Success for yearly shots!

So about a month ago, Theo had his yearly checkup and shots.  He was suppose to get 3 shots, a nasal  shot, and blood work.  None of it happened.  We started by looking (or should I say, trying to look) at his ears. We had to muzzle him and it still didn’t go well.  We had given him some treats previously to putting the muzzle on, and he got so worked up that he threw up - with the muzzle on, and then more when we took the muzzle off.

That was that.  Since he was so worked up, we ended the visit and went out to dinner.  We are so lucky that our vet is also a good friend, so we always end up hanging out afterwards.

Today was the 2nd try and we also gave him Xanax to help calm him down.  I’m not sure if it helped or not.  We did get the 3 shots in and decided to pass on the heartworm check since we are deligent at giving him his meds.  The nasal shot didn’t go as planned.  He was on to us.  We decided to let us try to give him the shot after they left - thinking he would calm down and we would be able to get the syringe at least close to his nose.

It didn’t get any easier.  He still gave us a hard time, but we think we got the medicine in.  Not sure how much, but hopefully at least enough.  It’s for kennel cough, which is an optional shot anyway.  It just is dependent on if you board your dog.

Poor pup is sore in the shot area and is restless.  Dan has touched his back where the shots were given (not even thinking about it) and he’s yelped.

It’s bedtime now, so hopefully, he’ll sleep and feel better tomorrow.

Our Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve day is full of cooking, an early dinner, and opening presents.

We always start out day with making knots and zeppole (or at least what we call zeppole).  Our fryer was done last year. We got it as a wedding gift (I think), so it was like 20 years old.  It was getting so hot and the temperature gauge did not work.

Early this year, we purchased an air fryer.  It works ok with certain things - like French fries and a couple of recipes that are made for it, but today, we really wanted it to work for knots and zeppole.

We had two fails.

The first was using gluten free flour for the knots.  It did NOT work well two fold.  First the flour isn’t the same consistency as regular flour when it comes to making the dough for the knots.  It took awhile to be able to make knots.  Next fail was the air fryer.  It didn’t work at all.  I put little balls of dough in it to try it out and put the time to the same as doughnuts.  They were cooked, but it tasted bland.  It tasted a little better with the cinnamon-sugar on it, but still didn’t taste the same.

So to the back up plan.  Old school oil heated up in a pan.  Then they came out a little better.  They cooked better, browned, and then added the cinnamon-sugar.  Success.

The rest of dinner went well - the zeppole went well, the spaghetti and the oranges.

Presents went well.  Theo has a wonderful first Christmas.  He loved all of his presents - 3 toys and a bunch of treats.

Dan got candy and 2 TV seasons of a show he wanted - Ash vs Evil Dead, plus I got him some Star Wars sleepwear. He got me a Shar-Pei book that I wanted and a window cling that says I love my Shar-Pei, along with a bracelet, a scarf/wrap and some candy canes, fruit and peanuts.

Tomorrow will be cinnamon rolls for breakfast and Chinese for lunch!

Settling in nicely

Theo is doing great!  He is totally at home with us and loves meeting other people and dogs.  The dog part he just kind of sniffs and I can't tell if he is ok with the dog or not.

Today was the first day I actually saw him wag his tail after sniffing another dog.  It was a puppy, so maybe that's why.

Yesterday, I came home to find the TV remote on the floor.  I think I probably had it on the couch and he pulled it off.  In the process, he turned on the TV (without the cable).

Also yesterday, he got to meet Esa's boyfriend, Moby.  Like I mentioned, I can't tell if he liked him or not.  I also got to introduce him to Kurt, our neighbor who has a lab (Xena), who Theo had met on the weekend.

The biggest introduction was to Chrissie and David Casey - Chrissie is/will be Theo's doctor, so they came over to see Theo as a family friend before poking and prodding him.  He was all over both Chrissie and David, so hopefully he will be ok when Chrissie comes in as the doctor.

A couple of days ago, we got the harness out to see if he would be ok with it.  It was tough the first time putting it on.  He wasn't sure about it, but he didn't growl or anything.  He just wouldn't keep still.  Now, he's doing great putting the harness on - even when we have issues with hooking it (when it doesn't line up right, it gets stuck).  He does so much better on walks with the harness.  He was kind of choking himself with the pulling of the leash with his collar.  He still needs to work on the loose leash, but he is getting there.

We are so happy with him.  He is so calm and fits right into our life.  He doesn't mind us touching him anywhere.  He loves to mouth/gum your hand in play, so we need to watch his mouth because when he gets wound up, he goes right for your hand - still only mouthing, but he doesn't know when to stop.

Busy Friday Meeting New People

Friday was a very busy day for Theo. We had a bunch of people come by the house.

First up was Holli with Compassion Speaks. Holli is an animal communicator.  I had a feeling she wouldn't really be able to tell me anything that we didn't kind of already know, BUT I got to hear Theo's side of the story.

