Pedigrees and parents. My emotional trauma.

I'm going to get this out in the open. I don't want some tabloid to come along and find the story and splash it all over the news stands and TV like they did the "John Edwards cheating on his wife" story or the "Elliot Spitzer scandal."

I do not want my family shamed like that. I refuse to put them through such pain. I love them too much. So, here goes.

I found out that Hoppy and I are actually half brother and sister. We have the same father. Can you believe that? Let me explain.

My parents showed me my pedigree once and my bio parents' names were Hot Chocolate (mom) and Badger (dad). When I was a little bitty puppy, I loved them so much...especially my dad. He was (and still is) a gorgeous lab. Here's a picture of him that my human dad took the day they came out to see our litter.


OMG!!!! Hoppy looks just like Badger! And no wonder, Badger is his dad, also. I don't look like my dad. I probably look like my mom, but we don't have any pictures of her.

What, you ask, is so bad about being Hoppy's half sister? Can't you see what this means? Can't you read between the sleazy lines?

My dad (bio dad) went out and cheated on my mom (bio mom)! And I thought they were so happy together. They produced a beautiful litter of 13 of the cutest puppies. That would be me and my 12 littermates. Here we are at about 5 weeks old.


I'm devastated now that I found out that he cheated on my mom with some female named Melee or Jada or whatever. That's where Hoppy came from. I saw it on his pedigree.

Well, I talked to my mom....my human mom.....and she said that I should just let it go. She said that dogs aren't like humans, and often times they do things like this, so it is okay. And that I should love Hoppy even more because we are blood related.

Oh geez. Okay, I'll love him, but, Hoppy, don't ask me to donate a kidney!

See you on the dock,
Sally, the FIRE in Team Fire and Ice
Proud Member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Well, he's here. This "Hoppy" thing is here.

Okay, folks. I'll just put his photo up first thing. Here he is. This is Hoppy.


My mom and dad brought him home yesterday. I heard them talking about how they got him from our breeder, Sumo Labradors. It seems someone bought him from one of the litters last year, but now they don't want him any longer. So they brought him back to the breeder. She called my mom and dad because she knew they were interested in a dark yellow (fox red) Lab. And that's how they got Hoppy.

Well, let's get a few things cleared up here. Let's get all the cards out on the table.

First of all, I found out where that ridiculous name "Hoppy" came from. (Personally, I thought they were getting us a rabbit with a name like that.) For you old people, you might remember a cowboy that starred in the movies way back in the last century...way back when movies were black and white. His name was Hopalong Cassidy. Well, my dad is one of those old people, and he remembers this cowboy dude and used to idolize Hopalong Cassidy when he was a little boy. (Why couldn't he idolize a real star like Rin Tin Tin or Lassie?)

Oh well, in the movies, Hopalong Cassidy's nickname was Hoppy. So this big new thing in our family is named Hopalong Cassidy, but they call him Hoppy.

I'm not impressed.

Secondly, he is fat.....really, really fat. Granted, he is a big dog, bigger than Spud even. But he is still fat. He has a big fat belly, a big fat neck, and a big fat butt. My mom and dad brought him over to the field with Sally and me to do some chuck-it retrieves. He's too fat to retrieve! He tried to run, but he can't begin to keep up with Sally and me.

I heard them talking about getting him in shape. And I did notice that this morning for breakfast, my mom gave him just a little cup of food. So maybe pretty soon, he will be in better shape. But he's going to have to get with the program if he's going to keep up with Spud and me!

Last of all, there's a little matter of territory. I let Hoppy know in no uncertain terms that I am the boss dog. If that big horse-sized dog thinks he can come into my house....play with my toys....sleep in my bed....lie around on my floor....pee and poop in my yard....and most of all, get attention and loving my my mom and dad....well, he's got another think coming. No siree....yesterday and last night I was not a happy camper!

Then my mom had a talk with me. She reminded me how I felt the same way about Spud when he came to live with us. And she assured me that I will always be her baby and that I'm still #1 around there. Then today, she took me all by myself to swim and dock dive and do chuck-it. We had a blast.

So I feel better now. Spud likes him a lot. I'm sure I'll probably get to love Hoppy before long, as a matter of fact, some of the things he does are pretty cool. He can patty cake. Look how cool this is:


There is one more thing you need to know about Hoppy, but I'll save that for another post. It's a very personal matter that is weighing very heavy on my heart. I need to talk to my mom first and get all of my feelings straight first.

So for now, things are getting better with Hoppy. I'm even willing to help my mom and dad with his weight problem. I'll keep running him and exercising him for them.

So much pressure on the big sister!

See you on the dock,
Sally, the Fire in Team Fire and Ice
Proud member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Happy Holidays from Team Fire and Ice

My mom was going to have a really cool and funny photo made with Spud and me to email to all her friends for Christmas. But my accident put a stop to those plans. (Actually, I'm glad because I think it was going to be very embarrassing for me and Spud and humiliate us terribly!)

For those of you who missed out on my accident, here's the post telling what happened.

