We are back! Curious Mia

Hi everyone! As always, absence from the blogging world is always the human's fault. Now that our human has caught a break, we figured it's time to update our blog.

Would you believe that Mia has been with us for more than a year? She joined our family last summer and now it seems like she has been with us forever. Mia is one curious beagle. She is always checking things out. Check it out...

 

Mia checks out her reflection on our bookshelf mirror. "Hmm...I really am quite a cute beagle"

 

 Checking out the flower pot...

 
Sticking her head into our friend's bag...As it turns out, she had a bar of chocolates in her bag meant for my humans. Thankfully, little Mia didn't get her teeth into those chocs.

 

Checking out the view on our walks.

Checking out dinner before it's served.

 

 

Watching the world go by from our front window...

 

Checking out the camera taking her picture.

Checking out the other doggies at the park

 

Last but not least, something we both love to do- checking out the ground for any food bits!

 

Time to Share My Blog

For five years, this blog has been about me, Kess, the Malaysian beagle. It started off as a way for my human to pass time and has evolved to a journal of my life - the daily stuff, the adventures and outings, the challenges of growing older, the big move from Malaysia to Hong Kong, and  a new addition to our family, Mia. Now that there are two beagles in the household, I thought it is timely to share my blog with my 10-month old beagle sister and what better way to kick off the new year with a new blog header picture of the two of us.

Friends say we look like sisters because we have similar faces. We've even had old friends who haven't seen me in years and never met Mia before confused. They were still expecting a deep tri-colour beagle and thought that Mia was me! Over the years, I have aged gracefully, turning a lovely gradual white. For a 11 turning 12 year old beagle, I am still going strong. I can still manage long walks in the lovely cool weather we've been having over the past couple of months even though stairs remain a challenge.

Since Mia came to our family, we share a lot of things. Apart from the fact that we're both beagles, we...

1) Strike the same pose

 

 2) Explore HK together - old Peak tram at the Galleria

3) Sometimes sleep together (although I prefer to have my own bed)

 4) Share the same buster cone (Mia had her surgery in September and I had mine in October)

 

 

5) Play together

 

So, all in all, having a beagle little sis (although Mia is not so little anymore - she is the same size as me and slightly taller) is not too bad after all.

 

Kess and Mia - Doggie sumo or play?

 

 Kess & Mia's Mama:

It's been four months since Mia joined our family. Kess and her have found their rhythm. Mia rejuvenates Kess with play, and Kess teaches Mia by leading by example. A good partnership indeed! One of the things that both dogs love to do is doggie sumo. Now that Kess's lump on her head has been removed (and no cancer!), there is no more risk of bleeding on her head,We let them have a play and when it gets out of hand, we call for time out. Both beagles tired by then have a snooze!

 

Post Usagi - All is Well!

As expected, the T8 signal was hoisted for Typhoon Usagi on Sunday evening. Thankfully though, the storm weakened as it approached Hong Kong from a severe tropical storm to a tropical storm. We were safe in our home and was well protected from the strong winds and rains. On Monday morning, the T8 signal was removed around 9.30 am and we were able to go for a walk. There were a lot of fallen leaves and branches, but no major damage.

Loving my garden!

After 2 years of not having a proper garden (the grass patch in the balcony doesn't really count), my humans and I are rediscovering the pleasure of a garden.

From this beagle's perspective, nothing beats the joy of sunbathing in the garden. Notwithstanding the fact that it's been a really wet summer (at the time of writing, the rains are pounding down as severe tropical storm Jebi was about 450 kilometres south-southwest of HK. Whilst Jebi is not expected to hit HK directly, its effects are definitely felt, as a T3, strong wind signal no 3 has been hoisted since dawn).

Still on lovely sunny days, this beagle enjoys sitting, lying and wriggling in the garden!

 

The other side benefit of having a garden in the backyard is that I no longer have to take the long way down, which involves going down 20 over floors on the lift, walking down the driveway to the small woody area to pee. In my mind, the best benefit is that I get to eat breakfast faster as it takes me no time to run upstairs to the kitchen after my morning pee! Remember how my humans were concerned about this old beagle going up the stairs? Well, ever since they've added fish oil capsules to my diet, I've had a new lease on life and my humans are amazed at how fast I get upstairs, especially when motivated by food!

 

Last but not least, I no longer have to have a bath in the cramp, slippery bath-tub. Of course, I would prefer not to have a bath at all, but since my humans vetoed that suggestion, I suppose it's much nicer to have a bath in the spacious garden. Plus, if my humans are not attentive enough, I get to wriggle in the garden after my bath. Ha! Ha!

 

Beagle Dreaming

I wonder what Kess is dreaming about...Is she chasing and barking at the squirrels? Who knows... Sweet dreams Kess!

Kess' Mama

Happy Belated Christmas and a Happy 2013!

Happy Belated Christmas and a Happy 2013!

