I'll be home for Christmas....

...if only in my dreams.

Sorry, Bing, but Skywalker isn't dreaming.  He is home for Christmas!

December 17, 2009 is now Skywalker's "Gotcha Day," the day he went to his forever home.

We got up very early that day, not difficult at all for me since I had been preparing for Skywalker for his new home the night before, trembling the whole time, dreading the parting, and then barely slept.  He got a bath and looked more handsome and shiny-coated than ever.  And quite adorable wrapped up in a fleece blankie post-bath.  All the animals seemed to know that a change was pending and they were all quite solemn after a rambunctious day of running in the snow and having "the greatest day ever."  Skywalker had no idea though just how great his life was about to come.

The employees at Alaska Air Cargo in Phoenix were very kind, letting me keep Skywalker out of the crate with me until right before he was to be loaded on the plane.  Naturally, Skywalker was very well behaved and charming so that one of the employees threatened to keep him.  That feeling was nothing compared to mine.  I shook like a leaf and kept whispering to Walker that we still had time to make our escape.  How could I be so stupid to let a wonderful dog like this, once he had been in my life, to leave my life?  Then, I started my foster mantra:  "This is a world-class dog who has been adopted by a lovely family who can offer him even more than me.  If he stays with me, another needy rescue Cairn will be robbed of a foster home to prepare him for his forever family.  It is the cycle.  I must be unselfish."

And, so, I was (barely) able to let Skywalker go.  When he was loaded into the crate on the forklift, he looked at me in panic, scratched the crate door, then laid down and stuck his nose through the wires.  Oh, Skywalker, that started the tears.

Talking to new Dad some hours later reassured me of Skywalker's safe arrival and his immediate confidence, coming out of his crate to greet the family cat and check out his new home.  Wow!  I knew he could do it.

The next day, Skywalker's Dad added icing to the cake by emailing and sending photos!

Skywalker, our beloved first foster, you have left HUGE footprints on all of our hearts.  We are so happy for your new great life.

Meeting a former Col Potter Foster

Today, my foster Skywalker and I stopped by to see friends who just adopted from Col Potter two days ago.  Joey, the former CP foster Jenna, has hit the doggy lottery!

Ms. Joey is already adored completely, has lost no time ruling the roost, freely bestows big kisses on visitors, and is well aware she is about the most precious little Cairn princess on the planet! 

Joey mastered the doggy door immediately, is very active but behaved, and went snowshoeing the very first day in the adjacent National Forest.  (OK, I really don't think Joey snowshoed, just one of her new people, but I bet Joey could snowshoe; she gives the impression of being extremely capable!)


After performing her hostess duties to Skywalker and me, Joey demonstrated how adorable  & important she is by standing on her back paws, little wagging tail straight up,  to look out the windows to survey her Queendom.  She moved next to her throne on the back of the sofa so she could enjoy the mountain views and keep a close eye on the horse next door.  She hasn't met the resident horses yet but I'll bet they will all be friends (and Joey will let them know she is the new boss).

Big thanks to Joey's foster home, the CP volunteers and contributors for making it possible to take this little Cairn into rescue.  And huge thanks to the wonderful couple who gave Joey her forever home!  

Want a dog like Joey?  Go visit the Available Cairns at the Col Potter web site and pick out your little sweetie!

Skywalker is a love bug

For a couple of days, Skywalker has been shy of even me.  Maybe an outgrowth of us all being cooped up in the house due to the blizzard.  Puppy Radley has been a wild man, my patience has run short, and there have been several harsh commands directed at Radley.  Skywalker is usually right there and, of course, he thinks the words are meant for him, too.  But Radley can be SO SO exasperating.  After Newt, I swore I would never get another puppy, only older dogs.  Why oh why did I fall off the wagon again?  Must be those silly looking little Cairn puppies that just make me all woozy with love!

