Mary and Teddy

 

Mary and Teddy arrived Monday evening. Their journey began in NYC where they were sitting on death row with little hope of seeing the light of a new day. Thousands of dogs and cats find themselves in this predicament daily. Most of us turn a blind eye to the brutality we as a country commit daily when it comes to our unwanted dogs and cats. The solutions are fairly simple. Educate owners, implement low cost spay, neuter programs, enforce cruelty and abandonment laws and require responsible pet ownership. Stop allowing indiscriminate breeding, allowing people to abuse and neglect animals without prosecution and continuing to allow people to abandon and dump animals without regard to cost and responsibility. Take a look at our open collection agencies which we incorrectly label as safe havens for animals where people can take and discard their pets and harbor the mistaken belief that they acted responsibly. These safe havens collect and hold abused animals, sick animals, emaciated animals and healthy animals in their bowels for short periods of time. In that short amount of time the animals are subjected to a hostile environment filled with feces, urine, deadly viruses and overcrowded conditions. Their fate is then pronounced in the form of a euthanasia list that is decided at the end of the day. Euthanasia begins at six am the following day. This story is played out day in and day out as the rest of the world goes about their daily business oblivious to the suffering that is being played out in shelters and safe havens like this across our country.

On almost every post, you can read someone write “I hate people.”  I never totally understand this. I love people. I love all the good people that take action and do something to change our world to make it a better place. These good people can be found in all the nooks and crannies in every corner of the world. These good people don’t have time to be recognized or the energy to tell those people posting how they hate people, how they need to become part of the solution instead of the problem. These good people are out there. Rebound Hounds,  (Anara and her pups) saved from death row and given another chance. Urgent Death Row Dogs who tirelessly day in and day out, obtain the list of tomorrow’s kills, do write ups, post pictures and desperately in the span of twelve hours try to find homes, rescues, places… true safe havens for the dogs whose chances have all but run out.

This is where Teddy and Mary story began again. Urgent Death Row Dogs posted them on the To Be Destroyed List. Posh Pets stepped in and pulled Mary who couldn’t even walk to her own water bowl. They provided emergency vet care and weeks of in hospital treatment to overcome the germs contracted in the government sanctioned safe haven. Posh pets paying the bill for a poorly run, poorly staffed and unsanitary government entity that should be regulated, should be managed and should be held responsible for the issues they continually fail to address. Proper veterinary care, proper sanitation and enforcing current laws and regulations would elevate many of the issues. Low cost spay neuter, education and responsible pet ownership would alleviate the rest.

After weeks of medical care, tests and diagnosis, Mary is stronger but her condition still remains a mystery. She was obviously used for breeding but other than that her history is unknown. When did she lose the ability to control the use of her front legs? Was she abused? Hit by a car? Locked in a small crate her whole life? When did someone decide she wasn’t worth feeding? Why Mary? What is her story and didn’t anyone care to find out? Posh Pets cared. Urgent Death Row Dogs cared. And all of their supporters cared. Mary is here now and we care. Posh Pets will ensure that she is treated with dignity and love for the rest of her life. Do you care? Do you care enough to find a way to actively make a difference in the lives of people or animals in your community?

Teddy was brought to our attention by Urgent Death Row Dogs. He was labeled as too aggressive to handle. Teddy is a fourteen pound shivering mass of fear. He showed his teeth and snapped. His only defense left in this world. All of his security, all of his feeling of safety ripped right out from under him. Fourteen pounds against all his fears and that is how Teddy ended up on death’s doorstep. Two days of love and attention and Teddy cannot stop kissing and snuggling. Two days of reassurance, two days of feeling safe… that was all it took to end fourteen pounds of fear. That was all it took for us at Click to Zen. For Teddy it took Urgent Death Row Dogs to recognize that perhaps they could make a difference. And it took Posh Pets. Posh Pets took the chance that Teddy would turn out okay. They took the time to visit him, look past his pearly whites and recognize that under that fear there was a dog who had exhausted every ounce of his ability to cope and was defending the very last ounce of life within him. Who among us hasn’t felt that kind of fear? Knowing how it feels, how could we allow it in our worlds, our communities without trying to find a way to alleviate that fear and make life just a little easier for those around us?

