Years Covered in White Hairs

Manny Goes Home

2013-07-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

So word is that Manny went to his new home Sat afternoon!!! Much to my mild surprise as due to overcrowding he had not made it into the public areas where would-be adopters could view him. Which means his adopters either came looking for him specifically based on seeing him online, or were one of the couples who met him when I walked him in the lobby earlier Sat.

Manny in the exercise yard Sat.

Brenna and I are very curious about who adopted Manny, but as adopter information is private we may never know. There was one very nice couple who were interested in him when I walked him, and someone on facebook who expressed interest. It doesn't surprise me that he got adopted. It's a rare half starved stray who knows sit, shake, down, and walks great on leash. Not to mention is well mannered with other dogs and people. So it was a numbers game until he found a home.

Sadly my fellow shelter volunteers didn't manage to get photo op like we got with Ned this Sat, but that's pretty much how it works as a shelter volunteer. You work with a dog to get them ready to be adopted and see them regularly for weeks at a time. Then they are gone and hopefully you'll never see them again.


Ned and his new owner

Thank you to everyone who forwarded Manny's blog post, the shelter workers who took him in, vets/vet techs who patched him up, and the volunteers who walked him and kept an eye on him for me.

PS- Brenna is very relieved that Manny has found a new home, and that she can abandon her plan to move into a hotel room for some peace and quiet in the event she came home one day to a third dog. Sam is happy because he'd miss her....

PPS- About a month after this post I became facebook friends with Many's new owner.

Dog X

2013-07-07T19:03:00.003-07:00

On Monday, a stray dog was hanging out by the dumpster behind our row of condos. It stared hungrily through the car window, watching Brenna as she drove by on her way to a meeting at work.

All of its ribs were showing. A long, unsecured tether stretched out behind it. No human was around.

Brenna got that unpleasant feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know you're about to do the right thing, and you know it's going to be a pain in the butt.

That dog would move on if nobody fed it soon. There were a lot of places nearby where an exhausted, starving dog could curl up on a hot day, and hope to wake up to something better.

And maybe never get up.

So she called Sam.

That may sound like cowardice, but the truth is that Sam is the dog person in the family. The idea of rescuing a stray would make Sam's day. And he'd know how to do it. Whereas the idea of rescuing a stray makes that unpleasant feeling in Brenna's gut settle in for the long haul.

With a little bit of food in hand, Sam led it to our backyard. It was emaciated. Its ears were chewed up, probably from flies. Somebody had tied a rope around its neck. The rope had rubbed its skin raw over the white patch on its chest, probably from the dog's effort to escape. It had other wounds, too - a cut here, a scratch there. It had ticks and fleas.

And then, there were those ribs.

Shit.

This dog is a survivor.

In spite of the obvious neglect, the dog was also very friendly. He didn't cower from Sam in the manner of a dog used to physical violence. If anything, he demonstrated an easy going, "Sure, dude, whatever you say," kinda nature, even when Scamper (aka Little Miss Mayhem) let it be known she didn't like having a strange dog in HER backyard. Indy objected loudly to not being able to greet the new dog properly. (Admittedly said greet would last 5-10 seconds then the dog would be uninteresting...)

After some water and food, the dog followed Sam eagerly enough into the car. It knew how to walk on a leash. It knew how to sit.

Sam drove it to San Jose Animal Care, where he volunteers regularly. While it seemed unlikely anybody would claim the dog (without serious questions about animal neglect, anyway), the dog clearly needed medical attention and more care then we could give it during the week.

Besides, we can't afford to bond with a third dog. Where would we put it? WE CAN'T ADOPT THIS DOG, DAMMIT.

So we called it Dog X. You don't have to worry about bonding with something called Dog X, right?

Over the next week, Sam followed the dog through his contacts at the shelter. The dog was eating. The dog was getting de-flea-ed. The dog was getting medical care. The dog was getting some dental work. The dog was getting its behavioral tests. The dog was getting fixed.

