Foster Life

Fostering is a whole lot more than keeping some critters in one's house. The last few days have been hectic and tiring, yet very satisfying. Saturday at PetSmart was as busy as we get. We had ten dog adoptions, including the last three puppies from the lab/border collie litter! I felt grateful for the distraction; it kept my mind off Tia.

Of course, the new puppy, Relay, is a great distraction too -- although I'm likely to fall just as in love with her. In just a few days, her ears have learned to stand at attention. The right one is all the way up and the left one is just a step or so behind. The hair around her scar is growing in, making it less noticeable. I massage the scar as I hold her and, although there's no medical basis to back up my theory, I swear it makes a difference.

Since she's still in quarantine (new puppies have to be separated from other dogs for ten days), I'm spending a lot of time in the basement where her x-pen and crate are. She's such a sweet girl; so happy to see me when I come in. I open her pen and she jumps straight into my lap. She'll run around and play with her toys, but she must lay against me once she chooses a chew toy to gnaw on. She's just not content unless some part of her is touching me. I can't wait until the quarantine is over and she can join me upstairs.

A fostering friend brought home eight six-week-old puppies Saturday evening. So, Sunday, I went to her house and helped her deworm and flea treat the litter. We packed the group up and took them to another volunteer's house for vaccinations. I've been paying attention during vaccinations, thinking how nice it would be to learn to do it on my own because it would save many vet trips and, thus, give me more time at home with the animals. Sunday I was allowed to vaccinate all eight pups. I was nervous at first; the puppies are so incredibly small and I didn't want to hurt them. Fortunately, they hardly noticed and most slept through the whole ordeal. My next step will be wiggly, protesting kittens -- a whole different experience, I'm sure!

And finally, on Monday I drove quite a distance to pick up my newest foster kitten. Angel is six months old and absolutely gorgeous. I pre-arranged a vet appointment for her FIV/FeLV tests on the way home because I'm out of quarantine space. Thankfully, she tested negative and was able to join the kittens in the big cat room. She's a little stressed by the sudden change, so is staying glued in the cat house on the big climber, but she purrs and kneads when she sees me, therefor I know she'll come down and join the crowd of kitties once she feels safe.

It's already Tuesday (although I haven't been to bed yet!) and today I am hoping to have no reason to leave the house. After the last few days, I'm thinking a day in jammies and lots of time to play with critters is in order. Wish me luck!