Lessons from a Jigsaw Puzzle

There's a quote that goes something like this:
 "Not all of the puzzle pieces appear to fit together at first but in time you'll realize they do, perfectly."

EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO KNOW ABOUT LIFE
I LEARNED FROM A JIGSAW PUZZLE

1. Don’t force a fit. If something is meant to be, it will come together naturally.

2. When things aren’t going so well, take a break. Everything will look different when you return.

3. Be sure to look at the big picture. Getting hung up on the little pieces only leads to frustration.

4. Perseverance pays off. Every important puzzle went together bit bybit, piece by piece.

5. When one spot stops working, move to another. But be sure to comeback later (see #4).

6. The creator of the puzzle gave you the picture as a guidebook.

7. Variety is the spice of life. It’s the different colors and patterns that make the puzzle interesting.

8. Working together with friends and family makes any task fun.

9. Establish the border first. Boundaries give a sense of security and order.

10. Don’t be afraid to try different combinations. Some matches are surprising.

11. Take time often to celebrate your successes (even little ones).

12. Anything worth doing takes time and effort. A great puzzle can’t be rushed.

Author unknown

Scattering Of The Pieces 

Last fall, owners of two Brittanys from the ATB family encountered unexpected health issues related to serious back injuries sustained in near fatal car accident.  They could no longer provide the level of care the dogs were accustomed to and reached out to us for help. When I learned the dogs were currently being boarded at a reputable kennel in Ohio I wanted to get them out of there right away. I just didn't know how.  John suggested we contact friends of ours who also live in Ohio. Surely God intervened because not only were they more than willing to help but they actually lived fairly close to the kennel!  (April, a vet tech, and her husband Steve operate a game farm and breed English Springer Spaniels. A few years ago John and a friend of ours ran dogs at a NSTRA field trial and stayed at their house.) Despite her own health issues, April immediately offered to go to the kennel, check on the dogs and share her observations. A day or two after the visit, April made arrangements with the dog's owners for them to be released into her care where they enjoyed a few days with new friends.

Assemble The Border

By now, I had let our network of wonderful ATB family and friends know about our re-homing situation. The response was over-whelming and we even heard from our breed rescue organizations who offered to help in anyway.  From the start there were several good potential inquiries. Even so,  I just couldn't get to where I felt it was the best 'fit' for these two special Brittanys despite the interest.

As each inquiry fell short of my expectations for one reason or another, I also knew April could not keep the dogs indefinitely. Then, our friends Pete & Kira, who own Wilson  and Annie, offered to be a 'half-way' house for the dogs. For a few weeks they would happily welcome them into their country home as their pampered guests, love on them, meet their needs, assess them and more.   Soon a plan was in place for the dogs to get to New York.  

When assembling a jigsaw puzzle usually you start with the border. It defines the space that you have to work within. Looking at the scattered pieces you wonder if they will ever fit together. But piece by piece you realize you can connect a few of them. Our friends were helping to complete a border. Both in Ohio and then in New York.

Pieces Start to Fall Into Place

Pete and Kira completely opened both their home and their hearts to "Maggie" and "Charlie".  Their own two Brittanys seemed to understand how special their guests were. Although displaced, confused, and unsure they responded positively to their new situation. Kira provided them with accommodations suitable for guests of a posh B&B. She sent daily videos, photos or updates of the dogs that made me smile.  The love, assessment, care, and attention given provided the framework, and if you will, the "border" for what would follow.  I know there were challenging moments but I also know that a necessary healing began to take place, a healing unlikely to have occurred if these special Brittanys had gone anywhere else.  All the dogs were of known lineage, each one sound and balanced. And all concerned were well aware of normal animal behavior and canine communication was well understood by all concerned. A perfect "half-way house" for two special Brittanys stopping midway on their journey with an opportunity to readjust, relearn, and progress while an abundance of love was poured out upon them as well as necessary vet checks and grooming.

Don't Force A Fit

For awhile it was a matter of trying to MAKE pieces fit together. Have you ever tried to 'jam' two pieces of an interlocking puzzle piece together? It is tempting to do this when they look like they should be put next to each other.

As things progressed it was clear that they were to return to the place of their birth, here to Maine with John, me, and our crew.  Afterall, we are their family in every sense of the word! Although at that point in time no definite plan was in place, by faith my heart still believed there was a special situation waiting just for them. After their wonderful experience with our dear friends in New York, John drove there and back to bring them "home."

