Forever Home!

I bet you're thinking that doesnt look like Tucker or Holly's crab-grass infested lawn... and where the heck did she get the funds for that fence? and MY GOD!!! is that two dogs on furniture???

My last blog was the one I posted the day before Quinnie went to her forever home. There aren't too many foster dogs that can make me cry but I bawled like a baby when her new family packed her into their car to take her home.

Kasey and Steve applied for two of our rescue dogs and they ended up with both of them. We decided that it would be in Quinnie's best interests for her to go to a home with another dog and as it turned out they couldnt have picked a better match for her.

So here is an update that I recieved from them.

Hi holly! I wanted to check in and give you a positive update on Scout and Chloe (we changed Quinnie's name). They are doing GREAT! Chloe does not even sleep in her crate anymore and walks around the house like a normal dog...she loves to sleep on our chaise and she loves to be outside...she loves to chew on bones (LOVES them). She is not scared to come around us anymore and we even got her on the leash for walks....its been a very good transition. She is quite happy and we are so glad we adopted them both. We spoil them. -Kasey

It was a long and rewarding foster experience and one I've learned a lot from. Living with a fearful dog is heartbreaking and frustrating at one moment and yet the next, you find yourself beyond elation for the simplest of behaviors, behaviors that you would take for granted from any other dog.

One day at a time, thats all I can say.

Progress Report week 18.5

Tucker and I decided to harness Quinnie up today and take her for a walk.

She was not at all impressed with the harness and as soon as it was buckled on she went to the back of the yard, sat down by a tree and proceeded to pout.

We walked over to her and snapped the leash on her collar and then took a quick spin around the yard. She did good, lots of forward movement and while she was walking very tucked, she didnt army crawl on her belly so we decided to give it a whirl on the other side of the fence.

She's certainly not the easiest dog to walk but she did so much better than I would ever have anticipated. She army crawled a couple of time (but only for a few steps) and she also had a few episodes of some serious panicked pulling but she made it all the way to the end of the culdesac and back with out any serious drama... I'm always excited when I can walk down my street and not have my neighbors staring out thier windows and pointing.

I'm thrilled with the progress she is making. I have hopes that one day she will find the perfect home and they will send me wonderful updates about all of the little steps that the rest of us dog-owers take for granted!

In the meantime, she is such a muffin and I am getting a kick out of all of her silly antics. Lately she has decided that her favorite place to spend the evening is entwined around my legs with her head resting on my foot.

Week 13 Progress Report

Goodness, I've been slacking.

It's safe to say that Quinnie's meds have officially kicked in. I am starting to see a much more relaxed Quinnie.

My friend JB met Quinnie the first week she was with me and he has pretty much been her nemesis from day one. She has a long history of barking at him, hiding from him, and throwing herself of my steps at the mere sound of his voice. Poor JB visits here a few days every week, the other dogs love him.

Yesterday we were camped out in the living room, wrestling with Turk, Yori and Irish and just like that Quinnie walked over to him, sniffed his hands and decided he was 'in'. Needless to say, he was beside himself since he has been getting nothing but a cold shoulder for the past 3 months.

Quinnie finally is standing next to me while I am standing. I know it sounds pretty unmomentous but if for the past 3 month if I'm standing, Quinnie is crouching, its how we roll. But this afternoon we were out in the yard, and not only did Quinnie saunter right over to me (okay, perhaps it was more of a hesitant walk but it was a fully upright walk) but she she jumped up on me and tried to get some love.

Darned Yori teaching her all sorts of bad tricks. I'll be honest, ordinarily this is something I would correct but how do you say "no" to a dog that is terrified of the world and is trying to get love? It was a pretty big step for her so I grabbed her feet, set them on the ground and gave her lots of pets and kisses. She is so ridiculously cute when she puts her mind to it.

But dont worry, my crazy-girl is still in there. I've changed her bedding 3 times this week since she cant seem to resist relieving herself in her crate. Oddly no accidents on my floors in well over a month.

I also learned that while she loves stuffed pillow beds, she loves them for all the wrong reasons. I of course realized this a bit too late as I was collecting a bed's worth of stuffing from her crate and the surrounding area.

Progress Report Week 7.5

Who is this dog?

My Mom stopped by this morning to drop her dog off at my house... bet you all didnt know I run of free doggy-day-care on the side? So we're chatting, blah, blah, blah and she tells me that Quinnie lets my Mum pet her through the fence??? Wha-wha-What? When did this start? Come to find out its been going on for at least a week...

