Growin' Up

It's almost sad, she doesn't have quite the puppy looks anymore! She weighs about 25lbs and she's filling out so we don't expect her to get much bigger, now that she's 5 months old. Still very playful, knows when it's about 6 o'clock it's bark park time and gets really excited, it's cute.

Training starts Thursday, which will be fun. Sleeping in her crate now which is good, most nights... lol. Still a sweetie. Still likes to eat pillows.

HEY!

Long time, no post! Here is a cute picture Adam's dad took of puppers, it's my favorite so far!

She is in the clear to go out and about, to the dog park and all over the place, which is very very very exciting!

Sit! Down! ... Wait, come back....!

Seeing as we can't quite put her in training classes yet, we've been trying to do a little training with her ourselves. She knows sit pretty well, down is another story. Also teaching her to heel on a leash, also another story. Rayleigh is easily distracted so it is hard to keep her attention for long, so we've just been doing quick little happy training sessions during playtime and that seems to work pretty good!

She is still teething (read: nicknames = Jaws, Alligator, Croc) and she's starting to challenge authority a bit so it looks like the tough love terrible two days are upon us. But on June 4th she gets a third parvo shot and should be g2g for the dog park, which we think will be a great way for her to get out some energy, and if her interaction with Jim and Evelynn's dog is any indication, herd some dogs around lol.

A Heeler??

We took Rayleigh to the vet and he had nothing but good things to say, quite the relief for a rescue pup. She's now had two of her four parvo shots, and in about 3 weeks she's cleared to go out and play with other pups and we can start taking her to training classes. Parvo has been quite the epidemic down here recently, so it's best to be safe rather than sorry and limit her interactions with other dogs for the time being, other than dogs we know don't have parvo (like Jim and Evelynn's).

The vet also gave his bet on what kind of dog she is, a Heeler, otherwise known as... a Cattle Dog! You know, those hyper, crazy, can't get enough attention dogs? We kind of looked at him like he was crazy, seeing as our dog is mellow and low key. But man, if you look up pictures of texas red heelers, she's got the exact same ears, especially now that all of a sudden they stick up! So now we're guessing she's heeler and... boxer? Bulldog? Who knows. She's gotten a bit more hyper and adventurous, and loves her daily or bi-daily walks around the circle. It's pretty cute.

Crate training is going well, she stayed in there for two hours today without us in the room. Tomorrow we'll start going back to work and leaving her home in her kennel, staggering our shifts so she's only alone for a couple hours. Hopefully all goes well!

New and Uncharted Lands

We're now adventuring out into the exciting world of ... upstairs! Didn't like that much at first, but getting the hang of it. She's sleeping up here next to my desk as I write this. She'll even walk around and explore a bit if Mom and Dad lead the way.

Also getting used to riding in the car, we took her for her Rabies and she was up and about in the back seat, not the normal doggie statue. Time for a doggie seat belt!

Finals will be over this week, exciting as we will then have more time to spend with Princess. Crate training is still in the works. She doesn't mind going in the crate for bed, but when we let her out half way through the night, she's not exactly interested in getting back in. And we're so tired and stressed with finals, we normally cave and don't make her. But with school ending, we will have more time to sit up and listen to some heart moving whimpering.

Another interesting development is that her ears stand up now ("like a dingo," as Mike says).

Several have asked about her name: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Rayleigh. We're taking optics nerdery to a whole new level I guess!

Getting Used to Home

Rayleigh has come a long way since Thursday afternoon. She knows her name, she's gaining energy, and she's meeting new people. Last night Uncle Mike and Auntie Corrie came over for dinner and to meet our little lady. She was a little unsure about Mike at first, but warmed up to both fast, especially when Auntie Corrie gave her Mr. Carrot, her new favorite toy! Today was filled with the excitement of a first trip out of the house and to Petco, she was such a good girl, wasn't scared at all. And, in a very funny little bit, we discovered she does have a bark, and she doesn't really care for her reflection (must think it's another dog).

The next step will be some fun crate training to get her in there all night. But we know our smart girl will get the hang of it no problemo!

Here she is!

We didn't think this would happen, but we got Rayleigh yesterday. The Humane Society had originally told Julia that when a puppy is adopted, she is kept overnight to be spayed before being released. But Rayleigh, 11 weeks old, had already been adopted a week earlier and was returned due to a child being allergic to her. So, she had already been spayed and we didn't want to miss our chance, so home she came! Timid and scared, we weren't exactly sure what we were getting into, but already she has livened up immensely and we are so very happy with her! She stayed in her kennel half the night, knows to go outside for 'business time,' and is just the sweetest thing. Enjoy some initial pictures of our girl!