"Tails" of Rocky: January 2009

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Wicked Cold!

Howdy Friends!

It's been wicked cold here, so I've been staying inside! Wicked -- that's a new word I've learned since moving to NH. Mom says it means: really, really, really, really something, like really, really, really, really cold! The other morning it was 21 below zero! Now that's wicked cold! Things can be wicked good, too, like when talking about my new food -- Taste of the Wild! It's full of salmon, sweet potatoes, blueberries and lots of other good stuff. Mom says Dad just bought it because it has wolves on the package. I'm just glad he bought it! It's wicked good!

On these wicked cold days, I don't go out much, except to go riding in the truck with my Dad -- I wicked love going for rides! (Mom says I shouldn't use wicked that way but I'm gonna anyways -- it's my blog.) So when I'm not riding around, I'm sunning myself in the sunroom deaming about riding in the truck. Oh, sorry 'bout the dog slobber on the window, must have been when one of us was drooling over the cats!

Speaking of dreams -- this is my new bed! I love my new bed, it's just like Bud's. Whenever I got on his he would give me the evil eye until I got up and moved, so Dad went and got me my own. I had another bed but I didn't like it as much as this one. This one is nice and thick and cushiony. And I love the pillow -- can you tell?

Ahah! Fooled ya! Betcha thought this was me, right? Wrong -- it's Sadie waiting for Mom to come to bed. We do look just like real brother and sister. Sadie spends time with me in the sunroom during the day. I like Sadie! Well, cold weather and a new bed is about all I have to report on this week. Stay tuned for more adventures next week! Keep warm and sweet dreams! Rocky

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Howdy Friends!

Here I am anxious to get going for a walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon. We got about five inches of new snow today and then the sun came out, so Mom said, "Let's go for a walk." I was so happy to go! The last thing I wanted to do was practice sit, stay for the camera! Can ya tell? It was about 28 degrees but it didn't feel too cold. I was afraid my feet were going to get cold but they didn't so I had a great time!

These are some of the elk that live down the road from my house. I really, really love to look at the elk! They remind me of the deer I saw when I was lost in the NC woods. The elk smell really good, too! I always have my nose up in the air when we walk by so I can get a really good whiff!

I guess I must have scared them as pretty soon all the big elk began to herd the little ones up and the big elk stood around the little ones and never took their eyes off me. I think I

must have looked like a coyote to them! But what would a coyote being doing walking on a leash?

Here's me and Bud, well, mostly Bud, but I'm there behind him. I learned something from him that's really cool! Eating snow! When we're out with our Dad we just walk along eating snow -- it's a lot of fun. This was taken the other day before all the new snow we got. Mom doesn't like me to eat snow, so I'll have to wait until she's not around to taste this new stuff.

Oh, well, that was the highlight of my weekend -- what was yours? Have a great week! ~ Rocky

Monday, January 5, 2009

First Solo Visit A Moving Experience

Hi Friends --
Well, our first solo visit to the NH Veteran's Home will be one Mom and I cherish and remember forever. We weren't even going to go yesterday because Mom was very busy and also felt we needed to practice a bit more before going solo. But later that morning, she said she got a strong impression that we needed to be there that afternoon, so she quickly groomed me and off we went. Our friend Kathy Wilson joined us to help navigate the halls of this large facility. Mom wanted for be sure to visit her friend Forrest, a former member of the WWII 10th Mountain Division. Mom had been looking forward to having me meet him from the time we began training for TD work. We found his room and went in, only to find him very sick. Mom had seen him a week ago, so she was surprised to see him so sick. He knew who we were, though, talked with us and was happy to see us. We visited for a short time and then a nurse came in to tend to Forrest, so we said we'd better go. A few hours later when we were at home, we got a phone call from Forrest's granddaughter -- Forrest wasn't expected to live much longer. Dad went over immediately to see him. When he came back, he told us that Forrest had told his son when he arrived that I had been in to visit him. I'm so glad he remembered I was there. This morning Dad got another phone call. Forrest died around 5:30 a.m. I'm so thankful my mom listened to that still, small voice and took me over to see Forrest. I hope I made his final hours on this earth a little bit brighter -- I think I did. That's what Therapy Dog work is all about. Rocky

