The Solomon Sisters Saga Continues...

It has been an eventful almost two months since I've last written a blog about the girls.  As usually, things are crazy here in the Solomon household.  Rob's aunt came to visit for Memorial day weekend and his parents, sister and grandmother came to visit for 4th of July weekend so we haven't been short on company.  It's been wonderful having everyone and next month my parents and brother will be visiting.  We're so lucky to be able to have family come visit us considering how far away everyone is from us.  It's good to see them all when we do get a chance, and we'll even be taking a trip up north to see them next month (more on that to come later).

Chloe has been having a listening problem lately.  While she comes to me when I call her (most of the time) she completely "forgot" all the tricks I taught her and now whenever food is involved instead of listening to the commands and doing them, she just does all of her tricks in a row figuring one of them will get her the treat.  So when I say "sit" she speaks, jumps, lays down, rolls over, paws at me (high five) and somewhere in all that she kinda sorta sits for half a second.   It has been frustrating for me because it's like starting from scratch with her.   But I've signed us up for puppy training, every Wednesday starting next week, and will hopefully be able to get her back on track with her training.

Also, she is loosing her teeth so she is in the chewing stage.  She will begin to chew something and then Chelsea comes along and wants to chew it too and before I know it my wires are chewed or Rob's brand new $50 head phones are split in half.  I've spent more money on rawhide bones and chew toys than you can imagine and it still doesn't stop the chaos.

But today, she went in to be spayed (which is why I had the time to finally write this blog) and just came home looking so groggy and sad.  I immediately took her to PetSmart to get her a collar incase she tried to bite her stitches, and also picked up a brand new bed for her since she chewed hers up and there is no padding left.  Figured she'd want something comfy since she's supposed to be "relaxing" for at least a week.  So she got a cute little pink bed that came with a pink blanket and pink bone pillow/toy...

Chelsea has actually been having the opposite of a listening problem.  She is actually listening to me which is big news because she is the same dog that would run away the minute you looked at her.  Two weeks ago I called in a trainer to help me work with Chelsea and Chloe.  The trainer suggested I have Chelsea on a leash, clipped to me at various times throughout the day.  Most of the day I spend sitting at my desk or on the couch, so she just lays there next to me.  Other times she is free to run around with Chloe.  Well, I tried this for only one day and immediately she made an improvement.  Once I took her off the leash she still followed me and when I'd call her, she came right to me.  I was astonished.  This was the same dog that would have jumped through a 3rd story window to get away from me 5 months ago.  Now she not only knew her name but knew to come when I called it.    So I let her loose most of the time, and when I noticed she'd start distancing herself from me and heading off to sit in a corner, I'd go put the leash on her and bring her back to me.   But the best part is, from practicing putting her on the leash she has learned what "sit" and "stay" mean, and does them whenever I ask.

The other night, Chloe was cuddled up on a pillow under my arm while Rob and I were watching a movie.  I looked down at Chloe and starting telling her what a good girl she was and petting her and kissing her.  Well Chelsea's head perked up from her dog bed where she was sleeping and she immediately got up, came over to the couch, climbed up and laid down next to me with her head on my leg.  She wanted to be my good girl too, and I made sure she knew she was.  I was very proud of her for doing that on her own.  I never thought she'd come to me on her own but she did.   She also loves to lay on my lap and sleep.  I pet her ears (her sweet spot) so she falls asleep.  I definitely didn't think she be a lap dog but she is turning into one for sure.

