Dudley’s Diary,   Part 1

Hey, Mara! This is me, Dudley!

I’m sorry it took me so long to get in touch, but all kinds of stuff has been happening—you wouldn’t believe!  Anyway, I miss you and the beagle pack, but I don’t think I can find my way back, so I guess I’ll stay here. Besides, there’s another pack here, a really small one. Just one human and another dog. And NO BEAGLES!  What are they thinking? Well, no beagles except me, that is, if I join up. So I joined up. I hope that’s OK.

When we got home after our long drive, I met the other dog. He’s a foster dog named  Birdie. He’s a fun guy. He said right away I should be alpha, so I am. I said I was a beagle. He said he was a beagle, too, but I later heard the human mention that he was part lab and part cocker, and all dog, but he definitely has some hound since he understands about smells, and when we walk, both our  noses go right to the ground, so he gets it about smells, if you know what I mean.

First day I was there the human said, “let’s have an afternoon nap, to rehearse for tonight,” so I thought, “Boy, they get it about beagles around here!” So I found out where I sleep. Birdie and I have two beds right next to the human bed.

Mostly, I sleep on one and he sleeps on the other (the human calls one the “red bed,” and that’s the one I usually end up on, and the other one is the “blue bed,” whatever that means). But we also sleep on each other’s beds and on both beds at once, and half on the bed and half on the fleece blanket on the floor. And on our beds with our chins up on the human bed, which is very low. And lately we sneak onto the human bed. Heh heh heh.

I met my new vet. She’s nice. She said I have a heart murmur, which I don’t know what that means. Also, the vet techs gave me a pedicure. They’re nice, too, and I got a treat. I have to have phenylpropanolamine ‘cause I leak.

Apparently, I’ve been leaking. The human checked this out by sniffing my bed. Human noses don’t work that well, but apparently it was obvious. Then we got the phenyl, which are little liver-flavored candies. Then the human washed my bed. Just when I got it all nice and Dudley-smelling!  What was she thinking? Anyway, I have rolled around on it some, and so has Birdie, and now it is all nice and Dudley-and-Birdie-smelling again. But without the leaking. Maybe she’ll leave it alone now, you think?

I have a nice cave I lie in while the human works on the computer.

We play a game called Fetch! I saw the human play it with Birdie, and I wanted to play, too. The human takes a ball or Kong Toy and throws it, and Birdie runs after it and gets it. I thought this was a very exciting game, so the next time the human picked up a Kong Toy, I jumped up and down, very happy, to show I was excited about the Kong Toy and wanted to play Fetch, too!  The human said, “Dudley, you are a beagle, and I don’t know if you can play fetch.” But I can, you know, so I bounced up and down, very happy, some more. So she threw the Kong Toy. And then I bounced up and down, very happy, to show that I was having fun playing Fetch! So then we walked over to the Kong Toy and picked it up, and I bounced up and down, very happy, to show how much fun I was having playing Fetch!

Birdie likes to play Fetch, but he does it wrong. He doesn’t wait for the human to walk with him to get the toy. Instead, he runs and gets it himself and brings it back or runs around the yard with it, so she doesn’t get to do any fetching. I think my way is much better and more companionable. I walk with the human, and I let her pick up the toy.  Sometimes we just play Fetch without the toy. We walk up and down the yard together, fetch, fetch, fetch! We don’t even need a toy! That’s because we are smarter than those retriever types like Birdie.

Speaking of walking, Birdie and I walk around the block where we live. We always have to take the human with us on leash, because otherwise she gets lost or something. Humans! Anyway, I have been getting a lot of walks, and my doctor says I have lost some weight and am now a very good weight and very svelte.

That’s all for now. I hope you and the beagle pack are doing well. I miss all of you guys, but I like my walks, and it’s nice getting petted whenever I want and especially right before I go to sleep at night.

Love,

Dudley

Dudley’s Diary,   Part 2

Hey, Mara! It’s me, Dudley, again. It’s been a few weeks, and I’m settling in. The phenyl has worked, and I’ve stopped leaking, but I have to take it for the rest of my life, which is OK because it tastes good.

The human and I have been having some discussions about where I’m allowed to piddle. The rule is “not in the house.” Strangely, it seems the hallway rug is “in the house.” Also, it turns out that, even though the vacuum cleaner is used for cleaning things, you’re not supposed to piddle on it, because it won’t clean that. And I thought that, since the briefcase goes out of the house, it would be OK to piddle on that, and then the piddle would leave the house with the briefcase. Problem solved, right? Well, turns out—and who could have guessed this, I ask you?—that it doesn’t work like that. Nope. Memo to self: NOT on briefcase!

There is this new place I go to called “obedience class,” where I have to walk around and stand and sit and stay and there are other dogs, but I don’t get to play with them. There’s another beagle there. He and I hit it right off.

