My house smells like dog pee. BLEGH. I don't like it. The fact alone that I notice it says something. I've been living with a zoo for the past few years, but after a while the smells just smell like home. That may sound gross, but I clean cages every week and I keep the rest of my house pretty tidy. It's not like we live in filth. But the animal smells just lose their smelliness... I imagine much like a smoker's house doesn't smell like smoke to a smoker. I swear - I was going somewhere with this...
OH, yeah. I think I might start crating the foster girls this weekend to try to break them from peeing everywhere. They're not all that bad (I'm sure they pee outside at least some), but if I just let it go, then I'm condoning it. Not only that, but they'll have to be crated after their heartworm treatments and if that freaks them out then it will defeat the purpose - which is to keep them calm. They may as well get used to it now. I kind of hate to do that to them, but for the sake of my nose and their hearts I guess it's probably best.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Quickie - Work
I noticed that I'm blogging more lately. I think it's because I've been going to work earlier and getting off work earlier so I have more free time in the afternoons. Not quite enough to go walking like I want to, but enough that I have time to get my chores and stuff done and still have a few extra minutes to myself.
I've been SUPER busy at work and that's fun. I'm finally nearing the end of a project that I started on over a year ago: LINE SHEETS. Line sheets were meant to make everyone's life easier - except mine, I guess. 😂 We've started and stopped and changed the way we were doing it... then I got close to done and we decided to do price changes so then I had to start over again. We finally found the way that would work best for us and I've learned so much from doing them over and over that it's not taking me forever. SO THAT'S COOL! 😁 (Btw, I am SO not complaining. I love my job. It's fun and I'm constantly learning new things.)
Anyway I've only got handbags and earrings left to do... maybe I can knock out one or both of them this week; I guess we'll just have to see how it fits in among the many other things waiting for me. If not I'm sure I'll have them done and up on our site by next week. And that will be a relief for me. I hate to leave things unfinished and these have been in the works for over a year. I have to say - considering that I had very limited knowledge about photography, Photoshop, and making web pages - these aren't half-bad. 😊 Very basic, I know, but functionality is the purpose here.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
The Foster Doggies
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| This is Faith (aka Freckles, aka Ginger) (check out that tail action!) |
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| And this is Sandy (The LOWrider, aka Bread) |
So far things are going pretty well. As well as you could expect from dogs who have lived in a shelter for over a year, anyway. They have no house manners and do not know they rules yet, but they are quick learners. Most dogs are. I haven't met many who were not eager to please.
No squabbles over food or anything. They don't ever want to go outside, though. I guess they're still not sure that I will let them back in. But they're catching on. Faith will go out, but immediately tries to run back in. Sandy will run to the door, but stops short. I have to push her out. 😂
Also, they pee in the floor. I bought some dog pads in hopes to make my cleanup easier, but when I put them in the floor they both laid down on them. I could practically hear them thinking "Ooh, this is softer than the concrete!" 😂 I started mopping up the puddles with the pads and then turning them over for them to pee on. Today when I came home one was full, but Sandy was still laid out on the others. She's conked out in the middle of them right now as I type.
I've ordered some more Kuranda dog beds... I was hoping that they would be in this week, but if not I will have them early the next I'm sure. (They have different colors than the last time I ordered so that's SUPER-cool!) I'll be up to 4 beds and 6 dogs. I guess I'm still short two, but that's ok. The beds are big enough for more than one dog.
Faith is a CLOWN. She is too funny. Very energetic - and she can JUMP! Not long after her arrival I found her perched atop the Shop Vac. Over the next day or two she realized that she could jump even higher to sit on the desk. I just wonder how long it will be before she realizes that she can clear the gate... 😳 Other than that she is very submissive which means that she's getting along great with everyone. I've had absolutely no problems out of her.
