Walking with Henry

A few days ago, the five of us took Henry around the block for the first time and that was a challenge. It took Henry about three days of my husband working with him. But now, he loves it! 

Today, Henry had his first official, public outing on a leash. Catherine, James and I took Henry in the car to pick Victoria up from school and he walked from the car, to the school and loved all the attention he got along the way. The kids adored him and the Vice Principal even came out to see Henry. He was a very good puppy! 

So tonight, after dinner, the five of us took Henry for his second walk around the block. Towards the end, he started to run after Catherine and James on their bikes. It was pretty cute to see. 

This is Henry starting to run after Catherine and James. 

He's exhausted!

9 weeks old!

Henry is 9 weeks old (as of Sunday, March 25)! We can't imagine if we just got to bring him home at 8 weeks. He's still a puppy but is so big that it's hard to believe that he is at times. Henry has a really good appetite, he loves to play, sleep and be loved, he is training really well with all that we've done so far...we could not have asked for a more awesome dog. We love him and he loves us. 

Other good news...he hardly sheds. My proof that the food you feed your dog does matter! So far, Nutro Ultra is the way to go. He loves it and I love it that he's eating good things. Also, we haven't had any shoes or furniture torn up. He sticks with his toys for the most part. We are really good at reprimanding right away if it's needed. Plus it helps that we don't leave him alone in the house and no shoes are allowed to be left out. Henry is a really good puppy! 

Look at how happy my husband is, blankets, dog and all!

Training Henry

My husband began training Henry to sit, "come here", lay down and more. It's pretty neat to see that he understands.

Only 8 weeks old and so big already!

Henry is now 8 weeks old as of Sunday, March 18, 2012. We feel so lucky to have actually gotten him at such a young age because at 8 weeks, he's massive! He's grown so much over the past few weeks, it's amazing. He loves his food and we just started to feed him only twice a day. I think Henry could definitely be an overeater so we have to be careful. He gets three cups of good, nutritious "big dog" puppy food a day. He eats between 6 and 6:30 a.m. every morning and will definitely let me know if I'm late. There's no sleeping in for me! He eats at 6 p.m. every night and is always so excited when I get his food bowl. Henry gets fresh water almost every day too. He's a drooler so it has to be changed more than normal. He is so loved and maybe even a little bit spoiled. Henry's had a few baths and gets clean, fresh bedding too. He is our 4th child, after-all. Below are some pictures taken on Sunday to mark his 8 weeks. 

Finally big enough to wear his brand new dog collar. 

St. Patrick's Day

This is Henry and the children playing Saturday morning, on St. Patricks Day. Henry loves all the attention he gets, especially on the weekends. And the kids love having Henry to play with. 

Henry loves to sit beneath the dining chair I sit on when I'm at the computer and chew on his doggie wearing bunny ears that Uncle Phillip, Aunt Sonia and his dog cousin Charlie (a black labrador) gave him. 

And finally, the party! My husband said I'm horrible, but I say "How adorable!!" Isn't Henry cute in his Leprechaun hat!?!

Today marks Henry's two week homecoming and we still love him!

Two weeks ago, we brought Henry home. I've kept in contact with his previous owner and she's said a few times, "I hope he's not a pain in the rear, puppies are a lot of work." And every time, I've assured her, we're all doing well and he's not a pain and is still so much fun. Yes, it's hard to get up at 4 a.m. because he's gotta go poop or pee, but that will pass. It is hard now, puppies are like babies in a way. They require constant love and attention and look to us for food and water. But puppies need the structure to learn the "right" things to do like chew on chew toys and not on shoes. So far, we've done really well, all five of us. (No shoes or furniture have been ruined or chewed on). The kids all pitch in to pick up the poop (I'm hoping they're still motivated when Henry is a big dog with big poop). And my husband is enjoying training Henry to do all things good. He's learning to sit, stay, lay down and "come here". And I feed him, love him and play with him when I can. He's a really good dog and we definitely feel blessed to have found such a handsome, fun and healthy puppy. 

This is Henry wanting to play baseball this past Monday, March 12.

Henry was a little late to get the ball.

Just watching the game.

Ah, isn't he just the cutest little puppy?!?!!

                                       

Too comfy on movie night!

Tonight, we had movie night and Henry had to be there. He was only interested in the cuddly, soft puppy dog sleeping bag James was bundled up in. He loved it! 

Playing with sticks and one week of puppy love

Last night Henry did not want to come inside and go to sleep. He wanted to play and he wanted to play with sticks! These two sticks kept him entertained for a good 20 minutes! He definitely enjoyed himself! 

This is a picture of Henry that Catherine made using chalk on our patio. Pretty cute! 

As of today, we've had Henry for one full week. We love, love, love him and are enjoying all that he brings to our family. He continues to do well at potty training (there's been a few accidents in the house, but nothing major), besides, he's still young at only 6-1/2 weeks old! Henry is definitely enjoying his food and drink too! As you can see, he's starting to look like a little, sleeping, pot belly pig! What's funny is that he sort of grunts like one too! As I type, he's asleep on the rug just underneath my chair. He loves to follow me around the house and when I get home, he always comes straight to me. Now if only I could get him to stop attacking my slippers while I'm wearing them... 

Today we received Henry Dean Grumpy Bass' AKC Official Registration papers. My husband gave Henry his full name. He says he looks like a little, grumpy bass. So with that Henry Dean Grumpy Bass it is! His name fits him perfectly. We love it!

Afternoon playtime

Monday was so pretty and warm, we just had to play outside. Victoria, Catherine and James enjoyed an ice-cream cone while Henry ran around with a real baseball. We had fun and enjoyed the 85 degree weather. 

Catherine, James and I took Henry on a car ride to my in-laws office. Besides a few whimpers, he did okay. We put him on the UPS scale and it fluctuated between 12 and 14 pounds. At 6 weeks old, he's one solid puppy! He eats between 1.5 to 2.5 cups of food a day and drinks a lot of water. We're weaning him from the Pedigree Puppy Chow formula to Nutro Ultra Puppy food. I like this food because it is made from real food. There is no corn, wheat or by-product ingredients. It has chicken, salmon and lamb, brown rice, blueberries and other good things in it. Once I started researching puppy food, I was shocked at all the yucky stuff they put in. Horrified actually. Just like people food, one must always read the ingredient list! He loves it. He found the bag this morning and tried to attack it. He's a funny little guy!

Below, Henry is asleep with his head on Scout. He's all pooped from a busy day of playing outside!