescue *****DOUBLE TROUBLE*****
And if you haven't been hit yet, consider it so.


~You have just been hit with a blog snow ball!~
It's the start of.....
Snow Ball Fight 2007!!
& 2008!!
One rule to this game....
You can NOT hit someone who has already hit you!
Now...
go out there and get as many people as you can,
before they get you!
I got you first! and you can't get me back!
Nanee - Nanee - Nanee!
We do not stop playing because we grow old;
we grow old because we stop playing.
Never Be The First To Get Old!!!!!

Keeley's human pack

Not much going on here now that it gets dark so early in the evenings. I thought I'd take the opportunity to write a little about Keeley's people.
Erin - Keeley's Mom
Keeley is my dog (or I'm Keeley's girl). I used to be seriously afraid of dogs but Keeley cured me of that 100%. I can't believe how much I love him! Before I got Keeley, I said I wasn't going to allow him on furniture and that he was not going to sleep in my bed. I've learned the hard way to watch what I say because I immediately allowed him on the furniture and by the time he was 5 months old, he was sleeping in my bed. I also used to make fun of people who dressed up their dogs, but now I love putting Keeley in clothes (even though he's not too fond of it). There are not many pictures of us together since I'm usually the photographer. This picture of us is from Keeley's first day with me in his new home.
Mama - Keeley's Grandma
Keeley's grandma lives upstairs from us; however, we leave our doors open and Keeley moves freely between the apartments. She used to be scared of dogs too and Keeley cured her about 90% of the way. Keeley loves her because she's a total play-baby. She's always playing tug-o-war or chase or something with the Keeley pup. He also likes that she always gives him Cheerios and yogurt.
The Dad - Keeley's Grandpa
Keeley's grandpa adores him. Before I got Keeley, he wasn't too keen on the idea of me getting a dog. But shortly after I got Keeley, he started saying stuff like "I'll probably have a few dogs when I retire." And when I asked him what kind, he said "oh, probably Irish Terriers." Keeley loves him because he's always bringing Keeley yummy treats and he plays like a dog with Keeley. They roughhouse and play wrestle so much that sometimes when I'm playing with Keeley and he starts to get a little carried away, I have to remind him that "Hey, I'm not the Dad!"
Ryan - Keeley's reluctant uncle
Ryan does not like dogs. He's constantly complaining about how much Keeley stinks and about how annoying it is when I talk baby talk to Keeley and that my life revolves around Keeley now. I really just think it's jealously since Keeley is my center of attention now. Keeley is always happy to see Ryan and he doesn't care that Ryan doesn't like him. When Ryan thinks that no one is looking, he'll kick balls around the yard for Keeley to chase and he'll pat him on his head. (Ryan refuses to have his photo taken with Keeley.)
Unkie Rob - Keeley's favorite uncle
Keeley loves his Unkie Rob. Rob only comes home to visit once a year. Last December when Rob had to leave, Keeley sat in the stairway and cried. Rob is always saying that he's going to steal Keeley and take him back to New York with him. When he calls we put him on speaker phone and he barks to Keeley. I took this photo of them together last December.

A visit to Minooka

This morning we decided to check out the new Minooka Park Dog Exercise Area in Waukesha County. It just opened last week.
It's actually 2 dog exercise areas. There's a 3 acre area for small dogs that are 15 inches and smaller. And there's an 11 acre area for larger dogs. Both are fully fenced (which is a must when you have a terrier).
Keeley had fun exploring the new park. He met a Jack Russell named Max. They moused around together for a while and almost caught some little critter that was hiding in a pile of dead branches. Keeley also got to see some people riding horses pass by on the other side of the fence. All together he had a pretty great time.
Unfortunately, when we were getting into the car to leave, I noticed that Keeley was covered in burrs. When we got home we had to spend a lot of time removing them one by one. That's never fun.
Right now, Keeley's napping on the floor next to me while I'm computing. I don't know what he ate but his farts are nearly killing me! I had to open a window to get some fresh air.

