PHANEROO \fan-er-o-oo\Greek: to manifest in word or deed.


Saturday, December 14, 2013

His Name is Jake

We named him Jake. It just seemed to be a good Treeing Walker Coonhound name. Lily is smitten. He's gotta be one of the snuggly-est doggies I know. He's not content unless he's on a lap with his nose nuzzled into your neck. Jake sleeps in Lily's bed with her. That seems to make both of them very happy. Jake is doing well with house training with less accidents every day. He knows how to sit on command, and he's learning his boundaries as far as what he can chew and what he cannot chew. It's been said that hound dogs aren't all that smart, but this boy is breaking the hound dog mold. This boy is pretty smart, and a real family man. I've owned a hound before, a Bassett Hound named Oscar. He was sweet but annoyingly stubborn and difficult to train. Jake, however, responds perfectly well to correction and doggy treats.  The vet says he'll probably weigh between 60-70 pounds. He'll know for sure how to estimate his growth when he sees him again at his next vet visit. According to the vet, if he gains 2-3 pounds per month then he will reach about 70 pounds at adulthood. However, if he gains 4-5 pounds per month he'll probably reach 80-90 pounds at adulthood comparative to a large Labrador. We saw Jake's mother at the shelter where we found Jake. She was a good-sized Coonhound, probably 70 pounds. But we aren't familiar with Jake's father so time will tell how he turns out. For now, the kids (and their momma) are all about Jake.

Monday, December 2, 2013

The Day-After-Thanksgiving Hike

It's a tradition with my family to hike the day after Thanksgiving. No shopping and bargain hunting for us. No sir-ee! We hit the trail. Go here to get a glimpse of the day through my uncle's lens.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

A New Addition

Over the past 9 years, we have added a new family member every two years. Hence the ages of our children - 2, 4, 6, 8. It seems the tradition continues with our newest addition…

The newest family member…still nameless.

He's a 3-month-old Walker Coonhound puppy at the animal shelter.

BJ said he knew this was the moment when it went from a rational decision to a purely irrational one. There was no turning back. In my defense, I just thought he smelled like a puppy, and he liked to snuggle :-) 
We sign the paperwork tomorrow (Monday) and pick him up on Tuesday after he's neutered. He was a perfect gentlemen with the kids - friendly, lovable, and even sat at their command. He will be one big lap dog.