Then, yesterday, it was official.

The dog had passed all its tests. The dog was adoptable.

Here. Take a look. http://www.petharbor.com/pet.asp?uaid=SNJS.A842448

They had the nerve to name it Manny. How Dare They.

Then, today, against her better judgment, Brenna joined Sam when he went in for his volunteer shift at the shelter. Against her better judgment, she took some photos of the two of them together.

You'll notice how pleasant the whole thing is.

Then, against her better judgment, she joined Sam in petting the dog,

and scratching him,

and feeding him.

Unfortunately, the dog is affectionate. This is a problem, because WE DON'T HAVE ROOM FOR A THIRD DOG.

Can you help us out here, anybody? Anybody want a Real. Good. Dog???

(Here's that link again: http://www.petharbor.com/pet.asp?uaid=SNJS.A842448.)

(This post is a joint effort by both Silbory's.)

Doggie Elimination diet

2010-12-23T17:48:00.000-08:00

Indy has been having itchiness, and digestive issues of late. The itchiness has of late gone to the extent of causing self mutilation from licking and biting. Leading candidates acording to my research are yeast infection in the gut, or allergies. (Of course the 2 symptoms could be unrelated.) This leads to a logical diagnostic of an Elimination diet. Luckily for Indy my work's weekly lunch was sparsely attended, and I manage to save several pounds of chicken and beef. So this week is yogurt, chicken, and beef....

The idea is that yogurt seems to calm his stomach issues so it's likely not causing them. It's also said to be more for yeast issues. The meat is much closer to a dog's ancestral diet which reduces the chance of allergies. While it's not a horribly balanced diet it won't hurt him to eat it for a week. Also the meat and yogurt should starve out yeast in the gut. Hopefully this won't result in another night of horrible gas and frequent trips outside.

He seems to be loving it, which will likely not be the case for stage 2 the vegan diet....

The End for Shaggy

2010-08-17T12:33:00.000-07:00

I got a call this Tuesday from the Shelter in San Jose. Shaggy was picked up by his owners. Given that the Shelter is closed Monday, Shaggy was picked up late Friday and the chip company is strictly 9-5 M-F. The shelter had to have called the owners today. The head of the shelter said they came right out to get him. Given she called me around noon I suspect his owners dropped everything, and came right into the shelter.

PS- Months later I encountered Shaggy on leash on a walk in the neighborhood with his owner. She relates he got out of the yard on 4th. They live maybe a mile away. She adopted the dog as a semi-feral stray. He originally been living a creek near Alum Rock Park.

Curse Your Sudden but Inevitable Betrayal

2010-08-16T22:01:00.000-07:00

All last week I've been working with Shaggy. I feeding him on my morning, and after work walks. Slowly I'm gaining his trust. I've gotten him to sit before I feed him. Then feeding him by hand. Shaggy has even let me stroke and scratch him while he eats. (His skin is in bad shape covered in scabs from fleas.) He is still leery of me. Jumping nearly a foot in the air when I sprayed him with an herbal anti-flea/tick treatment. By Friday the flea treatments seem to have worked as he isn't constantly scratching.

Then late Friday the fateful call came. I was home early from work. (The new "faster" internet connection was having issues which left us off the internet, phones unusable, and the alarm occasional going off.) My wife was down with a migraine which left us unable to head out camping, and I was wondering how to broach the idea capturing Shaggy today. At which point my phone rang. Lisa, an animal control officer, was in the area looking for Shaggy.

I grabbed some food, Indy and headed out meet up with her. We cross the dry creek and approached Shaggy's den. Shaggy comes out as usual out when I call, and seems happy to see Indy. He is leery of Lisa, but food convinces him rapidly to approach us. He recognizes her attempts to slip a leash on him, and easily evades her.

So we regroup. She puts the food bowl down, and positions a snare pole's loop around it. Shaggy is leery, but I feed him a little by hand. He goes for it, and Lisa expertly loops the snare pole around his neck and pulls it tight.

