Jack turns 2

 On December 7th, Jack turned 2 years old.  We celebrated by getting a monster bone from Winco and he shared it with his two brothers.  We went to the dog park (which they do several times a week anyway), and they had a ball.

Marshmallow got neutered a few weeks ago.  He and Bear snuck out when I was working in the garage with the door open.  Jack and Rosco (we were tending him), stayed with me so I assumed Bear and Marshy were just out front, but no they took off.  I found them way over at Mike Thompsons house.  And got them in the back of the truck.  However just as I was taking off, one of the older Thompson boys came running out of the house, "Are those your dogs?!"   Yes.  "Well we have a problem, they got in and got to our chickens." 

Oh NO!  I got out and went in their back yard with Mike and the boys and sure enough.  Feathers everywhere.  Well sort of.  We all worked together to walk around the back yard to look for scared chickens and hopefully no bodies.  Sure enough we found a couple of them hiding, but one was still MIA. Only one of them got cut up, but not too bad.  Apparently later that afternoon, the one that was missing came back as it had escaped through the open gate before the mayhem included him.  Whew!  

However, I realized that with dogs that are intact, they have a tendency to want to go roaming looking for cute girls (and maybe some free meals).  So I decided to get Marshy fixed.  He's such a sweetheart, I think Bear might have been the culprit anyway.

Here are some updated pics.  

We love each other.

Buddies that take up most of the space on my bed.

What did I do to deserve this Dad? 
It was Bear!

Poor Bear and his cone of shame.

Good Buddies

Buddies

Meeting the Great Pyranees puppy.
That could be a cousin to Marshy.

Can we come in?

First time playing in the snow for
Marshy and Bear for this season.
They loved it.

Happy 1st Birthday Bear!

 Happy Birthday to our Bear!  We sure love this boy with a bit of an attitude.  He loves to run around at the dog park chasing new friends and barking the whole time.  He loves to play in the water and romp around with Jack and Marshy. 

End of Summer Update

 So I was finding Bear getting very barky with the neighbors, and getting aggressive with Jack and Marshy just a little too much.  And with him getting older and his testosterone really kicking in, I figured it is better to get him neutered now rather than later. 

Marshy is such a lovable soul!

His recovery has been going really well.  He is on his last day of medication.  His head cone however only lasted a day with him playing with Marshy.  Marshy managed to rip it off which I'm sure Bear was grateful for.  But I got some zip ties and attached the cone to his collar.  Good luck getting that one off buddy!

I weighed Marshy yesterday, and was surprised at how much he has put on since the last time I weighed him.  He was 75 pounds a couple weeks ago.  He had gained weight and is now 87 pounds.  He has a ton of skin and I see him still gaining as he gets bigger.  

Sam loves Marshmallow. 

Jack is such a good boy and plays well with them, and lets them get rowdy with him always trying to challenge him as the alpha. He is the alpha in a leadership way, but not in an in your face, I'm the boss way.  When we go on off leash walks at the dog park, they just follow him around and let him take the lead in what adventures to take on. It does my heart good to see these boys get along so well.

Sam caught this picture of 
Marshy snuggling up in 
the crack of the sofa.  I posted
this on the Great Pyranese 
Facebook group and it went 
viral.

This meme spoke to me.

The dogs and I snuggling in the trailer early one
morning after taking Cathi to the starting line
of the Beaver Marathon.

Jack looking for flies to hunt down
in the trailer.

The dog park in Blackfoot Idaho is pretty nice!

They ran for about an hour within the dog park
trying to get the energy spent.

Buddies

Hot Tub club with Marshy wanting
to become a member.

There was a dog show in the neighborhood and here is what I wrote for each dog:

1st entry

Name: Jack Gridley

Owner: Gordon Gridley

Age: 1 yr 10 months

Breed: English Setter

Weight: 45 pounds

Bred by our wonderful neighbors, Chris and Makenzie Banz. 

Jack has a decent arsenal of tricks: Sit, Stay, Roll over, Turn around, Go get it, Bring it, Find it (Where's the bird?) 

