Transitions

Tuesday evening I drove up to Maryland and spent the night with Norman in a motel room. I kept him in a crate and never left him alone but he was great and I got to spend a few hours watching Big Bang Theory once again (the only thing I've missed since giving up satellite television). Very early the next morning Norman was on his way. He arrived safely in Canada was awaiting his new people who were anxious and excited to meet him. I'll post more when I know more about that.

I brought back two new Green Dogs fosters. One moved to another foster home later that day, and one, Sweet Tart, became our newest foster. She's young and is said to be a Great Pyr/Golden Retriever mix. She's sweet and friendly, very pretty, and is getting acquainted and settling in well enough.

Bailey will challenge newcomers, but here she's doing her best to get the new girl to come out and play.

Bette (former foster) arrived also on Wednesday. She's with us for about a month. She's been with us enough that she's just welcomed back in with no real transition period. 

Looking very demure here, but that's really not Bette.

Here's the complete current adult canine pupulation all in one picture. 

Front: Candace, Elvis, Paisley, Bette

Center: Bailey, Bear

Rear (in crate): Sweet Tart

Norman's farewell party

The brown dogs got together to throw Norman a farewell party this afternoon in the pasture. Norman is our biggest dog, by far. Things will be quite different around here without him, but it's high time he got a home of his own. I've got the van set up for a Norman transport, one large crate for him to ride in and another that I can take into the motel room Tuesday night. I've got his food packed, a harness fitted on him, and he had a dose of wormer after dinner with some canned food just for good measure. Adventure awaits and Norman is ready for it.

The puppies all love Bear best.

Norman and Bear: Breaking up the band

Breaking up the band isn't always a bad thing. Often the opposite is true. A break up allows each member to move forward independently, often going on to bigger and better things. Bear has been signed with a new label although he'll be here finishing up some projects over the next couple of weeks. The first to actually move on will be Norman. 

I took Norman to see a vet Sunday morning who gave him an exam necessary to issue a health certificate for interstate travel. I'll be taking Norman up to Maryland on Tuesday where he will meet another transport early Wednesday morning. That's just the start of Norman's journey, however. Ultimately he's headed for a new life in Quebec, where he will probably learn French before I do. “Le woof!”

This is a wonderful opportunity for this dog that I've had for the better part of the last two years. Norman was less than a year when he came here so he really has grown up here. His growth is apparent to everyone who "knew him when." He has matured, settled, grown, and found his voice as a dog does after passing through the terrible twos. He has come into his own as a dog and he has helped Bear, who also arrived here at less than a year of age, to do the same.

I have every reason to believe that both Bear and Norman will go on to great things, becoming canine stars in their own right as solo acts. 

Bear et al.

Saturday morning broke with sunshine on a bit of new snow that had fallen overnight. Midday Saturday brought us the warmest temperatures we've had in over a week and at least some snow melt. But the best thing that Saturday brought us was a young local couple who want to adopt Bear. I say young but that's relative to me. They are early retirees from the DC area who moved down here with their prior shepherd, which ticks the "shepherd experience" box and the "smarter than the dog" box that trips up some many potential applicants. 

Bear is wary of strangers and he was with them at first, but he showed no aggression and they showed a bit of patience. We walked around the yard and then came into the house and he settled down at their feet while we talked for a good hour about shepherds in general and Bear in particular. They will be away under the end of January so he'll be with us for a couple more weeks, but that's fine. Bear is an easy keeper and the best puppy sitter I've got. 

All the brown dogs: Bear, the three pups, Bailey, and Norman

Saturday evening Bailey and I went to town for a beer.

Clay will be home Sunday evening and we will all be glad, although he and Bailey will have to work out something at bedtime because she's been occupying his spot for the last couple of weeks.

Lowe's trip

I've been needing to get to Lowe's all week but didn't make it until Friday evening. It's all I did today too, not even a pasture walk. And isn't that just a little bit sad. But I took Bailey and she enjoyed it. I used the Gentle Leader on her and she was keenly aware that I had treats in my pocket. She's a very different dog when I have treats. I pushed a shopping cart along with us and she wasn't bothered by that at all. We saw people but no one talked to us, which we both prefer. 

I need to get Bailey out in more social situations around other people. Hikes are what we both enjoy but she needs to get used to more than just the trails, deer, and squirrels. I need to start working on that.

Puppies learning to dog

There is nothing that excites, entertains, and pleases the puppies more than walkabouts in the pasture with the big dogs. We did it again today, but this time I noticed the puppies paying more attention to the big dogs and even beginning to mimic some of their behavior. Pasture time is hunting time, certainly for Elvis, Bailey, Norman, and to a lesser extent, Bear. The pups seemed to pick up on that today as the big dogs buried their noses in the snow, sniffing for field mice. I'm not sure if the puppies knew what they were looking for, but they were noticing the behavior and beginning to mimic what they saw, and that's probably the first step.