We invited a couple of Kitty's friends to bring their children to meet the dogs. One family might borrow Bob soon.

I arranged to meet some people to introduce Peyton today. I knew that he wasn't smelling great so I loaded the dogs from home (minus Marley who was already being groomed and Grazie who went with Kitty to the farmers market) and headed to the kennel to bathe Peyton.  Wrangling the other dogs took about as much effort as bathing Peyton.

Peyton was clean when I got him so this was his first bath with me.  He was easy.  It was a pleasure to work on him.  The other dogs also did a remarkably good job of waiting while I bathed him.  Then we all went out to play!

It's been awhile since the Norwood family visited us. The boys are growing! They got along beautifully with all the dogs. They especially liked Conner and plan to borrow him next week.

"152 nails to trim.  152 nails.  Grind one down.  Move to the next. 151 nails to trim!"

I've been neglecting nail trimming.  I didn't want to try the new dogs until I felt more comfortable with them and I was really reluctant to handle the crazy-long double rear dewclaws on Harley and Dexter.  And I'm lazy.  But Grazie, Marley and Bob have Pet Partners tests tomorrow so I decided to do them.  Then Kitty helped so I decided to do the rest of the dogs.

O.k., it wasn't quite like that.  I was trimming Bob first.  We were outside and I put some pieces of raw venison medallions on the table.  Bob is so easy that I didn't grab any meat treats for awhile.  Then I heard something and turned to see Harley coming off the empty table.  Grrr...  So I decided to switch to Harley.  He struggled a bit at first but Kitty gave him lots of treats (Ewww!  Meat!) and I sat on him.  It took quite awhile to grind down over half an inch from each of his four rear dewclaws.  By the time I finished he was lying on his side and relaxed.  I was sweating.  I cuddled with him for awhile before switching back to Bob.

Bob makes nail trimming so easy.  It's remarkable how calm he is about it.  Since Grazie is testing tomorrow I did her next.  She was happy to get treats during the trim.  Marley tests tomorrow too so I did him next.  That was a breeze, especially with his recent haircut.  He's such a sweetie.  (He's lying on my leg as I type this.)

I was feeling refreshed after Marley so I decided to try Dobky.  He tends to "freeze" whenever he's stressed so I was hoping he'd just hunker down and let me trim.  He was a bit more active than that but he did well, especially for his first time.  He got a lot of meat.

Another set of long dewclaws remained.  I've been wincing whenever I see Dexter's rear dewclaws and it was time to tackle them.  I was expecting it to be quite a chore but Dexter was a doll!  He was so good about letting me grind and grind on him.  He even remained standing the whole time.  I was impressed.  Dexter was the big surprise of the evening.

Jarreau...oh, Jarreau.  He's a handful.  Nothing new.  I finished on Morgan because I can always count on him to be solid.  I'd say that he's stoic about nail trimming but I'm not sure it even bothers him.  He's so confident and trusting.  It's a joy to work with him.  And that's it!  No more nails to trim...except my own.  I really gouged a couple with the grinder.

Yesterday I took everyone but Grazie (3 family + 4 foster dogs) for a quick jog around University Place.  Harley had a seizure early the next morning so I thought it might have been too much for him.  Today I went on a longer jog to campus with only six of the dogs (3 family + 3 foster).  It was comfortable.  I kept my guys on the left and the fosters on my right and they all did well.  Bob, of course, lives to run and always pushes me.  Dobky is often in trail but sometimes comes up with the others.  I keep a close eye on Dexter because I always wonder how he'll do with others on the trail but we passed and were passed  a few times and he ran right along like a gentleman.  O.k....there were a couple bunnies and a squirrel that ran in front of us.  That did cause a bit of excitement but it was easily managed.

The dogs do fine even though we're running in 80F weather. We stopped half way and had some drinks but most of the dogs were not interested. (Dobky was happy to drink from my bottle.) I'm looking forward to going on longer runs as the weather cools and the dogs get the rhythm.

Kitty and I took all the dogs to playgroups, as usual.  The kids were walking Dr. Banker's dog, Zeus, out as we arrived.  He got mobbed a bit but everyone handled it well.  He's getting so big!  But he still acts like a puppy.

Judo, Keowee, Peyton and Conner were already out of the kennel and had been playing for awhile when we arrived. Keowee was too much for a Dalmatian in the large area but Judo was still playing there. Layla ushered us down to the agility area to help with evaluations of a couple Yellow Labs. Grazie, Jarreau, Dobky, Peyton and Dexter quickly entered there while I worked on the gate so we could use the playgroup area with a tree. The dogs roamed while I worked on the gate. Morgan joined Judo in the big area and Harley was invited into the adjacent playgroup. By the time I fixed the gate I had only Bob and Keowee. I wandered over to check on the evaluations.

Everyone in the evals was doing remarkably well. I expected my guys to be a little high-energy for the Labs. There was one outburst. I didn't see what started it but I did see Dexter getting chomped by a Lab a few times and he kept moving away. I called him and he came to me. The Lab had a bunch of white fur in his mouth. I was so proud of Dexter!

During evals a guest joined us to see Dobky. He was more social with her than I expected and she took him for a walk in the playgroup corridors. I was impressed that he did so well.

