Hello friends and happy Sunday! It is currently sunny and 39 degrees on this lovely, late-Fall November day. We are just days away from Thanksgiving and the start of the Holiday season. This week was fairly uneventful, with our regular nightly walks and my final night of work travel for this year. We have settled in to the time of year where is it nearly dark by the time I get home from work every night, so our nightly walks are a bit shorter and definitely less exciting. But that's just how late November goes!
I did have a couple of highlights this week as I was able to spend some time with my good friend Kim while I was out of town for work on Wednesday night. It's always nice to be able to spend some time with her and visit over a nice dinner. We spent the night in at her house with some take-out from the Rusty Bucket and her adorable boy, Baxter. And any night spent with a dog is a good night in my book.
The biggest news of the week is that we brought in our newest foster, Cricket. Cricket is a hound mix who is just about a year old. She hasn't had a very good start to her life. She is pretty scared of the world in general, and since she came into the shelter in early October, she's already been in two other foster homes. I think the instability and constant change haven't helped her in overcoming her fears, but she is a very sweet girl and she won't be leaving my house until she's ready to move on to a forever home. I plan to give her lots of love and stability, and hope to build her confidence over time. We have had her for less then 48 hours and I have definitely seen some improvements, but we have a long way to go.
Our original plans for Friday night had been to attend the Silver Bells in the City parade and State Christmas tree lighting in downtown, but Cricket would have been far too overwhelmed, so instead we stayed home and watched the parade on TV. Everyone seemed happy with our choice to stay home.
After a lot of anxious pacing and worry about some scary areas of the house, like the hallway, Cricket found a spot next to the toys where she seemed to feel safe and was able to relax for a bit.
Saturday we were up early and outside to do yard work and leaf clean-up. This gave Peaches and Cricket plenty of opportunities for some fun games of chase. They spent a good part of the morning outside chasing each other, sniffing around, and just enjoying the day. Cricket also discovered that the neighbor dogs like to chase her along the fence, so each time she goes outside she runs to the fence looking for them. It was a great day to be outside and even Maddie was happy to spend some time out with us.
While she is slowly settling in, sometimes it feels like we take three steps forward and two steps back in our progress. The biggest challenge so far is getting her to come into the house. Going through doorways seems to be very scary for her and I am patiently allowing her to make the decision on when she feels brave enough to come inside. Many times it takes me putting her on a leash and walking in with her, but she's making progress. I'm hopeful, and pretty confident, that by next week, she'll be running right through the doorway.
We were also happy to celebrate our little buddy Bentley's 7th birthday with him yesterday. Of course we had an ice cream party to celebrate the day. Cricket wasn't sure what to think about ice cream at first, but eventually I was able to get her to try some. She thoroughly enjoyed it.
When we weren't outside, Cricket spent most of the day yesterday safely far away from us on my bed. Eventually I convinced her to come stay with us in the living room and she has finally decided that she really likes the recliner.
After an early start to the day this morning with a good game of chase in the backyard, she has found her way back into the recliner for a good nap.
I look forward to watching her grow brave and blossom here with Maddie and Peaches' help. I'm hopeful that she'll be loving life as a dog in no time. And I look forward to sharing her journey with you.
The girls and I wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!
I did have a couple of highlights this week as I was able to spend some time with my good friend Kim while I was out of town for work on Wednesday night. It's always nice to be able to spend some time with her and visit over a nice dinner. We spent the night in at her house with some take-out from the Rusty Bucket and her adorable boy, Baxter. And any night spent with a dog is a good night in my book.
Our original plans for Friday night had been to attend the Silver Bells in the City parade and State Christmas tree lighting in downtown, but Cricket would have been far too overwhelmed, so instead we stayed home and watched the parade on TV. Everyone seemed happy with our choice to stay home.
After a lot of anxious pacing and worry about some scary areas of the house, like the hallway, Cricket found a spot next to the toys where she seemed to feel safe and was able to relax for a bit.
Saturday we were up early and outside to do yard work and leaf clean-up. This gave Peaches and Cricket plenty of opportunities for some fun games of chase. They spent a good part of the morning outside chasing each other, sniffing around, and just enjoying the day. Cricket also discovered that the neighbor dogs like to chase her along the fence, so each time she goes outside she runs to the fence looking for them. It was a great day to be outside and even Maddie was happy to spend some time out with us.
While she is slowly settling in, sometimes it feels like we take three steps forward and two steps back in our progress. The biggest challenge so far is getting her to come into the house. Going through doorways seems to be very scary for her and I am patiently allowing her to make the decision on when she feels brave enough to come inside. Many times it takes me putting her on a leash and walking in with her, but she's making progress. I'm hopeful, and pretty confident, that by next week, she'll be running right through the doorway.
We were also happy to celebrate our little buddy Bentley's 7th birthday with him yesterday. Of course we had an ice cream party to celebrate the day. Cricket wasn't sure what to think about ice cream at first, but eventually I was able to get her to try some. She thoroughly enjoyed it.
When we weren't outside, Cricket spent most of the day yesterday safely far away from us on my bed. Eventually I convinced her to come stay with us in the living room and she has finally decided that she really likes the recliner.
After an early start to the day this morning with a good game of chase in the backyard, she has found her way back into the recliner for a good nap.
I look forward to watching her grow brave and blossom here with Maddie and Peaches' help. I'm hopeful that she'll be loving life as a dog in no time. And I look forward to sharing her journey with you.
The girls and I wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!
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