RODEO ... watch for him!

Hold your breath for RODEO, who should arrive later today. You can find a picture of him on the Misty Creek Dog Rescue website - he looks like a gentle little charmer who will need a jacket for this winter weather! For now, here is Ginny, foster-mom in waiting.

PALS Moments

Iggy and I just got back from our PALS visit. I really didn't want to go today. I had a headache, and it was so cold outside. But, as Don put it, I had made a promise. And of course I couldn't overlook the irony of it all. Relative to a headache and the temperature outside is life on the inside, no hope of parole.

Nameless lady: strapped into a wheelchair. For good measure, held in by an attached table over which she leans, trying to pull herself up and out. Every time I look at her, she's making eye contact. "Help me. Help me." As on the last visit and the one before that, I go over and hold her hand. She clings to mine, and gives me background information, none of which sounds good. "They're all dead," she says, and she could be referring to something in her past or to the room we're in right now. I don't talk to her because I don't know what to say that might help. I think she just wants out.

Helen: new, and sitting by herself in a hallway nook. She keeps falling down, she says. Her family and her dog live in Mackenzie Town, and she has no idea why they put her here. She can't bear to go to the main sitting room, because it's so sad. "I just don't fit in here," she says. We tell her we'll be back in two weeks and we'll keep our fingers crossed that she'll be back in Mackenzie Town. I'm thinking she couldn't be too hard to look after because she's so tiny. If she were my mother I'd just take her home with me.

Tawnia: Native, looks about 35. In a wheelchair by the door. A volunteer says to her, "Too cold to to outside for a smoke today, right?" Tawnia says, "I've been out three times already." Volunteer: "I wouldn't do it." Tawnia: "Well, you ain't got any Indian in ya."

GINNY INTERMISSION

Here is foster-mama Ginny, who loves all this puppy business and who (in this picture) has just captured a wild sheep.

IGGY INTERMISSION

This is Iggy, the grumpy old man who has no interest whatsoever in all this puppy business. (Which explains why there were no pictures of Iggy with Tristan.)

KEYWORDS: "OUT THERE"

Well, Tristan has been adopted and goes to his new family at 5:30 today.

I'll miss his baby-fur and wet nose and the little snuffly-noises he makes when he's sleeping. As the volunteer coordinator at the Humane Society put it, saying goodbye to a dog leaves a wound. Which, she added, "...you sew up with another dog."

So we'll see what happens next. According to the e-mail I just fowarded to Don, there are more puppies that need fostering. These puppies are currently "out there" where day-time highs are going to be -20. Can we help?

Of course we can help! How many puppies are there? I will take all them all and keep them "in here" where it's warm, and there are so many pee-stains on the carpet that a few more won't hurt.

AND HE SUMMITS!

THE BIG EXPLORE

Tristan looking good in white!

TRISTAN THE SNOW DOG!

He loves the snow! Tristan can go from full-nap to full-run and back again, all in the space of a few minutes.

Hmmm... maybe I can chew you into the shape of a shoe...

Iggy received this stuffed toy at one of his PALS visits, but he wasn't much interested because there were no eyes to remove. So Tristan has yet another toy.

BUT CAT FOOD IS GOOOOOD.....

Here is Tristan after being told to "Leave it!" (the cat food, that is). He knows the Leave It command very well, having practiced it in relation to all objects known to man.

TRISTAN UPDATE

Tristan is doing great with training - the only thing holding him back from perfection is all that puppy-exuberance!

To the list of achievements in his little autobiography (a few messages down) we can add the following:

He now sleeps all night in the crate with no whining. During the day, he has a habit of falling asleep under my chair. He waddles into his crate and flops down quite happily when I wake him up and say, "Go to your crate."

He's still quite attached to me, but is gradually widening his territory. Today we went for a car ride with him in the crate. We left him for about 20 minutes where we could watch the car. He must have been quiet because people who walked past the car didn't even look in (and they certainly would have if Tristan was upset - he has quite a voice!) When we came back to the car, he was just lying quietly, not at all concerned.

Tristan is also a great walker. Until a couple of days ago, he didn't want to leave the house. He would brace himself against the leash until we turned around to come home. But now he accepts the leash in any direction. Yesterday, we went for what I calculate to be about a mile, and he trotted along beside me the whole way.