a full day for Keeley

Today started out with a trip to Runway dog park. Keeley made sure to check out all the mud pits since I had given him permission to get good and muddy.  
When we got home it was bath time. We used his new "Vanilla Musk" shampoo which made Keeley smell great. Since it was such a beautiful fall day, he decided to dry himself by laying in the sun outside while his grandmother worked on refinishing her kitchen cabinets. 
Our neighbor's son was visiting her and doing yard work.  He had brought along his dog, Abby.  But since they don't have a fence, she was either going to have to wait in the car or get tied up with a short rope.  We offered for her to hang out with Keeley in his yard instead.
Keeley loves having doggie visitors.  Abby is a shy dog, who takes a while to warm up to new people and new dogs.  Keeley was a total gentleman.  He gave her plenty of space and didn't act nearly as crazy as he usually does when there's a dog in his yard.
Before long it was dinnertime already and Keeley's uncle, Ryan, came over to visit.  Just when it seemed like the day was finally winding down, Keeley's grandpa showed up for a surprise visit.  He brought fresh liver treats for Keeley too.
Keeley's going to sleep like a log tonight.  His day was so full, he forgot all about taking his normal daytime nap!

Love your blog, Kirby!

We've thought about it and now we would like to pass along this honor to Kirby in Chicago.
Here's the address for his blog: http://kirbytheairedale.blogspot.com/
Keeley's grandma is always going on about how Airedales are by far the cutest puppies. I keep telling her to shush (I don't want Keeley to get a complex!).

So much to blog about, so little time

Last night at Runway Dog Park we bumped into Lucy, the Irish Terrier, and her mom. To our surprise, they were walking with 2 other Irish Terriers that we've never met before. Their names were Shannon and Liffey. We figured that it was something pretty special, having 4 Irish Terriers there all at once. Of course, I didn't have a camera with me.
Anyhow, we made plans to meet back there tonight. We didn't see Shannon and Liffey, but Lucy was there. Lucy's cousin, Eszti, the Viszla was there too. This time I had a camera with me but was unable to get any good shots of them all together. Keeley was being his typical knucklehead self, blazing his own trail, getting into the mud, and not walking with the pack on the pathway. I did however, get a picture of Lucy.
Keeley also got mail today. It was a card from Lojack. Here's a picture of it.


Can you read it? It's written in Lojack-ese. It starts out, "eye makud dis witt meys teef!"

Let's see... what else did I want to blog about? Oh yeah, Keeley had a Barbie for breakfast.I guess that's all for now. I've gotta go pay attention to my pup!

New bells

Today we got new bells for all the doors that lead outside. Since I'm now commited to having dogs for the rest of my life, I figured that I might as well invest in some better looking bells. I got them from www.poochiebells.com. They were expensive, but they do look pretty. The bells that we were using before were just pathetic looking in comparison. I guess Keeley approves of the new bells because he keeps ringing to go outside. Speaking of.... the boss is ringing to go out right now! Geez, this is the 8th time this evening!

Thank you, Lacylulu!

This is the first time I've been chosen for anything!

Keeley, the lap dog

While Keeley was sick we gave him extra love in the form of petting and belly rubs. I guess he liked it because now he thinks he ought to be a lap dog. He doesn't understand that he's too big.
He keeps jumping onto my lap and he doesn't fit so his hind legs have to hang over the side. And if I'm sitting on the floor, he'll come over and sit on me. He even jumped on to my lap twice while I was driving (and that was scary!).
Keeley can be such a goofball!

Beginner Agility Starts

We took the Puppy Foundation For Agility class last year. Keeley really liked it but then he hurt he his foot somehow and had to be on "limited activity" for a very long time while it was healing.
Tonight we went to our first Beginner Agility class. The hardest part about agility for Keeley is his concentration and waiting his turn. The actually obstacles are a piece of cake. Tire, Weave, Jump, Tunnel, Bench.... these things are easy for Keeley. In fact he does them without putting forth any effort. But his lack of concentration sometimes gets him into trouble. He even trips over his own feet because that's how little attention he's paying to what he's doing.
He also likes to make his own course. I'll say "tunnel" and he'll go thru it just fine but then he'll turn around and go back thru it and then forward thru it again. And then he'll do some jumps and jump thru the tire and then back thru the tunnel. It's ridiculous. I guess he's a typical terrier with a mind of his own. He just wants to go full throttle and doesn't want to wait to be told what to do next.
Keeley's other major problem is waiting his turn. He can't stand to watch the other dogs practicing something. He lunges and barks as loud as he can. He pulls hard and tries to wiggle out of his collar.
The worst is when another dog has difficulty learning something and needs extra help. It just drives Keeley crazy.