Happy New Year!

We hope everyone has a safe and happy New Years! We are celebrating a few hours early with a present to ourselves....

Don't you wish stuff came with the batteries already charged?

Bulldogs

For a breed you don't see very often, it has been nice to have a few different bulldogs at the daycare. The first to come was Ruby. The regular dogs didn't quite know what to make of her - she looked different and snuffled a lot. However, she quickly convinced them that she could be a whole lot of fun and was always ready for some play.

Then along came Bella. By now, the regulars knew that bulldogs were fun and they accepted her from the moment she arrived.

I haven't met too many bulldogs but from these two I can tell, this is a very appropriately named breed - they are like bulls in a china shop!

Border Collie?

Maggie Mae is a pure bred lab but we swear there must be some border collie in there somewhere! She loves to stalk. She will lay in wait for Gus to come up to her and then launch at the last minute. In these pictures, she was stalking a dog just behind Amanda so we were able to get some pictures of the look of concentration!

Merry Christmas!

From all of us at Paws on the Run - Merry Christmas! We hope you are all having a wonderful day today. We have the pleasure to be hanging out with some great company - your pets!

Thanks to everyone who brought us and the dogs so much stuff - cards and gifts and yummy things to eat. I'm thankful I've been doing so many dog walks lately so I can burn off all those extra chocolate calories!

Not enough time!

It has been almost a week since our last blog! Sorry about that. Life has been crazy busy and blogging unfortunately is not at the top of the priority list. I think things have settled down though so posts should start becoming more regular again.

Amanda put this together the other day for all of our amusement. It is staring: Kaleb, Perkins, Mira, Maggie Mae and Coulee. Enjoy!

Indoor Dog Park

You've requested it, and we've listened. Starting the second weekend in January, we are going to open the daycare on Saturdays for 2 hours (from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.) so that you and your dogs can come and play...well the dogs can play and you can chat with other owners. The cost will be $5 per family (up to 3 dogs). I've listed all the rules of the indoor dog park below. We want to make sure this is a safe and fun environment for all.

Indoor Dog Park Rules
You will be asked to sign a copy of these rules before entering the playroom with your dog. The rules are in place to create a SAFE, fun, healthy environment for all dogs!

Upon your first visit to the indoor dog park, please have a copy of your dogs shot records that we may keep on file. Shots must include Rabies, DHLPP and Bordatella (Kennel Cough).

Paws on the Run reserves the right to excuse any dog, at any time.

• Aggressive dogs are not permitted on the premises. Dogs must be removed at the first sign of aggression.
• Toys are not permitted in the play area.
• Please do not bring your dog if it is exhibiting any of the following behaviours: coughing, excessive sneezing, runny nose or runny eyes, vomiting, diarrhea, or unusually lethargic behaviour. If a staff member notices any of these symptoms, the dog will be excused immediately.
• Owners must stay with their dogs in the playroom the entire time the dog is here.
• Children 8 years and under are not allowed in the off-leash dog area; children ages 9 to 15 years must be accompanied by an adult.
• It is your responsibility to clean up after your dog. We will provide mops, buckets, poop-scoopers, etc.
• All dogs must have collars, For the safety of your dog(s) and other park visitors, choke, prong (pinch), collars with chain and spike collars are strictly prohibited.
• All dogs must enter and exit the facility on a leash.
• Female dogs in heat are prohibited.
• Food and drinks in glass containers are prohibited; training treats are allowed.
• Owners/custodians of a dog are responsible for the acts and conduct of their animal at all times when it at the indoor dog park. Dog park users and dog owners assume all risks related to use of the dog parks.
• Handler is limited to a maximum of three dogs.
• If entering or leaving the playroom, do not enter the double-gated holding area if there is already someone in that area. This will eliminate the possibility of both gates being open at the same time.
• Quickly move away from the entrance area as you enter. That will help disperse the group of dogs that will come over to welcome your dog to the park. Move away from the fence so that your dog will not feel cornered or threatened. This will lessen the problem caused when several off leash dogs, already in the park, come running over to greet the new arrival, perhaps overwhelming the arriving dog.
• Keep your head on a swivel at all times as there will likely be groups of dogs running around the park and having fun. People standing around are obstructions. A dog being chased may try to run its pursuer into a person in order to gain an advantage. Stay alert!
• Owners must quiet dogs that bark, howl, or whine excessively.

