Transitions for the Frisbee

Frisbee is transitioning into a big(ger) boy and is also transitioning to spending more time with me and his other primary co-raiser (as opposed to his starter co-raiser). He has spent the last few days with me and not only did spectacularly at school (which means staying quiet and sleeping lots by my definition), but has settled more into our routines. Since he got his last puppy shots last week, he is ready for more outings. So he went on his first "real" outing with me... where else but the fabric store! It was a very successful outing including walking around the different aisles and getting a few pets from new people. I think he is going to be a champ at this with a little more practice :)

[Frisbee sitting in front of some bolts of fabric.]

On this visit we got some more snow. I was feeling lazy (and also working on a big assignment for my class) so didn't do much in the way of playing in the snow with the dogs, but they did enjoy some time in the micro yard. Gelly and Ellis can get pretty rambunctious, so Frisbee kept his distance a little.
[Ellis chasing Gelly in the snow with Frisbee standing to the side]

It is amazing how fast Frisbee is growing and maturing. For a nearly 4 month old, he is surprisingly mature in many ways. I wonder if he might be one of those "old soul" dogs, but it is probably too early to tell. He can be pretty goofy and silly too! He is now about 30 pounds, so has nearly doubled in size since his arrival. For better or worse, the big dogs are engaging with him more these days. It was sort of nice that they were mostly ignoring him, but it is sort of nice that they will play with him too. It just makes for more challenges keeping things calm and under control in the house!

He will be with his other raisers until after Thanksgiving, at which point I will have him about half the time. So I had to sneak in some documentary "kitchen rug" photos to document the three dogs with Frisbee being 4 months old.
[Ellis, Frisbee, and Gelly sitting up][Ellis, Frisbee, and Gelly laying down][The yellow ones, little Frisbee and big Gelly][The boys, Ellis and Frisbee]

I can't wait to spend more time with this very special puppy! He is so different from especially my last 2 puppies that I know there will be new and different challenges, but I look forward to learning and growing with him!

Shameless plug...

Hi Facebook fans! I entered Ellis in the Halloween photo contest on Entirely Pets Facebook page... the prize is a $100 gift certificate (think toys and treats!!! He promises to share if he wins!). So now we need your votes :)In order to vote you have to become a fan of Entirely Pets, which you can do by going to:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?filter=nf#/EntirelyPets
And clicking the link up at the top of the page. Regardless of any prize we are trying to win, they seem like a quality company and give puppy raisers and guide dog users a discount, so I figure that is worthy of being a fan of anyway!

Once there you can click on the Halloween photo album and vote for Ellis by using the "like" button on his picture.

After the first day of voting he is actually in the lead, and most of the votes weren't even from my friends ;). So the proud momma in me is totally tickled that other people think he is so cute... but really I think it is the awesome hand crocheted scarf my mom made for him!

Fingers crossed... it would be really fun if my little boy who loves dress up actually won! I've been working hard to curb my dog toy buying obsession, but it doesn't count if you use a gift certificate so I could buy more toys, right? ;)

One year later...

The anniversary of my pets' adoption will always be easy to remember... Halloween!

This was us a year ago...[Ellis and Gelly (aka Angel) being handed over to me by the puppy truck driver, dressed as a surgeon]
[Ellis, Emily, and Gelly posing in front of the truck]

So I was considering a highly sentimental and emotional post regarding the last year with my new pets, Ellis and Gelly (aka Angel), but then I didn't know what exactly to say. There have been ups and down, but far more ups than downs. I have no regrets about taking both dogs back and given the same opportunity would do it again, but I still struggle with missing my old girl Maggie. They are no replacement. But at the same time, now that I have had these guys for a year I realized that I am starting to feel differently about them... they are becoming more a part of me. They are also growing closer to each other. It was a pretty unrealistic expectation that they would be best friends right off the truck... they really didn't know each other at all and were suddenly expected to just love each other? Being good natured and friendly dogs of course they got along great, but especially in the last few months I have seen their attachment and affection for each other grow.

As for little updates-

Ellis: Ellis is doing great! I still feel terrible that his former partner had to go through the pain and trouble of having a dog that did not work out, but I can accept that he is in the right place now and am happy about that. In the last year he has undergone a pretty amazing transformation. Yes, he will probably always be a little neurotic, but no, it is no longer severe enough to really be interfering with his daily activities and happiness like it was a year ago. He will always be special for so many reasons, but he is happy and loved! I am also happy to report that his health has been excellent, especially since switching him to a limited ingredient fish and sweet potato food. His recurring bouts of diarrhea have been nonexistant since the food change and his skin has been infection free! I look forward to his next "well-dog" check up in December!

