Was thinking on the way to work this morning that I should do a quick post on how things are going with the training. Sandy has sit mastered and is doing really well with down. I need to practice down more and also in different places than just inside the house. We took a walk yesterday doing the walk a short bit and then do a sit and that seemed to work okay. She was still trying to wander around, but I need to do it everyday so she gets in the habit of thinking, oh, we are just going to that next driveway, and then the next driveway.
Sandy is really starting to like to ride in the back of the car. At first, she was hesistant and I had to pick her up to get her in the back there but she seemed to enjoy the ride. Now when I take her to the back of the SUV with the back open, she jumps right up in there. She sure can leap for a short stubby dog. When I took her to the shelter on Sunday and went back to pick her up, she was bounding against the fence, happy to see me. She was literally up off the ground, bouncing up in the air. I have also seen her do that in the last few days watching her chasing squirrels out back.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Training begins
Yesterday was day 1 of our weekly training class. The class is only 4 sessions long and we have Spring Break off. Ben and I went by the shelter and Ben picked out Confetti and we did a quick meet with her and Sandy in the office and they got along fine. Monica said that Confetti wants to play with any dog and sure enough she and Sandy started playing right away. We put them in the back of the SUV and headed over to Tomlinsons with them playing around in the back and Ben watching over them to ensure that they were getting along okay.
When we got to Tomlinson's, we took the dogs and walked over to where the shelter's monthly adoption day was going on and said hi and then went into the store. The folks there directed us out back to the little grassy area in the parking section behind the store. Dana, our instructor, had set up some chairs for us to sit in with out dogs and spread us apart so that we could work with our dogs and ourselves without too much interference from dogs wanting to play. Ben and I took our seats and filled out the paperwork. Dana asked us to introduce ourselves and our dogs and as we did I wondered if having Ben come with a randomly chosen shelter dog was a good choice. On the one hand, the information covered is instructive and I want him ot have some dog handling training, but on the other hand, it will take a lot more effort to build a relationship with a dog that we don't have at home. As the class progressed and we got homework to work on, it became clear that there may be some issues with doing homework with Confetti. We need to make it out to the shelter to get Ben to work with Confetti. Another concern that popped into my head, which is purely selfish, is "what if Sandy or Confetti get's adopted during the time that we are training?" Of course, my second thought was that there is a much higher likelihood of Confetti getting adopted out from under Ben and screwing things up there because she is at the shelter all the time. I need to call Dana and see what she recommends we do if that happens.
Sandy is outside laying in the yard right now watching a squirrel eat from the ear of corn on the feeder. She is so patient lying in wait for an opportunity to chase the squirrel up the tree or over to the fence line. It is a stark contrast to how she has been when I first come home or first get up in the morning, but this morning was different on that front. Dana told us that if a dog jumps up, we need to "ignore the behavior" and not give attention for negative behavior. This is classic parenting, but she adds in the doggie twist in that we should look away and look to the stars. The reasoning is that this is dog behavior for this situation. She also told us that dogs maintain leadership by controlling another's individual space and to that end, we need to walk right through our dogs and not around them if they are in the way. I tried this out this morning with great success. Sandy has not jumped up at all this morning. She remained calm and excited to see me and when I initiated a bit of playing/petting, she was well behaved.
The tough part of dog training and the thing I have the hardest thing with in my life in general is following through and being consistent. I need to do the dog training every day. I have already done some sit and stay with Sandy this morning and it went really well. Dana said we need to do it in 4 different locations to set it as a general behavior and so I need to do more in the house today and then do some in the front yard. We did some at the shelter and I will do some more there after I drop her off for the day and I need to pick a fourth location. I also need to get Ben to pick a time to come with me to the shelter today and tomorrow to work with Confetti. I think Ben thought it would be immediately easy to do and that she would get it right away. She proved to a bit tougher and did Sit pretty well, but didn't make much forward progress in 1 session of trying to get Down. I hope that Ben will come back today and keep at it and see how well it can work with repeated training.