December has been a crazy busy month for me and my humans. We've had friends and visitors staying with us throughout the month, which explains my absence from blogging. It's been great fun catching up with family and friends. Inevitably, they come bearing gifts for this canine and her humans. My gifts include doggie treats from Australia - kangaroo jerky and pigs ears, whilst my humans enjoy chocolates and other yummy goodies. Unfortunately my humans have decided to ration how often I get to eat my treats, so they're in the pantry, away from reach of this beagle :-(

Treats aside, I've also enjoyed lots of attention from our friends and family - both old and young. After all, you're never too old to enjoy a game of tug of war...

And which dog doesn't enjoy some TLC?

To top it off, I had an unexpected gift from Santa. Santa knows that Kess has been a good doggie and this beagle made it on his "nice" list. Dear ol' Santa must have been so busy delivering gifts that he got lost and delivered my treat to my neighbour downstairs instead. Our kind neighbour delivered it to me. Thanks MM! These heart-shaped treats are not only yummy but healthy too.

 

 

Goodbye 2012! To my human friends, may 2013 bring you love, peace and joy. To my canine friends, may 2013 bring you lots of treats!

 

With love from Kess & Her Mama

 

Before, During and After

It was a lovely weekend again and this beagle and my humans headed to our favourite country park.

Before

This was me on the way to the park - enjoying the wind with our open sun roof.

 

During

This was me, sniffing the air, trying to figure out where the Alsatian that was ahead of me went. I went berserk on this walk - pulling my humans and barking at a very high pitch as I caught the scent of the Alsatian but not being able to catch up . Now usually, my humans are comfortable to let me go off leash as I will generally stroll and stop every few feet to check out the smells. Not this visit! Given my highly charged state of mind, going off-leash was not an option! Needless to say, we finished our walk faster than usual, and panting more than usual (beagle and humans..).



After

This was me, on the way home in the car - exhausted!

 

A Beagle Explores the Hong Kong Trail

Many people associate Hong Kong with this...Buildings and crowd.


True, Hong Kong is densely populated and heavily built up. But, Hong Kong is also this...Country parks and greenery.


Once my humans bought a set of wheels, we've been spending our holidays and weekends exploring the surrounding country parks. The cool weather is ideal for humans and beagle alike to go on long walks on parts of the Hong Kong trail. The Hong Kong trail is a 50km walking route which spans from the east to the west of Hong Island and passes through five country parks. So far, my humans and I have mainly explored the trails in the Aberdeen Country Park.


At the beginning of autumn last year, we checked out the Aberdeen Reservoir...The weather was warmer then and my humans could still go in T-shirt and shorts.


On another trip, we admired the view of the Happy Valley Race Course from the Black Link's trail.


Further down the Black Link's trail, we enjoyed the lush green hills and breathed in fresh clean air. The weather has cooled considerably and out came the jumpers and long pants.


One time, we explored Lady Clementi's trail, a lovely shaded trail with quaint stone bridges and gentle meandering paths.



This beagle can't wait for my next country park outing!

My Very Own Patch of Grass

After much delay, my humans have finally got me my very own garden patch of grass. Can't really call it a garden when what it actualy is, is a 3 by 4 ft plastic box filled with pebbles, soil and grass. So, I thought a patch of grass is more appropriate. I have to say though, it's quite a lovely patch of grass. Our neighbours are all quite impressed that we actually got real grass. Some of them got synthetic grass for their canines. My humans thought that the real thing would suit our needs better since this beagle is used to real grass back in Malaysia. My humans are grateful to the manager at our apartment who helped them source for the custom-built box and grass supplier. Otherwise, this would not have been possible. My little patch of grass is placed at our balcony. My humans did not let me out to the balcony for 1 week after the grass was planted so that the grass can take root properly. Finally, in the second week, they decided to introduce me to the grass patch. As always, this beagle is cautious when it comes to exploring new things and I gingerly climb onto the box and sniff.

I check out the Hong Kong view from the patch of grass:

I have a snooze on the patch of grass:

I did everything but pee on the patch of grass, which was why my humans got it for me in the first place! After a few days of failure, my humans thought of an idea. When they took me down to pee, they took a leaf that I had peed on and brought it back up to transfer the pee scent onto the grass. So the next morning, they opened the glass door to the balcony, fed me breakfast so that I would have to a full bladder, and stood in the cold balcony, encouraging me to pee. (The things our humans do for us...). Their perseverance pays off!

I still don't use the grassy patch on a regular basis, preferring to go downstairs instead. So my humans still have to take me downstairs for my night pee before bedtime. However, they now don't have to take me downstairs first thing in the morning. Instead, they open the balcony door and leave the option to me to pee there whilst they have breakfast. Sometimes, I'll pee on the grass and sometimes I just wait until my morning walk. Hey, it's a beagle's choice after all :-)

Family time

Now that my humans are with me again, I'm fine. No more diarrhea or vomitting. This beagle's appetite is back to normal and my tail is up again. In fact, I've had a pretty fantastic time over the last 3 weeks. We had both sets of families over in HK for a visit. My humans and I have been in HK for 3 months. Whilst we've made new friends, both humans and canines, it is wonderful to be reunited with our families, even if it's only for a few short weeks.