Since Chelsea and Chloe are both doing so well at coming to us when we call them, we decided to try out the dog run nearby.  At first, we brought them in and kept them on the leash incase they were startled and tried to run.  The dog run is HUGE, like the size of a park but just fenced in.  If either of them took off running it could take forever just to find them wherever they ran off and hid.  So we then walked them into a smaller enclosed section of the dog run.  There were about 5 or 6 little Yorkies there, playing and yapping away.  We brought them in and immediately they all came running to greet us.  Chelsea pulled at the leash to run away and Chloe began growling and barking like she was going to protect us from this group of dogs bigger than her.   Finally when Chloe realized they weren't leaving us alone (all they were doing was sniffing) she began to yelp like they were trying to kill her.  Her yelps are so loud and shrill it's enough to make even the meanest person's heart drop.  I swear you'd think she was dying.  But the trainer explained she does this out of fear because she thinks we'll either pick her up or protect her.  The best idea is to let her realize she is a "big girl" and to stop crying about it (yeah, I laughed when I heard that too).   So we took them both off the leash and they both just followed us and the other dogs left them alone.  Both of them stuck to us like glue.  When we walked away, they followed.  Even when they went to sniff around they stayed close enough to get back to us in a short sprint, and made sure they could keep one eye on us.

Chloe did meet one dog she didn't mind.  He was a Yorkie mix (almost Chelsea's size) and the two of them sniffed each other and sat next to each other and she didn't once bark or growl at him.  So at least she is capable of making friends...  Chelsea wasn't interested in any dogs at all.  She did go face to face and sniff a bigger dog (as did Chloe) but they all realized they weren't mutually interested in each other and went their own ways.  So the dog park was a success in the fact that we learned that off leash they actually won't run away from us and still listen to us.  But not so much a success because they had no clue how to socialize, or maybe just didn't care to.

Part of the reason we wanted to try the dog park was because we are going on a road trip up to NJ & PA in August.  My best friend, Laura, is getting married in PA and I am her Maid of Honor.   We'll be packing the car full of dog beds and toys and heading up North.  It will be Chloe and Chelsea's first trip up to NJ to visit our family and she'll be spending the weekend with my parents and their dog Andy (this is where Charlotte usually stays when we need a sitter) while Rob and I head to PA for the wedding.  It will be a nice chance for Chelsea and Chloe to have a house to stay in with a back yard to wander around in. Plus, everyone up north has been wanting to meet the girls and this is a great chance for them to be able to.   By the time we leave Chloe will be fully healed and will have started her training too which is great.

Chelsea and Chloe are both great in the car.  They just lay there in the dog bed or look out the window.  Charlotte has been great on past car trips with us, so we know she won't be a problem.  I expect the dogs to be the least of our worries on the trip.   Their choice of 3 dog beds, water, food, bathroom breaks with new scenery and fresh air, and the occasional chicken nugget from McDonalds (their favorite) and these girls will be loving life.

I've been taking them on short trips to PetSmart during the week, just to get them out of the house and into social settings.  I'll take them and walk them around the isles and let them sniff and meet people.  This way they get used to people wanting to pet them and hold them.  They are usually very good about it. Chelsea still seems reserved and nervous, but once people start to pet her and she realized they don't want to hurt her, she relaxes.  Chloe just loves all the attention.  Everywhere we go people want to pet her and pick her up.  In fact, today at PetSmart, while she was all drugged up, a baby reached out in the check out line and pet her.  The baby was too small to even talk, but she reached over behind her mom, pet Chloe's face and then grabbed her paw.  I was glad Chloe was drugged for that because the paw grabbing may have frightened her otherwise and she could have yipped and scared the baby.  But I was shocked at how well she handled it.  Ah if only she could be drugged more often... (just a joke).

So I'll leave you as usual with a few fun photos of the girls.  Until next time...

Sleepy Chloe

Chelsea and Chloe cuddling together, as always.

Chloe holding Chelsea's paws. :)

One of Chloe's puppy teeth next to a grain of rice (the grain of rice is the bigger one...)

 Chelsea follows me everywhere now.  Including the bathroom...

Cuddling with Mommy. :)

Charlotte cuddling with the stuffed pig.

Wish I could make this into a portrait and hang it somewhere. :)

Chelsea and Chloe out to eat at Jollie Mon's (pet friendly) grill.  They loved the catfish nuggets. :)

Finally, A Chance To Write An Update!

