Charlie Pictures

Karen B asked me what kind of dog Charlie is - size & breed.  He weighs nearly 56#, and looks like a shepherd mix.  Those feet are HUGE, and when he sits beside me standing, his head is about at my knee (I'm 5'4").  

 

 

Here's his ad picture

Here he is on the floor next to rescue MacKenzie, who's about 34# lab mix.

R sent me this one -- Charlie found a stuffed duck toy, and was chewing on it.  Last night, I also watched him play with a knotted rope toy.

 

 

He's improving a little more every day.  Last night, he started to go outside nearly by himself, but pauses on the back porch to wait for me.  That makes things a little more difficult for "go outside, go potty" for Allie and Kenzie, but they're adjusting.  No big accidents in the house last night, not even minor "scared piddles", which is terrific.  R watched him try to climb over the couch yesterday morning, and he had a "scared piddle" on the couch (!) when he realized he was stuck, and shouldn't have done that.  Fortunately, the pieces were washable.  Whew.  He is eating great, but this morning I had to pull him off of Allie's breakfast, as she eats slow, and he wanted to "help her finish" when he was done with his bowl.  He sniffed of Kenzie's bowl, and she growled at him, so he backed off.  Allie?  She backed away and looked at me sad, like, "Mom!  Make him stop!!"  I had to hold him back, but he finally got the message.  

 

I'm trying to convince a local rescue no-kill shelter (closer to my house than where I got Charlie from) to help with the neutering bill.  They offer it at low-cost to the general public, but given what run-around I already got, and the bill I already paid, I'm hopeful they'll cut me a bigger break.  If you're able to and would like to help out, shoot them a message on their Facebook page, or send them an email (address on their website). 

Weather's been too humid to ride - last night late it might've been okay, but there was a little confusion about one of R's friends coming to disc/drag the arena.  Tractor tire problems.  That was scheduled for Wednesday, then pushed to today, and now I bet it doesn't get done for a few more weeks.  This means we're back to riding and working possibly tonight, definitely tomorrow.  Jen sent me some ground pole arena exercises, so I'm anxious to set some poles out & get started.