Thursday, July 12, 2018

New Day

Happy for another new day! It is always a blessing when I can get up and face a new day. 
Walter has been with my granddaughter for 3 days now and all seems to be going well. I have not heard yet today but I am sure that all is fine. 

Another of my Shelties, Jeep is with a friend of mine so that he can work in agility more. I don't have the stamina to keep up with  him and he loves to work so much. He will be competing in a trial this coming weekend and I hope he does well. We are co-owning him  so he will have two homes but spend his time in his new agility home. He has been adjusting very well, I am really happy for him. 

Most importantly for all my dogs is safety and happiness. 

I am still going to get Luke his CGC so that he can be certified for therapy dog work.  He completed the class, but the day of the test he missed the test due to having a foot of a toy removed surgically. That slowed him down for quite awhile. But he is now well recovered and ready to take up training again.

My oversize Sheltie, Keeper will be starting nose work soon and I hope the mental stimulation will slow him down some. Nose work looks like it can be a lot of fun. 

I need to keep my Shelties stimulated and engaged in some sort of work. When they are bored is when they get into some sort of trouble.

I would like Keeper to become a confident working dog so that he he could compete in some obedience trials, eventually. Living with the Shelties is almost a full time job especially when it means keeping them all groomed,  healthy and happy.

I would not have it any other way. They keep me going,  they are good company and with having to adjust to a new life style without my husband, they make it a little easier.

                                                                         Keeper


 

Monday, July 9, 2018

Funny how things turn out. How each day  something comes about that you had no idea that it would happen. Today Walter our little year old sable male when to live with his co-owner, my granddaughter. She is old enough for the responsibility of a pup. He is a year old so he is house trained, leash trained and crate trained. She just needs to spend time with him and do some training. I am looking forward to seeing how it goes and what Kaelyn can accomplish with Walter. Being summer it is the perfect time for her to have a puppy. I am counting on my granddaughter to keep him happy and safe. 

As with any new animal, safety is primary especially until they are well adjusted. It is important at all times but when they are new to the environment it is critical. I am sure that Kaelyn will keep him safe and spend some time with hm.

Funny how each day something comes about that you had no idea would happen. I had been considering a new home for Walter but this is absolutely the perfect solution.

This leaves me with seven shelties and it seems so quiet here. They will all get more attention and time which is what I want for my dogs. 

Today really turned out to be such a good day. Unexpected but perfect. 

That is about it for now. Will try to keep this blog going smoothly. 

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

The dogs are out for their last time tonight, the fireworks will be starting and they do not like that noise in the least. We had a nice quiet day and it was way to hot to do anything much. 
I read some, worked on the computer while the dogs slept in the cool air of the AC. After their dinner they were full of it and played a little game of chase between the living room and the kitchen. Keeper tried to get into the zoomie mode but not much room for such speed. 

I hope to get something accomplished tomorrow. Maybe get a couple more dogs groomed, I can do that in front of the AC.  I hope to start some nose work with the young dogs, I can do this at home until a class opens up for them. They need the mental stimulation which will hopefully wear them out.

I am looking forward to getting back into some dog classes. I really miss them. 

The fire works are starting so need to get everyone in and ready for bed. 

Hope that everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July.
 
I promised my granddaughter that I would try to keep this blog up. She discovered it by accident and enjoyed reading it. So for her and myself I will try every day to write a little.
My son came up yesterday afternoon and I helped him get the boat out of the tight lean to and into the garage to work on it. It was almost like helping my husband again. Took me back to those days. My son should enjoy using his Dad's boat. I am happy he has it as he is more of a water person and fisherman.
Today the 4th of July is a holiday and I will not be celebrating, it is too hard to do those things yet. I will be grooming my dogs and enjoying them. My dogs are such good company and give me purpose.
Below is a photo of my granddaughter with her pup Walter, who now is almost grown up.

                                                                    

Sunday, September 10, 2017

This morning while having coffee with my Shelties I am trying to start another day. It is difficult alone but my dogs definitely make a difference. It will take time to adjust to my new normal but I am sure in time it will happen.
I have started a basic obedience class with my boy Luke and that is so good for both of us. He is a sweet boy and will be an excellent Therapy dog, maybe even a little agility eventually. By the time he is trained my new normal should be well on its way. 

I am also helping a friend with a very shy Sheltie, he is coming to live with me for awhile to see what I can do to help him. He is a young boy who just needs more socialization. This gives me a goal and a little more purpose at this time in my life. I am looking forward to see what I can do for the pup.

