Kerloo went to the vet on Wednesday for his neuter, final puppy shot, microchip insertion and to have his unarticulated rear dewclaws removed. That's a lot for such a wee little boy but, Kerloo was a trooper and hasn't missed a beat. He's not so fond of his stylish back leg wraps! We've told him as long as he doesn't chew on them he won't have to wear the dreaded e-collar of shame! So far he's listening well. Kerloo also scored because I was going to crate him on Thursday with the e-collar on but, his foster dad felt bad for him so Kerloo got to go to work with his foster dad.
Taking in our talk about NOT chewing his bandages
Waiting for breakfast
Bones make everything better!
Catty's bone that he stole when she was sleeping
Lucky boy got to go to work with his foster dad - Kerloo loved laying in the sun!
and his name is Kerloo! This funny little boy loves to steal Catty & Dandy's treasures which as you can imagine doesn't always go over well. Kerloo has figured out that if he's sneaking he can steal a lot without getting noticed!
One of Catty's deer shanks - "shhh don't tell her"
BOTH of Dandy's blue whales - "maybe Dandy won't see me behind his babies"
Dandy & Catty are inside - "I'm outside with Catty's bone and Dandy's big bird baby"
"I'm hiding in the living room with Catty's bone - paws crossed she doesn't notice"
Snoozing in the sun in Catty's favorite spot & on her favorite bed
"Maybe that's a bone I'd like - I'll wait to see what Dandy is going to do"
"I stole one of Catty's bones and so far so good" - Lucky for Kerloo Catty had a differnt bone she wanted to chew on
Dandy & Catty hoarding their stuff before Kerloo realizes what they have
Dandy has decided that instead of Kerloo steal his blue baby whale, maybe trying to get him to play tug or "take away" is more fun. This is a long video but pretty funny to watch both boys!
We are pretty sure the farm experience was a first for Dandy & Kerloo and boy did they have a blast!
Darby showing Dandy how to find a cool spot in the shade
Everyone just hanging out and Dandy going to Darby's dad for a neck scratch - good boy Dandy!
Butch and Dandy hunting voles
Dandy was out hunting voles all on his own for about 15 mintues - he was so happy just being a terrier. You can see the softness in his body and face - he's having a super time.
Dandy the tired but happy boy!
Dandy resting on Darby's dad lap while watching the horses.
Kerloo was not happy to have to wear his leash - here he is trying to chew it off
Typical puppy - Kerloo can't decide if he wants to dig for bugs, chew on his leash or eat the grass...
Butch, Dandy & Kerloo hunting the grass. Luckily there was no rolling in dead snakes
Gross but, when you're in the country what's a little roll in horse poo or even taking abreak with a horse poo snack. That's Darby just crusin with us!
Kerloo and Darby taking a rest
Just hanging out
Darby the blind dog keeping watch over the rest of the rattie's
We had the best day ever out in Sequim thanks to Darby, her awesome dad Bill and rattie brother Butch. When Darby was fostered with us she was extremely dog reactive, which we believed was due to the fact that Darby is blind. The way she greeted dogs was so off-kilter that other dogs thought she was going to attack them. During her two months with us we had Darby fully separated from our other dogs. We did try to integrate the dogs but, Catty couldn't tolerate Darby's greeting skills so it was a stint in separation for the girls.
When Darby moved to her adopted home in Sequim, she moved in with a very calm, very well balanced and very tolerant male rattie named Butch. Within days, Darby figured out that Butch was pretty awesome and that he could not only tolerate her lack of dog greeting skills but he could also teach her how to appropriately greet other dogs. Besides being reactive to dogs, Darby was also reactive to noise and her dad has helped her work through those issues as well. Darby's dad rescues and rehabilitates horses, so he was pretty comfortable with adopting a dog like Darby who needed some special care and assistance.
Darby has been with her family for the last four months and she's a different dog than when she was with us. You can see the joy in her body and face and that she loves her family very much. As a foster parent we always hope that our foster dogs find a better home that we could have been to them -- and for Darby this is true in spades. We could not have asked for a more perfect family, setting and home for this special girl who took part of our hearts with her when she was adopted. She is a good example of why we foster; why we deal with the potty accidents, the challenging behavior and the struggles and joy that come with fostering. Darby's only way out of the shelter was via rescue and based on her blindness and presentation at the shelter it's shocking she made it out. There were days during the time we fostered Darby that I thought "what on earth are you doing", but this visit answered all of those questions. Both my husband and I are so happy that we took a chance on fostering Darby and that her dad took a chance on adopting her. She is our foster dog poster pup and we will always keep her in mind on those tough foster days!
