Shaggy Dog

Wrigley has just passed the 11 month mark and we are discovering that keeping him groomed has become quite a challenge. It wasn't a big surprise...but still concerning. So about a month ago we took him to get groomed. Arguably his hair hasn't quite been the same. Now this is not her fault (the groomer) as it is his coat of hair is changing. This was something I didn't anticipate...but evidently a Goldendoodle's hair goes through changes. His hair has become quite matted lately. Ryann has taking the last two weekends to brush him out and the matts don't go away. I have learned that evidently this could be caused by his baby hairs becoming entwined with his newly formed adult hairs.

There is a great article about grooming a Goldendoodle that I want to highlight.

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/articles/goldendoodlegrooming.htm

Dee Gerrish is the author and Goldendoodle breeder...so...sounds like an expert to me. :) Once Ryann gets back from class I plan to go over this plan that is highlighted in her article. There are great tips in here for how to brush your Goldendoodle's hair, how to trim around the face, how to trim around the pads of their feet, and much more. Very good stuff and I will keep you posted on the results....

Josh

Gotta stay fit....

So I brought up this odd behavior that Wrigley has on my Facebook account....and it got some great responses. Whenever we take Wrigley for a walk....before we step outside...he stretches. Not just a casual stretch....but this deep fully extended stretch. Its like he has to stay limber and loose in order to go for a walk. He does this sometimes after a long nap, but definitely before walks. So, my question is this....do other dog owners witness this phenomenon? I'd be curious to hear stories....

Wrigley Knows Best

So many stories to share, I must do a better job of doing this. This past weekend was Halloween and Ryann and I had grand plans. We were going to make our costumes during the day Saturday and party all night! Now, waiting until the day of to make a costume definitely can have its consequences...as we will find out. Ryann was making a dress for Jessica Rabbit, as I would be Roger Rabbit. The dress didn't quite work out as planned and it really upset Ryann. Halloween is her favorite holiday....it's a big deal! So this was a major letdown, as we didn't have time to carve pumpkins or going to a haunted house...so it felt like Halloween was wasting away....

So as I go to console Ryann and give her a hug...Wrigley clearly sensed something was wrong. He jumped up and put his front paws around us and gave us both a hug. It was one of those simple moments...one that I won't forget. One in which I realize how blessed I am to have such a great little family. Wrigley's personality is amazing and that simple gesture brought a little tear to our eyes....

Lions and Dogs...Oh My!

Wrigley loves taking naps with people and sharing...but I don't know about this...a Lion and Dog sharing a cage together at a zoo....

Dog And Lion Are Roommates

Puppy Panther??

Wrigley is found of all animals...and doesn't always get it when they don't like them back... :) But this baby panther seems just find to have a dog as his mother...check out the video...


Dog Adopts a Panther Cub

Wrigley's New Friend

Our good friend Bob rescued a puppy last week and we orgainzed a play date with Rockne and his brother's golden doodle Irish. Sense a theme here ND fans. :) Well during all the playing there was this great moment of Wrigley teaching Rockne how to play tug of war....simply priceless....

Dancin' Dog

Now, I must start with the fact that I have not seen Riverdance, but this appears to be a very good re-enactment of the dance. This dog has some serious moves....I don't think I could get Wrigley to do this, he jumps to high to sustain this feverish movement. :)

Dogs Gone Wild

A simple adoption segment on a local news channel gets out of hand when the dogs show their appreication. Too funny...


Hyperactive Dogs Ruin Adoption

Trip to the Cove

The local minor league baseball team does a great thing once a month for us dog lovers. They invite our furry friends out for Canines at the Cove one Sunday a month. We have taken Wrigley 3 times now and we have loved every minute of it. He has started to become a local celebrity. The cotton candy gal is a big fan. The players recognize him from games earlier this year and marvel at how much bigger he is now. Swoop, the mascot, LOVES Wrigley...and Wrigley loves chewing on him. :) If your local team does this kind of event, I strong encourage it, as its great to see all the dogs, and the kids love it as well. I am privileged to get great seats due to my company's sponsorship with the Silver Hawks. Check out the pics below of our great times!

Sharing Some Knowledge

This blog will be dedicated to Wrigley,but I would also like to highlight other great blogs out there. If your looking to stay on top of the latest trends and ideas for pet care and pet products, check out The Daily Treat...a blog from the Animal Planet. Great ideas and giveaways on this site...very much recommended.

Family Vacation

Well...it has been some time since I've blogged, so I have a lot of catching up to do. We recently went on our 1st family vacation. We took Wrigley down to see Ryann's friend Katie for her birthday down in Cincy! It was a nice 4.5 hour drive, so we took a pit stop outside Noblesville....17 minutes later we had our food...and Wrigley had made new friends outside. Wrigley was going to meet up with Lola, a 5 year old lab. She has arthritis from a car hitting her when she was younger. Wrigley, the friendly do that he is, LOVED her. Maybe a little too much. We were there for 4 days and by the end, I think Lola was done with Wrigley's puppy energy. He just kept wanting to play and she was ready for a nap. But they did get a long very very well. Wrigley did something new though that weekend. This may get a little vulgar for some.