Both Teddy and Mary will eventually be available for adoption. Hopefully whomever falls in love with each of them will love them unconditionally. I don’t hate people. I love all the people who wake up every morning and decide that they are going to do right, that they are going to take action, that they are going to make a difference in their corners of the world. The people that consciously decide to make a difference despite what they have or don’t have, despite all the drama in their lives, despite everything, they forge ahead and change the world for the better even if it is for one day. Make the decision today to be THAT person. It makes a difference.

Anara and Athena moving forward

Anara’s days have been filled with trying to teach Athena proper puppy etiquette. They spend a considerable amount of time together, wrestling, playing and running. Anara is very patient and loving with Athena and shares toys and kongs willingly. Her favorite game is to grab a toy and have another dog chase her endlessly. Anara will play with Athena until Athena tires and then she is ready for the next dog. She absolutely adores Emmett, a handsome young Chesapeake man who is here sharing the holidays with us. Anara is fond of the snow and playing outside. She is an endless source of energy and happiness. Her favorite day ends up being Thursday every week because another young man (German short hair) Jack comes over to play. Jack has a little less energy than Anara but he can play for hours on end. Anara goes to the Animal Doctors on Monday for her spay.

Athena has been working on her manners with Anara. She plays well with one dog at a time but tends to get too excited when there is more than one dog. She does not have the energy level of the other dogs and does not like the cold weather or the snow. Athena much prefers to snuggle on the couch with a nice person. She has been working hard with several of the young students who come to help with training. She is very proficient with her sit and down cues. Karla (foster mom to Tucker) came out today and worked with Athena on her elephant (two paws on an object), touch, light and proper greeting behaviors. Athena worked quietly and attentively in the room with other dogs working around her. Athena prefers calm, quiet environments. She walks well on a leash and is appropriate when walking among and around other dogs on a leash. Although Athena is not high energy she is very athletic and would do great with Nosework or Frisbee. Athena loves to jump in the air and enjoys vaulting over other dogs and objects. She loves to climb on Jungle Gyms and climb on top of platforms.

Athena, Anara and Jack play the day away

Athena cleared her vet visit yesterday with flying colors. Today it was a celebration of sorts. On Thursdays, Jack the German Short Hair pointer pup comes and spends the day to be socialized and deenergized. His parents are awesome and understand the importance of training, socialization and reinforcing great behavior. Jack doesn’t know any of that. He does know he has a ton of energy and wants to play. Athena was a little miffed when she found out she had to leave for class shortly after Jack arrived. Anara thought this was beyond cool. Two hours of pure wrestling fun with another german pup!

Athena’s pout didn’t last long when she realized she got to walk to the training facility. She loves to walk! Once there, she met Brooklyn, an ABC student who is training with us. Brooklyn worked on loose leash walking skills with Athena inside and then worked on adding movement and distance to her touch. She worked diligently through class and seemed to love every minute of the attention. She ignored a few barks by Ranger the GSD and offered a polite sniff to Ranger’s sister Macy. Polite, focused and attentive, cannot get much better than that. We walked back home politely on a loose leash. There was no crossing in front or pulling. Just a nice quiet walk in the pouring rain (the only one that seemed to mind that was me).

Once we got back, Anara had to go to her room so Jack and Athena could meet and get acquainted for real. Anara took this in stride and fell sound asleep. Apparently two straight hours of Jack play is a bit wearing. Athena and Jack played together for another hour and then Anara came back in to join the party. Another three hours of puppy craziness before everyone fell sound asleep snuggled to each other. Athena is not a fan of playing in a group of three. She preferred to jump in after everyone settled down. She is very active in her play when it is one and one and more of a sidelines observer when another pup gets involved. All in all a great day for Athena, Anara and Jack.

