Wordless Wednesday: making a come back.

Choosing the right photo for the come back.
Obvious choice: me and my Valkyrie girl.

Trust

Valkyrie in the front yard.

Trust
noun
1. reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence.
2. confident expectation of something; hope. 

Trust is something to be earned. Valkyrie, at the age of ten, has earned some of my trust. I trust that she will beg if I have food. I trust that she will snuggle with me on the couch. I trust she will pee on the floor while I am at work. I trust that she will snark at me about having her nails done but will relent because there are cookies to be had. But these aren't the kind of trust situations I am talking about. I recently moved to a house without a fenced in yard. I did fence in a small part of the back yard so that I wouldn't have to always have Valkyrie on a leash- practicing agility on a leash is hard work. Today I was working in the front yard and Valkyrie really wanted to keep me company. So I decided to trust Valkyrie to be a good girl and stay with me in the front yard. My trust only goes so far though. She was on a 25foot leash because there is always a chance that something might cause Valkyrie to break my trust. But today she was such a good girl. I weeded and she lounged in the sun. I raked and she rolled in the grass. My neighbors dog ran around in their unfenced front yard and Valkyrie came over to me looking for a cookie(which of course I went and got for her!).
Not only do I trust Valkyrie- she trusts me. She trusts that I won't let anything bad happen to her. She trusts that I will always scratch the good spots. And she trusts that I will always have an endless supply of cookies.
I love that Valkyrie and I have built up this trusting relationship. It's taken years of hard work and patience on both of our parts. But the benefits of all that work is absolutely worth it.

Double digits!!

Happy tenth birthday Valkyrie!!

Cause I am a slacker mom photos of the spoiled girl will be posted later.

Wordless Wednesday

Valkyrie says "it's hot out momma"

Hiking.

I have taken Valkyrie hiking with me for years. She is an amazing hiker. In the past I have let her run off leash, even in places that say a dog needs to be leashed. I would try to find parks that had signs posted saying "dogs must be under owners control" so that we wouldn't be breaking the law. I figured she would expend more energy running loose than going at my much slower than canine pace. But recently I have had to face reality- Valkyrie does not get along with all dogs. We have been lucky that in the past we never had any really negative encounters with other dogs. But I am not willing to take that risk anymore. Valkyrie is a leashed dog now. Permanently. I love her too much to take chances with her life. There are way too many chances for circumstances beyond my control when out in the woods. I really thought that Valkyrie would pitch a fit when I kept her leash on her but she was a perfect little lady. No pulling at all. Perhaps she is finally growing up. Or perhaps it's all the hours spent on little walks near the house working on leash manners. Whatever the reasoning, I love it. I love hiking with my girl.
My nine year old dog still acts like a puppy. She has limitless amounts of energy. She could go all day as long as she is with me. Exercise is great for her anxiety too. The more tired she is the less likely she will be anxious when I leave the house. And the exercise is of course good for me too. I'm still slightly out of shape from my surgeries but I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things. I love working the hours that I do because it leaves my afternoons free to go hiking with Valkyrie. Crossing my fingers for beautiful weather the rest of the summer and fall. Not too hot and no rain on my days off. I'm not asking for much!

My best friend.

My best friend. She is a pit bull. But she is so much more- She is the other half of my heart.

Today is Valkyrie's gotcha-day. I don't normally celebrate this day since I know her exact birthday.  Nine years ago I took a really crazy adventure to pick up Valkyrie. She completed my heart when I met her. I wasn't exactly in a good place in my life then. I certainly wasn't in a good place to be getting a second dog, a puppy no less. But as soon as I met Valkyrie I knew we were meant to be together forever. We have been through so many tough times together. And we've been through good times too. Every moment of joy or sadness over the past nine years Valkyrie has been there with me. She is my heart. My constant companion.

Helping mommy heal after surgery.

"If you're alone, I'll be your shadow.  If you want to cry, I'll be your shoulder.  If you want a hug, I'll be your pillow.  If you need to be happy, I'll be your smile.  But anytime you need a friend, I'll just be me. "

Beautiful girl.

  
“Some dogs come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave pawprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same.”

Bliss.

"My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet." 

 

Unconditional love.

 

 "Soul-mates are people who bring out the best in you.  They are not perfect but are always perfect for you."

"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."

Decisions.

Things here have been pretty quiet lately. That is because I have been thinking and deciding on something very difficult. Something that is completely heartbreaking- even if I know it is the right thing to do. I have officially decided to rehome Kieran. I love him enough to want to see him have a better quality of life. He shouldn't have to live in a crate&rotate situation. He deserves constant love and attention that I cannot provide for him. This decision wasn't made lightly. I do truly love him and that is why I am going to do what is right and best for my Special K.
It's been so ingrained into my mind that when you take in a dog that they are family. You don't just give up on family. Sometimes I honestly do feel like I am giving up on him. On us as a family. But sometimes you have to  provide your family with a better life by letting them go and be loved by a new family. I will never stop loving him. I know I am going to miss him. I love his spunky attitude. Valkyrie might even miss him- just not in the same way I will.
Valkyrie has shown to me that she would prefer to be an only dog. Her happiness has been compromised by Kieran's presence. I am just trying to restore a happy balance. Kieran won't suffer from the extra love and attention he is going to receive with his new family. Valkyrie will be happy to have her mom back 100% since she is a spoiled princess. My emotions go back and forth on this. My heart will break giving him up but it will be healed by the fact that he will be loved by a new family.

