We left Auburn yesterday just before 5 PM yesterday, drove through two thunderstorms, but we got to the hotel at 10 PM.
Then we went outside to work on Keely's walks. At first Keely kept pulling toward the grass, so I told Barbara to let Keely walk around in the grass a little bit because I thought she needed to poop. Keely did and Ed picked up. Then Keely still pulled a lot, after about five minutes, Barbara said she usually walks a lot faster than this, she does power walk to get her blood pumping. So I said, that sounds great, because Keely pulls less when I walk faster too (I usually walk the dogs pretty fast too, to try to cover as much distance in as short amount time as possible). Once we started walking fast, Keely didn't pull anymore. Ed tried walking Keely also and she did fine with him too. Erica wasn't interested in walking Keely as she will go back to Chicago this afternoon.
Millie is planning to stay overnight next Wednesday in Nashville on her way to visit family in Louisville. Also she is planning to possibly pick up Blue from Nashville also on Thursday morning. Since Millie said when we met Keely�s family for the first time at her lakehouse, that she would be able to go see Keely for me, I asked her if she would be able to see Keely on her way from Louisville. She said yes, and Barbara said that�s fine also.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
I just talked to Ed and Barbara. Barbara answered the phone, and she said yesterday after they let Keely out of the crate after they came back, Keely quickly went to the water bowl, drank a lot of water, and threw up. She asked me if that had happened before, and I said the only time I remembered Keely throwing up was when I fed her breakfast half hour to an hour right before a vet appointment, and I think she got really nervous at the vet's office, and threw up in my car on the way back. Barbara said that's what they are thinking too, that maybe she got too excited in the crate or when they let her right out. So now they are letting her have small amounts of water at first after they let her out of the crate.
I asked Keely with Milo, and Barbara said that they are doing great together, sometime they would stare at each other, but no growling for the past week. Just one growl when Milo came near Keely's bowl when the dog was eating, but otherwise they are doing great together. Barbara said that now even Milo can sit under the table and Keely would eat (I think her bowl is by the fridge, about five feet away from the table), and Keely would still be okay with the cat watching her eat that way and no growling.
Barbara said Keely's doing wonderful on her walks (I guess they had some issues with the walk with their previous dog), a joy to walk with each morning. She said in the past week, they've met two other leashed dogs and Keely is fine with that. She said also they ran into two dogs who were not leashed and just loose in the yard, and at first Barbara was a little nervous, that maybe Keely would get mad if the dogs come sniff her behind for too long, but she said they just walked a little faster and Keely was okay with them. She said also with dogs barking through the fence, she said Keely just ignores them.
I reminded her regarding Keely's vaccine, and she said they have an appointment at 4 PM tomorrow, just her and Keely will go. She asked if she should feed Keely before going, and I said when she threw up when she was here, it was because I fed her full breakfast, but I told her treats should be okay, and I said since it's 4 PM, it should be fine. And Barbara said she'll feed her breakfast Monday morning, and I said that should be fine.
Regarding Millie's visit, they said Millie's sister-in-law lives like a mile from their house, so it should work out fine. I told them that Millie will contact them for further info.
She said they are going on vacation for a week in August, so they are thinking maybe wait until September to start the obedience class. Barbara doesn't think they need the classes, she said Keely knows all the commands and they don't have problem with it. But when I asked her how Keely is with sitting before the door before going out, she said she tried to wean her off the treats, but then Keely started doing them less and Barb would have to tell her a couple times, and now she's back to using the treats. So I still recommended them going to class, but I told them September is okay.
She said she and Ed take turns brushing Keely's fur. She said overall Keely's good with that, and yesterday she had Keely in stacking position while brushing, and said Keely was great with that too. She said Ed is brushing Keely's teeth everyday also.
Then she put Ed on the phone. Ed said they need to practice more with Stay longer, and also they tried for the first time to let her off leash in the yard yesterday. He said he stood on one side with treats and Barbara on the other side. They just told Keely to Come between them back and forth, and he said Keely did really well with that, except near the end Keely started to sniff a little bit, so they leashed her back up again. I told him that Heather said she used to let Keely off leash at her house, and he said they've been letting Keely off leash in the pool area, and he said that seems to be good practice, and they are slowly working to see if Keely would follow them off leash in the rest of the yard.