When we got to Tomlinson's, we took the dogs and walked over to where the shelter's monthly adoption day was going on and said hi and then went into the store. The folks there directed us out back to the little grassy area in the parking section behind the store. Dana, our instructor, had set up some chairs for us to sit in with out dogs and spread us apart so that we could work with our dogs and ourselves without too much interference from dogs wanting to play. Ben and I took our seats and filled out the paperwork. Dana asked us to introduce ourselves and our dogs and as we did I wondered if having Ben come with a randomly chosen shelter dog was a good choice. On the one hand, the information covered is instructive and I want him ot have some dog handling training, but on the other hand, it will take a lot more effort to build a relationship with a dog that we don't have at home. As the class progressed and we got homework to work on, it became clear that there may be some issues with doing homework with Confetti. We need to make it out to the shelter to get Ben to work with Confetti. Another concern that popped into my head, which is purely selfish, is "what if Sandy or Confetti get's adopted during the time that we are training?" Of course, my second thought was that there is a much higher likelihood of Confetti getting adopted out from under Ben and screwing things up there because she is at the shelter all the time. I need to call Dana and see what she recommends we do if that happens.
Sandy is outside laying in the yard right now watching a squirrel eat from the ear of corn on the feeder. She is so patient lying in wait for an opportunity to chase the squirrel up the tree or over to the fence line. It is a stark contrast to how she has been when I first come home or first get up in the morning, but this morning was different on that front. Dana told us that if a dog jumps up, we need to "ignore the behavior" and not give attention for negative behavior. This is classic parenting, but she adds in the doggie twist in that we should look away and look to the stars. The reasoning is that this is dog behavior for this situation. She also told us that dogs maintain leadership by controlling another's individual space and to that end, we need to walk right through our dogs and not around them if they are in the way. I tried this out this morning with great success. Sandy has not jumped up at all this morning. She remained calm and excited to see me and when I initiated a bit of playing/petting, she was well behaved.
The tough part of dog training and the thing I have the hardest thing with in my life in general is following through and being consistent. I need to do the dog training every day. I have already done some sit and stay with Sandy this morning and it went really well. Dana said we need to do it in 4 different locations to set it as a general behavior and so I need to do more in the house today and then do some in the front yard. We did some at the shelter and I will do some more there after I drop her off for the day and I need to pick a fourth location. I also need to get Ben to pick a time to come with me to the shelter today and tomorrow to work with Confetti. I think Ben thought it would be immediately easy to do and that she would get it right away. She proved to a bit tougher and did Sit pretty well, but didn't make much forward progress in 1 session of trying to get Down. I hope that Ben will come back today and keep at it and see how well it can work with repeated training.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Running around like a maniac
Yesterday I got home from work and came inside and Sandy wasn't inside. It was a cleaning lady day and the house looked nice and clean, but the ladies had put Sandy in the backyard. This isn't an issue since she loves it out there and they usually come in the late afternoon. I am not sure when they came yesterday. I went into the backyard and Sandy greeted me in her normal frenzied affectionate way. She ran up to me, doing circles around me as I sat on the step stool out back and she got a bit of petting and then she tore off running around the yard. She did laps around the back yard and down the long side of the house for what seemed like 10 minutes. She just kept running at full speed. When she went off running, I decided that I needed to take the cold weather cap off the faucet and put more water into the fountain as the weather was beginning to run it dry. Sandy just kept right on running. I stopped adding water and went back to sit down to watch her and she ran right through the fountain. I figured she was going in for some water, but she ran into it, spun around in place (it is longer than she is) and then she plopped down for a second to cool off and get wet and then she spun up again and took off running. She made several more frenzied passes and trips through the fountain and then finally went and lay down in the grass with her tongue hanging out and panting. I went inside and got a towel and dried her off as best that I could before I let her bring her dirty wet self inside onto the freshly mopped floors.
