Summer Adventures
- haidinyak
- Aug 25, 2019
- 16 min read
Summer means lots of fun to be had and Zeus has been enjoying his first summer with our family and friends a lot! We've been keeping him busy with lots of parties, carnivals, cottages, and hiking adventures. He's been enjoying meeting all kinds of people and being a great ambassador for the breed to the point that every place we go someone always walks away saying they want a bulldog. Of course we make sure to educate people on how his training and constant socializing is key to a good boy, but I'm always proud he makes the breed look good and our hard work with training has paid off. This exact thing happened at our first adventure this summer which happened to be a Canada Day party at Kelly and Steve's house. We ended up getting Zeus a little outfit for the big day, a Mountie hat and bandanna which I thought, and maybe I am biased but, he looked super cute in!
He loved showing his outfit off to everyone and he loved running around to greet everyone that came to the party. One of the couples at the party who enjoyed Zeus' visit walked away saying they want to get a Bulldog now. They really liked how calm and social he was but again we made sure they knew about the training that is involved. While at the party Zeus' friend Latte and Abby had cute little outfits on as well so we took them on a walk around the block in a mini Canada Day parade. Zeus lead the way looking very proud and the people we passed all got excited and commented on the dog's outfits. They were a hit!
While Zeus has lots of fun and enjoys his visits so much, his buddies Latte and Abby are not as fond of Zeus. They are okay for the first little while, tolerant, but after a bit they started to get a little grumpy and growl at him. Zeus, being a Bulldog, thinks when they growl and bark at him that he needs to push them more and that they are playing and he tries very hard to get them to chase him, so we do have to give the dogs their space with time outs, but in the end everyone had fun at the party.
Our next big adventure was a dog carnival! The TAGS rescue group (The Animal Guardian Society - https://animalguardian.org/how-to-help/adopting-a-rescue/adoptable-pets/) put on a fundraiser event by throwing a carnival for dogs to attend. There was an agility ring, a dock diving area, lots of booths to check out with lots of treats to try, cooling zones, and a snack area for owners too. We first tried walking around some booths and checked out some of the goodies and we ended up buying a bag of fresh treats for the guys to enjoy. We also were able to meet our friends Kelly, Latte, and Abby there so we could cheer Latte on while she showed off her dock diving skills! This little Dachshund can really motor in the water, and although she makes swimming look easy Zeus did not want to try the big scary pool out.
Zeus decided instead he would just wade into the kiddie pool at the cooling zone where he could get lots of attention from the guests and make some new friends with less effort.
While we were waiting for Latte to get through the line for the pool we took Zeus over to the snack area for a rest. It was a hot day so Zeus would hide under the picnic tables in the shade until someone wanted to visit him. Well, he was so excited to have attention that his little head would poke out for a pet which made everyone laugh. He really has the silliest and biggest personality, I love bringing him out to events and having him brighten everyone's day with laughs and smiles.
After a nice break we decided to check out the agility ring where they had some celebrity guest dogs showing off their skills and tricks. One such dog was a Bulldog named Eleanor. She was so cute in her little outfit for the carnival, and of course Zeus wanted to meet her. It was love at first smushy Bulldog face sight! The two hit it off and became friends, and it was nice to talk to another Bulldog owner who was into rescue. It was also neat to see what a size difference Zeus is compared to a regular Bulldog full grown. I hope to see them again for a play date but for now we are friends over social media so we can enjoy all their silly Bulldog antics. You can find her on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/eleanor_the_bulldog/
Once the dogs had their fun we decided it was time to go home and out of the heat. I've noticed that Zeus just can't handle the heat well even though he does not have the same breathing issues as a regular Bulldog, so we only go for short periods of time outside and then back into the A/C to rest. We are very cautious to make sure our guys do not overheat in the summer and Zeus is always happy to be back home and to his couch after a fun day out.
Our next big adventure was the family taking vacation time together. We decided to enjoy both my family cottage and Mike's family cottage. I always tell the guys they are lucky and so spoiled to be part of a family with two cottages to enjoy and I'm sure they understand as they always wink at me afterwards. One at Georgian Bay in the Township of Tiny: (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sawlog+Bay,+ON+L9M+0B2/@44.8583161,-79.9626466,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4d2ae08182766adb:0x86ab954e1667cdc0!8m2!3d44.858318!4d-79.945137)
One up in the Kawartha's on Lake Kushog: (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kushog+Lake/@45.0918645,-78.809865,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4cd59f714b880519:0x48e08faa6a7d5855!8m2!3d45.0918664!4d-78.7923554).
