Friday, July 22nd, 2016

Extra Attention

Gracie spent her extra attention time up front in the reception area with all of the staff working today. She was so smiley walking around wagging her tail making sure to say hello to everyone and get a good scratch on the head. She checked everything out before stretching out on the cool floor to relax and have a snooze in the company of her friend Merlin, a resident senior husky. For her training today we spent the afternoon in the playroom continuing to practice what we started yesterday. She remembered very quickly what to do when I asked her to sit and reach her paws into the air. Gracie decided that since it was such a hot and lazy afternoon we would cut the brain work short and just show off her tricks, rolling over and giving me her paw while watching keenly for a treat.

Stanley loves his extra attention. Delaney spent some time with him this afternoon. Despite the warm weather, Stanley was still up for a good game of fetch. She tossed the toy for him a few times before taking a break and relaxing with him in the shade to keep cool. Stanley of course thought that they should keep playing with the toy and kept bringing it over to show it off to Delaney, trying to convince her to play with him some more. After their time together they headed back to his kennel inside to cool off and have a drink of water. With all this playing Stanley should sleep well tonight!


Groups

Boris was so excited to meet up with a new husky relative today. Lyla, a Hibou X Tycho pup, was the highlight of the group. She did a really good job keeping Boris busy, along with his usual mates Magic and Justice. Of course Boris started things off by dancing around with Magic. He taunts her until she finally leaps at him. He always takes this as the cue to begin bolting around. With Boris in the lead, the entire pack began zooming around the yard at full speed. Adele, one of our bloodhound fosters, was very keen to join in on the games today. Boris stopped running to check her out and see what she was all about. After he said his hello's, he headed to the pool where he could grab a drink and cool off. It wasn't long before Lyla and Magic were nipping at his tail begging him to play some more. This time around, Tasha joined in on the shenanigans. She did a good job following the group around. She bounced in between the playing and pounced on Boris whenever he got really excited. She is a great referee. By the time play time was over these two were more than happy to have a sleep on the cold tile floor.

Syrus is such a handsome boy. He was very pleased to spend the first portion of group time by my side accepting as many pets and scratches as possible. He then head off to sniff and explore the yard. With his nose down, checking out the perimeter of the yard, a new dog Darwin bolted up to him to say hello. Syrus was pleasantly surprised by his outgoing personality. These two instantly hit it off and began dancing around. It wasn't long before Rex was in on their games too. They danced around, pawing at one another and slowly boxing. Finally Syrus bolted in the opposite direction looking for a chase. Both Rex and Darwin were more than happy to follow along. These three boys zoomed around the agility yard with giant smiles on their faces. Syrus took a break after a couple laps to grab a drink from the pool. He was happy to find his friend Mel in the pool too. These two hung out with one another cooling off until it was time to head in.

Joey and Giacomo are such well behaved boys. They were very excited to see me this morning, and were more than ready to motor down the hall and out the door into the yard. Joey is always keen to sniff and explore, and then remembers a human is in the yard too and will quickly turn around to come by for visits. Giacomo, on the other hand, is much more focused on the dogs and the smells. Today Giacomo started things off by trotting around the perimeter of the yard with his nose to the ground. He then did zigzags around the yard checking out all the smells. Part way through group time he met up with a lab named Darwin. These two did a couple circles around one another and then Giacomo did a quick play bow then dashed off. Darwin wanted more of this, so he darted after him looking for a play-mate. Giacomo was happy to play with him for a short period of time before he headed back to sniffing and exploring. Throughout most of play time, Joey hung out by my side accepting as many pets and cuddles as possible. Towards the end he met up with and older lab named Fez, and these two danced around for a brief period of time before they headed indoors. Joey and Giacomo love their kennel. They both are quick to find very comfortable spots on their cots, and they snooze until its time for the next outing.

Mel had a blast in the yard today. He is obsessed with the pool, taking every opportunity to have a swim. The moment he spots the pool in the yard he leaps in and begins digging away. Throughout his group, I keep the hose running since he digs out so much of the water. Once he has a dug a good spot in the water, he plops himself down. He tries to get as wet as he can by rolling back and forth, creating waves. His group mates flee the pool while he is doing this. Once he has cooled off his warm black fur, he begins zooming around the yard in search of toys. Today he was happy when I showed him a frisbee. He had some competition, but to no ones surprise. he was the first to get it every time. He sure is one speedy man. After numerous rounds of fetch, Mel headed back to the pool where he cooled off again. He shook all over me, and I actually enjoyed the cool mist of water hitting me. Before it was time to head in we had a good cuddle - and kiss - session.

It's a pleasure to have Rex and Fez back with us. Rex was so excited to head out for a walk this morning. He and Darwin definitely led the way, going full speed the entire walk. We jogged for half the walk, that was my attempt at burning some of his silly energy. I wasn't surprised to be the tired one, and have him looking back at me asking to keep going. In the yard Rex was so happy to make so many new friends. His first set of new pals was a siberian husky and another lab. They were quick to meet up and dance around then head off for a couple laps around the yard. Rex is always keen to join in on any action. He is a very easy going dog. After his run around with his friends he headed for the pool where he practically dunked his whole head in attempts of cooling off. He was very happy when I offered him the flowing hose. He stuck his whole muzzle around it and gulped back fresh cool water. He was then ready to head back in the agility yard where he met up with Stanley and Mel, who were playing with a frisbee. Rex loved chasing after the frisbee, but had a very hard time picking it up when it was flat on the ground. With some assistance, he finally managed to get a hold of it. He was content and felt successful so he headed back to the pool to cool off once more before heading inside. Meanwhile, Fez spent practically the whole group time in the pool. He loves the cold water. It takes him a bit of time to get all his paws into the pool, but as soon as he's comfy and content in there, he plops himself down with a big smile on his face. He doesn't move too much when the other dogs come in. He is very happy to take up all the space to himself.

