New Dog Day 1

Backfill: Nov 16 '03 Met Gina at PowerPaws at 8:15 a.m.!?! to have Nancy take a look at "Savannah" (not a name I'll keep if I keep her). I had already met Sav. at an agility trial just after Gina got her in late nov or early dec, where she was barking like crazy at everything. Met her again this previous sunday at elk grove, where she wasn't barking at all. Gina used bark collar & I don't know what else--spray bottle and ??? She is *such* a lovely snuggly dog, and very cute--those collie ears that sometimes bend backwards at the top.

Sav. is maybe 10 months old. She was adopted from the North Bay Animal Shelter (?) at an estimated 4 mos. of age (no idea where she was before that); returned 4 months later because she had too much energy (or maybe because she barked too much), which is when Gina got her. Apparently had gotten some training but mostly spent all her time in a crate.

She's a little bigger than I wanted, maybe a little older than I wanted but not quite sure. I'd been saying something between rem & jake in size, and she's easily Rem's size (i haven't measured yet), and somewhere between puppy & 1 yr, so she's on the high end of that.

There's also the border collie puppy that Maureen Strenfield has available--Rachel & Nancy think it's a mix, but it sure looks awfully border collie to me, and I'm not sure I want to look quite so much like the pack, although I've always liked border collies despite that, and this one seems like a very good age--. Of course, Savannah looks a lot like an Aussie, although next to Aussies it's very clear she's a mix. Someone said she looks a bit like a coyote; two dog folks have said she looks like a collie x aussie. And she's blue merle with a tan undercoat--always wanted a blue merle, although her eyes are quite thoroughly brown.

Nancy said she definitely passes the trainable-for-agility test--ran over a board, went over a jump, and thru a chute barrel, all without a 2nd thought. But nancy asked whether I wanted a dog that big, with all that Aussie likely-to-bark problem, and that old already--and her build might not make her a superstar agility dog, but she could definitely do it. We of course have no clue about her hips. Nancy is good at pointing out both the downside & the upside of things, so that's helpful.

But at power paws Sav was throwing herself at the end of the leash every time she saw another dog or another dog moved. So we spent a bout 15 mins before we went home, me standing still & just tightening & relaxig the leash & giving her goodies when she came to me. When she'd get good, I'd move 5 feet closer to the agility class, and we'd start the whole thing over again. There's hope, but it'll take a lot of work.

First day home, Jake hid in the bedroom, wouldn't play squeaky even while Sav. was tied to the porch. Rem followed me around closely all day, wagging his tail a lot, ears back, doing his best to look like the sweetest dog on earth.

Tried to teach Sav. the doggie door. She didn't follow the other dogs in & out, so I did treats with her back & forth a couple of dozen times & she wasn't keen on the flap touching her back & I had to hold it all the way open for her or she wouldn't go thru.

Then later discovered she wants to whine shrilly & run insanely alongside the neighbor's fence where their dog--who's been no prob at all with Rem & Jake--kind of barks & encourages it a little bit (not a real lot). So maybe her not knowing the doggie door would be OK.

hauled the crate I borrowed from Gina from the car into the house & back out and decided I wasn't going to do that again, so I have the x-pen set up in the house next to Rem's bed, with the unused small bed between them like a wall. She goes in very nicely.

Took them all in the car with me to my ESI EGM meeting & left them there for the meeting. A bunch came out to see the new dog afterwards. Karen Ehrenfelt suggested "Agate" as a name. It has potential.

Gina said she'd had Sav. in a crate in her bedroom. I'm out of crates, so at night I just put a mat in the corner behind my bedside table & with the corner closet door open. She'd like down quickly but get up & start wandering as soon as I lay down, so I got the extra baby gate from the garage and set it across the gap between the chest & the table, & she settled right in.

She got restless about 2 am; let her out & she peed. Really restless--finding things to nibble on--about 4 am; let her out & she immeidately did #2. I'd wondered whether I was going to have a problem, since she hadn't done either for quite a while before bed time. so it didn't surprise me. And she settled in good immediately each time.