Monday, June 30, 2014

Cooling The Machine

In the evenings, mom likes to play fetch with me.  We use my rope because a ball would roll down our hillside and through the fence.  I love playing rope fetch and do it just as pawfectly as with my ball (if Stanley doesn't interfere)!



So Stanley was grabbing my rope when I was trying to return it to mom but he finally got tired.


I was working really hard cuz now I was fetching without interference!  I call that fetching in its purest form!  Finally I got so tired that mom forced me to catch my breath.  I started out panting with my tongue to the left.


Then I had to cool off my other side so I switched my tongue to the right. 


So after I cooled down and caught my breath I switched to tongue in the middle.


Now I'm ready to go again.  "Hey mom, where are ya?"





Murphy the Fetching Master


Saturday, June 28, 2014

He Ain't Heavy

Update:  We've had some exciting things happening with the dog park.  If you remember, it was SUPPOSED to go back to the city council on July 8th.  But then Thursday night the mayor tells mom it is on the agenda and being discussed!  (The regular Tuesday meeting was postponed until Thursday due to an election.)  So mom made sure she and dad were there!   Anyway, they talked all about the proposed dog park and the city manager revealed what ideas they came up with!  It was exciting!  And you will NOT believe what else happened!  The city people kept showing this photo on the big projector for EVERYONE to see DURING the council meeting discussion (mom had posted it to the mayor's Facebook page just before the meeting)!


They loved our picture!  And the mayor said they were showing it to soften everyone's hearts!  After the meeting the mayor wrote:  
This picture was the most popular part of tonight's Council meeting. Thanks Carol Campbell! For everyone's information, the Council has decided to take the next step towards creating a Dog Park. We are going to prepare some additional information and bring it back to the City Council in August. It will be voted at that point on whether or not to establish a park. In the next week I will be posting some more information about the Dog Park and how you can give your input. We want your input!
So then after the meeting, one of the councilmen messaged mom and asked her to set up a Dog Park page on Facebook cause he REALLY wants it.  (Mom already could tell by his statements at the meeting.)  So of course mom does (and our picture is on that too BOL!)  You can see the page HERE.  As you can see, the city manager gave all the information about the proposal and everyone on the council kept saying it was very doable.  The only thing they wanted was COMMUNITY SUPPORT.  So now mom is trying to rally the community.  We are getting soooo close!

*****
As you might already know, on Fridays me and Stanley run 6 miles with our pawrents.  Since it rained in the morning we left a little late.  BUTT, there were LOTS and LOTS of puddles for us!  Mom could tell we were getting a bit warm (our pawrents watch us VERY closely) when the sun came out so we took a little break in the shade.  That was when mom got this funny picture.


Don't worry, Stanley wasn't really THAT hot.  Mom sets her camera on "burst" so it takes rapid fire pictures and then when she checks them later she finds out she got a funny one.



Murphy & Stanley

Friday, June 27, 2014

Me and My Twin

 Most of the time me and Stanley work well together and play as a team.



Sometimes we do stuffs to gang up on our pawrents.


 Sometimes mom calls us "The Twins" BOL!



Murphy & Stanley

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Hot Dog!

 OK, we took too long to show you why Stanley was all wet.  Summer is here and when the sun is out me and my brother get hot fast!









Murphy & Stanley

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Playing Hide & Seek

The bestest thing about having my brother live with me is that we are the very bestest furiends and we ALWAYS have somebody to play with!  Mom says that is all we ever do it play, play, play!




 And then it starts all over again . . . 


Tomorrow we'll show you one of our other games (and you'll know why Stanley's all wet)!



Murphy & Stanley


Monday, June 23, 2014

Eating Kibble Can Be A Ball!

I love my red spiky ball.  I have 6 different ones but I love this one the bestest.  Stanley likes to hide it from me so I need to take extra precautions.







Murphy

Saturday, June 21, 2014

Stanley's Ride

You probably saw yesterday's post where I bought my new truck on e-bay.  They actually had 2 of them and Stanley wanted one too but there was a problem . . .




They didn't have a bigger truck on the lot but I was wondering around and found something I thought my Brother might be interested in!


So I hollered over for him to check it out!




He's still trying to convince mom that having a race car wouldn't be dangerous . . .



