Hoop Jumping

Even though this video was posted on my Youtube Page last year, I’m pretty certain I never shared it on the blog. Mostly because it’s embarrassing for certain Dachshunds involved. I will not mention any names.

 

Either way, I hope it gave you a good chuckle today.

2012 New Year Goals

Last year I made my list of New Year Goals, so I thought it would be fun to check back and see how far I got with them – and also come up with a few new ones for 2012!

ammo the dachshund new year party

P.S. this may look like my Birthday hat, but right now it’s doubling as my new years party hat!

LAST YEARS GOALS:

1. Take another agility class or maybe even COMPETE in agility. Sadly since my last agility class at the Dog Training Club of Chester County I haven’t been able to attend any new classes. Not because I didn’t want to, but because the training center hasn’t been offering any new agility classes that fit my busy schedule, so mom’s been looking into finding a new place for me to test out my agility skills this year, like this place. But I did try my hand at an agility course while I was at the Dog Days of Summer Event and I even tested out some moves at the dog park this year.

Ammo jumping through hoop

2. Actually win a race at the Dachshund Races this year. I did even better than win just one race this year, I won 3! and I even qualified for the Championship race, bringing home a respectable reserve champ ribbon! Go me!

3. Make MORE artwork. This year I created and shipped all over the World nearly 20 original pieces of art. Not bad for my first full year of being a real life artist!

4. Visit some nursing homes. I made several trips this year to visit the nursing home – HERE, HERE, and HERE. I even made some undocumented trips too! It’s great when I can make someone’s day a little bit happier with my happy wagging tail.

ammo the dachshund nursing home

5. Perform more with the Trick Ponies. I added lots of new performances with the Trick Ponies to my calendar this year. I visited a school and made appearances at the Ludwigs Corner Horse Show and The Dog Days of Summer event to name a few.

6. Learn at least 10 new tricks. Ok well I might not have accomplished this “10 new tricks” goal, but I did add a few new ones to my repertoire. Which reminds me….I never shared them with you guys! So that will definitely have to be a future post.

7. Dress up more often. This one I have totally accomplished. I was a dressing up fool this year with my 12 days of Christmas, my rocket dog costume and even my Valentines Day outfit to name a few.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

8. Go on vacation. Admittedly I don’t really go on vacation much, it’s hard to get a way when you have such a busy working calendar like me! But I did get to take a special trip this year to Assateague Island to visit the sand and surf (and some new friends) with my pony pals.

assateague island

9. Try something new. This year I took my first trip on a motor boat at the Marsh Creek State park, I built a super fort while mom was away in Chincoteague, and I even did some relaxing by the pool for the first time. Oh yeah, and I watched a movie in the park this summer!

10. Giggle more. I giggle everyday, what about you?

2012 Goals:

1. Learn a new trick with my favorite pony, Minnow.

2. Compete in my first agility trial or take an agility class with a new club.

3. Make more home movies, featuring me!

4. Get more creative with my costumes.

5. Master some new tricks and share them on the blog.

6. Take pictures every month for my 2013 Calendar!

7. Make more DIY projects.

8. Paint more.

9. Dig more holes in the backyard.

10. Smile everyday!

So what about you? What are your goals for 2012? Do you think I can accomplish everything on my list by this time next year?

P.S. Don’t forget there is still time to enter my giveaway to win my 2012 Calendar!

Superhero Playdate

Oh hey, did you come to play super heroes with me today?

ammo the dachshund superhero

What do you mean you don’t have a super cape?

ammo the dachshund superhero

Well, I guess we can share mine.

ammo the dachshund superhero

Even if it was especially made just for me.

ammo the dachshund superhero

But next time you better bring your own.

ammo the dachshund superhero

Because we need TWO super heroes to save the princess….

ammo the dachshund superhero

…and we both need to be able to fly.

Home Sweet Home

Home. Work. Farm. That pretty much describes a good majority of my life. So I thought it would be fun to give you all a little “peek behind the curtain” and show you exactly where I spend my days & nights.

This is home – my quiet little street in the ‘burbs where I have my own doggie door, keep all my favorite toys, and get to take naps on the couch.

studio 3

This is work, right smack dab in the center of town.

studio 3

It’s where I spend my Tuesday through Saturday greeting customers.

studio 3

I take my work very seriously and although sometimes you’ll catch me napping on the job, it’s usually just a ruse to get you to rub my belly. (I’m sneaky like that)

ammo the dachshund at work

iron horse farm

This is the farm – my home away from home. It’s where I help train the trick ponies, do my chores, and play tag with Trooper and the kitties.

iron horse farm

And if I’m truly showing you where I REALLY spend most of my time, there is one last photo I must divulge.

iron horse farm

These are my groundhog holes. And I’m only showing you this because I KNOW you can keep a secret.

