Living with Canines: The Domestic Side

Too cute

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 05:48:00 +0000

I can't believe how much time has passed since my last post. I won't even try to explain, but will soon give updates on our pack. There have been some changes. Meanwhile... sit back, relax and enjoy this video.

Everyone who loves dogs will LOVE this video. It is an example of the "Mirror Method" of dog training.

This is called The Dog Days of Summer

Huskies are hunters

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:28:00 +0000

I was getting ready for physical therapy and took the dogs to the kennel for their out time. As I opened the walkout door, huskies flew out of the stairs and feathers began to fly. Literally.

I had only one thought... keeping the dogs from fighting over these birds that had made their way into the kennel. They were largish birds... why they went out of their way to get in the kennel is beyond me. (Our kennel has a roof so it is fully closed. The birds would have had to wiggle through the chain link openings.)

Little Mitzi had a bird in no time flat. She only wanted to get away from the others, so she turned back into the house followed by Lancer and Truman. I took the opportunity to section off three dogs at least. I shuddered thinking that bird was heading upstairs to my great room.

Nikki caught a bird. She was also very adapt at moving the bird with her from spot to spot to protect her catch. Chandler managed one... and he swallowed it as I approached. (We never say "what does Chandler have" in our house or the prize is swallowed immediately). Poor Roman ran from spot to spot, sniffing at feathers and looking for a bird of his own.

Truthfully, I was a bit afraid that Nikki would not like me taking the bird from her. So I gathered up the other dogs and herded them inside into their "houses". I called Mitzi, only getting Truman and Lancer, who I also caged. I went after Mitzi. Cringed at the bird on my floor. Grabbed a vinyl glove and bagged the dead bird.

Once Mitzi was secured in her house, I went back out for Nikki. Broom in hand, I was trying to get the bird away from her. I seized a moment of weakness when she dropped it and managed to pick it up and pitch it through the chain link.

I called hubby breathlessly, panicked about what had just transpired. I felt like such a failure. I was so worried about keeping the kids from fighting. Joe suggested I call the vet and see what we should watch for. Turns out the usual: vomiting, diarrhea, stomach tenderness or swelling. The biggest worry being worms that birds carry so we need to get a fecal on any of the kids who ingested bird.

The vet wanted to know what kind of bird or suggested I take a photo since they didn't actually want the bird. Hence the photo.

Being as the bird is a mourning dove, we would like to know why the birds went into the kennel. I read they migrate south or we considered they were after straw for bedding/nesting. I think we will leave some straw outside of the kennel just to be safe. If other animals want it... I'd rather they get it without risking their lives.

Nikki is well adjusted

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:02:00 +0000

Nikki is resting her head on Roman's thigh. Truman is behind them. Mitzi is at the corner of the bed, below Roman's paws also in close proximity to Nikki.

It's a very happy bed full of huskies! (Lancer sleeps in the Lancer Spot... a dog cushion on my husband's side of the bed. Chandler sleeps on the floor next to me.)

It took some time, but Nikki has come to love her new canine friends.

Pawstabbing

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 23:53:00 +0000

This behavior is known as pawstabbing. It is a method of canine communication and carries a variety of meanings. It can mean... hey! let's play. Or... watch it buddy! Our dogs also use a pawstab on us when we cease petting them before they are finished with us. In this case, it means.. you.. human... keep petting me! It can also mean I want what you have. It is not always easy to interpret the true meaning of a pawstab. Watching their expression and the assessing the situation will aid you in finding the true meaning.

Hot spots

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:13:00 +0000

This is a hot spot. In all the years we've shared our lives with dogs, we never encountered a hot spot before! One day, we noticed that Chandler was licking at Truman's shoulder very earnestly. We would gently push him away only to have him return.

We decided to see what had Chandler's attention. There was a lump! And it was oozing and ugly looking. We decided Truman needed to see a vet. Our minds were racing with thoughts of tumors and such.

Vet said it was a classic hot spot. Some antibiotics, a white powder and we were on our way. Fortunately, Truman was not overly bothered by the hot spot. Chandler was the one that irritated the spot. Vet also said to give some benadryl, saying that often times hot spots are the result of an allergic reaction. We all rather agreed that Truman must have been stung by a bee or bitten by a spider.

He has healed nicely. It was scary finding that spot.

Huskies aren't for everyone

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 04:17:00 +0000

This _was_ my bedroom carpet. It is more than a bit shredded from Nikki. While she was recovering from her injury, she was wearing an Elizabethian collar so putting her in her crate was not possible. I left her in my bedroom one day while I went to the zoo with my daughter and granddaughter. My husband was at work.

