new pack member soon - first hike

[akane]

Ok I can't wait to post something. I have looked at dozens of breeds, traveled the nearby states, talked to even more breeders, ended up with a runt husky in the process, and thought I'd found what I wanted in some "inuit dogs" in Indiana. I've been waiting on a puppy from this breeder since Feb but a part of me remained uncertain of the unorthodox methods and some lack of answers. It just happened 2 days ago that I woke up, checked the internet, and my heart said no. It just said no. My husband wanted to murder me for the sudden decision change ( that was partly because he wasn't fully awake when I dropped it on him) but I went searching and emailing some more. Pure breeds of what I would accept were up around $500-600 more than we had planned to pay or had waiting lists. Then I came across some northern breed crosses for a bit less than our original plan. I had planned a male and everything around a male and thought about a male, even named a male, but logic got stomped into the dirt this week. :lol: My heart says this female and after an agonizing 24hrs where I debated just using the masculine name I liked so much I reached another decision. Aiko will be picked up probably this weekend or at least by next in Minneapolis. Aiko as a name is normally translated as something like beloved child (ai-love, ko-child) but my thought was more toward the verb usage which can mean partner, to match, to fit, to come together.... A lot of things in Japanese are pronounced the same but different characters used to write them mean different things so you can say the same word but not intend the same thing. The very short alphabet usage is probably partially to blame. Things sometimes turn into crazy long words in Japanese. :roll:

I may be excited but at the same time my heart breaks because my akita is showing a degenerative back problem her mother has and declined to barely able to walk within 2 years. I get a new puppy but it's to train in place of what has been my other half years before my husband existed. The breeder and I have been mourning the decline of our older akitas and discussing how to help prevent the spinal damage to Zami as long as possible. She is in better shape and more active than her mother was when it started. So it is a bittersweet moment and my facebook feeling status over my puppy says "convoluted" and anyone who complains I'm getting another dog is under threat of unfriending and me not going to their events to see them.

So pictures...





I have a backup if this falls through but it would be really hard on me. I might even give up on my backup plan and get on the 2year wait list for the Northern Inuit Dogs which were the breed used as dire wolves in game of thrones. My dogs are my family and my lifestyle. I can't have people disappointing me repeatedly over this decision.

 

[SarniaTricia]

Sounds like you know what you want and are willing to fight for it..... don't give up.

Finding the RIGHT FIT for a new pack member is a difficult, time consuming and painful process.... because of that, when the fit is right, It is a beautiful thing!

Good Luck
You will find him/her

 

[Nymphadora]

Those white paws are just the cutest. I hope everything works out wonderfully for you.

 

[Zass]

What a cutie!!!


Post lots of pics, OK?

 

[akane]

Fun. We are headed to Minneapolis the weekend they are getting up to 8" of snow. 15" farther north. Also, the suv has those shrapnel airbags of death we should see if we can just turn off even though it's illegal. Plus the back tires are bald. :

 

[Nymphadora]

Fun. We are headed to Minneapolis the weekend they are getting up to 8" of snow. 15" farther north... Plus the back tires are bald. :

Chains. Chains are your friend. :lol:

 

[akane]

chains aren't legal in Iowa so we don't have any. I'm not sure about the states north of us but they damage the road and we don't have mountains or hardly even steep hills so they aren't allowed. It's just massive snowplow and ice melt efforts every winter to keep things clear enough people who have to go somewhere can accomplish it. Most also have 4 wheel drive vehicles.

 

[Nymphadora]

chains aren't legal in Iowa so we don't have any. I'm not sure about the states north of us but they damage the road and we don't have mountains or hardly even steep hills so they aren't allowed. It's just massive snowplow and ice melt efforts every winter to keep things clear enough people who have to go somewhere can accomplish it. Most also have 4 wheel drive vehicles.

Wow! I didn't know that they were illegal in some places... although they certainly do damage the roads. The only places we use them around here is in the mountains, too, because traction on steep slopes becomes almost impossible once there's ice covering the roads. Plus, mountains are the only places you'll really find snow in southern California.