Tomorrow is dog training at Tomlinsons. I need to call the shelter this afternoon and see what dog I might pickup for Ben to train. Something in the 1-25 pound range is probably about right. Now I just have to figure out the transport logistics. Sandy Ben and I can go to the shelter to get the dog, but do I crate both dogs, or put them in the back compartment of the SUV together. It is a short drive from the shelter to the training, but, I don't know what dog we will get. Alternatively, I could drop Ben/Sandy at Tomlinsons and rush over to the shelter to grab another dog. That still leaves returning the other dog to the shelter, but I could use a similar tactic. Well, will just have to see who Monica thinks we should take for Ben to train.
I will probably write again tomorrow with a wrapup of training. Dana, the trainer, tells me that I don't need to bring the premier collar and that Sandy should be fine without it after some training.
Tomorrow is dog training at Tomlinsons. I need to call the shelter this afternoon and see what dog I might pickup for Ben to train. Something in the 1-25 pound range is probably about right. Now I just have to figure out the transport logistics. Sandy Ben and I can go to the shelter to get the dog, but do I crate both dogs, or put them in the back compartment of the SUV together. It is a short drive from the shelter to the training, but, I don't know what dog we will get. Alternatively, I could drop Ben/Sandy at Tomlinsons and rush over to the shelter to grab another dog. That still leaves returning the other dog to the shelter, but I could use a similar tactic. Well, will just have to see who Monica thinks we should take for Ben to train.
I will probably write again tomorrow with a wrapup of training. Dana, the trainer, tells me that I don't need to bring the premier collar and that Sandy should be fine without it after some training.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Adoption Day, Eddy, Happy New Year
Well, it's been about a week since I last wrote. Happy Chinese New Year to everyone. The year of the dog is over, welcome to the year of the Golden Pig. Yesterday was my monthly adoption day at Petco and I decided it was time for Sandy to get more exposure. Ben wasn't feeling well, so he stayed at home I took just Sandy. She enjoyed the car ride (she has taken a number in the last few weeks and does well. I setup the table and chair inside Petco and setup the brochures, etc. and then I went and got Sandy. I just hung out and Sandy just got comfy and lay there next to me (since I had a short leash). She really liked it when other dogs came in and showed her playful side, but aside from that she pretty much lay there. She let most people come up and pet her though she did growl at one young girl but she let the little girl pet her also. There were a few people that showed some interest in Sandy as a second dog for their other dogs. After Petco, I decided to drop off Sandy at home before taking the stuff back to the shelter. I took her off leash and let her in the backyard and she dashed over to the fence and poked her head under. When she pulled her head back, Eddy popped through. His 4th visit in 2 weeks. I sent him off home and then took the stuff back to the shelter. Next weekend, we have obedience training at Tomlinson on Saturday and on Sunday, I will take Sandy by the shelter so she starts getting more exposure.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
That's not a squirrel, it's Eddy
Twice this week, I have let Sandy out to chase a squirrel and been surprised to see that it wasn't a squirrel that had her at the back door, but a male chihuahua named Eddy. Eddy lives in the neighborhood behind us and he seems to find his way under fences. A call to his family yields a quick retrieval and he is very friendly. The good news is, Sandy gets along find with him. She runs out and wants to play and they get along fine. I haven't really seen Sandy have problem with any of the dogs we have encountered.
