I haven’t blogged about the newest addition to our menagerie: Xena, the Rottweiler, who joined our household in May.
She’s closing in on six months and has integrated well into the pet dynamics although when the cats get wild and crazy, Xena can’t help but get equally excited. Xena is the most orally-obsessed animal I’ve owned: every walk is a challenge as she seeks to ingest any and everything she encounters. Seriously: she licks the dry street and sidewalk if nothing interesting presents itself (although blowing leaves, sticks and stones are best).
Amusingly enough, our geriatric, tiny Sheltie still rules the roost. One emphatic snarl from Goldie has Xena on her belly, signalling her submission. You have to know that Goldie happily abuses her power every chance that she gets.
Xena has been a real project pet: she’s more high-energy than previous pups in that she really needs not one, not two, but three brisk walks a day of a mile, preferably more. I’m getting a lot of exercise, which I probably need. So much walking that, in fact, my lovely exercise bike sits idle in the basement because, if I have twenty or more minutes to use that, why am I not walking the dog(s)?
Hrm. Ask me that again in the depths of winter when I’m bundled up and praying that my boots don’t slip on the icy mess that our sidewalks become after the first thaw/freeze cycle.
jliedl.ca 
She’s beautiful! And she takes you for walks! (Have you tried antler for her oral needs? I heard about them, and got one for when the neighbor dog visits, and she loves it, and it keeps her busy a good while. You can get them here at local pet shops.)
Thanks for the antler tip! ;-) I will look those up at the local pet shop. that’s for certain.
Oh, she’s just gorgeous! Rotties are such wonderful dogs. But they are working dogs, and need the exercise and mental stimulation of the work. Give the pups a hug from me, and count yourself lucky that you have such great companions.
You’re right about the working dog background. We had a Rottie from 1994-2003 and she was also energetic, just not quite at this level. Of course, that may just be my memory playing tricks on me. In any case, I do enjoy having the dogs to keep us company and keep up my exercise levels.