I have a friend, who shall remain nameless, who calls her young male dogs "The Boy" in conversation. I laugh about it, because it doesn't matter which boy she's talking about, he's "The Boy."
As many of you know, Blaze has been "The Baby." Yesterday The Baby became The Boy. How did this happen? How did my darling little puppy grow up without me noticing?
Katie is in season. The boys are all far too interested in her and we've instituted the Separation of the Sexes for playtime. That mean's that Grandma's Girls (which includes Katie) spend a lot more time in Grandma's suite of rooms. The gate on the stairs remains closed at all times (unless I forget!) and no one gets let inside, outside, upstairs or downstairs without checking "where are the boys?" or "where's Katie?"
All month I've been pleased that The Baby didn't seem to be overly interested in her or really quite "get it." But the signs have been there. He's constantly annoying the other girls, you know, in an irritating pull on her hair to show her you like her, elementary school kind of way. But yesterday he took another step in moving away from being The Baby and becoming The Boy. I came home to find Ryder had some scratches on his nose. The scratches are remarkably similar to the scratches that Max and Ice sported when Ryder reached that stage in his development. Head wrestling will do that to you...when one of the parties gets a little out of control. The Boy is more assertive, standing over the other males to say "I'm a BOY" now.
Yep, he's The Boy. He's figured out what girls are...and he's figured out that he can throw his weight around with the boys.
I think The Baby is growing up.
May 15, 2007
May 09, 2007
Mushing Boot Camp 2007 - Pictures!!!
When I realized that Sean had forgotten the camera, I was both distressed and, I'll admit, somewhat relieved. I knew that he was going to be focused on the dogs, working with the dogs and learning...I was kind of afraid the camera would suffer. But, on the flip side, it meant I wasn't going to get any pictures...and that was distressing. I love watching the dogs work.
Happily Twila and her husband, from Quinalt Siberians, came to the rescue and took some great pictures. I've snagged the pictures that have shots of Sean and the team in them and uploaded them to our picturetrail album.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. I especially like that I got to enjoy Boot Camp without having to get up at 5:30 am to water the dogs and grab breakfast!
Laura, the Lazy
Happily Twila and her husband, from Quinalt Siberians, came to the rescue and took some great pictures. I've snagged the pictures that have shots of Sean and the team in them and uploaded them to our picturetrail album.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. I especially like that I got to enjoy Boot Camp without having to get up at 5:30 am to water the dogs and grab breakfast!
Laura, the Lazy
May 07, 2007
We survived Mushing Boot Camp 2007
Well, we're finally on our way home. We learned a lot this week and worked hard for Daddy.
Some of the things we learned?
1. Don't stop to go potty when working. Daddy will let the other dogs run you over.
2. Don't throw temper tantrums if you don't want to work. Daddy doesn't care and will make you do it anyway.
3. Daddy can be just as mean as Momma and we have to listen to him too when he tells us to do something.
4. Daddy IS the boss of us.
I had SO much fun. Daddy put me in back for a little while, but then moved me back up front with Grandpa Ice. I swear, if those two lazy butts behind us (Ryder and Satinka) had done some of the work, Grandpa and I wouldn't have gotten so tired!
After I tried to get out of the funny box thing the first night, Daddy put us in our crates to sleep. That's OK, I guess. I'd rather have been on the bed with him, but at least I'm used to my crate and it has a crate pad, not that funny straw stuff.
Oh, one more thing I learned - pulling a cart and Daddy through mud is HARD WORK. And when I get tired and sit down, Daddy makes me go again. I love running, but really...
We practiced "on by" a lot. I mean a LOT. Apparently it's very important for us to know "on by" and we do. Momma taught us that already. Apparently she didn't tell Daddy we already knew that.
And Satinka and I think that the really neat cart that Daddy tried looks MUCH better behind us than the black one. It's sleek and pretty...just like us. We'll have to talk to Momma about getting one of those. I know Daddy will help us.
We'll be home tonight...I hope Momma's planning on us sleeping on the big bed with her. We're ready for a soft bed!
Frosty, the Littlest Lead Dog
Some of the things we learned?
1. Don't stop to go potty when working. Daddy will let the other dogs run you over.
2. Don't throw temper tantrums if you don't want to work. Daddy doesn't care and will make you do it anyway.
3. Daddy can be just as mean as Momma and we have to listen to him too when he tells us to do something.
4. Daddy IS the boss of us.
I had SO much fun. Daddy put me in back for a little while, but then moved me back up front with Grandpa Ice. I swear, if those two lazy butts behind us (Ryder and Satinka) had done some of the work, Grandpa and I wouldn't have gotten so tired!
After I tried to get out of the funny box thing the first night, Daddy put us in our crates to sleep. That's OK, I guess. I'd rather have been on the bed with him, but at least I'm used to my crate and it has a crate pad, not that funny straw stuff.
Oh, one more thing I learned - pulling a cart and Daddy through mud is HARD WORK. And when I get tired and sit down, Daddy makes me go again. I love running, but really...
We practiced "on by" a lot. I mean a LOT. Apparently it's very important for us to know "on by" and we do. Momma taught us that already. Apparently she didn't tell Daddy we already knew that.
And Satinka and I think that the really neat cart that Daddy tried looks MUCH better behind us than the black one. It's sleek and pretty...just like us. We'll have to talk to Momma about getting one of those. I know Daddy will help us.
We'll be home tonight...I hope Momma's planning on us sleeping on the big bed with her. We're ready for a soft bed!
Frosty, the Littlest Lead Dog
May 04, 2007
Mushing Boot Camp, 2nd Report
Hey Mom!
Ry figured out how to work this cell phone, so while Daddy's inside talking with all those people, we thought we'd call you and tell you what's really going on up here.
I'm running lead, with Tinks. It's pretty cool; she doesn't work quite as hard as I do but she's pretty good. Daddy's teaching us to line out...he said we were really good, especially Tinks and I when we stayed while he took Ry & Frosty off to their tie outs. Tinks was the last one off and she stood there like a real sled dog, waiting her turn. The folks here said since I'm the best worker, I should run up front and man is it cool! There's so much more to see up here. I like it up front. Ryder keeps trying to catch up with me, but he can't.
We were trying to help Daddy, by coming back to the cart to get our water, but he wanted us to stay in our spots. So, I guess we'll just let him wait on us. We were just trying to help.
We've been practicing on by. It's like you make us do when we can't stop to check stuff out, so it's no big deal but some of these dogs are BIG! Now I have to figure out how to mark without stopping, 'cause Daddy's decided I don't need to stop and mark every little thing. Doesn't he know that's one of my main jobs?
And, Momma, Daddy feeds us TWICE a day. The meals are a little smaller, but we get fed TWICE. We need to talk when we get home.
This afternoon Daddy says we're doing a "wet" run...that means we get to go play in the MUD! I can't wait. We've been teaching Daddy to get off the cart and run beside it, so we'll have more energy for playing in the mud.
Ry, Tinks and Frosty are already asleep, so I'd better figure out how to put this phone back where Ry found it and catch some shut eye myself. We've got MUD to play in this afternoon.
Ice, Lead Dog
Ry figured out how to work this cell phone, so while Daddy's inside talking with all those people, we thought we'd call you and tell you what's really going on up here.
I'm running lead, with Tinks. It's pretty cool; she doesn't work quite as hard as I do but she's pretty good. Daddy's teaching us to line out...he said we were really good, especially Tinks and I when we stayed while he took Ry & Frosty off to their tie outs. Tinks was the last one off and she stood there like a real sled dog, waiting her turn. The folks here said since I'm the best worker, I should run up front and man is it cool! There's so much more to see up here. I like it up front. Ryder keeps trying to catch up with me, but he can't.
We were trying to help Daddy, by coming back to the cart to get our water, but he wanted us to stay in our spots. So, I guess we'll just let him wait on us. We were just trying to help.
We've been practicing on by. It's like you make us do when we can't stop to check stuff out, so it's no big deal but some of these dogs are BIG! Now I have to figure out how to mark without stopping, 'cause Daddy's decided I don't need to stop and mark every little thing. Doesn't he know that's one of my main jobs?
And, Momma, Daddy feeds us TWICE a day. The meals are a little smaller, but we get fed TWICE. We need to talk when we get home.
This afternoon Daddy says we're doing a "wet" run...that means we get to go play in the MUD! I can't wait. We've been teaching Daddy to get off the cart and run beside it, so we'll have more energy for playing in the mud.
Ry, Tinks and Frosty are already asleep, so I'd better figure out how to put this phone back where Ry found it and catch some shut eye myself. We've got MUD to play in this afternoon.
Ice, Lead Dog
Ch. Apache Run's Satinka of Kaos and AB1634
Man, that looks cool, seeing that CH in front of Satinka's name. Don't you agree?
I keep thinking it was a long time coming, but really it wasn't. In August she took her first reserve to a major. In October was that FANTASTIC reserve at a huge specialty in Chicago. In November was her third reserve to a major (never mind that there were 9 other RWB awards...they were when she was younger and still not mature). In January she took her first major, in April her second to finish. Nope, that doesn't seem like such a long time at all.
Looking back, I can't believe the cute little puppy that I brought home from Texas finished her championship with me, her novice owner/handler on the other end of the leash. I can't believe that a breeder who didn't really no me from Adam agreed to let me take this pick of the litter girl and bring her out to California.
You know what's worse? I can't believe that under the proposed AB1634, California's mandatory sterilization bill Satinka wouldn't be finished now because she wouldn't have qualified for an intact permit under the proposed law.
(2) The owner sufficiently demonstrates, as determined in the discretion of the local jurisdiction or its authorized animal control agency, all of the following:
(A) His or her cat or dog is used to show or compete and has competed in at least one legitimate show or sporting competition, hosted by, or under the approval of, a recognized purebred registry or association in existence since at least October 1, 2007, within the last two years, or by whatever proof is requested by the authorized local animal control agency that the cat or dog is being trained to show or compete and is too young to have yet competed.
(B) His or her cat or dog is a valid breed that is recognized by an approved purebred registry or association in existence since at least October 1, 2007.
(C) The cat or dog has earned, or if under two years old, is in the process of earning, a conformation, obedience, agility, carting,herding, protection, rally, sporting, working, or other title from an approved purebred registry or association.
Yep, I'd have to have met ALL of those qualifiers. And, guess what? She finished 1 day after her THIRD birthday.
Kinda takes the shine off of her Championship, knowing that if this bill passes, it'll be my last one if they don't finish before they're two.
I keep thinking it was a long time coming, but really it wasn't. In August she took her first reserve to a major. In October was that FANTASTIC reserve at a huge specialty in Chicago. In November was her third reserve to a major (never mind that there were 9 other RWB awards...they were when she was younger and still not mature). In January she took her first major, in April her second to finish. Nope, that doesn't seem like such a long time at all.
Looking back, I can't believe the cute little puppy that I brought home from Texas finished her championship with me, her novice owner/handler on the other end of the leash. I can't believe that a breeder who didn't really no me from Adam agreed to let me take this pick of the litter girl and bring her out to California.
You know what's worse? I can't believe that under the proposed AB1634, California's mandatory sterilization bill Satinka wouldn't be finished now because she wouldn't have qualified for an intact permit under the proposed law.
(2) The owner sufficiently demonstrates, as determined in the discretion of the local jurisdiction or its authorized animal control agency, all of the following:
(A) His or her cat or dog is used to show or compete and has competed in at least one legitimate show or sporting competition, hosted by, or under the approval of, a recognized purebred registry or association in existence since at least October 1, 2007, within the last two years, or by whatever proof is requested by the authorized local animal control agency that the cat or dog is being trained to show or compete and is too young to have yet competed.
(B) His or her cat or dog is a valid breed that is recognized by an approved purebred registry or association in existence since at least October 1, 2007.
(C) The cat or dog has earned, or if under two years old, is in the process of earning, a conformation, obedience, agility, carting,herding, protection, rally, sporting, working, or other title from an approved purebred registry or association.
Yep, I'd have to have met ALL of those qualifiers. And, guess what? She finished 1 day after her THIRD birthday.
Kinda takes the shine off of her Championship, knowing that if this bill passes, it'll be my last one if they don't finish before they're two.
May 03, 2007
Is this any way to treat a Princess? or...I WANT my Lawyer!!!
Last weekend I finished my championship, mom made a big deal about it, kept picking me up and spinning me around (OK, she finally got over that, I didn't have to barf on her) and in general, treated me with the attention and adoration which is my due. After all, I'm the only champion at Kaos. I'm special.
Then, Wednesday morning Daddy woke me up at THREE AM. That's MORNING...before Momma has hit her buzzer two or three times even. The sunshine isn't even up at THREE AM...and here's Daddy, waking me up. Then he took me out to the van. Oh, goodie...a ride. I love my crate in the van, it's got all sorts of toys in it and I can watch out the back window and make faces at people. Uh...hold on here...this isn't MY van or MY crate...Daddy? What's going on? Hey, Mister, why am I in a 300 sized crate on the FLOOR. I can't see down here. Hello? Daddy? Oh for crying out loud, Mom's not coming...we're in Daddy's van. This can't be good...or can it? Daddy doesn't know all of Momma's travel rules....this could be fun.
So, I'm stuck in a 300 sized crate, the size Momma puts babies in for heaven's sake and down where I can't see. That's the first complaint for my attorney...accommodations unfitting to my station in life.
Then Daddy drove all day and took us to some place called OrEgon. It's WET up here and there's MUD everywhere! Um, hello, this better not mean an extra bath Mister. Ok, so we can play in the mud, that's cool. Daddy put us on these chains to keep us from running in the woods...kinda weird...Momma uses crates. But I can live with that.
Then came bedtime. Daddy didn't put us back in our crates, we can work with this! Frosty and I did our darnedest to eat these boxes apart...I got the wire off the door...Frosty almost got hers open. I tell ya, another hour and we'd have been busted outta these boxes. Daddy calls them "dog boxes" and we are on a trailer thing...but sheesh, any self-respecting Siberian Husky should be able to get out of these. I can't believe those lazy boys didn't do a single thing to help. Lazy bums.
And then...Daddy put us on our tie outs...and it's wet and muddy again. There's grass and stuff, it didn't take me long to show him that wasn't a suitable bedding material for a Siberian of my stature. And then? Oh, we got to go run with the scooter...now that's fun. I let Frosty do most of the work, 'cause she really likes it, but I sure look pretty running like that.
He must have called Mom at that point, because I'm stuck in my crate now. How come when Momma talks about wireless it's a good thing, but when Frosty and I try to go wireless it's not? HUH? That's not FAIR. Now I'm stuck in this dinky little crate, and I can't see out the window and I don't have my toys.
I want my lawyer. And my union rep. I have a union rep, right? I didn't ask to go camping...Momma says girls don't have to camp, that's what hotels are for.
Miss. Ch. Satinka
Then, Wednesday morning Daddy woke me up at THREE AM. That's MORNING...before Momma has hit her buzzer two or three times even. The sunshine isn't even up at THREE AM...and here's Daddy, waking me up. Then he took me out to the van. Oh, goodie...a ride. I love my crate in the van, it's got all sorts of toys in it and I can watch out the back window and make faces at people. Uh...hold on here...this isn't MY van or MY crate...Daddy? What's going on? Hey, Mister, why am I in a 300 sized crate on the FLOOR. I can't see down here. Hello? Daddy? Oh for crying out loud, Mom's not coming...we're in Daddy's van. This can't be good...or can it? Daddy doesn't know all of Momma's travel rules....this could be fun.
So, I'm stuck in a 300 sized crate, the size Momma puts babies in for heaven's sake and down where I can't see. That's the first complaint for my attorney...accommodations unfitting to my station in life.
Then Daddy drove all day and took us to some place called OrEgon. It's WET up here and there's MUD everywhere! Um, hello, this better not mean an extra bath Mister. Ok, so we can play in the mud, that's cool. Daddy put us on these chains to keep us from running in the woods...kinda weird...Momma uses crates. But I can live with that.
