My One Year Anniversary at The Rainbow Bridge

Can you believe it, it's been a year since I left earth to come to the Rainbow Bridge. We don't mark our existence up here by the calendar but today I happened to check up on my mom, dad, and baby brother and I found Mom working on my grave site. That's what reminded me of how long it's been. She was cementing the marker down on top of a couple of patio stones and adding polished river stones and broken china to decorate around it. It looks pretty and it made me feel good to know I'm still in her heart.

I'm finally a full-fledged angel-dog. Little did I know when I first got here that you start out with a little pair of training wings and if you want a "full-feathered" set you have to earn it feather by feather. I do look majestic, now, if I do say so myself. Not that most angel-dogs are vain about their looks. They're not. I was always a "preener" by nature and most earthly characteristics stick with you up here, especially the quirky character tics that make you you.

Little Levi who Mom and Dad adopted the day after I passed over to the Rainbow Bridge is doing well except he still squats like a little girl which amuses me to no end. Dad always said I probably lifted my leg a minute after I came out of my mother's womb.

Being a poodle, I used to think poodles were the best groomed in the world but watching my schnauzer brother grow up has given me a new appreciation for and definition of dogging beauty. He takes my breath away, he's so cute and Mom loves to run her hands over the soft texture of his hair. She calls him her stress reduction machine. That long beard of his comes in handy, too. He hides bark in his mouth when he's outside and brings it inside. Mom always has a pile of confiscated bark sitting on the kitchen counter waiting to go back out.

Speaking of stress, there's been a lot of it the family house for Levi to help Mom overcome. All the bankruptcy talk in the news about the company my Dad gets his pension and health insurance from is causing it. She even started selling stuff on e-Bay to help build up a nest egg should that happen. It takes up a of time and she doesn't like doing but she's the kind of person who has to do something when trouble is on the horizon.

Anyway, Levi is the perfect puppy for Mom and Dad and he came into their lives at the perfect time. I see that all now. In my sixteen years on earth I caused a lot of stress with my stubbornness and need for early intervention with an animal behaviorist. Mom and Dad were up for the job back in those days but now that they are older they deserve and need an 'easy' dog like Levi. He's a sweetheart with a sweet heart.

Cooper from The Bridge

P.S. Wasn't I a cute baby. That's me in the first photo above, when I was 4 months old. The second photo is one of Levi taken a few days ago.

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Pee High, Pee Often

Mom's been busy day dreaming over house plans and hasn't taken the time to help Levi get on the computer. She gets like that sometimes---drawing blueprints has been a life-long hobby of hers. Anyway, since Mom wasn't keeping in touch, I decided to take a break from my angel duties up here at the Rainbow Bridge to keep the blog from drifting off into oblivion.

Actually, what drew my thoughts back to earth was my older brother Jason. I caught him peering down through the magic water at Mom and he was tail-wagging happy, laughing so loud a group of dogs had gathered at his side. I asked him what was so funny and he pointed down at a photo Mom had found in a box of stuff that had been in a closet for the past six years.

Jason went on to tell about how Dad was never without his 35mm camera with a long, telescopic lens back in his younger years and Dad would drive Mom crazy because he took a zillion photos of Jason leaving pee mail all over the world. They'd go on vacation and half the photos he'd come home with would be of Jason peeing on things like: "You are Entering the State of Wyoming" signs, or a tire on the biggest front end loader in the world, or a tin can in the desert.

Dad's favorite "pee mail" shot of my big brother is the one below and Mom had been looking for it for a long time. So she was happy when it turned up in the closet with a bunch of other framed photos that never got unpacked when they moved in .


I liked seeing Jason in this photo. Up here at the bridge he's a Mr. Perfect, do-good Angel Dog and it was fun to see him acting all macho in the real world. Who would have guessed he and Dad were so obsessed with pee shots? But I seriously hope Mom shows this photo to Levi. He's a year old and I'm worried about him still peeing like a little girl! That can't be normal.

Cooper

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Another Pet Food Recall

Moomie wanted me to pass the word about the peanut butter recall extending to pet products now. Click here to read all about it. Be careful, everyone!

Levi

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Happy Birthday to Me!

Today was my first birthday. Me's not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing. On the good side me's got a new avatar to replace the one on right that was taken on my adoption day when me's was three months old. Me's also got a cake and play date with my cousin. On the bad side my Moomie made me make a list of everything Levi learned last year and everything me's still needs to learn. It took forever to write!

What I learned This Year ---

To pee and poop outside. To ask to go outside and bound on the window to come inside. Me's learned what Moomie means when she says: No, sit, off, stay, heel, stand, down, up, kiss, back (walk backwards), and come---me's does that real good outside but Levi doesn't see why me's has to do it inside. Moomie can't get lost in the house. Me's can also: Shake left and right, circle left and right, bow, go through Moomie's legs left and right, play the 'which hand' game, and the 'find it' game. But my favorite lesson learned is how to eat snow.

What Me's Still Needs to Work on---

- Not to play with toads
- Not to get so excited when company comes
- Not to take off Daady's socks when it's not bedtime
- Not to bark at Mom's morning doves and squirrels
- Not to squat like a little girl to pee
- Not to take the leaves off the house plant
- Not to keep forgetting to use my "I" word when me's type. Daady never says it, why do me---oops, why do I have to do say it?
- Not to sit and bark at Moomie when she's at her computer for reasons she can't figure out. She calls it a schnauzer thing.
- How to fetch a ball. Moomie tries SO hard to teach me that but me's just doesn't see the point of that game.
- How to put myself in time out when Moomie tells me.

My Best Skills---

Me's automatically does a great sit/stay out the fall zone when my Daady transfers in and out of his wheelchair.

Me's give Daady the best goodnight kisses. First me gets a good drink of water so my beard is all wet, then me jumps on the bed when the light goes out and kisses him in the ear.


This is my cousin Ted and me taking a break from playing keep away with my favorite toy, a sock with a knot in it.


This is me investigating the cakie thing.


This is me playing the 'find it' game. Moomie puts a treat under one of the three paper cups and me's has to watch the cups go around and around before me can have the treat underneath one of the cups.


Next birthday can you all come over to play with me and Ted? Love, Levi

From my friend, Tibby!

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Tail Biting Time

This is my Daady's really, really, really old friend. His name is Donkey Footstool which is a strange name compared to mine---Levi Strauss. Notice that he has a weird bunch of hair sticking out of his butt. Moomie calls it a tail and it used to be longer and thicker.

Yesterday when my pawrents went out for lunch me's decided to turn Donkey Footstool's butt into a schnauzer butt like mine. Clean, trim and sleek.

But Moomie did not like that Levi surgically removing that tail. Can you believe that! She gathered all that hair up and spent a long time trying to put it back together again.


After Donkey Breath got his tail back, Moomie tried to get us to kiss and make up, but we didn't do it. When she wasn't listening he threaten to bite me if Levi tries to grab his tail again and me promised him next time me will hide all that hair so Moomie can't find it.


At least someone appreciates my talents even if Moomie and Donkey Breath doesn't. This award came from my friend Tibby. Thank you, Tibby!

This award came with these words: "These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

Levi is passing this award on to:

Deetz

Ruby

Shelly

Alanis

Hershey

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