Walkin' walking' bikin'

I took the dogs for a 3-4 mile spin today. My odometer isn't working on the bike, which usually helps me gauge their speed and distance. Bella has picked up the pace and strength. She wasn't even panting after  walking, jogging, and running. Took us nearly an hour by the time we had walked a few blocks to get Spike to "duty".

The walk is supposed to drain their energy, but both dogs are ready to play when we walk in the door! I pushed Bella off Spike this morning. She's quite aggressive at times: she watches until Spike picks up a toy and wrestles him for it. When I look over a few minutes after her challenge, she's usually chewing the plaything.

Terrier style is to hang on and pull. Poodle style is to jerk, yank, and bounce. I wonder if Spike gets a headache from hanging on while all that energy is coming his way! Spike often walks away and gets another stuffed animal after a few minutes of sustained poodle bouncing. (Which doesn't guarantee that she won't try for the new toy.)

Yesterday she yelped while they were playing, so I stopped them. Looked like Spike was chewing on her ear. "No! Spike!" He must have nipped her or pulled her ear hair... hence the wild scream.

Why on earth? Oh... she had a little piece of dog food tangled in her hair; when she jumped him, he played a while and probably smelled the food. I cut the piece of whatever out and they went back to playing around. No harm done, though for a split second she sounded like he was killing her.

Our evening routine has morphed: they are frisking around the office while I study, so I've started walking them for 10-20 minutes on the treadmill, one at a time. (Spike runs down the middle and he's stronger, so Bella gets pushed to the side if they're on together.) They get a treat each time they're done, and seem pleasantly exercised.

We still need our fresh morning air though. This is the first time we've biked in weeks, with snow outside or file drawers blocking the bike. (We rehomed piano music for a retiring teacher, which meant 5 huge drawers in the entry for a week. Ugh.) They're chomping chicken legs this morning - they just love the RAW diet and have more energy and spunk than on kibble. Who thought we needed more spunk? Good doggies!