I wish you all the best in the world for your trip then, be safe out there!

 

[akane]

You want me to sleep less than 12 hrs from picking up a puppy?! I want to go back to finishing all the stuff that I could really use another day for. Then right after puppy I have to get ready for a bull snake coming from WI. That's actually more my christmas present. Puppies aren't christmas presents. They are planned family members irregardless of timing. I think it just finally sunk in I will actually have a puppy. I have been disappointed by so many breeders and ads and this won't be my first time running up to MN but last time we basically got kicked out of the breeder's house when we mentioned raw feeding. I should probably have not gone on to talking about getting a grinder that can do rabbit..... :? This time it's practically a done deal. Unless something looks off when I get there we have an address, we have pictures, we have cash withdrawn, and we have a vet appointment for Monday. A puppy will actually be here. How am I supposed to sleep? I was going to clean the suv and lay a sleeping bag in the back for my akita, Zami, to go with so maybe I'll crash with Zami. Just so long as my husband doesn't crash without a copilot. He's got to be ADHD or without the H. I know, don't use your phone while driving and aside from taking some calls which I don't prioritize over my driving I don't. He'll text, web browse, watch vids.... I complained at first but I found if he doesn't he is at greater risk of falling asleep than he is crashing while using his phone. I always offer to drive but after that time I spent way too drugged and dealing with a spreading infection he doesn't want me to. Grudgingly he's realizing my thought process is mostly back to normal. I do still get lost way too easy in cities though. :lol: If he zones out too much and ignores my questions we could be in Michigan instead. How easy is it to fall over the canadian border? :lol: Given the passing storm if the snow starts to surpass 8" you've gone too far.

 

[Random Rabbit]

Waiting to hear how You made out. Fingers crossed that it worked as You hoped.

 

[akane]

She needs dewormed and is constipated with a big pot belly but she has a vet visit tomorrow and that should be quickly fixed. Otherwise she looks healthy. They counted on deposits to pay first vet bills and no one put down a deposit. Everyone is just agreeing to pick up puppies as they say they are ready. My akita went with and then spent half the ride back smooshed in a corner going "don't let it touch me!" but after water in, pee out (in the grass) Aiko went to sleep, got up to poop (in the grass), and I laid diagonally across the suv so they got a barrier and everyone slept home. My neck hurts though. I got one blurry pic of her mauling my face for more water.


More pics probably not until tomorrow. I had planned to thaw under the heated blanket, take my pills (2hrs ago) and then deal with puppy but the husky had tried to poop loose stuff out the side of her crate that currently can't be moved, my husband got done with that to find the akita had inhaled kibble and vomited all over, he then left me with a puppy on the bed who thinks the cat is a fluffy puppy to play with because I said Aiko needed food. I told him to put puppy and canned food in crate but about the time Aiko went in the crate and found the divider between blanket side and side that was supposed to but not yet had puppy pads I could see she understood the plan. I wasn't sure where the pads got put or I was going to do one while he was still sleeping this morning so I told him to get them quickly but quickly failed and gooey poop went all over the frame. While he was retrieving the other roll of paper towels she stepped in it. Somewhere about there was one of the examples of why my husband should not have kids anyway. So I had to get puppy food into a bowl, we are supposed to bring a stool sample to the vet tomorrow anyway so bagged that and wiped it up with disinfectant, laid down puppy pad, and tried to convince puppy that was food. It was failing even after feeding the husky some so we dumped a little milk replacer powder over it and I said leave her. Bark, bark, bark, whine, whine, whine, hooooowwwl, bark, whine, whine, hoowwwwl... Nope I've been here 3 times already so all that will accomplish is sending Josh to a hotel and you will still be in that crate until you calm down. The other dogs even told Aiko to shut up a few times. Finally after stumbling through the food several times (reason I kept pushing the blanket washing this past week) she ate a little, cried, ate a little, cried, and suddenly went quiet aside from sliding bowl noises. She appears to be asleep in the food bowl now and Niji has decided she can leave the new puppy safely in it's pen. She's already claimed it over Haru like she did Miyu as a kitten. That led to a near all out fight once so we'll see how that goes. Aiko should be much more able and interactive with them when her digestive tract is sorted. Hopefully she doesn't have anything that Revolution won't treat in ours. I didn't see any obvious worm signs but that belly and coat are.

