These couple of weeks must be something special, because I adopted all three of the browns during this time of year. Wrigley's adoptaversary was yesterday, Probert's today, and Maizy's is in just a couple of weeks. So, I figured it was time to do some comparison photos. Then and now(ish - the now photos are from the past few months).
Probert was adopted 6 years ago at about 11 months old from a rescue in Columbus, OH called Measle's Animal Haven. He was a scrawny little pup who had been abused, rescued, and then contracted a mild case of parvo (mild due to being an older puppy) and been bitten by another dog in rescue. Now he's a little snugglebutt who still has issues from his past, but over just the past couple of years is really learning to be a DOG. Finally.
Wrigley was adopted 7 years ago at about 5 months old. He was a direct rescue from people who didn't want him. They said they were watching him for someone who went out of town and never returned to pick him up. Wrigley was living life underneath a trailer at the end of a tow chain and had never even been given a name. The people who had him did doxie rescue and had about 9 rescue dogs in their house, but never thought to bring Wrigley indoors because of his breed. To their credit, they did make some effort to rehome him and I was happy to invite him into my pack! Now he is a wiggly goofball. Definitely the most challenging of my dogs due to his guard barking, but he makes up for it by being one of the most genuinely sweet souls I've ever encountered.
Maizy was adopted 8 years ago at about 9 months old. She was a scrawny 27 lbs and smelled like mildew, probably due to the workers at Philadelphia Animal Care and Control hosing out her kennel with her still in it. She was shy and sometimes stubborn, but always a wonderful, personable dog. She grew up quickly, gaining tens of pounds in just a few months after her adoption. She is my most faithful companion and is definitely the pack leader. I have been so fortunate to have her to teach the boys the ins and outs of being a dog, as I see they have often studied her behavior and followed her example.
So, there it is. Happy Adoptaversaries to all of my babies. My life would simply NOT be the same without you. I love you all so so much.
This may sound funny, but in the nearly 1.5 years that Dan and I have been dating, we have yet to fully integrate our dog packs. Well, mostly we have avoided fully introducing Maizy and Greta, our two bossy ladies.
I had a gift certificate for some dog training and we recently used it to meet with a trainer and work on the relationship between those two and I have to say, it was very promising!
So, now we are taking them for walks and letting them in the yard together (with Maizy on a leash still) and things are going great. Greta is getting confident enough that Maizy is not annoyed and Maizy is realizing that she cannot be the boss of everyone.
Well, in just a few short days I am off to Japan on what I think is a very well-deserved vacation! The dogs will be on vacation, too, on their first ever trip to a boarding facility. I put a lot of care into choosing a place for them and I am optimistic that everything will work out well in my absence. Nervous, but optimistic. It will be really good for all of us, I think, since I have never boarded them and need to lighten up and it will be a good "out in the world" experience for the browns. Cutting the cord... I will report back on how everyone does.
Last week at Doga Maizy was such a pill that this week I put in an untested rookie. Probert was up to the challenge and made a LOVELY Doga companion. He taught a wonderful class and he just might be my new Doga co-teacher.
My boyfriend brought over this poster for Probert this weekend and hung it above his crate. Probert came in from playing outside to see it for the first time, walked straight into his crate and stood there staring at it. I think he likes it!
Last week was my friend Flo's birthday and we surprised her with this photo (which was a huge pain in the butt, let me tell you!). ;)
The matriarch of the brown dog pack got another year older on Saturday! Maizy Anne is now seven years old! Even with an arthritic hind end, she is LOVING our Chicago weather and is showing up the younger dogs racing around the backyard like she's got springs in her paws!
Her daddy is out of town this week, so Miss Addison Mae is back in brown dog land! Unfortunately, the browns were not too excited at all to see her and Wrigley even HID! She is doing great, though, and I was happy to see her after a month of her being away. The first night I couldn't remember how I did everything with so many dogs, but now I'm back in the swing of things and everything is going smoothly. She leaves again on Friday, so I am enjoying our time together while it lasts.