Speaking of John, he often compares how salmon know when they have returned to their spawning ground to the way a Brittany born here reacts to being with us again. Based on their reaction to a initial romp around the yard or even to littermates, sire or dam who may be here, often it seems indeed they do sense the familiarity.

One of the first things we did when Charlie and Maggie arrived was oversee a full pack run around the yard with ALL the crew.  Maggie ended up romping with her father.  Clearly we could see her confidence was stronger than Charlies.  It only took her a few hours to feel comfortable enough to jump up into a chair!  It took Charlie a few days longer.  Hemi gave sideway glances to this new boy-dog (son of Jack dog) like he was daring him but was quickly reminded we are the pack leaders of the house.  Consequently, there were no issues.

Although we're completely fenced in and all our dogs run freely for the first few days we only allowed Charlie and Maggie outside if we had them on an extended nylon lead about 20' long. (Speaking of leads - I think extendable/retractable leads should be banned but that is another story.) The next step was to let them just drag the leads but when they did not come when called it was back to square one.  My biggest concern was they would scheme together and escape!

Maggie and Charlie obviously were brought up responsibly and with lots of love.  We had the benefit of personally knowing the breeding behind them, knowing they are not a 'rescue dog' or a 'shelter dog' meant whatever extra baggage they may have brought along, wasn't going to be anything serious. These are both very smart and kept us entertained! They are great dogs.  Completely house broken, participated in agility, passed AKC Puppy programs, and checked out AKC Rally too. They just loved the opportunity to eventually run freely off leash and within no time were running back to us when called. John brought Maggie to our friends outdoor agility course just for fun and she showed them she knew what to do there.

The Pleasure and Glory of 
the Completed Puzzle

Slowly but surely we watched the puzzle come together, yet not in the way we first imagined.  Although many expressed an interest in welcoming Charlie and Maggie into their lives, there were just as many who I knew ultimately would NOT be
the best 'fit'. There are things we learned along the way. I had assumed Maggie and Charlie should be kept together, believing they were dependent upon each other and a strongly bonded pair. I also thought this would best honor their prior owners wishes and we had no plans to separate them. They showed us all that while they adored each other, they also were wonderfully independent of each other. No matter what, we were committed to remain involved with Maggie and Charlie's future, just as if they were puppies leaving us for the first time.  And along the way we realized they could indeed thrive and be happy living separate lives.

Miss Maggie Rose is living the life of a well loved family pet in an active home with two other dogs, one of which is from our program. In other words, she is with an ATB family about 40 minutes away. One of her owners is at home full time! The picture in the completed puzzle above shows Maggie relaxing in her new home. which is in the country surrounded by acres of land. Maggie is doing great and quickly bonded with her new owners upon their first visit here.

And that leaves "Charles" as John affectionately refers to him.  He and John have become very close.  I know this is due, in part, to how very much Charlie and reminds him of our beloved JackDog, Charlie's sire. (I saw a lot of our sweet Molly Rose in Maggie's eyes, daughter of Molly.) Charlie has made himself right at home here and is very comfortable and happy as part of our pack. It took a little while for all the boys to understand Charlie is here to stay but now they romp and play. We have open runs with ALL things Brittany under close supervision. Hemi was so sad for a long time about the loss of his friend Jack so in a very subtle manner, Charles' presence has helped.  John couldn't wait to get him out on some birds to see what to expect and sure enough, Charlie shows a lot of potential. If all goes well once the snow leaves, Charlie will probably be out in the field preparing for an AKC Hunt Test. He absolutely loves to spend time outdoors and he would stay there for hours if we let him. Charlie seems to see something beyond what is in front of him, much in the same way his grandmother Treasure will do. For long periods of time he will stand or sit in one place, just gazing out in such a surreal way.  He can be a puddin' head about coming back into the house sometimes but we're working on that.

In closing, we remain in touch with Maggie and Charlie's previous owners.  They are our friends who we care about.  I keep them in my prayers and am happy to know that all things considered, the future is truly looking bright!  Praise God.

Take care and God bless and as always thank you for your interest in All Things Brittany.  Next up I hope to share about my incredible experience judging the 2018 American Brittany Club Western Futurity.  John, Ann, & ATB

If this story has touched your heart in anyway, or if you feel others would be encouraged please feel free to share it, thank you!

How You Can Help 103 Brittanys

If you are wondering how can you help these Brittanys in the Louisiana rescue of 103 Brittanys I post the following for your consideration:

Thankfully there are people who can physically transport, foster, or even adopt a dog but it is true that not everyone can help that way, despite the tug on many hearts. Even so there's an opportunity to help by supplementing the necessary financial resources with a donation.

