UtterlyChaotic!

She's NOT staying.....Really!

2011-11-17T13:05:00.000-06:00

Well, it's been a very, um....chaotic! few weeks around here. Adding a pug seems to be an exponential rather than linear expansion. Unfortunately, we've all fallen head over paws for her.
The humans, that is.

The pugs? Meh.

Hear no evil.....SEE no evil.....speak no evil ???

Ruby's gotten a lot more comfortable around here, as you can see:

Such a cutie pie!!

Shortly after she arrived, a local family met her and has fallen under her spell to.

Until her adoption is finalized, she'll be staying her with us.

We'll keep you all posted.

Snorts!

Gen, the Foo & Ruby too!

Introducing.......RUBY!

2011-10-05T22:51:00.000-05:00

A few days ago, Mom told us some startling news......we were getting a visitor.

Not just for a day or two, but for a while.

"How long?" we asked........

"As long as it takes" Mom said.

Mom explained that there was a sad pug out there who needed a safe place to be.

She's a puppy mill survivor.

A what?

What's a puppy mill?

A place that's not good for dogs.

Where there are only cages, and no families, or playing, or even names.

No belly rubs or treats.

The only important thing is making new puppies.

So when Mom heard that Kentukiana Pug Rescue needed some more foster homes, she agreed to keep a pug-in-need safe till a new home could be found.

A few hours later:

OK, it was really 2 days.

Mom gave us a big pep talk about being nice to thte new kid in tow.

Here's a picture of the official

"Pug Welcoming Committee"

The Foo really enjoys her nightly glass or Pinot Grigio.

And here she is!

Poor Ruby was shaking in Mr. KPR's arms.

Much butt sniffing ensued, and we showed her our backyard.

And then our deck, and finally inside the house.

Ruby was a wreck, and could not stop shaking, even when Mom was holding her.

In the past 4 days, she's gotten more comfortable around our house.

At first, she clained a spot on the carpet and wouldn't budge. Everytime Mom picked her up to try to get her to drink, eat or pee, she ran right back to her "spot". So Mom put a dog bed down for her.

We are trying not to give her the cold paw, but boy, is she weird! She doesn't know her own name!

And she doesn't know how to go for a walk on a leash. She scares herself when she shakes her own tags. She jumps everytime theres a loud noise. And she wouldn't eat for a whole day. (now that's crazy!) She doesn't know how to play.

She likes to jump around, sniff stuff and generally act strange. During nap time.

After four days she is starting to get a bit tired.

But she is good at making Mom a little crazy.

Here's a shot of us messing with Mom when she was trying to take a picture of us all.

Ha, Ha...........

At least she snores just like us!

She is starting be kinda fun to be around,

but we really hope she can find a forever home soon.

Love

Gen & the Foo

and Ruby too!

The CLAW......or how I got to be a Hot Mess

2011-09-14T12:14:00.001-05:00

Old age ain't pretty, let me tell ya. It's that time of year (again) when I lose clumps of fur. I've got big patches of it sticking out all over me. Mom just grabs a handful and plucks it out. Don't worry - there's more where that came from.

Face it, I'm a HOT MESS. The other day, as I was ~~passed out~~ relaxing on the living room rug, Mom noticed some schmutz (ssh-MUT-tze) on my paw. For those of you who don't speak Yiddish (HELLO! Michelle Bachman??) that means, crud, or crusty, well....stuff. And she noticed this.

Yeah, it is curling underneath itself. Doesn't hurt, but Mom sure flipped, then she yelled "I said NO CLAWS, human feet ONLY!!"

So today, I'm off to the vet for a Pawdicure. Spa Day - the whole 9 yards, the works. So talk to ya later. If I'm a bit silly, it's just because they served me a bit to much champagne with my peeled grapes and caviar!

Love,

the Foo

Busted......

2011-09-08T10:09:00.004-05:00

If I just hide my eyes, maybe no one will notice I'm on the couch?

Yeah, guess not.

I should probably mention that this is the old "new" couch, so who can blame me for not really listening to the "no pug on the new couch" rule. You see, it's Dad's new couch from a few years ago, but now it's and Mom-n-Dad's house, which is my old house. Get it? I thought so. As great side benefit of the humans moving all their stuff into the same house has been the piles of stuff, and partially filled boxes I can climb into or on top of. It's been fun.

I've got my EYE on you. Oh, yeah, that's the broke eye, nevermind.

I'm just quietly resting here on my blankie in the sun. Looking cute:

and listening to Mom yelling at my sister.....

Love,

Gen & the Foo

Scrub-A-Dub-Pug: Two pugs in a tub

2011-08-21T15:41:00.000-05:00

Prologue: We know that several months have gone by with no news from the UtterlyChaotic Headquarters. That's because it's been, well, CHAOTIC! Much has gone on, and we promise tell all, but ,dear readers, you will need to be patient. We return to the blogoshphere with this current event:

PUG SPA DAY

Momma threatened, and threatened that our stank was too HORRIBLE to bear. We didn't believe her, but she finally did it.

Yes, Pug Spa Day. Blech, I don't know what all the ladies are talking about.........OK, well, maybe.

Mom said with the heat this summer, the ONLY way we were allowed outside for longer than 5 minutes was if were got hosed down first. We got a last minute stay of ~~execution~~....I mean, washing....when it thunderstormed all day yesterday.

So it was in the tub for us! Brrr...that water was cold. Oh, yeah....that actually feels kinda good...

Aw, Mom.......do you have ta use SOAP too?????

"I'm soo mortified, I am SIDEWAYS", snorted the Foo

Do I LOOK happy?

After several escape attempts, much scrubbing and a cool rinse......

But the Momma was not done yet.....

extensive FURmination ensued,

until the comb came clean....

there was enough pug hair too....

well, cover an entire pug!

(1-800-PUGHAIR-HELP)

Snorts,

Gen & the Foo

Destination: destinkification

2011-01-27T09:02:00.000-06:00

Oh NO!!!
Say it ain't so.

Momma's taking us to get destinkified. She says our stank would break the camera lens, so you'll have to wait for the "after" pictures.

We hope we survive the ordeal.

Wordless Wednesday: Stubby Edition

2011-01-12T00:02:00.000-06:00

We' miss you, buddy!!

Happy Everything!

2010-12-25T04:38:00.000-06:00

Mom's been so lame these days. It's like it took all her waking hours to make this: (Hmpf!)

She acts like shes planning a wedding, working, studying for her Boards

and taking care of all of us or something!

Wishing everyone a snortalicious holiday!

Gen & the Foo

Eh Hem, Mom, you're a little behind on blogging!

2010-10-05T23:20:00.000-05:00

Do I need to do this myself? We've got tons of things to say!

A road trip, a wedding, a visit with a pug celebrity? Come on!

Mom, this is reallllllly hard with no thumbs!

And it's not working any better using my snout!

Not quite Fuji Friday

2010-09-24T09:50:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of Mrs Jetplane

PFOOEY on Fuji Friday!

2010-09-17T14:54:00.000-05:00

Eh, hem.....

What am I? Chopped Liver?

I have allowed the back-up pug to steal the blog once too many times.

This one is ALL ABOUT ME.

See? Do I look Happy?

Whippy Cream Ho

2010-09-15T16:15:00.000-05:00

Looks like once the Foo got a taste of the good stuff......there is no turning back.

Back when the Foo needed to take 18,437,273 pills every day, mom came up with some tricks to get the medicine down. One of these included a healthy squirt of whippy cream.

These days, the Foo has become a very picky eater. Sometimes even ignoring her bowl of kibble. Yes, I know. Lowly kibble is for mere peasants. Mom's tried several ways to get the Foo to eat more. Wet food, meh. Chicken broth, warmed, meh. Leftover chicken or beef shredded up, better. But there is one sure way to get the Foo to lick her bowl clean.

Whippy Cream.

Now the Foo stares mom down till she gets the delightful enhancement:

Yup, mom created the Whippy Cream Ho.

We's been invited to a Wedding!!

2010-09-11T13:59:00.001-05:00

This is soooo exciting. We thought we'd have to wait for 192 more days till Momma & Honey's wedding, but we's been invited to a wedding next month!

OMD, what should we wear?

This is so difficult, chooosing outfits to compliment our curly figures.

Some dresses available on myuptownpooch.com myuptownpooch.com

Josie, Oh Josie, and IzZy...can we borrow your curlers?

Maybe we'll need paw-dicures? What color should we pick?

Oh, we'd better Furminate the Foo, too!

FUJI FRIDAY!

2010-09-10T10:23:00.000-05:00

Things that should have killed Fuji.........but didn't:

Seizures
Brain Tumor ?
Sedation for Dental Cleaning & Surgery
The Eyeball Incident and surgey to put back eyeball
The Breathing Episode: Heat Stroke + Laryngeal Edema
Laryngeal Paralysis
Multiple (successful!) escape attempts

Snorts!

Gen & Lefty

L'Shana Tovah

2010-09-08T20:31:00.001-05:00

Rooo, roo, RoRoooo.

Oy, What are you? A Schlemiel?

That's dog for "Shanah Tovah".

Wishing all our pug and human friends and new year filled with joy, happiness and belly rubs.

The Well-Read Pug.....or how I got to meet my favorite author

2010-09-06T21:36:00.001-05:00

Mom told me that a very special writer was coming to town.   When I head it was none other than Heather McElhatton (a.k.a Walter's Mom), I demanded that mom get me there to hear her read in the fur.

