Opened Pandora's Box of Cuteness!

Yeah, I went and did it. I started and Instagram for the Lily & Bear. I'll try to get other photos that are stashed around Facebook and various other places posted as well, but I've put up everything I've had on my phone thus far. If any readers out there want to send me a-dorkable Bear & Lily vids or pics, that would be awesome! Feel free to add them in the comments here, or tag them/me on Instagram(if you can do that... I'm not sure, I'm learning!)

What I can't post on Instagram will end up here. I have loads of videos and pictures laying around that need to be shared for cuteness factor. We'll see how that goes.

Apparently you can only upload to Instagram from your phone, which stinks because I regularly move shit off my phone so I don't lose awesomeness to phone glitches.

Here is a little video of Lily hanging with some of her friends (pre-Bear) howling with some coyotes in the middle of the night. Enjoy!

The Tale Of The Cracked Tooth

We don't give dogs enough credit for how intelligent they are, even though a majority of their drives and behaviors are influenced by instinct.

Voting is Important!

As much as my dogs are tuned into me, I'm finding as we travel and share space with each other, I've become very tuned with them as well. I notice things about how they walk, how they are acting, whether it's a good day, or a bad one. If Lily has an ear infection, or Bear is hyper-focused on another animal in his general vicinity, I notice.

Bear had bad breath from the start. On his first vet visit, I asked about this and worried that his teeth might need to be looked at, or at the very least, cleaned. He'd been at a shelter for about six months when I adopted him and a stray for about a month before that. I wanted to make sure that he had the best chance going forward.

The vet recommended probiotics for his breath and horrendous farts. His farts were pretty epic. One day, he managed to clear out me and Lily from the living room. It also forced me to open the house even though it was mid-summer in Texas. I was willing to give the probiotics a shot if it meant I didn't have to air condition the outside to survive an accidental ground attack from a four-legged gas bomb.

Switching to the probiotic routine meant giving up processed treats for a while. Lily was less than pleased. Bear always liked about anything he was offered, from apples to broccoli, so it was less of a problem for him. At that time I was on a bi-weekly farmer's box program, and I was struggling with ways to use up all the produce. Even though the box was meant for two people, often there was enough for four or more sometimes.

I was cooking sweet potatoes one night, boiling them to remove the skin so I could cube and mash them. The potatoes were cooling off and I noticed both the dogs were sitting at my feet watching me. I took a couple of small chunks out of pot, checking to make sure they were cool enough, then offered them to the dogs. They kinda lost their minds and pushed closer to me and the stove, sitting perfectly, waiting for another bite.

Post walk lounging

I got creative after that small window into doggie likes and bought a dehydration unit. With this I created beet chips and sweet potato chips, which both dogs loved. I dehydrated green onions, apples, kale, mint, tomatoes, carrots; basically anything which I thought I might not finish before it rotted, I dehydrated and put in the freezer. This extended a lot of things for a month or more. For the dogs it was a new found treat they enjoyed more than the treats from the bag. The produce was getting used up instead of rotting in my fridge! It was a significant win-win overall.

As bad breath and deadly gas attacks subsided, Lily and I were getting used to this new being in our house. He was handsome, smart, quiet, almost too quiet, to the point that I wasn't sure he would bark, until a knock on the door or a door bell rang. He had this awesome personality, which was the near opposite of Lily.

As with most medical things, finding one problem and resolving it means others pop up or make themselves known. It turns out, Bear is mildly allergic to something outside. Whether it's grass or some pollen, I'll never know. Likely because of the allergies, he snores like it's his job.

One of the first nights he slept in the same room with Lily and me, I was startled awake by very human sounding snoring. I sat up in bed, wide awake, freaked out that someone was in the room, when I realized Bear had crawled up from under the bed (which was where he always started out the night back then) to lay next to me, head on pillow, all four legs sticking straight out. Lily was peacefully curled up at the foot of the bed. I was the only one in the house that could hear it. I went back to sleep, laughing at myself and pretty happy.

Fast forward to mid 2017.

Bear's bad news breath was back. It wasn't horrible, but it was noticeable. I was concerned, but I thought it might be from plaque buildup. Getting a dogs teeth cleaned is a major event for your dog and your wallet. It was something I was going to have to plan for as it seemed. I knew I was heading to another project towards the end of the year, plus Bear needed his vaccinations in October, I figured I'd check with the vet I found then.

