Untitled Document

Maggie
written by Cliff

(Maggie was rescued from a puppymill, so this is her first home!)

Nov, 2006

Maggie completes her obedience class! Each one of us has been instrumental in her development. A pastor once told me that some people plant seeds, some fertilize and others harvest the crop. This could never be truer than in caring for rescued animals and in our case, Shelties. I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed day. Cliff

July 24, 2006

Well, this was a week-end to remember. We finally heard her bark (once) on Saturday while chasing away those dastardly squirrels from her yard. It took three weeks to hear her make any noise at all. She has such a sweet bark. On Sunday evening, she really got cranked up barking at two squirrels and now the barking drought is over. She has the poise of any hunting dog I have been around. She puts both front paws up on the tree as high as she can get them, looks directly to the sky with her tail up and looks for the trespassing tree dwellers. Once they have been chased from her yard, she struts around back and forth with more confidence than we have seen in her.
Maggie is a different dog now.

What really set her off Friday night was when I showed her one of Dena’s stuffed animals that looks like a Jack Russell terrier puppy. When I put the stuffed puppy on the floor next to her she went crazy. She ran around, tail in the air and then proceeded to run circles around the puppy. She picked up the puppy with her mouth behind her neck and carried it around then took it to her crate and started licking on its bottom, ears, mouth and body until it was soaking wet. When the puppy didn’t show any signs of movement, she would nudge it with her nose. Maggie now carries her puppy outside with her. When she couldn’t get the puppy that was in her mouth through the door to the back yard, she calmly took the puppy back to her crate and then went outside. What a smart girl! She is so highly intelligent. More so than me that’s for sure. Dena thought that I had really messed up Friday night because Maggie would not leave the puppy alone and it was getting close to midnight. She even put the puppy back on the spare bed. The spare bed is a 100 year old
frame that sets high off of the floor. Five minutes after putting the puppy back on the bed, Maggie had it in her mouth. She had to jump up on the bed to get her puppy back. We had to take the puppy from her after midnight Friday and she did not settle down until around 1:30 a.m. Ann, once I gave the puppy back to her on Saturday morning, after I talked to you, all was well and she is so happy.
I’ll say it again, she is a different dog now.

We had a bath Saturday afternoon and Maggie loved it. All of the prayers worked. She sat still in the tub water and looked like she enjoyed herself. Dena and I both worked with her in the tub, lathered and rinsed together and she really did great. After we dried off a bit, she strutted around the house. I gave her a treat after the bath and she was more energetic and frisky than we have seen so far.
In fact, she began playing with me. What a smart girl.

We refer to this past week-end as the 3-B’s – bark, bath and baby. I can not begin to tell you of what a changed girl she is now. Now if we could just get her to go potty on a leash or after the rain. Our little girl does not like to get her paws wet. Dena has suggested getting a rain coat for her and she was serious! I hope you enjoy the pictures. I took several so I will send 4 or 5 at a time. We are leaving Friday for our vacation in Arkansas. That will be another learning experience for Maggie but, her/our confidence level is at an all time high. We will keep our guard up at all times with her as we have a long way to go. God has really blessed us with such a wonderful little girl. I’ll take lots of pictures while vacationing. Can’t wait to see how Maggie reacts to all of the wildlife, our camper, the river, etc. I have a feeling that the squirrels will be a little nervous with her around. Have a great day; Dena and I are on “Cloud 9”.

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Maggie in her new home!

Photos from July 4th