I know I am FAR overdue for a Solomon Sister blog post, and I apologize profusely for that!   Life has been a bit hectic in the Solomon household.  On May 10th, my brother Jeremy flew down from NJ to doggy-sit the girls while Rob and I spent the weekend at Beaches Turks & Caicos where Rob filmed one of my client's weddings (since I am a travel agent, I plan a lot of destination weddings as well as honeymoons and vacations).

I fully expected the girls to be little terrors for my brother, but they warmed up to him nicely and not but a day and a half after he arrived, they found themselves alone with him and bonding.  Chelsea took to him very well.  By the end of day one they were taking walks together and she was coming up and eating out of his hand.  Once we were away, Jeremy didn't have a problem getting her into her harness and leash for walks, and he was so proud of himself when (during a thunderstorm) she let him hug and kiss her.  After that he was petting and hugging and kissing her all the time.   She still isn't comfortable with a lot of affection, so we tend to let her be for the most part.   When she wants attention, she knows to come to us.

Of course, Jeremy completely fell in love with both girls.  He thought Chelsea was absolutely beautiful, but found Chloe to be too adorable for words.   They LOVE their "Uncle Jay Jay" which probably has to do with the fact that he fed them treats that whole weekend, let them sleep with him in bed, and didn't abandon them like Mommy & Daddy did.  Plus, one afternoon he walked across the street to Walmart to buy some groceries and a bad storm blew through the area.  Instead of waiting it out at Walmart he literally ran home though the rain and lightning to make sure the dogs were okay (he thought he left the balcony door open and was worried that they'd be terrified of the storm.  We all laughed about how he risked his life for them, but it was still very cute to know he cared so much about them.

Once Uncle Jay Jay left, we prepared for a new visitor.  This time Rob's aunt, Christina, came to stay with us for Memorial Day weekend.  The dogs did very well with her and we were glad they are learning to warm up to people coming over.  Of course, Chelsea continues to keep to herself, watching everything as opposed to jumping in and looking for attention like Chloe.  But I think the fact that Chloe does it helps Chelsea come out of her shell.  Chloe takes all the attention off of Chelsea, and allows her the time to observe and then warm up to situations and people.

Now that the girls, and mommy and daddy, are settling back into our routine that went awry this past month, we can all finally breath a little and relax.   I am enjoying getting back into the swing of things because I spend all day with the girls and get to watch them in their element.  I've noticed a few funny things that have changed in the past month.

For starters, Chloe is becoming quite the little brat!  I am convinced that however many months old she is, is how many people years she acts.  So right now she is between 4-5 years old and she is definitely acting like a typical 4-5 year old.  For example, when I give Chelsea or Charlotte something, she wants it.  It doesn't matter if she is sitting in a bed full of her toys, she wants the one toy I gave to Chelsea.  Or, if I give them all rawhide bones, she will only chew hers until she sees the other girls got one too, and then all of a sudden she wants theirs instead.   My favorite is when she is passed out sleeping in her bed and one of the other girls goes to eat dog food out of the "communal" dog bowl.  She could be snoring away and as soon as she hears the crunch of a kibble, her eyes shoot open and she darts out of bed and into the dining room, nudging her way up to the bowl to get a bite too.  At first Charlotte was angry with her.  I'd hear the muffled growls echo out of the bowl while Chloe pushed her head in, right next to Charlotte's.  A few times Charlotte snapped and Chloe backed up looking very confused, as if to say "but I'm so adorable, how can you be mad at ME and not let me get away with everything??".   But after a while Chloe learned how to tip toe around Charlotte.  Charlotte would take a mouth full of food and drop it outside the bowl (she always does this and I have no clue why) and then she'd eat from her little pile.  While she is busy eating, Chloe would sneak by and grab a kibble or drink some water, and then sneak back and wait on the sidelines for Charlotte to get more food.  She has this down to a T now.  But I think this is because Chelsea put her in her place.