I feel guilty. I feel selfish. I feel like crying. I feel like I am letting people down. I feel like I am giving up-taking the easy road. I feel like this is the right thing to do.

Facing facts.

Sometimes life doesn't go the way you think it should or thought it would. When I adopted Kieran just over a year ago I had dreams of doggy bliss and a new agility star. Over the course of the past year reality has smacked me in the face more than once. Kieran is not physically healthy enough for agility. Maybe one day he will be but definitely not right now. And his poor little body has suffered from being down and out for so long I'm not exactly sure that it could handle the physical strains that agility might require of him.This disappointment I am handling very well. As long as Kieran is happy and healthy he can do what he wants. He doesn't have to be my next agility star he just needs to be my very good boy.
The disappointment I am having a really hard time dealing with is that my two dogs don't like each other. There. I said it. I put it out there for everyone to know. About seven weeks after Kieran came home Valkyrie started attacking him. I thought it was just over possessions/toys and took them all away. Valkyrie tolerated him a bit better for a while but I just never knew when she would snap. Inside the house, which is very small, I have been doing crate and rotate. Only one dog can be out at a time. I wish I could baby gate off sections of the house so they could both be out but Valkyrie has zero respect for the gates. Clearly I put the gates there to be jumped over multiple times.
Outside in the yard, as long as there were no toys, the dogs were getting along great. Running and zooming all over the place, mutually ignoring one another. Every once in a while there was the occasional game of chase. That all changed this past week. Both my dogs are resource guarders and I know it. I guess I just didn't know the full extent of it before. Valkyrie pooped in the yard and turned around and decided to eat it(ew!). Kieran came over to see what she was snacking on and she attacked him. Kieran didn't even have a chance. His arm was all chewed up and now he has antibiotics and some pain medicine. He is also recovering very nicely- you wouldn't even know that he had been bitten just a few days ago. Now my life is ruled by the crate&rotate situation. I have years of crate&rotate ahead of me. There is no way that I am willing to let both dogs out in the yard together. I can't put Kieran's life at risk. I am still hoping that some day I will be able to walk them both together. I'm not sure it will ever happen. I'm having a hard time facing facts.

Goals.

Goals. Especially in relation to my dogs. I have to be realistic. I have to.
Valkyrie- I really really wanted to have Valkyrie become NATCH Zell's Valkyrie CGC. I have to face facts. This is just not going to happen. I don't have the money for starters. I also lack the time. Agility trials are on weekends. I work weekends. It will cost me nearly a thousand dollars. And that's if we run clean on every single run from now on. There is just no way. So our goal is to go to as many agility trials as we can this year and run clean and have fun. I don't think we are striving for any more titles. I have to face reality even if I don't like it. I don't plan on retiring Valkyrie from agility until she shows me that she is ready to retire.

Kieran-  I adopted Kieran because I really wanted a second agility dog. I have learned a lot from working with Valkyrie but I made a lot of mistakes training with her because she is my first agility dog. Realistically Kieran will probably never compete in agility.  I am thinking that I'd really like to try either competition obedience or rally with him. He seems to enjoy working closely with me. But our goal for this year is to get him healthy. I want to get Kieran to a healthy weight and lifestyle before I will decide anything further for him. It doesn't mean that we won't be working on our obedience skills in the meantime.

So officially the goals are:
Valkyrie- Run clean&have fun at as many trials as possible.
Kieran- Get fat&healthy. Practice obedience.

Click it!

Ok, I have known the benefits of clicker training for a long time, but oh my goodness! I am seriously loving clicker training! Kieran and I have been working on clicker training for the past week and it's beautiful. Valkyrie has learned some new tricks with the clicker too. I got a whole bunch of clicker training books from paperbackswap.com. I originally got the books so that I could teach both dogs some novelty tricks. However, since reading a couple of them, I have decided to teach Kieran to loose leash walk using a clicker and no head halter. He is doing a fantastic job! WE are doing a fantastic job. Sometimes I find it difficult to manage everything- the clicker, treats and leash. But most times it's really not so hard. We haven't taken a real walk yet since I am not physically up to it yet. But while I am still recovering is a great time for Kieran and I to work on the learning process. I realized that with the head halter I jumped right into full walks once Kieran adjusted to having it on. I stopped really training him on good behavior while wearing it because I was all about getting in some exercise. This time I hope to get it right with the clicker.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

My loves. My life.

Approved.

