Most all of my days are spent with dogs...and I count myself lucky for that. Dusk and I did go out and help look for the sheltie. Dusk seemed to indicate which general direction the dog had went but of course with a trail so old and walked on he never really had a chance to find any recent scent he could follow. Still he did help eliminate some areas....like a big wood pile and a couple of culverts which the owner was fretting about. Aim the golden girl is getting ready for an obedience trial in Seattle in a little over a week. She is doing really well and I am filled with hope that she will be able to get that last leg for her title. Over the weekend the weight pull went well and me and my pack earned a couple of titles. One of my Aussie rescues who was adopted by my close friend, Sally, earned his weight pull championship. It was fun to see them accomplish this goal. I also have been working with a handful of private students and currently have a couple of dogs I am working with who are having big behavior problems. One of them is a young Vizsla whose fear has gotten away from him and he is acting aggressive on lead. I worked with him about an hour in the paddock with the greyhound girls in the adjoining paddock. At first he was hysterical at the very sight of them. Once he started to catch on to what I expected, it wasn't long until I was able to bring Tava into the paddock with him. I chose her because I knew she would stick to me like glue and I also knew she would not react to this idiot pup. The Vizsla's owner was amazed her dog was settling. Again we see another dog who was going nuts without a leader. Before he left we had worked about 90 minutes and he was loose in the paddock with all 3 of my greyhound girls. I was so proud of my girls that they helped the pup's break through moment happen. In addition to the private classes I have 5 group classes going on at my place. Honestly it has been a little crazy...but winter is coming and it will wind down.

Today was a day of high and lows. The high being getting to travel to Bozeman with a friend where she met and adopted a senior sheltie boy. It was fun to see her open her heart up to this senior dog who although he was loved no longer fit into his family. The sheltie adored the new baby BUT he became very protective and would alarm bark at every car passing the house and every noise. After 6 months of diligent work his family could not solve the problem and regretfully decided to try to find him another home. They had a long list of criteria to be met and had given up. What they didn't know was that I had spotted their ad on Craigslist and had forwarded to my friend who had been mulling it over for days. Presto...the next day Pam emailed them and after a week of emails today we headed to Bozeman to meet him. It was a bittersweet meeting. Pam was torn between feeling so sorry for his old owner and being elated to have a sheltie boy back in her life. We got home kind of late so Sam is here tonight and will start his life with his new family in the light of day.

When I got home there was two bits of sad news waiting for me. One call from a local gal in the kennel club. One of her cherished show shelties is mysteriously missing from his yard. A 2 year old black and white boy. The fences are 100% and the gates were secure. No neighborhood sightings. No body along the road. He has just vanished into thin air. With her remote location is seems unlikely that he was stolen. She had called and left a message to see if I could maybe track him. My best tracker, Dusk, just turned 12 years and with the days that have passed and lack of any sign of the lost boy it seems pretty doubtful. I will call her in the morning. The other bit of really sad news is my friend up north who is very involved with Search and Rescue lost her 15 month old up and coming search dog. This dog is the son of her current search dog. She has traveled around the world to help in searches. Western Montana is certainly safer with her and her dogs in the area. I am not clear on the details but somehow during one of her training sessions he got loose and ran into traffic. I tried all night to call her and finally had to settle on sending her a email. Hopefully she is in bed sleeping off the worst of the pain. Hug those pups and never miss a moment to fill your eyes with their beauty and your heart with their love.

We love our dogs. They become so much a part of our lives it is impossible to think of life without them. When they are sick our hearts break and when they are failing and we feel so helpless. We pray for a miracle that will bring comfort and more days with our beloved friend. The one who can bring such a gift is nothing short of a hero. This is the story of such a hero. Our very own Gable Henderson of Billings as told by his owner, Judy.

