Christmas cards are in the mail! If you've been reading the blog, you probably have guessed what might be featured on our card. If you're just checking out the blog for the first time, you're now beginning to realize that we're insane - or at least insane about our dog. We'll leave that up to you to decide, just don't tell us the verdict.


After Thanksgiving, we started trying to get a great shot of Maggie with her Santa hat on. We started on her bed, and then once the tree was up and decorated we changed the shooting location. Mags wasn't really the biggest fan of this process, but relatively speaking she handled it pretty well.


We had plenty of cheese on hand for bribes, and kept it to short sessions. It got a lot easier once we thought to use the rapid fire feature of the camera so that we could hold down the button and just shoot away, so 4 or 5 sessions and 200+ pictures later, we got the card. The hardest part was picking out a favorite.






Anyway, thanks for indulging us and checking out the site. We're now on our 10th month with Maggie and she's changed so much and doing great.

Maggie, Kat & I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We just got Maggie groomed this past Tuesday, so she's all set for the holidays. She looks so much like a puppy after she's been cut. It's really nice this week too, because she doesn't usually smell very great after coming home from day care, so we have the better part of a week before she'll pick that odor up again.

This picture of her cuddling Mr. Stinky is from today. She's started showing more interest in him lately and often curls up with him or uses him as a pillow.

Mags enjoyed her first Thanksgiving at Grandma Lela's. She seems to like it there because she doesn't have a "spot" and moves around more (relatively speaking, for Maggie). Our little non-food motivated girl though is starting to come out of her shell. At one point we were all in the kitchen with Maggie still in the family room. Kat took a peek out there and Maggie was up at the coffee table sniffing the dip. Another minute, and Maggie would have had her first taste of pumpkin dip and ginger snap cookies.

We took a few shots of Maggie eating. We still put her food near her for meal times, just a few steps away from her bed. She's also started doing this thing where she stands on her bed and licks her bowl clean after we move them back by her bed. And she licks her chops constantly after eating. Not that either of these are unusual, just everything she does amuses us...

It's been a couple of weeks, which is an eternity in Maggie-world.

First, the bed. She LOVES the new bed. She laid on it right away, but it took a couple of days for her to really figure it out and get comfy. She now zonks out on that bed like you wouldn't believe. We thought she was adorable while sleeping on her old pad. That was nothing compared to her on the new bed. Even on the bed every time we think that's as cute as it can get, she finds another pose to entertain us.

She's figured out that she can rest her head up on the bolster around the sides and back. When she's not doing that she likes hanging her head completely off of the front. Other times she just sprawls out and takes up the entire bed. I'm sure she never dreamed of having it so good.

We'd gotten her used to coming over to the couch and sitting by us. On her pad she always gave us "the look" that we interpreted as her wanting to come over here, but waiting to be called... so we'd call and she'd run over here; often before we even got more than one syllable out of our mouths.

With the bed, that's changed. Suddenly laying on the area rug by the couch is slumming it. If we call her like 10 times and really insist she'll come over here, while making sure we know that she doesn't really want to be here. And she can't get back to her bed fast enough when we tell her to go.

Maggie continues to go to doggie daycare or "school" as we call it. In general she's going twice a week now. It's ridiculous how much she loves school and has changed - at least while there. They have a web cam so I can occasionally check in on her. The first few weeks, I generally would only see the back of Maggie's head, sitting in the corner in front of the web cam. Now, she's prancing around, sniffing all the dogs, her tail way up high and wagging. She's so happy.

The people working there are awesome, totally love Maggie and have noticed a huge change in her as well. They say she plays with the dogs outside now (I can't see that on the web cam). One of the days that she goes, her pal George is there. George is very nice to Maggie and I think showed her the ropes. Often when I check-in on the web cam George is lying down next to Mags. On one occasion I'd see George go play with some other dogs, check back in and sniff Mags, go play some more and then come lay down next to her.

One of the best parts for us is that Maggie now will get excited when she sees us. When we go to pick her up, she can see us in the window and will start running around and jumping up on the gate. That's right - Maggie, jumping. We about died the first time we saw it. She even jumped over some other dogs to make sure everyone knew it was her turn to leave and that her mom and dad were there to pick her up.

She's a total spaz when we walk out of there and take her for a quick walk before getting in the car. Suddenly she's Speed Racer and can't walk fast enough. She also appears drunk as she can't walk anywhere close to a straight line. We walk her now before getting in the car because, to our knowledge, she has yet to "get busy" while at school. At first we didn't do this, but we got a few blocks away and Maggie started whining. Yep - whining. That's the one and only time she's ever done that. So we immediately pulled over, she went, and now that's part of the standard operating procedure.

I think the other change around here is that we're bringing Maggie in on the leash now from her walks. Normally we'd take her off leash in the yard, she'd run up on the deck, and then we'd tell her to "go to her spot". The problem with that was that Maggie was a genius about going to her spot very quickly when it was first thing in the morning (breakfast was about to be served) or her after-work walk (dinner was about to be served). The other times (leaving for work and the last walk of the night before bed) Maggie would act like she had no clue what her spot was and frankly often looked like she didn't know who we were or wasn't convinced that this was her house (seriously, at bedtime she'd always sniff the door frame and look all around like it was her first time here).

So, we've started keeping her on the leash and walking her in the house. That's easier said than done, but after about a week and a half of that, it seems to be paying dividends. Last night was the first night that she walked in at bedtime on the leash willingly. Previous nights I had to eventually pull her in, but we think (hope) she's getting it.

Speaking of nighttime walks, it's about time for hers tonight - although from the looks of it she's dreaming (her little paws are going) in her bed.

Sleep tight . . .