A soulful look.

When he went for his vaccinations, he wasn't exhibiting any issues with eating and the vet gave him a clean bill of health, and also noted, like about every other vet that had seen him, that he had a very high pain tolerance. He stood still for shots, blood draws, and examinations. His only exception was anyone messing with his butt, so getting a stool sample or a temp was often problematic. He still had some pretty foul breath though. I chalked it up to his obsession with goose poop (That's a whole other story I'll write up later).

It wasn't until early March 2018 that I noticed he was only eating on one side. Over the last four to five months, his breath got worse, and I was giving him things to chew that should have helped clear plaque, if that had been the problem. When one night, I gave him a bully stick, which he usually gobbled up, I noticed he was taking longer than Lily to eat it. That never happened before. Lily was usually the slower, pickier eater.

He had the stick between his paws and I gently took it from him, and he let it go. (Another bad sign. That dog never gives up food once he has it.) I started looking at his teeth, and he tolerated this until I got to his back teeth on his left side. I saw a tooth that looked grey. It was a bad color for a tooth. Usually it meant it was rotting out, possibly infected, or both. I made another vet appointment.

It was now apparent that he was masking some kind of pain. His once exuberant meal time, was half-hearted at best. The vet saw the tooth and immediately knew it was cracked. The stench coming from his mouth now was pretty bad. The doc was keen to get him in for an extraction and I absolutely agreed.

The vet also mentioned that it was rare for owners to catch something like a broken tooth. I told her that I pay attention to the dogs, what they act like, what they are doing. Smart dogs equals clever and sneaky, and because of that, you had to be vigilant to mood and behavior changes. Unhappy dogs or dogs in pain can cause all kinds of problems for themselves and those around them. An otherwise fantastic dog can devolve into dangerous behaviors because of pain or stress. It's one of the biggest lessons I learned from the folks at Dogs Out Loud.

Surgery day was kinda hard on both dogs. They don't like being separated. Lily went to daycare. It was routine for her. Bear went to the vet. He had to be encouraged to leave with the tech. Thankfully it was a day operation. I picked Bear up first, then we went to get Lily. You could see the tension melt off both of them as they saw each other again. Licked each other's faces and sniffed butts. The way they behaved it seemed like they hadn't seen each other in weeks rather than hours.

We all came back to the hotel after that. I made dinner, started a movie, and eventually I had a dog on either side of me, sleeping peacefully.  The next day, I could tell Bear was feeling better. He was playing and interacting more with Lily that morning. He could have been high too. The dog was on some pretty good meds. Seeing happy Bear made me happy and glad that I caught his tooth problem before it got even worse.

The Dynamic Duo - My Yin & Yang - Lily & Bear

The 4 AM Pee-pee

Prior to being a consultant, the times I had to get up to walk a dog for no other reason than to pee at 4 AM were rare.

I lived in a house. I had a huge, fenced back yard. I had a doggie door which was open unless it was raining or the neighborhood wildlife was particularly active on a given night. The dogs took care of themselves. I would hear the doggie door flap and think nothing of it if until barking happened.

Living a life on the road, I do everything I can to avoid the 4 AM pee-pee dance.

Avoiding 4 AM

When I was younger, 4 AM wasn't a big deal. Sleep wasn't a necessity. I managed nicely on an hour or two some days. These days, being older, I rather like sleep.

My goal, to avoid most witching hour potty breaks, is to take the dogs out right before bed. If I can get them to do all of their business between 10-11 PM, usually the 3 or 4 AM pee pees won't happen.

Lily did go through a phase where she would get up at 3:30 AM on the dot, almost every day and need to go pee regardless of the fact that she went pee before we went to bed. She was about 2 years old then. It's not an uncommon thing, but I would get up and let her out into the back yard and wait for her to come back inside.

After that phase though, we've been pretty good about sleeping through the night unless they were sick.

