Oh my goodness, Puppies, what a fantastic day! Look at all the hikers who came out to support The Alliance of Northern Breed Rescues. First of all, I need to say a big THANK WOO to everyone who pledged to me. With your help I raised over $200 in pledges and felt very good about my contribution to the day’s success.Everyone had a great time introducing their puppies to each other or just lounging in the cool grass under the big trees. Do you see who is in the background of this scene?Here is a close-up so you can see a little better. That is right. It is Maximus! He brought his family out to hike and enjoy the day, and we were so glad to see him. His fur is already longer than it was when he left here.Speaking of seeing a former foster dog, I spotted Jasper and his mama running across the lawn while two rowdy youngsters wrestled nearby. Jasper’s fur, which used to be red with damage, is now a striking solid black.We had so many exciting activites and demonstrations throughout the day. On the left is an animal first aid demonstration given with the help of the life sized practice CPR Siberian. He is one helpful Husky. Below, Save our Siberians, an organization that gives extra aid to rescue Huskies who need special medical attention, is showing how they raise funds. They spin Siberian fur into yarn and knit or crochet that furry yarn into hats, scarves, and other fun items they can sell.

Mama got a Magnum tattoo while she was there. It only makes sense that she should have me permanently impressed upon her. Okay, it is not permanent, but the face painting booth was turning out some great pictures of paw prints, puppies, and other requests. The boy on the right here asked for a skull tattoo on his cheek. Anything for the dogs.

We also had a visit from a giant stuffie. I noticed some dogs were excited and some were afraid when they saw the giant stuffie, but Grandma took Maverick and me over to the stuffie, which lead me to realize the stuffie smelled and sounded just like Mama. Well, if it smells like Mama and sounds like Mama, it must be a pretty nice stuffie. Oh, there was food too. Lots of food. Lots of begging and thieving Siberians.
Callie was feeling well enough to get out and enjoy the day. Callie has frequent cluster seizures that can be quite disabling, so friends were stopping to sign a get well card for her. We hope we can balanace her medication so she can enjoy more days out without worrying about seizures.Okay, so here is the worst thing that happened. I took Grandma and Grandpa home after just a couple hours so I could tell Blue about the events. Then, AFTER I LEFT, Maverick spotted Indy and they got to play. I was happy for Maverick, but I was awfully disappointed that I missed Indy. When Papa got home he kept saying how Indy was taller in real life and he was such a handsome dark red and so on.

Well, missed blogger buddy aside, I had a specatular time and I think everyone else did as well. So Thank Woo to everyone who participated, even if only in spirit, in the first annual Hike N Howl, and to our many supporters.

1 September 2007
9 am to 3 pm
Norristown Farm Park
Norristown, PA.

Brought to you by
Delaware Valley Siberian Husky Rescue
MaPaw Siberian Husky Rescue
Harnessed to Hope Northern Breed Rescue

Hi Puppies, this week we are puppy-sitting another one of our former foster dogs. Deeko is the very first dog for whom Mama and Papa found a home. He was wandering through the woods with both eyes crusted from entropion. MaPaw got him the veterinary care he needed and found him a home with two Siberian brothers. That home is also with a good friend of ours so we get to visit Deeko often.

Deeko’s big brother Knanook (not the Newfy) may be an old man now, but he can still beat up Blue now and then. Knanook is the first Siberian Husky Mama and Papa knew, and they liked him so much they decided to rescue Siberians. I am certainly grateful that Nook demonstrated the delightful Siberian character.Here you can enjoy the music Deeko and his other brother Logan have brought to my home.

So Puppies, I mentioned Blue when I talked about the last meet & greet. What I did not mention is that Blue came to my house after that event. Princess was off to her new home and we knew Blue was lonely at the kennel where he was staying because he kept escaping his run to climb into the runs of other dogs staying there. The kennel has plenty of Siberian experience, but they could not contain Blue and he was doing a lot of expensive damage while they were kind enough to house him for us. Mama met Blue a couple weeks before that when she took pictures for our website and evaluated him. As she held his paws, took away toys, and turned him on his back, Blue gave her kisses and rolled in the grass. Mama wanted to start fostering him right then, but our house was full, so we had to wait.It is an occupational hazard, Puppies. We love every dog we foster. We welcome them into our hearts and home. We care for them as a part of the family. When they go on to their new homes, it is always a bittersweet feeling as a piece of us goes with them. Once in a while, there is a dog who thrives in our family, a dog who fits so perfectly in our pack that we cannot say goodbye. Blue fit into our home as if he was returning after an absence rather than arriving for the first time. Bailey, Ananya, and I usually disagree about which foster dogs are our favorites, but we all love Blue, so we had a talk with Mama and Papa and now we are four.

Naturally we will continue to foster and share with you the stories of Siberian resilience, but Blue’s happy ending tale comes at the same time as his introduction. Join me in welcoming my new little brother, Blue.

