Storm as hunter and NBRAN Transport

 Storm caught a mouse in the garage.  She's all about hunting now: beetles, bugs, mice, anything that mores.  Paul often carries her between houses now since she spends so much time hunting. 

We transported 2 Brittany puppies (6-7 months) to DuBois.  Tjhey came from Cheri Heimbach, Gambol's breeder in Lewisburg. They have a neurological disorder that gives them very shaky movements.  Apparently, there is no cure or alleviation of this condition although it isn't painful. They were crammed into a 1-dog crate and didn't mind at all.  They traveled quietly. They are to be fostered by Theresa Bair in Canton, OH where I took Huck in April. 

Then the garden club had a tour of the Happy Valley Lavender Farm. It's 3 yo and has about 1000 plants.  It's not Provence or Australia and they are kept gumball sized so it's not English hedges, but it's very cool anyway.

Dinner at Champs.

Meet Cooper

Cooper arrived on the 10-driver Canine Transport on time and hungry from Normal, Illinois. heartworm positive, intact, and has some bad teeth.  He's 8+ yo, a total package that's a recipe for disaster in overcrowded shelters.  NBRAN stepped in after only a night or 2. He then spent his 10-day required quarantine in Bloomington/Normal while the transport was set up.  He had shots and was chipped and was determined to be good with other shelter dogs and ready to move on. His temp foster in Illinois said, "I noticed at our house that even when our male went right up to his crate to peer in, Cooper did not make a sound. Which is pretty remarkable...my husband and I were trying to recall another dog being quiet and just letting unknown dogs stare!" That's good news.
He slept in Paul's lap most of the way home from DuBois.  He met our boys, and the initial meeting went well with Gambol and Buddy, but there was a small dust up with Remington, with Remington probably the instigator. We are keeping them apart for now and will closely watch their interactions. Not sure what triggered it as they were both sniffing each other with wildly wagging tails and then, all of a sudden, they both started barking and pulling toward each other--no contact was made and I didn't see bare teeth so it may have been more sound than fury.  Maybe too much, too soon.
His first-day report:

• He traveled well. 
• He's quiet.
• His body weight looks good.
• His hair is bright, shiny, silky, and full (Ronald Reagan-like but white). He's got some skin thing going on behind his ears. Almost healed.
• Nails are good. Feet fur is a bit long. Paul trimmed it and had no trouble touching each foot. No dew claws.
• Gums are a bit pale. Front 4 lower teeth are nubs and will undoubtedly have to go.
• Eyes look clear. 
• Ears look clean. 
• He has tried to mark inside twice so he's got a band on. 
• He's not overly fond of kibble and has a funny routine. When I put the bowl in his crate, he immediately nudges it over and spills everything out. He rubs his nose in the blankets and then eats a couple of bites from the floor. He's done this 3 times now. Maybe the bowl bothers his teeth. Small food offerings on the floor rather than 2 meals will probably be better for him for a while.
• He's a curious counter surfer. He jumps on us, too. 
• Crate: he slept all night in his closed crate with not a whimper. 
• Leash walking: hahaha! Not so much. I'd say he's never seen a leash in his life. I have introduced him to the Martin Mckenna, dreadlocked Australian Dog trainer's, bump method. He's improved already to loose lead when we walk in boring places like the driveway. Interesting places like grass is a real struggle. He's smart and alert, though, so he'll catch on.
• Remington doesn't like him.  I'm primary caregiver so Paul can deal with Remington. 
• Cooper has no companion dog manners like come, sit, down, stay, etc. but he's a nice boy and wants to please. He'll learn what he needs to know. While he's energetic outside, he's calm inside. He played with a tennis ball for a little while. He's not especially a snuggler but does like an occasional back scratch. He's content to lie at my feet. Of course, he's on a leash inside so he doesn't have a lot of choice.  Yet. 