You see, being a pug, it can be kinda hard to read books. Turning the pages can get pretty difficult without thumbs!   So, I secretly listen to books on tape.    Listening to a pick-you-own story on tape was a little challenging, but I managed it. Clever, very clever.

But Jennifer Johnson? Fabulous!   Finally, a story that tells it like it is.    I must have listened to that book 10 times!    There's hope for single girls everywhere!

So, when I heard there was going to be a reading at Barbara's Books in Chicago, I went right to Google to see how to get there.   I went on a complete cuteness strike until mom agreed to drive me down.   The Foo wanted to go, but since she really prefers cheap dime-store romance novels, I told her it would be a bit of an insult to attend.    Agent Awesome wanted to come too. She hasn't read any of my fovorite author's books, but that's Ok, because Heather say's they are rated PG-15*

It was soooo exciting.   As we got to the bookstore, I couldn't help but sniff everything! Heather, Heather...where are you?!?

Oh, here!

I was so excited, I could not stop moving!

Here's a better picture....

Of course, as the only four-legged fan, I got the pug's-share of her attention! And a signed copy of the new book just for me! I let her write Foo's name too, just to show how nice I am. And it seems like I might be the ONLY four-legged fan who's come to the bookstore; the nice workers there were totally charmed and treated me like a queen!

It was just the best night.Ever.

Heather was so nice. She didn't even get upset when I tried my famous sneak-lick attack trick. Or when I left half my fur on her pretty black jacket. We made her promise to bring Walter next time.

* Heather says her books are too grown-up for Agent Awesome. No one under 15 should be reading these books. But she explained to Agent Awesome (owner of the red legs) that she was hard at work on a book just for young adult readers. And she even promised to send us a copy when it gets done.

It was a big night for me, and I had to go home quickly to get ready for the big wedding adventure - stay tuned for the details.

PeeS: Mom says big SORRY for slacking off on the blog keeping. Sometimes she gets superbusy (or lazy).

I Ear 'Ya.....................If it ain't one thing, it's another.

2010-08-04T12:12:00.000-05:00

Now that Lefty's eye is better, guess who has an ear infection?

Apparently, Gen was getting a little jealous of all the attentions I was getting.

love, Lefty

The Eyes Have it.......

2010-07-27T21:54:00.000-05:00

Just a quick note to let you all know that the Foo had her follow up at the Eye Vet today. There is no need to discuss the $137.00 charge..... But

We are happy to report that she is

infection-free,

and on her way to a full recovery!

Thanks for all the Paw Power!

Love,

Gen & the Foo

Out of Office Message:

2010-07-24T13:46:00.000-05:00

We are at a very important business meeting.

We will be back on Monday morning.

Bye,
Gen & Lefty

Packing for Camp!

2010-07-22T23:20:00.000-05:00

We are so excited for Sunflower Camp!!

As peomised, we are bringing the GIANT Marshmallows for S'mores over the campfire. Without thumbs, it's hard to roast those marshmallows, but we will find a way!

YUM.

We think Mom has a little OCD. She wanted to make sure we have EVERYTHING we might possibly needs, so here is what she packed:

Extra-strong hiking harness

and boots to protect our paws

Of course, something to keep us cool.......

PugPack to hold all our stuff!

A nice cozy tent to keep us warm and bug-free,

Dog sized sleeping bags!

For going in the lake (cuz we Pugs kinda sink),

Always leave only foot prints......

And, de-stinkifier,

just in case we maybe roll in some gross stuff.

Gen: Foo, would you roll in stinky stuff?
Foo: Never, NOT ME!

We are so excited to go to camp! We can't wait to see Wilma and all our Sunflower sisters!

Love,
Gen & Lefty

Lefty's a Champ!

2010-07-21T23:36:00.001-05:00

Today was Foo's follow up visit at the eye vet. Her eyeball looks like it's repositioned itself back where it belongs, or, close enough. Unfortunately, she doesn't seem to have sight in the eye, and that's probably permanent. She's getting around really well, so it should not be a problem for her. PSA: even thought the eye isn't functional, if the ulcer gets badly infected, it will need to be removed. I think Foo has had quite enough surgery already.

Here she is with Dr. Mohoric. Cute, huh? As you can see, Foo did a pretty good job of cooperating with the doc and his assistant. She does have an ulceration that we need to clear up, so its 2 medicines, each 6 times a day. Her other eye is doing well but will always need the Tacrolimus drops for dry eye.

Ok - total for the Foo: 2 drops, six times a day. 1 drop, 2x day. 2 pills twice a day, and two pills once a day. I've totally lost count!

So Gen was feeling kind of left out......and we took her for a check-up too. Well, turns out she has some pretty serious problems too. Poor tear production, and chronic dry eye have allowed verydark pigmentation to develop. He thinks it is impairing Gen's vision. That's possible, but she can see a speck of food at 20 paces......so I don't think she's suffering. So, she get Tacrolimus for life too.

Hmmm, who makes that stuff? I think I'd better buy some stock!

Shoulda been a vet.

Mom

Just Call her Drama Queen.....

2010-07-20T13:56:00.000-05:00

Is it time to change her name from Lefty to......

DRAMA QUEEN?

Or maybe she is just not the "Outdoorsy Type"?

I should probably start by saying that I'm OK!   But here's the whole story:

Mom and Honey decided to take a quick getaway over the weekend, since Mom has never seen "the house in Wisconsin".    So, they loaded up the car with all sorts of crap, including our crate!

Because the Foo (me) couldn't be left with just anyone. All those eye drops, you know. So, a road trip to Wisconsin it was.   We've been to Wisconsin before to go to PugFest, and that was OK, so we were excited.

Except it was pretty hot out around here.   But Mom cranked up the A/C in the car, and all was good.  I got to sit on her lap for most of the way too. Did you know that the floor in front of the passenger seat is the exact perfect size for a Foo? She even carried me into the grocery store when we got the Prtizl's for "provisions" (Honey forgot the buns).   And we even got our personal fan up at the house.

This is me, enjoying the wilderness, from the deck.

That's my "Before" shot.

And here's Gen.

Note the creative use of the forks by Honey, who forgot a few parts for the grill.

For most of the way back, I was doing fine. Crazy Honey HAD to go see the Ten Chimneys Historial Landmark. Honey thought is was some kind of Native/Indian natural landmark, but no. It had something to with actors. Whateves. He and mom got completely eaten by 'squitos. Serves em right. Then mom HAD to stop at this quilt shop. Patched Works. Yeah right, like she doesn't have enough UFOs!

At the quilt shop, Honey took us on a nice quick walk while momma was shopping and we were both just fine. But when momma took us out of the car at home, I had a puffed up belly, was really hot and having trouble standing, along with my exaggerated panting. Now I am an old girl, so I do pant alot. But mom knew this was just not right.

So I got a quick ride to my old friends at Animal 911. They were REALLY worried about me. I had to stay overnight, with oxygen and a tubie down my nose (yuck). They gave me an IV and lots of medicines to help my breathing. They checked on me all night. By the time momma came back in the morning, I was able to breath all by myself, no more tubbie. See:

I'm not quite my energetic old self, but I'm breathing OK and just taking it easy. My regular vet even called to see what kind of trouble I got my self into this time! See my aligator head stuffie? He's helping to keep me comfy. I get to take 4 different medicines every day for about a week. That translates into a lot of WHIPPY CREAM! And take a look at my EYE! It's almost all better now. It must be allPaw Power my friends are sending! See, it's WORKING!

Don't I look comfy?

And let's not forget Big Sister Gen, who has been watching over me. Right now she is laying low (ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzz) to keep the excitement level down so I can recover. Thanks, Gen.

Love

Fuji the Drama Queen

Power of the Paw needed....again

2010-07-19T22:18:00.001-05:00

After what seemed like an idylic overnight trip to the rugged land of Wisconsin - a state known far and wide for it's cheese and Green Bay Packers - the Foo seems to be fighting health issues one more time.

When we got home, I noticed she was quite warm and had a belly full of air.   Although the car was heavily air conditioned during our trip, it looks like the heat was a bit too much for her.

Tonite she is at the ER vet on oxygen and fluids to help get her stable.   The tissue aound her throat, which was quite thickened to begin with became very swollen and is making it hard for her to get enough oxygen right now. Hopefully fluids, mediations and oxygen will be all the support she needs to turn the corner.

I guess she did not like the family cabin in Wisconsin.......

Please send the Power of the Paw to her so she can recover quickly,

Thanks!

Gen

PUPDATE: Spoke with the ER vet @ 10:30. Foo is sleeping & comfortable. Her breathing is slightly eased, but still not where we want it.   She will continue getting fluids, O2, and meds through the night.

Ode to a Pug.......by Agent Awesome

2010-07-13T17:46:00.000-05:00

The Fuji Eye Song
Written by Agent Awesome
with a little help from Mom,
and inspired by Fuji's cone head

Fuji sitting on the carpet
Her eye went plop,
She called the doc
She has surgereeeeeeee

She came home, wearing a cone
with an eye injureeeee
It was all sewn up
What a strong pup
Fuji the strong pugeeee

Fuji was okay, ready to play
The she got her drops,
hoping for it to stop.

She needed a rest,
the doctor request (ed)
a very big payment from Momeeeee

Now Fuji's okay,
knowing she may
BE AN AWESOME PUG, YEAH!

On the mend.......