Shaggy desperately writhes in the nooses grip. My heart sinks at the betrayal of his fragile trust. The struggle lasts an eternity, or perhaps as much as 20 seconds. Indy is draw by Shaggy's struggles, and I have to hold him back. I don't know if it was an attempt to help, discipline, or just curiosity. After Shaggy calms a bit more we head back with obvious unease and occasional attempts to bolt. Shaggy seems to calm when I bring Indy to walk beside him.

The creek that we had easily crossed a few minutes before seem a bit daunting to cross with Shaggy. I offer to walk Shaggy back to the bridge while she drives over to meet us. I walk back with Shaggy and get a number of odd looks as I walk through the more populated park area. He still has snare pole and a leash around his neck, and he is a bit wild on the leash. Soon he settles, and the walk is some what pleasant and strange.

We meet up with Lisa and she scans him. To her surprise she find an embedded microchip. We both had until this point thought that Shaggy had been abandoned by the creek. It's possible given his skittishness that he was frighten by fireworks, and has been lost for a month or so. The chip is an unfamiliar one to her, and not used by local shelters or most vets in the area. The company that issues it has an 1800 number only staffed 9-5, and that 9-5 isn't PST.

Lisa tells me they will attempt to find his prior owners, and if they can't be found then he will be tested for suitability for adoption. If he fails he will be put down. She isn't hopeful given how much he shys from touch. I ask if I can foster him or adopt if he fails. No apparently only a rescue group would be able to claim him at that point. I'm not entirely surprised. I've figured that I might need to involve a rescue group to find him a home or retrieve from the pound. I've already sounded out a few groups. I'd have to foster him myself as most rescue groups are pretty much completely full.

A Shaggy Stray

2010-08-12T21:33:00.000-07:00

Over two weeks ago I had a bit of a scare when a collarless dog emerged out of the creek and head right for Indy. Indy's not dog aggressive. He in fact will ignore major provocation from small dogs, and tries to defuse situations with larger or more dominate dogs. That said he has proven willing to try to go head to head with dogs close to his own size that are doggy polite. He's never bitten another dog, but he has cowed or driven off other dogs. This dog fit the bill for trouble young, full of energy, and slightly smaller. Just the type of dog to mistake Indy's laid back tolerance for a submissive dog.

The encounter went fine the dog was happy to see Indy, and even tried engage Indy in play. Even better he stopped pressing the issue when Indy, annoyed by the attempt, asserted himself. At the time I thought nothing of it as I see the occasional loose dog in the creek area. As the week progressed I noted that a prime cat hang out stopped having cats, but Indy still often stopped to sniff the area. Also I increasing saw the neighborhood cat closer to the park rather than the cat hangout.

Last week before my vacation I met the dog again, and noted that the dog was far more matted. He still was friendly, but I noted that he had all the ear marks of a stray. When I returned I expected to find that he had moved on. The area regularly used by dog walkers, runners, and bikers. Not all the dogs walked in the area are friendly to other dogs. To my surprise not only was he still in the area, but he had establish a den. Even more surprising is that he and Indy greeted and he joined us on our walk for a time. He acted healthy, but I saw warning signs. Areas where he had gnawed on himself, and continued scratching.

I wandered a bit and ran into some on my fellow dogwalkers. An older fit gentleman with a high energy you pitbull that always pestered Indy to play, and seem to enjoy Indy running him off. Said he'd been dened up all week, and like to play with his dog. The older couple with a flat-coated lab of questionable socialization said they had started feeding him, but were worried they were leaving on vacation soon.

It seemed that a responsible dog lover would call the local shelter and have them send some one out. Sure some of you are wincing, but this is the Bay Area. The local shelter has dogs that have been up for adoption for 2 months. The San Mateo Shelter has a senior pit bull who had been there for years until it was adopted. I could make sure they knew I'd foster the dog if it came to it. There are rescue groups around. It was simple they'd send some one out. I could work from home and lead them right to the dog. We could lure him with food and Indy. So I filled out the form on the local animal control site.

