Taste of the Wild...

The dogs are almost completely moved over to Taste of the Wild fish variety. So far, I am loving it and they appear to be loving it too. Much less poop-- 2x a day rather than 4x! There is no hesitation on Tink's part to eat in the morning even when I just put yogurt in it. (Ok, so I know I spoil them with eggs and chicken and cottage cheese and such, but c'mon, plain kibble is oh so plain!)

The Holistic Eagle Pack served us well over the past 3 years, but for whatever reason is no longer meeting our dogs' current needs. Each bag seemed so different and the dogs responded to each bag very differently lately, and lately with much more poop than necessary!

So here we go, on to new food! And it's grain free which I'm loving too.

PS: Parker is exhausted! Tink is rediculously adorable sleeping here on the couch with me! I love these dogs so much : )

I Want to Add to the Beauty....

Parker and I walked to our last basic obedience class this evening. I was listening to my ipod with one of my favorites, Sara Groves. Sometimes I crave certain artists and songs and tonight was definitely a Sara night, Add to the Beauty CD to be specific. As I was listening to "Add to the Beauty" a few profound thoughts hit my mind. Regardless of what I am doing or what I need to do in life, I want to always add to the beauty and not take away from it in this world. There is so much ugliness and I just don't want to have any part of that. Directly related to the dog world, I want to create an environment where our dogs want to do well and want to thrive. I want my home to be safe and loving environment to every one and every animal that walks through these doors. I want my attitude to add to the beauty while working with these dogs. Unfortunately for me, that is not always how it goes. But God is good and He gives us new days and His strength and dogs who also extend grace...(ha, that's a funny concept to think about, dog's giving grace, but it's true!)

Parker did very well tonight. It was almost like he was showing off, because he was MORE consistent at obedience tonight than he is in general. Of course, in his defense, I fed him 1/4 of this meal and took the rest with us, so he was hungry. It worked out well minus a small issue at Tink's bowl this evening. It was my fault, I let him out of his crate too early...he must have kicked Tink away from her bowl with a growl. I came in yelling. He almost went after me, but then thought better of it or I ordered him to his crate too quickly...? Not sure, but his "crate up" was solid even when he was hungry! I don't put him in there as a time out too often, but sometimes I need a break and in this case I needed to see where Tink was and how she was doing. Of course she was fine. Parker and I had a little heart to heart and then we were fine again.

Oh I digress...anyways, Parker greeted every dog at obedience with a wagging tail. Now I had a good hold on him, but still, no sign of aggression or fear. He had one of the best "heels" while walking this evening. His sit, was impeccable; he sat beautifully while a tween greeted him and while an adult greeted me.

I still have to wonder what types of dogs he has issues with. I haven't been able to typify them yet. We met a lab mix of a dog, Baron, in the parking lot earlier this afternoon and Parker snapped at him a few times. He met a Rottie and a Portugese Water Dog mix this evening without any issues. Small dogs, jumpy dogs were ok too. I'll keep looking for a trigger or pattern, but he's not making it easy to find!

He wasn't keen on me interlocking my fingers under his chin and stroking his jowls, but we'll take that slowly. We spent some time working through being able to touch all over the dog's bodies and while I know that is important, it's gravity hit me again tonight. I have spent the past month or so working on being able to do exactly that with him. I can brush him anywhere, we're working on his feet, I can rub him down, etc. It's also a really neat opportunity to spend time bonding and having fun together.

So yes, that's my update on adding to the beauty, one dog at a time.....

Add to the Beauty--Sara Groves

We come with beautiful secrets
We come with purposes written on our hearts, written on our souls
We come to every new morning
With possibilities only we can hold, that only we can hold

Redemption comes in strange place, small spaces
Calling out the best of who we are

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

It comes in small inspirations
It brings redemption to life and work
To our lives and our work

It comes in loving community
It comes in helping a soul find it's worth

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces
Calling out the best of who we are

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

This is grace, an invitation to be beautiful
This is grace, an invitation

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces
Calling out our best

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

Parker...is it really you?

So Nick and I have been trying to decide if someone traded out Parker for an angel or if we just imagined all the issues we've been working through the past 6 weeks. Week 7 and 8 (has it really been that long?) have been going beautifully. I continue to train with part of his meal and feed him the rest in a bowl....he's been going for at least a mile walk every morning and a decent walk in the evenings, he's generally well mannered and easy going.... I spent over 30 minutes this evening brushing him and dremeling his nails. He wasn't totally thrilled about the dremel part, but we kept it playful and food oriented and fun and he did just fine. It was fun to play and be silly for a bit with him, taking everything slowly and keeping it positive.

