Another Good Dog™

dog rescue, foster dogs, fostering, Gala, lost dog, oph, Pepper Puppers, puppies, running with dogs

Runaway Gala (& The Pepper Puppers)

September 5, 2017 Cara Achterberg

This time I really thought I’d seen the last of Gala.

That was my thought, anyway, as I watched her disappear through the woods in pursuit of a herd of deer. She was headed in the general direction of Maryland, and I was pretty sure she would make it.

We were about a mile and a half away from home on our regular run when the deer appeared. Gala did what she usually does – leapt in the air after them.

Because we run with the Easy Walk harness, this usually means that as she reaches the end of her lead, the harness forces her to do a lovely pirouette in midair and land facing me again.

This is the point where I say, “Leave it,” in my firm, take-no-prisoners voice, and then she does not leave it. Most days it takes three or four pirouettes and reminders before she gives up and simply prances for a quarter mile or so.

On Friday, she had done about four pirouettes, when she went airborne for a fifth. This time, though, Continue reading “Runaway Gala (& The Pepper Puppers)” →

Dogs with Issues, fosterdogs, fostering, Gala, Yin and Yang

Looking for Lucy

August 29, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Arriving home from the vet’s office, where I had just deposited Gala, I called Nick to tell him what was going on and said, “She just can’t catch a break.”

Later after picking her up and watching her sleep off her sedative, I thought more about it. Maybe Gala’s stream of mishaps and misfortunes have more to do with how fully she lives her life than any kind of black cloud hovering over her.

My little brother was the same way. He broke at least five bones (maybe more I lost count) when he was a kid – falling out of a tree house, taking a header over an unexpected wall, pretending to be Evil Knievel. Seems every summer he had a plastic bread bag over his casted arm as we swam at the beach. As a teen he totaled at least three cars. And later he became a fighter pilot in the US Airforce, flying F-15s all over the world including Korea, Iraq, and Afghanistan. I always enjoy his company because it’s never boring and he usually has me laughing so hard I pee myself. Tommy lives his life full-on.

That’s how Gala lives. She has an exuberance for life that may sometimes lead her into trouble, but Continue reading “Looking for Lucy” →

Dogs with Issues, fostering, Gala, training, Yin and Yang

All This Good-Bye Saying is Wearing on a Soul

August 21, 2017August 21, 2017 Cara Achterberg

The house feels so very quiet and calm despite the fact that all three kids are still here and we have a border collie puppy in residence. Without Gala, the energy is different. I dreamed about her last night waking at 3am with an uneasy feeling. I lay there imagining what she’s thinking, worrying about her tender heart, and sending up silent prayers that she would blossom in her new setting.

As has been the case for me of late, sleep did not return. I tossed and turned and debated getting up and cleaning something instead of wasting so much time growing more impatient at my inability to get back to sleep. And then I became absolutely sure I could hear the puppy crying downstairs. Continue reading “All This Good-Bye Saying is Wearing on a Soul” →

fostering, Gala, house training, Yin and Yang

Yang, the Clever One, Goes Solo

August 15, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Yang is a solo puppy now, although she’s been trying out the role all week.

Last Friday, she discovered she could jump the puppy fence in the puppy room. Ever since the night we put them in there and she stood on her hind legs and peered over the top of the fence, everyone has wondered why she hasn’t jumped out. It wouldn’t be a great feat.

I suppose she had no motivation to jump because she didn’t know us or our scary house, she only knew her stubby sister who couldn’t jump the fence, so she was sticking with her.

After Yang jumped the fence and then celebrated by unloading as many shoes as possible from the shoe cubbies across the hall from the puppy room, I installed our tallest fence.

Five minutes later Continue reading “Yang, the Clever One, Goes Solo” →

Breeds, Carla, Dogs with Issues, fosterdogs, fostering, Gala, oph, Pit bull, shelters, Yin and Yang

Record Breaking Dog

August 8, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Gala has broken the record.

Longest foster dog we’ve ever had.

At nearly five months here, Gala easily surpassed Whoopi, Ginger, and Carla, our other longest fosters.

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She’s also the dog with fewest applications. (Currently that would be zero applications.)

In the past five months, she’s only had four interested potential adopters. All changed their minds. None ever met her in person. Continue reading “Record Breaking Dog” →

fosterdogs, fostering, Gala, training, Yin and Yang

The Excitement at Our House has Reached Epic Levels

July 31, 2017August 1, 2017 Cara Achterberg

I’m out of breath just thinking about them. My two new pups, Yin and Yang, bring a whole new meaning to the words ‘whirling dervish’.