So that brings me to my next story. Yesterday evening we had visitors and I invited them into the living room. Quinnie was in her crate but the door was open. She barked initially when they came into the room and then settled right down. After a few minutes she ventured out of her crate... to be honest it was more of her bolting through the living room into the dining room and then looking wearily behind her to see if anyone had noticed. She danced around the dining room for a bit then bolted back into her crate. This went on for a few minutes. She was clearly nervous because of the guests but everything about her behavior with these strangers was different...

She looked at them with more curiousity than weariness, she stayed toward the front of the crate as opposed to pinning herself against the back, she only barked initially whereas in the past when I have had guests over every time they have shifted positions it would set her off barking again... her body was tucked but she stayed on her feet and did not army-crawl and though her tail was also tucked, it was wagging most of the time, and did I mention that she came out of her crate?

So I brought Frankie, the biggest of the puppies, into the living room with us. Frankie had a blast jumping all over the guests, running around like a cheese-head, and ofcourse playing with Quinnie. I know I have said it before but Quinnie is a sucker for puppies and she can and will ignore almost anything if there is one in front of her. So she hung out with us in the living room, climbed all over our laps, let everyone pet her, it was pretty comical. Eventually Frankie and Quinnie settled down so I sent them both out for a potty break and Quinnie came right back into the house with out a sideways glance at the door...

I would like to thank the manufactures of Prozac for this amazing evening and also my guests for their patience and understanding, and ofcourse all the people behind the scenes, and my fans, I couldnt do this without you... Oh wait, sorry, I got a bit carried away there, where is Kanye when you need him?

But seriously, how awesome is it to see a traumatized, shell-shocked animal begin to relax and begin to trust again?

Progress Report Week 7

I started Quinnie on a bit of pharmaceutical help last week. Dr Kucia and I had a discussion when I first brought Quinnie to the vet's office about considering medication to help with her fear issues. After 6 weeks I decided it was time to give something else a try. She has been on Prozac for about 10 days and so far, so good.

No side effects thus far and still waiting to see if they take effect and how.

She has been a lot more vocal this past week. She grumbles to be let out when she is in her crate when I am actively playing with the other dogs in front of her. If the puppies are running around the house she is beside herself to be out with them, lots of muttering and barking and pawing at the crate door. She does love her some puppies.

Door ways have not been an issue these past few weeks and she has not had any accidents inside the house (or her crate).

She is ridiculous in the evenings when its her time for some attention. She all but throws herself in my lap and there is lots of rolling around on her back, burrowing her head into my lap, flailing her legs around and getting up to do it all over again. Her affection is very frenzied and comical and my poor dog is so confused by it that sometimes I think he just stops and stares at her and wonders what in the world is wrong with her.

Progress report Week 5

Its been hills and valleys these past two weeks.

Quinnie has decided that we are friends, but occasionally she forgets. She will always come out of her crate for petting if I sit down in the living room but hasnt been very consistent when in the yard and hanging out in the house.

She also had a brief few days where she forgot that doorways were her friend too. Getting her inside became the chore that it used to be and on a few occasions I had to crawl around the yard to catch her and bring her back inside.

She is still a night mare on the leash, all panic and belly crawling. I brought her for a quick car ride to a nearby park and when she got out of the car she tried to crawl underneath it. To be hoenst, I have no idea what I was expecting, but, lesson learned. At this point we are just working on getting out of the house, into the car, going for a drive and coming back home without it being a traumatic experience. Lots of praise but she is so scared she could care less about treats.

Quinnie has started to bark at guests. I'm not entirely sure if that is progress or not. She is clearly scared of them but where she used to stay quiet and hope that no one noticed her in her crate she now barks in warning.

Turning Point 11.17.09

Turning point, it sounds ominous doesn't it?

Today was a great day! Earlier Quinnie and the other dogs were running around my house, I was busy at my desk, typing away, when out of nowhere this multi-colored muzzle appeared beneath my elbow and pushed my arm.

Quinnie and I are now the best of friends. I cannot sit down without her coming over to me and trying to crawl all over me to give me kisses and get some pets. She loves affection and handling and the moment I stop she starts pawing and squirming and doing everything in her power to get me to start back up again.

So, after 3 weeks of housing, feeding and cleaning up after this baby it appears that the cold war is over. I'm sure I have said this a hundred times in the 3 weeks that she has been with me, but its hard to believe this is the same dog...