Thursday, December 11, 2008

Splish Splash

Tara and I go to puppy school at Multidog every week, I think it very important that Tara should be a well behaved doggy when she grows up. I watch Dog Borstal ( a TV programme on the BBC about a sort of boot camp for extremely misbehaving dogs and their owners) regularly and that is so not going to happen to Tara and me. A world of no to that as some dogs are so bad that their owners are considering putting them down. So puppy school it is for Tara and me. A well trained dog is a happy dog!

The pic above is of most of the gang at school. We had our last lesson of the year last Wednesday. It was nice and sunny but the field was rather muddy and wet.
Aukje (left), Tara's sister, attends the same lessons as Tara so that's fun for both of them but not us. Hanny and I have to keep them separated the whole time otherwise they will distract each other and learn nothing. Kooiker puppies are a bit of a handful in case you hadn't noticed.
We train the puppies outside and at this time of year it's pretty cold out so we are glad of the break when we can get a hot cup of tea or coffee and slowly defrost. After the lessons we usually play a game of footie (not really).
The sophisticated redhead is moi, the cute pooch Tara and the blond is our dog trainer Arno.

Because both puppies had not been able to play with each other at all during the lessons, we asked if Tara and Aukje were allowed on play on an enclosed field afterwards, seeing it was the last lesson and all that. They said yes so then the fun started. Tara and her sister played for half an hour and when we finally broke them up it was hard to tell which was which as they were unbelievably filthy. It had been more of a doggy mud wrestling match then anything else. I'd never seen puppies that dirty. Guess what happened after we got home?
That's right, splish splash, Tara had a bath and it was her first one in a real bath. (To get in the mood, click on the vid bar on the right.) As she is not afraid of water she thought the whole experience was great fun.
Before
Her coat is pretty wet as you can see but that's not from the bath but from the grass she was playing on earlier with her sister.
After
One soaking wet doggy after I had bathed her. You're left with only half the amount of puppy you had before or so it seems.
Just look how dirty the water is after her first rinse. When she was clean again I rubbed her dry with a big fluffy towel and then used the blow drier on her until she was dry. There are no pics of that as I needed both hands for drying her.
Tara was not the only one that day that took a bath. Russian Blue kitty Willow thought she needed one too.
But just her tail. Cats are very clean, you know, much cleaner than dogs ever are. ;-)
And little Tara? Well, completely dry she looked like her sweet fluffy angelic self again, see?But she's no angel as we all know far too well.
More a fallen angel, don't you think?

copyright 2008 Y.E.W. Heuzen except for the pics made in puppy school, they're copyright Rob Schagen

35 comments:

Cat in the Foxgloves said...

WHAT a sweetie!! Even if she did bad things could you really punish her whilst looking at that sweet little face? I don't think I could.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Oh no Tara is a full fledged angel. She is just in puppy stage.

It sounds like you both had a great day. I bet Tara slept like an angel after the lesson and romp with her sister. A bath to boot. A big day for a little pupppy.

Anonymous said...

So sweet - and so incredibly skinny when wet!

Anonymous said...

Willow giving herself a bath? Neatly put!:))
And I loved the photo of Tara and her tiara!

Naturegirl said...

Tara is a most precious angel Yolanda! Santa needs to bring her a coat a special one to keep her warm on cold winter wakies! :) NG

Tracy said...

I'll take a fallen angel doggie any day! The most precious post, Yolanda...Tara with her crooked fairy crown really tugs at my heartstrings... (I see your binoculars on the window sill--ready for peeping at bird, flowers and whatnot ;o) But cats are definitely more tidy and cleaner than dogs, that is very true--LOL! We leave for our Christmas trip on Monday. Looking forward to visiting you here when we get back at New Year. Happy Holiday to you and all the Team--cuddles and purrs... ((HUGS))

emmat said...

ha ha ha ha the photo of the wet dog has made me burst out laughing xxx

Jan said...