Then came bedtime. Daddy didn't put us back in our crates, we can work with this! Frosty and I did our darnedest to eat these boxes apart...I got the wire off the door...Frosty almost got hers open. I tell ya, another hour and we'd have been busted outta these boxes. Daddy calls them "dog boxes" and we are on a trailer thing...but sheesh, any self-respecting Siberian Husky should be able to get out of these. I can't believe those lazy boys didn't do a single thing to help. Lazy bums.
And then...Daddy put us on our tie outs...and it's wet and muddy again. There's grass and stuff, it didn't take me long to show him that wasn't a suitable bedding material for a Siberian of my stature. And then? Oh, we got to go run with the scooter...now that's fun. I let Frosty do most of the work, 'cause she really likes it, but I sure look pretty running like that.
He must have called Mom at that point, because I'm stuck in my crate now. How come when Momma talks about wireless it's a good thing, but when Frosty and I try to go wireless it's not? HUH? That's not FAIR. Now I'm stuck in this dinky little crate, and I can't see out the window and I don't have my toys.
I want my lawyer. And my union rep. I have a union rep, right? I didn't ask to go camping...Momma says girls don't have to camp, that's what hotels are for.
Miss. Ch. Satinka
March 19, 2007
A Crisis of Procrastination
So, about 18 mos ago, I started tiling the downstairs of our house...having lived on bare concrete for 4-8 months, I figured it was time. Mom's room was 1/2 done after all, it was time to start another project.
About 800 sq feet into the project I realized...I HATED THE TILE. Hated, as in "would pay someone to tear it up" hated it. So we did, pay someone to tear it up that is. Then, having learned that lesson, we paid someone else to lay down the tile we selected as replacement. This tile covers almost all of the downstairs; the library will, at some point, be re-carpeted, along with the stairs and upstairs hall and the spare/Sean's/den room. And we have no molding, either at floor level or around the doors, because that all came down to repaint everything AND to switch it to something nicer than "builder's bulk purchase" molding. (Please, don't ask about dogs chewing on exposed drywall edges...it may send Sean, well, over the edge. He's getting REALLY good at drywall repair.)
The soft, butter creme color of the walls had to go, between the new lighting fixtures with their energy saving fluorescent bulbs and the new floor color...it was HIDEOUS. So now we have Mesa Tumbleweed (aka chocolate milk brown) walls and a couple of walls that are Japanese Maple - one downstairs and one in the master bedroom. (Actually, I think it might be Plum Raisin, but doesn't Japanese Maple sound prettier?...anyway, it's a deep, dark, burgundy color that I shall call Japanese Maple...except when I have the paint chip in hand and need to match it to something...but I digress.
The Japanese Maple was picked upstairs because it was perfect with the wallpaper border that Sean and I had agreed on for our bedroom on our FIRST trip to look at wallpaper books (what are the odds of that?). So, we have the border ordered (sometime early last year) the painting done (sometime early THIS year) and a couple weekends ago we put up the wall paper border.
But some bimbo can't measure correctly and she was 3 rolls short (that's 15 yards). No problem, right? Go back to the website, order 3 more rolls, don't think about the lot numbers, it won't be THAT obvious...well, no, it won't, because the ding dang pattern has been DISCONTINUED. As in not available. As in..can't get it anymore.
After a couple hours of frantic googling, I *think* I found some in stock. I ordered it and now I'm waiting to hear back. If it's not in stock, I HOPE I can find another pattern from the same company, in the same shades so I don't have to repaint that Japanese Maple wall upstairs.
Of course, if I'd done the painting and wall paper border a year ago when I ordered the stuff I could have ordered more border before it was discontinued...but where's the fun in that?
Oh, did I mention that we didn't care for how the grout color came out? And "staining/sealing grout" is still on my list of things to finish. But I've got the stain! I ordered that last year.
About 800 sq feet into the project I realized...I HATED THE TILE. Hated, as in "would pay someone to tear it up" hated it. So we did, pay someone to tear it up that is. Then, having learned that lesson, we paid someone else to lay down the tile we selected as replacement. This tile covers almost all of the downstairs; the library will, at some point, be re-carpeted, along with the stairs and upstairs hall and the spare/Sean's/den room. And we have no molding, either at floor level or around the doors, because that all came down to repaint everything AND to switch it to something nicer than "builder's bulk purchase" molding. (Please, don't ask about dogs chewing on exposed drywall edges...it may send Sean, well, over the edge. He's getting REALLY good at drywall repair.)
The soft, butter creme color of the walls had to go, between the new lighting fixtures with their energy saving fluorescent bulbs and the new floor color...it was HIDEOUS. So now we have Mesa Tumbleweed (aka chocolate milk brown) walls and a couple of walls that are Japanese Maple - one downstairs and one in the master bedroom. (Actually, I think it might be Plum Raisin, but doesn't Japanese Maple sound prettier?...anyway, it's a deep, dark, burgundy color that I shall call Japanese Maple...except when I have the paint chip in hand and need to match it to something...but I digress.
The Japanese Maple was picked upstairs because it was perfect with the wallpaper border that Sean and I had agreed on for our bedroom on our FIRST trip to look at wallpaper books (what are the odds of that?). So, we have the border ordered (sometime early last year) the painting done (sometime early THIS year) and a couple weekends ago we put up the wall paper border.
But some bimbo can't measure correctly and she was 3 rolls short (that's 15 yards). No problem, right? Go back to the website, order 3 more rolls, don't think about the lot numbers, it won't be THAT obvious...well, no, it won't, because the ding dang pattern has been DISCONTINUED. As in not available. As in..can't get it anymore.
After a couple hours of frantic googling, I *think* I found some in stock. I ordered it and now I'm waiting to hear back. If it's not in stock, I HOPE I can find another pattern from the same company, in the same shades so I don't have to repaint that Japanese Maple wall upstairs.
Of course, if I'd done the painting and wall paper border a year ago when I ordered the stuff I could have ordered more border before it was discontinued...but where's the fun in that?
Oh, did I mention that we didn't care for how the grout color came out? And "staining/sealing grout" is still on my list of things to finish. But I've got the stain! I ordered that last year.
March 14, 2007
The pitterpatter of little feet...
...won't be heard at Kaos for a while yet, but our first co-bred litter is safely on the ground and healthy. Elvira, one of the "not really mine, but...." girls at Maskarade Siberians presented us with five healthy puppies a few weeks ago. 2 girls, 3 boys (although which was which seemed to be a little bit of a mystery to Tony, who's only been doing this for 25 years or so).
You can wander over there to see the puppies. I'm not sure who Tony & Adele are going to keep and I'm kinda bummed that I'm only getting to watch them grow up in pictures, but what can you do? I mean...who wants to live in Yakima for heaven's sake? The puppies will probably be down her for a visit later this spring, I can't wait! As I told friends, this is the EASY way to breed a litter...find someone else to do all the work.
In other news: Blaze was Reserve Winners Dog on Sunday, March 11th at the Apple Valley Kennel Club. His very first RWD...and hopefully not the first of many. We'd much rather go straight for the points! But we did take a picture so look for that on his web page in a week or so. Our little boy is growing up and I think we're going to be very, very happy with him.
Sean's heading up to the Klamath Falls, Oregon area for Mushing Boot Camp in early May. He's taking Frosty, Ryder, Satinka and Ice and I'm looking forward to lots of good stories and getting back some trained sled dogs! Since MBC mornings start at 5 am or some ridiculous hour, his mom is going along with him...not me!
While he's gone, I'll be taking Blaze to his first United Kennel Club show, if all goes as planned. I've heard lots of good things about UKC shows, including fun, relaxed attitude and well, fun. I can't wait to see how it goes.
I think that's it for new news at Kaos. We're doing some yard work this weekend, and then a couple weekends of shows, with some specialties and Mission Circuit coming up. I keep whispering "grow your new coat" in Satinka's ear while she's sleeping....I hope it works! In the meantime, I'm taking extreme measures to keep Frosty OFF of the kitchen counter. I've caught her up there three times in the last three days...bring on the scat mat!
You can wander over there to see the puppies. I'm not sure who Tony & Adele are going to keep and I'm kinda bummed that I'm only getting to watch them grow up in pictures, but what can you do? I mean...who wants to live in Yakima for heaven's sake? The puppies will probably be down her for a visit later this spring, I can't wait! As I told friends, this is the EASY way to breed a litter...find someone else to do all the work.
In other news: Blaze was Reserve Winners Dog on Sunday, March 11th at the Apple Valley Kennel Club. His very first RWD...and hopefully not the first of many
Sean's heading up to the Klamath Falls, Oregon area for Mushing Boot Camp in early May. He's taking Frosty, Ryder, Satinka and Ice and I'm looking forward to lots of good stories and getting back some trained sled dogs! Since MBC mornings start at 5 am or some ridiculous hour, his mom is going along with him...not me!
While he's gone, I'll be taking Blaze to his first United Kennel Club show, if all goes as planned. I've heard lots of good things about UKC shows, including fun, relaxed attitude and well, fun. I can't wait to see how it goes.
We took some of the gang up to Truckee, CA (near the Nevada border in the Sierra Mountains) for a fun weekend of sledding with the Northern California Siberian Husky Club. Little did we know that it was going to be the start of a HUGE snowstorm! While we were making our 1.5 hour drive down the mountain in 10 hours, we had fun reliving Sean's runs with the dogs...a longer run on Saturday and a short run on Sunday. If we'd known we were going to be on the freeway until 10pm or so just getting to Sacramento, we'd probably have stayed longer on Sunday!
Blaze wasn't old enough to run with the team, although he did get a chance to go 100 yards or so with them, so we let him play in the snow and have fun. And he did!
Isn't he the CUTEST?
While we were up playing in the snow that weekend, Ice was with Grandma at the Southern California Malamute Club's weight pull event, where he earned his 3rd leg toward his weight pull title. Little does he know he's going to have to do it all over again for his UKC weight pull title. Somehow, I don't think he's going to mind. How cool does he look?
I think that's it for new news at Kaos. We're doing some yard work this weekend, and then a couple weekends of shows, with some specialties and Mission Circuit coming up. I keep whispering "grow your new coat" in Satinka's ear while she's sleeping....I hope it works! In the meantime, I'm taking extreme measures to keep Frosty OFF of the kitchen counter. I've caught her up there three times in the last three days...bring on the scat mat!
February 07, 2007
PETA shows its true colors
It's not all fun and games at Kaos. One of our passions is fighting against the animal rights movement as it encroaches on our ability to own our animals and make our own decisions about their lives. Here's one of our more serious moments:
http://www.wilsondaily.com/Opinion/Editorials/300718245342361.php
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Last week's trial of PETA employees ended in at least a partial vindication of the defendants, who were convicted only of littering, not animal cruelty. But People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals was revealed as a dishonest and misleading organization, which raises millions of dollars for its campaign to place all animals on the same plane as humans. PETA president Ingrid Newkirk's infamous comparison, "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," establishes the group's radical philosophy.
PETA has campaigned against "factory farms," against eating meat, against wearing fur and against "exploiting" animals as beasts of burden or household pets. The term "pet" is forbidden, by the way; the preferred term is "companion animal."
In 2005, PETA raised more than $25 million in tax-deductible contributions.
Testimony at last week's trial in Winton, however, painted a different picture of the organization. Two PETA employees had been caught dumping the carcasses of dogs and cats into a supermarket Dumpster. The animals had been "rescued" from animal shelters in Hertford and Bertie counties.
Shelter workers and other witnesses said that the PETA employees promised to find good homes for the animals. The defendants denied that charge, insisting that everyone knew the animals would be euthanized.
The judge in the case dropped the animal cruelty charges because the prosecution could present no evidence that the defendants had been intentionally cruel. What they had done was execute the collected animals in the back of a PETA van. When the stench of decaying flesh became too much, the defendants pulled over the van and dumped the carcasses into a trash bin. They were found guilty of littering.
Although PETA officials insisted they had done nothing wrong, what they had done was to reveal PETA's true nature. If "a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," as the organization's theology claims, these workers had committed murder.
This glimpse of PETA's true colors should serve as a warning to the many Wilson County residents who are frustrated by the county's Animal Control problems. Some have been heard hreatening to get PETA involved. Spare us. Wilson County Animal Control has many shortcomings, which we hope are being solved. But PETA, the two-faced, puppy-killing organization, will not help Wilson County's Animal Control procedures or "rescue" its abandoned animals."
http://www.wilsondaily.com/Opinion/Editorials/300718245342361.php
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Last week's trial of PETA employees ended in at least a partial vindication of the defendants, who were convicted only of littering, not animal cruelty. But People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals was revealed as a dishonest and misleading organization, which raises millions of dollars for its campaign to place all animals on the same plane as humans. PETA president Ingrid Newkirk's infamous comparison, "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," establishes the group's radical philosophy.
PETA has campaigned against "factory farms," against eating meat, against wearing fur and against "exploiting" animals as beasts of burden or household pets. The term "pet" is forbidden, by the way; the preferred term is "companion animal."
In 2005, PETA raised more than $25 million in tax-deductible contributions.
Testimony at last week's trial in Winton, however, painted a different picture of the organization. Two PETA employees had been caught dumping the carcasses of dogs and cats into a supermarket Dumpster. The animals had been "rescued" from animal shelters in Hertford and Bertie counties.
Shelter workers and other witnesses said that the PETA employees promised to find good homes for the animals. The defendants denied that charge, insisting that everyone knew the animals would be euthanized.
The judge in the case dropped the animal cruelty charges because the prosecution could present no evidence that the defendants had been intentionally cruel. What they had done was execute the collected animals in the back of a PETA van. When the stench of decaying flesh became too much, the defendants pulled over the van and dumped the carcasses into a trash bin. They were found guilty of littering.
Although PETA officials insisted they had done nothing wrong, what they had done was to reveal PETA's true nature. If "a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy," as the organization's theology claims, these workers had committed murder.
This glimpse of PETA's true colors should serve as a warning to the many Wilson County residents who are frustrated by the county's Animal Control problems. Some have been heard hreatening to get PETA involved. Spare us. Wilson County Animal Control has many shortcomings, which we hope are being solved. But PETA, the two-faced, puppy-killing organization, will not help Wilson County's Animal Control procedures or "rescue" its abandoned animals."
February 01, 2007
Why I'll never have "trained" Siberians.
I don't doubt that someone who knows what they're doing (both with a clicker and a Siberian ) could probably get wonderful results from my dogs... I also don't doubt that I'm NOT that person. I use a marker "good" with my "happy mom" voice when they've done something I've told them to do or they're doing something good (I'm not the only person that tells them what good dogs they are for lounging around, doing nothing, right?). And I've got my ACK or UH UH and NO with the appropriate voices too.
Last night Ryder and I had an entire conversational exchange...it went like this:
Ry: Hey, Mom, you're not going to eat all that pizza are you?
Me: Ryder, you should get OFF of me
Ry: OK, I got off, what do I get?
Me: "Good boy"
Ry: That's IT? How about some pizza?
Me: How about you get OFF? good
Ry: You suck.
Me. I don't care.
Ry: Are you sure I can't have some pizza? Maybe just some crust?
Me: Good sit!
Ry: Well, crap, if you'd wanted a sit, why didn't you just say so?
Last night Ryder and I had an entire conversational exchange...it went like this:
Ry: Hey, Mom, you're not going to eat all that pizza are you?
Me: Ryder, you should get OFF of me
Ry:
Me: "Good boy"
Ry: That's IT? How about some pizza?
Me: How about you get OFF? good
Ry: You suck.
Me. I don't care.
Ry: Are you sure I can't have some pizza? Maybe just some crust?
Me: Good sit!
Ry: Well, crap, if you'd wanted a sit, why didn't you just say so?
January 31, 2007
How come it wasn't a holiday?
Monday should have been a holiday. We all should have had the day off.
I woke up to the realization that one of the more important events in my dog-show life was passing without the world stopping to acknowledge it. Satinka won her first major!!! (For you non-dog show people, this is a Big Deal.)
