Shasta’s activities were curtailed again for part of this month as she was in heat. This kept her from attending in-person puppy classes and going out in public in her cape. She was, however, very popular with the boy dogs in our neighbourhood, and on more than a few occasions we would open our front door to find them sniffing for Shasta in our front yard.
Over the holidays, Shasta was very intrigued by all of the new things in her environment, like the Christmas tree, decorations, yard ornaments, and unopened presents. She was very well-behaved and didn’t chew or destroy anything. She had a great time playing in all of the snow but was suspicious of the small snowman that had been built in our yard. She finally got up the nerve to bite off his carrot nose and eat it.
Shasta spent a lot of time with small children over the holidays, some of whom were not terribly gentle with her. Shasta showed remarkable restraint during these times and was very kind and cuddly with all of the kids.
Where Shasta still struggles to show restraint is around food. She is on a constant search for things to eat and is lightning fast if given an opportunity to steal anything edible. A few days before Christmas, Shasta jumped up and took a 6 1/2″ chicken kebab off of a plate that someone was standing and holding. She swallowed the kebab whole and had to go to the emergency vet clinic to have it removed (intact!) endoscopically. Thankfully she was no worse for wear, though the experience was very stressful for her puppy-raising family!
Shasta travelled to the Okanagan after Christmas and spent several days with other family dogs. She got along well with everyone and particularly loved running with the other doggos in the snow. Our family went up to SilverStar Mountain to watch the New Year’s Eve fireworks, which were very close and loud. Shasta was initially a bit startled by the noise, but once she’d had a couple of bites of kibble she was relaxed and unbothered by the sounds and lights. She walked through the crowd with confidence and was able to follow commands. We were so proud of her π
Submitted by: Lisa Heiberg
