"I'll do ANYTHING for food!"
Sweetie absolutely loves treats (well, which doggie doesn't?!), but he loves them so much that he would do anything for them! When we first started taking him to puppy kindergarden, we'd give him a command, and he would perform every command he knew hoping that he would get the right one, to get the treat! What a silly pup! Whenever we walk by him, he thinks we have a treat for him in our hands -- he will stand on his back feet and beg with his front paws (I know it's not good for his (and other toy breeds') back legs, especially the knees, but it's just so cute!!!). So, we would let him check our hands -- he would poke his head into one fist, find nothing, poke his head into the other fist, find nothing, poke his head back into the first hand again, find nothing, then the other hand again... He would do this back and forth five or six times even though it's obvious that there is nothing there... but he just couldn't believe the fact that there is no treat or anything there for him! I guess he just deeply believes "there gotta be treats here somewhere..." Well, at least there is hope... In fact, Sweetie is always so busy with his treat search, we can hardly even hold him still to pet him! Oh well, finding a treat is a lot more rewarding than being petted as long as Mr. Fuzzy doesn't get any petting either..., at least that's what Sweetie thinks.

Quest for World Domination!
As I mentioned earlier, Sweetie really believes he can conquer the whole world and loves to show all the big guys like Rottweilers and Chow Chows "Who's the boss?!". When he was 7 months old, he underwent a hip-joint surgery. When I picked him up at the vet, he was in such pain, crying and just being miserable (poor doggie :-( ). Right before we left the vet office, a full-size black Chow Chow came in... All of sudden, Sweetie forgot ALL about his pain and the fact he could only move three legs, and started growling at that Chow Chow very angrily (I was holding him at the time). I mean, He was mad! He was like "Back off! Get out! Leave us alone OR ELSE!" Boy, he was ready for a fight, as if he had never had that surgery! It was so funny... I told him, "Sweetie, don't you remember you only have three legs to use and he can eat you alive?!" But all he cared about was to protect us from the "giant Chow Chow invasion"...

Anyway, he's fully recovered now, but still takes every chance he gets to "protect" us from every moving-living object, as well as some non-living objects too! Especially trash bags and basketballs! Oh well, what can I say about this ambitious little guy...

Passion for Watermelons!
Sweetie loves watermelons! In fact, he loves them so much that he goes totally nuts as soon as he sees them! As soon as the watermelon is taken out of the refrigerator, Sweetie starts his temporary "nervous breakdown" -- he can't stand, he can't sit, he can't lay down -- he gets so frustrated that he can't do anything unless he's gotten a piece of that watermelon! It's just so weird -- I could've never guessed that any dogs would like any kind of fruit before Sweetie! Not long after Sweetie decided he liked watermelon, whenever Sweetie starts his "Oh watermelon, PLEAAAASE GIVE ME SOME WATERMELON" song in the kitchen, Charlie would ask me "Are you eating watermelon again?!" even though he is in another room, and he knows exactly when Sweetie gets his share!

Sweetie usually gets two or three small slices of watermelon each time. I usually give him one piece first, and he will make sure to let me know when he's ready for the next one! Once, I ignored him on purpose after he finished his first piece, to see what he was going to do to get his second piece. (He doesn't cry for his second or third piece.) So, Sweetie finished his first piece, ran to me and stopped by my feet to try to get my attention as usual... I pretended I didn't see him... He circled around my feet a couple of times to try to get my attention. I still pretended not to look at him. He ran back to his first piece (almost totally gone) and looked at me to try to get me look at him there. I still pretended not to look at him. He ran back to me again to get my attention, but I still pretended I didn't see him. Finally, he ran back to his first piece, picked it up, brought it right next to my feet, put it down and pushed it over to my feet with his nose as if saying "Look, look mom, there is nothing left on this piece, GIVE ME ANOTHER ONE!!!" What a smart little boy! He got some extra pieces of watermelon that day, of course... :-)