I've been whining for months that Satinka was becoming my Reserve Queen. She's won 12 RWB awards...12! If I bought 12 cups of coffee, I'd be working on my second punch card! But, then I looked a little deeper...
She finished winning minor points in July, and went Best of Breed at the Burbank Kennel Club show. In August, she got her first RWB to a major. Since then, she had that big one at the Siberian Husky Club of Greater Chicago, another at Sacramento Valley Kennel Club, and the fourth at the Golden Valley Kennel Club. Not too shabby. She's been in the ribbons more than she's been out...and here I am complaining? Sheesh!
But, anyway, she hit the jackpot last Sunday, at the Orange Empire Dog Club show. Winning the Open class is no guarantee that Winners Bitch is yours (see above results from the Sacramento Valley show)...but it's a good omen. Walking out, to the applause from friends who've been watching me since I first started showing 4 1/2 years ago, who've watched and advised as Satinka and I grew as a team...I tell ya, there's NOTHING like that feeling. Well, at least not yet. I'll let you know how it feels when the picture placard reads "New Champion." 'Cause, baby, we're almost there!
I woke up to the realization that one of the more important events in my dog-show life was passing without the world stopping to acknowledge it. Satinka won her first major!!! (For you non-dog show people, this is a Big Deal.)
I've been whining for months that Satinka was becoming my Reserve Queen. She's won 12 RWB awards...12! If I bought 12 cups of coffee, I'd be working on my second punch card! But, then I looked a little deeper...
She finished winning minor points in July, and went Best of Breed at the Burbank Kennel Club show. In August, she got her first RWB to a major. Since then, she had that big one at the Siberian Husky Club of Greater Chicago, another at Sacramento Valley Kennel Club, and the fourth at the Golden Valley Kennel Club. Not too shabby. She's been in the ribbons more than she's been out...and here I am complaining? Sheesh!
But, anyway, she hit the jackpot last Sunday, at the Orange Empire Dog Club show. Winning the Open class is no guarantee that Winners Bitch is yours (see above results from the Sacramento Valley show
January 09, 2007
These Dogs were made for Workin'
Last weekend Sean had the chance to take some of the crew up to Lancaster to go carting out in the desert with our friend Nicole.
Here's a photo of the four that went up to Nicole's last weekend while Blaze, Satinka, Grandma and I did the show thing. There are 4 dogs in front of them (Nicole's Siberian and her 3mals...dogs who are acually trained...seems a good idea to put them infront, doesn't it?) and three foster Jindo's behind them.
Nicole's never run an 11 dog team before (nor has Sean ever driven one!). They're going out again next Monday (I have to work) and Ryder the Lazy will probably be left home and Satinka and Katie will join the outing. And it looks like they'll be going out most every Sunday until it's too warm to run. I know Sean can't wait for snow to take the sled out....and I'm thinking Ryder and I will make a great ski-jouring team...I don't like to go too fast and he doesn't like to pull too hard.
Since not everyone knows each of our dogs by sight, the little gray girl is Frosty (aka The Littlest Sled Dog and Sean's lead dog in training). The red boy beside her is Max, our Los Angeles Pound Puppy who also runs lead with Frosty, or wheel with Ry or Ice and, happily, has 1/2 a clue about what he's doing in harness. The black boy behind him is Ice, aka Born to Pull who runs wheel (when the run kicks in, the ears stop working). Beside Ice is Ryder "I'd rather be Resting" The Lazy, who despite having no "drive in his head" (thank you Karen for that very accurate description of what Ryder doesn't have) won't let Ice or Max out run him - out pull him, maybe, but not out run him.
Here's a photo of the four that went up to Nicole's last weekend while Blaze, Satinka, Grandma and I did the show thing. There are 4 dogs in front of them (Nicole's Siberian and her 3mals...dogs who are acually trained...seems a good idea to put them infront, doesn't it?) and three foster Jindo's behind them.
Nicole's never run an 11 dog team before (nor has Sean ever driven one!). They're going out again next Monday (I have to work) and Ryder the Lazy will probably be left home and Satinka and Katie will join the outing. And it looks like they'll be going out most every Sunday until it's too warm to run. I know Sean can't wait for snow to take the sled out....and I'm thinking Ryder and I will make a great ski-jouring team...I don't like to go too fast and he doesn't like to pull too hard.
Since not everyone knows each of our dogs by sight
Momma brought home more dogs.....
.....and we couldn't find them!
Last night, Momma and Daddy settled down on the sofa and turned on the funny window thing. Imagine how happy we were to find out that Momma and Daddy brought home a whole bunch of new dogs for us to play with!
We couldn't find them though. I checked the boxes beside the window where the noise comes in, up and down the boxes and behind them and couldn't find those dogs. I know better than to paw at that window, 'cause Daddy would get REALLY REALLY mad...so I settled down to watch
the dogs play out the window. But then they started calling us to come play. And there were a LOT of them.
We all started looking for those dogs. Katie was the first to think they might be outside, behind the window and ran out, but she came back inside and said she couldn't see them anywhere in the yard...but we could still hear them. Ice stayed on the love seat to watch them out the window, to make sure they didn't leave before we found them.
Aleska stayed near the sound box by the window, to make sure she could still hear them.
The rest of us kept watch in the back yard, coming in to see if they'd come in the house yet...we could SEE them in the window and HEAR them in the boxes next to the window but we couldn't find those dogs. And they were having FUN.
Ice got pretty excited when he saw them being harnessed up to go for a run and we tried to get in line with them when we saw them running...but we couldn't find them. I finally settled down next to Momma to make sure that when they came in the house, they'd know she was MY Momma. And those dogs got to run a LOT.
Finally the dogs went home, Momma and Daddy closed the window and went to bed....we'll have to be alert for the next visit by these new dogs. I know they want to play with us...but where are they?
Ryder
Mom's translation helper:
Funny window thing = TV
Boxes where noise comes in = speakers
New dogs = Pretty Sled Dogs DVD from www.huskyproductions.net
Last night, Momma and Daddy settled down on the sofa and turned on the funny window thing. Imagine how happy we were to find out that Momma and Daddy brought home a whole bunch of new dogs for us to play with!
We couldn't find them though. I checked the boxes beside the window where the noise comes in, up and down the boxes and behind them and couldn't find those dogs. I know better than to paw at that window, 'cause Daddy would get REALLY REALLY mad...so I settled down to watch
the dogs play out the window. But then they started calling us to come play. And there were a LOT of them.
We all started looking for those dogs. Katie was the first to think they might be outside, behind the window and ran out, but she came back inside and said she couldn't see them anywhere in the yard...but we could still hear them. Ice stayed on the love seat to watch them out the window, to make sure they didn't leave before we found them.
Aleska stayed near the sound box by the window, to make sure she could still hear them.
The rest of us kept watch in the back yard, coming in to see if they'd come in the house yet...we could SEE them in the window and HEAR them in the boxes next to the window but we couldn't find those dogs. And they were having FUN.
Ice got pretty excited when he saw them being harnessed up to go for a run and we tried to get in line with them when we saw them running...but we couldn't find them. I finally settled down next to Momma to make sure that when they came in the house, they'd know she was MY Momma. And those dogs got to run a LOT.
Finally the dogs went home, Momma and Daddy closed the window and went to bed....we'll have to be alert for the next visit by these new dogs. I know they want to play with us...but where are they?
Ryder
Mom's translation helper:
Funny window thing = TV
Boxes where noise comes in = speakers
New dogs = Pretty Sled Dogs DVD from www.huskyproductions.net
January 04, 2007
Pedicure time at Kaos
When you've got 10 dogs, someone always needs their nails done, especially when about 1/2 of them have dewclaws (which may be where the retractable thumbs hide, except that Ry doesn't even have dewclaws and if any of 'em have thumbs, it's him :-)
Anyway...over the years, the dogs have caused me to develop different techniques.
Max, Lacy, Ryder, Aleska and Cheyenne will just lay on the floor and let me trim. They're the ones who most often get their nails trimmed, because it's easy.
Frosty requires that I position her so that she can't see the clippers. Unfortunately for her, she jerks her foot, so she's been quicked more than anyone else...resulting in a reluctance to have her nails done. Also, unfortunately for her, her nails grow freakishly fast, needing trimmed at least once a week.
Satinka requires that I work as quickly as possible, only do her dewclaws (she keeps the rest pretty short) or dremel her on the grooming table with someone else holding food. Very rarely does she need more than an evening up of some edges, and her dew claws.
Ice is my nightmare. The pads of his feet are SO ticklish that if I brush against them, nail time is over. It's HARD to do nails without actually holding the foot, but holding the pastern. Last night, however, he let me roll him on his back in my lap and trim his rear nails (fronts were short enough).
Katie hasn't needed her nails trimmed more than once or twice in 2 1/2years...actually most of them don't, given that their yard is gravel and concrete, but when I do dewclaws on the showing dogs, I'm reminded that I need to do them on the stay at homes too, which results in a pedicure session for everyone.
But the most fun is The Baby. He was sleeping on the kitchen floor and I figured since he was getting a bath on Friday I'd do his dews last night. I clipped the first one while he was lying there and he opened an eye, looked at me and said "can you hurry up, I'm trying to sleep here." I quickly trimmed the 2nd one and let him resume his nap. Yep, I can tell he's going to be a handful.
Anyway...over the years, the dogs have caused me to develop different techniques.
Max, Lacy, Ryder, Aleska and Cheyenne will just lay on the floor and let me trim. They're the ones who most often get their nails trimmed, because it's easy.
Frosty requires that I position her so that she can't see the clippers. Unfortunately for her, she jerks her foot, so she's been quicked more than anyone else...resulting in a reluctance to have her nails done. Also, unfortunately for her, her nails grow freakishly fast, needing trimmed at least once a week.
Satinka requires that I work as quickly as possible, only do her dewclaws (she keeps the rest pretty short) or dremel her on the grooming table with someone else holding food. Very rarely does she need more than an evening up of some edges, and her dew claws.
Ice is my nightmare. The pads of his feet are SO ticklish that if I brush against them, nail time is over. It's HARD to do nails without actually holding the foot, but holding the pastern. Last night, however, he let me roll him on his back in my lap and trim his rear nails (fronts were short enough).
Katie hasn't needed her nails trimmed more than once or twice in 2 1/2years...actually most of them don't, given that their yard is gravel and concrete, but when I do dewclaws on the showing dogs, I'm reminded that I need to do them on the stay at homes too, which results in a pedicure session for everyone.
But the most fun is The Baby. He was sleeping on the kitchen floor and I figured since he was getting a bath on Friday I'd do his dews last night. I clipped the first one while he was lying there and he opened an eye, looked at me and said "can you hurry up, I'm trying to sleep here." I quickly trimmed the 2nd one and let him resume his nap. Yep, I can tell he's going to be a handful.
December 11, 2006
Lure Coursing....all it takes is a little prey drive, right?
Our friend, Lynn, found this great lure coursing club in San Diego (http://www.luratics.com/) that is an all breed lure coursing club and we arranged to head down this weekend for some fun after a little bit of reading/researching of course. The course is fenced...that was the research...and we were ready to go. I signed us up for four runs and plugged the park's address into the GPS. We loaded up the chosen four in the van: Ice (Mr. Prey Drive), Frosty (Granddaughter of Mr. Prey Drive), Satinka (the Airhead), and Katie (if Grandma's going, I'm going). We headed down to the park where the lure coursing was held to watch the tail end of the morning session to see what the whole thing was about. We got there, found parking and ran into the first "you've GOT to be kidding" moment. Yes, the park is fenced...on three sides (and I think there may have been an unsecured opening up at the far end, I tried not to think about it much)...and along the fourth was that orange, plastic field fencing stuff, about 4' high. GULP
At this point, Grandma has decided that Katie will just watchbut I had other ideas. We watched the rest of the morning session with great delight. I tell you, watching those sightounds (and terriers and even a Newfie) run the course, chasing the lure...it was amazing.
Now, let me tell you a little bit about this very, very special lure. It's a plastic grocery sack. So, here I am, about to take my Siberian off leash, with a 4' fence along one side of the course, and expect them to chase a stupid little plastic bag...yards away from me...I mean, so far that they're a little speck in the grass. Have I lost my flippin mind? (No need to answer that!)
So, up went Frosty. First off, I'd forgotten NO FLEXIES...and I didn't have any other leashes with me. Ok, we were forgiven that faux pas after I swore NEVER to do it again. Sean took Frosty over to the start and I watched him get ready to release her...FROM HER COLLAR! ACK. No leash, no collar...Siberian? Again, I wondered, had I lost my flippin mind? (Again, no response required). Pat, managing the lure controls, scooted it back and forth to get Frosty's attention..and boy did she. Frosty danced in place in anticipation of capturing that amazing lure. Then, she was off! My heart in my throat, Grandma standing by with a noisy bag of treats...I watched my little girl race around the course...chasing a plastic bag! Her focus was amazing...and she followed the entire course and came back to the start point, got to jump on the bag and was re-leashed by Daddy and given a treat by Grandma.
Now I'm feeling more confident. My first off leash, off collar lure coursing run and I have my dog back, safe and sound in her crate. Of course, we had to buy one of the spiffy, quick release, lure coursing collars so we had the right equipment.
So, after the success with Frosty, we're feeling pretty confident. So, Ice is up next. I cautioned the gal with the Italian Greyhound to hang onto her dog, Ice has a pretty good prey drive and I wanted to be able to come back. She assured me she'd hang on to her dogand as the other small dogs along the course were gone for the day, we were feeling pretty darn good. So, I watch, again with baited breath, as Sean let Ice loose for his run. Now, crated along the course, Ice had been watching, avidly, all morning as dogs were turned loose to chase...something. His bright blue eyes gleamed with anticipation. He wanted to do...whatever it was those other dogs were doing. So, off he went. And he ran...and ran...and chased. At the end of his run, he was collared and treated and went back in his crate to rest. Two down, two to go.
Next it was Satinka's turn. My biggest concern was that she'd get bored 1/2 way around (at the absolute farthest point from me) and go exploring the park. Holy COW. Talk about focused. Satinka ran this course like she was born to it, cornering like a pro, turning and following that lure every foot of the way. I couldn't believe her aptitude for this game. And, quite a game it was for her. When she got to the end, she pounced on the lure (good thing they're cheap) and managed to get a piece of it before Daddy got ready to catch her and crate her up. Oh boy, now for Tink's favorite game...chase me! But the rattle of treats in Grandma's hand proved to be too much to resist and Satinka was safely collared and re-crated.
Now it's Katie's turn. Grandma wasn't sure about turning Katie loose, but after seeing Satinka the Brat, I was feeling pretty confident that Katie'd do just fine. Sean took her collar off and the lure took off....but, hey, over here...some loose dirt by the starting spot... We all laughed as Katie let the lure take off while she explored the loose dirt...hey, after all, a pile of dirt v. having to chase a plastic bag? No contest, right? The lure started on it's merry way, unthreatened by a chasing dog. Pat brought it back, ran it back and forth to get Katie's attention again and then they were off! Katie didn't run with the drive of the other three...but she chased that darn lure until she caught it...and then went back to the safety of her crate (I could see Grandma's relief).
So, all four dogs ran and we decided to give Tinks and Ice another go. Tinks was first. Quivering with anticipation...dancing from foot to foot..begging Daddy to let go of her, she waited impatiently. Then it was her turn again. The lure took off...and the black and white blur that was Satinka took off with it...all the way around, although this time she let the lure take some corners and she shortcutted to try and cut it off (no one said she was stupid). She "caught" the lure at the end and then, again, thought it was time for Tink's favorite game..Chase Me. Pat tried running the lure back and forth to bring her in...no good, she's smart. Finally, she got close enough to me that a flying tackled got her. Lynn said it was a good one . And she went back in her crate, done for the day. I know when to call it good.