That is one thing I've been noticing more and more lately.  Chelsea is my little babysitter.  She is always keeping Chloe busy by playing with her, but she also keeps her "in check".   For example, the other day Chloe was antagonizing Charlotte who was just trying to eat her dinner.  Chloe was jumping all around her and trying to grab food that Charlotte had taken out of the bowl.  After a few growls and barks from Charlotte, and Chloe still not letting up, Chelsea decided to go over and investigate.   Well, Chelsea very quickly intervened.  She walked between Chloe and Charlotte (who was back to eating her food) and she growled at Chloe until Chloe walked away.  From a distance Chloe watched Charlotte eat while Chelsea stood there almost as if she was protecting Charlotte.  When Charlotte was done, Chelsea ate a few kibbles and walked away.  Then Chloe approached the dish and finished eating her dinner.   I wanted to praise Chelsea but she wouldn't understand and it would probably just frighten her.  I was so proud of her for putting Chloe in her place and showing her what her "rank" in the house was.  After that Chloe has been a little bit less of a nuisance when it comes to eating.

Chelsea and Chloe spend all day together.  When they aren't playing together they are cuddled up sleeping together.  In the morning, I let Chloe out of her kennel and the first thing she does is go jump on Chelsea and kiss her on the face.  Then she goes off to the potty patch to do her business.  She adores Chelsea and it is just too cute.   They play fight all the time and then every once in a while Chelsea gets tired of Chloe and lets her know with a firm nip or growl.  My favorite moment was from the other day when Chelsea gave up on play time and decided to switch over to nap time mode.  Chloe still wanted to play but Chelsea was already falling asleep in the dog bed, so Chloe decided to climb up on Chelsea's back and nibble on her ear for a bit before she fell asleep with her head on Chelsea's neck.   It is just TOO cute when these two play or nap together.  It melts my heart.

So for the most part, the girls have been getting along great.  In fact, so well that we have to now lock them all in the kitchen when we go out because they play around too much that they have started using pillows and decorations as toys [rolls eyes].  But at least they get along and everyone is happy. :)

Uncle Jay Jay winning over Chelsea's heart (the key is lots and lots of treats)

Uncle Jay Jay + cooking = 3 happy spoiled little girls

Chelsea and Uncle Jay Jay (at the vet waiting for Chloe to get her last set of puppy shots)

Uncle Jay Jay trying to reassure Chelsea that the vet visit is not for her and that she is only with us to enjoy our trip to the dog beach afterwards.

Chloe eating her rawhide bone at the beach

Chelsea and Uncle Jay Jay taking in the beautiful scenery.

The wind kicked up and Chelsea got a leaf stuck on her nose. She was terrified of it and couldn't figure out how to get it off of her. LOL!

Cuddle time for the girls :)

Chelsea's new favorite spot to lay in the sun.

The Solomon Sisters enjoying their new dog bed that I bought to match the new living room furniture. :)

Oh these two are too cute together...

Multiple [Dog] Personalities

When I look at my dogs I often don't see them as dogs.   They have such personalities that I constantly have to remind myself they have four legs, not two.

Charlotte is convinced she is a princess or of some noble blood line.  I am positive that could she see, she would have watched the Royal Wedding this past weekend and pranced around the house acting as if she was Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Clearwater.   I often think that she dreams of being a descendent of some important tribe in Mexico.  Dare I tell her Chihuahuas originated from Indian tribes that used them for food?  No.  I think I'll keep that bit of information to myself.   

But what surprised me was to see how completely different all three of my dogs are.  Once I had gotten used to Charlotte's royal ways, I expected the next dog to act the same way, chalking it up to "just another Chihuahua".   But Chelsea is completely different.   

Chelsea on the other hand is convinced she is a wild dog, maybe even a wolf.  She definitely has the physique to prove it, if it were true.  Her tail is fluffier and she even has some what of a mane.   She has no idea what it's like to be an indoor dog, or a family pet.  She loves being part of a pack, but when her pack is inside, she wants nothing to do with any of us.  If she could, she'd spend all day outside laying in the shade.  It's like two different dogs in one.  Inside she is scared, reserved, and lazy.  Outside she is alert, curious, and on guard.  It's the weirdest thing, but once she steps through the door way and sniffs that fresh air her tail goes up and away slips that nervous dog that hides in corners.   I think it is because outside, she gets to pretend she is a wild animal, living on the edge, but then she comes inside and realizes she is just a house pet and it depresses her a little.

