DeletedUser20951
Guest
I made a false claim recently, that I don't use the camera on my phone. I do use it on a rare occasion, when I remember it exists, to take low quality, often blurry (because my hands have a constant tremble), uncentered, idiotically angled, improperly lit, and likely flawed in a dozen other ways, pictures, which I will now presume to inflict upon you.
Meet Ruin (short for RUIN AND DAMNATION), circa October of last year, when she was first adopted from the local animal shelter.
Cute, right? (the only correct answer is "yes") We were told (she lives with my father, but I take care of her exercise and grooming) that she was fully grown, and I wish I had thought to take a true side picture at the time to reflect the change in size from then to now, but she is easily twice as big in the present.
Normally, when you choose a pet, you want to know specifics about their training, behavior, and whatnot, but she had been picked up as a stray, and all that the employees could say was that she was sweet, seemed to prefer to go outside to go to the bathroom, and a bit stubborn (I remarked to this immediately with, "I love stubborn dogs."). They had her breed listed completely wrong (English Setter?!), and I puzzled over this for quite some time until I realized exactly how much she was growing (my assumption as to what she could be was based on her supposed full growth). As has been the case with every dog I have adopted, I was sold the moment she quietly gazed up at me while the other dogs were barking like mad, that soulful hound look I'd never had a whole lot of experience with, having never owned one.
It was heartbreaking in the beginning. She paced through the house constantly, didn't know she was allowed to lay on a dog bed placed out for her (which took more than a week before she could be coaxed to lie on anything but the floor), she became anxious at any movement from humans, and when you reached out towards her, she would drop to her belly and curl up protectively. She would take treats gingerly and often drop them with how tentatively, carefully she bit, her tail tucked between her legs always.
I had expected, given her previous homeless status and the obvious abuse she suffered, that I would have my work cut out for me in training her. Completely wrong on that front. She was already housebroken, possessed no destructive tendencies, and did well on a leash except for being fearful of everything we encountered, especially people and cars driving by. Much of the early walks were more of my petting and talking to her until she calmed than actual walking.
Fast forward to close to seven months later:
Dude, she is so happy now and very rarely afraid, loving to bound off into the brush and gallop over rolling fields (I call her a miniature horse), while striding up to greet people on the street (whether they want to be greeted or not, and I'm working on that still).
I had never heard of Bluetick Coonhounds before, nor had I ever had any sort of hunting dog, and the only 'downside' I've been able to see about them is that they require a great deal of exercise. For the first five months, it was dawning on me that I might have done fricked up, as from what I had read about the breed, you couldn't allow them to be off-leash and I kept accumulating leg injuries that didn't heal because I simply couldn't keep up the brisk pace (fast as I could walk, with pathetic bursts of long-term smoker jogging) for the miles that was necessary for her to get enough physical activity in the limited amount of time during the day I had for the endeavor. I was willing to die in the attempt, but was seriously starting to believe that I just might. She was attentive, though, during the walks, regularly glancing back at me and listening when I spoke, so I took her to a location where, even if she chose to run off, there was little chance she would get hurt. Unhooked the leash, and lo and behold, she behaved perfectly, staying within sight and coming when I call for her. I WAS ECSTATIC, both for her and myself, and letting her frolic out her extensive energy while I look on and meander after her is amazing (I've almost been enjoying the exercise. Almost).
We sometimes frequent the Link River:
But she is an explorer and prefers to cover new ground. I know more about the geography of my own city from the last few months than I learned in my entire twenty-eight years of living here. XD
Alright, this post is massive, and I think I've run out of steam to gush about how proud I am of the doggy... For the moment.
If you guys have anything you would like to share about your pets in return, I would like to hear/see it.
Ruin and N/A out.
(...don't actually post pictures... it's against the rules. Muhahahahahahaha! )
Meet Ruin (short for RUIN AND DAMNATION), circa October of last year, when she was first adopted from the local animal shelter.
Cute, right? (the only correct answer is "yes") We were told (she lives with my father, but I take care of her exercise and grooming) that she was fully grown, and I wish I had thought to take a true side picture at the time to reflect the change in size from then to now, but she is easily twice as big in the present.
Normally, when you choose a pet, you want to know specifics about their training, behavior, and whatnot, but she had been picked up as a stray, and all that the employees could say was that she was sweet, seemed to prefer to go outside to go to the bathroom, and a bit stubborn (I remarked to this immediately with, "I love stubborn dogs."). They had her breed listed completely wrong (English Setter?!), and I puzzled over this for quite some time until I realized exactly how much she was growing (my assumption as to what she could be was based on her supposed full growth). As has been the case with every dog I have adopted, I was sold the moment she quietly gazed up at me while the other dogs were barking like mad, that soulful hound look I'd never had a whole lot of experience with, having never owned one.
It was heartbreaking in the beginning. She paced through the house constantly, didn't know she was allowed to lay on a dog bed placed out for her (which took more than a week before she could be coaxed to lie on anything but the floor), she became anxious at any movement from humans, and when you reached out towards her, she would drop to her belly and curl up protectively. She would take treats gingerly and often drop them with how tentatively, carefully she bit, her tail tucked between her legs always.
I had expected, given her previous homeless status and the obvious abuse she suffered, that I would have my work cut out for me in training her. Completely wrong on that front. She was already housebroken, possessed no destructive tendencies, and did well on a leash except for being fearful of everything we encountered, especially people and cars driving by. Much of the early walks were more of my petting and talking to her until she calmed than actual walking.
Fast forward to close to seven months later:
Dude, she is so happy now and very rarely afraid, loving to bound off into the brush and gallop over rolling fields (I call her a miniature horse), while striding up to greet people on the street (whether they want to be greeted or not, and I'm working on that still).
I had never heard of Bluetick Coonhounds before, nor had I ever had any sort of hunting dog, and the only 'downside' I've been able to see about them is that they require a great deal of exercise. For the first five months, it was dawning on me that I might have done fricked up, as from what I had read about the breed, you couldn't allow them to be off-leash and I kept accumulating leg injuries that didn't heal because I simply couldn't keep up the brisk pace (fast as I could walk, with pathetic bursts of long-term smoker jogging) for the miles that was necessary for her to get enough physical activity in the limited amount of time during the day I had for the endeavor. I was willing to die in the attempt, but was seriously starting to believe that I just might. She was attentive, though, during the walks, regularly glancing back at me and listening when I spoke, so I took her to a location where, even if she chose to run off, there was little chance she would get hurt. Unhooked the leash, and lo and behold, she behaved perfectly, staying within sight and coming when I call for her. I WAS ECSTATIC, both for her and myself, and letting her frolic out her extensive energy while I look on and meander after her is amazing (I've almost been enjoying the exercise. Almost).
We sometimes frequent the Link River:
But she is an explorer and prefers to cover new ground. I know more about the geography of my own city from the last few months than I learned in my entire twenty-eight years of living here. XD
Alright, this post is massive, and I think I've run out of steam to gush about how proud I am of the doggy... For the moment.
If you guys have anything you would like to share about your pets in return, I would like to hear/see it.
Ruin and N/A out.
(...don't actually post pictures... it's against the rules. Muhahahahahahaha! )
Last edited by a moderator: