dog rescue, foster dogs, fosterdogs, fostering, Gomer Pyle, oph, puppies, training

Progress Can Be Noisy

Cara Achterberg

Our house is noisy.

Well, our house is normally noisy, but this past weekend, especially so.

Gomer has much to say, particularly about anyone playing without him.

Plus, two lovely ladies moved into the puppy room on Saturday. They are surprisingly quiet, but their movements are monitored by the other three canines in the house, and their fondness for squeaky toys pushes several of those canines over the edge.

The dawn chorus is really something. Yesterday Brady remarked that Gracie has a very nice quiet bark. That’s the point we’ve been driven to—we qualify all of the barking.

Frankie is LOUD. For such a gentle guy, he sounds ferocious.

Gomer is shrill. His barks are laced with excitement, he just cannot miss out on any party.

Which leaves Gracie (who initiates almost every choir rehearsal). Her bark is low and steady and I’ve begun to wonder if she doesn’t just start barking to get the other dogs in trouble.

 

DSC_1883Okay, okay, I’ll tell you about the new puppies! (it’s always about the puppies with you people!) Continue reading “Progress Can Be Noisy” →

dog rescue, Dogs with Issues, foster dogs, fostering, Gomer Pyle, heartworms, training

A Foreigner in a Foreign Land

Cara Achterberg

I got a new foster dog.

And he’s not a puppy.

And he’s not a mama (obviously).

He’s Gomer Pyle… Continue reading “A Foreigner in a Foreign Land” →

dog rescue, foster dogs, foster fail, fosterdogs, fostering, Hops, puppies

Puppy Play Yard

Cara Achterberg

My husband Nick and I are a pretty good team. I’m the ‘idea’ person and he does all the work.

This weekend, though, Frankie and I were his helpers on a project that has been on my wishlist ever since we began fostering.

I’ve been angling for a ‘dog fence’ for quite some time. Our little hillside farm has six acres, plenty of room for a dog to run, but those acres are surrounded by farmer’s field, woods, one testy neighbor, and a road. It’s rare the foster dog (like Hops) that I can allow off-leash.

I worry too much about losing a dog in the woods, the endless cornstalks, the gun-owning neighbor’s property, or chasing the goats across the road. (The goats live in an invisible fence which makes them readily accessible to the dogs. I’m pretty certain it’s only a matter of time before the wolf or coyotes that have been spotted in our area nab them.)

Ever since Frankie discovered the vultures on the top fence line, Continue reading “Puppy Play Yard” →

Amstaff, dog rescue, foster dogs, fostering, Pit bull, puppies, training

Adopter’s Remorse?

Cara Achterberg

You’ve heard of buyer’s remorse?

Every now and again I’m pretty sure some of us have adopter’s remorse.

Not that I don’t LOVE my Frankie. Not that I wouldn’t adopt him AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN. He is my wubba-bubba. I can get teary just thinking about the fact that someday he will die.

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And yet…. Continue reading “Adopter’s Remorse?” →

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I Believe

Cara Achterberg

Honored to get a mention here from a blogger I so very much admire. She is a wise woman once again sharing her wisdom and warmth with the rest of us. There are many times I read Ann’s blog posts and think, “Amen.” So, once again, Amen, Ann.

Ann Coleman's avatarMuddling Through My Middle Age

When Cara Sue Achterberg over at  anothergooddog.wordpress.com  asked me to review her book Another Good Dog, I was a little hesitant.  The book is about how she became a temporary foster for a rescue group that pulls dogs out of overcrowded shelters (usually in the South) and places them in foster homes until they can be adopted.  I volunteer at a large, open-admission animal shelter, and I know that sometimes people involved in this sort of rescue have nothing good to say about animal shelters.  I didn’t want to write a review for a book that badmouthed the animal shelter workers and volunteers that I have come to respect and admire.

Turns out, I had nothing to worry about.  Another Good Dog is an interesting and well-written account of the joys and challenges of fostering rescue dogs, and Cara never once trash talked animal shelters or the people…

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dog rescue, foster dogs, fostering, Hops, puppies, Updates, Zander/Cedar

The Difference Ten Pounds (and Two Months) Make

Cara Achterberg

Frankie has another new puppy – only this puppy is ten pounds bigger and at least ten times more trouble than little Zander.

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Hops is a gangly, sweet, goofy boy who somehow already seems bigger than when he got here on Saturday. He’s forty pounds, but his feet are so big he looks like he’s wearing galoshes, so I’d say that even though he’s six months old, he’s far from finished growing.

He routinely runs into things and can’t get his long legs out of his own way. He’s labeled a lab mix, but looks like he was put together with spare parts from a handful of breeds possibly including shepherd.

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He’s in that awkward adolescence phase, tripping over himself, with a loose discombobulated swagger that makes me smile and think of teenagers trying (and failing) to look cool.

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Nothing on the counters is safe. Yesterday he polished off the cream cheese, sampled the newspaper, and [insert frustrated shriek and several curse words] broke Continue reading “The Difference Ten Pounds (and Two Months) Make” →

dog rescue, foster dogs, fosterdogs, fostering, Frankie, poop, Spay and Neuter, willow wonka, Zander/Cedar

Sometimes it’s Easy

Cara Achterberg

Sometimes it’s really easy to foster. Sometimes it’s not.

Willow has been one of our easiest foster dogs to date. Absolutely housebroken, wonderfully crate-trained, not overly-chewy (except stuffed animals). She loves our visitors, tolerates visiting puppies, and listens in an I-will-do-anything-you-ask-especially-if-you-have-a-treat kind of way.

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Little Zander is also one of the easiest foster puppies we’ve ever had. A house-broken, mild-mannered, relatively calm puppy who’s worst habit is his penchant for shoes.

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So, I didn’t hesitate to leave my 15-year-old in charge of the foster dogs, plus Gracie and Frankie overnight last Friday. Nick and I headed to New Jersey to see our daughter perform in a benefit showcase. We would stay over and pack her up the next day and bring her home from college.

I left Ian a list of instructions and even measured out the dogs’ meals and labeled them so he wouldn’t be confused.

No worries, right? Continue reading “Sometimes it’s Easy” →

dog rescue, foster dogs, fosterdogs, fostering, Frankie, oph, puppies, Spay and Neuter

A Puppy for Frankie (and NO more puppies for Willow)

Cara Achterberg

Frankie got a puppy!

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At least that’s how he sees it.

His interactions with our new foster puppy completely personify the Abominable Snowman’s interactions with Daffy Duck-

“I will hug him and squeeze him and name him George!”

He is delighted to have a new playmate/toy and finds Zander simply irresistible. He paws at him and grabs him by the hind leg to drag around, but then flops on this back and lets Zander jump all over him. They race around the kitchen with Continue reading “A Puppy for Frankie (and NO more puppies for Willow)” →

dog rescue, foster dogs, fosterdogs, fostering, hard to adopt, oph, training

Meet YoYoMa (and her remarkable foster mom)!

Cara Achterberg

It’s a quiet house now.

Just us.

Well, and Willow, but she feels like she’s one of us.

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Willow’s spay appointment is May 3, and after that she’ll be ready to go to her forever home. I’m pretty certain by then she’ll have one. She was just added to the website and there’s so much to love about this girl that I expect there to be plenty of applications.

There is rumor that we’ll have a new pup joining us on Friday night from the transport. Check in on the Another Good Dog facebook group for updates.

Since I have no dog stories to tell on my little herd, I thought I’d do something special this week. I’d like to introduce you to a very special dog who came into the rescue about the same time as my Gala but is still searching for her forever home.

YoYoMa is a foster mom herself, as you’ll soon discover. I’ve followed her story because I think it’s a special one and because she is such a funny dog! Her pictures always make me smile. She’s had a hard-luck life and more than deserves a forever home, so I appreciate anything you can do to help us find her people.

I’m also going to introduce you to her foster mom, Val, who is someone I look up to and learn from every day.

Here’s my Q&A with YoYoMa (and then the same questions posed to her foster mom Val!) Continue reading “Meet YoYoMa (and her remarkable foster mom)!” →

dog rescue, fostering, poop, puppies

I’m Betting on Hound

Cara Achterberg

I have only five days left with these puppies.

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And depending on the weather that will go by in a flash or it will seem like forever.

These babes have decidedly outgrown their tiny puppy room. We finally got them outside for some extended time and they loved it. I invited my favorite photographer to stop over and she got some amazing shots of these pups.

Before I share a few of my favorites, I need to give a shout out to Nancy Slattery! She donates extensive hours to OPH photographing pups and then uploading and editing and posting the pictures to help us get dogs adopted. My pups already have adopters, but I asked her here because a) I knew she’d love to come play with them and b) I wanted these pictures for an upcoming project and c) I haven’t gotten the chance to hang out with her in a while, so it was the perfect ruse.

Nancy brought her daughter Casey with her as assistant lighting director and Casey held a remote flash which is partly how these pictures came out so great. Mostly they came out so great because Nancy is Nancy. (AND if you are ever looking for a professional photographer for your own dogs or yourself, ask me for her contact info. Nancy took my headshot long before I discovered her gift with pet photography. She’s quick, talented, and very reasonably priced.)

Despite my grumbling about the messes they make, these five weeks have flown by and their happy energy and adorableness have gone a long way towards easing us out of the winter that never ends.

Early on, I made a few bad guesses as to their breed, after all they were fuzzy, fat, and delectable; they could have been anything. They are labeled blackmouth cur, and that seems likely—as one person commented on their pictures, they look as if their tails are dipped in chocolate.

The other breed I’m becoming more convinced we’re dealing with here, though, is bloodhound.

Here’s a photo of bloodhound puppies at four weeks from the Fishing Forum next to a photo of a few Chocolate Factory pups at four weeks: Continue reading “I’m Betting on Hound” →