Sandy, on the other hand has more of a dominant personality. She's humping everyone (yes, females do it, too - to show dominance) and that has caused a few small fights. Once when Natasha decided to break up Emma and Sandy Emma ended up with bit of a bloody nose. Not cool. More recently Sandy is behaving, but Emma reminds her OFTEN who humps who in this house. I think it's finally sinking in.
All in all I'm very happy with the dogs. I think that they are good girls who deserve a nice forever home. It will be great to know that they're going to a shelter that is not so crowded where more homes are available. I hope we make it through the spaying and heartworm treatment without a hitch. While they're here we're going to learn some things. They're going to be the most adoptable dogs up there! 😁 I'm really glad that I've had the opportunity to meet them and help them on their journey. I will try to keep you posted on their progress.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Dogs
I'm just being lazy and hanging out with mine right now. I guess I'll enjoy the peace and quiet of being down to my own 4 for another day or so. My foster doggie, Bug, made the trek to Wisconsin a couple of weeks ago. I hear that he's settling in quite nicely. He lives in a house with a few pugs and a bunch of cats. He like cats toys so he's probably happy about that. 😀 The only thing he has a problem with is the cold... I knew that he wouldn't like it. When the weather got chilly here I had to push him out the door and leave him for a while so that he'd use the bathroom out there instead of inside. The cold is just not his thing. Oh well - better to be in a nice home that only makes you go out occasionally than to be homeless and stuck out in the weather always. Bugs still WINS (although, they did change his name to Dudley). 😂
Anyway after Bug left Shadow and I decided that we'd like to foster another dog so we checked The Animal Shelter's PetFinder page and found one who seemed to need out. She'd been there for over a year and had become withdrawn and sad. Believe it or not a lot of dogs just view the shelter as home and are not unhappy to be there. It's all they know. But some of them just don't do well in that environment - especially not over an extended period. Cara was one of them. We wanted to help her so I contacted the shelter.
That did not go as planned. 😕 Technically, Bug was a part of Hope's Rescue and not The Animal Shelter. The difference between Hope's Rescue and The Animal Shelter is that Hope's Rescue can afford to pay for Heartworm and flea medication for the fostered dog and The Animal Shelter cannot. (Unfortunately, neither can I.) The similarities between the shelter and the rescue is that they are both run by the same person, but they are not related. She started Hope's Rescue before taking on the responsibilities of The Animal Shelter.
So I was bummed out about that. My dogs have a nice big room and a fenced-in yard. They all get plenty of attention and are all pretty well-behaved. I was kind of upset that my finances could really prevent me from helping out. I mean I buy all of that junk for my dogs yearly, but it's a stretch. That's the main reason I'm holding at 4 of my own - I don't want to get in over my head.
Anyway, a few days ago I got a call back from the shelter. The Animal Shelter is working with a shelter up north who will take up to 120 ADOPTABLE dogs per year from us which will greatly help with the overcrowding here. (Up north, they have laws that prevent unwanted litters and animal neglect so they do not have problems like we do. Btw, we're trying to get similar laws passed. We NEED them.) So The Animal Shelter has been picking dogs to go north. Of the first 5 they sent 4 were adopted in the first week. How's that for exciting? 😊 Apparently, though, a few of the one's they'd like to send have Heartworms which prevents them from being "adoptable." That blows.
Fortunately Heartworms are treatable, but depending on how you do it it can be very hard on the dog. The easy way (which is what Bug is going through) is to give them Heartgard or some other preventative treatment so that no new worms will be able to grow. The downside to that is that takes from 18 months - 2 years before the adult Heartworms die so they can still be in there causing damage that whole time. The hard way is to give the dog 2 very painful injections (2 months apart) into the muscles of the back. They will be sore and they will not feel good. Also, you have to keep them quiet and calm for at least 2 weeks after the injections; crating is often recommended. If they get excited and get their heart rate up they can die from a blockage from all of the dead worms or worm eggs. That sounds pretty scary to me. 😟 On the plus side, though, they should be free and clear of Heartworms within 5 months.