Hope to see you in January!

Edie

Does Edie look familiar? That is because she used to be called Neena and was with the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue. We are really happy that we get to see her still as her mom has started bringing her to daycare. She has found a great home and seems truly happy.

One thing hasn't changed though...Amanda is still obsessed with her ears. She really wants them to stand up and it looks like only one of them is going to. :)

Another Busy Day

This week has been very busy at the daycare. Which is great - it gives the dogs lots of different playmates. It seems like each day, new friendships form. D.O.G. and Kierra met for the first time today and they had a blast!

Let's hope next week brings just as many playmates!

We are also planning on starting up some indoor play sessions where you and your dog can come and play. We are thinking of having these on Saturday's from 11-1. More details to come!

Technical Difficulties

I'm really sorry I have been such a bad blogger. We have been having lots of technical difficulties. First the camera and then the computer. It works fine until we try and edit a picture or upload one to the internet - then the whole system crashes. It has been very frustrating. We think it might because of all our pictures... So we are going through them all and deleting all the "not so good ones" and putting all the decent ones onto CDs. This is taking us a long time because we've been so busy! That is a very good thing!

Santa Photos

Hi everyone,

I'll be e-mailing everyone who got their dog's photos taken but I thought you might also like to have a look at all the dog's Santa Photos. You can see them all on our Flickr site.

Christmas Cheer

Just a quick note to let you know that the Christmas Party was a lot of fun! Thanks to everyone who came out and donated to the food bank and the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue and the Humane Society. We raised over $200 for the two rescues and have two big boxes of food and got lots of collars, leashes and toys for the dogs. Thanks also to Brian who made a great, if rather thin, santa. We'll post the pictures on our flickr site soon.

Have you heard the news?

If you read the Lethbridge Herald, you would have seen a picture and story about Amanda in there this morning. I tried to scan it for those of you who don't get the paper but the scanner is electronic and I seemed to be cursed with all things electronic lately, and it wouldn't work for me. Thankfully it still prints and copies...just won't scan. Sigh. Anyway, the article is all about how wonderful Amanda is and all the stuff Natalie and her have done to help dogs through the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue.

In other news, Tala went off to her new home today. It was very bittersweet for me. I love Tala and it is hard for me to see her go, but on the other hand, I know her new family will love her too and give her lots of attention. Hopefully she'll come and visit us at the daycare some time.

New Pups!

Wow! What a week it has been and it is only Tuesday morning. We've had 6 new dogs this week already. It must be the cold weather. We love cold weather. :)

We don't have pictures of all the new pups (the camera needs more repairs...sigh...that could be a whole other post) but here are a few.

This is Trajan - he is huge and such a sweetie.

This isn't a very good picture of Tucker, but like I said, the camera is dying a slow death and needs to be sent back to Canon. His little floppy ears match his cute personality.

This is Maggie, looking very cold. She has a lot of spunk for a little girl and had a blast playing with the puppies.

Speaking of puppies, this is Tessa, a little shepherd cross. She is soft, cuddly and full of sass.

And speaking of sass, this isn't really a new daycare dog but she is a little foster dog that is staying with Amanda. We think she is a lab/poodle cross. How couldn't you love a face like this?

Chasing Tails

Normally dogs tend to chase their own tails. Not so with Boynapsi! He's got a pretty good grip on D.O.G. Good thing he doesn't seem to mind!

Perfect Match

Charlee (lab/retriever pup) and Bowser (husky pup) are the perfect playmates. They are almost prefectly matched in size, age, temperment and of course play style!

