Lacy and Spring Break!

Lacy went to her new foster home today. They decided that they could take her after all. I was a little sad to see her go, but she was really much happier in a calmer household. No more Sport to pester her! Amy gave her a beautiful haircut yesterday. It is sooooo cute and Lacy thinks so too. She is Muppet no longer.

I am so cute.

Anyway, I took Sport and Tira to the vet again today. I spaced out their vaxs because I hate getting them at the same time, and I am glad I did. Last visit, six weeks ago, Tira got her rabies and got a reaction to the vaccine. She was fine this time with the distemper so that is good.

Sport has gained weight...haha. I need to cut back his food, but otherwise they are both healthy. I asked my vet to check Sport's anal glands, and he DID NOT like that. He flipped out, but I was able to bring him back to sanity really quickly. I put my forehead to his and he immediately calmed down and stopped struggling completely. I took treats with me and he was working the whole time that we weren't doing his exam. It really helps him to calm down. I buckled down and bought heartworm meds. Heartworms really isn't that bad here because it is so dry and meds aren't really necessary. But another clinic I know in FoCo has already seen three HW positive dogs this year and it seems like it is increasing in my area. Boo.

Anyway, I am on spring break right now and I am going to be working with Sport a lot. I am hopefully going to go on a few hikes with him and some friends and just enjoy this lovely weather we are having.

Lacy

Well, we had a foster home set up for her, but they had to cancel. Unfortunately, we have been getting tons of calls from shelters to take new dogs, so obviously those are the priority since they are in danger of euthanasia.

So, Lacy is here to stay for a while. She's finally warming up to us. Instead of sitting under the table, she is choosing to sit on the couch or in our laps. She will try to follow us around and generally tolerates the dogs. She growls at Sport, but he ignores her for the most part.

This week, Em will be staying with my boss and Lacy and Sport will be coming down to Longmont with me. It should be interesting to say the least.

Introducing...

Lovely Empress!

Isn't she cute? Her pics don't do her justice, she is very feminine and gorgeous. Em is also very soft and snuggly and I seem to be falling hard. Which is really not good. So I have to get her out of here as soon as I can.

But look how cute she is!!!!!

Okay, I know. I know. I cannot get a second dog right now. I cannot afford it, so I should just enjoy her while I can.

She and Sport are having lots of fun playing though. They cuddle a lot and play a lot. I think that she might have food allergies though, so I will be switching her food very soon.

They come... they go...

For the past couple weeks, I have been fostering a lovely young pit bull named Rhino:

Ain't he cute?

I haven't written much as school is once again kicking my behind and somehow the days do not have enough time for me to do everything I want. But the dogs don't mind too much. Rhino and Sport get along really well.

Kisses?


Hugs!

But even though we love Rhino very much, we prayed that he would find his forever home.

Please Dog. Doesn't anyone want me?!

And he DID! Yay! Rhino is going home later this week and I am amazed that yet another pit bull was adopted! Happy days ahead, Rhino.

Hip Hip Hooray!!

He was one of my faster fosters, which is just fine with me. But we won't be fosterless for long. Probably next week, or even this weekend, we will be taking in yet another homeless pup. Stay tuned! I have a feeling you are going to like this next one.

Little Leo found a home!!

Leo went home today!!!!! He did wonderfully with his new pit bull sister and cat siblings... well, the cat hissed and growled at him and swiped at him so then he left her alone. I think that they will get along fine because he is pretty smart and respectful.

Oh, I am so happy for him. As we were saying goodbye he sat down on his new mom's feet and just looked up at us like, "I'm home! Thanks, bye!"

But then, as we were walking to the car I turned back to look at the house and I see him in the window his whole body wagging, but concern on his face. Then he turned to look over his shoulder and got out of the window. He was home. Finally and forever.

We'll miss you, Buddy!

My foster puppy may be going to his forever home!

LEO MIGHT GET ADOPTED SOON!!!!!

A woman from WY came with her husband and dog to meet Leo on Saturday. Leo loved the dog, Lola, and the people. Lola was pretty stressed out to be around a shelter so she wasn't wanting to interact a lot. But the people still loved him and put an application down on him.

My manager and I are going to do the home check this week. It is about a hour drive, and it just snowed here... so hopefully the roads are okay. We are thinking that we don't want to have them or us make another trip so we are going to bring Leo with us, and if everything goes well, we will finish the adoption there and leave him with them. My manager also wants to bring along Rhino, another pitty of ours so that if for some reason Leo doesn't work out, we can try Rhino at the same time and if they want they can adopt him instead. They liked Rhino a lot, but are concerned about him with the cats. Leo is better around cats but higher energy than Rhino.

The home check is going to be either Wednesday or Friday. I am really excited and hopeful that everything works out. Leo deserves this.

I am going to miss this little bugger. My manager is totally in love with him as well so we are surely going to cry when he we hand him over. We also told them that we would be willing to dogsit him ALWAYS.

