Recovery time

So I can't remember if this was the first or second cruciate ligament surgery.

I think probably the second time (since this is still winter of 2006).

Frito was running through the snow and stepped into a swail that he couldn't see under the snow.

But he was such a good trooper, and fully recovered from both surgeries.

And look how adorable and cute he was with his little blue cast.  Awwwwww.

Shaggy

Looks like someone is getting a little shaggy.

It's still winter of 2006, so there's no reason to get a haircut.

Frito had so many "looks" depending on the length of his fur.

But no matter what, he was always adorable.

Winter snow blowers

Jumping ahead another year to 2006.

Alpha's all set to snow blow the driveway.

And Frito (who is now 5 years old) is ready to blow through all the snow as well.

He sure could fly!

Bundled up

Alli, why are we all bundled up?

Oh, now I see!

Frito really loved the snow as a young pup (this was early 2005, so he was still 4 years old).

He would just bound through the snow, and end up with snow balls clinging to his furry legs.

But he didn't mind.

Who's your teddy bear?

What a fuzzy teddy bear.  (I'm talking about Frito ;-)

It's winter time, so we're letting his fur get a little bit longer (now it's 2005).

Tell me that isn't the cutest guy you ever saw.   (Yes, I'm still talking about Frito ;-)

Loungin' with Alli

Frito sure loved his girl.

Here he is resting his head on Alli's feet up at the cottage.

This was the summer  of 2004, so Frito was 4 and Alli would have been 17 (never do math in public ;-) 

And here they are taking out some friends in Big Bertha.  

Frito really loved the boat, especially if Alli was there with him.

Snoozin' on the command chair

Ah yes, the "command chair".

This is the chair my Mom had in Florida, and she used to sit in it and (politely) tell people what to do ;-)

Frito loved this chair, and if anyone was reclining in it, he would immediately jump up to sleep with them.

Apparently, even if no one was reclining in it ;-)

Picking wild blueberries with Mom

Another one of Frito's favorite activities when he was up at the cottage was hiking up Mt. Kearsarge.

Here he is halfway up the mountain helping Mom scope out the wild blueberries.

Fresh air, moderate exercise, and healthy snacks -- what else can one ask for?

Can we play now?

Here is Frito asking "what's next?"

Like all kids (he's just 4 here), if he's not sleeping, he wants to be playing (or eating ;-)

Look at his luscious fur and beautiful puppy eyes.

What a cutie pie!

Lounge puppy

Here is Frito lounging at the cottage (in 2004, when he was 4 years old).

It was one of his favorite spots to relax.

Now he's wondering when the masseuse is going to show up.

He needed to keep that fluffy fur all soft and curly, and a vigourous rubbing never hurt.

But the real secret was what Tucker Pond water did for his hair.

It's like magic ;-)

Wanna play tug-o-war?

This was also in 2004.  Frito loved to play tug-o-war with his knot rope that we kept up at the cottage.

He was viscious, and we often worried about hurting his teeth.

But we never did, as far as we know.

Frito just about always won the tug-o-war.

He was such an animal ;-)

Crazy for acorns

This was back in 2004, before surgery on both of his hind legs for torn cruciate ligaments, one of which came from this little sport.

We used to roll big juicy acorns down the road or driveway, and Frito would go tearing after them.

Frito was fast, and quick, and able to shift directions quickly no matter how the acorn bounced.

This quick direction change is was did his leg in.

But boy how he loved his acorns. He used to catch them in his mouth and crack them open. And then wait for us to throw him another one. You can see one of his acorns next to him.

Frito was an awesome athlete.

How much is that doggie in the window

So I wonder how much this 2004 doggie-in-the-window would now cost?

It would be worth every penny, whatever it was.

Speaking of the boat

So here's Frito riding in the boat.  He always loved to do that.

Carol's giving him a hug in the back of the boat.  The is from 2003.

Here the wind has blown his hair around, and it looks like he's got a pompadour.

My mariner buddy.

Happy B-day Alpha

Well it looks like Frito is not the only young pup around.

These photos are from July 2003, so 9 years ago.  That would make Frito 3 years old.

And as for Alpha and Mom -- well, I'm not telling.

These photos were taken at Tucker Pond.

Frito just loved the time he was able to spend up there, swimming, riding in the boat, and taking walks around the pond.

What a cutie pie

Awww, look at the cutie pie.

Such a young looking pup (this was from 2007, so Frito was 7 years old).

I can hear him now ... "So are we going for a walk?  Huh? Are we?  Come on, let's go!

Remembering Frito Crisp (2000-2012)

Well, there's no way around it -- this is a sad day.  

Frito had to be put to sleep yesterday.  It was peaceful, it was quick, and Frito was comfortable and we were both with him.  And we are certain we did the right thing for Frito.