Now don't get me wrong, he has his moments, but they are fewer and less severe. Heel has been an amazing training concept as walking him is SOOO much nicer. He's improving when we walk around other dogs. He's still a nut case, but he's getting quieter and getting over it quicker. He's actually a really nice pleasure to be around. The flat buckle collar has been indespensible in this process too.

The 4 of us are soooo looking forward to the cabin! (ok, so Parker has no idea, and Tink could care less, but still!) After a fabulous friday night with company I am confident that Parker will be just fine. He's going to run and run and run and stay outside and sleep and eat and lay outside and did I mention lay outside? Sigh, hopefully we can exhaust him and he will sleep past 7am : ) That's my master plan. But regardless, it's going to be a beautiful weekend to relax and take it easy with some family and our pups!

It has amazed me how every once in a while, especially now that Parker has manners, I realize how bratty miss Tink can be. Now I love her dearly and she has earned certain rights, but when she clamors at dinner or refuses to sit nice while Parker is quiet and calm, I remember that she needs obedience maintenance too. I say to Nick "It's pretty bad when the foster dog shows the forever dog up!" Fortunately she shapes up pretty quickly....One night not too long ago though, she was pawing up at me at the dinner table and I had to correct her (ha! Her correction was "Tinker off" with a gentle push to put all 4 paws back on the ground.) Parker's face looked as if he was to saying "finally! I thought that dog could never do anything wrong!"

Oh I love having these 2 around. Tink's my little snuggler and Parker is my little project. His next home will appreciate all the time and energy that has gone into him and will work to maintain and continue his training! Soon, very soon hopefully.

I need to take some more pictures of Tink and Parker....our new Macbook should be here tomorrow and then Nick and I can play with it and post some pictures next week when we return from the cabin! Oh what fun times ; )

Tinker and the Broken Lamp

So Miss Tink continues to do very well. She's happy and eating well and looking great and going for some nice walks.

She usually gets up in the middle of the night and I pick her up and put her in bed. A few nights ago, around 1 am, I heard her stir. Rather than get out of bed, I figured I would wait until she came back around to her bed and pick her up. Bad thought process. She hit my nightstand and knocked the lamp off it, shattering the top part of it. In my sleepy stupor while I'm cleaning up the glass, I told her she needed to find a job to pay for it : ) (Nick in his infinite wisdom, decided not to comment at that particular moment.)

We cleaned it up, put her in bed and then fell back to sleep....

We decided Tink would be best suited as a cookie taster or carpet shampoo-er.

So much happens....

...in one week that it's hard to fully share and give a good explanation of all that's gone on in it.

I'm not going to lie. Parker had me really nervous this week. I've spoken with several different trainers who, like therapists, all had a different perspective and way of handling Parker. I like to think that Nick and I are intelligent and well trained people and we have been listening closely and learning from each person we come in contact with. We generally ascribe to a more behavioral approach to things and that is the main angle that we are using with Parker. Positive reinforcement, rewarding the behavior we want and attempting to ignore behavior we don't want are some strategies we are using. I've learned from working with people with Autism that no 2 people respond the same way to a given behavior plan. What works for one will not necessarily work for another. So we're taking an individualized approached and really working hard to study Parker and use what will work best in his individual case.

We've started controlling his food intake. I struggled with this initially, but after talking with Ed in Frenchtown NJ on Wednesday and processing through it with Nick, we've developed our own plan with Parker. Ed made it quite clear that Parker is too comfortable and full and therefore won't work as easily. Which was totally true after thinking it through. He's turned down hot dog, chicken liver, and hearts on me. He recommended that Parker work for every single morsel of food that he eats to gain more control over him. (From a different perspective, this also reinforces that people are good and that good things come from people and to be nice to them : ) He suggested 1 meal a day with lots of training.... We're still feeding 2 meals, but they are much lighter. He works for at least 1/2 of his meal by doing things: crate up, sit, down, stay, look, come, touch, etc etc. 1 or 2 pieces of kibble at a time. Then he usually gets a 1/4 of his meal in his bowl with the last 1/4 used while we're walking. Although this morning he got 1/2 and 1/2 with some on the walk as well. His heel and looks are coming along out and about now.