2010-07-11T21:30:00.000-05:00

Nothing major to report, just a little better every day.

Lefty, formerly known as the Foo, is taking her drops like a man. Although it seems easier when two humans are on the job!

Almost all the swelling has subsided, but the eyeball remains really gross! And since the sweling is down, we can see a lot more of that eye!

There aren't are new pictures, so here are a few old ones I thought you might like. They are from one of the artists who had a booth at PugFest last May.

Hey, these guys look like us!!

Yeah, sometimes we smell.

You gotta a problem with that?

We don't exactly understand this one.

OK. See, we are not the only ones thinking that!

See ya soon.

(Oops. No pun intended.....)

Love,

Gen & Lefty

Pupdate & .......THE PACKAGE!!

2010-07-07T22:10:00.002-05:00

Gen & the Foo were sooooo excited to win Salinger's giveaway from Taste of the Wild!! It's so much fun to get a package, especially if it contains foodables.

Unfortunately, several calamities have conspired to delay a post about hte contents of their package. So first, we'll have to talk about this:

This is NOT what arrived in the mail. Rather, it is all the medicines Foo has been given to fix her broken eye. Today, momma took her to see the the puggy eye doctor. She will have to keep her eye closed for 2 to 3 weeks. After that, we'll try to find out if she can see and move her eyeball. For now, that's all we can do. But he did change her medicines. While he was at it, the eye specialist also checked out her her good eye and a few problems were found. (thanks Dr.Mohoric!!) Dry eye, very common in pugs was severe, and there was also a mild infection of the lid. Some of these have been discontined. From the left (no pun intended):

Metacam - for inflammation (#2)
Tobramycin - 2nd antibiotic
Artificicial Tear Ointment
Tacrolimus - tear stimulant (and chemotherpay agent)
Triple Antibiotic ointment
Rimidyl - first anti-inflammatory
Number of vets seen: 2
Number of medications being given: 4
Number of drops per day: 10

And now........we turn to more exciting news!!!!

The PACKAGE

We could not open this ourselves, so the momma had to help. It was soooooo exciting!

And look at all the booty we found inside:

I guess the nice lady at Taste of the Wild doesn't know that we don't do tricks.

So I sniffed and sniffed all the goodies. There was all kinds of foodables. And a gigantic collar......what breed did that lady think she was sending her box too? An English Bulldog? We'll have to find a big buddy to send that too. Can anyone think of a furiend with a giant neck? And there was also a piece of paper. It didn't smell like much but momma liked it. She said it was useful to get MORE foodables, so I am OK with that.

(We put that up sideways so ~~the Foo~~ Lefty can read it)

Here's Lefty checking out the booty before her "injury."

Mom, seriously, look at all this stuff! Canned food (for Lefty), kibbles (for me) chewy stars in THREE sizes! Hey, wait, is someone suggesting my breath is less than delightful??

I scarfed up my chewy so fast, momma could not even get a picture. Dentally challenged Foo, I mean Lefty, gnawed and gnawed. Finally after like an hour, mom had to take her chewy and throw it away. Seriously, she only has like 5 teeth left, what were ya thinking, mom?

We can't wait to taste the real foodables....but more on that later.

Love,

Gen & Lefty

Eye ya Yai! or...The Cone of Silence

2010-07-05T20:19:00.000-05:00

The Foo wanted to thank all of her pug and human friends for their kind words of support, and for sending out the Power of the Paw. She is at home now, slightly drunken, but feeling OK.

He eye is sutured closed to help it heal.

Hopefully, when the swelling subsides her eyeball will go back where it belongs.

The Foo seems very comfortable, even with......the

CONE OF SILENCE*

It's clear. She does not seem to notice it, but is bumping into things because she is not used to the extra space she needs. Otherwise, she seems just fine.

She'll be spending the next few nights in the

"Inner Sanctum"

of momma's bedroom in her new soft crate.

It's a special treat because no pugs are allowed in human bedrooms.

And I have to give her eye drops 847 times a day.

30 minutes apart. So you can see how that could be a problem......

We'll keep you all posted,

and keep sending the

Power of the Paw!!

*for those of you who can remember Get Smart!

My new BFF, Animal 911

2010-07-05T10:26:00.001-05:00

Clearly, the holiday weekend was progressing too smoothly..........

Gen & the Foo had a little tussle over breakfast this morning, resulting in a really gross, bulgy look eye for the Foo. Eeeewww. Oh, wait, GROSS - this is serious!

Oh, you were thinking we'd put up photo of that grossness?

Come on, we've got some dignity.

Well, maybe not.

But I was not able to get a photo while racing down the block, blinkers on, nearly running red lights to get to the ER vet.

Fortunately, we were able to get Foo over there within 10 minutes. The vet wasn't able to reposition her eye (right, in case anyone cares) on the first try, so she will need to be sedated. Hopefully, the eye will heal and no further treatment will be needed.

I saw Foo just before her surgery, and she was pretty, well, drunk. But I told her she was really brave. And seriously, eye patches are really a fashion problem.

Please send eye healing thoughts!

(Chocolate works too)

iUpdate: Foo made it through surgery, but the vet was not able to get her eye in the completely correct position (due to swelling). She had to suture the lids closed to help it heal. We'll need to watch her carefully, and with medication and drops, hope for the best.

Programming has been interrupted for a test of the Emergency Broadcast System......

2010-06-29T22:29:00.000-05:00

The big reveal of our package has been interrupted by the following test of our

Emergency Response System:

That would be the momma mobile. Even though we are pugs, we are pretty sure there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with this picture.

When pugs collide, nothing much happens. When people mobiles collide, this is what happens. Even if the momma was parked (as in stationary) and just minding her own bees-wax.

The ~~fender remover~~ other driver was heard to say "I didn't even see you."

Again, we're just pugs, but even we can see a large SUV before we run into it.

Tune in tommorow when we resume our regularly scheduled

"BIG PACKAGE REVEAL"

Love,

Gen & the Foo

It seems we've gotten a package.......

2010-06-28T18:57:00.000-05:00

Mom was at some foot convention over the weekend, and while she was away a package came for us.

We barked and barked at the mail lady to just leave it for us, but she brought it next door. Hmmpf.

Our neighbor brought it over to us today. But Mom won't let us open it till she find the camera. Something about it being lost in her suitcases. Whatever.

Love Gen & the Foo

The Klondike Rebellion

2010-06-11T22:56:00.000-05:00

Momma opened the garage door this morning, and we heard a horrendous shriek. Seriously, it hurt our delicate puggy ears......

Agent Awesome was immediately summonsed to the scene of the crime.

Which began with a suspicious puddle, much like this one:

Ok, well, may be it was not actually not THAT big, but momma sure was pissed.

And so she followed the puddle.....

And we decided it was time to quietly step away from the scene.

Where she found an overturned box of soggy, melted these:

In what "may" have been a jailbreak out of the extra freezer?

Leaving the door WIDE OPEN....

for 10 hours.

(Not actual fridge)

Resulting in a fridge full of soggy, melted food.

Did the Klondike's try to make a break for it?

Protesting poor conditions and the specter of cruel & inhuman punishement?

Or, did *someone*, maybe,

FORGET TO CLOSE THE DOOR??????

We'll never know, will we?

But we sure don't want to be around when mom finds out!

as Reported by Gen & the Foo

It's My Birthday, and I'll Snort if I Want To!!

2010-06-06T20:07:00.000-05:00

Genevieve turned 5 on Wednesday!

For some perspective, here's one of her earliest pictures:

Not the blondie, that's Agent Awesome.

It's probably time to tell you how I got here to my family. After adopting many pets from local animal shelters, mom wasn't exaxctly sure how to find a good breeder. So she kept going to pug events looking for suggestions. And she finally found one in a place call Eye-oh-wah.

But Agent Awesome was still pretty small and momma wasn't sure if it was time yet. Agent Awesome begged and begged for her Genevieve, you know the little dog that rescued Madeline from her fall into the River Seine in Pa-ree.

Can't you see the resemblance?

It was winter, so momma told Agent Awesome that they'd have to wait for springtime because it was too cold for me to travel across the ocean. Momma was hoping to buy some time, but Agent Awesome, who was just 5 years olf (like me!) said "You can just put a sweater on her Momma."

And so, when I was finally born, and ready to leave the farm, Momma told her I was on my way. Unfortunately, she sais I got a little lost on my way from Paris and had to be picked up in Eye-oh-wah. Another day we will tell you Agent Awesome's description of the trip to come get me.

For now, please share in my birthday celebration!

Hmm, that sure smells goooooo!

Nom, nom, nom!

The Foo licked her plate bone dry.

Here she is in her party outfit.

Look at all this birthday booty!

OK, I admit it, I'm still kinda confused about what to do with toys.

Do you think Angry Chicken looks sad?

Agent Awesome made my very own Birthday Bandana.

Bye Everypuggy!

Love Gen & the Foo

Without further adieu.......PugFest

2010-05-23T20:54:00.000-05:00

We are SO excited!

We finally made it to PugFest!

Thanks for driving, Mom.

Mom got us some new bling just for the Fest, see our sparkly new harnesses?

We stopped by and talked to lots of our favorite rescue groups, and did LOTS of shopping and donating.

There were all kinds of treats for us.

We met some adorable furry friends! Mmmmm, Smmmoch!

Also some treats for the humans. OK, NEXT!

These guys look kinda like us!