Chloe, has the personality of a Diva in what she thinks is the body of a Great Dane.  No one has explained to her what a Great Dane really is.  She thinks she is the biggest and most important thing in this house.  I try not to baby her too much since I don't want to create a problem with the other two, so since I've stopped babying her, she's moved on to demanding attention from everyone else in the family.  When Daddy comes home she carries on a fit until he picks her up.  When she is running free and see's Charlotte she immediately runs over to her and smacks her in the face with her paw, as if to say "excuse me, look at me, I'm over here!".  She has no clue Charlotte can't see her and assumes every time Charlotte walks into her it's a game of "tag - you're it".   Poor Charlotte is NOT amused by these antics but even if she did want to fight back, she wouldn't even know where or what to snap at.  So Charlotte has begun to walk into the kitchen, where she can barricade herself, and then barks non-stop until Rob or I pick her up and bring her somewhere safe, which brings me back to Charlotte thinking she is a Princess...

It makes me wonder where these personalities come from.  Did I create it in my mind?  Or do I make my dogs act this way?    It's so strange, but whatever the case may be, it makes for some great entertainment. :)

An Unlikely Pair

On Tuesday after Rob got home from work, we headed over to the pool for an hour since it had been so hot outside.  When we returned home we noticed that Chloe had found a way to push her play pen away from the wall and get out.  So she had been running around with the big girls for the hour while we were gone.   One of the main reasons why we have her in her pen, aside from keeping her out of trouble, is to keep her away from Chelsea and Charlotte who don't appreciate her constant jumping and pawing at them.  When we aren't home to monitor her, I don't want her out for fear she may upset them and they correct her too harshly.

One thing I completely forgot is they are dogs.  It's their nature to correct each other.  When one dog thinks the other is going to far, it's okay for them to tell the other dog. It's how they communicate with each other.  So for me to assume I have to do it for her was me being a typical human thinking my dog is my baby. 

Yesterday,  I decided to do a little "experiment".  I let Chloe free.  The very first thing she did was run onto the balcony and try to play with Chelsea who loves to spend most of her days out there soaking up the sun.   I was surprised when Chelsea didn't run at the sight of Chloe.   Normally, I'd put Chloe on the couch with us and Chelsea would take off running.  Now I realize it was because every time she'd show her teeth I'd correct her, but I shouldn't have.  I should have her let establish her own boundaries and without her showing her teeth, Chloe wouldn't know when enough was enough.  I wasn't letting my dogs just be dogs.  

So a few minutes after going out there, Chloe began jumping all over Chelsea, who seemed not to mind too much until Chloe got in her face.  That's when Chelsea disapproved and bared her teeth.   After a few attempts at "testing" her, Chelsea finally snapped at Chloe.   

My first reaction was to jump up and yell at them, but I noticed Chloe wasn't hurt and was still looking to play.  Chelsea wasn't looking to hurt her either.  I'd seen dogs attack each other and this was far from one of those moments.  Chelsea looked calm and relaxed even when nipping at her.  And even after being nipped at,  Chloe still looked playful and excited.  After an hour of this back and forth, Chloe settled down and the two of them laid down to relax.

Very quickly Chelsea set her boundaries with Chloe and then the two became good friends.  By the end of the day, Chloe was laying with Chelsea in the same bed and was following her around everywhere.  Chelsea started taking on the "mother" role.  Whenever Chloe would get out of hand she'd correct her.  

At one point, Chloe brought her squeaky ball over to Chelsea and the two of them tugged it back and forth for a little bit before Chelsea gave up and let her have it.   Because of this new development, Chloe was able to spend almost the entire day out of her playpen and got so much exercise that she wore herself out and ended up falling asleep way before any of the us did (which is unusual because we usually all go to bed and she cries in her kennel before falling asleep).

