Testing the camera

I haven't tested my camera for action shots yet, but I definitely like its closeup capabilities!

Foster sister in 3 days!

Abby's new foster sister arrives on Friday! Well, technically Saturday since she arrives at 1:00am. I'm so excited!

My plan for the introduction is different than it was for Tryp. Things were so hectic when he arrived (lots of people, everyone so excited) that I didn't follow any kind of plan. I ended up carrying Abby into the living room from my room (I somehow thought that she would be less scared if I carried her in than if she ran into the living room and saw another dog there suddenly - not really sure where my mind was actually). She was pretty snarky with Tryp, but he was so mellow that he just took it and they were bouncing around together after a couple of seconds of Abby's supreme bitchiness.

Since Mia is younger and a female, I think I should let Abby meet her more gradually, and not let Abby be snarly when they first meet. The plan is to keep Abby in my room when Mia arrives and then take them on a walk together, keeping some distance. Then, I think it would be a good idea to separate them with a baby gate just to see what kind of interactions they have that way, and then hopefully remove the baby gate that same night. If this dog is anything like Abby was at 9 months, they'll have a great time together - all Abby wanted to do at that age was wrestle and play with almost every dog. She still does love to wrestle and play, but mostly with dogs she knows - so these two should get a kick out of each other.

I want another dog.

I want a second dog, and I've decided that in May I'm going to get one. I've been thinking about this for a long time, and I think it would really benefit both me and Abby.

For Abby, the reasons are pretty obvious. She loves playing with other dogs - she would choose playing with a dog (one that she knows) over playing with a person any day. I have to try really hard to be as fun and exciting as another dog. Also, dogs that are outgoing with people really help Abby with her fear of people. When Tryp was here, he'd go running up to any stranger who came into our house as though he'd known them his whole life. It was great for Abby - pretty soon she was running up to everyone too because she didn't want to get left out with all the attention. When she didn't feel like going to say hi, she was more relaxed about it since the focus and attention wasn't all on her. The people could concentrate on Tryp while Abby could concentrate on checking out the people, unnoticed.

A second dog would help me deal with Abby in the ways I just mentioned, as well as helping me with my need to have a friendly, outgoing dog. It is really hard for me to have to tell everyone not to touch Abby - I loved having a happy to meet everyone dog. It really made me feel good that Sam was so great with strangers. There are tons of other things that I love about Abby, obviously - it's hard to find a more velcro or responsive dog. Social butterfly, however, she is not. Having a second dog who was a happy go lucky social guy would be perfect - I'd appreciate Abby more for being so easy to train (some kinds of training...) and for being my little shadow, and I wouldn't feel like I have to make her into the all around 'best dog ever'. I mean, I know that her issues just have to be managed, and aren't ever going to disappear. Having a second dog that kind of fills the gaps that Abby leaves would help.

I'm not sure if I got that out right. I just have this very distinct feeling that getting another dog would really improve everything with Abby.

This imaginary second dog would have to be pretty near perfect, though, so I'm willing to wait to find him. I want a medium sized male (easier with Abby, and in general I've found that males are more laid back and cuddly) around Abby's size. He would have to be fine with cats (because of Peppy and Darla), great with other dogs (but not overly enthusiasic about them - ie no barking on the leash) and outstanding with people of all ages. I don't want a dog that guards resources at all. He doesn't have to be brilliant (like, ahem, Abby), he can be a huge doofus, but he has to be super friendly. He can't be oversensitive to movement (like people running by) or to sounds (like busses, skateboards). He can't have separation anxiety, and he has to ride in the car well.
That sounds like a long list, but I have a very specific kind of dog in mind. Yes, a dog with issues can be trained, but I have a dog with almost every issue under the sun, and I need a break with my second dog. He has to be the kind of dog that you can bring anywhere, that you don't worry about constantly. I also can't have a dog with issues other than Abby's (she leaves few undiscovered) becuase I don't want to take any chances about her learning from a new dog.
I'm still undecided as to whether I would lean more towards a dog with a lot of focus and drive, like a Border Collie type, or whether I'd lean more towards a laid back Golden Retriever type. The BC type could keep up with Abby, and might be another agility dog. A GR type, on the other hand, might help Abby to relax a bit more, and might be a good therapy dog candidate - an activity that I can't try with Abby.
I think as long as I'm willing to wait for him, I'll find my perfect dog.

