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Khana, Trick and I just spent the day at a Health Fair, at a booth for Delta Society Pet Partners. We drove down last night (about 90 miles away) and spent the night in a motel, which is always an adventure for Khana. She's excited at new places and has a period of settling in where she has to woof at various noises. Then she races to me and makes sure that I heard her .. *L*
I'm normally a very very good person in a motel. I grew up with a motel as the family business and was cleaning rooms at a very young age. So when I stay in a motel, I make sure that all my trash is in the garbage pails, my towels are all in one area, the bed is neat (not made, but not strewn everywhere), and if I have dogs that are shedding I bring sheets/blankets and put them down (or on the bed, if the dogs are on the beds at all).
But I broke one of my rules at this motel. Khana was so full of pent-up energy and of course I had to keep her on leash. We went out after we got to the motel so she could run on the long line and play in the snow - there was about 6-8" of new snow there and it was plowed up into deep berms on the edges of the parking lot. Khana LOVES snow, so she bounded around in it. But it just wasn't enough exercise.
So we went into the room and I took off their leashes and made sure they had water. I went over and sat on one of the beds and it was a high bed that sunk way down when you sat on it. Ugh! I hate mushy beds. So I tried the other one and it was just as bad. As I was moving back and forth trying the beds, Khana jumped up on the one as I moved to the other. The beds were only about 30" apart, so I said "hup" and she leaped over to the second bed. She looked so darn pleased with herself that I stood up and sent her back to the other bed .. *L* .. and then Trick jumped up and pretty soon both dogs were leaping from bed to bed!
I know ... SHAME on me!! But they were having such a good time and I didn't figure they would hurt those dang mushy beds at all. The dogs were clean (Khana had just been bathed and the snow didn't get her dirty at all). So I grabbed my camera and took some pictures. Khana is so funny - she will follow Trick ANYWHERE. You can see the look on her face as they were leaping to the other bed - she's watching Trick for the next move!
Even with this extra exercise, Khana was still not completely comfortable with the new surroundings. Trick's an old hat at staying in motels, so she curled up and went to sleep. Khana had to keep checking in with me. I don't sleep well under the best of circumstances and I had to be at the health fair early - the alarm was set for 6 a.m. I could NOT get to sleep, and so I had the TV on hoping it would put me to sleep (it often does at home). Unfortunately it wasn't working well, so about 2 a.m. I turned off the TV and the room was pitch black. I snuggled in to try to get a bit of sleep and suddenly Khana leaped up onto the bed, came right up to my shoulders and flopped down, pressed against me. This isn't normal for her! It was too warm like that and she got up and moved to the end of the bed, but within a minute or two was back against me. After laying there for a bit as she panted noisily, I figured she was laying against me for the comfort because the room was so dark and she wasn't sure of herself. So I turned the TV back on and sure enough, she jumped down and went over near the door where it was cooler.
So the TV just stayed on. Around 4 a.m. I dozed off - and when the alarm went off at 6 I was NOT ready to wake up. But duty called, so I stumbled out of bed and headed for the shower. Khana followed me in and guarded the bathroom (I'm sure that was why she was in there .. *L*).
Khana was SO good at the health fair. She was petted dozens (maybe hundreds) of times by people from tiny (not yet walking, in strollers) to elderly. Kids mobbed her and at one point she had six kids petting her all at once - which she LOVED. She also visited with some handicapped people, including a young man with Down's Syndrome. He was so cute - she was reaching her face up toward his and I said "be careful not to put your face down or she'll give you kisses!". So what did he do? He put his face down so she could give him several kisses on the chin. He grinned from ear to ear and his Mom was grinning on the sidelines. It was just adorable. Khana was so gentle with him.
A few people said "aren't chows supposed to be mean?" and that gave me an excellent opportunity to talk about good breeding and socialization. Many people commented on her purple tongue! *L* And since she'd just been bathed - and conditioned with expensive conditioner, followed by blow drying and fluffing with brushes - she was very soft to the touch. People were just drawn to her.
I also had Trick there (German shepherd). She tended to attract men like the Coast Guard guys and EMTS and cops. I had a soft crate behind the exhibit and traded out dogs so they could have a break and rest. There was another lady there with a shiba and one more came with a springer spaniel. The booth was pretty popular and people were very interested in how the program worked, so I think it was a great success.
By the way, the shiba was the exact same color as Khana, just much smaller and of course with the short coat (shibas, for those who aren't familiar with them, look like miniature akitas). At one point I joked that the shiba is what happens when you wash a chow in hot water! *grin*
Khana and Trick pose in front of the Coast Guard helicopter in the parking lot
The health fair started at 7:30 a.m. - I was there at 7 so that I could get my blood drawn ahead of time. I always take advantage of the inexpensive blood profiles they offer at these things. People started coming in before the doors even officially opened as they had to fast 12 hours before the blood test, so they couldn't eat breakfast until they got their blood taken! There's always an early rush at these things. Khana and I did a walk through the back part of the fair and visited with people. We had no problem finding people who wanted to visit with her - she was definitely a hit.