And we think we found Gen's twin-separated-at-birth, don't you? (on the right)

Yeah, he's thinkin' what we're thinkin'!

We were so exhausted by the end!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............

Next time: the BOOTY.

Winner, Winner ....Chicken Dinner. NOT.

2010-05-19T19:08:00.001-05:00

Please send healing thoughts to our buddy Anakin, who had an unfortunate run in with some purloined chicken bones. He's had two surgeries, the latest on his birthday! Not exactly what he was hoping for!

Not actual bones purloined:

The only chicken bones a dog should be thinking about:

Fortunately, his momma noticed he was having some trouble and got him back to vet quickly.

He's on his way home right now.

Anakin, buddy, hurry and get better soon!

I think we might need a birthday re-do.

We loves you,

Gen & the Foo

Gettin' Ready for PugFest!!

2010-05-16T19:19:00.001-05:00

We were so excited for our big day at PugFest. Oh yeah.....time for a road trip! That is till Momma said our pug-stank had to go.

Oh no!! Not.......

BATH TIME!

Oh yes.

Momma set the water for our special temperture (100 F),

And hearded us into the ~~torture chamber~~ bathroom:

Oh no, this won't be good.

See, I told you!

The humiliation.

This is so wrong.

Finally, finished. Next time, we going to hide a lot better.

Mom declares us clean enough for PugFest.

.........To Be Continued.

Milwaukee bound......

2010-05-16T08:49:00.002-05:00

PugFest or BUST!

Our Momma needs your help!

2010-05-10T21:18:00.000-05:00

You probably don't know this, but Momma and Honey are planning to get married soon. Momma has a little habit of entering contests and sweepstakes. And finally, she's hit paydirt!

Momma and Honey are semi-finalists in a dreamy, swanky

WEDDING GIVEAWAY!

But she needs your help!

See:

Mmm, Foo, I don't think that's so helpful.

Well, that's a little better.

Let me try it again.

There we go!

And once you get there:

Please tell all your friends, especially the ones with computers AND thumbs.

Momma and Honey need all the help they can get!

Please visit www.elevenelevenwedding.com

and vote for PETA & JOHN!!

The winning couple will receive an all expense paid wedding courtest of some of Chicago's best wedding vendors. The whole 9 yeards - from the dress, to limos, a hip venue in the West Loop, fancy-schmancy invitations, bridesmaids dresses, shoes, jewelry......hey wait? Where are the dog outfits! No fair!

Thanks for your support!

Love
Gen & the Foo

Mother's Day Booty.......

2010-05-09T18:07:00.000-05:00

Mom started the day with Agent Awesome on a Pirate Ship! We're not kidding,
And then, after getting "shystered" by Agent Awesome at the American Girl Doll Store, she got his present:

Pretty cool huh? A handmade T-shirt of, yes..........funny pugs.

Here's the detail:

An original by our own Agent Awesome.

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Love Gen & the Foo

Wordless Wednesday: Late Edition

2010-05-06T00:37:00.002-05:00

De-Pugification

2010-05-01T21:02:00.000-05:00

We protest.
Yesterday, we were exiled while mom and Ursula ~~destinkified~~ de-pugified the house. We don't understand what took so long, or why we had to stay out on the deck for sooooo long.

Something about taking apart the entire couch, washing all the slipcovers, spraying de-stinking spray, and putting it all back together so we could have guests stand to be in the house.

Everyone loves our scent, right?? Right??

See how terrible it was for us:

We protest the cruel and de-pug-able conditions.

Aren't we protected by the Geneva Convention?

Gen & the Foo

Gone Surfin'

2010-04-27T21:10:00.000-05:00

couch surfin' that is.

On Honey's new couch. Not sure why that would make momma scrunch face.....

It's Earth Day!

2010-04-22T08:59:00.002-05:00

Take a look at what out buddy Puglet did to spread the word about taking care of our planet:

(How cool am I? - I just embedded a video!!)

Puglet is on a mission to teach people about recycled dogs, but he learned that dogs are not the only thing that should be recycled, reused or repurposed. Special thanks to our friend Stubby for teaching Puglet about how important it is to treat out Earth right.

Please treat our earth kindly today, and everyday.

Love
Gen & the Foo

Busted

2010-04-20T23:17:00.000-05:00

Seems like someone has gotten wise......

I knew I heard suspicious noises possibly involving spilled kibble, but I finally caught the perpetrator red-PAWED:

Reaching.......

Oh just a little closer and I have it!

Action shot!

Feeding frenzy.

Note that I (Gen) do all the hard work,

and Foo just helps collect the spoils.

Gettin gevery last bit of the ill gotten gains.........

Oh, there's one more I missed.

For Penny

2010-04-18T20:28:00.003-05:00

For the past few days we have been very sad since hearing the news that our friend Penny went to the Rainbow Bridge. We are so glad that Penny is longer in pain or has to struggle with her blindness and other medical issues. But we will miss her Beefy Sexy self.

We thought long and hard about how to remember our friend. We know she would not want us to be sad for long. Mom said no to a few of our ideas: First Class flights to Vegas, pug size bikinis, a lifetime supply of whipped cream. Mom did agree to a trip to Starbucks to celebrate Penny's memory. Of course,we felt it was fitting memorial.

In honor of Penny, come along with us!

Whippy cream? Did someone say whippy cream?

It was a long walk, but we finally made it!

Mmmm, lots of friendly people to meet.

Two pup cups in honor of Penny please!

Oh, and a coffee for Mom,

Sniff, sniff. That's not like the stuff we get at home.

That hits the spot!

Hey, Mom, do I hapve a whippy cream moustache?

Oh Penny, we will miss you so much.

We will keep snorts on your Momma for you.

Love

Gen & the Foo

Incognito

2010-03-29T05:15:00.000-05:00

You may be wondering why we haven't posted in a while........

We were waitin' for our ride to join the secret mission to bust out a certain persecuted pug. Who may, or may not be from Oklahoma. Many hijinks ensued. It took a while to get back home.

Think anyone will recognize us?

Fuji Friday: The toof, the whole toof, and nothin but the toof......

2010-03-19T13:55:00.002-05:00

For the past few days, Fuji has been picking at her food.   Even though she continued in her role as "Back-up Barker" for Gen as she lets us know it's meal time, Fuji has been skipping alot more meals. Now that does NOT mean that anyone else is welcome to her bowl of kibble.....let's not be silly!     Gen was not very understanding of the watched bowl full of food, I'll tell you.   She hovered close by, but Fuji stood her ground.  The Foo defended her untouched kibble with a barely audible growl until I finally picked it up.

Even since Fuji came to live with us, she has occasionally turned down a meal of mere dog food.  When she first arrived, she would only tolerate wet food. (Stinky!!!) After weeks of combining the wet and dry, we eventually transitioned her to eat the dry.

And what pug would turn down a meal? But this past week, it's been getting to be too frequent.   And then I had the chance to peek in her mouth.   Bug puffy pink gums.....and........not so many teeth. In fact, no front teeth at all.   Hmm. Where'd they go?   I think I would have remembered if she came to us partially toothless.   Right....right?

So, we figured it was time for a trip to the doggie dentist.    Yup, some pretty inflammed gums alright.   She got some antibiotics (CA-CHING!) and some Rimadyl for the discomfort (CA-Ching!!) and an appointment to get her teeth cleaned today.

She was dropped of at 7 this morning.   Since she's an old girl (almost 11), I was kind of concerned that she'd have some anesthesia problems.

The vet called about 10am to let us know that one tooth was very loose and needed to be extracted. That was likely the source of her discomfort.  One other tooth has some serious gum disease but would be OK with treatment. As for the front teeth - all missing.    That leaves her about teeth 6 left.

She did fine with the anethesia and is getting loved on by all the vet techs.   She'll be fluffed and folded by 4pm.

Update:
Following a significant amount of primping, Fuji was released by the vet about 5pm.   Quite fluffy from her bath, but obviously loopy.    Having no moist food, we tried Minestone soup with limited success. Yogurt was a dismal failure - at leat for the Foo. Apparently Gen LOVES the stuff!

Finally, Honey arrived with the wet food, and Fuji decimated it in less that 60 seconds.   Oh, and a little whippy cream helped the medicine go down. Yeah - 7 pills per day.   I'm running out of disguses!!

Happily, the Foo seems like she be just fine.

Free Pearl

2010-03-13T21:46:00.000-06:00

It has come to our attention that out friend Pearlie-poo has been unfairly imprisioned. She was taken in on trunmped up chicken-snatchin' charges.

Clearly she was framed in this heinous crime, entraped into unbearable temptation.

Several of her friends have initiated a rescue mission. We pray that they will be successful.

Gen & the Foo

Flat Puglet Has An Adventure!

2010-03-07T17:34:00.000-06:00

Flat Puglet #22 has been having such a good time at our house, that he begged to stay a little longer. To hear all the details of his visit, you'll need to follow his journey at his very own blog.

However, we can give you a sneak peak of his activities during his visit:

We really can't say anymore.

Love,

Gen & the Foo

A Very Special Visitor

2010-03-03T21:49:00.000-06:00

This past weekend, we had a very special visitor.........

Mom is totally in love....he doesn't smell, never barks, is completely house trained, and really cute.
Hmpf.

We gotta admit, he is sorta cute.

OK, OK, we gotta admit, he doesn't steal our toys or even go near our kibble.

Yeah, I guess he's alright.

It's just that he's kinda, well...flat.

Whatever.