I was very pleased to see the little Pop Star this morning. I love Poppy! She is sweet as can be. She was very good in her group today as well. She was very happy to be out in the yard with some older, independent dogs. She spent a brief amount of time zooming around saying hello to everyone before heading into the agility yard to sniff around. She then made her way into the main yard to investigate this territory too. When she spotted me kneeling down saying hello to one of her group mates, she was very fast to zip over and nuzzle her way under my arm. She insisted on getting as many pets as possible, and she was successful. Poppy wiggled her bum up against me while accepting a good ear and bum scratch. When I stopped, she turned around and nudged my hand for more. She practically spent her entire outdoor time receiving pets and cuddles. Towards the end of play time she headed back into the agility yard to explore the whole yard with her group mates before it was time to head inside. She was very pleased to have a large cot in a large kennel where she curled up into a little ball and snoozed.

Gracie spent the day in the staff room today; she loved having lots of attention from everyone who came in to greet her. Gracie was so excited for walk time today. She spent most of her walk sniffing around in the tall grass stopping a few times to snatch up some pretty wildflowers. Then Gracie went for a snooze on her big bed until it was time to go outside. As soon as Gracie got out the door she raced around the agility yard with all of her friends, making rounds of the agility tunnel and the pool. Eventually Gracie slowed down to sniff around the rocks and grass, only stopping for a tasty treat until all of her friends started chasing around the yard again. After running around with her friends Gracie decided to go back to sniffing around until it was time to go back inside.

Finnigan loved spending time with his friends today. On his walk, Finnigan sniffed around the field in search for a place to stop and roll around in the dew covered grass. Once he found the spot he got down to business and started rolling around and being goofy. Once he was back from his walk, Finnigan spent the rest of the morning resting up and asking for a few treats. When it was time for his group to go out he was so excited. He ran out the door and ran straight for the pool to cool off. After he found his best pals, Finnigan started running around the yard, chasing after all his friends. Once he was done playing around, Finnigan took some time to chew a bone but eventually made his way to the pool to lie down until he went back inside.

Casper and William couldn’t wait to go outside this morning the play around with all their pals. Once it was time for their walk, Casper and William spent the whole walk by each others side only parting occasionally to sniff around in the grass. As soon as they went outside for their group, Casper chased William around the yard until they got tired and slowed down a bit to sniff around a bit. Eventually they went over to the pool to take a quick dip with some of their pals, but a butterfly caught Casper’s eye and off they both went to chase it. Once the boys were all tuckered out they came over by my side to lie in the grass until it was time to go back inside.

Ryder was so excited to go out for his walk today. He spent most of his walk sniffing around but made sure to take some time to race around with his pals and give the grass a taste. After his walk Ryder spent the rest of the morning curled up on his bed sound asleep, resting for playtime today. As soon as I opened the door Ryder was the first one outside, running around the yard trying to get his pals to join in. When he finally slowed down, Ryder went over to the picnic table, jumped up on top and patiently waited for a belly rub. After his belly rub Ryder went over to see what the pool was like, after putting a paw in he quickly decided he was not ready for a swim and ran off in the yard until it was time to go back inside.

Coco and Timbits had a fun little run around the path after they arrived this morning. While they waited to go outside, Coco decided to take a nap while Timbits sat at their door keeping watch over his sister. Once it was time to go outside, they couldn’t get out the door fast enough. Timbits ran straight to the back yard followed by Coco and their other pals. Coco and Timbits chased each other around the yard for a few minutes but eventually Coco decided she could no longer keep up with Timbits and went on to do her own thing. While Coco was off sniffing around Timbits decided he wanted to have a roll around in the grass, then he ran over to the pool but decided he would rather chase his pals around the yard until it was time to head inside and cool off.

Keegan spent most of his day lounging in his kennel cuddled up on his bed. However, he was very excited for his groups and walk. Keegan enjoyed a nice long walk in the field with a few of his best pals, sniffing around and occasionally stopping to roll around on the grass. After he got back from his walk, Keegan went back to his bed and got some beauty rest. Once it was time to go outside Keegan jumped right up from his bed and went out to chase his friends around the yard a few times. After bonding with his pals, Keegan went on the sniff around the rocks, step in to the pool a few times and roll around in the grass. After he was done, he laid in the grass and I went over to give him a belly rub until it was time to go back inside.

Xena had a great day running around and playing with her brothers. Xena was very excited for her walk and started pouncing around as soon as she saw me, on her walk she spent most of her time sniffing around but stopped briefly to play around with her brothers. As soon as she got back from her walk, Xena decided to go have a little nap before going back outside. For her group today, Xena spent most of her time sniffing around the rocks but made sure to take a quick dip in the poll with her brothers. After getting out of the pool Xena chased her brothers around the yard until it was time to go back inside.