Herman is Corgi of the Day!

Could not have happened to a better Corgi. Congratulations, Herman! You deserve it. Click here to check it out.

Rescuing Herman

Herman has come a long way since I adopted him from the Humane Society in Newcastle, Wyo. two years ago. We have been through mites, worms, skin issues, kidney and thyroid problems, high blood pressure, and pneumonia. For a while there they even thought he was in heart failure. We have been through a lot together this past year and he has really blossomed. He has finally found his corgi bark and uses it often. I thought it was worth posting a before and after photo to see the transformation.

Herman has been with me through the roughest season of my life - the loss of my sister and nephew. I think really - he rescued me.

When the cats are away...

...the dogs will play!

Well, by away, I mean Feo is over and the cats are thus in hiding. Imagine that. Little ol' Feo scares the cats into the closets. Herman doesn't seem to bother them, but Feo? It's like she's the cat-devil incarnate to Les's cats. :)

Anyway, Herman didn't used to know how to play until Feo came along. Now he can't get enough of it. Tug-of-war, the barking game, chase, the barking game, fetch, and the barking game all seem to be his favs. Feo just likes attention of any kind. Having Herman join in the fun seems to startle her, though. She'll get used to it (Les did).

Sarah 2007-2009

He is my other eyes that can see above the clouds; my other ears that hear above the winds. He is the part of me that can reach out into the sea. He has told me a thousand times over that I am his reason for being; by the way he rests against my leg; by the way he thumps his tail at my smallest smile; by the way he shows his hurt when I leave without taking him. (I think it makes him sick with worry when he is not along to care for me.)

When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive. When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile. When I am happy, he is joy unbounded. When I am a fool, he ignores it. When I succeed, he brags. Without him, I am only another man. With him, I am all-powerful. He is loyalty itself. He has taught me the meaning of devotion. With him, I know a secret comfort and a private peace. He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant.

His head on my knee can heal my human hurts. His presence by my side is protection against my fears of dark and unknown things. He has promised to wait for me... whenever... wherever — in case I need him. And I expect I will — as I always have. He is just my dog.

Gene Hill

Herman is not a huge fan of smooches

Family Photo

This was a spur of the moment photo taken by my laptop. Herman, who thinks he is GQ of the dog world, is always ready to pose. Herman somehow manages to look dapper in all situations. I am not sure what Al was doing. As usual, I tried to disappear in the background which is hard with this group.

Feo was unavailable for a photo. She was out doing her fruitbat imitation.

Purrs and Peace

There is now peace in the Collins, Corgi, Cat household. Feo is gone, Herman has calmed down, and the cats have stopped fighting. I think the cats had an internal reorganization.

Odin, the seven year-old Ragdoll, is now the top cat.

Oz, the four-year old tabby, doesn't really care. He wants to know why he didn't get any pizza.

Ori, the nine-year Ragdoll and former head cat, is just ticked off.

1st Anniversary

I know our few "followers" to this blog are mostly, ahem, more "golden" (geriatric), but it's a pretty big deal to us. So, in celebration we exchanged presents and gooey words of love and affection. I don't have a picture of the gooey words, but couldn't help taking a pic of the watches (hey, I love watches).

Boogs was just happy that we went with pizza for dinner. He could have cared less about the watches (Watches?! We don't need no stinkin' watches!!) but the warm pizza box (pizza still inside) was something else entirely.

Me? I'm just happy to have Les in my life.

Edit: Anne and Kelly, I see you are followers to our humble little blog. We haven't met in person, so please know the above jab at the elderly and infirmed was directed at my father (Art) and colleague (Cathy), neither of whom are elderly or infirmed (much). ;-)

CATastrophe

Al is off to Vegas leaving me with three feuding cats, fruitbat, and killer. Feo loves all the turmoil but Herman doesn't know what to do. There is a lot of hissing and Barking going on.

Explain this one

Feo's look... "Nah nah! I get to sit in the nice lap, and you don't! Pfffffttt!"
(Be sure to click on the picture for the full effect.)



The beautiful woman whose lap Feo is sharing more than makes up for the sassy attitude.

Some random pics of the pups

As always, these poochies have a way of keeping our spirits up. :)

You can't see me!


Right! This knuckle bone is bigger than my head!


More baby fish!!!


Pizza? Somebody say pizza?


This is MY blue ball.


And finally... whether from the side or kinda blurry, a happy dog is a happy dog. Check out those smiles!

Waiting...

Photo by Art Elser

It only took three days...

...but we finally got Killer, Fruitbat, Flanksteak, as well as Les and Al to calm down enough to all be gathered (and relaxed!) in the same room.

Hot Rod Herman

Gibson's Hot Rod Dog pic from Corgi Butts inspired Herman to dress up for our employee picnic. Herman was a hit! In fact, he has more friends than I do.

Get Well Card

Herman received a get well card from his Corgi friend Bob in Cheyenne.

Thanks Bob!

Corgi Carnage!

Herman Havoc!

In Hiding

This is what happens when Fruibat comes to visit my house. The poor, terrified, scared, cats are forced to hide in cramped conditions on top of my entertainment center to escape the Beast. My other cat Oz retreats to the outdoors. Will there ever be a truce - probably not.

The magic of modern medicine

Well, the meds the vet prescribed for the Hermster appear to have worked as intended, according to Les. He's back to his excited, hungry, happy, hungry, loud, hungry, sweet Corgi self. I imagine it may be a day or so more before his system has completely cleared out, but at least he's no longer unwittingly eating for two. That's what happens, I guess, when a breed eats anything any everything that even remotely smells like food. :)

While the meds may have worked as intended, one unfortunate side-effect is the growth of a spare appendage which looks surprisingly like Herman's buddy, the Fruitbat:


Okay, okay. That was taken a couple weeks ago during a thunder storm (boy, does Herman REALLY not like thunder), when the two pals were so scared of the storm they had no problem with sharing a spot on the couch not quite big enough to share. As Herman explained it: "It was loud, and the air was electric, so my ears and hair hurt. I could have cared less if Fruitbat wanted to share in my misery. I just wanted the noise to end."

Feo just wants Herman to come over and play. She has a ball ready for herself...



...and a ducky ready for Herms. "Hurry up and get Les to bring you over, Herman! I really want to go crazy for five minutes with overwhelming excitement and then ignore you for 6 hours!"

In Jail

Herman seems to be doing better with the new pills the vet gave him yesterday. He is quarantined in the kitchen while I am gone until everything is cleared up. I don't want to spend another Sunday cleaning carpets.

He still can get out to his dog run from the kitchen and his buddy Oz the tabby visits. I don't know if Oz is visiting or taunting but it's still company. Hopefully this will clear up in a few days and all will be back to normal (mass chaos with cat chasing, barking, hissing, and food gobbling).

Sick Puppy

Herman is still one sick corgi. So I thought I should post a pic of him in happier times before he went around consuming gross stuff that makes him sick (oops he still does that). Herman's zest for food has given him stomach problems but it doesn't seem to stop him from continuing to enjoy himself.