After the evals I moved my dogs into the area with the tree. We were adjacent to some very small dogs and Dexter was especially interested in them. Eventually I took Dexter on-lead to see them. There was a Boston Terrier with his owner and a smaller terrier(?) girl, Morgan, who was "stay and play." Conner was also in there but he didn't come to see us. Dexter did great with the little dogs. After the Boston left I let Dexter go off-lead with the tiny dog. (We joked about taking a photo and calling it "stay and pray.") Eventually I just opened the gate and let tiny Morgan meet the rest of the big dogs, including Harley who had joined us by then. There were no problems at all.

Oh!  One more brag on Dexter.  We've always had to help him into the Jeep.  Today he jumped in all on his own both to and from playgroups!  I think he's lost a bit of weight and is feeling more comfortable but I'm sure that the peer pressure (literally!) of seven other dogs shooting/squeezing past him helps too.

Good people. Good dogs. It was a good day.

I played volleyball this morning, then went to a birthday party in the afternoon and had a jazz party in the evening - all without the dogs. I needed to give them some activity but I didn't have a lot of time...and then I got a work call and had even less time. I decided that I'd jog with the dogs to our evening party to meet Kitty and I'd grab the Jeep and drive home to shower so Kitty could be there on time and we'd end up with only one car. It didn't work that way though.

I took only six dogs again, leaving Grazie and Harley at home. I ended up with the skijoring belt I use to connect the dogs on top of the waist pack I wear to carry water, my phone, etc. It seemed a bit more comfortable there so I decided to try it for this trip. We took the path along Lindberg, through the Celery Bog and as we came up the hill we passed a young lady with her dog. For some reason Dobky was having trouble right then and was dancing out it front of me. I tried and tried to just pull him back into position without stopping because I wanted to keep up the speed as we passed the other dog. And then Dobky's collar snapped open. It's no fun having a loose dog at the side of a busy road, especially a new dog who doesn't yet respond to his name. Fortunately he stayed close and checked out the other dog. I asked the dog's owner to grab Dobky and she did. As everyone mobbed her dog I looped a lead around Dobky's neck and we were quickly jogging again.

It wasn't until I was waiting to cross Salisbury that I realized I'd lost my phone. I flipped around and retraced our steps. I kept thinking that it must have happened during the Dobky incident and I was relieved that when I reached that area it was there in the grass where we'd pulled around the other dog. (I'm guessing that the skijoring belt pushed the phone from its spot when I was twisting and bending.)  We went straight home and Kitty got one of our collars to replace Dobky's faulty quick-release collar.

I've hit an especially busy time and I've been neglecting the dogs and my updates. I'm going to stuff this entry with updates.

On Monday I took Grazie and Bob to the clinic for their Delta Society Pet Partner health screenings. I took Harley along because he's still drinking amazing amounts of water. Everyone seemed in good shape so we decided to test some more samples from Harley. (Kitty submitted those samples today.)

For a long time, I've been feeling like the dogs need more than just "free play." Taking them all for walks is difficult but six of the dogs at our house are getting quite comfortable with jogging. (I've been leaving Grazie and Harley at home during our runs.) We've been doing a 5-6K path that loops into campus. I'm trying to get the dogs accustomed to being in public and especially on campus before the students return. They're tired enough and "in the groove" when we reach campus so they don't react much to people around them. I'm hoping that this will be such routine that they'll be comfortable when students return.

Dexter...oh, Dexter. He's rolling on the floor with Jarreau as I type. Marley is in on it too; Kitty just removed a big glob of white fur from his mouth. They are all such great playmates. Dexter frequently initiates play with them and they go for hours.  Dexter is doing great at eating from my hand every meal.  He goes right into his crate when we ask and he doesn't bark when we leave or return.

Dobky is standing into Kitty to be patted right now. He'll do that for several minutes. I haven't worked with him beyond the general stuff around the house and during our runs. I'm trying to get him to be comfortable and confident before I push much more on him.

Bob delights in our runs. He's always in the lead. Such a Husky. Then he crashes at night. I love tired dogs.

Kitty took Marley to the West Lafayette Farmers' Market this evening and then they went to a friend's house for dinner. With only seven dogs at home I decided to take everyone for a jog but I didn't want to push Grazie and Harley so we just went across the road and around University Place. We ran into some residents in back and when we stopped to talk I think the entire dining staff came to greet the dogs. It was good to see everyone and the dogs behaved beautifully. I am especially pleased that the foster dogs are so social without being overbearing (although Dexter does like to thoroughly greet everyone).

Allison wrote that Keowee is staying with her again and keeping Mackie active. She also told me that everyone's samples came back "normal" today. That means we're still trying to determine why Harley drinks so much. I'm taking him to the clinic for another blood draw tomorrow.

The weather was beautiful this evening - sunny but not terribly hot, especially in the shade. We arrived at 5:00 with all eight of the home dogs and the four kennel dogs were already out. Judo, Keowee, and Peyton were playing in the main area while Conner was in an evaluation with a tiny Pomeranian in a small area. Conner was his usual - relaxed and off to the side.

We mostly milled around the corridors for awhile. Layla requested a big dog to introduce to the Pom so I sent Jarreau. He did beautifully, of course. Eventually I also sent Grazie, Morgan and Harley to meet the Pom. I also took Dexter on-lead at first but he did a great job and I quickly released him. Dexter provided a wonderful example of how barking is not always aggressive. Layla narrated as Dexter did a full play bow and barked repeatedly to invite one of the small dogs out from under the chairs. Although he's a bit overwhelming he's always careful with the little dogs.