Learning basic puppy skills

Athena cleared quarantine yesterday and spent the day getting acquainted with Anara. It was not a love at first sight friendship as one would hope for in this tale. Instead it was a carefully orchestrated meet, greet, distance, meet, greet, distance. Athena clearly missed out on some valuable puppy socializations lessons and Anara clearly was ready to clue her in on proper puppy manners. Some things in life though are worth working toward. Both Anara and Athena desperately want attention, play and socialization. Getting along with each other would positively impact both of their lives. By mid afternoon the dogs were running, playing, wrestling and chasing each other around the yard. Play time is kept short and offered frequently to minimize any disagreements and to give each dog space.

Athena had her vet visit today at Animal Doctors. She did really well and was a very happy puppy. She was appropriate, well behaved and delightful to be with. She is more likely to be closer to six months old than four. She has lost all her puppy teeth and has a full set of adult teeth. She weighed in at 28.4 lbs. She is getting to be a big girl J

3's Company

The meaning of life

Casting stones onto an already broken system is relatively easy but ultimately ineffective. We know the system is broken. Focusing on the negative doesn’t bring positive, it brings more negative. This story is about a group of people who stepped up to help an animal in need. A group of people who continuously try to keep a broken system from destroying innocent lives day in and day out. This story is about Anara and her pups. The facts of the story are sometimes blurred. Sometimes you read there were five pups and sometimes there were six. Today there are no pups. Six innocent lives lost. Two lives who never felt warmth. Two lives who never felt love. Two lives who left this world knowing only evil. Two other lives who were born into the hellish cold of NYC ACC and knew even briefly the warm and loving touch of a human hand. The love of someone trying to help them, save them, keep them in this world for as long as possible. And the last two pups, that lived long enough to have personalities and characteristics. One who loved to eat and sleep and then eat some more. The other one who was much pickier about eating but loved to chat. She had stories to tell. Stories that would make our hair stand on end if we could speak puppy. Both who knew love, knew warmth, knew the feel of their mother’s tongue, knew her gentle nudge and knew both a Mom’s love and human love. This is their story. This is Anara’s story. This is a story that should never have to be told.

Social responsibility would mean whoever made the decision, if a decision was made to breed Anara’s Mom and have a litter of puppies that they would be there for those puppies until the day they died. That Anara would always have a place to return to, that she would have been taken care of medically, that she would have been loved and provided for, that she would always know love. The decision to breed Anara’s mom or any female dog should never be done without taking into consideration the fate of the puppies, the care and cost of raising pups, vetting them and making sure there is a place to return to should their responsible new homes become irresponsible. Without meeting these criteria, Anara’s Mom should have been spayed.

Anara is a beautiful german shepherd. She was born, somehow she was bred and somehow despite her good behavior she ended up homeless. Social responsibility would dictate that Anara would be loved, that she would be cared for and if ultimately she became pregnant, the same courtesies would be afforded to her that should have been afforded to her Mom. Mistakes are made and people who are taught responsibility, deal with those mistakes and make them right. Instead, Anara was left, pregnant and alone in a NYC park. She was abandoned when she needed people the most. This isn’t about the failure of one person to take responsibility. This is about the failure  of a society to hold individuals accountable and responsible.  With no viable system in place to locate and prosecute her owner for abandonment and cruelty, Anara was brought to a place that should be a safe haven for animals. A place that is regulated and controlled by laws, rules and regulations. A place that is supposedly inspected and approved by a regulating government agency.

This safe haven is nothing more than a game of Russian Roulette with a firing squad. It is a maze of silent, lethal killers. It takes very little effort to get a dog into the ACC, it takes a miracle to get them out. Once admitted into this germ laden, ruthless organization, it is an hourly gamble whether or not a dog will die from disease, administrative incompetence, medical incompetence or simply have their life extinguished for lack of space. Anara who had no behavior issues and no major medical issues found herself in this maze of incompetence. Medically, they denied she was pregnant. They denied this right up to the day she gave birth. When she spit six puppies (or maybe five… what is one life here or there) onto a concrete floor, it was then determined that she was indeed pregnant. She had already been started on Doxycycline for kennel cough. This kennel cough would be the same illness that would cause the incompetence of the administration to rear their ugly head and put her on a list to extinguish her life. Well, it would have had a rescue not stepped up and intervened on her behalf to request she not be spayed (a full term abortion on a dog that they did not know was pregnant). The reason for not spaying her would ultimately be the reason she could have been extinguished, the kennel cough. Disease saves, disease kills, this is such a double edge sword.

