Lady is fabulous. She is napping upstairs on my bed right now after the first of her twice-daily swims in the Long Island Sound.

She is an absolute delight. She’s not alone much, but when she is, she has free range of the house and doesn’t chew or bark. She’s been great with kids, including my nephews and niece, as well with any dogs she’s met in the dog park or around town. She has had two trips to my beach house and is already making herself quite at home there. Here are two photos of Lady practicing yoga and hanging with the swans (they don’t go anywhere near dogs so no need to worry about swan attacks).

Since she has arrived, she has lost about 4 lbs - at the recommendation of my vet. She could lose a bit more (couldn’t we all?), but she is getting many swims and lots of exercise so I am sure it will come off in time just fine.

Anyway, things are wonderful, I can hear her softly snoring as I type this. She’s a happy camper, and so am I!

Hello!

The last month has been really crazy for me! I went to the doctor who told me that I was very healthy for my age that’s great news, don’t you think? I have been spending a lot of time out in my yard playing fetch with my sister, and it is so much fun! I have been off leash quite a bit and am enjoying my freedom. Although sometimes I don’t want to come inside, and my mom has to call me several times to come in. The best part is that I get to sleep ON my sister’s bed every night and snuggle her. Oh, one more thing, I think my family has finally figured out what I am saying when I talk to them — it’s about time!

Peace,
Evander

Ruban is doing great! It really feels like he has always been part of our family. I read that over and over again in these updates, and it is so true. He has a lot of character that has really shown itself in the past few months. He loves to lay on the back porch in the sun or out in the garden in the shade and absolutely adores the beach. He tires pretty easily, but he still has a good amount of energy most days. Most of all, he is a snuggler and is happy to be curled up near one of us- especially if he can score a belly rub out of the deal!

We have made enormous progress with the cats. Everyone lives pretty harmoniously at this point, and Ruban really doesn’t pay the cats much mind anymore though he still likes to fuss at them in the early morning when they come looking for their breakfast.

Also, Ruban also got his Canine Good Citizen certification over the winter!

Emma is doing wonderfully. It’s been less than a week, and she already knows “sit,” “down,” and a few other tricks! She’s a fast learner and seems to be having fun. But the BIG news is that she met Robert, our first veteran, this week, and the two seemed to hit it off right away. He fell in love with her… Then again, who wouldn’t… and he’s eager to get started. Robert will train by himself (learning clicker-training basics) for a couple of weeks, and then he’ll be matched with Emma in about 3 weeks and they’ll attend classes together for 6 months or so.

Our NEARR girl Emma has been adopted by Operation Canine!! Emma is Operation Canine’s first service dog trainee and will ultimately be placed with a veteran. Very excited for Emma and NEARR’s association with Operation Canine.

For more information about this fantastic organization — http://www.operationcanine.org

Next week will be 4 months since we adopted “Dill”. We call her Dill Pickle, she seems to like it. She is settled in to our routine and enjoys hanging out with her sisters. When I’m out in the yard doing gardening all she wants is to come out and lay near where ever I am working. We are very excited, our yard was partially fenced in, this week we are finishing the fencing. Now we can all be out there together and not have to be constantly watching.

Dill is a wonderful addition to our family. The picture of her is on our deck while we were cooking supper.

We wanted to let you know that Lekoda is happy and energetic and enjoying life to its doggie fullest. She is an absolute dear, a real role model of how to grow old with grace and a good heart. We are so grateful to NEARR for pairing us together.

Pearl is doing great. She did have some separation anxiety the first couple of nights(as expected) when we went upstairs to bed but is settling in and is adjusting very well to her new home.

My husband is home with her today, and as we speak, she is laying on the back lawn soaking up the sun. She seems to really enjoy the fenced in yard and having the freedom to roam around out there. She went to the river with us last Sunday and went for a swim and did very well walking on the leash. She is a really sweet dog and is well behaved. We are really enjoying having Pearl with us and feel the house is whole again.

Thank You to everyone who made this adoption possible.

This girl LOVES catching some rays on the patio! It’s hard to get her off sometimes, unless its to play fetch. Love her to the moon and back.

Lady is doing great. She is such a wonderful doggie. She is very, very sweet - a great companion. She naps quite a bit during the day but enjoys her walks and swims.

Fiji is doing great! She has completed her obedience training and has been cleared by the trainer to be ‘off leash’. She has zero problems meeting other dogs when she is in the off leash situation and the upside is that time spent off leash has reduced her overall anxiety about other dogs in general. It is a pure joy to watch her tearing around the trails when we walk in the woods. She is just so happy. The other advantage is that I can let her off leash when we run at the local canal, and she can swim. At first she was not a great swimmer. In fact I have never seen a lab so unaccustomed to the water. I thought I might have to jump in and save her, but her instincts kicked in and now she knows what to do. She still thinks that she will be able to catch a duck, but they just swim calmly away when she gets close. On the home front she is happy and always ready to give and receive love from whoever happens to be close by. She greets everyone at the door with a toy. I have attached a picture of Fiji after a canal run, totally wet and completely happy!