The Pee Pee Dance

It starts with a wet nose to the face. Often very wide, bright eyes that you can see in the dark staring at you, pulling you out of your comfortable slumber. (It's always a comfortable one, never a fitful sleep, or one where you are mostly awake already.) Lots of moving around when otherwise I would hear only snores or farts from different parts of the hotel room or apartment. Curtains rustle. Then comes the jumping on and off the bed.

I'm awake at this point. I know something is up. I've had this happen enough that I can read the signs of discomfort on dog faces.

I get dressed, and harness up very patient pups. (OH yes, if one dog has to go, the other dog usually decides that they have to go as well. It's a rare night if I only have to manage one of them because the other went back to sleep.)

I give Lily the quiet signal. She's usually quiet this early in the morning, but a reminder is helpful. As a talker/barker with no volume control, I can only imagine the complaints if we walked down the hall during the middle of the night and she decides to have a conversation.

I head us strait for the nearest staircase and we all take it at our usual pace, which is mostly too fast and at a speed I'm entirely not awake enough be able to manage.

The tricky part is paying attention to your surroundings at 4 AM. Feral cats,  squirrels,  other dogs, and deer could all be a factor in whether or not you lose two dogs on an early morning walk.

If we are out in a rural area, unless I have fence handy, I don't let my dogs outside. Coyotes are a factor as well, along with other nocturnal creatures. (Sometimes it's half the reason they are awake. It's not to pee, but to chase something.)

In the city, they are on a leash and it's safe for the most part. I do have the occasional time or two they see something and want to chase it, but I've managed to bring them back around to the point by hanging onto the leashes for dear life and walking the opposite direction.

Post Pee

Heading back to bed is slightly futile after all of this commotion. I'm usually wide awake, though tired. Sometimes I manage it, but mostly, I end up writing a bit or making coffee.  The doggo's go back to bed just fine. Mild jealousy of the all too adorable snoring starts setting in and then I chuckle to myself and pour another cup.

This early morning excursion doesn't get me out of the 7:30 AM walk either. They will wake up again, and I'll be more awake the second time around, but coherent thought might be difficult.

Lily Post Pee

When Sickness Strikes On The Road: A Dog Parent Perspective

My two dogs are pretty healthy. They are calm enough and old enough that I don't have to worry that they will destroy the hotel room or act out. We have a sorta routine that we stick to and as long as they get outside a few times a day for more than the two minutes it takes to pee, then everything comes out alright.

As I've been traveling with Lily and Bear over the last year or so, I've been pretty fortunate in regards to the health of both of them. I stay current on their shots and checkups wherever I go and I inform myself about pet issues in the communities where I work and stay.

We've only had two minor illnesses while traveling.

Giardia Is No Picnic

The first was earlier this year when both of them kept me up for a full night with trips outside with diarrhea. I took them to the local vet I found when I first started working in the area. Our best guess was they had picked up Giardia somewhere between the daycare/boarding place and our daily walks around the area of the hotel. A bunch of meds and lots of rest later, both my pups were back to their playful selves.

I waited a few days before taking them to the vet because dogs can have upset stomachs for any number of reasons, however, when it was clear that it was persistent and symptoms were getting worse, I didn't hesitate to make an appointment for them.

Kennel Cough Is Obnoxious

The second time they have been sick was pretty recently. Even though I keep my dogs up-to-date on their shots, they visit daycare a lot and they are in boarding one to two times a month. This increases the risk of picking up various illnesses. This time it was kennel cough. While they both have current Bordetella vaccinations, not all strains of kennel cough are covered by the vaccine.

They went to daycare on a Wednesday perfectly fine, and by Wednesday night, Lily was coughing and sneezing a lot. The poor dog couldn't seem to catch her breath. I was worried immediately. Could it have been something she ate too fast, or was it really kennel cough? By Thursday evening, I knew it was probably kennel cough, as Bear started to cough and sneeze to clear his throat. His breathing was labored and he had a lot of nasal drip.

I was able to get an appointment Friday morning for the local vet.

It was the first time I've ever had to do contagion protocols for my dogs. Since the progress of the symptom onset was pretty fast and due to them both being vaccinated, the vet was worried that it might be fairly contagious. I had to bring each dog in from the car one at a time, through a side door, to an isolated room to control exposure to other animals in the building at the time.