Maggie's first weeks with us included the purchase of lots of items . . . some of which were never used, briefly used, or rarely used. Count a big, fluffy bed among the items that were briefly used.

When we first adopted Maggie she never moved unless we picked her up and carried her . . . except the seventh night she was with us. That day I had purchased a big, comfy, fluffy pillow bed for Maggie. When it was time for bed we laid her on her new bed and documented the moment with a photo - - you can see from the picture that she looks thrilled ;-) At 1 a.m. the dog that never moved got up and walked across the room to lay down in front of her crate.

That story isn't a big deal for a normal dog, but Maggie was (and in some ways still is) a shell of a dog. It took amazing courage for her to get up and walk across the room - - and was proof to us that she really, really didn't like that bed.

I returned that bed the next day, but her response to it left us in a pickle. We knew we needed to make Maggie comfortable, but how? We decided to start with a simple pad and work our way up (thus, the famous brown crate mats layered with her towels in every photo to date). In the beginning Maggie seemed to really love the crate pads, but over time they lost their allure - - she has become a dog used to living the good life and we could tell she was ready for something more.

Thanks to a doggie catalog that arrived in our mailbox, Steve found a couch / bed that looked perfect for Maggie. Our purchase arrived today and it's now the newest piece of "furniture" in our family room. We put a brown towel on it (that's the Maggie universal sign for "lay here") and she jumped right on. She's still adjusting, but we think she's happy with her new couch - - we just want her to be happy!!

We got some good news from the vet! Last Thursday we took Maggie to the cardiologist for the ultrasound of her heart to see if it was indeed enlarged and if it posed any health risks for her. The doctor said that her heart is slightly enlarged for her size (they calculate a ratio between the heart size and spine length to come up with a number to compare to a "normal" range). He confirmed though that there is no heart murmur, that she has a normal heart rate, and the ultrasound showed perfectly normal heart function. So, our little Mags' heart is totally fine!

Maggie seems to be enjoying her visits to the Mutt Hutt (aka "school"). It's amazing some of the changes we've seen in her since she started. Maggie is really wound up when we pick her up at the end of the day. When we picked her up yesterday she actually jumped up on her hind legs a couple of times when she saw us waiting outside for her. She's exhibiting more normal dog-like behaviors, such as curiosity of her surroundings, and she really perks up and wags her tail a little when she sees other dogs or people approaching.

We're just taking her once a week, but it seems to be a really good experience for her to socialize and learn from other dogs. They have a webcam so we can periodically check in on her. In just 5 visits, she has gone from sitting in the corner watching the other dogs to walking around, sniffing and interacting with the other dogs. She's not exactly running around and playing, but it's definitely an improvement.

We went on the Chicago PAWS fund-raiser walk a couple of weeks ago at Montrose beach. There were thousands of people and dogs. A month before that, I don't think Maggie would have been able to handle it, but after a nervous start she was pretty chill with it. And it was cool how many other people - with their own dogs in hand - stopped us to ask us about Maggie and comment on how cute she is.

Maggie also has become a pro at coming over to the couch to visit with us and seems to enjoy sprawling out in her new den next to mom and dad (the first picture above).

Thank you, Grandma Lela!

This past weekend Steve and I went to KC to visit our good friends Todd & Marcy (and their wonderful children Jake & Alyssa). They were wonderful hosts and we had a great time. MANY THANKS to Grandma Lela who took great care of Miss Maggie while we were away.

Since Maggie's still learning how to be a normal dog we had some anxiety about leaving her. Would she refuse to go to the bathroom? Would she go on a hunger strike? Maggie had a few day visits with her Grandma to get used to her home, but we were still nervous. To help the visit go smoothly we created a "survival guide" for Grandma Lela to refer to during the weekend. I've pasted it in below so you can get a glimps of a day-in-the-life-of-Maggie (and us).

So no on has to ask . . . Yes, we missed Maggie terribly and phoned daily to check on her. As soon as our plane landed we raced from the airpot to pick her up. She didn't stand up and wag her tail when she saw us, but she seemed happy to see us in her own way.

Maggie: The Caretakers Survival Guide

SCHEDULE
Maggie’s M-F Schedule
A.M.: Wake-up; potty; eat breakfast; potty before we leave for work*
Daytime: At home alone with her treat-filled Kongs
5 P.M.- ish: Potty; dinner
Bedtime: Potty
*sometimes she doesn’t have to go again so soon. If she doesn’t go, she doesn’t go. If you can sneak home at lunch and give her another try great, but if not she’ll be fine.

Maggie’s Weekend Schedule
A.M.: Wake-up; potty; eat breakfast
12 P.M. - ish: Potty
5 P.M. - ish Potty; dinner
Bedtime: Potty


FOOD
- Maggie gets a leveled ¾ cup of dry food for breakfast and dinner (a total of 1 ½ cups per day). Place her food right in front of her. To help with trust we never make Maggie work for her food.
- While she’s never choked, we are always in the room with her when she eats (but don’t watch her - - she’ll give you a look letting you know she doesn’t like that!).

Water
- Maggie gets her water bowl 24/7 (even at bedtime). She likes it on the front corner of her bed (so it’s nearby, but not in her way).

Medicine
- Maggie gets one vitamin daily in her dinner. Just simply drop the vitamin on top of her food (no need to try to hide the pill). If you forget to add the pill, you can offer it to her from the palm of you hand. If you forget all together simply skip that day.

Treats
- Maggie gets her Kong treats once daily. On Saturday night she should get an extra special treat (after dinner, around 7 p.m.)
- The treats in the Kong are small enough for her to have while she’s alone and do not present a choking hazard. All other treats have to be supervised.