Murphy & Stanley

Friday, June 20, 2014

Murphy's New Ride

 Guess what!  I bought me a truck on e-bay!  I've been driving it around everywhere!







Murphy


Thursday, June 19, 2014

Answers To The "Ask Murphy & Stanley" Questions

Thanks for the great questions.  There were a lot of them so grab a cup of coffee and plan on spending a few minutes with us. So without further ado, we give you our answers:

Reilly-Denny Cowspotdogs and Easy Rider asked:  We would love to see the view from your window....we saw a bit the other day and it looked amazing.

Answer:  We love our view and it also looks really pretty at night.  When the house was being built our builder put up a sign that said:  "House by Nilson Homes, View by God".

Me looking out window.  We have 3 windows in the living room, a large picture window and 2 side windows (that open).  This is a side window.

This is the top of the same window.
This is from the center window.  The blue sliver in the far distance is the Great Salt Lake.
Just to the left of the other view (notice same house as on top).  This pic was taken the next day.

This is the view from the front of the house when I am in my Barking Chair.  (It was an overcast day so the sky is washed out.)
*****

Molly The Wally asked:  OK so our question is how do make sure the staff never lets the treat box go empty? She realized this morning we are out of dental chews. Criminal if you ask me. What can I do?

Answer:  Molly, is there a place like Chewy.com that you can order treats delivered right to your door?  How about BarkBox or something similar?  If not then you have no alternative.  You MUST report your assistant to the authorities because it IS criminal!  If this is a first offense they should just give her a written warning as long as she corrects her behavior!  Also, it might be helpful if you have photographic evidence of the empty cupboards to corroborate your complaint.

*****

Frankie Furter and Ernie asked:  YOUR MAILBOX...... we remember when it was hit by the guy PARKING??? so he could use his phone SAFELY... a Before and After of the Mailbox would be super.

Answer:  They don't look a lot different.  When he hit the mailbox he didn't knock it down, he broke the mortar (and the handle and flag).  So in order to replace the metal part it had to be taken apart.  With the mortar broken loose from the bricks it was also no longer structurally sound.  The original brick (that matched the house) was no longer available so we had to just pick something close).  Here are the photos:

This is the new mailbox
This is the old mailbox before it was hit).



















*****

Hailey and Zaphod and their Lady asked:  Hmmmmm, we want to know how you learned to run with your people. Thanks.

Answer:  First we went on a lot of long walks, around 5 - 6 miles.  Then when we started running with our pawrents, we started with a shorter distance and then just built up to 6 miles (9.66 km).  It didn't take very long though cuz we were already in shape.  It is impawtent to watch the doggie to see if you need to take a break, a drink, or walk through a puddle to cool off hot toes.  The hardest part was learning to run along side and not trip our pawrents and leave them crashing to the pavement.  I am embarrassed to admit I did this to mom once.  Our pawrents wear a hands-free leash so it is VERY easy for us to trip them if we make a fast move in the wrong direction.  Mom used a clicker to show me where I should be when I am running.  Mom says it is good to start running very slowly just to make sure the doggie stays in position.

*****
Yamini MacLean asked:  Now tell me, doods, how is that basement door working for you? Also, how high are you above sea level? The photo the other day made look like you are up knocking at Heaven's door!

Answer:  Our doggie door is still a "work in progress".  Stanley goes in and out quite easily.  I personally like it best when mom or dad walks me to the door and tells me to go out.  I usually ask them to break the magnetic seal and then will finish pushing it open.  A few times I have gone through without any help.  But I usually will not come back through it, especially without prompting. I prefer to just go up the stairs to the kitchen door.  I am training mom and dad to pay me off with our raw dog meat treats.  I do MUCH better if I know there is a pay-off on the other side.

Now for your second question. We live at 5,000 feet above sea level.  We are about 800 feet above the Great Salt Lake and 600 feet above the valley below us.  It is just enough that we sometimes get snow and the valley below us gets rain.  We are located on the bench of the Rocky Mountain's Wasatch Range (in the shadow of Ben Lomond Peak).  Our view is made even more impressive by the fact that the back of our property is a fairly severe slope.
*****
Soggibottom asked:  How do you get your beautiful locks looking so spectacular ?

Answer:  We just have a bath every week to 10 days and a trim every 3-4 weeks. Mostly we get our good looks from good genes.