A bit after Eddy left, Sandy picked up a rawhide chip that she had gotten and went running into the backyard with it while I was on the phone. Well, after my post a few days ago, I was watching attentively. I slid quietly out the backdoor (only because it was ajar since it squeaks so loudly, I should fix that, but that is another issue) and watched her run around with it. She headed for a spot under one of the cedar trees and started digging up some of the dead cedar "leaves", or whatever you call that stuff, under the tree and it was clear to me that she intended to bury it. I gave her a quick yell and she wandered off with the chip in her mouth and I watched her go down the side of the house and wander back and forth and then settle in a spot where there was some space under the fence and start to dig at the grass. I yelled at her again and she stopped that. I told her to take the rawhide inside and she did. So, it appears that the answer to where all the rawhides have gone is "in holes". I will have to ask the dog trainer what I do about her digging. She digs little holes her and there and I cover them back up, but I haven't figured out what to do to keep it from happening in the first place.
A bit after Eddy left, Sandy picked up a rawhide chip that she had gotten and went running into the backyard with it while I was on the phone. Well, after my post a few days ago, I was watching attentively. I slid quietly out the backdoor (only because it was ajar since it squeaks so loudly, I should fix that, but that is another issue) and watched her run around with it. She headed for a spot under one of the cedar trees and started digging up some of the dead cedar "leaves", or whatever you call that stuff, under the tree and it was clear to me that she intended to bury it. I gave her a quick yell and she wandered off with the chip in her mouth and I watched her go down the side of the house and wander back and forth and then settle in a spot where there was some space under the fence and start to dig at the grass. I yelled at her again and she stopped that. I told her to take the rawhide inside and she did. So, it appears that the answer to where all the rawhides have gone is "in holes". I will have to ask the dog trainer what I do about her digging. She digs little holes her and there and I cover them back up, but I haven't figured out what to do to keep it from happening in the first place.
She puts the P in painfully timid
Well, today was a mixed up day. I planned to take Sandy to the Petsmart adoption day today. I told Randy that I would be there and he could drop by and meet Sandy. I was hoping that her okay performance in the much small Petco last weekend when I was doing some shopping would mean good things. I was finishing up morning stuff and Ben dropped by with Bill/Garrett to pickup his wallet and stuff to go to Best Buy. I told them I was headed to Petsmart for the adoption day from 12-3 and said I might see them there. Sandy ran and hid when she saw the 3 of them coming in. She was extremely shy and wouldn't come to Ben or Bill/Garrett and she got nervous and peed a tiny bit. I cleaned things up and she was okay to follow me to the other part of the house, but didn't want to come out where the other 3 men were. They went on their way and I got Sandy's leash and hooked her up and took her in the car. When I pulled up to Petsmart, I knew I had messed up. I started to think to myself, hmmm, Petsmart, 2/11, oh crud, it is 2/10. No wonder there is a PAWS van outfront. I saw Ben/Garrett down the parking lot at the Best Buy so I took Sandy on her leash down to see them. They were waiting for their ride back to Garrett's as Bill had dropped them off to run an errand. I went down to Petsmart and picked up some chew things and on my way back to the car remembered there was a shelter email about a special adoption event this Sat. at Brushy Creek MUD office. I didn't know exactly where that was, so I called and had to leave a message on the shelter voicemail.
I do know where Brushy Creek road is, so I decided to take a drive out there while trying to get the shelter or Monica. Well, no luck, so I pulled into Brushy Creek Lake Park and took Sandy for a walk. Randy called and asked where I was. Oh crud again. I told him about the SNAFU and he said he was going to go do some shopping and we could checkin after that to see where to meet. We finished our walk, no luck on getting directions to the adoption event and no answer on Randy's phone, so we went home. Randy called when we just got home and I told him to come over. Sandy was out playing in the backyard and Randy and Tommy showed up at the house. I got her to come inside, but she ran away in the house. I decided to try outside and see if she did any better, but she still wouldn't come to any of us. I sent Randy and Tommy inside and I got a leash and Sandy came to me to get hooked up. Sandy and I went inside, but she was still trying to stay away from the "new men". I finally got to settle down in front of me on the couch and Tommy was able to pet her a little bit as she leaned way in to get a treat from him a couple of times, but she wouldn't' lean all the way to Randy for a treat or anything. He leaned in to her and she felt a bit threatened and he was barely able to give her a little pet while I was still petting her. She growled at him to let him know he was invading her space and I had to shush her. They finally gave up left to do other things and I realized that I may be too optimistic about the progress she has made in her shyness to strangers.
