Cold Blooded Killers

So now, here’s what happened with the squirrel, as told by MissMuddyPaws (aka Lydia):

Milly saw a squirrel in some underbrush and chased it up a tree. Having always loved chasing and treeing squirrels, and having never caught one, I used this as the perfect opportunity to snap some pictures and watch her play. I’m not sure if something was wrong with the squirrel, or if it had weak nails, or just picked the wrong tree – but while Milly was attempting to climb the tree/barking at squirrel I noticed the squirrel was only half way up the tree trunk. This is a really tall pine – probably 70 feet or higher – and the branches are not until the very top, so the squirrel is clinging to the side of the trunk. The next thing I notice, the squirrel has gone around to the other side of the trunk, Milly and Hush follow, at which point I think to myself what the hell is going through this squirrel’s mind? Why doesn’t he just climb the tree. I decide maybe the squirrel is tried and scared, call the dogs to me, and we head down towards the creek. The next thing I know, both dogs have taken off and are back at the squirrel tree. Then, I see the squirrel. It was like in his little brain he decided the only way out was down, and he could run sideways and fast, and leap into the tree beside the one he was in for better coverage.

At this point, everything goes into slow motion – like I’m watching some predator show on the Discovery Channel and they are slowing down the antelope being attacked by the Mountain Lion.

As if on the count of 3, the squirrel leaps to the ground and starts high tailing (no pun intended) away. Had it just been Milly, he probably could have gotten away. But it was 2 against 1. Once again, like it was some Discovery Channel predator moment, Hush and Milly team up – they move as one. While one chases, the other corners, while one blocks the front, the other closes in on the rear. It was the most natural, effortless, and graceful thing I have ever witnessed. With no way out, Milly pounced onto the squirrel, grabbing him in her mouth on the first try. Proudly she flings her head about, like Miss America immediately after crowning, she has tried for this moment her entire life, and never thought she would be here. Meanwhile, a tear is trickling down my face. I start franticly yelling, “Milly, Drop it!”

I know Milly, and I know she has a soft mouth. This squirrel is alive and alright, as long as she drops it. The next thing I see was heartbreaking. Hush playfully grabs onto the other half of the squirrel, and they begin tossing it about, playing tug of war with it. I want to vomit, and I’m praying they’ve broken its neck. The situation has gone from surreal Discovery Channel to horrifying murder.

Hush wins the tug of war, and they drop the squirrel, but continue to ignore me. I suddenly remember the one surefire way to get a solid recall out of them is to walk away, making them think I am leaving them. I head down the hill towards the creek and dog park, if I can just get them far enough away from this squirrel they will be distracted by the creek. I turn around to see Hush running full-steam ahead right at me… the squirrel hanging from her mouth. I know at this point I should have stood my ground. I should have called her over, made her sit, and removed the squirrel from her mouth. But, I didn’t. I couldn’t.

Instead, I run the opposite direction, flailing my arms about, as she playfully prances behind me flaunting her new possession. My heart is racing. I want to cry and vomit simultaneously. Luckily, Hush has a short attention span – she drops the squirrel and bounds over to people playing in the creek. At this point, Milly is at my side, I grab her collar, and walk her to the creek. The squirrel seemed to be dropped on the edge of the woods, it looked dead in Hush’s mouth; we’ll just leave it there.

That would have been find, had the lab that was playing in the creek with Milly and Hush, yes, the one keeping their minds off the squirrel, not taken off running. A game of chase started, but Milly made a b-line for the squirrel, now the lab is chasing Milly. I look up to see something hanging from her mouth. I yell, “Milly, DROP IT!” And, somehow, SHE LISTENS. The squirrel tumbles from her mouth and she obediently trots over to me. It isn’t moving, I sigh in relief knowing it is dead, and hope it has been dead this whole time.

At this point, the lab’s owner has gotten to his dog; the squirrel is in the lab’s jaws of steel. I grab my dogs’ collars, and head in the opposite direction, putting on their leashes. The dead squirrel now becomes the lab owner’s problem.

We amble away, and I look down and notice blood on Milly’s muzzle. I think it is blood from the squirrel, because Milly is completely un-phased... so I walk down to the creek and let her splash about in it. There is now more blood. Crap.

I wipe the drool off of her muzzle and see two small puncture wounds. My mind starts racing as I think when her last rabies vaccine was, and whether or not I’ve heard of squirrels carrying diseases. I know she isn’t due for rabies for over a year, but draw a blank on illnesses. We head back home, I use the hose outside to lightly rinse the area, head inside, clean it with betadine and e-mail the vet.

“Apply pressure to stop the bleeding. Clean it with Betadine. Keep an eye on it, and if there are puncture wounds she may need to come in for antibiotics.” $$$$’s, The Vet.