Things are going so well with Hank! He is the kindest, most sensitive and happy dog ever! Every day he either goes to the park where he meets his friends or he takes a stroll on the beach with his brother. He loves to go for his daily rides with his head out the window taking it all in! We are always showing him off to our friends as he loves their company and loves to be involved with everything we do! We just love him beyond mere words!

Lexi is absolutely awesome and gets more awesome all the time. That tail of hers is wagging anytime she isn’t sleeping. She is so happy and so sweet. It’s hard to describe but she just seems so happy and bright and comfortable and attached. Even my family and friends comment when they come over at how well she seems to be doing. She is so in love with my daughter and husband (well me too, but I find it adorable how she is with them!). She follows her sister everywhere. Sits outside her bedroom door, goes crazy when she comes in the door from school. She is also so attached to her dad. She follows him around all day too — they spend a great deal of time outside together. She is getting tons of exercise and tons of attention. I am the early bird in the house. The second my feet hit the floor she comes over to me and we start the day together. She has a bed in my office and comes down with me and sleeps there while I work. At the end of the day, she curls up at my feet.

Lexi feels like she has been with us forever. I say this every time I write but we all are so in love with Lexi. She is fantastic with other dogs and with basically everyone she meets. We feel very lucky. Lexi is just so special to all of us.

~ Lexi’s Mom

Bear continues to thrive in his forever home. He is such a loving, playful and handsome boy! I cannot believe it has been eight months since I brought him home. It seems like we have been together forever. He is a loyal companion who has a lot of love to give. Bear is always right where you are and he loves being around people. He is very spoiled by everyone that loves him. Bear is simply the perfect dog!

Hi,

This is Bruno here again. I have been a member of my family now for 2 months. It is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I feel so loved.

Since my last update, I have finished obedience training. I was the star of my class. The instructor used me to demonstrate new skills because I am so smart and catch on so easily. (Who would have thought that I am smart? I look like such a big goof.) I learned some new commands. I now know to take a few steps backwards when I am told to back up. I wait instead of bolting out the door. If I am in the mudroom and Mom tells me “IN”, then I know to go back into the kitchen. If she says, “OUT”, then I know to go outside or back into the kitchen. “GO TO BED” means to lie down on one of the many dog beds in the house. I have learned a lot in 2 months and I am so proud of myself.

Mom is the center of my universe. Where she goes, I go. I enjoy having her massage my ears and scratch my chin. I like the way she brushes my fur and rubs my butt. I love going for walks, and I am very good about not pulling on the leash as hard as I used to.

Dad is great at playing ball with me in the yard and supervising how I play with my sister. He has taught me to fetch. Sometimes we even play fetch in the house using a squeaky toy. Squeaky toys are my favorite, and I greet Mom and Dad at the door with one just about every time they come home.

Mom and Dad refer to my sister and I as the “dynamic duo”. When they leave the house, we stand at the slider together to watch them drive away. When they come home, my sister and I are there to greet them with wagging tails and excited barks. Our favorite game is still “CHASE” with my sis is always out in front because she is the fastest. Sometimes she takes pity on me and slows down so I can catch up with her. Of course, this is just a tease; she zooms off again as soon as I get close.

My cat sister has gotten braver around me. She now sneaks into the bedroom at night after I have fallen asleep; she then jumps up on the bed with Mom and sleeps at her feet overlooking my bed. Mom says that the cat has even come nose to nose with me while I am sleeping soundly in my bed in the living room. Occasionally the cat will climb into Mom’s lap while she is watching TV or knitting. She has allowed me to get up close and personal with some sniffing of her butt and underside. I don’t know why I am so fascinated by her, but…. Mom hopes that someday I will be able to allow her in the room without accosting her with my nose.

They say things happen for a reason. I was in a foster family for almost 8 months with no one who was really interested in adopting me. I think I was meant to be with this family, but they just weren’t ready to adopt when I first came to NEARR. Although I am sorry that my family lost a dog whom they loved very much, I am happy that they decided I was the right dog to take his place in the family. If they love me half as much as they seemed to love him, then I am one lucky dog!

I LOVE MY FAMILY!!!!

Best wishes,
Bruno

Hi all!

I am doing well at my new home. I really like how big my new yard is! My new family is really nice and I know that I am going to love it here. Today was really fun because my new Dad took me outside with him so I could help with the spring yard work!! Of course, I was too busy to help since I was having so much fun chasing my ball around the yard! As you can tell from my picture, I am wiped out and ready to take a nap!

Well I’m off to bed……

Evander

It’s me again - Bruno!!! Just wanted to let you know how much I LOVE my new family!

