Countdown to obedience

In two days, Curly Joe and I start obedience classes. I haven't taken a dog to obedience classes in ... over 20 years. This ought to be fun. I dosed Curly with Frontline last night and trimmed his nails the night before last. That was a surprise; normally he kicks up a big fuss, but he was lying on the frontroom floor, basking in the warmth of the pellet fire, and I figured I'd play with his paws. He protested a little at first, but once he realized I was trimming his nails whether he liked it or not, he just lay back down. LaShea and Chad did a great job of desensitizing him when he was a puppy, but now that his health is better and he's found his place in the house (i.e. Dennis the Menace), it's a toss-up whether or not he'll let me cut his nails.

I'm interested to see how he'll do in a class setting. The last time I took him to Petco (the classes are at Petsmart), he was really intimidated. I think the smells overwhelmed him because when we all met up in Colorado last August, he did just fine when we all went inside the Stanley Hotel.

I'm interested to see how I do, too. I'm pretty shy and being out in public usually freaks me out. I'm not good at small talk and never know what to say to people, so I'm really hoping Curly Joe doesn't pick up on any of my anxiety.

Class starts at 4:30, so I want to be up in time to take him for a walk or at least play with him out in the yard before we go. You know, to burn off some of that extra energy so he'll pay attention in class.

The vet wants to see Curly in soon to recheck his bloodwork. Thankfully, I get free labwork through my job, so I can pretty much get any tests I want and not have to worry about breaking the bank. Hopefully he's doing ok. Or as ok as a dog with a messed up liver can be. He's still a little porky, so I need to really step up on the walks. I've lost ten pounds in the last month, so I'm really motivated now to keep us all up and moving. Especially now that our nails are all short and pretty.

Recent pictures (as always, click to enlarge):

I slept on the couch a couple nights (days, whatever) last week because I wanted the warmth and comfort of the pellet fire. The boys fell asleep as soon as they settled down in their bed.

Last week, we got a package from LaShea and Chad and in it (amongst other things) was a DVD Chad had made from when they were fostering Curly Joe. We finally got to see his curly ears!!!! I haven't had time to watch the whole thing, but what I've seen so far is both adorable and hysterical. It's really sad because Curly Joe lived outdoors for so long, he didn't know it was okay to come in the house. He'd follow their dogs (Samus and Sheba) to the door and then sit down. Gahhh. Of course, he doesn't have that problem anymore. He runs everywhere and usually doesn't stop until he hits something.

The other night, I swear to god, he said "Murphy."