More Wrestling!

The big shocking news at our house this week is that Salinas has decided that she likes to play with Gorky. You have to understand Sal to know why this is so shocking. While she is quite playful with her toys, tossing them to herself and chasing after balls, when another dog tries to engage her in play she gives a slight curl of her lip and walks away. It's weird because more than any of my other dogs she does best having another dog around, but she just likes to co-exist with them - no playing.

But for some reason she has decided she loves wrestling with Gorky. Unlike her sister Chima, Gork isn't so vocal and intense in his play so Sal doesn't get nervous that this might end up being dangerous.

Taking a break

It started with just a few short matches to try it out but now, a few days later, and they will spend a good 20 minutes wrestling, giving themselves short breaks when they get tired or the wrestling gets too intense. It has been a joy to watch them.

Chima and Frodo are a bit irritated by it, but they are always a bit irritated if they aren't the ones having the most fun.

Frodo on fun patrol

And the result of so much wrestling? A very tired Sal and Gorky.

Sleepy Sal

Salinas' decision that she likes Gorky still doesn't apply to when she's resting and he wants to hang out next to her. Although after he used her head to kick of the couch to chase a ball, I can't really blame her for that.

Apologies for all the leaves on the carpet. The dogs bring them in when they whoosh in the door from outside and there always seem to be a few more, along with fir needles recently.

Adopted!

Who's adopted? Salinas is! And where is she going? Nowhere. We have thought long and hard about this since we really never wanted to add another dog to the pack, but the reality is that Salinas has pretty much been ours for awhile now and so we are making it official and adopting her.

The longer she was with us, the clearer it became how strong the bond between Sal and Chima was and how difficult a time she would have if she had to be separated from her, even to go to the very best of adopters. Unlike Chima, Sal is pretty brittle when experiencing new situations and environments and although we work on this she's never going to be a dog  who happily embraces change without her sister by her side. She finds life a bit scary and having Chima there to blaze the way gives her a bit of resiliency that she doesn't naturally have on her own.

And Chima would have struggled with the loss of Sal as well although she is more resilient so would have eventually bounced back, I believe.

We didn't just adopt her because it would be tough for her to manage life without Chima, though. She's a wonderful, sweet dog who is full of love and snuggles and does great with other dogs so she is a wonderful "addition" to our family.

So for those followers of "The Great Adventures of Chima and Sal" there will be many more posts to follow with I am sure, many more laughs. They are definitely a couple of very silly girls.

Sunny Saturday

It's that time of year in the Pacific Northwest where panic starts to set it. Each time there is a clear sunny day we start to panic that it might be the last one until late Spring. Because of that there is almost a maniacal need to be outside every moment the sky is clear.

Yesterday was one of those days - beautiful, clear, and temps in the low 70's. So the dogs and I were out enjoying the great weather and working in the yard - me doing a bit of weeding and them continuing to develop their master plan to oust some rodent who has moved in under the shed. They are frustrated that I nixed their "dig it out" idea.

Pictures below are of some sunbathing the dogs were doing. Tuttle found that too boring so kept himself busy exploring.

Salinas, Tilly and Frodo enjoyed sunning on the bench beneath the bamboo while Chima chose the deck

Tuttle thinks sunning is boring so instead inspected the fountain

When to Bend

Most of us have had the idea driven into our brains that we are the bosses in our relationship with our dogs. In this mindset the dog is the lesser creature and does all the adjusting to live in our world. I think though that there is a difference in being "the boss" and being a leader. And a good leader understands that compromise is not a sign of weakness.

Chima, Salinas and Frodo

Why am I rambling on about this? Yesterday I was down on the ground playing with the dogs and I realized how different my interactions were with each dog. Salinas got snuggles and even semi-confining hugs. I flopped on top of her, in a mini-pin that she could easily escape and she was in heaven. Salinas craves touch and so my interactions with her include tons of it. My elderly dog Tilly is like this as well.

Frodo though is about action. He wants to be chasing and darting around with pets in between as long as they aren't grabby. Tug and fetch and growling at each other is how we interact. I talk a lot at Frodo and he talks back. A lot.

Finally we have Chima who finds touch aversive. She's doesn't seem to find it scary but she just doesn't enjoy it and her skin will shudder a bit with each pet. So Chima and I found a way to interact that is comfortable to both of us. No hands are used - just heads. When I make a smoochy noise at her she will come and touch noses. We will headbutt each other, I'll rub my cheek on hers and she'll reciprocate. Often she'll get playful and she might invite me to some wrestling time with her.

