Catching up......

Well, it's been a busy couple of weeks, even though there hasn't been much in the way of comings or goings. But there was a lot of interest in the boxer mix pups, and correspondence and application review for just them kept us pretty busy. We had a week of pretty lousy weather, which meant nobody could spend much time outside even if they'd wanted to. Nobody (except Tansy, who seems to be impervious to the weather) wanted to go out in the rain and muck even to potty, much less to play. Thank goodness for the recent break in the weather. Even though it was cold for a few days it was sunny and dry, and now it's warmed up to the mid-50's and it's still sunny and dry, so the dogs have been getting much more opportunity to spend time outside. When they get enough exercise/play time outside, they're all a lot quieter when they come in, and it makes life easier.

I took a little video of some of the little dogs out in the yard the other day. Pearl the puppymill poodle is the little white dog leading the chase, Bibi the puppymill cockapoo is the fluffy little black dog, Tansy's the bigger fluffy dog, and the other players include a couple of my personal dogs and a couple rescue dogs that aren't ready to be listed on Petfinder yet.



On Friday, I talked a regular - though sometimes reluctant - donor (my mom) into buying me a nice big Rubbermaid bucket with a wringer. Oh boy, I looooooooooove my new bucket! I had a smaller mop that I used with it Friday and Saturday and it worked pretty well, but the mop head is small and the handle's short, and it was still pretty hard work. But yesterday, I bought a commercial-grade janitorial-type mop with a big mop head and a longer handle, and this afternoon the floors are getting another complete going-over. Then I'll be able to just fill the bucket each morning and keep it out, for immediate and easy accident clean-up. My old regular bucket and Libman Wondermop just aren't heavy-duty enough for my needs, the new bucket and mop should make floor cleaning much quicker and easier, leaving more time for playing, training, and other direct interaction with the dogs.

I'm grateful for the advent of Spring. The warmer weather will also simplify husbandry chores. During the winter I can't fill the water buckets/bowls out in the yard using the hose. I fill two gallon milk-jugs at the kitchen sink and haul them through the house and out in to the yard, and fill the water dishes that way. It takes two trips each time they need to be filled, twice a day. But with the temperature above freezing, I can fill the water dishes from the spigot out there. It's also going to make crate cleaning a lot easier. During the winter, crate cleaning is a pain. I have to take the crate apart and put it, one half at a time, into my bathtub to rinse out/clean, then dry, then reassemble. Inevitably, I get dirty water all over my bathroom, so it has to be cleaned afterward. When the weather's above freezing, I can just haul the whole crate out into my driveway, rinse it out with the hose, leave it out there to air-dry, then haul it back in afterward. No disassembly or reassembly required most of the time, and no bathroom-cleaning afterward!

We did home visits for the three puppies yesterday. They'll be neutered on Thursday, and they'll be going to their new homes that evening. Duncan is going to a young couple, Bentley is going to a family with 3 children, and Brando is going to an amazing home with a lovely young woman and her large, dog-loving family. (Brando's going to be the most socialized puppy on the face of the earth, I think.) An added bonus is that both Brando and Bentley will be within easy driving distance of my obedience class in that area, so I'm hoping to see them both in class the upcoming term!

Sinatra, Cider, Frannie, and probably Geraldine will also be going in to be spayed/neutered on Thursday. I hope someone falls in love with Sinatra, soon. He's a wonderful dog, very affectionate and sweet, but he's a bit of a bull in a china shop and this little china shop is just not big enough for him. He'll be a great family companion and he'll probably settle easily into a new home, and with the one-on-one time he'll get in a home of his own he's going to be a really wonderful pet.

I can't believe we've had so little interest in Scooter, the little white poodle boy. He's a great little dog, very social, affectionate, and funny. He makes me laugh all the time. He has very little residual psychological damage from his life in the mill, and he's got such a happy, gung-ho attitude that any lingering shadow of his former life will soon be a thing of the past. He's young, no more than about 2. He loves other dogs, he's great with cats, and he'd probably be great with kids too. And he's a poodle for goodness' sake. I'd sure like to see him settled into a loving home.