And last, Tristan has learned to sit with the big dogs and wait for his supper. That took a lot of self-control because he is one hungry little guy!

BUT I'M STILL HUNGRY!

No, he's not hiding - he's under the big-dog food tables looking for crumbs.

"LEAVE IT!"

Poor Tristan! He just doesn't understand why he should have to leave it. It's just sitting there and it is, after all, a doggy treat!

TO MY FOREVER FAMILY... WHERE ARE YOU?

These are all the things you should know about me, TRISTAN, on November 29:

• 
  I sleep through the night in a playpen beside my foster-humans' bed. If they stay up too late, I climb the stairs by myself and wait for them to come up and put me to bed.
• 
  During the day I will nap by myself in my special place beside the couch.
• 
  I ""Go Pee!" and "Go Poop!" on command.
• 
  I walk on a leash unless I don't feel like it.
• 
  I like to lick the cat's face. I am starting to think the cat is a dog.
• 
  I sit for treats as long as my bum will stay on the floor when I'm excited. Check out my video with dog-trainer Megan!
• 
  Today, I started learning the "Leave it!" command.
• 
  I am learning to have short naps in that scary crate - today I was brave enough to go in and lay down all by myself!
  

Below are all kinds of pictures of me, so you can see how smart I am and how much fun I am to have around. I am trying hard to be good and to learn all kinds of new things, because I know I'm getting ready for my forever family!

I hope my forever family comes soon. I can tell that my foster-humans are starting to love me, and the longer I stay, the sadder they will be when it's time for me to leave!

Tristan

AWWWWWW...

Tristan is learning to sleep in the crate. He actually went in by himself today. One baby step at a time!

He is also learning the command "leave it!"

I don't think he's going to be very tall - squat and solid, that's my guess.

AN APPETITE FOR LITERATURE

Here is Tristan under the coffee table... fast asleep among the books. He loves to chew on books!

"So many words!" he says. "I just can't get enough of them!"

EVERYTHING IS RELATIVE

When they're sleeping next to each other, you can see how small Tristan is. And notice Ginny's tongue hanging out! Those play sessions are just exhausting for an old lady of two years!

DINING WITH JACK

This is Jack's first meal with Tristan. We tried having Jack eat his supper in a different place, but he wouldn't eat! He just kept coming back to where his food dish is supposed to be, so we gave in. Obviously, Tristan doesn't mind!

TRISTAN SITS!

DOGGIE WARS

Tristan is learning how to hold his own with foster-mama Ginny. Tonight they raced around the dining room table for quite some time - and Tristan had the advantage because he can fit under all the chairs!

Believe it or not, Tristan is learning to sit and lay down! He should have it completely figured out within the next two days - he is a very smart puppy! I think it's all the vitamins he's getting - paper vitamins, shoe vitamins, plant vitamins, chair vitamins and wicker basket vitamins.

POOPIE NEWS!

Good news for Tristan's adoptive family when they come along. I don't think Tristan knows he isn't supposed to pee or poo in the house, but he does know that when he's outside, it's time to go!

Twice today, he actually went to the door - not in a definitive way, but kind of a tentative "hmmm... I wonder if I'm supposed to go outside for something..." and both times, he performed like a champion as soon as he hit the grass.

Don't worry, I won't take pictures of that!

TA DAAAA!

There's a solution for every problem! Tristan can't come into contact with other doggies (or other doggies' doo) because his immunizations aren't complete. There are hardly any places in the world where other dogs haven't been, so here is Tristan in his "This-is-weird-but-at-least-I-get-to-leave-the-house!" pack.

I can't tell if he likes it or not. When I took him to the school to pick up Megan, he kept his "stuffed toy" look on the whole way.

You can tell Iggy (lower right) thinks it's the stupidest thing ever invented!

"ARE YOU MADE OF FABRIC?"

Jack the cat says hello. But he isn't very interested in Tristan, because he much prefers silk to fur.

IT'S HARD TO GO POO WHEN YOU'RE PLAYING...

Ginny is teaching Tristan the fine art of being bowled over.

TRISTAN AT WORK

This is where Tristan is happiest. Hard at work chewing the little wooden zipper tag on my coat while I compute. I think he's building a coffee table.