Ice was our final run of the day. He'd been watching all afternoon and he WANTED that lure. So, off he went, my 7 1/2 yr old, harness banging, wheel dog. He had a good run...but, somewhere toward the end, the lure got far enough ahead of him that he got distracted...uh oh. No problem...Pat reversed the lure to get it back in front of him...but he's running backwards on the course...after a little feather or something tied on the line...to heck with that plastic bag, he found something smaller to chase... After much laughter (although I'll admit mine was nervous laughter) eventually he targeted the lure again and came on in, happy as could be.
There wasn't a peep out of them on the way home...they slept like logs. We had a great time and I can't wait to take some of the dogs out again. If you'd told me on Friday that I'd be turning one of my Siberians loose, with no collar in a park that I hadn't walked the fence line, that had a temporary 4 foot plastic fence along one side...I'd have told you that you were crazy...but, maybe I'm the crazy one?
At this point, Grandma has decided that Katie will just watch
Now, let me tell you a little bit about this very, very special lure. It's a plastic grocery sack. So, here I am, about to take my Siberian off leash, with a 4' fence along one side of the course, and expect them to chase a stupid little plastic bag...yards away from me...I mean, so far that they're a little speck in the grass. Have I lost my flippin mind? (No need to answer that!)
So, up went Frosty. First off, I'd forgotten NO FLEXIES...and I didn't have any other leashes with me. Ok, we were forgiven that faux pas after I swore NEVER to do it again. Sean took Frosty over to the start and I watched him get ready to release her...FROM HER COLLAR! ACK. No leash, no collar...Siberian? Again, I wondered, had I lost my flippin mind? (Again, no response required). Pat, managing the lure controls, scooted it back and forth to get Frosty's attention..and boy did she. Frosty danced in place in anticipation of capturing that amazing lure. Then, she was off! My heart in my throat, Grandma standing by with a noisy bag of treats...I watched my little girl race around the course...chasing a plastic bag! Her focus was amazing...and she followed the entire course and came back to the start point, got to jump on the bag and was re-leashed by Daddy and given a treat by Grandma.
Now I'm feeling more confident. My first off leash, off collar lure coursing run and I have my dog back, safe and sound in her crate. Of course, we had to buy one of the spiffy, quick release, lure coursing collars so we had the right equipment
So, after the success with Frosty, we're feeling pretty confident. So, Ice is up next. I cautioned the gal with the Italian Greyhound to hang onto her dog, Ice has a pretty good prey drive and I wanted to be able to come back. She assured me she'd hang on to her dog
Next it was Satinka's turn. My biggest concern was that she'd get bored 1/2 way around (at the absolute farthest point from me) and go exploring the park. Holy COW. Talk about focused. Satinka ran this course like she was born to it, cornering like a pro, turning and following that lure every foot of the way. I couldn't believe her aptitude for this game. And, quite a game it was for her. When she got to the end, she pounced on the lure (good thing they're cheap) and managed to get a piece of it before Daddy got ready to catch her and crate her up. Oh boy, now for Tink's favorite game...chase me! But the rattle of treats in Grandma's hand proved to be too much to resist and Satinka was safely collared and re-crated.
Now it's Katie's turn. Grandma wasn't sure about turning Katie loose, but after seeing Satinka the Brat, I was feeling pretty confident that Katie'd do just fine. Sean took her collar off and the lure took off....but, hey, over here...some loose dirt by the starting spot... We all laughed as Katie let the lure take off while she explored the loose dirt...hey, after all, a pile of dirt v. having to chase a plastic bag? No contest, right? The lure started on it's merry way, unthreatened by a chasing dog. Pat brought it back, ran it back and forth to get Katie's attention again and then they were off! Katie didn't run with the drive of the other three...but she chased that darn lure until she caught it...and then went back to the safety of her crate (I could see Grandma's relief).
So, all four dogs ran and we decided to give Tinks and Ice another go. Tinks was first. Quivering with anticipation...dancing from foot to foot..begging Daddy to let go of her, she waited impatiently. Then it was her turn again. The lure took off...and the black and white blur that was Satinka took off with it...all the way around, although this time she let the lure take some corners and she shortcutted to try and cut it off (no one said she was stupid
Ice was our final run of the day. He'd been watching all afternoon and he WANTED that lure. So, off he went, my 7 1/2 yr old, harness banging, wheel dog. He had a good run...but, somewhere toward the end, the lure got far enough ahead of him that he got distracted...uh oh. No problem...Pat reversed the lure to get it back in front of him...but he's running backwards on the course...after a little feather or something tied on the line...to heck with that plastic bag, he found something smaller to chase... After much laughter (although I'll admit mine was nervous laughter) eventually he targeted the lure again and came on in, happy as could be.
There wasn't a peep out of them on the way home...they slept like logs. We had a great time and I can't wait to take some of the dogs out again. If you'd told me on Friday that I'd be turning one of my Siberians loose, with no collar in a park that I hadn't walked the fence line, that had a temporary 4 foot plastic fence along one side...I'd have told you that you were crazy...but, maybe I'm the crazy one?
December 01, 2006
Ooops, I did it again....
We took the Kaos eKpress out with the cart again last weekend. Sean had done some work to improve the steering (YIPPEE) and we gave it another go.
With Hummee and Ice at wheel, Frosty and Max in lead and Aleska and Katie trotting along in the middle (swing), we were ready to go.
Ok, so, the steering on the cart is fixed...but in order for it to work, one has to actually TURN the handlebar.
Picture this: 6 dogs, running and having a ball. Daddy yelling FROSTY - HAW, MAX - HAW and darling little 36 lb Frosty trying her best to make everyone HAW (that's a left turn, by the way). So, Momma leans to add her weight to the turning cart...except...the cart isn't turning! It's following the dogs!
I had plenty of time, as I flew off the cart, to remember to tuck in my arms, roll my shoulders and tuck my head before I hit the ground...and remind myself to wait until I stopped moving before I tried to get up.
So, we learned a few things:
1 - One lead dog isn't necessarily enough to turn the team, especially the 19 1/2", 36 lb Frosty.
2 - Turn the cart and the wheel dogs respond to the change in direction and help move the whole team.
3 - slow the dogs down before a turn, they can't do a 90 degree turn!
4 - Mom steers and controls the dogs, Dad is Brakeman.
Although maybe #1 should be - train the dogs.
Here are photos taken that day: www.picturetrail.com/kaossiberians They do NOT include any pictures of Laura flying off the cart. These were taken AFTER the "big run" with the dogs going out on the scooter with Daddy so I could take some pictures.
Frosty, bless her 36 lb little self, was pissed every time the scooter took off without her. So we sent her out with Aleska, "I'd rather be resting" and Frosty had to pull both the scooter AND Aleska. And yet she still wanted more. I'm betting that while I'm here at work, she's home leading the snow dance so we can take the sled up to Big Bear for some real fun!
With Hummee and Ice at wheel, Frosty and Max in lead and Aleska and Katie trotting along in the middle (swing), we were ready to go.
Ok, so, the steering on the cart is fixed...but in order for it to work, one has to actually TURN the handlebar.
Picture this: 6 dogs, running and having a ball. Daddy yelling FROSTY - HAW, MAX - HAW and darling little 36 lb Frosty trying her best to make everyone HAW (that's a left turn, by the way). So, Momma leans to add her weight to the turning cart...except...the cart isn't turning! It's following the dogs!
I had plenty of time, as I flew off the cart, to remember to tuck in my arms, roll my shoulders and tuck my head before I hit the ground...and remind myself to wait until I stopped moving before I tried to get up.
So, we learned a few things:
1 - One lead dog isn't necessarily enough to turn the team, especially the 19 1/2", 36 lb Frosty.
2 - Turn the cart and the wheel dogs respond to the change in direction and help move the whole team.
3 - slow the dogs down before a turn, they can't do a 90 degree turn!
4 - Mom steers and controls the dogs, Dad is Brakeman.
Although maybe #1 should be - train the dogs
Here are photos taken that day: www.picturetrail.com/kaossiberians They do NOT include any pictures of Laura flying off the cart. These were taken AFTER the "big run" with the dogs going out on the scooter with Daddy so I could take some pictures
Frosty, bless her 36 lb little self, was pissed every time the scooter took off without her. So we sent her out with Aleska, "I'd rather be resting" and Frosty had to pull both the scooter AND Aleska. And yet she still wanted more. I'm betting that while I'm here at work, she's home leading the snow dance so we can take the sled up to Big Bear for some real fun!
November 30, 2006
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....
Well, some of the neighbors have their Christmas lights up, decorations in the yard and the wind is a blowing. Here's my contribution to the Christmas spirit.
November 13, 2006
Weekend Warriors...
Sometimes Sean and I like to pretend that we're actually going to work the dogs in harness...you know, with a cart or the sled we have in the garage. Last weekend was one of those times...we met up with the Southern California Snow Dogs group down at Fairview Park in Costa Mesa.
Oh, let me back up a minute...first, on Friday night, I went to pick up a new cart, a Black Ice Wheeled Training Cart. The advantage of this cart is that the passenger area is large enough that we can both ride along, with Sean doing the steering and braking and me just going along for the ride...or so I imagined.
So, Saturday morning we get down there (on time, by the way) and we were the first ones there. (Yes, Kelly, Sparkle time is almost officially dead, the AKC doesn't wait for anyone, even me when ring times are posted.) We unloaded a couple of crates to give everyone their own space and started unloading carts. There's the new Black Ice cart, very nice, with lines to hook up all seven dogs...yep, we took seven untrained dogs out on a new cart, on new trails. Genius, I tell you, simply genius. Then we unloaded the Trail Pup Plus for Maggie to try and the Dirt Dawg scooter for someone else to use. Got everyone harnessed up and proceeded to decide who was going to go where.
Ice and Ryder at wheel, that's an easy one. Mr. Let me RUN (Ice) and Mr. He's Not Going Anywhere without Me (Ryder) at wheel insures that we'll get moving. Humvee and Blaze went at team (in the middle) because, well, wheel and lead were taken and that's what's left. We didn't want Blaze working overly hard, since he's just a baby and really wanted to keep it easy and fun for him. Hummee, although he's only been out once, is just a year old and, again, I wanted him to have fun, but I knew he'd take most of the load off of Blaze. Up front we had "I know what you want, I just don't feel like paying attention right now, Leader Frosty" and "I know what you want me to do, I don't want to do it right now, Leader Max" and "They had to put me somewhere, Miss Satinka".
We got everyone lined out, Max does know line out so that helps. And then the plan was that Sean would start them off easy while I swung myself up on the cart to ride along. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and dog drivers. Sean got them slowed down and I was able to run up to catch them and hop on....then we realized that we were on a trail with a 90° turn to a bridge. Luckily "easy" and "whoa" seemed to work.
It was then that I realized Sean had planned for me to do more than ride along. Someone (read ME) had to go out to the front of the team, walk them around in a WIDE circle and get them facing back the direction we wanted them to go. Gee and Haw didn't seem to be on Frosty's or Max's agenda that day..and Satinka, well, she's never been trained to do anything but "stand, pretty" (which, by the way, she does very well). So, we got them and the cart turned around, Sean hollered "HIKE" and they took off a little slower this time. I was able to swing on and didn't fall ootherwise embarrasssss myself. A couple of runs back and forth in the grass (high rolling resistance = slower dogs) and we were ready for the trails. We took off behind everyone (because, of course 7 dogs are slower than 2? and we didn't know the trails) and followed along. At the first decent downhill we discovered that taking 7 untrained dogs down hill, on a new cart where you're unsure of the braking is, well, an adventure. I ended up walking the dogs down the hill with Sean riding the brake.
We made it, without incident, down the easier hill than everyone else took (stories of Bodie and Arrow dragging Maggie's scooter told us we didn't want to take the "big hill") and met up at the turn around/water spot. The dogs took their break, with most of them deciding to lay down on the cool grass while the people talked and chatted. Then it was time to turn them around again and head back to the car. We accomplished this with a minimum of mounting/dismounting on my part and all arrived back at the car, tired, happy and ready to rest.
Next weekend we're going again, but we're going to try it with a few less dogs...anything to shorten the distance from the back of the cart to the front of the line! I didn't realize being a passenger was going to be so much exercise!
Dear Lord, I hope someone has trained them by the time we have snow to sled in!!!
Things we learned:
Oh, let me back up a minute...first, on Friday night, I went to pick up a new cart, a Black Ice Wheeled Training Cart. The advantage of this cart is that the passenger area is large enough that we can both ride along, with Sean doing the steering and braking and me just going along for the ride...or so I imagined.
So, Saturday morning we get down there (on time, by the way) and we were the first ones there. (Yes, Kelly, Sparkle time is almost officially dead, the AKC doesn't wait for anyone, even me when ring times are posted.) We unloaded a couple of crates to give everyone their own space and started unloading carts. There's the new Black Ice cart, very nice, with lines to hook up all seven dogs...yep, we took seven untrained dogs out on a new cart, on new trails. Genius, I tell you, simply genius. Then we unloaded the Trail Pup Plus for Maggie to try and the Dirt Dawg scooter for someone else to use. Got everyone harnessed up and proceeded to decide who was going to go where.
Ice and Ryder at wheel, that's an easy one. Mr. Let me RUN (Ice) and Mr. He's Not Going Anywhere without Me (Ryder) at wheel insures that we'll get moving. Humvee and Blaze went at team (in the middle) because, well, wheel and lead were taken and that's what's left. We didn't want Blaze working overly hard, since he's just a baby and really wanted to keep it easy and fun for him. Hummee, although he's only been out once, is just a year old and, again, I wanted him to have fun, but I knew he'd take most of the load off of Blaze. Up front we had "I know what you want, I just don't feel like paying attention right now, Leader Frosty" and "I know what you want me to do, I don't want to do it right now, Leader Max" and "They had to put me somewhere, Miss Satinka".
We got everyone lined out, Max does know line out so that helps. And then the plan was that Sean would start them off easy while I swung myself up on the cart to ride along. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and dog drivers. Sean got them slowed down and I was able to run up to catch them and hop on....then we realized that we were on a trail with a 90° turn to a bridge. Luckily "easy" and "whoa" seemed to work.
It was then that I realized Sean had planned for me to do more than ride along. Someone (read ME) had to go out to the front of the team, walk them around in a WIDE circle and get them facing back the direction we wanted them to go. Gee and Haw didn't seem to be on Frosty's or Max's agenda that day..and Satinka, well, she's never been trained to do anything but "stand, pretty" (which, by the way, she does very well). So, we got them and the cart turned around, Sean hollered "HIKE" and they took off a little slower this time. I was able to swing on and didn't fall ootherwise embarrasssss myself. A couple of runs back and forth in the grass (high rolling resistance = slower dogs) and we were ready for the trails. We took off behind everyone (because, of course 7 dogs are slower than 2? and we didn't know the trails) and followed along. At the first decent downhill we discovered that taking 7 untrained dogs down hill, on a new cart where you're unsure of the braking is, well, an adventure. I ended up walking the dogs down the hill with Sean riding the brake.
We made it, without incident, down the easier hill than everyone else took (stories of Bodie and Arrow dragging Maggie's scooter told us we didn't want to take the "big hill") and met up at the turn around/water spot. The dogs took their break, with most of them deciding to lay down on the cool grass while the people talked and chatted. Then it was time to turn them around again and head back to the car. We accomplished this with a minimum of mounting/dismounting on my part and all arrived back at the car, tired, happy and ready to rest.
Next weekend we're going again, but we're going to try it with a few less dogs...anything to shorten the distance from the back of the cart to the front of the line! I didn't realize being a passenger was going to be so much exercise!
Dear Lord, I hope someone has trained them by the time we have snow to sled in!!!
Things we learned:
- one gallon of water for the dogs is not enough
- 3 dogs in lead means much switching of necklines as they decide who's going to be next to whom
- being a passenger doesn't mean just riding along
- passengers should wear good running shoes
- running dogs in harness is exhilarating, addicting and tiring (I napped until 8pm when we got home).
November 08, 2006
Happy Birthday, Dear Ryder
I can't believe my baby boy is four today. Where does the time go? Is this what it's like to be a parent and look over and realize the young life you've been nurturing is grown up and ready to spread their wings? Well, lucky for me dogs don't have wings, eh?
