Excitement Abounds

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Ammo

Yesterday morning on the farm a cool mist of fog rolled in over the hills.

misty morning on the farm

All the horses amidst a backdrop of fogginess had such an ominous look about them.

early morning mist on the farm

Including my pal Spider the Kitten.

early morning mist on the farm

Mom said the foggy sky must have brought out the feisty in Spider.

early morning mist on the farm

I have to admit, she had a crazier than normal look in her eye.

early morning mist on the farm

But when I inspected her thoroughly ….

early morning mist on the farm

…and sniffed every square inch…

spider and ammo

….I couldn’t find anything that smelled like feisty! Nope, just regular old Spider.

Feisty smelling or not, excitement abounds whenever Spider has the look of fire in her eyes!

ammo the dachshund on the farm

Yipeee!

Halloween Weekend Adventure

Posted on November 1, 2011 by Ammo

Over the Halloween weekend I went on nearly a 400 mile excursion to visit a place that is very special to my pony friends, Assateague Island, Virginia.

See my pal Minnow was born wild on Assateague 18 years ago, and every year he returns to neighboring Chincoteague Island to perform for a week during their annual pony penning. I never get to go because the island isn’t very dog friendly and sitting in the car is not a good idea in the summer heat.

ammo the dachshund rest stop

Even dogs need to take advantage of the rest stop!

But this time as all the ponies loaded up for a special trip to Assateague to ride on the beach in the cool fall weather, I was allowed to come! Yipee!

The even better news was that I got to leave behind a rare October snowstorm in PA for the still cold but way less snowy weather in Virginia. Score.

Upon arriving Saturday evening I got to attend a special picnic where mom got to meet up with her Chincoteague Pony Friends from all across the country. I even got to meet a bunch of my facebook fans in person for the very first time, and I wasted no time showing off some of my favorite tricks so that everyone could have a good laugh.

assateague island

The next day we were up early and headed across the bridge and onto Assateague Island with all my pony friends in tow.

Dogs aren’t allowed on Assateague (seriously?) so I spent my morning snuggled in a pile of blankets. Honestly I can’t complain, from what the ponies tell me it would of been too cold for me anyway.

riding ponies on assateague

Meanwhile mom got to live out her dream of riding the ponies on the beach. Boomerang and Blitz were excited to visit the island where their parents were born years earlier. It was a very special trip for everyone.

minnow on assateague island

Naturally mom spent hours on the beach taking pictures of the ponies. She promised me she’d show me all the cool photos once she has time to filter through the nearly 1,000 photos she took (and I thought she took a lot of photos of me!)

But here are a few she showed me last night that I thought were extra special.

chesapeake boomerang

chincoteague minnow

chesapeake lightning

I taught those ponies everything they know. Don’t forget that! 🙂

After our beach adventure we headed back to the mainland so the ponies could participate in a fun show. They won me lots of ribbons – but I won the most special one of them all…

The costume contest! Well, ok, Minnow might have helped some.

Then on Halloween morning we made one last drive out to Assateague so the ponies could say goodbye to the ocean before heading home to PA. I told them I had to be back home in time to hand out candy to all the trick-or-treaters in my neighborhood!

So how about that for a Halloween weekend adventure? Pretty exciting, right? I just might have to spend the rest of the week catching up on my sleep after this weekend fun!

P.S. More fun photos from our amazing adventure will be popping up on the Painting Pony Blog & Facebook page as soon as my mom has a chance to filter through them all! So make sure you check back soon!

Friday Fetch: Nobility Dogs

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Ammo

nobility dog prints We all know dogs are pretty important in the face of history, but artist Sij Sandra of Nobility Dogs takes it one step further. Using historic works from famous artists, she inserts canines to portray them as wealthy noblemen, kings and queens, even dukes and duchesses. And her main inspiration? Her Dachshunds of course!

Not only does Sij create canvas glicee prints from her work, but she also has brooches, shoulder bags, scarves, and watercolor prints. You can even order a commissioned work that includes a picture of your favorite canine pal. I’m thinking I totally need a print of me riding in on a white steed to save the day, what do you think?

You can fetch your own Nobility Dog print here for around $30.

nobility dog prints

Equipment Crew

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Ammo

Over the weekend we held a horse competition at the farm. Riders come from all over to compete in the high-speed relay racing of mounted games and to win fame & fortune….ok well maybe in reality it was just ribbons & prizes, but that’s besides the point.

ammo the dachshund mounted games

Everyone on the farm is expected to help out at the horse show to keep things running smoothly.

ammo the dachshund mounted games

This time I was head of the equipment crew with my dad.

ammo the dachshund mounted games

I got to run up and down the side lines making sure we had all of the equipment ready for the next race.

ammo the dachshund mounted games

Balloons – check, Flags – check, Buckets – check, Bending Poles – check.

ammo the dachshund mounted games

It’s a very important job, and someone has to make sure everything is done right. Sometimes even dad needs to be reminded how things are supposed to go.

“A little to the left Dad”

You can check out all our fun photos from the horse show on the Iron Horse Farm Facebook Page.