Bentley, the Dalmatian, arrived soon after we did. Peyton was a little too much for Bentley so Peyton got to join the house dogs in the second area while Judo, Keowee and Mackey worked on Bentley. There were several heated exchanges and the monitors had their hands full keeping control of the situation.

Peyton wanted so much to be with his buddies that he popped the (weak) gate a few times so that he could run in the corridor along the main area. It's not that he's "mean" - he's just so active and driven. He needs someone to give him a lot more attention. I had no problems retrieving him and the others each time and herding them back into their area.

Dobky didn't get any special activity. He obviously would have enjoyed sticking with me the whole time but I wasn't yet comfortable putting him with new small dogs. It's not that I think he'd do anything wrong but I just don't feel like we know each other well enough to ensure that he'd behave appropriately. He's really gaining confidence though. He often goes head to head with the other dogs, not fighting so much as just asserting himself. Morgan has been incredibly forgiving of this behavior. Although Morgan has given Dobky some corrections they've all been minor.

I played volleyball at Purdue for a couple hours this morning. We had a date for disc golf in the evening so I took the dogs for a run in the afternoon. I extended our route a bit; we went on campus, circled the IM fields on the bark path, went around the RSC, and then along the street in front of Tarkington, continued the bark path around the track, headed up the hill and returned home. Due to construction we had some tight spots on the path and Dexter went wide once, catching a pole and snapping his collar. Oops. At least he was easy to grab. Everyone did a great job running and no one seemed bothered by all of the sounds and activity of students arriving on campus. We're also getting the hang of drinking from the bottle I carry. Everyone can now drink from it without "gacking." And oh, how they did drink. It was warm and they cleaned me out quickly. I might need to switch to my two-bottle pack for these runs or refill along the way.

As we entered Blackbird Farms Kitty's mom motioned for me to come help her. It's garage sale day and she'd sold her grill but the gentleman who bought it needed some help. Kitty was there with Harley and Grazie but her mom must have really wanted me to help with the grill because she wore my belt with everyone attached while I worked. They were mostly in down stays but I was still impressed both at how well the dogs did and that she'd handle all of them.

After disc golf I got dropped at home to feed the dogs and then bike to meet everyone for dinner. As I was feeding Dexter (by hand, as usual) I saw Bob nose over a couple of times as Dexter was waiting to take the food in front of him. When we started doing this such an incursion would have gotten at least a lip curl from Dexter but tonight Bob even nosed Dexter's paw and Dexter just moved it a bit while continuing to watch me, waiting for his command to take another handful of food. I am so delighted that he trusts me to handle the situation.

We returned home late and I had some work to do on the computer but now it's about 11:00 PM local and I'm at the bar with most of the dogs passed out at my feet. I think the dogs have had a full day despite me being gone so much.

Our neighbors are having a garage sale today so we have lots of people parking in the street and walking around our house. Dexter has been keen to alert us to everyone and warn them away from approaching our house. I've been calling to him when he starts barking and that is working well. I like it a lot more than my gut reaction of yelling at(/with!) him.

I called him away from his sentry position into the living room last time and I was trying to distract him when I recalled that he had a few minor matts around his neck. The brushes were handy so I started brushing him. He seemed to enjoy it so I continued and was almost done when I realized I'd only been doing the top layer of his withers. Underneath he had a bunch of large matts that I'd missed!

So...out came the comb and dematting tools. I went at him for awhile and enjoyed observing his behavior. He has a tendency to bite when he's stressed instead of vocalizing. "Bite" could be a bit misleading in this case; he grabs with his teeth. It's wonderful that he has such good control of his bite. Morgan was the same way when I met him and it's one of the reasons I adopted him. As I cut, combed and brushed Dexter I stuck my face in his and worked on communicating with him that nuzzling was alright and biting was not. (I discovered that his high forehead and mine mesh quite well.) He seemed to get it but it will take a lot of work for me to trust that inhibition in most any situation (as it does with any dog). At the same time, Dexter worked on communicating with me that when I pulled "this" much it was alright and when I pulled more it wasn't. His reaction was always timely and in proportion to what I was doing; he didn't suddenly snap and he didn't remain stressed after I changed what I was doing. I also noticed that he did well with being restrained. He struggled only slightly at first and then he seemed to realize what I wanted and I was able to work on him without holding him at all.

When I first met Dexter I thought that working with him might exceed my capabilities. He continues to show me that he's really just a big sweetie looking for direction. There are so many times that I surprise myself and think "Wow! Dexter is the best dog in the bunch!" about a given situation. Speaking of that...

Due to their health and personalities, I've been feeding Harley and Dobky on their own just outside the kitchen. I don't require the other dogs to go into downs until I return to the kitchen. Normally Morgan and Jarreau quickly down without being told and I have to work on the others. Dexter is usually last and takes awhile. This morning as I was filling the bowls for Harley and Dobky I looked over and saw Morgan, Jarreau and Dexter already waiting patiently in downs! (Yes, they each got a venison medallion for that.) Dexter is such a sponge - so ready to accept training. I hope I can give him what he needs.

We didn't get to run yesterday so I was especially longing to hit the road today. Then, of course, I had an afternoon meeting that ran long. I was hoping to run six dogs to the library to meet Kitty and the other two at a concert there. I fed the dogs late and we were way behind schedule. I didn't want to run them right after eating but after 45 minutes I had everything in order so we went!