So keep your fingers crossed for Leo. He is about to start his new life pretty soon, and I can only hope that I have prepared him enough.

The innocence of dogs

As I sit watching Sport blow bubbles in his water bowl for no apparent reason, the thought hits me: Dogs will be dogs, and to expect more than that would be unfair.

Sometimes I catch myself expecting so much out of my dogs that I lose sight of their very doggyness. Leo is a baby. He just doesn't know better and I shouldn't expect him to. Sport has only been here for six months, he's not perfect nor will he ever be. We have a lot to overcome and change doesn't happen overnight.

All I want is for my guys to be happy and that is all I should be worried about. I don't want my dogs to only do what I tell them to; I want them to enjoy life and explore and be mischievous. I don't want robots, I want dogs. And my two are extremely doggy.

So I throw Leo and Sport some ice cubes and marvel in their doggy innocence. Who needs a reason to blow bubbles in the water bowl?

Puppies...

I almost forgot why I try to not foster puppies. Don't get me wrong, puppies are the cutest things ever, but my new foster dog Leo, a 6-7 month old puppy, is CRAZY!

As soon as I brought him home, Sport and Leo were hellbent on destroying my home. Sport realized that he was faster and more agile than Leo, so he would run under the glass coffee table, through chair legs, behind the tv and over the couches to play "chase." Leo, who I am convinced is part puppy/part horse, would clod around behind Sport crashing into the glass coffee table, knocking over chairs, through the wires behind the tv, and over all of us on the couches. I sent them outside and Sport quickly taught Leo how to dig and then they munched on grass in between crazy chase sessions.

Leo gets into everything. I am apparently horrible at puppy-proofing and every time I turn my back he has something else in his mouth. Shoes, blankets, dog beds, trash, tablecloths, couches... I can not let my guard down for a second(currently he and Sport are in the yard running around like fools).

He and Sport are getting along fairly well. Sport likes to play with him a lot. I think the weirdest thing is what is going on with Sport. With his other doggy friends, he likes to play chase or play with toys and tug. With Leo, he wrestles. At first I was scared that he was hurting Leo because Leo is quiet, but Sport sounds like a Tasmanian Devil. However, they just continue to wrestle until I chase them outside. It is odd though, becase Leo always puts himself on the bottom so it looks like Sport is a big tough dog.

It's a good thing puppies are so darn cute. I can't imagine putting up with this otherwise. People who want dogs that stay puppies forever are crazy. But at the same time, I think someone should take Leo home soon cuz he really is funny and adorable.

Things the Leo is still learning about:
-Screen doors (he's crashed into it more than once...)
-Oven doors (There's a dog in the oven!!!!BARKBARKBARK)
-Stairs (his horse part doesn't like it)
-Dachshunds

Little Leo

Sport is a mean foster brother... haha

Icarus Udpate

Little Icky is in the hospital. After talking to the vet and having her look over him, she told me that it seems like kidney failure. We decided to still run the blood work to confirm, but it doesn't look good.

I don't think Icky is coming home.

How weird that I could be so attached to him after only a couple weeks. I started crying as we discussed it. The sad fact of the matter is that he is not my dog and I cannot afford to pay for expensive treatments for a foster. Nor can my shelter, really. There are so many more things we could do than try to extend the life of an old min pin.

I also found out his whole story today. Apparently his owner died and the person who inherited him surrendered him to the humane society because he was biting (no teeth!!!!). The humane society transferred him to us because of his attitude and age.

How sad that this boy had to live the end of his life amongst strangers. Strangers who love him, certainly, but not the people he has known and loved for his entire life.

He is such a sweet little dog and he deserved better than this. I am just glad I got to meet him. I am glad he got to spend these past weeks in a home and not a shelter.

The first day here...


Hanging in the yard with Sport

Smarty Pants and Icky-poo

I have never practiced "Leave it" outside of my house. I usually only use it for cheap parlor tricks (put a piece of food on Sport's foot and tell him to leave it until I release, "Okay!") or when I drop something I don't want him to eat (like chocolate) and then I reward with a treat.

Today on our walk, my little boy surprised me! I had him off leash and he was bounding through the field. I called him back and he came running and stopped right before he got to the trail. He looked down and sniffed. I walked over to him and saw a BLOODY RODENT SKULL just as his little jaws were opening to gobble it up.

"Leave it!"
He looks up at me.
"Good boy!"
He looks down and opens his mouth again.
"Leave it!"
He looks at me.
"Let's go!"
He runs towards me and we go down the trail.
"GOOD BOY!"

I honestly was expecting to have to pry it out of his mouth. I made the mistake of rewarding him before I called him away. He is used to me saying "leave it" and then releasing him to eat it with "okay" so he thought I was releasing him to eat the skull. But he still listened to me!

Even more amazingly, he still left it alone when I went back to take a picture of it (because I am a zoology major/nerd and I wanted to see if I could identify what kind of rodent it is). It had to be tempting since it was very fresh. Probably just killed a couple of hours ago.

