Tomorrow I leave around noon for every one's favorite vacation spot - Ligonier, PA. Well, it's not every one's, but certainly a favorite of mine. I grew up in the neighboring town of Latrobe, PA (Heard of it? Should 'ave. Rolling Rock Beer. . .Mr. Rodgers. . .Arnold Palmer. . .the list goes on) and my best friend from babyhood (yes, we met when we were infants) now lives in Ligonier. So, a couple of times a year we get together; either here in NJ, but mostly in PA. I can't go too long without my favorite pizza.
What does all this have to do with Boris? Well, I can't take him with me. Actually, I don't want to bring him along. He'd be very bored. While we're out running around, he'd have to stay crated and that wouldn't be much fun.
During the time that I'm gone, I planned many things for him so that he won't be lonely. Kola will be home, but is working his usual lawyer hours of all the time. He'll take him out in the morning; then again when he gets home after 11 pm. There's a long time between his coming and going so Kristen (my dog walker) will come around 3:00 to walk and feed him. Around 7:00, Holly and Michael will take him for play dates with Othello to make him nice and tired. Finally, Kola will be home again around 11 to keep him company.
Sounds like he has a great week planned; kind of like going to camp. Although, I still feel bad about leaving him. I'll miss him! I also worry that something dreadful will happen while I'm gone. Like he'll eat one of the remotes or something else. All my worries are unfounded, though. I have plenty of people - a village - looking after him and will keep him healthy and happy. But, still. . .
I'll try to blog while I'm in Ligonier, but the postings will be "Life Without Boris. . ." Sniff.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Caring for Boris and the World
This morning, Boris took his heart worm pill like he does every 17th of the month. Last night, he threw up and I gave him an antacid. On August 9th, he'll have a microchip implanted between his shoulders coded with Kola's and my contact information if, God forbid, he gets lost and ends up in a shelter somewhere. A while back he put on a few pounds and our vet wrote a prescription for him to receive diet dog food that we paid a fortune for.
Boris gets the best health care, plenty of exercise, playtime, and herding training so that he doesn't get bored. I work for the US Fund for UNICEF so every day I juxtapose planning Boris' care along side trying to raise funds for children who, for the most part, don't have the very basic clean water to drink, or food to eat, let alone a school to go to. Sometimes they're sick; sometimes they're very sick. They've lost their homes due to war, natural disasters, or poverty. Some of the children are orphaned, and those who aren't have parents that care deeply for them and try their very best to keep them healthy. It's not unusual to for a mother to walk for days taking her child to a clinic when they hear that a doctor will be available.
I guess what I'm trying to say here, is that Boris gets better care millions of children worldwide. In fact, daily 26,000 children die from preventable and/or curable diseases. My dog is my responsibility, and I see to it that he's taken care of. I have the means. Besides, I love my Boris! I know that the parents of the children that aren't being taken care absolutely would do the same for their children given the means to do so. But, through no fault of their own, they can't. Here's where we come in.
If you can, I would encourage visit UNICEF's website (unicefusa.org) and learn about all the wonderful ways in which this organization is working so that every child has the opportunity for a healthy and happy life. Maybe after viewing the site, you'll be inspired to share your good fortune with those who are opportunity-challenged (how's that for a made up PC label!) and it doesn't have to be with UNICEF; there are plenty of worthy causes that support needy families (and other causes) abroad and here in the US. Boris regularly gives to the ASPCA; well, I give to the ASPCA in honor of Boris.
Okay, now I've cleared my guilt (well, not entirely) for spoiling my dog. From now on I promise to deliver more funny stories about my smarter-than-smart German Shepherd Dog, Boris.
Boris gets the best health care, plenty of exercise, playtime, and herding training so that he doesn't get bored. I work for the US Fund for UNICEF so every day I juxtapose planning Boris' care along side trying to raise funds for children who, for the most part, don't have the very basic clean water to drink, or food to eat, let alone a school to go to. Sometimes they're sick; sometimes they're very sick. They've lost their homes due to war, natural disasters, or poverty. Some of the children are orphaned, and those who aren't have parents that care deeply for them and try their very best to keep them healthy. It's not unusual to for a mother to walk for days taking her child to a clinic when they hear that a doctor will be available.
