Preparing for the Holidays

I'm sorry I haven't updated this in a while, with Christmas and the start of my Radiology Tech program coming up I have been pretty busy.

JJ earned a submission to Dogshaming after eating Drew's favorite hat and peeing on the carpet 10 seconds after he came inside. Rori is learning that JJ is not as forgiving as Belle is and will react if hurt. She got snapped at a few days ago and although alarmed by it I wasn't mad at him and I don't think he is a threat to her. He was just telling Rori (in a very adamant way) that what she did hurt. Just so we don't look like terrible parents we did tell her to stop and what would happen if she didn't.

JJ refused to sit up for his Dogshaming photo and a second after the picture was snapped he tried to eat  one of Rori's toys.

He and the rest of our pack also decided to take themselves for a walk. JJ and Beau came back on their own, My mother in law had to hunt Belle down. Belle also ate six packages of chocolate gelt wrapper and all and a Chunky bar! She wasn't sick from it and hasn't died but boy does she smell like something crawled up her butt and died.

JJ is also warming up to Drew though he refuses to sleep on our bed if Drew is in it. The newness of JJ has worn off for Rori and she has even said she wants a puppy instead of dogs. I told her that's too bad we are a family. We didn't get rid of her when she got bigger and we aren't going to do that to our pack they are for life. 

We are getting ready for Christmas and this year my mother in law and I thought it would be nice to do family traditions we remember from when we were kids as well as the ones that my husband grew up with.
My mother in law is half Hungarian and she grew up with a lot of Eastern European foods and traditions. My mom is half German so we grew up with a lot of German traditions (even though my mom didn't celebrate holiday except Passover). So we are going to do a Christmas Eve breakfast with some of our favorite foods for those traditions. For me it's Latkes (potato pancakes) and Kugel (sweet noodle casserole with apples in it) that remind me of the holidays growing up. For my mother in law it is Beigli (traditional Hungarian nut or poppy seed roll), Kiffle (not sure exactly what this is but I'll find out soon enough), and Pashka (traditional Eastern Bread we aren't making until then I think). For me this will help Rori know more about her heritage as well as continue family traditions that have been practiced for years. We want to incorporate more than just traditional food but I need to do more research on the traditions of Hungary and pick which ones we want to use. 
On that note Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanza, and Happy Yule. Enjoy the season! 

Treatment has Begun!

JJ riding to the vet (sorry it's a little blurry)

Today JJ started his heart worm treatment, I had to sneak him out Rori's room this morning to get him to vet. Rori slept through it and when she woke up she was okay with him being gone because the other dogs were gone too (Belle and Beau had their annual check ups today). The back seat was a tangle of dog parts and the seat is now covered with fur.
When we got to the vet's office Beau our huge great dane mix was scared by a little Shih Zhu and hid until it was their turn to go into the exam room. JJ didn't want to be there but he did good waiting his turn. The vet had him all day long. Rori kept asking when we were going to go pick JJ up she was impatiently waiting for him to come home.

Rori comforting JJ after he got home 

When we finally went to get JJ we talked to vet again and asked him questions about what to expect from JJ while he was going through treatment. The vet said JJ's infection was was a stage one infection so it should be relatively easy on him but that he would be sore for a few days and that he could not exercise until a few months after all his treatment was finished. If he gets his heart going too much he could have a pulmonary embolism and die (basically a blood clot that gets caught in his lungs). JJ will be sleeping with Drew and me for a few days until his back isn't sore anymore. We don't want to risk Rori hurting him accidentally and getting nipped. During human dinner time tonight JJ went to Rori's room and went to sleep on the bed. I think everything that happened today took a toll on him. Even as I'm typing JJ is passed out at my feet.

He was awake long enough to eat and then love on Drew for a bit though. We will have to watch him for a while and he won't be cured for sure until late January, but he is on his way to recovery and soon will be as if he was never sick and that is exactly what we want for him.

Belle and JJ loving on Drew

Christmas time for JJ

Rori helping JJ to groom Beau. ICK!

JJ will go in on Monday to begin treatment for heart worms. YAY!! I'm pretty excited about that. Rori doesn't know that JJ is even sick so she won't understand why he is going to the vet again, but I'll just have to deal with her tantrum. I really don't want to tell her he has heart worms because she will be really worried about him. They haven't had many big adventures lately and are just taking things slow and calm. He has gotten the hang of their routine and is settling in really well to life with us. He has really bonded with Beau and they spend a lot of time playing together. The have also been licking each other on the living room floor. With Christmas coming up Rori wanted to get JJ a present so when we were at the store Thursday she got JJ a stocking, 2 dental chews, 2 Squeaky toys, and a new leash to match his collar and harness. She is excited to give it to him. She also wants for me to help her get him an engraved tag for his collar, we'll see if we do that before Christmas.