NBRAN Transport

We've done at least 8 Brittany transports but tonight was special as we delivered Timber to his new family. Seeing Timber with his new 12 year old owner, Jack, was a real treat. Timber's original transport last Saturday was cancelled due to bad weather along the transport route from Michigan to Pennsylvania. Because of the Holiday season, the next transport would have normally occurred after New Years, but all of the transport volunteers were happy to make a special effort to get Timber to his new family before Christmas. When we picked Timber up he had not pee-ed for a while, so it was a major success that he was able to take a mighty pee before we got back on the road. Timber was a sweetie the whole 90 minutes we had him in the car, occasionally leaning on me to rest his head. It was great to see Jack and Timber interact in their first moments together! Thanks NBRAN for letting us participate in this happy event! Merry Christmas Timber and Jack!

Busy weekend

   After a 1.5 hr drive to Brookeville, PA to pick up Rex, a 4 m liver Brittany full of cuteness, and deliver him to the next leg of the NBRAN transport system, we decided to take a little hike at Black Moshannon.  We left the car at Strawband Beaver Rd and walked with Gambol off leash but the other two pulling and raring to go.  About 3/4 mile we came to Moss Hanna Trail.  If we'd have turned right we would have had a 2 mile hike through the woods back to the road.  As it was, we turned left and had 10 miles to go to get back to the car.  Oy!  The dogs didn't seem to mind.  Paul gave me all three dogs, did the last 3 miles at his own (faster) pace back to the car, and picked us up with about 1 mile to go.  Lessons taught (we'll see if they were learned): take a map with us next time and wear better socks.  We both have blisters on our feet. We were too tired to anything but soup for dinner. 
   On Sunday Paul judged at the Frederick MD State Fair Homebrew Beer Competition. He had 13 Belgiums to taste test so I went down as the homeward bound chauffeur.  The dogs and I roamed the empty fairgrounds and read in the car during the judging.  The day was cool, dry and sunny, a perfect outdoor lounging day. I hooked up Buddy and Kilo to the car door latch so they could sit under the sycamore and smell the flowers.  Gambol wore his leash but wasn't attached to me by anything but love (cue: Awwwww).
  When we got home about 1730  bald faced hornet nest in the holly bush between the garage and the main entrance to the house had been torn out of the bush. About half of the bush was destroyed as well.  A lot of hornets were buzzing around with a distinctly bad attitude, so we all kept our distance.
It was a super year for bald faced hornets: this nest was about the size of one and a half basketballs, easily 2 feet long.  Our first thought was that it had just grown too heavy for the little holly.  We had been watching it grow from smaller than softball in the early spring.  As long as we didn't disturb the hornets they didn't bother us, --well, except for Jonathan, who accidentally flew two of his paper airplanes into the holly bush and got stung once or twice for that.  So, while the hornets can be aggressive, they usually have to be threatened to become a problem.

Bald faced hornets in a holly bush which used to be hidden by some jewel weed.

  The nest was damaged in broad daylight. We don't know for sure what animal did the deed but we suspect there's a bear around with a sore nose and mouth.  We will avoid the nest area for a few days, at least, to let the hornets settle down again.

We were going to try to harvest the nest for a nature box after the cold weather killed off all the resident hornets, but now we'll have to see how much the hornets can repair before the frost gets them.

The Weekend with our Pack

Saturday:  Paul went to a forestry seminar; I was on a Magnolia Brittany transport of 3 dogs from Newport to Milesburg.  Kilo wasn't happy even though everyone had peanut butter bones.  He squeaked and scratched at the door.  Paul left before me; same thing when I left. Mild separation anxiety?
They all managed for the 6 hrs we were gone, but I was in deep kimchi when I came home with 3 different dog smells on me.