In other news, my neighbor is also a yoga student of mine and heard me talking about Maizy's work at the library (which she hasn't been doing since her tail amputation several months ago because it took her so long to heal from that surgery) and asked if she could stop by with her kids someday. I said sure and yesterday she stopped over with the kids who read to Maizy, petted Hannibal the cat, and were licked by Probert (who is crated in the living room until Addison's departure because they stress each other out). Maizy was ecstatic to have visitors who were paying attention to her and after only a half-hour visit, she spent the rest of the day in recovery sleeping. Some "nanny dog"! Hehe. Probert was less enthusiastic, but was very tolerant and observant. He is not so used to children, but I thought he did great. Only one growl when the kids were getting too crazy by his crate, but he is entitled to give warnings if he doesn't like something. Wrigley did not come visit because he would have steamrolled those poor children with his boisterous enthusiasm for all things. :D
In closing, here is an updated photo of all three browns. Do you know who is who?
Just a note since I think someone requested advance warning, but if you are in the Chicagoland area, Maizy and I will be teaching Doga for free THIS Sunday, October 3rd at the Bark for Life North Shore walk and fundraiser event! We are teaching from 12:30-1:00, so catch us while you can!
If you are interested in knowing about upcoming Doga events, you can sign up for my email updates at www.nicolesopko.com (you will also get information about yoga events, but I send out updates once a month only unless something special comes up so it will not overwhelm your inbox).
Bonus: Picture of Maizy driving home from our big day on Sunday which involved participating in the Chicago PAWS walk and then going to clean out the boyfriend's garage! I thought she looked very cute the way she was sleeping and you can see that we were transporting home her new crate floor!
So, I don't know if any of you have had the same experience, but those plastic crate pans that come with most brands of crate really stink! About two years ago, I replaced Maizy's (for around $60-70) and once again last month, it had broken. It didn't make sense to spend more money on a crate pan, so she was existing without for a few weeks while I figured out what to do. I considered trying to find the right size of metal crate pan or make some kind of metal floor for her, but I soon realized that it wasn't the best solution. Add to the situation that Maizy is a massive chewer and that I was buying her new blankets from the thrift store every few weeks, and I decided that the solution to our crate floor situation had to be dual-purposed.
After some discussion with my brilliant boyfriend, we came up with a plan. And so, this past weekend we cut down a piece of plywood (with the aid of a neighbor who couldn't bear to see me using the manual version, and rushed over with his electric saw in order to do the cut for me quicker than his estimated "three seconds"), dug a scrap of carpet from the depths of the boyfriend's basement, and created a masterpiece!
Tada!
I present to you: Maizy's shiny new carpeted floor. This was a simple and cheap solution (we already had all of the materials laying around) and is working out beautifully so far! And Maizy is very happy with the results as her initial reaction to her new floor was to hunch up into "resource guarding" posture lest one of the other dogs even THINK about relaxing on HER new carpeted board!
This obviously isn't a good solution for a dog that has regular accidents in their crate (Addison!) or who has a sensitive stomach that can lead to barfing (Wrigley!), but this is the perfect solution for all of Maizy's issues. If it isn't, I don't know that yet, but will keep you updated in the following weeks to see if there are any major issues with her carpeted floor.
I've also included one bonus photo, which includes all four pups in their crates with the doors shut and their dinners sitting in front of them waiting VERY patiently to be given the "okay" before diving in. They are such well-beahaved sweetstuffs (sometimes).
A few months ago, I received an email inviting Maizy and I to come teach Doga at Chicago's 2nd annual Dog Day on the Green event to be held at Montrose Harbor. I was so excited and happily agreed. Well, the event was yesterday and we had a blast! Here are some pictures:
On the way there, Maizy was enjoying our beautiful (and hot!) end-of-summer Chicago weather.
Teaching some Doga to the people and dogs willing to brave the hot sun in front of the stage.
Meeting John Garcia from Best Friends' Dog Town in Utah! We really loved talking to him.
Maizy was being a hilarious priss about using any of the communal dog bowls provided at the event, but it was hot so I knew she was thirsty. So, we stopped by this conveniently-placed drinking fountain which she took right to (with some help from mom).