He was the first home to this mess... and was not looking forward to telling me. Well.. I certainly did surprise him. I actually gave Nikki a big hug for helping me out! I have wanted to remove carpet for some time now... Nikki's efforts in the bedroom revealed there was tile under the carpet, albeit old tile. At any rate, I took this opportunity to rip the carpet out of the bedroom and found that my breathing was much easier. (Can't wait to do the rest of the house now!)

Nikki was trying to get out of the bedroom to go potty. Did I mention that she peed and poopied on my bed as well? She was VERY ashamed and wanted nothing more than to leave the bedroom. She was also very afraid and shied away from my husband when he got home. That led us to believe that Nikki had been harshly disciplined in the past. I don't think she was expecting a hug from me in the least.

The only problem with all of this was... we couldn't get Nikki to help us remove the rest of the carpet! Silly girl.

Nikki's leg has healed nicely

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 04:12:00 +0000

The vet has been very pleased with the healing of Nikki's leg. You will remember from an older post, that the skin died and was removed. The scarring is there, but minimal and not often visible due to the location.

Dog Saves Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 20:00:00 +0000

This is a truly incredible story. Please take a moment to view the CNN video at Video: Dog Saves Baby

Here is a link to the written story at CNN: Dog protected abandoned newborn, doctors say

Canines are truly amazing!

Gee... time flies!

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 01:44:00 +0000

Goodness. June 12th was my last posting. I have no excuse except my daughter was married on July 25th. Getting ready for that.. taking care of Nikki... and time just zooms right by.

Back to Nikki... first let me say that she is adjusting to life with our pack. She is a very happy dog these days.

She did, however, have another scuffle.. this time with Truman. It was an attempt to guard me. I was in the bathroom. I think 5 of the dogs were in there with me.. which makes for some tight quarters. Truman was to my right. Nikki to my left. A step ladder in between. Truman tried to get around the ladder and past Nikki and all heck broke loose. Fortunately, hubby was at the door (not much privacy for me in the bathroom, huh?)...and the fight was stopped within 30 seconds.

30 seconds can be a long time. I could see that Truman was bleeding on his nose. Joe segregated Nikki while he looked Truman over and did first aid. Then he checked Nikki.. who actually was worse for the incident. She needed some immediate vet care.

We called the emergency number and reached the vet who agreed to meet us at the clinic. He knew that we would be able to help him without his having any techs on hand. Had it been someone else, he would have sent them to the Emergency Hospital instead.

Our vet is wonderful. He called Nikki "honeybear" as he worked on her. He stitched her up as Joe and I held her. He told us of the complications that could occur. He explained that the injury was similiar to "degloving".

As the vet had explained, the stitched skin and fur died. I noticed it turning black the Saturday after the incident. The fight occured on 06-15-08. The following Monday we took her back to the vet. Here is a photo as I saw it on the 21st.

The vet cut off the dead skin and fur, assuring us that the flesh beneath was healthy and healing. It would also now take longer to fully heal and there would be a cosmetic scar. Fortunately, the location is where the fur would cover the scar.

After our experience with the spaying... we kept Nikki in the Elizabethan collar from the beginning. With the collar, we couldn't leave her in a crate.. so she went to work with me for about a month. Joe slept on the couch with the other 5 dogs and Nikki slept with me in the bed.

After all this... it was like starting from scratch to get them together again. Happily, I am writing this in retrospect... so rest assured that everything is fine.. Nikki has healed... and all the dogs are together again.

We are Foster Failures!

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 03:24:00 +0000

Time just slips on by so quickly. I have never been happier to admit to being a failure! It's official. We are keeping Nikki!!!

Nikki FINALLY received a clean fecal last week, so she was able to begin joining the rest of the pack in the kennel. Despite the continuing issues with possessiveness (over me) and food... the outside is viewed as neutral territory. At least so far.

Nikki makes great strides by the day. I am continually amazed at her will and her beauty. Frankly, I think Roman has her a little baffled for the mean time. Some food was dropped, they both moved in... and Nikki actually deferred to Roman and pulled back. I was afraid there would be a fight. I was very amused by the turn of events.

Nikki is also still possessive of the bed. However.. Roman can get on the bed and cuddle next to me without a pucker, sound or hackles. This does not always hold true for Truman and Mitzi. Sometimes she doesn't object to their presence, sometimes she does. That's a husky for you!