This would be a test of how well the dogs do in public. We took the path along Lindberg through Celery Bog and then joined Northwestern at Cherry Lane. There was a fair amount of road and foot traffic but not nearly as much as there will be in another week. The dogs did well. They quickly get the rhythm and Bob is doing well at playing the lead dog and following my calls. I rarely get tripped...unless my shoe comes untied (as it did today).

Coming through campus was a non-event. The dogs pretty much ignore other people. I can usually keep them in line by just picking up the pace if they get distracted. It was a good quick run to the library and then I picked up Harley from Kitty and walked to the restaurant while Kitty drove with Grazie. Kitty got a parking space right by our table so I put the foster dogs in the car with Grazie. The boys stayed on mats by us while we ate. Jarreau and Morgan did great but Marley was constantly breaking his stay. The dogs in the car got a lot of attention from passers-by.  Although Grazie hides in the driver's footwell, the other dogs seemed fine in the car - alert but content and not at all bothered by the busy area.

Four of our friends came over for dinner and brought a Great Pyrenees and a Standard Poodle puppy. Things went pretty well but the Pyr was a bit overwhelmed by all the dogs. Marley and the puppy, however, had a glorious time playing by themselves.

My day has been packed. It seems like there's been one thing after another with work but I was able to take a break to have lunch with some of the people involved with the rescue and discuss our goals for the second year. Getting our dogs ready to pass the CGC will be a big part of it.  After that it was back to handling emergencies right up until our CGC test time. Once again, I'd failed to practice with any of them.

We got to Klondike Canine Academy right before our scheduled time but I needed to pull dogs from the kennel.  Then it was time to test. I decided Harley probably wouldn't need to play so I tested with him first. He did a great job. He's far from being an ultra-responsive dog like Grazie has been but he's a sweet big guy and easy to manage. Pass!

I decided to try another big dog next. I didn't quite expect Dexter to pass but I wanted to run him through the test to see what he needed. The only walks he's taken with me have been high-speed so heeling isn't something we've perfected. He always pulls me until we've run a couple miles. As we walked into the testing area he was pulling hard and I almost turned to switch him for another dog but we gave it a shot. He took quite a bit of handling but we passed! I was especially happy that he did well on the supervised separation. (It doesn't hurt that the evaluator is a "big dog" person and appreciates him.)

Judo was next. Ug. Judo. He is so excitable and joyfully explosive. I love to be with him but pulling him through a CGC test is quite a challenge. I just had to laugh and look at working with him as a test of how well I can do instead of focusing on whether or not he'd ever pass. He did surprisingly well.  I had him a bit too jazzed when we did "walking through a crowd" and his front paws left the ground when he went toward someone. We got a "redo" on that later and I approached it more calmly. He breezed through it. He passed!

This means that most  of the dogs (five of eight) currently in the rescue program now have their CGCs!

I was told we had time for four dogs so I grabbed Morgan to finish. I thought he'd be easy but he surprised me. It was a couple hours beyond his normal feeding time and he was scouring the floor for leftovers. And he was curious about the part of the barn that covers the ground hog den. But he did fine until the supervised separation. He was ready to go home and then he heard Bob barking in the play area and got really excited. Fail. Oh, well. It should be easy to pass with him under better circumstances.

Since we'd moved through the dogs so quickly the evaluator offered to test another. Kitty chose Marley and we breezed through the testing. He takes handling at just the right times but he's generally easy. Another pass!

I returned from the farm just in time to load the dogs and head to the park. The kennel dogs were already out playing. Bizet was with the little dogs. We joined the bigger dogs in the main area. All the dogs there were cool so I brought Bizet over to join us.

Dobky and Bob were a bit too interested in Bizet. Once, when Dobky was chasing Bizet Peyton broadsided him. I could imagine that he was "splitting" - trying to diffuse the situation.

Some young friends joined us and did a great job with the dogs. It was a good night.

Toward the end of last semester some Purdue students contacted me about working with the dogs. What a wonderful opportunity! I've always had this hope that I could get students involved with working the dogs and I know there are students on campus who miss their own dogs or wish they could have their own but can't because of their housing, schedules, etc. The students took a couple of the dogs out for tours of campus last year and did a great job with the dogs. I looked forward to their return - and today I got the call!

The ladies were already at playgroups when I arrived. We talked about the current group of dogs and some of the changes coming to the group. There's still a lot to resolve but I'm excited about getting more people involved and getting dogs on campus for socialization. There are wonderful possibilities.

I caught a brief nap after playgroups and then fed the dogs. After waiting an hour we still had some sunlight so I took everyone for a run to campus to get a glimpse of the weekend before classes start.

We take the trail along the golf course and then through the IM fields to Purdue West. I could hear the band playing as we approached. They were practicing right where we turn to head toward the RSC. Even though they made some startling sounds and were milling around the trail, the dogs did well staying with me and keeping pace. We needed to go off-trail a few times due to traffic but the dogs didn't get spooked by any of the activity.

I've been getting fairly comfortable taking six of the dogs for a run most days. Harley has become so much more active lately that I've been considering taking him with us. I wasn't going to take him tonight but he was so excited I just couldn't leave him again.