Click on the collage of them playing in the snow to see full size.

Snow Day!

Amanda let the dogs out in the back for a quick romp in the fresh snow. They had a lot of fun!

They couldn't get out the door fast enough.

Everyone was just racing around in circles.

Notice there aren't many feet touching the ground! (This was taken before Perkins figured out it was cold out - although this may be why all four feet are in the air)

Check out the Flikr site for more snow day photos!

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that I nominated ourselves for a Blogger award. :} <- that is supposed to be a sheepish grin. You can click on the logo on the right hand side of the blog to vote for us. I also nominated the Prairie Dog Rescue blog so be sure to vote for them too!

The Camera has Returned!

What a happy day. The camera is back. Of course, I had to test it so I went outside with the pups and took a few pictures. I had to take them very quickly before my fingers froze off.

This is Jenna, one of the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue foster dogs.

This is Koda...

Kinsey...

Barley...

and Jack.

Ahhh. It is so nice to have the camera back. Now we just need some warmer weather so we can stand outside for longer!

Speaking of Christmas...

We have partnered up with Go! Dog Go! to host the best furry Christmas Party in town and I'd like to invite you all to come. It is on December 8th from 1-3 p.m. and is being held at the Daycare (242 12 St N). Admission is free with a food bank or a pet rescue related donation. From 1:00 - 2:00 we'll be playing some doggie games but be sure to bring all your pets down from 2:00-3:00 for some pictures with Santa! We will also be havin a toy exchange. Have you ever gone out and bought a toy, brought it home and your dog/cat/ferret has shown no interest? Why not trade it in for a new one? We will have a toy exchange box so you can bring in your gently used toys and exchange them for a different one.

I hope to see you all there!

Click on the poster to see it full size.

Christmas

I'm sure I'm not the first to mention it. Christmas is coming. Soon. The entire Paws on the Run team will be working over the Christmas holidays which means - we'll be pet sitting, dog walking and running the daycare - even on Christmas Day!

We've already gotten lots of bookings and we want to do our best not to turn anyone away. Because of the high volumes over Christmas, if we are pet sitting your dogs we would like to have the option to bring them to the daycare during the really busy days - this will allow us to look after more dogs and still ensure they get the care they deserve. For one dog, the daycare/shuttle package is the same price as pet sitting ($30 per day), for two dogs the daycare/shuttle package is traditionally more expensive than pet sitting ($50 vs. $35) but for the Christmas season, we will only be charging $35 for the daycare/shuttle package for two dogs.

For cats and other pets, it will be business as usual.

The picture of Coulee was taken last year at the Lethbridge and District Humane Society during their "Paws and Claws" fundraiser. Phone the Humane Society (320-8991) if you are interested in getting your pet's picture taken with Santa this year!

Tala

Tala is one of the dogs rescued from the Reserve by the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue. She stayed with Marlin and I initially for about a month, then went off to a new foster home who was considering adopting her but in the end decided it wasn't a good match. So she came back to us and we've had her now for about 3 weeks. She needs to leave. Soon. We are falling in love. Actually I think we've fallen in love. Unfortunately we don't have the time or resources right now to give her everything she needs or we'd probably adopt her. She loves to cuddle. She isn't allowed on the furniture, with one exception.

I usually head up to bed around 9 p.m. and Marlin follows about 20 minutes later (after watching sport highlights). Tala and Coulee wait patiently (okay, not so patiently) for me to get into bed and at the "OK" they hop up with me. Tala runs straight for me, pushes her head into my neck and throws her little body up against me. She's allowed to stay there until Marlin comes up and then she sleeps peacefully in her crate.

She is great at the daycare, she loves to play with lots of other dogs, she isn't a big barker (I know she is barking in the video but that is only because everyone else is!) and she is great on off-leash walks...unless a jogger goes by. Then she gets really excited and jumps up and down while running along beside them. It is pretty funny to watch - not so funny to the jogger who is just trying to get some exercise.