Love, Gen and the Foo

Tourette’s?......No Thanks……one Rett is enough!!

2010-02-23T22:36:00.001-06:00

We are going to take a break tonite from our coverage of the Pugistan team in Vancouver to talk about a very special person: #1. Our human sister, Elaina, who struggles with Rett Syndrome. She will be 13 in a few weeks. On February 24, msnbc.com and a host of others have collaborated to raise funds to help find treatments and a cure for this rare disorder. We hope that you will visit the International Rett Syndrome Foundation website at www.rettsyndrome.org to learn more about Rett, and if you can, make a donation.

#1 is very special to us. She may not say much, in fact nothing at all, but we’ve got a thing going. Since we don’t have opposable thumbs, it’s pretty hard for us to use our paws too – we kind know how she feels! She lets everyone think that she can’t get a good grip on her foodables, but we know better! She is actually inconspicuously dropping treats for us. Oh yes, you can tell by the sly look on her face……

So, Mom………take it away!

When I explain that my daughter has Rett Syndrome, that (Tourette's??) is one of the most common things I hear. I’ve had to explain so many times, it’s hard not to make a joke of it. And really. What’s funnier than differentiating between two life changing neurological syndromes? Obviously you don’t know how to have fun!

Until I scoured the internet to try to find information about my daughter’s developmental delays, I’d never heard of Rett Syndrome. But mother’s ALWAYS know, and once I read the description I knew. (it just took our doctors over a year to agree.) My daughter’s failure to learn to walk, her loss of hand and language skills could not be denied. Our doctors tried. Oh, they tried very hard. “Whatever she has, it’s not serious.”

But eventually, her development lagged so far behind it could no longer be ignored. Adding to our pain was the year of trying to figure out what was wrong with our baby. Many, many terrible disorders were ruled out through painful and complicated tests. A decade later, the remembered pain feels fresh. And still, there was no answer. Which meant, it COULD be Rett.

Most days, we try to celebrate all the small gains my daughter makes. The first day she walked into the school building under her own power, backpack and all! [At age 11.] Recognizing friends, classmates and family by flashing a mega-watt smile. Snatching a cookie from someone by using her uncooperative hands. (Watch out! Chocolate significantly improves her fine motor skills.) Grabbing a baby bottle out of the kitchen sink because she’s thirsty. Feeding herself, or drinking from a straw with minimal assist.

We ignore all that she should be: staying up late, dancing with her friends, talking on the phone too much, playing too many video games. Instead of soccer practice, she has physical and speech therapy.

My dream is that no one will hear about Rett Syndrome in the future, not because of ignorance, but because it no longer exists.
While we cherish her, watching her struggle to communicate and manage even the most basic functions is heartbreaking. So today, I am asking that you take a minute to learn more about Rett Syndrome, and if you can make a small (or big) donation so that we can continue the fight make this devastating disorder a thing of the past.

Just ten years ago, we did not know the cause of Rett Syndrome. Although it was strongly suspected to be genetic, the defect was elusive to researchers. In 1999, some thirty years after the syndrome was described by a neurologist in Austria, a lab funded in part by grants made from a parent support group (IRSA) discovered the gene responsible for Rett Syndrome. Most recently, symptoms of Rett Syndrome in a mouse model were reversed by researchers. Yeah...reversed!!

We’ve come a long way in those ten years. Girls can now be diagnosed correctly in months, rather than years. Therapy can begin much sooner to prevent the loss of skills and improve communication strategies. Pediatricians are now at the forefront of suggesting developmental evaluation, rather than discouraging it when parents raise concerns. More doctors, teachers and therapist are aware of the disorder, eliminating the need for parents to explain it again and again. But there is so much more to do!

So I speak for girls who cannot speak for themselves. Please learn more about this disorder. And, if you can, be a part of the cure in what ever way you can.

Pugistan Curling Team drills

2010-02-22T14:22:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note to let everyone know that the Pugistan Curling Team is hard at work. Under the eagle eye of their coach, the Pugistan pug-letes go thru the paces.

Curling enthusiasts will note the double twirl configuration of the tail, often likened to a "Cinnabon"

Go Pugustan!

Rooting for Pugistan

2010-02-20T20:16:00.000-06:00

The Momma's camera battery needs charging.

We offer you t his chilly pug, courtesty of the New Yorker Magazine.

GO PUGISTAN!!

Our First ValenPug Party!

2010-02-14T20:54:00.005-06:00

We are going to take a short break from our coverage of the Vancouver Games to tell you all about the fun day we had at ValenPugs!

Since Mom was too ~~lazy~~ tired to ski today, we begged her to take us to the NIPRA ValenPugs Party. Fortunately, she did not have enough time to give us a bath, so we got to attend with our stink on. We were soooooo excited, especially because there were some very special pugs we would get to meet!

When we ran into a posse of pugs on the way into K-9Playtime, we knew it would be a really fun party.

It was so exciting to see soooo many otherPugs, but also a little overwhelming. We spent alot of time hanging out near Mom and Honey's feet. There were lots of little crazy pug puppies running around inciting chases and causing other mischief. Some of the senior pugs thought it was funny to hang out around the edges and watch these sillies tire themselves out.

All the pugs were dressed up for the party. Some had colorful collars, others had dresses or t-shirts, and one even had a special silky Chinese outfit in honor of the Chinese New Year!

And finally, we got to meet some of our bloggies friends! We kept hearing her name, but it took a while to find Rainey. She was sooo adorable and petite. She was wearing a Princess shirt, and we could not have thought of a better was to describe her.

But it did not take long at all to find this guy. Something about his snappy hand-crocheted vest!

It was Stubby !! wearing his very own PugNotes creation. Everyone was jealous of his adorable sweater vest, made by Emmitt's Mom. Clearly, he was quite pround of his stylin' outfit. But Stubby is no spring-pug, so he was pretty happy to hang out with his Dad and watch the excitement.

A couple of the pugs at the party were wearing t-shirt or tags letting people know that they were available for adoption. For a while, it made me sad to think about a pug with no furever family to go home with. But we know that NIPRA places so many pugs (like my sister Fuji) in good homes, I felt better right away.

After a while, I felt comfortable enough to roam around and check out some of the other people and pugs. We even got our picture take by the photographer. I have to say, I was getting a lot of puglove from the hoomans, see:

Foo doesn't get around quite as nimbly as I do, but she sure worked the crowd. Everyone was charmed by her sweet face (except me, of course.)

In fact, she was kind a scratch-whore if you ask me.....

We had such a fun time, we could barely stay awake in the car on the way home!

Thanks NIPRA for hosting such a fun event!

And I am so tired from this exciting day, that I'm crawling into my nice, cozy crate for the night.

Love, Gen & the Foo

Representing Pugistan..........

2010-02-12T21:09:00.000-06:00

As we watch the opening ceremonies in Vancouver, we'd like to bring your attention to a little know and often overlooked country that will be participating in the games this year. Because of their short stature, it will be easy to miss the team of two as they take the stage in the arena tonite.

Representing the sovereign nation of Pugistan, nestled in the heart of the Maldives in the Indian Ocean, are two determined pug-letes. Bode PugMiller and Shaun PugWhite have been in intense training for years as the 2010 games approached.

As you can see, these two athletes are in superior shape, and you can expect great things from them in their respective events. Bode competes in Downhill, while Shaun dominates in Free Style Snowboarding.

As you watch the games, make sure to watch for these two superstars!

In case you were wondering........

2010-02-05T05:23:00.000-06:00

where we were.................

We are holding down the fort at home, warm and cozy, while Mom and Honey are here:

Yup, on the long sticks again. Silly humans.

We think that looks might COLD.

We really want no part of this.

Seriously.

Stooopid Bowl Sunday?

2010-01-26T10:12:00.000-06:00

Gen here, reporting about an escalating rivalry here in our house. Honey like to watch his sports on TV, so Foo and I got to watch the Vikings and Saints go at it the other night.

Here's what we learned.....

It seems that Foo is a Saint's fan. As evidenced by her "Roo, roo, roooo" cheers each time that darm team did something right. Not, by my estimation, very often.

I, however, an a Vikes fan. As evidenced by my loud "Arf -Arf -ARF" when the Saints fumbled. Freqently. So obviously I'll have to back the Colts.....

So it will be an intersting Stooopid Bowl Sunday in our house. If we are awake, that is.

Love

Gen & the Foo

Monday Menu LinkUps: Pug Approved

2010-01-25T16:07:00.000-06:00

It's Gen here, and today I am turning over the blog to Mom so she can speak of things not directly pug related. She has decided to participate in a menu planning party. Please bear with her......

Poached Salmon with Rice

An easy meal that's both healthy and yummy! Hoisin sauce is a little sweet, so most kids will enjoy it. Poaching is much less complicated than it sounds, and is less smelly than pan frying.

Prep time 15 mins
Cook time 10 mins

Ingredients
4-6 oz salmon fillet per person
Hoisin sauce: 1 tbs per filet
Scallion: about 1 stalk per fillet
1 lemon
Your choice of plain or flavored rice

How to:

Chop scallions into 1/2 slices, reserve green tops for decorative garnish.
Slice lemon into thin slices, set aside
Wash salmon filets in cool water.
Arrange salmon filets in a single layer top of a double boiler, or use a veggie steamer in a sauce pan*.
Make sure to have a few inches of water below the fish, but do not submerge filets.
Top each filet with @ 1 tbs. Hoisin sauce and sprinke with scallion slices.
Cover and allow fish to steam for @ 10 mins/inch of thickness, when fish appears opaque, it is cooked.