Anyway, now I can tell you what I'm trying to tell you. The shelter asked if I'd be interested in fostering dogs while they go through Heartworm treatment. The lady with the heart big enough to run both shelters has generously offered to pay for their flea treatments while they are in my care. SO HELL YEAH! I'll be happy to do it. I'm a little nervous about them going through the treatments since I don't have any experience doing things the hard way, but I'm excited, too. I get to pick up 2 dogs on Saturday. I'm not sure when they will get their first injections, but they need to feel comfortable here before that happens anyway. Whenever my dogs meet new dogs it's always a cause for celebration. 😁
So yeah. More doggies! 😍😍😍
Anyway after Bug left Shadow and I decided that we'd like to foster another dog so we checked The Animal Shelter's PetFinder page and found one who seemed to need out. She'd been there for over a year and had become withdrawn and sad. Believe it or not a lot of dogs just view the shelter as home and are not unhappy to be there. It's all they know. But some of them just don't do well in that environment - especially not over an extended period. Cara was one of them. We wanted to help her so I contacted the shelter.
That did not go as planned. 😕 Technically, Bug was a part of Hope's Rescue and not The Animal Shelter. The difference between Hope's Rescue and The Animal Shelter is that Hope's Rescue can afford to pay for Heartworm and flea medication for the fostered dog and The Animal Shelter cannot. (Unfortunately, neither can I.) The similarities between the shelter and the rescue is that they are both run by the same person, but they are not related. She started Hope's Rescue before taking on the responsibilities of The Animal Shelter.
So I was bummed out about that. My dogs have a nice big room and a fenced-in yard. They all get plenty of attention and are all pretty well-behaved. I was kind of upset that my finances could really prevent me from helping out. I mean I buy all of that junk for my dogs yearly, but it's a stretch. That's the main reason I'm holding at 4 of my own - I don't want to get in over my head.
Anyway, a few days ago I got a call back from the shelter. The Animal Shelter is working with a shelter up north who will take up to 120 ADOPTABLE dogs per year from us which will greatly help with the overcrowding here. (Up north, they have laws that prevent unwanted litters and animal neglect so they do not have problems like we do. Btw, we're trying to get similar laws passed. We NEED them.) So The Animal Shelter has been picking dogs to go north. Of the first 5 they sent 4 were adopted in the first week. How's that for exciting? 😊 Apparently, though, a few of the one's they'd like to send have Heartworms which prevents them from being "adoptable." That blows.
Fortunately Heartworms are treatable, but depending on how you do it it can be very hard on the dog. The easy way (which is what Bug is going through) is to give them Heartgard or some other preventative treatment so that no new worms will be able to grow. The downside to that is that takes from 18 months - 2 years before the adult Heartworms die so they can still be in there causing damage that whole time. The hard way is to give the dog 2 very painful injections (2 months apart) into the muscles of the back. They will be sore and they will not feel good. Also, you have to keep them quiet and calm for at least 2 weeks after the injections; crating is often recommended. If they get excited and get their heart rate up they can die from a blockage from all of the dead worms or worm eggs. That sounds pretty scary to me. 😟 On the plus side, though, they should be free and clear of Heartworms within 5 months.
Anyway, now I can tell you what I'm trying to tell you. The shelter asked if I'd be interested in fostering dogs while they go through Heartworm treatment. The lady with the heart big enough to run both shelters has generously offered to pay for their flea treatments while they are in my care. SO HELL YEAH! I'll be happy to do it. I'm a little nervous about them going through the treatments since I don't have any experience doing things the hard way, but I'm excited, too. I get to pick up 2 dogs on Saturday. I'm not sure when they will get their first injections, but they need to feel comfortable here before that happens anyway. Whenever my dogs meet new dogs it's always a cause for celebration. 😁
So yeah. More doggies! 😍😍😍
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