Bedtime for JJ and Rori

Christmas is going to be very busy for us and we aren't sure how JJ will react when there are 3 more people here and another dog. My brother and sister in law, their son, and Spinner will be coming for a visit before going to their duty station overseas. Spinner however will be staying with us for the rest of his days. We hope he does well with JJ because they have never met before unlike Spinner and the other dogs. I will post on JJ's treatment soon.

A New Collar for JJ

JJ wearing his new collar and rabies tag

When we took JJ to the vet we also stopped to look at new toys, collar, and harness for him. Our plan was to give more ownership to Rori by letting her choose things for JJ. Rori had no problem choosing toys for him. She chose a tug rope, a squeaky duck, and a squeaky penguin toy. Collars however she had some impracticality problems. She kept choosing collars that were spiked, or girly, or too small for JJ. In the end I chose for her based on her personal preferences. The one I chose had a matching lead and harness and was safe for the other dogs and Rori. JJ looks more comfortable in his new collar and harness. It's always nice to have things that fit. He looks pretty happy to me.

JJ looks happy with his new collar on

Burying the Hachet

Drew, JJ, and Beau breaking the rules of "no puppies on the sofa"

Drew has been trying everything to get JJ to be at ease with him. Drew has taken him for walks on his own, he has tried giving him his food at dinner time, he even went so far as to share two bacon cheeseburgers from Jack In The Box with him to try to bribe him to like him. Until recently it hasn't really worked and we aren't sure what finally did it but JJ has overcome his shyness with Drew and now goes up to him for attention and has even accepted food from him finally. We are so thrilled that JJ is overcoming what ever made him act that way. Drew is still slightly concerned about JJ's protectiveness of Rori. Right now he shows concern by getting between Rori and whoever is trying to discipline her or as was the case last night whoever is rough housing with her, and we're okay with that we just don't want it to escalate to growling or biting.

Getting belly rubs from Drew

The Other Shoe Drops

Rori and JJ waiting at the Vet's office

We got news when we went back to the vet to pick up JJ that made us a little sad. JJ tested heart worm positive. We are sad about this because it is expensive to treat and is also most likely the reason his first family dumped him. We are however determined to be the family that JJ deserves and are going to have him treated. It will take three separate treatments with all day observations but at the end of it he should be cured. JJ and the other dogs are all on a health care plan with the vet which gives discounts for  certain services so the treatment is a bit cheaper than it would have been but it will still cost a few hundred dollars. We feel he's worth it though. He also got a new collar and harness today that seems to fit his personality. I will post pics when I take them.

Our pack: JJ (German Sheppard mix), Belle (black pit mix), Beau (we think he has some Great Dane)

Going to the Doctor

On the way to the vet

Today was JJ's first vet appointment and Rori insisted on going with us. She did fine until the vet said they wanted to keep him for a few hours to do all his tests and start him on his vaccinations. She freaked out about JJ not leaving with us. JJ was well behaved he just didn't want us to weigh him (we did anyways). He stayed still and patiently waited while the vet looked at his teeth and did a physical examination. He was calm while the vet tech checked him over, and even licked both the vet and the tech's hands. He is the calmest dog I have ever taken to the vet's office!
We found out a few things about him from the vet too. JJ is not a pure bred German Sheppard he is a mix breed (with what we may never know without a DNA test). He is most likely 1 1/2 years to 2 years old so he is still young and full of energy. JJ is fully grown, he will always be a medium sized dog (Thank You! We don't need another Beau). He also generally appears healthy the vet will know more after the tests are done but he saw nothing that concerned him. When we go to pick him up we will find out if he has a microchip or not, if not he will be getting one.  The entire time we were there Rori was fascinated with the vet's stethoscope and was asking him all about it. She told everyone who would listen that JJ was her dog and he was healthy. She thinks JJ is gone for ever despite reassuring her that he will be back this afternoon. So I have just given up trying to calm her she'll see soon enough.  