First one we went to was my cottage for a few days. The guys always enjoy their time there because we usually have family with us so there is always someone to play with and pet the dogs. This year my dad got the guys a new giant ball to play with which Zeus loved! He would chase that thing like crazy and just when you thought he was about the catch it he would roll over top of it and chase it back the other way. It was hilarious to watch and great to tire him out.
Once Zeus was done chasing his ball he would be very hot so we would take the dogs down to the beach for a swim and to cool off. The guys were able to enjoy some time together at the beach and Ares would try to get Zeus out in the water, but with no luck. Our little guy just isn't sure when it comes to the water and he doesn't like being unable to touch the bottom. He loves to chase sticks into the water and fetch them but we have to make sure not to throw them too far. If the water touches Zeus' face he doesn't like it and backs up without his stick and just looks longingly at it until Ares goes and saves it. Then once Ares has the stick back on land Zeus rushes in and takes it from him and back to the safety of the beach. Ares doesn't seem to mind and this was another great way to tire out both dogs. We did have Zeus try out his life jacket but he didn't really like it. We tried to get him into the water by gently lifting him up and carrying him out just enough so that he would be floating, however, he just wasn't having it and even pushed up so fast he knocked me backwards and into the water myself, clothes and all. Yes we laugh about it now but at the time it was so embarrassing!
At the end of the day we would all relax by the fire. Zeus and Ares both just lay in the leaves behind us and next to the fire. Thankfully both dogs are really good about staying on the property so we only put them inside once the bugs became too much for them. Although we had lots and lots of fun at the cottage we also had some downs. The bugs were really bad this year, to the point where we would often get fed up and just hang out inside. There is lots of mosquitoes and horse flies that just tormented the dogs. To combat this I make sure the guys always have their yearly shots and I also make sure to bring up bug spray specifically for them. I use a horse fly spray we buy from Greenhawk (https://greenhawk.com/) and also a spray we buy from Ren's (https://www.renspets.com) that is all natural. These help more for the mosquitoes and regular flies I found, but every little bit helps. The guys don't really enjoy getting sprayed with the stuff so we try to only use it when needed. The time up at the cottage went quickly and, before we knew it, we were headed home to freshen up for the next trip to Mike's family cottage.
Mike's cottage is a little different then mine in the sense that it is on a lake. This was a concern because the water is very deep right off the dock and I didn't want Zeus to get excited if people were swimming and try and go off the edge. We did have his life jacket with us so the deal was:
a) he wore his life jacket and he was free to walk around, as Zeus had proven to us he is great with staying on the property off leash or
b) if he had no life jacket then he had to keep his long lead leash on to make sure he couldn't reach the deep water.
I did take him out to the dock a few times with just his harness on so that I could take a few photos and see how he liked being out there. He did great so long as there was no distractions and I kept a firm grasp on that harness handle just in case. Zeus really liked being able to lay and sun tan with Ares out there.
Again we had my family and friends up so even more people to tire the dogs out with cuddles and play and again we brought his new favourite toy the giant blue ball.
This really as a life saver for tiring out Zeus and we were thankful for it because the bugs were really bad up on the road away from the water. They were so bad in fact that Zeus flat out refused to go for his walks. He just does not handle the bugs well at all, our cute little city dog. Some nights we just let the dogs stay inside cuddled on the couch or close together on the floor to avoid the bugs while we had a fire. As long as they were together they were okay and it reminds me a lot of how Ares and Titan used to be up there and again I can't help but wonder if Titan's made his way back to us a little bit.
The last night at the cottage was just Mike, the dogs, and I and we ended up watching a movie after the fire. Little Zeus was so tired out from his weekend that he just climbed right up on my lap, curled up cuddled in my arms, and slept the whole movie that way. When we first brought him home as a pup he used to do that all the time and it was nice to see he hasn't grown up that much yet.
All too soon it was time to leave and we were back on the road headed home with some tuckered out pooches. The day after getting home Zeus slept the whole day right to 4pm and Ares stayed in his bed until 5pm before they even thought about a little walk. I just love knowing our guys had so much fun!
After a few days of being at home and enjoying our normal routines we were headed up to my families cottage again. Not for as long but to get some more beach time in. We ended up stopping half way in a town called Orillia.