In the past few days, Frito had declined very dramatically, and had been recently diagnosed with dementia, in addition to all of his other conditions.  He was also in distress for the last couple of days, and unable to get comfortable for any length of time.  We suspect he had internal bleeding, among other things.

But as sad as this news is, we also wish to celebrate his life, and remember all of the love that he gave to his family (and that he received from his family), as well as his many acquaintances along the way.

Frito added great joy to many lives, and we wish to remember him as the cute and funny and active dog that he was, and not just the recent challenges and illnesses that he faced.

So with your permission, and because I still have quite a few photos of Frito on my computer (a couple back to 2003), I thought we would continue posting some of these oldies but goodies and help us remember all of the great times we had together.

So here's to Don Frito el Bandito Crisp -- the best dog in the world, and perhaps the most loved, and certainly most photographed pooch around.

Frito, we miss you, and we love you, and we will always remember you!

Dog Breath

Alpha says I have "dog breath".

What does he expect?  Cat breath?  Well 'duh!

Alpha also say's it doesn't smell very good.

In fact I think the words he used is "OMG Frito, your breath reeks".

I though he said my breath rocks.  I can get behind that.

But is it really so much of a price to pay when you can get such great shots of my nose and tongue?

I'd say it's a good deal for you all.

And a pretty good deal for Alpha too.

After all, he got to have me lay on his chest while he was sunning in the yard.

So stop your whining Alpha.

Snoozin' on the cool grass

It was pretty warm on this day.

But Alpha found me a nice spot in the shade, and as you can see, I took great advantage of it.

I had my little outdoor mat to sleep on, but I chose instead the nice cool grass.

You humans may have a different idea, but I think this must be Heaven (doesn't that look peaceful?)

Let's go macro

That means focusing close and capturing lots of detail.

Even a little wildflower for me to admire.

Very, very close.  With perhaps just a bit too much detail.

But hey, it's my noble nose and you are very lucky.

Lookin' Good!

Hey, look at us.  

Out for a walk and struttin' our stuff.

I'd say we are ... Lookin' Good!

Prettier flowers

Now these are some prettier flowers than yesterday.

And I think I'm looking pretty adorable as well.

(If I do say so myself ;-)

Maybe it's time to mow?

Ground level in my yard.  Things are looking a little shaggy.

Our landlord must not realize that I'm just a little pup.

And these flowers are interfering with my walk-abouts.

Doin' the walk-about

So, I have a new "thing" that I'm doin' lately.

It's called the "walk-about".

When I no longer want to snooze, I get up and just ... start ... walking.

I never leave the yard.  But I just keep going around and around.

I will come over to say "hi" when someone else is in the yard, but after that, back to walking.

What can I say -- sometimes old dogs do learn new tricks ;-)

Self portrait

Lounging in the yard.  

Alpha shows up with a camera and sets the self-timer.

Voila!  A self portrait of moi.

Dunno why the other guy is there ;-)

So here's how yesterday's walk started

Yeah, so Alpha carried me this far, and then thought I would start walking with him.

We're still in our own yard (hee, hee)

Such a silly boy.

Doesn't he know I can play a good mule when I want to?

And if needed, I'll just lay down and see if he plans to drag me along on the walk ;-)

Turns out, I made him carry me all the way over the railroad tracks to our hillside walking trail.

Sometimes I'm such a stinker ;-)

Now that's a sunset

Alpha had to pretty much drag me around on this walk.

I was soundly sleeping on the sofa, and apparently he decided I needed some exercise.

Well, lucky for him it was a beautiful evening.

And lucky for you, he made sure I was in this picture (hee, hee).

Happy Independence Day!

How's this for showing off my independence?

I can still outrun Alpha (by a lot) and I'm 84 dog-years old!  Listen to how winded he sounds.

It's been a couple weeks since I ran like this, and truth-be-told I'm facing more health challenges today ...

But that's pretty impressive if I do say so myself.

An indoor runway too

And I don't confine my running to outdoors -- indoor is just fine and dandy for me too!

In fact, this is my new routine after a bath.  I used to go rollin', rollin', rollin' on a towel.

Now I just take off like a banshee and run back and forth, bouncing off one or more sofas.

Alpha has no idea what is going on with me, and I kinda like it that way (hee, hee).

And see how fast I can run

After walking around the garden (Alpha was not quick enough to capture that on film), I decided to run like a banshee.

Ha, ha, no one can catch me!

A better walkway (and runway)

So the 'rents concluded that I was to blame for a couple of broken sunflowers.

Then they figured out it was really their own fault becuase they had blocked my runway with flower pots.

So they finally got the bright idea to move the pots to the corners and edges of the garden wall.

Now I can finally walk around the wall again without having to jump into the garden.

Well, 'duh!

And everything still looks all pretty with the flowers.

Plus you can have me as an added attraction.

Now that's the way to make a good looking picture.