I love my dog. This I’m sure you know well. With a face like that, how could you not?
However, I don’t want my house to scream “A DOG LIVES HERE!” I feel that his presence pushes the point home more than enough, and I don’t need “dog stuff” strewn all over the house to further prove that my house is a dog house. So, I tuck “Mosey” stuff mostly out of the way. I suppose I would be a terrible parent. Corralling all the kid’s toys into one room or closet and saying “don’t let that stuff come out here and spoil my living room!”
Anyway, in celebration of the fact that as of today, April 16, we have been Mosey’s parents for a whole year, here are some snapshots of Mosey’s World.
Here’s his food and water, which is in the living room between the fireplace and walkway to the dining room. “They” say not to feed the dog in the kitchen/dining room to discourage begging… but Mosey begs anyway… The placemat is one Doug used growing up :)
We tuck the container of dog food on the kitchen cart (under the waffle maker) next to the oven. He gets a natural/organic blend with no fillers. It has banana chips, peas, carrots, and craisins in additon to the chicken flavored kibble. Sound fancy? It is. He eats better than we do. But since he eats so little, it’s not a huge burden to spring for the better dog food. His food dish is a one-cup portion, it’s easy to just scoop it out with that… no other portioning tools needed. He gets one to two cups a day, depending on how active he’s been lately. He eats more in the summer and less in the winter.
His treats are in this cookie jar, and he definitely knows the “clang” of the metal on the glass means he’s about to get something yummy! (Note: I can not verify the yumminess of the snacks. I have not tried them, but he sure seems to like them.)
Here is his crate “house.” I hate the word crate, sounds so mean, so I call it his house or his kennel. The blanket over the top helped keep the warm air in during the winter… it’s still kind of chilly inside during the day so I’ll leave it on until the weather becomes HOT. The floral pillow inside was a DIY floor cushion that failed, that turned into a dog bed. The red crate on top holds his travel bag (with a few toys, plastic bags, etc for when we take him to Doug’s parents or to the dog park) in addition to two coats (he gets cold in the winter) and old (chewed up) leashes, among other things. The certificate commemorating his graduation from obedience school is on the wall, haha!
It has been a great year with our sweet pup!
Questions? I’ll be happy to answer in the comments!
My Friend Staci 
With our apartment, it often looks a bit like a Catopia, or as close as we can get it, a lot of the time. Their stuff gets all put away when I vacuum (but, hey, so does ours! haha), and eventually makes its way out again over time. However, we have spaces for all their things to be tucked and hidden away for whenever we have company coming over so that it doesn’t look like The Cat’s Apartment (that the humans share).
I like what you’ve done with the dog food/treats out of their bags–it’s something that we’ve thought of doing for the cats’ dry food as well to make it easier to access. And maybe putting their treats in glass jars will limit the times Loki finds the bags and gorges himself on treats.
Also, a small side note: I also had difficulty with the word “crate” with Gwenni, since it sounds mean. But, she loved her crate–a LOT. We started calling it her “den” instead. So weird how words can come with such weight!
I want a dog so much but it’s just not possible for us right now. Happy one year with Mosey! He’s lovely.
I love how you tied in your guys’ love of maps (and kind of your wedding colors too) with Mosey’s bowl and placemat!
Glad you noticed! I smile every time I fill his food and water and sometimes switch them around like, “now he’s eating food on top of Asia, now he’s drinking water on South America,” Haha, I am such a nerd.