Monsters all around and deep in my head

It occurred to me this morning - sometimes it takes a long time - puppy dog is quickly becoming a surrogate for the nightly "monster watchers". As a kid, I was incredibly terrified of monsters under the bed, closet, etc..(I blame my bro for some pranks & me for an exceedingly overactive imagination & the house which had old flooring, water heating pipes, and other things that made horrific sounds). So I would line myself with stuffed animals - literally, inc at feet & head - every night before I felt safe enough to sleep because their eyes were always open so always watchful (yes, creepy, but it made me feel comfortable)

Since the move and we let Ebbs come sleep in the rm (bed), she's taken up alternating either nightly or thru the night various positions around me (e.g. up against my back, across my feet). I know she doesn't understand what she's doing for me and while I don't fear the 'monster under the bed' anymore ('sides, I have Matt to protect me too ^_^) Instead, I just have the MonSter in my life to contend with and all the things it brings along. Feeling her solid lump of a body press up against me is quite calming as I'm falling asleep...I know it should be the hubby's place to do that, but unfortunately, I sleep under a heated blanket, as well as emit TONS of body heat (I know.. tmi) and Matt get's easily overheated... its a win-win that Ebbby will lay against me.

manufacturing blah blah yada yada... update

We got the puppy (term used loosely for the 10yr old, grey muzzled doggie) a new collar and when we went switch them out, we realized the other one, or her claws, had rubbed a bald spot on her neck where the itchiest part of the old collar had lain. So... we left her neck bare for a number of day & kept the house well lit (stupid black stealth dog) in hopes that the irritation atleast would subside.

Thankfully, today, when we woke up I felt her fussing at her neck (she usually lays pushed up against me in the bed and last night she was at the small of my back). I stopped her from scratching at it and saw a downy cover of light greyish-black fur over the spot. She might not get her rich, thick black coat back over that spot, but its atleast on the mend and Matt and I made sure her new collar is smooth all the way around -- we stood in the store running our fingers over almost every collar in the correct size trying to find one that wouldn't cause a similar problem and debating back and forth over what we could or couldn't feel  o_O

I hope dog appreciates the time and effort we take to make sure she's comfortable and healthy lol   :-P

manufacturing expectations and the lack of standards..

I realize this is gonna be a petty complaint..but it kinda comes down to expectations in a brand name...and really expectation in a product type in general for a moderately priced (not the highest, but definitely not the cheap stuff) product.

We bought a new collar for our dog at the same time we got the halter & lease for Ebby. Everything is of the same brand and frankly I'm thrilled with the halter & leash. Ebby steps willingly into the halter so everything works out. The collar needed replacing cuz her old one was like 9-10 yrs old. Unfortunately, she's been itching at the collar, regardless how loose we keep it. I ran my fingers along the inside of it and realized because the stitching method included doubling the clothe the hold one of the plastic pieces, it formed an incredibly itchy, stiff section that lays right up against her neck. The section requires so many stitches because it is so heavy duty, there really is no way to correct it. We can probably lessen the impact by adding duct tape to the area, but its frustrating because we shouldn't need to modify the collar just so the dog could comfortably wear it. It makes me wonder if it had really gone thru QA testing because I felt the problem as soon as I ran my finger along the inside of the collar.

Oh well.. Thankfully, we can keep it loose since I use the halter to take her for walks and the collar is just to hold her tags. :-)  and make her feel more comfy..she hates not having her collar on...don't know if that's cuz she feels she's not ours or what XD