Many of you will remember that just a few short days ago (at least it seems to me like it was just yesterday) I brought home this fluffy little bundle of Ryderness, who was quickly dubbed the MonsterWonderPuppyFromHeck. When he discovered girls, his name was changed slightly, and he became the MonsterWonderPuppyFromHeckwithHormones.
Ryder got into everything - the dishwasher, the fridge, he even managed to open doors and turn on the stove. His first night in a hotel room at a show he opened the door to let himself out to go potty. Unfortunately for his plans to explore, I'd fastened the security bar, giving him a scant 3" of opening...enough to panic me, not enough to set him loose.
Ryder's a Momma's Boy, through and through and I love his fuzzy little self to pieces. As my first show puppy, I always thought Ryder was perfect. I still do. :-)
Tonight, it's carrot cake for everyone and Ryder gets the corner piece with all the frosting!! 
P.S. for those who wonder...somewhere around four, they start growing a brain! I'm seeing signs of it in Ryder.
P.S. for those who wonder...somewhere around four, they start growing a brain! I'm seeing signs of it in Ryder.
November 07, 2006
Carting in the Vinyard
Last weekend Sean and I loaded up the van with a few dogs (Max, Ice, Ryder, Hummee, Tinks, Frosty and Blaze) and their harnesses and went up to join the Northern California Siberian Husky Club for their annual fall event "Carting in the Vinyard." It's been a while since we had the dogs out to run...months probably. So, with hotel reservations, a plan to visit a girl friend in Concord and a full tank of gas, we headed out on Saturday morning.
A brief detour past the Santa Fe dam, where the Antelope Valley and San Gabriel Kennel clubs were holding their shows netted us a hitch hiker, an 11 week old Staffordshire named Ridley who needed a ride up north to his new home. (Yes, that now makes eight dogs in the van.)
So we headed north, without incident, and made it up to Barbara's. I finally got to meet Teddy, her Toy Fox Terrier. I tell you, I was afraid I was going to step on the little guy. He's cute, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't last long at Kaos. We ran and fed the dogs, talked and went out to dinner and then strolled over to Half Price Books, a store Sean had never been to, but found much to his liking. After dinner we loaded all the dogs back up, making sure we had all eight of them and hit the road to Santa Rosa, with a brief detour to hand Ridley over to his new folks. We got in at a reasonable hour, checked into the hotel, walked all the dogs and went to bed, counting on Blaze's "wake up call" feature to wake us up (he did, at 4 am and at 6am). Before going to bed, I even remembered to plug in the crockpot with the Lil Smokies and sauce for the next day's potluck (you'll see why this detail is important later).
Saturday morning dawned bright, clear and cool as we walked the dogs and got ready to find the closest Starbucks and hit the road. As we made the turn onto Hwy 12, I felt a warmth on my foot...oh CRAP...a crockpot full of Lil Smokies and sauce was now 1/3 full. The other 2/3d's ended up on my foot, the passenger side of the car and, happily, in the map pocket on the door. We pulled over and cleaned up as much as we could (guess who forgot to replace the empty roll of paper towels in her van?). As Sean reached into the map pocket to clean out the little wieners, I managed to blurt out "they're hot" just as he yanked his hand out of the sauce. Finding a convenient grocery store, we stopped and got paper towels, wet wipes and ingredients to refill the crock pot, did some more clean up and continued on our way. At this point, we're running about 40 minutes late. No big deal, it's a casual thing and we'll get there in about 20 minutes.
Waiting at an intersection, we saw a truck with a great dog box go by, pulling a training rig. I figured we'd probably follow them to the carting fun and we made the turn....as my brain processed the fact that no one who was attending had a rig like that. As I glanced down at my directions, to confirm we were going the right way it occured to me that we were supposed to be going to Calistoga...yet the directions to Glen Elen, where we were picking up our new sled later that weekend, were on top. Yep, sure enough, not only did I spill our potluck offering on the way to the potluck, but we weren't even going the right way to the potluck! Traveling with me is such an adventure :-)
So, we got ourselves turned around, called to let the carting group know not to worry, we were running way late and headed back out...this time to Calistoga. We had a great time once we got there.
We had a great time with our Nor Cal friends. In addition to running the dogs, there were great games like "bobbing for hot dogs" (the dogs bobbed, not the people), musical paws and doggie limbo. While we didn't win any prizes, the Kaos Krew sure had fun...especially on that bobbing for hot dog game.
Sean took out our foursome with Max and Frosty at lead and Ryder and Ice at wheel. Now, let me just say that Ryder's not the most motivated of working dogs...unless he's following Max or running with Ice. But with those two in the team with him, he's a pulling machine. Frosty's going to make a great lead dog with some training, she's actually responding to commands already even if she can't make everyone turn with her (she's our Littlest Sled Dog). But she's determined. Ice and Ryder, and later Ice and Hummee ran at wheel.
It was Hummee's first time out in harness. The previous trip down to go scootering he'd been a little too young for me to be entirely comfortable running him. I tell ya, this boy has leg and knows how to use it. He threw himself into his harness and pulled like he'd been doing it his entire life.
It was Satinka's first time out as well, other than a brief foray up in the snow a couple years ago. Unfortunately, we'd put her next to Ryder (see the aforementioned description of Ryder's work ethic) so she didn't really get what was going on...but she ran. I don't know how much pulling she did, but she had fun.
The best fun was taking Blaze out with his brother and sister on the puppy run. He put his shoulder into the harness and he pulled. I tell you, there's nothing cuter than a bunch of puppies in harness. Of course they didn't work hard and they didn't go far, but they sure had fun!
I managed not to run the cart into any of the buildings (but it was close) on my trip out; no one fell or otherwise hurt themselsves and we all made it home in one piece. I've never heard my dogs so quiet (is that possible?). They slept, ate and went right back to sleep.
We made it down to Glen Elen to pick up our sled (from the driver of the truck we saw that clued me into the fact that we were going the wrong way earlier in the weekend) and spent some time with Van and his wife, talking about dogs, racing, equipment and other things dear to Sean's heart :-) and drove home with a sled on the van.
Now, I guess, all we need is snow. And maybe a GPS for better navigational success?
A brief detour past the Santa Fe dam, where the Antelope Valley and San Gabriel Kennel clubs were holding their shows netted us a hitch hiker, an 11 week old Staffordshire named Ridley who needed a ride up north to his new home. (Yes, that now makes eight dogs in the van.)
So we headed north, without incident, and made it up to Barbara's. I finally got to meet Teddy, her Toy Fox Terrier. I tell you, I was afraid I was going to step on the little guy. He's cute, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't last long at Kaos. We ran and fed the dogs, talked and went out to dinner and then strolled over to Half Price Books, a store Sean had never been to, but found much to his liking. After dinner we loaded all the dogs back up, making sure we had all eight of them and hit the road to Santa Rosa, with a brief detour to hand Ridley over to his new folks. We got in at a reasonable hour, checked into the hotel, walked all the dogs and went to bed, counting on Blaze's "wake up call" feature to wake us up (he did, at 4 am and at 6am). Before going to bed, I even remembered to plug in the crockpot with the Lil Smokies and sauce for the next day's potluck (you'll see why this detail is important later).
Saturday morning dawned bright, clear and cool as we walked the dogs and got ready to find the closest Starbucks and hit the road. As we made the turn onto Hwy 12, I felt a warmth on my foot...oh CRAP...a crockpot full of Lil Smokies and sauce was now 1/3 full. The other 2/3d's ended up on my foot, the passenger side of the car and, happily, in the map pocket on the door. We pulled over and cleaned up as much as we could (guess who forgot to replace the empty roll of paper towels in her van?). As Sean reached into the map pocket to clean out the little wieners, I managed to blurt out "they're hot" just as he yanked his hand out of the sauce. Finding a convenient grocery store, we stopped and got paper towels, wet wipes and ingredients to refill the crock pot, did some more clean up and continued on our way. At this point, we're running about 40 minutes late. No big deal, it's a casual thing and we'll get there in about 20 minutes.
Waiting at an intersection, we saw a truck with a great dog box go by, pulling a training rig. I figured we'd probably follow them to the carting fun and we made the turn....as my brain processed the fact that no one who was attending had a rig like that. As I glanced down at my directions, to confirm we were going the right way it occured to me that we were supposed to be going to Calistoga...yet the directions to Glen Elen, where we were picking up our new sled later that weekend, were on top. Yep, sure enough, not only did I spill our potluck offering on the way to the potluck, but we weren't even going the right way to the potluck! Traveling with me is such an adventure :-)
So, we got ourselves turned around, called to let the carting group know not to worry, we were running way late and headed back out...this time to Calistoga. We had a great time once we got there.
We had a great time with our Nor Cal friends. In addition to running the dogs, there were great games like "bobbing for hot dogs" (the dogs bobbed, not the people), musical paws and doggie limbo. While we didn't win any prizes, the Kaos Krew sure had fun...especially on that bobbing for hot dog game.
Sean took out our foursome with Max and Frosty at lead and Ryder and Ice at wheel. Now, let me just say that Ryder's not the most motivated of working dogs...unless he's following Max or running with Ice. But with those two in the team with him, he's a pulling machine. Frosty's going to make a great lead dog with some training, she's actually responding to commands already even if she can't make everyone turn with her (she's our Littlest Sled Dog). But she's determined. Ice and Ryder, and later Ice and Hummee ran at wheel.
It was Hummee's first time out in harness. The previous trip down to go scootering he'd been a little too young for me to be entirely comfortable running him. I tell ya, this boy has leg and knows how to use it. He threw himself into his harness and pulled like he'd been doing it his entire life.
It was Satinka's first time out as well, other than a brief foray up in the snow a couple years ago. Unfortunately, we'd put her next to Ryder (see the aforementioned description of Ryder's work ethic) so she didn't really get what was going on...but she ran. I don't know how much pulling she did, but she had fun.
The best fun was taking Blaze out with his brother and sister on the puppy run. He put his shoulder into the harness and he pulled. I tell you, there's nothing cuter than a bunch of puppies in harness. Of course they didn't work hard and they didn't go far, but they sure had fun!
I managed not to run the cart into any of the buildings (but it was close) on my trip out; no one fell or otherwise hurt themselsves and we all made it home in one piece. I've never heard my dogs so quiet (is that possible?). They slept, ate and went right back to sleep.
We made it down to Glen Elen to pick up our sled (from the driver of the truck we saw that clued me into the fact that we were going the wrong way earlier in the weekend) and spent some time with Van and his wife, talking about dogs, racing, equipment and other things dear to Sean's heart :-) and drove home with a sled on the van.
Now, I guess, all we need is snow. And maybe a GPS for better navigational success?
October 27, 2006
Unpacking National Memories
As we unpack my suitcases from the 2006 Siberian Husky Club of America National Specialty, I find that some of the items have memories associated with them.
The red Siberian Husky bag - a much contested item at the Rescue booth raffle, I spent much of my discretionary $$ at the booth buying tickets to stuff the cup for this bag and scare off other interested parties. Well, I didn't scare them off, but the last batch of tickets I bought, that Gerry wasn't going to let me have in case she'd feel some guilt if I didn't win the bag, were lucky! That bag is sitting happily on my dresser now.
Half-eaten bully sticks - in an effort to assuage my guilt at having to crate the dogs in the hotel room so long, I was constantly stuffing bully sticks in their crates. (If you don't really know what a bully stick is, don't worry, you probably don't want to know.) When I cleaned out the crates for the trip home, I found that both Satinka and Hummee had a supply of half-eaten bully sticks tucked away in the backs of their crates.
Everyone needs a new grooming bag, right? I won a new one in the aforementioned Rescue raffle. No, I didn't need a new one and, had I been thinking, I'd have saved it to donate to another raffle...but it's packed and in the van ready for its first outing this weekend.
Black velvet bag containing gold Siberian Husky head silhouette earrings - Satinka wanted me to have these on Sunday when she won Reserve Winners Bitch. I swear, that's what she told me :-) Wonder what she would have wanted me to have if she'd won Winners Bitch? It boggles the mind to consider.
That's the first suitcase down. I can't wait to unpack the memories in the second one, but that'll have to wait until next week. Tonight we're off to Dixon, CA for another shot at a major for Tinks (ok, and Katie and Hummee).
See ya!
The red Siberian Husky bag - a much contested item at the Rescue booth raffle, I spent much of my discretionary $$ at the booth buying tickets to stuff the cup for this bag and scare off other interested parties. Well, I didn't scare them off, but the last batch of tickets I bought, that Gerry wasn't going to let me have in case she'd feel some guilt if I didn't win the bag, were lucky! That bag is sitting happily on my dresser now.
Half-eaten bully sticks - in an effort to assuage my guilt at having to crate the dogs in the hotel room so long, I was constantly stuffing bully sticks in their crates. (If you don't really know what a bully stick is, don't worry, you probably don't want to know.) When I cleaned out the crates for the trip home, I found that both Satinka and Hummee had a supply of half-eaten bully sticks tucked away in the backs of their crates.
Everyone needs a new grooming bag, right? I won a new one in the aforementioned Rescue raffle. No, I didn't need a new one and, had I been thinking, I'd have saved it to donate to another raffle...but it's packed and in the van ready for its first outing this weekend.
Black velvet bag containing gold Siberian Husky head silhouette earrings - Satinka wanted me to have these on Sunday when she won Reserve Winners Bitch. I swear, that's what she told me :-) Wonder what she would have wanted me to have if she'd won Winners Bitch? It boggles the mind to consider.
That's the first suitcase down. I can't wait to unpack the memories in the second one, but that'll have to wait until next week. Tonight we're off to Dixon, CA for another shot at a major for Tinks (ok, and Katie and Hummee).
See ya!
October 24, 2006
Where did it go???
Wow, I can't believe we're back already. Hummee and Tinks had big plans to take over the computer and share the whole trip with you, but they must have been tired.
Satinka was tired because on Sunday she won Reserve Winners Bitch (that's like Runner Up to Miss America for you non-dog show people). While we could have been happier, we were thrilled with the win.
Hummee was tired because he had to spend so much time laying around, sleeping. The weather was COLD and it rained off an on. Sunday morning we woke up to mixed rain and snow for our drive back to the airport.
All in all, it was a great week, we met some new friends, connected with some old friends, saw some great (and not-so-great) dogs and had a good time.
Satinka was tired because on Sunday she won Reserve Winners Bitch (that's like Runner Up to Miss America for you non-dog show people). While we could have been happier, we were thrilled with the win.
Hummee was tired because he had to spend so much time laying around, sleeping. The weather was COLD and it rained off an on. Sunday morning we woke up to mixed rain and snow for our drive back to the airport.
All in all, it was a great week, we met some new friends, connected with some old friends, saw some great (and not-so-great) dogs and had a good time.
October 11, 2006
We're off to see the wizard....
Oh, wait, that was LAST year's National Specialty...in Topeka, Kansas. This year we (Satinka, the Diva, Hummee, the Doofus or Dummee if you're in a rhyming type mood and their erstwhile handler and provider of yummy treats...aka Momma) are headed to Rockford, Illinois for the Siberian Husky Club of America national specialty (think all Siberians, all the time). As an added bonus, the Siberian Husky Club of Greater Chicago is having their annual specialty the Saturday and Sunday before the SHCA specialty begins.
Your intrepid travelers will begin their journey on Friday, October 13th (could we be any less happy to read the date?) from Los Angeles International airport and fly out to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Avoiding the bustle of Chicago's O'Hare, MKE is about the same distance from Rockford and the ticket was cheap. Did you know on Midwest Airlines the dogs accumulate frequent flyer benefits? How cool is that?
Tinks and Hummee have insisted that I bring the laptop so that they can keep you up to date with the happenings in Rockford. So, check in from time to time next week and see how much fun we're having. Did I mention there are SNOW FLURRIES in the forecast? Let me tell you that 1/3 of the traveling team isn't nearly as excited as the other 2/3ds of the team.