I guess what I'm trying to say here, is that Boris gets better care millions of children worldwide. In fact, daily 26,000 children die from preventable and/or curable diseases. My dog is my responsibility, and I see to it that he's taken care of. I have the means. Besides, I love my Boris! I know that the parents of the children that aren't being taken care absolutely would do the same for their children given the means to do so. But, through no fault of their own, they can't. Here's where we come in.
If you can, I would encourage visit UNICEF's website (unicefusa.org) and learn about all the wonderful ways in which this organization is working so that every child has the opportunity for a healthy and happy life. Maybe after viewing the site, you'll be inspired to share your good fortune with those who are opportunity-challenged (how's that for a made up PC label!) and it doesn't have to be with UNICEF; there are plenty of worthy causes that support needy families (and other causes) abroad and here in the US. Boris regularly gives to the ASPCA; well, I give to the ASPCA in honor of Boris.
Okay, now I've cleared my guilt (well, not entirely) for spoiling my dog. From now on I promise to deliver more funny stories about my smarter-than-smart German Shepherd Dog, Boris.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Dog Days
I don't know about the rest of the country, but, man, it's been hot in NJ/NYC. The temps are in the 90s with 90% humidity; it sucks the life out of everyone.
With these hot days, I am concerned about Boris getting overheated. After all, he's in a fur coat. How I solve this problem is to keep the shades down, and the AC and ceiling fan running in the bedroom so he'll have a cool retreat when the rest of the condo is hot. I also leave him ice cubes in his water, but God knows how long those last!
Yesterday was particularly hot. When I left in the morning, he had already retreated to the bedroom. When I came home last night, he didn't greet me at the door; I found him on the bed catching the cool breeze of the AC air that bounces off the ceiling fan. Very Smart Boy.
My dog walker, Kristen, leaves me a note every day detailing her walk with Boris. Yesterday, she also found him on the bed soaking up the coolness. He didn't greet her at the door either. She found him on the bed and snapped the picture that you'll find at the top of the post. She also had this to say: "I have my vision of him on the bed, under the fan with white show poodles in pink bows all around him feeding him grapes, or liver ha ha!" That's my boy.
I took an on-line test once titled, "What celebrity does your dog resemble?" Boris matched George Clooney. I think the test was right.
Lesson learned: On hot days, nothing beats a cool breeze and being waited on.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
To herd or not to herd
Boris had made such remarkable progress during the second day of the herding clinic that I asked the instructor to email me her rates and availability for consideration of further training. That email came this morning.
She's available during the evening and on the weekend, and her rates are reasonable. So why am I not jumping on this? Because it'll be work.
Truth be known, it'll be more work for me. This is because Boris lives in the moment. He's not the one shuffling his schedule to get to class, or worried that he didn't do enough "homework" in time for the next session. He doesn't have to drive the car to get him there, or make sure we have enough gas. He isn't embarrassed because of bad behavior- past or present. He just hops in the car, and takes it minute by minute - he's very zen that way.
The email did say that Boris isn't too far from working the sheep, and this is why I'm leaning more toward taking the lessons. From what I can tell, Boris LOVES feeling useful, and I want that feeling of achieving teamwork. . . so, it's off to Outback Farm for at least a couple of lessons.
She's available during the evening and on the weekend, and her rates are reasonable. So why am I not jumping on this? Because it'll be work.
Truth be known, it'll be more work for me. This is because Boris lives in the moment. He's not the one shuffling his schedule to get to class, or worried that he didn't do enough "homework" in time for the next session. He doesn't have to drive the car to get him there, or make sure we have enough gas. He isn't embarrassed because of bad behavior- past or present. He just hops in the car, and takes it minute by minute - he's very zen that way.
The email did say that Boris isn't too far from working the sheep, and this is why I'm leaning more toward taking the lessons. From what I can tell, Boris LOVES feeling useful, and I want that feeling of achieving teamwork. . . so, it's off to Outback Farm for at least a couple of lessons.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Herding Clinic - Day 2
Poor Boris. The Day 1's experience left him exhausted. After he had his dinner, he slunk off to the bedroom, by himself, to go to sleep in the nice, cool, AC. He, and I, was spent physically and emotionally.
