Saturday, May 24, 2014

1 part-dog. 1 part-human. 1 part-devil.

To say things have been an adventure would be an understatement. Lois the Rescue Pooch has been home for 3 months now. It has been 3 months of love, sweat and tears.
 
Lois is our little-not-so-little cuddle bug. The love in our house these days is endless. While it wasn't instant, the bond that we share is unbreakable. If you're not petting her she will gently nudge push your hand to the exact spot she wants to be. When we pull out of the driveway she is standing in the window with this look that brings a whole new meaning to puppy dog eyes. And she's standing in the same place when we get home.
 
ps - don't bother wearing nice clothes to our house as you'll be leaving with a fur jacket on once she warms up to you, jumps in your lap and kisses you to death. Schtickies are our latest décor trend as you'll find them in every room.
 
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When she's not licking you to death she's on the go. Hubs and I have both worked up some pretty good sweats with Ms. Lois. We can have her out for hours and when we get home experience the look of "so what are we doing now guys?" as she's bouncing up and down. Mama's going for a nap is what's going on!

 
One day hubs decided to see if she had any husky in her. He attached a rope to her lead and off they went cross-country skiing pulling. Lois loved it! She pulled him across the lake and back on their first outing. Within days we had a proper dog-sledding harness purchased and this became her favourite winter activity.
 
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There are rare moments - and by rare I mean twice since we've had her home - when the off switch is flicked and she actually tuckers out. Four minutes is about all she needs before her batteries are re-charged and she's ready to go again.

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It's hard to believe there have been tears with this girl but trust me, they have flowed. I did my first on-leash walk with her a few days after having her home. That's when the first sobfest happened. A few hundred metres into our walk a truck drove by. Queue herding instinct! That's when Lois decided to chase it with me on the other end of the leash. Truthfully, it scared me more than anything. We stomped home and I declared that was the last walk I was taking her on.
 
My declaration was short-lived. It wasn't long after the on-leash walk fiasco that I tried walking Lo in the bush behind our house. I tied a long rope to her collar and off we set. Things went fairly well. So well that in another few days I decided to test her recall. Bam! Right by my side. This was a big moment as we love hiking the trails. Letting her off leash would save my arms in my sockets.
 

Give a foot; take a mile.

 
Crisp winter morning. Sun beaming through bush. The crunch of snow under your feet. Lois bouncing down the trail. Me soaking in the peacefulness of it all. Then she stopped. As she looked back at me I could see the devil on her shoulder waving at me. Like a sprinter out of their starting blocks she was gone. And that's when I realized what was going on.
 
"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" echoed through the bush as my arms flailed and my legs didn't cooperate. I was running in slow motion. Lois was now half way across the lake chasing after the deer who just seconds before were huddled together trying to conserve energy.
 
My saving grace? The deer split up. She stood still, her head jetting back and forth unsure of which way to go. When she made her first move it was too late, she lost sight of them. She darted the other way but they were gone too.
 
I called hubs who was already at work when we got home. Through the sniveling all I could get out was, "I don't think she's the effing dog for us."
 
This wasn't the only time she took off. Almost every hike we went on Lois would spot something to chase. Deer. Chipmunks. Skidoos. If it moved, she was running. We eventually figured out that if you stayed in the last spot she saw you, she would return.
 
 
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"Don't cry mommy. I'm way too cute."
 
Lois is a spoiled child pup. She has a toy box filled with fun things. Unfortunately she doesn't clean up after herself. She loves mental stimulation as discovered by the dog puzzles we have. The at home agility course will eventually get set up. 
 
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Like a child
 
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Money well spent
 
 

Itchy scratchy

One of the things with bringing home a rescue is you don't always know their medical history. When we first met Lois she had an ear infection. No big deal. Our #suckhole had them all of the time. Generally after a few days of drops it goes away. With Lois though the head shaking, scratching her ears, red eyes and gnawing at her paws never stopped.
 
We discussed her habits with our vet and learned these are common allergy symptoms. Gah! I felt awful. She was crawling out of her skin itchy. Lo is now on a special protein modified, hypoallergenic diet and is allowed nothing else. It has helped the scratching but she still wakes us up every morning at 5:30 gnawing at her paws. Wha? You don't expect me to kick her out of our bedroom, do you?
 
We have a new routine when we come in from outside: wipe paws with baby wipes. Twice a day apply a medicated cream between her toes. Once a day wash with a steroid soap before applying a leave-on conditioner. If only I paid that much attention to my skin routine!
 

Family

All that to say, we wouldn't trade the love, sweat and tears for anything. She is part of our family and home to stay. Even if she hasn't learned that mama doesn't do mornings!
 
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"Are you OK mommy?"
 
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Stop to smell the flowers

13 comments:

  1. I love your story!! You have a great family!! :-). Hope I get to meet her someday :-)

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    1. You HAVE to meet her some day Julie. She really is a sweetheart.

      xo

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  2. This makes me want a dog. I love the post :)

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  3. Dogs are a lot of work but are full of love. Our beagle though tiny, when on the leash pulls my arm off, where as middle child's dog, a Doberman Shepherd mix is a gentle giant.

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    1. Pretty sure they're more work than kiddos Catherine. I can't stick a dog in front of a TV when I don't feel like walking them ;)

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  5. Sarah, I have fallen in love with your dog! Even though she sounds like a lot of trouble, she seems as though she's one of the sweetest dogs ever! Thanks for sharing this post. It made my Sunday afternoon that much sunnier!

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    1. Reese - you & the kiddos can borrow her any time ;)

      xo

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  6. That Lois sure is a handful. I don't think it's a coincidence that she chose you to be her family. Pretty soon you'll start to look alike.

    Love the single maple leaf in picture.

    Besos, Sarah
    Blogger at Journeys of The Zoo

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    1. She's like a toddler Sarah. Puts everything in her mouth. This weekend it was dandelion tops. FYI - dandelions are still yellow when they come back up.

      xo

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  7. Love this post. You are terrific fur parents and I love reading about her fair shenanigans. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks Trace. We sure are trying. Lots to learn about being a furmom of a rescue but we're all adjusting.

      You sure you don't want her for a night??? ;)

      xo

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