*****
scotsmad  asked:  What happened to the people down the hill? Are they any nicer to their puppy?

Answer:  They do the minimum required to stay out of trouble.  T-Bone (whose real name turns out to be Gemini) spends a great deal of time in the house.  He isn't totally housebroken though, cuz we overheard an admonishment as he was put outside.  He has a doghouse for protection from the elements (the outside is unfinished wood but it's more than the other dogs ever got).  Unlike the dogs before him SO FAR he hasn't had to endure long periods of time on his chain in inclement weather.  We are trying to decide if Josh has moved out of the house as we haven't seen him in quite some time.  But it is sad to watch T-Bone just watching me and Stanley play and wishing he could do the same.

*****
Misaki asked:  My question is, why is my food bowl always empty??

Answer:  Your people have not been trained properly.  They believe this nonsense about doggies needing only certain amounts of food.  They have a fridge and pantry available for when they get hungry and you should too.  We suggest a gentle reminder that they are being cruel and if they don't change their ways then you will have to turn to authorities, or Oprah, for assistance.  At a minimum there should be treats on the counter so you can reach them during a counter-surf session, and a continuous feed food bowl that holds a MINIMUM of 10 pounds of dog food.  Anything less that this is just wrong.

*****
zooperson Lady Caroline asked:   How's the doggie door doing? I wanted to print your picture,but mom says your "taken." What does that mean?

Answer:  Please see above for the answer on the doggie door.  As for what "taken" means . . . well, uh . . . that is complicated . . . I admit I am crazy about smitten with the funny, smart, beautiful, clever, excellent mixologist cute Ruby but we have only been on one fun, fantastic, wonderful, glorious date.  At this point we have not discussed the details of our relationship.  So I guess the official answer is this:  "How the heck do I know, I'm a guy!"

 *****
Madi and Mom asked:  Where were you born, how many pups in your litter and did you come with your names or did your peeps name you?  Oh and what colors were the other pups and what color are your parent pups?

Answer:  Me and Stanley were born near Salt lake City.  We have 4 sisters (all dark reds) and 1 other brother (same color as Stanley).  Our mom is Daisy and father is Guss.  Mom and Dad gave us our names when we were 2 weeks old.  Both my other brothers were named Stanley and at 5 weeks I picked this Stanley to come live with me in our forever home.  Mom knew she loved me and named me Murphy the same day my eyes opened when I was a tiny puppy dog.
Our litter
Our dad - Guss



Our Mom - Daisy
*****
Tweedles asked:  Where do you two sleep? In bed with your pawrents?

Answer:  Of course!  We started out in kennels but as soon as we learned about going to the bathroom outside we got to sleep in the big bed.  Stanley usually sleeps along the bottom of the bed but I like to move around (but mostly next to mom).  Sometimes mom and I share the same pillow.

*****
Idaho PugRanch asked:  Has there been any progress on the dog park proposal??

Answer:  Yes!  It is moving forward so far.  The mayor was supposed to present a plan to the city council on June 10th but when mom did not see it on the official agenda she asked the mayor if it was moved to another day.  The mayor responded to her with this statement:  " . . . upon further review our staff needed two more weeks to develop some budget recommendations for this matter, and it will be brought back on July 8th. We are actually considering some additional ideas, including a longer-term plan for a full Dog Park and needed to do some more research. Hope to see you on July 8th."  We thought that sounded really pawsitive!
*****
Jazzi asked: Your yard seems so cool on the hill, do you have more yard space?  Are those your pretty flowers in the picture and how do they get them that nice? 

Answer:  Me and Stanley like running and playing on the hill but we don't have a lot of space.  The grassy area of our yard is very minimal.  Our house is only on a 1/4 acre lot.  The flowers in the photo are at a nearby park and they are cared for by professionals.

*****
Duncan asked:  How do you gets your people to blog so regularly? Your assistants don't need to take these long breaks my mom seems to need. Is your assistant uber-organized? Help!

Answer:  Mom does 99.99% (or more) of my blogging for me.  If you ever see Stanley's name on a post or comment, that is dad assisting him.  Mom is NOT organized at all!  I asked mom for a tip and she said that being able to take photos on her cell phone really helps.  She looks at the photos to see what they are saying.  She reads our minds all the time.  Then she will often sit down and set up 4-5 days of posts at a time.
*****

Val asked:  We are wondering if you are still doing agility and do you think the mayor will put some agility equipment at the new dog park you're working to get???