Anyway, back to the holiday photo. So, you know my mom. She's not going to let any opportunity go by to get a few laughs at our expense, so here is our holiday photo.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE!
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See you on the dock,
Sally, the FIRE in Team Fire and Ice
Proud member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

I heard them talking....

...about something or someone named Hoppy. My mom and dad are getting all excited about a "Hoppy." What is a "Hoppy?" Why would that make my mom and dad so happy? They went off yesterday for a few hours, and when they came home, that's when they were talking so excitedly about this "Hoppy" thing.

I've also noticed them looking at these photos on their computers lately.


Could this "Hoppy" thing possibly mean they are getting another dog? Do Spud and I have a new brother on the way? Oh geez!!!

I remember when they got Spud, I didn't like him very much at first. As a matter of fact, I didn't like him OR my mom and dad for bringing him into our home. But soon I was having fun with him, and now I love him.

If this "Hoppy" thing turns out to be a new dog, I guess I'll adjust again. I just hope he likes to run and retrieve with Spud and me.

Oh yeah, one more thing. My mom keeps talking about his kissing her? Now what is this all about?

But "Hoppy?" If it is a new dog, what kind of a name is "Hoppy?" We'll see. I'll keep you posted.

See you on the dock,
Sally, the Fire in Team Fire and Ice
Proud member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Why did they put this torture device on me?

I'm depressed. I'm hurt. I'm sad. I'm confused. Okay, let's be honest I'm downright mad!!! Look at what they've done to me.


What did I do to deserve this? I can't walk around without bumping into things. I can't sniff things. I can't curl up to sleep. I can't get on the couch or bed. I can't see very well. I can't play.

Okay, here's what happened. Last night, just before bedtime (around 10:30) Spud and I were running through the house playing...getting one last romp in before Mom and Dad said we had to go to bed. Well, I guess we got a little rowdy, because all of a sudden I heard a loud crash and realized I had run into a display case in our living room. It has glass doors on the front of it. Glass was going everywhere.

Somehow, one of the big pieces of glass had sliced my butt!!! And it hurt....bad!!!

My mom and dad looked me over to see if I had been cut, and that's when they saw the blood running out from that big cut on my right butt cheek...right beside the base of my tail.

They grabbed some paper towels and took me to a doctor's office. It wasn't my regular doctor, but another place. Soon I was sound asleep. When I woke up, they had shaved my butt and sewed me up. I heard the doctor talking to my mom and dad telling them the cut was about 6-7 inches long and needed several stitches.

But the worst of all....they put this big plastic torture device on my head. That was okay, because when they opened the door and I saw my mom and dad, I knew I would be okay and they would take this stupid thing off my head.

But they didn't. They took me, put me in the truck, brought me home and never took it off. Did they forget to take it off? I whined and whined and whined all night long trying to remind them to take that %^@&* thing off my head. But they won't take it off.

What's wrong? What did I do to deserve this punishment? I don't understand at all. Now, it's the next day and it's still on my head.

Oh well, I know they still love me, so they will do what's best and get it off soon. Until then, I hope no one sees me with my butt all shaved. I feel rather silly.

No, I feel really, really mad!

See you on the dock (maybe),
Sally, the Fire in Team Fire and Ice
Proud member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Waiting for dock diving and keeping us busy.

I can't wait for dock diving season to begin again. I heard my mom and dad talking about our first event being in February in Charleston, S.C. Of course, we will train on land and hopefully in the water before then (after it warms up a bit).

But until dock diving begins again, I'm doing my best to keep my readers up-to-date on the other fun stuff in the lives of Team Fire and Ice.

One of the best things that happens to us is when we get to go to our doggie daycare. It's a place called Pawtropolis, and it is awesome!!!!

Sometimes Spud and I go for the entire day, and sometimes we only go for a few hours. We don't go every day, but usually 2 or maybe 3 days a week. Occasionally, when both our mom and dad have late night shoots, we will spend the night over there. That's really cool!

At Pawtropolis, they have all the dogs divided up into what they call play groups. That's so each dog will be in with dogs of its same size and similar temperament. In other words, it wouldn't be good to have a big dog like me with such boundless energy and drive to play with a smaller couch potato dog. I would drive that poor dog crazy!

(All of these photos were taken by the Pawtropolis staff for their own blog.)

So what do we do at day care? We tug.

(That yellow lab in the above photo really looks like Spud. But it's not.)


We play with balls and rings and all sorts of fun toys.

They have a great outdoor area for us to run and play real hard. And the best part? It has a pool! That's right. We can play in the pool with our toys!

(In the above photo, notice Spud watching me.)

Spud also loves Pawtropolis. He doesn't play as hard and fast as I do, but he loves it when they bring out the tennis balls to retrieve. He also enjoys just chilling out and having all the staff members love on him! Here are some photos of Spud having fun at daycare.



And here's a photo of Spud and me with our favorite toys...Spud with his tennis ball and me with my jolly ball.


