Celebrate Laika’s 4th Birthday: A Collection of Favorite Moments

OK so the party is over, the balloons are deflated, there’s some weird guy passed out in my living room and the carrots are long gone. I’m sorry if you feel lied to and maybe even a little betrayed. But you can still help us celebrate Laika’s 4th gotcha day — instead of carrots I present to you a collection of my favorite Laika posts. I call it “Whimpers, Nips & Cuddles: Laika’s Greatest Hits.”

It’s hard to imagine it was 4 years ago today that I got into that epic battle over a stupid rawhide with my new puppy. Things didn’t go well from the start, and she certainly had more ‘spunk’ than I knew what to do with. I’d tell her to stop biting and she’d bite harder. I’ve never been so covered in scratches in my life. I’d go to feed her and she’d turn into a little demon — hellbent on keeping anyone and everything from going near her food bowl.

It’s been 4 years since I questioned whether I could handle this little pup on my own, and while it wasn’t easy I’m glad to say I didn’t give up. I didn’t give up on her, and I didn’t give up hope that I could handle it myself.

She’s still not perfect, but neither am I. She doesn’t guard her food anymore, and she’s stopped all that biting. Both of us continually learning, and through it all Laika has become my best friend, my one true ‘heart dog.’

Without her I would have never pursued this blog. I wouldn’t have met all of the awesome dog people (that’s you!) I now call good friends. And maybe I wouldn’t have ever found such a fun creative outlet, and for this I’m forever grateful.

While I don’t like cliche’s, and I certainly don’t believe that whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, I do think certain situations can change us for the better. And in this case Laika has made me a much better person. I’m more perceptive, more understanding, less judgmental, and certainly more open to trying new things.

To celebrate 4 years of Laika I thought it would be fun to share my favorite Laika posts.

The “Best of Laika” Top 10 Posts aka Whimpers, Nips & Cuddles

• Try Yelping They Said
  Laika showed me that yelping to stop puppy biting isn’t always a good idea.
• 10 Things a Dog Sitter Should Know About My Dog
  Some of the quirks I’d like dog sitters to know.
• 19 Reasons My Dog is My Best Friend
  This explains why she’s my heart dog.
• How Boredom Caused My Dog to Become a Hoarder
  When I wasn’t paying attention Laika developed a hoarding habit.
• I Encouraged My Dogs Bad Habits
  I’ll admit it, I’ve encouraged a lot of naughty behavior.
• I Missed the Early Signs of Arthritis In My Dog
  How little changes can go unnoticed.
• Is Your Dog a Jerk When You’re Sick?
  Have you ever been woken up by a Kong dropped on your face?
• I’m Thankful For My Dog Everyday
  How Laika & I developed a great bond.
• Why I Only Have One Dog
  People have asked why I only have one dog, so here’s the explanation.
• Laika’s Lessons: What My Dog Has Taught Me
  “Hiding toys in coat pockets your surprise for later.”

How Did Laika Celebrate Her Gotcha Day?

In the morning we went out to the beach for a nice long swim, sadly it’ll probably be one of the last times this season. It’s damn chilly out.

For her meals she got lots of yummy carrots, sugar snap peas & rice mixed into her meals. Don’t ask me why but this dog goes insane for carrots & snap peas.

In the afternoon we went to her favorite state park for a hike. And since it’s a special occasion I got into the mindset of ‘let her do as she pleases’ (within reason of  course), so she rolled around, sniffed, and played in every disgusting thing we found.

For our evening entertainment we cuddled on the couch and caught up on some Pitbulls & Parolees — which I’m pretty sure is her favorite show considering her constant interest while watching. Maybe since she’s a rescue herself she just loves seeing all those adoptions, especially the dogs like herself that could be considered challenging.

I guess that doesn’t explain the guy passed out on my couch though…