A day passed... Hmm the 2nd day around 4 I called the non-emergency line. I was on hold until 5 when they went home. Thus hatched my daring plan I'd capture the dog my self. Sure he was wary, and grabbing him with my hand might not go well. A dog bite needed to be avoided at all cost. I reported it they come get him to check for rabbis, but it would greatly increase the chance he'd be labeled dangerous and put down. If I didn't report it I be in for a series of painful shots.

So the obvious thing to do was to gain his trust enough to slip a leash on him. Deciding that I nicknamed him Shaggy and set out to gain his trust. I'm sure he's not going to understand my eventual betrayal, but I suspect it will be is his best long term interest.

Indy comes home

2010-07-27T17:49:00.000-07:00

Out of the shelter things go much better. Indy is nervous, but is obviously comfortable with a leash. We get the the car and open the back door. Indy climbs right in with barely a second hesitation. We start on our way back, and the dog gives us little trouble. He's unsteady on his feet in the car, but still prefers not to sit or lay down. But he is extremely calm and no trouble at all. His one bark is over a passing motorcycle. For a dog just plucked out of a shelter he is an angel. I'm far more worked up than him, and hungry to boot. (Other than a boba drink I haven't eaten all day.)

We start looking for a Pet store, and food. We don't have anything for a dog. I know you should buy every thing BEFORE you get the dog, but when you are looking for a dogs between 15-50 pounds you can't buy ahead. The crate, harness, lead, dish are all going to be determine by size. Even for the food I wanted to know what the dog been eating before, and it's age. So we pulled into a strip mall with a Petco, and an In&Out. We hit the drive thru and hope that the dog won't cause trouble with us eating in the car. To our surprise he seems interested, but polite, and calm. Before we go to the pet store I try to feed him a piece of patty I've saved. No luck. He is interested, but won't take it. I'm surprised by this, what dog won't readily eat hamburger patty?

In the store we get a harness, 20 foot lead, 2 steel dog bowls, and a crate. Brenna isn't a fan of the crate. (Like me she grew up with dogs that basically just ran free.) But I figure that Indy will prefer being locked in a crate inside rather than sleeping outdoors. I wander the store looking for the right brand of food, and I'm grateful that Indy helpfully selects exactly the right brand himself (sniffing it with interest). We get out to the car, and suddenly realize that there isn't enough room for both dog, and crate. Wondering if we've made a mistake we put the crate in the car, and urge Indy into it. He balks once, and tries to go into the floor the second time. Then once he realizes that I want him in the crate. He climbs right in. I close the door, and he rides without complaint the whole way back. The only noise is the occasional thump when he is knocked off his feet during braking. (Some things never changed.) By the time we get home he is asleep in his crate.

Bringing a dog home is a nervous experience. Nothing in his paperwork indicates he is house trained. You ask yourself. Will he pee on things? Get into the garbage? Chew on things? He raises his leg once, but stops when he gets a harsh no. We setup his crate, and have him go inside. We put some food in the bowl, but he won't eat. He spends the rest of his evening sprawled out on the floor, or curled up in his crate. His one walk of the evening is nervous, and tentative. The cars in the dark spook him leading me to think it may have been a very long time since he has walked in a public place at night.

Twain on the lower animals

2010-07-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

I have been studying the traits and dispositions of the "lower animals" (so called) and contrasting them with the traits and dispositions of man. I find the result humiliating to me.

FYI on San Mateo SPCA

2010-07-16T20:38:00.000-07:00

Despite my initial misgiving on the San Mateo SPCA. They really do well by their animals. Sure the shelter is the latest and greatest. But they take in dog that the "no kill" shelters won't. Also despite being in theory a "kill shelter" they haven't put down a dog in years. I recently read they adopted out Barb the pitbull in their newsletter. Nothing online, but there is an old post about her here. If you are in the bay area it's worth a look. They have quite a selection of dogs. Just be aware they will happily show dogs like Indy who other shelter might not take and certainly would keep out of sight.

