National Dog Walk, Sentosa & Maya's Adoption

Thanks to Uncle Furry, we didn't need to lug our camera around to take nice pictures of ourselves! Visit his website for more great photos that day! Hopefully we can go back to photography soon to take pictures as good as Uncle Furry's.
The National Dog Walk was unfortunately blessed by rain in the morning... that ensured a really low turnout. However, the mud was well worth it! We even went into an inflatable pool that was filled with sea water... and suddenly a woman screamed at me! $6! $6!
Errr... ok... So we got out of the pool (which by the way had no indication that we had to pay... and had to actually buy coupons to pay... which was nowhere near the pool... which we eventually got distracted anyway from going back.) and we went visiting the great offers they had around the area.
We eventually bought what pa has been looking for a really long time...a KONG ROCKET BALL THROWER!Check out the youtube video on how the product works! and it works GREAT. It goes a lot further than you would think. And not more dirty hands touching our ball before it goes into our mouths!

Later, we went to Sentosa for a swim and a bath at Cafe Del Mar.
We met a few German Pups that had an excellent trainer for a Pa... they were beautiful too!
Well- motivated and adjusted... it was easy to see they were eager to please. We got our own bite toys from the same trainer as well. His stuff is da bomb. Say hi to Uncle Joseph Yeo of Lei Ces training school.
The Beach was great and we had a go using the Kong Rocket as well... Uncle Furry had a great time taking pictures of us...
Bruno really enjoyed the extra distance the Kong Rocket added to the ball and was happy to go really far out.
We were allowed off leash only in the water, so we made full use of it!
We were playing right under the life guard station... and they kept an eye out for us too! They were totally comfortable we use playing near them. This is a great thing.
We were reaching for the ball and Bruno always cheats by running faster than me!Ok... so he got the ball again... i'll just nip him in the butt... just as a sign of... well... HE CHEATS!

Rotty (renamed Maya) has been successfully adopted!

Say hi to a whole new Maya! (Previously named Rotti) She has done SO well at Mutts and Mittens... and the Staff really took great care of her. She fattened up beautifully as well as her coat is now gleaming. Remember how she looked before? She is indeed beautiful. After a couple months of waiting, Shuan and Trey fell in love with her and decided to make her theirs.
She was rightfully ecstatic. On her day of her adoption... She could hardly sit still... She was a little nervous at first, but she got through it like a big girl! Look at how everyone is happy now!

On behalf of Maya, she would really like to thank Uncle Wei Xiang who believed in her... took her in, sheltered and boarded her when no one else would.

ASD (Auntie Wendy) for putting her ad out, finding Uncle Shuan and Auntie Trey, and eventually assisting on the adoption process.

Finally Mutts and Mittens for really truly taking care of her like one of their own.

Pa helped with the shopping for Maya's new stuff and boy is she a lucky girl. Pa didn't buy as many things for me even after so many years! Maya is truly in great hands. We hope to see her soon!
Remember to come play with us and not be strangers! We have SO MANY places to show you Maya! Come Out to PLAY!!!

The Big Shot photography challenge!

Hi Guys! Pa needs your help and votes. There is a new Reality Challenge called The Big Shot on Ch 5 and Pa needs his picture voted on! That's the original picture he took on the top! The picture posted was the slightly edited picture he sent in later... perhaps the unedited one would have been better. He was only given 15 mins to take the picture with his phone... lucky it was a great camera phone.
So please go to the FaceBook Page and remember to "LIKE" the page first... before going to Pa's picture to "LIKE" it as well. If you do not like the main page first... you will not be able to "vote" your like on his picture! I have seen the rest of the pictures... You be the judge! Please tell others to help too!!
In other news, We received with utter surprise from PawGlam and Pets magazine an appreciation gift because of our participation of the Pets Runway! Its a Beautiful Dog Tag... though i might not able to wear it... but I know someone that would love to have it... Right Auntie Sydnie?
Ok... pretty random... but MAN... what a weird flower... there are very very few black flowers in the world... Say hi to the Bat Orchid... which really isn't an Orchid at all.
And finally... a really strange signboard. For those that cannot understand it... the right column talks about serving puppy meat with duck. Argh... I really hope that's just an error in characters. Similar sounding would be using Wolfberries (a herb) to cook the duck in. *cross paws*

Food Review with Chef Iskandar & The Tiffin Club

Chef Iskandar previously in the food review back in August 2008 has contacted Pa about having a food tasting session at his new place called The Tiffin Club. He could bring himself and 3 OTHER friends! So Pa and his friends went down to try out the new menu!...Bruno and I wasn't allowed to go once again as well. Irritating. But at least this time he didn't sneak off. I wasn't too happy on how he secretly smiled when he reviewed the pictures. With him that day was Siren, Scarlet Ting and Vandalin.
First up was the Tiffin Satay ($16) which was meaty beyond belief. ok... lets focus on the satay here. The dip vege and peanut sauce both familiar and original at the same time. Honestly, ALL satays should be exactly like this.
...eyes here... still focusing on the Satay please... I mean... after you drop something that deep down, what are the chances of finding it again?