POTTY
- The potty phrase is “get busy.” Say it kindly, but firmly. Don’t baby her, and don’t let her mess around. Potty time is all business.
- She usually does #2 twice a day, but that’s just an average.
- If her stool is very soft or runny please cut out all treats and let us know. If this happens Mags will be very grateful if you can increase her turnouts.
- She can hold “it” for a very long period of time. Just be consistent with her turnouts. When she’s scared or nervous she shuts down, but she’ll go eventually.

LEASH
- When you put Maggie on the leash turn your back to her and say, “let’s go” kindly, but firmly. Even if she doesn’t move right away keep your back turned and keep saying “let’s go” - - it may take a minute, but she will follow.
- When your back is turned you can jiggle the leash to encourage her.
- Tug on the leash only as a last resort - - she gets scared and it sets her back.

GROOMING
- Maggie develops lots of eye boogers. If you wipe them away once a day that’s all she needs to prevent build-up. She really doesn’t like to have them wiped away, and will try to turn her head away.
- Maggie’s paws get wiped each time she comes in so she doesn’t track dirt all over the house. If you want to wipe her paws feel free to do so - - she is accustomed to this tradition.

IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY
Cell #'s . . .
Vet . . .
Emergency Vet . . .

Angels Among Us

Maggie's blog recently received two anonymous comments under our very first entry.

One comment came from someone who was there the night Maggie and the other dogs were seized. The other comment is from someone who is familiar with the legal proceedings against the operator of Maggie's puppy mill, J.C. Heiberg. Apparently she is doing some well deserved jail time! I'm thinking this jail time is a result of the separate misdomeaner guilty verdict for not providing proper shelter for an animal, but I do not know for sure. To read about her trial check out our entry on 8/24/08.

This is a great reminder for Steve and me that there are many, many people who helped and loved Maggie before we ever knew she existed. They literally saved her life. I can't help but wonder how these anonymous posters were and/or are specifically involved with this case. Are they volunteers? Lawyers? Concerned citizens? I would bet money that they have big hearts and love animals.

The blog has many advantages. Our friendship with Justin, Carla, and George is just one example. Another advantage is that we have the opportunity to publicly say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to every person who helped save Maggie and the other dogs. Ever since we adopted Maggie we've made a point to educate ourselves about puppy mills, and I know the work you're doing is not easy.

Since the posts are under our very first entry I have pasted them in below . . . because they are very worth reading.

- - - - - - - - -

Dear Maggie: I am glad to hear that you found such a wonderful home. I know you deserve to have such wonderful doggy "parents". You had a "ruff" start in life, but your future looks brighter.

I just wanted you to know that JC is being held in Jail for 60 days for her crime. I also can assure you that her operation has been shut down & will not be re-established. She is being monitored very closely by the Sheriff's Department and her Probation Agent.

Have a happy life, and be a good doggy!

- - - - - - - - -

SteveKat: Thank you for posting this website. I love to hear that these dogs are finding such wonderful homes. I was there the night they were seized by the Kenosha County Sheriff's Dept. I know many dogs did not get rescued because Fondulac failed to do their jobs. I am just glad that this puppy mill was shut down and that Kenosha County took extreme steps to keep her shut down. Please keep posting information on Maggie, because I love my dog as much as you do & happy to hear this one had a happy ending...or should I say a new beginning in life.

1st Day of School

Today was Maggie's first day of "school" (a.k.a. doggy day care). She didn't play today, but was brave enough to spend all day in the big room with the active dogs.

Her mom wasn't so brave. I was a crying mess. Her little face in the window watching me leave broke my heart. The staff kept telling me to hold it together and be confident for her . . . I tried. They had to ask me to hand over her leash and then said, "It's time for you to go now." I felt so silly. I apologized when we picked her up tonight, but they assured me I wasn't the first.

Steve checked on Maggie via the daycare webcam, and I called during nap time (12-2p.m.) to get an update. Our friend Carla even got a progress report when she called to check on George.

Speaking of George, he was so sweet with Miss Maggie today. The staff said as soon as she arrived Maggie went to be with him, and when we picked her up George stopped playing to say good-bye. They're so cute!

The plan is for Maggie to go to day care every Monday, but while she's adjusting to that environment we may add in a second day for a few weeks.

Yesterday Maggie spent the day at her Grandma Lela's while Steve and I watched the Bears lose to the Bucs in OT. She did great with her treats and dinner, but wouldn't go to the bathroom until we had returned from the game.

We're hoping all these new experiences help expand her world and teach her that she is safe.

Re: teaching, Maggie is learning "stop". After her run-away accident this summer we started teaching her to "stop" each time we cross the street. Well, it has translated in the house, too. Sometimes Maggie gets confused between "upstairs" and the "basement" and in the past there was no stopping her once she was on her way. Now, if we say "stop" she will and we're able to re-direct her. No more frantic scrambling that scratches up the floors. It's almost as if her brain is settling down and allowing her to hear us.

Maggie also made big progress tonight - - we called for her to come sit by us and she walked over on her own! We didn't have to pick her up or use the leash!! It's another sign that she's finally settling in to her new home. It's hard to believe that Maggie's been with us for over 7 months now.

Now I just hope that when we pick Maggie up from day care next time that she comes running up to us with her tail wagging . . . or at least that it happens some day.

Get Well Gift & New Fall Fashions

Maggie's recup-eration just got easier thanks to her Aunt Aimee. Today a package from Beantown landed on our doorstep with some yummy treats inside. You can see from the photo that they immediately peaked Maggie's interest, and early tastings have been very positive. Thank you, Auntie Aimee!!

