I took the herd outside. We have a huge backyard, but I was standing on the patio barefooted and burned my toes. So, when they started for the door, I rushed them quickly. It has been so hot here, they aren't dawdling like they normally do...it's pee, poop, roll on a dead worm or two, then back in the house.

I hate trying to cross our asphalt parking lot at home with my dog. I try to keep her on or with access to walk on grass when it's hot, it's an eye-opener to see how hot asphalt can be at 77 degrees though. It's 77 right now and feels cool after the horrible heat wave we've had, it was 103 on Saturday.

for about 5 minutes before the kidz go out to play. I have to turn it off while they are out because only about 5% of the doggies LOVE the hose and the rest HATE the hose but I always have the doggie pool full and there is plenty of cool grass.
Nevertheless, as soon as the pavement dries it's time to go back into the AC!

Yoshi could stay off of it if he wanted to, but he likes to stand at the gate at the end of the walkway and wait for the little girl next door to come home from nursery school, and he'd wait there for her even if the cement was in flames. Conveniently the cement dips the slightest bit there like a bowl right at the end at the gate, so it makes a bit of a puddle for him. I never noticed the slight dip until I started watering the backyard for the grass. Otherwise, the only way to convince him to go outside even to go to the bathroom is to soak the yard and walkway with the garden hose. If I don't he'd hold it all day until night time. He'll still stand in the doorway for quite awhile making up his mind whether or not he wants to go out there for a quick pee or hold it... usually he decides he doesn't want to go out there unless I get busy with the garden hose. He'll finally run out for a pee and then run right back in the house and throw himself down on the cool kitchen floor and then watch what's going on outside through the doorway.

But when it gets time for T___ to come home from nursery school he's out there whatever the weather waiting at the gate for her. Our gate and her dog's gate are right next to each other, and both her dog and mine sit there patiently waiting for her to come home from school every day. If the dog in the next yard over is outside, she'll sit outside at her gate and wait for T___ also. This little kid has some kind of magic spell over all the dogs in the neighborhood - they all absolutely adore her though she's quite a little brat. I'll never get that. I've taken to squirting the walkway in front of her dog's gate for him as well because just like Yoshi he'll sit on that pavement even if it were on fire waiting for her.

I also can't figure out how they tell time... how do they know what time it is and exactly when T___ is about to come home from nursery school? They'll even wake up out of a dead sleep at the right time to go sit at the gate and wait for her as if they had alarm clocks in their heads. They also know each one of the special engine noises of the various cars that are part of her car pool that take her home, and start getting excited knowing she's about to arrive long before which ever car it is comes into view, and there's four or five different cars it might be.