Interestingly, all the strangers today were men and I do need to do a followup experiment with females to see if she is more shy around men than women.
I do know where Brushy Creek road is, so I decided to take a drive out there while trying to get the shelter or Monica. Well, no luck, so I pulled into Brushy Creek Lake Park and took Sandy for a walk. Randy called and asked where I was. Oh crud again. I told him about the SNAFU and he said he was going to go do some shopping and we could checkin after that to see where to meet. We finished our walk, no luck on getting directions to the adoption event and no answer on Randy's phone, so we went home. Randy called when we just got home and I told him to come over. Sandy was out playing in the backyard and Randy and Tommy showed up at the house. I got her to come inside, but she ran away in the house. I decided to try outside and see if she did any better, but she still wouldn't come to any of us. I sent Randy and Tommy inside and I got a leash and Sandy came to me to get hooked up. Sandy and I went inside, but she was still trying to stay away from the "new men". I finally got to settle down in front of me on the couch and Tommy was able to pet her a little bit as she leaned way in to get a treat from him a couple of times, but she wouldn't' lean all the way to Randy for a treat or anything. He leaned in to her and she felt a bit threatened and he was barely able to give her a little pet while I was still petting her. She growled at him to let him know he was invading her space and I had to shush her. They finally gave up left to do other things and I realized that I may be too optimistic about the progress she has made in her shyness to strangers.
Interestingly, all the strangers today were men and I do need to do a followup experiment with females to see if she is more shy around men than women.
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Where have all the rawhides gone, short time after
I gave Sandy a 6" circular rawhide earlier in the week and she took it in her mouth and walked happily around the house with it. It was in her mouth and wrapped around her nose like a donut. When she went to backdoor the first time, I wouldn't let her take it out. The second time, I relented and figured what the heck. Sandy went out and trotted around the backyard and about 3-5 minutes later came back without the rawhide. I went out and walked around the backyard and couldn't find any site of it nor any places that looked like she had dug a hole to bury it. It was a mystery but I figured, oh well. I have subsequently given her a plastic/rubber newspaper toy to carry around/play with in the backyard since she seemed to be playing with half of a broken plastic planter that was laying in a corner of the yard. She seems to like it. This morning, while I was on a conference call, I left the backdoor ajar so she could run in and out some. I saw her out of the corner of my eye running around in the backyard with a big 7" knot ended rawhide bone in her mouth in the backyard. Yep, you guessed it, a few minutes later she was back inside without it. I just did a quick loop around the yard and I found the newspaper toy, but again no rawhide. These things are like socks in a dryer, but more expensive. On the upside, I got them as a free sample from ruffchews.com with an order, but on the downside, where the heck are they? Is she giving them under the fence to the dog that lives behind us? Is she burying them quickly? Is there a transdimensional portal somewhere in my yard? Foster dads want to know.
Saturday, February 3, 2007
Home again and clean
I picked up Sandy after her day at the shelter yesterday. The person who visited with her found her to be very sweet, but didn't think she would be a good match with his 3 dogs. No problem, we expected to be keeping her for more than 3 weeks, so she's back home.