He said with coat brushing, he said overall is good, he said Keely has days she likes to be brushed and days she doesn't so much, and she doesn't like her tail brushed, but he said they are slowly getting her used to it. He said teeth brushing is going well, said Keely loves the toothpaste.
Ed said he checks Keely's poop everyday just like he did with their previous dog, and no diarrhea. He said Keely did have one potty accident a couple weeks ago when she first came, but Keely's very well housetrained.
He said in the mornings, Keely would jump on their bed at 6:30, like it's a routine for her, and then they tell her Off, and she would immediately. Then Ed would wake up to let her out potty, and then Barbara would go for the morning walk with Keely. He said since Keely's an older dog, the walk pretty much makes her calm the rest of the day, and she would just walk in the house from room to room, and sleep on the tile or wood floor rest of the time. Ed said she would play with her toys several times a day, and they put her toys in her crate or toy box, she would take them out and play. And near 9 PM, she would play with the toys by herself, and then they would play with her a little bit before going to bed.
He said with jumping on furniture, he said the first week, Keely would jump on furniture but would jump right off when they told her too, and now she doesn't even jump on the furniture anymore. He said they've had visitors coming, and Keely has been doing wonderful with them. I told him I remember Keely would get so excited whenever I come home, he said Keely still does that with them and with the visitors, but he said other than that, she's been wonderful with all the visitors.
He said at first Barbara would time Keely during meal times to see how long it would take for Keely to eat, but now Keely would sit immediately when Barbara show her the bowl, and then Barbara's training Keely to Stay longer, and then give her the bowl. They don't even time her now because Keely is being very good and eats immediately.
He said when they eat, they would tell Keely to Sit-Stay in the rec (family) room and that works out well, or they would have Keely sit in the sunroom when it's not too hot. Either way, Keely would have view of them while they eat (which is what I recommended; I recommended that they don't shut the dog into another room where the dog can't see them while they are eating). He said Milo likes to sit in the sunroom and look out of the window, and when it gets too hot, they would have to keep Milo away from the sunroom, but when it's not too hot, Keely likes to sit in the sunroom with Milo also.
Regarding their trip in August, Ed said they are going the last week of August, they are driving with Mark to Tampa to see Barbara's mom. He said Erica can't go because she has a summer internship and can't take off work for one week. I asked if they are taking Keely with them since they are driving, he said they are planning to board Keely and Milo at the kennel. He said they looked at several places and found this really good one, he said it's glass walled so they can see the animals easily when they go visit, doesn't smell, and they have an on-site vet. He said once they even found an urinary tract infection with their previoud dog at the boarding kennel that they didn't notice at home. He said it's more expensive and reservation often fill up, but he said it's worth it. I said if they are driving through Alabama, I would love to dog-sit Keely. He said they'll go through Montgomery, so they'll send me their schedule and see if that would work out, if it does, they'll bring Keely down for me for a week in August.
Ed said that they try to take Keely with them as much as possible, because she seems to like car rides. He said that when he and Barbara are both in the car, Keely is very good about sitting in the backseat. When it's just he and Keely in the car, Keely would jump into the front passenger seat but is very good about staying off the center console.
I asked if they received the photo CD I sent them. Ed said Barbara has been looking at the photos, and they all have been looking at my website, and they are all very impressed with amount of info in there. He said Mark has looked at the pictures of the dogs and says his first dog will be a Springer too!
Monday, July 24, 2006
Barbara emailed and said that they are driving to Tampa on Saturday, August 19th, and driving back on Saturday, August 26. The timing sounds good to me too, so we agreed for Keely to come for a week of dog-sitting.
