Shulamith is limping

Yesterday I noticed that  Shulamith was limping. My first thought was the dreaded Valley Fever.  Then I thought maybe she just got injured from playing roughly with the other dogs.Today, She is much better which leads me to think it is an injury from playing with the other dogs. Today,I don't see the limp at a walk, but at a trot I can see a slight limp. It was much worse yesterday,being visible at a walk,and much more visible at her trot..I will see if she improves more tomorrow and go from there. If she is limping worse again,we will have to see the vet. I am hoping that she will not have any limp at all tomorrow.   to be continued.............

Shulamith is doing well with her training

Shulamith is doing very well with her training.Her house manners are vastly improved. She is better at waiting her turn at getting treats,no longer stealing them out of the mouths of the other dogs. She still has a habit of chewing paper and toilet paper, but that is getting better.We are still working the down command as she is still not good with it yet.I am still trying to get her nails down to where I can put the dog boots on her. I keep cutting little by little, but they keep growing little by little.I wish the vet could just chop them off and get it over with. Shaman has taught her to bark. She sounds just like him and I have to look to see which dog is barking.Shaman has gotten better about his barking but we are still working on Shulamith.She does not bark when she has her training vest on and we are out, but she barks at home,when people walk by the fence. Shaman has gotten better about being around her now. He still growls once in a while but there have been no fights.I have the basket muzzle ready in case I need to put it on him,but he has been good for a while now so.........I have been showing Shulamith what I want her to do when I say down by using Nici or Shaman to show her the down position. Sometimes she will do it,but not consistently yet.She is much better around food now. I can eat an entire meal without her even looking in my direction.If I can just get her to do the down consistently,we will be ready to try going to a restaurant. The training is going slow but she is doing well and I think we are both enjoying it.  To be continued..............

My new dog now has a name

I had a long list of names  and I chose several that I really liked and called her by those names. She responded to Shulamith.I kept calling her by the other names and she ignored them. When I called her Shulamith, she would turn her head and look at me or she would put her head in my lap.So.....she has picked her own name.She is doing very well with her house manners and the sit command. The down command is non existent at this point.We will keep working on it.She had no training before I got her,so things are going slow.She needs to figure out what I want her to do. When I show her, it takes a little while for the light bulb to go off. But I will let her learn at her own pace. I wish Shaman would not be so jealous of her. Things were going well between the 2 dogs,but my house keeper came yesterday and Shaman adores her. When Ashley said hello to Shulamith,he got jealous and attacked Shula. I got the dogs separated but I can't have dog fights here. I just won't put up with that. I don't want to find a new home for Shaman,but I may have to.I have a basket muzzle on him right now and he has made no attempt to go after Shula but I don't know what will set him off next time. Dogs have come and gone from here as I foster for a rescue.Shaman has never had a problem with any of them. He has seen me working with them on house manners and obedience to make them more adoptable. I just hope Shaman comes around.He has nothing to be jealous about. I love all my dogs,and spend a lot of time with all of them.  To be continued..................

I have a new dog !

I went up to San Tan Valley this last Sunday to look at some German Shepherd mix dogs. The one dog I thought I would get, was a little too small. I would have the same problem of her keeping up with the power chair that I had with Nici.I looked at 2 other Pure bred German Shepherds. I really liked both dogs but I chose the one they called "Momma Shepherd". I think this dog is a good match for me. I have not settled on a name yet,but I am working on that.We are currently working on house manners and the sit and down  commands.She is crate trained and potty trained. She also learned the first night, what "OFF THE BED" means and has remembered that . She also knows what "NO" means.She wants to please me. She is a very calm and quiet dog. Not a barker at all.Even when Shaman barks at something,she will look to see what he is barking at but, she doesn't bark.I really like this girl.She is predominately black with a small amount of tan on her neck,chest and legs. She is very pretty.I adopted her through Central Arizona Animal Rescue.She came out of very bad situation,from a back yard breeder. I am told the woman went to jail on neglect and cruelty charges. This poor dog lived in the same pen with 3 German Shepherd males and  they probably bred her every time she came into heat. No dought the puppies in the litters had 3 different fathers. She was selling them for $300.The dogs were starving and living in filth. When I brought her home, at first Shaman was a little jealous, but he has come around and seems to like her now. All the other dogs have accepted her also.Every thing seems to be working out fine.    To be continued...........

Sadly I have Retired Shaman, and decided to get another dog to work as a guide dog.