Harley was pulling hard at first but then he settled back after about a mile. Then we ran around campus and he was really dragging. I stopped a couple times to check on him but each time he'd start pulling again so we'd resume. As we approached Slayter Hill Harley just dropped. I wasn't about to push him to continue. Kitty was out with a friend so I asked them to provide sag wagon service. Waiting with all of the dogs at the busy corner was a good experience. Everyone seems comfortable with all the activity except Marley is spooked by skateboards.

There were a couple evaluations at playgroups today and we were also short on staff so I went for the whole time. Well, I arrived a bit late but I made quite an entry. I unloaded my dogs from the car and was mistaken about one of the new dogs, Lough, (for evaluations) being through the second gate. Instead, he got swamped by my guys in the entry area - quite an initiation. He handled it well, though!

Playgroups were uneventful after that and I had time to talk with Onyx's owner. I had completely neglected her request to try a playmate for Onyx. At first I was thinking that one of the doodles would be good but then she asked about Dexter. Of course! Dexter lived with a cat, has great housetraining, and his original owner was also a young woman. Dexter went home with Onyx. I neglected to mention that Dexter has difficulty getting into cars and I realized it just as I watched him start to enter her car. Then he high-tailed it out of there as I headed for him. I gave him a boost and it sounds like he did fine after that.

I visited Dexter later and took his crate and some food. He'd been doing fine with Onyx and seemed relaxed in the fenced area with Onyx. I just set up the crate and tried not to bother him. I look forward to hearing how he does.

I had Harley and Dobky with me and we headed straight to Global Fest in West Lafayette. Even though it was finishing as we arrived they got lots of attention and they did beautifully. Afterward a bunch of us went to a restaurant in Lafayette. Harley and Dobky got lots of attention while waiting for everyone to arrive and then I hitched them to the fence near the restaurant entrance. They continued to get nearly constant visitors throughout the evening.

I was amazed at how well Harley and Dobky did with all of the people, smells and sounds. I've traveled the country with lots of great dogs for many years so I have fairly high standards when it comes to being in public. Although I would expect my family dogs to maintain downstays in public without being tied, these guys were awesome and didn't seem to mind be restricted by their tethers. They were rock solid not spooked and social but not pushy. These are wonderful dogs. It was a delight to have them with us and they were fantastic representatives for our program.

Dexter spent a week with Onyx and her owner and returned home with us after playgroups yesterday. It sounded like he did alright but was too controlling of Onyx inside. I've seen him start to do that at home and I neglected to warn of this behavior.

Bizet has been at the kennel for a couple weeks and seemed stressed. It didn't help that he was in isolation for the first week due to concern he might have kennel cough. He was neutered about a week ago and was getting along well but he was straining and had loose stools, and he had lots of "eye gunk" and tear stains. And he's soooo needy. I wanted to give him some attention.

I had a family in mind ever since I saw Bizet. I contacted them to see if they had any interest and they came to playgroups yesterday to meet Bizet. Bizet was in rough shape and certainly didn't look his best but they decided they'd like to work with him. The family needed to finish some painting at home before Bizet arrives so we took him home for the night. I thought it would be good for us to get a better idea of his in-home habits before he goes out anyway.

I'm pleased to report that Bizet has been a jewel at home. Bob (the Husky) is constantly eyeing him but they're doing well. (Bizet is on the bed next to me as I type. Bob is lying on the floor watching him intently.) Bizet had no accidents or even close calls while he was free in the house. He sticks very close to me at all times so it's easy to keep an eye on him but he was good about relieving himself when he went out with the other dogs. He was still straining last night with loose stools but this morning Kitty reported he was doing great!

Last night Bizet stayed in a plastic kennel while we went to dinner and slept in it overnight. He goes into it without a fuss but does bark/whine for awhile. Once he settled last night that was it - we slept through the night! (That's a first in a very long time.)

This morning as I started the shower Bizet poked his head in it so I invited him to join me. He seemed to enjoy getting bathed. After working with the big dogs who buck and pace in the tub it was a wonderful change to have a little dog who just stands in place and savors the cleaning. Kitty towel dried Bizet and in a few minutes he was in bed rolling in the pillows but already dry.

Like so many small dogs, Bizet likes to jump on people, especially when big dogs surround him. I'm working on that. He does like to simply be held. (Right now he's holding my arm with his front legs and resting his head on my belly and laptop.) I think Bizet is going to make a great family dog.

We've been staying busy and I've neglected to make updates so I'm going to catch up here.

On Friday I was contacted by Indiana Spay and Neuter because they were full of dogs. They have a striking blue-eyed white Husky but I'd decided I'm over my quota of Huskies. Instead, I decided to help an older doodle, Delaney. Delaney was dropped at the kennel Friday evening. I was told his face was caked with burrs so I went there this morning to shave him. By the time I arrived the groomers had squeezed him into the schedule and were almost done with him. They'd uncovered a weeping cyst on his chest and a substantial fatty lump/tumor/? elsewhere. A doctor had checked the cyst and said it will need to be removed so he'll be in surgery next week. Despite his problems I was told he was a nice guy by everyone who'd encountered him. (While at the clinic I also learned that GP has little interest in kittens.)

