Saturday March 11th, 2017

Sophie is such a sweetheart! She was so happy to see me this morning and followed me around the whole yard, soaking up all the attention I was giving her. Occasionally Sophie would wander off to give something a sniff or say hello to one of her many friends. However, every time I turned around she would be patiently waiting for more snuggles. For her walk today, she joined a bouncy new energetic friend that she hadn’t met before. She was very excited to head out to the trail and also play with her new friend. They both squeezed their way through the door at the same time and bounced happily into the yard. Sophie led the way and soon the two of them were racing all over the trail. The first part of the walk was quite hectic as they were so full of energy, but they still had lots of fun playing. At one point, Sophie had found a good spot for a roll, and wasted no time flopping over to wiggle around in the snow. She then leaped to her feet and went running to the end of her leash. The rest of the walk was nice and calm because Sophie decided that she had so much to explore while we walked. After that it was time for groups, and somehow Sophie didn't seem the slightest bit tired! There was a lot to sniff in the yard and Sophie was racing back and forth as she tried to check out everything. She happened to glance in my direction and noticed me taking pictures of her, so of course she had to come running over for some cuddles! Sophie must have been a bit wound up because she was wiggling around like crazy as I was petting her. She then leaped away from me and play-bowed. I picked up the closest tennis ball to me, threw it and Sophie went flying across the yard. She quickly circled back and went past me again. This seemed to be one of Sophie's favourite games so we continued playing it until she was ready for a break!

Bruno is such a funny character. He is always playful and running around not just after the dogs, but us too! It’s great to see, and he’s so much fun to play with. During his extra attention he got lots of cuddles and kisses from our staff. He loves being around people and other dogs so we brought one of our staffs dog Molly into the room so he could have even more company. He loved this and the two of them sniffed around and pranced around the room. They weren’t that interested in toys but kept active by running after each other. Outside the cold weather didn’t bother him in the slightest! He was chasing after other dogs wanting to play, rolling around in the yard on his back and exploring the many scents with two beagles – he took a liking to these two. He definitely was well stimulated today as he had lots going on!

Pepper had a lot of fun outside today. She was with the smaller dogs and had a blast chasing them around - and being chased. Pepper is really warming up and was very playful today. She seemed un-phased by the weather and extra “bouncy” outside.  I gave Pepper lots of positive reinforcement for being so good with the others, not like she wouldn’t have just good to let her know she’s doing well! Pepper was the last to come in which I think is a sure good sign she was having fun and didn’t want play time to come to an end. With just one “ come, pepper” she pranced on over and went back inside and into her bed no problem. I, again, gave her more positive reinforcement for listening so well and left her to nap.

Gracie spent another wonderful day in the kitchen today. I can tell that she always loves being in there because no matter what, there's always someone stopping by to say hi and give her a quick bit of attention. When I saw her this morning I could tell it was going to be an excellent day for her because she was already in the best mood, Gracie quickly greeted me with kisses before I moved on to let dogs out for the morning. When it was time for Gracie's first extra attention of the day I went into the kitchen and she couldn't have been happier to see me. Gracie raced up to the reception and searched for anything to do. At first she found Alyssa sitting at the front desk so she went over to greet her. Alyssa gave her a nice long back scratch before I started testing her on a few of her tricks. Gracie was definitely in the mood to show off her tricks this morning. She loves showing me her sits, lay-downs, and especially paw. Gracie also enjoyed rolling over and attempting to learn how to play dead for a few extra treats. Once Gracie was done showing meet her tricks I set out the puppy puzzle with some treats for her to explore through. Gracie made sure to get every last treat out of the puppy puzzle and did a superb job of searching it. Next up was Gracies long outdoor playgroup. When I went to get her she was all snuggled up in the kitchen, soon enough she jumped up and joined me for a trot down the hallways and out into the yard. Gracie seemed so happy to be playing with her friends again. The first thing she did once she got out was greet absolutely all of the dogs in her group. Once giving them an overall sniff, she decided it was time to explore the yard. Gracie had so many new scents to sniff out so she spent most of her time doing that. After she was finished sniffing, Gracie joined me on the ground for an extra belly rub. She especially enjoyed getting her ears scratched towards the very end. 

Kouza had a little buddy during extra attention today. It was a pug, one of our staffs’ dogs. We did treat training and it was hard to tell who liked carrots more! Kouza was great as per usual and so gentle when receiving the treats. We did “sit”, “stay”, “paw” and “come”. Kouza is so bright and you can tell she loves practicing her basic training to keep her on her toes. She definitely isn’t mad about the reward either! Outside Kouza didn’t seem too bothered about the weather and just walked around at her own pace. I asked Kouza to come so she could sit in the sun and she responded very well, coming right over and quickly realized I was onto a good decision! Kouza also got lots of back scratches today while she was sitting down, I love when her back legs shake from it.

Coco and Timbits are always a pleasure to have here. They are the “great explorers” of outside and seem to find everything worth finding! They will be digging in the corner, or sniffing along the fence line, there’s always something and they are eager to find those scents or hidden treasures (branches…). They took a special liking to Bruno today and he kept up with their activity level. The three of them would wrestle around the yard constantly running and toppling over…what a sight to watch! I tried to get Coco and Timbits to sit still for a second for some back scratches but they thought “ no time for that!”, they much preferred playing and bouncing around instead, who can blame them!

Obi and Calvin had a good day today! They woke up to some morning cuddles with Delaney while she cleaned up their condos. They napped throughout the day in their warm beds, and later on they got to roam around the cat room. Calvin was slow to wake up from his snooze, but Obi was right up and ready to wander. He said some hello's to Tiffani as he passed by her and then walked to the other end of the room, rubbing his head on all of the chairs and the cat tree. I followed him and he smelt all of the cat carriers. I offered him a treat but he politely declined and trotted back to his condo. Meanwhile, Tiffani was giving Calvin some soft pats as he sat in his condo bed. Once Calvin saw his brother heading back towards the bed in the condo, he scooted right over to the same side and nestled in right beside his brother. These two handsome fellas then both enjoyed some petting and a good scratch behind the ears. Calvin was more than happy to accept a treat from Tiffani, and was content to take a little nap afterwards and watch the other cats pass by as they roamed around. 

Sadie had an overall fun and exciting day today. Right from the first time I saw her this morning, Sadie was up and ready to start her day. She came bouncing right up at me and made sure to give me plenty of kisses before settling and waiting her turn. Sadie was very excited for her long group time this morning. Although she's loved her special walks that she had been getting the last couple of days during her outdoor playgroups, I decided to bring Sadie into the yard for a bit and then into the playroom for some indoor play time. She couldn't have been more excited to get outside. However, when she felt how cold it was outside she wasn't so sure. Sadie was still quite the trooper and searched the entire yard for new smells. Once she realized that I was bringing her in to go up into the playroom, Sadie got so very excited! She just couldn't wait to start play tug of war and also get the chance to have yet another belly rub today. Once we got into the playroom, Sadie chose her favourite toy out of the basket and sure enough it was rope toy! The two of us played tug for quite sometime before she wanted to cuddle once again. This time Sadie loved getting her ears rubbed but she soon jumped up and was ready to start playing all over again. Juts before I brought Sadie back into her kennel, I gave her a few treats just for being such a good girl.

Seamus and Quincy were just the cutest dynamic duo throughout the day today. When I went to get them for their extra attention time just after their walks, the two boys could not have been more excited to see me. Quincy was standing up and waiting right at the kennel door for me to come get them. Seamus wasn’t in as much of a rush and simply relaxed until I opened their kennel door. Once I opened it, Seamus was up and trotting down the hall before I could even blink. Quincy was still leading the way as they found themselves up in the front reception area. Quincy and Seamus both came bouncing into the reception and ran right up to Alyssa and I for some snuggles. The two of them were immediately on their backs on the floor, just waiting for belly rubs. Alyssa laid down on the ground with them while making sure that Quincy and Seamus were both content with their belly rubs. The only thing Seamus liked more than the belly rub was the ear rub he received after wards. I think Seamus could have laid there forever. Soon after they were done soaking up all of the attention, the two boys were ready to show off their tricks and definitely get some treats for them. Quincy trotted right over once he saw me get the treats while Seamus tried to get a little bit more of an ear rub. Seamus quickly joined and sat like the good boy he is. They both did an excellent job at their sits and lay downs. After a little bit, it was time for one of their group time. Once outside, Seamus couldn’t get enough of me. He loved following me around and was constantly trying to get as much attention as he could. Eventually I picked up a bright yellow tennis ball and as soon as he saw it he knew he had to have it. Seamus kept his eye on the ball as I walked towards him and once I threw it to him, it was in his mouth within seconds. Seamus walked around the entire yard with the ball in his mouth and always made sure that he showed it off as he walked by his friends. He and I enjoyed a quick game of fetch but he decided that it was time to lay down and play with his prized possession. Quincy was all about the playing today. He met a few new friends out in the yard that he knew he just had to play with. Quincy raced out into the yard and immediately sniffed all his old and new friends. After a little bit of time, he decided on one of his girlfriends to play with. Quincy spent half of his time simply tracking her every move. However, eventually he saw a bright yellow tennis ball that I was offering to him and raced over to me. Quincy was jumping up all excited to try and get the ball from me. This led to a quick game of fetch of course. Every time I’d throw the ball to him, Quincy would jump up and miss the ball but was fast enough that he could still get before anyone else, silly little guy.