The Dog

2010-07-16T20:23:00.000-07:00

My wife to be comes back with a set paperwork I've seen before. Jack the howler's other kennel-mate Indy. It turns out he has been hiding away from Jack near the flap to the outside. (If I lived with Jack I'd hide too.) Prodded on by my girlfriend I say "Sure let's meet him." All the interview rooms are full. So Larkin (a volunteer) takes us to a fenced area between 2 kennel buildings. This bad place for him it's fenced, but open on all sides with people, and dogs constantly wandering around. Indy makes a poor showing. He is aloof, and extremely nervous. Every sound causes him to start, and look around wildly. (In retrospect the reasons for this are obvious.) I try a few dog biscuits, and he wants nothing to do with me. I throw a tennis ball no dice. Larkin wisely decides to give us some time. She is gone a long time. (It's the weekend, and Christmas is a week away.)

I evaluate the dog. He is "7" which is getting close to elderly for a dog his size. (In a shelter 8 is elderly and can be a death sentence in crowded shelters.) He is highly stressed. He isn't affectionate. He doesn't appear very trainable. Reading his file he was originally from a shelter in Merced (3 hours east), and was taken in by a rescue group before he could be put down. That was a year prior. (A closer look later at his paper work much later indicates he has been "7" for over a year. ) What happen next is anyone's guess, but he and Lucy, who appeared to be related in some way, were turned in a couple of months ago to the SPCA. Indy was in bad shape back then. He'd been constantly gnawing and/or licking a patch of skin the size of my hand right above his tail. This has gone on long enough that it needed antibiotics when he came to the shelter. His white fur still bore obvious redish saliva stains. His initial eval notes indicated he was behaviorally even worse when he came into the shelter in terms of submissive behavior. He'd been tucking his back end down so much the evaluator had thought he might have had hip issues.

On the other hand there were many thing in his favor. He had the right type of floppy ears for Brenna. (Really her only stated preference other than it being a nice dog.) He was in good shape. (Thinner than I like, but not unhealthy.) I was raised with dogs, and real or imagined I think I have a gift with them. I've read, and watched enough about behavioral problems to be cocky. After all compared to the mauler. Bringing a shy dog out of his shell shouldn't be that much harder. Besides everything I've read indicates that behavior at the shelter vs 2 months later is massive. Why not take him. Worst case we can return him... (I know myself well enough to know I'm kidding myself about being able to return a dog.) Plus I've got a good feeling about him, and I can sense that there is a good dog waiting for the right owner.

This is the dog. It sinks in. In as little as 2 years he'll die of old age. Maybe with lot's of care he'll live another 7 years or more. Maybe. I take a minute to mourn my new dog's impending death. After wiping the tears away I sit down, and try to lure my dog over. It doesn't work. Some time then Larkin returns and seems resigned that Indy and I haven't bonded, and the poor dog will likely be here for months. (Heck they have a pit that was going on 2 years at that point.) I'm kinda teary, and sad. Indy is avoiding me on the other side of the area.

I immediately tell her "We'll take him". She does a bit of a double take. We go back to a room with Indy, and we fill out the paperwork. Indy seems much happier in the room, and allows us to freely pet him. By pet him I mean he sits down next to us facing away from us. There is period of confusion when they say he is bonded to Lucy. Looking back I wonder if they were hoping we'd take both, they were just confused, or if they were bonded but figured this was Indy's best shot.

At the front desk we wait, and pay his fees including a mandatory training deposit. The ladies remark we must like project dogs. Most likely thinking we zeroed in on the mauler, and Indy. I suspect Indy was on the mental list of dogs they didn't think were adoptable. I resist telling them I don't like project dogs I'm just picky, and Indy is the best dog they have for me. If they had a better dog I'd take him, but their selection sucks right now.

