Green Wellies

Casper welcomes his new "brother"...

Meet Indy, the latest addition to our household menagerie.  He's just four years old and is a Parson Russell terrier.  He was ferried to the Sunshine Coast yesterday, by his owner...a kind and gentle woman who has raised a kind and gentle dog. She came to the decision to find him a new home, due to a family member's allergies.  He's everything you'd want in a little dog and more...fabulous on or off leash, very obedient, loves the beach, aims to please and has a heart of gold.  He is settling in like a real trooper.  We will run with him, play with him and love him, in the manner that he's accustomed to and rightly deserves.  Casper thinks he's the cat's meow and the cat is warming up to the idea.  He's landed in a good place.  We welcome you with open arms, Indy...

* During our initial beach walk, Indy's owner took this photo of him and Casper racing the sands...no paws touching.  Indy loves large sticks and Casper did his best to follow suit!

Here He Is Again!

There seemed to be some confusion when I posted a picture of the thrift goodies on flickr that Jayne and I found last weekend and Casper insisted on getting in on the action by posing with everything we'd laid out on the kitchen floor.  I guess I didn't make it clear enough that he was not part of the bounty found at the Salvation Army and so I'm trying to set the record straight!  For some, this will be a repeat of what I've already written, but when it comes to this crazy little dog, it's never enough.  I found Casper on Vancouver's 1atatime online rescue site. I'd already filled out an application form and checked the site daily. This group works with some women in Louisiana who go into high-kill facilities and pull dogs who are slated to be gassed. They were told to pull out three on this particular day and then a frantic call went up to Vancouver, saying that the facility was closing in ten minutes and that there was this great little fellow who was to be gassed at eight the following morning. As a result of that call, Casper was rescued, posted on the website at midnight that night, I happened to check the site five minutes later, saw him and knew that we were meant to be together. I had to wait seven weeks while he underwent heartworm treatment.  He was fostered during that time by Ginger, a kind and gentle woman who kept in touch with me by phone from Louisiana to British Columbia, on a regular basis. I took the ferry to Vancouver last May 10th and brought him home with me. He's the most loving, clever and amazing little dog and I can't imagine life without him. He loves everyone and everything, except I've noticed lately that he barks at men with canes!  I'm sure he was the headliner in a circus somewhere...he knows so many tricks and understands everything I say. I named him Casper, because he came as close to being a ghost as a little dog could get.  Here's his Easter Rabbit impersonation...

 

Anything's Game!

I really do try to not write too much about Casper...he almost needs his own blog for that.  But after the fiasco of trying to do something as simple as change the sheets on the bed, I couldn't resist.  It was a huge mistake on my part to grab Casper's green cat from him and hide it under the sheet when I was shaking it out to put it on.  He decided this new game was THE best ever, digging and whipping the sheet about in a frenzy until he found the toy.  I finally threw the cat (the toy one) down the hall and started again with the sheet, he ran back without the toy, literally yanked the sheet from my hands and high-tailed it into the livingroom dragging it behind him.  He piled it on top of the toy and proceeded to start the game all over again.  After at least a half dozen tries at making the bed...laughing myself silly at this point, I gave up, left the sheet in a big jumbled heap and went to make dinner instead.  Later, when I walked past the bedroom door this is what I saw...I kid you not.  Apparently Casper's not the only one too clever for his own little britches...just look at the smirk on that cat, what's left of his mouth anyway!

Oops!

While playing our daily round of fetch, I accidentally pulled the leg off poor brown teddy...it wasn't Casper, it was me.  He's always so careful with his toys, which is saying a lot for a Jack Russell, I think.  And because he's such a clever little bean, he'll actually put one toy back into the basket before getting another one.  It didn't take him long to get over it, though...he played with the leg for ages. 

* My apologies to all the teddy lovers out there...it was me, it was me!

Here's his basket of favourites...he's had the little green cat for 8 months now and has only nibbled off the nose.  The only thing he's ever really torn to shreds was a Miss Kitty that I found at the thrift store...he didn't like her one bit!