Friday, June 11, 2010
Hello everyone! Well, last month was a very busy month, so excuse my absence from the blog once again! All is well here with the pups. Maizy's tail is healing up well and Probert, who decided to follow suit with a more minor (non-surgical) tail wound of his own is also healing his tail. I am just not sure what is with those dogs, but the two of them are now referred to as the "tail twins" on most occasions.
Wrigley and Addison are also doing well. My boyfriend recently scored a whole messload of athletic balls from a trash pile and the dogs have been loving the unending supply of basketballs and footballs that appear from the garage every time an old ball is killed. It's adorable. And a cheap source of entertainment for sure!
Well, vet season continued last week with vet visits for Maizy, Probert, and Addy. The last two pups are doing great, but Miss Maizy had a big problem! Under her fur, we discovered a hidden mystery wound on her tail that she had not let me know about it any way and which had apparently been there for a while, causing the end of her tail to die!!! I spent the next several days trying to get her to leave her (now shaved) tail alone until she could have a surgery to amputate the damaged end. This was not easy.
Her surgery yesterday went amazingly well and she is doing great, with the exception of one thing - the CONE. She is a big dog and needs a 30" cone to prevent her from reaching her tail. She is also a terrible navigator and has been banging and tripping all over the house. She hasn't even been home 24 hours and the cone has become dented and mangled. We have 10 days total until her stitches can be removed and I hope we all survive.
Check out this great new lamp! It goes so good with my Eames rocker.
The magnolia tree in the backyard is blooming and the days here in Chicago have gotten so beautiful! The "little dogs" (Probert and Addy) are getting daily walks now and the "big dogs" (Maizy and Wrigley) are spending lots of time in the backyard while I lounge in the hammock. I was in Texas for a week, so it was nice to come back to similar temperatures here at home! Also, I missed my pups! Here are some portraits from yesterday:
Here is Addy on our walk today. She has taken to carrying her pink kong on every single walk that we go on, which is totally cute and charms the heck out of me (and some others). This is Probert's move on a walk when he wants to sniff something and doesn't want me to drag him along. It is both totally cute and annoying to watch him army-crawl through yards taking in all of the sniffs and totally slowing down the pace. Yesterday I was finally able to pick up a refill of Maizy's new meds and so she is back to feeling great! She had run out right before I left for Texas and her doctor hadn't written the prescription yet, but we got a donated bottle of the name brand as well as a written prescription for the generic (which is like $7 a month compared to over $50). Very exciting. Wrigley still refuses to pay attention when I am trying to take a picture of him outdoors. There are SO MANY THINGS to be vigilant of, and he does not disappoint.
So, a few weeks ago, I took Maizy in to see yet another orthopaedic specialist about her unusual gait and knee issues. After leaving her there for the day, he determined that she does have one partially and one fully torn ACL in her knees. The surgery that he could do would not repair the tears, but would only shave down the bones to try to slow the progression of the related arthritis. However, his statement to me that she would always have a "high degree" of lameness has put me off of doing the surgery. It just doesn't seem right to me to put her through surgery, rest, recovery, and then another surgery (opposite knee) with more rest and recovery. So, instead, I opted to try her on an NSAID for the arthritis to see if that would help. And what do you know, she's like a new dog! Bouncing around like a puppy and happy as can be. So, I've contacted her regular vet about getting a prescription (the generic "human" variety is cheaper than the branded "dog" version... same medication, less dollars) and I will keep her on that. I know so many people who have had good results with ACL surgeries with their dogs, but I just don't think it's the right thing to do for Maizy when there's so little chance that it will help her enough to be worth the process. Being a dog parent is fully of so many hard decisions!!
P.S. The picture above is from a few weeks ago when Maizy and I led a Doga (yoga for you and your dog!) class at Best Friends All for Doggies in Chicago with all proceeds going to One Tail at a Time rescue!!!
Hi friends, we hope that you are all doing well. Things have been crazy and busy for us here, which is really no excuse for not updating, but I'm using it anyway. The dogs are all doing well and I am adjusting to being a full-time single dog (and cat) mom. It helps (I guess?) that I was also laid off from my full-time job and now have a lot of free time to spend with the pups! At least for the time being.
Anyway, here are some pictures that I neglected to share from recent months...