So if you know of anyone who would love an active, sweet, medium sized dog, please get them to contact the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue!

Showcase of Women in Business

What are you doing tomorrow night between 5 and 9 p.m.? If you have no plans, you should check out the Showcase of Women in Business that is being held at the Lethbridge Lodge. I was on the waiting list to participate and just found out Thursday night, that someone else cancelled so I had a spot! If you've never been before, it is essentially a tradeshow of women owned business - you can shop, browse and have fun. There will be lots of free goodies and draws. We'll be drawing for a doggie gift basket including a collar and leash, gift certificate, and treats from Diggers Delights. I hope to see you there!

Camera Loan

It sounds like you guys are almost as upset about the lack of camera as we are. We've had 3 offers to use your guys' cameras - you guys are the best! Sandy dropped hers off this morning with the dogs - an offer I couldn't refuse.

So now I can show you guys some of the new pups that have started coming to daycare.

Scamp - a seriously cute border collie cross pup.

Boynapsi - the adorable terrier cross pup.

And last but not least, Maggie the cute-as-a-button jack russell - trust me she is much cuter than she looks in this picture.

Caricatures

A site where I've ordered business cards from in the past - Vista Print, now has a caricature option. It is so much fun! You can do people, dogs, cats and other pets. I did one up of us to share with all of you. You can add these to t-shirts, Christmas cards, return address labels and more. Go have fun!

Doggie Massage

I just found out that someone in town is offering doggie massage! Massage is a great way to help dogs recover after an injury.

Massage can:

1. Increase circulation,
2. Decrease pain, soreness and stiffness,
3. Restore supple muscle tone,
4. Improve muscle function,
5. Increase flexibility and range of motion,
6. Expediate removal of wastes and toxins, and
7. Stimulate the immune system.

Massage is beneficial for:

1. Structural imbalance or poor conformation
2. Orthopedic diseases
3. Sports injuries
4. Arthritis
5. Hind quarter weakness
6. Aging and inactivity
7. Post-operative healing

Veronica Kloiber is a registered massage therapist who also puts her talents to work on dogs. For more information give her a call at 634-8078 or stop by the daycare to pick up a brochure.

Next week I'll post some information on t-touch, which is another healing technique that is being used on dogs more and more.

New Doggies

What a time for the camera to die. We had 4 new dogs yesterday and 1 today (so far anyway!). And I can't share their pictures with you. It makes me sad. I bundled up my camera and mailed it off to Canon today for it to be fixed - hopefully! It should arrive tomorrow. I hope they can fix it quick! I'm already in withdrawal and it has been less than 24 hours. I'll have to dig through old pictures so you guys don't get bored!

Slobber Factory

This is Atlas. Isn't he a beauty? That is, if you can ignore all the slobber. Poor Kinsey, she was his favorite and she is wet....soaked actually. Unfortunately, we didn't get any photos of her condition before the camera died but I have posted one of Coulee to give you an idea - she is nowhere close to as wet as Kinsey.

And speaking of the camera, all may not be lost. I talked to Canon directly and the place the camera was originally purchased was a legitimate dealer. So I am going to send it in to Canon to see if they can fix it. I'm very happy. The Canon guy thinks the serial number may just have been worn off. :)

Sad, Sad Day

My camera has died. Dead beyond recovery. Not because it is broken beyond repair but because no one will fix it. Apparently it is from the "black" or "grey" market. i.e. Despite it's good looks, and good pictures, my Canon Digital Rebel, isn't really a Canon. It is a no-name knock-off. So Canon can't fix it because it isn't theirs. :( I'm really sad. We literally take more than 100 pictures a day. I bought the camera off a friend who I am sure had no idea they had been scammed. I need to go home and see if I can find the original receipt but even if I do, it is buyer beware. So even if it was bought at a legitimate store, I'm out of luck. So if you are buying electronics this Christmas, be sure to look for a serial number - they should all have one.