Flagstaff was a bone-chilling -10^o this morning.  Skywalker and Radley didn't seem to care but bad mom still hasn't found fleece jackets that fit them and I was afraid for them to be out too long.  I called them back in and started a fire in the woodstove.  With it being so cold, it figured the fire was hard to start this morning.  The patience was tried as I squatted and squatted in front of the stove, knees screaming.  And then there was the persistent nudge nudge nudge on my back.  Skywalker was there and he got a quick skritch.  Back to the fire.  Nudge nudge nudge.  Skritch.  Fire. Nudge.  Well, I finally caught on.  I sat down on the floor, Skywalker crowded into my lap, cautiously keeping the back legs on the floor, and we had a regular love fest.  Then Bad Rad, the jealous monster, crowded in, pushing out Walker.  Rad got pushed out, Walker pulled in, etc etc.  I growled out Rad and he backed off for a minute or so.  Then he started nipping Walker on the back legs.  That ended the love session but Rad kept torturing Walker with rough play.  Out comes the spray bottle, here comes the time out.

The rest of the morning, Skywalker has been so sweet to me, nudging me, putting his paws on my knees, wagging his tail furiously.  This boy needs a home without a jealous monster, without 6 other animals competing for attention.  He wants animal companionship, too, but this zoo is just overwhelming him.

Handsome young Cairn in need of loving home needing handsome young Cairn!

Get your application in to Col Potter today because we have lots of little Cairns like this hoping to go "Home for the Holidays."

Skywalker is ready to find his special home

It breaks my heart but also makes it soar.  Skywalker is ready to find his forever home.  He loves us, we love him, but he needs his own special home and we need to be ready to take in a more needy foster dog.

Skywalker went to a boarding kennel for two nights, along with resident Cairns, Radley and Miss Parker.  His special needs were made known and when I came to pick him up, Skywalker was best friends with the male kennel owner!  He had also captured the heart of the female kennel owner.  Oh, yeah.  They said Radley and Parker were good, too! 

Going home, Skywalker didn't have to ride in his crate and, boy, he was one happy dog!  Riding in cars is good!  Since then, he has been much more confident.  If he is let into the yard, he comes in without hesitation when called, sure he will get outside again.

Such bittersweet (for me) strides in adopting to his new life of freedom.  I hope someone adopts him before my love gets too deep.

Be Still My Heart

Wow. Wow. Wow.  I am just so excited and the news has to be published!

Once it warmed up, the dogs wanted out again.  I took a deep breath, told myself Skywalker is so good, and let him out for the first time without a trailing leash.  You could tell he was ecstatic!

Later, I glanced out the window and saw that Walker appeared to be chewing on something while Radley patiently watched.  Dang, he must have a prairie dog or some other disgusting carrion.  I rushed out only to find that Skywalker had... A TOY!  He was playing with a toy for the very first time!  Squeaking away on Rad's favorite toy while Rad watched.   A quick shot (above) before Skywalker, as always, rushed over to me barely shows the toy between his paws.

And if the first toy wasn't tear-jerking enough, just now I looked out the window and Skywalker was asleep in the sun, his head laying on the toy. 

Wow.  Fostering is great.

Little joys and big heartbreak

Two nights ago we decided to see if Skywalker would sleep all night in his crate with the door open.  He did!  Admittedly, his crate is within an ex-pen (a wire portable exercise surround with no top), but Skywalker and my Radley are adept at scaling ex-pens when they want to, so Walker staying in his crate and his ex-pen all night I consider a huge step forward.  Especially since the crate is on the side of the bed where Evil Foster Dad sleeps.

Skywalker was very shy last night when I had company, including another of those very scary baseball cap wearing men, and he immediately and hastily trotted back to the bedroom and into his ex-pen. (The doors  on both his inside ex-pens are left open during the day so he can go into his sanctuaries as he pleases.)  After company left, I went back to the bedroom and Walker was lying quietly in a niche between the crate and the armoire, probably trying to hide the view of Evil Foster Dad sitting in the chair doing some reading for work.  Skywalker looked very comfortable, even with Foster Dad there. I found one of our incredible number of fleece pads, picked up Skywalker, and put the blankie down for him.  He settled right back in and promptly went to sleep.  When we were ready to go to sleep, I closed the ex-pen door but decided to let Skywalker sleep next to his open crate (oops, breaking those Foster Home rules again).  He stayed quietly on the blanket all night!  Paul and I were so excited because we realized this is probably the first time in his life that Skywalker didn't sleep in a cage or crate!  He got to camp out!  This won't be Skywalker's new routine for night but he succeeded brilliantly in this new step forward in exploring freedom.