The vet and her assistant were great. They worked efficiently so both dogs could be seen and assessed quickly. I shuttled the dogs to and from the car. Once the exam was over, they gave me a bag of meds and instructions and we were on our way.

The dogs won't be able to visit daycare or be in boarding until they are asymptomatic for at least 10 days. Thankfully, my schedule can accommodate that fairly well right now. Not being able to do daycare for a few weeks is sad for both me and my dogs, as we all get a much needed break outside of the house and socialization, but it's even more important to make sure they are healthy and we don't contribute to other dogs catching this particular strain of kennel cough.

If my dogs had been older or weaker, it's possible they could have ended up with more complications. If I had waited another day or two, the infection could have spread to their lungs and caused permanent damage, or even death. After 24 hours of meds and rest, they are already doing much better and the severity of the coughing has lessened. Hopefully by Monday we are truly on the mend and healthy before we travel back to Texas for our Christmas break.

Tips For Handling Illness On The Road

• Don't wait to see a vet. As soon as you identify a problem that isn't normal, contact a vet and make an appointment. 
• Keep all paperwork on-hand. While it might seem like a pain to travel with all the papers for vaccinations and visits your dogs have ever had, it's saved time and phone calls for the vet and assistants doing intakes for appointments. I even keep adoption records and micro-chip numbers with their paperwork so it's available if I ever really need it.
• Use home remedies sparingly. I know visiting a vet can be expensive. It might seem like a good option to use a suggested remedy from the internet. However, you might only be delaying or exacerbating the illness for your dog without medical intervention. Use home remedies only if a vet suggests them. I've used anti-diarrhea meds, antihistamines,  pedialyte, and melatonin, only at the suggestion of a vet with a good idea about what the dosages should be for my dogs. 
• Keep water bowls full and fresh. Dehydration is a big issue with a lot of illnesses, especially for dogs. Changing out the water in bowls can help reduce recontamination and entice your dogs to stay hydrated. 
• Bribe Them If You Have To. When dogs are sick, they often don't want to eat. If you have to give them meds which require food, getting your dogs to eat can be tricky. Go for things with extra protein in them like bits of meat, egg, or broth. I've found that a sausage patty or a hard-boiled egg does wonders when I'm trying to get pups to eat so they can have their meds. 

Hopefully you won't have to deal with your pet being sick while you are traveling together, but if you do, at least you know that it's manageable. Quick action is the key in dealing with any illness and getting back to your daily routine with your pups.

Traveling Band Of Misfits: Living With Dogs On The Road

Traveling with dogs takes an amazing amount of patience, coordination, and support. There are days where I have lacked some of those or all of those. You do the best you can. Here are some tips from things I've learned while traveling with my two beasties.

Car Rides: 8-10 Hours Max

I don't know about your dogs, but mine will do really well in the morning, and really well at night, but mid-day they are kinda stir-crazy.  They want out of the car longer than the 10-15 minute potty break affords them when I stop for gas or food.

I start early in the morning when I drive with them. It keeps them cooler, happier, and they actually nap most of the way once I'm on the highway. I always let them out to pee when I stop. I water them up before I hit the road again. Breakfast is had before we leave the house. I generally don't do more than a treat or two in the car because Bear can get an upset stomach from being too excited.

They get their food immediately when we get to the hotel room. I unload the car. I get necessary stuff only, settle them in, and let them eat. Everything else can wait. Taking that space to let them calm down, and let me rest has been the best 30 minutes of every trip I've been on once I figured out how to do this.

I haven't flown with my dogs, yet. I know there will probably be a time when that will happen. When that does happen, I'll be sure to write a new blog post. 

Pet Friendly Hotels Are A Must

I plan my trips by the number of hours it takes to get 8-10 hours down the road. If I know I can drive about 600-800 miles in a day, I pick the midway points of the route I plan. I search for pet friendly hotels, call ahead, and book the room. If I get to my destination early, awesome. If I don't. It's OK. I don't have to stress about where I'm stopping for the night or if they will take my dogs.

Cooling Off In The Shower!

Emergencies happen, so here is a great list of places that are pet friendly. Call ahead though if you can. Policies change and not every hotel in a chain is pet friendly and some require a room deposit.