We still continually watch them all for small signs of trouble brewing. The only big issue at the present is between Lance and Nikki. Lance doesn't like to play doggie politics.

The play between Nikki and Roman is non-stop. She is gaining some weight. Has lots of her strength back. I think Nikki and Roman were made for each other.

Oh! I nearly forgot. The second round of antibiotics seems to have cleared up the nodules. Her incision is actually quite neat looking these days. Amazing considering what it looked like when she came to us. And the fur is growing back on her foreleg and her tummy.

Nikki's incision

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 25 May 2008 23:43:00 +0000

Nikki's staples were removed on Friday, May 23rd. The scabs had all fallen off and the incision was fully closed. The vet was concerned about the nodules shown in the photograph. He is worried they may be an infected interior stitch. He extended her antibiotics for another round.

Her ears look good, the infection is entirely gone. She did still have whipworm eggs in her feces and will receive at least two more rounds of panacur.

Nikki has some very unusual vocal sounds. We were thinking that she may have been debarked or that her vocal chords were damaged in some way. Our vet agrees with our suspicions. Despite the unusual tones, Nikki's song is still quite enjoyable.

How to clean up after a messy meal

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 25 May 2008 22:00:00 +0000

Savannah can make quite the mess during meal time. Chandler helps with the clean up quite happily. Note that Savannah puts her fingers and hand into his mouth several times, and he never once hurts her. Savannah loves Chandler, and giggles when he tickles her. This is real trust.

Chandler and Savannah

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 25 May 2008 21:23:00 +0000

Chandler is a very tolerant husky. He is also very gentle with Savannah, our granddaughter. Savannah was examining his tags until he got bored.

Complex social behaviors

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 18 May 2008 00:16:00 +0000

And seven days later... Nikki and Roman are playing like old friends. The social structure of a pack of huskies is very complex. One hurdle remains. Will Nikki be ALPHA or will Chandler retain his position?

When Chandler joined our pack, Ginger was the Alpha female. Chandler is rather laid back and was content to allow her to continue her "rule". After Ginger crossed over the bridge, Chandler became the top dog.

As the video unfolds, you will see Chandler begin to talk to the playing Nikki and Roman. Nikki is listening. Integration of a new dog is always a challenge. Nikki have made great strides in a short time. It appears all that remains is establishing the top position.

This past week has been quite a journey Nikki.

By the way... I make no excuses for my house. Our household is run for the comfort of our dogs. My daughter(who went with her fiance to pick up Nikki) just recently moved back from college. There are things literally everywhere as we make room.

Introductions: Nikki and Roman

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sat, 17 May 2008 23:08:00 +0000

This video was taken on May 10th. Roman is a very playful husky, about 2 years old. Of all our dogs, Roman and Nikki are the closest in age. Our vet estimated Nikki to be about 2 years old. On first greets, Nikki puckered at Roman. Today, May 17th, as I post this, the two of them are playing like they have been friends forever. It is very heartwarming.

Just one reason why they need our help

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 11 May 2008 23:31:00 +0000

On May 8th, I received an email from Suzy asking if I could help with transporting a female Siberian Husky. She mentioned she felt that this girl was an Alpha Female.

Suzy knew we were looking for an Alpha female as our "pack" of huskies lost their alpha female last October. A couple phone calls later, my daughter and her fiance drove to Newcomerstown, Oh to meet up with Suzy.

Around 8 PM, Chris and Andy returned home with the this lovely lady. It seems that a boy (much to his mother's dismay) had purchased this dog for $13 from a man selling her from the back of his car, claiming she had killed his chickens.

Suzy rescued the dog and arranged for spaying. She picked up the dog and drove up to Newcomerstown to meet Chris and to pick up another rescue. The busy life of a rescuer.

The dog does have a name. It is Nikita, Nikki for short. We are fostering Nikki and hopefully will be her forever home. The determining factor is whether she gets along with our 5 dogs.

Nikki was VERY protective of her incision. She was not overly thrilled with other dogs. I could see that she was hurting. We got a brief glimpse of her incision and it was the weirdest looking thing we have ever seen. (Turned out the hanging thing was a dressing that fell off sometime over night.) We decided that I would take her to work with me and get her to see one of our vets the next day.

As it turned out, the lovely lady was already getting an infection, had removed at least one stitch, her ears were infected, she has whipworm and she was impacted. Our vet removed the office call, but the medications came to $276.50. But what a difference a day (and some antibiotics) made!

Introductions have gone very well so far. Nikki has met each of our 5 dogs individually. Today, all 6 dogs were together for several hours.

