Happy Birthday Phoenix!

Gosh! I had been so busy with other stuff, every time I was driving driving around or waiting for an appointment, I thought of writing this blog on your birthday, then the day came and went I was not able to get to it. 
So here you are in this picture with a dry porcupine blow fish in your mouth, you looked so adorable...and Victor was chasing after you so you will drop the fish!
For a Pharaoh, you do pretty good, though he did have to chase you we finally lure you with a treat and you gave up your yummy dried fish to us for the 2nd time (yes, this picture is of the 2nd fish you found in the beach!) 
You are growing to be a happy and sweet dog. You are very friendly with all animals! You are friends with the donkey from across the street (@ Victor's apartment in Puerto Vallarta), you are always sniffing the cats at the corner, and you always want to play with other dogs. You are also very quiet and relax at home, much like Nazca was, unlike KanLoo that needs attention and entertainment during the day, and he absolutely complains when I am working at the computer! So you sit there while Victor works, sleeping, chewing on a piece of coconut or a toy or once in a while, you want some attention and bring a toy to Vic. Then at night, when is time for bed, you go to bed waiting for Vic and when he takes too  long you start barking softly, more a talk than a bark, calling him to bed. That is so cute!
You guys play in bed, with the sheets. Vic just discovered the other day that the sheets you guys have now are see-thru, so when he throws the sheet in top of your head, you can see him thru the sheets! He discovered that when he was going to grab you and you grab his hand instead!
Overall you are a great puppy, and very handsome dog and a happy family member!
Happy belated birthday my sweet boy! May we enjoy you many many many years more!

Xmas in Puerto Vallarta part 2

So it tooks us 3 days to come back, not so bad! We had to spend the night in Culiacan, but was not so bad at all. I have found that MOTELS are more accepting of dogs than regular hotels and that all the motels that took my dog in where quite clean and because they were in the edges of town, were pretty safeguarded, The parking lots had a security guard all day long.
Though driving up and down was very long and a time sucker, every second of driving was worth it, as both dogs enjoyed each other's company! And they also played with Nahala, Phoenix's girlfriend.

The days were fast gone, we woke up to walk them for 2 hours in the morning and walked them also 1 hour in the evening. We couldn't go too often to the beach, as KanLoo got a nasty cut chasing birds at the beach, and they both got a nasty skin irritation/infection given the bacteria in the water.

With that, we were seeing the veterinarian almost every 3 days!

The leg chewing was still there, but it was also done this time by Phoenix to KanLoo, so overall, KanLoo found that his student had learn from him wonderfully!

We had a great time together, even the fireworks and fire crackers for New Year were not so bad as in other places, though we stayed home making sure that KanLoo was not going to be so scared, panicking!

Now we are home, just waiting for Phoenix and Victor to finally move here! 

Xmas in Puerto Vallarta

So as planned, we spent Xmas together in Puerto Vallarta. KanLoo and Phoenix had been apart since end of July and their reacquaintance was something interesting to experience. When we arrive in Puerto Vallarta a day later, on Dec 20th, it was a great and happy event for Phoenix. My mom, KanLoo and I came in the house and he was so happy to greet us all, he, as usual, pee from being so happy. Poor puppy!

KanLoo and Phoenix had to get to know each other again, and they immediately started sniffing and remembering each other. The reunion was a mix of emotions for both dogs, KanLoo surprised to see Phoenix, Phoenix happy to see KanLoo! But now that Phoenix is a much bigger dog (11 months), KanLoo had to show him who was the alpha-male, so it was a game of dominance all over again, and it lasted thru the whole time we were there. So here we have KanLoo pinning Phoenix down!!

The trip was long, we arrived in Puerto Vallarta last Saturday morning, after driving 4 days from Los Gatos, CA.  

Unfortunately, KanLoo's fear of firecrackers and loud noises is getting worse and worse. The other day we were walking by a restaurant and someone open a soda can, the noise put him over the edge and he was dragging me back home. The problem with his panicking is that he goes quickly into fear, which leads to aggression. He has not done anything radical yet, but I have noticed that when he is stressed he has very little patience with Phoenix and tries to put him in his place much more aggressively. Yesterday morning we had to separate them as the playful test of dominance became a full flesh fight! Poor Phoenix got really scared of KanLoo, something we really do not want happening. It is enough to have a fearful dog!
It is all a combination of his fear of noises and his memory of being attacked by the 2 huskies in the dog park.
I have done some research and there is really very little I can do to "re-train" him, all I can do is start him in medication like vallium. We went to the vet here, a reputable one within the expat community here and he prescribed a new medication, that contains L-Theamine, a natural ingredient, and seems to be working.
So we are spending Xmas as a little family, KanLoo, Phoenix, Victor, me and my mom!

Phoenix and the mosquitoes

Last week sunday, Phoenix had a bad reaction to mosquito bites. They bit him in the nose and eye, and his face was really swollen and getting more swollen by the second. Victor called the vet and he open just for them. He gave Phoenix a couple of shots to help with the allergic reaction. He has been having bad reaction to the mosquito bites in Puerto Vallarta, every time he gets bitten, his bites get really swollen and he obviously gets really itchy.
I have to say, the mosquitos in Puerto Vallarta are vicious!