Do dogs have names for themselves?

Two of my favorite comic strips are The Other Coast by Adrian Raeside and Dogs of C-Kennel by Mick & Mason Mastroianni.

In them, the dogs frequently call each other by name. Their human bestowed name.

How do they keep their human names straight? Dogs with multiple owners have had multiple names.

Bogie was a found rescue, so, of course, had another name although I don't know it. Angel has been known as Peanut, Tiny, and Angel by her various humans. In both cases, I kept the name they came with, but I have changed a dog's name before. 

Even dogs that have only had one owner have multiple names. 

For example, Bogie is Bogie, Bogie Boy, Baby Boy, Baba, and Dude. Angel goes by Angel, Angel Girl, Angel Baby, Baba (it's a multi-use name), and Pretty Girl.

Do dogs just shrug and somehow figure out what their humans call them?  I had a friend who was a pet psychic tell me that they know because you are thinking about them specifically. It's as good an explanation as any.

Do dogs have their own private name, shared only with other dogs?  A mother dog has to have some way to differentiate her puppies?  Doesn't she?  If only puppy 3 is biting too hard while nursing, would the mother dog just yip at all puppies?  Seems ineffective.

When Bogie introduces himself, does he tell the other dog his name is Bogie?  Or does he tell them his name is Lord Tall Who Reaches Cupboards?

Well, that wouldn't have been a puppy name. That's a grown up skill.

Maybe it's more like Smell 04526 With Dark Spots?

Smell 04526 With Dark Spots

It's the little things in life - literally

So I wash most of my dishes by hand.  Yes, I know that dish washers are more efficient, but I have to wash the dogs' bowls out twice a day anyway.  So I wash up mine as well.

I stack the drying dishes in the left side sink.  Not sure why it bothers me to have a rack on the counter, but it does. 

Previously, I would angle the dog dishes, then layer my dishes around those.  Made it impossible to get to the dog dishes for the next meal.  And it looked really messy.

But I found a small in-sink drainer.  It fits perfectly into the sink well.  There is room for the dog dishes, a rack for my dishes, and even a cutlery holder.  (The ceramic knife always goes up top so I don't accidentally grab it.)

Much more organized.  Satisfies my need for order. 

Mountain Oasis painting

For January, there was only one painting we wanted to do.  Well, two, but no time for the other.  It was a fun class and I really liked the result.

The instructor painting had "M" birds, but I went with a sprinkling of stars instead. 



Done at The Brush Bar

Best New Year's Eve in several years

New Year's Eve is one of my least favorite holidays.  Of my last 6 dogs, four have been freaked out by fireworks.

And boy does my neighborhood like fireworks.  This year they started around 7 and went to 12:15.  Last year they started at 5:30 and went to 1:30.

Yeah, I don't get much sleep on January 1st.

Currently I have two dogs.  Angel is the Belgian Malinois/Great Dane mix and is almost 12.  Bogie is a Great Dane and is 7 1/2.

In year's past, I've had to hold Angel (all 100 pounds of her) and reach to pet Bogie.

For some reason, in 2018 Angel decided fireworks no longer bothered her.  Yay!  Going deaf?  I don't think so.  She can still hear the pantry door open from outside.

I don't know which of the several things I did helped Bogie this year, but he did better than he has since I got him.

1. I increased his evening dose of CBD oil in the hopes it would calm his anxiety.

2. I kept the door closed to keep him from running outside to bark.

3. I put a series of movies on with the volume louder than usual.

4. I sat on the floor with him most of the night, petting him, and holding him tight when he tried to jump up in response to an extra loud boom.

Mostly I think the solution was 1 and 4. 

There were definitely fireworks.  I could hear them, even over the TV.

But Bogie was a lot less stressed.  And that made me a lot less stressed.

Christmas Cactus painting

Every year our paint place (The Brush Bar) posts at least one new Christmas themed painting.  This year, I made custom greeting cards (Shutterfly) from two of the previous years' paintings. 

This year's offering was a cheerful Christmas cactus.  Quite appropriate in a state where people actually do decorate their cactus. 

This one will definitely be next year's greeting card.

Inattentive drivers paying no attention to pedestrians

It's a scary time to be a pedestrian, even in the suburbs.

Bogie and I walk daily pre-dawn.  Our route often takes us past the driveways to a gas station and to a grocery store.

Too many times, drivers pull into, or out of, these driveways without even looking.  I've had to pull Bogie up short so he wouldn't be hit.  Or hustle to cross so we wouldn't get run over.

Yes, I know it's dark out.  But there are lights illuminating these driveways.  And Bogie is big.  And white.  Hard to miss if you are looking at all.

Do drivers not expect there to be pedestrians?  Is there an arrogance of driver versus pedestrian?  The knowledge that a car trumps a pedestrian in any encounter so why should the car pay attention?

Or are they so anxious to get to their cup of coffee or gas tank fill that they don't even bother to look?  Am I expected to hear them coming from behind me?

Another place that is risky is a parking lot.  Walmart or the grocery store, I park my car away from the entrance, usually because I have the dogs in the car. 

Drivers should expect pedestrians in a parking lot.  How else do people get from their car to the store, and vice versa? 

And especially in the *specially marked* crosswalks.  I mean, that's why they are there.

But there have been many, many times I've had to abort my progress because a moving car made no attempt to stop, or even slow, for the pedestrian in the crosswalk.

Is it rudeness?  Inattention?  Is their time more important than the rules of courtesy?

I don't know the answer.  I just know that I have to be extra-aware, because other people aren't aware at all. 

Identifying photos - please do.

I spent this weekend finally finishing up the scanning and labeling of all of my Mom's photos.  She died almost three years ago, so I can't claim to have been hurried.

The main point of scanning them was to share with various siblings and relatives.

I did the same thing when my Dad died.  And ran into the same problem. 

Who ARE these people?

For one thing, sticking photos onto albums means they may or may not be able to be removed later.  So if there was any identification written on the back, well, there's no way to tell if there is writing on the back.

But even with loose photos it's hard to figure out.  Some people can tell the difference between one infant and another, but I can't.  Which brother is this?  I don't know.  If there was a date I might be able to figure it out, but many of the photos we have, my dad developed himself.

No dates. 

And the people from my parents' generation or before?  Don't assume we're going to know who they are.  The next generation down will recognize even fewer people. 

I asked my mom once "Who is this?'.  "That's your great-grandmother."  "Well, write that on the back."  "I told you. Just remember."

Sigh.  I didn't.

It's really a shame.  There are some interesting, very old pictures in their collections.  One was a boy about 3 years old with a cigarette, which may or may not have been my dad.  One of a great-great-aunt was actually marked.  That was thrilling. 

So please, please make sure your photos are identified.  Your heirs will appreciate it.