Baby Love

My aunt is having a huge garage sale for the second weekend in a row. Last week, I checked it out/helped out with my mom. Since I was killing time away from my doggies, I just couldn't return to them empty handed! But what could I bring them back from a garage sale? My first stop was the stuffed animal bin. The only problem is that all of the stuffed animals had those little pellet things inside. Well that's just a disaster waiting to happen. One rip of the fabric and hazardous material would be ready for the consumption. Then my aunt suggested taking a peak inside the free bin where there were a couple of old dolls. Bingo! I found a winner I was sure Mister would love. We named him baby.

Missaroo loves him too.

And by love I mean wants to rip his legs off. 

Making Friends

If anyone had told me two years ago that the Missaroo would one day have a brother I would have laughed. "Missy is dog aggressive" I would have retorted, "no way." But she and Mister are the best of buds. Another year later and the Missaroo surprised me again while proving the world wrong about biters. Sunday Mister, Missy, my dad, and I all headed out for the dog park. Yep, you read me right. Missaroo went unleashed at a dog park and you know what? She made friends! And more than that, she and Mister both had a great time.

Missy's biggest problem is leash aggression. She's totally "that guy" who picks fights with really big dudes in bars and then yells to her buddy's "hold me back brah." Except she's no guy, the big dude is a dog, and I'm the posse holding her back via leash. She's all talk to them and all bite at me. I nipped the biting in the bud, but not the leash aggression. She is also waaaay over protective of me. So the dog park really is perfect. It takes her off the leash, lets her socialize so she can see not all dogs are bad, and she can meet and greet without me at the other end of the leash. What a sweet deal! Now, this is not to say I wasn't surprised she did so well. The one thing about dogs that bite, they are a bit less predictable than other dogs. I still monitor her play very closely, but boy has she come along way. I can't tell you how proud I was to see Missy playing with other dogs and making friends.

Today we went back to the park and I think I may have met a friend too. There was another dog mom very much like me with her Peanut. No really, that's her dog's name. We talked about how we would both love to be in the animal welfare/sheltering business as oppose to our career paths, vaccines, dog parks, doggie daycare, and the like. I hope I'll see her again at the dog park soon. Just like the Missaroo, I've had trouble making friends. Maybe this is a turning point for both of us.

Wise.

Wise.

Love.

Love. 

The Happiest Place on Earth

There aren't a whole lot of places I rather be than home with my dogs. I mean, come on, my ideal job is what I'm doing right now. Unfortunately, I've only made less than a dollar in two years of doing this so I have to look for work outside my backyard. I think if I could pick a runner up, it would have to be the place I go to everyday, Found Chicago. I love it there! Sure, at noon I'm ready to punch out for the day. BUT I'm also just a lowly intern and most of my day consists of picking up poop. That part of the gig is def not my dream job but I put a big smile on my face while I do it anyway. Why? Simple: Everyday we save lives. I would love to help Found save even more lives for the rest of mine. Not only are they apart of the No Kill movement, they are on the cusp of something really great. I want to be a part of their greatness too. So everyday while I'm cleaning kennels, mopping floors, filing papers, and meeting with the head honcho, I just keep smiling. For me, Found Chicago has become the happiest place on earth.

So, now you're on board right? Totally pumped and want to help Found save lives too, right? You can! And we won't even ask you to pick up poop! Just drink! Cocktails for Canines is June 29th at Parlour on Clark in Chicago. I'll be at the front door to greet you. For ten dollars you get two drinks and the chance to make a difference. There's more info on theFound Facebook Page. See you there!

Life and Such

I just wanted to pass along a quick Bill update since it has been three months since his accident. Tomorrow he is being discharged from rehab and will finally go home. Although the best place for him to be right now is probably rehab, that just isn't in the cards for him. So, we will all make the best of it! The good news is he will be home with his loving family. The goal is that he will make enough progress there that he will be able to eventually return to rehab where he can get the care he needs. I am hoping to send him a care package by the weekend. Continue to pray for his recovery. We are just getting started folks! Team Bill.

Breakthrough Missaroo

One of the trainers at Found Chicago told me that dogs have three reactions to stressful situations, freeze, flee, or fight. The Missaroo has always chosen fight... until yesterday. As most of you know, I have been working with Miss for three and a half years now. She suffered from terrible separation anxiety and dog aggression on top of her other crazy habits. When I first started working with her on being less aggressive on leash toward other dogs she bit me. I still have the scar on my right arm to prove it. I've had to nail her butt to the ground a couple of times in order to tell her I was the one who was really in charge of the situation. Over the years, she has calmed down quite a lot. She doesn't even snap at me anymore when I try to get between her and another dog, but her choice remained fight.

Now that we have a fenced in yard, I have been able to work with Missy in a new way. There is a neighbor dog who lives behind us who hasn't yet given up barking at Miss the way Rusty did. This dog always starts the barking, but Missy makes sure she gets in the last word. They meet at the fence and go at it. So, I've been working with Missy to stop the barking and climbing on the fence. Success. But I still had to stay right there and hold her back just a tiny bit. So we kept working at it. Every day, every chance I had to be there with her when the other dog barked, I used as a lesson. And then yesterday a miracle happened.... I mean like the clouds parted and a dove might as well have flown down. Missy not only approached the dog without barking, she WALKED AWAY FROM A BARKING DOG! She simply chose to ignore him. AMAZING. Like seriously! I just about died. My mom was like geez it's not that big of deal, but she wasn't there the day Missy turned her head and bit me. Not the time on the leg. Or the time that left the scar on my arm. She wasn't there when I had to force Missy onto the ground and hold her there until she stopped. She wasn't there when I almost gave up. So she didn't understand why Missy simply walking away from a fence made me so overjoyed tears filled my eyes. And more than being happy for my own success, I am happy that Missy can be just as chill as her little brother Mister. Going through life fighting with everyone is no life at all. I'm so happy Missy just improved her own quality of life! I am sure there will be more fights in the future, that this was just another step and not the end of the journey. BUT it was indeed a breakthrough for the Missaroo.