Ziggy's Adoption Video

Recently I took a short video to add to Ziggy's online adoption information. The previous video on his bio was Ziggy looking cute while eating treats. He looks cute because he closes his eyes each time he takes a treat, in order to fully enjoy the experience. That was a cute video, but it wasn't convincing anyone to adopt him. So I decided a new video was in order. One which demonstrates what a smart dog Ziggy is. One that shows off many of the tricks that he has learned.

View directly at Youtube

What is amazing about Ziggy is not that he knows so many tricks in spite of being deaf. It's that he knows so many tricks in spite of the fact that I spend almost no time teaching him these. If I try to teach him something and he doesn't learn it within 30 seconds, I usually just give up, because I'm lazy. But fortunately Ziggy is smart enough to learn all these tricks in 30 seconds or less, so he makes me look good (if you ignore the part where he always tries to steal the food out of my hand). This also explains why Ziggy knows all these commands and several more, while my own dogs only know like three things each. Maybe this video will help Ziggy get adopted... but probably not.

Just a Puppy

I fell in love with this puppy on Saturday.  She's probably a Golden Retriever/Cocker Spaniel mix, maybe with a few other breeds thrown in.  She's twelve weeks old and just adorable.  She was found wandering around a state park along with her brother.  They'd been dumped there - we assume they were left in a box because they were both covered with urine as though trapped in a small box for quite some time.  I don't understand how someone could do that.  But I'm glad someone else happened along at the right time and rescued them.  Both puppies have been adopted into good homes now.  I just hope that those were the only two puppies left there.  Because now all I can think about, is that maybe that box is still out there, with one or more puppies still inside.  It happens more than you ever want to know.  So give your dog a hug today and be grateful that when they were a puppy, they weren't abandoned to die because they were "just a puppy".  

. 

How Big of a Crate Do You Need?

When transporting dogs to adoption events, it's always good to have them in crates, for their safety and the safety of everyone in the vehicle.  Generally a dog's crate should give the dog enough room to stand up and turn around and lay down comfortably.  Someone forgot to tell this to Evie.

At Saturday's adoption event, I met Evie for the first time.  She is a German Shorthaired Pointer.  She was used as a breeding dog and then when she stopped producing puppies, she was shot and left for dead.  She was rescued and has been in foster care for a year now.  She is fully recovered and ready for her new home. 

Evie is a pretty large dog, as you can see from this picture.

So it would be nothing short of animal cruelty to force her into a small dog crate like the one pictured below.

 Unless of course you watch as her foster mom sets down the crate (which was used to transport a small puppy to the adoption event) and Evie makes a beeline to the crate and climbs right in.  And then manages somehow to actually turn herself around so her head is sticking out the opening.  It was amazing to behold.  I didn't manage to catch it on video, but I was able to take some pictures of Evie looking oh-so-happy to be in her oh-so-small crate. 

 So next time you're measuring your dog for a crate, you may want to ask the dog what size they prefer!

Peanut was adopted!

On Saturday, my foster puppy Peanut went to his forever home.  This is great news for Peanut.  But for those of us left behind, it means a bit of an adjustment.  Things are going to change around here.

For one thing, Peanut won't be annoying Noelle anymore.

Are you my mommy?


He also won't be using me as a jungle gym.

I'm King of the hill!

He won't be giving out little Peanut kisses.

I WUV you so much!

And he won't be entertaining me with his cute little Peanut looks.

Can we cuddle?

I will miss my little peanut, but I'm happy for him that he has a wonderful new family where he will be very spoiled and loved. 

Update on Ziggy

It's been three weeks since I wrote a post specifically about Ziggy. So for any new readers out there, let me give you a quick summary. Ziggy is an overzealous, highly intelligent, extremely food motivated, deaf American Pit Bull Terrier. I started fostering him over a year ago, and in spite of being listed for adoption on several websites and attending weekly adoption events, he has never been adopted. In fact, he has only received two applications in the past year - one of whom lived in a city with breed bans, and the other of whom changed their mind after filling out the application.  I have tried everything - hired a trainer, taught him tricks, changed his adoption listings/pictures/videos numerous times, made him wear adopt-me vests and bandanas everywhere we go, and even tried shrinking him in the dryer when someone liked him but wanted a smaller dog! Okay, fine, I didn't really put him in the dryer. I did consider the use of a hair dryer though.