Nikki rests close to Chandler, our alpha male. Chandler is very laid back. He made one statement to Nikki. He sniffed around the crate she is using, and even though he really dislikes being crated himself, and her crate was way too small for him... he walked in, turned around, laid down and looked at her. When he exited the crate, he walked in front of her and barked. She merely watched as he sauntered away. Chandler had let her know that this was his house in his own quiet way.

Nikki still has some issues with Roman, who is the only one of our dogs that is close in age to Nikki. Roman was the "baby" of our pack. Nikki put him in his place once, and he has been giving her adequate girth ever since. We are hoping that one day Nikki will love and play with Roman like the other dog. Roman LOVES to play. He will have to wait to play with Nikki until her stitches are removed.

Nikki is a very sweet lady. She loves attention. She is quite comfortable on the couch, thank you very much. She seems to be making great progress. Just look at her smile.

National Pet Week May 4th - May 10th, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:51:00 +0000

In recognition of National Pet Week, here is a link where many informational brochures may be found, both in English and Spanish.

Pet Health Care

It's not canine.. but way too funny to pass up

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:16:00 +0000

This "Found Cat" poster is too funny. How could anyone confuse a possum for a cat????

MAY 3RD Siberian Transport

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 04 May 2008 19:50:00 +0000

All legs were generously filled. As first leg, I volunteered to overnight the three dogs in order to have an earlier start on Saturday morning. Chaos was the word to describe our house Friday evening. 8 dogs. What was I thinking??? I would do it again. It was a very rewarding experience.

Feather is a very enthusiastic little lady. She LOVES people. She was not loving other dogs, however. Feather growled at all of the dogs, including the puppy, Ears. Feather was rescued from the Stark County Pound and was heading for Bandit's Place in East Hartland, CT.

Ears is a heart stealer. I heard that everyone along the transport fell in love with Ears. She looks very attentive in the photo. In this pose, she reminds me alot of our Ginger as a baby. Ears was rescued from the Guernsey County Dog Pound and was heading for Bandit's Place in East Hartland, CT.

Levi is a very sweet male husky/golden lab mix. Levi is going to make someone a wonderful companion. Levi was rescued from the Stark County Pound and was heading for Husky Savers in Churchville, NY. Not long after his arrival, Suzy sent email saying he may already have a home with 2 other labs and 2 children. Someone spent time with Levi, it was quite obvious. He was very comfortable in his "house" (our word for crate.)

I can't begin to fathom how the dogs reconcile being put into a pound, rescued, transported across several states to a rescue facility... to find their forever home. I only know that it is a good thing and our family feels VERY good about helping. I will be cross-posting notices for future transports. I hope others are inspired to help through my sharing of this experience.

More photos of Ears, Feather and Levi will be posted in a Webshots album.

May 3 Siberian Express - Cross Post Freely (Please!)

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:50:00 +0000

Please don't let 2 short legs (total 107 miles) stop this Siberian Express!
Leg 3
Fredonia NY to Buffalo NY......................NEEDED!
49 miles
45 minutes
11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
Leg 4
Buffalo NY to Churchville NY..................NEEDED!
58 miles
1 hour
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM

Please crosspost...even if you are not on route...your contacts are invaluable! Please reply to: wolfdance3@msn.com @ msn.com

This transport is for Feather and Levi coming from a pound to rescue!
Saturday May 3

They are both from:

Stark County Dog Pound
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/OH175.html
Canton OH
330-451-2343

Passenger 1

Levi
Siberian Husky Golden Lab mix
1 year old
45 pounds
Neutrered: yes
Shots: yes canine combo shot, kennel cough, rabies
Heartworm Status: negative
Traveling With: Medical paperwork and wearing a collar
Temperament: Very sweet little boy, likes other dogs

Cute Little Levi

Receiving Rescue for Passenger 1
Husky Savers Inc
http://www.petfinder.org/shelters/NY449.html
Kim Morrell
hskysavr@rochester.rr.com @ Rochester.RR.com
Churchville NY
585 576-1724 Cell

Passenger 2
Feather
White German Shepherd mix
1 year old
40 pounds
Spayed: yes
Shots: yes canine combo shot, kennel cough, rabies
Heartworm Status: negative
Traveling With: Medical paperwork and wearing a collar
Temperament: Very sweet little girl

Lovely Feather
Receiving Rescue for Passenger 2

Bandit's Place
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/banditsplace.html
East Hartland CT
Liz Bennett
BanditsPlace1@aol.com @ aol.com
860-653-0558

All legs F L E X I B L E......please let me know
what you can drive!