Our human says she doesn’t know anything about beagles, but apparently SOMEBODY got a bad case of loose lips and told her about the beagle bolt (HEY AMY, I’M TALKING TO YOU!!!)  because the whole yard is fenced in. Another time, when we visited another house, I thought I would get out the door when someone opened it, but boy, were they waiting for that!

Our obedience class is Greenbelt Dog Training, run by Allie and Adele Lee. My human told Adele that she didn’t think I’d do well in obedience because I’m a beagle. Adele and said beagles can do just fine with obedience, but we have to work every day. Allie said beagles respond well to food training, instead of just leash tugs. (I LOVE Allie!)  Then Allie had to go and add, “Just a tiny bit to smell and taste will do it. You don’t want to give him too much.”  (I still love Allie, but he could have quit while I was ahead.)

Every single day we go out, the human and I, and spend fifteen minutes by ourselves (without Birdie!) walking around and heeling and sitting and staying and standing and walking around.

Also—did I mention?—we beagles respond well to training with food. 

Love,

Dudley

Dudley’s Diary,  Part 3

Hey, guess what? I qualified for Pets on Wheels! Allie is a temperament tester for Pets on Wheels, and every week during obedience class, he comes up to me and tugs an ear or pulls a paw or gives me a hug, and I thought, hey, whatever. One night we stayed late after obedience class, and a bunch of people walked around talking loudly, and I walked with my human around with them, and people petted me, and then someone dropped a chair, which made a lot of noise, but hey, whatever, and then someone came tromping through with a cane, and it was all pretty noisy, but hey, whatever. But then it suddenly it all stopped, and Allie announced that I had passed the Pets on Wheels test, and everyone applauded.

So now I’m a Pet on Wheels dog. I wonder what that is?

One thing I know, I get a cool scarf to wear. And who can resist a guy in uniform?

Love,

Dudley

Dudley’s Diary, Part 4

Well, I found out what a Pets on Wheels dog is. I visit schools and nursing homes, because people need to pet dogs. In schools, I show how well behaved I am. We went to a school with lots of kids, and I got petted! Here I am with some of my Pets on Wheels colleagues at one school.

At another school we went to, I met a new colleague, Buttons the Bichon Frise. Buttons’ person told the kids, “I have to bathe Buttons once every three weeks to keep him looking nice and fluffy!” The kids asked how much work it is to keep me looking good. My person gave a big smile and taught them a new phrase: “low maintenance dog.”

The kids drew some pictures of Buttons and me. Here are two—pretty good, huh? I think they got that wonderful round happy Bichon face just right, and also, they caught my soulful but happy beagle look.  The teacher said Buttons and I were superstars.

Yep.

I also visit a nursing home twice a month. Everyone is very happy to see me. Seems I’m some kind of special guy or something.

Well, whatever.

Love,

Dudley

Dudley’s Diary,  Part 5

Hey, guess what else? I passed my obedience class. In fact, I came in first! We had to do a test where we went through everything we had been doing for every class, and I came in first. Here I am with Allie and my diploma and our new bumper sticker, which says I am an “honor student.”

My person says one reason I did so well is because I am older, so I am very calm and work hard and don’t get distracted so easily. Also, of course, because we practiced. Every. Single. Day.

Also, did I mention that beagles do very well with food training?

Well, time to go to the nursing home. Can’t keep the fans waiting.

Love,

Dudley

Dudley's Christmas Letter - December 2006

Dear Mara,

Dudley here! I just got back from my second Pets on Wheels Christmas party. The first one, a year ago, I wasn't certified, but the Pets on Wheels leader, Karen, said she thought I'd be a great visitor. Well, this time, I've got a year of visiting under my harness, so I am one of the pros. For our party, we all go to one of the nursing homes where we meet a whole bunch of residents. All our humans bring treats for their own dogs, and of course, if you look at them JUST the right way (and as a beagle, I am VERY good at that), they're happy to share. So for us dogs, it's like Halloween. We get to collect all kinds of treats. If a handler keeps treats in their pocket, they don't want to go home with a pocket full of crumbs, so they say things like, "Oh, I have some extras I have to get rid of. Does Dudley want to help Fifi finish her treats?"  And yes, Dudley does, thank you very much.

Some of the dogs did tricks. There was a two-year-old beagle named Pumpkin who did figure-eights and jumped through a hoop and danced in a circle. It was very clever, and we all had fun watching. Still, just in case, I nudged my human and whispered, "Don't get any ideas!" The residents do some good tricks too. My favorite is when they pet any dogs who happen to be in their vicinity. That's my idea of a good trick!

