The Dog Days of Winter

Well, I was lied to about the snow. Shoulda known. But, we did get a new president, which happens even more rarely than snow, and is quite exciting. And I'm getting my teeth cleaned today. What more could you want! :)

In an effort to find meaningful ways to use all of my new-found spare time, I have been doing some volunteering at a nearby humane society. I had to go 30 minutes away to the town of Portsmouth because the local humane societies required such a long and involved list of requirements to volunteer that I would be back in the mountains before I was half done with all the trainings, orientations, etc. The Portsmouth Humane Society is pretty desperate for help and basically said "Sign this waiver form and here's a leash!"

Yes, working at a humane society is dangerous for me. I do want to take them all home, well, ideally anyway. Even I don't want to have 100+ dogs! My main task has been dog walking. The dogs are so happy to get out of their little kennels in a room swamped with pent up dog frustration. The really sad part is having to coax them back into the kennels after their walk is over. They pull me on the way out, I pull them on the way back in. :( This is also my first real experience with pit bulls. I'd say about half of the dogs in the shelter are pit bulls, and most of the ones I end up walking are. They have all been very sweet dogs. I was really taken with one yesterday that looked exactly like the dog from Little Rascals, and had a really cool tempermant to boot.

To further add to the dog fun, I spent part of last week assisting in pet sitting for Joe's uncle. He has a boston terrier, Lucky, that I hadn't previously been too fond of due to his uncalled for aggression to Wilson whenever they happened to meet. However, over the course of the days I was watching Lucky, and much to Wilson's initial chagrin, I took them all (Joe's cousin's boston terrier puppy, Tico, as well) on quite a few walks, during which time they managed to sort out whatever differences they have. Calling them friends is probably a stretch, but Wilson and Lucky are now settling for just giving each other the cold shoulder without any words having to be exchanged. I think it was a good experience for all involved. :)