What we did this week

What we did this week, 

By Sagacious Sadie

I dunno why my mama's not bloggin’.  There is LOTS to blog about, an’ here she hazn’t wrotten writed written a thing for nearly a week again. Sigh.  I guess that means I gotta do it for her again.  Sure wish someone wud invent a computer with keys big enough for PAWS.  An' cameras too, cuz my mom has hardly taken any shots this week.  I hadza take some for this blog, but they is a bit blurry.  Sowwy. Oh well, here goes:

First of all, our friend Georgi is here for a visit while her mama has deserted her gone on a holiday.  She came a WEEK ago, an’ haz mama written a thing about it? Noooo.  If Georgi’s mom is checking the blog, she’s gonna think we’ve booted her out to roam the streets all by herself. 

But no, she’s here, she’s fine, an’ we enjoys her company.  We had a laff  luagh  funnies the other day.  Petey stole Georgi’s cushion.

Petey, the cushion thief

So Georgi stole my cushion.

Georgi, the cushion thief

An’ I had to sleep on de floor.  But mama sez I’m a very grashus nice host to let visitors borrow my bed.  Georgi will be here for a few more days still.

Petey, Georgi, Sadie catching some zzzzz's

And on Sunday – DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED ON SUNDAY THAT MY MAMA DIDN’T BLOG ABOUT???

Guess who this is:

Guess who?

No, silly reader, that’s not Eddie. This is Eddie:

Ha ha, fooled you!

That’s our friend Taleah!  She's about the same age as Eddie, and the same colours, but much smaller:

Taleah and Eddie

She came to visit with her good buddy Riley. 

Riley

They also let their mamas Deb and Sharon come too.  Taleah and Riley haz been here fore, but Eddie hasn’t met them cuz he is the new kid on the block.  They stayed at the RV place down by the beach, an they waz here for three days!  

Eddie an Taleah and Riley and the humans went down to Osborne Bay Park.  I can’t do that walk anymore, but that’s okay – I caught up on my sleep.  The humans also got kicked out of a nursery  (the tree kind, not the little baby kind) - but I’ll let mama tell you that story.  Mostly I think the humans drank beer and wine and ate. 

But they did plant a tree in memory of my ol’ buddy Charley.  A dogwood tree.  It waz a gift from Aunties Deb and Sharon and Ellen.  An’ Deb dug the hole and they put the tree it in and told it to grow.  My mama doesn't seem to haz a picture of it yet (Auntie Deb took some pictures though!), so you hasta use yer imaginations. 

My mama also got a package of hundreds of ladybugs and they set them loose all over the flowers, especially the roses because the aphids is eating them.  But this pickshure  pictoor photo is of them on some yellow daisy things.  We broughts some of the ladybugs into the house on our furs!  Heh heh heh.

Ladybugs

And today – ya know what happened today?  My mama took me an’ Petey fer a long ride to Victoriaiaiaia.  And she drove to the POUND there.  And she LEFT PETEY THERE. 

(Sadie! You make it sound like I abandoned him!  One of the directors of Petey’s rescue, Broken Promises, works there and Petey is going to a new foster home down there so his quality of life and medical needs can be better assessed, and so I can get a bit of a life again.  The pound was just the meeting place.  Besides, you liked it there – you said hello to the chickens and bunnies and cows and goats roaming the fields.) 

Whatever.  He left wiv his sootcase  cardboard box of clothes and peepads and food and medicines and pages of stuff my mama wrote about his care.  An' he took one of his baskets and his favorite blankie.  An' he also took some other stuff fer Broken Promises – leashes and coats an stuff that friends had donated or that we don't need anymores.  I tell ya, that ol’ man didn’t leave empty handed pawed! 

Petey moves out

But now my mama sez it is very quiet around here.  She was able to get the lawn cut without any dogs crying or barking.  An' to have a quick look at some of the few photos she took this week.   If I can drag her to the keyboard, I’ll get her to post some more of them in the next few days – and Auntie Deb will send us some too! 

Anyway, that’s about it.  It’s a good thing ONE of us takes the time to blog and let people know we’re alive. I tell ya, one of us hasta be the responsible one.  I guess that's me.

Love,

Sagacious Sadie. 

Sumbody Save Me!

By Petey

Ah dunno about my foster mama.  First she takes such nice
photos of me to show my transformation



An' then she sticks me in this dorky hat she found
at some thrift store on the mainland.



Do I look happy?



Sumbody adopt me and save me from this humiliation!



Charley's Will, Petey's Inheritance

Shortly after Charley passed away, I received the following beautiful poem from my friend Gail.  The accredited author is Luis Delgado:

A Dog's Will

Before humans die, they write their Last Will and Testament, give their home and all they have to those they leave behind.  If, with my paws, I could do the same, this is what I'd ask....

To a poor and lonely Stray, I'd give my happy home.  My bowl and cozy bed, soft pillows and all my toys.

The lap, which I loved so much, the tender loving touch.

The hand that stroked my fur,  and sweet voice which called my name.

I'd will to the sad, scared shelter dog, the place I had in my human's loving heart, of which there seemed no bounds.

So when I die, please do not say, "I will never have a pet again, for the loss and pain is more than I can stand."

Instead, go find an unloved dog.  One whose life has held no joy or hope, and give MY place to HIM.

This is the only thing that I can give .....The love I left behind.

This is my inheritance! My Last Will and Testament.

I know if Charley had left a will, those would have been her words.  And while I expect to adopt another dog or two in the coming year, today we address the spirit of the will by welcoming a new foster dog to our home - a dog who, without a doubt, fits the above description of those Charley would want to help.