Thinking all the paperwork was set and with pups laying on a cement floor in urine and feces, the rescue attempted to pull. Unfortunately that administrative incompetence was still running rampant and Anara and those pups would have to stay another day so that paperwork could be completed. In this twenty four hours, Anara who was emaciated, malnourished and deficient of milk tried to care for her pups. She licked them, she nudged them and she loved them. What she could not do is feed them or keep them warm and dry. People could have done this. If people had been raised to have social responsibility. Instead her pups would go another twenty four hours without food. By the time the rescue would be allowed to pull them, there would be four pups and two of those pups would be barely alive. And then having barely felt the touch of love, the glimmer of hope, they would pass from this world. They would leave behind vet bills for the pulling rescue. Vet bills that could have been avoided had they had medical treatment at that regulated and carefully monitored government controlled facility. These costs would be absorbed by caring individuals. Individuals who had social responsibility. Individuals who had a moral compass. Individuals who were raised to be or had somehow learned how to be competent loving people.

With two remaining pups and a confused and somewhat disadvantaged first time mother, they would be taken care of by a string of caring people. These people, who aren’t being paid (unlike the people in that government run facility) would spend their own time, their own money to make sure the pups and their mom reached their new destination. That is social responsibility. These people would continue to love and support these animals even after they were out of their care. They would do this despite having their own families, their own pets and their own social responsibilities.

The pups would try to overcome the poor prenatal nutrition, they would try to overcome the administration of vaccinations not recommended for pregnant bitches and they would try to overcome the administration of inexpensive antibiotics that would be harmful to pups (when more expensive, less harmful antibiotics are available but not used in that government run facility). They would try to overcome not having any nutrition in the most critical period of their lives, and they would then try to overcome being exposed to kennel cough, canine influenza, and any number of other potentially life threatening illnesses present in that government run facility. They would do this all without the mother’s antibodies and not because their Mom didn’t care. Their Mom loved them despite being a young mom, despite being scared, despite not having any food or nutrition and despite having nothing to feed her babies. Even more so their Mom, still loved humans and she loved them dearly despite what they had done to her.

Despite receiving medical attention, despite the love and despite the attempt for good to triumph evil, Anara’s plump little girl died. Then Anara’s chatty little pup died. She licked and pawed her plump girl. She was frantic when presented with the limp body of her chatty girl. She howled in her room. She searched her blankets. She howled some more. Then she buried her head into a human lap. She feels pain, she feels emotion, she feels the loss. What do you feel?

Anara will be connected for the rest of her life to people who are socially responsible. Anara will be taken care of until she dies. Anara will find the perfect forever home. She was one of the lucky ones. That is if you can define luck merely by not having your life extinguished.

Every night a to be destroyed list comes out. Every morning lives are extinguished. If you are breeding you have a social responsibility to the animals you have brought into this world. If you are a pet owner, you have a social responsibility to the animals you have accepted responsibility for. If you are or are not a pet owner you should be outraged that your hard earned tax dollars pay for this level of incompetence.

We all have the ability to make small changes in our world that cumulatively can bring about large changes. What ACTIONS can you take to change the life of one living being. What will you be remembered for when your time on this earth is extinguished. I live each day, trying to do just a little more than I did the day before. There are still many injustices but if there was just a little more social responsibility and a little more accountability, there would be a little less suffering.  That is my gift to Anara, her pups and the countless animals who have needlessly suffered at the hands of socially bankrupt individuals.

