A new game

Calvin and Henry's relationship has been a stormy one. Henry has no shortage of personality and preferences, and he really wants nothing to do with Calvin. Calvin, however, thinks Henry is the best thing ever and wants nothing more than to be near him. Most of the day consists of Calvin chasing Henry and Henry running away. Until this morning.

Henry drug his towel out of the kennel and began pulling it around the living room, as per the norm. Calvin crawled after him and body sprawled across the towel. Henry grabbed the corner and pulled it, dragging Calvin along with the towel until he managed to get away. Calvin was absolutely cracking up. This continued, off and on, for several hours. I finally decided to try to record it. It's the first time I've actually seen them really play together on their own and it was darling.

Happy Birthday Henry!

A very happy FIFTH Birthday to our dear pup, Henry!

Here is a little picture tribute to the many places our little guy has adventured with us:

The day we picked him up, when he was eight weeks old - so small and sweet!

Sleeping with Matt.

Four months old, rolling around in the laundry.

Playing fetch on the Oregon coast.

Braving the windy gales at the Golden Gate Bridge.

Boating at Green Lake.

Hanging out on the Jersey Shore.

Surveying his kingdom at the golf course behind our house in New Jersey.

As powerful as the Washington Monument ;).

Hanging out on the Butte overlooking Lake Chelan.

The Green Lake on Highway Two ... I can't remember what it's actually called.

On the ferry to the San Juan Islands.

Hiking and camping in Southern California.

Hating the snow sticking in his paws during a winter in Princeton.

Catching the frisbee like the awesome dog he is.


Obviously Henry will never see this, but it was fun to remember how much this little guy has done with us - a cross country move, all kinds of different trips, and the addition of little Calvin. What a great dog he is! Those who know and love Henry have learned to appreciate his many eccentricities.

The rules of Henry's life:
* I like to hump my towel, especially when I am not getting enough attention
* Don't pet me when I'm begging for food.
* Leave me alone, I want to sleep - that is why I have left the room
* You can only fight me with one hand
* Don't touch my paw ... or my nails
* Yes, you may bathe and groom me ... but I will expect payment afterwards
* One day I will win and the vacuum cleaner will die
* Other dogs are not invited in. I am a lone child.
* If I hear a knock or anything else suspicious I will bark ... even though I know I'm not supposed to.
* All squirrels must die.
* I prefer to walk at a brisk pace ... try to keep up.
* Please throw my frisbee low and accurately or I will not bring it back.
* The front seat of the car is mine ... whether you are there or not.
* Treats are desired often and in large quantities.

These are just a few of the "Henry things" we have grown to love. As, I know, have many of you! Happy birthday big boy - what a blessing you have been to us!

For those who miss Henry

We had three videos ... Henry pouncing on a bone ... Henry pouncing on his Heartguard ... and this is Henry pouncing on his flea pill. I think it's my favorite.

Henry ate chocolate

Matthew's mother and husband are here this weekend. 

Sweet Donna showed up at our place Thursday with a tray of enchiladas and a box full of chocolate-creamy-peanut bars. She flew here. Part of the reason I love her. 

We went out to dinner that night, leaving the box of brownies closed and on the kitchen table. I'm sure you're beginning to see the writing on the wall. 

Two hours later we arrive home to a happy puppy ... and notice that the box that was on the table is now on the floor ... and half gone. We then notice that Henry is not walking so much as he is WADDLING. He was SO FAT. His stomach was sticking out to the side an extra two inches, out the bottom an extra inch and was rock hard. 

So of course I begin freaking out because of the sheer volume of fatty people food he has just eaten plus the fact that it is chocolate, which we all know is very bad for dogs. I got on the phone with the doggie ER (because of COURSE it's after hours so now we can't go to our regular vet) and they say we need to bring him in immediately. 

At the ER they gave him an injection to make him puke and kept him there puking for two hours before we could have him back. He seemed happy as a little clam afterwards! So that apparently got all of the chocolate out of his system. But not the nuts!!! Sorry if this is too graphic ... yesterday was the day of puking up PILES of nuts. It was ridiculous. After seeing that, we actually concluded that he probably ate a lot more than we thought he did. My dog is a glutton. 