Here is Miss Maizy A in November after a day of vet procedures. She is FINE, but was feeling a little beat up when she came home. The no-bite collar was not popular. In December, we had a lovely last-minute Christmas tree that was enjoyed (and not destroyed!) by all of the pets. Our first full-sized Christmas tree. It was a wonderful holiday. That is Justice admiring the tree. Here are two recent pictures from last week. Maizy and Probert enjoying a delicious pear and Addy hunting for lost treasures under the love seat with a guest appearance from Wrigley's butt. Also, we have had a very special new addition to the pack as of late, Greta! Greta is a three-year old GSD/mystery mix dog who belongs to my boyfriend (!) and comes to visit often. Her and Wrigley have really hit it off and I have some adorable videos of the two of them that I will share soon. So now we are a five-dog pack on some days! It's a full house, but we couldn't be having more fun.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Hello to all of our two-legged, three-legged, and four-legged friends (and anyone we missed)! A few weeks ago, my computer broke and then I went out of town for a week, so I haven't been able to update the blog. As it is, I still haven't set up my newly repaired computer so that I can get the photos off my camera, but that is coming. You will have to settle for words for now.
The pups are doing great. It is "vet season" I guess because in the past two months Wrigley, Maizy, and Probert have all been in to see the vet for their necessary yearly visits. Wrigley's visit was mostly uneventful minus the news that he is overweight. Since he is getting the same level of exercise as the ideally-weighted Addy, Maizy, and Probert, our only choice was to cut his food down. Poor Wrigley. Though, having been away from him for nearly a week last week, when I saw him again with "fresh" eyes he looked thinner to me! I guess we'll see how he does!
Maizy's visit was exciting in that she required a tooth cleaning, x-rays (to take to a new ortho doc), had an ear infection, and had a little arm scab that she kept tearing open. She came home from her tooth cleaning appointment in a No-Bite collar limping from hip manipulation and having lost a tooth that just fell out during the dental! Only six years old and she is falling apart! She is an angel about her ear medicine, though, and her arm healed after a few days in the collar (which she hated. a lot).
Probert's visit last night was good. The doctor took blood in order to test his liver as she thinks he will be on his medication long-term and wants to be sure it's not affecting his liver. He also needs his teeth cleaned, so I will be scheduling a dental for him soon. He also had a little mass aspirated and we'll find out what that was. Luckily, everything else is great, so we got out of there relatively unscathed!
Addy doesn't see the vet until April, so she is plenty happy about that!
This weekend was an eventful one for the pups. On Saturday, Maizy made her glorious return to therapy dogging by working at the local library again. We had 4 kids signed up to read to her and she was so so so good. I had bought an extra copy of Demo and brought that along to donate to the library in Maizy's name, so hopefully she will be hearing that story soon! On Saturday we heard part of a Goosebumps story about worms, and The Cat in the Hat Comes Back read by siblings. We also heard Hooray for Fly Guy! about a fly who plays football. The last one was read by a grandmother because the child was disabled and could not read. He did like dogs, though, and he REALLY liked football! Maizy was an angel the whole time we were at the library, so I was proud of her. She was especially adorable while resting her head in a little girl's lap and looking up at her as she read. She is a nice dog.
On Sunday, Probert had his first ever day of school! I took him over for a private session with our favorite trainer, Rendy from Anything is Pawsible. Professional training is part of the program laid out to manage Probert's anxiety by his vet and our session was really productive! We worked on desensitizing him to the Halti, staying with distractions, saying hello, and got a lot of great tips about how to manage some of his more difficult behaviors. Probert warmed right up to Rendy, which was adorable. It was interesting to me to notice how when she tried to get him to play with a toy, he would get excited about her excitement, but not know what she expected him to do with a ball or a rope. Sometimes at home he will pick up a toy and carry it for a second, but he always drops it. He doesn't really understand how to play. I get so used to it, but to be reminded of it is so sad. Then again, I have to remember that this is the same dog who used to move as far away as possible and then flatten himself to the ground every time a car drove by while we were on walks and I know that he has come so far. There's still more work to do, but he can definitely do it.
