Teacup Chihuahua Graduates From USC

Extra extra, read all about it! On May 14th, at approximately 11 o'clock, a teacup chihuahua graduated from USC. This was the first recorded incident of a chihuahua graduate in the history of the school. It was the first of many. The teacup chihuahua  graduation will be well established in the years to come. The term, coined by the first chihuahua to ever graduate was: Gradhuahua!

I will let my chihuahua pictures tell you the story.

I arrived in style, in M's purse

While I was waiting for my class to graduate, I ate a bit to keep my energy level up

The donut was a bit stale, but luckily I had some coffee to wash it down with

A good samaritan agreed to watch the chiweenie and me while M bought a lei

Instead of helping me out, sharing her canine good citizen test tips, the chiweenie . . .

well, she spent her time under a chair, classic!

I walked, with some assistance, with the other graduates

And walked . . .

And walked . . .

I was finally handed my diploma and recognition

In the end, we all got in the car, the chiweenie passed out

We were headed to the beach to continue the celebrations

To be continued

Congratulations Class of 2010! Fight on! 

Twinkie the Gradhuahua

A USC Equestrian Team Fundraiser and The LAPD Mounted Police Force

I had the opportunity to visit the fourth annual USC Equestrian Team Fundraiser this past weekend. M always complains and tells me that banquets and fund raisers are terribly boring, but this time she was proven wrong. The USC fundraiser was a hoot! My favorite part was LAPD's Mounties' demonstration. 

LAPD badge

A nice soft breeze, a comfortable seat on mommy's lap, and the best show I could have asked for (not even counting the yummy food!). Three LAPD officers, two on horse and one on foot explained the inside scoop on this small 35-man unit, established in 1986. 

The officer in the middle is the "bad guy"

The mounties are about to arrest him

"Stop right there!" 

See the officer dismount in the back?

Officer in the left is in the process of dismounting next, once 

the other officer is pointing a gun at the suspect

We were told that LAPD mounties never shoot from their horses, and that's just in the movies, duh! However, these horses are not like horse show ones. They are so well trained that if you have to shoot a gun near them, they will stay exactly in the position they were left at. They are trained to fear nothing, especially loud and sudden noises. 

You're toast, sucka!

Busted...

Now, roll over 

(oops, I guess I'm still thinking in terms of dog training tips, BOL)

Notice how both horses haven't moved an inch? That's due to their amazing training. They are not to move one foot/hoof once dismounted. While the mounties' horses are publicly/city owned, the responsibility falls on their rider. The LAPD mountie officer said, "We are responsible for every footstep our horse puts on the pavement." He used the example of a stroller. I got it.

LAPD mountie demonstrates how well-trained the horses are

and that they simply will not move, even when pushed

The wooden "katana" hanging in front of the mountie is how they treat suspects who are too close

The suspects get hit anywhere but their heads, ideally

If somebody approached my horse with ill intentions, I'd make sure to doink him on the head

I loved learning that a strike to any of these mounties' horses is a misdemeanor whereas any visible injury is a felony! The horses can be petted in public since they are publicly owned, and the officers encourage the human interaction, unless they have a nipper on their hands. A touchy subject is the clean up. Apparently in horse country, like in the city of Chatsworth, the mounties and their horse doodoo are welcome, but at certain parts of LA, certain unpleasant issues arise. E-hem.

The LAPD mountie who acted as the perp, had a horrific story to share with us. Apparently, a man he called "a gangster" released a trained pit bull on his horse at the Venice Beach Boardwalk. The dog was ordered to go for the throat, and the mountie was bucked off. The horse was able to free himself and started running through the freaked out crowd. The police had no way of shooting at the suspect in the middle of the crowd. All I wanted to know was what happened to the horse. He recovered from his injuries and was immediately retired. Apparently he still can't be around any type of dog, even one my size.; not even a Chiweenie. Since then, all doggies are banned from  the world famous Venice Beach boardwalk.

Thank you USC equestrian team for giving us the opportunity to meet and hear from these brave LAPD mounties and to see the demonstration. For more information on the LAPD Mounted Police Unit you can click HERE.

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May I have your attention please? My furiend Norwood is organizing the first ever, the one and only, the 2010 Pawdance Film Festival! Still here? Go check out the details and I dare you to compete about me. All I'm going to say for now is: You snooze, you lose. There are no losers in here, so let's go!