Location Challenges 

If you know you are hitting the road and will be somewhere, not close to home for longer than a week or two, knowing what's available in that area can really help. Here is a list of things you should look up in the place you are staying before you get there. Make arrangements prior to getting there if you can, but certainly do it as soon as possible.

• Temporary Vet
• Temporary daycare/boarding facility/groomer
• List of local pet friendly parks & off leash parks
• Pet ordinances (especially for breed restricted places)

 

Additional Tips For Safe Dog Travel

- Travel with a med bag specifically for the dogs. Pack any wound products you have available. Here is a good list for a doggie first aid kit.

- Travel with any tags or pet records you have. The more complete the better.

- Bring multiple leashes and leads. I travel with regular leashes, a y-leash, and two harness leads. You never know when something will break.

- Bring a small toy bag or purchase additional toys on arrival. This keeps them busy and ignoring the hotel furniture and pillows.

- Get a Barkbox subscription! You can update the address monthly, if needed. I've had them mailed to my hotel room. Monthly treats and toys keep coming and I don't have to think about picking things up for them when I'm on a tight schedule.

- Set a routine immediately. Figure out the walking routes around your hotel/corporate apartment.
 Figure out where the poop stations are. Figure out the best routes through your hotel to help your pups stay calm during high traffic times at the hotel.
(Special note for boy dogs: change up what bush they pee on. If you are there for a while, it becomes noticeable over time as the bush does start wilting and turning yellow way before it should.)

Remember to always do the best you can!

Deaf Dogs - Love And Challenges

Deaf Dog Awareness Week: September 18-24th

There are some days that I'm a big fan of Lily being deaf. Loud noises, thunderstorms, upstairs neighbors moving around, none of those seemed to bother her like it bothers other dogs.

Flashing lights, quick movements, and being in total darkness does.

Separation anxiety is somewhat common for deaf dogs. They learn to trust their humans and learn how things work from the human they associate with the most. Leaving to go to work became a daily ritual of treats, coaxing into a crate, and standing outside of the apartment door hoping today would be better and she wouldn't start barking non-stop for two hours. I know it was two hours because neighbors would come and tell me this, and I would apologize since there was really nothing I could do but keep working with her to make her feel more comfortable about being home alone.

Lily is pretty loud when she barks. The bark is high pitched as well. It seems to be missing more of the vocal range that one might hear in an adult dog. I have a theory that because she's mostly deaf, she's probably mimicking barking as best she can with what she can hear of herself. Some dogs adjust to this quickly and don't mind it. Others sense it as a weakness.

Over the last few years, she's had problems with other female dogs. The only fight she ever got in with a male was over a tennis ball he was obsessing over, and she stole it.

I've been socializing her since she was eight months old. It was my hope that this might counteract some of the breed instinct Kelpies have. This means I also have to watch my behavior around her in social situations. Especially now that she's an adult dog. If we go to dog parks, I don't sit down. I keep moving around the park. This is even more important when the number of dogs in the park is high compared to the amount of space. Working dog breeds need a lot of space. They are wired to roam with herds, so it's much easier for them to deal with other dogs in big spaces. If I do sit, it's far away from other owners in the park. It stinks for social reasons, but I've learned over time, the moments that I do sit and other dogs or owners are in the area, Lily becomes overly protective of me and this as resulted in some minor scuffles, mostly with other females.

I didn't always have to do this. It's the result of her maturing into an adult dog which made things a little more difficult for her. As a pup, older dogs were generally protective of her or wanted to play. When she reached about one and half years, I noticed a shift in attitude and behavior of other dogs towards her. From what I understand, this is not an uncommon thing for dogs in general. In Lily's case, it was a little harder for her to understand. She socialized easily, and still does, but now, there is an underlying instinct I've seen in some situations where if she thinks the other dog might jump, she'll react first. Sometimes I've been able to grab her before it gets too serious and other times, I've not been so lucky.

This might sound a little hokey but I also pay attention to the energy in the park. Excited, nervous and frustrated energy does not work well with Lily. She's an extremely empathetic dog. She's extremely good at picking up on my emotions even before I'm fully aware of them. Because of the sense she lacks, she's more quick to react on emotional instinct, either ignoring or not trusting other social queues. Also, I've had to learn when she and Bear are not comfortable, even if I am. I've been in a park no more than 10 minutes and left because of the energy levels and how my dogs were reacting to it.