One of Sarah's recommendations was using NILIF (Nothing in life is free.) The main premise behind this is that the dog is expected to do something before he gets what he wants. If he wants to be petted, I asked him to sit or touch (I really like that fun one). If he wants to go out, he sits or waits before he's given the ok to go through the door way. Fortunately he was asked to do something to get something about 85% of the time anyways. Now we've just upped it to 100%. He loves to "touch" my hands and just like Sarah said, I can get him moving around without touching him : )

He works so much better being slightly more hungry. He's more motivated and actually better behaved overall. He has filled out so nicely and his coat is so beautiful that I don't feel badly about leaving him a tad on the hungry side. He wants to please and I think he is enjoying his job of working hard. I do make sure the leash is on him when we're working so if I need him to come or "crate up" I can help him following through. Generally, he doesn't need any help.

We had company over last night and I was nervous. Much to my surprise, Parker was amazing. He had no major issues with Nate, who has a full face of hair. He actually seemed to PREFER him and sat by him at dinner and kept a close eye on him, not in a nervous way, but in a companion-like way. Then Christina and Ben joined us later and again, no issues and he seemed to really enjoy Ben's company. I kept the leash on him and had them drop or hand some treats to him. Everyone made him do something before they petted him and he listened like a pro.

Parker is a morning dog. There is no way around it. He konks out on his bed in the living room (even last night with 5 of us playing games and laughing and being loud) around 9:30, 10ish at night. He's slightly grumpy at night in the way that he just wants to sleep and be left alone. But man, 5:30 am comes around and that dog is ready to bounce of the walls! He is so happy and happy and happy that it's morning time! It's a new day and he is ready to seize it with a walk and food and love and all the great things that a dog enjoys.

Ok so this is long winded and probably boring, but I enjoy it.

The Beauty of Positive Reinforcement

So, after emailing with Sarah at side by side training an looking at a local trainer's website (in the dog house) she suggested, some thoughts began to click which I think should have clicked earlier. I need to continuously motivate Parker to WANT to do what I want him to do. Duh. I need him to be excited about what I need/want him to do! Doing it once or twice and expecting him to always be excited without a tasty treat once in a while is unrealistic.

So I started to problem solve one potential issue, his growling at me at night while on the chair.

I want him to get off the chair to get outside and potty. He is perfectly comfortable sleeping where he is at. How can I motivate him to move? hmm, If I have yummy treats by the door and he gets up and comes when he is called then he gets a big yummy treat as a reward for doing what I want. And as a result, he gets what he wants, a yummy treat. I will start by getting a treat and showing it to him before I ask him to come to me. I know he is food motivated and I know what treats he likes. Theoretically he should beat me to the door in no time!

I cooked up some hot dog and chicken hearts and armed with a bag full of small pieces of treats, a leash, and a positive attitude, Parker and I went down the street to McCracken's to have a positive experience! Once out of the car I showed him the treats, asked for a sit and look a few times in the parking lot and off we went.

Systematically we went. Once through the door, Parker, Sit, look! Good-boy! give treat. Up first aisle, Parker, sit, look (longer pause) good-boy! give treat. We avoided the group of people at the counter at first...too many men with facial hair. The place cleared out and Dave, one of the men that works there offered to help us out a little. I let them know up front, we're working through men with facial hair issues and he was ok with that. He let Parker come to him. No body language that showed fear or uncertainty. I treated Parker with a nice "good-boy" and Dave moved away. Dave came around Parker a few more times while we were there without any issue or hint of fear or aggression. Parker received lots of praise and treats during the whole experience. He was well behaved, attentive, and polite!

He did manage to pee on the floor though : ( I watched him go to pee and tried to get him moving... all i succeeded in doing was have him pee on the floor rather than the display. So we cleaned it up and kept on rolling.

We picked up some Zuke's mini naturals so I can have treats strategically placed around the house so I can catch him being good and reward quickly and effectively. I love the hotdog, but it needs to be refridgerated (ok, so I hate the crap that is in hotdogs, but I love the results I get with the dogs when working with it....the positives outweigh the negatives in this case...plus I don't really want to pay 8 bucks a package for hotdogs without perservatives...I'll wait til they're on sale : )

So that's my positive outlook. Let's keep him motivated to do what I want him to do, give him the training and consistency so he knows what I want him to do, and stay loving and kind to this little bugger!

