http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/ Charlie became our first family dog and this blog is devoted to recording down the moments we spend with her. en-us Nucleus CMS v3.22 © Weblog http://backend.userland.com/rss http://cavalier.spacelimited.com//nucleus/nucleus2.gif http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/ http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=74 Charlie Likes her cushions. They were ours but Charlie have hoarded them for herself. She'll burrow under those cushions and sleep there during daytime. Sometimes she sleeps on top of them, but only after spending a few minutes scratching them to make them flatter! She'll have to get up a few times because the cushions never become flat. ]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=74 Sun, 23 Mar 2008 20:58:03 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=73 Charlie communicates in different ways. Usually it's through the use of body language but sometimes through sounds. If she is protesting, she'll give a low growl that sounds like "ooo ... ooo". She usually does that when she refuses to have her paws washed after a walk in the streets or when she refuses to be moved from her resting positions. We'll then replied "ah-ah, ooo ... ooo", meaning, "NO GROWLING!" and she'll obey straight away.

Charlie says "come, follow me" by first scratching us with her front paws and then walking ahead and looking back to make sure that we are following her. She calls me for meals when the table is set. She's a "messenger" and a good one too! We can ask her to call anybody in the house and she'll understand what to do - and to make sure that they follow her. What a clever dog!

Charlie has a very good memory too. I once played a "hunting game" with her where I hid several pieces of fruits all over the place and she was to hunt for them, and she loved it so much! The next day, at the same time, she reminded me to play the same game with her again! Now it's routine, we play this game with her every day. First we'll ask her to go into her cage and wait. She'll run off at once and stay there until commanded to search. It's so fun to see Charlie hunting because she sniffs the air so intensely and even walks on two legs :-)]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=73 Sat, 22 Mar 2008 12:24:49 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=72
Charlie takes her bath every Saturday morning, yes, once a week. She loves bathing and would sit in the tub very still while we clean her with lukewarm water from the shower. When bathing Charlie, we would also talk to her and how she loves the attention! Whenever we said "Charlie shake shake", Charlie would shake vigorously to rid herself of excess water. We experimented with various types of doggie shampoo but have yet to discover the best ... Charlie seems to "feel itchier" a few days following her bath. We have tried everything from organic shampoo, oatmeal shampoo to all types of moisturizing shampoo!

To dry Charlie, we put her in her cage which is lined with two towels, and we blow her fur with a hairdryer. Charlie was always cooperative and would roll on the towel to get the excess water off. After a while she would be totally dry with beautiful fluffy fur which also smells terrific! When all that is done, Charlie would drag her towels out of the cage and bring them away to play and chew! She loves to play with towels :-))

Some believe that dogs should not be bathed too often, maybe twice a month or once a month. But Charlie tends to smell a little off approaching one week after her bath. Since our sofa and cushions are her favorite spots for naps, we must make sure that she is kept rather clean. When we are resting, Charlie would always climb right on us and settle down on our chest or lap for a nap!!

Cavaliers are extremely sensitive dogs who are aware of their owner's feelings. They are also very communicative - ours definitely is! In this photo, Charlie is looking at me "hiding" her treats for her treasure hunt! We use a lot of positive reinforcement / praise to teach our doggie patience and obedience. Charlie is absolutely a joy to have.

]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=72 Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:15:18 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=71
Charlie is now 2 years old and in human age, that should be 14 years of age. We still treat her like a little baby because she is soooo cute ;-) Charlie is eating alot, especially table scraps (plain cooked rice) given by my wife. We are trying to reduce Charlie's weight now that she is 15 pounds, whereas before, we kept her at 14 pounds. I am also reducing the amount of her daily snack (dry food) to 15 kibbles as opposed to 20 kibbles. We don't want to reduce her intake so drastically and suddenly, but we'll try it discretely.

However, on Saturdays, I do spread a little bit of peanut butter on small pieces of bread as a special treat for her. Charlie also enjoys her hunting game which involves placing tidbits of food around the livng room for her to hunt. We place cranberries, blueberries, bread crumbs and pine seeds here and there and it is such a comic to see her sniff here and there.