We have developed hand signs between the two of us over the last few years which she has taken to fairly well. I don't think any of it's ASL. It's mostly signs between us that I think are obvious. Like "blanket" - I hold my two hands up like I'm holding a sheet of paper at the corners. She knows I am talking about her little squares of fabric she likes to tote around the house.

Another sign she picked up easier than "stop" or "no" was "bad". When we first started working together. I used leash to direct her a lot. Two gentle tugs meant sit, three meant stop/wait, one meant come along. It worked pretty well. I reinforced those commands with a thumb's up, with me saying "Good Girl!" She can't hear me, but my face says a lot. And she's an expert at reading it. Originally, I tried to get her to understand a "no" command, but the slashing hand motion I was using just wasn't clicking. She'd look at my hand, and I'm pretty sure for all the world, she thought I was just playing. It wasn't until I decided to give her a thumb's  down and a pretty serious frown to go with it that she instantly realized that she had done something I didn't like. Opposites. She got that pretty fast. This became "bad".

"Leave it" command was a little more complicated as I mimed a dropping motion, then an index finger pointing up to indicate I wanted her attention. "Drop" she figured out, but it takes a while if she's in a playful mood. "Leave it" was slightly more complicated. It was made simpler by training, adding a "stop" like gesture for the "Stay" command right after the "Leave it" command.

It was much easier for her to understand "Leave it" after Bear came to live with us. I think she understood it before, but when the other dog in the pack has worse impulse control than she does, and she get lots of praise for not going after the treat immediately, you can see the little light bulb come on in her head when she does the training exercises.

There is a ton of information on the web for owners and disabled dogs. Deaf Dogs Rock is great for reading up on techniques, advice and even adopting deaf dogs. If you have any other websites you'd like to recommend, feel free to leave them in the comments!

National Dog Day - And My New Blog Launches!

Hello Reader!

I'm sure this will be the first of many blog posts about my dogs and their antics. Also other information about groups and training ideas I read or practice on a daily basis. I've wanted to write/talk about my experiences with my two rescue pups for a while. I talk a lot about them to people who will listen, mostly patient friends and family.

First, this is not a perfect dog owner blog. I am not a perfect person and I'm sure, much like life, I don't do exactly the right things all the time. My pups are very forgiving of my failures thankfully. As they are sitting in my home office with me, relaxing in the morning sun, they probably don't care too much what I do as long a I'm near, they have food and water and a doggie door to run in and out of.

Let me introduce you to these fuzzballs of awesome:

LILY (Mouse)

At about 8 mo. old

 This crazy ball of fluff is an Aussie Cattle Kelpie/Jack Russel mix. She's also mostly deaf. I say mostly because she does respond to loud noise in some instances and I've whistled at times and it appears she might hear that as well. I know for a fact that she picks up on vibrations better than some humans.

I've had her since she was six months old. A friend of mine in Dallas couldn't keep her and pretty much the moment I saw the adorable face, I fell in love.  Her original name was Mouse. I changed it to Lily to match her ears, plus, I call her Lily Mouse sometimes. It fits.

It was a hard few weeks. I hadn't had a puppy in almost 30 years and she was smart, very smart, willful and so full of energy, I wasn't sure I would be able to keep up.

For example, she would go to doggy daycare three days a week, and on the off days, a dog walker would pick her up and take her to a park for a hour. I did this because I was working 8-10 hr days and didn't want her at home in a crate the whole time with the amount of energy she had. Even after all of that, she would come home, eat dinner and happily spend three more hours running around the small dog area the apartment complex had. She still had energy to spare.

I even broke down crying at one point early on from frustration.
Mostly it was a communication barrier, and

Lily, 4 - 2016

it took time, like anything does, to develop trust and get her to associate my hand signals for commands.

 With her though, it was more like requests. I couldn't command her to do anything. She either does it, or not. Thankfully, I learned pretty quickly what this dog will do for cheese, liver, duck and peanut butter. Apples are right out, along with carrots and most green things, except green bean crisps - lightly salted.

