A Mid-May Micro-Update

May starts my busy season at work, and as my office hours steadily increase, my writing time is diminishing, but I wanted to pop in and share some micro-updates about me and the dogs.

Leah: In order to compete for Leah’s K9 Nose Work 1 title, she needs to be able to: (1) Search for scent contained inside a cardboard box (2) Search for scent concealed in the interior of a building (3) Search for scent hidden on a car (4) Search for scent somewhere on the exterior grounds of a building. To me, I think Leah could easily nail numbers one through three. But remember the post, Lee-ah Pee-ah?????? Well, yesterday we practiced four exterior searches – and Leah marked during three of the four! Sooooo…..we have our work cut out for us. Other than that, my Leah is doing extremely well, and whether or not we can get past this issue and go on to compete, we will continue taking Nose Work classes just for the enjoyment of working together as a team.

Toby: Now that he is no longer jumping, the swelling on his joint has gone down completely. His ear infection is also a malady of the past. I am looking forward to starting Nose Work with him in June, and currently, he is being a stand-in for my ten year old Goddaughter, Erin, who’s sweet old Bullmastiff, Daisy, recently passed away. Erin is planning to get her feet wet in Rally by taking a couple of classes with Toby, and maybe one day she will go on to compete with a dog of her own – once my cousin, Jenine, decides between another Bullmastiff – or a Beagle….? (I, of course, have suggested a Labrador instead – but since none can compare with my Toby – Jenine is not interested in a lesser Lab.) Erin and Toby already practiced heeling, sits, downs, and recalls in her backyard, where Toby was a patient teacher and Erin, a quick study, so I have a feeling they will have fun together in class.

Meadow: No news is good news. The combination of Estrogen and a half dose of Proin seems to be keeping her urinary issues at bay, and I have been extremely lucky in that no fireworks have gone off while I’ve been outside with her since she started the Prozac. Inside the house, she still ducks behind the furniture if she hears one go off, but she recovers quickly from her fear. I’m sure as the season progresses, I will witness how she reacts when one goes off while she’s outside – whether I like it or not. Meadow has suffered no ill health effects from the meds, aside for some appetite loss, (which sautéed ground venison miraculously ‘cured’). She also has been acting braver, approaching and ‘touching’ objects that she would have shied away from in the past. Additionally, she has been much less barky, which also means that she has been better behaved around Toby and Cinder. Nick now gives me one ring on the way home, since his arrival seemed to prompt the behavior chain of barking-chasing-nipping, and I have been holding Meadow by the collar until Nick is in the door. Meadow does not seem as focused on Toby at these moments as she had been, which is also a very good sign. I’m unsure if her improvement is due to lowering her Proin dose or the addition of the Prozac – but either way, I’m extremely happy that particular issue seems to be subsiding. Toby and Cinder agree.

And Me: This week I learned that my short story did not place in this year’s AKC Fiction Competition like it did during the two previous years, which was disappointing since I thought the story I submitted was the best of the three. However, on a better note, Celebrating Greyhounds Magazine will be publishing my story, “A Brief Affair,” in their summer issue, which will be mailed to subscribers in June. This will be my first piece of fiction in print – and it gives me hope for my novel, which I am still plugging away at. I recently crossed the 100 page mark and am a little over a third of the way there! As I mentioned above, the office is getting busy, so from now until late September, I will be blogging a lot less. If you promise to be patient with me, I promise to update whenever possible. In the meantime, enjoy the warm weather, and take your dogs for a romp in the park!