After all, there’s only one Super Dachshund fit to guard these holes, and it’s me!

 

Halloween Weekend Adventure

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!

Rocket Dog 2.0

Remember how I lost my rocket pack that my mom made me for Halloween? And I suspected that the groundhog in my backyard found it and was rocketing around all over the place? Yeah, well I was pretty sad about not having a Halloween costume this year, but my mom knew just what to do to make me feel better.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

It’s Rocket Pack 2.0! My mom made me another one – an UPGRADED one to be exact.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

See version 2.0 has wings, which means I can rocket even faster!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog dino

I was having so much fun playing Halloween dress up that I even tried out a few different versions for my costume. Rocket Dinosaur? It’s a possibility.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

Ultimately I think I decided on just plain Rocket Dog though, it really highlights the rocket pack. Although there is one more thing that would make my costume out of this world…

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

Mom, can you PLEASE make me a rocket ship out of this cardboard box?

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I promise if I end up blasting to the moon that I’ll be back in time for dinner! After all I don’t want to miss tick-or-treating.

Happy Howl-o-weenie Everyone!

The Adventures of Rocket Dog

Ever since my mom made me my very own rocket pack I’ve been itching to have some Halloween adventures! So it was just my luck when we hosted a SUPER HERO Halloween party at my house last weekend.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I of course dressed up as Rocket Dog, complete with my led glowdoggie collar too!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog & the rocketeer

And I think mom was jealous of my rocket pack, so she made herself one too and dressed up as the Rocketeer.

captain hindsight

Dad on the other hand went the more obscure route and dressed up as Captain Hindsight (honestly no one was really sure who he was). In hindsight he probably should have been something everyone was more familiar with. hehe.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

Of course I had to invite my best friend Trooper to the party. And wouldn’t you know he dressed up as his favoritest Super Hero of all…..ME!

trooper the hot dog

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I spent most of the evening contemplating when my big adventure might happen and just at the right moment I rocketed out the front door with my rocket pack when mom and dad weren’t looking. hehe.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

All the super heroes at my party went running through the neighborhood trying to catch me as I zoomed about with my rocket pack. Mom says thankfully they were able to spot me easily with my glowdoggie collar on and Captain Hindsight (aka dad) jumped in a briar bush after me. Sadly I snagged my rocket pack on something in the woods and my amazing Halloween adventure came to an abrupt end.

I was pretty bummed about losing my rocket pack, but atleast it was fun while it lasted!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I’ll always remember you rocket pack and the fun times we had!

Rocket Dog

Technically Halloween isn’t until Monday, but I just couldn’t wait any longer to share my very special Halloween costume with all of you. It is way cool!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

Do you know what I am?

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I’ll give you a hint, I’m not a bird or a plane…

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

No, I’m ROCKET DOG – faster than a speeding bullet!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

You have no idea how excited I was for blast-off! Mom said I had to wear my helmet for safety reasons, and it’s a good thing I did…..

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

…because the landings were a bit bumpy at first.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

But with every crash landing I started to get the hang of it and before I knew it I was a bona fide Rocket Dog!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

Yea, that’s right I was rocketing so fast my ears flipped inside out!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

I know you’re jealous!

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

The groundhogs in my backyard have no idea what they are in for!

Happy Halloweenie!

Street View

You might remember that a few months ago when Hurricane Irene hit my home town, that the awnings at my shop took a bit of a beating. Mom and I decided that they needed to be replaced so we hemmed and hawed for weeks over what color they should be (the original color was discontinued – so we had to replace all of them) and what the lettering should say.

My vote of course was bright yellow with “HOME TO AMMO THE DACHSHUND” on the awnings. Unfortunately I was out voted because mom said she gets two votes since she’s the boss. Phooey!

So yesterday I stopped by the shop to check out the awning progress as they began to be replaced.

ammo the dachshund shop awnings

I was a little jealous my name wasn’t on them, but I have to say they did look classy.

ammo the dachshund shop awnings

And today when I got to see the full finished effect – I really did like them.

Mom said we still have some changes to make, like removing the lettering on the windows and maybe adding a neon sign on the corner – but she promised me that as a compromise maybe she’d put a picture of me in the window on the shop door, yea!

You can check out how our shop looked over the past 30 years+ by visiting www.studio3framing.com

Equipment Crew

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.