The Mauler

2010-07-11T22:34:00.000-07:00

We continue to the Silicon Valley HS. My worst fears are confirmed. They seem to think I should have made an appointment. I love dogs, but looking at the paperwork it's like I'm adopting a kid. I take a look through the shelter it's small, and the selection is very poor. The only dog on my list still there is Danica a "King Charles". She doesn't look much like I'd expect her breed to, but I'm game. A quick inquiry reveals she is on hold. It seem appears you can have an appointment, and reserve a dog. The shelter folks seem to think this is my fault despite none of this being apparent from their listings, and it being counter to standard procedures at the rest of the shelters in the area. But they are happy to let us meet her, and claim 2nd rights. Assuming the people who have her on hold decide they don't want her. She's ours??? Brenna also wants to "interview" a larger dog, but it's a barker and a good 30 pounds outside my size desires.

I elect to just leave. As the last thing I need is to bond with another dog, and lose out again. The next place is a 30 minute a drive, and I'm pretty sure we aren't getting a dog. We pull into the crowded lot, and get out of the car. A howl greets us, and continues to welcome us as we cross the lot to the San Mateo SPCA. I remark to my wife to be jokingly "We are sooo getting that dog". (Not imagining how close I am to the truth.) The shelter is a large older building. It smells a bit, and the dogs are often 3 to a kennel. My gut reaction is I don't like this initially don't like it. But the staff is friendly, and I warm to the place. The kennels are narrow, but long with an inside, and outside part. (In retrospect the crowding is due obviously do their desire not to put down adoptable dogs.) I look around no labs. The only dog left on my list is a bansiji who's behavior and the notes on the evaluator's sheet confirms she needs lots of exercise despite her age.

We find the howler. He is named Jack, and is kenneled with another dog. Jack spends the entire time we are there running back, and forth only stopping to howl. The paper work on his door indicates the other dog is Lucy. Cute, and friendly Dalmatian/ Australian cattledog, but she is 10 years old. She's got a heart murmur. (I'd take her but I want a dog not a patient.) Another dog's paper work is there, but he isn't in evidence. I figure he is in one of those adoption rooms. We tell Jack he isn't doing himself good with the howling, and move on.

Everything else is small and shivery, requires more exercise then we can give, is a pitbull, is the size of a pony, or displays major behavioral issues. (Trust me at this point I'm not being picky.) We go to another section and find a lab at the end of the line all by himself. He is bouncy, and extremely happy to see us. By happy I mean he is sticking his nose through the bars, licking us, whining... Just completely desperate for attention. We look for paperwork. None!! That is a bad sign maybe someone else is looking at him.

We go up to the front desk and ask the girls there. "Oh Max!" They pull out his paperwork, hand it to us, and carefully explain. He is off by himself because he mauls other dogs. Really badly too. I digest this. The back patio is well enclosed. We don't have a dog, and I can live without ever owning a cat. We don't have kids, and don't plan to in the near term. Heck I've watched enough "It's me or the dog" to understand the basics of socializing an aggressive dog. My response is "This may not be an issue as we don't have dogs, or kids. Can we meet him? I'd like to see if I think I can work with him." I'm already thinking of what sort of head harness I'll need.

They blink, not expecting this sort of reaction, and consult a bit. They can't allow us in with him without with out the behaviorist present, and he isn't in today. I can leave a number and talk to him during the week. I'm pretty down about this, but I leave my number and tell my girlfriend we should go. She tells me to sit down, because she wants take one more look. (She is determined to bring a dog home today rather than deal with the aftermath.) She is gone for quite some time. I just sit feel sorry for myself, and try to brace myself for what entirely unsuitable dog she'll bring back. (She is a former poverty lawyer among other things, doesn't give up easily, and has a soft spot for hard luck cases.) I'm preping myself to put my foot down. I'll try again during my week off, look at the shelters down south and maybe come back about the mauler.

Indy faces the pack of doom

2010-07-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

Well not really they were quite friendly which I can't say about the Chihuahua convention next door.

