Here are some pics of some happy cats playing on a cat tree. I had bought that thing and a similar piece for our cats quite a while ago when they were mostly living in our guest bedroom and bathroom upstairs. They never really used them and they were taking up space so they found a new home with cats who are appreciating them.
I've had Brady for a year or so. Just recently he has taken to jumping the fence. Generally he has just come into the yard near the house, ran around a little, looked for the cat and cat food. Yesterday he was out in the dog yard and pasture running with Sparky. I saw Sparky come back in and hang around the gate without Brady. He trotted back out a few times and I kept expecting Brady to come back in with him. I walked out into the pasture and looked around to make sure he wasn't just hunting the tree line and ignoring my calls, but he just wasn't there.
out front, so I finally got in the car to drive up the road and have a look. I didn't have to go far and found Brady just about 10' outside our fence, on top of the bank along the road. He was laying there and looked ok, but was unable to move. His back legs were obviously injured and had some wounds. I picked him up and carried him to the van and drove back home. 
We discussed whether or not to go to the emergency vet but I decided against it. The more I looked at him, the more I thought this may have been the result of a dog fight rather than a car. He had some puncture wounds that looked like bite marks. The emergency vet would have cleaned up the wounds, put him on an IV, given him pain meds, and taken xrays. The bill would have come close to $1,000 and I'd still have a dog that needed to go to the vet today. 
Copper is doing well in his prospective new home. He's good with the cats and is well behaved indoors. She has noticed his smile, the "funny wrinkly face when he's really happy." He wants to be near her all time, plays when she wants to and settles down when she wants quiet. The chickens may be a bigger hurdle, but there's a fenced yard for the dogs away from chicken territory so they have some time to work on that.
Last weekend I met a woman at an adoption event who was interested in Copper. The short version of this story is that he's with her tonight on a trial.
On first meeting Copper did very well. He took correction and re-direction very well. He was curious and the cats and chickens, but not really aggressive.
Among the things I've been forgetting and failing to do is to get the kennel license and tags from Fluvanna County for 2010. Today when I pulled out all the rabies certificates to take with me to get the tags, I discovered that Gypsy's rabies vaccine was expired.
I called the vet and got an appointment for early afternoon. Gypsy always likes riding with me, although now I have to lift her into the car. She comes up behind me, puts her head and nose up against my face, and lets me hold her head like that as we drive. People don't always believe that she really is a sweet girl. She's a total daddy's girl and has no use for anyone else.
She's never been good at the vet, but she is better than she was when she was younger. We muzzled her and I held her tight. She got her vaccines, and tested negative for heartworm/lyme/erlichia. We drew blood for some routine blood work because she's an old girl and is on twice daily Rimadyl.
She's got some wobble in her rear end now, but I told the vet that Gypsy still does everything she did when she was younger, just not quite as fast, quite as long, or quite as hard.
The best way for me to cope with emotional exhaustion is to match it up with physical exhaustion. So yesterday afternoon I loaded up both Sparky and Brady and headed for the trails. Emmylou's harness fit Brady perfectly. Apparently they are about the same girth even though Emmy was much taller and longer.
Her Holiness, The Most Righteous, Exalted, Lady Ga Ga, has a song called "Boys, Boys, Boys." The lyrics of the refrain go like this:
While we were walking, I re-wrote the lyrics:
Tuesday was a beautiful spring day but it was a rough day. Emmylou's pain wasn't being controlled anymore. She hurt when rising and walking appeared to be difficult. She had a sway and a weakness that we hadn't seen before. She could still climb the stairs, slowly, but going down was difficult unless I held her collar and steadied her. She was uncomfortable much of the day even as I increased the pain meds and gave her something new. But in the late afternoon we went to the dogpark to see her friends and she wagged her tail and gave everyone a smile and a kiss.
I really didn't plan to do a walk, she seemed too unsteady on her feet. But when we left the dogpark she headed down the trail instead of going back to the van. I was obviously going to do anything she wanted, and I expect she knew it.
Clay had to hit two drug stores on his way home to get a prescription filled, but the muscle relaxers gave her some comfort last night and she seemed to sleep well. I brought the guest room mattress into the office so I could stay with her last night, but she occupied the center of it, and the pillow, so I went back to my own bed as not to disturb her. She slept near Molly, who seemed to know what is going on.
Those eyes of hers could look right through me and read me like a book. She spoke with her voice, her eyes, and her entire body, reserving her greatest excitement for the hunt and her happiest expressions for people. She greeted everyone like a long lost friend, but she was most vocal when Clay would come home from work, telling him about everything that he had missed during the day.
Copper is not one of my typical shepherd- or rottie-mix fosters. He's a bully breed, or more accurately, a bully mixed breed. I don't know those dogs well at all. He's probably part American Bull Dog, part pit bull, maybe part boxer. Whatever he is, he's a very good looking dog.
I don't know the breeds well, however, and I'm not sure what kind of home to pursue for him. He's well behaved indoors; it really seems like he's been a household dog before. He's a bit on the alpha side though. He gets along really well with Teddy, and doesn't seem aggressive towards others, but he and Brady did get into it one day. It was a fight over food, and it was my fault. I had just introduced them and I fed them together without staying to supervise. One dog probably rushed the other's food dish and that set it off. I wasn't even aware of it until later. It was obvious that they had been fighting, both dogs were exhausted and both were covered with spit slime and dirt, but no blood. For those two dogs to have fought without drawing blood means that there was far more snarling and body slams than teeth involved in the fight. It was a boy fight. There was no real attempt to hurt each other, they just wanted to prove a point. Still, I have kept them apart after that. Brady is happy with Sparky, and Copper is happy with Teddy, so there has been no need to push my luck.
