Beans

Welcome to the this-crazy-lady-really-loves-her-dog page! I mean... the about page for Beans :) Beans is kind of a big deal to me. He is, like, my whole world at times. I lived without a dog for 23 years. Oh, what miserable years those were - and I didn't even know it. Since getting him, my whole world has been turned upside-down (for the better) and my heart has grown three sizes. You could say I was The Grinch of dog lovers before I got Beans. But now I am smitten with him every day. He brightens my mood, makes me laugh, and gives a fun furry feel to my every day.

Meet my best friend (besides my hubby!). Beans is a magical Italian Greyhound with a passion for sleeping, fleece blankets, sleeping, barking when the elevator dings on my floor, napping, shredding paper, and being adorable. Okay, so there is a little more to him than that...

The Beginning 

It all started when I watched my friend's dog for the weekend (also a toy breed). I grew to love having her in my lap and seeing her follow me around. After she left, though, both my husband and I were like, "Where's the dog?!" It felt awkward to be without an animal, after even just four days. That's when we started talking about getting a dog. Two months later, Beans was a part of our family. We brought him home March 5th, 2012 when he was 14 weeks old. The rest is history!

His Personality

Beans is extremely affectionate. He is pretty much content sitting on my lap in a fleece blanket alll day long. He is a true lap dog. He loves to follow me around and pretty much wants to be with me always. The only time he is independent is when he is curiously getting himself into no good. He is very curious, loving to sniff and explore everywhere we go. He also has a very playful side. He loves to growl and bark when he plays, but he means it all in fun. Tug of war, fetch, and doing tricks are some of his favorite things to do when he's active. He has a delicate daintyness about him, too. He likes everything to be "just so" (who knew? Humans aren't the only ones!). We literally have to "tuck him in" at night and situate his blankets for his just right (yes, multiple blankets for this spoiled one). But overall, he is a very sweet and gentle dog with tons of personality.

Training 

I had never trained a dog before Beans, so I can't really say if he was easy to train or not. But if I had to guess, he was fairly easy to train. He is a very quick learner. Some of his tricks (mentioned below) took him about two days to learn. Pretty quick if you ask me! Sometimes he is quite defiant though and will just sit there when you ask him to come. He is extremely food-driven, so if he knows we don't have a treat and sees no reason to come over or do something, sometimes he doesn't. He's getting better though, and I'm always working on training with him throughout the day.

Potty training was interesting because he is puppy pad trained. Being in an apartment, on the 4th floor, in a cold area - pad training was the way to go. Although he is fully potty trained, I still continue to use pads because that's just what works for us. He does "go" outside like all dogs, but when it's cold, I've waited up to an hour with no success. Yeah, pads it is :) Anyway, his potty training well and I trust him in the house completely now.

Random Facts 

His birthday is November 29th, 2011.

He went on a 20 mile road trip with us, twice. He's also flown with us and did very well. He is a travel trooper!

Tricks he knows: obviously - sit, stay, come, lie down; not obviously - speak, high five, dance (twirl in a cirle), walk (on hind legs), crawl (army crawl on the floor - it's so cute), turn around, and if you consider looking amazingly adorable all the time a trick, then that one too.

Nicknames: Mr. Beans, Mista Beans (this is different than Mr. Beans!), Beanie Baby, Beanerator, Jelly Bean, Beansie, Animal, and I'm sure there's more.

More 

       
If you have any questions about him at all, please ask! I love talking about Beans and all-things-dog. And he loves the attention :)