It was bitterly cold this morning, 5 degrees, when we first let the dogs out at 6 am for their morning "dookies."  Wasn't too hard to get them back in for breakfast!  I built a fire in the wood stove so they could all gather around. Even the pseudo-tough barn cats (including semi-feral Willow) trooped through the cat door and settled in.  The newspaper and a cup of coffee accompanied me so I could watch them.  (Selfless of me, huh?) Quite a cozy scene.

After about an hour, Skywalker really wanted to go out, so I let all 3 dogs out the door.  Radley and Miss Parker made it to the edge of the porch and decided the wood stove was much more appealing than romping on frozen grass.  Skywalker peeked back in the door but opted for the safety of open spaces.  Once he goes out, he is always reluctant to come back in.  If I'd been in prison my whole life, I think I'd want to be outside all the time, too.

I was worried about Skywalker being out in the cold but I could see him in the yard through the French doors and he made no move to come to the door.  He just broke my heart though, because he curled up on the freezing ground, tucked his nose into his paws, and laid there looking back through the doors at all of us warm and toasty inside.  I was sure he would give up and ask to come back in but he didn't.  After 15 minutes, I couldn't take it anymore, and walked out to him.  He didn't shy or move at all, except for shaking from the cold, and I picked him up, snuggled him to me, and carried him back inside.  What a sad, sad statement this is on his poor little former life.  He would rather be outside, shivering, forsaking his beloved Foster Mom and Foster Sibs, than give up the freedom of the outdoors. 

OK, now I am upset, too

Yesterday, I let Skywalker run around the property a great deal with my puppy, Radley. Our property is 2.5 acres with a barn and several sheds about half way back and then a berm left over from when the land was part of the Mormon bean fields of Flagstaff. Although the property slopes from the National Forest a quarter mile west of us down toward our house, that berm is high enough to conceal the view of Cairns on the back half of the property.


Although I am never supposed to let Skywalker out of my view, I confess to occasionally going into the house for coffee or another brief errand. My kitchen has walls of windows on 3 sides, so it is easy to keep an eye on the dogs except when they go past that berm.

The first time I lost sight of them, I went out and called. As usual, there was a slight delay before Rad crested the berm at full speed, with Skywalker close behind. The second time, there was enough delay that I started walking out to the berm. The dogs appeared before I got too far and I thought they were just visiting the horses or exploring underneath the rabbit brush.

About 4 pm, I was silly enough to get distracted by some email when the phone rang. The neighbor behind me told me the pups were in her horse corral. Ah, that colorful language emerged again. I charged out the door, hollering their names, and just as I crested the berm, they exploded into view. The dogs, at least, were ecstatic.

I walked on to the back of the property, dogs close on my heels, to talk with my neighbor, Amy, about this incident. She was just coming back from a ride and saw the dogs but they took off and got through the fence in no time. She'd seen them on her property once before & thought they'd squeezed through the gate that allowed access between our properties. She & her husband were thoughtful and kind enough to put up extra fencing across their side of the gate to keep the dogs out. Hmm, maybe they are keeping us out, too. Whatever. Amy and I walked down to the general area where the dogs popped back onto our property and found an 18" long cut in our fence near the corner where 4 properties meet but in the fence between Amy & me. The cut was about Cairn height and someone had stepped on the bottom portion of the cut fence to bend it down.



Paul and I have walked that fence at least twice a week since Newt got out and was run over. Amy and I have walked the section between our properties several times since then also. The fence is 2" x 4" galvanized horse mesh and looking at the cut ends there was no shine to the cut portions but no rust either. And I honestly don't know enough about this type of fencing to know if either of those observations is significant. Amy and I bent the fence back into shape as much as possible and then we each gathered up rocks and wood to pile on our respective sides of the fence to make a temporary repair.

