What are your Yorkies' plans for July 4th?? - YorkieTalk.com Forums

bettyeanne · 06-30-2004, 03:02 AM

What do you all have planned for your baby and all the noise of the 4th? We have tried so hard to not show fear that Toto would sense when it thunders, when we turn the vacuum on, etc. She still almost jumps out of her skin when it thunders ... the vacuum on the other hand ... she would ride it if she could stay on!!

She thinks the vacuum is great fun ... and if I could teach her to push it, it could be great fun ... at least for one of us!!!

Patrick has his annual fireworks display all set and ready to go [he does this for my Mom because she enjoys it so much and for several years now her health has been so bad there isn't much she can enjoy outdoors ... so we do the cookout, fireworks, etc. as a prelude to her "Birthday week" which runs through the 8th!]! He expands it every year and I just pray that this year he and my son don't blow themselves up!!

Thank God they are very safety concious! Anyway ... for Toto I am going to hopefully have her worn out by the time the fireworks begin and I will tuck her into her carrier [that fits on the front of me] and we will just be snuggled up and hopefully it won't be too scarry for her!!

Any other suggestions??

Higgin's Mom · 06-30-2004, 04:07 AM

I think your idea of keeping her right up against you so that you can reassure her is the best idea. Pogo hates thunder and gunshots and fireworks, too, and usually comes to me for reassurance. So far, Higgins hasn't minded thunder. And if he could KILL the vacuum, he would. Not afraid of it, for sure!

My son and his fiancee are coming for the weekend and we are going to address wedding invitations for their September nuptuals. We'll have lots of good food (son Sam was a gourmet chef in another life and loves to cook for us) and get in some paddling on the lake. But THE GREAT JOY of the weekend is that Higgin's "cousin", Princess, the long-haired Chihuahua, is coming along for the visit! Those two dogs absolutely LOVE each other and they race and chase and wrestle non-stop for hours. It is so cute to see their reactions to each other when Princess gets out of the car and they put her down.....talk about JOY! When Sam and Caren go on their honeymoon, we will be babysitting for our little grandpuppy.

My first husband and a neighbor were into fireworks when our kids were little. We lived in Dallas and they used to drive out to the city limits to get MORE and MORE fireworks. These two very conservative men became absolute idiots around those things and it is a MIRACLE they didn't injure themselves or others! When we lived in Dallas, son Sam was in kindergarten and brought home a book that became his favorite: "Sam and The Firecracker Family" by James Flora. At the time, James Flora was the second most popular childrens' author after Dr. Seuss. We moved from Dallas to Connecticut and right next door to JAMES FLORA!!

The Floras' five kids were all pretty grown up, so every July 4th, Jim would knock on our door and collect our three kiddos (and us) and we would all go watch the local fireworks together. What a treat!!!
Jim also would be sitting on his porch and call our little Betsy (then 3) over and set her on his lap while he told her a story and ILLUSTRATED IT on a big sketch pad as he went along. Needless to say, she adored Jim! Jim also put our son Matt in his book "The Great Green Turkey Creek Monster", about a monster vine that takes over a town, but is driven back by a boy practicing his trombone on the front steps of his house. Guess who used to practice his trombone on the front steps of our house -- Matt. Now Matt reads that story to his own two little girls.

So July 4th has lots of memories for us! And I'm confident that Higgins will bring us some more holiday memories! I hope you all have a safe and happy Fourth!

fasteddie · 06-30-2004, 10:49 AM

Sounds like fun. We're going to Yoda's grandparents' house up in Lynnwood. They have a nice 5 acre spread with lots of places to roam. Yoda wasn't too scared of fireworks last year, but when the boys (big and small) start playing with any kind of fireworks, we're going to be sure Yoda is not anywhere near (or at least in someone's arms). Should be a fun BBQ and all-around feast. I see the weight gain already! The weather should be nice, too!

bettyeanne · 07-01-2004, 02:18 AM

Mary Ellen, sounds like the boys will have a fun-filled week-end! I know they will have a blast with Princess .... wish Toto had someone her size to play with! The snooty border collie [Missey] doesn't try to bite her anymore but still won't interact! Slowly but surely I think she is learning that Toto "isn't going away" .... here's hoping!