__________ Mon Nov 21, 2016 2:26 am __________

If you are going to drill a food container to hang so the puppy does not walk through it put the hole in it before the food. I need to go to sleep before anything more happens. <br /><br /> __________ Mon Nov 21, 2016 4:30 pm __________ <br /><br /> Back from the vet and it's been a tiring day.





No external parasites, you can see she's a little thin now that the pot belly has gone down some, and they are running a fecal. She had diarrhea all night but it's improving today. We started her on ground raw and are mixing panacur powder in it. She's much more subdued when out. I've got her to start following me and she sat for the first time while waiting for the vet and got liver treats.

 

[Nymphadora]

Wow she's precious

What's the other furry lump in the crate, out of curiosity?

 

[akane]

Stuffed hedgehog toy. I think she's hoarded a couple more since then. Niji got upset the toys were being stolen and they had a little battle of collecting all the stuffed toys in the house.

__________ Mon Nov 21, 2016 8:53 pm __________

If the puppy wakes up and pees before you notice always still take it out or put it back in it's crate before taking the blanket down to the washing machine. I came back up and there is pee EVERYWHERE. What did it do spin in a circle while peeing and then squat on my pillow which it shuffled down off of before peeing on the blanket while I was laying there using my laptop? Good side; waterproof mattress cover and enzyme spray. Bad side; most things go through the wash again in this endless cycle as the vomited on and pooped on dog blankets finish. Somewhere in there the dirty laundry basket needs to go in or we'll have blankets but no clothes.

__________ Tue Nov 22, 2016 12:30 pm __________

Diarrhea flare up and maybe low weight may be explained by giardia. Just continuing the panacur and have sentinel. She's not lethargic, trust me she is really not lethargic or I wouldn't be awake for 2hrs, or vomiting and her stool is getting more solid again so stress combined might have brought out symptoms from a mild infection.

__________ Tue Nov 22, 2016 2:10 pm __________

Ahhh... puppies. She howled me awake, passed out again, I went to feed her and she was alert but uninterested in food and went back to sleep. Text messages to my breeder friend and some globs of honey on her tongue later she ate her food in slowly increasing amounts at a time, laid down, sat up, squeaked, passed worm filled mucus, and sat in it. Disinfect the puppy butt, disinfect the crate, disinfect me.... We were going to up her food anyway and I don't know if that will be enough or we need to slip a little extra meal in there when my husband leaves for work in the morning.

__________ Wed Nov 23, 2016 3:36 am __________

I went to post this to fb and then debated who would want to read it and who would understand it but, as I continue to talk to myself, my thoughts on my search for a dog.

Trying to explain again to experienced dog people what it is about an akita that they can quietly make human and animal believe they are about to die whether there is any intention behind it or not. The shiba goes off with growling, yelling, snapping... and the cats and puppies just stare at her or outright defy her. Like Aiko's barking and taking over the center of the room in front of Haru today. Zami goes still with that look and everything walks cautiously around her. If she raises a lip things fall over backward to get away. (Nearly including Josh). She is actually quite harmless if you don't attack her or her pack and she will give up that food item if you call her bluff. I taught her proper response for various situations and she won't even harm a guinea pig but there's still that thing I can't explain there. Aiko just ran into a bucket because she turned around to find Zami trying to get past to the water and she was too busy staring at Zami to look where she was headed to get away. Zami did nothing but make it clear where she was going. I can't say it's really confidence because Zami was quite a coward for a long time and I've seen it in other akitas even when reacting out of fear response. I can never explain it. It's the thing that launched research into native breeds of 4 continents and trips across the country looking at breeds only to have my heart step in and pick up a mix from a random ad. Maybe I just got tired of trying to find the right words to say to a breeder so they understand what temperament I appreciate in my akita without it sounding negative. It's almost a touch of wildness. A bit of maturity bred out of most dogs so they will be compliant pets for most owners. Some say dogs get along so well with humans because we have essentially stopped their development at an immature point. What if I don't want or need that to completely happen? What if I went searching for a mature, equal partner instead?