I've continued to clean the wound. The swelling is gone, and I'm keeping an eye on the way it looks (and smells)... so far, it is healing nicely, so hopefully a trip to the vet will not be necessary.

Stop and Smell the Roses

Over the weekend, Hush and I took a few really long walks. At one point, it got really hot, so we found a clean part of the creek, and I let her get her paws wet. Dogs "sweat" through their paws (they don't actually sweat, but they release heat through their paws), and wading in a nice cool stream can really help them cool off. I try not to let her drink out rivers and streams, but I couldn't pour her portable water fast enough! So here is my little troll under the bridge.


After we played troll under the bridge, we continued on our walk until we got to one of Arlington County's many, many, many parks. This particular park has lovely rose gardens, and beautiful benches where you can sit and relax. We walked around the gardens, sat on a bench, picked and shared blackberries, and then took a nap in the grass together under a large shady tree.



Hush is a big fan of roses. First she wanted to smile with the pretty pink ones. Don't you just love this picture? When I showed it to her breeder she was blown away by how beautiful Hush is looking. She just gets better every single day!



But, Hush still does not have a very long attention span, so it did not take long before she was sick of playing photo shoot amongst the pink florals. Next we came to the yellow ones, and she decided it was time to stop and smell the roses. Of course, with all this trolling, posing and sniffing... we were exhausted. So, we collapsed in a ball of Lydiahushness under a big oak tree, and didn't wake up for over an hour! When we woke up there was a snow cone truck parked on the side of the road, so I bought us each a snow cone. Hush has hers with no flavoring, just shaved ice, but she doesn't seem to mind, and the snowcone salesperson usually discounts hers since there is no flavoring on it. You have to be careful feeding frozen treats or ice cubes, because of bloat, but the occassional frozen goodie is safe... just make sure you supervise your dog, and your dog does not eat the shaved ice too quickly.

Eye Exam

I’ve been so busy lately that I rarely have time to post. A few months ago Hush had an encounter with an insect on a hike and her face swelled up like a balloon. It was incredibly scary, and the normal Benedryl routine did not work. Her face continued to swell, her lips were so puffy I measured them at 1.5 inches wide, and we rushed to the vet.

That afternoon, I had taken Hush and Milly on a short hike in the woods at lunch, as I do almost every day. After our hour long wooded jaunt, I gave her water, brushed her coat, and put her back in her crate and returned to my office. When I came home after work, about 2 hours later, I noticed her eyes seemed red and funny looking, almost droopy. I gave her Benedryl, and kept an eye on her, but when I noticed she was getting much worse and her face was rapidly swelling I headed to the vet. At the vet, I was told it was a good thing I brought Hush in, because if the swelling had continued her airway may have become obstructed. The vet gave her more a Benedryl injection, some steroids, and sent us home with instructions to give her Benedryl (2 pills x2 daily for one week). The swelling immediately went down. Within two days the only trace of the reaction was her red and droopy eyes.

Fast forward a few weeks, and the eyes still had not cleared up. Because Hush is a show dog, and I plan on breeding her at some point (after she has passed her clearances), I did not want to mess around with vision and made an appointment with a veterinary ophthalmologist. She had a complete eye exam – they dilated her eyes and examined them just like a human retina specialist would – and was given a clean bill of health. Her eye problem is a non-contagious form of conjunctivitis, and not at all serious. Hush was prescribed a month of eye drops, and we left the vet relieved this was not a major health problem. The vet assured me this will in no way hurt Hush's vision, thank heavens!

Well, that was 6 weeks ago, and her eyes have not changed at all. So, it is time to head back to the ophthalmologist. Unfortunately, she is out of town for the next few weeks so we won’t be seen until June 2^nd, and now I need to decide if I should take her to a regular vet in the meantime, or just wait it out. I’m eager to get this taken care of, first off, because conjunctivitis can’t be comfortable, though Hush doesn’t seem to notice. And secondly, the red droopy eyes are unattractive, so our dog showing is on-hold until this has cleared up.

Heroic Dog Used in Bin Laden Compound Raid

With Bin Laden's death, many people are praising the brave Navy Seals who risked their lives for our freedom. But, it's important not to forget the brave canines who took part in this historical event.

I encourage you all to read this incredible article about a Military Dog used in the Bin Laden compound raid. If I wear a Seal, I'd be proud to have this dog serving alongside me! The respect and trust he shares with his handlers is incredible!

K9 Data

I cropped this picture and used it as her K9data.com photo!