Charlie has a selected number of doggie friends. There are three other Cavaliers which she likes, one Sheltie, one Springer Spaniel, one standard Collie, and one Yorkshire Terrier. She is very shy and submissive with Golden Retrievers, but is definetely afraid of English Cocker Spaniels, Bernese Mountain Dogs, German Shephards, Corgis and other species of dogs.

We truly believe that our Charlie was born at the rump of the litter and that is why she is extra sensitive, very timid with other dogs and her surroundings, but she is a very friendly dog. We treat her as if though she is part of our family and we still love her very much.]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=71 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:54:18 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=70
Cavalier King Charles - Flock Print
I drew this Cavalier King Charles picture - inspired by Charlie. I have a picture of Charlie in my diary, a T-shirt with Charlie's picture when he was a puppy, and a picture of Charlie on my office table! My husband hangs two pictures of Charlie around his neck whenever we're out.

Charlie and our family are inseparable. Last Christmas when we were away for 10 days, Charlie lost a pound or two even though she was well cared by our helper who also loves her very much. We missed her terribly. When we came home, she was ecstatic, and she gained back all the weight that she'd lost. Yes, I think Charlie missed us when we were not around. ]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=70 Sun, 16 Mar 2008 19:13:17 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=69
It has been a long time since we have the time to post update about Charlie. She's now 2 years and 2 months old - and a very healthy doggie. Since we had her two years back, she has never fallen ill, eats well and is a happy dog! She thinks that every human being she meets is her friend. Charlie's tail is always in perpetual motion. But she's so close to us that she shadows us where ever we go. She greets us with the warmest welcome when she meets us even after a short time apart. It's amazing how a dog can have such love for human beings.]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=69 Sun, 16 Mar 2008 14:26:49 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=68 Dear Readers - I hope to share with you a bit about our Charlie. I'm sorry for not adding new blogs about our dog, Charlie.
Our dog is now nearly 1 year and 11 months old. She will be 2 years old on January 8, 2008. By human years, she would have been 14 years by then. (I figure that each dog year is multiplied by 7.)
I wish to tell you about our Charlie's eating habit. She usually has her "little tea time" snack after her morning and afternoon walks. Now she is getting picky and choosy and not wanting to eat her "little tea time" snack immediately. When fed the first kibble, she would hold it in her mouth and spit it out. She just wants to play with her food for a little while. Charlie does not eat her kibbles quickly, but she still eats them at her own pace. I have been thinking whether it is the taste of the kibbles, or could it be the size, or the texture. Up to this day I have not been able to figure it out. Charlie takes a long time to eat her kibbles as her "little tea time" snack. She does not refuse them, nor is she being forced fed. It's not that she doesn't have the appetite, but I believe that she is just plain choosy and picky. The reason for that is because Charlie uses her body language and jestures to let me know that she wants to eat her kibbles, but when kibbles are presented to her, she is playing the "I don't want to eat" so immediately game with me.
She does enjoy her kibbles at her snack time and she will eat all kibbles given to her, but she does not eat so enthusiastically. If I tell Charlie, "No more yummy yummy, Daddy put away.", Charlie will come after me and will begin to whine or bark as if to say, "I want more kibbles." Charlie isn't satisfied until she eats a full snack of kibbles, usually 20-25 kibbles. Good grief. ;-)
Anyway, I'll add new blogs when something interesting comes up. Stay tuned folks.
]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=68 Fri, 26 Oct 2007 22:25:21 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=67 Tuesday, July 31st, 2007
Play Ball. Charlie likes to play ball in the evening after I have thrown out the garbage. This is the time when I am absolutely free and I can spend quite some time playing with Charlie. In the pictures here, you can see that Charlie has two balls. One is a hard green rubber ball and the other one is a softer red rubber ball that makes a squeaky noise when chewed on. Charlie is more fond of the soft red rubber ball than the green one. However, there is one problem when playing ball with Charlie. When Charlie was still a young little puppy, she loved to run for the ball that I roll across the floor and she would retrieve it back for me and allowing me to roll the ball all over for her again. Now, she presents the ball to me as if saying, "Let's play ball." So, I roll the ball across the floor and she just sits there and watches me roll the ball. For every 10 to 20 rolls, she would then chase for the ball. But instead of bringing it back for me, she just leaves it there and expects me to get the ball for her. It doesn't matter what color ball I use, Charlie expects me to roll the ball just to "entertain" her. SIGH!!! It's so irritating and so frustrating to see Charlie sitting there or lying on her cushion and watches me roll the ball so many times before she decides as to when she wants to go chase the ball. She doesn't catch it, but she has her own opinion as to when she decides to chase it and when she decides to catch it. When she is in her good playing mood, she will go and catch the ball, but she still refuses to bring it back to me. I sure missed the good old days when Charlie was a little puppy.I would throw the ball and she catches the ball and brings it back to me.
It's even worse when I roll the soft red rubber ball for her and she decides to present the hard green rubber ball to me. I thought that she wants me to play with her using the hard rubber ball, but no, after I have rolled the hard rubber ball, she goes for the soft red rubber ball and expects me to play with her using her red squeaky rubber ball. Charlie has a mind of her own and she makes her own opinion as to what ball she decides to play. If I don't play with her and goes to the study room to talk to my wife, Charlie comes into the study room and gives me a loud bark as if to scold me indicating, "What's the matter with you? Play with me!" Charlie does not allow me to talk to my wife and insists that I go out into the living-dining room and play with her. She then goes for one of the ball, may it be the hard green ball or the soft squeaky red rubber ball, she would just hold the ball in her mouth, drop it in front of me and expects me to roll that ball for her. And when I do roll that ball for her, she does not go for it, but instead watches me roll the ball just to entertain her. She is making a fool out of me.