I'll bet it was interesting living next to James Flora [I believe Mandy had some of his books when she was small]! I plan to order some of his books for Austin & Abbi.
Pat has been "holed up" in the Casita for days working on the latest and greatest "mods"! He will surface soon I hope ... maybe we can actually have a conversation which consists of more than "Need anything from Lowe's?" "Yeah .... sure!"

Sounds like Yoda has a fun-filled week-end coming up too!! Isn't it amazing that to make our babies happy all we have to do is give them plenty of room to play, a lap for naps, water, a little food and something to chew on? Heck ... even if we don't give them something to chew on .... they will find their own!!

Higgin's Mom · 07-01-2004, 07:25 AM

Our car just came back from Home Depot -- Don's Toy Store. He doesn't have to steer any more. The car has worn a track there and back. He also has found an RV place that has lots of little fittings and stuff that are a lot cheaper than Camping World, so he is a happy ModMonster. Hey, it's better the Casita than another woman, right?

Pogo has really begun to play with Higgins now. Not a lot, but he's pretty good. The way Higgins is always in Pogo's face, if I was Pogo, I'd let him have it, but good! The old dog is pretty patient.

We had Don's brother and his whole family here yesterday for a cookout all day. They have four youngsters who were pretty good with Higgins. And Higgins was a model puppy! I am so glad we got him while we were at The Rock so he could become well socialized early.

We are taking off towards Vermont and New York bright and early Tuesday morning! I can hardly wait!!!! LOOOOOOOVE campin'!

bettyeanne · 07-02-2004, 02:24 AM

Mary Ellen ... hope you all have a safe and fun camping trip!! I know I tease Patrick about working in the Casita all the time, but you are absolutely right, they could have worse "hobbies"!

I really don't mind what he's doing so long as it makes him happy!
My sister dropped by yesterday ... for coffee & to play with Toto! She wants a little one so badly and her husband never refuses her anything ... except ... an inside pet!!

He has always been that way ... puts his foot down!! Retired Army officer who would bleed green if you cut him!!

What he doesn't know ... years ago I had a little peke-apoo that my sister absolutely adored and when he would be gone overnite little Brandy would go home with my sister for sleepovers!! Yep! Not only would she sleep over ... she slept on Larry's pillow!!

My sister tells him that when he dies she is gonna get two Yorkies .... one for each arm!!!

She is toooo funny!!!

BTW ... Patrick shot a "trial rocket" off our patio last night [just to make sure they would work well in his fireworks display]!

The thing went up 200 ft. and sounded like a bomb!!! Toto was mortified!!

Took us quite a while to calm her down ... I was furious! We have decided that she and I will watch from a great distance!!

Higgin's Mom · 07-02-2004, 02:52 AM

Awwwww....poor Toto......

We had a ripping thunderstorm last night. Really the first big thunderstorm since we've had Higgins. He was sooooo MAD! Not trembling or afraid, but growling and barking back and jumping around the bed trying to get us to get up and go get that bad man outside making all that noise!!! It was really funny.

Poor Pogo was trembling. He hates storms.

Pogo has apparently gotten something stuck in his throat and can't get it up. We have a call in to the vet now......Will keep y'all posted.

fasteddie · 07-02-2004, 08:51 AM

Try massaging Pogo's throat gently. We've had that happen a few times with Yoda. He'll be okay!