About 4:00 p.m. last Thursday we got a call from our vet that they had a lab that was in need of blood. Gable is an emergency blood donor. Within 15 minutes I had Gable down there,I was told that the lab has a mass in it's stomach. About 7:00 p.m. the vet called and said she would keep Gable the night that he was very sleepy, they have to sedate the donor dog to keep them quiet and calm so that no problems develop with the donor dogs. Friday morning the vet called for us to pick up Gable. He did not like their cuisine so when we got him home we fed him. With extra yummy steak in his kibble, he licked his bowl clean. No problems at all with him otherwise after the donation. Vets office called me yesterday and told me that the lab went home with his family which is extremely good news. Now the lab needs one more miracle and that is that the mass is not cancer, he has a one in three chance. Lets all pray and keep positive thoughts for him, The lab is 11 years old and it would be nice for him to have more days of old age.

love
All the Henderson's

Waiting for the dogs to arrive "grandma" Vicki and "auntie" Joni both could hardly wait to see Tiny Tim. Finally the truck arrived and Judy said, "So which one of you will get to walk Tim?" I assured her with a wink that I didn't have to be super fast just faster than Vicki. Finally when the driver was opening the door to the first crate I stood back to make sure it was the boys. I immediately stepped forward and took Tim by the collar, very pleased with myself. The driver was trying to hold the other two dogs in and he said to me "Hand that one off and take this one." I nearly passed out "WHAT?? Hand off Tim?? What??" But I did it and I helped get Xavier unloaded. I turned around expecting to see "grandma" Vicki with the new baby. But it was Dan Tripp who held the long awaited Tim's lead. With a nod from Vicki I swap Dan dogs and headed out to the back of the parking lot to give Tim a much needed nature break. It is hard to pick a favorite among the 3. Rag Doll immediately walked off with Vicki's heart. Rag Doll has these big doe like eyes that look right through you. Her personality seems to be gentle and sweet. I am not a big fan of blue dogs but Xavier is really handsome. He is a nice size and has nice milk chocolate eyes. Tiny Tim is a medium size boy in rich dark brindle. His personality seems to be curious and outgoing. I think he would be a fantastic family dog. When I got Tim home he had a touch of diarrhea no doubt from travel stress. After giving him a little medicine, I put him out with the girls for much of the afternoon. I will cat test him tomorrow. I will get pictures after the week end.

I am getting really excited about the new dogs heading our way. In particular I can't wait to meet Nitro Tiny Tim. Saturday they are due to arrive. I can barely wait!! Gabe the Springer rescue continues to thrive. It is interesting to me how different they look when they relax and find some happiness. He has covered so much ground this week. Day one he was a dog who was peeing on himself, growling and so tense...now he is a pup with some bounce in his step and an adoring smile in his eyes. I really am proud of him. Aim has had a bit of a break from obedience but we need to start getting busy if we are going to be ready for the show next month. There is a weight pull the end of the month and some of my students and I have been getting some dogs ready. So far we have entries from 3 states and several local dogs are entering. It should be a fun week end together enjoying our dogs. I am pulling with my boy Brink. I thought about entering him last year but he just wasn't ready. He is a intresting dog, his body was mature long before his mind caught up. Now at 3 years I think he is ready to step out of the wings and into the lime light.

It has been a interesting week on many levels. Of course when the Springer showed up I ended up taking him in. After I agreed to keep him, his owners confessed he had planned to take him to the vet in the morning to be put down. The Springer has some confusion about the order of things in life but something in his face told me there was a good boy still in there. It is interesting that the number one thing that screws up dogs is the very thing people think is a great kindness. Dogs can not understand is complete freedom. I am not talking about no fences or leashes (because in most American societies that means death), what I am taking about is no rules and babying bad behavior. A life without structure and with no leader is a heavy burden for dogs. So Springer boy stayed here to find himself and hopefully a better life. When I work with a dog with problem behaviors I mostly let them just decompress the first week or so. The only rules I enforce are things that are dangerous to themselves or others.

