Moon Hits The Dog Park

Easter Sunday was a great day for the first Rattie Meet Up at Mercer Island's wonderful Luther Burbank Park. There is a very nice small dog off leash park there. The all size part of the dog park is very cool too, with swimming and plenty of room to run. To sign up for email reminders of when and where Seattle area Rattie-Meet-Ups please click here http://www.meetup.com/ratterriersofseattle/

We weren't really sure how Moon would do at the dog park scene. But if there is anything I have learned about Moon that is never to assume anything when it comes to how she will react to something new. I carried her across the park and then into the off leash area. We stood there for a few minutes so she could check things out. Then I put her down and she did rattie runs around the place and showed everyone her speed. She ran after other dogs and allowed other ratties to run after her! She took treats from anyone passing them out and seeked out pets and attention from so many other rattie mom's and dad's. It is safe to say that Moon felt at home within the presence of all those rattie and small dog owners. This was such a great experience for her, and for us as her foster parents.

Moon has been with us just a little over 1 month now and she is certainly growing into a much more confident dog. We couldn't be happier for her.

Moon asking foster dad for a treat, and Liza gets in the picture too!

Moon checking out all those bags on the table, her nose tells her some of them hold more treats!!!

Here are a couple of videos with Moon showing her stuff. She is one fast girl and she really likes to run.

Oh No! Snow In April???

I bet that title got cha! This was supposed to go on for April 1st! Anyhow Happy April Fools Day a day late. Enjoy Moon running in her first snow back in March. We ended up getting about 6" total here in the convergence zone of Snohomish County.

The Rattie Off Switch

These pictures were taken one day after a walk.....

As adoption coordinator for New Rattitude I get to talk to a lot of people about Rat Terriers. One of the things that comes up time and time and time again is the rattie "off switch". People who have had ratties before always tell me they love that ratties are energetic and athletic and smart....but the thing they like best is that they have an off switch. I tell people who have not had a rattie before and want to know what they are like and ask if they are like a Jack Russell Terrior that ratties have some similar traits to the JRT, they are intelligent, similar in size, can go go go, but the big difference is......ratties have an off switch! Applicants always say things like "oh that sounds like what I am looking for, a dog that can run and hike and play fetch but then when I want to watch TV or read, I would like a cuddler and for the dog to settle down. Here are the dogs in my house the other day demonstrating the "Rattie Off Switch"

Our senior boy Sage (notice the worn spot on the arm of my chair? that is where my girl Jenny-Boo paws to ask me to pick her up and put her in my lap :) I love that worn spot because it represents to me that she is comfortable being in my lap as there was a time when she was not.

And this is the famous Jenny-Boo (arm chair scratcher extraordinaire)

Liza-Bear our wonderful little Min Pin, she has an off switch too unlike many min-pins.

Skip wishing I would go away and let him sleep between my husbands legs in peace.

Birdie, another daddy's girl.

Moon with her favorite toy, the opposom.

Moon's Got Mail!

We found out about this cool program called Bark Box. For a reasonable cost we get a monthly subscription to the Bark Box program. Once a month we get to try a few toys, treats and other cool dog paraphernalia, all delivered to our door. We got our first one this month and Moon got to sample some fun and tasty items!

Moon and Jenny ponder together what this box is all about. It has smells inside!

Yup this is something pretty fantastic as far as Moon can smell.

How Fun! 2 nice bags of healthy treats and then there is a wool rat.....and a hemp fabric bone! What is that other little thing in there?

Moon is part Rattie so of course she would be interested in this life size rat.

Moon softly gnaws the woolen toy

Skip likes this bone and with it made of hemp fabric it is safe and eco friendly!

nom nom

This is the other thing in the box...it is a cool little poop bag dispenser that looks like a fire hydrant! All dog lovers can use one of these!

Moon thinks the tail of this thing makes an excellent tooth cleaner.

Our pack and Moon are very happy to be taste testing those yummy treats. I wonder what April's box has in store!

Moon is Foster Dad's Little Girl

When Moon first arrived it took her some time to warm up to my husband Dave. In the beginning I was the go-to human. The way Dave handled this was to give her all the space she needed to get comfortable with him in her presence. Because he didn't push it with her she took chances with him quicker than if he had tried to pet her or pick her up. The first thing she did was to find that his lap was pretty snugly and after all the other dogs loved to be there so he had to be safe!

Even though Moon had discovered Dave's lap it took a bit more time to really begin to trust him.

