The Great Experiment

Thing are much better between Gypsy and I today. I took all three dogs for a walk in the neighborhood this morning and everything went great. She actually slept in until 8:00 without barking at cats.

The Problem

Each fall and spring my yard turns into a mud track. The dogs run out the door, off the deck and in to the yard in approximately the same place all the time. Once in the yard they venture all around, but they have the path, the track to get there. Sound familiar?

After all the rain in the last few days it is really bad, they are killing the grass, what is left of it and as all dog owners are aware; muddy paws, wiping them off, muddy bellies, wiping them off....it more then a challenge it is a job. Now times 3 dogs is 12 paws, 12 legs and 3 bellies!
I have mopped the kitchen 9 thousand times. Once in, and wiped down they must "crate" to dry off, but still, come on, you know it is crazy. Jake is like a giant sponge.

The Experiment

Today I went to a local farm and purchased 2 large bales of straw. I then spread this out all over the path, the track, the yard. If it doesn't help with mud, the dogs think it is great to run and play in. Even Gypsy was playing and I have never seen Gypsy play. She was chasing Jake around and around the yard with Mollie in hot pursuit. Jake was doing his infamous jumps and turns in the air then rolling around in the straw with Mollie and Gypsy fighting him down. I laid on the new straw path and just laughed at the game.

Now I didn't say this was the best plan, as the straw in hanging off of Jake making him resemble the Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz, but it is a plan. I will keep you posted; was this is a great plan or if it turns out to be the great experiment gone wrong.
The Lady

Bad Day, Sad Day

We had a very bad day today. I woke the Lady before 6:00 AM, I was barking at one of the cats. She was very tired, she had stayed up late reading a book. She came down the stairs in her robe and said "do you want to go outside." Mollie and Jake went right out, I didn't want to, it was raining and kind of dark out there. So the Lady put on her big rain boots and kind of pulled me by my collar outside on the deck. She said, "go potty". She wanted us to do our business so she could go back to bed and sleep late.
I ran around the deck and wouldn't go down the steps into the yard. So the Lady pulled me by my collar, she was saying "Gysp Come", but she was kind of mad and I was kind of scared. We were both getting kind of wet.
Then when she got me in the yard in the rain in her boots and in her robe she said "go potty".
I keep trying to run back up the stairs, then she stamped her foot and said really kind of meanly
"GO POTTY"
I ran under the deck to hide, I have never seen the Lady mad and she was mad at ME. Mollie ran, but Jake just kind of looked at her. Mollie came right back to the Lady cause she knows the Lady never really stays mad for long. I don't.
The Lady said she was sorry, but I didn't believe her, I kept running away from her around and around the yard. She put Mollie and Jake in the house, they were pretty muddy and she got the Liverwurst, but I wouldn't come anywhere near her or the deck or the house. I just keep running around the yard.
She went in the house and got dressed in her rain coat and everything. She came back out and I was shaking and wet and cold, but no way would I go to her! I was sure she was going to stay mad at me. She would sit in the yard with the Liverwurst and call me very nicely, but no way would I go to her. She would sit very quietly but now way would I go to her.
She then had a good idea, she called Purrcella out with her. Purrcella is one of my more favorite cats, she is never afraid of me and she comes when the Lady calls her. I love to follow and herd the cats in the yard, it is one of my most favorite things to do. Purrcella really doesn't like me to herd her, but she knows the Lady won't let me hurt her. The Lady and Purrcella started walking around the yard and I started to follow them. Then the Lady called Purrcella up on the deck and I keep following them. Then she called Purrcella into the house and I followed her in.
I was really glad to be inside our house again. It was 9:30 in the morning by this time. The Lady had stayed outside in the rain with me almost the whole time, but she had scared me. When we got in the house I finally came to her and she pet me very nicely and told me how sorry she was, she even had big tears in her eyes. I believed her, I told her I was sorry too!
Now I am kind of scared to go outside, but each time the Lady goes out with me. She is being patient with me, but I am still scared. The Lady just keeps tell me "I really screwed up, but we will get through this" I hope so and so does the Lady.

The Lesson in all of this: Never take a shy dog outside in the rain when you are tired and not ready to deal with what could happen. You will end up sorry, very wet and very sorry.
The Lady.

I Finally Got It

Today the Lady took Mollie, Jake and me for a walk in the neighborhood. It was raining and not too cold so we did the short walk, 1.5 miles and it takes us about 30 minutes. I am doing great on a leash. I wander from one side to the other, but I am staying on heel or walking behind the Lady, just like she wants me too. Well most of the time I am. Mollie and Jake do this very well, most of the time.