Fall has arrived and Maggie has updated her look. She started this weekend with her new Chicago Bears collar and leash, and she has progressed to parting her hair down the middle. We don't know how she does this - and the photo doesn't really do it justice - but we promise that it looks like she's learned to part her hair. We've wondered what she does up in the bathroom all day, and now we know. As soon as she's well she's off to the groomer so we hope she's not overly attached to her new style.

Maggie, Bears, and Wookies

First, Maggie seems to be feeling better and we haven't heard her cough today. Thursday night and yesterday morning she was pretty despondent and sounded bad with her cough. So it seems the antibiotics are doing their job.  Also her heart worm test came back negative, so that's good news.

Since football season has officially started, Maggie has now donned her Bears collar and leash. Her prediction for the season is 9-7, but that they'll still win the division. She also has a particular dislike for Green Bay, being in the northern wasteland of Wisconsin and all... When asked how she thought Aaron Rodgers would do, she just gave a quizzical look, like "Who is Aaron Rodgers?" - exactly.

Since she hasn't been groomed in a while (and now it's further postponed while she finishes up her quarantine period) we've had probably 4 or 5 people comment that she looks like Chewbacca, or more generally, a Wookie. So I couldn't resist... I think I see the resemblance.

Maggie is sick...

I left out some details from the end of our vacation until we had a chance to go to the vet and get some facts instead of just worrying about what may be wrong with Maggie. Here is some background and what we know now:

Late Sunday night, just before bed, Maggie coughed a few times. I've never heard her cough before, but we were sitting outside for a while and we figured she probably just got a little something like hair or grass stuck in her throat. There was also someone smoking nearby, so I thought maybe that bothered her.

Just after we got on the boat Monday afternoon she coughed a few times and sounded like she might vomit. We still weren't sure it was anything. I'd just lifted her up, so we thought I might have applied pressure to her throat. Plus when she sounded like she might vomit we were at sea so we thought maybe the motion was bothering her.

By Tuesday she'd coughed a few more times, never very long, but it had happened enough that we thought we'd better schedule an appointment for the vet. The canine flu has been going around, and if untreated and severe can be fatal, so we din't want to take any chances. The soonest they could get us in was this afternoon.

Around the time we made that appointment on Tuesday, Kat wrote Carla to let them know we'd better put off any playdates with George until we figured out what was wrong with her. That ended up unfolding a series of other events.

It turns out poor George started coughing on Saturday, and by Sunday they were at the emergency vet. Because of the flu problems, their vet did an x-ray. That x-ray showed possible fluid in the lungs and an enlarged heart. They started George on antibiotics and went back on Tuesday to get new x-rays which showed some improvement in the lungs, but again the enlarged heart. Taken by itself, they weren't sure if it was all related, or if the heart was a separate issue from the lungs/cough.

We heard all of this from Carla on Wednesday. We were worried about the cough and now possible heart problems was on our list of worries. The good news was that since they both were coughing it seemed likely that the cough was just something going around and not related to the heart. We're really glad that they let us know all of this so we were armed with this information for our appointment today. Since they came from the same environment, and possibly are genetically related, the heart was a concern for us - but I think really we thought we were just being paranoid and overly cautious.

In our appointment, they ran a test for heartworms, which we'll hear back about tomorrow. They weren't going to do an x-ray, but we relayed what we knew about George and they said they'd take 1 x-ray picture just to doublecheck and to put our minds at ease.

It turns out that they saw 'spots' or 'spiderwebs' in the x-rays of her lungs. I don't know if this is similar to the fluid described from George's x-rays. And, unfortunately, they also see abnormal enlargement in Maggie's heart too. They ended up doing another x-ray after seeing the enlargement in the first one to get a different angle on it, and got 2 other vets opinions on it to confirm it was enlarged. If there's any good news in this, it's that in both George and Maggie's cases, the vets didn't hear a heart murmur which would likely indicate the problem was in an advanced stage.

Maggie now is on two antibiotics - same as George. They're advising us to come back in 2 weeks to see if the cough is gone and get another x-ray to check her lungs. They don't think the cough is related to the heart problem and is likely a bacterial infection. The vet did point out that the enlargement was there, and noticeable, but was not major (as far as enlarged hearts go, I suppose). They advised us that after we clear up the lungs we can decide what to do about the heart. A next step would likely entail doing an EKG and ultrasound with a cardiologist to get an opinion on whether it requires treatment or is mild enough that it won't cause her long-term problems (Maggie is going to have to get a job now to pay for her medical bills).

We assume the cough for George and Maggie will likely clear up soon and it may have been a blessing in disguise to uncover the potential heart problems. Right now we're very happy that Carla and Justin found us, otherwise we wouldn't know about this at all, and it's going to be helpful to exchange notes on this as we all go forward.

We always knew Maggie had a big heart, but this wasn't exactly what we had in mind. Of course, we're hopeful and optimistic that it will all turn out OK for both Maggie and George. For now all we can do is wait and see.

Our neighbors Phil & Ann invited us out on their boat today to go tubing, and were nice enough to invite Maggie as well. We figured she'd done so well all week, and in the spirit of continuing to introduce her to new adventures - why not?

They have a dog (he's still a pup), Marley, so they'd each have company and they've met each other in the hallways before. She seemed to like it. If we didn't know better we'd think she on boats all the time. She acted much like she was in the car, and having cool, calm and collect Marley around didn't hurt. Also, as you'll see the pictures, Maggie took a turn in Marley's life vest for a little swim...

So here are the pics, plus some shots from when we were at Grand Mere State Park earlier in the week.

Maggie & Marley - two happy boaters

"You're kidding, right?"

That's not an otter

Watch out Phelps - it could be Maggie in 2012

Maggie drying off with her mom

Kat & Maggie saying "Goodbye" to a great vacation...