This was a place we were thinking of moving to (should my job not have changed our plans) and decided to check out the area a little bit. One area of this town where we looked at houses had a dog park called Calyt French Park (https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Clayt+French+Park/@44.6079559,-79.4609342,136m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4d2aaeeafa7a0077:0xe3817f349fc45ad7!8m2!3d44.6079549!4d-79.460387?hl=en). Of course we couldn't pass up on the opportunity to check it out. Now, I am a little hesitant with the dog parks because I don't want my guys being attacked while there as I've had many run-ins with people not listening to the on leash/off leash rules and their dogs not being so friendly, and I never want my guys to learn those behaviours. So we checked out the park first and made sure the boys were comfortable going in and once I felt sure they would be okay we let the leashes off and let them run around and just be dogs. There was another Dane, a Golden Retriever, a Boarder Collie, a small Chihuahua mix dog, and a Lab. The guys were great with all of them and Zeus was exceptionally good with everyone. This made me so happy as we have had those instances where he would push the other dogs to rough house with him which would often upset the other dogs and they would attack him, which made me nervous to let him play in the parks. One of the best parts about stopping at the park was when Zeus befriended the Chihuahua dog who was missing an eye and he was very nervous around most dogs. Zeus was so calm and just enjoying rolling around that the little dog felt comfortable enough to let his guard down and enjoy some fun with his new friend. The owners couldn't believe it and I wish we could of stayed longer with them but after a hot twenty minutes we carried on to the cottage with the guys enjoying the A/C in the truck. This time we invited our friends Kelly, Steve, Latte, and Abby up. They came for the day and the dogs were all able to enjoy some cottage hikes and swimming together. Latte showed off her swimming skills and tried to play fetch. Unfortunately Zeus had other plans and thought it would be fun to wait until she got the toy out of the deeper water, then he would take it from her and run it up on to the beach. At one point he even held onto her life jacket and pulled poor Latte out of the water toy and all!
In the end I think they all had a blast and were well tired out and so we were able to end the night with another relaxing campfire. On this cottage trip we did try to get Zeus and Garrett together with Mike holding Zeus' leash. It wasn't great but it was better then last time. We noticed that Zeus was very intense coming towards Garrett which made Garrett growl, which would then set off Zeus and it would result in the two going at each other. Slowly we are piecing the puzzle together in the hopes of making it work as Garrett insists on coming over to visit us every chance he gets.
Once we were done with the cottage we headed back into the city for the final weekend of our holidays together as a family. Kelly and Steve had invited us to a party with a Gilligan Island theme and asked if we could bring Zeus again, so of course I said yes and knew he needed another outfit. First we tried to find Zeus a Hawaiian shirt from the pet stores, but with no luck, they just didn't have his size any more. Next was a large child's shirt from Wal-Mart, but again no luck, it just didn't fit around his big chest. This breed has a very wide chest so it was hard to get both of his legs into the arm holes of the shirt. Determined as ever we looked online and found one that said it was made special for large dogs with deep chests like Boxers, Golden Retrievers, and Labs. We went with the XL size and when the shirt arrived I was so excited to try it on. The shirt fit better then any we had tried before as it did fit around him, we just could not do up or the shirt would be to tight around Zeus' thick neck. Zeus still rocked his shirt anyways and was a hit at the party.
He did his usual meet and greet of everyone and made the breed look awesome. There was only one hiccup at the end of the night. As always and as I've said before Latte and Abby sometimes get a bit tired of Zeus and his puppy energy, and as always Zeus was trying to get them to play by play bowing and jumping towards them then running away in an attempt to get them to chase him. At one point though the two girls decided they just were not having it and ended up growling and running at Zeus to which he, I think, took as a challenge and he went back at them, so we had to break the dogs apart for time outs. I felt so bad about that and going forward we will have to be careful about Zeus pushing his limits. Everyone was okay and Zeus was trying to get them to play through the glass door after the time out so we ended the night a little early to give the dogs a break apart to relax. Even though we had that one small upset we all had a fun night with lots of fun photos so hopefully we can try again for the next dress up party.
