Let's Get Beachy, Not Bitchy

I so appreciated all your comments and support on my previous "rant" post!! Sometimes, a little rant just feels darn good, especially when others with similar experiences can chime in--it's so cathartic! Unfortunately, puppy raisers are only human--and humans and canines both are entitled to good days and bad days.

Last week, I was super busy getting ready for a big event over the weekend. That was likely part of my reason for getting "maxed out" by people's random comments in public. But Cabana was acting WEIRD, too, perhaps due to my stress, or perhaps because she's close to going into season? After all, she's over 11 months now and hasn't been in season yet, so we keep waiting....

Anyway, we were a couple of bitches (Cabana is a female dog, after all) last week...ha ha!! (Pardon my language, I don't normally swear, but I couldn't resist the double entendre.) But now with my event being over, I decided no more bitchy--instead, we should get beachy!

So, after dropping my girls off at school this morning, Cabana and I headed for Bodega Bay (acclaimed because it is where Hitchcock's movie, The Birds, was filmed).


We did see a lot of birds, but none that tried to peck at us. It was cool and very foggy. In fact, I worried a little because if Cabana somehow got away from me, I wouldn't be able to see her in all that fog. But although she might have liked to get free from her leash, she had no such luck.


Cabana loved checking out the kelp. Kelp is so amazing and interesting and fast-growing. It's also stinky and fly-attracting and a bit disgusting. I'd never stick my nose in it like Cabana does--eewww.


We had the beach mostly to ourselves. The only time Cabana would stop dashing about and sit calmly was when she could discern someone approaching in the foggy distance. She knows good things happen when she sits, so she does it automatically, hoping that if she sits nicely enough, the people will be drawn to her. Her magical sit didn't work this time, though.


Here's a piece of kelp that looked a bit like a Nylabone.


Cabana played with it just like she would a bone.


Tired and dirty, Cabana headed home for a warm bath and long nap. It's a tough life, but someone's gotta do it.

What Cabana Did on Her Summer Vacation

We had a whirlwind of a week! It was a lot of fun, but it's also nice to be back home and catch up on blogs!

My husband's brother came from out of state, along with his wife and 4-year-old son, Adam. Adam and Cabana took to each other in the first 2 minutes. I don't know what they're doing in this photo--peekaboo maybe?

The first part of our vacation was in Santa Cruz, where we stayed in a rental house just minutes from the beach. Cabana loved and adored every minute we spent at the beach, running like mad on her flexi leash. She dug holes in the sand, ogled other dogs, and dashed through the waves.

Those retractable leashes, though, do not retract as fast as they should--especially when they're a bit water-logged! A couple of times, we had a massive tangled mess, and it was all I could do to keep Cabana still enough to untangle her.


Here we are at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk--a great place for puppies in training, since "regular" dogs are not allowed! We did see one other service dog there, and both dogs were equally distracted by the other. Still working on that one, ad infinitum!!


Onto the Monterey Bay Aquarium! Cabana and I had front row seats for the penguin feeding, and Cabana, although interested, was very well-behaved, even while being completely surrounded by children who wanted to pet her.

Unfortunately, Cabana had an accident while we were at the aquarium, although I blame myself entirely. I forgot to relieve her as we were leaving the beach house, and when we got to the aquarium, I tried to get her to pee. But Cabana wouldn't go, and the rest of my family was waiting for us--so I gave up. After we entered the aquarium, the time slipped by quickly as we went from exhibit to exhibit. Then, just as I was thinking I should take Cabana out, she peed on the floor. :(

Cabana hasn't had an accident in at least 5-6 months, so I felt bad for making her break her almost-perfect record. But hey, pee happens!


I don't know if it was to appease me, but our relatives said they wanted to take a tour of Guide Dogs for the Blind! They really enjoyed Cabana and hoped to get a chance to pet some of the baby pups. So even though we missed Fun Day, we got to have our own mini fun day! This puppy caught my eye because he was such a chubby chunk--what a sweet baby!


Also on the tour with us was a working guide named Donna, along with her partner Amy and husband Dave (they gave me permission to include them in this post). Donna was so good at her job!! I confess that I found it a bit difficult to see Cabana doing that someday, unless she undergoes quite a change in the next few months. Our tour guide used a few inevitable adjectives for Cabana, like "high-energy", "high-spirited" and "live wire".


But I know that Cabana CAN be disciplined and self-controlled, because she was ALWAYS so sweet and gentle with 4-year-old Adam who is a bit high-energy himself! It was absolutely endearing to watch them together. Above, they are sitting together on Cabana's dog bed.


Tickets to the boardwalk and the aquarium can be expensive--but wouldn't you know, they had the time of their lives with a couple empty plastic bottles and a big bucket of water.


As they say, "Priceless!"

Beach Dog, Baby Teeth, and Bad Breath

Today, we met some friends at DP Beach for a barbecue lunch. The weather was overcast and windy, but we managed to survive the elements. Cabana had a lot of fun, running in the surf, chasing seaweed slivers, and drinking ocean water.

She looks pretty dirty here--but it's amazing how easily labradors clean up. A few wipes with a towel, and she's back to her spiffy self.

On another subject, Cabana's breath has been stinking to high heaven. When she opens her mouth in the back seat of the car, I can smell her breath from the front seat. It's a very metallic, rancid smell, probably due to the fact that she's losing so many teeth. Every few days, one pops out onto the ground. This morning, I went to get Cabana out of her crate, and there was a tooth sitting on the ground in front of it. She must have spat it out through the crate door. I hope her baby teeth will come out quickly so her mouth won't smell so bad anymore. It's highly unpleasant--I wonder if she notices it herself? Probably not.