Had I insisted on petting her as my way of interacting she wouldn't have snapped at me or completely avoided me. But our relationship would not be nearly as close as it is with me respecting her need for hands free interaction. It now has a depth and a playfulness I never thought possible when I first met this rather aloof, regal girl.

Had I been rigid about a goal of getting Chima to the point where she wanted tons of petting, I probably would have failed and both Chima and I would be frustrated with each other. I could have gotten her to the point where she would tolerate it but just tolerating one's life is a pretty sad way to live. Kind of like an introvert forced to work in a job where they are constantly working with people - it can be done but it takes its toll.

So consider making a few compromises in your interactions with your dog. If we expect them to be respectful of us, we really should reciprocate. And amazing things can happen in a relationship built on mutual respect.

100 Dogs

Besides just being cute and sweet, there's something else that is special about Rothko. He is our family's 100th foster dog!

Rothko - Foster dog #100

We bought our first Rat Terrier, Frodo, from a breeder in December of 2005 and over the next year we fell so in love with the little guy that we considered getting a second Rat Terrier. We weren't sure though so I had the idea of fostering for a Rat Terrier Rescue. I figured then we could have that "2nd dog" but would be saving more than just the one we would save if we adopted a dog. And now here we are, with three Rat Terriers of our own, two foster Rat Terriers and 98 others we have fostered over the last seven years.

My heart dog, Frodo

Initially in 2007 we were fostering for another Rat Terrier organization and our first ten foster dogs were through that group. When New Rattitude formed in August 2008 we changed groups and have been with New Rattitude ever since.

Our first foster dog, Smudge

Weirdly, our first foster dog wasn't even a Rat Terrier. He was a tiny black Chihuahua puppy with a broken leg who we named Smudge. I cried for a whole weekend after he was adopted but decided I could live with the pain of goodbyes if it meant more dogs could be saved. So often people say to me "well, I just wouldn't have the heart to let go of them!" The reality is if you really have a heart, you let them go, knowing that there are hundreds of others waiting for that life saving foster spot. Happily it got much easier to say goodbye the longer we fostered. It wasn't that I loved the foster dogs any less, I just learned how to think of them as someone elses's dog and over time I saw that the families they went to gave them wonderful lives.

Catty, one of our more challenging foster dogs whose adopter has become a close friend

In the past seven years the dogs have taught me so much. I've dealt with just about every physical malady in dogs that I had heard of and some that I had never heard of. I've also dealt with some very gross stuff that only a dog could share with you - dogs eating poop and then puking it up on the carpet an hour later, a dog who left tapeworms in my bed, and every weird wiggly worm that could come out of a dog has graced our doggy septic tank.  

Mama Star and our first (and hopefully last) litter of foster puppies

My understanding of dogs has deepened as well. Whereas I started out thinking of them simply as cute pets, I now appreciate how nuanced their personalities can be and how amazingly complex their language of movement, gestures, and body language is. It fascinates me so much that I now attend many seminars a year to learn how animals learn, how they relate to people and to other dogs, how to help them manage and overcome fear, what makes them tick....

Our 10th foster Tilly was the first highly fearful dog that we fostered. We adopted Tilly and she has made amazing progress over the six years we've had her. She's now 13 years old

They have pushed me to the edge emotionally a few times as well. I've fostered and done behavioral rehabilitation on a few very difficult dogs and of course those are the dogs who taught me the most about both dogs and about myself.

Callista came to us from a shelter in Texas and had been infected with distemper. It was the first time we had to deal with a major disease. Sadly Callista had to be euthanized when the disease moved into her brain. It was one of my most difficult times in fostering. We also had two puppies at the time who caught the disease from her and one pup died and one lived.

It has become a huge part of who I am and is an amazingly fulfilling job and I thank my family for all of their support and help with caring for the dogs. I also thank the volunteers that I work closely with both as fellow foster parents and as a regional rescue coordinator for the Pacific Northwest. Now, onto the next 100!

Our current pack: Tilly, Salinas, Chima and Frodo

If you've ever thought of fostering, New Rattitude is a great organization to work with. They give tons of support, offer stipends for food, pay veterinary medical expenses, cover flea and heartworm preventative and more. To learn more about fostering with New Rattitude go to www.newrattitude.org/foster.htm

Play Nice!