No I'm serious it was some sort of crazed Chihuahua lover convention.

Twain on Dogs

2010-07-09T17:40:00.000-07:00

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man.

Allie's dog makes mine look like a super genuis (sort of)

2010-07-08T14:55:00.000-07:00

After reading Allie's post I decided to retest Indy. I'd tested him a year ago after we had had him for just 6-7 months. He had barely managed to place just above the bottom rank due to generous scoring.

Hyperbole and a Half: Dog

Now I know Indy has made major improvements so I did this test to check his progress.
http://www.abc.net.au/animals/dog_test/default.htm

Indy scored dead in the middle. Acing some tests, but completely failing the towel, and smile tests. Then I got to thinking how fair were these tests. I don't smile a lot, and why should Indy decide to come to me just because I smiled. Also some of the tests seem to favor a dog with persistence, and drive rather than intelligence. Lastly some are subjective. Calling out refrigerator in the same voice you call the dog might result in the dog coming if you use a variety of names to call them. Like wise with Indy you call his name he won't come. He'll look at you to see what you want, but unless you say come, slap your side, or look like you have food he won't come. Why? We call his name to get his attention. It's not a command.

So I tried another set of tests, but with one major difference. I went out of my way to make it a game, and cheer him on. I was careful to not give him clues.
http://pets1st.ca/articles/00025adoggieiqtest.asp

The results were very different. For example in the 1st towel test I simply placed a towel on Indy's head. He never tried to get out of it. It was as if he decided that if I wanted him to have a towel on his head that was his lot in life. On the other hand in the second test I started playing with him, threw a towel over his head, and then verbally encouraged him to escape. He had the towel off in under 5 seconds every time. Like wise with a little encouragement he knocked the cup right over and got the treat.

It's obvious that used dogs like Allie and mine are at a great disadvantage in these tests. Their shy personalities, and long periods of time in kernel with little interaction with their environment don't equip them well for these IQ tests. Also if your dog is use to getting treats for tricks, playing with treat balls or the like then these are easier tests. As a dog who isn't use to having to puzzle out how to get a treat may not even try.

Of course being me I've added Indy's 3 worst tests to his play routine. So if anyone test him they'll think he is a genius. He really loves the treat under a cup test. At this point he is simply picking up the cup, running around happily, and then dropping it to get the treat. Of course being Indy he'll be so excited he'll run off with the cup, and forget the treats. The multiple cup test is currently a wash. He tends to go after the one he saw the treat put in, but always knocks all of them over just to be sure.

the 1st shelter

2010-07-07T07:43:00.000-07:00

After my girlfriend (now wife) came back we'd visited a few rescue groups at an few adoption fairs. We'd found mostly smaller dogs. None who fit the big dog in a small package image I have. At one fair we were told they had the prefect dog for us named Jack. He was at another fair in Mountainview, which was across the bay from Fremont. So we drove across the bridge, somw how finding the only traffic jam on this Saturday, to meet him. Sadly we didn't click. He was a nervous high strung dog. Not the calm older dog I wanted. Also he entirely failed to bond with me in any way. Certainly not small enough to have that much energy in my condo with no backyard.

At that same fair I gave my girlfriend a scare. There was this beautiful lab-pit mix. As my girl would relate, it was love at 1st sight like out of some cartoon. She could almost see the hearts in my eyes. Then Roxy barked. The poor dog managed to combine the worst parts of volume and pitch for a bark. My mind flashed to an image of her spending all day barking at the chow on the other side of the fence. Needless to say I wisely elected not to get a dog that day.

After my experiences with rescue groups I decided that the dogs I really wanted weren't going to be there. For example good lab in the Bay Area is only at a shelter for a matter of days. I hit the sites online and checked out the local rescue groups and shelters. The types of dog I wanted were there, but they moved fast. Thinking this would be easy I mapped out a route 3 shelters each with 2-3 dogs that I liked as of Friday night.