Sadly I have retired Shaman, My wheel chair guide dog.  He has been unable to work all winter and I feel it is best that he retire.I have searched the Internet looking for a female Shepherd or Shepherd type dog to train as a guide dog.I will have to  to take out a loan to get this dog as I had to pay a vet bill for Nici my current guide dog.She and Tess, one of my foster dogs, got sick from eating something outside. I think one of my neighbors threw some thing, maybe bones over the fence and these 2 got it before the other dogs did.Luckily, the rescue paid the vet bill on Tess. They are both better now but I was left with out the cash to pay the adoption fee for the dog I wanted.I qualified for the loan and go Tuesday to sign the paper work and get my loan.I have to make an appointment with the rescue to go and see 2 dogs and will decide which one will be the best choice to be a guide dog.One is a female Shepherd mix. She is black and tan but mostly black. The other one is a Lab/shepherd mix. She looks almost like a white Shepherd,but is a light tan color.I hope I will be coming home with one of these dogs. My friend Dave has agreed to help with the socializing of the dog and teaching her to ride the bus.  I will be working with the obedience and house manners.When she is ready I will start the guide training.I think Shaman is OK about being retired.He seems to be enjoying himself. I just felt that with his severe allergies that it was unfair to keep working him as I think the stress from guiding me was triggering a lot of his allergy symptoms. He does seem a little better now as I think the Raw Honey treatments are helping him. His ears have cleared up now that I am using a different medication for that but, I know he will get another ear infection soon  that will have to be treated again.The vet calls it allergy ears. Shaman also has a cyst on his side that has gotten bigger and is right where the harness goes around him.The vet has told me that it can be removed by surgery, but will most likely come back.Shaman and Max, one of my retired service dogs are both still on their grain free food but most of their allergies are environmental so they are both on medications for that.Max is now 15 and almost deaf and has cataracts, and is getting senile.I sadly wonder how much longer he will be with us.I seem to have several older animals and I realize that some day they too will be gone. I lost Flathead my 15 year old cat  and  Pacman my 19 year old cat and Puff my 16 year old Bearded Dragon last year and it was very sad.I do have their ashes though to remember them . Well on to more happy thoughts. The new dog will be trained to work with the power wheelchair like Shaman did. Nici will continue to work with the manual chair and with me walking when I am able to walk.Nici has much shorter legs than Shaman,and just could not keep up with  the power chair.She is still a very good guide dog so I will continue to work her. She and I are very close and have a special bond. I love all my animals but  my guide dogs are always special.I have a list of names to go through when I get my new dog.I will have to see what fits the dog's personality.  To be continued..........

Dog needs a home

There is a very nice young dog that needs a home. Her name is "Feisty" and she is a mix of Australian Shepherd and Terrier.She was a rescue and is in need of a home with out other dogs as she is frighted  of other dogs.She may be able to live with a very calm dog.She is very good with people and loves to be petted. She is also very smart and wants to please. She would make a good therapy dog or possibly a service dog. You can contact me  at   wolfsinger.lakota@gmail .com if interested in this very special dog.

Summer has gone and Winter is here!

I expected Shaman's allergies to clear up by now as most of his allergies are environmental.He has not cleared up at all. He is still scratching and chewing himself. His coat looks terrible. He is only 5 years old,yet he looks like an old dog.I have decided to retire him as guiding is a stressful job and stress can trigger allergies. I read an article about using raw bee honey for dogs with allergies. The idea is to increase the amount over time and that should get them used to the various pollens that are in the air,as they are also in the honey. Honey also has healing properties in it. I think it is worth a try to make life more comfortable for Shaman.             Christmas was a good one, but also sad. The loss of my 19 year old cat,Paccman and the loss of my 16 year old Bearded Dragon Puff, made it a sad time. New years Eve was a quiet one here. The weather here has been warm,cold, rain back to cold again. I hope it warms up again as Nici needs more work. Johnny and I are going to work our dogs at the mall soon.  To be continued................                                                                                                                                                              .

Warm weather, time to start using the dog boots!