We have to wait for the Lady to go out the door first. She says wait, wait and holds up her hand like a stop sign. I have this down. Then when we go out the door we have to wait again on the deck because she has to close the door. Where we live there are no sidewalks, so when we get to the road we have to wait again until we are all calm and in line with the Lady in the middle we then go for our walk.

As it was raining we were all wet when we got home. The Lady told Mollie and Jake to "Crate" so that they could dry off. I don't like to go in my crate when the Lady tells me too, so the Lady and I work on this with Liverwurst. She lets me smell it in her hand and she says "crate" and I follow the scent inside the crate, then I get the liverwurst and she closes the door. This is all good, but I keep digging at the crate door and crying.

So today the Lady would come to the door of my crate and just stand there. She doesn't look at me she just goes sssspt and holds up her hand for me to back away from the door. When I would sit down on my blanket she would walk out of the room. We did this for a full hour, over and over! She never got mad at me she just keep up the ssspt and holding up her hand, when I would move from the door, she would go out of the room. Finally I got it, I just laid down and went to sleep, just like Mollie and Jake do. After we had slept for about 45-minutes she came and let us all out. She told us we were very very good dogs.

When the Lady is at her desk, which is in the room where all three crates are, I go in my crate all the time, all by myself, but the door is open. I think what she wants me to lean is, I can go in my crate when the door is open, I should go in my crate when she says "crate" and I should stay in my crate quietly until she let's me out. I think I finally got it! What do you think?????

Bunkbed Sofa

Last night after a long day at THE PARK OF THE DOGS

Gypsy curled up with Billy.....

while Jake couldn't keep his eyes open......

then theres the ever watchful Mollie Maie, just can't catch her sleeping on the job

I am off the leash....out of the box

Today, I, Gypsy went off leash at THE PARK OF THE DOGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Thank you, thank you, thank you. Please, please sit down, hold the applause, your embarrassing me."

"Not really, I am so proud, go ahead clap all you want."

The Lady, our friend Dave, Mollie, Jake and me went back to the greatest place on earth again today..................

Wait, first I need to tell you that I got a new coat. It is soooooo cool, olive green on one side and brilliant orange on the other. The Lady noticed that I was getting really cold when it was wet and windy at THE PARK OF THE DOGS, so she got me this very cool coat. Today it was cold, windy and raining but really fun. Guess what, I get to wear my new coat until my natural beautiful coat comes back in. Now back to the story..............................

So we where all the THE PARK OF THE DOGS and I was wearing my new coat, and I was dragging the training leash just like before. But today the Lady would call and I would come right back to her. Just like I was supposed to! I was also walking ahead of the Lady and Dave and I would turn to check where they were. Dave and the Lady were most impressed. We went in the woods and found the really cool tee pee, the Lady said it was Boy Scouts that built it, but Dave and I think it was Indians. I stayed on the training leash for a long time, but after we came out of the woods the Lady took it off. I was free, I could run around anywhere I wanted to go. It was so much fun, it was so very cool. Dave said "It's graduation day."
So we took another short walk in the field and the whole time, yes that is right, the whole time I was OFF THE LEASH, OUT OF THE BOX. I even had a nice little run of my very own. But the most important thing was I stayed with my pack!

And guess what else we did, go on just guess, you will never guess.

We made our own MOVIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dave was our host, director and camera man and it stars Jake, Mollie and me. The movie is all about...................now wait......................get ready.....................here it comes......................

THE PARK OF THE DOGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am not going to tell you anymore cause Dave is going to do something called edit it and when he gets it all ready we are going to show it to all of you on Fluffy Dogs on the Go. So keep checking back and we will have it for you very soon.

Fosters From the Past!

The Lady told us a story today.......Here is how it goes.....

My first foster was Bella, what a wonderful dog. I signed up to be a foster with Fluffy Dog Rescue and three days later I received an email asking if I could meet a Doodle in Barrington. The dog was coming in from Ohio. Sure, I responded, that will be fine. So I followed the directions that led me to a home nestled in a grove of trees.

There were so many dogs I was overwhelmed, two vans filling up with crates to transport dogs to Wisconsin and Minnesota. These dogs had been saved from high kill shelters in the south and southeast. It was all so organized and the mission was to save dogs.

I met a great guy and told him I was with Fluffy Dog and was to pick-up a Doodle named Babbit. He opened up a crate and this beautiful creature gracefully walk out. She was so calm in all the barking and chaos I just could not believe it.