I’ve mentioned K9 Data in previous posts, often during my hunt for the right puppy or in reference to specific Golden Retrievers, but realized I’ve failed to really discuss the website and database as a whole. And what better time, than just days after I created Hush’s K9data.com page! As she obtains health clearances (both preliminary and final) as well as titles I will update the page to reflect that. Many people feature win photos or cute candids on their dogs’ pages. I don’t have any win photos, so I went with a recent picture of Hush retrieving in a river. I love her expression in the picture, and it really does a great job of capturing her head, which is one of her stronger features. As we accomplish more I will most likely change the picture.

K9 Data is an excellent user-created resource of pedigrees of thousands of Golden and Labrador Retrievers. The website enables users (you must register) to create pages on dogs, upload pictures, and link to pertinent health clearances. K9 Data is NOT a registry. Registries are organizations like the AKC, CKC, UKC, KC, etc. Many of the dogs on K9data.com are most likely registered with one or more of these registries. For example, Hush is AKC registered, and I have her registration number listed on her K9data page.

With so many Golden Retrievers in the database, it is very easy to use and just knowing the parents of a specific dog will usually generate a full five generation pedigree. Breeders and dog fanciers turn to the website as a way to link all relevant information about their dogs in one place – from clearances to recent titles won – and as a solid tool in creating test breedings. When I learned of Hush’s litter, I created a test breeding to compare this pedigree to the original litter I was supposed to get a puppy from (as you know, the first breeding only resulted in two puppies, neither show quality).

The database can do a lot, to say the least, from pulling up siblings on specific dogs, to running pedigree reports displaying longevity or hip information. If you are an owner of a Golden Retriever or Labrador Retriever, I encourage you to enter your dog’s information.

Child-Proofing Your Canine!

One of the things I like to do with both Milly and Hush is to put them in situations they may encounter with young children. I am 26, almost 27, and I anticipate in Hush’s lifetime I will most likely get married and start a family of my own. In the meantime, many of my friends are getting married and having children, and I have a two year old niece, and another niece on the way. Of course, I am a big advocate of educating children, even toddlers, about animal care and how to treat animals, but there are still certain things that only kids will think to do with a pet.

I remember as a little girl putting Muggins, my Munchkin Cat (a breed of cat with a regular sized body but 2” legs), in a dress and baby bonnet and pushing him around in my doll’s pram. Did this hurt him? No. Did he enjoy it, probably not, but he tolerated it well. I also remember dressing my dog Springdale in Bermuda shorts (the fly made a perfect tail-hole), Hawaiian print shirt, a hat, and oversized sunglasses and having him pull me around in my Radio Flyer red wagon. Again, something most adults would never ask of their dogs, but children might. Along those same lines, I grew up with a Border Collie mix named VT (named because he adopted my brothers and I while we vacationed in Vermont one summer), who I loved to play with. VT was an excellent fort making companion, and together we would spend hours constructing forts out of blankets, pillows, sofa cushions, and cardboard boxes. He was a high energy and high strung dog, but a complete love, and great to play with. When I’d fight with my brothers, I would take VT into the back of my closet, and we’d sit together, crammed into the tiny space, disguised by hanging dresses and boxes of winter clothes. Of course, these probably were not my dogs’ favorite activities, but they relished in the attention, and tolerated my creative childhood antics quite well.

Sometimes, it’s hard for me to think of ways to keep Hush and Milly child-ready. I’ll occasionally dress them up, lightly tug on their ears and tails, use Milly as a pillow while I watch TV (which she loves!), and a few times a week stick my hand in their food bowls while they are eating their dinner. With any new experience or socialization exercise you do with your dog it is important to make it a positive experience. Last Saturday, I had my friends Kyle and Kevin over for a relaxing day of eggs benedict, beer and mimosas, and movies. Neither Kyle nor Kevin had pets growing up, nor do they have pets now, and both are fascinated by dogs, especially Kyle. With limited canine experience, Kyle often suggests things to try with Hush that I, as a dog owner, would never think of. On this particular day, Kyle discovered my yoga balls, and began rolling them around Hush on the floor. At first, she was nervous with balls being rolled towards her, but she quickly realized this was a fun game. While some people might balk at the idea of doing things like this with their dogs, I think it is excellent preparation for when I visit my nieces with the dogs. Content that Hush was in good hands, I went back to cooking and left Kyle and Kevin to amuse themselves with yoga balls and my dogs. When I heard laughter resonating from my bedroom I decided to check on the situation. I found Kyle on the floor, the yoga balls in Hush’s crate, the door to the crate open, and him attempting to coax her into the crate. With no treats, Hush just wagged her tail and looked at him like he was nuts, and the two boys quickly gave up on their creative plan.

In this corner of the crate she could not get around the ball, but the other corner had ample room. I took this picture just before she realized to go to the other side of the crate.