Answer:  Yes, we still work on weaving, tunneling, and the balance beam.  We haven't been doing our jumps too much but mom said she will try and remember to get them out for us to work on.  (She is always worried me and Stanley will twist an ankle on the many holes we dig in the lawn and flat-space is a problem.)  The mayor has made comments that suggest to us that he is looking at putting in agility equipment at the dog park.  We should know more on July 8th when the plan is presented to the council for a final vote (see comment above regarding this issue).

*****
Jeanne Pursell asked: We would like to know how tall you guys are...and how much you weigh? We think somewhere we read you two are mini-golden doodles...is that right?

Answer:  Yes, we are mini Goldendoodles but I am more mini than Stanley.  I weigh 21 pounds and am 17" tall.  Stanley weighs 36 pounds and is 20" tall.

*****
Whitley Westie asked:  What are da meaning of life? Just kiddin, BOL! I are really asking what your favoritest toy is.

Answer:  Me and Stanley play with lots of different toys but my favoritest of all is my ball!  Stanley's favoritest is probably his monkey.
*****
Sweet William The Scot asked:  Since you have that magnificent view that goes on and on forever, have you ever seen anything strange, spectacular, weird or unusual in the sky?

Answer:  We see the fireworks from about a dozen different cities (maybe more) at the same time.  We also see various types of weather as it comes across the valley.  It is very cool to watch a storm front come past us.  We haven't seen a UFO but we're still watching!

***** 
Golden Woofs! SUGAR asked:  We want to know more about Utah. Is it dog-friendly and special places you can take your dog.  We have to install the talking app on our phone, what is it again? 

Answer:  Utah is not what we would call very dog friendly (that would be Oregon!).  There are cities where dogs are not even allowed in parks!  We have magnificent national parks (5 of them in fact) but doggies are not allowed on trails.  However, doggies can go on trails in state parks. We see others post about Pet Expos but we don't have anything around here even close to the same caliper. The weather in Utah is typically very nice but we do have 4 seasons (sometimes in the same day).  We have very low humidity and more often than not, totally sunny blue skies.  Where we live mosquitoes are not a problem, you can go out at night, but closer to the lake there are mosquitoes.  Fleas are pretty much a non-issue and ticks are not really common (lack of trees).  A swimming pool for doggies recently opened in the SLC area but otherwise there aren't many special places for dogs.  It is unfortunate that many owners are lacking responsibility and ruining it for others.

The app is called "My Talking Pet" and is very easy to use.  It is available on Android and Apple products!
*****

Thank you so much for the wonderful questions!!  Maybe we should have an official day in Blogville where everyone asks each other questions!



Murphy & Stanley

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

We're Sorry

We want to thank everyone who submitted a design for the official Blogville logo contest.  Unfortunately, there was a copyright concern raised with one of the entries.  Because we do NOT want to violate any copyrights we decided to pull the post down.  We feel that just pulling the logo in question would have invalidated the votes that were already cast so the most fair thing would be to just pull the plug on the contest.  We're sorry for those who took the time to prepare and submit an entry.  This copyright issue turned out to be much more complex than we expected and we were in over our heads.  We hope everyone understands and once again are sorry this did not turn out well.



Murphy & Stanley's Mom

Wordless Wednesday


Thursday we will post our answers to all your questions.  And don't forget to place your vote for the official Blogville logo!!  Just click HERE!



Murphy

Monday, June 16, 2014

Expensive Practice

There's a place (Lowe's) me and Stanley go so we can practice our commands "in public".  We did a lot of our training there when we were practicing to get our CGC (Canine Good Citizen).   The employees are always happy to see us come in the door.  When we're there we mostly practice "DOWN-STAY with distractions".


Lately Stanley has been going rogue.


It didn't seem fair that I had to DOWN-STAY and Stanley didn't!


Mom wouldn't give in.  She signaled me that I HAD to keep my DOWN-STAY.


Our pawrents kept opening up the freezer fridge doors but there were NEVER any treats in them!


Mom says it costed a lot of green papers for us to practice commands today.



Murphy & Stanley