Our schedule looks something like this:
Friday night: arrive very very late
Saturday: get up very, very early...show at the Chicago Specialty, Day 1, both Hummee & Tinks
Sunday: get up very, very early...show at the Chicago Specialty, Day 2, both Hummee & Tinks
Monday: sleep in and attend afternoon educational seminars
Tuesday: Hummee shows in 9-12 puppy dog sweepstakes, go visit a friend in the area
Wednesday: Hummee shows in American Bred dog class, order pizza and a movie and relax
Thursday: Satinka shows in Open bitch class
Friday: Hummee shows, with his sister, Roxie, and Dad, Cody, in the Stud Dog class
Saturday: Woohoo!!! No reason to be clean today (unless the amazing happens and Tinks or Hummee takes Winners...but let's be real) so we'll watch the Best of Breed judging (Hummee and I will be sitting ringside, cheering on Big Sister Roxie).
Sunday: get up very, very early and fly home.
Monday: back to work...what a vacation.
So, stay tuned and we'll try and share the fun with you...from the snow to the shortage of grooming space, from sharing a room with two friends and four other dogs, with a mix of puppies, in-season girls and intact boys...it'll be a week we won't forget *unless, of course, we find the bar first*
Your intrepid travelers will begin their journey on Friday, October 13th (could we be any less happy to read the date?) from Los Angeles International airport and fly out to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Avoiding the bustle of Chicago's O'Hare, MKE is about the same distance from Rockford and the ticket was cheap. Did you know on Midwest Airlines the dogs accumulate frequent flyer benefits? How cool is that?
Tinks and Hummee have insisted that I bring the laptop so that they can keep you up to date with the happenings in Rockford. So, check in from time to time next week and see how much fun we're having. Did I mention there are SNOW FLURRIES in the forecast? Let me tell you that 1/3 of the traveling team isn't nearly as excited as the other 2/3ds of the team.
Our schedule looks something like this:
Friday night: arrive very very late
Saturday: get up very, very early...show at the Chicago Specialty, Day 1, both Hummee & Tinks
Sunday: get up very, very early...show at the Chicago Specialty, Day 2, both Hummee & Tinks
Monday: sleep in and attend afternoon educational seminars
Tuesday: Hummee shows in 9-12 puppy dog sweepstakes, go visit a friend in the area
Wednesday: Hummee shows in American Bred dog class, order pizza and a movie and relax
Thursday: Satinka shows in Open bitch class
Friday: Hummee shows, with his sister, Roxie, and Dad, Cody, in the Stud Dog class
Saturday: Woohoo!!! No reason to be clean today (unless the amazing happens and Tinks or Hummee takes Winners...but let's be real) so we'll watch the Best of Breed judging (Hummee and I will be sitting ringside, cheering on Big Sister Roxie).
Sunday: get up very, very early and fly home.
Monday: back to work...what a vacation.
So, stay tuned and we'll try and share the fun with you...from the snow to the shortage of grooming space, from sharing a room with two friends and four other dogs, with a mix of puppies, in-season girls and intact boys...it'll be a week we won't forget *unless, of course, we find the bar first*
October 02, 2006
More Purple and Gold!!!
And, no I'm not talking about the colors flying when the University of Washington Huskies beat the UCLA Bruins....that was just bonus purple & gold.
Sunday, at the Burbank Kennel Club, Satinka was Winners Bitch, both days, Best of Opposite on Saturday and on Sunday...her first Best of Breed! I was a little surprised (ok, a LOT surprised) and thrilled to receive that award for Tinks. Not so thrilled to stay for groups with rain showers off an on but we stayed and showed (and didn't do anything in group).
So, all three of my current show dogs are pointed...Hummee has 2 points (and 1 BOB), Katie has 2 points (and 2 BOBs) and Tinks has 8 points and now her first BOB!
To make the weekend more exciting, when I called Tink's breeder to let her know how Tinks did, I found out that Cha'tima, Satinka's dam finished her championship this weekend; her sister, Abey, was WB the other two days of the 4 day show and her 1/2 brother, Frosty, was WD. What a great weekend for Apache Run Siberians...and Kaos!
Not to be left out, Hummee won RWD on Sunday...he's got some maturing to do, but he'll get there.
Blaze spent an uneventful weekend at home with Daddy and the other dogs....no new cute puppy stories for now.
This weekend is our last big California show before the National Specialty in Rockford, Illinois. I'm excited to go. I don't know that Tinks and Hummee share my excitement...or much care :-) I'm not sure where September went...
Sunday, at the Burbank Kennel Club, Satinka was Winners Bitch, both days, Best of Opposite on Saturday and on Sunday...her first Best of Breed! I was a little surprised (ok, a LOT surprised) and thrilled to receive that award for Tinks. Not so thrilled to stay for groups with rain showers off an on
So, all three of my current show dogs are pointed...Hummee has 2 points (and 1 BOB), Katie has 2 points (and 2 BOBs) and Tinks has 8 points and now her first BOB!
To make the weekend more exciting, when I called Tink's breeder to let her know how Tinks did, I found out that Cha'tima, Satinka's dam finished her championship this weekend; her sister, Abey, was WB the other two days of the 4 day show and her 1/2 brother, Frosty, was WD. What a great weekend for Apache Run Siberians...and Kaos!
Not to be left out, Hummee won RWD on Sunday...he's got some maturing to do, but he'll get there
Blaze spent an uneventful weekend at home with Daddy and the other dogs....no new cute puppy stories for now.
This weekend is our last big California show before the National Specialty in Rockford, Illinois. I'm excited to go. I don't know that Tinks and Hummee share my excitement...or much care :-) I'm not sure where September went...
September 28, 2006
Why we're Kaos Siberians
There's a reason we chose our kennel name. It'll become very clear in the next minute or two of reading.
I received a call on my way home last night from the husband, and he didn't sound particularly happy. "Who left the house last this morning?" "Um, I did, why? What did I do?" "It's not so much what you did, as what you didn't do....you didn't close the dog door."
At that point, oh SH*T was the only thing I had to say. Luckily, there wasn't too much of that!
They had gone through the garbage can in the cabinet under the sink, making sure there was nothing edible being thrown out. They had gone upstairs and gotten MUD all over my bed (someone marked on my pillow too...nice), visited the stamp room and pulled stuff down (like you can really tell!) and marked on some of the iris carts, gone into the blocked off library and pulled a lot of treats out of the dog cabinet to eat...is it any wonder that everyone had the runs?, marked all of the plastic sheeting draped on the furniture in there but...the best of all...somehow Blaze got behind the couch (it's not in its usual place, but in front of the empty TV alcove) and got stuck. We suspect the went over the back of the couch or dogs jumping on the couch pushed it back, blocking him in. Other than a little potty spot, no damage there....thankfully he did NOT get bored and chew on Daddy's newly run speaker wires!
Sean says coming home to find 11 Siberians greeting him at the front door was a little disconcerting. I'm just happy he got home first and did all the clean up!Oddly enough, they were all pretty tired and when I decided it was bed time at about 9pm, they were already sacked out all over the floor.
This morning? I double checked all the doors! And all day long I've been fighting a compulsion to drive home and check on them.
I received a call on my way home last night from the husband, and he didn't sound particularly happy. "Who left the house last this morning?" "Um, I did, why? What did I do?" "It's not so much what you did, as what you didn't do....you didn't close the dog door."
At that point, oh SH*T was the only thing I had to say. Luckily, there wasn't too much of that!
They had gone through the garbage can in the cabinet under the sink, making sure there was nothing edible being thrown out. They had gone upstairs and gotten MUD all over my bed (someone marked on my pillow too...nice
Sean says coming home to find 11 Siberians greeting him at the front door was a little disconcerting. I'm just happy he got home first and did all the clean up!
This morning? I double checked all the doors! And all day long I've been fighting a compulsion to drive home and check on them.
September 19, 2006
Purple and Gold!!!
No, not the University of Washington Huskies....but the Kaos Siberians!
Last weekend we drove about 7 1/2 hours up to beautiful Prescott, Arizona. I tell you, if I won the lottery, and had a private plane, I'd consider moving up there. The drive up the side of the mountain is torture for someone with vertigo, a fear of heights...but this year I took the trusty Mom who did all the long driving (thank you, Mom!).
We checked into our hotel around 2am and I decided that Tinks and Hummee were quite happy tucked in their crates in the car for the 5 hours I was going to nap before getting ready to show. Note: 10 mo old puppies should NOT be denied their usual activity for a day prior to showing if one expects them to behave as if they're trained show dogs.
Ok, fast forward past all the boring chit chat about setting up, getting ready, greeting friends....Results dang it, give me results!
Saturday was a bust. Hummee had a good time (see note above) and Tinks went Reserve Winners Bitch (her 8th or 9th) to a lovely bitch. I guess if you have to lose, its not as bad when you lose to a dog you like, right?
Sunday, however, was Kaos' day! Hummee was Winners Dog, for his 2nd point. Satinka was WB for her 4th point. Then, come Best of Breed, Hummee got it! WOOHOO!!! My baby boy has his first BOB win...over a special mind you. That just makes it a little more special, beating a dog who already has his/her championship. And Satinka...she was Best of Opposite...again, over that special :-)
Reality crashed down on us in the group ring (translation: we didn't do anything) but I've still got that purple and gold ribbon for Hummee!
Last weekend we drove about 7 1/2 hours up to beautiful Prescott, Arizona. I tell you, if I won the lottery, and had a private plane, I'd consider moving up there. The drive up the side of the mountain is torture for someone with vertigo, a fear of heights...but this year I took the trusty Mom who did all the long driving (thank you, Mom!).
We checked into our hotel around 2am and I decided that Tinks and Hummee were quite happy tucked in their crates in the car for the 5 hours I was going to nap before getting ready to show. Note: 10 mo old puppies should NOT be denied their usual activity for a day prior to showing if one expects them to behave as if they're trained show dogs.
Ok, fast forward past all the boring chit chat about setting up, getting ready, greeting friends....Results dang it, give me results!
Saturday was a bust. Hummee had a good time (see note above) and Tinks went Reserve Winners Bitch (her 8th or 9th) to a lovely bitch. I guess if you have to lose, its not as bad when you lose to a dog you like, right?
Sunday, however, was Kaos' day! Hummee was Winners Dog, for his 2nd point. Satinka was WB for her 4th point. Then, come Best of Breed, Hummee got it! WOOHOO!!! My baby boy has his first BOB win...over a special mind you. That just makes it a little more special, beating a dog who already has his/her championship. And Satinka...she was Best of Opposite...again, over that special :-)
Reality crashed down on us in the group ring (translation: we didn't do anything) but I've still got that purple and gold ribbon for Hummee!
September 13, 2006
The Diary of Blaze
Momma is leaving me home with Daddy this weekend to go to a show...I can't wait till I'm old enough to go to shows. But I think Daddy is going to let me play outside all day long with the big dogs because Hummee won't be home. Sometimes Hummee and I play a little rough and Momma is worried that I'll get hurt 'cause I'm smaller than he is. I think travelling with Momma is going to be fun. She gives me a box up where I can watch out the windows and there's SO much going on. I get tired just thinking about it. Next weekend I get to go to somewhere called Santa Ana...and then Momma said I get to go somewhere called Donner Trail and see my doggie-daddy. That'll be FUN.
I went to my first puppy match last weekend and it was FUN. You wouldn't BELIEVE the amount of treats and toys and oh...the belly rubs and attention from people. And then there are all the other dogs to play with...it was GREAT fun! I can see why Satinka and Hummee like going to shows so much. The only downside was that I had to have a bath I work so hard getting dirty and them Momma and Gramma take it all off. Momma says I have more matches coming up; I'll bet she's got lots of good toys for me there too...and I always get to meet so many fun dogs to play with. Sometimes some of the dogs don't want to play with me, because I'm a puppy....but the ones that do are really fun.
Momma says I'm too little to go to the National this year, but next year I'll get to go. She's taking Satinka and Hummee, so I'll have to play with Katie and Aleska a lot while Hummee's gone. I'll surprise him and GROW while he's gone until I'm as big as he is.
Blaze, The Stepford Puppy (I thought I was a Siberian puppy, but Gramma and Momma say I'm a Stepford puppy)
I went to my first puppy match last weekend and it was FUN. You wouldn't BELIEVE the amount of treats and toys and oh...the belly rubs and attention from people. And then there are all the other dogs to play with...it was GREAT fun! I can see why Satinka and Hummee like going to shows so much. The only downside was that I had to have a bath
Momma says I'm too little to go to the National this year, but next year I'll get to go. She's taking Satinka and Hummee, so I'll have to play with Katie and Aleska a lot while Hummee's gone. I'll surprise him and GROW while he's gone until I'm as big as he is.
Blaze, The Stepford Puppy (I thought I was a Siberian puppy, but Gramma and Momma say I'm a Stepford puppy)
September 06, 2006
She flies through the air.....
And the flying part didn't hurt, but dang, I gotta work on those landings.
Last weekend was another dog show (shocker, eh?) up in Grass Valley, California. After getting mostly ready to go, I took off from work early on Friday to start the drive. About Stockton I realized I was using WAY too many lanes and pulled over to a safe parking lot to nap. So, I arrived about 3 hours later than planned at my destination. The plan was to toss Blaze into an xpen in Lori's kitchen...he lives in a xpen at my house, no problem, right? WRONG. Blaze didn't like Lori's kitchen. So I took him out to the van to sleep with Tinks and Hummee. Apparently he didn't much care for that plan either....but the guest room is at the back of the house...Blaze, the open window and my hostess' bedroom were at the front. I slept well anyway.
Saturday morning rolls around, way too soon and we head off to the show. I hand Hummee off to his co-owner, Uncle Tony (yes, everyone my dogs come in contact with get cute "relative" names) and settle in to watch until it's time to get Tinks ready. Then our turn comes. We excecute our down and back without any major goofs and then get ready to take our turn around the ring. About halfway around someone moved the ground! I put my foot down and the ground isn't there....then, all of a sudden it is, and I'm on it! Ringside spectators said it was a beautiful, graceful slide. How embarassing. And, not only did I fall, but I didn't even get the sympathy "make the cut" from the judge...which in hindsight doesn't matter much, because it means I didn't have to run around the ring again.
Sunday morning came around, again WAY too soon and we headed back to the show grounds. This time, I didn't show. I handed off Tinks and Hummee because Saturday's "graceful fall" left me feeling quite sore. Hummee took a 4th in a large open class...but the big excitment of the day was that his sister, Roxie, took Best of Breed and a Group 4 placement (that's a Big Deal).
Monday morning, long drive home...sucky traffic over the Grapevine, 3 hour nap at Lake Hughes to get out of traffic...and the long weekend is over.
Boy, I've got one heck of an exciting life. Don't I?
Last weekend was another dog show (shocker, eh?) up in Grass Valley, California. After getting mostly ready to go, I took off from work early on Friday to start the drive. About Stockton I realized I was using WAY too many lanes and pulled over to a safe parking lot to nap. So, I arrived about 3 hours later than planned at my destination. The plan was to toss Blaze into an xpen in Lori's kitchen...he lives in a xpen at my house, no problem, right? WRONG. Blaze didn't like Lori's kitchen. So I took him out to the van to sleep with Tinks and Hummee. Apparently he didn't much care for that plan either....but the guest room is at the back of the house...Blaze, the open window and my hostess' bedroom were at the front. I slept well anyway.
Saturday morning rolls around, way too soon and we head off to the show. I hand Hummee off to his co-owner, Uncle Tony (yes, everyone my dogs come in contact with get cute "relative" names) and settle in to watch until it's time to get Tinks ready. Then our turn comes. We excecute our down and back without any major goofs and then get ready to take our turn around the ring. About halfway around someone moved the ground! I put my foot down and the ground isn't there....then, all of a sudden it is, and I'm on it! Ringside spectators said it was a beautiful, graceful slide. How embarassing. And, not only did I fall, but I didn't even get the sympathy "make the cut" from the judge...which in hindsight doesn't matter much, because it means I didn't have to run around the ring again.