Suffice it to say that I refuse to give up. I continue to hope that someday he will get a real home of his own. And that home is definitely not mine. Some foster dogs just "fit" into a household very easily, and those are the hardest ones to adopt out. Ziggy is not one of those foster dogs. I love him, but life will be easier for everyone, including him, if he can go to a home that is a better fit for him. So we'll keep trying.

Now for those of you who don't know Ziggy well, you may be curious why he hasn't been adopted yet.  I'm curious too.  But I think it might have something to do with the fact that he's a pit bull, he's deaf, he has food allergies, he has way too much puppy exuberance, he chews on everything and everyone, and oh yeah, he will only "listen to" roughly 1 of every 100 people that he meets... unless they have food - then he'll listen to anyone.  Until they run out of food.  He's fickle that way. 
Here is how Ziggy has spent his last few weeks:

Chewing the vaccum cleaner cord into two:

Signing "no" to a deaf dog while taking his picture is not an easy task!


Waiting outside my visiting stepdaughter's bedroom for her to come out.

Rachael has become Ziggy's favorite chew toy. Suffice it to say that Rachael is NOT in the 1% of the population that Ziggy obeys. He does not mean to hurt her - he just likes to play with her just like puppies play with toys... by chewing them! This is the reason that Ziggy needs a home without children. Sigh...

Ziggy has also been busy teaching Noelle how to circumvent the ex-pen that was being used a fence between the kitchen and the living room for the safety of Peanut and Cricket. 

Ziggy figured out if he jumped up onto the glass-topped end table, then pushed aside the wire ex-pen with his nose, then stepped onto the kitchen trashcan, he could then jump down onto the kitchen floor.  And not only did he figure this out, he did it often enough that Noelle eventually figured it out by watching him.  This picture is of Noelle trying out Ziggy's new route for the first time. 

In other words, Ziggy has been up to his usual tricks - nothing new - just general Ziggyness. 

Featured Blogs

To Other Blog Owners:

I have always enjoyed reading blogs on my lunch hour, but several months ago a new security feature at work caused my work computer to block all blogs - even before and after work hours!  I can still read them through Google Reader currently, but I'm unable to leave comments.  This makes me sad since those of you with blogs deserve to know how much I enjoy your blogs.  So I found myself left with a few options.  First is to read the blogs from my home computer where I can leave comments.  This doesn't work well since I am usually too busy chasing after Ziggy doing foster-related tasks at home.  Second was to find another way to let you know how much I enjoy your blogs.  So I developed a Featured Blog listing.  I will pick five blogs each month to feature on my blog.  I will do one post each month to share why I chose those blogs, and then the links to the blogs with the most recent post information will stay at the top of my blog all month long. Featured blog owners will also receive a badge showing they've been selected as a Featured Blog.  I hope those of you with blogs will forgive me for not commenting more often!  Please check out these featured blogs for the month of January, listed here in alphabetical order:

Daily Dose of Jack - Jack and his person (Tall Guy) always make me smile.  They are very funny - a perfect pick-me-up for a work day!

Frankly Speaking - Frankie, the Mayor of Blogville, is one of the nicest doggies I've met.  He put on his Christmas list to Santa that he wanted Santa to find Ziggy a real forever home.  I don't even think 87 gazillion thank yous could really show how much I appreciate that! 

Mayzie's Dog Blog - Mayzie's blog is always the first blog I read.  She is a Most Wonderful dog and has the best, most positive attitude anywhere!  I'm considering painting Ziggy with brindle stripes and trying to sneak over to Mayzie's house and trade doggies.  Do you think anyone would notice?