So, we have a lot to work on and so far, the work at home has been going well. Probert is a smart little dog. I also had some good conversation with Rendy about our decision to medicate Probert which reinforces that we did the right thing. Looking at him now as compared to pre-medication, I could not be happier with our decision. The medication has clearly freed up some space in his mind to work on being a dog without the incessent anxiety and fear. And as Rendy said, "You clearly have not turned this dog into a coffee table." :)
Here is a video of one of Probert's favorite "games," and probably the only one he has figured out how to play. I like it because you can hear all of his snuffling to find the treats. This game is called "Find It" and I throw little treats into the rug for Probert and Maizy to find (they do this well together and the competition keeps them working, but I wouldn't do this with a dog who resource guards from other dogs). The rug hides them enough that they use their noses more than their eyes. They didn't get this game at first, so I contained it to one side of the rug, then expanded slowly. Now we can play this game on the big living room rug or I can start to move treats off the rug into other parts of the kitchen (you'll see in the video that one rolls away and Maizy digs it out from under the counter). This method of slow expansion has worked well to make sure that everyone "gets" what the goal is. Let me know if there are other variations that you play with your dog!
Yesterday while out and about, Maizy and I stopped and bought her a shiny new dog seat belt for the car. (We also went to Natural Pet Market in Wheaton, which Maizy LOVED and which is owned by friend to pit bulls, Tracy!)
(Yeah, you never want to have to ride in my back seat... it is dog hair city.)
Maizy and Justice both looking nervous about being so close to each other. To be fair, Maizy has the most to worry about because Justice is always the one attacking her. She always acts like a lady.
The Pinups for Pitbulls Team: Michele with Frankie, Jesse, Nicole with Addy and Maizy, Trish, and Gina.
The Chicago PAWS Walk For Their Lives yesterday was a great time! Everyone returned from last year, plus a few new additions, so we had a great group (all ladies, by the way)! This year I had started a "team" for Pinups for Pitbulls and we raised over $1000 between us, beating our goal.
The weather was beautiful for the end of September in Chicago, so no complaints there. The walk was long and we took many breaks because of our little fwee wegged friend, Addy, who was worn out by all the walking. She refused to be carried very far or to ride in a stroller (we tried!), so we walked at her pace. Jesse quite nimbly handed out Pinups for Pitbulls fliers to people walking with pit bulls (we had a fun time trying to spot the pitties). By the time we got back the the finish line, they had disassembled it and there was no one there to cheer for our accomplishment. Boo.
The walk had about 4,000 participants this year and I think the money raised was in the neighborhood of $250,000! Great news!
We didn't hang around too long, but we did have to go to the doggie massage tent so that Maizy, Addy, and Frankie could get a well-deserved massage. Also, Maizy spent some time playing in the water (which was meant for drinking). This video I took cracks me up. Look at how wet Addy is from her unexpected splashing.
On the way home, we made a well-deserved stop at Fritz Pastry which I cannot recommend enough if you are in Chicago. The food they make is delicious and some of their items are even vegan (ask for which items are vegan, but I recommend the coffee cake or the blueberry muffin). They also have a great little outdoor deck that is perfect for tired doggies.
Wow, we have been slacking on updating this past weeks! Sorry about that. I saw that some people asked how Probert is doing in his new crate and the answer is "pretty good"! There have been a few incidents where we've come home and the crate is moved (and a little bent), but overall, things in crate land seem to be better than they were. **Knock on wood.**
Nothing of particular interest has been going on. The pups have been playing, biteyfacing, walking, running, tugging, and chasing more than ever now that the weather has cooled down a little bit. In fact, Maizy was outside helping me in the garden the other day and I took this picture.
"Nope, not done yet!"
Addy has been doing well in advanced obedience classes. There is only one other dog in class this time around, which has been fantastic. Lots of space and attention for both dogs. We are still working on some of her barking, but everything seems to be going well! Last week on our way home from school, Addy and I saw a huge rainbow that went right over the Chicago Loop. I could only get a picture of half of it, but managed to get the passing El train as well as the Sears Tower.
Addy enjoyed it, too:
And since Wrigley is the only one I haven't mentioned in this entry, I should mention that Wrigley is doing good, too. He and Addy have been wrestling and biteyfacing and generally creating chaos every free second that they have together. It is both adorable and a constant tripping hazard!
