I am happy to report that ALL of our puppies have found new homes! On Friday, Leila (the brindle one) went to a post mistress in a nearby town; on Saturday, a family with several children (including teenagers who LOVE dogs) picked up Lucky (the woman said, as she was putting Lucky in the back of the car, "Now I have a new baby! I can't wait to go buy him some things!" Translation: he will be spoiled.).
On Sunday, as I was grooming my horse, some folks came by to pick something up. I had Lani with me, and the woman was like, "Well, she's awfully cute!" The man: "We don't need another dog. We got two dogs. One's a hundred pound German Shepherd. He could hurt her, just playing, of course, but still." The woman: "He doesn't hurt the other dog, and besides, we have a kennel to keep them separated if we need to." Man: "Grumble." Woman: "Well, what do you think?" Man: "(Sigh) Whatever you want." Me: "If she doesn't get along with y'all's dogs, I'd gladly take her back." Man to woman: "Well, whatever you wanna do." Lani: Licking the man's arm and face as he holds her, not squirming one tiny bit like she usually does, on which I commented." Man: "I got a way with animals..." Man looking like a boy with a new puppy...
Jordan, by the way, turns out to be about 4 yrs OLDER than we thought he was! Witness Protection and all that, but ironically, I had just said to him, "Jordan, you look GOOD! Are you SURE you're 22???" No wonder he said no! Ahem.
So, thank you all for your support, for your queries about the pups, and for wanting to see photos/videos of them. They are all living with nice families who will take good care of them.
Here, then, is the last one we took of the three of them romping around:
I'll get back to the serious stuff again soon, but after the VERY informative Live Chat on Torture Sunday night at No Quarter, PUPPIES are a good thing to see...
As much work as it was to have them all here, and as expensive as it was (and as it ever), that all pales in comparison to the joy, delight, and love they brought us. We will forever be thankful for the opportunity that presented itself in the form of a stray dog who needed a home...
2 comments:
Hi there Amy!
I have been following your posts since your return. Great photos of your trip and of course, I was able to get a few ‘Oh! Puppies!’ moments. The momma dog must have had an angel on her shoulder when she found you. Is she staying with your family now? Are you now officially a hound dawg owner? We have an elderly dog and when buying her food at the big box pet store, we always stop by the kitten cage and of course laugh at the puppies trekking through the store, with new owners anxiously trying to instill adult commands on their puppy that has the attention span of a gnat. Amusing to watch.
The Spring Session has started at the NARHA program and the horses (10 in the stable) are getting back in their groove. They are eager to work and the plus side is that they get way more attention. They get groomed at least 3 times a night when they work. A few have high energy, such as the gal pony which always seems to be just a hair away from breaking into her rendition of the Electric Slide. Then there is the Big Guy, (I think he is something like 17+ hands), a former dressage dude who is just tall and massive. He is like working with butter, so smooth, but intimidates because of his size. He was a high level dressage horse until he came up with a case of EPM and his owner couldn’t ask him to perform at the level required. So, she donated him to the program. Horse people know that the program horses get pampering and attention and care 24/7/365, so it is a sought after place for retiring their horse. Many more horses are turned away than accepted. It takes a special kind of horse to qualify as a program horse as they carry very special cargo.
Funny how people react to the pony vs. the big boy. They think the pony is going to be a milder ride, more of a kids ride and that the big guy is just too much horse. It is just the opposite though, the pony has a constant wedgie and the big boy is so mellow that he almost instinctively follows commands before they are given.
One of our dreams is to some day have some land and be able to start a NARHA program. The services provided are very much needed. There are more people trying to get their special needs person into a session than there are sessions. We always have a waiting list.
If any of your readers are interested, you can visit the NARHA website where they have a list of all the centers around the nation. They are anywhere from near big cities to in the most out of the way small towns. From there you might find one that is close to you and arrange to just go see what they do. The NARHA centers are non-profit and every center is always looking for people to volunteer. There are needs for barn help, help with the lessons, fund raising, help just about everywhere and typically, no horse experience is required to volunteer, they will teach and train you under supervision. NARHA has strict guidelines for their center operations and there is a spot for every person that wants to help. Once you see a lesson, watch the kids and adult students during a lesson, you will understand what goes on and why this is so important.
Anyway, I am glad that you and your family are back and that you had a nice vacation and that the puppies found forever homes.
Write on!
Hey, Deborah!
Thank you, and welcome!
And thanks for the compliment, too - we are keeping the mama dog (Lucy), and oh, my - she is the quintessential hound dog, alright! (We had two greyhounds preivously - lost both of them abt two years ago two months apart from old age illnesses.) Lucy is a beautiful dog, and as I told her, she made the most beautiful pups - but those were her LAST ones! She will be getting spayed soon...
Oh, I LOVE hearing abt the horses!! Thank you so, so much for telling me (us) abt them, and abt the NAHRA program, and what a wonderful program it is. If you ever want to write something p, and include a photo of that big, beautiful horse, let me know - I would be DELIGHTED to have you do a guest post on it!
Off to pick up one of my (other) dogs from the vet, but I did want to acknowledge your lovely, informative note - thanks, Deborah!
Post a Comment