The only problem is that, right before we went to the party, my human decided I could use a little spritz of something, and sprayed some dog grooming spray on me,so instead of smelling like a proper beagle, I had to go to the party smelling like a great big tricolor long-eared vanilla-flavored RASPBERRY! But the humans seemed to like it. (I'm going out in the yard later to get some proper cologne on.)
           
This has been a good year.  First off, my person is now calling herself a "beagle person." When I first got there, she said she was really a terrier person. But we fixed that! Heh heh. Also, you remember my foster-brother Bertie? Well, my human did something or other with some pieces of paper, so now he's permanently with us and his name is Riley.

In October, we celebrated my one-year adoption anniversary with a trip to acottage in Pennsylvania, where we relaxed and napped in front of the fire and the human read lots of books and we all took lo-o-o-ng walks in the crisp fall air. My human bought Riley and me 30 foot leashes so we could nose around in a nice sunny park area that doesn't have a full fence. My human went out a couple of times and came back with bags of something called apples. Not sure what that was all about.  Apples are pretty useless, if you ask me.

Then, in November, we started something new. You already knew I visit a nursing home, right? Well, Prince George's County Pets on Wheels started a library program. We dogs go to the library and a child reads us a book. My human and I practice by sitting on my special Reading Mat, where she practices reading aloud to me, and I practice keeping an eye on the book because every so often–POOF! A treat shows up, right on the book! (This only happens on my special Reading Mat.)  Some kids like to pet dogs while they read. After they read their books to us, we trade treats! The kids give me biscuits, and I give them special bookmarks with my picture. I'm sending you one. It's good for marking your place if you're reading a book! (Hint: it works best if you pet a beagle while reading.)

Happy Holidays, Mara and everybody at Beagle Rescue! Thank you for taking care of me until you found someone who really, really, REALLY needed a beagle!

Love,              

Dudley
 

Dudley’s Diary,  Part 6

Update:  6/12/07

This note from Dudley's mom on the further adventures of Dudley:

Greetings, everyone! Just wanted to pass along a couple of Dudley updates.

First, having put my other dog, Riley, through positive reinforcement training, I thought Dudley would enjoy it--his obedience class had been a traditional one, and this one was all about clicking and treating good behaviors. (Has anyone ever mentioned that beagles do well with food training?)

Besides, Dudley was getting REALLY annoyed when Riley got to go out every Thursday night and he didn't. So I enrolled the beagle boy. He was great in the class and did a spectacular job of walking to heel, which is exceptional for a beagle, even ignoring interesting tid-bits off to the side. However, the one thing he didn't want to do was lie down. When I'd give him the "down" cue, he'd slide one foot slightly forward and dip a shoulder a bit, then straighten back up into a sit and give me one of those crafty beagle looks, as if to say, "Look, you know I know what 'down' means, so just give me the treat, huh?" He had the instructor very amused, because he clearly knew what was expected and was just as clearly determined to see how much he could get away with. Uh, a slight dip? One elbow sort of down? Duck the head towards the floor?

He also had a little trouble doing a stay, because stays are rewarded with (you guessed it!) special treats (chicken!), and he'd get so excited by the prospect of a treat, he'd dance with his front feet (right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot) while his back end, which was in a neat little "sit," would slide backwards because it wasn't anchored by the front feet, which were dancing away.

HOWEVER, in true Dudley fashion, he came through did everything perfectly on the last day of class, which was when the dogs were tested to see if they graduated. I wasn't sure he was going to make it, given what he'd been doing throughout the class, but he did great and came in second. (First place was a pit bull mix, whose owner had clearly been working and working and WORKING with the dog--and she was perfectly trained. It was a well deserved first.) The instructor pointed out that Dudley was doing really well at a lot of things beagles aren't supposed to be able to do easily.

I almost didn't go to the nursing home yesterday (pollen takes it out of one), but ended up going anyway. Lo and behold, while walking past one of the small lounges where residents meet with their families, I heard, "Oh, we need a dog visit! PLEASE bring the dog in!" One can guess what that means: conversation has been flagging and the visitors are at their wits' end. Dudley trotted right in got the conversation moving. We got to see the resident suddenly get very energetically involved with her visitors on the subject of various pets she had had.

Every so often--rarely--one gets to actually see the effect, and it's VERY nice when that happens.

(Pretty good, what Dudley can do without saying a word, huh? Actually, given the sound of a beagle bay, you can imagine that the nursing staff, hearing THAT echoing down the halls of the nursing home, not all knowing what beagles sound like and not all aware that there was a dog on board, would all go to full alert and do a full ER-style run down the hall to find out which resident was in such agony! And really, it would just be Dudley saying, "hey! how about a treat?" He doesn't bay when we're visiting, BTW, although I'm trying to teach him to bay on command, for when we go to schools and I talk about beagles.)

Anyway, wanted to update you on Dudley and thank you again for this wonderful beagle boy!