SOMEONE IS IN SOOOO MUCH TROUBLE!

Our beautiful new blue car had two damaged tires this morning, one to the point that it went flat while Andy was at breakfast with some men from church. Both of them to the point that they had to be replaced. The car is only 4 days old, so this is not something that made us happy, nor was it something we had budgeted for. It literally took all day to get the tires replaced - took the car to the dealer before 9 a.m. and didn't get it back until about 3:15 p.m. And because the damage was not warranty type of coverage, we had to fork out the money. Everyone was mystified as to what could have caused that kind of damage. We have been so careful as we drive this new car, and could not think of any places we went that would cause that kind of damage. We were considering the possibility of vandalism, but that didn't really make any sense either.

So, then tonight as we were driving to our friends house for dinner and a visit, the tire pressure warning light went on. This is a new feature to us, and we were not happy to be seeing it's function twice in one day. Got to our friends without and problems, hoping that maybe the light going on would be a quirk of the car electrical system that would be fixed under the warranty. No such luck. Got out and saw that the front right tire was damaged the same as the other two tires. Now, this is one of the tires that we bought today - and as you all well know, tires are NOT cheep! So, once again, Andy put the doughnut tire on, and tomorrow he will be going to our local tire place to get yet another replacement - not through the dealer this time as we think we can get a better deal elsewhere.

Andy gave this situation some thought, because obviously, something is damaging our tires. The damage is on the sidewall of the tires too, so it is not repairable! Andy is pretty smart, so it didn't take him long to come up with the culprit. Here he is:
Yes, it is Leo. Our beloved dog (well, at least he used to be beloved until he went through over $400 in tires in one day) is at fault. He loves to bite at the tires as we back down the driveway to the turn around spot. It is an annoying habit he has always had, and we have always feared that we would run over him. He has never punctured a tire before, so it wasn't a danger we were thinking of. But, the tires on this smaller car are . . . well, they are smaller. And I guess he can get his big mouth around more of them, which allows for him to puncture the side of the tire. Not good! Guess who is getting shock-collar trained tomorrow! And while we are at it, Bo will be getting a lesson in not jumping up on the new car with his big long toe nails and scratching the doors - hasn't happened yet, but it's coming if we don't get control of that!

Leo has always been a bit aggressive with barking and biting at moving parts. Two weeks ago he barked and bit at the running chainsaw and got nicked in the lip pretty bad. When Jansse came running in and said that Leo had bit the chainsaw while it was running and was bleeding I was pretty sure he was a gonner because I couldn't imagine how he could survive contact with that sharp fast moving chain. But, he just had two nicks in his lip/nose area. You would think he would learn from an experience like that, but he didn't. Now, he is not allowed outside while Andy uses the chainsaw - or the snow blower or the wood splitter or the circular saw or the sander or the grinder or any other loud motor thing that has moving parts for him to get caught in. And, if he's not careful, not while the car is moving!

This tire thing is just so frustrating! I sure hope that shock collar works, because this is not a dog we can afford to keep if it does not!