The weather has warmed up considerably. It's time to put the dog boots on when I take Shaman and Nici out.My friend Carla took me out to eat om Easter.I used Nici and she was very good in the restaurant.She laid under the table and did not beg for food. Several people complimented me on how well behaved my dog was. Nici is always well behaved when we go out any where. On Sunday,my friend Rachel and her husband,Jeremy are coming over with their guide dogs. If the weather is not too hot, we will walk to the park.I have made the switch from Purina Pro Plan Sensitive skin and stomach for Shaman and Max to Taste of the Wild,grain free food.I am also mixing some of this food in with  Nici's mixture. They all seem to like it.All the dogs have been coming in the house for most of the day as it is getting too hot for them to stay out side.Even Myah is coming in. She usually stays out even when it is hot. Even Tess, the puppy that was found in a garbage can has been coming in when I call her. I guess she has finally decided to trust me.It has taken a long time for both Myah and Tess to trust humans again. They are the only foster rescues that I have at this time.The other 6 are mine.And of course Shaman and Nici are my guide dogs. Caring for all these animals is what keeps me going.  to be continued...............         

Long time no post

I was in the hospital over Christmas and New Years.I got scratched on the ankle by one of the dogs when I was fixing there food. They always get excited when it's dinner time.That scratch became infected and then the infection went into my blood.Off to the hospital I went. I also had a mild heart attack,so I was pretty sick for a while. I am fully recovered now. Johnny and Dave took great care of the animals while I was away.Johnny brought Nici to the Rehab place to visit me. When it was time to leave,Nici sat there and refused to move. She did not want to leave me. Johnny had to drag her out of my room.Poor Nici....I guess all the dogs missed me as they all went nuts when I came home.They must have thought I was never coming back.I was also very glad to see all of them. Any way, things are pretty much back to normal here.I've been working both my guide dogs and they have not forgotten any thing.Last Saturday, Carla,Johnny and I went to a meeting of the Rescues. There were a lot of dogs there as well as some cats.I took Nici with me and she was great with meeting all the dogs and even the cats. Johnny took his service dog Lady and another dog in training to be a service dog named Violet.It was a very interesting night. I met a lot of nice people and animals. I have begun training Nici to locate dog poop piles for me. I am using clicker training for this. This way when I loose the rest of my sight,I will still be able to pick up after the dogs. I have lost a lot more of my sight after my last hospital stay. Both Nici and Shaman are such wonderful guide dogs.Max, my Border Collie is now 15years old. He can't hear to well and has cataracts, but he seems to be doing OK. I hope he continues to do well. He is my retired Seizure Alert dog. Wanagi's left eye is now blind from the Valley Fever.I need to get her retested to see if she needs to go back on the medicine.She seems to be doing fine without it so I hope she can stay off of it.Wanagi is my retired guide.Tokala has been on a diet. She is still a little chubby but looks better than she did.She is still quite the food thief! Tunyan has been coming into the house more often lately.I hope she and Mya will come in the house when the Summer heat hits.It gets so hot for them and I worry about them.Even on the coldest nights,they refused to come in.But they are Huskies so I guess they can take the cold. Mya did come from Alaska,where it gets a lot colder than the Arizona winter.Mya now lets me pet her when she is on the porch. She no longer runs away from me.She has come a long way from when she first came here.She had been left in a compound in Alaska to starve to death with 200 other huskies.She still has trust issues,but  at least she does trust me.Our puppy,Tess has also come along way from being found in a garbage can. She still has trust issues but is now going up to people to lick their hands.She is still hard to catch though.She is about 8 or 9 months now.She is growing like a weed! Her coat is coming in nicely and her tail is fluffing up.She looks like a husky now.I sure did miss my dogs when I was in the hospital.I also missed my Bearded Dragons and Pacman my 18 year old cat.    to be continued.........










                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Shaman is back to working again

Poor Shaman has been laid up for the entire Summer with his allergies.He is doing much better now that the weather has changed.His coat is growing back and he is beginning to look like a beautiful dog again.His allergies  are more seasonal than food allergies. I have had him on a special diet but I am going to change him over to a grain free food to see if maybe that will help more .I hate to see him scratching and chewing at himself so I am hoping that the new food will change that.I worked him for the first time in 2 and a half months and he has not forgotten any of his training.His work was just as good as if he had been working the whole time. We went to the grocery store last night.He was happy to be working again.Shaman trots faster than Nici so we got there faster and got home in time to watch the National Dog Show.Nici may not be as fast as Shaman but we get there just the same. I usually use Nici when I use the manual chair or I am walking because she goes slow enough for me walking  or using the manual chair and Shaman is much too fast for this.When I need to use Nici for my power chair she does very well,she just goes slower.Both dogs do well when in crowds but Nici does better than Shaman when there are a lot of dogs.I guess this is because Nici has never been attacked and Shaman has been attacked so many times.I like having the use of 2 dogs as each one has their strong points, just in different areas.I love them both very much!        to be continued........