Xena in the sunshine!

What a great weekend with Xena! This weekend, we went to lunch together outdoors. I didn't even need to hold her leash. She took a snooze by my side in the sun and paid no attention to the food and people all around her.

Then we went on a very long walk around the upper west side apartment hunting. Whenever she is in a new place, she does the same routine... it's a bit of restlessness I think. She basically walks around and around the new space, smells everything, sits down, gets back up right away and continues to walk around. It takes some affirmative action on my part to get her to calm down, but once she does she is good to return to that space without the same anxiety.

Took Xena to Central Park. She loves it there!! Xena napped (she's such a napper!) in the sun in the park and got up a few times to look around. I did not have to worry about her trying to run away/wandering into the road or anything like that. She seemed to be able to block out the bikers, kids, dogs and all the like.

When I got home with Xena, she began her new "play" routine. This involves taking stuffed animals and throwing them around the room. She does this by picking them up with her mouth, shaking her head dramatically back and forth, and then finally letting go, as the stuffed animal flies across the room. It's quite funny!

Xena-Rainy Day Sleeping Beauty

So, for the past few days it has been raining. Xena took the opportunity to get in some rest. She does not like the rain! She will go out and quickly do her business with your urging, but she does not want to walk around in the rain. This is actually a good thing, because for most of us, we don't want to walk around in the rain either! And what's even better, Miss Xena didn't become restless not having much exercise for a few days. She became a bit of a couch potato and thoroughly enjoyed her naps.

I took Xena to get groomed and from what I hear, she did just fine. In fact, all the groomers took a fondness to her! While all their other dogs needed to be caged until their owners picked them up, they allowed Xena to wander around and nap in different parts of the rooms. She is a very trustworthy dog!

I had to go to a passover seder last night and the night before. The first night, I thought I would leave her alone since it was at my family's house and I knew I could bail early. She was alone for 6 hours or so and was just fine. Happy to see me when I arrived home. She does this cute thing whenever I come home now... She walks quickly towards me, her tail wagging all up in the air, and then she walks right through my legs, pushing them open, and then turns around, walks right through my legs again. I usually lean down to see where she is going and then when she walks through my legs from back to front she jumps up a tiny bit and licks me. It's absolutely adorable! The second night of passover, my friend came to watch her and Lucy. Xena had never met him before, but she was okay with a "stranger" coming into the apartment. She is not territorial and almost never barks! She really is quite the catch!

Xena is a bit nervous with stairs. This has gotten much better though! I think she may just fear new places or something. Once she feels comfortable somewhere, she seems to forget there are stairs there and walks right up/down them.

The girls are napping now (Xena and my chihuahua) but I'm about to wake them up and take them for a walk since it finally stopped raining! More to report later!

The weekend with Xena

This was a fun weekend! We went apartment hunting together yesterday and encountered many dogs. Xena seems to be frightened/nervous around dogs who are interested in her, or show any interest. She tucks her tail and tries to get away... it's kind of sad, but I think she's just not used to socialization. She's better around smaller dogs. In the picture above, we bumped into another Rhodesian. Xena really wanted to get away from him, but after she realized he wasn't going to hurt her, she was able to sit patiently and wait for me to finish shmoozing.

Today we went to Westchester to my family's house. Xena definitely will need an owner who will be understanding that she is nervous in new places and with new people. She had not met my family before and had never been to the house. She walked around the entire house, smelling everything. She will not jump on on anything and will not take a seat on the couch without you offering it to her, but she takes awhile to settle down and relax. My father tried to give her some treats, which she was happy to take, but it seemed to excite her more. I had to leash her, put out a familiar blanket for her to lay on, and then she finally relaxed and laid down. She was great for the rest of the visit.

I thought, since my family has a large venced in yard, that Xena might want to play fetch with a tennis ball. She wasn't too into the idea... but I think it was because she was freaked out since she just left her family of 9 years last weekend, and has been with two foster parents in the past week... taking her to more new places might not have been the best idea, but given her week, she did wonderfully.

When we got back to the apt, Xena was sooo happy to be back! She knew exactly where the apartment was and wagged her tail all the way down the block until we arrived. Then, she was ready to play! I actually don't have much experience with large breeds, so I wasn't sure how to handle it. She was crouching her back and wagging her tail leaning over... she picked up one of Lucy's (my chihuahua) toys and threw it back and forth. This was the most playful I have seen her! Now, she is resting on my couch.

Xena does not go for people food. She lets you eat peacefully, no begging, no attempting to get at the food... she just looks, but doesn't get up from whatever position she's in.

That's all for now!

Xena days 1-3

Xena is a beautiful 9 year old Ridgeback. Her family had to give her up due to having twins that are allergic.

I picked Xena up Monday night from Jeff's apartment, and she perked up and even gave me a spare lick! We drove to my apartment uptown, and she entered the doggy kingdom. There were three chihuahuas running around my apartment (including mine, Lucy) and Xena walked around, sniffed a couple of buts, and then plopped down on her dog bed. Of course, as you can see form the pictures, she later decided the couch was more comfortable!