I'll spare you the pic, it even grosses me out. But I was really proud of him.

I am worried about Icky, though. He hasn't been eating again and he has lost quite a bit of weight. He ate some turkey tonight, but hasn't has a meal since Monday. I am taking him to the vet tomorrow to run some blood work. I am so disheartened about him sometimes. Who is going to adopt this goon? But honestly, if I find out that he is sicker than we thought, I will be willing to keep him. It's not like he is any trouble. I bet my parents will even take him on...

Icky-poo!

Overwhelmed...

I'll admit it. I am constantly in a bad mood lately. It's silly because I don't feel like I am in a bad mood, and I don't act like I'm in a bad mood... but things that used to make me happy don't so much anymore.

I really dislike my classes this semester. I struggle to stay awake in each one, to understand the concepts, and to get the grades. And when I do badly, I don't even care that much.

Blase. Apathetic. These are the things that I feel.

At work, I am annoyed. By both people and dogs. The dynamic between the dogs currently residing there is... strained. There is a lot of fence fighting and tiffs. I am frustrated and upset and this causes my concentration to be shot. That is why I got bit today. It wasn't a bad bite, no broken skin or anything, but I have a feeling that in the morning, I will have a nasty bruise on my thigh. It happened because a beautiful dog named Empress decided that she didn't like the looks of fluffy dog named Wylie (and his buds, Snowflake and Georgia). So she tried to eat them through the chain link as I was walking her past. I was pulling her along and like an IDIOT, I tried to body block her with my thigh.

Rule #1: Never use your body to block a dog that is snapping.

So I pushed my thigh into her face, and her teeth collided with me. OUCH. I yelled and scolded and she hit the deck. I felt like a complete jackass. It wasn't her fault. It wasn't as if she tried to bite me, I just got in the way of her gnashing teeth.

Then not ten minutes later, I am carrying a wiggly puppy to her crate, and she swings her head around and clocks me in the jaw. I swear my ears were ringing for at least an hour. I'll probably have a bruise there too.

Some would say these types of injuries are just part of the job, but in all reality they aren't. Honestly, if you are careful and respectful, you won't get bit. I have never been bitten by a dog. (my definition of a bite does not include a dogs face colliding with my thigh or any other body part) I have been snapped at, and I have come very close to being bitten, but contrary to popular belief, most dogs do not want to bite people.

But I know that these injuries are all my fault because I was not paying attention like I should. I swear my head is not screwed on right.

This unrest is seeping into my home life as well. More often than not I find myself shooing Sport away from me. I am currently living in a zoo, so I am a bit frazzled. My parent's cat is staying with us for the next few weeks. Plus I am fostering an old min pin with no teeth. He likes to bite a lot too, but he does no damage.

Icarus (Icky) is a little grump

Tiramisu hides in the sink. She hates the dogs.


Sport is confused by the new additions.

Life is exhausting and the only time I am content is Sport's massage time in the evenings. Then I can relax with my favorite boy.

Now we wait...

I just submitted my vet school application. ((Big sigh of relief)) It is amazing to think about all that I have done leading up to this one decision. Putting my fate in the hands of a bunch of nameless, faceless people... it is scary indeed. But what is done is done, and I can only hope that I have done enough to impress someone on that board. Now we wait until.... February.

Today, I also went and paid rent and another pet deposit since I kept Sport. I was paying it, and the woman asks, "Do you know about our restricted breed list?" I respond with, a very shocked NO.

"Oh it's the usual. You know, Pit Bulls, Rotts, Dobies, Akitas, and German Shepherds."

Oh man, I was pissed. When I rented this place, I specifically asked if there were any breed restrictions and I was told no. Now I am told there are? Right when I am going to get a Pitty Puppy?! The worst part is, I rented this house even though it was more expensive and further away from school than another house I was looking at, just because I didn't want to support a company that supports BSL.

My roommate thinks we should take the pup anyway. He's just a foster, and it isn't in our lease.

Oh... Life...

So yeah, this blog thing wasn't working out as well as I would have liked. Life got it the way, as it so often does.

In one week, my vet school application is due. The one thing that determines my life for the next four years is due in a week and I am nowhere near close to submitting it. Plus, classes have been difficult. Same old story...

The most exciting thing that has happened since I have last written has been the new addition to my family. His name is Sport:

Ain't he cute? He was a foster dog... for a few days. Haha. Technically, I haven't adopted him yet. The paperwork hasn't been filled out, but he is staying here for good. Yes, he is now subjected to a life of purple sweaters and a raw diet. Oh the horror!!

In other news, I may be getting a new foster soon. My boss is currently fostering a pit bull puppy with a hurt leg (Can you say CUTE?!). She may have to go visit family soon, so I will take him on. If not him, I will be fostering something pretty soon...

That's it for now. More dog stories to come soon. I finally found the cable for my camera so dog pictures will be coming soon as well.