I don't know what else I can do to please her. Now I am trying to leave her alone and go into the study room when she does not go for the ball that I roll for her even though she has presented the ball for me to roll. I get so tired of rolling the ball 10 to 20 times and Charlie just sits there and watch me roll the ball for her as if I am the one who is entertaining for her.

Does anyone has any suggestion as to what I can do to prevent rolling the ball 10 to 20 times and being watched as if to entertain my Charlie? She has lost the interest of chasing the ball, but will only chase and catch it when she is in the mood. When she is not in her chasing mood, she will just watch me roll the ball. As I have said, she used to chase, catch and return the ball to me when she was a little puppy, but now she watches me roll the ball more than she goes after the ball. She isn't bored with the game, but she just wants the attention of me being with her. If I don't play with her, she gets upset. Any suggestion, ideas and comments are welcome. Please help me. ]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=67 Wed, 1 Aug 2007 00:11:36 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=66 Sorry readers, no pictures today.
It's been quite a while since I last input information on Charlie's blog. Today, I wish to write about Charlie's schedule. So, here goes :
7:00 a.m. Charlie gets her breakfast in a doggy dish. It consists of cooked chicken meat, minced broccoli floweretts and minced baby carrots (or minced baby corn), goji berries, flax seeds or dried blue berries or dried raspberries. I then warm it up in the microwave for 25 seconds and add stock from the cooked chicken meat, or stock from thee cooked mince beef. Charlie loves her concoction and finishes it in seconds.
8:00 a.m. Charlie gets her morning walk. Sometimes she meets other dogs and sometimes, she meets friendly people on the way. After she comes back from her morning walk, I brush her fur, clean her face with a wet tissue, wipe her tail and backside, and wash her feet when she is not wearing doggy booties. On the days that she is not wearing booties, I let her play with the towel after I have washed her feet.
9:00 - 9:15 a.m. Charlie will demand a little play time with me. She expects me to roll her green ball or her red ball across the living room just so that she can watch the ball roll by. Out of every 10 to 15 rolls, she will then chase the ball and lets me roll the ball all over again.
9:15 a.m Charlie gets a little morning snack of dried kibbles. I feed her by hand. I give her 30 little kibbles, or 15 larger pieces. So, one large kibble equals two small kibbles.
9:20 - 9:30 a.m. Charlie takes her morning nap. She naps until 12:30 p.m. or 1:00 p.m. She likes to nap on our sofa. Sometimes she naps on her own cushion under the coffee table.
During her nap time, we sometimes go out for lunch and leave Charlie to sleep in her own cage which we call, "House".
2:00 p.m. After our lunch hour, I bring Charlie out for an afternoon walk because she has had more than adequate sleep in the morning. It's time for her to stretch out and go for a walk. Sometimes it's pretty hot, so I put on her four little booties. On other days when the sidewalk is very wet after heavy rain, I put on her booties. When it is drizzling, I put on her raingear and her booties and bring an umbrella. It's quite difficult to walk Charlie when she is in her raingear, because she doesn't quite like her raingear. But what else can I do to keep her dry during her walk? Sigh....