I am also keeping little Walter from my litter and co-own him with my granddaughter. She and I will be training together. This is going to be fun and the first pup she has trained, She is excited and for a 10 year old this is awesome! She will be coming up today to see her puppy.

The sun is coming up and time to get my new day started. I pray for all those in Florida and hope that they will be safe and that all the animals find safety too. So sad for all these residents of Florida.

Everyone  be well and enjoy your Sheltie and make the most of the day. 💟


Saturday, September 2, 2017

The Start of a New Life!

This has been a hard year for all of us, including my Shelties. My husband was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer in July of 2016. I have spent the past year as full time care giver for my husband. My husband passed from his cancer July 16, 2017 exactly one year to the day that he was diagnosed.

My Shelties took a back seat for most of the year. They were so good and seemed to be so understanding of the situation. They received all the basic care to keep them content and healthy but the extras were missing. Agility took a back seat and probably will continue to take a back seat for some time. There are too many basics that need to be caught up with.

My Shelties are awesome watch dogs so I do not worry about my new life. Hopefully it will become the new normal, as my normal life was shattered a year ago. Having been married for 51+ years it is definitely a new normal and will take time to become comfortable with my life.

My Shelties taught me to live one day at a time, the only way to get through the past year. I just did as they do, don't think about the past and don't think about the future. Just make the most of and enjoy the day you are in as best you can. A really good way to live your life.

My new life started with a litter of new pups, they are such a gift and to have all that new life in my house has been a blessing for me. They need much care, handling and socializing. Needless to say they have kept me very busy. They are now almost 6 weeks and so much fun. They develop by the moment and you see changes physically and mentally every day. Maybe a new agility prospect, who knows. 

The first thing to do with my Shelties is to take Luke to basic obedience class and then on to get his canine good citizen an then to become certified with Therapy Dogs International. He is a sweet and loving boy and will be an awesome therapy dogs. My husband talked about giving back all the time and even though he was so sick he always wanted to do something to give back. So no better way than sharing my Shelties with the elderly in nursing homes or those who are housebound. 

I hope to be much more faithful with keeping this blog up. There should be a lot going on with my dogs now that I have so much time. They are the best company and give so much comfort. I would be lost without them. As I write one is under my computer desk and the others are scattered around the office. 

Training with Luke starts this week and I have high hopes for this boy. At the same time I am keeping one of the pups, we call him Walter which is a family name, my husbands middle name and the middle name of both my sons. He was a special pup that I bottle fed for awhile as he was small and needed the help. I will start his house training soon and socializing is on going. Every day the pups experience something new, a different room in the house, a different floor, different music, a small tunnel to play in and with, they love to drag it around but are learning to run through it. You would be surprised at how fast these little ones learn. 

It is getting late but just wanted to start the blog again and let you know that I hope to keep it updated as much a possible. It really will not be just about agility but about living with and having fun with your Shelties. Maybe eventually a little agility thrown in for fun.


                                                                            Walter


Monday, November 2, 2015

Once again I am remiss at keeping the blog up. I really need to try to do better with my news! 

Chanel did have her pups, 2 boys and 1 girl. A blue boy and a tri girl and boy. They are lovely pups and what I was hoping to get from her when she was bred to Belmark Earthshaking. The two boys are now in wonderful homes and getting loads of attention and training. The girl is here with us and we are working and socializing to make her the best puppy ever! She is so smart and it only takes seconds to understand what you want and then she remembers. 
Chanel was an awesome mom for the first five weeks and then she decided that was enough. She would get in and feed and clean but after I coaxed in in with a cookie. Puppies had teeth by then and I think it hurt her too much to continue nursing. She also decided by then to sleep by herself at night and that was ok.

We have named the little girl Amy, Jopavist Maybe Amy. She starts a puppy class on Sat, Nov. 7 and I am looking forward to that. I took her to our rescue meeting Oct. 25 to socialize and she got plenty of that. She was passed around and held and petted and loved. She got to see some goats and chickens but not too close.

Jeep and I went to a Nose Work clinic and had a lot of fun. He really enjoyed all the treats when he scented the right box. You could tell he was really enjoying the day. He is back in Agility Classes with Diane at Ellis Dog Training, we are getting him ready to run a trial in December. By the way Ellis Dog Training in Gonic NH is an awesome place to train. All kinds of classes are offered from Puppy to Competition.

Thats the news from here today, hopefully I can remember to keep up with everything that is going on!