Off we went, she was great in the car. When we got home she was gentle with the cats and very good with Jake and Mollie, who were at the time each about a year old. Within the first week I found out more of Bella's story.....

She had been trained to be a companion to a blind man. This made sense, she was so gentle and calm about everything. I figured out she was very well trained just from hanging out with her. She made Jake and Mollie look like dumb and dumber. After her owner passed away a neighbor of his took her in, but this woman had too many dogs, she was a hoarder and poor Bella was standing in a corner due to lack of simulation. This woman's daughter convinced her to give Bella up to Fluffy Dog to find her a new home. I couldn't call her Babbit she was just too lovely...that is how I came to call her Bella meaning love.

Bella was with me all of three weeks. She found her forever home very quickly and what a great place. She now lives on a farm with a Doctor, his wife and three children. They have horses, goats, cats and now they have Bella too!

Bella will always have a very special place in my heart. She showed me I could do this, foster dogs and help them on their way to their FOREVER HOMES. Thank you Bella for showing me the way!

Bella the Beauty

What a great Face

When I picked-up Easton, my second foster, it was a cold and raining night. I met one of the other foster Mom's at a gas station, she had picked him up from HAWS in Waukesha where he had just be fixed and transported him to Kenosha. All I knew was that he as was a stray found in Ohio living on the streets and he was a poodle.

This is Easton the day after I met him

His poor feet where bare.

The dog I met was soooo sick, no fur on his feet, sores on his face from scratching himself, thin... all and all just a pathetic mess. I carried him into his crate and he went to sleep. The next day I called Fluffy Dog and said "How are we going to help this dog?" What I was thinking was "I am in way over my head." Fluffy Dog Wellness snapped into action. It was parasites with an internal yeast infection combined with malnutrition. He went on a Raw combined with Grain-free kibble diet along with tons of supplements. When I say tons, I mean tons, it would take me about 10 minutes each feeding just to crush supplements. I mixed them into Raw Venison, Chicken and/or Beef with yogurt and grain-free kibble.

I must have sent Fluffy Dog thousands of emails, "What next" "Are you sure this is going to work?" "Are you certain this is humane?"

I had never been involved in treating such a sick animal, I worried and wondered if he would ever gain weight, if he would ever stop scratching, if he would ever get well. It took about 6 weeks of good food, lots of love, supplements and hope and he began to turn a corner. Slowly the number of supplements he needed each feeding declined, his fur started to grow back and he gained weight. He actually began to look like a rag a muffin dog!

Through it all he was a character right out of Dickens. I laughed at that pour little creature all of the time. I bought him a coat to help keep him warm as the fur grew back. Whenever he was loose at the dog park, Mollie, Jake and I spent are whole time chasing him. He wanted to meet everyone! He has the craziest personality, just a clown all of the time. After 4 months we had this great dog ready for his forever home.

If you ever think that a dog is too far gone to save think about Easton.

This is Easton the day before he went to his forever home.

His new family named him Rudy which fits him.

He really came a very long way.

Sunday Sunday Sunday

The Lady took us to the PARK OF THE DOGS again!
I am working on staying with my pack. The Lady is using a very long leash and I get to drag it along, when I get to far away from her, Mollie and Jake I hear " Gypsy, come" if I don't turn to look at the Lady, she says it again then gives a quick tug on the leash.

I really like to meet all the little dogs, and kind of try to herd them. I also put my foot on them to hold them down, gently. Any ideas on what this is about?

I am also getting very good at "SIT", when the Lady holds a treat over my head I am starting to sit on my own. Geeze I am such a smart and great dog.

Saturday in the Park

Yesterday was a very good day, yes a very good day in deed!

The Lady and her friend Dave, along with Mollie, Jake and I went back to the coolest place in the world THE PARK OF THE DOGS.

We hung out in the play areas where Mollie and Jake played with their old and new friends. I hung with the people and got lots of petting that was very nice. Next we all hiked and it was great. I am begining to stay with the Lady and our Pack, but I am still leaning to come to my name and I am on a long training leash.

We are so happy to hear that one of my old pack mates Bella is starting to understand that the new people taking care of us, and the new packs we are staying in are kind and good places to be. Not all humans are not going to just put us in a pen and ignore us.

We are all, the 6 Beardies that where saved from the Puppy Mill, starting on our journeys to finding FOREVER homes. Please check out each one of my old gang at http://www.fluffydogs.net/
You will not be able to miss us, we are in a group of photo's that look like Whippets.

Please help us find our FOREVER homes, but in the mean time we are all leaning to be very good dogs.
Gypsy