06-30-2004, 03:02 AM	#1
bettyeanne Donating YT 7000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Alabama, etc. Posts: 7,732	What are your Yorkies' plans for July 4th?? What do you all have planned for your baby and all the noise of the 4th? We have tried so hard to not show fear that Toto would sense when it thunders, when we turn the vacuum on, etc. She still almost jumps out of her skin when it thunders ... the vacuum on the other hand ... she would ride it if she could stay on!! She thinks the vacuum is great fun ... and if I could teach her to push it, it could be great fun ... at least for one of us!!! Patrick has his annual fireworks display all set and ready to go [he does this for my Mom because she enjoys it so much and for several years now her health has been so bad there isn't much she can enjoy outdoors ... so we do the cookout, fireworks, etc. as a prelude to her "Birthday week" which runs through the 8th!]! He expands it every year and I just pray that this year he and my son don't blow themselves up!! Thank God they are very safety concious! Anyway ... for Toto I am going to hopefully have her worn out by the time the fireworks begin and I will tuck her into her carrier [that fits on the front of me] and we will just be snuggled up and hopefully it won't be too scarry for her!! Any other suggestions?? __________________ Toto's Mom *http://www.dogster.com/?206581www.millbusters.com/forums* THE CRAZY CLUB http://yorkierescuecolorado.com/home.html ~ Proud Member of SRC ~"PP" ~ Tink's Friends**

07-01-2004, 02:18 AM	#4
bettyeanne Donating YT 7000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Alabama, etc. Posts: 7,732	Mary Ellen, sounds like the boys will have a fun-filled week-end! I know they will have a blast with Princess .... wish Toto had someone her size to play with! The snooty border collie [Missey] doesn't try to bite her anymore but still won't interact! Slowly but surely I think she is learning that Toto "isn't going away" .... here's hoping! I'll bet it was interesting living next to James Flora [I believe Mandy had some of his books when she was small]! I plan to order some of his books for Austin & Abbi. Pat has been "holed up" in the Casita for days working on the latest and greatest "mods"! He will surface soon I hope ... maybe we can actually have a conversation which consists of more than "Need anything from Lowe's?" "Yeah .... sure!" Sounds like Yoda has a fun-filled week-end coming up too!! Isn't it amazing that to make our babies happy all we have to do is give them plenty of room to play, a lap for naps, water, a little food and something to chew on? Heck ... even if we don't give them something to chew on .... they will find their own!! __________________ Toto's Mom *http://www.dogster.com/?206581www.millbusters.com/forums* THE CRAZY CLUB http://yorkierescuecolorado.com/home.html ~ Proud Member of SRC ~"PP" ~ Tink's Friends**

07-02-2004, 02:24 AM	#6
bettyeanne Donating YT 7000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Alabama, etc. Posts: 7,732	Mary Ellen ... hope you all have a safe and fun camping trip!! I know I tease Patrick about working in the Casita all the time, but you are absolutely right, they could have worse "hobbies"! I really don't mind what he's doing so long as it makes him happy! My sister dropped by yesterday ... for coffee & to play with Toto! She wants a little one so badly and her husband never refuses her anything ... except ... an inside pet!! He has always been that way ... puts his foot down!! Retired Army officer who would bleed green if you cut him!! What he doesn't know ... years ago I had a little peke-apoo that my sister absolutely adored and when he would be gone overnite little Brandy would go home with my sister for sleepovers!! Yep! Not only would she sleep over ... she slept on Larry's pillow!! My sister tells him that when he dies she is gonna get two Yorkies .... one for each arm!!! She is toooo funny!!! BTW ... Patrick shot a "trial rocket" off our patio last night [just to make sure they would work well in his fireworks display]! The thing went up 200 ft. and sounded like a bomb!!! Toto was mortified!! Took us quite a while to calm her down ... I was furious! We have decided that she and I will watch from a great distance!! __________________ Toto's Mom *http://www.dogster.com/?206581www.millbusters.com/forums* THE CRAZY CLUB http://yorkierescuecolorado.com/home.html ~ Proud Member of SRC ~"PP" ~ Tink's Friends** Last edited by bettyeanne; 07-02-2004 at 02:30 AM.

