Tag Archives: Dogs

Foster Dog, Day 2

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings,

Foster dog Zeke, Day 2. Today we ran errands. I didn’t want to leave Zeke home while we were having work done on our house, lest he become afraid or slip out the door. So he got to go along with me. He traveled like a champ. 

So far he does pretty much everything like a champ. He can sit, lay down, shake, and wait for your permission before going through a doorway. He goes in a crate on command. He is calm and well mannered. Has no house training accidents. He apparently lived with cat/s before because he had no reaction to ours. 


Zeke was turned in to an area pound, along with another dog, by his owner because there was a change in living circumstances. That is all I know except that he is up to date on shots, heartworm negative, and neutered. 


I am guessing that someone, somewhere is heartbroken to have to give up their dogs. Dogs don’t get like this by accident, a lot of training was involved. When you tell Zeke to sit, his back side hits the ground  immediately. To honor this person, I will do my best to make sure that Zeke ends up in a loving home where he receives the best of care. That is what I would pray for my own dogs. And Zeke deserves no less. 

Some Things That I Have Learned While Fostering Dogs

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings,


People go to adopt a dog from a foster home or shelter and take their impressions of the dog from what they immediately see. And really, for the average adopter, they think what you see is what you get. Not so much. If you had been abandoned, sent to a new home, or your best friend had died, or you were in an unfamiliar situation for a host of possible reasons, would you be at your best? You would be in unknown territory and so would have to try to adapt with whatever skills you had or just try things and see what worked. This is what so many dogs are doing when a potential adopter comes to meet them.
With luck, the dog will be happy go lucky and thrilled to see every new person and go joyfully with them wherever they want to go and do whatever they want to do. This rarely happens. And really, would you go with a stranger, without reservations, and do whatever they asked of you? I think not. In fact, the argument might be made that this would be foolishness. Why then, do we ask it of dogs?

Often the dogs are sad, afraid, looking for safety. Trusting you to provide what they need is something that must be earned. If they came from a good, loving home, hopefully this will come quickly. If they have never had care, love, and safety, they must learn that these things are available and will be a constant in their lives. Expecting a new dog to integrate immediately into your life is not likely to happen and not fair to the dog.


Sometimes I have seen a family come to meet one of our foster dogs and have an immediate bond. This is rare. Usually the dog becomes anxious and sometimes panicy when it is time to leave with the new owners. Sometimes the foster dog tries to get out of the car and gives us a pitiful look with forlorn or panicked eyes. Or acts dejected. On fortunate occasions the dog is just happy to go for a car ride and jumps in. And these are dogs that have been living in our home, which admittedly is not very normal, but is loving, with lots of attention and company from humans and other animals.

Think then what it must be like for a dog living in a shelter or pound. Don’t get me wrong, most of these places now are wonderful, doing the best they can to provide for the animals in their care and often doing a fine job. Still, the animals are there because, for some reason, they have lost their homes, if they ever had a true home. And these places are not homes, even though they may simulate them. Workers and volunteers still have to go home at night. It is not physically possible for the sheer number of animals seeking homes to have an actual home to stay in during this transition.

These dogs in shelters and pounds can exhibit behaviors like slinking in the back of the cage, cage aggression-protecting the only thing they know, and shutting down, becoming non-reactive, or exhibit fearful shaking. These dogs do not “show” well to potential adopters. They get passed by, so spend longer in the shelter, which makes them have more negative reactions as they spend even longer in the shelter. It can become a vicious circle. Getting them out of their cages for walks and one on one interactions can help. It gets them out of that reactive situation.


With all dogs that you are meeting though, in foster homes or shelters, don’t expect miracles. The true personality of the dog may not emerge until you have adopted them and had them in your home for a while. How then can you make a decision on who to adopt? Well you can take them out of the current setting if possible and see if there is a connection with you and your family, including any other dogs you may have. It would also be wise to ask the shelter workers for their advice and opinions of the dogs and what is normal for them.

My experiences while fostering have taught me that, on average, the true personality of a dog won’t begin to emerge for about a week, maybe longer. Once they start to develop a routine and become familiar with a place, they start to relax and do things that seem normal to them. So keep in mind that input from someone who has spent some time with the dog can be invaluable!

All photos are of past dogs that we have fostered. 

Dogs and Tools

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, Uncategorized,

Some people say that a sign of high intelligence is the ability to use tools. In fact, at one time it was thought that only humans were intelligent enough to use tools. Other animals have since been found to employ the use of tools. 


