Author: riley

The Banana Boat

riley

As far as dog beds go, I have a really cool one. It’s shaped like a banana and we call it the banana boat. Wen bought it years ago, thinking that it would look really cute in photos and it resides in an upstairs closet until we bring it out and I’m pretty sure that it will be with us forever, because it is so unique.

We did a banana boat adventure years ago for my blog where I sailed it to an island and discovered a treasure. Along the way I met new friends and they sailed back home with me in the banana boat. We had a lot of fun staging scenes with that banana boat and it has remained our favorite prop through the years.

Wen thought that she had bought an unusual item that she’d never see again, but a couple years ago and as recent as last year, she spotted some banana dog beds just like ours in two different stores. Then, recently while watching TV, she noticed the very same banana bed in the background of an apartment, so there are more banana dog beds out there, but are they banana boats? Guess we’ll never know.

A Tribute to Alabi

riley

Today we are paying tribute to Alabi, Tissa Salter’s beloved 14-year old Scottie who just lost her battle with severe health issues. Alabi was the bravest Scottie ever for miraculously surviving over a year in China during the COVID lockdown while separated from Tissa, who had returned for a vacation in the US, only to not be allowed to return to China.

Tissa paid for Alabi to stay in a kennel in China the entire time and there were all sorts of problems: Alabi’s health issues, a flood, a kennel employee stealing Alabi and not knowing where she was, and Alabi finally showing signs of being separated for so long. Every attempt Tissa made to return to China was thwarted and there were so many glitches and disappointments that it seemed that Alabi would be stuck in China forever, but Tissa shared her story online and hundreds of Alabi’s angels rallied to undertake the process of getting Alabi shipped to the US.

It was truly a miracle that Alabi survived all that she went through to finally be reunited with Tissa and that she recovered from her long ordeal to once again live a happy life with her Scottie mom. Tissa documented Alabi’s story in a series of three books: Black Dog Down, Black Dog Stay, and Black Dog Home, which are detailed accounts of her separation from Alabi and all that they went through. All three books are a tribute to the amazing fortitude of a little Scottie, who after surviving an incredibly tough journey several years ago, sadly became very ill last week so that Tissa had to make the excruciating decision to let her go.

Alabi will forever live on in the hearts of everyone who knows her story though. Now she runs free and although she is no longer with us, the adventures of “A Wee Scottie Named Alabi” will never be forgotten.

Alabi

Mr. August

riley

Our 2026 Scotties Rock Foundation calendar arrived in the mail this week and we were very excited to see it! Why? Because Wen was notified months ago that the photo of me she submitted to their annual calendar photo contest was selected to be featured on a month page!

It’s a real honor to be selected to have your photo in the calendar when there are so many online members of Scotties Rock who submit photos. The calendars are a fund raiser for the foundation to help Scotties with medical issues that their owners need financial help with and it’s a very worthy cause that we are proud to be a part of.

So it turns out that I am Mr. August in the calendar and we are super grateful to have been chosen!

That Look

riley

The other day, Wen decided to grab Sadie and try her Halloween costume on her to see if it fit. Needless to say, Sadie wasn’t exactly thrilled, as she doesn’t like to be dressed up or pose for pictures. I’d say that the look on Sadie’s face pretty much shows her displeasure. Yep, that look definitely says it all!

Oh My GOURD!

riley

It’s been chilly, cloudy, and rainy lately and the leaves are turning and falling. The wind has picked up and leaves are blowing all over the neighborhood. Pumpkins on porches and Halloween decorations are popping up everywhere. You know what that means? Oh my GOURD it’s fall!

The Addams Family

riley

Yesterday was the Rocky Mountain Scottish Terrier Club Halloween party at a park in the neighborhood where the president of Scottie Rescue lives. Club members brought their Scotties for a costume contest and a parade around the neighborhood that was led by a bagpiper playing Scottish tunes.

Wen dressed me up as Gomez Addams of the Addams Family and she decorated our wagon with plush characters from the TV show, so I got to ride in the wagon for the parade—that is, until the front axle of the wagon fell off and I had to walk the last part of the parade on a leash. All Wen’s hard work making signs and decorations for the wagon sort of went to waste when the wagon broke down, but we caught up with the rest of the people and Scotties and finished the parade.

The club members had a good lunch and a good time and we Scotties got to see lots of other Scotties and have our pictures taken a bunch of times when we were all dressed up in our costumes. It was great seeing everybody and so many Scotties and hopefully, the club will host another Halloween party next year!

My New Toy

riley

Guess what?! Wen got me a new toy and it was one of my very favorites. She got me a Frankenstein Wine fuzzy squeaky bottle with a plastic bottle inside.

I love squeaky bottles and I squeak them incessantly by chomping on them until the plastic bottle inside is crushed. At that point, I chew on the fuzzy covering until I get the trap door open and then I get the plastic bottle out and chew on it until it’s unrecognizable.

That is when Wen usually confiscates my new toy, but she takes the squeaker off the mangled plastic bottle to put on an empty water bottle and stuffs it inside the cover for more fun at a later date.

It’s kind of too bad that we Scotties like to tear up our toys and chew them up, but hey, that’s just what we do. I may forget about my new toy after it’s taken away, but I’ll get it back sometime in the future and then I’ll get to chomp on it again..


Tails Are Waggin’

riley

We Scotties have good looking tails that mirror our emotions and my two sisters have the best wagging tails. When they are excited or happy, their tails are waggin’ and I mean super fast! Sometimes, when they get going, their tails even go around in a circular motion.

My tail isn’t quite as expressive as theirs, but occasionally you will see it wagging away. I guess that Molly and Sadie are just more generous with their tails expressing their emotions!

My Sometimes Shadow

riley

Sometimes little sisters can be your shadow as they follow you around to see what you’re going to do next. Molly would NEVER follow me around, as she tends to do her own thing, but Sadie is my sometimes shadow and she literally can look like a shadow, following me around with her black haircoat.

We Scotties are an independent breed, but it’s okay when Sadie shadows me. After all, she makes a great pillow!