One Step Forward, Three Back

Last night I picked up Sparky. I will be taking care of her along with Sally for a few weeks. Sparky is the opposite of Sally. She is energetic, enthusiastic, and playful. Her tail wags high and she lives life to the fullest.

After giving her a needed bath, I put the two dogs together and all was well. Sparky was more aggressive which I figured, but soon pulled away to do her own thing. Sally responded OK.

When I got home however, Sally had squirted in the shower. I thought we were over this! I did give her some of my spare rib the other night which had a lot of fat so I hope that was it. Then I woke up this morning and more mess. YUCK!

Sally was outside in her crate today but at noon it was 100 and much too hot, so I put a towel over the bathroom window to keep any heat and sun out in the bathroom where she is resting...or nesting in her case.

Sparky on the other hand is snoozing. She snores and gained some weight since I last took care of her. She's chunky now and I like it. I will shed the pounds by walking her. Her owners are well intentioned, but with two little kids in the house Sparky gets the short end.

Hopefully the mixture of both dogs will be positive for Sally who needs to relax and feel much more secure.

Postive Progress

Lots of progress w/Sally. I was housesitting for a month and she adapted well to the new house. She still likes to nest in her favorite places--bathroom shower, couch or under a tree outside.

The diarrhea issue got bad. One day she squirted six times! That was a lot of clean-up!!!

She will now go for a walk without dragging and trying to get back to her nesting area. This is a huge move forward. She still does not move from her nesting area and has to be picked up for tugged. In the early morning she is tired and easily gets up to go outside.

No more squirts...her stools are normal and I fell like a proud parent at her poops. Silly, but after all we've been through it's satisfying to know she isn't really sick.

I feed her at night in order for her to digest and then in the morning let her out. I was so paranoid I'd get up and find her all messy that I tried the night feeding and it is working.

She still has a long way to go but the progress is nice. She doesn't give back much like a normal 8 month old pup. Sally has a cat temperament. I am hoping that will change and she will get over her nerves. Some days she acts like we just met which is humbling.