Jack loves to find and chase birds, go Jetski riding, run around at the dog park, and go camping. He follows Gordon around constantly and doesn't like being separated even for a couple of minutes. His growth and skill development have been blogged from an early age at: http://gordsdog.blogspot.com/

Some of the Gridley kids claim that Jack has a higher standing in the house than they do. That's Cap!

2nd entry

Name: Bear

Owner: Gordon Gridley

Age: 1 year birthday coming up 9/15/21

Breed: Newfoundland/Poodle  (NewfyPoo)

Weight: 65 pounds

Cathi loves big dogs and wanted a Newfoundland breed, but doesn't enjoy the shedding so she found this breed which helps with much less shedding.  Bear was also raised starting 7 weeks in the Gridley home. Bear is a very social dog at the dog park and loves to play chase with other dogs and barks constantly as his way of laughing.  He tries to assert dominance over Jack, but when they are off-leash, he constantly follows Jack and Jack is the leader.

Bear has recently undergone surgery to make sure he maintains his single status and encourage a more laid-back lifestyle, hence the "Cone of Shame".  More information on Bear also found at the  http://gordsdog.blogspot.com/  website.

3rd entry

Name: Marshmallow

Nickname: Marshy

Breed: Great Pyranese Mix 

Age: 7 1/2 months

DNA Testing on Marshy reveals he is 55% Great Pyranese and is definitely his dominant breed with his loveable laid back and loyal personality, protector of the home by invaders.  He is mixed with about 8 other breeds at 5-7% each.

Marshy was an unplanned addition to the family as he was received at Cathi's wishes after winning a bet with Gordon.  She had to endure a cold water dip to obtain the funds for her big-dog fascination: Fun video of the event: https://youtu.be/JVyw1yAlKrI

Marshy loves to eat, sleep, dig holes, scavenge garbage cans when nobody is looking and lazily follow his brothers around at the dog park.  His loving personality and feigned innocence help him to receive forgiveness and social standing in the Gridley house.

All three dogs love to play at the dog park and find interesting smells from other dogs.

More information on Marshy also found at the  http://gordsdog.blogspot.com/  website.  

Our RV Trip with Jack and Marshy

 So Cathi, Sam, Oliver and I went on a cross country trip to Iowa for a marathon series that Cathi was running.  We took two of the three dogs because we were dog sitting for Grandpa.  He brought over

Here are all four buddies in the doggie pool.

"Roscoe" a Goldendoodle that is a little rambuxious. I didn't want Roscoe to be home alone with Isaac, so we left Bear behind to be a pal for Roscoe.  However poor Bear was left alone once Grandpa came to pick him up half way through our trip. 
I setup a "Doggy Pool" for them because it has been so hot lately. However I found that it get's dirty real quick, so I have to empty it about every other day. I don't fill it up very much to avoid water waste, which really isn't a waste since our back lawn is practically dying even though I'm watering it. Any extra water the lawn gets is doing it some good. Here's a fun video of Marshy enjoying the pool Thinking back, we should have just taken Bear with us.

Anyway, we made our way to Iowa which spanned a two day driving trip through Wyoming and Nebraska.  The most we drove in a 24 period was 9 hours.  

We loved the trip, and so did the dogs.  When Cathi was out running her marathon, the boys would take the dogs and stand by the side of the several out and back marathon course.  Here are some pictures:

Here we are at Mount Rushmore.  

Checking out the Mississippi River while staying
in Clinton, Iowa. 

The best dog park I've ever seen
is in Clinton, Iowa.

Resting with Oliver in the RV.

The Buddies enjoyed wading in the Mississippi River
while waiting for Cathi during her marathon in
St. Cloud, Minnesota

Clinton had the best dog park.  It is Prairie Pastures Dog Park in Eagle Point Park.  It cost $3 for a day, but so worth it!  The dogs ran the entire time exploring and chasing birds.  Sam even loved exploring the diverse and lush greenery and picked up a tick.  The dogs escaped tick free probably because they were running so fast and didn't really get too deep in the bush whereas Sam was trying to play hide and seek.

Jack the "little" brother

 It's official, Jack is the smallest of the bunch.

Marshmallow tipped the scale at 50 pounds.

Roy Dog Park

Sit!

Bear didn't really like riding the seadoo.  He jumped in a couple
times to escape.

