How are the remaining puppies doing as their siblings leave?
They see them leaving and so they obviously must be aware, but puppies are pretty clueless. Being puppies, they carry on playing with whoever is still around. No one has sunk into a deep depression and tried to end it all by jumping into the ball pit.
How is Allison doing as her litter is shrinking?
She has seen some of them leave and she looks concerned. She goes out to Daneland and wants to see them. I'm not letting her in with them because she was just spayed and I don't want the pups to rip her open with their dagger-like claws, but she has seen them through the fence. This was not Allison's first litter so she's been through this before. I don't know how she feels about it, but she's still a happy girl, trying to play with Maya or the boys, although I'm not allowing her to run and play outside yet.
How am I doing with the puppies' departure?
This one is almost harder to answer than the others. Saturday was 10 weeks since Allison gave birth and I have been focused on them to the exclusion of everything else other than work and caring for the other dogs. I slept out there with them for three weeks. I've watched them eat, sleep, poop, and grow for 10 weeks. I've tried to build and do things to keep them entertained and to exercise their minds as well as their little puppy bodies. Although they haven't all left at once, the fact that they are leaving has been slapping me in the face over and over again. I need to get back to doing a lot of things I've put aside for the past almost three months.
Weren't you going to keep Elliot?
No, I never had any serious intention of keeping Elliot or any of the other pups. He's had an adoptive home lined up for several weeks and I like them. I'm not equipped to raise a puppy, particularly a deaf one. I suppose Maya and Della could raise a puppy, but they would make her into the dog they want, which could be problematic. I loved all the pups and I do miss them, but I also want them to move out, move on, and get on with their lives. I hope we gave them a good start, but the real work is now up to the adopters.
Has Malala been adopted?
No, not yet, and that concerns me and needs to be the focus of my attention now. Maybe it's her funny name or her funny face. There has to be someone who is the last to be chosen, of course, but mostly we ran out of applications on par with those who have been approved.
The rescue has set some stiff, but reasonable requirements, e.g., being local, committing to classes, requiring pet insurance, etc. The local thing is because these are giant breed pups that we are sending out into the community without being spayed and neutered so they will have the benefit of the hormones to grow and develop. The adopters are contractually required to have the speuter done a year from now, but that requirement can be difficult to enforce is the pup is halfway across the country. If the adopters are local people that we know, and in classes together, etc., the follow up is a lot easier. These puppies will not add to the pet population by "accidental" litters even if it means I have to show up on their doorstep with a vet in tow.
What's going on with Allison and her eye?
The hope was that Allison's "cherry eye" could be fixed at the same time she was spayed. The vet was prepared to do so, but once he examined it closely realized that this was not an easy fix. She will see a canine ophthalmologist. The vet who saw her thought that it could be fixed, but it's a more involved procedure than he was prepared to do in combination with the spay. She needs to see a specialist and we will get her to one, but that's not going to happen next week. I wish we could find her an adopter now, even before we are able to get her seen and get the problem fixed.
That brings me to the last thing I wanted to say today, which is "thank you." So many people have followed Allison and her pups and provided support in many ways. The pups may be adopted, but this isn't over until Allison is safely ensconced in her new home with her eye fixed. Thank you to everyone who has provided funds, supplies, and/or emotional support. All those are still needed, particularly funds for Allison's eye care and surgery. Here's a link where you can donate to Green Dogs for Allison and others who will follow her.
Rufus and Hugo, both disc dogs now.
Rufus is a good boy. There's got to be someone out there wanting a nice, easy shepherd.
Della (above) took one look at Serena (below) when they first met and decided that Serena would be her friend. Della doesn't need, or want, any other dog friends; Serena completely fulfills her need for a dog friend.
Max with ball, Rufus with disc.
Serena looks for any excuse to run to the fence and bark, at anything,
neighbors, dogs, cars, deer, or even the possibility of any of those things.
My firepit has been a pile of ugly cardboard boxes for months.
Today I burned it out. Not a big start on fall cleanup, but it's a start.
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