These past few days have been great with her. She sleeps right through the night, wakes up when you get up, and is ready to eat! Boy, this chica loves her food! She tried to go after Lucy's food, (the grass is always greener...) and responded to my "Xena, No" voice. I wonder why that doesn't work with my boyfriend... or my appetite... yikes!

Xena is a big follower. She attempts to come with me everywhere, in the shower, from bedroom to kitchen to living room, etc. But, I did swing by Magnolia Bakery today with her (that damn appetite again!) and Xena was happy to wait for me outside while I shoved cake down my throat and pretended I'm not obese. Right.

We walked for a good two hours today. She walks at a medium pace, stops every now and then to squeeze a few drops of pee out (I keep telling her she has nothing left!) and struts her stuff. She does not pull on the lead at all.

Xena isn't a huge fan of the dog run. I took her twice. She seemed to get kind of overwhelmed and just stood there. I'll try again later; maybe she's just nervous being that she just left her dad of 9 years, or maybe I am rubbing off on her and she wants to get home quick to watch Eva Longoria on Desperate Housewives and pretend I'm that pretty.

On our long walk today, we went on a bit of window shopping... it seems wherever we go, Xena gets treats! (I wish that happened with me) So anyway, she is out right now... in total sleep mode.

That's all for now! More updates later!

SIMBA - Day 1

Everyone, MEET SIMBA! Simba, meet everyone.

Simba was brought to Rhodesian Ridgeback Rescue last night by his previous owner, Craig.   Craig and his family rescued Simba from a very scary previous situation, but due to their current dog and time constraints, didn't have time for a new puppy.

Simba's first owner got him to be a "warehouse dog".  He was left tied to a dumpster at an old warehouse day and night, seven days a week.  Craig stepped in after seeing this and offered to buy the dog from the previous owners.  They declined, but a day or two later came over and gave him the dog.

Simba was boarded for two weeks for observation and training. After that, Craig and his family had Simba for a few months, but decided it would be best for Simba to find a family that has the time and energy for a new young dog.

He definitely has all the energy that you can expect from a young hound mix (he's a bit over a year old), but knows basic commands that are helpful.  He sits before eating, can shake hands (paws), and even comes when you call.  He still plays a little rough, as puppies do, but that could go away quickly with training.  He's crate trained, so I have started using that as his "time-out".

He's very curious, and is good with new people and dogs.  We spent a good hour and a half walking and  playing in the dog park at Tompkins Square this morning, and other then his excitement over squirrels and birds, it was a great morning.  While he is normally very peppy and playful, he went into a very safe submissive state with the other dogs.  No aggression whatsoever.

Simba is a FANTASTIC dog, I'm sure we will find a home for him really soon.

MISS LACEY - ADOPTED!!!!!!!

After nearly three weeks with me, we found Lacey a fantastic new home with a great mom and dad as well as two really awesome sisters!

Thanks everyone for keeping up and reading this blog.  Keep checking back for Lacey updates and more.  I should be getting another foster case soon!

MISS LACEY - DAY 13

My mother was kind enough to let me know that I am a slacker and I have been neglecting my blog/sharing my days with Lacey with you (with her).  So, after a two day absence, here we go!

Lacey is becoming a better and more secure dog everyday.  She is feeling much better this week, and we have been enjoying a lot of playtime.  She has taken a liking to her rawhide bone as well as her "wubba" (a toy made by Kong) &  because of this, we have gotten the fetch thing down pretty well.  I honestly think I have more fun playing fetch than she does...

She's really been enjoying the snow over the past week.  Not only does she get to her "business" faster, but she also likes to jump around and play.  It's really nice when she gets into a play-mode outside, since she is normally in fear-mode.  I've been walking her with the gentle leader collar and dual looped leash to start teaching her not to pull and to stay behind me.  Its been three days and she's really starting to respond.  She doesn't like walking down the stairs with the leader on, but thats understandable, so I've started putting on the harness when we get downstairs.

After Lacey got sick last week, I decided to implement a "no laying on the furniture" rule.  I was a slack foster dad for the first week as I pretty much let her relax wherever she wanted to.  On Friday I started telling her "no" and making her lay on the floor next to me or would make her go to her crate to rest.  If you are wondering about her progress, she's lying at my feet right now while I type this on the couch.  (And I didn't even tell her to)

From the beginning of this blog I have suggested that Lacey is a really sweet dog.  I am finding that the more that we break through her fear-based issues, the more I am finding her to be a very smart dog.  All of Lacey's issues lie with trust and fear.  She is comfortable enough in my apartment now that she can be herself.  I have even started inviting friends over to meet her, and other than one time with my friend Eric, she has come out of her crate and greeted them/smothered them with love after about 5 minutes.  Once she works past the outside issues, she's going to be a really happy dog.