Look! It's Treasure Claus!

Wow, what a month it’s been already!  The Treasure Claus has been very busy visiting her friends and spreading good cheer!  She went therapy visiting to the assisted living facility up the road, but no sooner did we get there and start talking to people than the electricity went out!  We waited for a little while, but it soon became obvious things were not going to be back to normal soon, so we said goodbye and headed home.  She’ll try again next week. 

We took a visit down to see Treasure’s foster family, Treasure Claus and gifts galore!  Took lots of pictures and had lots of snuggles.  Shared lots of stories.  I have to show my appreciation for foster homes.  Having been a foster home, I perhaps have a unique perspective.  Often we get the comment, “Oh, I could never do that.  I would get too attached and I wouldn’t be able to give the dog up.”  It’s almost as if people assume the foster family must not love the dog at all in order to be able to give it up. 

But foster homes are amazing people.  People who make sacrifices every day for their foster dogs.  They are people who will hug a filthy, smelly dog, with a skin disease, from a shelter, and genuinely mean it.  They spend their own money on toys and bones, treats, sweaters and dog beds.  Their homes and belongings take a beating from dogs who are teething, not housetrained, or who are afraid to be left alone.  They spend their free time answering emails and phone calls to people interested in adopting a dog, possibly their foster dog.  They attend adoption events and drive many miles transporting dogs to and from here and there.

There is no glory. There is no pay check.  Why would someone do all of that for a dog if they didn’t love it with all their heart?  We truly do love our foster dogs.  But our greatest wish is for them to find their own family to love forever, where they will never have to leave again.  And, yes, we cry tears when they leave us.  How could we not?  They have become a part of our lives.  But by letting them go, we are able to then take and help the next dog who has been waiting in the wings for someone to rescue it.  So, thank you to all the foster homes out there.  You are amazing people.

Ok, so where else has Treasure Claus been seen?  Recently, she was spotted visiting two local 4H groups while they had their holiday celebration and made ornaments for the community Christmas tree.  And if you’re lucky, you may see her riding around in the back of her van, dressed up in her holiday finest, running errands here and there around town.  Watch for the smiles, for the Treasure Claus spreads them wherever she goes!  And the excited whispers and points in her direction as the children spot her from afar …



Treasure and her foster mom





Thanksgiving K9 nosework

Since graduating from obedience class, Treasure and I have been training for a new adventure ... K9 nosework!  Well, the instructor wanted us to start training at home to give Treasure a head start.  (Class actually doesn't start until January.)  So I've been teaching her to find food hidden in various cardboard boxes around the room.  She is getting so fast that I can barely reload and move the box before she has found it!  But there is a side effect that I hadn't counted on ... Treasure is now even more adamant about finding ANY food, ANY time, ANY where!  As we were loading the dishwasher after Thanksgiving dinner, I turned around to find Miss Treasure climbing up into the dishwasher!  She looked very proud of herself.  After all, this is what I had been rewarding her for, wasn't it?  Finding hidden food?  Hee, hee, hee. 

If I had found another one of my dogs in the dishwasher, I probably would have told them to get out, but because it was Treasure, I ran to get my camera instead.  It's so fun to see her trying new things and doing little naughty things right along with the other dogs.  And, of course, it wouldn't have been fair to get upset with her for doing something I had taught her to do.  Words of wisdom ... be careful what you teach!

I have many blessings to be thankful for this holiday season!  I hope you and your families do too!  Treasure is very thankful that we don't rinse our dishes very well before we put them in the dishwasher!

Ride for a Princess

Sorry for the dark picture, but I found a used stroller while at a flea market recently with a friend.  I decided that it would make life easier at times when trying to transport Treasure around.  I go to a lot of pet expos and events, where it is crowded.  It would certainly be more comfortable for both me and Treasure to have her elevated safely out of harm's way where people could actually see her coming at them.  I like to walk my dogs, but taking Treasure on a walk is a much slower process than my other dogs want to endure.  They are all about go, go, go!  Having a stroller to push Treasure in will allow me to take several dogs together comfortably.  And, I envision it helping on therapy visits as well.  The stroller is just the right height to park next to someone seated in a chair so they can reach her easily.  There have been a few times when Treasure just can't seem to get comfortable on someone's lap without slipping off. 

So, home the stroller came.  I thought I would have to teach Treasure to stay in it without trying to jump out while it was moving.  The first time I put her in it, she sniffed around for a brief moment and then laid down to relax.  She was quite comfortable and looked like she had always ridden in "her" stroller. I pushed it around the house, and at first she sat up, but she did not panic or try to jump out, even when I ran the stroller into the table leg!  Soon she laid down and enjoyed the ride.  After I stopped, she continued to lay there and even fell asleep.  The photo is from her first introduction to the stroller.  You can see, that she is not bothered in the least! 

I've only had the stroller for a week, but we've taken it to a professional photo shoot, where Treasure was content to lay in it and wait her turn.  If I had not taken the stroller, I would have had to hold her the entire time.  If I put her down, she would have been into everything exploring.  The stroller was a great place to park her and she acted like it was her throne.  Everyone commented how regal she looked sitting in it.  Then we took a trip to the pet store, where Grace and Owen accompanied us (and the stroller) up and down the aisles.  I had nothing to worry about, and Treasure indeed is a princess in her new ride.  Grace and Owen, however, need a bit of practice with us all walking together with the stroller! 

Graduation pictures!

These are a couple of the pictures I took of Treasure after her class graduation!

Graduation Night!