So, does someone detest my Cairns so much (Parker and Radley do bark a lot) that they would cut a hole in the fence, hoping they would get out and be killed? Such potential cruelty boggles my mind but I can't think of any other reason for such an odd cut in the fence to be there. I hope I am wrong. Fortunately, the weather was excellent today and I spent a lot of time repairing the fence and reinforcing other areas.

OK, tomorrow, back to the saga of Skywalker, not that this incident didn't impact him. I am very impressed that even though he and Rad went through the fence to visit the horses, they came back immediately when I called. And they ran joyously to me, making me feel like I was the most special person on earth.

Well, maybe a little more gushing about Skywalker! Skywalker is incredible. He really does stay off furniture, sleep through the night, only uses outside as his bathroom, etc. If he weren't so afraid of Paul, I wouldn't believe he was a puppy mill product. He'll be with us two weeks this Sunday and I am reluctant to pronounce him ready for adoption. Reluctant mainly because I want to continue to nurture him. It is so unbelievable when he follows me everywhere, nudges me if he thinks I don't know he is right behind me, and then will put his paws up on my knees when I squat down and let me totally engulf him with a hug for a very long time. I want so much to put him on the bed, have him sit by me on the couch, totally spoil him, but I am trying hard to follow the foster home rules. But, for the right home who can continue to help him work through the bad times, he IS ready. Tonight when I was snuggling him, I told him I was so sorry that his life had been so bad but now... LIFE IS GOOD!

I'm so tired

Oh, yeah.  I was going to post everyday, every little advance or setback Skywalker had.  Yep, I could deal with it.

Notice that I haven't posted in 6 days.

For a shy, submissive dog, Skywalker has a real "Cairnitude."  I said it from the first day and I still say it:  This dog is first class.

Now I did take some sketchy notes each day and I just did roust out that envelope containing the scratches from the pile of junk that has gotten alarmingly high since Skywalker arrived.

Lesson #1: We were calling him Walker, when I wasn't calling him Traveler.  Beats me.  To dog ears, however, Walker and Parker obviously sound the same so we've been trying harder to use the full name.

Don't worry, the lessons will be intermittent.  Instead, I will get back to the back of the envelope (see 2 paragraphs above) and transcribe my observations.

Day #1, Sunday, 11/28/09.  I think that I have mentioned that when we got Skywalker at the airport, he stuck his head out the crate, licked foster dad's hand, and then was perfect on the long ride back to Flagstaff.  We had a pen set up for him in the bedroom with his crate in it.  We were thrilled that he stood up against the pen, tail wagging, to greet us.  Being first time foster parents, I don't think we were cautious enough though.  Miss Parker and Radley, the resident Cairns, were allowed to approach the pen.  Skywalker was very accommodating but it could have easily been just the opposite.  There were tail wags and nose-nuzzling through the pen on both sides, much joy and acceptance.  Whew.  We were lucky.  Not as lucky as later when Buddy Holly, the 3 year old cat, sauntered into the room.  Holly was raised with another Cairn, sadly at Rainbow Bridge now, but quickly accepted puppy Rad as her new BFF.  I am hoping that Holly sized up Skywalker's personality and assessed the risks first because without a hesitation, she jumped right into Skywalker's pen. My heart skipped a beat or two and knowing what I have learned in the last week about cats and Cairns, I should have been hysterical.  No problemo, though.  Skywalker was mildly interested as Holly inspected the entire enclosure and crate.  Later, when Skywalker was outside in an attempt to induce "dookies," Holly moved into the crate.  Lesson #2: Cairns have a strong prey drive and silly cats raised with terriers have no sense.  Do not ever let this happen again.  Just because a bullet was dodged once doesn't mean it will ever happen again.


Day #2.  Skywalker slept through the night without a problem.  He didn't want to come out of his crate in the morning, so I picked him up and carried him through this house to the outside.  He seemed to think this was cool.  Outside was even cooler, though, and he did not want to come back inside.  Gee, if I'd been in a cage my whole life, I'd probably act the same way.  He was easy to retrieve, however, so back to the pen he went.  Both foster dad and I were quite surprised at the next turn.  Paul stood by Skywalker's pen as he put on his sport coat to go to work and Skywalker freaked.  He ran to the corner behind his crate and cowered.  Poor Paul.  He loves animals even more than me and he was crushed.  There was no denying, however, that the big dark coat, swinging through the air, terrified Walker.

