Friday, July 16, 2010

Happy Gotcha Day CupKate!

It was 5 years ago that I saw this pathetic little face on Petfinder.com
CA85.4698643-3-x

I had several emails and phone calls back and forth with the foster coordinator. Since Kate was a 3.5 hour drive away, we all wanted to be as sure as we could that this was good fit. The FC’s priority was getting Kate into a home that would help her. She wanted her to go to someone who would help her get over her issues and not just accommodate them. My biggest priority was Bella. I did not want to end up with a dog that would make her life miserable.

It was a win-win. Although, there was some questioning on that first day
Kate_7-16-05g

First step: Remove some fat!
Kate_7-16-05b

I don’t know if you can really tell since you guys don’t see her IRL, but man-o-man was she out of shape. The dog that can go all day now could only run for about 3 minutes before she had to lie down! Getting her in shape was pretty easy as following Bella around was her number 1 priority. Everything else has definitely been a learning experience for both of us. Kate is both the easiest and most difficult dog I have ever worked with. She really is an easy keeper. Quiet, non-destructive, travels well, good with others. The struggle for both of us has been dealing with her worrying.

This she has always done a lot of
Kate_12-14-05g

She’s the dog that Can’t Be Wrong
Kate_11-12-07a

Progress was also hindered by the fact that she didn’t know what toys were
Kate_11-27-05a

And wouldn’t eat treats
DSC_2-5a (18)

There were many times that I looked at Bella and said, “what the hell are we supposed to do with this dog?” :-)

After about a year of shaping, trying to get her into toys, she just decided one day that maybe balls were kind cool. I was sitting on a bench at the park throwing the ball for Bella. I looked up and noticed that Bell didn’t have the ball. Of course, I started to get annoyed. Who’s untrained dog am I going to have to chase around the park for 20 minutes to get my ball back? It was Kate! I think the day Kate discovered retrieveing was the darkest day of Bella’s life. Haha. It’s been all down hill from there.

The Kateness was born
DSC_5588

She is the perfect example of Be Careful What You Wish For
Kate_3-18-06c1

She also quickly caught on to the She Who Holds The Ball Rules The World thing. Need a break? Don’t let it go.
DSC_1416

It’s been such a joy to watch her change. My favorite is just seeing her enjoy herself. Just have fun or hang out or just be without worrying that some unnamed horrible thing is going to happen any minute.
DSC_8322

I say to her often, “I love you even though you’re the most clingy and annoying dog I’ve ever met.”
DSC_0051

Bella loves her, too, even though she may prefer a little more personal space from time to time
BandK_2-24-06b

To celebrate, we had a little peanut butter last night. PB is the one torturous thing I allow myself to do to my dogs. Watching progression of irritation cracks me up ever single time.

We start all very excited that something good is coming! Bella gets all smiley
DSC_8593

Kate tries hard to keep her shit together. What she really wants to be doing right here is screaming in my face.
DSC_8557

Then we get our first tastes and life is good.
DSC_8596

DSC_8569

Well, life is good until you have been licking for about 3 hours trying to get the damn PB off you face.

My face is tired
DSC_8574

This is not so fun anymore
DSC_8631

I’m going to kill you in your sleep
DSC_8575

No, no, let me. I sleep closer to her head
DSC_8599


25 comments:

  1. aw what a great post!

    happy gotcha day, kate!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hip Hip Hooray for the CupKate! Roo also agrees with Bella and Kate that peanut butter is very overrated. Sticky is icky :)

    Keep on catchin,
    Roo

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've been enjoying your blog for sometime now. Thank you for Kate's background.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a sweet post and great photos. Those tongues have got to win some sort of canine record.

    ReplyDelete
  5. awww....lovely post. their faces are so funny! what dear things they are.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Happy Gotcha Day, Kate! I love the action shots with the ball.

    Kate and Bella, would you mind coming for a visit to teach MY couch potato border collie crosses how to play with balls and other toys?
    Maybe I should coat a ball with peanut butter?

    ReplyDelete
  8. This was one of the best, most moving blog articles I've read in a while. Thanks for the story about Kate. I love the part where she discovered balls. My puppy has discovered birds ;)

    Beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am new to your blog and I have to say 3 things:
    1) I love your pictures, they are stunning!
    2) Kate discovering balls reminds me of my Dixie discovering water (rivers, lakes, oceans, ponds, she is in!)
    3) This post made me almost cry it was so sweet, and then I laughed out loud at the end because dogs and PB are so hilarious.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Awesome reason for a post. I was delighted to discover Kates from Petfinder! Nice to hear about her past, prior to her wonderful present and future :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wonderful post! Love seeing the contrast of the different positions of Kate's ears in the beginning compared to the more recent photos.
    What a difference love makes!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Happy Gotcha Day Kate!

    I didn't ever read back and see if you'd posted her story on the blog, but I just wanted to say it looked like a hilarious and rewarding journey in teaching Kate how to annoy Bella the bestest.

    She's such a goofy little dog. You take the best pictures of them! (LOVE the one where she's shutting her eyes at the frisbee!)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Cool post..you are a lucky dog having found you forever home. Great pictures
    Benny & Lilyrethn

    ReplyDelete
  14. I love dogs too but can never understand why a couple would take one to their wedding. I even wrote a post about it on my blog:
    http://soyouwanttobeabanquetmanager.blogspot.com/2010/07/why-is-there-dog-here.html

    ReplyDelete
  15. Happy Gotcha Day, Kate! That was a wonderful story with great pictures too!

    ReplyDelete
  16. LOL! Brilliant pics! Belated birthday wishes from afar!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I love the post and the pictures they are great...your dog is stunning...very energetic!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Those are some impressive tongues.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wow!! That is a great post and yu are special to take her on but I'm sure she was very much worth it!! Both you and Bell have a new BFF

    ReplyDelete
  20. Absolutely love this post! Couldn't stop laughing...My oldest has 1 ball that she plays with when she gets sick of seeing the real ball dog get all the throwing attention. This will last about 3 min and then it's back to clinging to mom. Check out my blog if you get a chance http://www.arwenspack.blogspot.com/
    Thanks and I'm definitely following!

    ReplyDelete
  21. happy gotcha day kate!! she looks SO sweet.

    ReplyDelete
  22. p.s. those tongue shots are AMAZING!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Happy Gotcha Day, Kate! What a great post. I'm so glad that you've given Kate such a wonderful life. The world needs more dog lovers like you who are willing to give rescue dogs a full life, complete with hobbies, a family, and a job.

    And as always, amazing photos. I love seeing their personalities pop out of every photo.

    Kisses,
    Laila (and her human Renee)

    ReplyDelete