I am so proud of how his was in public today! Go Parker!

Pouring doesn't even begin to describe it!

I love Murphy's law, really I do. I heard Parker whine just a bit at 6:45 this morning and I closed my eyes again. At 6:55 I heard rain start and quickly got out of bed to get Tink and Park outside for the morning pee. By the time breakfast was served, it was raining hard. I decided to see how long I could wait until Parker needed to go out again as he growled at me when I tried to towel him off from the first pee break of the day.

Ha, well 15 minutes after breakfast, he's peeing on my floor. I catch him mid pee and take him outside. Of course he doesn't like the rain and it takes him 10 minutes to pee. Good-boy! Inside we go.

I'm up, I might as well get some voice memo/work related computer stuff done that I've literally been putting off for months....as I finish that up, Tink is stirring. I take her out with an umbrella and she goes quickly (we're both trained with her!) By the time I get Parker out it was raining the hardest I've ever been in. Umbrella or not, we're both drenched. It's like a flash flood in the parking lot. My pants are soaked up to my knees and my backside is wet from my flip flops splashing up. We're standing under the trees by the dumpster and I am just at a loss about what to do. He's beginning to show signs of panicking and while he's peed he certainly hasn't pooped. I rationally figure that he's not going to at this point. We do our best to get back quickly but the once parking lot, now river is impeding fast progress.

He let me towel him off when we got back and he seemed in a happy mood. I think he was cranky this morning from me raising my voice (a firm "No! We potty outside!) when he peed on the floor and from realizing he lost his chair privileges. (He's growled/snapped at me 2 nights in a row when I try to take him out for his last potty of the night. Now there are 2 big boxes on the chair so he has to sleep on a dog bed on the floor. It's a shame, really.) I'm not sure how going out in the rain cheered him up any, but he seemed to be more tolerant after we came back.

For now Tink is sleeping somewhat content on the couch and Parker seems content on the bed in front of the couch.....maybe the rain will stop before I see an ark floating down the road...

Never a dull moment....

So Parker's a really good boy. I love him a lot. But man, I need to be 100% focused when we walk. I forget that he isn't my ready made Tink and that he will be "unpredictable" at times.
Case in point...I get tired of walking the 2 dogs separately all the time. Last night I thought I might "cheat" a little and take them together. We went out back in the field and such on a "safe" route where we wouldn't encounter any dogs and we could hang out in the grass and take it easy. Aside from the minor intricacies of walking a blind dog and a space cadet together, we were doing ok. We were on our way back when the loud obnoxious Min-Pin from across the street came bombing at us barking with his hair raised up...

Yeah, so I began to freak out...and then began yelling bloody murder for someone to get this dog off my dogs. The Min-Pin was in our faces and went after Parker and then he saw Tink. As he headed her way, I thought I was going to really lose it! Oh, it was quite the scene. I had visions of Parker killing the Min-Pin. There was no way I was going to get in the middle if anything came down. I thought of kicking, but with my two so close there was no guarantee who I'd actually hit.

Fortunately I have a strong set of lungs and people from across the street came running and got the dang dog off us. Apparently they thought I was hurt as they kept asking "are you ok... are you sure?" Ha, or maybe they thought I was just plain crazy...or some of both.

All this because I was trying to save a bit of time and energy....definitely didn't save either when it was all said and done! Parker is a good boy, he just requires a bit more energy than Miss Tink. He's making huge strides; he's only been with us for 6 weeks. I have high hopes for him!

So the moral of the story is: walk one dog at a time and carry a big stick : )

Happy Tails BT Book!

So a book series is being created to raise awareness about dog rescue and all the amazing happy ending stories. We found out about it through NEBTRescue when Kyla was looking for stories about rescue dogs. We shared Tinker's story and her story is one of the many in the BT book! Check this book out and support a great cause. A proceed of each book is given to BT rescue! If you preorder the book, you can either get a discount or double the proceeds will go towards rescue!

Get Your Happy Tails Books and Bumper Stickers, and Help Dog Rescue Groups!

Pre-order your copies of "Lost Souls: FOUND! Inspirational Stories of Adopted Boston Terriers" today and we'll support Boston Terrier rescue with a DOUBLE DONATION! Boston Terrier inspired books and stickers are available for pre-sale through July at the happytailsbooks.com website! Please order yours today... during this commemorative period we will either give you $2.00 off every book or DONATE DOUBLE to rescue! Buy now to make even more of a difference in a rescue dog's life!

