I've mastered "Monster Creation 101," and am rapidly moving on to the intermediate levels.
Initial stepseses:
Introduce dog to family, observe and chortle with evil glee as wife, who swears she's not a dog person, becomes infatuated. Giggle as children also become infatuated. Ignore signs of own infatuation. Not possible - I'm an adult, and a rescuer, to boot - I'm above canine manipulation!
Yeah, right.
Moving right along to "Monster Creation 102, Optional Topics:"
Purchase a training lead. Oh, wait, I might need different lengths - Better get another one. Oh, and wait, what about a pretty lead for when I'm walking her someplace where I might want her to look 'pretty?' OK, fancy lead. And matching martingale, too. Gotta cover all bases! Oooh, and what about tags? I'll want to easily switch tags when I'm changing collars - Lets get a tag clip, too - a fancy one, so it'll go with the fancy lead & collar! Oh, and nifty little 'poop bag' dispenser, too! Can't just stuff bags in my pocket, oh no! That'd be gauche.
Me?! I'd never go over the top like that. T'cha!
Intermediate Monster Creation (200 level):
Carefully teach the non-obsessive, non-toy-focused BC to play with toys. Then introduce "tug-o-war." Then introduce "Fetch." Then add erratic bouncy-toys to Fetch. Last, wonder why the dog is standing at the door, bouncy toy in mouth?
I wonder if teaching the kids to play Fetch with Suka would move me to the advanced class, or does that fall under 'optional topics' at the intermediate level?
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Now you see her, now you don't...
Heh!
Call me prescient; Pip has gone home, already! She took almost no time at all to assess and place.
She flew through - in little more than a week, she'd already found her place. Other dogs haven't gone as well, sad to say - One placement was returned almost immediately - the resident dog objected violently to the newcomer. It's rare that we have a screening failure of that magnitude - We were a bit shocked. Oh, it happens, but so rarely that it's caught us on the back foot.
Call me prescient; Pip has gone home, already! She took almost no time at all to assess and place.
She flew through - in little more than a week, she'd already found her place. Other dogs haven't gone as well, sad to say - One placement was returned almost immediately - the resident dog objected violently to the newcomer. It's rare that we have a screening failure of that magnitude - We were a bit shocked. Oh, it happens, but so rarely that it's caught us on the back foot.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Another transport...Gone right this time.
I'm not usually in the transportation rota, but we had a gap in our rotation that couldn't be filled. Two dogs coming in from the mid-west, two different locations, and we couldn't complete the chain with the usual suspects, so I stepped in.
310 miles, before the day was done, but I brought a tiny, sweet full-grown owner surrender, and a 12-week dumped puppy to the Farm, where they could settle in comfort and safety.
Pip, the owner surrender, already has potential home prospects lined up. She was obviously stressed, but behaved very well for me, and was completely appropriate with the other dogs at the Farm. The puppy, OTOH, hasn't anything lined up yet, but he's an utterly fearless little fuzz-ball. He was dumped at a shelter at age approximately three weeks - And when I mean 'dumped" I mean left on their doorstep in a box sometime over night. Three weeks old..?! What the hell, people?! What idiot takes a pup away from its mother at three weeks?
Well, anyway, a shelter worker took the pup in, and nursed him past weaning, before sending him to us. The result is not only is he a fat, cheerful little guy, but he's got zero sense of fear - boldly ran up to me, ran over to the car, ran over to pretty much everything that caught his eye - a blowing weed, a scrap of trash, the other dogs, the barn cats, the HBIC, another volunteer... This little guy might take as many as five minutes to place.
:-p
Considering the unmitigated train wreck the last transport run was, this one was pure pleasure.
Edit 9/17/2008:
Just want to show you my passengers:
Casey (the puppy):
http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=11915779
Bold little guy, fearless and inquisitive - Not for a novice home!
Pip (tiny little Lady - And I DO mean "Lady!"):
http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=11915707
She's going to be a beloved pet for someone - Proper, appropriate, and mannerly, she's a canine "Miss Manners."
310 miles, before the day was done, but I brought a tiny, sweet full-grown owner surrender, and a 12-week dumped puppy to the Farm, where they could settle in comfort and safety.
Pip, the owner surrender, already has potential home prospects lined up. She was obviously stressed, but behaved very well for me, and was completely appropriate with the other dogs at the Farm. The puppy, OTOH, hasn't anything lined up yet, but he's an utterly fearless little fuzz-ball. He was dumped at a shelter at age approximately three weeks - And when I mean 'dumped" I mean left on their doorstep in a box sometime over night. Three weeks old..?! What the hell, people?! What idiot takes a pup away from its mother at three weeks?
Well, anyway, a shelter worker took the pup in, and nursed him past weaning, before sending him to us. The result is not only is he a fat, cheerful little guy, but he's got zero sense of fear - boldly ran up to me, ran over to the car, ran over to pretty much everything that caught his eye - a blowing weed, a scrap of trash, the other dogs, the barn cats, the HBIC, another volunteer... This little guy might take as many as five minutes to place.
:-p
Considering the unmitigated train wreck the last transport run was, this one was pure pleasure.
Edit 9/17/2008:
Just want to show you my passengers:
Casey (the puppy):
http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=11915779
Bold little guy, fearless and inquisitive - Not for a novice home!
Pip (tiny little Lady - And I DO mean "Lady!"):
http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=11915707
She's going to be a beloved pet for someone - Proper, appropriate, and mannerly, she's a canine "Miss Manners."
Monday, September 1, 2008
Roll em' out!
Actually, I'm told that there were five adoptions this last week.
Puppy Jez, one of a litter of puppies that were transferred in at the same time as my semi-disasterous transport run,* went home on Tuesday. Jas, from the same litter, went home Wednesday. Duncan, whom you've already read about, went home Saturday. Marla (formerly 'Marly'), the subject of my disaster-run, went home yesterday (Sunday), as did Gabby (another of the puppies). That's three of six from that litter. The rest are all in foster care.
Busy!
This is why I go scoop poop - Not for advice (excellent though it be), but because the HBIC is a genius at finding good homes for so many dogs! She needs help to make it happen, and I'm very pleased to be even a small part of making her mission succeed.
*Reference to the 'adventure' in question: Blue Rock Shilohs: Transporting: It's not just a drive in the country.
Puppy Jez, one of a litter of puppies that were transferred in at the same time as my semi-disasterous transport run,* went home on Tuesday. Jas, from the same litter, went home Wednesday. Duncan, whom you've already read about, went home Saturday. Marla (formerly 'Marly'), the subject of my disaster-run, went home yesterday (Sunday), as did Gabby (another of the puppies). That's three of six from that litter. The rest are all in foster care.
Busy!
This is why I go scoop poop - Not for advice (excellent though it be), but because the HBIC is a genius at finding good homes for so many dogs! She needs help to make it happen, and I'm very pleased to be even a small part of making her mission succeed.
*Reference to the 'adventure' in question: Blue Rock Shilohs: Transporting: It's not just a drive in the country.
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