Stumpy's Daily Dose o' Dirtville - Stumpy's blog is one of the most recent blogs I've started reading.  Stumpy has a pretty amazing life in Dirtville, quite different from my life in the suburbs.  I love reading about Stumpy's life. 

Tucker - When I first started blogging, I deliberately went looking for a blog about a Harlequin Great Dane like Remi.  Then I found Tucker and I've been a big fan ever since.  Tucker and Remi are a lot alike, and I think if Remi got his own blog it would look like Tucker's blog.  Except Remi complains a lot more than Tucker does.  So maybe it's good that I just stick with reading Tucker's blog instead. 

Stay tuned next month for more featured blogs!

The Truth about Small Breed Dogs / Cricket Was Adopted

 I've never really thought of small breed dogs as actual dogs. They were a whole other species, somewhere between cats and real dogs (i.e. big dogs). Real dogs were at least the size of a beagle. All those little yappy dogs were more like noisy decorations. I've seldom fostered small dogs, since having a horse pony Great Dane in the house meant large playmates were needed. There have been a few exceptions - but even those didn't completely change my mind.

He's a Peanut.

 Now that I've fostered two adorable Chihuahua/Toy Fox Terrier puppies, I can tell you from personal experience, that I was right. Small dogs are a whole different species than real dogs. I'm sure the experts will tell you otherwise. They'll say small dogs are just like big dogs - only smaller. But I'm not convinced. Small dogs are not all yappy - Peanut and Cricket are some of the quietest puppies I've ever fostered. And small dogs are not just decorations - Peanut can play a rousing game of fetch or tug. But I'm still not convinced they're real dogs. Oh don't get me wrong, I love them very much. I could even see myself owning a small dog someday. I just don't think I would consider it a real dog. Peanut and Cricket seem more like toys than dogs. Adorable little stuffed toys that move and bark and give kisses. Stuffed toys that I can dress up (yes, I spent way too much money on a little hoodie to keep Cricket warm). Stuffed toys that I can carry around in my arms everywhere I go. They're absolutely wonderful - they're just not real dogs.

Peanut makes new friends at an adoption event.



Cricket finds a friend

Many trainers will tell you that if you have a small dog, you have to treat it like a regular dog. The reason some small dogs become yappy and high-strung is because they are treated like toys instead of like real dogs. This is very good advice. It is also a very good reason for me to never own a small dog. Because although I do my best to treat Peanut and Cricket like real dogs, it is not easy. I try hard. I walk them on leashes, and play games with them, and if they ever did anything wrong I'm sure I'd be able to manage a stern look. I even put them in their own little crate at the last adoption event.


Homeless puppies - will you take me home?

Fortunately Cricket was adopted before I had to issue any stern looks. Because seriously, how do you expect me to manage a stern look when faced with this?


Cricket

Cricket went home with a wonderful family who has a Mastiff and another Chihuahua. Peanut, on the other hand, has not been adopted yet. Stern looks should be a bit easier to manage with Peanut. Until he looks at me with his big eyes and wrinkled forehead.

Peanut

Then I'm done for.

Results of Study of Puppy Behavior At Adoption Events

Saturday's adoption event involved a lot of puppies. After a lot of research and hands-on evaluation, I have determined that there are three stages of puppy behavior at adoption events. I've decided since there isn't a lot of information on this out there, I would share my results first with you. Then perhaps I'll write a paper to be published in the Journal of Puppy Behavior*.


Puppies at adoption events generally follow a set pattern of behavior which can be recognized as it progresses through the following three stages: the Obnoxious Stage, the Calm Stage, and the Stuporous stage.

First is the Obnoxious Stage. You may question how such cute little creatures could ever be considered obnoxious. Unless of course, you've experienced life with a puppy first-hand. Then you will quickly recognize that this is a stage that is repeated at several times during the first year of a puppy's life. Obnoxious behavior can be observed at adoption events when the puppies begin wrestling, playing, chewing, exploring, and tugging on objects all around them. At this point, the best chance anyone has to control a puppy is just to hold onto the leash and stay out of the way. It's tough to get a picture of a puppy in this stage, but I have provided some examples below to demonstrate various puppies engaged in the Obnoxious Stage of Behavior:

Out of control puppies





Plotting puppies




Puppy attempting an escape from his collar.