NEW bumper Stickers! THANK YOU to everyone who contributed! The number of stories we received for this book was profound, so much so that we were not able to include every story. If you submitted but haven't heard from us, we apologize, but we were not able to include your dog in this edition. However, we'll keep your story on file, as it looks like we might need to do a second edition! We hope that you will still support this effort by picking up a book - the stories are heartfelt and thought provoking! ------------------------------------------ The following rescue groups were responsible for making this book a success. Thank you! Arizona Boston Terrier Rescue Boston Terrier Rescue of North Carolina Bostons by the Bay Friends of Homeless Animals Mid America Boston Terrier Rescue Midwest Boston Terrier Rescue Northeast Boston Terrier Rescue Rescue of Western Washington Southern Boston Terrier Rescue SUPPORT THESE GROUPS TODAY BY VISITING HAPPYTAILSBOOKS.COM! PARTICIPATE IN OUR NEXT BOOK: "Lost Souls: FOUND! Inspirational Stories of Adopted GOLDEN RETRIEVERS!" Do you know anyone with a great story about their adopted Golden Retriever? Please let them know we want to hear it! The deadline for submissions is July 30th, 2009. Further information and submission guidelines can be found at HappyTailsBooks.com.

Parker, Obedience Week #2

So we survived our second obedience session tonight. The weather held out and we were able to walk over and back and stay dry! He was quiet as a church mouse with the other dogs this week. A few chicken noises and whining when a big dog came near or when the group congregated together for the first time. A marked difference and noticed by all who were there.

I shared our experience with Parker and Don this past weekend and fortunately we had 2 men with dog experience and facial hair around to help work with Parker. Bob works with prison dogs and/or big Rotties and walked us through a few different experiences. Parker was ok with him initially but when Bob leaned over towards him and invaded "his" space, Parker began to bark and show agitation, to the point that when Bob turned around to walk away, he would have gone after him if i let him. We practiced with Parker sitting and snacking on a treat in my hand while people came up to greet us and shake hands. Parker did very well with both Bob and Ron during this experience.

Bob seemed very knowledgeable and was very patient working with us. He seemed to agree that he thinks Parker was hit or abused in the past judging by his ducking and body language when Bob entered into his space. He is fearful but once a person turns around he perceives the fear as gone and acts all tough which one possible reason why he then goes after the back of someone's legs like he has done with a few select people. I say and think, once he learns to trust and learns that all his basic needs are met with love and care, the fear, through work and diligence, will slowly decrease. I've already seen marked improvement here in the house. And while Tink is a very different dog, once she knew she could trust, life changed for her and she blossomed.

Parker is currently sacked out on "his" chair. He really is such a good boy. It's hard work fostering and not falling head over heels for these guys!

Chicken Leg Tinker....

So apparently Tinker was too tired to make it all the way onto her bed....

Ready to run or something?

Mommy, I hear you taking pictures...stop it!

Isn't she so stinkin' cute?!?!

Parking and his blankies....

So I've noticed that Parker enjoys sucking on blankets, my sweatshirts, his bed...i've read and hear about other BT's doing this, but never seen or had one that's done it personally. It is soo cute but hard to catch on camera!

Sucking on a yummy blanket

No, I wasn't, stop looking over here!

mmm, fabricy goodness!

I'm gonna just stay here for a bit...

Tinker & Parker misc....

So Tink continues to feel better and act better and have more energy. It really is an amazing thing! The 4 of us have been talking nice walks both in the morning and evening together this weekend and it's been lovely. Overall, Parker is very patient with her particularly with letting her bump into him on the walks to keep her on the path. Don't get me wrong though, she can take the lead and enjoys being lead dog too some nights : )

Tink's just about back on her normal diet with her usual kibble ration plus all her extra yummies. I think she is sad that she isn't getting as much chicken any more. She used to scarf it down. Now she eats but there's a slight initial hesitation...."mom, are you sure I'm well enough for this food...?"

I'm thinking of switching both the dogs to Taste of the Wild with the next bag of food. Both of them have been pooping up a storm with the Holistic Eagle pack. The Taste of the Wild is grain free and another high quality food. I would love to see if that will help minimize the poop factor. Now my concern is switching Tink over slowly enough so as not to mess up her system again. I have a few weeks before we'll make the switch though....

