Venice and Clara Update (large photos, one graphic!)

Venice and Claire continue to get along fantastically! Claire is growing and growing... we are meeting fewer puppy-fevered crazies as a result of this, which I'm happy about (no really, upon hearing she was a foster and was looking for a home, one man told me "wait right here, I'll run home and grab some cash, how much is she?!")






You're losing your sweater there, Claire-bear...




She is going to be such a stunning dog when she's all grown up!


Venice has been with us for three weeks now and I am so happy with her. We went to flyball practice with a friendly at the beginning of the week and had a blast. We're both total newbies but I'm told she did absolutely fantastic, and we're invited back whenever we please. I was impressed with her, I thought she would have some trouble focusing with all the dogs barking and people yelling, but she had a solid recall all night and was crazy about her tug. No photos, I forgot my camera!

Here are some things Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum have been up to.

Sunbathing


Keeping warm.


And doing both at once


More!

Lots of playing


Inside and out!


Sometimes looking like a chilly gremlin.


Finally getting the ball out from under the couch.


And wondering why it is -30 C but there's no snow.


Yelling at strangers (she's actually just chewing a twig)


We had and accident Wednesday night at the park, so we won't be going back to flyball for a few weeks. I dislike dog parks but am lucky enough to have responsible dog friends and a nearby fenced in baseball park where we can let 'em rip! We had a big thaw on wednesday and the field was icy in some parts.. It was dark by the time we got together so I have no idea what happened, but think she must have slipped on a patch of ice and caught her paw on the chain link fence. All we heard was one of them bang into the fence. No crying, no nothing. I didn't even notice until a few minutes later that she was fussing with her foot. When I got my phone out to shine a light on it I saw a lot of blood - assumed a ripped dewclaw or split nail or something, but nope... she tore the top of her paw open!

This was at the after hours clinic when they were making up our quote (not nearly as much as I expected, phew!)


She needed to be anesthetized and stitched up, fortunately no tendons were damaged so she should make a speedy recovery. So far lazing around on the couch is still a novelty so she doesn't seem too antsy. I think the giant knucklebones help.


Her incision today when I changed her bandage. Looking good!


More

Sooo not impressed.


Stop.


And one of Clara on hot-water bottle duty for the invalid.


To stave off some boredom today I taught her to beg (or 'sit pretty', whatever). She caught on great! I took a video but didn't like it (aka I introduced the cue too early and messed up clicks and didn't really feel like showing that )

Clara is my 'animal behaviour' project this semester and is doing great at that. I'm just desensitizing her to nail trimming. She'll let me play with each individual nail now without pulling away. Next step, clippers.

And in other news, Venice's DNA swab results arrived. I don't have a lot of confidence in their accuracy, but did it out of curiousity and the hope that it would say something like boxer/whippet/terrier so I could bring her home for the summer (home = Ontario = pit bull ban). She is totally just a Nova Scotia mutt. The only thing they could say with certainty was that a great grandparent (or possible even farther back) was a Rottweiler. MAYBE, just MAYBE she has SBT in her equally as far back, but they warned that they couldn't say that with any real confidence as her DNA is just all over the place.

Meaning she is safe to come home for the summer! (At least to the city I live in where the ban is publicly unenforced... I don't think I'd go flaunt her around Brampton or London or anywhere that actually enforces the law). Don't worry, had her test results said YOU HAVE A 100% APBT AND IT IS READY TO EAT UR FAMBLY, I had a backup living situation planned out.

Take care everyone!

Still claiming she's a foster, eh?

How are you getting to Ontario? If you're driving through the states, they won't let her in if you try to get through the boarder into Ontario, just something to think about

Yes, still a foster! I didn't plan on getting a dog of my own for a couple years yet, so a SECOND one is definitely not in the cards!

Thanks for the concern and the tip! Driving through the states doesn't actually save any time in the long run, so we take the Trans-Canada.

You need to keep her <3 she looks so at home.

I'm sorry about Venice's foot! I hope she heals quickly! Poor thing!

Both of them are just PRECIOUS.

HA, that little porkchop could make herself at home anywhere. My friend hung on to her while Venice and I were at the vet and this is where she plunked herself down 5 minutes after walking through the door.

I love Claire's jumper! It's like something you'd get in Topman!
Great photos, glad Venice (awesome name by the way) is recovering well!