Sunday morning came around, again WAY too soon and we headed back to the show grounds. This time, I didn't show. I handed off Tinks and Hummee because Saturday's "graceful fall" left me feeling quite sore. Hummee took a 4th in a large open class...but the big excitment of the day was that his sister, Roxie, took Best of Breed and a Group 4 placement (that's a Big Deal).
Monday morning, long drive home...sucky traffic over the Grapevine, 3 hour nap at Lake Hughes to get out of traffic...and the long weekend is over.
Boy, I've got one heck of an exciting life. Don't I?
August 25, 2006
What I think of this - By Blaze
Momma Lori,
Tonight Momma put me up on the big counter in the kitchen, which I thought was REALLY, REALLY cool, 'cause Satinka told me there was always good stuff up there to eat that Momma, Daddy and Grandma hide from us. I was very, very excited. Once I got up there, I realized that Satinka doesn't know everything...Hummee had warned me that sometimes the people like to do things they call "practice" and "training" on the counter. This was one of those times. There was nothing on the counter except a towel, and Momma wouldn't even let me eat that!
Then she tried to make me stand still. Lady, I'm a puppy. Still happens when I sleep. So I made this special face to let Momma, Daddy and everyone else know what I thought of this "training" stuff.
Momma did have a good treat up there for me, and when she wouldn't let go, I tried to eat her fingers too. She called me "sharktooth" but I got the treat, so I didn't mind.
See you soon,
Luv, Blazie
Tonight Momma put me up on the big counter in the kitchen, which I thought was REALLY, REALLY cool, 'cause Satinka told me there was always good stuff up there to eat that Momma, Daddy and Grandma hide from us. I was very, very excited. Once I got up there, I realized that Satinka doesn't know everything...Hummee had warned me that sometimes the people like to do things they call "practice" and "training" on the counter. This was one of those times. There was nothing on the counter except a towel, and Momma wouldn't even let me eat that!
Then she tried to make me stand still. Lady, I'm a puppy. Still happens when I sleep. So I made this special face to let Momma, Daddy and everyone else know what I thought of this "training" stuff.
Momma did have a good treat up there for me, and when she wouldn't let go, I tried to eat her fingers too. She called me "sharktooth" but I got the treat, so I didn't mind.
See you soon,
Luv, Blazie
August 24, 2006
I wish I had thumbs
Here's one of the pictures that Satinka's breeder, Kathy, sent me from Satinka's puppyhood...a period of time that I think I'm glad I missed based on her current ability to control me with her big, brown eyes.The scene: a night earlier this week.
It seems, after investigation, that Satinka woke me up to go potty and I stumbled to the door to let her out and then waited upstairs for her to come back in and upstairs and went back to sleep. When I woke up later the light was on, the door was closed and I was confused. I went downstairs, got something to drink, let Satinka out of the crate to come upstairs to sleep and....HUH?
Mom (that's Grandma to the dogs) said she heard something downstairs, my bedroom door was open and the light on, but Satinka was downstairs, eating 3 cups of kibble that a weekend visiting dog had left, as well as over 1lb of cherry tomatoes a co-worker had sent home with me.
Now, either I woke up and let her out...or she turned on the light, opened the door and let herself out. Even money on either option but I'm going with Option A; Option B is too frightening to contemplate.
August 23, 2006
System overload!!!
Having a puppy is so fun. You relearn so many things that faded from memory as they grow up and become well-behaved, mature dogs (I'll let you know when any of mine get there :-)
One of the really, REALLY, important thing one learns when feeding raw is that too much food can provide explosive results. When it's in a puppy who's inside all day, that's not a good thing.
And, just for the record, 2+ pounds of chicken meat for a 12 week old puppy qualifies as "too much food." Nuff said?
Hummee's fast becoming Blaze's best friend, they have similar energy levels (endless) and right now the only major problem is that Hummee is a wee bit bigger (OK, Blaze can walk under Hummee while only crouching down a little bit). But Hummee is learning some self control and we can let them play together under supervision. When Hummee's in a crate and Blaze is out, Blaze will paw at Hummee's crate, roll over or play bow and bark "come out and play with me." And when Blaze is in the Puppy Palace, Hummee will do the same. All together now "awwwww, how cute."
One of the really, REALLY, important thing one learns when feeding raw is that too much food can provide explosive results. When it's in a puppy who's inside all day, that's not a good thing.
And, just for the record, 2+ pounds of chicken meat for a 12 week old puppy qualifies as "too much food." Nuff said?
Hummee's fast becoming Blaze's best friend, they have similar energy levels (endless) and right now the only major problem is that Hummee is a wee bit bigger (OK, Blaze can walk under Hummee while only crouching down a little bit). But Hummee is learning some self control and we can let them play together under supervision. When Hummee's in a crate and Blaze is out, Blaze will paw at Hummee's crate, roll over or play bow and bark "come out and play with me." And when Blaze is in the Puppy Palace, Hummee will do the same. All together now "awwwww, how cute."
August 18, 2006
Puppy - Day 12
I can't believe that Blaze has only been here 12 days...it seems like he's been here forever! The dogs' reactions to him range from tolerance, to amused tolerance to thinking he's the best thing in interactive squeaky toys (although I do discourage that behavior). Blaze, on the other hand, thinks that the other Kaos residents exist simply to entertain him....his world view is just a smidge Blaze-centric.
Thankfully, that 5:30 am "Momma, I'm hungry" chorus hasn't been repeated. Because I'm not sure that I was so happy with that. We'll see, on Sunday when I get to sleep in, how much I'm going to love the puppy :-)
Speaking of the other dogs, Satinka and Hummee had a show last weekend. Neither of them did anything, but they both showed nicely for me and I'm always a fan of that!
We've got a couple of weeks off before the next show, so we're going to be painting the house and finishing up as much of the remodeling/redecorating project as we can. I can't WAIT to have sinks in the bathroom again! Any sink....in any bathroom! Blaze likes to help with demolition (notice it always comes back to the dogs?) and wants to tear drywall down in all of the places where, eventually, we'll have molding back up. It's a constant challenge to get bitter apple on those favorite places before he remembers them.
A couple of weeks ago a terrible tragedy took the lives of some show dogs in Missouri. They were left in the handler's vehicle, with the A/C running and something happened and the A/C died. So did the dogs. I frequently leave my dogs in the van, either with the Ventlock (www.ventlock.com) if it's cool enough or with the A/C running if it's too warm for the ventlock. I'd done some research on temperature sensors that had a paging feature and found one that was designed for dog show vans (www.dogshowvans.com) and put off ordering it. I ordered it yesterday. My theory is that'll it'll work for both situations, letting me know when it's too warm to rely on the ventlock alone and letting me know if something happens with the A/C and the van starts heating up. The temperature sensor will get it's first test over Labor Day, as I travel up to Grass Valley for the Gold Country Kennel Club shows with Hummee, Tinks and Blaze (Blaze is going up to visit his family at Couloir Siberians (www.couloirsiberians.com) so that Grandma doesn't have to clean up after the little fart while I'm gone...we all know Grandma "doesn't do puppies" and the house will be considerably calmer with the Terrible Twosome gone.
Thankfully, that 5:30 am "Momma, I'm hungry" chorus hasn't been repeated. Because I'm not sure that I was so happy with that. We'll see, on Sunday when I get to sleep in, how much I'm going to love the puppy :-)
Speaking of the other dogs, Satinka and Hummee had a show last weekend. Neither of them did anything, but they both showed nicely for me and I'm always a fan of that!
We've got a couple of weeks off before the next show, so we're going to be painting the house and finishing up as much of the remodeling/redecorating project as we can. I can't WAIT to have sinks in the bathroom again! Any sink....in any bathroom! Blaze likes to help with demolition (notice it always comes back to the dogs?) and wants to tear drywall down in all of the places where, eventually, we'll have molding back up. It's a constant challenge to get bitter apple on those favorite places before he remembers them.
A couple of weeks ago a terrible tragedy took the lives of some show dogs in Missouri. They were left in the handler's vehicle, with the A/C running and something happened and the A/C died. So did the dogs. I frequently leave my dogs in the van, either with the Ventlock (www.ventlock.com) if it's cool enough or with the A/C running if it's too warm for the ventlock. I'd done some research on temperature sensors that had a paging feature and found one that was designed for dog show vans (www.dogshowvans.com) and put off ordering it. I ordered it yesterday. My theory is that'll it'll work for both situations, letting me know when it's too warm to rely on the ventlock alone and letting me know if something happens with the A/C and the van starts heating up. The temperature sensor will get it's first test over Labor Day, as I travel up to Grass Valley for the Gold Country Kennel Club shows with Hummee, Tinks and Blaze (Blaze is going up to visit his family at Couloir Siberians (www.couloirsiberians.com) so that Grandma doesn't have to clean up after the little fart while I'm gone...we all know Grandma "doesn't do puppies"
August 15, 2006
Blaze the Brilliant
There are just so many moments to capture with a new puppy, I think it's impossible to capture them all...especially when I'm at work full-time. I keep trying to tell Blaze to save anything cute for the evenings when I get home.
Yesterday I got a call from Grandma. It started out "your puppy"
Today Mr. Blaze was fussing and bored so Grandma gave up and went down and got him, and took him upstairs to play with Katie and Aleska. Not only did he manage to climb up on Grandma's bed
My baby boy is BRILLIANT, simply BRILLIANT I tell you.
Of course, this morning, all of my opinions were reversed when he started the 5:30 AM "It's breakfast time, Mom" chorus and everyone else joined in. But he did get his breakfast...which of us is in charge?
August 08, 2006
The Puppy Journals
I swear I'm going to do this everytime a puppy moves in, but then I get busy and the moment is lost. I guess until I get it right, I have to keep getting puppies?
The Puppy Report - Day 1.
Blaze came home on Sunday, Aug 6. He had gotten into Allez food that morning, so I wasn't looking forward to an exciting time of it as his system reacted to eating 1 c of a kibble he hadn't been eating. I wasn't let down. He started early in the day and by the time we got home and went to bed about 2am, his system was completely cleared of the food. UGH Luckily, I was smart and he travelled in a wire crate with a pan that slides out easily for rinsing!
We set up a temporary puppy pen Sunday night and Blazie (yes, even Blaze can be made into a cutsie puppy name) finally settled down to go to sleep. Monday morning dawned early with the "hey, lady, I'm in a strange place and I'm HUNGRY" cry. Having been well trained by Hummee, I went down to rustle up breakfast for him. A pile of chicken and a turkey neck later, the beast was soothed...yep, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, especially at 11 weeks old! He munched on that turkey neck all day long. When I got home, it was a little 3" nub. Since he decided to play "guard the food" with Lacy, he had his first lesson about who owns what in my house...ME and I gave the leftovers to Lacy. I figure it'll take him a little while to get a handle on that concept.
During evening, he spent some time running around the house being cute with his buddy, Rio, who is down here visiting. It's not hard work for either of them to be cute. Then some "waiting for meal service" time in his crate with all the grown ups. I don't really "crate train" puppies....they spend some time in their crates every day, usually around meal times and by the time they've graduated from the puppy pen, they're crate trained. Dinner for Blaze was a big bowl of green tripe...he gave it four paws up and as soon as he finished eating, went to sleep. We took advantage of the quite to eat dinner ourselves AND set up the real puppy palace.
The puppy palace has evolved...it's a sheet of 6 mil plastic (to protect the new tile which hasn't been sealed yet!) with a sheet of 6' x 9' linoleum over it. Two x-pens are supported, at the bottom, by a PVC frame and voila! it's home. Puppy pads at one end keep the mess to a minimum and you hear "good potty on the paper" anytime we catch the puppy using the paper. I'm proud to say that by this morning, Blaze had already mastered "potty on the paper" and there were no messes anywhere else in his palace. What a smart boy!
After some play time with Momma, Blaze went back in his palace and Mom escaped to work. It's so hard to leave the little cuties, knowing that they grow up so fast.
The Puppy Report - Day 1.
Blaze came home on Sunday, Aug 6. He had gotten into Allez food that morning, so I wasn't looking forward to an exciting time of it as his system reacted to eating 1 c of a kibble he hadn't been eating. I wasn't let down. He started early in the day and by the time we got home and went to bed about 2am, his system was completely cleared of the food. UGH Luckily, I was smart and he travelled in a wire crate with a pan that slides out easily for rinsing!
We set up a temporary puppy pen Sunday night and Blazie (yes, even Blaze can be made into a cutsie puppy name
During evening, he spent some time running around the house being cute with his buddy, Rio, who is down here visiting. It's not hard work for either of them to be cute. Then some "waiting for meal service" time in his crate with all the grown ups. I don't really "crate train" puppies....they spend some time in their crates every day, usually around meal times and by the time they've graduated from the puppy pen, they're crate trained. Dinner for Blaze was a big bowl of green tripe...he gave it four paws up and as soon as he finished eating, went to sleep. We took advantage of the quite to eat dinner ourselves AND set up the real puppy palace.
The puppy palace has evolved...it's a sheet of 6 mil plastic (to protect the new tile which hasn't been sealed yet!) with a sheet of 6' x 9' linoleum over it. Two x-pens are supported, at the bottom, by a PVC frame and voila! it's home. Puppy pads at one end keep the mess to a minimum and you hear "good potty on the paper" anytime we catch the puppy using the paper. I'm proud to say that by this morning, Blaze had already mastered "potty on the paper" and there were no messes anywhere else in his palace. What a smart boy!
After some play time with Momma, Blaze went back in his palace and Mom escaped to work. It's so hard to leave the little cuties, knowing that they grow up so fast.
July 28, 2006
Kaos' newest Hotshot
Speaking of Dixie...her name is now Belle, or Bella...and she's in a wonderful pet home. Hmmm, I'm sensing a theme...girls from these lines do NOT come to live at Kaos. Remember Latte, now Denali living in a wonderful pet home? Now Dixie, aka Bella? What gives?
What gives is that now I'm getting a wonderful little red boy, Artika-Couloir's Into the Fire aka Blaze. I wanted to call him Hotshot, for the elite wild fire fighting crews, but well...Hotshot just seemed so presumptious..and it was already far too easy to change that last vowel out for another...ya know what I'm saying? So, Blaze is moving into Kaos. Ryder and I have had long, long talks about how he's always going to be Momma's baby and her favorite red boy, so I think we'll be OK there. (By the way, Ry's tumor on his testicle was malignant, but with it removed during neutering, there's very little chance anything else will come of it.) Ry's promised to take Blaze under his paw and teach him the ropes at Kaos. "Be afraid, be very afraid" is what comes to mind. And I am. But I'm also very excited. A puppy is so full of potential and watching them grow up and mature is such a learning process and just plain fun!
Speaking of Blaze, here's a picture of the little rascal at about 6 weeks old ...isn't he adorable?
What gives is that now I'm getting a wonderful little red boy, Artika-Couloir's Into the Fire aka Blaze. I wanted to call him Hotshot, for the elite wild fire fighting crews, but well...Hotshot just seemed so presumptious..and it was already far too easy to change that last vowel out for another...ya know what I'm saying? So, Blaze is moving into Kaos. Ryder and I have had long, long talks about how he's always going to be Momma's baby and her favorite red boy, so I think we'll be OK there. (By the way, Ry's tumor on his testicle was malignant, but with it removed during neutering, there's very little chance anything else will come of it.) Ry's promised to take Blaze under his paw and teach him the ropes at Kaos. "Be afraid, be very afraid" is what comes to mind. And I am. But I'm also very excited. A puppy is so full of potential and watching them grow up and mature is such a learning process and just plain fun!
Speaking of Blaze, here's a picture of the little rascal at about 6 weeks old ...isn't he adorable?
Here he is just last weekend...they grow SO fast! 
So, now that we're approaching the end of the flooring project (the tiles are installed, and just waiting for us to seal the grout - of course staining it in the process because we don't like the color we chose) I've got to bump it up a notch so I have somewhere to set up the puppy palace!