The overall rescue effort is headed up by National Brittany Rescue Adoption Network (NBRAN) with other rescue groups working alongside of them in an impressive coordination on behalf of all Brittanys involved, all for the love of the dog, both given and received.  The expenses involved for medical care, transportation, and the set up of the staging area in Louisiana are great and will continue to mount.  Listed below are several legitimate non-profit Brittany breed rescue groups recognized by the American Brittany Club and which, at one time or another John and I have worked with  in some capacity.   You can be assured that your donations will indeed go to help in this large scale Brittany rescue effort. These groups are NOT to be confused with animal rights activists.

I also would like to caution anyone against pointing fingers at the breeder.  There are always two sides to every story and this one is very sad and very unfortunate.  Hardships can befall any breeder without advance notice.  Our breed is blessed to have such committed and dedicated volunteers to assure that this rescue was and will continue to be conducted with the most utmost integrity.    What matters most is the well being of each and every Brittany involved.  Even with charges brought against the breeder it is up to the courts and the authorities to determine the outcome regarding the breeder.  As in all things, there are many many rumors going around which is understandable. Even so, it does not benefit the dogs in anyway to speculate or judge the situation.  To squelch some of the things being said I share this information: "He  did not kick out his old dog, Hooker. He had hoped they wouldn't take the house dogs. He's dealt with the stress of constant harassment from the local AR groups for a year. How many of you could handle that? With over 100 dogs it took AR four months to get a picture to "prove" animal cruelty. One picture is all it takes under Louisiana law."  I have seen both sides in the past of situations like this. There are groups who simply HATE all dog breeders, regardless of how many animals are in their care. Indeed, the numbers of Brittanys in his care was in my opinion excessive!!! But, I wasn't there, I didn't see the dogs, I didn't see the environment other than photos taken to emphasize negativity.  In an overall situation in consideration of how many dogs a person owns - there can be one dog owned that is neglected or abused.  There can also be numerous dogs owned that are much better taken care of than that one dog.  We need to move beyond judgement.

Above all perhaps the very best thing we can all continue to do is to pray as God leads us, asking Him to bless the rescue effort with abundant finances, give strength to the weary in their well doing, bring healing, restoration and love to all involved - both canine and human.  Thank you in advance for any help at any level which you may be able to provide.

Contact Information

NATIONAL BRITTANY RESCUE ADOPTION NETWORK http://nbran.org/

Donation Link (includes online Pay/Pal):

http://shop.nbran.org/category.sc;jsessionid=BD3D760E7CF2C6D614D307EACFE80279.m1plqscsfapp02?categoryId=9

NBRAN Magnolia Rescue http://www.razoo.com/story/Nbran-Crisis-Rescue-Operation

 

 

NEW ENGLAND BRITTANY RESCUE http://nebrittanyrescue.org/index.html

Christine Leachman-Yee | NEBR President
(781) 275-0630
clyk9s@gmail.com
 For donations, please send checks to:
Bonnie Paiva | NEBR treasurer
829 Mill Street
Marion, MA
02738
momtomarley@gmail.com

AMERICAN BRITTANY RESCUE http://www.americanbrittanyrescue.org/

Online Donation Link: http://www.americanbrittanyrescue.org/index.php?module=pagesetter&func=viewpub&tid=3&pid=6

There are additional groups involved however these are the ones that we have personally worked with in the past.

More than 100 Brittany Dogs seized in Thibodaux

FOX 8 Defenders: More than 100 dogs seized in Thibodaux   VIDEO

Thibodaux, La.-- Lafourche Parish District Attorney Cam Morvant tells FOX 8 in court Wednesday, Judge Hugh LaRose told Chris Michot of Thibodaux he could keep 10 dogs, and ordered him to get rid of the rest, more than 100, and turn them over to a National Brittany Spaniel Rescue.
The court order comes on the heels of Michot's May conviction of animal cruelty, failure to vaccinate animals, and violations of the animal noise code.  Also, a parish veterinarian, who evaluated Michot's dogs and their housing last month, recommended to the court then that all animals leave the premises.
By 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office and its animal control officers started seizing animals from Michot's Little Choupic Road property.  Each dog was placed in a kennel and loaded onto cattle trailers.  Fifty-six dogs were loaded onto one trailer, more than 30 onto a second trailer and some were placed in animal control vehicles.  "We're using some of their (animal control) vehicles with climate control to take care of smaller or sicker animals," said Deputy Brennan Matherne, Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer.
Several members of the Crisis Management Unit, essentially Lafourche's SWAT team, were even on site.  "They were on scene just in case the situation escalated into something.  We were just prepared for any situation.  Luckily, Mr. Michot has been cooperating, and we have not had any issue with him at all," said Matherne.