Oh - there was one thing that was SO funny! Not far from our booth was a Coast Guard booth. They had the cutest thing - a tugboat type toy that was out in the middle of all the people. It was huge though - probably 2.5 feet tall by 4 feet long. It looked like one of those cartoon tugboats, with big eyes on it. It was on a remote control and could be moved around, the eyes blinked and it could make "toot toot" sounds. But the funniest thing was that the woman at the controls also had a microphone system and was talking into it and the voice came out of the boat- and was distorted to sound like a kid's high voice .. *LOL* .. I had seen it out there but didn't realize it was on a remote control (I thought it was something like those automatic vacuums that just wander around by themselves .. *L*). So I'm walking by with Khana and this boat says "Hey, look at the dog! Hi doggie! What a cute doggie you are!" I stopped and Khana and I looked at this boat, and then the boat went "woof woof!". Khana's ears perked forward and she stepped towards it, and the boat said "what a good puppy! Are you a nice puppy?" and then those big eyes blinked and Khana kind of jumped back a bit. I walked towards it and she came with me willingly but could NOT understand why this boat was talking to her. The boat would say something to her and she'd look at it and then look around the room. It was so funny, and people were watching and laughing.
Then I pulled out some cheese and the boat said "are you going to have a treat? Can I have a treat too?" Khana, of course, was looking at me at that point so I put the treat ON the boat. She reached for it and the boat said "good puppy" and she stepped back and stared at the boat again. It took her a couple of tries and she finally got the treat. It was really cute to watch her work through it. We came by a couple of more times and the boat always talked to her and she would go right up to it after that. Trick visited with the boat too and it didn't phase her at all. Not much bothers that girl.
The health fair ran until 1:00, but about 12 I started packing my things up. The lady with the springer spaniel came about 10 or so, and she hadn't done much as her dog was taking a long time to settle. But he finally got more relaxed so I figured she and the other lady could cover it and I would head down the road. I was SO tired by then, and very achy.
But on the way I stopped a couple of times to try to wake up, and I took some photos of the mountains on the way. The road down to Homer follows along the coastline of Cook Inlet, and across the inlet is a range of volcanic mountains. I really love these mountains - they are always beautiful and when the sky is clear and blue they're just wonderful to see.
Mt. Iliamna - my favorite mountain, of course!
It was a beautiful day for a drive, and a very successful first big event for Khana. All in all, a great weekend!
Melanie and the gang in Alaska
I'm normally a very very good person in a motel. I grew up with a motel as the family business and was cleaning rooms at a very young age. So when I stay in a motel, I make sure that all my trash is in the garbage pails, my towels are all in one area, the bed is neat (not made, but not strewn everywhere), and if I have dogs that are shedding I bring sheets/blankets and put them down (or on the bed, if the dogs are on the beds at all).
But I broke one of my rules at this motel. Khana was so full of pent-up energy and of course I had to keep her on leash. We went out after we got to the motel so she could run on the long line and play in the snow - there was about 6-8" of new snow there and it was plowed up into deep berms on the edges of the parking lot. Khana LOVES snow, so she bounded around in it. But it just wasn't enough exercise.
So we went into the room and I took off their leashes and made sure they had water. I went over and sat on one of the beds and it was a high bed that sunk way down when you sat on it. Ugh! I hate mushy beds. So I tried the other one and it was just as bad. As I was moving back and forth trying the beds, Khana jumped up on the one as I moved to the other. The beds were only about 30" apart, so I said "hup" and she leaped over to the second bed. She looked so darn pleased with herself that I stood up and sent her back to the other bed .. *L* .. and then Trick jumped up and pretty soon both dogs were leaping from bed to bed!
I know ... SHAME on me!! But they were having such a good time and I didn't figure they would hurt those dang mushy beds at all. The dogs were clean (Khana had just been bathed and the snow didn't get her dirty at all). So I grabbed my camera and took some pictures. Khana is so funny - she will follow Trick ANYWHERE. You can see the look on her face as they were leaping to the other bed - she's watching Trick for the next move!
Even with this extra exercise, Khana was still not completely comfortable with the new surroundings. Trick's an old hat at staying in motels, so she curled up and went to sleep. Khana had to keep checking in with me. I don't sleep well under the best of circumstances and I had to be at the health fair early - the alarm was set for 6 a.m. I could NOT get to sleep, and so I had the TV on hoping it would put me to sleep (it often does at home). Unfortunately it wasn't working well, so about 2 a.m. I turned off the TV and the room was pitch black. I snuggled in to try to get a bit of sleep and suddenly Khana leaped up onto the bed, came right up to my shoulders and flopped down, pressed against me. This isn't normal for her! It was too warm like that and she got up and moved to the end of the bed, but within a minute or two was back against me. After laying there for a bit as she panted noisily, I figured she was laying against me for the comfort because the room was so dark and she wasn't sure of herself. So I turned the TV back on and sure enough, she jumped down and went over near the door where it was cooler.