Chima is by far the most playful dog in our family but due to her size and her intensity, she often scares the crap out of the other dogs. It's sad because she wants to play so bad, but typically this is how a play session goes: 1) Chima initiates play. 2) other dog accepts and bitey face/wrestling begins. 3) Chima gets excited and barks intensely in the dog's face pushing them into a corner. 4) Game over.

That scenario plays out for the most part in less than 15 seconds. Often it ends in a fight, me yelling and both dogs freaked out. We have been in this rut for a long time so recently I decided I needed to change things up so that Chima had a chance to be successful and get some play time. Since Serra wants to play with Chima still and hasn't been scarred by Chima's attempts I decided to work with her and Chima this week before she heads to her adoptive home.

Next stop: Lucha libre?!:  El Perro Loco vs La Cobra de Rosa

The problem is that Chima gets overstimulated so quickly that the play turns into a fight. How I started working on this is I let the play get initiated, let each girl get a bitey face move in and then I created a distraction so they back off each other and look at me. They then get that "break" reinforced with treats and/or praise and then when they discover I'm not that interesting they go back to playing. I keep at this, always monitoring play so that I don't give Chima the chance of driving herself into a frenzied barking fit. You can see an example of this in the video below. Slowly but surely the length of play lengthens before I step in and distract the girls into taking a break. And then miraculously over the course of a morning Chima starts to give herself breaks. Better yet, she will even pause when Serra steps back to take a breather and respect Serra's need for a break.

Note the tennis ball fuzz hanging stuck in Chima's mouth

As we have new fosters who are willing and able to play with Chima, we'll keep practicing this. The bad news is that she's practiced the intense level of play for a long time so that's a lot of momentum to overcome. However, the longer we practice successful play with built in breaks, the more she will be reinforced by this type of play. Previously, the play always ended in a pretty overwhelming, way that was no fun. But now she gets reinforced by more play, and lots of praise and occasionally treats when breaks are inserted into the play. That is a lot more fun and worth doing more of. And that is how we will make that behavior worth continuing.

Serra attempts the controversial butt pin

It's easy for us humans to get stuck in a pattern of behavior with our dogs - yelling and reacting to something that frustrates us. But the reality is that the behavior is not going to change if we, as the adult guardian, don't step in and provide some positive guidance to get things on the right track. For Chima and I, all it took to get that change started after a year of frustration was one morning of me consistently paying attention. And the payoff for that is reinforcing to me as well as Chima. Because it sure is tough not to feel happy as I watch her wiggle and flop herself around on the floor, tail wagging madly and Chewbacca sounding noises coming deep from her throat.

And now just for fun, watch how Sal enjoys playing by herself, completely oblivious to the mayhem whirling about her as she focuses on her favorite pasttime: toy destruction.

Just chewing on her ball

Serra and Chima roll closer but Sal is oblivious

They now wrestle over the top of her and she is still unphased

The result of such concentration? Successful tennis ball destruction and a carpet covered with yellow fuzz

Serra: Introductions

I know I've posted about this before, but MAN is it amazing what a difference introducing dogs on a walk makes. I've seen dogs go from stressed out barking messes to just strolling along next to each other in 10 minutes. And that 10 minutes can save a person weeks or more of trying to remedy a botched introduction.

Because we have a fenced back yard with plenty of space for the dogs to roam, and because it takes 2 people to properly introduce new dogs on a walk, I often will just have two dogs meet in the back yard where they can move away from each other if they feel they need distance and the dogs can set the speed of the introduction. While this works somewhat, with Chima it often can take two to three days before she relaxes enough where I don't have to be so hyper-vigilant and careful about managing things.

Because Serra seems to have a bit of Jack Russell in her and occasionally charges at dogs to get them to play with her, I knew that Chima would not react well to her so I enlisted my husband and off we went on a walk.

We started off with the dogs on the outsides of each of us. Sometimes we have to start across the street from each other but this time we could start walking together. The key to success is watching the dogs body language so you know when they have gotten relaxed. Then you bring them a little closer together. I also like to have them do what I call stealth butt sniffs. The person walking the dog in front walks at a normal, leisurely pace with the dog leashed next to them. The other person lets their dog get up close enough to get a little bit of a sniff in and then they immediately slow down and create some distance before the front dog has time to get nervous about the sniffing. This gets repeated several times until the dog isn't really interested in more sniffing. Then we switch places so the other dog gets their turn sniffing.

Typically at this point following the sniffs the dogs noticeably relax and are fine being walked side to side. We walk back to our house and instead of going inside we end the walk with off leash time in the back yard - just the two dogs and us. At that point the dogs are old news to each other and other than doing a bit of sniffing they do great.

