The Scary Airplanes

Morey isn't scared of much. He is rarely even hesitant to approach something to check it out; if he is faced with something new he usually just takes it all in, checks it out, and then moves on. Today, however, I found something that Morey is afraid of: remote control airplanes.

Two boys at the rugby event this weekend had new remote control airplanes and were trying them out. Morey and I had just gotten done playing ball and he had his tennis ball in his mouth. At first it was the sound that caught his attention, then he noticed the strange flying things. It didn't help that the "pilots" were flying a little erractically-making the planes move up and down quite rapidly. There were two planes and the sight plus the sound sent Morey slinking behind my chair (still holding his ball of course). Then the planes would land and he would cautiously start to approach only to have them take off again. Finally he decided they were too dangerous and wouldn't go close to them anymore.

When we went in the gym and the planes came too, Morey kept a watchful eye from his bed. I would have liked to have the chance to have Morey check them out when they weren't moving at all, but unfortunately that never happened. That may have to be a training/desensitization project for the future.

Fascinated by Football...or Not

After a hard day of rugby, we were planning on going to dinner with the team, but then they decided they needed to stay at the hotel and watch the rest of the game first. Morey was invited up on the bed, but then he was blocking someone's view. So I asked him to crawl over to where I was sitting between the beds. I didn't expect him to keep crawling until his front end was on my lap and his back end was still on the bed. But apparently he was comfortable because he fell asleep (no, he is not dead!)

As you can tell from the picture, Morey and I were very enthusiastic about watching the game.

Road Trip Part 2

For the most part, Morey's life is fairly routine. This is not a problem, but when we travel and he is suddenly put into new situations I realize the importance of keeping him used to variety and not letting him get too stuck in his ways. Especially in the potty department.

The hotel had landscaping that used lava rocks instead of mulch. Morey tromped around for quite a while, needing to hurry, but not wanting to do so on this surface. There was no easily accessible grass available but when he still wouldn't go, I found some regular mulch he could use. I also usually let him have his morning time on a longer retractable leash and he didn't like only having 4 feet instead of 12. We will definitely be adding some variations to his potty routines so next time he will be ready to go (quite literally!).

Morey hasn't been to a hotel for a while, but he got quite excited when I let him loose in the room. He ran around sniffing everything and when I got out his water bowl and toy he became very playful. I was rooming with one of our support staff and she instantly became even more of his friend when she invited him up on her bed. He brought his squeaky toy up with him and looked quite comfortable. When it actually came time for bed though I made him come over and sleep with me...I don't mind sharing Morey to a certain extent, but I do have my limits. : )

Road Trip Part 1

This weekend Morey accompanied the Texas Stampede to a practice/scrimmage in Houston. Morey is a good sport when it comes to road trips; he makes himself comfortable in whatever space is available after all the people and wheelchairs are loaded up. I rode with a teammate and in his van we had 2 people, 2 everyday wheelchairs, 2 rugby chairs and Morey. Aside from the wheelchairs sliding around a bit, it was an uneventful trip.

At the gym I got Morey settled on his "bed" a blue rug that travels with us to practices and games. Some kids who belonged to members of the other team came over and very politely asked to pet him. From there they moved on to asking what Morey can do and when I demonstrated a retrieve and pushing the automatic door button they went running over to their dad yelling "Dad, you've got to see what this dog can do!" Ah, Morey has it easy when it comes to making friends and fans!

While we played, Morey hung out and watched. He gets pretty relaxed given the chaos going on around him but I don't think he really sleeps. If I had 8 iron-clad wheelchairs running into each other at high speeds mere feet from me I don't think I'd be sleeping either!

Holiday Helper

When people ask what Morey does for me I usually give several generic answers; retrieve items, open doors, pull my wheelchair, etc. But there is a whole list of things he does for me that fall under the "other duties as assigned" category. I think helping me decorate and undecorate for holidays meets that criteria.

I put my Christmas tree up in my office instead of my apartment because that is where I spend more of my waking hours. The box is big and so I shoved it under my desk after I put the tree up-out of sight and out of reach. Today when I decided it was time for the tree to go back into storage (it felt strange to have a Christmas tree up when it was 70 degrees outside) I had Morey retrieve the box. As you can see, it's long and awkward and required some careful problem solving. It took several tries, but Morey did it. He gets so excited after he completes a complex task!

Happy New Year!

As you can tell, Morey was excited about celebrating the New Year.

I'm glad I have a dog who will humor my sometimes crazy ideas and who looks pretty cute in glasses!

Pictures with Santa

While we were on our way home for Christmas, Morey got to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what he wanted for Christmas. We didn't even have to go to the North Pole-Santa was at the Austin airport! He said Morey was the biggest dog he had had his picture taken with and the most well-behaved. I bet that earned him a few extra Christmas surprises.

Santa's fuzzy suit made it hard for Morey to stay on his lap for long enough for a picture. Who knew that fuzzy material is also slippery?