Please do not skip this photo, as hard as it is to look at.  It is the 'before' picture of a sad unloved dog.  If ever you doubt there is a need for rescue, consider this photo.  This is Petey, when he arrived at animal control a couple of days ago:

The good people at Broken Promises Rescue responded to the shelter's call for help - a shelter was no place for this dog.  Petey is blind and appears to also be deaf.  The vet believes he is at least twelve years old.  His blindness is due to neglect - likely neglected eye infections - in which his eyes are now completely destroyed and will likely need to be removed.  His teeth are also destroyed - nearly all will be pulled when he is ready for surgery.  He was, as you can see, a matted mess.  He has now been bathed, groomed, and been to the vet.  He's on antibiotics and pain relief.  Here is his 'after' photo, courtesy of Broken Promises:

And for all he has been through, despite months or years of living hell,  he is a funny, sweet, loving boy who likes nothing better than being cuddled and who is already showing signs of being the male version of a Diva.  I brought him home from Victoria this afternoon, and he quickly took charge of my lap, much to the cat's disgust.  Then he chowed down on a dish of food, pranced around the back yard with a little guidance from me, wasn't the least bit fazed by Sadie or Becky or Allie, made a lot of squeeky noises and a few barks, and after an incredible effort at remaking his bed to get it 'just right' (I have never seen a dog put so much effort into making a bed!), settled down in Belle's old basket, with Charley's old blanket.  He then continued to grouse and complain until I covered him with his fuzzy-lined coat.  Once appropriately covered, he promptly went to sleep:

Welcome, Petey, welcome.  May you enjoy the bed and bowl bequeathed to old shelter dogs by those that I have loved.
                                                                    **************

Note:

Surgery for Petey and others like him is expensive. Please consider making a donation to Broken Promises Rescue, a registered charity, to help cover such costs. You'll find donation information on their website. Tell them Petey sent you.

Getting to know you.....

Getting to know you,

Getting to know all about you.

Getting to like you,

Getting to hope you like me too....

(song from The King and I)

That old song was running through my head this weekend as Jessie and I get to know one another. No description from a previous home or shelter or foster is ever completely accurate in a new environment – while it may have been true for that person in that space, substitute another person and another space and the behaviour may be different.

Jessie came from bad beginnings – a puppy mill – and through a couple of very unsuitable homes before landing with Broken Promises Rescue, for whom I am fostering. Jessie is about 1.5 years old, a bearded collie, and very, very timid. My primary task is to gradually expose her to new situations in a way that will increase her confidence.

Her biggest nemesis is a car. She is terrified of cars – especially of going in cars. The trip up island in my van was one of drool and nonstop quivering.

Jessie, soaked with drool

Her greatest ally is her crate. Unfortunately she is a wee bit picky about crates – loves plastic ones but not wire ones. And I only have wire ones. Yesterday, I started asking around for a plastic one to borrow, but after some initial resistance that even liver treats couldn’t overcome, she is finally adjusting to the wire crate with a sheet covering the sides. (As I write this, my friend Else is bringing over a plastic crate for Jessie - a better choice as Charley believes all wire crates are her personal property but won't be caught dead in plastic.)

Settling in

Because she is such a timid dog, it is important for her to have a place she feels safe and secure. As I’ve written before, on the post about crate training, a properly crate trained dog sees a crate as a den, a haven, not a cage or jail. Jessie is one dog who really needs a haven.

Jessie has some other challenges on which we are already working. She doesn’t know how to ask to go outside to go to the bathroom. But she is learning, and a quick “uh uh – outside!” results in her running to the door with me to finish the job on the grass.

She also pulls like a Trojan. While I was told a quick “uhuh” brings her back in line, this hasn’t been my experience so far. Once she has done her business and received her treat, she practically drags me back to the house. That is a problem for me (I have a spinal/hip problem that makes it impossible for me to walk heavy pullers), so I will need to work with her indoors on leash heeling, where the door to the house is not a distraction. And I’m making arrangements to borrow a ‘no pull’ harness for her.

And at the moment, “ Walkies” is not in Jessie's vocabulary. Our one foray outside of the fenced back yard, just onto the driveway - resulted in her having a meltdown - a quivering, shivering, hunkered down, not-going-anywhere sad-little-muppet meltdown. We shall try again in a couple of days, this time leaving through the gate on the other side of the house, away from the car and driveway. Our journey of exposing Jessie to the outside world will be taken with baby steps.

Jessie has a lot of really good traits.

She has a lovely “sit”. She will sit for anything. Because she has a tendency to paw and jump up for attention, the rescue was teaching her she only gets attention or treats when four paws are on the ground. We are continuing with that training – not even a pat on the head unless all paws are down.

She is, so far, a very quiet dog. In the house, she is silent – no barking or whining at all. This morning, for the first time since her arrival on Saturday, she let out a joyous WOOF when we headed for the back yard at six AM. She has a very clear WOOF, not a bark or a yip or an arf - a clearly articulated contralto “WOOF”. There’s nothing more annoying than a yappy dog, so I consider a contralto woof to be a good trait!

I'm quiet, but I know how to WOOF!

She is a quick learner. Initially, she trembled violently each time I picked up the leash to take her into the yard. The very sight or sound of the leash was enough to send her running. I think she was afraid I was going to take her out in that puke-producing metal box on wheels again. So I left the leash clipped to her Martingale collar and let her drag it around for a day, and now she is just fine with it.

She is great with other dogs, cats and people. She is a bit of an attention hog, but that bodes well for her to become attached to a future companion, and also makes training that much easier. She wants to please.

I'm smilin' now!

Jessie will be a work-in-progress. But for the right home, this muppet of a dog will one day soon be a great companion.