After the puppies have used up most of their abundant energy supply, they enter the second stage of behavior, known as the Calm Stage. This is the stage where the puppies are most often chosen for adoption, because potential adopters only see a cute little puppy that licks their face, not the obnoxious chewing creature that was on a mission to destroy all shoe laces in the world just ten minutes earlier. Here are some examples of puppies who have entered the Calm Stage of behavior:




A great example of how looks can be deceiving




Innocent look perfected.

 

This puppy is beginning to transition from stage 2 to stage 3.

  Finally, energy reserves fully depleted, puppies enter the third stage of behavior - the Stuporous Stage, also known as the "Dead to the World" stage. At this point, you can do pretty much anything without the puppy waking up. You can make as much noise as you want. You can transfer the puppy from person to person. For all intents and purposes, the puppy has been "turned off" while it's energy cells are recharging. Enjoy this time, because it seldom lasts as long as you'd like. Here are some puppies that have fully entered the Stuporous Stage during the adoption event.

Down for the count



This puppy would make a great doorstop.





This puppy knows how to make herself comfortable before shutting down to recharge.

*Not an actual scholarly journal - but wouldn't it be great if it was?

Catching Up

It's been a crazy couple of weeks, and I have so much to say, that I'm not sure where to start.  So let me give you a quick summary, and maybe later this week I'll share more about some of these things. 

1)

First, let me assure you that life around here continues as usual.  I still haven't closed on the log home that I've had a contract on since September.  I'm told it could happen any day now.  In the meantime, Ziggy continues to be Ziggy (yes, he was laughing at me when I caught him chewing on the vacuum cleaner cord).  Please note that both the vacuum and the carpet spot cleaner have taken up permanent residence in my kitchen since they are put to use so often.  Also please note the silver exercise pen that has been turned into a fence to block off the kitchen from the living room.  This serves two purposes.  First, it limits the destruction caused by Ziggy to just the living room.  Second, it keeps Peanut and Cricket safe in the kitchen.  Please ignore the chew marks on the windowsill.  These were not caused by Ziggy! 

2)

Remember the thirteen puppies I talked about several weeks ago?   They grew up and got adopted.  At least ten of them did.  There are three left, including the one shown above.  I am guessing they will all be gone by next weekend!

3)

Cricket and Peanut are doing great.  I am so crazy about these puppies.  One of them actually went to their new home yesterday, and the other one has received two applications (we are waiting on the vet check and home visit to be scheduled).  I'll tell you more about them later this week - I promise!

4)

I was recently contacted by a teenager who lives in Illinois.  She is a volunteer with Forever Home Feline Ranch, a 501c3 organization that provides sanctuary for homeless cats in need of a forever home.  Owen has not only fostered special needs kittens for this group, but she's actually written a grant proposal that has been accepted by the Pepsi Refresh Project!  That's pretty amazing for a 16-year-old to do all on her own.  The organization sounds like a great group of people, so I hope you will support them and Owen by voting for them as part of the Pepsi Refresh Project.  You can vote every day, once a day, throughout the month of January.  And if you have a blog or a twitter account or Facebook account, please share the link below with others.

Vote here: http://www.refresheverything.com/felineranch

Merlin Plays Fetch

I hope you had a very Merry Christmas. I haven't taken any new pictures for a few days, so I decided to share this video with you. This was taken a few weeks ago at my mom's house, shortly before decorating the Christmas tree. Merlin, my cat, loves to play fetch. He also loves to chew on small items, and to wrestle. We think he may be part dog... or perhaps he's just been living at my house for too long.

