Pet Walk!!

Today Socko, my 9 year old Shepherd Mix, went out and represented Out-U-GO! at the Hinsdale Humane Society's Pet Walk!! We had a great time! I planned to post lots and lots of pictures, but after the shot I got of Socko, my unsmart camera phone decided not to work. Oh well... Here's the one of Socko! He's sooooooooo happy!!


"I LOVE this place!!!"



Death and the Kitty

Nova

Nova, our 16 year old tiny tuxedo kitty, has taken a turn for the worse. While not surprising, she was diagnosed with kidney failure in November of 2008, it's still sad. We're taking her to the vet Monday afternoon to say our last goodbyes. Our vets, who are wonderful, have a relationship with Nova. She's been going to Danada Veterinary Hospital since she was about 4 years old. They've helped us & her through some really tough times including diagnosing her and helping us with her treatments including subcutaneous fluids. While we will be sad when she's gone, we do not regret the decision. Until Monday, she'll be swaddled in love as we keep vigil.
 

Swaddled

   

Swaddled and Sleeping

Walk the dog

Zinc - Boston Terrier

Max - English Bulldog/Pug Mix

Walking a dog on a leash was something I didn't really think about before I worked at the animal shelter.  I grew up with dogs, so I knew how to walk a dog on a leash, right? That's partially true. I knew how to walk my dog. But every dog is different. At the shelter, I've learned how to approach an unknown dog for a walk. Staying calm and having a lot of patience is key. Many dogs respond to treats and praise and me making absolutely ridiculous noises to get their attention. Some dogs just have to be waited out; given time to trust you. We even have some puppy mill dogs who know nothing about the world beyond the cages they've lived in and have to be carefully introduced to everything. (I'll touch on puppy mill dogs in a later post.)

Through my work with Out-U-Go!, I get to know the particular idiosyncrasies of each dog. This is exciting because along with walking the dogs, I do some very rudimentary training. Here are 2 examples:

1. Zinc, the Boston in the picture, can be a pretty stubborn little fellow. He will sit on his haunches and refuse to move. The fortunate thing with Zinc is that he's treat motivated. I will show him his treat (actually, half of one of his treats), let him sniff it, then point to the next corner. At the corner, I give him the treat. It took him a few walks to trust me, lots of stopping and starting with me putting the treat up to his nose each time he sat down then pointing at the corner, but he now will trot happily to the corner and await his treat! Sometimes, he even forgets the treat and we just keep going with lots of encouraging words.
2. Max, the other dog pictured, is just over 2 months. He's a little pup just learning how to walk on a leash. For him the world is huge and exciting and can be a little bit scary. My job is to help his family reassure him that the world isn't a scary place.When I first get him out, I talk to him excitedly and give him lots of pets. Once he has started walking, I use the "AA-AH!" sound to stop him from chewing on the leash then praise with words and treats when he walks nicely. He LOVES my high-pitched happy voice so he responds very well. He still has many things to learn, but he's on the right path!

But cats HATE water!

Not all cats hate water. There's even a breed of cat, the Turkish Van, that LOVES water!!
  

Meander drinking from the faucet

One of my cats, Meander (the long haired gray boy), will sit on the edge of the tub and bathe himself while I take a bath. He likes for me to rub my wet hands over his fur so he can lick the water droplets off. He also drinks from the faucet. I adopted him from the shelter at 4 years of age. The first time he jumped up on the sink, I thought he just wanted to get closer to me. The he nuzzled the faucet. I turned it on and he was thrilled. "You've done this before, haven't you?"


Hey! What a good idea!! I, Ink, shall now drink!

 I have another cat Ink (the little black kitty) who learned how to drink out of the faucet by watching Meander when he was just a kitten. I don't know if he would've been such a water lovin' cat on his own since he followed his big brother around and wanted to do everything just like Meander! It's that whole "nature vs. nurture" debate... but with adopted cats.

 

Alex and Spencer drinking water from the tub



These other two cats are Alex and Spencer. I petsit for them through Out-U-Go! Every time I go over there, one of the first things I do is turn on the bathtub faucet so they can slurp up the trickels of water. They love it! Alex even gets right into the tub and, by the time he gets out, his face is all wet.


 

Ready.... set....

Lick!!!  



Pocket of Poo

Having any job in the animal care industry means that you're going to be dealing with some stinky stuff. The important thing is to always be prepared and be flexible and to know that, at some point, you are going to mess up. Then you recover. You pick up the poo.