These shots are from Thursday when we went to Grand Mere State Park:

New Buffalo City Dog Park

We just found out yesterday that the New Buffalo dog park is now open. Its only about 1.5 miles out from the center of town at 1420 E. Washington St. It's smaller than the Michigan City park, but plenty big enough. Its less than a 5 minute drive from our place, which is better than the 15-plus minutes down to Michigan City. Its very quiet and a nice grassy area for the dogs to run.

We took Maggie there last night and there were 4 friends there for her to play with. She sniffed around a lot and was comfortable enough to lay down, but she didn't do any running around. We'll try again tonight.

We went to the Michigan City park Thursday night where she did run around and play for a little while with two puppies. It was good for her to see how the puppies initiated play and since they were pups they were much more insistent that she play. The grown dogs often will show they want to play but if Maggie doesn't respond they leave her alone and go find another dog.

The frequent exposure to other dogs this past week really has semed to help her and each day builds off of the previous.

We also went to Bridges to eat outside with Mags. The food was so-so but it was a great spot to take her out with us and pretty quiet.

Also on Thurs, Maggie jumped out of the car on her own. That was a first and she repeated it yesterday, so we're hopeful that she finally has this down.

We've seen some great progress with her recently. The are sometimes small things, but they are signs that she's more trusting of us and more comfortable with new situations.

In the house she's figured out that if we're petting her that she can flop over on her side to get a belly rub. Previously we had to nudge her over to show her.

In a few new situations, such as the new park, the State Park beach, or just stopping to talk to neighbors in New Buffalo, she'll pretty quickly be comfortable enough to lie down and just chill. The old Maggie would have stood nervously with her nose dripping like a faucet. The nervous nose running happens much less frequently and for shorter durations. She still wil jump or finch easily at small noises, but we're seeing progress.

Last night some of our neighbors were at the firepit so we brought her out with us. She was great with about 15 people out and just lay there calmly all night - you wouldn't have even known she was there.

Grand Mere State Park

I'm doing my first posting from my phone, so we'll see how this goes...

We went to the Grand Mere State Park today as they have the only dog friendly beach anywhere nearby. Overall I'd say it was a bust. It couldn't be less convenient to get to - about .5 miles down a nature trail and what seems like another .5 miles over several large sand dunes.

It was all very secluded. Where some people might see nature and peace and quiet, Kat sees opportunity for someone to leave us for dead in the woods. But she sees nothing wrong with chasing someone's car in Cabrini Green when they hit her and fled... Go figure.

There was no one else on the beach, which normally would be nice but without other dogs there for Mags to play with she just laid on the beach and watched us get wet and try to call her to the water. It gets deeper a lot faster than Montrose so she probably wouldn't have enjoyed it much anyway. Add to that a dose of biting flies and we spent more time walking to and from the beach than at it.

We have some pics which we'll post when we're back home - I forgot the cable I need to get online here w/o going to a café or something.

We'll be hitting the park tonight and then try the restaurant, Bridges, which we've heard allows dogs on the patio. Hopefully the park works out better than the beach.

Vacation update - we just spent 2 hours with Maggie at the Montrose dog beach. The second we walked in her tail was wagging and she was bouncing around. We weren't there 5 minutes and she was running around. The waves were bigger than last time we went which startled her a bit, but she was really brave and worked her way back in. We stood about 20 ft out in the lake and she'd come part way out, go back, come out a little further. Eventually she made a game of jumping the waves as they came in and she worked her way out to us. Her tail was wagging nearly the whole time. Later, back on the sand, she got into her "I'm going to play even if I don't know how to play with other dogs, so I'll run around in circles by myself"-mode. She ran with us a few times up and down the beach too. She really seemed to have a blast and so did we.

Again, we think it's building off of being around George and the other dogs yesterday. Any time we have time around other dogs in relatively close succession she kind of picks up where she left off from the previous day. We're really looking forward to this week. On the agenda: there's a beach that allows dogs about 20 miles north of New Buffalo that we've never scoped out, so we'll probably check it out tomorrow; there's a restaurant in Michigan City that allows dogs on the patio that we've heard about from others at the dog park; we'll try to hit the dog park in the evenings so we can get her some daily exposure to dogs during the week, without the downside of running into some of the sketchy characters that go there during the work day.

I'm sure she'll sleep like a baby on the way up to Michigan, she was on sensory overload at the beach today, and that's the most running around she's done in months.

We just got home from Maggie's first "play-date" with George. George, as we mentioned on Saturday, was rescued from the same puppy mill as Maggie. George was awesome - he looks very much like Maggie (he was just groomed yesterday, so he's actually clean and trimmed - unlike our currently shaggy pooch). George was definitely not shy with the other dogs, and didn't care if a dog was 5 lbs or 70 lbs before engaging in play. If Maggie were eventually even 1/4 as playful as George, we'd be ecstatic.

They seemed to take to each other - Maggie certainly gave George much more sniff time than the other dogs. Later in the evening they both laid down together which Maggie doesn't do and they just seeemed comfortable with each other.

It was interesting to see how similar they were in some ways and very different in others. Apparently George also 'prances' on the leash, and he has very much of the same 'little person look'. Behavior-wise though, Maggie is a lot more timid and reserved.

George's parents, Carla and Justin, were really nice. They've had George going to doggie daycare twice a week and have had him in obedience training. They said he's come a long way since starting both of those activities. George even picked up a ball at the park today from another dog, which was a big step for him. We've held off on daycare up to this point thinking it would be a waste if Maggie is just going to sit in the corner and watch the other dogs, but now we're reconsidering. Carla & Justin said that's how George started off in day care, and now look at him, so we should give it a shot.