Chloe is a little brat though.  The typical puppy and showing signs of the 3rd child syndrome. :)   Every time I give a toy to Chelsea, it doesn't matter how many toys Chloe is surrounded by, she wants the one I gave to Chelsea.  Poor Chelsea.   And if the toy squeaks, forget about it.  She goes NUTS.  What is it with dogs and toys that squeak?  She ripped apart her toy ball and pulled the compartment with the squeaker out and just sits there making it squeak for hours.  She thinks its the greatest thing ever.

Anyway, that is the latest.  Charlotte and Chelsea are buddies, and now Chelsea and Chloe are buddies.  Charlotte tolerates Chloe but does her best to stay away from her.  

Here are some photos of the girls I took recently:

Also, I have created a YouTube channel for all the videos I've taken of them.   You can view them all here: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSolomonSisters?feature=mhum#p/u.  Take a look when you have some time.  There are some funny ones like "Chloe Has A Humping Problem" and "Chelsea, The Big Bad [Overdramatic] Wolf."

I'll leave you with one of my favorites, clips from Chloe's first trip to the beach this weekend, which was a success! :)

The Solomon Sisters Get A YouTube Channel

Just a quick update to let you guys know that I created a YouTube Channel for the Solomon Sisters.

You can now view all their video antics here: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSolomonSisters?feature=mhum#p/a


Enjoy! :)

Happy Easter!

Wanting to wish all our family & friends a very Happy Easter.  Wish we were back in New York & New Jersey to celebrate with all of our loved ones, but we are there in spirit.

Today is a pretty quiet day for us.  Rob is making a pork tenderloin roast, which I am sure the girls will be very excited about.   :)

Chelsea is doing excellent!  She now goes and sits in the corner by the gate when she has to go out and when I come to her to put on her harness she lifts her paws up for me so I can get it on her easily.  Major improvement from when she'd just run away and one of us would have to hold her.

She also had a moment last night.  Charlotte climbed up on my lap and was licking my leg like it was chicken bone.  Not sure what possessed her to do that all of a sudden but Chelsea was just staring her down the whole time.  Finally, after a minute I felt Chelsea's little nose sniffing my arm which was right next to her face, and she gave me three very little kisses!  I was shocked and she probably would have kept going had I not gasped and startled her.  I just wasn't expecting it from her, but after that she put her snout under my arm and fell asleep like that.

Today, Rob had the brilliant idea to try and "play" with Chelsea.  So she jumped on the couch to try to play and she of course took off running and actually came to me.  I sat down on the floor and pet her to tell her it was okay and when he got up and came over I picked her up to keep her from running so he could come over and make nice with her again.   At that point she latched onto me like a baby and put her head on my shoulder.  It was very cute but when I put her down she didn't run away, she just backed up onto my lap and stayed there.  So I pet her and told her what a good girl she is and then Charlotte came over looking for some attention.  At one point Charlotte put her head under Chelsea's head and the 3 of us were cuddling as I pet them.  It was very cute and I almost wonder if Charlotte even knew she was cuddling with Chelsea or if she thought it was me.   But that was also an improvement that Chelsea came to me when she was scared.

Charlotte is being Miss Affectionate lately.  She is always up on my lap or kissing our feet or legs.  She just can't give enough love, and of course whenever we pet her she nudges us to tell us she wants more pets.  It's one of my favorite things that she does.

Chloe got a new bone today.  It's a special bone for puppies who are teething.  Since she loves to chew and her poor stuffed animals are taking a severe beating, I wanted something a little more durable for her to chew on.  She is loving it and now prances around the house with it.  She literally takes is wherever she goes.  It's too adorable. :)

Chloe is also learning new tricks!  I've already taught her to "sit", "lay down", "roll over",
"high five", "shake", "dance",  "crawl" and "speak".  I'm working on "play dead", "bow", and a few others... though she keeps confusing "lay down" and "play dead". HA!  She is smart as a whip! 

I'll leave you with a video of some of the first things I taught her.  

There Was Nothing "Good" About This Friday For Chloe - Vet Visit Part 2

Today was Chloe's follow up vet visit.  Being that she is only 12 weeks old she was due for her 2nd set of puppy shots.