Tools are used to make survival easier. Wouldn’t a greater sign of intelligence be the use of toys? Toys are used for fun and play.  Although I suppose the argument could be made that play is practice for skills needed later in life.


Still play does not support immediate survival. So I think that only highly developed animals play. Food for thought. 

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Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Gardens, Thoughts On Life, , , ,

Line of Cats

It’s nice to hang out with friends who “get us”. Luckily we have a few. We just had a nice visit with a friend of my husband’s who is one such person. 

Not just everyone is able to “get us”.  We have an immense love for our animals and a fondness for our old house. Not a big deal, you say? We currently live with 5 dogs and 2 cats. These are low numbers for us. 

We currently have 4 dog crates in our dining room. One fits a 70 lb greyhound. Our front entrance houses two litter boxes and a table with cat food, all barricaded by a baby gate. 

Our house was built in 1830 and comes with “charm” from olden times. The floors are uneven, the electric could stand an upgrade, the basement walls are made of stones, and the windows stick. 

But then again, there is plenty of character if you  are able to see it. There are old doors with latch type handles. There are lots of doors and windows with moldings. Curved walls in two rooms. Old fashioned sleeping nooks off the main bedroom. And older outbuildings, trees, and plantings. 


And we have room to create gardens that we enjoy since we live in the country. 


The best part though is our family that lives here with us. It’s not everywhere that you can see a line of cats outside the bathroom. 


Or a pack of dogs equally eager to snuggle or play. 

This is not the life for everyone but we call it home. 

Car Full of Monkeys 

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

May the Force Be With You.


This is Coco and Milo. They are Pembroke Welsh Corgis. Coco is a sable and white little girl of 2 1/2 years of age. Milo is the tricolor and turned one recently. We are watching them this week for our daughter. And here the adventure begins. 

We went to pick them up and bring them home one evening last week. This was to save them the trauma of being “left” by their parents. My husband was driving us home and the dogs were crawling all over me and trying to crawl on him. I told them “no crawling on the driver”. I had to grab them frequently by their harnesses to gain some modicum of control. Milo the Younger was on my lap, on the dashboard, on the armrest. Then he crawled around the back of my neck and hung their. Then it was in the backseat, in the front seat, trying to crawl on my head. And Coco the Elder was going from front seat to backseat and trying to stand on the driver, etc. You get the idea. I turned to my husband and said “this is like driving around with a car full of monkeys!” 

We were on the freeway about halfway home when my car window started to go down.  I thought my husband was putting it down so the dogs could get some air. But it kept going down. And there was an energetic dog on my lap looking out the space where the window pane was. (Now halfway down.) My husband said ” what are you doing?” I said “I thought you were doing it.” Turns out Milo was standing on the control and he put the window down. Mercifully, he had been such a monkey up to this point that I had my hand on his harness, as I did for most of the trip. (Please note, childproof locks were engaged after this episode. )

To be fair, after we got part of the way home, Coco the Elder went in the back seat and laid down. I suspect the excitement of having someone take them away from home had them all worked up. 

The reintroduction to our pack went well. The dogs all remembered each other and there were no issues. After the initial sniffings everyone went their own ways. They all went out for last call to do their business with no problems. 

Then it was nearly bedtime. We were leery of bedtime because the pups would have to sleep in a crate which they are not used to. For their own safety and the peace of mind of the other animals, a crate was required. We thought it would be a long night with lots of barking and scolding. Those little pups went in their crate with their treats and were good as gold. They slept in the same crate because they are so bonded. Milo and Coco are actual siblings. Same parents but different litters. The only peep we heard out of them during the night was to provide backup for Baxter, our lab/Doberman mix, who was barking out the window at a groundhog. 

And so day one ended well and peacefully. Stay tuned for further adventures of Coco the Elder and Milo the Younger…

Size Isn’t Everything 

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,


Size isn’t everything. It’s often attitude that is the deciding factor in the pecking order, for people as well as dogs. In this case I’m talking about dogs.

Yesterday the dogs were playing outside and got quite wound up. Cassius began hazing Shelby. Cassius is a greyhound who weighs 70 lbs. Shelby is a Shetland Sheepdog who weighs 32 lbs. The score? Shelby- 1, Cassius- 0. 