It was also nice to meet people who love to talk about their dog as much as we do, and convince us that we're not ridiculously obsessed or crazy (now, now, everyone keep your comments to yourselves). Hopefully we'll be getting back together soon!

Maggie didn't actually play at the park - as usual - she just supervised. But as I type this, she is completely passed out on her bed. Watching the other dogs play really tuckers her out.

Disappointing News . . .

Hi, everyone - it's Kat. I haven't posted in a while, so I feel bad bringing disappointing news to Maggie's blog, but it's something I have to share.

On July 1st the Fond Du Lac Reporter published a story with the results of the trial of J.C. Heiberg. Who's that? The owner / operator of Maggie's puppy mill. The verdict? Not guilty. I'm speechless - - and angry, upset, and sick to my stomach. Who does this to animals? Who sets them free to do it again?

I try hard not focus on Maggie's past and let anger enter my mind, but it's hard. I know the best thing I can do for Maggie is to focus on her future. Steve and I are committed to giving Maggie the very best and everything she needs - - and lots of love! We just want her to be happy, healthy, and to know that she's safe.

But the past keeps coming back to haunt us. As I type this Maggie is literally having a nightmare and is crying out. I used to rush to her side and wake her, but everything we have read says to let her sleep through them in the hopes of her not remembering. We can't help but wonder if she'll spend the rest of her life tortured by her past.

In order to keep our focus positive we've deliberately not Googled J.C. Heiberg in the past. Tonight "curiosity killed the Kat". If we had known her case was going to trial what would we have done? Attended? Maybe. Called the prosecutor and offered our assistance? Absolutely.

In the end it's Maggie - and the other animals - who were robbed of their justice. Steve and I are blessed to have Maggie, and we give thanks for her each day. She is the love of our lives.

It's been in the blog in the past, but it's worth mentioning again - - PLEASE DO NOT BUY A PET FROM A RETAIL STORE! Pet stores keep puppy mills in business.

Here's the story from the Fond du Lac Reporter on July 1st (and a link with more info) . . .

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A Fond du Lac County jury decided Tuesday afternoon that a 70-year-old woman was not guilty of mistreating up to 70 dogs, which authorities found housed in barns at her former Townline Road home in December 2007.

On a separate misdemeanor charge, J.C. M. Heiberg was found guilty Tuesday of not providing proper shelter for an animal.

Along with finding her not guilty of intentionally mistreating animals, the jury ruled she also was not guilty on two counts of obstructing an officer.

A sentencing hearing has been set for 10 a.m. July 21. Heiberg faces up to nine months in jail for the lone guilty verdict.

As a defense witness, Heiberg took the stand Tuesday morning, explaining to the court that she had a kennel license and was able to house the large number of animals she was keeping at her Townline Road home.

She said she was in the process of moving when authorities showed up on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2007, to search her residence.

Heiberg said she first started moving her horses and some of her dogs to her new Kenosha home the Friday before that, but made daily trips to the Townline Road home to care for the animals.

“Were the animals fed and watered every day between Friday and Tuesday,” defense attorney Brian Mares asked during direct examination.

“Yes,” Heiberg answered.

According to a criminal complaint, when authorities from the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Department arrived at the home on Dec. 18, they found animal waste covering the floors of the barns where the animals were kept, with no food and little water for the dogs. Most of the water was frozen due to freezing temperatures at the time, according to the complaint.Two puppies were found dead, according to the complaint.

A Waupun Veterinary Clinic report concluded Heiberg was using her home to serve as an inhumane puppy mill in “an environment that kept the puppies alive but nothing else.”

Fond du Lac County Assistant District Attorney Jocelyn Jurva called detectives on the case to the stand during the first day of trial Monday. Testimony wrapped up Tuesday with the jury getting the case early in the afternoon.

After about three hours of deliberating, the jury returned with the verdict around 3:45 p.m.

This case is not the first time Heiberg has been charged with neglecting animals. Charges were sought after authorities searched her Townline Road home in December 2005 and found several animals without food or water. One dog was found dead in that instance.

Charges in that case were later dismissed on a prosecutor’s motion.

http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/13052/WI/US/

My cousins, Emily and Julie were in town for a few days this week for a visit. Maggie was her usual excitable self: running around, jumping on them, and barking crazily - she's such a hassle! Ok, not really - she just chilled on her bed the entire time. Julie and my aunt Sue are big fans of the blog, so it's about one of them got honorable mention here (if Sue & Tom ever came to visit, they'd be here too). It was great to see both of them again and hopefully they'll make it back here soon.

Maggie did really great at the dog park last weekend. She got to go on back-to-back days which seemed to really help. She didn't play with the other dogs at all, but she definitely showed a keen interest in several of them and you could see the wheels turning in her head that she was thinking about jumping in. She just didn't get up the courage to go for it. On Sunday you could tell that we were picking up where we left off from Saturday, so that was good to see. Maggie immediately started wagging her tail as we entered the park, which surprised us and encourages us that even if she isn't running around that she enjoys her time there.

We're hoping a few more trips with some of the more friendly dogs at the park will get her going again. Also ,this Tuesday we're meeting another couple and their dog, George, at a dog park in Chicago. They found us through the blog, and rescued George from the same puppy mill. We're hopeful that they hit it off and it will be great to trade stories as they both seem to have similar behaviors.

We're also taking more time week through Labor Day in Michigan. We always see the best progress with Maggie when we have several days in a row to spend with her full time, so we're looking forward to 6 days of Maggie time. We'd hoped to get that level of time with her over our 4th of July vacation, but that started the day after the Great Escape occurred and Maggie (aka "Boots") spent the week nursing her paws.