They love just laying down on the cool linoleum
floor in the trailer.

I get this view in the morning as I open the basement door.
"Let us in!"

Marshmallow's breed revealed

So our little Marshmallow will end up shedding most likely.  I'm glad we didn't pay full price to get that "oodle" mix which he has 0% poodle mix in him.  But he's worth it in my opinion.  He's a little cutie.

He weighed in today at 26 pounds. Bear weighed in today at 65 pounds. Jack weighed in today at 45 pounds.

This last week I got a shell for the back side of my truck, and this morning I went to DI and found the perfect sized couch to fit in the bed of my truck to transport the dogs to the dog park.  No more shedding in my cab.  They can enjoy the ride in a relatively large soft couch and not worry about climbing up over the console to join me on the front seat.  I can leave the back cab window open with the shell window also open so they don't feel completely isolated.

Oliver and I took them to the dog park and they had a ball!

And here they are playing in the back yard.

PRs broken left and right

 Jack - 

• First time to a dog park

Bear - 

• First time to a dog park
• First time to the cabin
• First time swimming!
• First time crossing a 4 foot high dog ramp

Marshmallow - 

• Weighed in at 16 pounds this week.
• First time to a dog park
• First time to the cabin
• First time sitting on command
• First in the family to get a DNA test.
• So we were told that Marshy's litter was dual sired, which means that its possible that he isn't a Great Pyranees/Poodle mix.  He definitely looks it.  Here is his Mother (Pyranees):
• 
  
  

And here is his possible father (Red Poodle):

So we got a sweet deal on him understanding that he may not be the exact bred dog we expected.  I'm sure glad we went through with it even though Cathi is really wanting that poodle dna with the dog shedding that she can't stand.  

I went ahead and got a Embark Vet dog DNA test though cause my curiosity is peaked a bit.  So I sent Mel's sample in the mail this afternoon.  Regardless of the results, it'll be good to know what breed he's got in him. We sure love him to pieces.

A queen-size bed is too small. We need a California
King now if Cathi wants a place to lay her head.

Yesterday, we went up to the cabin in Logan, and Bear had his first time up there.  Jack loves it up there and runs the perimeter of the entire lot and just loves it chasing birds and getting in a good run.  Bear just follows him everywhere.  Poor Marshmallow though just wanted to lay down, eat, and chew on something naughty. We're gonna have to keep an eye on that little cutie.

Being a dog is tiring stuff!

Bear still a little wet from his
cold water swim!

Bear had a ball up at the cabin running
around with Jack

This little cutie enjoyed following the big brothers
around, but then slept and ate the rest of the time.

When Marshy saw his brother
Bear swim across, he thought
maybe I'll try it!  We kinda panicked
and stopped him before
he got to the water's edge.

Jack and I went across the bridge, and Bear tried to follow us, but after going about 10 yards and the bridge is a see-through steel slotted floor, he freaks out and heads back.  After Jack and I were over there and Bear just a howling the whole time.  I noticed him climbing out of that freezing water and shaking all the cold water off.  Oh my, he's never demonstrated swimming before as he's never had the chance.  Well he did it without me even knowing.  I had to watch him swim back so we went back to the cabin side and watched him.  I was a proud papa, but a dummie in not videoing it. 

I went inside and told everyone, but they thought I was kidding.  So we had to cross again and not only show the kids, but get it on video. After that though I felt bad making him get in that freezing water and worked with him with some treats and coaxing to cross the bridge properly.  He got really scared but gently encouraged him, and he did it.  He crossed two more time over the bridge.

Here is the swim on video:

On the way home from Logan, we saw a dog park with dozens of dogs.  We did a U-turn and got in on the action!  Jack and Bear loved it.  Marshmallow just was getting tons of love from humans as he is just a magnet being a cute round puppy.

Dog park video from Sam:

What a fun weekend!  These dogs are so tired.

From earlier this week:

Oliver loves our new buddy!

Roasting our Marshmallow! He looks perfectly
browned.

Mel felt right at home in the dog's
bedroom. Which is under the stairwell
behind my work desk in the basement.

Mel's first walk 
the day after he
came home to us.