He's better today. Still not eating regular food, and still throwing up a bit, but not a big fatty anymore, and alive which is all I care about in the end (that's what I tell myself to think about instead of our hospital bill). So that's our tale of the week. Matt wanted me to post a picture of the pile of peanut puke, but I'm not sure that's in good taste. 

No pun intended. 

Happy Birthday Henry!!!!

Well, the Hen turned three on Saturday ... our little Valentine puppy! I can't believe we've had the blessing of his sweet furry-ness for three years! (of course, I say that to Matt and he replies that it seems a lot longer to him, but whatever). Anyways, since we've been lacking in blog posts lately, here are some pictures of little Henry through the years.

I told Matt the other day that I think it's important for us to have kids soon so that Henry will start to receive a "normal" amount of dog attention. Between Matt, Andy, and me Henry has become accustomed to a certain lifestyle. Again, Matt responds by saying Henry will probably eat our firstborn. I disagree.

The first day we got him, at 8 weeks ... 

He's been lots of places! Henry on Wall Street. 

This is one of the reasons why he's the coolest dog ever. 

In front of the National Monument

I love this picture. He looks so mad. 

Matt's experiment ... can you see the mohawk? 

Looking Lion-esque in Chelan

On the Oregon coast 

The Disease

Henry has the lyme disease.

I blame this entirely on New Jersey.

Let this be an informative little piece of information for all dog owners in areas with ticks ...

We took Henry in to the vet last week for his yearly checkup. I got wonderful lady vet this time, who mentioned he had never had blood drawn to test for heart disease and lyme. I said, great - please test him. She called later to say that he had tested negative for heart disease (thank goodness, since that is virtually uncurable), but positive for lyme.

The next step was to take him in to have more blood drawn (he loved that - it was about the same response he has to us cutting his nails). They test the blood and give you a number between 1-300 to let you know how much of the bacteria they have in their little bodies. Henry came back a 190.

As I am about to hyperventilate, the vet informs me that most dogs are carriers of the lyme bacteria, and that it is a very simple and usually effective treatment to give them three weeks of antibiotics, regardless of their number. We've just started him on that, and will have to have his blood taken again in 6 months to make sure the number is below 30 or gone entirely.

At any rate, I would just like to say, as someone who is a little obsessed with her dog ... that we are pretty religious about putting on his Frontline every month on the correct day. So he has had the strongest tick protection available, and he still got this. If your dog has ever had a tick, ask your vet to draw their blood and test for lyme. Apparently most dog owners have no idea until the dog is symptomatic.

Anyways, if it's not ridiculous to ask for prayers for a puppy ... I just really want this to go away and not be an issue. Of course, Henry has no idea and is just happy that he gets an extra treat every day with his pills ;).

Awww ...

I was looking through some of our old pictures of Henry today ... looking at them made me smile, so I thought I'd share! These are from his first day with us, he's 8 weeks old.

He's so stinking cute ... ;)

Henry's Birthday Treat

Just for fun ...

On Henry's 2nd Birthday this year we gave him a special meat filled bone. He pounced on it like a mad man. After a couple minutes I went and got the camera to capture the end. Enjoy.

Vote for Henry!

So on a whim one day I decided to enter this great picture of Henry that Matt took in a contest. All I could find was this kind of unprofessional looking cutest pet thing online. After not hearing anything for several months, I got an email back a couple weeks ago saying that Henry is a semi-finalist and that voting would open soon and then the winners announced in June. Today I got an email to vote for Henry! It's kind of bizarre, because it doesn't seem to give any confirmation that your vote went through and it also seems you can vote as many times as you like. Who knows. This could be really weird, but there's always the chance it's not and the prize is $1,000-5,000 CASH. So vote! I mean, he truly is the cutest pet right? ;) 

To vote, go to: www.cutestpetcontest.com  

Then there should be a bar along the top right where you enter my name and it will take you to the photo. Happy voting! 

The one they call Henry

The Kaemingk family blog wouldn't be complete without a little introduction to Henry, our much loved little cocker spaniel. Henry just turned two on Valentine's Day (ahhh). Here are just a few pictures to give you a sense of the fullness of his adorableness and lovability.

Our all time favorite -


Catching the frisbee


Looking all tough in front of the National Monument in DC


Sweet and cuddly in his towel


The first day we got him ...


I'm sure many more pictures will come over time :)