I am Simone's & Kersten's dog and we live in Gothenburg. Master and mistress are actually quite cool, but sometimes they really totally annoy. This is why I wanted a place for myself. Like this. Maybe you like to stop by from time to time.
Rain forest walks
Winter where are you? We have and windy days with mild temperatures since November. Thats great on one hand, because I don't have to wear my jacket, but it's annoying to get wet all the time on the other. We can't use our favourite forest paths - they have become small creeks. The ground is completely soaked and there is a lot of rotting wood everywhere. I love to stick my nose deeply into it!
Happy 2020!
Stay healthy and curious and enjoy life!
#Vacation memories
I have been travelling to Germany. That’s quite a way to go from Gothenburg. But it was fun and worth the efforts. It was a an ongoing family meeting with lots of people, cuddling and spoiling me all the time. It felt like being with a large pack. I also did exciting city trips to Cologne and Hamburg and mistress says, I behaved perfectly. Now am home again and suddenly everything is so quiet...
#Library dog
I have decided to become a librarian in my next dog life. Being surrounded by books might be fun. First I’d chew on all the recipe books, then on anthologies and novels and at least I’d bite myself through exciting history books. I have already tried a crafting book “Origami”, but mistress didn’t like it for a reason.
#Cat-like moments
Master and mistress say, I am rather cat than dog. I am so very on my own and independent, they say. I never do things just to please them, they say. And I am crazy about fish, I say. And once in a while I jump on window sills and try to meow - very quietly. Just to experience the feeling.
#Couch Surfing
Is there anything better than taking a nap on the couch when back from a exhausting walk? Master, mistress and me hiked around a nearby lake - ten kilometres full of amazing scents! But there were also some challenges to master. We had to cross a long wooden bridge, that was swaying like an old ship. Actually it was a kind of raft, attached to the bottom of the lake with iron chains. I could see and smell the dark water. That was frightening...
#Muddy run
We had the first autumn storm, with heavy rain and frightening strong gusts. Nevertheless did we go out as soon as the weather calmed down a little bit. Mistress and me hiked up to a rocky plateau, that is crossed by stripes of marshy landscape. Because of the rain everything was soaked and the path had become a little river. We had to jump from stone to stone. That was fun!
#Me, going for the oysters
Isn't it great how much I've shed my fear of the water? Ok, I still don't go in completely, but if there is something to dive for, I would do it. With my head, I mean. And with my paws. So it!s more like snorkelling. And it probably sounds like it, when I snort my nose under water. My owners could not stop laughing, when I was trying to get up some open oyster shells. They smell so nice, like the sea and a little bit like rotten fish. Maybe I will be a famous oyster fishing dog.
#Staying cool
I think I a grow up and become a little bit calmer. A real family dog. There were masses of visitors in master's and mistress's house during this summer. And in the beginning I was not sure whether I liked it or not. Strangers in my territory! It was irritating. But after some days it was great. I felt like being with a big herd again. There was always someone to play with me or go for a walk - fantastic! And I learned a lot of new things. For example, how to wear sunglasses properly.
#Island hopping
Finally summer has come to Sweden or well... whatever they call summer. After struggling with getting enough undercoat for the endless long winter, I have now to get rid of all my hair. The vacuum cleaner is mistress's best friend at the moment. When the weather is nice, we spend a lot of time outdoors. We have gone to the archipelagos north and south of Gothenburg. Amazing places with countless small and rocky islands. I love to jump up and down the rocks and go for hare trails on the inner island parts. Unfortunately I am not allowed to run free, but that’s ok. Most of the time I like going back home with my owners. Most of the time.
#New home 2.0
They did it again. Master and mistress moved once more. They have bought a nice white house that looks actually a lot more Swedish than the old one. And I really like it! We now have a garden where I can run around without leash. They have fenced it completely, which is little of a pity, because I am obsessed by the neighbor‘‘s cats. I can smell them from behind the hedge. Whenever I get a chance I try to get on the other side. But besides that everything else is great. I still can’t decide on my most favourite spot. There are so many!
#Holidays
Guys, it's amazing. We have gone to South Denmark and I love this place. Our cosy house is located in the dunes, less than 100 meters away from the beach. When we go there I am allowed to run free without leash and I can't get enough of it. I also like snooping along the flood line. You can find a lot of crazy stuff there. Can I stay here forever?
#Hospital
May I give you some advice? Don't eat stuff you find on the street or somewhere in the forest - no matter how good it smells. Something of it made me suffer from the worst stomach pain of my life and got me into the veterinary clinic for two days. I could not stop throwing up although there was nothing left to throw up and I've had the worst diarrhea you can imagine. So finally mistress decided to take me to the vet. There they took blood samples and x-rayed me to make sure there was nothing stuck or twisted in my guts. Luckily, there was nothing wrong with it. But it seemed to be a severe gastritis infection and they put me on the drip. At first I was sleeping and didn't notice anything. But have you ever woken up at night in hospital? It's horrible! You just want to be home. I missed my master and mistress terribly and was so happy when they were allowed to pick me up. Now I am on a special diet and need to take medicine for a while. And the worst: no treaties at all.
#Bedtime
Dogs do not belong in bed! They are full of dirt, bacterias and parasites (well, the last thing might be true, especially in summer). This is why master and mistress were very happy when I stayed in my dog bed during nights after my castration. But that only lasted a few weeks. Then I started to feel lonely and cold when I woke up in the darkness. I need the pack right next to me. So most of the nights I jump up in master's and mistress's bed after a while. I love to curl up in the hollow between their legs, but they hate that because then they are unable to move under their blankets. I needed to change my strategy. Now I sneak up between them and press my paws tight against their bodies. Most of the time they don't even wake up or just move away a little bit. That's perfect!