Forrest and his late wife, Dorothy. They are now together...forever. Helaman 10:7

http://scriptures.lds.org/en/hel/10/7a

Things I Love

Ice cubes! Bud & Sadie taught me to crunch ices cubes. Sure wish I'd had those on hot days back in NC!
Meeting new people -- the Southern gentleman in me really shines here!
Carolyn's Canine College -- Carolyn is so nice to me and gives me treats!
My dog sister, Sadie (notice I didn't say, my dog brother, Bud)
Fish Oil Capsules -- My bedtime snack, yummy!
Riding in the Car -- sometimes I get to stick my head out the window!
Going for walks with my mom on my country road
Sleeping (Especially on my mom & dad's bed!)
Food (Mom only lets me eat dog food, no table scraps)

Rocky's Story

My story begins in North Carolina back in December of 2007. I was rescued from the woods by a kind young lady who overheard some hunters say they were going to "shoot the shepherd" because they thought I was keeping deer away. I had already been shot at once -- and hit! I had a BB lodged in my forehead that my owner never bothered to have removed. There were a lot of things my owner never bothered do to, so that's why I ran away to begin with and got lost in the woods. Another thing my owner never bothered to do was give me heartworm medicine and, yup, you guessed it, I not only had that BB in my head, I also had heartworm.

I wish I knew who that young girl was that gave me a ride that day. She saved my life and I'd like to say thank you to her someday. After she saved me from those hunters, she took me to a vet to see if I had any identification -- I didn't, of course. So the vet contacted Bob, a volunteer with Forever Home K9 Rescue. Bob came over and brought me back to his home. It wasn't a forever home but it sure was nice to be out of the woods. My owner actually did track me down and when he found out Bob would help find a good home for me, he decided that was the best thing for me. That was just what Bob was hoping for, now he could get on with helping me and that began with getting that BB out of my head and neutering. Then came the heartworm test...positive; then the heartworm treatments, ugh! They were tough but Bob, Denese and the wonderful vets and technicians at Animal Hospital of Statesville took real good care of me and I made it through! Thanks, you guys!

Bob then started taking me to PetCo for the adopt-a-dog days. A lot of people would stop and pet me, but Bob told me he was waiting for the right people to give me a good home. My lucky day was February 16, 2008, when a man and woman came by and began talking with Bob and petting me. I thought they were very nice, but I knew they weren't from around NC because they had a different accent. But Bob seemed to like them and I trusted Bob. About three weeks later, back at PetCo I met the same people again and they seemed very happy to see me. That's when I began to realize that these people were going to be my forever home.

On March 10, 2008, in the early morning hours, Bob got my things and we headed out while it was still dark. We went to a hotel parking lot and there were those same two people again. That's when Bob told me I would be going home with them. I was sad and alittle scared to leave Bob, but I knew that's what I had to do. Leaving the parking lot, I whimpered a little as I sat in the corner of the back seat of the pick-up truck. I was trying to be brave. These people seemed nice, but I was really missing Bob and I had no idea where I was being taken.

I rode quietly for quite a while, with a scared look on my face. I looked out the window to try to see where we were going but I couldn't tell. Finally, I started to relax a little and took a nap. When I woke up, I felt better. I continued riding for miles and miles, hours and hours -- about 17 hours to be exact and pretty close to 1000 miles. We stopped off and on along the way for potty breaks and snacks. I was getting to like these new people!

Finally we arrived at a house in the country. I got out and stepped into this icy cold white stuff that was slippery to walk on! Oh no, snow! I'd seen a little of this stuff in NC but not like it was here. Then they told me, I was in New Hampshire!

This was my new forever home! It was really late, so we went right to bed. The next morning I met my new family: my German shepherd sister, Sadie, and my German shepherd brother, Buddy; and my feline brothers & sisters: Sam, Jack, Eddie, Annie and Chloe; and my grammy, who is 87-years old and blind.

My life has changed so much since I joined my forever home. I go for walks. I have a huge yard to run free in with my brother and sister. I have my own bed. I go to dog school. And I'm preparing to be a therapy dog so I can go to nursing homes and children's reading programs. Life doesn't get much better than this! Thank you Forever Home K9 Rescue for helping me find my forever home...even if it was 1000 miles away! Rocky

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