Twinkie

A USC Horse Show Outing

We did go to the horse show yesterday! We went to watch M's girl-peanut who was competing for USC. It was a beautiful sunny day, a bit on the cold side, but so much fun.

The minute Frankie and I arrived, we became the center of attention--what's new?

We got to play in a vast, overgrown field

We made some new furiends and we invited them to GABE

They are going to ask their mothers for permission

I picked a fight, because I'm ornery

Hear me roar!

We were hanging at the edge of our seat (M) as spectators

On our way back to the car, we visited some more beautiful horses

We didn't really want to go home

But that was only because I didn't know we'd be getting juicy bones when we got back. 

Overall, a most excellent day! Thanks to M's peanut, we got to go out and enjoy ourselves for a change. Did I mention I'm on my way out the door this morning? Um, I'm going to the horse barn! BOL Have a grrreat Sunday!

Twink!

Dog Obedience Training and How to Potty Train a Puppy

An Unconventional Long Weekend

Mom was indeed gone all weekend to attend some USC event. She left Saturday night and didn't come home 'till yesterday. I had a great time because I do love our sitter even though she takes us for walks instead of hikes. The weather was cold and Frankie, the chiweenie, and I, the tea cup chihuahua, didn't want to go out often, which meant that Frankie had a "few" accidents. Anybody that knows how to potty train a puppy, please speak up. We stayed inside, bundled up and visited with our sitter who gave us nice treats and let all of us sleep with her at night. Meanwhile, our mother was out of control. I asked her to post my blog several times, but she was too excited about her firstborn and some USC athletic event he was participating in and ignored me. I can't quite blame her, being so happy for her son, but how could she forget I'm not tall enough to get up on our computer desk? She didn't even bother setting up my ramp.

Then, when she finally got back from the USC water polo finals, she had to take care of her daughter who got very ill during their trip. I missed my mom and couldn't wait for her to pay attention to me, but my human sister was so sick, I just had to be understanding. She's better already; she's recovering.

Finally, I figured it was my turn and got real excited. I started hopping around Mom trying to catch her attention, but she was in a rush again. She had to take Frankie to dog obedience training. What on earth does Mom think? Does she think that Frankie's some kind of genius who will learn a bunch of commands? I doubt that, but I'll keep you updated on my sissy's progress. OMD! This should be fun.

Frankie after dog obedience training

After class, at last, I got my mom back. It was sweet. She apologized for not paying more attention to me and after spending quality time together and a lovely meal of kibble mixed with my favorite chicken soup, she set me up at the computer. I guess we'll figure out how to potty train a puppy soon. If we're lucky, the dog obedience training will make our chiweenie more disciplined on all respects.

Aaaaah...life is good.

Twink!

USC water polo

One of the Happiest Days of My Life

It's all because of Jordan, my human brother. I love Jordan. He's a giant. He's 6.6 and weighs about 250lbs of pure muscle power, yet he's so gentle with me. I'm not even afraid to roam around his size 16 shoes. He's so careful with me. I feel safe.

So, here's a little background. Jordan's been an athlete his entire life. He first became serious about a sport though, when he first started playing water polo. He SUCKED at first. He was slow...real slow. But he had a great coach, Coach B, who never let Jordan off the hook. He pressured him gently. By the end of his first year of playing polo, Jordan was one of the best players. The next year he got better, and better, he earned the All American title for several years in a row and won the CSI championship his last year in high school.

Then the recruiting started. USC wanted him and he eagerly accepter. USC has the best water polo program in the nation. What happens when you join the number one team in the country, coached by the number one coach also in the country? You sink or swim. Jordan worked hard for three years. He worked and worked, and finally, his last year he blossomed. Again, having suffered multiple serious personal and team setbacks, Jordan came through.

So, I woke up this morning to the following news. Jordan, MY brother, made MPSF player of the week. Of course he did. Not only did he score 4 goals, he also drew 5 ejections giving his team great advantages. What impressed me the most though? Jordan was playing hard but he was also being his team's cheer leader in between. He had the entire stadium in stitches, including our rivals' fans. That's my brother and that's why I love him. He's an optimist, a big, lovable teddy bear. Needless to say, Mom's crying tears of joy when she's not jumping around screaming. I better watch out for her today. She's out of control. I live in a very happy household where the people and the animals love and support one another.

Jordan Thompson Earns First MPSF Player of the Week Award

And before I go, you should all know by now, I'm Jordan's NUMBER 1 FAN!!! Twink!

Fight on! As they say at USC.