Mike worked with Ollie for 15 minutes earlier this week to add laying on his side (we’re working our way up to a full roll) to his repertoire of tricks, and I swear he has a dell memory because the next morning he pulled his new trick off without a hitch on the first try.

I wish we could get some hotel deals on Auntie Barbara’s Bed, Bath & Biscuit. Ollie goes back for his four stay in a month this Monday, and at $35 a day, it’s starting to break the budget. The only thing that keeps us going back is that he gets lots of exercise while he’s there and the staff clearly loves him.

Oliver is a crazy puppy after he’s had a bath. I think the Stud Muffin cologne that I douse him with tickles his nose, which makes him rub all over the carpet and run in circles. He should win a Rolex Daytona for how fast he can make a figure eight around the apartment.

When Ollie was a puppy, giving him a bath was as bad as giving him his monthly pet supplements. He’d whine and wiggle and jump out of the tub. Now he takes a seat and enjoys the warm water.

All pet owners in our apartment complex got a scathing letter from management about keeping their pets away from the shrubbery when they are taken out to relieve themselves because all the bushes are starting to die. Being the good apartment dwellers that we are, we started to take Ollie on a different route to the grassy area, and now instead of peeing on the bushes, he pees on our neighbors teak outdoor furniture. That may or may not be an improvement, depending on who you talk to.