Satinka, Hummee and I are on the road next weekend to go pick up their new baby brother and I can't wait.
June 29, 2006
Humvee, the Travelin' Man
It was a fun weekend for the Humvee. Thursday evening saw him being bundled up into a 500 crate (a virtual palace of a crate!) and loaded onto an Alaska Airlines jet for a quick hop up to Portland for the Lower Columbia Siberian Husky Club Specialty and the two days of shows following it.
While Humvee didn't do anything outstanding at the show, his sister, Roxie did get her Championship on Friday. That was pretty exciting since I got to take her into the Winners Bitch class and be handed the purple ribbon!
Humvee got to hang out with his sister and baby brother, Tazo, as well as get 100% of Mom's attention. It's not often that I only travel with one dog. He amazed everyone with his behavior in a soft crate (good) and was Mr. Mellow the entire weekend. We did discover that he does have protective tendencies; anyone knocking on my hotel room got a good growl from Humvee. And he's got a big boy growl!
Upon arrival at LAX and release from his crate, he informed me that he was DONE riding in the crate for a while and rode home on the floor of the van, where I could reach down and pet him. I rarely ever let the dogs ride loose, but he'd been such a good boy all weekend and didn't fuss about the whole flying thing that I bent the rules, just this once.
Now Tinks and Humvee have both successfully flown (Tinks moved to California from Texas, via American Airlines) and I'm ready to take them both to Rockford, IL for the SHCA National Specialty.
Speaking of adorable, here's the next little darling who may come live at Kaos. Dixie, as she's being called, was born 5/17/06 and we're eagerly waiting a few more weeks of growing to learn if she's going to be the newest Kaos resident.
We've got a long weekend at home, a weekend at the shows in Ventura and then I get to fly up to Sacramento to visit Dixie and her brothers, Toby & Trace. I can hardly wait!!!
While Humvee didn't do anything outstanding at the show, his sister, Roxie did get her Championship on Friday. That was pretty exciting since I got to take her into the Winners Bitch class and be handed the purple ribbon!
Humvee got to hang out with his sister and baby brother, Tazo, as well as get 100% of Mom's attention. It's not often that I only travel with one dog. He amazed everyone with his behavior in a soft crate (good) and was Mr. Mellow the entire weekend. We did discover that he does have protective tendencies; anyone knocking on my hotel room got a good growl from Humvee. And he's got a big boy growl!
Upon arrival at LAX and release from his crate, he informed me that he was DONE riding in the crate for a while and rode home on the floor of the van, where I could reach down and pet him. I rarely ever let the dogs ride loose, but he'd been such a good boy all weekend and didn't fuss about the whole flying thing that I bent the rules, just this once.
Now Tinks and Humvee have both successfully flown (Tinks moved to California from Texas, via American Airlines) and I'm ready to take them both to Rockford, IL for the SHCA National Specialty.
Speaking of adorable, here's the next little darling who may come live at Kaos. Dixie, as she's being called, was born 5/17/06 and we're eagerly waiting a few more weeks of growing to learn if she's going to be the newest Kaos resident.
We've got a long weekend at home, a weekend at the shows in Ventura and then I get to fly up to Sacramento to visit Dixie and her brothers, Toby & Trace. I can hardly wait!!!
June 20, 2006
Best Brace in Show
What a fun weekend! In the sweltering, humid heat of Chula Vista, Satinka and Katie played at being a trained brace and...pulled it off! Beating a brace of Golden Retrievers and a brace of Mini Schnauzers, the girls were awared Best Brace in Show on Saturday. What a rush!!! It made staying outside all day and the resultant sunburn more than worth it. And then, on Sunday, Satinka won Winners Bitch for her third point.
What a great weekend!!! This weekend it's off to Canby, Oregon with Humvee for the Lower Columbia Siberian Husky Club specialty. It's also Humvee's first plane flight. Should be entertaining!
What a great weekend!!! This weekend it's off to Canby, Oregon with Humvee for the Lower Columbia Siberian Husky Club specialty. It's also Humvee's first plane flight. Should be entertaining!
June 13, 2006
Welcoming the newest member of the Kaos pack!!!
We all know and love him.....Humvee! Humvee is staying at Kaos. He'll be loved and shown by me, his Momma instead of heading out into the big bad world with his other Mom.
I'm so excited to have him and hope that we make both Tony & Adele and his breeders proud of us in the ring.
And I feel like a huge dark cloud has been lifted. My baby boy is staying home :-)
Welcome home, Dorkboy Jr.
Love, Momma
I'm so excited to have him and hope that we make both Tony & Adele and his breeders proud of us in the ring.
And I feel like a huge dark cloud has been lifted. My baby boy is staying home :-)
Welcome home, Dorkboy Jr.
Love, Momma
June 08, 2006
The Case of the Missing Pork Roast
It began like any other evening, getting home from work with a "to do" list longer than the remaining awake hours of the day allowed. But there was a difference; from the kitchen counter the smells of the pork roast in the crock pot wafted through the house, encouraging the residents to get some of the "to do" list deeds accomplished to sit down and eat.
One by one, the residents of the home grabbed some dinner and headed off for bed. The house guest, the first one to go, pronounced the roast "splended" and "perfect for my lunch sandwich tomorrow." Dad, heading to bed early, grabbed his dinner and went upstairs to watch some TV in peace (somehow he doesn't consider 17 Siberians conducive to "peace").
Mom and Grandma continued to toil, one by one crossing off the items on their lists and looking forward, with great delight, to consuming some of the roast that had been tantalizing their senses for hours.
Finally, the time had come. Mom and Grandma pronounced themselves "done for the day." Mom went upstairs to kiss Dad goodnight and Grandma let the canine crew in for some evening quality time.
The peace of the evening was shattered with Grandma's shriek of "RYYYYDDEERRR" echoing through the house. As Mom jumped up to run downstairs she analzyed the vocal qualities of the shreiking. After concluding that it wasn't a dog fight kind of yell, she slowed enough to take the stairs one at a time. By the time she arrived downstairs, all was quiet. There were no tell tail yellow stains indicating Ryder had lifted his leg inappropriately; there were no destroyed pieces of clothing or furniture....what was that shriek for?
Grandma recounted Ryder's offense: He ATE the remaining pork roast! Ryder, the Master Counter Surfer, waited until Grandma was distracted by the 12 other dogs in the house (including the three very accomplished distracting puppies) and snagged three pounds of pork roast off the counter with out making a single sound. His mad dash for the crates gave him away as the primary suspect in the case of the missing dinner.
Grandma and Mom settled down for their dinner of brussel sprouts, the scent of pork roast tantalizing them with their loss. Then Mom uttered those fateful words: "I hope that gives you the sh*ts, Ryder."
P.S. It didn't.
One by one, the residents of the home grabbed some dinner and headed off for bed. The house guest, the first one to go, pronounced the roast "splended" and "perfect for my lunch sandwich tomorrow." Dad, heading to bed early, grabbed his dinner and went upstairs to watch some TV in peace (somehow he doesn't consider 17 Siberians conducive to "peace").
Mom and Grandma continued to toil, one by one crossing off the items on their lists and looking forward, with great delight, to consuming some of the roast that had been tantalizing their senses for hours.
Finally, the time had come. Mom and Grandma pronounced themselves "done for the day." Mom went upstairs to kiss Dad goodnight and Grandma let the canine crew in for some evening quality time.
The peace of the evening was shattered with Grandma's shriek of "RYYYYDDEERRR" echoing through the house. As Mom jumped up to run downstairs she analzyed the vocal qualities of the shreiking. After concluding that it wasn't a dog fight kind of yell, she slowed enough to take the stairs one at a time. By the time she arrived downstairs, all was quiet. There were no tell tail yellow stains indicating Ryder had lifted his leg inappropriately; there were no destroyed pieces of clothing or furniture....what was that shriek for?
Grandma recounted Ryder's offense: He ATE the remaining pork roast! Ryder, the Master Counter Surfer, waited until Grandma was distracted by the 12 other dogs in the house (including the three very accomplished distracting puppies) and snagged three pounds of pork roast off the counter with out making a single sound. His mad dash for the crates gave him away as the primary suspect in the case of the missing dinner.
Grandma and Mom settled down for their dinner of brussel sprouts, the scent of pork roast tantalizing them with their loss. Then Mom uttered those fateful words: "I hope that gives you the sh*ts, Ryder."
P.S. It didn't.
June 05, 2006
Saying Goodbye....
How do you say goodbye to a puppy who's stolen a piece of your heart? Humvee, who I knew from the beginning wasn't a permanent Kaos resident, is going home next week. This little puppy has wrapped my heart around his little paw. We've done a LOT in our 6 months together. Humvee went to his first puppy match with me (he won Best of Opposite Sex!). Humvee won Winners Dog the first time with me (he beat Ryder). Humvee won his first Major Reserve Winners Dog with me handling him. And, last weekend, Humvee won Winners Dog for his very first point with me on the end of the leash. And, the milestone of all puppy boys, Humvee started lifting his leg and peeing like a big dog with me (not on my...at my house!) I've leash trained him, crate trained him, house trained him and given him, I hope, the best possible foundation for his career in the show ring I could. He's confident and happy, well socialized and yet, fairly well behaved. I know that I couldn't have loved him more if he'd been my own dog for more than just the last six months.
In my heart, he'll always be my baby boy. But now it's time for him to leave the nest, move in with his new parents and make his mark in the world. And, I expect, it'll be quite a big mark!
Take good care of my baby.
In my heart, he'll always be my baby boy. But now it's time for him to leave the nest, move in with his new parents and make his mark in the world. And, I expect, it'll be quite a big mark!
Take good care of my baby.
May 24, 2006
Katie takes back to back Best of Breeds
What a weekend it was for Kaos! Ryder took his third point, winning under Judge Lamar Mathis (ok, all the other entries were puppies, but there were some nice puppies and a point is a point!). But the real fun started when the girls went in. Katie was in a single dog class and Satinka won her Open class (of 2). So the girls went back in for Winners with Grandma taking Katie in. Imagine her surprise (and mine!) when the judge gave Katie Winners Bitch (her FIRST POINT) and Tinks Reserve. The fun continued when Katie was given Best of Breed and Best of Winners. Ryder had to settle for Best of Opposite
Sunday was another day of the same....Katie opened up her can o' whup ass on Tinks and took WB for her SECOND point, Best of Winners AND Best of Breed...oh, and this was AFTER Humvee slammed Ryder and took off with his first Winners Dog (but, sadly, no points). And Humvee did deserve that win because he really is the better of the two.
Ok, it was a small show, with no specials (that's no dogs who already have their championship and are competing only for Best of Breed) but you know what? We'll take it!
Grandma not only handled Katie to her first two points, but also to her first two Best of Breed wins (the first of many in her life we hope!).
Needless to say, I'm going to crush the competition by simply leaving Katie at home!!! We've got Mission Circuit coming up with 4 days of majors, Pasadena a small show where Tinks and Elvira will get a chance to show in Brace again and then the Camino Real Siberian Husky Club Specialties. After that, I think we're going to need some rest...but no....more shows after that! It's a good thing we have fun doing this!!!
May 16, 2006
Satinka Remembers Mother's Day!!!
Well, I may have looked calm and composed, but inside I was jumping up and down with joy. Satinka won her second point on Mother's Day. She must have known that Momma was ready for another purple ribbon (and the trophy...a beautiful etched glass piece...bonus!).
I'm so proud of Satinka I could burst (and that'd be messy) but she's two years old and really getting ready to hit her stride. Of course, we don't have the picture yet. When it gets here, and if it's good, it'll be over at www.kaossiberians.com
The house projects continue.....to need work. I've got a tile guy coming in to give us an estimate to finish the floors, upstairs and down. A painting guy will come do all the painting (except any faux finishing treatments and the wall paper border I've chosen for the master bedroom). And Sean's task is to ask the neighbors for the number of the guy who did their framing/drywall work so we can get the library closed off. I can't WAIT until these projects are done. Done done done....finished, complete.....you get my drift :-)
I'm so proud of Satinka I could burst (and that'd be messy) but she's two years old and really getting ready to hit her stride. Of course, we don't have the picture yet. When it gets here, and if it's good, it'll be over at www.kaossiberians.com
The house projects continue.....to need work. I've got a tile guy coming in to give us an estimate to finish the floors, upstairs and down. A painting guy will come do all the painting (except any faux finishing treatments and the wall paper border I've chosen for the master bedroom). And Sean's task is to ask the neighbors for the number of the guy who did their framing/drywall work so we can get the library closed off. I can't WAIT until these projects are done. Done done done....finished, complete.....you get my drift :-)
May 03, 2006
Saying Goodbye before Hello ever really happened...
A couple of weeks ago, Mom told me about Kiska. Kiska is a 15 yr old Siberian Husky who, along with her owner, was trapped in an abusive relationship for a number of years. The woman's attempt to leave left Kiska at the mercy of the abuser who starved her for two weeks to manipulate the woman into returning. This happened 9 months ago.
The woman finally made it out, Kiska was relinquished to a private SPCA organization and lived at a veterinary clinic. She has heart, liver and kidney issues and probably won't be around for a lot longer. She's deaf, and her old eyes are cloudy with cataracts. She gets hand fed homecooked meals. They take great care of her at the clinic she lives at; she's become sort of the office mascot.
After an hour visit with Kiska, we had rearranged our lives and hearts to make a space for Kiska at Kaos, for as long as she lived. It was hard, after losing Nikki, Sasha, Tasha, Bo and Shana, to open my heart to the thought of another rescue, one that I knew I'd come to love and lose far too soon. But this girl deserves so much. She deserves a home, she deserves to know life in a pack of Siberians.....I couldn't even fathom that someone would think she was better off living at the veterinary clinic.
But they did. The Board of the private SPCA decided that Kiska was better off at the clinic, in case she needed immediate medical attention. They were worried that the stress of moving to our house would do her in. I couldn't believe it when I heard the decision. I still can't. I'm hurt and I'm angry. I'm still upset, two weeks later.
I've lost her and I never had a chance to tell her how important she'd become in my life. She deserved to be as special to us as Katie Kit Kat or mydarlingRyder or Frostlette or Princess Pointy Nose Aleska or Satinka the Diva, Bubblehead Cheyenne and Bobblehead Lacy, snugglebug Ice or the longsuffering King Max...she deserved a shot at the kind of spoiled life that all of my crew know.
Goodbye, Kiska. I wish you could have been one of the Kaos Girls...even for a short time. Too bad we never really got a chance to say hello.
The woman finally made it out, Kiska was relinquished to a private SPCA organization and lived at a veterinary clinic. She has heart, liver and kidney issues and probably won't be around for a lot longer. She's deaf, and her old eyes are cloudy with cataracts. She gets hand fed homecooked meals. They take great care of her at the clinic she lives at; she's become sort of the office mascot.
After an hour visit with Kiska, we had rearranged our lives and hearts to make a space for Kiska at Kaos, for as long as she lived. It was hard, after losing Nikki, Sasha, Tasha, Bo and Shana, to open my heart to the thought of another rescue, one that I knew I'd come to love and lose far too soon. But this girl deserves so much. She deserves a home, she deserves to know life in a pack of Siberians.....I couldn't even fathom that someone would think she was better off living at the veterinary clinic.
But they did. The Board of the private SPCA decided that Kiska was better off at the clinic, in case she needed immediate medical attention. They were worried that the stress of moving to our house would do her in. I couldn't believe it when I heard the decision. I still can't. I'm hurt and I'm angry. I'm still upset, two weeks later.
I've lost her and I never had a chance to tell her how important she'd become in my life. She deserved to be as special to us as Katie Kit Kat or mydarlingRyder or Frostlette or Princess Pointy Nose Aleska or Satinka the Diva, Bubblehead Cheyenne and Bobblehead Lacy, snugglebug Ice or the longsuffering King Max...she deserved a shot at the kind of spoiled life that all of my crew know.
Goodbye, Kiska. I wish you could have been one of the Kaos Girls...even for a short time. Too bad we never really got a chance to say hello.
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