�We went to the vet this afternoon and Keely got all her shots, a 6 month supply of Heartgard and Frontline. It went fine but I don�t know if she�ll be as eager to go next time.�
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Millie called and said that she just visited Keely. She said Keely was asleep when they entered the house, so they went to wake her up. Millie said Keely appears to be very happy and outgoing, loving all the attention from her and Craig. Millie said Barbara told her that they think Keely might be losing weight, because they don�t give her as much treats as I do. Millie told them to just increase the amount they feed her per meal.
Thursday, July 27, 2006
�I did tell Millie that I thought she lost weight but Ed weighed her last night on our scale and we actually think she gained weight. The vet visit was rather chaotic when he weighed her so I think I did not hear him correctly. We will watch it because I�d like to keep her at around 32 lbs.�
Friday, July 28, 2006
Dede�s mom emailed and said,
�Hello Dear Millie,
I am so happy to tell you thinks are doing really fine with me and Dede. I have Dede, waiting for me every day after work that make me very happy. We walk every day, in the morning about 15 to 30 min, and the evening between 20 to 45 min. I play with her inside the house, I made her jump a obstacle (a small box). I teach her to walk on the treadmill, but we still working in that, she just walks on the treadmill with me walking with her, is very funny. I took her to vet. He checked her, and said she was fine, he said was ok; I am late two weeks in the heartworm treatment. Now every month I gave to her heartworm treatment and flea/tick/mosquitoes (now I am using k-9 advantage), and every week I put the solution in her ears. I already took her to the groomer. Thanks for everything, I am so please to have her.�
After we got back inside again, Mark was downstairs eating breakfast. Keely drank some water and lied down on the kitchen floor. I left their house right after that.
Millie emailed, �You are so like a mother bird who sends her children out of the nest! I know she will do great! I also know how quiet your apartment is and how empty that place at your feet feels right now, but you will get some great emails from Barbara and Ed that will help fill the void!
I saw my friends today that are friends with Jake's mom and dad. Bucky says that Jake is all John talks about......!�
That�s exactly how I felt on my drive back from Nashville. I thought, this must be what parents feel when their kids go off to college. There is a sense of accomplishment, yet a little anxious too, because it�s a whole new world to the kid, but we hope that all we�ve been teaching and preparing the kid for all these time will help her get through it and be successful at the new place.
Barbara and Ed emailed, �We had a good day today. She went for a car ride to the airport and did very well in the car. We had a little trouble getting her into the crate when we went out tonight but she finally went in after the treats. She is a sweet dog.�
Wednesday, July 5, 2006
�Keely is doing well. She stayed on her bed all night and slept well. Ed took her out twice in the night and she came right back in and went to sleep. Ed walked her this morning because it was pouring rain. She did fine except that we forgot to put her sweater on and she got wet. I don�t think she was too happy about that because she growled when we tried to feed her. We picked up her bowl and tried again and she ate it so that is going well now. We realized when we tell her okay � she can eat her food now that we must step away before she will eat. We also found that the off command is working well, too. Ed found her on the bed when he came out of the shower, told her off and she jumped right down.
Mark played with her this afternoon � throwing her squeaky toys and she would catch them. He loves her, too. He has friends over tonight so the doorbell has been ringing and she has been greeting everyone.
Keely and Milo ended up nose to nose this morning and they seemed OK with each other but later on in the day we had a hiss and a growl at each other. I am not sure what happened but I don�t think it is anything too serious.
Keely is doing well with the crate also. I have quite a few of her toys in there and put a lot of treats in to get her to go in but tonight I found her going in there by herself. The door stays open so she can go in whenever she wants.
I brushed her this afternoon and Ed brushed her teeth tonight. She was good for us � even when I brushed her behind. Each day we will get more confident with these activities.�
I emailed Ed and Barbara, �I'm so glad to hear overall she's doing well, but I also appreciate hearing about the issues that come up and about how you deal with them, because this tells me you are very observant with her and are continuing with the training.
Yeah Keely doesn't like to get wet from the rain, she's such a dainty girl trying to stay pretty. Most people I know aren't into dressing up their dogs, but I do it sometimes, for functional reasons, like sweater to keep warm, and I can send her a raincoat if you are okay with dressing her in it.