How sweet:) You're not fond of animals, now are you:)) I think it's good for doggies to go to doggie school. We did the same thing with our standard poodle when he was just a puppy. He learned to be sociable and gained (some) manners. Not as many as I'd like...! It's fun to read what people are posting now that the gardening isn't so good! Jan/ThanksFor2Day

Anonymous said...

The schooling looks to be great fun for pets and owners, although a bit cold at present!
You're lucky that she doesn't mind having a bath! xx

Libby said...

Puppy classes are so important, you are right socialisation is very important, as is the word NO!!!
She is so cute.

Anonymous said...

Look at that dear little face...and those eyes. :) Willow is gorgeous -- a dear friend used to have a Russian Blue and I thought she was the most beautiful cat I'd ever seen. (Except for my own, of course!)

Cheryl said...

Hi Yolanda.....I so adore little Tara...I am by nature a doggie lover and she is darling.....

If ever she is too much I am sure I could make a trip to Holland and bring her back with me......Nella would love a playmate......

You are quite right cats are much cleaner than dogs....its a fact.....

The last photo is a gem......

a said...

Super cute!

And good for you for being so firm about puppy lessons and bringing up a well-behaved, properly socialized dog! I am fostering a dog right now that is super sweet with adults but is really reactive to children and other animals - she clearly wasn't brought up right (and was abandoned by her owners). She'll be a good pet for someone, but can't be adopted by many homes because she wasn't taught right from the start.

Anonymous said...

She is delightful, Yolanda. I love that you're capturing so much of her puppyhood. And since she loves to get wet and muddy, it's a good thing she likes baths too!

Anonymous said...

I like to watch Dog Borstal sometimes. It makes me feel slightly smug that Merlin is (marginally) better behaved than the dogs on that programme.
Tara is delightful, lovely pictures.
Why do cats not realize when they fall asleep with their tails in strange places? (lol)
K

Aiyana said...

Tara in the tiara is adorable! Has the learning stuck?
Aiyana

Gail said...

YE, You always surprise me with a great laugh! Fallen angel indeed! She is adorable and I totally see how she is a new love in your life! How have the cats adjusted to her? Have a great weekend and thank you again for the chuckles! Gail

Katarina said...

Tara is so sweet!
Kram Katarina

Anonymous said...

Hi YE, I think we may be related, as we both have the same hair color! HA The lessons are a great idea, doggies do need to be well behaved, even cute ones like Tara. She must have had such fun running and wrestling with her sister too. A treat for humans and siblings. The bath looks like it was just the thing to return Tara to angelic tendencies. Tail in a teacup, priceless!
Frances

Carol Michel said...

Those cats were probably looking at Tara thinking first how 'dumb' she was to get so dirty in the first place. No cat would do that! And second, that she couldn't wash herself off and had to be bathed. I bet Tara is an endless source of amusement and gossip for your cats.

Carol, May Dreams Gardens

Piondröm said...

Your dog is so cute!!
Ken

TYRA Hallsénius Lindhe said...

LOVE, LOVE, LOVELY dear Yolanda, what more can I say.

Dear Tara I just want to say to you that you are the most beautiful poppy I have ever seen and if you want to please come and stay with me :-) / Your biggest fan...second biggest...OK any way I love you!/ Tyra

Anonymous said...

Mooie jas heb je aan, maar wel erg besmettelijk voor hondengedoe :-)

Ach ja, puppycursus......... We denken daar vast heel anders over. Maar Tara is een lekker (b)engeltje!

LadyLuz said...

I wonder if Tara did what my Sheba used to do after a bath - escape and do a mad dash round the house, shaking off the drops everywhere. I was never quick enough to prevent this.

Dirty, wet or dry, Tara is such an adorable little dog.

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Yolanda .. Tara is so darn cute ! no matter if she is dirty or clean (we cat people perfer the clean bit a little more though ? haha)
It is funny to have her sister in the same class .. I love seeing Willow with the tail in the cup .. Emma loves our coffee cups .. she is a coffee fiend now ! haha
Love the process of the classes to the bath to the squeaky clean little angel ! : )

Anonymous said...