For the most part, the summer so far has been lots of fun and full of adventures and new challenges. The one thing we did not expect was an unwanted eye issue and a few vet visits. At some point during our holidays Zeus started to have an issue with his eye. We first noticed it in the truck on the way to my cottage the second time. He was squinting and his eye was watering so we got worried he hurt it or got something stuck in it so we ended up pulling over and checking him out. Once he was out of the truck he seemed okay and his eye went back to normal so our thought was maybe the AC being on constantly was drying his eye out because he sits right in line with it. We didn't notice another issue with it until we got home but again it seemed to clear up just as quickly as it came on. The third time we noticed it we knew it was now a vet visit issue so off we went to see Dr. Holmes and figure out what was going on. We started the appointment with a look in the eye to make sure there are no holes or scratches. The Dr. applies something called Fluorescein which is an orange stain that is applied to the cornea to reveal corneal lesions. Once the stain is applied to the eye, the excess is rinsed off, and the remainder turns fluorescent green. The stain adheres to any areas where the surface layer of the cornea is missing and where the underlying layer has been exposed. Before Dr. Holmes was able to apply the stain Zeus insisted he sniff it first so there was some stain on his nose. Of course Zeus decided this would be a good time to sneeze and he promptly sneezed right into my face. We laughed about this which helped us relax as I was a bit stressed over what was going on with my poor guy. Leave it to my goofy boy to make sure mom is feeling okay even when he is not. The vet didn't end up seeing anything damaged but did notice he had an eye infection so Zeus was given eye drops called Isathal Eye Gel and instructions to apply them twice a day. Off we went after paying $81 for this unexpected visit ($17.50 for the stain, $32.08 for the gel drops, $31.50 for the brief exam).
Zeus was a very good boy about letting me put the drops in his eyes until the third day when he started to give us a fight about opening his eyes for the drops. This time when I applied the drop it seemed to sting his eye right away, he shook his head and pawed at his eye and then I got really concerned when he squeezed his eye shut tight and refused to open it. He was not a happy puppy and Zeus is always a happy puppy so my dog mom sense went into high alert. I felt so bad for the little tyke who always acts so tough, so the next morning a call went out to the vet for another visit.
Our vet got us in right away and again we got the Fluorescein stain in the eye, but having learned my lesson from the first visit I stood behind Zeus so I would not get sneezed on again. From where I was standing this time however, I could tell by the vet's face that he didn't have good news. Dr. Holmes realized Zeus was having an allergic reaction to the eye drops we had been given and it had made Zeus' eye itchy. So, at some point Zeus had attempted to scratch his face and ended up scratching his sclera (the white part of the eye). Not the news I wanted, my heart sank and I just snuggled my tough little guy up. The vet staff were very good about making sure his eye was cleaned out thoroughly and to check that he didn't have anything stuck in there to scratch it again. Then Zeus was given new drops called Ocuflox. These drops stop bacterial eye infections in their tracks and give dogs quick relief from pain, swelling, itching, and discomfort. This time the drops are to be applied every two hours for twenty-four hours and after that he gets the drops four times a day and a re-check at the vet in two days. The vet gave Zeus his first drops at the office to make sure they didn't give him any reaction and he wasn't in any pain. Because of the first drops bothering Zeus so much I think he gave us a bit of a harder time with the new ones, and the first drops were gel and easier to know if we got it into his eye so we only held him for a quick moment where as the new ones are actual liquid drops and require a more careful application to make sure we get it in the eye so we are holding Zeus longer which he doesn't like. This visit we were only charged for the new medication ($37.85) and not for another exam fee and a note was put on Zeus' file about his allergy for future visits. We have had our first follow up to make sure the new eye drops are working properly and there is no other allergic reactions. The vet felt good about the progress so far and asked us to keep up with the eye drops four times a day until Friday when we will have another follow up. Again, there was no charge for this visit today, just lots of loves and treats for Zeus.
Friday was the same routine, a quick check up to make sure Zeus' healing was on track. From what we saw the scratch is healing well but his eyes are still red and sore so we are to keep giving him the drops until we again go back on the Thursday. Thankfully, Zeus is still very playful with Ares and us and he isn't letting the injury keep him from having a good appetite, so just a slight set back for his summer fun. He's such a little trooper!
All in all, a good summer so far with just a minor set back. Once Zeus is all fixed up I'm sure his summer adventures will continue and we will have another fun update for you heading into the fall. In the meantime I will leave you with some more cute videos and photos of Zeus enjoying some summertime fun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiqf2uxFMR4&t=30s - Playing with bubbles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSdS4mN7TRI - Playing in the water with Ares slow
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7Szz92ST1k - Love these dogs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQ2OIwU7CR4 - Playing with the blue ball
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jn5NXrzHopw - Slow-mo over the blue ball
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