Maggie continues to enjoy her time in the car and the basement. We wish we could bottle up whatever goes through her head in the car and bring it into the house. She's such a different dog in the car - so curious, interested, and happy. We've also started bringing her over to the couch in our family room to sit with us (by the couch, not on the couch). This also seems to help and she seems to want to be by us now - in the early days if we brought her over here she was stressed out and couldn't get back to her bed fast enough. Now she'll lie here for hours next to us.

One quick update - I was working from home today and was taking Maggie in to get her nails clipped over lunch.

I called Maggie down from the deck to "go to the car". She actually went - in the past we've always had to put her on the leash to guide her and get her to follow us to the garage.

As we walked in the garage, I immediately realized we might have a small issue. Before I called her down, I had gone to the car and opened the back door for her, and also put the garage door opener back on my visor. I accidentally left the driver door open while doing that, in addition to the back door. Consequently, Maggie got a little confused about which one was her door... this was the result.

We're off again to Michigan so we hope to have some fun stories from the dog park for Sunday night!

Ok, it' been a couple of weeks (again). So lots to write about...

Unbelievably, this past Saturday was exactly 6 months from the day we brought Maggie home. Going back through the blog photos and thinking about how this poor pup was afraid to walk anywhere and we were carrying her around, it's hard to believe how far she has come. Watching her on a walk outside now - assuming it's not too windy and there aren't any sprinklers running nearby - you'd think she was like any normal dog. She looks so happy prancing around the neighborhood - and seeing Maggie happy makes us happy!

We took Mags to New Buffalo again this weekend, and on Sunday went to the dog park. She was a lot more interested than the last time we went. She didn't do her "go crazy and play" thing, but she was definitely thinking about it. She made a few moves like she would but always backed off - hopefully this weekend she'll finally commit. But any day where Maggie gets to go for a car ride is a good day in her book. And due to the never-ending construction on I94 she got extra car time on the way back home.

We've been trying a few new things with Maggie that seem to be helping her.

We've been taking her with us whenever we'll be in another room for an extended period of time. That means after breakfast she comes back upstairs with us while we get ready for work.

We've been doing that for maybe three weeks. On Tuesday our schedules were a little off and Maggie was still contemplating eating her breakfast when Kat got in the shower and I headed out for work. Kat heard something, and sure enough, Maggie had worked up the courage to just come upstairs after finishing her breakfast. That's really the first time she's just done something like that on her own so it was great to see.

Today she did the same thing again - twice really. This morning we were both upstairs and left her downstairs with her breakfast. Sure enough, I heard the little clink-clink of her tag and there she was! Then tonight, Kat was upstairs while Maggie and I were in the family room. I got up to go to the bathroom, came out and Maggie was gone. She'd gone upstairs to find her mom all on her own. We're hoping this is the beginning of her starting to feel comfortable to walk around the house on her own. Up until now she's only ever moved from point to point when told.

Also now that our basement is finished we've been taking her down there. She's starting to learn "let's go to the basement". Right now she only gets it if we're going down there while we say it and she can follow us. If we point and say it while we stay here then she gets confused and goes upstairs. But before even if we were going that direction she'd go upstairs so at least she's starting to figure it out.

It's great in the basement because she doesn't have a bed there so there's no clearly defined area for her. She doesn't exactly get up and run all around, but she moves around in a larger area than her bed allows which is a good thing.

Also, she's become the master of the Kong. You can see it in a couple of these pictures. We got this thing around the same time we got Maggie. It sat virtually untouched for months. At the most she'd hit it once. If a treat came out she'd hit it again, but the first time she hit it without something coming out she'd give up on it.

Now she's a riot to watch with it. She's using her paws to grab it and shake it back and forth and will nose it all around the area in front of the couch in the basement.

She's gotten where she's very relaxed in the basement and we think she enjoys being down there with us. She sprawls out on her side which I'd say indicates she's pretty comfortable.

We bought Maggie a 6 month birthday gift at our favorite little pet store - Beachtails - in New Buffalo. It's walking distance to our place, the people - and their dogs - are super nice, and they have all of the things we buy for Maggie (ie. good quality, non-Chinese stuff). It's similar to Kriser's here, but we do all of our shopping up there now. Kat does her best - every weekend - to support the new local business :) And I don't need any excuse to avoid the B.S. sales tax around here - but I digress...

We were so excited to give her this gift, since she's done so well with the Kong. Here's a picture. Basically it's a hard rubber ball with a portion "scooped" out. We knew with some frozen peanut butter in there we'd have all sorts of entertainment watching Maggie chase the ball around.

As it turns out, Maggie is too smart for that. We put the ball in front of her, full of anticipation of the entertainment to come. She nosed the ball once, brought it back to her, and then used her front paws to hold it in place while she spent the next 10 minutes eating all of the frozen peanut butter. She didn't let the ball roll around at all. It didn't really turn out as expected, but at least she's smart and comfortable enough to do that. 4 months ago she would have just watched it roll away and then taken a nap.

Maggie's grandparents came up from Florida for a visit this past weekend. Over the past week or so we've really been trying to take Maggie wherever we can with us, whether it's running errands (where we're both there and don't have to leave her in the car) or other rooms in the house where we're working. So, with that in mind, Mags went for a ride down to Midway. I wasn't sure how she'd be in the car with two people she'd never met, but she was great.

I brought some treats for my parents to use to bribe her, which seem to have worked out well. My mom sat in the back with her and at one point Maggie was sitting up next to her and leaning on her.

We went on lots of long walks around the neighborhood. Of course, Maggie insisted that everyone walk in front of her, instead of some behind her. She also is really not fond of hoses, sprinklers or little American flags. Otherwise the walks were great and uneventful. On Sunday Maggie even walked with her grandpa holding the leash.