Gelly: Gelly is also doing great, and continues to be my little princess. Anybody who knows me can tell you the last thing they would expect me to have is a little princess. But I've got one! Gelly has been working hard to train me for the last year and I think I am finally starting to meet her high standards ;) She is doing much better with her house behavior, and although she still has to be confined during the day, seems much better adjusted to her mostly stay at home life. I think it would be a stretch to say that she has mellowed out, but she is far more easy going than she was and has really curbed her attention seeking (negative) behaviors. I think she still wishes that she could be physically attached to me, or at least live between my skin and clothes, but she is happy curled up by my side whenever she can be. And her health has been excellent too, although health was never really a concern with her. No cause was ever found for her demodex mange infection, and after 6 weeks of treatment the infection seemed to be clearing. And now 8 weeks later the hair is starting to regrow. I still wonder if there could be a connection between the allergic reactions (vaccine and maybe an insect sting) and the infection, but I will probably never know and hope to never see the demodex on her again!

And of course there have to be some documentary "kitchen rug" photos. I dread the day that I start to see gray on their muzzles!

[Ellis and Gelly, arms crossed][Gelly and Ellis again, lying in the kitchen]

And since this is Halloween afterall, the dogs have Halloween collars...
[Ellis' collar with jack-o-lanterns and stars on a black background]
[Gelly's collar has an all over orange pumpkin and jack-o-lantern pattern]

And since he loves "dress up" so much, Ellis as Harry Potter! I took just him (no need to torture Gelly with a costume) to the HPWT Halloween party where he won first place in the famous person category. He chose a jolly ball for his prize (nearly jumped up on the table to grab it, so I know that was what he wanted!) which I still need to let him break in!
[Ellis wearing a black velvet coat, yellow and burgundy knit scarf (thanks mom!), glasses, and a little lightening bolt on his forhead].

So here's to the next year! And the year after that, and the year after that...

First big snow

[Frisbee running towards the camera through the snow, ears flying up]

Frisbee's second sleepover

Since Frisbee's primary starter raiser is out of town, I have had him since Wednesday and have been enjoying (almost) every minute of it! I really can't say enough good things about him! So instead, I give you a few pictures...

Frizzy's first day at school! After a rather excited entrance, he settled in famously and has been incredibly easy to have around for a 2.5 month old![Frisbee under my desk at school]

After school Friday he walked up with me to the homecoming powderpuff (girls) football game. He met lots of students and learned very quickly that being calm meant he got lots of pets! Smart boy. [Frisbee sitting on the sidewalk in front of the football field]

And now, he is exhuasted. The big dogs seem to be accepting him quite well. They won't really play with him, but they are pretty tolerant and even let him into the evening dog pile.[Gelly, Ellis, and Frisbee all curled up on the same big dog bed by my couch]

I am thrilled that I "get" to keep him until Monday, as I can't seem to get enough of snuggling with him! The only thing I would like for him to work on this weekend is pooping on more of a schedule... for a puppy that seems to need to poop a ton, he sure is resistant to pooping! Loves to pee though. Really loves to pee. But knock on wood, no accidents (pee or poop) so far this visit!

Fall cabin get-away

The big dogs and I spent a weekend at a friend's cabin. Relaxing, hiking, reading, and sleeping where the only agenda items. Oh, and pictures of the dogs too of course.
[Emily in a lounge chair with Ellis and Gelly on dog beds on the cabin porch, the hills and blue sky in the background][Ellis squinting in the sun with blue sky and clouds behind him]

[Gelly posing on an old log]

[Close up of both dogs' faces]
[Another picture of Gelly on the log]

The dogs definitely enjoyed spending the weekend running, sniffing, and snoozing, all without the constraints of leashes! The joys of private property way in the boonies!

Does he have what it takes?

Douglas has made it to phase 10! It went so fast (because of their new training methods or maybe because of his extreme intelligence?) that I barely had time to even think about him being gone and in training! So now the real breath holding begins. I honestly think that he is meant to be a guide dog, but you never really know if that is what he is going to choose or if he will pass all the final tests. I whispered in his ear the day that he left that I love him and will be proud of him no matter what, but I would still love to see him graduate.

Fingers crossed that he will pass his tests and not have to wait too long to find his perfect match! I will now be holding my breath every day when I check my voicemail... the next news will come by phone, good or bad. And it could come soon, or it could come in months!