Great job with the walks and with the meal routine! The walk is just about the best way to keep her socialized to the rest of the world. And it's very important to keep training her during meal times too. I think she missed out on some food guarding prevention training when she was a puppy, thus it's all the more important that we must continue training her, because if we don't do anything about it, it would just get worse. And please don't be afraid when she growls, if you back down, she would know she had won and would do it again because she would know it worked. I'm reading a great puppy training book by Ian Dunbar. There's a good section about how to train a puppy not to guard his/her food, but I think it applies to training adult dogs too.
From Tuesday I know especially Barbara is a soft-spoken person even with Keely, but I hope Keely's able to do these commands for all of you. I'm not implying to be mean and overly dominating with her, but definitely she needs to do basic commands for you to see you as pack leaders. After all, we wouldn't want her to be dominant at home and shy in public.
I agree about her and Milo, I don't think it was anything serious. Actually the first two weeks Keely was here, she actually was a little fear aggressive with my cat too, it was pretty funny how a 30 pound dog would be scared of an 8 pound cat. But it was nothing serious either, just some hissing and growling like you described. But my cat's dog-savvy like Milo, so I think he and Keely will work it out just like she did with my cat.�
I ordered a raincoat and a couple training treats from drsfostersmith.com and sent them to Ed and Barbara.
Thursday, July 6, 2006
Erica emailed, �Thank you so much for the pictures of Milo! Those are by far the best ones I have of him - he usually isn�t still enough for me to get a good picture :)
I also want to thank you for Keely. I know that my parents are really enjoying her already and that they are very excited. It looks like they are a good match!�
I was going to give Kathy B. a call about Jazz, but Kathy P. said she received Jasmine/Jazz�s adoption contract today, so I decided not to call.
Ed and Barbara returned my call tonight. They said they still have not decided if they want to keep Keely, because she growled at Ed this morning and again when he came home from work. They said both times were near Keely's feeding times. She was sitting there in the livingroom by herself, when Ed approached her to try to pet her, she growled at him. They are both very surprised and worried. They said they can work on the feeding routine, but they are worried about her growling at him during non-feeding time. I just told them to have Ed try hand feeding her and that not to be afraid of her or back down when she growls. Ed said when Keely growled, he just stood in the same place until she stopped growling. Personally I think it's nothing major, just something Ed has to work extra on a bit (remembering Lexi also growled at her new dad when he tried to take her out of her crate the first time, before that it was her mom who cared for her). They said Ed was able to brush her teeth, told her "off" when he found her on their bed and she jumped right off (although they said she had this triumph look on her face when they caught her standing on the bed). Barbara is brushing her, but still hasn't tried to get Keely to lie on her side or back to brush her that way. They said Keely's doing marvelous with Mark, he would tell her all the obedience commands and she would do it very well for him, and this afternoon he was in the fenced in pool area, and they said she just sat by him for two hours in the pool area, even though they let her off leash in the pool area. They said right after Keely growled at Ed this afternoon, Mark came by and approached Keely and was able to pet Keely with no problem. Personally I think it's just Barbara and Mark are at home all day pretty much so Keely's has bonded with them more (maybe even practiced obedience with her more), whereas Ed works full time. Otherwise they said she's doing great, sleeping in her own bed at night in their bedroom, no potty training problem.
They said they were keeping Keely in the sunroom when they (the humans) are eating, so Keely would still be able to see them through the glass door when they are eating.