Ohw, wat een heerlijk snoesje, met dat kroontje. En net uitgebadderd, hmmm...

Monica the Garden Faerie said...

I dunno, in some of the shots, Tara looks like a sophisticated redhead, too. And, yes, cats are much cleaner than dogs, for sure! :)
~ Monica

Anonymous said...

Bij de foto van alleen water dacht ik dat ze kopje onder...;-)))))
Het is een engeltje hoor- en wat leuk dat ze samen met haar zusje kon rollebollen:-)))
Willow met haar staart in de kom is ook een kostelijke plaat!

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen said...

Hi all and welcome to Bathing Bliss!

* Cat in Foxgloves: Tara is trained in a very dogfriendly way. Avoiding problems is one part of it, distracting the dog from unwanted behaviour another. Punishment is used very seldom and only verbally.

*Lisa: you are absolutely right, Tara was puppygone tired. ;-)

* Easygardener: you're left with half the dog you've started out with when you've washed them. The same applies to cats.

* Anonymous: usually it's the other end of Willow that I find in my tea cup. She loves a good brew.

* Anna: perhaps Santa could bring her 2 pairs of wellies, I'd like that much more. Everytime we've been for a walk I have to wipe her tiny feet. And we go for walkies often as she is still a puppy.

* Tracy: in your dreams, Tara is mine! ;-) She is sweet, isn't she and I love that last pic of her too as it is sooooooo very much Tara. Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

* Emma: wet animals are always funny, sometimes even a wet human animal.

* Jan: nope, not at all. ;-) Doggie school is a must for doggies and their owners.

* Flighty: it was a bit nippy as it involved standing around a lot in the cold. Brrrrr. We start again in January with the next course.

* Libby: NO is a very important word as Tara is finding out. ;-)

* Nancy: Ruskies are my favorite cat breed; they are dropdead gorgeous and have the most gentle and loving temperament. And, also very important, it's a healthy breed.


* Cheryl: I'm sure that your Nella would love a little playmate but Tara is staying firmly where she is now, with me! ;-)

* Arythrina: welcome to Bliss. A good start in life is important for all of us. I'm trying to do the best I can for Tara. I believe that only a well trained dog, is a happy dog when it has to live among humans.

* Nikkipolani: you're right, it's fortunate that Tara loves baths as all the members of the Bliss team are not that keen on it. ;-)

Thanks for your visits and comments, I've enjoyed them as always.

Matron said...

Those expressions on Tara's face in the bath are just priceless!! How can they be anything else but really communicating to us!! You made me smile - thank you. xx

em said...

great post, i love puppies! especially when they belong to other people, not me!

Anonymous said...

Yolanda!
Puppies and cats.. my favourite animals, besides all creatures in the wild;-)
Very enjoyable post!
I wish you a
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Canada! Gisela

A wildlife gardener said...

Dear Yolanda, I have had a fun morning trawling backwards through your blog to when I was last here in late August.

Imagine my surprise to discover you have a new member of the Bliss team, in the form of, none other than, Tara...the wonder dog, who has so many indulgent kitty friends looking after her...definitely a devil in disguise...but she will learn quickly, I think, with all those clever kitties to guide her :)

I love the beautiful, new path, on the Jeeves post, way back...

The snow has transformed your garden into a veritable winter wonderland :)

Happy Christmas and life's richest blessings to you, and all the Bliss team, in 2009 :)

Connie said...

She is a cutie! So...you have cats and a dog. Do you have indoor birds as well? I think that would qualify as a menangerie. :-)

Åsa said...

Hi! I can really see that Tara and Nemo are sister and brother! They have the same look in their eyes. :-) Perhaps Nemo is an fallen angel to! ;-) I hope you will have a nice, warm christmas holiday! /Åsa, Nemo and Xsa