While cooking, you can start your rice and make fancy scallion garnish like this:

Place the cooked salmon on a bed of rice with a slice of lemon and a sprig of scallion. Yum.

*Unless you have a fancy fish poacher like this:

Feeling more adventurous? Here's a salmon recipe from Kikkoman that looks great.

A word from Gen & Foo:

We LOVES salmon! Just be very careful what you touch, or else, you might have this problem.

Sharing: unique ways to help Haitian earthquake survivors

2010-01-22T10:39:00.009-06:00

Mom says the ground got very shaken up in a place called Haiti. So many humans are hurt and homeless it's very hard to image the magnitude of it. She wanted to share two things she learned about to help the people there......
Fat Quarter Shop, one of mom's favorite [crack dealer] suppliers is sponsoring Quilt Auctions of over 20 gorgeous handmade items donated by designers and quiltmakers. Proceeds will be given to one of several agencies providing relief in Haiti. Please check out these beautiful items.

Over at one of mom's favorite blogs, Kelcey Kintner of the mamabird diaries has offered to donate a dollar for each comment on her blog today. Two other website are matching her donation, so please go on over and leave a comment. Just make sure your not eating or drinking while you read her blog, mom says. She is hysterical, and you'll just laugh so hard, you might choke. or spit a mouthful all over your desk. We warned you.....

Love,

Gen & the Foo

Wordless Wednesday

2010-01-20T21:52:00.003-06:00

On the long sticks again.....

2010-01-18T08:49:00.006-06:00

All by ourselves..........

Yup.

Mom and Agent Awesome have abandoned us again to go ride the long stick on the cold mountain.

How fair is that?

(Agent Awesome tried out her new gear)

(Representative picture, as Mom was too lazy to download a more recent one)

Foo-dini strikes again!

2010-01-11T21:38:00.008-06:00

But this time it was inside!

Mom and all the humans went away and left us here to entertain ourselves. Humpf! We surely don't conside having a food dispenser, even is she was human, terribly caring. So, Fuji busted us out of the basement, through not one but TWO gates and into the kitchen, so we could leave eveyone a message to show how we feel about being left behind.....

(Not actual gates, but mom is too lazy to take pictures.)

(Not actual message, which was, unfortunately cleaned by the dog-sitter.)

We're not sure why anyone would want to spend two days out in the cold sliding down tall mountains on long sticks. It doesn't make much sense to us, but the humans seem to like it. It's called skiing....whatever.

They claim to have had fun. (Really, what could be more fun that twirling in circles, begging for food and belly rubs and sniffing out the prefect spot for a pee?) Here, see for yourself:

Hopefully next time those humans get any bright ideas, they'll rember not to mess with us!

Snorts,
Gen

Foo-dini........Strikes again!

2010-01-07T21:33:00.007-06:00

The amazing, the incomprable, the SNEAKY Foo-dini is at it again. This afternoon as I opened the car door in the garage, I notice a certain familiar sounds.

The distinctive snort-breath of a......pug. And there was Foo-dine herself waiting to greet me after a long, cold, wet day at work. Isn't that sweet? Well, of course it is......but, wait just a minute!

Foo-dini entered the garage from the OUTSIDE. As in out the gated backyard in several inches of now, around front, and stealthily into the garage I just opened as I pulled in.

I DO NOT KNOW how this dog manages to get herself out! And Gen isn't telling.

And so, Fuji has earned yet another nickname!

How DO you measure a year?

2010-01-03T17:31:00.005-06:00

Even though the handy Blogversary counter has been reminding me that the big day was approaching quickly, I'm still taken a bit by suprise. A year......huh.

Now it would be typical to post a retrospective of 2009. so I won't do that.

I'll just say that if a year has 525,600 minutes, about 300,000 were spent sleeping by two lazy little pugs. And good things happened, then some bad one. And some more good ones.

And we made friends. Lots of them, furry and not so furry.

Thanks for joining us on the ride!

Love

Agent99
Gen, the Foo and the rest of the gang

Fuji Friday! & Fashion Show

2010-01-01T15:56:00.001-06:00

I've been bugging mom for months to do "Fuji Friday!". Here's a tip, all you have to do is have a scary old seizure. So, at long last.....it's MY day.

First, I told mom to tell everyone that I am feeling really well today. Ever since we got back from the vet, I've been great. I'm even able to get up and down the steps all by myself. Still, I am milking this for all it's worth and enjoying all the spoiling I am getting. So don't tell my peeps how good I'm feeling, OK?

Next, I've been pestering Mom to tell the story of how I became a member of the family.

It all started back in 2007 when I was surrendered to NIRPA (Northern IL Pug Rescue.) I was fostered by a family outside of Chicago with LOTS of other pugs. It was really fun to have so many other pugs to play with, free run of the the house....including the ability to couch surf at will, and a nice big back yard to frolic in. Yet, living with some many otherpugs can be a little overwhelming. My foster parents took very good care of me when my original family couldn't take care of me anymore; and best of all, the kept me company till me new family found me.

When my new pawrents came to meet me the day after after Thanksgiving 2007, I was a little scared. Some of the othe other pugs I was living with were really cute. After all, I was eight years old, and most families want those adorable little puppies. What if my new pawrents didn't want me? I knew it was a BIG day.

They brought along another pug, and she gave me lots of sniffs. She told me her name was Genevieve and that her pawrents were pretty good. She said she gots lots of treats and belly rubs ALL the time. So I really wanted to go home with my new family. The ride home was very scary because I did not know where I was going. We stopped at the big PetSmart, but I was a little confused and tried to jump out of the back of the car. Fortunately, my pawrents were ready for that and caught me before I leaped and got hurt by a car.

Gen was right, now that I've been living with my new family for over two years, I can say a pug gets lots of belly rubs around here. We also get some pretty good treats too. And when the momma cooks yummy stuff like roast beasts and chickens, there is always a little bit leftover for us pugs. Sometimes we go for long walks in the neighborhood, but usually we get to hang out in our big backyard - when I don't slip through the fence that is. Hmm, mom's shaking her head, better not mention that episode! Not a bad retirement, I have to say.

Did you notice my chic little leopard cape? That's the fashion show portion of this blog post. Agent #2 decided I needed some fancy clothes today. Please call her Agent Awesome for now on though, OK?

Well, this pug is all tuckered out! I gotta take my nap now. Stay tuned for the next installment of "Fuji Friday" where I will make momma explain how I got my name.

And now, here's our New Year's Eve photo:

Happy 2010!

Love, The Foo

Fuji's Driver's Licence has been revoked......

2009-12-30T15:19:00.000-06:00

It seems like Fuji experienced a couple of seizures this morning. Although she was her usual perky self this morning at ate a full breakfast, this kids noticed she was acting very strangely shortly after she ate. "Mom! Fuji's shaking!"

After two epsiodes of this wiggley behavior, she had some trouble getting up and keeping her butt in the right place. After about 5 minutes she seemed back to normal, but it was pretty unsettling, so we took her to the vet.

Over the past few weeks, Fuji has had increasing trouble getting up the stairs. At ten years old, we chalked it up to arthritis. Last night she was being extra cuddly and peaceful on my lap; a sure sign that she wasn't feeling right. But we now know that she's lost 2 pounds. She checked out pretty well on her exam, with no apparent neurological deficits, suggesting she did not have a stroke. The vet called back to let us know all of her blood work was completely normal, so that rules out a metabolic cause for the seizures. Sadly, that leaves one likely scenario: a tumor or lesion of the brain.

Of course, there is no way to know how quickly the problem will progress. So while we do need to take back her driver's licence, we plan on spoiling her ridonkulously for as long as we can.

Anyone have any experience with pug seizures? We'd love to hear any suggestions on keeping the Foo safe and comfortable.

Merry Pugmas to All!

2009-12-25T21:55:00.000-06:00

Hope Everypug had a safe and happy holiday filled with lotsa treats........and belly rubs!

Love,

Gen & the Foo

Holiday Humiliation.......

2009-12-23T21:22:00.000-06:00

Oh....... what Mom does to us in the name of the holidays.

Can you believe what she makes us wear?

First it's the bows and nametages...

something about not getting lost at MeetUp,

then it's the Snow Princess get-ups,

and finally, the deepest humilation of all.

The dreidle head-dress.

And she wonders why we weren't very cooperative for the holiday card photo shoot?

Seriously, how much can a pug take?

Happy Holidays!

Love,

Gen & the Foo

We finally made it to MeetUp!

2009-12-13T21:56:00.000-06:00

Well, Mom finally ~~got off her lazy butt and~~ took us to a Chicago Pug MeetUp party! It was full of other puggies and we ~~sniffed~~ met lots of other fun pugs! Of course, Mom had to dress us up.......but we had fun even if we did look a little silly.

We went to the dog hotel where they had a great open space for us to play inside. As you can see, the weather was rather...wintery!

Here we are in the car, so exciting!!!

There were over 30 pugs at the meet-up. It was a little scary to see sooo many pugs in one place. Fuji was a little shy. We met Gatsyby, Romy, Stubby, and so many other pugs it's hard to remember everyones names.

I quickly found the buffet and strategically positioned myself for dropped nuggets of holiday goodness.

It was easy to get lots of butt scratches and belly rubs. Oooh, yes, right behind the ear please!!

