Even scratching is cute when a puppy does it

The vet we saw on Saturday specializes in dermatology.  Similar to a specialist in human medicine, his office is far more luxurious than most vet offices.  Rather than a stark, sterile place, it’s a house on a lake that’s been converted to a vet practice.

They kept a large, open room in the front as a living room setting with lots of big furniture to lounge in and wide open spaces for pets to run around in.  They even provide a big bowl of tennis balls in case you didn’t bring your own toys.

Out front they have a fenced play area with a miniature agility course and small goldfish pond.  Through a gate there’s a large fenced yard that slopes down to the lake.  The fence ends at the water and a large flock of domestic geese hang out at the water’s edge in spite of having been chased into the lake by more than one dog.

Conner, the vet’s brand new puppy, has quite a life ahead of him.  He will go to work every day with his dad and be surrounded by dog lovers.  Between the assistant, the collection of vet techs, and the puppy-loving customers, he was having a hard time getting enough sleep.

When we first arrived, he was napping in a chair next to another customer.  When Tisen rudely squeaked his latest toy, Lamp Chop, repeatedly, Conner managed to open one eye part way and slightly lift his head, just enough to identify who had the audacity to disturb his nap.  I sat there wishing I’d brought my camera in with me.  So much so, I went out to the car to get it.

Of course, as soon as I returned, the vet was ready for us, so I missed the opportunity to catch Conner napping.  But when it was time for us to leave Tisen for an hour, Conner was waking up.  The assistant took him out in the yard to play and I was quickly reminded how unpredictable puppies are as I chased Conner around the small yard trying to get a shot.

Conner rears up to take the jump

True to form, in my rush to catch Conner every time he didn’t something cute, I forgot to check my settings from shooting at the park we’d stopped at on the way in.  When I finally got a good look at the images, I was dismayed that I had too slow of a shutter speed to get much that was worth keeping.

But Conner was so cute, I couldn’t discard all the images.  Especially when he made an attempt to jump over the low jump in the agility course.  The vet had just picked up Conner the night before, so this was the first time he’d seen the agility course.  We were all impressed.

For those of you worried about Tisen from yesterday’s post, he is still sick, but improving.  He saw our local vet today and we are hopeful his stomach will settle soon.

Conner changes his mind mid-leap and darts around the jump instead