First order of business was finding him a new name. His name was Sage. I already have a Sage in my pack and since he may be here a while he needed an adjustment. With the help of Trish I settled on Gabe...Gabriel...naming him after an angel can't hurt...he needs all the help he can get. About day 3 I let him out for some paddock time with Aim, the golden. After about half an hour I decided to shake things up a little and add a dog Gabe didn't know. I chose a dog who I knew wouldn't react to him, as I expected Gabe would try his bad dog hysterical act. I had no idea what a show we were all in for. I entered with the new dog and let him off lead. I stayed near with lead in hand just in case. Sure enough Gabe charged at the new dog barking like a crazed soul. I stepped between them and swung the lead at him in a threatening way. Gabe stopped short and for just an instant I saw him think about taking me on...my no nonsense stance and hard look made him veto the notion. As soon as I saw him back down I called him to me and praised him. The new dog came in for some love and I watched Gabe start to brace for another bout of hysteria. I very quietly slid the slip lead on him. When he charged at the other dog he hit the end of the lead flipping himself off balance and onto his back. His hysteria now displaced he began to thrash on the ground and scream bloody murder. I kept my eyes on the other two dogs who were completely awestruck. If they stepped forward I got eye contact with them and told them to "GET OUT!" It took about 2 full minutes before Gabe started to slow down. I just held the lead and waited. As far as tantrums go it really was award winning. He kicked, thrashed and screamed and we waited. Slowly the brain started to turn back on. He stopped moving and he laid there a moment taking inventory. "Hmmm I am not hurt. Hmmm no one seems to care I am hysterical. Hmmm everyone else is clam." Then he rolled onto his chest and stood up rather sheepishly. We moved around the paddock and he kept glancing at me with this befuddled look on his face. We stayed out in the paddock another 5 minutes or so and then headed in. He had a lot to sort through while he napped in his crate. Since that time I could see him shifting gears. The crazy behavior is still close to the surface but he is trying to fit in. Today is day 6, he is wagging his tail and his eyes are softening. I let him out this evening with another group of new dogs. He raised a lip but when I verbally corrected him and got eye contact with him, he seemed relieved to know I was in charge. He also is letting me touch him all over finally. Last week he was rock hard tense, would not let me to touch his rump and peed all over himself. Gabe will be a project for sure but I am learning from him. One thing I learned is the value of the growl. Because his owners punished him for all growling he learned not to give verbal warnings when he was uncomfortable. The end result was the owners felt he was randomly going off. In fact he was doing what they taught him to do, skip all the warning and jump right into the hysterical behavior. His hysterical behavior caused them to try to soothe him with calming words which he read as reinforcement. Like all behaviors that are reinforced the hysteria grew. And so started the cycle of behaviors that had him dancing on the end of a needle full of blue juice.

Two weeks before the next dogs arrive from OK. With them will be Nitro Tiny Tim. I can't wait to meet him. We don't know yet what time they will arrive but expect it will be during the day on Saturday Oct. 24. Let Carol or I know if you want to be advised so you can come meet the bus and the new dogs.

I had a woman call me yesterday who was referred to me by the Animal Control. The woman was frantic about the behavior of her dog. The woman was speaking so fast and furious I barely could get a word in edgewise. She was obviously in distress. The dog is a 2 year old male springer and is having problems with both fear followed by bouts of hysteria exhibited by barking and lunging at dogs or strangers. She said she could not figure out the triggers. They have tried a gambit of things from putting him on meds, neutering him and taking him out to public places all to no avail. Finally this last week the dog lunged at a visiting family member leaving a scratch on her mother's face. They could not decide if the scratch was toenail or teeth caused but either way it spurred them into action. I told her I charge $50 for a one time consultation and offer discounts for a series of classes. She said she would discuss it with her husband and call me back. Soon she called back and said they decided not to spend any more money on the dog. I asked so what now? her response was "One way or another we are getting rid of this dog." Her options were to put the dog down or take it to the shelter but she was open to other options. From the description of the dog and behavior it sounded like a dog who simply has lost his way and I really felt like I could help him. I was a little surprised to learn they were on the verge of making a date with a syringe full of blue juice for this dog. This dog had sparked a bit of interest in me. What his owners see as a nightmare I see as a interesting puzzle...a chance to learn and maybe help this pup. So I did the only thing I could do I offered to waive my fees and agreed to evaluate the dog. I told her I would be very frank and if I thought the dog needed to keep his date with the vet I would tell her. I am not a bleeding heart there are dogs that for whatever reason are too dangerous to be in society. If the body is sick and is not going to recover people see immediately the dog needs to be released. I believe if the mind is sick beyond repair the same rules apply. It isn't enough to give them life if there is no quality to it. Sunday morning she is bringing him out. I know she is hoping she can bail out and dump the dog on me and RUN. Who knows I might even allow it.