A Letter to LAPS, from Allie (now Maggie)

Dear friends at Langley Animal Protection Society (LAPS),

Remember me?
I was called Allie, but now I'm Maggie!

Thank you for taking such good care of me in your shelter. You have a very nice place there, but I have to say I like it at my new home much better! I have been here two weeks now, and my new mama says I am settling in well. My mama likes to take lots of photos, and most of them are of ME! She said I can use some of them for this letter, so you can see how I'm doing and where I live.

C'mon - I'll give you a tour! 

I have been slowly learning about life here on the island. Did you know there is a beach just a block or so from my new house? We go there almost every day on at least one of our two daily walks - oooooh the great smells on the beach!

This is one of my favourite places -
we see herons and eagles and otters and shellfish!

I can lie here for hours!

There's also lots of fun places to hike, and I've been to two of them. Last Friday I had my first hike at a place called Swallowfield with Mama and my new friends Pat and the Poms (no, that's not a singing group - it's my mama's human friend and her two Pomeranians). And on Monday I did my first hike to Crofton Lake too!

This is me at Swallowfield.
That's the Chemainus River behind me,
heading to the estuary.

And this is me at Crofton Lake.
I sure love hiking!

It's so pretty here.
My mama is always taking pictures! 

I also love Mama's back yard and like to spend lots of time out there lying on the grass or under the bushes or even on the back porch. Fortunately, mama has work to do out there so she can hang out with me.

Hey, Mama, I'll pose for you! 

Every day we do at least one new thing - walk a little further, meet one new person, practice one new behaviour. Yesterday it was raining, so my new thing was wearing a raincoat for my walk - I didn't mind a bit! And when we got home, we played with a toy that dispenses treats - I don't quite have the hang of it yet, but when Mama nudges it with her paw - er, foot -  to make it wobble, goodies fall out!

Okay, I do have a few challenges. Mostly with cats. I am very obsessed with the cat who lives here (her name is also Allie, which is why my mama had to change my name), but Mama puts a leash on me and ties me to her belt when I get too nosy or when I chase her.

Cat.cat.cat.cat.cat! 

When I am calm around the cat I get lots and lots of treats! And I am learning not to pull Mama off her feet when I see cats during our walks. Treats are also involved there! Because of my allergies, I get dried kangaroo treats and they are DELICIOUS! So it is all good.  Allie the Cat isn't very happy (she even peed and pooped on the rug twice - oh my!) but she is calming down now that I am learning to ignore her. Sometimes I sense her scowling at me when I am trying to nap.

Is there something watching me?

My other challenge is new people. I don't mind meeting nice well mannered dogs, but people are just plain scary. I run to the furthest part of the yard and hide when someone comes to the gate while Mama and I are in the back yard.  

Stranger Alert! Stranger Alert! 

Even after hiking with Auntie Pat and the poms, I wouldn't let Auntie Pat touch me, though I did let her walk beside my mama. More treats! And whenever we see a human on our walks, Mama gives me another treat before we even get to them. So maybe humans are okay.

What else can I tell you? I love car rides, but Mama won't leave me in a car when she's running errands so I only get to go when it is ALL ABOUT ME. I wear my seatbelt, and mama is teaching me to use a crate instead (which I Do Not Like!) because it is safer. Crate training involves treats too!

At first I hated being in the house  except at night, and paced continually, but now I am getting much more relaxed about it. I have claimed Mama's bedroom as my den - I sleep on her bed or sometimes in my own raised bed on the floor, and I like to help her when she makes the bed in the morning.

I'm such a good helper!

Mama fixed up the baby gates so I have access to my our bedroom when she goes out without me. Yes, sometimes she leaves me behind when she goes out (can you believe it!), and at first I howled like a husky when she left the house - she could hear me all the way out to the road! But she kept popping in and out several times a day for just a few minutes, and gradually lengthened the time away, and now I can stay by myself for two or three hours without getting upset. Treats are involved with that, as well!

I met my new vet and even though I don't like strangers I was a very good girl. I had some goopy eyes so I got some drops for that. My new vet was the  one who recommended the kangaroo treats so she is my new best friend.

As you can see, things are going well and my mama loves me to bits. And you should hear her laugh when I do my happy dog dance and play bow at her. I also love to get belly rubs from her so when we play I roll over lots and wave my paws in the air until she tickles my tummy.  Hahahahahaha - that is so much fun! And after showing my happy spirit, I get more treats!

Life is good! 

Well, that's about all I can think of to tell you. Thank you again for my three weeks with you, and matching me up with my new mama. I'm loving life and getting braver every day!

Lotsa love,
Maggie (formerly Allie).

The Pawty that Went to the Dogs

Last weekend, our training facility hosted a party for the dogs and their humans.  Eddie and I attended, though I left my camera at home.  All photos in this post are courtesy of Bev Maahs and Cowichan Canine Behaviour and Training.  There are more photos on their facebook page, which you can reach from their website.