Sunday: Kilo is working on his off leash manners.  We let him go out to pee off leash, and we take his leash off as we approach the house. On each walk we let him drag the long leash to run 50 yds. or so to us .  Paul hides behind a tree or tall grass and calls him.  Sometimes Kilo finds him on his own; sometimes he takes a cue from one of the other dogs.  He does mind Paul's "here" much better than mine.
Paul was in the Carriage House, all 3 dogs were with me.  When Kilo realized his dad was missing, he started squeaking and pacing.  Kilo usually ends the evening lying on Paul's toes as we read.  I believe they've bonded.  We may have a failed foster here.
The porcupine destroyed the  sassafras tree by topping 3/4 of it.  Paul cut the trunk off.  It will probably stump sprout, but maybe the porky will find a more discrete tree to gnaw on.  Kilo helped, off leash.)  The trunk has very wide rings: 5 years old, but probably not large enough for a box, except perhaps for needle storage. 
I planted 15 Mertensia that SFast gave me.  That trail (?Jennifer's elbow, Jonathan's, Ginseng Path?) is showing promise of a lovely spring walk.
Later: We decided to check out the dog park just before dinner.  There were just enough dogs there to be fun and keep us busy.  We took the double leash to see how Buddy and Gambol reacted to hauling Kilo around.  We gave both dogs a chance at leadership.  It worked, so we used it at home for just one short run each.  No sense having too much fun.

NBRAN transport-- Ernie, Ronnie, & Scout head north to I-80 and then west to OH & MI

These 3 are part of the Magnolia rescue from Lousiana.  I picked them up in Newport and drove them to Milesburg.  They were a handful to transfer but settled down after just a few minutes.  I had 2 crates for the 2 with medical collars and a safety belt for the other, who sat behind me an leaned his head on my shoulder most of the drive.   Paul didn't come with me for this one as we had planned to go to a forestry seminar.  He went; I caught half.  It was at Benedict's and we'd been before.
As a post script to this journey, I saw 2 greyhounds at the McD's in Newport.  They were going to the Nittany Grey picnic;  I told them how much we loved Nittany Greyhound.  That was fun.

Ernie is a 4-5 year old ( 40 lb ) liver/white neutered male brittany who needs transport from Country Comfort Kennels in Delta, PA to his NBRAN-approved and HV-screened foster home in Parma, OH. Ernie is UTD on all immunizations, HW negative & healthy. Ernie is friendly to people and to other dogs. He will travel with leash, collar, vet records & health certificate.

  

Ronnie is a 2 year old ( 35 lb ) orange/white neutered male brittany who needs transport from Country Comfort Kennels in Delta, PA to his NBRAN-approved and HV-screened foster home in Brighton, MI. Ronnie is UTD on all immunizations, HW negative & healthy. Ronnie is friendly to people and to other dogs. He will travel with leash, collar, vet records & health certificate. 

 

Scout is a 2 year old ( 35 lb ) orange/white neutered male brittany who needs transport from Country Comfort Kennels in Delta, PA to his NBRAN-approved and HV-screened foster home in Brighton, MI. Scout is UTD on all immunizations, HW negative &  healthy. Scout is friendly to people and to other dogs. He will travel with leash, collar, vet records & health certificate.

I learned something very important at the end of this transport: not everyone understands, or perhaps believes, that dogs should be confined in a car, especially rescues whose past is uncertain or just plain bad.  I gave these 3 boys who behaved perfectly in my car, to a couple who just shoved them in their car and took off; no tethering or crating or even a pee break.  I learned that they jumped around the car the whole hour drive to DuBois , and one took his bathroom break in their back seat.  Why don't I feel sorry for this couple, and maybe even just a little gleeful?

The NBRAN transport planning team has their job down to a science.  We arrive within minutes of the appointed time at both ends. 

NBRAN transport--Rusty

We picked up RUSTY, a 9 yo (45 lbs), UTD, orange/white neutered male, brittany  who needs transport from his Brighton, MI foster to his NBRAN-approved & screened foster home in Tarrytown, NY.  He will be traveling with a collar, leash, and medical records & a health certificate. 
 in DuBois and drove him to Milesburg.  He's another cutie who snuggled with Paul in the back seat the whole hour long drive..

NBRAN transport--Lucy

Lucy is a 2.5YO liver & white spayed female Brittany (40#) who needs transport from her foster home in IN to her NBRAN-approved & HV-screened forever home in NJ. She is UTD on all immunizations, HW negative& healthy. She is friendly to people & to other dogs. She will travel with leash, collar, vet records & a health certificate.
We picked her up in Brookville and drove her to Milesburg.  She is probably our gateway drug to these transports.