I emailed Ed and Barbara after the phone call and recommended Barbara feed 1/2 of Keely's meal still from a bowl (1/2 of 3/4 cup), so the feeding routine would continue. I also recommended Ed use the other half of the kibbles, hand feed them to Keely as part of her training. So maybe the very first time, tell Keely to "Come" to Ed, and then feed her from his hand when she does. Then after a couple successful tries, Ed go to Keely with the food, again feeding from hand. Also, maybe 3-5 times a day, have do Keely do Sit-Down-Stays, especially before letting her out of the door to go potty or for walks. I think Keely's just at a transition period that she might be thinking that maybe Ed is trying to do more choke chain training with her. We want her to know that her new dad will still train her, just not with choke chain like her previous family did. I'm pretty sure she'll be a daddy's little girl once she bonds with Ed too. This is actually not unusual for family with full-time working dad and stay-at home moms, usually the dad has to work extra with the new dog after coming home for the dog to bond with him too. I don't know why she is different with Mark, even though he's an adult male too. Again I really don't think the growling was anything major, because Keely did get off the bed when Ed told her to and also she lets Ed brushing her teeth, so I think she has some trust in Ed already, just need more bonding time (not necessary from 3 hours of petting). I think walking would be a wonderful bonding experience for Keely and Ed, in addition to the hand feeding.
Also, I mailed them a copy of about ten pages from the Ian Dunbar book, where it talks about how to train the puppy not to guard food. It says hand feeding the kibbles and brushing the dog�s teeth regularly are great as part of bite inhibition training.
Monday, July 10, 2006
I hadn't heard from Ed and Barbara since Friday, so Sunday late afternoon, I decided to give them a call and left a message. Ed called later that night and said everything's doing better. They took Keely to a nearby state park earlier Sunday afternoon and walked her there. He also said Keely enjoyed the car ride. I asked Ed if Keely had growled at him again since Thursday, he said no. He said when it happened, they were very surprised, but he just stared her down. They think maybe that day she just decided to test her limits (which I had warned them about). Ed said the crate training is getting better too. He said they always put treats and toys in there, but the first time they did it, Keely refused to go in, and they didn't want to force in her. So Ed just sat in the family room with Keely for 30 minutes, finally Keely gave in and walked in by herself. He said after that, it's been taking only 30 to 60 seconds each time, he said Keely just can't resist the treats. I said I would recommend crating her when she's home alone for another two weeks or so, and Ed said that's what he was thinking too. Also he said Barbara has been doing very well with meal feedings, if Keely growls, she would immediately take up the bowl, and he said Keely's growling less and less during meal time. He said they've decided to change Keely's dinner feeding time from 5 PM to 7 PM, and he said before, Keely would circle around in the kitchen for 60 seconds before eating (they timed it), but now since Keely's hungry by 7 PM, she would eat immediately. He said but now the cat would be in the kitchen too when they are feeding Keely (I guess they feed the cat around 5 PM), so on Saturday night, right after they put down the bowl, the cat came over to sniff (when I was there Tuesday, they said the cat did that too with their previous dog), and Keely growled, but the cat's dog-savvy enough to leave immediately. He said the first two or three days, there were a couple hissing-barking confrontations, but now the two seem to have figured it out themselves and are able to walk past each other all the time with no problem. Ed said he's been able to brush Keely's fur and brushing her teeth, and also I asked him if they are able to touch her paws and ears, because they have to clean her ears and clip her nails in a week, and he said they've been practicing that and said Keely's okay with that too. Also, he said there has been no diarrhea or loose stool, they watch her closely to make sure she doesn't eat grass outside, but he said overall Keely hasn't been wanting to eat grass that much. He said both he and Barbara been walking Keely and she's walking very well for them both. He said on Saturday, they let Keely meet/sniff another dog they met on walk, and he said there was no growling. Ed said they feel bad that Keely isn't allowed to run leash free (because I told them no shock collar), so they just put her in their fenced-in pool area when they are in the yard, and he said Keely enjoys walking and sniffing around in there. I asked if Keely would do basic obedience for both of them, Ed said there are good days and bad days, he said sometimes Keely just pretends she doesn't hear (and they do reinforce the commands like I told them to), but he said overall Keely is very well trained and knows and has decided that treats are better than growling. He said they were trying to do everything I've emailed them about the first two days, and that probably got Keely on edge too, but he said now they've got the routine down and also the kids went back to school, so they are able to focus on Keely more. He said both they and Keely are getting better and are adjusting and that they are "hanging in there" (so I guess they haven't decided if they want to keep her yet). As I was talking to him, he said Keely's playing with her toys by his feet. And I asked him if Keely has started following them around the house, and he said yes, Keely follows him from room to room.