Michot's neighbors, who made several complaints about his dogs barking all day and night, watched as the seizure unfolded.  "I think they should have did this long ago," said neighbor Joey Sanchez. "They knew this was going on.. running an illegal business, and we shouldn't have had to move and the lady next door shouldn't have had to move.. they fought this for years.. they late."
From Thibodaux, crews transported 103 dogs to the Raceland AG Center about 15 minutes away.  "They're looking good.. considering," explained Lafourche Parish veterinarian Dr. Lonnie de la Houssaye. "Just where they came from.. a lack of care. With all the heart worm positives, you can only assume there are other things that are lacking.. the feeding, the housing, etc."
de la Houssaye had to evaluate and vaccinate every animal.  "A lot of heart worm dogs, a lot of skin issues, teeth issues, gum issues or mouth issues.. only one heat stroke.. and that was very mild and got that one on IV fluids and now up and walking around," said de la Houssaye explaining what he found.

Brittany Spaniel rescue groups from Florida, New England and Texas and two national groups are also in Lafourche.  They'll move the dogs to foster homes around the country and then eventually adopting families.  "There's a lot of people who put a lot of hard work in here, and we're all running out of adrenaline and we're all on cloud nine to have the opportunity to help facilitate them having a new life.. they deserve that," said Bill Canney with the National Brittany Rescue.  He said a team from the LSU Veterinary School will be in Lafourche to help on Friday.  He hopes to move out of Louisiana by the weekend.

de la Houssaye credits the animal rescue group "We stand by You" and the Lafourche Chapter of the Humane Society for staying on top of concerns at Michot's property. When FOX 8 started the FOX 8 Defenders series in November 2012, Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre had this to say:  "the evidence will prove beyond a reasonable doubt that cruelty does not exist and did not exist then."  Fast forward nearly nine months to today, and when FOX 8 tried to do an interview about the seizure with Sheriff Webre, he refused, saying he did not agree with FOX 8's coverage of this story.

103 Brittanys Rescued in Louisiana

One hundred and three Brittney Spaniels seized from a Thibodaux breeder, will soon be transferred to foster homes across the country.Till then  the rescued dogs are getting some much needed attention in Raceland.

Sixty year old Warren Michot was found guilty of cruelty to animals back in may and was ordered to substantially reduce the number of dogs on his property.

A court order Wednesday authorized Lafourche Parish to reduce the number dogs themselves.

Various Brittany rescue groups from across North America are caring for the dogs at a facility in Raceland made for animals.

“The parish vet is  here doing vetting,” says Susan Janowski with the National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network. “ We have people that are local doing the grooming and bathing of the dogs. It paid off today. There`s 103 dogs that have new lives. And they are all going to be in great homes down the road.”

Bill Canny with NBRAN says the  Brittany Spaniels will be ready for adoption only after further assessment and acclimation at various foster homes across the nation, “We could not have done anything without the determination and the resolve of Lafourche Parish officials and the Sheriff`s office .”

“They are great family dogs,” says Janowski.  “Great with kids. They are great hunting dogs. They are bird dogs. Pointing dogs.”

The one hundred and three Brittany Spaniels will be ready for adoption only after further assessment and acclimation at various foster homes across the nation.

The Britts will be transferred on Saturday.

National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network http://www.nbran.org/

Read more: http://wgno.com/2013/07/24/over-100-dogs-seized-from-lafourche-parish-home/#ixzz2a7Y7l4Ue

ATB Friends Rescue a Brittany

 

SAVING RUDY

Our friend was visiting relatives in New Jersey during Christmas week. She and her family love Brittany dogs. She has "Wilson" (Treasure/Gibson 2011) and Brandy, who is a dog they rescued several years ago.  While in N.J. they visited a mall pet store and were surprised to find a 4 month old Brittany orange and white male puppy for sale there. Her heart told her this was wrong and she immediately began to think of how she could rescue this young puppy from one more day of life spent in a cage. She learned he'd been in that cage since he was 8 weeks old.  Although his most basic needs of food, water, shelter were met clearly he needed so much more. And those needs included saving him from one more day in a pet store cage.