3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Charlie gets another snack of dried kibbles. This is her afternoon "tea time". Same amount of kibbles is given as morning snack. After that I leave her alone as I prepare our own dinner. We have early dinner at 6:00 p.m. When we have finished our dinner, it's time to feed Charlie her dinner.
7:00 p.m. Charlie's dinner. Charlie get fed with cooked rice, cooked minced beef, baby corn, or baby carrots or other concoction as her breakfast. But her concoction is different for every meal so that she does not get bored with her food. She is given a cooked egg yellow every Saturday. Egg yellow has omega-3 in it so it's good for her fur and good for her body.
8:00 p.m. Charlie gets her evening walk. Somtimes, she likes to look at cats that wander out in the evenings. After her evening walk, I bring her home, wash her cage and clean her potty and give her a fresh new diaper in her potty. Charlie likes to play for a little while before I send her off to sleep in her "house".
9:15 - 9:30 p.m. Time for Charlie to sleep. I stand by her cage and tell her, "Charlie, come." Charlie comes immediately and walks into her cage with no complains. When Charlie was much younger, I had to catch her and carry her into her cage to get her to sleep. In her earlier days, she hated to be caught and be brought into her "house" to sleep. Now she is bigger and she understands very well that it is time to sleep. She is such a good dog. Lights out and good night. ]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=66 Mon, 2 Jul 2007 12:56:56 +1100 http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=65 Husband writes : Charlie is now at one year and five months old. She is becoming more and more beautiful each day, getting cuter and cuter, too. Charlie is at the stage of learning "GO TO". I am teaching her to "GO TO" this place and that place. What I do is to place different objects that Charlie likes, such as her green hard rubber ball, her red squeaky ball, her rawhide bone, and her chew toy ring in different parts of the living room. I point and lead Charlie to each of these objects and say, "Charlie, go to red ball ball.", "Charlie, go to green ball ball." "Charlie, go to toy toy." and "Charlie, go to bone bone." I use her favorite food (cut pieces of a slice of apple or cut pieces of a wedge of orange) to teach her these commands. Sometimes, I will also say, "Charlie, go to house (the cage that she sleeps in).", and sometimes I will say, "Charlie, go to Ma Ma (my wife)." My wife would be in the study room typing away on the computer. Sometimes she doesn't quite understand the "GO TO" command and instead of going to these places, she would do any other things such as lie down, roll over, bark or run half way here and there not knowing what to do. It's such fun to watch when she makes these mistakes no matter how silly she is, but Charlie is slowly catching on and is making good progress as time goes on.

Charlie also enjoys a game of tug-of-war with her towel every time after I have washed her feet after we come back from her walks. After playing with her for 5 - 10 minutes, I will say, "Charlie, no more."a few times and she eventually stops. What a good girl she is! She is so cute, don't you agree?]]> General http://cavalier.spacelimited.com/index.php?itemid=65 Thu, 17 May 2007 01:18:47 +1100