A Howling Good Time

Took the little man back to the beach today. Unlike last time he was not interested in digging big holes and running in circles around me. This day was all about checking everything out.

He found a nice size shell.

Smellz like a good shell

He found a new little friend who we named "Pinchy"

Pinchy the crab

Dude youz are little

He stopped to smell the roses... Wait!.. What? Yes roses... there were roses all over the place for some reason.

Youz should always stop and smellz the roses

It was very windy so he spent a good deal of time sniffing the breezes and watching the waves.

Sniffffffff

When he was satisfied that he had explored and smelled enough we headed into town. It was there that little man turned in a performance worthy of those people on the Voice TV show. Just listen to the perfect pitch and match to the sound of the siren.

On the way back to the car he met a Bear, checked out some Alligator teeth at the SeaShell shop and got a little upset at the false advertising in a pet store.



Iz like Thiz Bear



Pretty Teethz

Mom they liez! There are no catz in the box!

All in all a good day for my little monkey man!

Therapy In a Four Legged Package

One of my biggest regrets is not having enough time with the Tonka man. He was such a confident and loving soul and would have made a perfect therapy dog. Isaac displays some of those same characteristics that the big boy had. He is loving and in tune with peoples emotions, leaning in and providing contact when someone is having a bad day or sitting quietly if that is what is needed. He absolutely adores children and is fine with multiple kids swarming him at the bus stops. He is a real sweetheart. The only bad marks for Isaac are his HATRED of cats, his desire to chase the school buses and all motorcycles and sometimes he will shy away from a stranger.

This week I finished up a course with the non-profit Pet Partners to register us as a therapy team. I passed my part of the test and now just need the little man to pass his. He has had experience with some of the evaluation requirements as they are the same as the CGC test that he passed in November of 2015. This test adds on with other items such as loud people, visual and auditory distractions from the front and behind, awkward petting and other things you might experience in an institutional\hospital or education setting.

Wish us luck!

Iz a Good Citizen

 

 

Today Iz got in the car and mom and Iz went to a park to meet a really nice lady.



Going to show off my skillz
 

We had to do some walking around and Iz had to sitz and be good for a bit and go down and be good for a bit. Mom had to leave me and I had to behavez and the lady brushed me and looked in my ears and touched my feetz. I had to be cool around other dogz and not be silly and want to play and run and I hadz to come to Mom when she called me. Basically I had to be a good boy, which of course I am when I haz to be.

Look how good I iz

When we were all done mom and the nice lady filled out some paperz and then I got to explore the park. I decided the bench was a good place to keep an eye outz for bearz.

Mom sayz I am now a Canine Good Citizen and she iz very proud of me.

Fireworks and Pets (the aliens have arrived)

My big guy was never afraid of anything and little man has proven to not be afraid of storms or the occasional loud boom or pop. That being said the fourth of July was a bit of an eye opener. We happened to be sitting out back on the 3rd of July when someone in the neighborhood to the right set off a round of fireworks. Isaac sprang into action and charged at the fence line barking to tell them to get away he was on duty. All of a sudden someone to the left set off a round and he came flying across the yard to tell them off. Within minutes both sides were shooting off loud, whizzing and popping fireworks. Isaac stopped in the middle of the yard and looked around frantically and then back at me. I tried to tell him it was okay but he took off past me and into the house. I do believe he thought aliens had arrived and were invading. When I finally got up the stairs after him I found him in what I will assume was in his mind his fortified defensive position. When he realized he was surrounded, he like any good warfare strategist performed a tactical fallback.

It took a bit of coaxing to leave his position but he finally came around to the idea that curling up in bed with mom was a safe place to be.

Anger to Sadness and Back Again

I am at a loss - I received a message from a neighbor that they had put their dog to sleep today. I have known this dog since he was a pup and he has been my buddy at the fence ever since they got him. I could pick him up and he would give me kisses. He would stretch up to me at the fence and I would lean over and scratch his back from his tail to his neck and back again. He was a friend to my big guy and all the dog walkers and their dogs knew his name and would stop and talk to him. I knew he had some jealousy issues with the husband and the wife but those are things that a behaviorist could have worked with.
I really do not understand people and this disposable society we live in. I should be used to it by now as some of the stories that people tell at rescue are just so out there. I would have called rescues till I found him a safe place if they had just asked. 
Tonka you look out for him now OK

The ride home from Narnia

We left Narnia in the early afternoon and headed home with Isaac on the Kurgo zipline in the back of the truck. It was hard driving away without his brother William but I knew he would get a good home. He was going to be big and beautiful and was very sweet.

 

Little curious

 As the trip went on Isaac got a bit bolder and made his way up towards the front.

Whats up here

Hi

Curious Monkey

Are we there yet?

I think I am going to be OK

The clover does it!

Playing with Isaac and William although fun was also upsetting as it sparked many memories of Tonka as a pup. I had posted the pics of the day on social media and people were posting back telling me I should get a puppy. Now if you are a dog lover you always want a puppy - even if you don't need a puppy. The minute you get near one and smell that puppy breath and feel those soft little puppy pads you immediately fall in love and want to take it home. I did not want a puppy, I wanted my Tonka back. I will always want my Tonka back. I can't make people understand that, even some people I consider "dog" people don't understand my complete loss at losing my son.
My friend CM and I made the trek back to Narnia on September 27th to help groom and walk the beautiful dogs at AGPR. It was CM's birthday so we made a day of it and when we got to the rescue I took her back to see the boys. As we walked back to the kennel I happened to look down and right in front of the two goofballs was a four leaf clover.

William and Isaac

...who put that in front of Isaac's Kennel

 

William on my head and Isaac in my lap

Isaac!

CM and Isaac

We spent a good bit of the day brushing and walking dogs. Some are old friends like Keesa who has been there since before I started volunteering. Others were fairly new to AGPR but still older dogs that enjoy being fussed over. In the back of my mind that damn clover kept popping up.

Now CM is one of those people that will go a little overboard when ever you mention something. If you say you want a new pair of shoes then you should have 3 new pair of shoes all in different colors. So when I said something about the clover and maybe Tonka was trying to tell me something she immediately went to "you should take both William and Isaac home". To which I replied "I am getting too old and too beat up to take care of two puppies".  She of course volunteered to get up early every morning and help which set me into hysterical laughter. CM never gets up early and will be late to her own funeral.
The day went on and we went back to see the boys and again Isaac thought I was the greatest toy ever invented. Now puppies always have a better shot at getting adopted so I knew these guys would find a home but I kept thinking of that clover.
After Tonka passed I had a discussion online with a friend about how if I ever decided the time was right to get another Pyr it should probably be another special needs dog. Her answer was priceless she  responded simply "they are all special needs - they need a home".
So was my Pyr Angel Tonka pointing me in the direction of one of these puppies? The answer seemed to be yes and Isaac was my new best friend so I pulled Victoria the rescue director aside and we had a chat about it. I found myself filling out an adoption application and writing out a check to take him home. I do believe Tonka orchestrated the whole thing.