Shelby was running and barking at a visitor as their car pulled out of our driveway, no surprise there, she is a sheltie. Cassius decided it would fun to bark at her for barking. Then he decided it would be fun to nip at her when she barked and finally he grabbed a mouth full of fur in a play bite that left her with slobbery fur and pulled her enough to move her. Looked like a bite but I know Cassius was playing and there was no visible wound, hence a “play bite”.

Shelby put up with his behavior up to the point where he grabbed her. Then she whipped around and got in Cassius’ face, barking and lunging at him and generally telling him off. She had him backing up while barking in his face. At that point we intervened so it wouldn’t escalate. But Shelby likes to be in charge and maintain control. You don’t mess with Shelby.

Cassius got scolded for putting his mouth on Shelby and spent the rest of the evening pouting and depressed, on the couch. He is such a sensitive dog. If you raise your voice at him, he gets very upset. 

But it was just a day in the life. As you can see they do normally get along fine. It was just one of those sibling squabbles. And so it goes.

Choose Wisely 

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, ,

Relaxing is good for the soul, and peace of mind. I could be doing one of the many things that I should be doing. Cleaning litter boxes, washing dishes, weeding. No thank you. I did the most important thing though. Frisbeed the dogs! It was the most important, just ask them.


But instead of any chores, here I sit on the porch with books about…dogs and food, of course!


And don’t forget the cold beverage.


I have chosen wisely. Life is good.

Snapshot

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life, ,


A typical photo of life at our home makes me happy. 

The furnishings will never make an interior design shoot. The couch is not particularly attractive. In fact, quite the opposite. It does however, hold up well to active dogs and feline paws. The windows provide places for cats to perch and sniff the air and keep track of life beyond the screens. And then there is the obligate doggy patterned pillow. Throw in a lamp and a piece of artwork and it is a functioning room.

You have to see beyond this for the magic to appear. The largest two of our four dogs are napping peacefully together. One of our cats is also hanging out, watching daddy watering plants outside.  All is peaceful and cohesive. 

This is a snapshot of our lives and I am content. 

The Transformation of Pain

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life,

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What once brought pain now brings happiness. This is a lesson I have learned from this video. Two of my girls featured have now passed on. At the time the pain was tremendous. And now, although I miss them still, being able to look at this simple video brings me comfort. 

I am blessed to remember the many times and great love we shared. This is something to remember during future painful times. Because they always come. Life is a cycle of joy and sadness, happiness and pain, good times and bad, life and death. Hence the saying “this too shall pass”. It applies to everything. 

But for this evening, I will enjoy these thoughts of some of my pups, past and present.

Kammie 

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings, ,

Kammie left this world this morning, after a lengthy illness, with her loving human mother by her side. She was nine years old.


We had the privilege of being Kammie’s foster family for 14 months. She was a sweet dog with an agreeable personality.  Her first human passed away which landed Kammie at one of the Cleveland shelters. She didn’t kennel well and was fortunate to be taken in by a short term foster family. They wanted the best for her so sent her on to our sheltie rescue. She was on thyroid medicine and antibiotics for a bladder infection. I met someone in a parking lot to do the transfer to get her to us. The plan was to get some weight off of her,she came to the shelter at 59 lbs, get her healthy and then find her a home.

Little did we suspect that she was home. She underwent treatment for several bladder infections that never really seemed to clear up. She came to our house in April of 2016. In July, after undergoing an ultrasound, she was diagnosed with several bladder tumors. At that point she was deemed unadoptable and we decided to provide her with whatever time she had remaining at our home.


So Kammie became one of our pack and a member of our family. She would bark and run outside with the other dogs. Sometimes she would then turn around and come back inside, her job escorting the others outside having been completed. She received a number of medications without complaint: Thyroid pills, piroxycam (to slow tumor growth), often antibiotics, and in the later days, tramadol for pain.  Not only did she take them without complaint, she would come and wait for them at the appropriate times. She was a good girl.

Kammie slowed down a little bit at a time with her back end getting weaker until by late this week, she could no longer walk. After a couple days when she had shown no improvement and the veterinarian thought the tumors had probably metastasized to put pressure on her spine, we knew the time had come.  Our time with Kammie was a gift and it was time to give her back. 

Thank you Kammie for sharing your time with us and letting us enjoy your gentle smile and spunky personality. We were blessed by your presence. Kammie’s medical care was provided for by Northeast Ohio Shetland Sheepdog Rescue. The love was provided by us.