The next night, I was thinking about what they had tried to do with Hush, and it reminded me of my fort building days with VT. I grabbed a big handful of treats, put one yoga ball in the crate, and bribed Hush into it. She happily followed the treats, sniffed the ball wondering why it was in her crate, and settled right in. Next, I took the ball out of the crate, again, rewarded her with treats and praise, and then put the ball back in the crate with her already in it. Once we had mastered the ball in the crate with the smaller of the two yoga balls, I decided to try both in it with her. I let her out of the crate, put the balls in, and encouraged her to “kennel up” with treats. Once she was in the crate with both yoga balls I closed and locked the door. Again, throughout this process I gave her plenty of treats. I would like to preface this with saying the entire experiment was for socialization and to build her confidence, not frighten her, in weird situations. I would never leave her in a crate with yoga balls in it unsupervised, and I was careful to make sure she had fun throughout the process. I was amazed. She seemed confused as to why there were two giant balls in her crate, leaving her little room to move around, but she went along with it beautifully. Once the door to the crate was locked, I praised her again, gave her more treats, snapped a few photos, and removed both her and the yoga balls.

She sniffed the new objects in her crate inquisitively, but was never distressed or nervous.

A lot of times, us humans, get very excited during dog training, especially when our dogs are doing what we’ve asked of them, and seem to be enjoying themselves. It is easy to want to keep going with the training session, and put more challenges in place, and push the dog a bit too far. This is frequently seen with newbies in agility, so impressed with their dog’s willingness, talent, and enjoyment of jumping, the new handler raises the fence height, and wants to keep going. This usually ends badly, with a dog that has been over faced with a new challenge, hitting or refusing the jump, and ending in shattered confidence. Knowing when to stop a training session is just as important as the training itself.

Perfectly content and standing happily with her tail wagging, waiting for more treats, I concluded the socialization experiment on a positive note.

I went into the crate and yoga balls experience with an end goal in mind – get Hush to accept the balls in her crate – and as soon as that was accomplished, I ended the session (with treats and tons of praise). Of course, I was thrilled to see her take to it so quickly, and in my mind wanted to continue with other things a little kid might do, like cover the crate in a blanket, or remove on ball and climb on in there myself. But, I didn’t want to throw too much at her at one time, our goal had been accomplished, and we can now build off of this positive experience in our next socialization training session.

Hush Has Her First Haircut

I have to confess… I have been absolutely terrified to groom Hush. I bathe her, and I trim her nails, but that’s about where I draw the line. I know that Golden Retrievers need regularly trimming – their tails need to be trimmed a certain way, their feet should be trimmed to look neat and tidy and cat like, and their ears should be trimmed to emphasize their heads. I even have excellent step-by-step instructions that are a great starting point for grooming. But, while I’m comfortable doing all of Milly’s grooming and trimming myself, just the thought of raising my thinning shears to Hush’s ears puts a big knot in my stomach!

I do want to learn, but no matter how much I read, I feel that I’m really going to need to learn in a hands-on manner, and no book will show me the proper technique. As a result, anytime I put pictures of Hush on Facebook her breeder always comments “SHE NEEDS TO BE TRIMMED!!!” And, I hang my head in shame, for having the pick of the litter, and being too petrified of messing up to do the necessary trimming.

Before I got Hush, I learned of the Olde Towne School for Dogs, a well-respected training facility, pet boutique, and grooming salon in the heart of Old Town, Alexandria. In fact, this place has such a solid reputation the First Dog, Bo Obama himself, has his spa treatments performed there. But, with celebrity canines and White House woofers frequenting the establishment, getting an appointment is nearly impossible. I’ve been on the waiting list for months, and feared I would never get “the call.” Of course, having researched the place before starting handling class, I needed to confirm this was a solid place to send a show dog. I asked around, and numerous top breeders from a variety of breeds all said, “this is the ONLY place to go with a show dog.”

Well, this afternoon, I got the call! There had been a cancellation, and if I could get Hush there in the next 20-minutes, I had an appointment! My heart skipped a beat, and of course, I said I would be right there. But, I know to be cautious of groomers, so before heading over I printed out my grooming/trimming instructions and brought them with me. Much to my surprise, when I dropped Hush off I was greeted by an old college friend, and fellow Hollins University alum, who explained the owner, is also a Hollins grad!

When I arrived I handed over my instructions, and was told they have excellent groomers, and I need not worry. I explained I had heard nothing but great things, but I wanted to make sure whoever would be trimming Hush was familiar with the breed standard, because she is a show dog. My friend called over the owner to introduce me, and mentioned Hush was a show dog. With this, Hush was immediately swept away, after the owner wrote in huge letters on the grooming sheet, “SHOW DOG!” and assured me only their top groomers, familiar with breed standards, would touch her!

I will post pictures after the appointment!