Adjusting Well

Looking cute after stealing my seat

This week JJ and Rori have been acting as if they have always been together. He plays with her loves on her and follows her around. She has shown a lot of love to him and constantly reminds us that he is her "JJ puppy". He has one habit that when it catches me off guard scares the crap out of me, he "smiles". At first when he did it when thought he was acting aggressive but nothing in his body language said he was aggressive, just a flash of his teeth. After looking it up online and talking to some breeders we figured out he's "smiling" which apparently according to dog behavior is a sign of submission to who ever he smiles at. Even knowing that I still feel a little uneasy when he does it. Maybe it's because it's ingrained in us that when a dog shows he teeth he is going to attack, or maybe it's left over from when I was a kid and attacked by the neighbors German Sheppard. I don't know but I watch him closely nonetheless just in case.

A girl and her best friend

 Rori's favorite pastime is going outside and playing with him and the other dogs. She chases them around the yard and giggles as the tackle each other. Sometimes she throws a ball for them, JJ isn't too big on the ball thing, but we have discovered that he loves squeaky toys. The louder the better. He will fetch them and loves to hear them squeak. He actually howled and danced the first time I brought them outside to our play session.

Taking a break from a game of Fetch the Squeaky

Rori has worked out a routine for him that works. When we get up he gets breakfast and potty time then we do our morning stuff including watching some cartoons and snuggling. Then after lunch it's outside time (weather permitting) where she brushes him out and then has playtime with him and the other dogs. We haven't been able to do it for the last two days because I had appointments first thing in the morning and didn't get home until the afternoon. We both look forward to this time together just us and the dogs.

"Sorry Mom I know you were only gone for a minute but it's my seat now"

Tomorrow JJ has his first vet appointment and hopefully we will get some answers about him.

Getting Settled In

Checking on his girl while playing in the back yard

After his first night JJ looked more at ease in his new home. During outside time Beau (our 100 lb mutt) actually started playing with JJ. Rori thought this was wonderful and chased them around the back yard giggling and laughing. He still shied away from Drew but showed his devotion to Rori by following her everywhere and putting himself between Rori and Drew whenever she got into trouble. 

Letting Rori put her feet in his face

It was obvious that JJ and Rori's bond was growing stronger and that they had finally found their best friends.  He started to roam the house with more ease and felt more comfortable going up to people in the house.We took him, Rori, and Belle (the pit mix) to the park to walk and bond as a family. He rode perfectly in the car, no whining, barking or pacing; getting him out of the car was another story. He refused to let Drew take him out of the car and crawled to my side of the car instead causing Belle to get free from my grip and take off running. After catching her and doing our walk Rori went to play in the playground while Drew and I watched. Every few minutes JJ looked up from where he was sitting to see where Rori was and make sure she was safe. I couldn't imagine a more perfect dog for my little girl.

JJ letting Rori cuddle him during nap time

Backstory

JJ on the first night we brought him into the house.

Meet JJ the newest member of our pack and Rori's first dog. JJ's story is vastly unknown but he has proven to be a sweet, loving, and loyal addition to the family. What we do know is that the Monday before Thanksgiving 2012 JJ was dumped across the street from our house by an eight year old kid and his mom, who was driving a dark colored SUV. We know this because myself and Drew were awake watching it happen. We called the police department but all they did was call Animal Control. Animal Control went looking for him but was unable to find him. Then Black Friday Drew saw him while coming home from the store. He then went out to catch JJ so that we could take him to the no kill shelter. When we went to take him, the shelter was closed and would not open until the next morning. So we all decided he could stay for the night but we would take him to the shelter the next morning, but first he needed a bath and badly!

JJ resting his head on Rori's feet the first night he was in our home.

After a good bath and meal he immediately took to Rori licking her face and laying his head on her lap. She was delighted and giggled a lot. We could all see that they just clicked and bonded instantly. So it was decided that even though our pack was already large (a pit mix, a 100 lb mutt, and soon a lab mix) he could stay.
The first night he stayed in Drew and my bedroom so that we could see his temperament before putting him in Rori's room. The next day we watched him closely as him and Rori interacted to be sure that he wasn't aggressive toward her at all. I tested to see if he had any food aggression or toy aggression and found none. So it was decided that we would put him in Rori's room. Drew and I barely slept that night and checked in on them often. Every time we looked in JJ would snap his head up and see who it was and when he saw it was just us he would lay back down sigh and close his eyes. This behavior helped set our minds at ease and we felt good about him being Rori's dog...