Love is muddy paw prints

First week of December and we are knee deep in mud and newly created streams. Mud, mud and  more mud…. The horses slide, the dogs slide, and the importance of four on the floor becomes obvious. The washing machine and the mop become intricately entwined in all our activities. Anara is unfazed by it all. She loves running, loves playing in the streams and doesn’t seem to mind being covered in mud from head to toe. She has a new friend, a black german shepherd named Keona.  She is content to spend hours wrestling, playing, tagging, chasing, and escaping from Keona. They wrestle, paw and mouth each other for hours. When they are exhausted, they each grab a genius leo ( a kong like jug you can fill with food) and settle down to chew until they fall asleep. Anara always likes to have contact and check on her pups after she comes back inside. After she sees them, she can then settle down and chew on her genius.

Kyrie stopped out to visit Anara and Keona today. The play session was pretty low key and nonchalant. Kyrie hung out while her  Mom (Michelle) trained Athena. Athena has been doing better. She has adjusted to being apart from other dogs. She is on a four hour potty schedule and seems to handle that very well. She is very good about picking the same spot to do her business in every day. She will go within the first few minutes of being outside and she is rewarded with play time and run around time. We never head back in right after she potties as we don’t want her to learn that going to the bathroom means the end of play time. She loves to investigate new smells but most of all she adores being recalled. She tucks her butt and races as fast as she can whenever she is called. Athena doesn’t seem to have the same fondness for mud and water as Anara. Athena will often look at her paws, shake them or otherwise appear somewhat disgusted at the textures under her feet. Michelle worked on her sit and down during the training session today.

The pups are three weeks old. They grunt and make bark like sounds. The Chatty Kathy pup is making more guttural noises and less whimpering. They consume more milk in a feeding but are less interested in eating as often. The Little Piggy pup is quite active and has started leaving the nest area to poop. Her eyes are open and she is experimenting with sounds. The Chatty Kathy pup opened her eyes briefly for a day but we haven’t seen them open since. Anara licks their faces often and continues to stimulate them to go to the bathroom. Soon they will be able to urinate and defecate without stimulation. They should get their milk teeth, start walking more and begin to be able to drink liquids from a shallow bowl in the upcoming days. Their sense of smell will become more acute with each passing day. Play becomes an important teacher as they learn to interact with each other and experiment with vocalizations and body postures. Handling and touching the puppies is important at this stage of development.

A happy Mom!

When Jake loaded in his Dad’s truck, Anara tried to follow. When Jake realized Anara wasn’t climbing in, he tried to get back out. Jake’s dad said it was difficult for him to watch. It was. Anara came home and kept checking at the gate to see if Jake would come back. Finally she came inside, sighed and settled down to lick and soothe her pups. Motherhood isn’t always easy. By the end of the evening, Anara was prancing around, nudging her pups and playing with toys. Tomorrow, Keona comes to stay and perhaps another friendship will be formed.

This week has seen a drastic increase in the amount of milk the pups are drinking. Chatty Kathy pup is still only at one eye open. They both are a lot more mobile and alert. Hoping the other eye opens soon before I start to worry even more that something is wrong. Perhaps Chatty Kathy Pup is secretly a one eyed pirate.

Tracy came cover today to visit Anara and the pups. After feeding the babies and playing with Anara,  Tracy asked to meet Athena.  Athena was overjoyed to have a visitor. After spending home time loving on her, Tracy and I took Athena for a walk. She wants so badly to run and chase leaves and play but she behaved like a young lady and decided walking on a leash would be the next best option. On the entertainment list for her tonight was a hard boiled egg to roll around and play with, a frozen kong and a squeaky toy. Music by Through a Dog’s Ear. Sweet dreams!

Sunny days and play dates!

Anara had another day of playing with her friend Jake. He is going home tomorrow and Anara will have to friend another dog. Jake and Anara really bonded in the few days they spent together. Hours of chase games, tugging on ropes, snuggling and grooming each other.  When all is said and done Anara settled down, checked on her pups, groomed them and fell sound asleep. She is one very happy dog right now.