Serra and Chima, sniffing and keeping calm

This walk I decided to let Salinas out to join Chima and Serra and the difference between her reaction to Serra and Chima's in the back yard was amazing. Chima was relaxed enough that she just lay down after a bit in the grass while Serra was playing and bouncing around. Salinas on the other hand stayed on her feet and did a lot of avoidance of Serra and obviously wasn't that comfortable.

Chima, all chill after her walk and Sal, still working on getting relaxed

Hanging out after introductions to Serra

Are they all best buddies now? Not at all. Serra is a 1 year old dog who is very puppy-like in her play and she tends to get in Chima and Sal's face. Chima is doing her best to ignore this and keep her distance which makes me very proud. When I can tell she's had enough I try to step in and distract Serra but Serra has gotten a few reprimands from Chima to mind her manners. What people need to remember is not all dogs are going to be best friends. Just like the temperament of some people is really annoying to a person, the same holds true for dogs. But they can live together in relative harmony and that is what we are going for here.

The pictures in this post were taken immediately after Chima and Serra's introduction walk. If you want to learn more about how to do an intro walk and see pictures of it, check out this post over on A Day in the Life of a New Rattitude Foster Dog.

Welcoming Hartley to the Pack

While there was the threat of rain today, so far it's been pretty dry so I took advantage of that and started working at introducing Hartley to the rest of the crew. She met Frodo last night and they were completely fine together but I know sometimes it can be a bit intimidating for new kids to meet "Thelma and Louise" aka Chima and Sal.

Hartley giving Sal a sniffdown

We started out meeting Salinas and that went pretty well. She's great with introductions as long as the dog doesn't try to hump her or spend too much time with their nose in her butt. Hartley did a bit of lip curling but we kept everyone moving and I weaved in and out between the two of them so there was never enough time for either to get offended at anything. Then it was back inside for a break.

Chima, Salinas and Frodo

About an hour later I let Hartley and Salinas out and then brought out Chima on a leash with a treat pouch at my waste to keep everyone's attention on me. Chima did really well and after a few minutes I let her off leash and then played a recall game with her to keep her calm and also to keep her from obsessing about Hartley. By playing this way she would get a short chance to sniff at Hartley but I would call her to me before there was time for Hartley to get worried and curl her lip. Chima would tear back to me, get reinforced for being such a good girl with a bit of jerky and then off she'd go back to her investigations.

Hartley

Salinas

We spent about 15-20 minutes this way and then everyone went back inside for some separated nap times so we could end things on a positive note before anyone had a chance to get overwhelmed and snippy.

Hartley is still a bit nervous but it's just her first day and she's had to meet 4 dogs AND have a bath so I can't blame her. 

I'm proud of them all. This was their first time meeting and we were able to get all the dogs out at the same time. Hartley stayed calm and was even able to relax enough to continue her tour of the back yard. In a few more days she should be all settled in and one of the pack.

Hartley's definitely a pretty girl

O'Keefe and the Pack

While O'Keefe isn't real excited about other dogs he's also not completely freaked out by them either. He's not a guy who has to be kept separate from other dogs but I am just careful that when he's interacting with dogs that I'm paying full attention to their interactions. If someone starts to seem more uncomfortable (or in Chima's case, more snarky) I get in the middle of things and redirect their attention onto me by playing some games. Our goal is fun, not fights.

The best way to keep things positive and relaxed is to keep the dogs interested in things other than each other. I walk around a lot to keep things moving and sometimes we practice cues that each of them are working on. When the treats are flowing and the fun level is high, that means that it's one more positive experience that I've given O'Keefe to help him realize that dogs can be fun.

Today we made the most of the sunshine and took lots of outside breaks. Chima, Salinas and him had a lot of fun sniffing around, and we played recall games as well as practicing cues for touch, spin, and sit.

The longer he's here, the more comfortable he is around the girls, and also the girls are cutting him more slack and not getting as offended when he happens to run into them or land on them when he's bouncing.

Both dogs are not so sure about being close together. You can see that they are leaning slightly away from each other.

O'Keefe decides he's a little too close for comfort and moves apart and lifts his paw in an appeasement gesture. Chima's not taking her eyes off the treats though.

I'm proud of him because he has learned to moderate himself around the girls and in turn, Chima has decided he might be kind of fun and today actually dropped into play position, inviting him to chase. They are all doing great!