Tonight was Treasure's graduation from basic 1 obedience class!  We didn't really teach anything new, but we showed off all we had worked so hard to achieve.  Everyone in the class did so well!  We were issued a challenge for graduation night to see how many of us could get our dog to come from two feet away to target our hand with their nose.  We hadn't really been working on hand targeting because it's hard to run up to touch something you can't see. 

But because it was graduation night, and because it was a challenge, I volunteered us to go first!  I walked three feet behind Treasure and squatted down with my hand held out towards her.  My secret weapon?  The roast beef tucked between my fingers.  She quickly turned herself around and came toward me, eventually finding my hand.  Voila!  Instant hand targeting! 

All cheating aside, Treasure was able to show off all of her new skills.  Sit, down, come when called, sit for a polite greeting, walking on a leash.  We had been making progress on stays at home, but that seemed to go out the window tonight.  I think part of it was that I had roast beef tonight and she kept trying to get up to look around for more roast beef!  She does love to eat!  So I helped her to be successful with some very short stays. 

We all played baseball.  A sit at home plate to get us started, then a down at first, a sit stay for five seconds at second base (she did stay for the whole five seconds!), then on to third for a polite sit for greeting, and a recall towards home plate.  Our baseball game took a bit longer than the others, but we got a home run!

Then Treasure showed off her trick.  We had been working very hard on it.  I had her spin first in one direction and then the other.  She is better at spinning to the right because when I brought her home and she would start into a spinning frenzy, it was always to the right.  So I didn't have to help her too much in that direction.  I just tapped her hip on that side and she turned in a circle.  In the other direction, I had to lure her around still.  I was surprised that I had to lure her as much as I did on that side, but it is a new place for that skill.  We've really only practiced it at home until now. 

Then we all got our graduation certificates and the dogs got to pick a new toy!  I put Treasure down in the middle of the toys, wondering if she would pick one.  She still does not play with too many toys on her own, but I thought I'd give it a try.  If Brinks is playing with her and has a toy, she will often grab at the toy and may even bark at it if she finds it laying around.  But the only toy I have seen her play with by herself is the de-stuffed shell of a smiling sunshine.  Treasure smelled the pile of toys around her but seemed to quickly lose interest.  So I chose the same smiling sunshine toy for her to take home ... but this one still has its stuffing! 

I must say a very special thank you to our instructor, who welcomed Treasure into her class with open arms.  It is all too common to find that people are a bit hesitant or overwhelmed when faced with something or someone that may be different than what they're used to.  I thank her for believing in what Treasure can do and giving her the chance to shine!  Congratulations, Treasure! 

Costumes!

Treasure the Jester

Grace the Rooster

Owen the Rooster

Brinks the Dragon

Treasure the Princess

We had a lot of fun playing dress up today.  These are a few of my favorite shots.  Grace and Treasure spent a lot of time sniffing the other dogs in costume, and Treasure even started chewing on the dragon's spikes.  Grace then ran under the kitchen table and hid there, not wanting a turn, but I convinced her to try on the new rooster outfit and got a few shots before she'd had enough!  Brinks, ever the puppy, was constantly trying to steal the costumes and drag them away to play with!  Owen is always the good sport and puts up with a lot to please me.  Treasure was very interested and had to inspect each costume I brought out.  Then she stood right in front of me until I tried each one on her.  Some she liked better than others, but she did not leave.  She stayed very close until we were all finished and the excitement was over.  Now she's sleeping at my feet.

Class Week Five

Treasure brought some smiles when she showed off her ladybug costume tonight.  But then it was right down to business.  I did manage to get her to sit and down while wearing the costume, but she isn't totally comfortable in it, so I removed it for the working part of class. 

Tonight we did sits and downs, and I actually got two downs from a standing position, which if you remember, we had a difficult time doing last week.  We worked on our sit stay.  My stay signal is a flat hand pressed gently into Treasure's chest.  I practiced moving myself around her while she stayed sitting.  It was interesting because she seemed to know as I was moving around her and turned her head towards wherever I was to get her treat.  I'm not doing down stay yet, but I think it will go quickly because once she's down, she tends to stay down longer than she stays in a sit. 

I'm starting to use less of a signal to get her to sit.  I'm not leaving my hand in position quite as long, which I'm hoping will lead to a quicker sit response.  We did loose leash walking.  She is doing so good with this!  But I noticed something I had not planned on.  She was great working near our station where the chair and training bag were.  But when I wanted her to move away from it, she fought me a bit, trying to get back to the known area.  She was able to come out in the middle of the room and do some walking with me though, once I did get her away from our station.

Treasure is starting to move when she feels my left leg take a step, sometimes without any tension on the leash.  She is learning to feel the movement of my leg and feel the air current of its movement, plus the vibration of my steps near her.  I am feeding every few feet still, but I am able to get her to do right turns and about turns.  I am feeding her right next to my left leg to increase the importance of that leg to her and to increase her attention to it. 

We also worked on recalls.  Treasure was able to come towards me from about five feet away with me blowing towards her.  We did this several times to get a longer recall, with her getting a treat after each five foot span.  Once, when she walked to the end of her leash to greet the instructor, I was able to blow on her rear end from six feet away and she turned around and came to me.  I am very proud of her!  Now I just need to work on having enough breath for a longer recall! 

Next week is graduation!  We are still working on our tricks and I've narrowed it down to the easiest ones for now.  She has certainly come a long way in just a few weeks.  And I think she enjoys the special one on one time, and of course I know she enjoys all of the treats!!