The biggest pup has both eyes open and is starting to haul herself around the enclosure. Chatty Kathy pup has one eye open and talks about the day she will have two eyes open and be trucking around after her sister. They both increased their food intake in the last two days and their growth is hard to miss. Three eyes open… just waiting on that fourth!

Athena had a play date of her own, the human kind. Michelle came over and spent a couple of hours snuggling, training and occupying Athena. Apparently Patrick worked on Athena’s sit pretty behavior yesterday. Michelle picked this up right away when Athena offered her sit pretty over and over again. Athena gave Michelle a ton of behaviors to dream about capturing when Athena is ready to start training. Until her spay incision heals, it is still mostly quiet time for her. Tonight on the menu to liven things up was a stuffed kong, Through a dog’s ear music and a squeaky toy.

Anara visits Animal Doctors, Puppy opens eyes and Athena waits patiently to heal

Anara was the perfect angel at her first official vet visit today. She stepped politely on the scale, lay down quietly while waiting and was polite during her exam. She was frightened of the stainless steel table but handled it with a some dignity by pancaking and attempting to keep her composure. She allowed her ears to be examined, cleaned and handled. Other than a yeast infection in her ears and some pustules on her chin from scratching, Anara came out with a clean bill of health. She rode like a dream in the car. She spent the rest of the afternoon playing with Jake and some Kongs.

The largest pup opened her eyes today. She was very inquisitive and curious. We were hoping the second pup would follow suit but she is still busy telling tales. She might figure out that her eyes open if she closed her mouth and stopped chattering for a few seconds. Nevertheless, she is passionate about her chatter. They are starting to eat a lot more, poop and pee a lot more and look like they are getting ready for some major life transformations.  They weigh over a pound now and are gaining steadily each day.

Athena is still on bed rest from her spay surgery. Her life at the moment is rather dull by anyone’s standards. She has tried to pass her time chewing kongs and licking bones but she is four month old puppy and really wants to run and play. We worked briefly on her leash walking skills as she has a habit of walking slightly in front and then crossing into your path. For all of our safety we needed to reinforce safer skills so she wasn’t stepped on and we didn’t fall over the top of her. This weekend has some promise of  human visitors for her. She is craving attention, games and some mental stimulation.  

A day to kick back and relax

After spending time in a concrete prison, giving birth, shuffling across the state, taking time to become healthy again, today was set aside as a quiet day for Anara to spend playing with her friends. To date all of  Anara’s playmates have been German Shepherds and she is perfectly okay with that. Anara loves playing with Wubba’s, Kongs, balls and tug toys. She plays hard and then snuggles up next to the first dog to lie down. She loves to run, play, chase and share her toys with whichever dog is willing to play chase me games. She prefers to be the chaser and will readily drop the toy so the other dog can pick it up.

Anara reminds me of a young Mom. She really loves her pups and is genuinely concerned for them. But what she loves the most is spending time with other dogs and humans.  Time alone or time cooped up with her pups is tolerated  but play, attention and human contact bring life to this sweet young lady.

The little girls are growing up. Their time with their Mom is closely regulated. Anara has a lot to teach them and she spends time carefully mulling over each little girl. Short bursts of time with her pups provide a lot of stimulation, communication and strengthening of their relationship. Finding that harmony is  important to both Anara and her girls. I think we all strive to find that delicate balance in all our lives.

Anara's first play date! Athena first day.

Today was a great day for Anara. She had her first official play date and play she did! Reserved and shy at first, sporting her now official “oh, crap” Mohawk, Anara first did not seem like a play date was her cup of tea. Five minutes later, she couldn’t get enough of her handsome date, Jake. Chasing, spinning, breath taking turns, tug of war for toys, Anara was in on this game. Kyrie, another German girl, stopped by to check out the action. Anara and Kyrie met a few days prior and neither seemed particularly interested in well… anything. Today, the world though was her playground. Kyrie, Jake and Anara played like long lost friends. And in the middle of their games, the very sweet, very elegant four month old Athena arrived. Athena was game to join the party as well, except for one small glitch. She had just had her spay surgery and fun and games were not in the prescription. After politely exchanging greetings, Athena retreated quietly and reluctantly to the peace of her crate. Some complaints were heard but Athena took it all very well and decided to take a nap instead. It won’t be long sweet baby Athena before you will be playing with the big kids. Meanwhile back in the nursery the little girls continue to sleep, eat and tell tales of the world.