Sunny Slumber

It's wet and cold today but I thought I'd post some photos from yesterday when it was a beautiful sunny, spring day. O'Keefe and Frodo were too busy exploring the yard to sunbathe but all three girls were happy to take in the heat with a sunny snooze.

A contemplative Chima

Sal goes "splat"

Little Tilly kicking back near the fountain

Can't wait for more days like this. Here comes the sun!

Helping with Yard Work

Salinas checking in the fern for any interesting critters

Typical view of Chima: - burrowing underneath plants to check for anything worth chasing or snacking on

It was a bit drizzly on Sunday but still, the temperate rain made for good weather to weed and cut things back. The dogs found this fascinating since the ten plus large Western Sword Ferns needed to be cut back carefully which made for lots of yard waste for them to dig through. It also opened up a lot of areas around the deck for them to check out but I do think Chima misses the ferns since they made great places to tunnel through. No worries Chima - they'll grow back to normal in no time.

Salinas and Chima check out the fern I'm cutting back. I think all the dogs where a bit horrified that I was ruining their best tunneling areas.

"Why?!"

Frodo didn't like all the dirt and mess so he quickly went back inside to watch the work from the comfort of the back of the couch. The girls enjoyed it though, and since it's that time of year where yard work is a constant chore to keep things under control, they will get many chances to "help".

They also spent a fair amount of time sniffing and climbing on the wood pile. Klee just used it as a puppy jungle gym.

But Salinas was all business, digging around in the wood to check for any intruding rodents

Chima's Epic Rodent Hunt

Chima is very much a working terrier in temperament. She's independent, not sure human are worth her time, and nothing in her life could ever be as amazing as hunting small critters. I've had terriers before who barked and made a racket when they scented the trail of a rodent but Chima doesn't bark, she screams. A scream that sounds a bit like a dog being tortured and makes neighbors wonder (aloud) if you are beating your dog.

When not actively hunting, Chima loves to patrol for critters who dare to invade her lair 

But as much as she finds me mostly useless since I can't help her catch critters, I love her enough for both of us. She makes me laugh daily and definitely gives me plenty of interesting stories. Ever since the bathroom trash cans have been locked out of Frodo's reach we've had a deficit of funny stories in this house so it's nice to have some fresh material.

A couple days ago after I came home from work I let the dogs out like I usually do. We had an hour between getting home from work and leaving for Chima's Nose Work class and I try to spend most of it as a playtime for the dogs. Chima tore down to the woodpile as per usual for a cursory check for any rodents who might have returned and that was when the screaming began. Bamboo quaked, logs flew through the air and then through the hedge shot Chima mouth wide open in the song of her people.

She launched herself through 3' tall Western sword ferns and then scrambled on her belly under our 14" tall deck. That was when an epic battle began. It lasted 50 minutes and involved a long stretch of landscaping tube. Apparently, some unlucky rodent parents had chosen a smart place to build a house - nice, dry, and dark - but you know the saying, "location, location, location." They really shouldn't have chosen Terrier Ghetto as their neighborhood.

Under the deck I could hear what sounded like Chewbacca battling a 6' long monster. Much groaning and moaning was heard with the occasional screech of anger and every once in awhile a length of tube would whip out from under the deck and back under before I could grab it.

I gave up and the other dogs and I went inside and every couple minutes I stuck my head out the sliding door to listen if the battle continued. It did.

Finally, 10 minutes before we had to leave for Nose Work class, I tricked her into poking her head out from under the deck and the look on her face was priceless. Utter joy and amazement like she was saying "OMG! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT I FOUND UNDER THERE!"  In a true show of progress thanks to training, I was able to get her collar and then using copious amounts of freeze dried tripe so she wouldn't freak out about me holding onto her collar, got her in the house.

She was dirty, grass stained and stinky but, dang, she was happy and off to Nose Work we went so she could ignore me some more while she hunted, this time with me paying for the privilege. That evening my husband managed to drag the evil tube out from under the deck and he left it in the middle of the yard, planning on disposing of it over the weekend. Yesterday this led to much merriment as Chima continued to work on the tube. I got some great photos and then the tube went bye-bye before Chima injured herself in her excitement.

Chima and Salinas wait it out on either end

Remnants of the nest and a couple peanut shells - you can see she had attempted chewing  the tube open under the deck

First she tried scratching it out with her paw

Then she tried poking her nose into it

Then she tried to shove her head into while walking. Alas, the nest stayed just out of reach.