Still Life!

It's SO rare that I manage to take a picture of Casper not moving, I just had to post this one.  The minute he sees me with the camera, he leaps up, noses the front of it and the moment's lost.  He won't stay still...ever.  I could photograph him sleeping, but he always hangs his head over the side of the pillow and looks like he's playing dead...not a trick I've taught him!  He was fetching the tennis ball, a game we really shouldn't play in the house (I've knocked some bits off the clump of coral and almost put it through the glass case holding the birds' nests, but the game goes on). I asked him if it was time to stop playing and go for a walk.  He looked right at the clock above the stove...I swear it's true.  What a clever little dog!

Dogs!

It's been raining cats and dogs all day and on that happy note, I want to wish everyone a Happy Year of the Dog!  May all your fortunes from the cookies come true.

Holiday Dog

Casper and I flew across the Strait in our own version of Santa's sleigh...a float plane, but that's about as much of the holiday trimmings as he was willing to put up with and he wasn't having anything to do with being bedecked in red scarf and hat for his Christmas photo shoot.  After the first attempt with the hat, he grabbed it and held on for dear life!

The festive day was too much for him...he was quite content to play pillow with Aethan and settle in for a long winter's nap...

Good Dog

My sidekick is Casper, a wee terrier of dubious lineage.  He certainly has some Jack Russell in him, maybe a spot of rat terrier and one look at his long ears and you'd swear there was rabbit in the mix, too.  Casper is a rescued dog and he came into my life last March when I saw his picture on 1atatime's website I'd been watching.  This non-profit organization is made up of rescuers whose sole purpose is saving the lives of animals from high-kill gassing facilities (I hesitate to use the word shelter) and Casper was pulled just ten minutes before a facility closed for the day.  He was scheduled to be gassed at eight the following morning.  He required foster care in Louisiana for approximately six weeks while he underwent treatment for heartworm.  His foster mom, Ginger cared for him, loved him and sent him on his journey north to Canada with his own heating pad, a quilt, some herbal medicine and his favourite treats.  She wrote to me and we talked on the phone during the time she had him...I knew he was in very good hands.  How anyone would think to take the life of this special dog, I'll never know.  He's a loving companion, a circus dog with tricks up his sleeve, adores children, cats and other dogs and from the second we finally met, we bonded instantly.  I applaud the brave people who work tirelessly on behalf of these animals, finding them a forever home.  After the hurricane in the south, their efforts tripled, but this group of rescuers has a huge heart and it shows.  Today, good dog Casper and I received a Christmas surprise package...a 1atatime t-shirt for me and the lion's share of goodies with tennis ball and treats for Casper.

Cool shirt...

                                                

                               

 

With ten minutes to spare, Casper is rescued and has his picture taken before leaving the facility.  He's since put on weight and his hair is longer.  I named him Casper because he came this close to being a ghost...thank heavens for the brave women who saw how special he was and nabbed him quick!

Woof!

Jayne came to visit for a couple of days...we needed some sister time together, because it's only been a month or so since the last sissy spell!  We'll come up with any excuse and this time we really didn't have one except that it worked for us...as good an excuse as any.  Like Santa, her knapsack was overflowing with goodies and I just about fell over when she pulled out this little guy.  He's the wooden version of Casper and for a thrift store find, he's top-notch.  I absolutely love him and Casper's not half bad either!

Hedgehog Heaven

It's been yet another rainy day on the west coast.  Just when Casper and I grab a window of opportunity, get geared up (both physically and mentally) and make a dash for the beach walk, the heavens open up and it rains cats and dogs.  But...there's something so magical about seeing the ocean "boiling" with raindrops and that sight alone is well worth the soggy clothes.  Casper decided two days ago that his new favourite toy is his hedgehog, that's spent weeks lounging at the bottom of the basket.  We hope that Lincoln a.k.a. Muddy Yellow Dog enjoys the picture (Link has his own hedgehog)...even though Casper looks more like a deer caught in headlights!