Within 24 hours after reaching out to her family, friends, and the Brittany community several good and kind individuals offered to help purchase the 16 week old Brittany pup.  Due to the generous and immediate response of my friend and other 'angels' soon he was safely on his way to the first day of the rest of his life.  As a side note, I'm extremely blessed because several of those loving and caring folks are part of the ATB family, and share their life with a Brittany dog (or two) from our program here.

Because this happened so soon after Christmas, the puppy was nicknamed "Rudy". Rudy encountered so much love as he was welcomed as a foster to live with my friend and her family.  She is well experienced as a rescuer and an adopter with an official Brittany rescue group. Even so, it was not yet certain where Rudy's permanent home was to be.  But the uncertainty did not remain for long.

In the meantime another scenerio was taking place.  The parents of my friend were dog sitting the two Brittanys owned by her family while they were in New Jersey. (One of these dogs is from Treasure and Gibson's second litter, the other a dog that was also rescued.)  Her parents owned and loved a senior Old English Sheepdog whose health was failing and had been providing hospice care for her over the past 4 months. I find it ironic that Rudy was 4 months old.

So the first stop on the way back home from N.J. was to pick up their other two dogs at her parents who also were introduced to Rudy.  Rudy also met their beloved 'Samantha', he interacted with her briefly. The picture I saw of the two of them together touched my heart as Sam was kept comfortable and Rudy, being a puppy, showed his curiosity by gently leaning over her face. This is included in the collage above.

The 3 Brittanys went back to my friends home and Rudy happily began to settle in with his new 'family'. I saw picture after picture of this little guy. John and I have transported, fostered and rehabilitated a few Brittany rescues in the past. One thing I always watch for in a rescued dog is the way their eyes change. Usually I perceive a sense of loss and emptiness in the eyes of such a dog. They are unsure, fearful, and afraid.  I'd never ever seen such a young puppy before though in that situation.  It broke my heart to see that look in Rudy's eyes.  But with each photo shared with me, I could truly see the changes right before my own eyes.  The brightness was there, a spark ignited perhaps for the first time in this 16 week old puppy, a baby who had never experienced the love and wonder of life beyond a cage.

One night my friend contacted me to say that her parents had called the vet to their home, asking me to pray. They are a Christian family, and I had felt a strong connection to her mother when we first met a couple of years ago. Yes, yes of course. And so they lay there on the floor with Samantha as she passed over to that place we all know as 'The Rainbow Bridge'.  A place where we are certain that animals do have souls and spirits and that God created them for our pleasure, and we will be reunited with them again. There's a lot of Scripture to support this, but this isn't about theology at the moment.

This family had been praying, seeking God's will and direction for their life.  As they prayed, a certainty had come to them.  And the certainty was that Rudy should go to live forever with my friends parents.  They recognized the hand of God in all of this. The timing is phenomenal. Thinking about my friend just happening to go visit the mall where she had gone as a child, to stop into the pet store and then seeing Rudy. The way it all came together so quickly, with so many people with sincere and good hearts helping come up with the money to rescue Rudy. The way the official rescue organizations stood by to help out if needed.  Indeed, God has known all along about Samantha, and about her family and their needs.  Just as surely he has known all along about Rudy, and the special needs he would have. And God so perfectly intervened.

Rudy has a new home, and he has a brand new name! He's named after the very first Old English Sheepdog my friends parents had, and his name was Beckett. The entire family is still grieving and will continue to miss Samantha of course. That void can't be filled in their heart.  But I'm confident that little Beckett, saved from the pet store, is going to fill a lot of the sad and empty places in their lives and in their home.

When we have ears to hear, eyes to see, hearts to believe, faith to hold onto we also are able to look beyond our current situation and see that God indeed does care about all that concerns those who put their trust in Him.  Rudy (now Beckett) has had angels watching over him just as surely as Samantha and her family. And every good gift, does come from above.  Sometimes we need to look beyond ourselves though to even hope to understand that. As Dwight L. Moody said, Faith makes all things possible… love makes all things easy.”  Please keep this family in your prayers...

Take care and God bless,
John, Ann, and All Things Brittany

On another note... we have recently sent an email with an update regarding puppies to our 'serious inquiries'.  Please let me know if you have not received yours by contacting us via www.mainebrittanysitejas.com thanks!