View at YouTube

I had some trouble with my camera battery not being charged, so the video is a bit choppy, but I hope you enjoyed it. My nieces and nephews especially like the part where Merlin runs into the wall. In fact, I've heard rumors that people may at times deliberately throw the mouse against the wall on purpose just to watch Merlin hit the wall. I do not condone this behavior, and I swear when I threw the mouse against the wall on the video it was an accident. Really. And the laughter you hear afterwards was me laughing at something my mom said - I was not laughing at Merlin. Really. Although the fact that he continues to run into the wall time after time (or so I've heard) may just be another example of how his intelligence more closely mirrors a dog than a cat. I'm just sayin'.

A success story...

Two three month old Boxer-Lab mix puppies were living outside. One was tied to a lawnmower, and the other was tied to a BBQ pit. They had no shelter and very little food. They were very skinny and filled with parasites.

When I first started volunteering with a rescue, I'd see rescue people get really upset about puppies being given away at Wal-Mart. It happens quite often around here, and I couldn't quite understand their reactions. After all, anyone taking in a puppy would give it a good home, wouldn't they? Since then I've seen the reality of what happens to many of these "free to a good home" puppies.

They don't usually go to good homes.  Even people with good intentions often don't know how to properly care for a puppy, and aren't prepared for the amount of work or the cost involved.  Too many people take in a puppy because they are cute or their child begs for a dog, and next thing you know the dog is either living in the backyard tied to a lawnmower, or taken to a shelter to be euthanized. 

 These two puppies were lucky. They ended up in rescue where they were given medical care, healthy food and a safe warm place to stay until they could be adopted into loving homes that were ready for the realities of adopting a puppy. These puppies were also spayed/neutered before being adopted in order to prevent an "oops" litter that may then be given away at Wal-mart next year.

I like seeing puppies like this be rescued. It is another reminder of why we do what we do. Thanks to Bev for taking in these two sweet pups and caring for them and getting them healthy and adopted into good homes.

Introducing Peanut and Cricket

I was told about four Toy Fox Terrier/Chihuahua mix puppies needing to get into rescue.  I've never fostered a Toy Fox Terrier.  Or a Chihuahua, for that matter.  And they're only ten weeks old.  So how was I supposed to resist?   Two of the four puppies went to another group, and the other two... well, allow me to introduce Peanut and Cricket.

Can you guess which one is named Peanut?  I know it's not very original, but it just fits him so well, that I couldn't resist.  Peanut is a bit more outgoing than his sister.  He loves to play, and will pick up a stuffed toy that is almost as big as he is and shake it and run around.  When I tried to take pictures of his sister Cricket he insisted on getting right in front of the camera lens every time.  He's a bit of a show-off, I'm afraid.

Make sure to get my good side!

Cricket is quite different than her brother.  She is very shy and scared.  She's only been her a couple of days and she's already improving, but I admit I was surprised at how shy she was for a ten-week-old puppy.  I'm used to the large-breed goofy puppies that don't know to be scared even if they should be.  When I brought Cricket home, she curled up in a little ball and started shaking, and I just wanted to pick her up and cuddle her and make her feel safe.  I named her Cricket because sometimes she tries to jump out of the ex-pen that she and Peanut are in.  She can jump very high.  Apparently Toy Fox Terriers... or Chihuahuas... or both... are quite athletic little dogs.  Cricket is doing much better now and has started coming up to me and asking to be cuddled, which I'm quite happy to do. 

These puppies will be ready for adoption in a couple of weeks.  I'm sure you'll be reading more about them before that happens though!

Rough-N-Tumble

Ziggy and Noelle are Rough-N-Tumble dogs. 

So to those of you who would like to come visit, I would love that! Just watch out for Ziggy's stalking posture.

Because it means he is about to pounce! 

But don't worry about Noelle - she gives as good as she gets.   

Don't let the scary-snarl-faces fool you.  They're having a blast playing with each other.  

Did I mention they're rough and tumble?  

Boisterous 

Rambunctious 

I could go on all day (thanks to thesaurus.com).  

So could they.

But in the end, they become sweet.  

Adorable, even.

While they plot and plan for their next rough-n-tumble play session.   

Which usually starts 15 minutes later.