Gracie, Our Newest Addition!

Gracie, the photo that started it all!

Since we lost our dear Max more than a year and a half ago, I knew I would eventually want another dog.  That's just me, I love animals, and enjoy having them around.  I thought long and hard about what kind of dog I wanted.  Max, a Loiusuana Catahoula Leopard Hound mix, would be a hard act to follow. There are so many to choose from, but I finally settled on a Sheltie.  My family had one when I was very young, and I have always loved them.  So, as my birthday neared, I started following the rescue shelters that were close by, looking for that perfect fit. Then, Tag 193 came across my Facebook page on July 25th, and I was smitten.  I first saw her on that Friday, and the

following Monday I decided I had to go check her out.  It was love at first sight!  A Sheltie mix, better yet! After a thorough check by our vet, we brought her home and Bill gave her a much needed bath and flea treatment, and she has been a delight ever since.  She's very intelligent, and eager to please, training has been quite easy actually, even tho' she's a bit younger than we had originally thought.  We bought her ID tag and collar from Boomerang tags. Love these tags, all our dogs have one.  We had her spayed and micro-chipped about two weeks after we brought her home.  She was an excellent patient, she never even needed a cone.  Potty training has been a breeze, I think she had a total of five accidents since day one, and three of those five were probably our fault. She now knows how to tell us when she needs to go outside.

Gracie on fence training!

The very first time I walked her, I realized she could fit through our field fence with no trouble at all.  This concerned me, even though the fence has an electric wire along the bottom, as she came to the shelter as a stray.  So, that means she's a runner.  Of course she is, she's a Sheltie! So my husband devised this 'stick on the collar' as a way to train her on the fence, without her getting through it first. She hates it, of course, but, the good thing is that she's still with us.  

Gracie, keeping an eye on the cat!

Gracie quickly attempted to make friends with our two cats, Mischief, the old, cranky one who is always stealing her bed, 

Sharing, well, sort of...

and Franke, the fun to chase one!  The top of the stairs is a great retreat for Franke.  For some reason, Gracie hasn't tried to climb the stairs yet.  Max went up them all the time until his hips got too bad.  He loved hanging out up stairs with me, I think it was the view!

Franke's safe spot!

As of this writing, Franke has stopped running (most times), and Gracie is learning to leave her alone (most times).  She and Ziggy, our old man Yorkie, are still working on their relationship.  

Just a mild disagreement!

You see, Gracie is quite young, maybe a year old, and Ziggy is just not into rough housing.  But, they work it out on a daily basis. Ziggy has no problem telling her "No, don't even think about it!". However, when it comes to rough housing, our two Anatolian Shepherds are in!  Kahn and Kehli look forward to their daily romp just before dinner each evening.  And can Gracie romp!  It took her a couple days to learn the ropes on doggie romping manners from the big guys, but as of last night, it seems she's got it down. Caesar Milan is right, nothing like a dog to teach another dog!

She can run!

Here they are, playing their heart out.  Gracie looks forward to this time of day, and so do we.  She is very content after this play time to sit quietly with two old folks for the evening.  She goes into her crate at night for bedtime with no trouble now, that was a bit of a challenge in the beginning.  I think she may have been used to sleeping in the bed with her former owners.  But, there's just no room in the inn right now with Bill and I, and Ziggy and the two cats.  Some day, maybe, who knows.  

Gracie, that face I love!

Do you see Mischief sleeping on Gracie's bed in the background? Gracie tried to nudge him out, and she got bit on her lip!  No blood, just a harsh warning.  I dumped him out three times before this photo.  As you can see, it didn't work.


Carpe Diem! Lil and Bill