It's the Ears

You gotta love Jasper. Hi is bubbly, he is friendly, and he has the cutest ears! Not to mention the little wrinkles on is forhead. :)

Only a Slight Obsession

Tinbie was only a little obsessed with Nypsy the other day. Well maybe that is a little bit of an understatement as she was soaked with slobber from all the kisses he gave her!

Click on the image to see full size

Jack in the Box

Jack is almost never still. It is a very rare moment when he is. He has the most energy of any dog I've ever seen. He is constantly in motion and usually in vertical motion. I think he was very aptly named!

Toy Trial

Yesterday, we did a toy trial. Under very closely supervised conditions, we brought out some low value toys (things without squeakers or fluff) and they had lots of fun! There were a few dogs that started to show some needs to guard and they just got a time out. When they came back, they had learned their lesson. It is amazing what a time out can do!

Perkins had a frustrating time trying to pick up the frisbee. He finally decided that it wasn't meant to be carried, it was meant to be stood on!

Young Pups

We seem to be meeting lots of new young pups lately. Much to our delight!

First there was Neena. Who is looking for a home by the way... Visit the Prairie Dog Canine Rescue site to find out more.

Then came Roxy, a young flat coat retriever...

And now Miikka, one of our dog walking clients, just had her first litter of pups! She had 7 cute and adorable puppies just yesterday. I can't wait to meet them all.

Centre of Attention

D.O.G. is the perfect dog at the daycare:

1. He is wild and crazy so he never stands still.
2. He will play with anybody, yet if they don't want to play with him, he doesn't push them.
3. He doesn't bark very much (I can't actually remember if I've heard him bark at all).
4. He will race around so everyone will chase him and this doesn't scare him. Some dogs get the "zoomies" and will start racing around and to their horror, all the other dogs think this is great fun so they get in on the chase. Not so with D.O.G. When he starts to run and everyone follows, he is in his glory!

New Arrivals

Well it has been a couple of really exciting days for us. Yesterday we got our shipment of Lupine Collars and Leashes. We decided to carry these at the daycare because 1)They are good quality, 2)They are attractive, 3)No one else in town carries them and 4)They are guarranteed - even if chewed! We have 9 different styles of dog collars and leashes and 3 styles of cat collars. Coulee is wearing the flower power collar.

Then to add even more excitement to our week, the calendars arrived today! I have to admit I was holding my breath when I opened the box because we hadn't seen a sample before we ordered $500 worth of calendars. But they look really good and I'm very happy with how they turned out. I hope everyone else enjoys them too! We only have 3 extras so if you didn't order one but want one, you better stop in soon.

Howling Good Time!

I have to admit, when Amanda first suggested we host a dog halloween party, I was a little less than enthusiastic. I have been so busy lately that the thought of doing one more thing "extra" was a little too much for me. But I agreed and Amanda ran with it. She did the decorations, the organizing, the planning, the advertising and everything else that needed to be done. And I'm very thankful. I'm not sure where she finds the time or energy but I'm glad she did because I had a GREAT time!

It was so fun to see all the dogs dressed up - some looked miserable in their costumes and others seemed to shine. Duke managed to destroy his before the party even started! We had a costume contest with prizes for the scariest, the cutest and best overall.

Buffy the vampire slayer won the scariest
(Jane was a close 2nd), Clyde won the cutest - he just suited his costume so well and Lucy the ballerina won best over all.

We had weiner dunking (of course) and Tundra was the new champion. She was in a pretty slow heat to start - none of the dogs had done it before so they weren't really sure what to do...but once Tundra figured out those were hotdogs floating in the water, there was no stopping her! We had a tricks contest - Pheonix won as he was able to roll over, say hello, weave through April's legs and play dead. We also played musical mats (sorry no photos - I must have been napping) and Sadie was the winner (we think! - it was a long day).

I also want to thank Sarah for putting together a scary music CD and helping out with the party, Amanda's mom for baking some amazing cupcakes and Amanda again for all her hard work!

Be sure to check out our Flikr site for lots more photos!