Incognito

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Ammo

spider the kitten

It’s fall on the farm, and it’s my favorite time of year. Even Spider the kitten is excited about the new fallen leaves.

spider the kitten

I have to say I’m a wee bit jealous of her – as she’s become a master at going incognito in her leaf surroundings.

cricket and spider

Even Cricket can’t figure out how not to stick out like a sore thumb.

trooper

And Trooper, don’t even get me started on him, sometimes I don’t even think he tries!

ammo the dachshund

I on the other hand “might” be able to pull off the incognito look, had somebody (*cough* mom) not dressed me in BRIGHT BLUE! Sheesh!

ammo the dachshund

But, despite my shortcomings in the incognito department I can still chase the cats….

ammo the dachshund

….and romp with the dogs. Blue coat and all! Happy Fall to All!

Secret Life

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Ammo

I have a secret to tell you. But you have to promise not to tell anyone! Especially not my pony friends!

ammo the dachshund

Ok, well sometimes, only sometimes, when I’m wandering around in my backyard…..

ammo the dachshund in backyard

…..I like to pretend that I’m a pony.

ammo the dachshund eating grass

You know, nibbling on grass, making little whinnying sounds, prancing – the normal stuff.

ammo the dachshund eating grass

It’s fun for a little while, but then I usually remember that grass tastes like yuck, I hate prancing, and I’d much rather be a dog that gets to eat hot dogs and bark at the neighbors. Oh and Dogs rule, ponies drool!

Creative Paws

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Ammo

Me and mom have been busy updating our online Etsy Shop (which I share with the Painting Ponies), so today I thought I’d share with you some of my new additions to the shop.

white dachshund no. 12

This one is White Dachshund No.12, isn’t he special looking?

yellow dachshund no.2

And this one is Yellow Dachshund No. 2, he’s such a happy little fellow!

Now, although I feel I am the most talented artist in the bunch, my Painting Pony friends (mostly Minnow) have also been busy filling the shop with some of their new creations.

Ok, I admit it, Minnow is pretty talented. But, he has been painting for much longer than I have (since 2007 to be exact).

ammo the dachshund in beret

But we all still know who looks the best in the beret! Eat your heart out girls!

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Ponies, Kittens and Groundhog Holes

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Ammo

I spend a lot of my time on the family farm, and as I roam freely over the 20 acres I can always find plenty to do. I thought it would be a blast to share some of the fun stuff that I do on the farm with everyone, so I made my mom spend a day following me around.

ammo the dachshund on the farm

On this particular morning I visited with my pony friends Minnow & Blitz for a short while. They made funny faces at me while I sniffed around for buried treasure in the tall grass. So far my efforts have yet to produce any riches or gold, but I won’t give up.

ammo the dachshund on the farm with the cats

Then I spent a good deal of time lounging around with my kitty pals, Spider and Cricket.

ammo the dachshund on the farm with the cats

Spider and Cricket are usually quite content to spend their entire days sunning.

ammo the dachshund on the farm with the cats

Well, in Spider’s case, also wrestling bits of hay.

ammo the dachshund on the farm with the cats

Me on the other hand, I get a little bored of sunning and lounging all day. So that’s why I struck up a game of Hide and Seek with Cricket, and ultimately found this awesome stick to play with.

ammo the dachshund on the farm

And just when I was starting to think that I didn’t have anything else to show my mom (and my blog friends) about what everyday life is like for me on the farm…..

ammo the dachshund on the farm

….I remembered the holy grail of adventures, the thing that I covet the most, and don’t normally share with anyone…

ammo the dachshund on the farm

…for security purposes I can’t show you EXACTLY how I got there….

ammo the dachshund on the farm

…but regardless, WELCOME TO MY HOLE! My groundhog hole to be exact, and if I’m divulging all my secrets, then you must know that there isn’t just one hole on the farm, but ten to be exact, well eleven if you count the one across the culdesac in the neighbor’s yard.

ammo the dachshund on the farm

I know where all my little furry friends live, and I monitor their where-a-bouts on a day-to-day basis. It’s a tough job, but I just know one of these days my groundhog friends will invite me in for tea.

So, there you have it, a typical day on the farm for me. What about you? Where is your holy grail of adventures? Any of my Dachshund friends out there monitor groundhog holes too?

Hide and Seek

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Ammo

Me and Cricket are playing Hide and Seek today on the farm. Will you help me find her?

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

She’s quite the crafty hider and sometimes I spend all day hunting for her around farm.

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

I thought I smelled her over by one of the ponies obstacles in the arena.

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

And I knew I heard a noise underneath the tarp.

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

But, when I peeked inside I saw nothing but darkness.

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

I was about to give up and move on to another hiding spot, when I thought I saw her little black tail poking out from under the tarp.

ammo the dachshund hide and seek

And just when I was about to tag her “it”, I thought I saw a groundhog out of the corner of my eye…..and she got away! That Cricket, she sure is tricky!

Wild Ride

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Ammo

Holy Cannoli! Boy did I have a busy weekend!

Ammo and Trooper at the fair

This picture of me and Trooper pretty much sums up the adventurous weekend I had. Don’t worry, I didn’t actually have to ride a bull, but I did have to entertain lots of children (and adults), sniff a whole bunch of dog butts, eat funnel cake, and I even ran through an agility course…twice!

ammo the dachshund with the painting pony