Anara starts training

As every good Mom knows, time away from the kids is essential. Anara spent her time away working on some social skills, manners and enjoying the beautiful weather. She is working on her sit cue. The first behavior taught sometimes can end up as the default behavior so we try to ensure the first behavior  is either a sit or down. It is much better to have a sit as the default than a spin or jump for joy cue. The sit can also be used as the positive opposite of the jump up behavior that we have seen with Anara. Our job will be to manage the jump up so Anara does not practice it when greeting us or other people and then to replace it with the newly learned sit.

Touch to a hand is a targeting behavior that has a multitude of uses. Touch is the basis of an off leash transport (moving a dog from one place to another without the handler physically handling the dog). It is also used in the vet’s office to load a dog onto a scale or exam table without physical manipulation. Many other behaviors such as spins, shakes, pushing on objects, jumps, platforms, balance beams also use touch as the starting point. Anara started her touch as an opposite of sit. Later, we can add a Stand cue to substitute. In the meantime, touch works great for getting Anara into a standing position so we can re cue sit.

Walking politely on the leash is also a valuable skill for dogs. Many dogs are given up because of their lack of leash skills. Anara is learning to walk politely with the leash loose so that she is a pleasure to walk.  She is also learning to sit automatically when her handler stops. Keeping distractions to a level that she can achieve success but still challenge her makes training more exciting.

Meeting new animals and establishing a baseline of behavior will also be important information to a potential adopter. Anara met a dog savvy cat today and showed mild curiosity. There is a world of difference though between a dog savvy cat and a cat that will run when confronted by a dog. A running cat might cause Anara to chase. This would be an example of prey drive. To say she was cat safe based on this one encounter would be misleading. Things are looking good though in the cat world at this moment.

Anara also met two senior black labs. She was a little over threshold upon approach but we used distance and obstacles to lessen visual stimulation and introduced when Anara had more composure. When she was calm, she was introduced and despite having a philoerection (hair standing on end between shoulders and back) she offered appropriate calming signals such as lick lips, head turns and eventually a play bow. After a few minutes she was licking both dogs. Her reaction to their handler was slightly more interesting. She did her hug behavior (jumps up but places feet on either side of the waist and rests head on chest of person) and submissive peed at the same time. It was an interesting behavior. Usually dogs offering submissive urination would crouch and not jump. So that leaves the possibility that it was more of an excitement urination although she didn’t seem overly excited. We learn by observing behavior and keeping our minds open to the possibilities. A sit to gain attention might change the whole scenario and give her more confidence by lowering the excitement level of the greet and thereby lowering the stimulation levels.

We finished the training session up with a little fun at the facility and some beginning nosework. Enjoy the video clip of Anara and the learning process!

Anara's first week

Anara has found her voice. It is all German Shepherd. Anyone who has ever had a German Shepherd for a companion can relate to this. She didn’t have a lot to say all week. Today she found her voice. She has a lot to say. Rightfully so. She is safe. As safe as any dog in this world can be. Safe under the umbrella of a rescue. Safe means a lot when you are feeling unsafe. Safe though is only part of the bigger picture. Safe doesn’t mean having someone committed to you. Safe doesn’t mean a lifetime guarantee. Nothing is guaranteed though.

Anara loves her babies. She tends to them carefully. She cleans them, nurses them with the small amount of milk she has. Anara is still young and full of puppy energy. She wants her puppies to be safe. She wants to run and play. She wants to be loved, petted and paid attention to. She wants to be close to humans, despite what she has seen, experienced and heard. It would be perfect, if Anara’s story ended here. Anara still needs to find a forever home. A home that will love her, work with her, train her, care for her medically and be there for her, no matter what. The reality is that those kind of homes are not easy to find.