Tink and I just had a delightful Sunday afternoon snuggle nap, but now it's time for dinner and a relaxing walk for the gang. More to come for sure : )

Paker Update, Week #5

So Parker has been with us for 5 weeks now. It seems kinda crazy to think about. Here are some of last weeks highlights

• He learned to climb the gate in the kitchen. The third time he climbed it was Wednesday night and he earned himself the priviledge of sleeping in his crate instead of the kitchen as a result. He doesn't seem to mind the crate so much which is good because he goes in there whenever we leave now.
• Both and and Tink seem to be in cahoots about the morning hours. He consistently barks between 5 and 5:30 and if he happens to sleep in a bit, Tink wakes me up and wants to get rolling around 6, 6:30. Blah. All I want is to sleep until 7am! My darling husband took care of Parker the Barker on saturday and Tink let me sleep until 7:45am : ) For those of you who know how much I am NOT a morning person, I'm doing ok with all of this considering the lack of morning sleep I've been getting.
• I've been consistently brushing out his coat. For people who think BT's are a short-haired dog we need to think again! This dog practically has an undercoat!!! I brush and comb and comb and brush and it keeps coming out! I learned yesterday why people bath their dogs at a dog wash.... He clogged my drain with all his hair. So gross. But his coat is looking so much better! The bath yesterday helped soften his hair even more. His skin is good and when all the crap coat leaves, he's going to look even more stunning
• My in-laws came for dinner on Friday night and overall Parker did pretty well. He appeared to have a slight issue with Don and possibly with hands....Parker was watching me with the food in the kitchen and Don came in to throw something away. When Parker turned around and saw him I think it partly scared him and he let Don know it. So after a time out and later in the evening. We repeated the scene in a controlled fashion so it would have a positive outcome. Parker's sit and look is very strong so we used that to "let" Don come into the kitchen, treating Parker for listening and looking at me rather than going after Don. Then Don gave him a treat too and Parker did ok. He's such a quick learner and I am certainly not afraid of him. I am confident that in time he will get over his fears and trust the people in his family more than he fears strangers in his own home.
• Parker doesn't like thunderstorms. I think it was Tuesday night we had one go through. Now previously I had been working furiously to keep Parker off the furniture to help him not get too comfy here. The storm hit and Parker sought high ground. Our bed was the highest he could find and when I found him I of course pulled him off the bed but I realized he was nervous. He tried getting up on the shoe rack in the living room and then the couch. And he settled. So I let him lay there. So as a compromise, we have a blanket on the chair that he gets to sit and lay on. And generally he doesn't even try getting on the couch any more : )
• We've been noticing more stiffness in his gimpy leg. Valley Animal hospital said to give 3/4 of an adult aspirin (264mg) to help the pain. But for a 21 lb dog it seems like so much. Dr. Haver, Tink's vet, said 1/4 of a baby aspirin (20mg) for her and she is 15 lbs.... So i've been giving him 1 or 2 baby aspirins with food at night when I notice he looks particularly uncomfortable (maybe once or twice in the past week and 1/2).
  

Overall, he's doing very well and he is a pleasure to have around. He's a lot of work, but he's a lot of fun too. He would love a fenced in yard when he can go and lay and roll around. So often we take him outside after a meal or for a walk and he literally body slams himself onto the ground for a good roll! It cracks us up!

Parker Starts Obedience School

So Parker and I started obedience with GEARS at the Etown fairgrounds last night. True to form, he was a nut case with the other dogs initially. I thought the walk to the grounds and around the grounds might help, but not as much as I was hoping. Fortunately he's a quick learner. It didn't take more than 3 sprays of the bitter apple and he was quiet as a church mouse for the most part : ) He settled down as the rest of the class (9 others) settled too. (There are some cute puppies there too!) He likes his order and routine, and 9 other chaotic dogs did not help his need for a sense of order.

His sit, sit-look, down, and even spin are coming along. He really wants to please, and now he is learning what he can and should do in order to please his people. I'm not sure if he thought it wasn't ok to look humans in the eyes but last night when he was given permission, he sure got good at it quickly! This crazy boy is going to make someone a good companion some day soon!

Here are some more pictures from a few evenings ago. I can't wait to see how he improves over the next few weeks and some consistent practicing!

