Adoption Update: Charley!

Charley has become an even greater dog.  He's fairly reliable on the leash, is learning verbal commands, is easy with other dogs and people, is gentle and sweet with kids, has even made friends with a couple of cats, and is so affectionate.  He's right at my side all the time. He's no longer aloof.  Quite the opposite, actually -- his personality is really emerging, and he is very popular in my building and in the neighborhood.  

We just returned from a 2-week driving vacation, and no one seemed to miss me, but they all missed Charley! The doorman in my building acted like he was being reunited with a long lost friend.  The vacation was good too -- Charley was equally easy in a fancy hotel in Boston as he was in the woods of Maine.  He still doesn't come back when I call, so I can't let him off the leash.  However, one time in Maine he slipped out (leapt off the back deck in pursuit of a chipmunk, actually).  He wouldn't come back when I called, but after a 30-minute wild romp in the woods, he came running back, as fast as a leopard, and straight into my arms.  I took some comfort in that, but clearly we have a long way to go.  In any case, I learned what a runner and jumper he is.  Maybe we should do some agility training.

A bit of very disturbing news.  At our 1st vet visit last month Charley tested positive for the lyme disease anti-body.  The vet wants us to have another, more definitive test, and to keep a close eye on Charley.  My heart broke when I got the news. I'd be devastated if he developed the disease. However, apparently, there's a good chance he won't.

That's all the news here.

I hope you're all well, and that the hurricane didn't do too much damage in your worlds.  Charley and I were in Vermont when the hurricane hit, but he was a real champ.  He used to hate the rain, and now he doesn't even blink!

Oh, and I beginning to think that his other part is actually Boston Terrier, because every time he meets one he really goes a little crazy.  It's weird.

-Thor

Adoption Update: Charlie in the City!

Week #2 with Charlie is going great.  He seems to love city life, and has adapted to apartment living too.

He's not afraid of much of anything except the occasion bike or stroller, and a few of the larger dogs.  Otherwise, he takes advantage of every opportunity to meet other dogs and people.  He knows the neighborhood really well, and already has plenty of friends.

He's very well behaved in the apartment.  He really hated being crated, so I've been slowly giving him more leeway during the daytime when I'm at work.  So far, so good.    I've been scheduling my days so that I can come home once or twice, but I'm also interviewing a dog walker this weekend to do a lunchtime shift.

His food intake has nearly doubled (although he's still fairly restrained about food, generally). He is starting to learn a couple verbal commands, but he responds easily to a variety of other signals.  He's picked up all my (and our) routines easily.  And he's a couch potato!!  My couch will never be mine again, but that's ok. 

On the leash, he has good days and those that are slightly less sterling.  I'm working on it.  It's clear that he's smart and willing, and when he's in a good mood and there aren't too many distractions, he's very compliant. 

His few minor issues should be solved easily -- he still pees when he's excited or nervous.  It's getting slightly better, but being unpredictable, it's difficult to manage.  And he has this cute (but annoying) habit of gently nibbling sheets and pillows with his tiny front teeth when he's falling asleep or getting cuddly or playing.  It's not destructive, but is something I'll need to manage.  

He's a great dog, and he seems very happy.  His personality is blossoming every day.  He's getting more playful, more communicative, and without a doubt, we're very bonded.

Just thought I'd send word.

I hope you're all well.

-Thor

DOCNA East Coast Nationals -- as reported by Maryellen Miller

We all had a great time at the DOCNA East Coast Nationals.

Brit, West and Charlie all came home with placements and lots of ribbons and medals.

West did not make the final rounds today for standard or jumpers since he dropped a single bar in both classes on Saturday. I am sure the bars were my fault as this is the first weekend I was able to run with him in nearly two months due to my knee injury. I think my timing is just a bit off with him. However, he and Brit both finished in 3rd place in the East Coast North American Challenge and earned a medal and a nice placement ribbon.

Brit and Charlie moved on to the final round for Regional Championships, Brit in both Jumpers and Standard and Charlie in Jumpers.

It was really fun as one of my good friends and fellow competitors was the only dog to make it to the final round in 16" veterans with Brit and it was a head to head competition between the two dogs for the final placements. I ran Brit in Standard and we beat Donna and Dazzle to become Regional Champs in 16" Veteran's Standard class. I was in way too much pain by the end of that round to be able to run Brit in the Jumpers final round. Al kindly took my jumpers run for me and ran Brit beautifully. Brit and Dazzle ran the course with a .03 difference in course time with Brit coming out the leader for the final round. However, she had dropped a bar in Friday's run, so Dazzle won the three day event by just under 4 points, giving Brit a second place in the 16" veterans jumpers class. It was a great way to end the weekend. Dazzle and Brit are both very competitive dogs in that class so it was appropriate that we split the Regional Championships between us in our jump height.

Charlie was a bit giddy with his run today and took an off course in jumpers to finish in Third Place for the Regional Championships for 20" jumpers. Still, he had some spectacular runs over the weekend and I was very proud of them both.

Maryellen

Happy Tails USDAA Trial

I just have to post a small brag and thank you to myhusband, Al.

While I remain on injured reserve due to a knee injury, Al ran all three MABCR dogs at the Happy Tails USDAA trial this weekend.

I am pleased to report that he qualified all three dogs in the tournament classes.

West qualified in Steeplechase yesterday with a 6th place finish and moved up to 4th place in today's second run.

Brit at 111/2 still managed a 2nd place finish and Q in PerformanceSpeed Jumping both yesterday and today, and Charlie finished with 1st and Q in both Performance Speed Jumping andPerformance National Standard.

The first place finish inPerformance National Standard earned Charlie a bye intoRound 2 in the 2009 Regional Championships. Additionally,he earned two other Qualifiers with West, who ran very well for his "dad".

While they have not run much together, they looked very much like a team as they qualified in Jumpers and Snookers this weekend with some very nice runs.

While it is really depressing not to be able to run my dogs,it is great to see them running so well for Al.

Maryellen