This transport will be monitored!
Saturday May 3rd THE LEGS
****Both dogs in at boarding in Chardon OH****
Chardon Country Kennels
345 Claridon-Aquilla Road
Chardon OH 44024
440 285-2545
**Please be there to pick dogs up at 8:00 AM...thanks.**
Leg 1
Chardon OH to Erie PA...............................Filled Thanks Laramie!
80 miles
1 hour 30 minutes
8:15 AM - 9:45 AM
Leg 2
Erie PA to Fredonia NY..............................Filled Thanks Karen!
51 miles
1 hour
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Leg 3
Fredonia NY to Buffalo NY......................NEEDED!
49 miles
45 minutes
11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
Leg 4
Buffalo NY to Churchville NY..................NEEDED!
58 miles
1 hour
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM
Leg 5
Churchville NY to Syracuse NY..............Filled Thanks Christine!
102 miles
1 hour 45 minutes
1:30 PM - 3:15 PM
Leg 6
Syracuse NY to Utica NY.............................Filled Thanks Marsha!
54 miles
1 hour
3:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Leg 7
Utica NY to Schenectady NY.......................Filled Thanks Steven
75 miles & Cheryl!
1 hour 15 minutes
4:30 PM - 5:45 PM
Leg 8
Schenectady NY to East Hartland CT.......Filled Thanks Mindy!
128 miles
2 hours 15 minutes
6:00 PM - 8:15 PM

Transport Done!

If you can help please email the following to:
Suzy Taylor
Transport Coordinator
WolfDance3@msn.com @ msn.com

Full name:
Home town with zip code:
Leg you are driving:
Home Phone:
Cell:
Vehicle make, model, color and license plate for ID purposes:
Email address:
Reference:

When you drive for rescue groups that are 501 C 3 non profit
and file the long tax formyou can take a deduction for
transport miles driven! Please see link below:
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0

Inspiring Dog Video - Tribute to Lisa & Diva

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 22:07:00 +0000

A truly inspiring video. Dogs bring out the BEST in people.

I'm back and I'm more frightening than ever!

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 00:06:00 +0000

Sorry to have been gone for so long. Had a bit of a medical emergency. I was in the hospital for a week, then recuperating... all that boring stuff. I have a new respect for breathing these days to be sure!

On to the stuff you really come here for....

While I was in the hospital, I signed up for a couple husky groups. Free wireless internet to pass the time. Woohoo!! This movie was on one of the groups today.

A strange relationship between dogs and bears.
Taken from the show "Jailed Polar Bear" on FirstScience.tv

Dog Piling

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 00:21:00 +0000

We call this dog piling. At rest, they seem to be always touching one another somehow. Sometimes, they form a circle with paws touching. Here, they just pile on top of one another. Mitzi is on top of Truman.

One dog too many!

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 02:10:00 +0000

Ginger and Mitzi shared a house for a short time, without resorting to blows! Crate training... a practice that you either love or hate. When I first met my husband, he thought it was so horrible I crate trained my dogs. It was not until we moved in together and blended our pets that he saw the real advantages to crate training. It was not as horrid as he thought!!

Unlike my photo here, each dog should have their own "house". This is their personal space. A place they can go to be alone. A place they can grab an undisturbed nap. A place they are safe when no one else is at home.

As my husband saw that the dogs loved their houses, he realized that the crates were not such a bad idea at all! Afterall... humans have their houses... why should a dog not have a house of their own?

Great patients

noreply@blogger.com (Laramie Coyote) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 02:37:00 +0000

Baby Heather.. what a fluff ball that girl was! It is amazing how their markings change over time. Heather had a bandit mask as a pup. As an adult, she did not. As the anniversary of her crossing the bridge approaches...she comes to the foreground of my mind. I miss her still. She had a quiet presence.

Heather had diabetes. Twice a day, my husband would test her blood and give her an insulin shot. A husky's fur is so thick, there are few places to draw blood. Testing was done by rolling her lip and taking blood from there. As soon as Joe approached the cupboard where her supplies were kept, she would come sit at his feet, knowing she would be pricked once for blood and then again with her shot. It is as though she knew on some level that what he did was helping her. She never flinched.

On a brighter note... Lancer is full of energy. We've never actually seen him this energetic. He is eating like never before. It grieves us to think his teeth had hurt him without our knowing. We are very glad we decided to brave the anesthesia and have his teeth cleaned. He is a different dog now!