Darby was so busy on the farm that it was hard to get a shot of her being still
Butch - Darby's amazing rattie brother
Darby out on the farm hanging with lots of dogs and having a great time! Notice her checking in with Butch and he keeps an eye on her.
This is Oreo - he lives on the 30 acres with the rescued horses. A number of years ago, Oreo showed up to the farm limping. Darby's dad took him to the vet and they belive either his foot was injured from a trap or a chain that had wraped around his foot. No one ever came to claim Oreo so he now lives the good life of a farm dog.
All the dogs!! Such a great experience for everyone
Darby and Dandy enjoying the shade
Darby and Dandy having a tender molment - Kerloo is exausted
Butch keeping an eye on his sister and Darby she's just hanging out. Kerloo's still sleeping!
Four worn out and relaxed rats - what a sight. But wait what's that?!
A priceless picture that includes two of our harder foster pups - Darby & Dandy
No one at our house!! Kerloo and Dandy spent Saturday as country boys out in Sequim which included lots of rolling around in horse poop and who knows what else! Back to life in the city and these boys needed a bath. Lucky Catty, well she get got a bath just because I didn't want her to feel left out.
Tomorrow I'll be sharing about our awesome visit to see Darby and her amazing family and home so stay tuned!
Kerloo is a good sport!
With Dandy it's moving slow and lots of talking to him that all will be fine
"These dang foster dog's making my life hard"
Catty trying to wipe away the bath, Kerloo says "What are you doing?" Dandy just pretending none of it ever happened.
Post bath time
More post bath play and then Kerloo... bad foster mom for not taking him out BEFORE the bath!!!
Kerloo true to form was amazing when I took him to work with me on Friday! He was so good with everyone he met, close to a dozen new people and it was all love and kisses to and from this sweet boy. Everyone who meets Kerloo falls head of heals for him which isn't all that suprising.
watching the traffic out the window
Hanging out under the chair (see the red collar) while we work
He's such a curious pup, doesn't bark just likes to watch and see what's going on
How can you not love this boy!
He fell asleep like this thanks to all the attention
I love Sequim, over the last couple of years we've headed over there for lots of hiking in the fall/spring and then snowshoeing in the winter. Well, when Darby received an application and I found out it was awesome AND in Sequim I was super excited! Darby was adopted by her amazing dad and she's been living the good life in Sequim. We are heading out today to go visit with this fun loving crazy gal who we haven't seen since April and we are excited! Her dad stays in frequent touch with us so we know she's doing awesome so this will be lots of fun.
For those of you who may not know Darby's story - she's blind, was picked up as a stray, brought to a very large shelter in California and her only way out of the shelter was rescue. One of the NR California volunteers let me know about her and we soon became Darby's foster parents. Darby was with us for a little over 2 months and she's a hoot! Oh and don't tell her she's blind as she won't understand what you're talking about. So today is a happy reunion day and we can't wait to see her and shower her with hugs and kisses!
If you want to read more about Darby (she's why I started this blog) go back to the beginning of this blog and you'll quickly see why she's such a special gal.
Kerloo loves to play and he's been pretty disappointed that neither Dandy or Catty want to play with him all the time. Both Dandy & Catty will play but, it has to be on their own terms. Kerloo is quickly learning this lesson - oh to be fostered with older dogs!
At this point Dandy only plays with Kerloo when we come back for a walk and it will last about 5-7 minutes and there are times that I need to stop the play. I stop the play due to Dandy getting overwhelmed with anxiety or excitement, a lot of this is a result of his lack of confidence in life . It's a combo that can change within second. Dandy plays this out by trying to hump out a dog or starting to nibble on soft items to discharge his excitement/anxiety. During Dandy's younger years, he was not properly socialized so he doesn't have much of a clue on how to play with a dog and true to his personality, play creates conflict for Dandy. Luckily Kerloo has great play skills and can work with Dandy's awkward play style and his vocalizations. All that "noise" you hear in the video's - that's Dandy. This is a very good play session for Dandy so way to go Kerloo - you were able to play and help Dandy work on building new skills!