The whole situation reminded me of the part in "Look Who's Talking Too", where the brother and sister are at the doctor and the little sister is all excited because there are toys and everyone is so nice, but the little brother tries to tell her it's gonna get worse, and then the doctor gives her the shot and she freaks out.  This is exactly how this played out.

Her first visit to the vet was with her big sisters two weeks ago.   That visit was fun and exciting to her.  She got all the love and attention while her sisters sat there shaking, huddled together in the corner.  I'm sure to tiny Chloe she had no clue why her sisters weren't as excited about how much fun this little adventure was.  In fact, Chloe didn't even have an exam, she just enjoyed being passed around between the employees, getting lots of love and kisses while her sisters were poked and prodded.  She got some cheese from the vet and then some treats with her sisters when she got home. It was probably the perfect day out for her.

Well this time was drastically different.

When we arrived a poodle and a golden retriever were having a conversation in the waiting room and the noise was deafening.   I will say though, it was adorable to watch the poodle yap away and then the retriever responding with his deep bark.  It seriously was a conversation.  One would bark, the other would answer, then the first one would bark again, and the second would answer.  But never at the same time because  I guess they figured that would just be rude.

Anyway, Chloe was already shaking in her carry case.   So I opened it so she could sniff around.  She watched the dogs but seemed terrified.  Last time she couldn't wait to come out of the case, this time didn't want to come out of it.  It was almost like she could foresee the future.

The vet came out and we chatted a bit about Chloe acting so scared so she immediately reached in and picked her up and took her around to everyone in the back to get her used to them all.  I guess it worked because she came back with some cheese (they give the dogs cheese to distract/calm them).  She was still a bit reserved but was excited about the cheese.

Then I handed her to the receptionists who were cuddling and kissing her.   Finally, we were taken into a room where Chloe was then brought to me, since she was still making her rounds when we were called in.

The poor vet tech had to get a fecal sample.  For those of you who don't own a pet and don't know what a fecal sample is, it is when the vet tech takes a long stick that looks like the wand you find in a bottle of bubbles (with a thinner circle) and sticks it in the dog's butt in order to pull out a sample of their poop to check it for worms.  It is just as disgusting as it sounds.

Chelsea didn't seem to flinch when they did it to her last time, which made me curious as to why the dog who runs away from lizards doesn't mind someone coming up behind her and putting a stick in her butt.  But anyway...

Charlotte has always hated it.  Poor Charlotte can't see what is in front of her let alone what is coming up behind her so every time it happens to her, her eyes bulge out of her head like a cartoon character (see example photo below).  It's always so hard not to laugh at her when that happens.

Well this was Chloe's first time and let me tell you, she absolutely hated it.   I can't fully blame her but her reaction was worse than any dog I've ever known.  She screamed bloody murder.  I don't speak dog, but I can only guess the words "help" and "rape" were somewhere in those cries.

Once that ordeal was over she trusted no one.   Every time someone walked into the room she latched onto me like a monkey.

The vet had to preform most of the exam with her in my arms.   At one point the vet felt around by her tail and Chloe let off a warning cry to tell her she was getting to close to her danger zone.

Chloe got 2 shots and luckily the vet was able to distract her with some more spray cheese which she was so busy licking off the table that she didn't even blink for her shots.   But after that she just wanted to either be in my arms, on my lap, or in her carry case.

The vet tech took a few photos of her to get a good one for her file.  This is what they were able to get:

After the entire ordeal I decided to stop at the bank since I had something to sign for my account.  Chloe stayed in her case and came in with me but of course the lady at the bank I sat down to work with wanted to hold her and pet her, and I was surprised that Chloe was calm about it.  A few times she looked back at me with a very unsure face, but she didn't yelp or freak out like she had at the vet.  

No she is curled up with her favorite stuffed animal and laid there with the most depressing face.  

I guess she is reflecting on her ever so traumatic morning at the vet.  Dare I tell her she goes back in 3 weeks?