Ed said something about they are able to keep Keely from the table when they are eating, so I'm not sure if they are still keeping her in the sunroom while they are eating or if they are at a point where they can just make her stay away from the table but still in the kitchen/family room area.
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Ed and Barbara called me last night. They said they took Milo the cat to the vet for vaccination, and they decided to take Keely along (before adoption, I suggested that they make a "dry run" to the vet, before they have to take Keely for her annual vaccination on July 30). They said Keely was fairly relaxed there, she ate the cookies that two of the vet techs gave her, and Dr. Alan came and petted her and said she's cute and very well-behaved for a Springer. I told them that Keely would get really nervous when she went to my vet, and they said Keely didn't appear nervous at their vet clinic, she sat down and lied down on the floor several times, but when somebody opened the front door, she would pull toward the door, they don't know if she was wanting to leave or wanting the person to pet her. They also said that it seemed that having Milo there helped calm Keely's nervousness.
They said she's doing very well, Ed said Keely's doing basic obedience for them really really fast now; he would tell her sit, and she would immediately sit-down-stay. I've just emailed them about maybe decreasing the treat frequency or practice more outside in unfamiliar environment (along with high recommendation of obedience class). I asked him if they have decided if they want to keep her yet or not, and he said yes they are keeping her. He said she's very well trained, and the amount of adjustments they had to make with their lives (Ed and Barbara's) is less than they had expected about getting a rescued dog.
He said she sleeps in their room at night, no potty accidents. He said Barbara takes Keely on morning walk on a loop to a nearby park, and in the afternoon/night, they both take her. He said they haven't walked her as much as they want, because of the hot weather. He said Keely would pant a lot after walks.
With Milo, he said it's getting better. He said Monday or Tuesday, Milo went into Keely's crate to investigate, then Keely rushed into the crate also, so for a few seconds, both of them were in the crate together, and they had a little hiss-growl-bark incident, but Milo got out alright. He said overall the cat is learning to stay on the other side of the kitchen island when Keely's eating.
Regarding meal times, he said right now they feed at 7 AM and 7 PM now, and Keely would eat immediately after Barbara put down the bowl (after making Keely Sit-Down-Stay I assume). So that's working out well. But he said one time last week, they suspected Keely ate the cat's food when they opened the door when they thought the cat had finished eating. But he said so far no diarrhea. And he said they've been able to keep Keely away from the kitchen table while they are eating. He mentioned something about crate, so they might be keeping her in the crate in the family room while they are eating?
Yard-wise, he said they put her in the pool area when they are in the yard, and he said Keely likes that a lot.
And he said no separation anxiety, he said Keely still doesn't like going to the crate when they leave, but she tolerates it and would go in when it's time. He said they are settling into the routines with Keely and it's getting easier each day.
I asked about teeth brushing, he said Dr. Alan checked Keely's eyes and ears and teeth, said her ears look good, teeth excellent. Ed said Keely loves the chicken flavored toothpaste and would run to him when he takes out the toothbrush, but she's not as thrilled about the brushing part, but tolerates it well. He said it's going to clean Keely's ears and clip her nails Saturday.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Heather emailed and said, �She had a rough start in a very unstructured family that tried medication and banishment versus training and guidance. Getting her the CGC was really only the start. Building her confidence and teaching her to respond to all people was the real milestone for this girl.�
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
�The ear cleaning went well. I am not sure about the nail clipping � Ed didn�t mention any problems.�
Keely and her parents arrived at my apartment this afternoon around 2 PM. They said that they didn�t need to look for my apartment, because Keely knew exactly where it is and took them here. And I told them, Keely is a very smart girl. When Keely saw me, she was very excited, jumping up and down, licking my face. Ed and Barbara said Keely remembers me. I got into my apartment first and took Tara out on leash. The girls sniffed each other, no drama, so we let them inside. Ed and Barbara brought Keely�s crate, because they are still crating her while they are not at home. Barbara said that last week, Keely had to be crated for 8 hours for two days, when she went to visit Mark. When Barbara came back and let Keely out, Keely was acting grumpy and even peed on the floor twice. They think she was trying to get back at them for crating her so long (Barbara�s home most of the time, so Keely�s usually not crated this long each day). I know a lot of people say dogs can�t plot revenges, but I think Keely does. She did something similar when she lived with me too. They also brought her bed, and a box of things like brush, toothbrush and toothpaste, nail clipper (which is good because the one I have is a cheap plastic one that doesn�t work very well), plastic container of food, and some in � cup portions in ziplock bags, Barley Dog and fatty acid, Comfort Zone DAP plug-in (I asked them to bring this item to help Keely feel more calm) and three or four toys. Barbara said to use my own discretion regarding clipping Keely, but she does not want Keely shaved. They also reminded me that Keely throws up if they give her water when she�s excited, and how much food and supplements to give her, and what times they usually feed her. Barbara also brought the slippery elm capsules. She said she only had to use it once, but she brought it just in case. Tara and Keely seem to ignore each other and getting along fine, so Ed and Barbara left soon after.