Pretty down

I love his wild eyes : )

Look at that face!

Notice Tink in the background...?

Belly rub please!!!

Tink & Parker Photos

So Nick turned around a few nights ago and saw the following shots! The 2 of them have been getting along very well. Parker has been very patient with Tink even when she bumps into him. He might look at her funny but, he doesn't snap or get upset with her. Now if only we could get some apps for him.... : )

pictures? awwwe : )

turn to the left

Are you done yet?

Stoic looks from both of them!

Look at how shiny Parker's coat is getting!

Lot's to catch up on....

So in case you're wondering if Tink is feeling better....take a look at these pictures!!!! These were taken 2 days ago!!!

mmm, Parker got the stinkiness back in it...let me have a taste

mmm, this is really good!

Gotta try all of it

good to the last lick

Musta got some on my paw...

So yes, Miss Tink is feeling better... we've begun SLOWLY adding kibble back to her chicken, rice and potato mixture. Her weight is back up, her poop is normal again, she's happy, has energy, and is getting along beautifully with Parker. She's been waking up at 6:30am though for almost a week....If we could only get her to sleep until 7, 7:30 we'd be set!

Parker Update 6/2/09

Seriously, Parker is a different dog since we came back from vacation. Somebody has been covering us in prayer for sure. One night quiet, could be a fluke, 2 nights in a row like it's been, less likely to be a fluke. He isn't as loud or barky here either. He gave himself 2 nice hotspots while he was on vacation, but has stopped chewing on them for the most part since he came back and they're just starting to look a little better (tea tree oil does wonders for skin!)

He's earning more privileges around the house too. I decided he's spent long enough in the kitchen and I need to know what he's like with the family and how he interacts and all that jazz. So far, so good. And when I need him contained, I put him in the kitchen and he is fine. I still wait until he's quiet before he gets out of the kitchen and he does fine with that.

Nick jogged with him this morning and I guess he did pretty well. I think he might be his jogging buddy a few mornings a week : )

He is such a friendly boy. I find him rolling over for a belly rub, looking to have his ears scratched and just to be around people. Whatever room I'm in, he's in. He is a nice boy. I hope the right family comes along for him soon!

Vet Call 6/2/09

So Dr. Haver called right on schedule like he always does. I explained what was happening and he sat on the phone for quite a while silent. I explained that I knew it wasn't serious yet, I just didn't want it to be 6 days before she poops again. He understood and agreed and after talking it through, he said, "well try some canned pumpkin. We're going for the fiber here... 1/2 teaspoon twice daily. And you keep me posted on how she's doing." Ok, can do! Nick and I were both relieved that he didn't think this was overly serious : )

I went and got some pumpkin and more chicken this evening (along with some icecream and other "brain" food for us!) When we went on our little walk, she pooped! I'll spare all the gory details but I was pleased with the results of the evening : )

Vet Report

Went to the vet yesterday morning with Miss Tink... Dr. Haver looked her over, listened to my long and involved story starting with Parker and the kennel cough and ending with the diarrhea. He explained that he thought she had colitis as a complication of the kennel cough. She probably had some pancreatitis as well with it as it's common in BT's and older dogs...

We're to keep her on a bland diet like we've been and I have an amoxicillan to give to her twice daily to kill the bad (and the good too i guess at this point) in her gut. If we can get that stuff out and start over then maybe we'll be ok?

So after we went to the vet, now we've gone full circle and she is consistipated...she's tried to go several times and then doesn't. So obviously, another phone call in to Dr. Haver. I left a message and he left one of my phone saying that he wants to talk with my about what's going on with Tink, today. Sigh, he had a more serious tone of voice than I was hoping to hear.

On the up side, she is acting fine, happy when i get home, ready to eat ALL the time, snuggly....she slept through the night (and so did Parker!) and here we are at 4:30 in the afternoon.... The vet tech said when I called back that Dr Haver would probably call after 5:30 since he's booked all afternoon...we'll see what he says.

And we'll keep you posted.

Stay strong Little One, stay strong....

I hate this rollercoaster ride

So Tink restarted this explosive diarrhea thing yesterday and it continued through the night....10:30, 12:30, 4am. At 12:30 we were sleeping and Nick found her making a break for it down the hallway. Poor girl. We have a vet appt this morning so we'll see what Dr. Haver says. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers....