Better late than never, right? Happy #NationalPetDay to my wonderful dog, who will never read this but I'm going to wish it to him regardless. Also, there are way too many ridiculous social media holidays.

After what seemed like weekly vet visits and lots of anxiety on Woody's part, he is officially free of his ear infection. For anyone who needs to have their dog treated for ear issues, I highly suggest asking about the leave-in gel treatment. It was a bit pricier but so worth it since I didn't have to fight with him to put drops in. And the best part is that it cleared everything up pretty quickly after the first dose. Two doses is what they typically do to ensure they get it all - no different than an antibiotic.

If you're a Snapchat user, you've probably been having a bit of fun with the new face swap feature over the past couple weeks. Some are hilarious, some adorable and some will just haunt your dreams. As a pet mom, I figured the best use of this would be swapping with my dog. After all, people are face swapping with Starbucks cups, fruit and fake faces drawn on napkins. Why wouldn't Snapchat easily recognize that I'm trying to swap faces with my pooch? Fun fact: it is a LOT harder to get this to work with a pet than I thought. First of all, if your dog or cat moves at all while you try to take that selfie, forget it. Also, they need to be looking directly at the camera with their nose and eyes visible or else Snapchat won't recognize them as a face. Lastly, you need good natural light so the app can easily distinguish your pet's features.

After a week of trying, here was the official, hilarious and terrifying result:

Anyone else get this to work with their pet, or were you just too afraid of what the result would be?

Today we talk Woody on his first long walk of 2016 and he got to enjoy a mass amount of sunshine in the living room. It was a good reminder that spring is getting closer. We set our clocks forward in two weeks. My birthday is approaching. I'm close to getting my braces off. And we have a ton of friends celebrating weddings and bachelor/bachelorette parties which means Woody will get some solid time at Camp Bow Wow. It's shaping up to be a pretty good start to the year!

Woody spent some much-needed time at Camp Bow Wow this past weekend. I foolishly decided to check up on him through the webcam and caught him getting friendly with one of the lady pups. On the plus side, Woody was the only dog she let near her so I guess she's committed to a monogamous relationship.

My office had a nice little visit from the Uber puppies (via the Cleveland APL) on Friday. These little guys made everyone's afternoon. Also, we were happy to hear that all of 4 Cleveland Uber puppies were adopted by the time they left their second stops for the day.

This week, one of the best doggie blogs in Cleveland posted the top-50 things to do with a dog in the city in 2016. From happy hours to sporting events, all the good stuff is here. I suggest you check it out!

http://dogsinthecle.com/2016-edition-50-things-to-do-with-your-dog-in-northeast-ohio/

It was a bit delayed, but winter has returned to Cleveland. Woody was not too pleased as I put his jacket on him for the first time this year and took him outside in the snow. I'm certain when I get home I will be greeted by a mess. As always, when the weather gets like this it's good to remember these tips for keeping your dog from feeling the winter blues:

• Play extra games of indoor fetch
  
• Work their mind and teach them new tricks. I love Zuke's training treats for this. To make your bag go further, break them in half. Just a taste is enough reward for any pup
  
• If you're running small errands that don't require you to be out of the car for too long, take them with you. The stimuli is good for them.
  
• Give them a (safe) bone or chew. I only buy these if they are made in the U.S. and are sold at a holistic pet store.
  
• If they enjoy being outside and it's not too frigid take them out for a romp in the powder. If they hate it like mine does, ensure they have a sweater for an extra layer of warmth and consider doggy shoes to protect their paws from the ice and salt.
  

I'm not an expert (again, I will probably come home to a mess), but I do try to integrate as much of this as possible into his winter routine.

Who says Mondays have to be awful? Go out and have a ball!