My girlfriend had a small group meeting with people from the UU church. So I decided to hit San Jose Animal Services at 10:30. I knew I was in trouble when I walked in the door. A family was just walking out with a lab. A quick check of the kennels, and I realized it was the one I'd seen online. I shrugged then found the cocker (Nixie) I'd seen online, and I bonded for 10 minutes with her though the bars. Then I went to fill out the require paper work and get my name on the list for an adoption counselor. I finished it, and went to say hi to Nixie again. She was gone. I glimpsed her through the window of a meet and greet room. "Damn bastards that's my dog!"

It was 11:00 Brenna still wasn't there (not that I expected her for an hour), and Nixie had walked out the door with her new owners. The place opens at 10:00, and an hour later it's nothing pits, chis, and small terriers. At around 11:05 my name is called, and I ask if they have any other dogs. The answer is no, but they have some strays that will be put up in a few days. The young lady recognizes me from last Sunday (when I scouted the shelter), and offers to let me in to see the strays. I demure as the last thing I want is to meet another dog, bond, and not end up adopting him.

My girlfriend gets out of small group, and calls me. I'm fairly depressed. I've miscalculated. The good dogs are flying out of the shelters like hot cakes. We're not going to get to the next shelter before 12, and by now everything worth adopting already adopted. We meet up at a boba shop. She is determine to soldier on. I'm blue enough over the holidays normally any way. She doesn't want to spend the holidays with "grumpy pants". (While I'm not prone to rapid changes in mood. When I'm down I tend to stay that way for days or weeks.) Luckily after some caffeine, sugar, and TLC I'm ready to go back into the ring.

Sigh

2010-06-29T12:15:00.000-07:00

You know you've failed your dog in some way when he watches to be sure you aren't leaving him before he eats his dog food. Sure I didn't break him but he is still a little broken....

the Prep

2010-06-27T00:52:00.001-07:00

When I set out that day little did I know I'd spend years covered in white hairs. It was a week before Christmas, and I was looking for a dog. You see I'd spent the last decade pining for the dogs of my youth. As an adult I'd always wanted a dog, but I had a long list of excuses. I was renting. I worked long hours. My housemates weren't dog people. I didn't have a big yard. I certainly had my reasons.... Of course the biggest one is I take my responsibility as a dog owner seriously. But now I have a 4 bed room condo with a modest enclosed patio, and I'm pretty close to work. I considered starting with a cat, but a cat just isn't a dog. (I like cats, but I love dogs.)

Early on in our relationship my girlfriend (now wife) had decided I was obsessed with dogs. Maybe it was my simple joy at seeing one. (I never failed to point out dogs.) Maybe is was my tactic of taking walks in places were people walked their dogs. She told me someone like me just needed have to a dog. (She was right of course as she generally is.) Shortly after convincing me to get a dog. She left for months to work on a political campaign. I considered getting a dog while she was away, (Indeed she urged me to do so.) but she was moving in when she came back. The dog would be member of our "family" and I wanted her to have a say. When she came back the the economy being in the tank meant I had a "extra" week off over the holidays. Plus she was taking a month off. All the books claimed it was best that the dog have as much time with the family in the early weeks as possible. Thus the week before Christmas was the "perfect" time for us.

I was prepared. (At least in my mind.) I'd watched 2 seasons of it's "Me or the Dog". Read numerous "taking your dog home" guides. Researched breeds, training styles, and the like. I'd been trolling adoption fairs at various pet stores on weekends. I knew what I wanted. An older lab mix. Or a King Charles Spaniel. Or as a last resort a cocker or small spaniel type. She and I had worked out a few guide lines as well. No dogs she would be afraid might bite someone. Pitbulls being the obvious example of this type for her. (Yes know. I've met a lot of nice pits too, but then I know some that are menaces.) On the other scale she didn't want a little dog that shivered all time like a Chihuahua. I'm not fond of them as they are the only type of dog that has ever bit me. (twice in fact)