Ear Wars

First it started with Juniper. A couple days before she went home her left ear popped up.

On Sunday it was Mesquite's turn and up went his right ear.

Looks like our pups are growing up!

Hangin' with the grown ups

Since Juniper has moved to her new home, Mesquite is the only puppy in the house. He's actually taking it much better than I expected he might, keeping himself busy with toys and chews. But since one puppy is much less obnoxious for the adult dogs to deal with than 3 puppies, he's been getting to spend more time with the grown up doggies.

Just hanging out and keeping tabs on what's going on in the kitchen

As long as interaction is carefully supervised, I don't think there can be any better learning experience for a young puppy than to hang out with some adult dogs who have a good dog to dog social skills. While Chima and Salinas are quite leery of new humans, their social skills with other dogs are pretty great. Of course, everyone has a limit to their patience so I try to make sure they get plenty of puppy-free time.

Muzzle licks are Mesquite's specialty

Mesquite does a pretty good job and will eventually listen to Sal and Chima, but sometimes the girls will have to ramp it up to a growl or even a pin if he's not listening to them tell him to take it down a notch. These are great lessons for our little puppy boy and he is good at showing them he heard them loud and clear by giving them a muzzle lick or at times rolling on his back or crouching down low.

"I come in puppy peace!"

He's a great little puppy though, and learns quickly. He's going to be a spectacular furry friend.

Juniper has been adopted!

Sweet Juniper has been such a joy to foster. I really love her somewhat clingy and snuggly brother, however, the best thing about Junie is her strong, independent terrier spirit. She may be one of the tiniest pups of the litter, but she doesn't let that slow her down. When all the other dogs are ready to come inside and kick back for awhile, Juniper is still fine with being out on her own (with me watching of course) exploring and hunting. She is all terrier - not really finding a need to check in with me because she's pretty sure that she can handle things on her own.

Because of her very independent and opinionated personality I am happy to say she has been adopted by a retired couple who have lots of experience with terriers and love them best for their big attitude in a small package. Juniper definitely has a double dose of terrier 'tude so I think they will really enjoy her personality.

So congratulations to Juniper (now called Junebug) and the Phillips! Enjoy your life together as a family and may you have many wonderful adventures together.

Rescue Railroad: Two new foster dogs in our WA foster homes!

It's that time again! We've got two new foster dogs who are arriving tomorrow night and I'm excited to introduce them.

Eddie

First we have Eddie. Eddie was found wandering the streets by animal control in Lassen County, California. This good looking teenage dog was in the shelter for awhile and had run out of time. The alert went out that his time was up and he was about to be euthanized and New Rattitude stepped up to take him. He's about 10-12 months old and best guess for weight is 15 pounds. Welcome to the pack, Eddie! So glad you're safe. Eddie will be fostered in Marysville, Washington.

Annie

Our second dog is sweet and shy Annie. She's about 1.5 to 2 years and was surrendered to New Rattitude when her mom moved and couldn't take her dogs with her. Annie is a purebred Teddy Roosevelt Terrier (type B rat terrier) and weighs about 13 pounds. She'll be fostered in Monroe, Washington by our newest set of foster parents. Welcome Annie!

Spay day!

It's spay and neuter day for Juniper, Mesquite and their visiting sister, Bailey. We had them at the vet at 8 am for their drop off and Bailey and Mesquite had a LOT to say about the Springer Spaniel and 2 cats who were in line to be checked in in front of them. So much to say in fact, that everyone decided to bump me to the front of the line so we could get them out of the waiting area and have some peace. This is a high volume, affordable veterinary clinic so it is saying a lot that they those two were loud enough to get people to give up their spots in line.

While they were having their surgeries, Chima, Salinas and Frodo joined me on the couch for some glorious quiet time. I'm pretty excited that Chima is now relaxed enough with being around humans that she'll share the couch with me. In fact last night she slept next to me while I was watching TV - still 12" away from me, but this is big progress for my big terrier girl. Chima, we are proud of you!

Chima and Salinas, taking it easy while the puppies are at the vets

Anyhow, the pups came home pretty stoned on anesthesia and pain medication. Poor Mesquite was not only neutered, he had an undescended testicle they had to dig around for AND he had an umbilical hernia repaired. On top of the surgeries they also had their rabies vaccinations so they had a nice quiet evening of recovery.

Mesquite, a bit stunned

Juniper, standing in one place at last, and Frodo impersonating a gargoyle

Something only possible when pups are drugged: three puppies fully in one photo frame and all somewhat in focus

Today I'm sure they will think they are ready for full speed so I'll be busy keeping them calm, coned, and separated - no easy task with three puppies who have the energy to wrestle and play for hours at a time.

Back at home

We had a fun vacation full of sightseeing, hiking and delicious green chile. The foster dogs had their own vacations but seemed happy to see us when we went to pick them up. We also picked up one of Juniper and Mesquite's siblings, Bailey, who is staying with us for the week while her foster parents are on vacation. 

Salinas, excited and a bit overwhelmed while we gather her and her things to head home

Bailey, Mesquite and Juniper wondering what is going on

Chima - home at last - and conked out on her favorite bed

But now things are back to business so today the three puppies headed to the vet for their spays and neuter. Mesquite will also have his umbilical hernia repaired and all of them will get their final vaccination, needed prior to their adoptions being finalized. It's a big day and I have a feeling they are going to be glad when today's adventure is all over with.

Other Foster "Places": Chimayo and Taos

Our current foster dog Chima is a beautiful gal and so is the town she was named after.

Chimayo is a small town North of Santa Fe comprised of several different plazas that homes and businesses are set around. It lies along the scenic byway called the "High Road to Taos" and like all the towns along the byway is full of artists and galleries. But Chimayo is most famous for its pilgrimage site, El Santuaria de Chimayo. Here's info about the site from Wikipedia:

The Potrero plaza of Chimayó is known internationally for a Catholic chapel, the Santuario de Nuestro Señor de Esquipulas, commonly known as El Santuario de Chimayó. A private individual built it by 1816 so that local people could worship Jesus as depicted as Esquipulas; preservationists bought it and handed it over to the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in 1929. The chapel is now managed by the Archdiocese as a Catholic church. For its reputation as a healing site (believers claim that dirt from a back room of the church can heal physical and spiritual ills), it has become known as the "Lourdes of America," and attracts close to 300,000 visitors a year.

El Santuario de Chimayo and plaza

Looking straight at the church. We went inside but not to the "miracle dirt" area.

One of the many galleries in the town of Chimayo

Our final destination on the byway was of course the famous Taos Pueblo and one of our first fosters of the year was named for Taos.

Like the Pueblo atop Acoma, the ancient structures still currently in use as housing were fascinating, amazing and beautiful. Taos Pueblo was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you ever visit New Mexico I highly recommend both a visit to Acoma and to Taos if you want to better understand the native culture of the region.

One of the Pueblo structures seen from across the creek

Close up of an entrance - originally there were no doors in the structure for defensibility and all entrances were on rooftops, accessed by ladders that could be pulled up

The Pueblo church