Gymnasts

Hello, Peanut here!

We have watched some of the Olympic Games on TV these last days. I was amazed to see the gymnasts, how they could fly, turn midair, hold themselves up with just one stretched arm, and so on. I would never have thought humans could move that way.

The truth is, they cannot, my friend Karstuhl explained. She ought to know, she is two years old, thus much more experienced than I am. Karstuhl told me the gymnasts do not actually do all that they seem to do. It is a combination of threads, invisible to the eye and the camera, that they hang from, and other tricks performed by special effects people behind the scenes. It is like illusionists, who really do not perform magic, Karstuhl said.

Hearing this explanation, I understood. It all makes sense.

Too Young!

A litter of six English Staffordshire Bullterrier pups have been stolen in Olofstorp, near Gothenburg. The pups are just seven weeks old. Pups need to be with their mother until they are at least eight weeks old. These pups need to come back home right away! Their mother was scared and miss her pups.

I hope the news on this will spread, so noone will buy any of these pups from the thief.

Lunar Origin

As long time readers of my blog surely knows, I am interested in the Moon, because my official name is inspired by this celestial body.

Nobody knows for sure how the Moon was created. There is a new theory now, based on computer models, suggesting it was created by a large body hitting early Earth much faster than have previously been thought. I am not sure why this is so interesting, because it has no bearing whatsoever on the everyday life, but I still enjoy reading about it.

Ears

Both pups of my youngest litter have raised their ears now. This is rather early, they are slightly more than five weeks old. The old wisdom says that the earlier a pup raises the ears, the better size the ears will have in adulthood. I would not be surprised. My pups are great in every aspect.

Olympic Games without Dogs

The 2012 Summer Olympic Games starts officially today (though some time consuming tournaments has already started, such as football). The Olympic Games are special in that there are so many sports in the same event. There are, among others, equestrian competitions. Still, there are no dog sports. I would like to see agility in the summer games and dog sleighs in the winter games. This would really be something. Until this happens, I do not care much about the Olympic Games.

Volcano Eruption

The Japanese Sakurajima volcano in the Kagoshima region has erupted. This is not the first time this year, on the contrary, the citizens are getting used to it erupting. It is not likely to be the last, either.

Japan is a fascinating country in so many ways. There are no volcanoes in Sweden, whatsoever. It is not that I miss the volcanic ash coming out of nearby volcanoes, but it would be a little exciting to have some volcano just a little further away. Maybe I am just saying this, because there are none, but so be it. I know many who long for the more exotic things in life, the things that are not here and now. For me, volcanoes are exotic.

Olympic Games

The 2012 summer Olympic Games starts Friday. Some of the competitions started as early as today, though. The Swedish women football team played South Africa, and won 4-1. It was a good game, not just because Sweden won. Sweden plays in the same group as Japan. I hope these two teams will continue in the tournament, hopefully playing the final against each other.

Female Astronaut has Passed Away

The American astronaut Sally Ride has passed away. She was famous not least for being the first American woman in space. The Russians had already had two women in space before Sally Ride got a ride there, but she was the third.

Of course, all the human females in space, as well as human males in space, came after the first female dog in space. The Russian bitch known under the name Laika went into outer space before any human did. Unfortunately, she did not come back. The communist Russians did not bother constructing any re-entry solutions before they let her have her lift-off. Still, the readings the Russians got from Laika was of vital importance for the first human space trips. There you see another example of the selfless sacrifice that dogs do for humans, except in Laika's case, she did not have any choice.

Rest in peace, Sally Ride. I hope you meet Laika in astronaut heaven.

Calvin Won

The winner today is Calvin. He won Best of Breed at the show this Sunday. My pups Polly and Nemo both won Excellent, Nemo with a CK, but no more. I would have wanted them to get better results. I am very happy for Calvin, though. He has had bad luck over many show seasons, lacking his full coat just at the peak of the season. This year, however, it looks like Calvin is the only one of us who has a great coat and generally is at a great shape at the peak of the season. We therefore hope for more victories for him this summer.

Nemo

Having pups of the age of four weeks stops me from going to dog shows. This does not matter so much, when I have older pups who show the world what they are worth. Today, my two year old son Nemo won CAC in Köping. Need I say more?

Cleaning

Hello, Peanut here! We cleaned the house this evening. I like helping out when Daniel sweeps the floor. The only trouble is, he wants to do it himself. He claims he does not need my help. This is sad, I really think I can make a contribution.

Not the Smallest

Hello, Peanut here! It has not always been easy for me, since Hailey got her latest litter of pups. I did think I would be the smallest, cutest dog of the household for some time longer. On the other hand, there are rumours that both of the two pups will move to other families once they are old enough. Then I will be the cutest again. I hope this will happen.

Terrible, Terrible

I must warn you, it is terrible to read about this. Two years ago, animal protection officers just south of Stockholm discovered 191 cats living on a small, urine infested area in the basement of a house. They barely had light in the basement. Of these cats, 174 were in such a bad state they ahd to be put asleep. The woman and her son who lived in the house have now been prosecuted for animal cruelty. They have also been forbidden to have animals in their care. I am glad the two humans get prosecuted. Cruelty to animals in your care should be severely punished. The main question is, however, why did it take two years to prosecute them? Could the prosecutors not be quicker?

Politics

Hello, Karstuhl here! I am considering a future in politics. This is not a common career for dogs, who usually work most of their time as pets. However, having read a story about the cat Stubbs, who has been mayor in a small town in Alaska for about fifteen years, I figured I could perhaps do the same. The question is just what office I will run for. I have to consider that for a while. I promise right now that I would not bother people with political decisions in the same way as most other politicians do.