Wednesday, August 2, 2006
�Keely is doing great. I have an appointment for her to get a bath tomorrow. I was thinking that I would then give her the Frontline.�
Saturday, August 5, 2006
�This is an update on Keely. She is doing GREAT!!!!
Eating � She has not growled while she is being fed. We can pick up her bowl and no growling.
Bowel Movement � No problems.
Weight � Approximately 35 pounds
Exercise � Keely walks about 6 days a week. The distance is approximately 2 miles. She walks very nice, no problems.
Grooming � She gets groomed about 6 days a week. She does not like grooming. I have given her treats, but it is still a struggle, especially her tail.
Tooth brushing � On average Keely gets her teeth brushed about 6 days a week. I brush her teeth everyday that I am not traveling on business. She likes the toothpaste.
Obedience � This is a hit and miss. Sometimes she obeys our commands, sometimes she doesn�t. We will probably take her to obedience class after we get back from vacation.
Vet visit � The vet found her in good health. She was good at the vet�s office, but when she got back home she seemed to be in a little bit of a bad mood. But by the next day she was back to her usual self.
Groomers � She seemed fine at the groomers.
Socializing � When we take her for a walk, we occasionally meet other dogs. She is shy with the other dogs but we have had no problems.
Ear cleaning � I have done this every two weeks with no problem.
Mark has asked that we bring Keely to St Louis when we come to visit him.�
I've been thinking about Keely a lot, as usual. Actually I've stopped calling my current foster dog by her previous name, but now occasionally I would blurt out "Keely" instead of "Tara"! Virginia says it's because I miss the adorable Keely so much.
Sunday, August 6, 2006
�The grooming session went well. I left her there with a full pouch of treats and they said they would give them to her. When I picked her up the pouch was empty so I think she enjoyed it. She was happy to see me.�
Monday, August 14, 2006
Keely's parents returned my call yesterday regarding this Saturday. They said they will drive to my apartment and meet me around 2 PM on Saturday. I did tell them about Woofstock and said just give me a call when they are passing Montgomery.
Barbara said Keely's doing fine and being spoiled. She said they started letting Keely off leash in the front yard and Keely is being very good and stay near them and come when they call her. She said when Keely comes to them, Keely would "Down" automatically because she knows she would get a treat. Barbara said the only issue is Keely would chase after squirrels, and I told her that's okay.
I asked about obedience class and she said she already sent the registration form and fee in, but the instructor has not emailed them back yet. She said I can clip Keely's fur on her tummy shorter, but she does not want Keely shaved. Barbara said it's okay if I take Keely to Millie's on Sunday.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Becky emailed and said the Bogey and Bailey were getting along fine, but about six weeks ago, Bogey started digging in the garden, so she started keeping them inside while she�s at work. That worked out fine until yesterday, when she returned home and found a hole that Bogey dug on the drywall in the livingroom, so Becky took Bogey to Heather�s vet for boarding until Heather gets back from vacation.