The Story of BB the Great Dane

BB being BB, 24 wks old

You’re going to be stuck seeing older pics of the BB boy, since dummy me let the digital camera drop in the pool. Not my brightest move. Still, it’s fun to go back through the Banana Butt’s younger days! This pic is the quintessential BB: bright eyed, looking up at you, and not the least bit concerned with his dignity. That’s the Beebs: all lumps, bumps, and wiggles.

He seems to have recovered from the Emily invasion Tuesday and Wednesday, not to mention being dropped in the pool with the camera Friday. The remainder of his day, once dried off and away from the large body of water anyhow, Beebs is full of puppy energy. Maybe it’s just a “that was icky” energy, but he seems to really feel better after a swim.

So Friday he got a wander in the yard, and led his grand self to the field without his Mom. She didn’t follow, so he didn’t stay long. He drove us crazy wanting to play all day! His beloved squeaky mat squawked and his new talking tuggie toy made noise without stopping. At one point, his brother Kenai was so tired of the commotion that he got up and took the tuggie away. It was left in a corner on Kenai’s side of the barrier!

At times like that, dogs almost talk: “Enough of the toy, man!”, or “One more sound and I’m taking it away!”. Brothers…what can ya do? Of course, BB got his toy back, compliments of the house, and Kenai flopped on the couch with a huge sigh. Nothing he can do besides sigh and moan if the people persons give something back.

Saturday BB got to watch his living room get taken apart for a half-hearted cleaning. His bed got put outside to air out, and he hopped about behind his Mom while she cleaned. The room still smells, a very strong aroma of the Brother’s grin in need of mouthwash. But we’ll take it apart again during the week for a serious cleaning. Right now, most of the hair is swept up and the sheets are clean.

That’s one thing I don’t like about BB and Kenai: they have a stout body odor. That stuff lingers in upholstery and carpets. We have those bags of volcanic rock, supposed to remove odors in the air, but they have yet to work well. So we’ve switched our main attack weapon to a doggie deoderant. We really need to have the couch steam cleaned, and get the throw rug scrubbed.

Anyway, BB is making good use of the wonderfully cool morning air. August feels like fall at the moment, and we’re loving it! It was chilly enough this morning that I wished I’d had a light jacket–almost down to the 50’s F. We’ve been gipped on autumn for several years now, drought dropping the leaves with no color to speak of, and going from intense heat straight to ice storms.

I’m hoping this fall, the boys get to have a real autumn, for the first time in their lives. I already know BB will have a total blast chasing leaves coming off the trees. Can already see it: chase down this leaf, look over there another, and POUNCE. His penchant for carrying stuff will be satisfied too.

BB is a carrying fool. When he’s done with his potty, if you don’t give him a stick, he’ll grab and carry his leash back to the door. He’ll carry a toy around behind you for hours, pausing only long enough to play with it a little. Last spring I taught him to carry sticks to a spot and drop them. So raking up leaves and sticks will be his bestest game all year. And when big brother demolishes the pile, BB will set to work like a busy little ant putting it back together again! Boy heaven… You wreck, I fix.

Oh, and snow: the first snowfall big enough for snowballs will send him into puppy rapture. “I chase, I pounce” will be the game of the day for our happy little game boy. He’ll have a hand-me-down coat from Taj, a lost love that came before. Nothing like a nice fleece coat to extend the snow games.

There’s lots to look forward to, as you can tell, and I’ve no doubt that BB will find some sort of fun while we wait.