Our first challenge was to get Eddie into the church hall where the party was being held - stairs!  Cement stairs, which are Eddie's scariest kind!  There was a ramp, of course, for accessibility, but it started right beside the stairs so Eddie's reaction was to attempt to bolt as soon as we came near.  Even high value treats were refused.  So, I put him back in the car and went into the party by myself.

Ten minutes later,  I returned to the car, walked him back to the stairs/ramp, and just stood there staring into space and chatting with other arrivals. After a while, his flat ears came back up a bit, his hunched body was no longer belly crawling on the ground, the the rain of treats dropping down were being noticed and eaten.  I backed up the ramp about an inch at a time, and soon he was putting his front paws on it.  More gazing, more chatting, more treats, more inching up the ramp,  and the back paws were on - and, wonder of wonders, he suddenly trotted up the ramp like he'd been doing it all his life.  He hunkered down again when we came to a turn in the ramp, but still made it into the hall.  Yay, Eddie!

And we were just in time for the games.  You remember Christmas Party games, don't you?  Musical Chairs, Egg and Spoon Race?   Of course, at a Christmas Party for the dogs, there are slightly different rules:

Egg and spoon relay race:  Participants (dogs and humans) line up in two equal lines.  Humans have their dogs leashed and the loop on the end of the leash is slipped over the owner's wrist.  About ten feet in front of each line, the leader places a chair.  Another ten feet further, places a second chair.  Leader brings out a carton of eggs, cracks one to show it is raw, and hands a spoon and egg to the first person int he team.  Participant must carry the egg on the spoon  using the hand that has the leash looped around it. Dog must demonstrate loose leash walking by walking with owner around the first chair (if not using treats) or the farthest chair (if using treats) without the human dropping the egg. You can't hold the egg onto the spoon with your hand! (In actuality our eggs were boiled, but we thought they were raw until yours truly dropped the first one! And no, it wasn't Eddie's fault. His loose leash walking is stellar. My hands are not) .  This game is also good for testing your dog's ability to "Leave It" as the egg tumbles to the floor.  Eddie did that well - others got the egg almost before it hit the floor!

Musical chairs:  Chairs are placed in circle facing outward - one fewer chair than humans.  Humans walk with their dogs clockwise around the circle of chairs while the music is playing.  When the music stops, the human must first get the dog to sit before the human sits in a chair. If the dog stands back up, the human has to stand back up as well, and someone else can steal the chair as long as their dog is sitting. When all chairs are taken, leader counts to ten - any dog breaking the sit before then means the round is still on and the chairless person can try to claim the chair. Once the round is complete, the person who didn't get a chair is 'out' and a chair is removed for the next round. Continue until there are two people/dogs and one chair - the winner is the person to claim that chair after getting their dog to sit (and stay in a sit).

Musical Chairs with Dogs
All photos courtesy of Bev Maahs
Cowichan Canine Behaviour and Training

Musical Chairs with dogs

At the end of the pawty, we were all called outside and watched as Santa came down the road with a Bernese Mountain dog pulling a cart full of presents for the dogs!

When there's no snow for the sleigh,
Santa has to improvise!

Eddie says hello to Santa and his reindog

Eddie got a gift from Santa ....and not a moment too soon.  Eddie is now on Santa's Naughty List because Thursday stole my lunch from the dining room table when I got up to answer the phone.  How the heck does an 18" dog, who doesn't hop onto chairs, reach a plate on a dining table top?  From the way Allie flew out of the room like greased lightening, I suspect she may have had a paw in it.  But she's already on Santa's Naughty List for repeatedly - and I mean REPEATEDLY - tearing apart the Christmas centrepiece I made for the coffee table and flinging the artificial flowers and greens and cones all over the living room.

Riley is still on Santa's Nice List.  Don't screw it up, Riley, you have only two more sleeps until Santa comes.

Eddie Graduates - With Honours!

Graduated with Honours!

Eddie has officially graduated from Cowichan Canine's Foundation Program.  Cowichan Canine Behaviour and Training Ltd.  is a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training partner, a 100% positive training method which makes use of clickers and treats to capture, shape and reinforce behaviour.

According to his certificate, Eddie has now learned to:  give attention, offer behaviours, respond to cues and target, as well as demonstrate self control.  This has enabled him to respond to his name, settle, sit, down, come, wait, do polite walking, leave it, and do various tasks with distance, distractions and duration.  An old dog can learn new tricks.  I'm not sayin' which of us is the old dog.

Eddie successfully completed 27 out of 29 tasks.  Two of the distance ones - down from a distance, and settle from a distance - were a challenge for my velcro dog, though he was beginning to catch on today.  Technically he had one more week of classes in which to complete these tasks, but given the Christmas break and my other commitments, he wouldn't be able to take it until mid January.  As weather is dicey in January (I don't drive in snow and ice), and sometimes life interferes, and as he'd completed more than needed to graduate, I decided to finish it off today.

Thanks to Bev Maahs and Lisbeth Plant for their great teaching, Karen G for her assistance, and the various dogs and peoples who shared classes with us on our journey towards perfection.

Eddie with our instructors, Bev and Lisbeth

Yeah, right.  And do you think I could get him to SIT for this picture?

I waz tired....and my tummy was full of treats!