One year ago today a now dear friend let me know I was approved to adopt Kieran- then he was known as Justice. The second dog! Finally! I'd been hunting for so long for that perfect match for my little family. Kieran sounded like what I was looking for. Playful, energetic, interested in toys, mellow around the house and got along with other dogs and cats.  And this photo was what helped me decide.

Who could resist such a cute face?

We had seven weeks of total bliss.  Then the honeymoon was over. It's so hard for me to believe that I have two of the most wonderful dogs out there and that they can't seem to get along. Valkyrie is still a very good girl. She just hates her brother. Kieran is a very good boy. He is still learning but he learns quickly. We live in a crate and rotate situation now. One dog must be crated if the other is loose in the house. Not at all what I expected when I adopted the second dog. Thankfully I can walk both dogs together. I am hoping to try to do slow reintroductions over the summer- once Kieran and I are both feeling better.
I do not regret choosing to bring Kieran home. He needed me. We had a long troubled road last year. But he has brought me unbelievable amounts of joy in that time too. He has connected me to an amazing group of friends that I might not have otherwise met. My little family is so loved and supported by so many now. And I love all of those that have been there for us and helped us through some very tough times.

Wordless Wednesday- Valkyrie&Tori

I've seen many other bloggers with this. I like it.

Valkyrie DOES snuggle with other people.

2 dogs- 2 walking styles

Well actually that isn't true. They both pull, I mean walk, the same. Even though neither dog weighs very much I feel like I am being pulled apart at the seams when I try and walk them on a flat collar. 

I have never been able to teach Valkyrie to walk politely on a leash. This is probably more my fault than hers. As I have stated before- I had no idea about dog training when I brought Valkyrie home. I don't even think I made an effort to train her to do anything at all until she was nearly two years old.  I didn't make a serious effort to train her to do anything until she was four years old and all hell broke loose and a training intervention was desperately needed. Somehow I have put agility titles on this dog and can't manage to teach her to walk nicely on a leash? There is something very wrong with this picture. 

Quite a few years ago I bought a gentle leader for Valkyrie. She nearly ripped her face off. No amount of cookies was going to be good enough to properly acclimate her to this new head halter. I needed a way to walk her without having my shoulder pulled out of its socket. I tried a choke collar. And it worked. But I felt terrible about using it. Once Valkyrie figured out that I wasn't going to follow through with the "pop" of the choke collar she leaned in real hard and would choke herself. For a long time I just left her on a flat collar and let her yank me around. Last summer I discovered the sense-ation harness. I decided to try it out. Valkyrie certainly isn't a saint on a leash now(also more my fault than hers) but I can walk her without injuring myself.  She doesn't pull as much as before and now I have more control when she does pull. I plan on working more with her in this harness and maybe by summertime we will have mastered the art of loose leash walking. 

Kieran is also a master puller. He has had a rough start- he's been very sick with inflammatory bowel disease(IBD) but that topic is a whole other post or ten by itself- but that certainly doesn't break his pulling spirit. He has places to go and people to meet and it all has to be done before the end of the walk. I planned to buy Kieran a sense-ation harness since I liked how well it worked with Valkyrie. But money has been tight so I decided to try the gentle leader on Kieran. He certainly was not thrilled with it initially. However, he can be bought. Just a few minutes each day over the course of a couple days I was able to convince him that every time the head halter went on he would get something very yummy. Yesterday we went on our first walk. I won't call it a phenomenal success but it was definitely progress. I know I need to work with him by himself to get it just right. He didn't pull once he realized that it wasn't going to get him anywhere. Right now with the limited amount of daylight I walk the dogs together. Once there is more daylight I plan to walk the dogs individually to work on their loose leash walking. Kieran and I are also going to attend a loose leash walking seminar next weekend. Crossing fingers and paws that we learn something(and then apply it!)

9 years ago.

Nine years ago my beautiful Valkyrie was born. I am still truly amazed that she is nine years old. She came to me a few months after she was born.  My life at that time was turmoil but in a good way(I can say that NOW that time has passed). I was transitioning from one point in my life to another. My life feels like it is still in transition. But I have my Valkyrie. She has been with me through so much. Always there for me.

Valkyrie is my slightly neurotic American Pit Bull Terrier(APBT). I had no idea what I was doing in regards to training a dog when I got her- even though I already had an older pit bull/boxer mix, Peanut. Valkyrie has an official name and everything. How fancy! Zell's Valkyrie CGC, NAC, NJC, TN-O, NCC, TG-N. All those letters after her name each have meaning. They stand for different agility titles she has earned over the past few years as well as her CGC(Canine Good Citizen award). Each of those titles have personal meaning to me too. We worked hard as a team to earn these titles but mostly we had a lot of fun getting there.

This blog is just a space for me to rant and rave about my life and adventures with my dogs. Yes, I said dogs. I have a second dog, Kieran. He is a little pit bull mix. But today's post is about Valkyrie. Because she is my princess.

Happy birthday my beautiful Valkyrie-bean!

 Baby Valkyrie.

Valkyrie the day I brought her home.

Valkyrie last week.