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They are billed as lab-mix puppies, but I’m gonna walk that back a bit and say lab-mix is overshooting it. I’m not any kind of expert, but my personal experience with lab puppies is that they are playful and fun – but not manic and bouncy. I’ve yet to be able to get a decent picture of these pups thanks to the constant motion. Even when I try to sneak up on them (I know they can be still because I see them on my puppy cam), they sense my presence and become airborne before I even reach the doorway.

(be sure you have the sound up on this video clip – that’s the best part) Continue reading “The Excitement at Our House has Reached Epic Levels” →

fostering, Gala, oph, puppies

She’s BACK…..(+how YOU can rescue dogs with paintings and wine!)

July 25, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Now that Gala is back in working order, she’s making up for lost time.

Her jaw has recovered so fully, that she’s been able to destroy a dog toy we’ve had for over two years (a friend sent it to us after our very first foster chewed through our house), several beanie babies (how these missed the goodwill pile is beyond me – I’ll be vacuuming up those tiny beans for weeks), tennis balls, pencils, and anything that Gracie touches (she most especially wants Gracie’s stuffed fox and we’ve all had to rescue it from the clutches of Jaws several times now).

Despite the relentless heat, we’re back to running, walking fast, hiking in the woods, and visiting the fox holes in the field above our pasture. Thanks to the loan of an Easy Walk Harness, we’re even more under-control.

Unless the Blue Heron is in the creek and then nothing stops her. Gala is a serious bird dog. This is one of the reasons I think she might make a good frisbee dog – she’s always looking up. Sometimes we scare up a flock of finches that hang out at my neighbor’s barn and she will leap vertically in the air, certain she could catch one if I’d just let go of that pesky leash. Gala is great company. There is certainly never a dull moment.

Gala sits on the bed behind my desk as I work, always ready to distract:

Gala does eventually settle, but she finds reading on the couch just a bit too boring: Continue reading “She’s BACK…..(+how YOU can rescue dogs with paintings and wine!)” →

fosterdogs, fostering, Gala, Highway Puppies, oph

Starting Over (Again)

July 18, 2017 Cara Achterberg

First, the good news – Gala is muzzle and cone free!

Her jaw has ‘knit itself back together’ as the doctor put it. She’s cleared for all activities – running, playing, even eating regular dog food!

The transformation was instantaneous. On the drive down to see Dr. Walker, she stood nervously behind me in the back seat. The last time we took this trip, she had a crate to ride in, but my big crate didn’t fit in the only car available for me to use and she refused to stay in the ‘way back’ where she would have been more comfortable. She fretted and I worried she would hurt her jaw being jostled around back there, but eventually she fell asleep as close to me as allowed. (I promise I took this picture while stopped at a light and not driving!) Continue reading “Starting Over (Again)” →

fostering, Gala, Highway Puppies, oph, Updates

Forced Stillness Takes a Toll on the Soul

July 10, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Gala has lost all hope.

I know that sounds horrible, but that’s the only way I can describe it. Up until now, she’s done really well with her forced confinement. (To catch anyone up on why she is in a crate 24/7 except for short potty walks – Gala has multiple fractures in her jaw after being kicked by a horse. You can read the awful story here.)

Personally, if I was forced to be still and quiet for a month and everyone was taking care of all my needs, giving me a comfy bed on which to rest, and stopping by frequently for visits, I think I just might enjoy it (except the endless streaming of Parks & Rec, that might make me feel as Gala does). All that lounging and catching up on my reading and eating fancy food someone else prepared and cleaned up – what’s not to like?

I didn’t think for one minute think Gala would enjoy or even be able to endure this, but for the first two weeks she surprised me.

She was sad, but resigned. She was happy when any of us crawled in her crate with her (it’s big enough for all of us).

When we took her out for walks, she was happy to get out, and slammed her cone into everyone looking for attention. She went back into her crate reluctantly and waited for her next walk or visit. She slurped up her gruel and watched what was happening around her intently. She seemed to sense this was ‘only for now’ and soon enough she would be back living amongst us.

But now after three weeks, she has changed. It is as if she’s given up. Continue reading “Forced Stillness Takes a Toll on the Soul” →

fostering, Gala, Highway Puppies, oph, puppies, Updates

Life in the Fun House

July 3, 2017 Cara Achterberg

Life sure is fun when you have six lab puppies in the house. I know I say this every time, but these pups are special. They are incredibly loving and sweet. Never mind that they are beyond reasonably cute – completely off the charts of adorable.