Here we are in our holiday finery. Doesn't Dad have cute legs?

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Love, Gen & the Foo

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland!

2009-12-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

Mom got us up reeeeeally early this morning for walkies. This is what we saw:

Brrrr. Cold paws!!! We did our business very quickly.

Now that Mom has her new fancy camera, she stayed outside in the cold taking pictures.

Here's what we did:

Yeah, that's us battling over the heat vent.......

While mom snapped even more pics:

Silly Mommy, you just got the garage cleaned! Put the car inside, OK?

So, you get the idea.......

Don't worry, we stayed inside. All snuggly & warm.

Happy Winter everyone!

PugMama's Birthday

2009-12-02T22:38:00.000-06:00

Mom's birthday was on December 1st.   She says's she's going to be 39, again.  (Fuji tells me she liked being 9 so much, she's gonna be 9 a few more times.)   All kinds of craziness has been happening around the house the past few days. That whole turkey thing an all....

So, we decided to help out.   We figured someone had to get the wrapping paper, so we set out from the backyard to go over to Walgreens to get some.   We slipped under the fence in the backyard. Figured we could get there and back before Mom even noticed, it's only a few blocks. Fuji got a little scared and wanted to go back.   She told me we needed money, but I thought my plan of using my special cute face with big liquid brown eyes to get whatever I want definitety would have worked. And then she wouldn't follow me home. She hid at Honey's house.   I took matters into my own paws and alerted one of the 2-leggers. She helped me get back inside to Mom.   That's when Mom noticed Fuji was NOT WHERE SHE BELONGED.    I kept trying to tell her, but she couldn't understand my barks.

Fuji was too scared to come back even with Mom yelling her fool head off all up and down the block. I think she thought she was gonna get in BIG TROUBLE.    But Mom was just really worried.   Finally she got in the car to drive around the block.   I heard another 2-legger walking her dogs asked Mom if the "little dog" was hers. That's when Mom followed Fuji to Honey's front yard. All before 7:30 am.

That adventure tired us out for the rest of the day!    Fortunately, honey remembered the wrapping paper. Mom got lots of booty when Honey and the kid's took her out for dinners. See:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/pugnotes

Recognize this? Yeah - it's even cooler in person!!

Thanks Grama Judy!

And then we all had yummy Carvel cake. Nom, nom, nom. See:

She was really happy with all her gifts.

No bones though, poor Mom.

Some people will do ANYTHING for the sale......

2009-11-30T06:49:00.000-06:00

Did The Limited suddenly start selling dog outfits?

Because I am a little confused about how a pug relates to their brand......

Happy Cyber Monday,

Shop On!

Something smells yummy......

2009-11-21T14:21:00.000-06:00

It's that time of year again...time to get the big bird ready in celebration of one of our favorite holidays. And why is it a favorite? It involves a great deal of FOOD.......

And it should not go without saying that, at this special time of year, we honor one of the lesser known, but nonetheless, very important 4-pawed passengers aboard the Mayflower, Sir Miles Pugish. Sir Pugish is indeed one of Genevieve's own forefathers who fled the oppression of the English in 1620. Feeling the journey to an unknown land, with no certain availability of Iams kibble, Greenie Lite, or other special dog treats, he made the difficult decision to leave a part of the family in England. The rest of the story is for another time, but on this holiday, we take time to remember this brave pug.

Knock, knock........who's there?

2009-11-17T20:52:00.000-06:00

Well, us pugs, of course!

See!

(OK, this picture is staged-no pugs were harmed in creation of this blog post, well, almost.)

Hey, it's us!

On the FRONT stairs......

Hey! Wait a minute!! There's something wrong with that!

You see, here is the back door, where we usually sit waiting to be let back in after morning walkies.

As you can see, no pugs here.

Or here, looking for a sun spot on the deck..........

Or even sniffing all the smells in the big back yard.

Sometimes we like to hide behindy Willy the tree,

but not today.......

But Mom did not panic.

She just went to check the front door, and there we were!

Guess we got busted on slipping thru the fence door, huh?

Mom's 1st Roast Beef

2009-11-15T22:19:00.000-06:00

Mom made a roast beef and all we got was this.........

Hey, it's EMPTY!!

She says it's the first time she's tried this.

It smelled sooooo yummy all afternoon. But he tall ones ate almost ALL of it! No fair. Mom was very suprised the humans ate so much, and actually asked for more. (What???? who's house are we in? Surely not mine!)

So we did get some yummy beef leftovers, but not as much as we would have liked.

OK, MOM, you get ~~two~~ four paws up! That one IS a "Do over"........please.

Thirteenth, Shmirteenth!!!

2009-11-13T14:07:00.000-06:00

Anxious about Friday the 13th?

Not even a little bit........

Gen is such a good pillow, see?

Happy Friday the 13th!

Birthday Prezzie Wish List....

2009-11-10T22:17:00.000-06:00

Here's what ~~Mom~~ Fuji REALLY wants for her special day:

Get it here.

The Birthday Princess Gets Her Beauty Rest

2009-11-09T07:48:00.000-06:00

Today is Fuji's 10th Birthday.

Here, she is getting her beauty rest in preparation for the big day.

Because we love her so much, we will NOT be giving her this cake*:

Rear view:

* Actual cake served at this wedding. Not even kidding. From TipsyCake, Chicago, IL

Pug Stories........New York City style.

2009-11-07T10:17:00.000-06:00

It ain't easy being a city dog. A lovely story from mom's old stomping grounds. Back in the day, mom tells us she spent alot of time in this park. (Before the dog run.)

Boo!

2009-10-31T12:57:00.000-05:00

OK, get ready......... it's ............

REALLY SCARY!

Happy Howl-oween to all our friends!

Just a few hours left for the ghouls and goblins to gather!

2009-10-30T12:29:00.000-05:00

What's better than one scary pumpkin?

Three scary pumpkins in ONE!!!

The delightfully creepy creations were made by #2.

Because Mom refused to let her use sharp tool with which she could have "sliced her fingers off"......

thus, we give you "Mr. PumpkinHead"

Wishing you all a

very frightening All 'Hallows Eve

A special shout out to Tuni!

2009-10-29T08:37:00.000-05:00

A very special contest

Some pugs have very special tongues. You know how you are! If so, this contest is for you:

To enter, Click Here

Good luck everyone!

(Almost) .........Wordless Wednesday

2009-10-28T18:40:00.000-05:00

Gen: "Do you think if we flatten ourselves enough, she won't notice we're on the couch?"

Foo: "I'm not sure......let's stay really still and see what happens"

Gen: "OK, just remember, no snorting......."

Foo: "I think we're busted."

PeeS: Thank's to everyone who sent well wishes for the Foo. We are happy to report she is back to her "regular" self.

The $243 case of.................................

2009-10-25T20:27:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Fuji seemed to be having incresing problems with ...........accidents. It seemed like she was leaking, because everywhere we turned, there was a little spinkle of pee. Mom knew it wasn't me when she saw Fuji just stand there in plain sight while piddling, not even a half squat. No amount of walking or keeping her in our (very large, shady and FENCED) backyard, or our crate seemed to improve the situation. She obviously knew what she was doing was bad, and seemed to hang her head in shame. Even her tail was uncurled......

Finally, Mom figured out that Fuji was probably not doing this on purpose, but might have a serious problem. She was afraid it might have been a urinary tract infection, or maybe bladder stones. So, Fuji earned a trip to the vet. Yes, we are very cute and get loads of tummy rubs and kisses at the vet, but still, a trip to the vet is never much fun. I was glad to be left behind this time.......

The vet agreed there might be a problem and suggested a boat load of expensive tests, including an x-ray. Good thing we started there, because Fuji's belly look suspiciously like this [not actual x-ray]:

It was plain to to see that nothing could be seen through all that poop. Fortunately, no stones or calcifications were visible. The vet wasn't able to really visualize any of the structure because of the ENORMOUS amount of poops in there. Even Mom could see that. So, only $243 later, the diagnosis:

CONSTIPATION

Fuji came home with poop medicine ($11) and strict orders to stay in the yard between frequent walks. Until she "produced." Luckily, Fuji seemed to "respond" to her medicine quickly and things got better quickly. Now that she's more...."regular", things seem better and we are seeing a lot fewer accident. And the curly tail is back.

That was one expensive case of constipation.

Who me?.......an Award!!

2009-10-20T23:06:00.000-05:00

How nice is that?

My IRL friend at Dovi's Life nominated me for this Bloggy Award (see above.) Awwww, I never win stuff. I feel pretty special, Thanks Sara!

I've got to be quick, the pugs are VERY upset that they have not gotten alot of attention these past few says. Especially since that meant they had to miss the Pug Party at Zella on Saturday. They are threatening to go on strike. From what, I have no idea.

Here are the rules:

Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass The Award on to 5 most-deserving Bloggy Friends. (See below!)
Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author & the name of the blog from whom he/she has received The Award. (Thanks, All My Monkeys!)
Each Superior Scribbler must display The Award on his/her blog, and link to This Post, which explains The Award. (Done)
Each Blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award must visit this post and add his/her name to the Mr. Linky List. That way, we'll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who receives This Prestigious Honor! (Hopefully done!)
Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules on his/her blog. (Done)

Just a few of my very deserving Bloggy Friends. I can't choose you all

S-dog and his Mom at "Multum In Parvo"...with a Cinnabon tail who is supercool and cracks me up daily,
Mugsy and his family over at The Ayatolah's Teachings for obvious reasons.....
"Tweedles....that's me"; the best storyteller we know
Earl and the crew at Brutus the Frenchie. He's not a pug, but we don't hold that against him.....
Puglet and his Mom at The Daily Puglet, who takes the most amazing photos!