I conked out immediately when my head hit the pillow. But, after a good night's rest Boris and I took on Day 2 of the herding clinic. I must admit, I was concerned that day 2 would be a repeat of the day before, but I was committed to finishing the weekend. It helped that I prepaid for the clinic. So, off Boris and I went.
Day 2's clinic had less participants than the day before (just 4 of us), so the atmosphere wasn't charged with as much energy. That alone was a big help for Boris. When it came time for Boris to work, the instructor, as promised, put on a prong collar on him and then we attached a second leash to his regular collar. My job was to let the leashes as loose as possible, which is a task. Given Mr. B's propensity to react to the slightest movement, I'm used to tightening up in preparation for the excitement.
Boris and I entered the ring and he gave a few barks. As instructed, I gave him a quick tug on the prong collar. Of course, this got his attention immediately. He stopped barking and had a look on his face of "What? Where am I? Oh, you're in charge." We then preceded to walk around the ring, and, what a surprise - Boris did not react at all until around the third lap around the ring! He even manged to walk up to the sheep with me calmly and without pulling.
The second day he was a completely different dog. We worked the ring a couple of times, got close to the sheep, without much excitement. I couldn't believe it. We even stopped to chat for a long while in the ring and Boris laid down at my feet calm and collected. I was so proud of him! He didn't get to go off leash to work the sheep, but that's okay because he made tremendous progress in keeping control of himself.
I'm so glad that Boris had a good day, and he felt better about himself, too. After finishing our second round, he earned the right to hang out with all the non-dog members of the clinic. He walked up to everyone wagging his tail and accepting congratulation pats on the head and scratches behind the ears. I believe it was his way of thanking everyone for being patient with him and for helping us figure this out a little.
I want to continue to train Boris to herd, but this last weekend has shown me that he has so much to learn. But on the other hand, he has great potential and he learns quickly. I think I've decided to start down this herding road with him and just see where it takes us.
Lesson learned: Patience, an experienced eye, and kindness make all the difference.
I conked out immediately when my head hit the pillow. But, after a good night's rest Boris and I took on Day 2 of the herding clinic. I must admit, I was concerned that day 2 would be a repeat of the day before, but I was committed to finishing the weekend. It helped that I prepaid for the clinic. So, off Boris and I went.
Day 2's clinic had less participants than the day before (just 4 of us), so the atmosphere wasn't charged with as much energy. That alone was a big help for Boris. When it came time for Boris to work, the instructor, as promised, put on a prong collar on him and then we attached a second leash to his regular collar. My job was to let the leashes as loose as possible, which is a task. Given Mr. B's propensity to react to the slightest movement, I'm used to tightening up in preparation for the excitement.
Boris and I entered the ring and he gave a few barks. As instructed, I gave him a quick tug on the prong collar. Of course, this got his attention immediately. He stopped barking and had a look on his face of "What? Where am I? Oh, you're in charge." We then preceded to walk around the ring, and, what a surprise - Boris did not react at all until around the third lap around the ring! He even manged to walk up to the sheep with me calmly and without pulling.
The second day he was a completely different dog. We worked the ring a couple of times, got close to the sheep, without much excitement. I couldn't believe it. We even stopped to chat for a long while in the ring and Boris laid down at my feet calm and collected. I was so proud of him! He didn't get to go off leash to work the sheep, but that's okay because he made tremendous progress in keeping control of himself.
I'm so glad that Boris had a good day, and he felt better about himself, too. After finishing our second round, he earned the right to hang out with all the non-dog members of the clinic. He walked up to everyone wagging his tail and accepting congratulation pats on the head and scratches behind the ears. I believe it was his way of thanking everyone for being patient with him and for helping us figure this out a little.
I want to continue to train Boris to herd, but this last weekend has shown me that he has so much to learn. But on the other hand, he has great potential and he learns quickly. I think I've decided to start down this herding road with him and just see where it takes us.
Lesson learned: Patience, an experienced eye, and kindness make all the difference.
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