With Delaney's care covered I decided to get everyone out to play for awhile (including Maisie and Barouch, who are boarding) and then I bathed Judo. He'd been blowing his coat for awhile and really needed to be brushed but I put him straight into the bath. GP stayed with us to get accustomed to the grooming area. Judo handled the bath well and allowed me to use the blow dryer on him without complaint. I took Judo home after the bath and he got along well with everyone at home. Later I took him to the LayFlats festival for the Almost Home Humane Society. Well...I tried to take him but I screwed up and let him get loose while loading him in the car. He took a tour of the neighborhood with me in pursuit, refusing to come to me even when I was very close to him. Kitty finally got him while I circled to watch for him at the main road. He'd taken a dip in the pond so I hosed him clean(er) before departing.

At LayFlats Judo was the only dog with a van full of cats. He got some good attention and although it was very loud there he behaved well and seemed comfortable. As we were preparing to leave a young couple submitted an application to adopt Judo. It's time for him to find a great home where he's appreciated.

After LayFlats we returned home to feed everyone. Kitty helped Judo with the house dining rules (down stays). While hanging out with us Judo was great and even went into a crate on his own for awhile. We returned to the kennel that night with all the dogs and pulled the kennel dogs for a late play session. Although GP had not met the house dogs and Delaney had not met anyone there were no major problems. Delaney warned everyone that he was uncomfortable by growling at fast-approaching dogs. Also, when we left Judo got pushy with GP and got a bit of a smack-down but although it lasted awhile there were no injuries. I like GP.

After dinner we returned home by way of the grocery and all of the house dogs did well while we waited for Kitty to do the shopping. They got a bit of attention and handled the passing shoppers without a peep.

Kitty wanted to attend Art on the Wabash after church but I knew the dogs were in need of a run. We hadn't been out for awhile so I ran with the boys while Kitty and Grazie drove to Tapawingo Park.

I decided to take a "short cut" through Happy Hollow Park, starting at the pedestrian entrance from Salisbury. We immediately encountered a walker with his older Husky. We talked for awhile and I hope to hear from him again. Then we ventured into the park...I didn't realize how challenging it would be. There were lots of steps and then the path turned to single-track on steep hillside. I experimented with trying to run ahead of the dogs and then letting three go in front and three behind me. Splitting worked well.

Dexter had been a bit of a pain, always pulling hard to the right, so I connected him to Bob. That usually works well but he got a little loopy a couple times and once he even fell off a small bridge, dragging Bob along with him. They were hanging by their collars (but able to stand) for awhile as I tried to get the other dogs stable. Bob slipped out of his collar and I was horrified to think of trying to chase him through the park with the five other dogs. Fortunately he quickly returned to me! I gave him some water and tightened his collar. After that incident it was fairly uneventful. We had a pleasant run downhill and along the river to the park.

I stopped at the edge of the park to call Kitty but we were already starting to draw a crowd. That's how it was the whole time; we could barely move because people were constantly wanting to pet the dogs and ask about them. I enjoyed it and I think the dogs did too. Lots of children came to greet the dogs and everyone behaved beautifully. We saw some other dogs and a little one visited us. I don't know how much of a difference the short run made but I couldn't have asked for our pack to have done better.

After Kitty had her fill of art I ran the boys to Puccini's to meet her for lunch. The dogs all seemed ready to get into the Jeep so I left them there while we ate with friends who we noticed were also eating outside. Our waiter was generous with water - the dogs quickly drained a couple pitchers.

We've been at the kennel late the last few nights. Yesterday and today we had a couple of my cousin's dogs, Bella and Bear, Lab. siblings, staying at the kennel.

Everyone is doing so well! Judo and GP had a little spat late in our visit but it was without injury. Delaney was such a gentleman, as usual. He has gotten much more relaxed with everyone and is just a delight. I need to get a collar for him but he's been so easy to handle; I often just let him wander and he'll follow me wherever I go and even get in his kennel on his own.

The new guy, Chewie, is finally out of isolation. I was told that he'd been eliminating in his crate and I wanted to get him out at night to give him a chance to make it to morning. When Kitty pulled him from his kennel he was clean! She brought him out after all of the big dogs and he was amazing. We kept him in the entry area and added a couple other dogs. I was concerned that Bob might overwhelm him. Instead, he slipped through the gate and straight into Bob!

Chewie is truly amazing. He never makes a noise and seems completely unfazed by much larger dogs charging him. He poked Grazie a few times and got some corrections from her but he didn't cower a bit. Kitty and I both held him a few times and he seems as comfortable in the air as on the ground. I'm always looking for little dogs who break the stereotype of being scared and yappy. This guy seems perfect. I'm looking forward to working with him.

What a day! We had a lot of firsts. Dobky had a hair cut when I got him but it's always blocked his eyes. Kitty took him to be professionally groomed and he looks great! She said that he did well with being bathed, clipped and dried. I love seeing his eyes and he's so handsome!

When dapper Dobky rejoined us we pulled T-bone for introductions. He quickly became comfortable with the Poodley boys and Grazie. I was a little concerned that this young intact GSD might not do well with the rest of my guys but they all did a wonderful job. Eventually T-bone joined our entire group. I was impressed with how Bob and Dexter readily accepted T-bone. Morgan even approved of him. I am delighted to have T-bone in our crew.

After such a great success I was quite hesitant to pull Crockett but I wanted him to get to be part of the pack. Again, I started him with Jarreau, Marley, and then Grazie who he'd already met. (He took a hunk of fur out of Grazie's head yesterday but they were fine today.) I watched carefully as Dobky entered. He can be a bit pushy but he held back with Crockett...for awhile. They stood against each other a few times and neither would relent. I just needed to step between them or give a vocal distraction to break the tension though.