Jumping the Shark......

2009-10-13T22:44:00.000-05:00

Ok, so after you carve a pug-kin, it can get kinda, well, shriveled. And not in a good way. Pug-kin remain pristine and magazine photo-shoot-worthy for about 45 minutes.

Next year, we'll be doing our carving 1 week before the holiday, not 3 weeks early. There is NO WAY this thing will last till Halloween.

Fortunately, the night views obscure the shriveled pumkin flesh.............

I give you, Illuminated Pug-kin!

See ya next year!

Ye of little faith, Behold.....The Pug-kin!

2009-10-11T15:46:00.000-05:00

So there's one thing the momma just can't resist.......a Challenge! She can't stand hearing "That can't be done" and especially "....can't be done by her........ which is about a million times worse!

So she got her pumpkin on, and got her tools ready:

There were lots of pumpkin guts:

But her trusty assistant #2 was there to lend a hand:

And after LOTS of scraping and marking and carving, the pumpkin began to take shape:

Using her surgical skill (and tools) it was finally done!

And then it was time for the photo shoot:

(This fine photo could not have been taken without the help of #3, thanks, cupcake!)

Who said it couldn't be done?

Hah!

Is she on drugs or what?

2009-10-08T12:21:00.000-05:00

Here's what Mom wants to make for Halloween.....

were just sayin'.............
Check back soon to see what actually happens.

Courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens

What? No Pug-lympics?

2009-10-06T23:54:00.000-05:00

Seriously. There must have been some mistake. We had BIG plans for the 2016 Pug-lympic Games in Chicago. How could this be? We are devastated.

We dreamed of assembling top-notch talent for unbeatable teams.......

....... and watching exciting heats of super-canine feats......

.......of all kinds......

Including our buddy Salinger's event: Greco-Roman Puggery!

.......of hosting pugs from all over the world, like Mexico (Ole')

......putting forth our best efforts in all events, like sunbathing as seen here:

....and bringing home the Gold for pugs everywhere.

..... listening proudly as the Pug National Anthem as we stood on the awards podium.......

We could have hosted our pug friends from near and far,

but no.

It's Rio in 2016.

How exactly are we supposed to fit into a thong?

Talk to the Booty Cuz the Hand is Off Duty!

2009-09-30T20:11:00.000-05:00

My 1st Wordless Wednesday

By #2, age 9........and 3/4!!

To the very large dog who's pooping on my lawn......

2009-09-27T09:07:00.000-05:00

Lately we have noticed something ~~delightfully smelly~~ disturbing on our lawn and Honey's lawn. POOPS, really BIG poops too. The photo is not the actual poops, but a fair represenation. We know it's not us, cuz our poops are rather petite.

This is an actual lawn sign Mom is thinking about ordering. Thinking VERY seriously (Thanks, VistaPrint.)

You see we have noticed several - not one - but several piles of evidence. It seems there is a new dog on the block, and judging by the size of the poops, he's a big one. I guess his human doesn't know the rules yet. Unless it is your own personal lawn, PICK UP THE POOPS.

Apparently, we are not the only ones having this problem:

Sometimes, no matter what language, the message is the same:

And some people get pretty serious about this problem:

As you can see, Mom is pretty twisted about this. I mean, poop happens. We think she should probably place one of these on our lightpost as a gentle reminder before she takes the nuclear option:

Yup, anyone can put their poops in a chinese take box with a Skooperbox!

Revenge of the Toilet Paper Monitor

2009-09-21T22:52:00.000-05:00

Mom decided that it's high time #2 starting helping around the house. She's 9. Hmmm, in dog years, that would be 63. Opps,  got that backwards......she'd be less than a year and a half.    Good thing mom did not come up with this idea when I was her age! Everyone knows pugs are lazy.

Her base pay is $4 a week.   That would be about 4 Large Greenies, right? (Nomnomnom) Too bad I don't have opposable thumbs.   I think I'm going to talk to my friend Salinger about his new start up.   And she gets bonus pay for "Garbage Safari", though why they throw all that good stuff away is a huge mystery to me.

So #2's jobs are pretty simple: keep her room picked up, clear dishes, FEED US, and make sure there is enough toilet paper in each bathroom.   She's called the "Toilet Paper Monitor." That's cuz she is too short for much else.    We are a bit unclear about the need for this toilet paper stuff. I mean, what's wrong with wiggling your butt on the carpet?   Plus, it's fun to pull off the roll. Humans sure are funny.

So here's what Mom saw the other day after the monitor was done with her rounds:

I call it the "Revenge of the Toilet Paper Monitor". Mom was sort of, well, annoyed. I don't think that's exactly what she had in mind.

What is the problem with people?

2009-09-19T19:02:00.000-05:00

Mom's in a grumpy mood this morning....so we are going to let her have her rant today.   Since #1 really really needs to use special parking places, we kinda agree with her. In a short break from our regularly scheduled pug programming, we present.......

Parking Rant
Just what is it with people? How lazy have we become....and how entitled?
Today while getting my almost daily dose of Dunking Donuts coffee, I notice a HUGE Nissan Armada parked cross-wise in the handicap spot.   It's not that I am gass-gussler-ist; not at all. Since we've got #1 on board, I KNOW there is a serious incongruity to a gi-normous SUV and a disabled driver or passenger. I mean, the car is so high off the ground, normal people have trouble getting in and out.   But, I give Mr. Armada the benefit of the doubt.....and peek around for the handicap tags or placard.   Of course, none.

And then, out walks a perfectly able-bodied man. He proceeds to gracefully hoist himself up into the drivers seat. No passenger.    And I am PISSED.   So I actually open my mouth. OK - it doesn't really take much to get me to open my yap..... And he says "Oh, yeah, I have the hang tag."   Yeah, right!   So I casually say "Gee, you should really put that up. The cops love to give those ticketes - even to me, and I have PLATES."

I should know. I've been through the ringer fighting tickets I didn't deserve.   We'll save the one in front of #1's Special Ed school for another post. (I'm just glad to local police didn't put me on a psych hold.)Otherwise my head might just pop off. And that would make a mess. I hate messes.

Thank God, here in Illinois, you can report these suckers. I'm so not kidding. Go here.

I don't really enjoy having these plates. In fact, I'd park in the remote lot if that would magically enable #1 to walk that far. Without a hand steering her. Or keeping her from falling. Really, I'd gladly give it up.
So I refer you to the original parking rant.

Ok, I've had my say.  You can put the soapbox away. I just hope that Parking Karma really does exist.

Shana Tova

2009-09-18T13:33:00.000-05:00

Hey everybody, it's a HOLIDAY!

Yappy New Year

Wishing a year of peace and prosperity to all our friends

Very excited......we hear rumors of roasted chicken. Yum.

Mom's on the health kick again......

2009-09-16T21:34:00.000-05:00

and that mean she tries to get us to eat these things called green beans. Another pug family told her that they feed their pugs a mix of equal parts kibble and canned green beans. Yeah.....whatever.

We don't know what these slimy green things are, but we are not impressed. I was kinda hungry tonite, so I ate mine. For the record...I DID NOT like it. The orange sticks are tolerable, but this is pretty ....well...nasty.

Fuji, however, was able to delicately discriminate between the real food and the green stuff:

What's a pug to do?

FUJI UPDATE: Not only did the Foo pick out the greenies at dinner, but Mom forgot and dumped her breakfast righ on top of them this morning. And there they stayed. Fuji's revenge? Mom stepped in the green beans, barefoot in the middle of the night.

Utterly Pawsome: Paw It Foward

2009-09-13T10:28:00.000-05:00

Our friends over at Lilo's blog, Tales of The Great Rock Eater, have selected our favorite pug rescue organization for a special donation. Since it was on our suggestion, we are so happy to be a part of this generous award!

Northern Illinois Pug Rescue is special to us because they brought us my sisterpug Fuji. I like to call her the Foo (cuz it rhymes with POO.) They kept her safe and healty until we came along to bring her to her fur-ever home. Even though I don't like sharing my treats, I love to snuggle and wrestle with her. She is also a good back-up barker. Her "Gotcha Day" is coming up and she will be here two years; it's just a few days after her 10th birthday. That's her on the right.

and here, I'm on the right, with the cute pink collar.....

Of course, the point of Paw It Foward is to keep a chain of ramdom acts of kindness moving through our communities. I keep telling Mom that means I should get more Greenies. That doesn't seem to be working. So we will be thinking up our our PIF - stay tuned!

The Good Helpers

2009-09-08T22:09:00.000-05:00

This weekend we were really good helpers. Mom decided to attack the extra bedroom/office/blue room/guest room. Everyone calls it something different, so I guess there were some identity issues.

There was nowhere for us to cuddle up, so we don't go up there much. Except when silly mom leaves a food wrapper in the trash. Oh yes, we are on that pretty quick.

So back to the helping. We are such good helpers. We gave mom very close supervision and expert guidance in cleaning up the room. See:

The Foo held the chair still while monitoring the mess below.
And I assessed the carnage on the mattress. See my watchful eye?

And here's the Foo: making sure none of Mom's papers got disorganized.

See. Aren't we the best helpers ever?