But as time has gone on, four weeks now that Moon has been in our home....well things really have changed with their relationship, proving once again that time, patience, backing off, and allowing the dog to warm up at her own pace pays off in a big BIG way! Moon is definitely foster daddy's girl now.

A big step for Moon to stretch out like this. Trust is a beautiful thing isn't it?

I love this picture. Stretching...........Makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.

Moon likes to nibble on Dave's fingers very lightly.

I love my foster daddy.....

Moon Follows Her Nose

Nosework is an awesome sport. It is a great sport for any dog. We started to notice after a few walks with Moon where she started to feel comfortable, even completely enjoying her time out in nature, that she almost always has her nose to the ground sniffing. She sniffs animal trails, fern fronds, anything an animal has walked by and touched or peed on. She sniffs rocks and water and mud. She sniffS sniFFS SNIFFS everything she can and all the while her tail is wagging or up at attention or relaxed but not slung under her body like in the beginning when she first arrived. Sniffing and seeking is her game so I thought Nosework a game where she would figure out which box held a treat would be right up her ally. It is a quiet sport so she wouldn't be overwhelmed by noise, it is a self rewarding sport, find the box with the treat and eat it! Sounds good to me! And because she has to maneuver boxes and new things in her environment she gets a good dose of confidence building :) The cool thing is we can do this at home.

Today has to be the nicest day of the year so far and Moon was enjoying the warmth of the sun as much as anyone.

More exploring....

This first video is the very first time I threw the boxes out for Moon to see what she would do. My dogs were in the house and Skip and Liza were having fits that they were missing out, but this was Moon's turn to shine and shine she did! The thing is I am not supposed to help her or say anything. This makes it all about her and she can take the time she needs. I made sure to keep an eye on her tail position, I wanted this to be ok for her and not stressful. By the position of her tail, relaxed I think she was just fine with the boxes. Moon is so smart she didn't take any time at all to figure out what to do.

In this second try video Moon checked a couple boxes out but then stops. My camera was running low so I stopped and then picked back up once she got interested again, but the waiting is just as important as the finding, the dog really has to think about what they need to do.

This third video is super cool. You will see her sniffing the air. A breeze had picked up and she was catching a whiff of those yummy treats on the wind. She wanders around a bit, pondering the scent wafting in the air, then she hones in on it. My camera battery died but I got most of it.

Moon Has A Lot To Teach Me Part 3 Labeling

When describing Moon I have been working on being conscious of what words I choose to use to explain who this little girl is. It is quite the exercise to listen to the words we use to describe our dogs and to change our language from saying something like, "Moon is a fearful dog", and then leaving that to hang in the air and not following up with, "Moon is also a resilient, silly, intelligent, snugly, super fast runner, who loves to play with toys, other dogs, and us!" Yes Moon has some fear stuff we are working on. So do I. Yes Moon can be suspicious when meeting new people, so am I. Yes Moon is hesitant about new things and has to go slow in the beginning to build up to being ok in a new environment or with new people, so am I! But that is not all she is, just like that is not all I am.

Baggage comes along with all of us as we journey through this life. Sometimes our bags are fuller than other times.  We tend to carry our baggage around with us but sometimes we leave some of it behind. Moon has some fear in her bags, and knowing this helps me to know how best to build our relationship, but Moon is sooooo much more than a fearful dog and she is showing me every day what she's got packed in those bags and a lot of it is super fun and positive! I am enjoying being part of Moon's journey and helping her to unpack those bags and taking a look at what she's got in there. Labeling her a fearful, shy, or skittish dog would just be so limiting to who she is. I have made that mistake with my personal dogs and am bound and determined to learn from my myriad of mistakes and use what I've learned to help Moon and the next foster and the next.

So who is Moon? 

Moon is a rich assortment of all sorts of wonderful traits and treasures. She is a gorgeous white and tan Rat Terrier-Chihuahua who is full of life and possibility. She has been a mom to two pups who also made it into foster homes with New Rattitude. Moon is intelligent, fiesty and silly and playful and sweet. At times she is frightened, hesitant, suspicious and cautious. Other times she is snugly, and cuddly and goofy and curious and LOVES to explore. She is a hunter when she pounces on toys and wants to chase birds and butterflies. Moon is fassssssst and runs like the wind. She loves to do rattie runs and sniff around in the snow.  Moon is nothing less that a wonderful dog with many many sides to her personality. These are just a few labels we could place on Moon, but the best label to describe lovely Moon is Pure Potential. This is what Moon is teaching me......everything.

Moon loves opossum.

Sleepy Moon

Sweet dreams....zzzzzzzzz