Eliminating and reducing normal canine behaviors that are not acceptable in our society will help Anara find that home. Jumping, barking, digging, chewing, mouthing, resource guarding, etc while normal canine behaviors are common reasons why dogs are surrendered. Replacing “negative”  normal behaviors with more acceptable behaviors will help ensure any rescue dog’s success. Socialization, training and human commitment will complete Anara’s story.

Anara’s story picks up again here.

Anara likes to hug. She likes to jump. She finds comfort in having hands or arms held gently in her mouth. She is traumatized, she is needy and she doesn’t feel secure. She is trusting, she is loving and she has a beautiful spirit. She is house trained. She does not like to go to the bathroom on leash. She does like to go behind a bush and use the same spot every day. She will hold her urine and her stool until she is comfortable. Today she had an accident in the house. It was human error, not Anara error.  She walked two miles on leash and came back inside. As her trainer, I made the assumption she didn’t have to go, when in fact she would have gone had she been given the space to go. She had time alone in the yard but was insecure being out alone. She needed someone to be in the yard with her and then she would have been able to see me, go behind the bush (where she can still see me), go to the bathroom and then come running back when she is finished.

She might be afraid that I would disappear if she lost sight, so she stayed close and disregarded her own need to use the bathroom. She might have been yelled at or hit in the past for house soiling mistakes. Dogs who are yelled at for making mistakes in the house, often learn that they shouldn’t go to the bathroom in the presence of humans but should go and hide to complete their business. Behaviors just don’t appear, they are inadvertently or advertently reinforced.

Knowing her needs, allows us to work with her and manage behaviors as well as train new behaviors. I cleaned up the mess and spoke lovingly to her.  I am human, I learn from my mistakes, I accept responsibility and I move forward.  Anara is beautiful, trusting and still learning.  This week she will be working on her sit, touch, loose leash walking and beginning nosework.

Anara's story

Anara’s story is like most of life. On the surface, her story is simple.  Delve a little deeper and you fall into the depths of a political and social nightmare. Beginning with society’s lack of moral responsibility for the animals in our care and custody and ending with a system so politically and morally bankrupt it self justifies its barbaric nature by complete denial. In the perfect world, Anara would have been spayed. Her suitor would have been neutered. They both would have been loved and cherished. In the perfect world, NYC ACC wouldn’t ever have been created.

Anara arrived at the shelter pregnant. Despite claiming to care about their animals, claiming they don’t kill for space, claiming they don’t perform late term abortions, they do all these things and more. Why they do them is anyone’s speculation. If the shelter found out Anara was pregnant, they would try to spay her. This would result in the full term babies dying and most probably Anara bleeding out. A group of dedicated volunteers stepped in and tried to negotiate for Anara.  They successfully prevented Anara’s spay but couldn’t get the ACC to step up their efforts to move Anara quickly out of the germ laden environment.

Anara contracted Kennel Cough. Anara gave birth to six puppies. Two were either still born or died at birth. Anara was emaciated, malnourished and so nutritionally deficient that she was unable to produce milk. Anara was not given supplemental food to help her, she was not given bedding to keep the puppies warm nor were the puppies given supplemental milk. Chances are not one person at ACC even checked on her or the babies. She wasn’t seen by a veterinarian. She was released a day later, with four puppies. One puppy died shortly after they were pulled, one puppy died a day later at a veteriarian’s office. Despite feeling sick, despite not having any milk, Anara still tended to her babies.

Volunteers and rescues stepped forward to help her and the babies. It is the people that choose to change the world, choose to inconvenience themselves, choose to do what is right, it is those people we chose to recognize. It is the people with a moral compass, the people that despite the odds still try, the people that give with their heart and speak with their actions. It is those people this blog is written for. It is a testimonial to Anara, her pups, and the countless number of dogs fighting for their lives across the country.

Anara is here. Her pups are here. And this is their story.

Now it begins

Here is where we will be posting Anara and her Puppy updates. Trying to keep it all in one place for easy viewing!

Anara Speaks