NIGHT #2 - AND NOT A PEEP!

Tristan has figured out, in no uncertain terms, where he's going to sleep. He snuggled in by our feet while we watched 24, and stayed there all evening. At 11:30, we put him in the crate - using the "organic door" method. Every time he tried to get out, he encountered an open palm that he just couldn't push past. When he laid down, the same hand stroked him. He fell asleep in about 20 minutes. Yaay! We just left him with the door open.

I came to check on him five minutes later... and he was fast asleep by the couch. So that's where he stayed, only waking up at 5 to go pee, and even then back to sleep until 6. What a good boy! We'll just have to take the crate training a bit slower, because he really doesn't like to be penned in. Right now, he's beside me (and I mean right beside me, so he can see me!) in a playpen, and he thinks that's unacceptable. But he is starting to settle now and I think he'll have a nap soon. In this picture, he says, "Let me out right now, or the sheep gets it!"

As for playing, Tristan is really coming out of his shell. He and Ginny have been trying to figure out how to get a game of doggy-tag underway, in spite of their great difference in size. More pictures later - for now, I have to see if I can work while puppy sleeps (yes! He's just zonked out in the playpen!) I would take a picture, but I don't want to wake him up with the flash.

SHEEP DOG

Yes, I can chew the leg off this sheep, but only if I don't have to get up!

LAZY L'IL PUPPY

Just like a human who ate too much and can only lie around clicking remote buttons... after he eats, Tristan is happiest on his back!

ZZZZZZ....

A relaxed and happy Tristan.

PUPPY HEAVEN

Here is Tristan falling asleep to a three-kid massage - "This is more like it!" is what he must be thinking after his first night in a crate.

Book of Puppy Training:
"Tether your puppy, and let him sleep on a blanket beside your bed. He may whine a bit during the night. Just reach out and give him a scratch to reassure him. If he becomes really anxious, take him out to eliminate, and then place him back on the blanket.

Book of Tristan: "Tether your puppy and let him sleep on a blanket beside your bed. He may go in circles and tangle himself up, and then frantically try to chew through the tether."
or
"Put your puppy in the crate, which should be braced against the couch with just enough space to get your arm in, so you can give him a scratch when he fusses. Fall asleep so that wiley coyote-pup can sneak out and try to scramble up on the couch."
or
"Put your puppy in the crate and lock the door. Put a clock beside him to tick-tock like his mommy's heart. He may squeal at 120 decibals. Adult dog may join in, bouncing up and down and poking you with her nose because there is a puppy crying and you are doing nothing. Have patience. Give puppy a "shhh" now and then to let him know you're there, and take him out to pee every two or three hours. And relax... the first night is always the busiest."

SOCIALIZING

As soon as he settled in, Megan's friends came to visit, and - even though it looks as though Megan won't share - everyone got a chance to hold him and feed him some kibble.

He didn't pee on anyone! What a good boy!

TRISTAN - Baby #1

And here he is - the newest pack member! When Tristan arrived, he was motionless (and expressionless) for all of ten minutes. And then his little tail began to wag, and we offered him some kibble. He loves food!

Now, 2 1/2 hours later, he has been happily accepted by Ginny and Jack, ignored by Iggy and snuggled by the neighbors. He even went pee outside on the 5th trip out. No accidents so far, and he's gone in and out of his crate a few times without any worries.

A sweet little fellah! It's hard to see it in the pictures, but he even has that little sharpei wrinkle running down his nose. It will be hard to say goodbye when he gets adopted, but between now and then we'll enjoy his company.

Packing Up!

Well, our first new foster baby is in the works - an 8-week old possibly Sharpei mix, and he arrives on Saturday. Already I'm worried that he'll be adopted before I'm ready to let him go. I'll post pictures soon! I know he'll be adopted before Megan is ready to let him go!

Here is the existing junior pack, from left to right:

1) Ginny, the Lab-Border Collie cross

2) Megan, the Human-Holy Terror cross

3) Jack, the Cat who likes fabric Way Too Much

4) Iggy, the Keeshonden who would sell his soul for a piece of fish

In about a week, we should have some new pack members. The adventure begins!