 

Next up was my friend, Suzanne, and her husband Mike.  Suzanne has always been the first visitor when we brought home a baby.  Theo did a great job with everyone visiting.  He started to get crazy with Suzanne and Mike after they were here for awhile. 

 

He LOVED the toy they brought him.

Then LATE last night, he got to meet his cousin Vinnie and girlfriend, Britney.  

Oh, he also got to meet some neighbors. He met Elijah from next door, and Shelby (golden/shepherd) and her mom, Erica. Theo has met quite a few kids in the neighborhood that we don't know and has done really well.  We visited our neighbor, Lisa, who I knew would love to meet him

Today, he met Abby and her family. He did great with Abby (anitoliane), and the kids. We are hoping they become good friends.

We've made it through 3 days!

It seems like Theo has been with us for longer than 3 days.  He has totally settled in.

Sunday afternoon, we went for a family walk and met some neighbors that we didn't know.  Monday I stayed home and made sure he was doing ok.  Tuesday, we met a neighborhood kid and he did fine. We met a dog that I didn't know and he did fine.  Also on Tuesday I had a meeting in the morning so Theo was left alone for 2 hours and NOTHING! He was ok!

Today, we had a delivery and he was fine with the guys.  We kept him outside and then Dan took him for a walk.  This afternoon, we walked over to our neighbor's house, who I knew would love to meet him.  He was great.

Theo is a great dog.  We can put our hand down by his food, we can play and put our face down by his.

He is so laid back.  During the time I work, he just hangs out on the couch.  I think this was meant to be.

The day is finally here.....

The last month as been so emotional.  We have been stalking rescue websites for the last couple of months, but within the last month, we have actually been going to see dogs.

We knew we wanted a pup that is totally different looking than Esa or Zed - even though we are partial to huskies, shepherds, and terriers.  We knew we didn't want a golden retriever, a pitbull, or Australian shepherd.  We just waited to see what came to us.  We knew when we saw the pup, we would know.

It all started with me seeing a puppy online at Wolf Trap Animal Rescue.  I felt the same way I felt when I saw the picture of Esa.  I had sent in an application on a Monday and followed up with an e-mail to see what the next step would be (if we would be able to meet her or the next step in the adoption process).  I got an e-mail back saying that she would be at the public adoption which is first come, first serve and suggested that we get there by 9 am (on the website, it says 11 am, adoptions start at 12 noon).  So, Saturday, we headed out to Tyson's Corner and got there right at 9 am.

We were 3rd on the list, and then when we were asked what puppy, we were once again, 3rd on the list for the same pup.  We waiting and waited - along with tears from me.  We asked about the process.  Basically they just look over the application, and you get the pup - no what is best for the pup, who would give it the best home.  So of course she was taken by the first person (who got there at like 7 am when the store opened).

The next day, we went to Petsmart in Casacdes to visit Lost Dog rescue.  I needed to it get over the previous day's emotional rollercoaster.  We did see one dog that was really nice, but he was getting over a surgery on his leg.  But, not the dog calling to us.  None of the dogs (except one) that we were looking at on the website were there.  There was one dog that I was interested in looking at was there.  He was nice, but not the one.

The next weekend we went to Homeward Trails.  Had a couple of dogs in mind that we saw on the website.  They have a lot of dogs that are from the meat trade circle.  There was one dog that we really liked.  We walked away to think about it, and she was adopted.

During this whole time, I have been following Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue on Facebook.  It's a new rescue, and the dogs have been pulled from Texas and Florida high kill shelters.  A lot of them have medical issues, but there were several dogs we were interested in visiting (you could not visit until you have submitted an application).  So the next Tuesday, I was planning on sending in the application.  Low and behold, one of the rescues had puppies that were a surprise - and when would they be 8 weeks - a week after my birthday.  I went ahead and submitted an app.

We also had been looking at Friends of Homeless Animals.  They are also a rescue that you have to submit the application before visiting the first time.  The next Sunday, (the 5th) we went there with our list of dogs who we wanted to see.  Several of them were immediately taken off because the group was afraid that the dog would jump our 4 foot fence.  We walked around and got a couple of different dogs that we decided to look at.  The first dog we looked at (that wasn't on our original list) was Bobby.  Our first dog on our list, Quincy, was out on a walk when we asked to see him.  Bobby was FULL of energy.  We played "fetch" (or at least throw the ball) with him.  He wouldn't drop the ball at all.  Liked him, but a little too much energy.

We then saw Quincy.  He was great on the leash and was a little playful on the walk (a little bit of the zooms), then we went into a play area.  He was just kind of walking around in the play area, but played with us and a toy.  We really liked him for decided to ask about the next steps.

We sat down and had our interview and then decided to think about it overnight because we had an appointment for a house visit from Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue.  So I wanted to wait and see what happened with that visit.  We (or should I say I) didn't know if we wanted a puppy or something a little older.

So after thinking about the pros and cons of a puppy vs. an older dog and then the pros and cons of getting a shar pei, we decided to go with Quincy!


Thursday night, we had our house visit and today, he is HOME.