Yep, Spud and I really enjoy our days when we get to go to Pawtropolis. The staff is so good to us, and our mom and dad say they feel very confident that we are happy and safe over there. I guess that's important to them. All that's important to me is getting to play and play and play!

See you on the dock,
Sally, the Fire in Team Fire and Ice
Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Road Trip. No dock diving, but a F-U-N time!

My dad is a professional sports photographer and had to go to Biloxi, MS, to shoot some kind of bowl game (a Jr. College Bowl, or something like that). My mom wanted to go with him. (She had ulterior motives that I'll get to later.) Now, of course, they aren't about to go off and leave us, so we all packed up for the 7-hour trip to Biloxi.

Spud slept back in the back of the truck for most of the trip.

I knew we weren't going dock diving because there were no crates, or pop-up canopy of equipment case. But they had their bags and the ice chest. I knew we were going for my dad to shoot a game because I had heard my mom and dad talking about it, and he had his big camera bag.

Finally, we arrived at a hotel and checked in, just like on our dock diving trips. But when my mom put Spud and me on our leashes and took us out for a walk, she did something different. She took two towels and a couple of wubbas. (She said she always brings something to throw in the water, just in case.) We walked down the hall and out back behind the hotel and guess what we saw! A POND!! And boy, did we have fun swimming and retrieving in that pond.

And then, after Spud and I thought it couldn't possibly get any better, my mom took us one block behind the hotel to a big open field and we retrieved with the Chuck-It until we were almost dry.

I had no idea my dad's photo shoot trips were so much fun. But it was only beginning.

The next day, my mom dropped my dad off at the stadium so he could shoot the game. Then we (Spud, my mom and I) took off in the truck and rode for about 20 minutes. I was looking out the window the entire time wondering, "Where in the world are we going?"

My question was soon answered.
We were going to Labrador Retriever Heaven!

It was what my mom called a "beach." I don't care what you called it. In my opinion, it was the greatest place on the entire earth!

About a mile of sand to run on. We ran and ran and ran.

Water to swim in, water as far as we could see.

Birds to chase. Mom called them sea gulls, but she couldn't get any photos because it all happened so fast.

Dead stuff to sniff (crabs, fish, birds). Lots and lots of good smells for our noses.

Good wet sand for me to bury my tennis ball and then dig it up....over and over and over again.

After a while, my mom laughed at my dirty face and especially the thick coating of sand on my tongue!

It just doesn't get any better than this!

When we got back to the hotel, my mom said we were still very dirty, sandy and wet....and smelly! So, to clean us off, guess what she made us do. That's right...go swimming out in the pond again! Oh, if we could just be that dirty and need cleaning off every day.

By the time we finally got back to the room, Spud and I crashed. We were worn out. Even when we left the next day, not only did Spud sleep all the way home, but so did I. Here we are both zonked out in the back of the truck.

If all of my dad's photo shoot trips are this much fun, Spud and I will accompany him every time.

Oh yeah, let's not forget my mom's ulterior motives for going with him. It was something called a "casino." I think she went and spent a lot of money on something called "slot machines." If she thinks that's fun, she should try digging in the wet sand!

See you on the dock,
Sally
The Fire in Team Fire and Ice
Proud member of Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video

Spud analyzes dock diving

Hi everyonne. I is sallys litle bruthr spud. I is not bery litle any more. My mama and daddy says i am a grown up boy now, but sally still treets me like a litle boy. but i does not care becus i like her to play wif me. sally and me have lots and lots of fun togethr.

what i want to writ about tooday is how i have begun to jump bettr than sally. now i am jumping over 20 feet almost all the time. sally still jumps 18, 19 and maybe 20 feet.

at first i felt bad because i thougt it was making sally sad or mad. and i luv her too much to hurt her feeligns.

but then sally talkd too me. she said she was proud of her litle bruthr. she reely wants me to become a big jumper in dock dogs. Isn't sally a gud big sister!

I don't no how i am such a big jumper. I just is. I sit in my crate until it is my turn. i just watch everybody or i even sleep sumtims.

Then my dad takes me out when it is my turn on the dock. we just wait in line to jump.

Then when the anouncer guy sez, "Bill Akin and Spud," my dad and me go up on the dock and he tells me to "Sit, Spud. Stay." And I do that.


I want that flappy or duck or wubba very very bad. but i just sit there like my dad sez to.

then my dad walks to the end of the dock and sez, "Git it boy!" and i take off runing reel fast.


Then he throws the toy out over the water and i jumps as far as i can for that toy. Sumtims it feel like i is flying!


My mom and dad sez i jump farther than sally becuz i is bigger and stronger. maybe so. but it makes me bery bery happy that sally is proud of me.

i is bery proud of her too speshully her speed retrieve. but most of all i is happy and thankful that she tout me how to dock dive.

(by the way, today is my dads birthday. Happy Birthday, DADDY!)

Spud (filling for Sally)
The Ice in Team Fire and Ice
Dixie Dock Dogs
Dixie Dock Dogs video