My sister wanted me to thank you for allowing Mom and Dad to adopt me. She tells me she had a brother before me who passed away in November, and she was very sad. She missed having a brother very much. And then I came along!

Dad and I have been to 3 obedience sessions. Who would have believed that I would ever be the star of the class? The teacher uses me as her model because I seem to learn so quickly. I have excelled at “sit and stay”, “leave it”, and walking by Dad’s side without pulling on the leash. My behavior at home has improved as well - although it is still hard not to bolt through the door when I want to go with Mom and/or Dad. After several reminders that I am not going, I finally relent and let them open the door to leave without pushing my way into the mudroom. Someday I will be able to be like my sister and go to bed with my carrot and not worry about my parents leaving.

Dad has learned that if I bark at the door in the middle of the night, it means that I really have to go potty. The other night I drank a lot of water before bed and I tried to tell him I had a problem; but he wouldn’t listen. Mom was so exhausted from a long night at work that she didn’t hear a thing. I ended up peeing on the floor in the hallway. I felt so bad, but I couldn’t hold it. Dad was very kind and didn’t even yell at me, but just cleaned up my mess and apologized for not responding to my call. Now Dad knows that a bark in the middle of the night means I need to go potty.

My other sister is a cat, and she is getting braver. She comes out of her safe haven into the common living area. She saunters by me and then lets me follow her with my nose up her butt. At other times she will run, but I think she wants me to chase her.

I love my new Mom and Dad and my 2 sisters!

Best wishes,
Bruno

I am just sending an update about our sweet boy. He is doing great! We have been playing a lot of fetch since the weather is so nice. Drew graduated from obedience class last week!!! He passed with flying colors, although we are still working on “down” and “loose leash walking”. I am attaching his official graduation photo!

Dill continues to do great! It’s like she has always been here. She loves to go to work with me and go for a ride. She seems settled in and happy now! In a few days it will make 2 months since we adopted her.

I’ve attached a picture of her actually standing, this was after the latest snowstorm. Every other picture I have of her is laying down.

And here is a picture of all the girls outside on the porch while I cleaned the house. I think they are saying, “when are you going to be done?” All are getting along great, and Dill is a wonderful addition to our family!

Thanks to all of you for bringing all of us together.

Hi Everyone,

It’s Bruno again for my week #2 update even though I have lived with my forever family for 5 weeks, but was only officially adopted 2 weeks ago!

This week Dad took me to my first obedience class. Mom thought it might help me bond with Dad if he and I had a night out together. She also thought that since Dad is the push-over in the house, taking me to class might help him be more assertive with both me and my new furry sister. That is how he got elected to take me to school. Mom’s idea is working as I have learned to plop my butt down hard on the floor the instant he tells me. There is absolutely no hesitation. This week at home we are working on improving sit-stay as I tend to pop up as soon as I get the reward. Dad hopes I am going to be the star of the class. Mom and my sister are going to join us this week just for the fun of it. I don’t know how well I will do against that smarty pants sister of mine.

I was a bit of a bad boy today. I got excited when Mom took the screw driver out of the gate handle today. She was going to go out and snow blow the driveway. I jumped at the gate after she told me to sit and wait. The gate flew open and out I went. Because I have not had much opportunity to explore the neighborhood, I did not stop or come back to her, but pretended that I did not hear her calling. Mom was so worried when I crossed the street that she yelled for help. A plow driver stopped and pretended that he wanted to give me a hug. I went running over to him so I could make a new friend. He grabbed my harness and brought me back to Mom so she could escort me home. My smarty pants sister is so obedient that she was still sitting in the yard at the open gate. Mom told my sister what a good girl she was and then looked at me and told me that I need to take a lesson or two from her. Something tells me we are going to be having some obedience lessons that involve sitting and staying at open doors and gates (initially with a leash or long lead attached to something sturdy that won’t allow me to go very far if I choose not to obey). I can only imagine the tongue lashing my obedience teacher will give me in class when Mom tells her how bad I was.

After my excitement this morning, Mom took me to work so the vet could recheck my ears. My ears still have some bacteria in them. They are not as bad as when I initially came to live here, but I need to have topical medicine applied twice a day for the next 7 days and then go back to visit the vet again. I like my vet, but I don’t like having to be kenneled while Mom works. I tend to bark and carry on so that I disturb everyone who happens to be in the building. Maybe next week, Dad will be able to bring me for the appointment so I don’t have to spend as much time in the ward.

My sister and I are getting along marvelously. She and I like to wrestle and chase each other. Many times my sister will initiate the play by slapping me in the head with her paw before play bowing and then running off. I give chase but can never catch her because she is so fast. Sometimes she ducks into one of the doghouses that are there for our amusement. I have gone into one of the doghouses with her, but it is a little crowded and so I don’t stay inside with her for more than a minute or two. We are two tired pups after our games in the yard.

I guess this is all I have to share for now. I will be in touch when my next update is due.