#Destroyer
Well, don't we all have a bad day once in a while? I had a bad day. It started when Master and Mistress had this little squabble one morning. They both were stressed because mistress wanted to finish breakfast and master wanted her to drive him to work. So the atmosphere was quite tense. I can sense things like this and they make feel me very uncomfortable. But what I liked the least that morning was the travel bag my master was carrying. Would they go on a journey and leave me at home? I felt so insecure. When I heard them driving away I needed to blow off some steam. Sorry for the shoes, mistress...But I don't think they looked so good on you anyway.
#My friend Johnny
Chewing. I can do this for hours. Maybe for days. I love to chew on a good peace of wood for example. Master and mistress have some fire wood stored in the living room and I really like to take a piece and crumble it into a million splinters. But of course I am not allowed to do that. I once did it in the wonderful ball chair in the hallway (guess...I am not allowed to lie in anymore) and on the carpet in front of the sofa. That was fun! But I also like my friend Johnny. Johnny is fun, too. He is made of hard rubber and indestructible. Really. He makes funny moves, when someone throws him on the floor or against the wall. And the best thing is: you can stuff him with treaties. I am quite good at getting them out in a few seconds now.
#Wild dog
My master and mistress want me to be more obedient. They think that I do too much "my thing" when we are outdoors. The other day mistress even said: "I think we have an autistic dog". That hurt me. Just because I don't want to play with other dogs sometimes. I rather follow my nose. And they're also worried about me barking at other dogs lately. They don't understand that I only want to tell them "Hey, I am the boss here". I feel like I have to do that. Maybe it's because of the castration. The hormones...you know. Now they think about taking me to a dog school. I don't know if I like it. Probably not.
#Super furry animal
It's winter now in Gothenburg, with snow and ice and temperatures below freezing. But frankly, I don't care. I really like to go out in every weather. Really. Ok, sometimes I'd rather stay in. For example when I manage to grab this wonderful polyester fur blanket. Mistress bought it once when she was living in an apartment that never could be heated properly in winter. This blanket is heaven. Unfortunately I have to share it with master and mistress. I tried to bark them away, but they didn't like it at all and sent me to my boring blanket. (sigh)
#Snow
There is this crazy white stuff outside now. Master and mistress call it snow and they seem to be quite happy about it. I like it, too. It's cold but fluffy and you can jump around in it. I also try to catch those white flakes flying around in the air. And there was this strange fat man on the grass field near our house today. He was just standing there with his ugly white roly-poly head and his big white belly. I barked at him but he did not move. Really very strange.
#Pre-dishwasher
Yummie, Yummie! I love the dishwasher. Whenever dinner is over I am the first one to do the dishes. Master and mistress don't want me to lick the dirty plates and bowls. But sometimes I still make it in an unobserved moment. I think they could save a lot of money because the dishes are already sqeaky clean before the dishwasher even starts.
#Stiches
I am a neuter now. I got castrated three weeks ago. I know that there is a lot of discussion about that topic and yes, I did not like it. I REALLY did not like it. It was painful and I was so afraid when mistress left me at the animal clinic. After surgery I had to wear an Elizabethan collar that should prevent me from licking my wound. A "cone of shame". I hated it. It was much too big for me. I staggered around like a toddler, banged against the furniture and could not lay down properly. Luckily mistress and master decided that I do not have to wear it. Which meant that they had to look after me all the time. Even at night. As soon as I started licking any part of my body they yelled "no!". It was so annoying that I did not even try to lick my wound.
Finally everything went well and removing stitches was done in two minutes. And I guess in a month my fur will have regrown again. Although it was an exhausting procedure it probably was a good decision. I will not suffer from this endless fake pregnancy anymore. And I will not fall in love with every male dog in the neighbourhood for weeks. That really stressed me and made me loose a lot of weight and tons of fur.
But how does it feel being a neuter? I can't tell you yet. All the other dogs I know still want to "say hello" when we meet in the park. But sometimes I don't want to. Master and mistress say I am calmer at home and even more cuddly than before. Well, let see how things develop.
#Friends
This is Mr Bassett and Doris, my favourite dog friends and the coolest gang in the hood. We sometimes take a walk together around the lake or in the forest. I have also spent New Years eve with Doris. We watched TV on a cosy hotel sofa while our masters & mistresses were out for a dinner party. It's good to have a friend by your side when you are afraid of fireworks. Did I tell you that fireworks frighten me to death? Anyway, with Doris I even managed to ignore them.
#Sniff'n'run
Sorry, but I smell. And I am pretty good at that. There is nothing more beautiful than sticking my nose in somewhere. I forget time and space about that - to the annoyance of my owners, who are sometimes in a hurry when we go for a walk. But the good thing about it: I would find them in every corner of the forest when we play hide and seek. I simply follow their scent molecules, which are already on the ground or still floating in the air. There are over 200 million olfactory cells in my nose, did you know that? It's like I'm reading a phantastic picture book.
I am also good at running. Unfortunately, most of the time I have to walk on a leash.But the other day in the forest my mistress took it off and I was allowed to run freely. That was great. And because I always came back when she called, I got liver sausage as a reward. But on one day there were two deer and I just had to go after them. Mistress yelled her soul out of her body, but I couldn't stop. Two other hikers with two interesting dogs finally stopped me. No, there was no liver sausage for me that day.
#Traveldog
Call me a travel dog. I have spend probably more time in a car during my first nine months,
than most of you. I have been brought from Sardinia to Germany, from Germany to Switzerland, from Switzerland to Germany again and then finally I made it up to the far north - to Sweden. That's where I live now. Fortunately I like driving in a car. The sound and the soft movements make me feel cosy, so I fall asleep after a few minutes.