I've been busy hanging out with gramps whilst he catches up with the newspaper...


I've been posing for pictures for Aunty Evie...


With all the family here, my humans have also been going out more than normal. Initially, my humans thought that they would have to engage the services of a dog-sitter when they go out for dinners with their folks. One night, they were waiting for the dog-sitter before they went out for dinner but she did not turn up. Despite calls and text messages, the dog-sitter did not respond. So, my humans decided to give me special treats for dinner, a chewable treat and then hid small bits of liver treats all over the house. They left the TV on for some background noise and left quietly, hoping for the best. Well, this beagle surprised them...I was extremely well-behaved and everyhing was fine when they got back from dinner. Everyone was happy and all was well for 3 weeks.

However, this beagle recently decided that it was no longer fun being left alone and went back to my old habit of whining, shredding boxes and scratching doors.



So, we're back to square one. My humans have submitted their application for a helper and hopes that once she joins us next month, we won't have an issue with my separation anxiety anymore and my humans have more flexibility in going out.

Separation anxiety

Beagles are pack animals. We don't like being alone. Now back home in Malaysia, I didn't like being left home alone. I've climbed over 7-foot fences, killed plants and dug the garden when left in the garden. During the rainy season, when left indoors, I would scratch the grill, shoe cabinet, shred paper bags....you get the picture...

My humans used to accept it in their stride. Sure, they got frustrated from time to time. But they knew that it's part and parcel of having a dog. Then of course, my humans had a network of family and friends whom they could rely on to keep an eye on me. We had the best neighbors, Aunty C and family absolutely adored me and I was equally at home at their place as I was at my own. Aunty C would usually bring me over to her place when my humans went out. If my humans had to travel, I would usually go over to gramps homes on both sides of the family.

Now that we're in Hong Kong, away from family and neighbours, my humans are faced with the predicament of having to deal with this beagle's separation anxiety. The first few times they went out, they put me in my crate, with a special bone treat. They even left the radio on so that there would be sounds at home. When they came home, they would find this beagle in a state of anxiety, wet from water spillage from the water bottle on the crate door because I had been "bouncing" my crate, as if I was trying to move the crate closer to the door. Looks like I never did adjust to being in a crate.
Because we live in a rented apartment, they don't dare to let me roam freely in the house due to fear of damage to the property. What they've resorted to doing now is getting in helpers cum dog-sitters when they want to go out. So each time they go out, they always have to watch the time coz they have to be home by a certain time. They've also tried a doggie day care once when they ouldn't get someone to come in. But they know that this beagle is more comfortable at home. It's been pretty challenging for my humans as it means they can't be spontaneous. They are now considering a full time helper, which is very common in HK so that there will be someone home with me whenever they go out. The trade off is loss of privacy. It's a real dilemma and they're still trying to find the best solution for our family.

A Beagle's First Outing in Sai Kung

My last trip to the vet doesn't count as a proper outing. So, this beagle was quite excited to actually go on a proper outing. We live on HK island - highly populated and densely built up. On my first outing, my humans and I went over to the mainland, past Kowloon, to a beautiful place called Sai Kung, a country park in the New Territories, about an hour's drive from HK island.


Since we don't have a car yet, my humans hired a van to take us there. As always, this beagle loves a car ride and took in the city sights, which gradually changed to countryside as we travelled away from the island.


The main purpose of our trip to Sai Kung was actually to visit a dog boarding place there. Since my humans had to travel for work, they had to find a place for me to stay when they are away. Now, there are boarding places on HK island, but most of them require the dogs to be in a kennel of some sort. But at DBDogsDayz in Sai Kung, the dogs are allowed to roam free in a home environment, with a back garden (which is a real treat in HK) and indoor air conditioned room to chill out in. The owner, Andrew requires a pre-boarding visit to ensure that the dogs can adjust to living with other dogs, which my humans thought was a good idea.

On the day of our visit, DBDogsDayz was at full capacity. Initially, I was a little apprehensive entering into the garden with a pack of 20 canines - large and small. But, after the customary butt sniffing, I finally settled down in a corner, whilst my humans chatted with Andrew. All went well with the pack.



After the visit, we headed into Sai Kung town. My humans had a dim sum brunch at a seafood restaurant by the pier, whilst this beagle sat patiently by the table (In Malaysia, it is rare for restaurants to allow dogs. In HK, some restaurants allow dogs at their outdoor seating area).


I tell you the seafood doesn't get any fresher than this.


After a very delicious lunch (unfortunately, there were no dim sum treats for this beagle, although my human did give me a liver treat for sitting so patiently), we took a walk by the pier and checked out the vendors selling fresh seafood from their boats.


All in all, it was a pretty good outing indeed, as can be seen by my happy face.


Note from Kess' Mama: Whilst it has been challenging adjusting to living in such a busy city, it really is lovely to be able to go to the country side with Kess and take her openly to a town or a pier. In Malaysia, we would not have been able to do so because dogs just wouldn't have been allowed. At the Sai Kung pier, people were walking their dogs, enjoying time together on a weekend. It's such a treat for us to be able to experience this with Kess.