Day #3.  Today, Skywalker was allowed to briefly meet the resident Cairns in person, no fence between them, everyone on leashes.  Not even the slightest aggression from anyone, only the wagging tails, butt sniffing, and general joy.  This is one sweet, even-tempered Cairn!  No results in the morning for the "dookies" walk even though it was about 18 hours since the last results.  Several intermittent trips produced nothing, not even pee.  Finally, a trip at noon produced both.  I was very impressed that this little guy held everything so long!  I took him back to his pen in the bedroom and went to the kitchen for a few minutes.  When I returned, Radley was in the pen!  Rad is a first-class climber and wire ex-pens are child's play.  As soon as I left the room, he scrambled right over and into the pen so he could be with his new buddy!  They loved each other.  Wow, another lucky break.

Day #4.  During the morning feeding, I once again found Radley in the pen with Walker.  Again, it was a mutual admiration society.  And another lucky break for foster mom.  I wasn't feeling like the best foster mom.  I knew I wasn't.

Later, I took Skywalker on his leash (of course), the two resident Cairns, and 3 of the barn cats on a tour of our expansive 2.5 acres.  We walked the perimeter of the fence.  Walker stopped at the first neighbor's horse corral, took deep breathes and wagged his tail furiously.  At the next corral, he met the neighboring woman and was very friendly.

It was probably too much too soon but when we got to the house, I didn't put Skywalker in his crate or pen, allowing him to roam the kitchen and living area.  He was so happy, if a little hesitant.  There was no marking, no bad interactions with any of the animals, nothing bad at all.  What a great little dog this is.

Day #5.  Because Skywalker has become so scared of foster dad, apparently due to past trauma, I suggested that dad leave off the big dark coat and the hat.  It did help but didn't cure the problem.  This is the Thanksgiving break so foster dad will be home for 4 days.  We're hoping this will help.  Skywalker has no problem with me.  He follows me everywhere, trailing his leash, and if I am busy with something else, he bumps me with his nose to say, "Hey, look at me!"

We went to have Thanksgiving dinner with friends and securely locked Skywalker in his crate and put the ex-pen around it.  So I thought.  When we came home, we were greeted by THREE happy little Cairns.  Apparently the crate wasn't latched well, Skywalker climbed the ex-pen, and life was good.  No soiling in the house, no furniture chewed, no problems at all.  Whew.  Another lucky break.

Day #6 & 7.  Walker loves to be outside.  He loves to run, he loves to be chased by Radley, he loves to chase Radley.  Snow was a bit puzzling on Sunday but this boy can adapt quickly.  I let him run around the property with Rad, dragging his leash, but he just refused to come inside, even when Parker and Rad came in.  It was very frustrating and of course scary to Walker when I was trying to catch him, even by that trailing leash.  Not the best two days.  I got very short-tempered and very tired.  Rad's obedience lessons were neglected and I felt like a full-time nanny.  I could do nothing right.  Even Radley was starting to ignore me and shy away when I reached for him.  This wasn't going so well.

Our First Foster Dog

At last, at last!  We were chosen to foster!

On November 22, we drove to the Phoenix airport to pick up Skywalker, a 3 year old male puppy mill rescue.  (I'll save the puppy mill rant for later but you should know that they are animal abuse.)

I had already twice devoured the Foster Home Handbook provided by CPCRN but still a bit nervous.  Both Paul and I were very excited to meet our new CP kid, Skywalker.  The freight elevator doors opened and we got a glimpse through the crate door of a  little black Cairn. A true Toto!

With paper work finally completed, we took the crate to a secluded and quiet corner of the airport and cautiously cracked the door.  Out came an alert head, ears pricked forward, eyes and nose moving furiously to take in everything.  He was so handsome!  And then he reached out and licked Foster Dad's hand.  Our decision to foster was immediately reaffirmed.

Per experienced-based policy, we could not remove Skywalker from his crate until we got home and were inside the house.  We topped off his water bowls and off to the truck we went for the 2.5 hour trip home.  Skywalker was perfect.  Not a sound, no crate soiling, no car sickness.  Just a very observant Cairn, taking in the sights and sounds of freedom.