So the TV just stayed on. Around 4 a.m. I dozed off - and when the alarm went off at 6 I was NOT ready to wake up. But duty called, so I stumbled out of bed and headed for the shower. Khana followed me in and guarded the bathroom (I'm sure that was why she was in there .. *L*).
Khana was SO good at the health fair. She was petted dozens (maybe hundreds) of times by people from tiny (not yet walking, in strollers) to elderly. Kids mobbed her and at one point she had six kids petting her all at once - which she LOVED. She also visited with some handicapped people, including a young man with Down's Syndrome. He was so cute - she was reaching her face up toward his and I said "be careful not to put your face down or she'll give you kisses!". So what did he do? He put his face down so she could give him several kisses on the chin. He grinned from ear to ear and his Mom was grinning on the sidelines. It was just adorable. Khana was so gentle with him.
A few people said "aren't chows supposed to be mean?" and that gave me an excellent opportunity to talk about good breeding and socialization. Many people commented on her purple tongue! *L* And since she'd just been bathed - and conditioned with expensive conditioner, followed by blow drying and fluffing with brushes - she was very soft to the touch. People were just drawn to her.
I also had Trick there (German shepherd). She tended to attract men like the Coast Guard guys and EMTS and cops. I had a soft crate behind the exhibit and traded out dogs so they could have a break and rest. There was another lady there with a shiba and one more came with a springer spaniel. The booth was pretty popular and people were very interested in how the program worked, so I think it was a great success.
By the way, the shiba was the exact same color as Khana, just much smaller and of course with the short coat (shibas, for those who aren't familiar with them, look like miniature akitas). At one point I joked that the shiba is what happens when you wash a chow in hot water! *grin*
Khana and Trick pose in front of the Coast Guard helicopter in the parking lot
The health fair started at 7:30 a.m. - I was there at 7 so that I could get my blood drawn ahead of time. I always take advantage of the inexpensive blood profiles they offer at these things. People started coming in before the doors even officially opened as they had to fast 12 hours before the blood test, so they couldn't eat breakfast until they got their blood taken! There's always an early rush at these things. Khana and I did a walk through the back part of the fair and visited with people. We had no problem finding people who wanted to visit with her - she was definitely a hit.
Oh - there was one thing that was SO funny! Not far from our booth was a Coast Guard booth. They had the cutest thing - a tugboat type toy that was out in the middle of all the people. It was huge though - probably 2.5 feet tall by 4 feet long. It looked like one of those cartoon tugboats, with big eyes on it. It was on a remote control and could be moved around, the eyes blinked and it could make "toot toot" sounds. But the funniest thing was that the woman at the controls also had a microphone system and was talking into it and the voice came out of the boat- and was distorted to sound like a kid's high voice .. *LOL* .. I had seen it out there but didn't realize it was on a remote control (I thought it was something like those automatic vacuums that just wander around by themselves .. *L*). So I'm walking by with Khana and this boat says "Hey, look at the dog! Hi doggie! What a cute doggie you are!" I stopped and Khana and I looked at this boat, and then the boat went "woof woof!". Khana's ears perked forward and she stepped towards it, and the boat said "what a good puppy! Are you a nice puppy?" and then those big eyes blinked and Khana kind of jumped back a bit. I walked towards it and she came with me willingly but could NOT understand why this boat was talking to her. The boat would say something to her and she'd look at it and then look around the room. It was so funny, and people were watching and laughing.
Then I pulled out some cheese and the boat said "are you going to have a treat? Can I have a treat too?" Khana, of course, was looking at me at that point so I put the treat ON the boat. She reached for it and the boat said "good puppy" and she stepped back and stared at the boat again. It took her a couple of tries and she finally got the treat. It was really cute to watch her work through it. We came by a couple of more times and the boat always talked to her and she would go right up to it after that. Trick visited with the boat too and it didn't phase her at all. Not much bothers that girl.
The health fair ran until 1:00, but about 12 I started packing my things up. The lady with the springer spaniel came about 10 or so, and she hadn't done much as her dog was taking a long time to settle. But he finally got more relaxed so I figured she and the other lady could cover it and I would head down the road. I was SO tired by then, and very achy.
But on the way I stopped a couple of times to try to wake up, and I took some photos of the mountains on the way. The road down to Homer follows along the coastline of Cook Inlet, and across the inlet is a range of volcanic mountains. I really love these mountains - they are always beautiful and when the sky is clear and blue they're just wonderful to see.
Mt. Iliamna - my favorite mountain, of course!
It was a beautiful day for a drive, and a very successful first big event for Khana. All in all, a great weekend!
Melanie and the gang in Alaska
It sounds like you all had a great time!