The Long and Winding Road... A Rescued Brittany

"The long and winding road, that leads to your door, will never disappear, I've seen that road before.  It always leads me here, lead me to your door..." beautiful lyrics to the Lennon/McCartney song came to mind when I was traveling back to ATB yesterday.  I had just transported "Blaze", a Brittany surrendered to New England Brittany Rescue last week and had spent several days with us. There have been a few times that John and I have been in a position to foster, rehabilitate, transport and do a home visit on behalf of all the Brittany organizations.  I wish we could do so much more.  I posted the following comment on Facebook about this most recent experience and the way it has touched my heart.  "Working with NEBR leaves me wishing I could do so much more to help while wondering what went wrong in a particular Brittanys life. Blame can be distributed equally among breeders and owners; Lack of socializing, education, experience, responsibility etc. on one side or the other are some reasons. Life happens, but a commitment to a dog is a commitment to it's entire life."  Our friend Zina commented that it was as great of a responsibility as if it were a child.  She is right.  And the breeder(s) and owner(s) are as if they are parents, sharing that responsibility. I am not one to assign human attributes to an animal and I do not support the concept of guardianship for animals in any way.  But the whole idea, the point I was trying to make is that breeders and owners alike share that responsibility.  I have seen breeders lie about their experience, persuading unknowing and unsuspecting individuals and in the end sell their puppies to people who have no understanding of the particular breed or even what is considered normal puppy behavior.  I'm too close to getting up on my soap box again, I realize this. But Blaze... The first thing any good breeder of purebred dogs will do when learning of a local surrender or rescue of their breed is ask how they can help. Get that dog out of the shelter and into the hands of a reputable breed rescue org.  I was told that not too many Brittanys show up in shelters in one of Maine's major shelters - which is good news.  Second thing the breeder should do is do a 'head count' of where their own pups were sold, recall the last time they heard from the owners, and gain as much information about the rescued dog as possible - especially the birthdate. Even when a pup is sold with the stipulation it must always be returned to the owner no questions ask prior to surrender to a shelter, rescue or humane agents that requirement is not always honored. Quite honestly, I am personally aware of several dogs from one particular breeder frequently showing up in shelters and rescued. This is just wrong.

I spent 7 wonderful days with Blaze.  It was not that I could do so much for him, but we could offer him a place of transition, a place where the other dogs are well rounded, balanced, and happy.  It rubbed off on him. Being an intact male with absolutely no manners we knew he could not stay in the house, especially with JackDog.  So at first a place was set up just for him in the grooming studio.  But Blaze needed to be able to see what was going on around him.  I knew he was up to date on his shots and so were our dogs so we doubled up on a couple of runs and gave him the "corner office."  Within no time at all he had settled into the ATB routine - well, that is with the exception of the free run with the rest of the crew.  I couldn't take a chance with the direct interaction or more importantly, the chance of Blaze running off.  He did enjoy being out with the 30' check cord but oh my! That boy is strong and muscular and I had all I could do to hold on.  I discovered he is like a little puppy and absolutely loved the water though.  He was no trouble at all. The first day or so he barked intermittedly and I had warned a couple of our neighbors we had a rescue dog in residence temporarily.  In the meantime Christine (who probably hates to hear from me by now!) of New England Brittany Rescue was hard at work behind the scenes laying a plan out for Blaze. His second vet visit was scheduled which would include heartworm testing and neutering - required by law for all rescued animals.  I had the paperwork on this side of the border necessary for housing and transporting him further.  And the good news was that a foster home had been found.  The day that he left he received a 'bath in a bottle', coat conditioning, some cosmetic grooming and clipping, and a full body massage.  What a happy boy!  (We can't always house a rescued Brittany here, especially if we have pups on the ground or are expecting a litter.  We are very particular about our interaction with other dogs and even people visiting our crew in those situations.  But I was happy we could help out this time.  And thoughts of Blaze will linger in my heart along with the other rescued Brittanys that briefly came into my life.

Ironically this came about just as we were ready to announce additional news about our fall breeding plan.  I appreciate those who did inquire about Blaze either directly or indirectly.  We do have some exciting news to share in the near future.  Stay tuned!  In the meantime, I am looking forward to an upcoming weekend of Hunt Tests. Nash will try to qualify for his second leg of his Junior Hunter title as will his 'friend' Paris.  John will handle our two youngsters, True and Piper.  They are not a year old so this is really asking a lot of them but we believe they are ready.  And last but not least we were pleasantly surprised to learn that 'Buddy' will also be tested.  The fun part of all of this is yet another weekend shared with good friends and their great dogs... and thank you Steve for offering up the camp for everyone - it's really going to be a great weekend.
Take care and God bless, John, Ann and All Things Brittany