I was surprised how much Maximus enjoyed swimming in the deep water, but Princess was no surprise. She hated it. She will not have to worry about going on that hike again, though, because she has moved to her new home! Teddy and his dad saw Princess online and came out to one of our meet & greets to get to know her. Poor Teddy does not travel well and vomited on himself, but he said it was worth it to him to find such a sweet sister.

Teddy felt much better when Princess made the drive to his house. Princess and Teddy hit it off immediately. They ran out in the back yard and had such a good time playing Mama could not focus the camera on them. Finally they stopped a moment to catch their breath and Mama got a shot of them smiling at each other.

We do not have to worry about Princess roaming the streets like she did at her previous home. Teddy has a secure yard where she can run, plus she could not possibly find anything outside the fence that would be as fun as her new big brother.

I have said it before and I will say it again – I move slowly. So I am late in responding to Indy’s tag, but now I will name 5 things I would put in a time capsule.

1. My couch – It is good for napping, resting, sleeping, and getting belly rubs. Also, it helps me reach the end table from which I can steal paper to chew.

2. Training treats – They are as versatile as my couch. I use training treats to make my mama focus all her attention on me. I do normal, everyday things like walking with Mama and sitting, but she gets much more excited by those things when she has training treats. Plus, they make excellent between meal snacks.

3. Collars & Leashes – It is a two-part tool to get my humans out of the house. A collar & leash helps me get car rides and walks and trips to the pet store. They will also help me get back to Mama and Papa if I ever accidentally wander away from home.

4. Frontline & Heartgard – They keep me safe from fleas, ticks, heartworms, and whatever diseases those parasites may be carrying.

5. Bagels – I love carbs.

I am slow and doofy, so I am also late in responding to Echo’s tag to answer a questionaire.

What is your favorite place to sleep?
During the day, I love the end of the couch nearest the kitchen. It is soft and close to the food. At night I like to sleep next to Bailey because he keeps me safe.

Is there a specific trick your humans make you do to get treats?
Sit, Down, Stay, Come, Heel, Stand or sometimes a combination of them.

If you could spend an entire day doing anything at all with anyone, what would you do and with whom?
I would go for a hike with my family and a couple foster dogs who have not had such good lives. Who would have guessed Maximus loves swimming? Then we would return home for a beef puff or another delicious snack and a nap.

What is your favorite toy?
Bailey, but most of the time I do not play.

If you could change one thing in your life, what would it be?
I would have more time, more space, and more money so I could help a lot more dogs. For every one we save, there are hundreds more waiting at shelters or suffering at the hands of people who do not care for them.

Good news, Puppies, Dawkin has recovered from his surgery and gone straight to his new home! Before Dawkin left for his surgery, he was hanging out in our back yard with Papa. Some neighbors walked over to say Hi and hear about the latest foster dog. As Papa told them about Dawkin’s eyes, our neighbors fell in love with Dawkin for his spirit and resilience. Dawkin now has an Australian Cattle Dog brother named Storm and a Boxer sister named Simone. The three of them hung out together in our yard before Dawkin’s surgery, but now he can see them.

Dawkin’s new people took him out for a game of fetch now that he can follow the ball, but he is still a Siberian, so of course he does not fetch. Dawkin loves to play with his new siblings and roll on the floor with his new human toddler.
Dawkin still needs eye drops three times daily and has to go to several follow-up appointments to keep his eyes healthy, but we are confident his new family will take excellent care of him.

Hi Puppies, we have been busy with meet & greets lately. We have to get out there to show people how adorable we are and let them all know about Hike & Howl in September. First we went to a Celtic festival with a bunch of other rescue groups. First pup is a MaPaw success story named Maia, although we all knew her as Cookie Monster, the first dog to pull my papa on skates.

Next is Rex, who could stay only a short while because he is recovering from heartworm disease. It makes me sad to think none of my friends would have to go through the difficult recovery if only their people would give them a special medicinal treat once a month.

Although Maia and Rex stayed for just a while, little Rocky was there for the entire event and he was exhausted. It was hard work being so cute and letting lots of people fawn over him.

Our next event was at a Pet Valu that is close to Norristown Farm Park so we could advertise the Hike & Howl to people who live near the park. Precious and Blue were not concentrating on advertising, though, they were too busy wrestling.

Misty claimed the fire lane as her personal space and allowed people the honor of petting her.

We also got a visit from Skunk, one of Jenna’s puppies who MaPaw raised during the winter. I would never guess she is half Siberian if I did not know her mama.

Blue and Precious just could not get enough of each other. We talked to a lot of people and Maximus met someone who was very interested in him. Maybe they will be the family who stays with him.

Blue and Precious just kept wrestling like there was no one else in the world. Silly young pups.