Oh and the last decision is whether I want a puppy. This dog is obviously going to be rescue, and if I got a puppy I'd want to choose one from a litter that was either born in the shelter or came to the shelter very shortly after birth. I'd want to meet the mom, and see that she wasn't overly shy. I'd love to have a puppy, since I've never had one, but this might not be the right time to raise a puppy since I have such specific needs in a dog. Maybe I should wait until I can have a dog who doesn't have to be Mr. Perfect, and instead go with an adult (>2) whose personality is more obvious.

It'll be four months before I'm even letting myself start looking for dogs. Four months...not long at all.

Back in Action!

Abby and I have been reunited! I got back Sunday morning, and we've had a strange couple of days trying to get back in sync, but I think we're now good to go. The first day Abby was super excited to see me for and was jumping and dancing and spinning, and then she fell fast asleep. I think the excitement just knocked her out completely. The next day she was more standoffish than usual, wasn't following me around the house, and kept running into her crate as if I was about to leave the house (which I wasn't). When I brought her to the field she was more excited than she normally is (didn't know that was possible), and wouldn't stop barking. Luckily, today things are better.

Abby had an interesting 2 weeks, from the sounds of it. The first week she was very different from her normal self, which means that she was very well behaved. She was polite with people she'd never met, wasn't overly scared, and even jumped into Tycho and Zeus's grandad's lap to give him kisses! Normally she's scared of him.
The second week Abby acted more like her normal self. She was at our house with my roommate, and I think that made her confident enough to act like regular old NuttyMutt. There was one bad incident where my other roommate's sister leaned over and put her face close to Abby's, and thumped her rib cage (a major pet peeve of Abby's). Abby bared her teeth and snarled. Other than that, she realized the person to latch on to was my roommate, and she behaved well for her.

I'm going to teach Abby a 'walk away' command. My long term goal is to have the cue for the command be a situation that makes Abby uncomfortable, such as someone leaning over her. I basically want to teach her to resort to flight instead of fight, since she is never actually trapped when she feels she it. I'm going to start my having her walk away from treats, then from my roommates playing with her, then from other dogs. I haven't decided what to call the command yet. I want it to be something I can say easily when people are petting/approaching her ( I try to avoid that situation all together, but it isn't always possible to stop people from petting Abby the wrong way. Most people, I've realized, think that they are the one special person who can pet her in any way they want. Very frustrating, since Abby only tolerates all kinds of touch from me and maybe 2-3 others). Back to the command, though - I don't want to call it something like "Get away from that stupid person that you're about to snap at", even if I'd like to call it that. I'm thinking of "by me" and maybe clapping my hands as another signal.

Abby got lots of nice gifts this year, and so did I! I have a new camera that I still need to test for action shots. I really like the still shots so far, though (it's a Canon SD600). Abby got a new floppy frisbee that she likes to shake so that it hits her in the face, and a new folding crate. The crate is pretty small, but since she only curls up in the back of crates at trials, I think it will be fine. It's nice and light compared to the wire one I've been using (that is way too big for Abby). Abby also got lots of treats, and some packed rawhide bones. She used to like those bones, and I watch her very carefully the whole time she chews them since I don't trust dogs with rawhide (Sam once got a piece stuck in the back of his throat when he tried to wolf it down to avoid having it taken away). She doesn't seem to like these bones, though. In fact, all she does when I give her one is get a panicked look in her eyes and starts crying while holding the bone. She then tries to bury it in my bed, and even used her nose to cover it up with the blankets. After that she shakes herself off, as if she's relieved to have hidden it, and goes back to business as usual. She is one weird dog. Oh, and she also got a new collar that I made her her myself, with her name stitched into it.

Trying to bury the bone in her new crate

My roommate is getting her new foster dog soon! The dog is a 9 month old female. She looks very cute in the pictures, and is supposed to be good with dogs, cats and kids. I think Abby will be happy to have a younger sister to boss around. An older female might not go over so well with, but a younger dog that can be pushed around - perfect in Abby's mind. Hopefully they'll play a lot and use up some energy.

What I Like About You

I haven't seen Abby in over a week now...so it's new music video time!
I miss my crazy little girl, but apparently she's doing very well and behaving a lot better than she does at home with me! I'll see her in 5 days!