Losing Newtie changed everything

On 7/27/09, my daring, reckless, very Cairn Newtie, my true Heart Dog, escaped out of the fence and was killed by a car right in front of my house on our dead end road.  It was right before his 3rd birthday.  My life was shattered.  I couldn't seem to recover.  My husband, Paul, wanted to immediately get a new puppy but that wasn't acceptable to me. Paul even found a puppy he really wanted, unfortunately not a CP kid or any kind of rescue, but another crazy little Cairn.  After several months, the puppy was still available, Paul still wanted him, and I was so lonely without Newt (remember, Parker is Paul's Heart Dog) the baby that I said yes. 

View Newt's memorial on CPCRN - be sure once you are on the memorial page to click his plaque for additional memories.

 
So My Shadow Boo Radley, now often known as Rad the Mad or Rocket Rad, joined us in September.  He helped my recovery so much but he also made Paul and me think more about how important dogs are in people's lives and how often dogs don't have the chance to be loved.  That was our turning point of stopping to think about ourselves when it came to fostering a dog for CPCRN.  What was fear of our being hurt when rescue dogs are in so much need and often have been hurt terribly themselves, often over many years?  That did it.  The application to be a Foster Home for Col Potter was immediately sent off.  CPCRN depends on very busy volunteers and is also known for its due diligence, so even though we had adopted twice from CP, we still had to be "vetted."   We passed and we waited.  Now we were so eager to have a foster dog that I started begging for one!  The wise people at CPCRN knew what they were doing though.

Getting to know Col Potter Cairn Rescue Network

In May of 2006, I adopted a Col Potter rescue dog after my first Cairn died of heart failure at the age of 22.  The Sainted Mr. Riley was sorely missed and I knew another Cairn was destined to enter my life.  I was determined to have another rescue Cairn and of course turned to the internet to help me locate that dog who was waiting patiently for me.

Once I found Col Potter Cairn Rescue Network, my application to adopt from this was sent in almost immediately.  I then spent hours poring over the "available dogs" on their website wondering which Cairn terrier I would come to love. Fortunately, CPCRN has matchmakers who know details of the dogs and learn what you are looking for and make suggestions.  Actually, I think I got only one suggestion, Tillie.  Tillie was a bit older at 7 years, a Cairn mix, diabetic, and developing cataracts.  She wasn't high on potential adopters wish lists and had been in a foster home for over a year.   Tillie's exceptional foster mother quickly convinced me that I could easily handle the diabetes and that Tillie was a doll.  I have a lot of experience with animal diabetes and my heart breaks knowing a diabetes diagnosis makes an animal very difficult to place in a forever home.  Paul and I discussed it and quickly decided that Tillie needed us.  She came to us a short time later, was renamed Parker, and quickly was nicknamed Miss Perfect Parker.

Parker was a bit withdrawn but had an endearing habit of taking 3 of her stuffed animals into the middle of the floor and attempting to nurse them.  Her foster mom assured me that Parker loved puppies and convinced us that we should get Parker a puppy.  Approximately one week after Parker came to us, she and Paul were absolutely mutually smitten, so if someone said Parker needed something, Paul made sure Parker got it.  And where else would we get our next Cairn?  Col Potter, of course.

  In November 2006, I drove to Washington state from Colorado and, in the middle of a snowstorm, my arms were filled with an enormous 3-month-old Cairn crowned by an even more enormous head.  Sir Isaac Newton joined the crew.

At that time, I had spent pretty much every day of the previous 7 months surfing the CPCRN website and becoming very aware of the desperate situation with puppy mills and how much CPCRN needed volunteers.  We didn't want another Cairn and the sad stories we read on Col Potter made us adamantly refuse to foster rescues, afraid we would not be able to withstand the heartbreak.  But I needed to help, so I signed up to help with the web site. Other than donations, that is all I have done for Col Potter in the last 3 years. 

Then the unexpected happened, as it always does in life.

 *************

All it takes for evil to prevail, is for good people to do nothing. 
-Edmund Burke