Its hard to believe Lia (formerly Tasha) has been with us only one year; it feels like she has always been part of our family. She and Seamus are best buddies; they play together and curl up together. Our days start and end with the two of them playing a gentle game of bitey face with each other. I even caught Seamus licking her face last week. They had a fantastic time in Down East Maine. Lia has transformed from a dog who didn’t want to get her tummy wet to an avid swimmer. If she sees water, she has to get in it. I took so many great photos of them it was really hard to choose which ones to send!
We are still working on leash training. Lia is so interested in following her nose that she tends to pull on the leash. I am seeing definite improvements. She responds beautifully to positive training and cookies. In spite of the cookies, Lia has managed to lose 28 pounds. She looks and feels great.

Ruby is doing great…her personality comes out more and more as time goes on. They say it takes 6 months for the dogs to adjust and I didn’t believe it, but it definitely is true. Bumper has accepted her and no longer growls when she crosses his territory. In fact, they have begun to engage in real dog play with Ruby as the instigator more often than not. We have gone through two training sessions with Joanne and will have a third next weekend.

My husband has all the current pictures and he is out of town. Next time I’ll send one.

Let me know if there is anything more you’d like to know. By the way, we’ve made it through a few more thunderstorms. We decided to approach it by making her think it is a time to play. It doesn’t really work, but we did distract her last time. She still shakes, but it didn’t seem too bad.

We just celebrated Casey’s fifth birthday, and it’s time for his 3 year
update! He’s still rambunctious and ridiculous, and I love him with
all my heart. He loves playing fetch with the red Kong ball, and
wrestling with the other dogs in the house. He still likes eating
tomatoes and apples, and carrying around any pieces of paper or
clothing he finds at nose level. He sends his love to all his buddies
at NEARR!

Boy, how time has flown by as we get to know Max and he gets to know us. He has settled in very nicely over the last six months. He enjoys long walks, drives in the car, playing fetch, eating (lots) and sleeping (lots). He really is a great dog and we feel extremely fortunate to be his parents.

While he has lived with us he celebrated his ninth birthday. He doesn”t look it nor does he act like an adult. He is full of energy. At times he has just one speed… fast. Many people have commented on his youthful appearance and demeanor. And don’t think that he doesn’t know that they’re talking about him. He loves all the attention!!

One thing we have found out is that Max is not a water dog…many visits to the beach have shown us he is a rare lab. Maybe snow will be his thing.