Some Cooper Vids (Because I Know How Much You're Gonna Love Him)

So, you all know how much I talk about him... how cute I think he is... how much he makes me laugh. I thought I'd share a little with you via the magic of the interweb. I've never embedded video on Blogger, but it seems like it's going to work... so we'll give it a try.

Have I mentioned lately that I ♥ HIM?!

You've heard me tell you about it, but now's your chance to see it. Cooper is hyper-excited by the W word. And when Coop is hyper-excited, he tends to jump HIGH and attempt to bite any piece of clothing he can get his teeth on.



You think I've been kidding? This dog does not tolerate stuffing! Parts 1 and 2 of Coop de-stuffing one of his fave toys (luckily, they're only $1.47 apiece at Wal Mart for any of you who just must see it again and again and again!).





And finally, my nightly bathtime has become a nightly sip-from-the-fountain. It makes me giggle when he does this... I thought maybe your fancies would be tickled as well.



Again, I really hope these are viewable. Not sure if Blogger support YouTube videos or not. Anyway, if not... here are some still pics for your enjoyment as well.




Let me tell you about that last one. Cooper doesn't normally hang out on the welcome mat... oh no. Usually, he's all about running around provoking Kona. Today, though, the afternoon ended with him sulking on the welcome mat. Let me just share with you how that came about. (I've already recounted the whole thing once via IM with Jon... so please excuse some of the copying & pasting. Maybe I'll make it seamless so you don't notice... but at the very least, Jon, you've seen this.)

HELLIONS, I Tell You: A Day in the Life of Cooper & Kona
There's a big yellow lab who lives down the street from us. He's off-leash sometimes and comes over to visit. He's a very friendly dog. Our two aren't (friendly dogs, that is). Today, the big yellow lab was on his leash, with his owner, walking by our house. This was just after our walk while we were sitting in the yard, practing "stay" (yeah right... first clue that this wasn't going to turn out well... we don't "stay" very well).

We had run into the big yellow dog once before already. He was in his yard playing, which is evidently unacceptable if you're Kona. Kona growled and got all riled, but I'll be danged if I was going to let her get away with that. I made them walk the cul-de-sac three times... just to practice not freaking out. They didn't freak the 2nd or 3rd time! Small victories... but no way were they going to let me win the war. Anyway, they were doing really well when we came back into the yard, walk concluded. I took the leashes off and we practiced staying down until I "broke" them. Then the big yellow dog came along with his owner. Kona was staying really well... Coop, not so much. And Kona was getting anxious, especially because Coop was running around. So, she started whining. Then she just squirted away from me. Both broke through the electric fence. Although they didn't actually have their collars on, they usually at least think twice before breaking the barrier. Today, no second thoughts at all. They quickly caught up with the big yellow dog and owner (who, incidently, had just walked by the house saying "Sorry" -- she was apologizing for getting my dogs excited by simply walking by -- and I said, "no, don't be... we need the practice"... YEAH, WE DO!).

Anyway, so Kona & Cooper both took off down the street, chasing after the big yellow lab. The owner has evidently not had many run-ins with dogs like mine. She started RUNNING. I'm like... please just STOP! 1) I won't catch you to help and 2) they're GONNA chase you! Oh, and by the way, the big yellow dog that was so threatening to Kona? Yeah, Kona bit at his behind at his most threatening moment... he was, um, how can I say this with a bit of decorum... he was "on the pot". Talk about attacking when his guard was down! So, I'm running after the lady who's running away from Kona & Coop with her big yellow lab (half finished, mind you). I'm yelling stop, stop, stop. She's trying to control her dog... who, poor thing, was just trying to take a dump. But, according to her later, she just didn't want him to snap and bite back. I was like... well, I WOULD'VE bitten back. What a rude interruption!

Finally, she gets the big yellow lab down on his back. Coop is still wandering around, but Kona is semi-controlled. At this point, I've placed myself between her and the big yellow lab and she sees I mean business. She goes into "shoot, I'm caught... submit, submit, submit" and seems more afraid of what I'm going to do to her. So, I start backing Kona toward home... and Coop's like, "nope, see ya" and goes BACK to the other dog!

After we're all back inside our electric fence, I go get the shock collar and put it on Kona. It usually only takes a tiny little reminder to make her very cognizant of the boundary for the next few days/weeks. I carried Kona to the edge and let her hear the beeping. Oh, she doesn't like that... she's freaking, trying to get me to let her run away from that mean old boundary. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, Coop heard the beeping from several feet away (it's very quiet and usually only the dog wearing the collar would be able to hear it). But Coop, he's attuned to that beep. He HATES the shock treatment and reacts the exact same way every time he hears it. RETREAT! After Kona & I have had our refresher course in underground electric fences, I look around to find Cooper. He is nowhere to be found and will not come when I call him. When I head back towaard the front door, I see that he's assumed the position... the I-heard-the-beep/saw-Kona-get-shocked-so-I'll-be-waiting-to-get-inside-please position on the welcome mat. He won't come back down into the yard AT ALL. Not after he's heard that beep.

Okay, so really long anti-climactic story. Sorry... that's usually what I do best, though. Hope you at least enjoyed the visuals that accompanied the words (more words) tonight! G'night.