He's a sweet, sweet boy, however. He loves people, loves hugging and cuddling, and he comes when called. I tested him with cats the other day and he was curious but not aggressive. I guess I'd exercise the same caution I do when adopting rotties-- the adopter must be smarter than the dog. No tea baggers.
I like the idea of moving dogs around within our extended pack, at least for certain activities. For one reason, they need to learn to accept and get along with "outsider" dogs. Second, they can learn different behaviors from different dogs. In the case of my Emmylou/Teddy walking pair, there was no question about them getting along. They both get along with everyone they've ever met.
He's happy and confident here at home, but out in public or when meeting new people he shrinks back into his shell. He will never get adopted if that continues so he's part of my push to place my other fosters while I'm in a lull with the shepherds.
We did a relatively short walk on the Fluvanna Heritage Trail, followed by some dog park time. It was enough of a walk for Emmy and it was twice as much walk for him with his short little legs.
Shayna's email from Utah:
I can't believe I've had Sparky this long and have never taken him hiking. He loved every moment of it and was surprisingly good on the leash. He has the best natural "heel" I've ever seen on a dog. He trots along next to me, keeping his head in contact with my hand or thigh. That may change once he develops more confidence on the trail. Not that Sparky is a dog that lacks confidence. We met one couple with a boxer and he was bound and determined to get to him. Sparky tends to kick butt and ask questions later, so I kept them apart. Sparky was wearing a harness, but I think I'll put a pinch collar on him in the future so I can attach a short leash quickly when I need better control. We need to work on his social skills. He's generally fine with other dogs here at home after he's beaten them up one time and everyone knows who's boss.
Mostly today's hike was about marking territory. He pissed on everything he could and when he started running low on urine he did more of the kicking with his rear legs after a short piss, spreading leaves and forest debris, which dogs often do to spread their scent over a bigger area. 
He was good with people we met and I let one man pet him as he passed by with his wife. I could see the look of envy in the guy's eyes. I'm guessing they have a little yap dog, or a cat, at home. 
I am without a foster shepherd at the moment and my plan is to work on placing my four non-shepherd fosters, Sparky, Brady, Teddy, and Copper. 
An article written by Lillian Stevens, titled "If They Could Tell Us Their Stories, Regina Root Canine Rescue" recently appeared in the April 2010 edition of "Williamsburg Next Door Neighbors."
The Roots adopted Kaiser (left), a kind and gentle soul in one of the most beautiful German Shepherd forms I've ever seen. He showed them the very best that the breed had to offer. Unfortunately, Kaiser developed cancer and didn't last long, but Kaiser had an impact on the Roots that outlasted his time with them.
They were good people to start with, but I have to give Kaiser credit for making them into more than ordinary good adopters. They saw the inside of the rescue world and even a bit of its dark side, but they came through it more devoted than ever. The dogs they have fostered since then, and especially their current girl, Maya (right), are the beneficiaries of Kaiser's impact on that family in the all too brief time they were together.
Rocky is not a morning dog. We had to wake him up to feed him, get him outside, and ready to go. He would have preferred to sleep in and get a later start.
The day started out frosty, but the sky was clear, the sun was warm, and it was soon another beautiful spring day.
When we got back from the morning walk there was a call from Austin's dad, who was back in town and ready to come pick him up.
Shayna, Rocky, Shika, and I then headed into town to Dirty Dogs, a self-service dog washing facility in Charlottesville. Rocky was surprisingly good with the bath and emerged as a clean, shiny, good looking and good smelling dog.
We took a break while Rocky napped and relaxed with a stuffed toy he found somewhere in the house. I had no idea he liked stuffed toys. I'm not sure the stuffing will last long, but he enjoyed it and Shayna has some waiting for him at home.
Then it was back to the dog park with Emmylou, who was needing an outing even though she had already had her unauthorized, off-premises romp this morning.
We hit the Fluvanna Heritage Trial at Pleasant Grove this afternoon. The sun came out and it was a perfect day for a walk in and out of the woods. Shayna walked both Rocky and Shika together. His leash manners improved dramatically with a pinch collar instead of the harness and with Shayna holding the leash.
Shayna and Shika arrived Monday afternoon after a three day drive from Utah. We did introductions in the dog yard and went for a short late afternoon walk on the Fluvanna Heritage Trail, finishing up with some dog park time just before dark.
Rocky demonstrated that he's very food motivated and Shayna was able to get him to "sit" and "down" with little effort. They also both shared Shayna's bed last night, which was a first for Rocky but one that he will quickly come to love and expect.
Today we went for a walk on the Rivanna Trail in Charlottesville from Free Bridge to Riverview Park. Rocky loved it and the dogs did well together. We encountered several other people, some with dogs, and Rocky greeted everyone. It was obviously a new experience for him, but one that he enjoyed. Shayna and Shika walk a lot, so he will be getting a lot of walking and hiking experience once they get back home.
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