Next up with the Otah and Salad ($14)... and Auntie Siren just went WILD with praise. Once again, an entirely reinvented dish which is such an improvement to the taste you would be already acquainted with. Chef Iskandar told everyone he just wants everyone to have fun with this...And they most definitely did! The lemongrass vinaigrette twist totally took it out of this world. Beef Ribs ($29) was served to us next and it simply melted in your mouth. Couple that with the MOST interesting version of Mash Potatoes (Potato Puree) Pa has every tasted.
Pork Two-way ($28) was the second main, and this redefined how should one serve pork. Crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside. The roll of pork loin was firm but not in a bad way. Rolled up with the green spinach, it was a perfect compliment to the other Porky way.
Then... the main of Mains rolled in. Grilled Graffeo Tenderloin($36).

Oh. My. God. <-and I quote. Simply the Best EVER tenderloin Pa has EVER tasted. The smokey tenderness, permeates into every single fiber. The aged beef is crusted with graffeo coffee beans which does not overwhelm the taste butts at ALL. This is really a dish that is better than any steakhouse has to offer. And the serving is VERY reasonable. Look at Auntie Siren's grin!
Pa had to run after that for a stupid meeting... but they were served very nice desserts as well. You can read more about the desserts on Auntie Siren's blog entry.
Methinks we should be invited for the next food tasting. Bruno and I have very sensitive taste butts as well.
Thank you Chef Iskandar for getting everyone together to have a great meal!

Tiffin Club is extending a 15% discount on the Ala Carte menu when you guys quote a password!

And that is an exclusive offer only off our blogs! So, just quote the password to redeem your 15% discount!

The Password is SINNING AT TIFFIN

In other news...

Bruno got knocked down by a lorry which sped off. Admittedly its the idiot's fault. But the lorry was travelling really fast and showed no signs of slowing at all.

Being the brute that he is, there was actually NO injuries at all. Not even abrasion. Sometimes i suspect he is some sort of Act Blur Think Smart Clark Kent / Superdog thing...
Nah....

Food, Training and Discipline...

Recently Pa have been receiving plenty of queries about food, health, training and discipline questions. There are plenty of resources actually online... but who do you listen to? One thing I can tell you is that...

USE COMMON SENSE.

Which can be not so common really.

DogLover on the TagBoard asked about how to prevent the tartar buildup in Bruno's teeth dated in August 2009.

a simple solution really... Bone Meal. However, DogLover thinks that bones are bad for the dog's tummy, so thanks anyway.

...WOAH. Wait a min. Say what? Bones are bad for a dog's tummy? Notice our Big Long fangs? our sharpened molars? We were Born to chew on bones! For more info, you can read plenty of references like This One. I'm not saying to believe 100% everything on the sites that you read... But take it with some common sense.
Bruno and Myself have what you would call a Balanced Diet. This is what we have every day or so...

1/4-1/2 cup Kibble of any various brands including sample packs
1/3-1/2 bowl of Brown Rice cooked in Grated various veges
1 to 2 whole chicken spines
3 to 4 chicken feet
1 whole chicken liver
1 strip of Beef Tendon (The tough bits you humans hate...)

+Various other occasional canned and mixed meats, even cooked food etc.

In other words, we really have a varied diet. We deal with all sorts of proteins. How much does this all cost? Incredibly only less than $3.00 a day for each of us.
Training a dog has truly many various methods. And it would be VERY silly to imagine that 1 method fits all. One of the few things doggie people can acknowledge is that... There is no such thing as the Best way... but rather the Most suitable.

Auntie Eileen posted on the tagboard an interesting article from the Times no less. The Article was very strong in its stance of dog training. What was actually more interesting was the comments the article garnered. Go read it if you have the time.

Me? I happen to think that Discipline and Training is actually two different things altogether.
In one of the comments, the writer talks about his own training and his scientific opinion on why things happen the way its does... and of course the "success" or rather limited scope in his own opinion that he had.

But still, he deemed it a "success" anyway.

The article I'm highlighting is his experience with a female rottie. Apparently his theory is based on a Border Terrier... and a huge female rottie that gave him a low growl with her teeth 2" from his face... and he blames it on himself for "leaning in... a rookie mistake".

DUDE. You really have to understand that training and discipline is very different. Being able to discipline a dog is no different from disciplining an errant child. Its not about allowing the dog to do what it wants.

Its about the dog doing what YOU WANT.
Why don't anyone understand this? This.... takes both training and discipline. Extremely positive experiences build up through careful nurturing.To make instant friends and able to play with other dogs takes a lot more skill than what most other humans have. And that only comes with constant exposure to new and interesting places, people and dogs.

Whatever the case is, Read Read Read... then Read some more... and learn as much as you can. Adapt to what works for you... cause if it works for you, it'll probably work for us. If it doesn't, feel free to drop me a message on my tagboard or my little pluggin for Pushme to Pa's iPhone direct. (huh? WTF? how did i get roped into this?)