 

[JessicaR]

She is a cutie! But oh what fun the puppy stage is! :shock: :lol:

 

[SarniaTricia]

She is Cute!
But WOW... I do not envy you the Puppy Stage.

We got our dog at a year old from the shelter.... she ended up being pregnant.... had 9 puppies...
I Do Not like the puppy stage!!!
All I have to say is Ew and Ow....

Good Luck.... Sounds like you have a Handle on it. (as much as you can)
:good-luck:

 

[akane]

Aiko turned 8 weeks old and went on her first hike.



You have to run very fast to keep up with big dogs



There was also lots of falling down, I have many more of her flopping but my photobucket is running out of space



We really hate that leash idea



Aiko found a stick and it had to come with until she got tired of holding it



<br /><br /> __________ Sun Dec 04, 2016 6:37 am __________ <br /><br /> So far I have defended taking my puppy outside to 2 groups, 1 breeder, and got flamed by a moderator!? People it's on a checkline doing what it wants. It's expending energy when it wants. It is stopping when it wants. It did more running alone in a relatives yard over thanksgiving. We were prepared to carry her if she started to tire and she just barely did right before we got to the car. There was no forced exercise there. We didn't march a half mile out and a half mile back. We did more leaf killing than running. So until she's 3 months we will no longer call these "hikes". They shall be "outings" of exploration and leaf killing. Now I remember why I quit going to dog forums when I got my akita and barely mentioned my next 2 puppies online. People are crazier than when stating opinions about their kids. I got flamed by a mod on a major forum without asking for more details.... (the crazy people are out) What am I going to wake up to tomorrow.... Hate "mail"? I might get death threats for walking a puppy. :roll: While having it touching the ground!

Yes, it will be utterly horrible if Aiko does get an illness and devastating if something claims her life but I could have killed myself on my bike (nearly did) all the time growing up. I also have permanent injuries from horses but I wouldn't trade all my horseback riding time. You don't put puppies or kids in plastic bubbles. You let them be puppies and kids.

 

[JessicaR]

Looks like she had a great time!

No matter what you do someone will tell you that you did something wrong :roll: That type of exercising is what I was told to do when I get my german shepherd pup, easy on the joints and you let them set the pace.

 

[SarniaTricia]

Akane
It's your dog.... you raise it!!! Don't let others get you down... just walk away from that negativity.

Looks like your pup had a great "Outing"
They do enjoy being out with the big dogs, running, jumping and just being crazy..... and they stop when they are tired... just like kids.

Keep on keeping on.

 

[akane]

I find most of the people who raise the healthiest and most well adjusted animals don't spend much time if at all on forums. They are busy doing it. The people making noise on forums are spending more time repeating all the potential problems they've only read can happen or trying to force their way on others. That's the reason I left the chinchilla forum. I disagreed with the tiny, sterile breeding cages that were causing mental issues for my adults and I let my best pair try raising kits in a full size, double level cage. My kits grow 3-4times as fast as they used to, we've had 1 death, and they are incredibly agile and friendly. We mostly quit weighing them so carefully because you can see them grow up and be active to tell their health. We don't have to wonder if one is struggling. They've got houses, shelves, wheels (not the wheels! They will die or forever have joint issues!), sometimes 4' high of cage and they maneuver it from a week old no problems. Chinchillas don't nest in the wild. I figured the forum was not going to be anymore interested in my experiment and new way of raising them than they were in my pellet opinions, which did get me "hate mail".