Maggie got two presents - a new safety harness (she probably won't love this, but it's for her own good) and some new beef treats. She really likes the treats - and they fit nicely into her Kong. Maggie had a great visit, and her grandparents got to see she's even more adorable in person! :)

Speaking of the Kong, Maggie has become a real pro. The Kong sat untouched for months, but now she pretty much empties it out every day while we're at work. She's also taken to playing with it more while we're home with her. She's so good at the first one that we bought her the "beehive" version to give her some variety and a new challenge.

I don't know if it's because we've had a few days off, we're bringing her more places, or what, but we've seen some small, yet noticeable progress. A few areas where we've seen some improvement:

Pupcicles - She loves these things, and pretty much has it down to a science knocking them out of the container and gulping them down. Unfortunately these are now about 2 minutes or less of entertainment.

Dinner - The last couple of days she's gotten much quicker at getting up to eat. We put her food bowl in the rack just off of her bed. Typically she'd think about going to it for at least several minutes, sometimes waiting until we left the room. At least for now she's getting up right away and going to it.

Basement - She's learning "let's go to the basement". She still has some work on this, with about 50% of the time her ending up upstairs, but she's getting there. The biggest thing in the basement though is that she doesn't have a bed or brown towel. She doesn't exactly get up and wander around, but so far she's shown that she'll expand her territory somewhat and has ventured across areas larger than her towel allows. We're trying to combine this area with her Kong and hope she chases it further (right now if the Kong goes off of her towel, most times that's the end of the game).

Coming in the house - In the evening we sometimes still have to tell her to come in 8-10 times, but she's getting better at it and is definitely better other times of the day. She's also gotten good about going to her bed no matter the time of day. There for a while at nighttime she'd just run straight upstairs, which wasn't good when it was muddy out and we didn't have a chance to wipe her paws down (this is done when on her downstairs bed).

The car - Kat discovered this one. Because it's harder for Kat to get Mags out of the car, she started pulling her feet out to hang out of the door to try to get her out. Reluctantly, at first, Maggie worked her way out of the car. She still hasn't gotten out on command, but seems to be getting better at it. She really, really loves car rides. Today, Kat decided to bring Maggie down and pick me up from work in the Loop instead of me taking the train. It was hilarious watching Maggie watch all of the pedestrians heading to the train station. She was just very interested and curious watching the masses pass by. I guess this is probably the most people Maggie has ever seen at once.

We're really hoping and expect that with even more time and attention Maggie will just continue to improve. We're looking forward to taking some time off next month to spend another extended stay in Michigan with her - and hope that this time she's not injured for our vacation and we can spend it focusing on her.

We finally took Mags to Montrose Beach today. The city has an enclosed portion of the beach which allows dogs off-leash. We've been dying to take Maggie to the beach, either here or in MI (but after the paw injury, our plans for the beach in MI were postponed).

First we got Maggie to go into the water on the leash. It was good she was still on leash the first time as the noise of her walking in the water scared her, which caused her to make more noise, and led to a minor panic. Once she calmed down, she wouldn't walk anywhere until we finally made a move to walk out of the water.

We walked around the beach a bit with her and tried to get her to go back into the water on the leash. She wouldn't go at all. Eventually I picked her up and carried her in a ways and put her down where it was still very shallow. She was still on leash and refused to walk with us through the water. We decided to see what she'd do if we took her off leash in the water. For a few minutes she looked longingly at the shore, and we both were sure she was going to bolt back to dry land. Finally, after many "let's go Maggie!"'s, she took a few steps toward us. Before we knew it she was following us around through the water, just like on land.

After a while we walked her back out onto the beach and walked around some more. Then we decided to try coaxing her into the water. Shw sniffed around some of the other dogs, and seemed like she might want to play, but ultimately never fully committed to it.

Still off leash, Kat & I went into the lake and called to Maggie. She did her little Maggie dance at the edge of the water. You could see the wheels turning as she tried to psych herself up and talk herself into going into the water, and trying to find just the right spot to go in. Sure enough, after a minute or two she walked into the lake after us and followed us out. We walked back and forth many times to get her used to it and just enjoying the experience. We were all feeling pretty brave at this point so we coaxed her out just to the point where she couldn't touch any more. And our little Mags swam!

She won't be appearing in the Olympics in August, but she gave it a great first effort. She looked like a little sea otter floating out there, doing little baby doggie paddles. She was a little nervous, but we were both there to hold her and guide her back to where she could touch down again. At one point she was paddling like crazy in probably 6 inches of water before we stopped her, pulled her feet down, and showed her that she could stand.

We got out of the water and back in with her one more time just to reinforce the act of getting into the water, and she did another brief swim.

We were both incredibly happy for Maggie, and you could immediately see a difference in her self confidence. When we were on the beach, her tail was wagging - not just swinging back in forth in tune with her gait, but really wagging. The only other time we've ever seen her wag her tail was while running like a mad dog at the park with the other dogs. She was so happy and confident, it was such a great feeling to see.

We also met a woman there with her dog who was also rescued and we were able to swap very similar stories. She had her dog about a year and had dealt with many of the same challenges we are, so it was good to hear and get some more advice.

We can't wait to get her back to the beach - if the weather holds out we'll try to go again tomorrow. Maybe we're imaging it, but ever since the beach we feel like Maggie has a whole new level of confidence and seems happier, so we want to keep reinforcing it with her.


To Carla, that's awesome that you rescued a dog from the same mill. We'd love to get together with the dogs and exchange notes. You can write us at katbrangan AT hotmail dot com.