06-30-2004, 04:07 AM	#2
Higgin's Mom YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Florida Posts: 851	I think your idea of keeping her right up against you so that you can reassure her is the best idea. Pogo hates thunder and gunshots and fireworks, too, and usually comes to me for reassurance. So far, Higgins hasn't minded thunder. And if he could KILL the vacuum, he would. Not afraid of it, for sure! My son and his fiancee are coming for the weekend and we are going to address wedding invitations for their September nuptuals. We'll have lots of good food (son Sam was a gourmet chef in another life and loves to cook for us) and get in some paddling on the lake. But THE GREAT JOY of the weekend is that Higgin's "cousin", Princess, the long-haired Chihuahua, is coming along for the visit! Those two dogs absolutely LOVE each other and they race and chase and wrestle non-stop for hours. It is so cute to see their reactions to each other when Princess gets out of the car and they put her down.....talk about JOY! When Sam and Caren go on their honeymoon, we will be babysitting for our little grandpuppy. My first husband and a neighbor were into fireworks when our kids were little. We lived in Dallas and they used to drive out to the city limits to get MORE and MORE fireworks. These two very conservative men became absolute idiots around those things and it is a MIRACLE they didn't injure themselves or others! When we lived in Dallas, son Sam was in kindergarten and brought home a book that became his favorite: "Sam and The Firecracker Family" by James Flora. At the time, James Flora was the second most popular childrens' author after Dr. Seuss. We moved from Dallas to Connecticut and right next door to JAMES FLORA!! The Floras' five kids were all pretty grown up, so every July 4th, Jim would knock on our door and collect our three kiddos (and us) and we would all go watch the local fireworks together. What a treat!!! Jim also would be sitting on his porch and call our little Betsy (then 3) over and set her on his lap while he told her a story and ILLUSTRATED IT on a big sketch pad as he went along. Needless to say, she adored Jim! Jim also put our son Matt in his book "The Great Green Turkey Creek Monster", about a monster vine that takes over a town, but is driven back by a boy practicing his trombone on the front steps of his house. Guess who used to practice his trombone on the front steps of our house -- Matt. Now Matt reads that story to his own two little girls. So July 4th has lots of memories for us! And I'm confident that Higgins will bring us some more holiday memories! I hope you all have a safe and happy Fourth!

06-30-2004, 10:49 AM	#3
fasteddie *YT 5000 Club Member* Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 5,807	Sounds like fun. We're going to Yoda's grandparents' house up in Lynnwood. They have a nice 5 acre spread with lots of places to roam. Yoda wasn't too scared of fireworks last year, but when the boys (big and small) start playing with any kind of fireworks, we're going to be sure Yoda is not anywhere near (or at least in someone's arms). Should be a fun BBQ and all-around feast. I see the weight gain already! The weather should be nice, too!

07-01-2004, 07:25 AM	#5
Higgin's Mom YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Florida Posts: 851	Our car just came back from Home Depot -- Don's Toy Store. He doesn't have to steer any more. The car has worn a track there and back. He also has found an RV place that has lots of little fittings and stuff that are a lot cheaper than Camping World, so he is a happy ModMonster. Hey, it's better the Casita than another woman, right? Pogo has really begun to play with Higgins now. Not a lot, but he's pretty good. The way Higgins is always in Pogo's face, if I was Pogo, I'd let him have it, but good! The old dog is pretty patient. We had Don's brother and his whole family here yesterday for a cookout all day. They have four youngsters who were pretty good with Higgins. And Higgins was a model puppy! I am so glad we got him while we were at The Rock so he could become well socialized early. We are taking off towards Vermont and New York bright and early Tuesday morning! I can hardly wait!!!! LOOOOOOOVE campin'!

07-02-2004, 02:52 AM	#7
Higgin's Mom YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Florida Posts: 851	Awwwww....poor Toto...... We had a ripping thunderstorm last night. Really the first big thunderstorm since we've had Higgins. He was sooooo MAD! Not trembling or afraid, but growling and barking back and jumping around the bed trying to get us to get up and go get that bad man outside making all that noise!!! It was really funny. Poor Pogo was trembling. He hates storms. Pogo has apparently gotten something stuck in his throat and can't get it up. We have a call in to the vet now......Will keep y'all posted.

07-02-2004, 08:51 AM	#8
fasteddie *YT 5000 Club Member* Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 5,807	Try massaging Pogo's throat gently. We've had that happen a few times with Yoda. He'll be okay!