Over time, we learned each other. The last few years, she has been a constant joy in my life. We've had moments of bewilderment and misunderstandings, but she's very happy either running around a dog yard or sitting at home with me watching TV and resting her head on my lap.

I can't imagine what life would be like without her. I've been on trips halfway around the world, and people take care of her always commenting on how good she is and how well behaved. I keep wondering if we are talking about the same dog, or if she really is that good, like when you sent the kids to grandma's for the week. Instead of coming back all sugared up, she's pooped out from playing. I completely accept this trade-off.

Bear

I found Bear, I think, because the universe has a way of moving and you either pay attention or you don't. I wasn't in a great place the day I saw his rap sheet. It was raining. I had just broken up with my boyfriend about a week prior. My brother's birthday was the next day, and I was missing him more than usual. He passed in 1998 from injuries sustained in a car wreck we were both in.

It was also National Adoption Day/Weekend. A large number of the shelters in the area were in the parking lot of Pet Smart. Volunteers were frantically trying to get animals out of the rain, which was one of the typical Texas down pours. I was originally going to get crafting supplies, or that was the idea. I was going to take out my feelings via hot glue and glitter (don't judge, besides, it's fun!). But instead, I walked towards the cordoned off area where all of the animals were being kept. I walked from one group to the next. No one stopped me. I had my hood up. I was getting wet. I didn't care. The animals were a little panicked and I kinda felt like most of them. Out of place and unwanted.

I was just about to leave when one lady from the Georgetown Animal Shelter stopped me and asked if she could help me with anything thing. I had been wanting a second dog for a while. Lily was OK with other females most days, but some dogs didn't like her because of the deafness, and the odd way she barks. I've seen dogs look at her funny. I've seen people look at her funny for that matter. Either they like her or they just don't.  So, I had a good idea what kind of dog I was looking for. I replied to the lady, "I want a male Aussie Cattle, preferably about 1 to 2 years old and good with other dogs." She immediately said, "That's Bear."

My eyes went wide. I've looked before and while there are a lot of Aussie Cattle dogs in the shelters, most of them are less than a year old, most of them are females and most of them are really headstrong and don't do well with other dogs. Especially Kelpies. That sub-breed is known for being very protective of owners, livestock and kids.

Bear wasn't there in the area at the parking lot. But they showed me his picture and basically the ad you see here. I didn't get crafting supplies that day. I got back in my car and drove to the shelter to meet him.

Once I got there, I went to the office and they knew which dog I was asking for. I was introduced and he was bouncy, dragging the poor volunteer behind him and excited to go to the play yard. He got there, immediately ran around peeing on every tree there as I watched. He came back up to us and I was coached through the two commands he knew. Come and Sit. He barely did the first for me, and the second one he did only after I repeated myself with a little firmer voice. There was a sliver of trust there. I didn't want to make the wrong choice though. I left and said I would be back with Lily to see how the meet and greet went.

I brought Lily back the next day, about an hour before the place closed. She and I went to the back to the play yard while the volunteer got Bear. We let them meet each other and it went well, or as well as can be expected. Lily was nervous with all the smells and in a strange place. She wasn't keen on being friendly just at that moment. Bear wanted to play though. He did play bowing and dancing trying to get her to engage and Lily just kinda sat there. It wasn't the worst thing that could have happened, but it wasn't a bad start.

We finally dropped the leashes and let them wander around the yard together. Bear kept his distance at first, letting her wander around the yard smelling things. He tried to play with her again, and she ignored him mostly. Bear was learning what it was like to be with a deaf dog. This didn't deter him though. He kept trying to play bow, and get her attention. Eventually, when none of the other stuff worked, he picked up her leash and jogged her around the yard. He didn't drag her, just jogged. She had no choice but to follow and she did. She caught up with him and they ran most of the yard before he dropped the leash.

The volunteer and I stood there stunned, watching. And he did it a second time. I remember them running and then I remember Bear dropping the leash again, and Lily came to me. Winded, and in good spirits. Bear stayed towards the center of the yard. I looked at the volunteer next to me and that was it. Bear was mine and Lily's from that point on. I picked him up the next day. They have been two peas in a pod ever since.

That was September 2014. The last two years has seen us three through a lot of adventures. I'm looking forward to even more as time goes on.