I took Sandy to Mudpuppies today for a bath. I had been noting that she could use a bath recently but she doesn't seem to like the tub at home because of the lack of traction (need to use a mat) and because I close the bathroom door. With the self-service dog wash just up the street about 1/2 mile, it seemed like a good distance for a walk. I put on Sandy's Gentle Leader and grabbed the retractable leash and away we went. On the way up the street, we ran into Jordan's parents and I stopped to chat about driving school for Ben/Jordan and Sandy wandered over to the dry grass next to the parking lot and rolled around in the haylike grass. I just looked at her and thought to myself, "get it out of the way now, because on the way home you will be nice and clean." We resumed our walk and in a couple of minutes we crossed the road and were at the dog wash. I signed her up and took a seat on the futon couch in the waiting area. There was a woman there with an Aerdale and another dog, a man with a black lab and us. Another man showed up with his son and their lab/rottweiler mix and they decided to hang around mostly outside because their was a wait and the room already had a number of dogs. Sandy seemed happy enough to just sit by me or lay down. She looked like she wanted to go over and checkout the lab, but she didn't pull at the leash so I didn't have to restrain her. Sandy was fine around all these people and other dogs with the exception of the boy who was skating around the shop on his Heelys. She growled and barked at him until I calmed her down about it and then she was fine with him too.
After a while, our tub freed up and it was time for us to head to the back to the bath. Sandy didn't like the looks of going down the little hall and I had to scoop her up and take her in there. I deposited her into the tub, put on the loop attached to the wall and took offer her leash/Gentle Leader. This was my first time to a self-serve dog wash and I kind of liked it. The tubs are just the right height to work at, they have mesh in the drains to collect up the dog hair, they water temp is pre-set and comes out of a sprayer and they provide shampoo, brushes and towels AND there is no cleanup for the customer to do. I washed Sandy which she tolerated pretty well, but when I grabbed the air hose to dry her and turned on the pump, the sound made her strain at the wall chain to run away. Of course she couldn't, but I had to put my arm around her to get her into the right position for blow drying and after a towelling and some blow drying, I decided she had had enough. I let her go out of the tub and down the ramp and we were off. Once we got outside, there was a profusion of shaking off the wetness and then we crossed the streeet and ran most of the way home to avoid the rolling in grass and to aid in the drying. I must say, Sandy is more pleasant to be with now that she is well bathed. I took a wet dog picture or 2 with my cellphone and if I can manage to get them off the phone, I will add them here to this posting.
I took Sandy to Mudpuppies today for a bath. I had been noting that she could use a bath recently but she doesn't seem to like the tub at home because of the lack of traction (need to use a mat) and because I close the bathroom door. With the self-service dog wash just up the street about 1/2 mile, it seemed like a good distance for a walk. I put on Sandy's Gentle Leader and grabbed the retractable leash and away we went. On the way up the street, we ran into Jordan's parents and I stopped to chat about driving school for Ben/Jordan and Sandy wandered over to the dry grass next to the parking lot and rolled around in the haylike grass. I just looked at her and thought to myself, "get it out of the way now, because on the way home you will be nice and clean." We resumed our walk and in a couple of minutes we crossed the road and were at the dog wash. I signed her up and took a seat on the futon couch in the waiting area. There was a woman there with an Aerdale and another dog, a man with a black lab and us. Another man showed up with his son and their lab/rottweiler mix and they decided to hang around mostly outside because their was a wait and the room already had a number of dogs. Sandy seemed happy enough to just sit by me or lay down. She looked like she wanted to go over and checkout the lab, but she didn't pull at the leash so I didn't have to restrain her. Sandy was fine around all these people and other dogs with the exception of the boy who was skating around the shop on his Heelys. She growled and barked at him until I calmed her down about it and then she was fine with him too.
After a while, our tub freed up and it was time for us to head to the back to the bath. Sandy didn't like the looks of going down the little hall and I had to scoop her up and take her in there. I deposited her into the tub, put on the loop attached to the wall and took offer her leash/Gentle Leader. This was my first time to a self-serve dog wash and I kind of liked it. The tubs are just the right height to work at, they have mesh in the drains to collect up the dog hair, they water temp is pre-set and comes out of a sprayer and they provide shampoo, brushes and towels AND there is no cleanup for the customer to do. I washed Sandy which she tolerated pretty well, but when I grabbed the air hose to dry her and turned on the pump, the sound made her strain at the wall chain to run away. Of course she couldn't, but I had to put my arm around her to get her into the right position for blow drying and after a towelling and some blow drying, I decided she had had enough. I let her go out of the tub and down the ramp and we were off. Once we got outside, there was a profusion of shaking off the wetness and then we crossed the streeet and ran most of the way home to avoid the rolling in grass and to aid in the drying. I must say, Sandy is more pleasant to be with now that she is well bathed. I took a wet dog picture or 2 with my cellphone and if I can manage to get them off the phone, I will add them here to this posting.