Flood

We are concerned over the reports on floods and landslides in the southern Japanese island Kyushu. As much rain as will normally fall in a year fell this past weekend. At least 26 humans have been reported dead. How many Shibas or other dogs are dead, we do not know. Evacuation orders have been lifted and cleaning up of the area have started. With these reports in mind, I guess we can stop complaining about the amounts of rain in Sweden this summer.

Climbing

The pups have started to climb out of the litter box. They are very agile. It is a pleasure to take care of them.

Pup's Claws

My pups are growing. So are their claws. Paula cut the claws for the first time today. It went very well. There was just a little bit of protest from the pups, but not more than expected. They would not be Shibas, if they would not make any protest heard at all.

Three Weeks

My pups are now three weeks old. They are almost standing on their back legs, when they make an effort. It is nice to follow their progress, but at the same time, they are now so old that I do not have to watch over them constantly. Not that watching over them is anything but lovely, but it is nice to be able to socialise a little with the other dogs as well. It is good to be a mother of pups.

Long Morning Walk

Hello, Peanut here!

Finally, this morning, I was invited to the long morning walk that Daniel walks with grownup dogs. I have been considered to small up until now, but I proved that I could walk the whole distance. Of course, it is not such a long distance by adult Shiba Inu measurements, but it is a fair distance for a pup like me. Eventually, I will take part in the long weekend walks as well. This is something I am looking forward to.

Plastic

Hello, Peanut here!

Today, I discovered a light weight white form of plastic, which was fun to chew on. I made the living room floor beautiful with the small plastic pieces. Unfortunately, Daniel did not agree with my sense of style, so he swept the floor. Now it is free from plastic again. Well, it was nice while it lasted.

Ferry Tragedy

This is crazy! A dog died today on a ferry from Sweden to the Åland islands. It had been left in a trailer that got too hot. Another dog in the trailer is currently treated for the heat related injuries it sustained and it is unclear whether it is going to make it or not. When will humans learn? This is animal cruelty of the worst kind.

Highly Developed Jaws

In ancient times, ancestors of us dogs developed the ability to hunt in packs, making them more efficient hunters. Their jaws developed and became very strong. Dogs' jaws are still very strong. As human scientists have mapped the canine family tree, they say that the reason we dogs like to eat meat and chew on bones is simply that we have the tools for it. It is nice to have a scientific explanation, even though I do not need it to enjoy chewing on bones. I also urge humans to give their dogs bones to chew on, regardless of what they think about the evolutionary origin of this behaviour. We like it, enough said!

Heat

There is a heat wave in Central and Eastern USA. Reports say many humans have died. I hope the absence of reports on dog deaths mean no dogs have died from the heat, but I seriously doubt it. Why can they not report on the dogs, too?

Aussie Win

Today was yet another Formula 1 race with a name that one of my pups from last year has got, my son Aangenaam Silverstone, a.k.a. Zeus. It was the British Grand Prix.

Auntie Linni was happy for the result, because Aussie Formula 1 driver Mark Webber won the Grand Prix. As I have written before in this blog, Linni's father was from Australia, so she usually hopes for Aussie sportsmen when there are no Swedes competing. I can relate to that, having an American Mum and a Norwegian Dad myself. I was also happy, for Linni's sake.

Staying at Home

This Friday and Saturday, Paula, Daniel, and some of the other dogs went to a dog show. I was out on a walk just before they left, and there the car stood open, with all the usual baggage you bring to a show. I had the urge to jump into the car, but decided against it. No matter how fun it is to go to dog shows, taking care of your pups is much more important.

4th of July

Hello, Peanut here!

One of the things that Hailey and I have in common, is that our mothers are from America. My mother do not care much about Hailey's mother, and vice versa, but they both believe America is the best country there is. They are celebrating this country today.

I am told it is the American national holiday today, because it was on the 4th of July that America declared its independence. This was generations ago, even more so for dogs than for humans, but it is still remembered. The American national holiday celebration is much bigger than the Swedish of the 6th of June, it is more like Swedish Midsummer Eve celebrations.

The downside in America is the fireworks. We have most of them in Sweden on New Years Night, our summer nights being too bright with light. Many dogs and wildlife are afraid of fireworks. I guess I am not afraid of them. To me, it just seems like an awful waste of money to buy expensive fireworks just to hear some explosions and see some colours in the sky for a few seconds. If you want to enjoy sounds, try a squeeky toy instead.

We will have hamburgers later tonight. It is fitting this day, because it is a national dish of America. I love hamburgers. If the Americans invented the hamburger, this is enough reason for me to celebrate!

More Pictures

Here are some more pictures of my latest litter:

Needless to say, I am very proud of them.

Picture of My Latest Litter

For all of you who have waited to see pictures of the two pups I gave birth to Friday the week before last, here they are:

Soon

Paula and Daniel were unsure what to do tonight, when the European Championship in football is over and no games are aired on TV. They need not worry, though, there will be more games soon. The World Cup starts in just two years.

Half a Year

Half of 2012 has passed. It feels like it has gone by quickly. Humans sometimes say they feel like time flies with an increasingly higher speed as you grow older. I guess they are right. I just do not know why this is so.

Worthy Winners

Spain won the European Championship in football tonight. They were worthy winners. There were many good teams in the tournament, but eventually, one needs to finish first. This time it was Spain. Congratulations to all of you who hoped for a Spanish victory!