Dexter was no problem at all with Crockett and so I moved on to Morgan. I did not expect Mo to be so quick to forgive the young punk so I put on a glove and held Morgan while everyone entered the main playgroup area. Crockett did not even show an interest in Morgan for quite awhile. When he did approach it was not an issue. I finally let everyone play freely and it went surprisingly well. Crockett was careful but joined in playing and did not get over-stimulated by some of the big guys running and playing a little rough.

As I was getting ready to leave a playgroup was about to start and some of the monitor's dogs arrived. One of the little dogs was very excited and ran along the fence creating quite a stir. I was too far away to reach the dogs before Morgan and Crockett bumped into each other and had an extended spat. It lasted a long time but was fairly controlled. I stood in the middle of it but they both stayed clear of me.  Finally I wrapped Crockett's neck and he immediately stopped without any struggling, almost as if he was relieved to be done. He showed no aggression toward me.  Morgan's leg was injured but I think he'll heal easily. The dogs were fine together as we left.

We had time to return home, feed the dogs and then go to University Place to meet another handler with her dog, Tanner. I took Dobky and Kitty took Marley. Normally we crate them and Dexter while we're gone so I decided to leave Dexter free in the house. That seemed to work alright.

The boys were great at UPlace. I enjoy seeing Dobky's eyes and it was fun to have two freshly-groomed Poodle mixes. We chatted with several residents while waiting for Tanner. He's a big guy and seemed anxious during the visit but was well-behaved. We visited the room of one resident in Assisted Living who saw us on our way into the building and called to request us. It was a perfect introduction to UPlace. After that we headed to the Health Center and after a couple visits in the hall we let the dogs play in the courtyard. The boys had a great time and Tanner did well at getting them to run.

Despite my failure to control the situation with Crockett it was a banner day. I think T-bone is going to be a great dog and I'm confident that Crockett will learn to relax around other dogs. Marley and Dobky did a beautiful job at politely visiting people. (Dobky seems to be a little spooked by the elevator and bathroom. We'll work on that.) It was so much fun to be around Tanner! He's a big boy and gets a lot of attention and he's very well trained. Although harvest is starting soon I'm going to try to get back into regularly visiting UPlace.  I enjoy sharing it with new teams.

Waynetta called me today to ask about bringing Aries to meet my pack. She wanted to keep away from playgroup times to avoid other dogs so we met at 3:30, just before playgroups. Aries, of course, did fine meeting everyone. We eventually added the kenneled dogs and Stan joined us. They were doing so well that we stayed for playgroups.  We had a good bunch of dogs and were joined by Sunny and his sister, Leia.

Everyone got along beautifully until the very end when we mistakenly tethered GP and Chewie to the same person to return to the kennel. I looked over to see GP holding Chewie in his mouth. I made my way through the gates to them and GP quickly dropped Chewie who ran off and squeezed through a gate. He was a bit scratched but did not sustain any major damage. GP had a bite on his nose. I wonder what happened.

We were all ready for dinner so I took our dogs and Aries home. I crated Aries and Dobky (separately), leaving the normally-crated Dexter and Marley free in the house with the rest of the dogs. Kitty and I joined Waynetta and Stan for dinner then returned to find the dogs all doing well.

I arrived well before playgroups to work with Crockett some more. We ran it just like the other times, starting with the Poodle boys, Grazie, then added Bob and Dexter. Dobky and Bob are both very confident with Crockett but there weren't any situations that couldn't be defused with some well-placed sounds.

Morgan and Crockett showed that they obviously recalled what happened last time the met. They were quite vocal with each other when Crockett initially arrived. I hesitated to bring them together again but decided I could manage them as long as no one else appeared.

I clipped Morgan to me in the main playgroup area stood behind the gate with him as I unlocked the gate. Crockett came through the gate looking for Morgan but I blocked him with a jacket. Morgan was not interested in engaging and Crockett quickly left to check out the new space. Crockett made a few more passes and showed some interest in Morgan but Mo seemed to get the message that I was in charge of handling the pushy young guy. In fact, he was pulling toward the gate to get into the other playgroup area, away from Crockett.

I decided that Morgan would not be a problem and unclipped him. I stayed on my toes and blocked Crockett a few times but let them get progressively closer. Eventually they were tempering themselves, making passes but not displaying aggression. (Crockett's hackles make quite a display when he's "on.") We ended the socialization and returned Crockett to his kennel without incident before playgroups started.

After returning Crockett I released Peyton, GP and Delaney to join us for playgroups. T-bone is still recovering from surgery and Judo is still on loan with Onyx. The kennel dogs were full of energy and Peyton was especially boisterous. We were joined by other dogs for playgroups, including Judo.  I discovered that Judo has been doing very well with Onyx, giving her nearly constant play. Although he hasn't hurt the cat, he has been chasing. We'll work on that.

I figured my pack had enough play already and I was trying to leave quickly but got delayed. Apparently Marley had a run-in with GP and I looked over to see GP grasping Marley's butt firmly in his mouth. Again, GP quickly released his grip when I reached him and Marley did not seem physically injured. GP did not seem at all bothered. I'm thinking that perhaps he's found an effective way to deal with pesky dogs. I'd like to convince him to use a different strategy. I'll need to be more protective of him.

