Thankful Thursday

We wanted to post this on Thanksgiving, but it got too busy to get it done. It has been a very busy year for us at Sheltie Times and we have much to be thankful for here.

We are truly thankful for the time we had with Bailey. It was so very painful to lose him, but we were blessed with more time than anyone predicted we'd have.

Katy was truly a blessing to Bailey as a life companion, but even more so until the very end. She was so encouraging and loving to him when he was sick. I truly believe her love and encouragement was a big part of why he stayed with us so long.

We are so very thankful to the breeders who helped us in our time of grief to find Annie. She has been such a wonderful addition to our family.

We are so grateful that Katy has finally started to move beyond her grief. Annie has truly helped her move beyond her grieving process and Katy has provided help for Annie as well. We could not have asked for a better match.

Finally we are so very thankful for all our Blogville friends who are always so supportive and helpful. We are not as active as many, but we are always here in our heats.

Still here

Hi everyone. We are still around and things are going well, we've just been crazy busy. We've been reading blogs, but just haven't been able to get to Blogging. However, for the first time in years we managed to sign up for the Christmas Card exchange just before our reminder from Lassiter, Chase, and Benjamin who never forget to remind us, so we don't miss out on one of our favorite Blogville activities. Thanks guys!!!

Mom and Dad updated phones and computers and Mom is still adjusting to working with the new tech. She misses some of the old features which seemed to be a bit easier for down and uploading pictures. Dog Dad is much faster adapting to new tech.

This has been a busy summer and fall. Katy had her first dog vacation. Annie came to live with us and has been having an awesome time making her place in the family. Mom and Dog Dad had two weddings to attend and there always seems to be something going on.

For those of you who might be worried we haven't been writing about Annie because things haven't been going well with her, rest easy. Annie is everything we could possibly have wanted. While the breeder felt Annie was too shy for show, she is a bold and brave as we could possibly have wanted. Where Katy is shy and reserved Annie boldly steps forward, as Bailey always did shielding Katy from too much stranger attention. She is funny, loving, mischievous, and has been incredibly successful in drawing Katy out of her grieving. She has been everything we wanted and more.

While Katy has always been something of an introvert, what we feared would happen when Bailey died did, she withdrew into herself when he died. It has taken all of Annie's energy and determination, but she has Katy playing, running, and becoming more like the dog she was before Bailey got sick. Katy has also developed a protective streak towards Annie She does her best to keep her out of trouble and that is quite a bit of work.

Annie has reintroduced toys to Katy who gave them up when Bailey died. Annie is constantly pulling toys out of the toy chest to explore. She loves to play and in the last month I've noticed Katy returning to some of her old favorites. I even saw her steal Annie's favorite Platypus the other day. Stealing toys from each other was something she and Bailey did all the time. This was the first time Katy had taken the initiative with Annie.

Friday Flower: Crocus

Mom discovered this fall Crocus popping up the other day and snapped a picture.

Wordless Wednesday: What Lurks behind the Fence?

Both Annie and Katy are certain something lurks behind the fence. Since we've had sightings and fence interactions with a groundhog and a gopher nothing would surprise me.

The Crate

Mom read about a new to her technique for getting your pet to want to use the crate. She decided since Bailey and I both were not huge crate fans that she'd try this new technique with Annie to make her feel more comfortable with using the crate when Mom has to be away from the house. Annie is not yet ready to be "home alone" as she's curious about everything and many of these things find their way into her mouth.

Anyways the technique suggests you put a desirable treat in the crate and shut the crate door leaving the dog outside the crate. This encourages the dog to want to get inside the crate. Later you open the door, allowing the dog to go in and have the treat without shutting the door. Eventually you work up to crating the dog with the treat. Well it worked I really wanted inside that crate.

Ok I kind of lost it. I wanted in that crate, despite the fact Dog Dad gave me the same treat without having to go into the crate. He's fair like that, but there was something about the crate bone I had to have. I tried everything I could do to break into that crate. I used paws, nose, and brute force, but I just couldn't get at that bone. Oddly Annie showed little interest. However, when it came time to be crated she had little issue with being crated either. She went in, had her cookie and settled in until Mom and Dad came home. I had my cookie and then tried to steal her crumbs by sticking my nose through the crate.

Mom was convinced I was going to stage a jail break, but I knew Annie was safer in her crate than running around and getting in to stuff. I do what I can to keep her out of trouble.

Wordeless Wednesday: Tennis Nap

Katy is introducing Annie to the joy of sports napping. Today we visit napping to tennis.

Tuesday Toys

Mom mentioned my new puzzle toys during the Maine posts and then never got back to posting about them. After Bailey died I haven't been interested in any of my old toys. Annie is exploring them, but I really haven't played with anything other than an old treat ball Mom picked up some place.

While visiting Scalawags Pet Boutique she found two puzzle treat balls that I love. We paid full price for these balls and are getting nothing for our review. We just thought others might be interested.

The first is the Wobble Ball that reminds Mom of an old Fisher Price toy she had as a child. With my lack of interest in toys, Dog Dad was skeptical about buying these toys, but Mom said it was a vacation so we were going to splurge a bit and have some fun.

Well the Wobble ball is so much fun. I began playing with it at the Bed and Breakfast, rolling it and batting it around to get the treats out. I have literally rolled this ball through several rooms in the house trying to push the treats out. I've even worked it out of walls when I've wedged it into a corner. I've never done anything like this before. Dog Dad was impressed that I'm actually engaging with a toy. The reason there is a link to Scalawags is Mom searched for these toys online when we got home and it appears the ones currently being sold online are "updated" with lights and sound. Mom wasn't crazy about the upgrades liking the older version. Honestly, I think the link is there so she has a quick link in case I break my ball and she needs to buy another one.

The maze ball is not listed online, but it is also cool. This one forces me to keep the ball rolling in different directions to get the treats out through the maze. Mom has been alternating my toys to keep me engaged.

Annie doesn't get the puzzle toy attraction. I get it. Until Bailey passed, I didn't get the point either. Suddenly I'm hooked. She has however, adopted an old hamster toy that Mom just repaired for her.