Teddy et al.





Old pic of Teddy (front) and Cooper at my place



Teddy and Cooper's adopter called today.  Everything is fine, she just needed my email address and wanted to let me know that things were going well.  Cooper completed beginning and advanced obedience classes and is now on his 4th agility class.  Teddy stays at home, but has some accomplishments to be proud of as well.  Mostly he has a home, which was a major accomplishment for a dog that was and is so painfully shy with people.  But he has adapted to the household routine, including going in and out with the other dogs.  He still drags a long line when he's outside so he can be caught if necessary, but he waits at the door for it to be attached when going out and to be detached when he comes back in.  He plays with Cooper and sleeps snuggled up with the old girl, Honey.  He used to be quite a destructive chewer, so he was generally crated when she was away or confined to the outdoor kennel in good weather. Today she left Teddy and the others free in the house when she was gone and returned to find everything still intact.  He still doesn't enjoy snuggling, or even being petted, but he did come up to her today and touched her on his own accord. 

Rita is now called Stormy, and her adopters called a couple days ago.  They are just ridiculously happy with her.  She's not like their old dog, but that's a good thing.  He was a great dog and they loved him dearly, but she's her own dog.  She has nothing to live up to.  They are happy with the contrasts as much as the similarities. 

She is friendly, they can take her places, and she keeps them busy.  Everything is new with her and she wants to experience it all.  She's still pretty vocal, but they are ok with that.  She also likes to sing and seems to request it and even gets them to join in.  My dogs do the group howl thing around here about 2 or 3 times a day on average.  Sirens always start it off, but they will start it up on their own if nothing else does.  Any dog who is stuck in the house during the group howl always looks at me as if asking permission to join in or waiting to see if I will do so. 

Apparently Stormy goes to her people, wanting something, and gets them to join her in good group howl.  I don't understand the behavioral aspects of it, but it's clearly a very social event and it's nice that she wants to share it with them.



Bailey with the neighbors' golden.



The yellow lab is now called Bailey. His adopters love him.  He displays some leash aggression towards other dogs and some strange men.  I suggested a training class to help get that sorted out, and I expect they will.  He's a great dog and has a great home.

The dog that I'm perhaps most surprised about is Sophie (Sunny), above on left.  That little girl was a pain in the ass.  She's a nice girl, but she's rotten.  She's smart and challenging but they love that about her.  She's doing better with the other dogs now; they are working with a trainer; and she gets a lot of exercise.