We've been staying busy and have not participated in the church retreat this weekend but we wanted to at least be there for the Sunday service. We loaded the house dogs and made it just in time for the start of the service. The dogs stayed in the car and did well waiting for us.

After the service Kitty and I took the dogs for a walk to the nearby campgrounds. The dogs were excited but did alright walking at our slow pace. We returned and put them into downs while we ate lunch. They're not like our old pack; instead they were constantly breaking their stays, mostly to get attention from the many adoring people who surrounded them. I couldn't fault them for that so they got a lot of slack. We had large and small dogs, and people of all ages visiting them. They did well with everyone. I was especially impressed with the foster dogs, Dexter, Bob, and Dobky.

I'd pulled out the Trikke for the kids and before we left I put Bob and Morgan on it. They did a great job of pulling, even taking commands at a great distance from me.

After lunch we drove to a nearby Niches property for a hike. It was a narrow track so I let our three dogs lead and the foster dogs lagged behind me. Kitty took Grazie.

We got a bit of rain today so we weren't in the fields. I spent the day catching up on work but when Kitty returned we took the dogs to the kennel to play. It's been a long time since they've been out to play.

After we unloaded I watched our guys while Kitty brought the kennel dogs. T-bone was first and I put him in the far play area to chill for awhile. Judo, Peyton, GP, and Fang followed and went in the adjacent play area. (Crockett is still recovering on hospital side.) It didn't take long at all to integrate that group with our guys. Fang is so easygoing and GP is just a sweetie who wants my attention.

Kitty took Morgan inside to have his leg wound checked and I strapped the muzzle to T-bone. I love the muzzle! T-bone is not thrilled with it but it's a wonderful tool. I brought him right in with everyone else and he was fine. There were several instances where I would have worried if he hadn't worn the muzzle but they weren't a problem at all tonight.

Dobky followed T-bone very closely and made frequent dominant gestures. T-bone mostly ignored him. Morgan and Kitty returned and Mo seemed almost disinterested in T-bone. I didn't expect that.

Everyone was doing so well that I thought we deserved some time in the big park area. I haven't had so many dogs out there in awhile. It was wonderful to watch them run. They picked up a few burrs but it was worth a little cleanup.

After returning the kennel dogs Kitty and I went to dinner with our pack. Dobky joined Morgan, Jarreau and Marley in a down stay (off-lead) and did well. Everyone was mellow during dinner. It was a good night.

It's been raining so I've not been at the farm as I was expecting. I took Mackey and Keowee out for a walk in the middle of the day and then I got to attend playgroups around 4:30. It's a good thing I got there a little early; only one monitor was there and we were getting a lot of clients. I took over the "big dog" section and my guys had a blast.

I'd gotten a call earlier from a couple friends we know from the Lafayette dog park who wanted to visit. They came and enjoyed seeing so many big dogs getting to play without anyone going crazy. I hope to see them bring their dogs soon.

It wasn't until others left at the end that I could pull the kennel dogs to play. I was expecting the mix of my tired guys and the fresh and nutty kennel dogs to be a challenge but they got along quite well. There was a minor scuffle between GP and Marley once when the dogs were all packed by the gate but that was all. T-bone wore his muzzle the whole time and seems to be doing alright. I'm in no hurry to discontinue the muzzle.

Later tonight I returned to the kennel to spend some time with Crockett. Poor guy! His left leg has been bandaged against his body and he's wearing a "no-bite" collar to keep him from bothering his foot. It reminds me a bit too much of my dog Garbo when he had osteosarcoma. Crockett will be better soon though and I'll try not to upset him in the meantime.  It was drizzling while we were outside so perhaps I'll get to spend time with him tomorrow too.

Today we dropped Bob at the kennel to rest and took Crockett to the farm with our other six home dogs. Crockett was muzzled for the ride and stayed on Kitty's lap. At the farm he ran with the other dogs and seemed generally alright although his pad still looks awful. It was hard to keep it covered all day even though he rode with me.

At the end of the day we left all of the home dogs in the semi in the field while we shuttled trucks. We returned after about ten minutes and I saw Morgan running toward me on the road. Then I quickly spotted the rest of the dogs in the field! Somehow the door to the semi had opened and all of the dogs were free - but Jarreau chose to stay in the semi. (Good dog, Jarreau!) Kitty collected the dogs as I struggled to muzzle Crockett. They all seemed happy to hop into the Jeep but they still avoided Crockett even though he was muzzled and tethered in the back.

We returned Crockett to the clinic and I released all of the dogs in the kennel. Bob stayed tethered to me as he hobbled about. Everyone else did their usual without giving Bob too much grief.

During soybean harvest I was able to take a breath every so often and write a bit about the dogs and Kitty stayed at home with our dogs there. Since we've been in corn I've hardly had a spare moment. Kitty and I take all of our home dogs (Grazie, Morgan, Jarreau, Marley, Bob, Dexter, Dobky) to the farm in the morning. On the way I pull up a gravel lane in the middle of a couple 'bean fields we've already harvested and I let the dogs run to the end of it where I collect them - except for Bob and sometimes Morgan, who get to chase us back to the road. The dogs are ready to relax a bit  after that.  We load them into the semi and haul grain non-stop all day. Kitty drives the semi and a tan