He developed the cling and hump method. Now, I'm sure that many of you have seen a male dog jump up and try to hump, and they do grab on. However, Wrigley didn't care if he couldn't get behind Lola. He was just fine side humping. We normally try to stop this kind of behavior, but it was just so funny, we just sat back and watched. Very good stuff. It was a great vacation and we have a lot of fun and interesting stories from the weekend, from drinking on the river, to driving through a flood. It was fun to get away for awhile and to see Wrigley have fun with a new doggie friend.

Poop Watcher

I know...such a great subject line right? Well, I proposed this question earlier on my twitter feed (tweetdvd)....Why does a dog turn around and look at you while they are pooping? I just don't get it....it makes me feel bad...like I need to look away. Is this common? Have others seen this phenomenon? Do they just want to make sure you are still there? I mean its one thing that I go and pick up his poop when he is finished, but then to degrade me even more by staring at me while he does it...it just creeps me out sometimes. Wrigley also does this thing where he double poops. He poops, of course while looking at me...I go and pick it up...I turn around and he has pooped again! So then I have to get a 2nd bag out and pick that up too! It can be rather annoying....so sometimes I don't pick it up...sshhh...don't tell anyone. Anybody else have a dog that double poops on them? Or gives the dirty stare down?

Can't forget the obligatory Wrigley picture....

Fireworks and Kids

I still have a lot of recapping of Wrigley's life to do, but I wanted to touch on the last two weekends with Wrigley. Of course last weekend was 4th of July. One big thing with the 4th is fireworks, which can be trouble for dogs. Ryann's cousin actually medicates her dog because his teeth chatter from the fireworks. So, we were very curious to see how he would handle things. Before we get to that though, we have found the perfect playmate for Wrigley. Kids!!! They like to run and play, Wrigley likes to run and play. They need to burn off energy so their parents can relax, same goes for Wrigley. :) He has been amazing with kids and they were each other out very well. Last weekend we went sure how he would do during our private fireworks display...so we kept him in the basement. However, this weekend, with a much bigger display, we thought we would see how he did. He was amazing. He sat down next to me and just looked up and enjoyed. I just kept petting him and talking to him and he loved it. We were pleasantly surprised...as he was the only dog of the 5 there that was all about the fireworks. I can't say that all Goldendoodles will act that way, but Wrigley is ready for next year already!

So...to recap...introduce your puppy to kids at an early age...that way you do your friends and family a favor...you wear their kids out as well!

Day 1 Continued...

So....we have Wrigley in our posession and had an hour drive till we were home. I drove and he sat in Ryann's lap. He was so scared that he didn't say a word and barely moved. We stopped at a Mcd's to take a potty break and he layed on the ground and did nothing...no potty...nada. He was VERY shy when we got him home, but we broke out some toys and he started to warm up to us.

I must say...looking back at this pictures brings back so many great memories, which I will do my best to share. Since we had an extra week, it gave us time to get prepared. We got his crate, some basic toys, food, and a book. Yes, we were one of those people that was going to do things by the book to do it right. We could not find a single Goldendoodle book in any of our local bookstores. So, we did the next best thing, got a Golden Retriever book. :) It was very informative and so helpful. Our friends made fun of us, but then would ask us questions later...yeah...we knew we were doing the right thing. To check out this book, click here. It was very helpful in getting us set up with the basics of how to break him into the transition. One thing I would have never thought of was bring a blanket when we picked him up. We slept with the blanket the night before, so it would get our sent. We then wrapped him in it when we picked him up so he could get used to our sent. 4 1/2 months later, he still sleeps with that blanket. :) It was one of many great tips. The night of February 28th changed our lives. We didn't sleep through the night after that night for some time...getting up in the middle of the night to let him out until he got older. Luckily we have gotten past that and he can last a very long time...but I still come home at lunch to hang out with the little guy....he's my buddy....








Well, more tomorrow, but if you have any questions about the breed or the early stages, ask away and I'd be happy to help.


For more pictures...check out our Flickr profile here.
Thanks,



Josh

Welcome

I'd like to welcome you to Wrigley's Recap. This blog will be devoted to my Goldendoodle puppy Wrigley. He is currently 7 months old, weighing in at 45 lbs. This blog will recap the life and times of Wrigley as well as look back at the early days as well. Ryann and I "rescued" Wrigley from the Amish back in late February of this year (2009) It was love at first site. We wondered at first why we couldn't see Wrigley on a website, but we soon found out that our breeder was Amish. She did send a picture and Ryann's heart melted, we had to get him.



We had to wait an extra week because little Wrigley had some diarrhea issues, but we would see him soon. February 28th was a fantastic day. It was about an hour drive to get there, passing buggies and buffaloes. Yes, Ryann saw a buffalo in Northern Indiana. Once we got there, Wrigley's very husky father (Golden Retriever) met us and showed us the way. Ryann walked in and it was all over. He was the cutest thing we had ever seen.

Wrigley had never been outside before...never been on grass...never had electricity...or been in a car...many new experiences awaiting him. I will continue with Day 1 tomorrow and will share stories, tips, ideas, and other fun facts of Wrigley's life. He is a wonderful Goldendoodle, the best dog breed there is! :) Talk with you soon....