Chinese cat

Chinese cat, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Cypress City, Hunan Province. We stopped for lunch in this town after visiting a forestry institute. This cat was on patrol through an open air shop.

Going for a Walk

Going for a Walk, a photo by Stephen A. Wolfe on Flickr.

Andi usually has Luna and Topper. Steve walks with Emma.

Three dachshunds, one yard, and lots of mulberries.

This time of year our backyard is covered in wild strawberries and mulberries that drop from the neighbor's tree. Emma, Topper and Luna love the berries and spend a lot of time in the yard eating them. They also eat worms, slugs, and any small critters they catch. This past week, Luna caught a juvenile robin. She had managed to eat the head before I found out. Yuck, what a mess! It's been awhile since I posted new pics of the dogs. The twins (Luna and Topper) are two, Emma is eight. All are feisty, in good health, and love to soak up the sun. They also enjoy walks, and it's a real treat to take three dachshunds on a walk together. Luna and Topper walk beside me, Emma beside Steve. They are very good on walks until we come across another dog... Luna goes into anxiety barking mode then, but the rest of the time we have an easy time of it.

Topper

Topper

Emma

Topper, sniffing for mulberries

Emma, sniffing for mulberries

Luna - "Are they eating mulberries without me?????"

Luna and Topper

Luna and Topper, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Two peas in a pod. These siblings are really attached at the hip most of the time. Both interact with Emma, and we have a very stable and loving pack of dachshunds, but there is a special bond between these two that is awesome to see.

Moon Pi

Moon Pi, a photo by Stephen A. Wolfe on Flickr.

Steve is practicing the art of chiaroscuro with Luna serving as a model.

Pretty Emma

Pretty Emma, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Emma is now eight years old, and is starting to get some white hairs around her muzzle. She's just as sweet as ever, and is still the alpha of the dachshund pack, despite have two youngsters who outweigh her by three or more pounds

A Bo wannabe

Labor Day Arts Fest, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Spotted at the Upper Arlington Labor Day Arts Fest.

Mom's been visiting cats....

Labor Day Arts Fest, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Seen at the Upper Arlington Labor Day Arts Festival.

Wow, now that's a feeding frenzy!

Here is the video Steve did of the ice cream social from Emma's birthday party. He did it in monochrome, which doesn't show the beautiful colors of our dachshunds, but who needs color when there are such cute dogs to watch?

Today is Emma's birthday!

 Emma is 8 years old today! She spent the day as she usually does - hanging out with Topper.......

and mothering Luna.

After supper we took Emma to the pet store to buy her a new toy, and then we went to the grocery store to buy some doggie ice cream. The feeding frenzy was pretty intense.



Photos by Steve Wolfe ©2012

Begging in the kitchen

Begging in the kitchen, originally uploaded by andiwolfe (Jet-lagged).

I've been doing a project 52 this year (one picture a week on a designated theme). This is going on over at Google+ with a bunch of photographers from around the world. This week's theme was "The Kitchen." A lot of the photos posted have been of kitchen appliances, counter tops, floral arrangements and the like. None of those ideas appealed to me.

When I think of my kitchen I envision my three dachshunds underfoot, hoping that some morsel will drop from the counter like manna from heaven. Who can resist those sweet dachshund eyes or those soft, whimpering whines?

Easter Dogs

Happy Easter from Luna Pi (our weimar-weiner), Topper (our whiney-weiner), and Emma (our wher-weiner).

Luna Pi

Steve took such lovely portrait of Luna while she was sleeping.

The Dog Santas... Finale: Defending the Neighborhood

Two of the Three Dog Santas chase off some suspicious interlopers.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen A. Wolfe

Three Dog Santas... Episode 3: Sniffing the Lawn

Two of the Three Dog Santas stop to sniff the lawn.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen A. Wolfe

Three Dog Santas... Episode 2: The Walk By

The Three Dog Santas walk by on the sidewalk.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen A. Wolfe

Three Dog Santas

The Three Dog Santas head out for a walk.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen A. Wolfe

Topper!

That's ! with the way his tail is up in this photo.  This is from last year when I was trying out a new lens.  I love the intense expression on his face as he's running toward's me.

 

Hot-doggity indignation

Mom's birthday tradition is a regifting of Emma (for six of the past 7 years - the original birthday gift was in year one). This year's twist was the addition of a hot dog costume as the wrapping. Oh, the indignity of it all.....

Emma:  Seriously, Mom?  Is this what you really want for your birthday this year?

Emma:  Well, ok, then.  I don't really mind.  It's going to be quite a warm winter coat for me this year, especially as it's a bit on the large side.

See?  I can run in it and everything.

Luna:  Are you sure you're ok with this, Emma?

Emma:  Sure, it's not so bad.  Michael and Tania wanted Mom to have an opportunity to embarrass us on the blog.  That's not a bad birthday gift, right?

Emma:  Look! I can fetch sticks as a hot dog.

Emma:  I bet Topper wants to try on my new costume.

Topper:  I hope they don't try to put that thing on me. 

Topper:  What?????  How did this happen???  One moment I'm running free as a jay bird, and the next I'm wrapped up like a wiener dog.  No fair!

Topper:  Ok, fun time is over.  Please take this thing off of me.

Topper:  Hey, I'm serious here.  Please take this thing off of me.  I have bunnies to chase now.

Topper:  If you don't take this thing off of me right NOW! I'm going to be gnawing on some ankle bones very soon.

Luna:  I really am not happy about this at all.  Topper looks much, MUCH better than I do in this outfit.  The beige clashes with my weimar-wiener coloring.

Steve:  What big babies!  I'll wear the costume and show you how it's done.

No comment, on the risk of getting in trouble....

(Sidebar: Steve has a philosophy that if you don't want your picture taken whilst doing something goofy, just refrain from doing it......)

Steve:  Super HOT DOG man!

Luna and Topper: Let's wrestle!  We need to get that costume out of our system now.

Luna, Emma, Topper:  YAY! We got to go for a 3.5 mile hike after that costume ordeal.  We like the Highbanks Metro Park pet trail.  We met lots of interesting dogs today.

Dachshund's just do this kind of stuff - they can't help it!