Friday, February 2, 2007
The Good, the Bad and the Anxious
On the good side, Sandy has been warming up to Ben. Not that she was cold on him, but I see signs of her being less shy with him. Over the past several days, she has played with Ben independent of me sitting right there next to him. A few nights ago, Ben made a vocalization, not exactly howling, but more like that 80's Little Caesar's commercial where the guy says,"Nothing's impossible. I taught my dog to say 'I love you. The dog then barks what sounds like"I love you." Sandy thought he was another dog talking to her and she responded by vocalizing and barking and wagging and running around him. Since then, she has gone over to him more often than previously and come to him for petting, etc. Of course, she has also barked at him more in a playful manner. The barking I have been discouraging and have asked Ben not to get her started with his vocalizations.
On the bad side, I caught Sandy digging in the rocks under the 2 cedar trees in the back yard. I am not sure what she was digging at, it is just limestone gravel over some dirt. I scolded her and covered the hole back up. She did it twice, but I have scolded her and I will keep watch on it and try to break that bad habit quickly.
And then there is the anxious. I dropped Sandy off today at the shelter because the shelter is open from 3-7 today and a gentleman who saw Sandy at the Tomlinson's adoption day last weekend wanted to come meet her and see if they are a good fit. My mother asked me a week or so ago if it would be hard for us and for Sandy to break the bonds we have made and for her to take to a new family. I told her that we could do it and I caught a positive glimmer of that when I dropped her off at the shelter and she was so happy to see April who she knew so well. I recall her apprehension when meeting Ben and I and how she has warmed to us and I know that fostering her in a home is positive for her and we are enjoying having her. While it will be bittersweet when we do place her and I await anxiously to see what happens today, I know that this is ultimately why we foster. Having volunteered at the shelter for 3+ years, it is hard to not fall in love with so many dogs and want to take them all home. After a while, you become inured to that desire and realize that there is a wonderful feeling of good when you can place the dogs with "a forever family" and the thing you can do by volunteering/fostering is to have a positive impact on the dogs/ease their experience while they await that eventual placement.
On the bad side, I caught Sandy digging in the rocks under the 2 cedar trees in the back yard. I am not sure what she was digging at, it is just limestone gravel over some dirt. I scolded her and covered the hole back up. She did it twice, but I have scolded her and I will keep watch on it and try to break that bad habit quickly.
And then there is the anxious. I dropped Sandy off today at the shelter because the shelter is open from 3-7 today and a gentleman who saw Sandy at the Tomlinson's adoption day last weekend wanted to come meet her and see if they are a good fit. My mother asked me a week or so ago if it would be hard for us and for Sandy to break the bonds we have made and for her to take to a new family. I told her that we could do it and I caught a positive glimmer of that when I dropped her off at the shelter and she was so happy to see April who she knew so well. I recall her apprehension when meeting Ben and I and how she has warmed to us and I know that fostering her in a home is positive for her and we are enjoying having her. While it will be bittersweet when we do place her and I await anxiously to see what happens today, I know that this is ultimately why we foster. Having volunteered at the shelter for 3+ years, it is hard to not fall in love with so many dogs and want to take them all home. After a while, you become inured to that desire and realize that there is a wonderful feeling of good when you can place the dogs with "a forever family" and the thing you can do by volunteering/fostering is to have a positive impact on the dogs/ease their experience while they await that eventual placement.
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