DICE!

Dice the spotted puppy.

Today was tooth #29's big day at the dentist, so I was kinda worried my human would go all AWOL on us and you wouldn't have any Daily Puglet to read. Luckily Miss Gimpy planned ahead (sort of) so today you get to find out how Dice the spotted puppy is doing in his awesome new home.

Big thanks to his human Elinor for giving us the scoop + very cute pictures :)

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Dice just had his first real family vacation at Donner Lake, got home yesterday. We hiked in snow (!) at over 7,000 feet elevation, swam in the frigid Donner lake, rode the gondolas at NorthStar and hiked to a lake (both dogs completely crazy with all the chipmunks there.), and rode around in the boat at Donner. Dice is such a champ, nothing faces him very much, although the boat rides are not his favorite, he jumps in happily each time :)

He is in extremely good shape, strong and agile, and handles himself beautifully in all terrains. I worry about him at such an young age and literally crate him sometimes to make him rest and settle down.

Dice the handsome.

He is finally starting to fill out a little bit - people comment all the time on his handsomeness. "And SO well behaved" they'll say, as he sits there regally accepting petting and cookies. Little do they know that he's just having a good moment, contemplating which moving object to pounce on next or which thing to possibly eat and/or destroy :)

Dice and his spotted 'sister' Flicka in their daytime beds. Notice how he has completely taken over the larger bed at only 6 months of age ;)

Little Flicka + Big Dice

Tonight we just completed our last dog class, an intermediate level class during which we occasionally have some bright moments. I will retake it again in September, working on longer attention span. He is so incredibly willing to offer behaviors. I'm very sloppy with my handling and a real beginner, so he often throws in all sorts of various moves in hopes of getting it right when I give an unclear command - making him look really funny and spastic as he will Spin Around, Crawl, Roll Over, Salute or walk backwards if I ask for something he's not quite sure of.

This fall we'll try a couple of novice Rally matches in the area just for fun and I'd also like to give the CGC test a try - we're really not ready for that one at all I think but there is one on August 13th in Sacramento. Just something fun for us to do together, and for me to feel that I'm at least one step ahead of him.

We're so lucky to have him.

Dice's light rail adventure.

He is ALL Dalmatian, spunky, sensitive, a handful to handle despite huge amounts of exercise, always challenging the rules and incredibly curious - like a cat. I've taken him to so many places, not even a LightRail Train ride really faced him, and if it wasn't for his insatiable urge to fling himself onto anything that catches his eye he'd make a really good therapy dog ;)