Prior to leaving the US, every summer, we had a camping trip at Antler's RV campground where people from California made the trip north and people from Oregon made the trip south for a week of sun and fun.
We decided to continue with that event again and so... Rainier goes camping for her first time.
Jessica, Rainier and I drove down to Eugene a day before the camping trip to help the Chans load up and buy food and drinks for the trip.
From Eugene, we made the 5 hours drive to Lake Shasta.
Rainier was my co-driver.
Yeah, as you can tell, not a very good one. All the other vehicles had drivers who could text. Mine, well, she hasn't quite learned how to do that yet.
When we got there... she had friends there.
Mitsu, the 3 month old Great Dane pup.
Remi, the Formosa Mountain Dog from Taiwan.
And Bella, the HBIC (Head Bitch in Charge), the Pomeranian who really doesn't quite like Rainier.
We know Rainier's breed is used as a water rescue dog. However, we had never taken Rainier swimming and had no idea if she knew how to swim.
Well, she does. And she loves it!!
We took her out swimming almost every day we were there.
And when she needed a break, she either hung out on the boat...
or hung out on the shore... alone...
or with people...
having a Coor's Light...
or a sip of Corona!!!
And at the end of the day out in the sun and swimming her butt off....
she hung out at the campsite...
sometimes, too beat to even lift her head out of the water bowl...
I don't think she quite knows what a cat is... and she has attempted to chase cats that run... but not this one. This is the second time she has had a stare down with Samson.
We will be going camping at Lake Shasta in a few days.
The weather forecast calls for 100+ degree day time temperatures.
So, we sent Rainier for a haircut.
Jessica originally wanted a lion cut... the body shaved but the fur on the head trimmed.
I was not too keen on that... and apparently, neither were the groomers.
So, Rainier landed up getting a "puppy cut".
And Jessica requested for the ribbons.
After they get rough and rowdy for maybe 30-60 minutes, right after Harley, the Great Dane arrives for day care. Rainier, our Landseer Newfoundland and Harley finally calm down.
There is still some activity, but the ruckus before they lay down for this kind of play will drive most people out of their minds...
I am sure there is a significance in why they lay their paws over the others paws... dominance?
I have what we (Jessica and I) have termed as "night duty".
I take Rainier out at about 11:30pm for her to pee, and maybe poop, before we go to bed.
Some of the nights, especially if she has had an "exciting" day at the dog park, she is not very inspired to go out.
So, this is how I walk her on those nights....
This is Mitsu. She is a 10 week old Great Dane.
Our friends from the San Francisco Bay Area, Elaine and Sok, had driven up to Seattle to pick her up.
So, for the 4-5 days they were here, Rainier had a friend to play with.
Mitsu is really clumsy right now. She is still trying to find her legs.
The first day Elaine and Sok got her, she refused to walk to go pee...
She needed some "help".
She was really nervous, but she warmed up quite quickly.
At first, she was terrified of Rainier. But that changed pretty quickly too.
Rainier forgets her size and has to be supervised when playing with a smaller dog.
But they got along just fine after the first 24 hours.
They played with each other... with Rainier being the bully.
They lay with each other...
They even napped together... but not for very long.
Then Mitsu had a visitor that terrorized her!
It was....
Jackson... the 15 lb King Charles Cavalier/Poodle mix!!
I have posted about Jackson previously. Jackson has a big dog attitude in a small dog's body.
Jackson was running circles all around Mitsu, literally... and Mitsu must have been wondering what the hell that creature was....
Mitsu has gone back to the Bay Area but we will be seeing her again at the end of July. She will have grown bigger and we can't wait to see her!!
Jessica took him on as a new client for day care about 2 weeks ago.
Harley is 2 years old and has some separation anxiety issues. So, the owner can't really leave him alone at home while he is off to work.
Harley is a real sweetheart though.
But he is HUGE!
The interesting thing about Harley is that he has a calming effect on Rainier.
Rainier is usually all excited and playful when we watch other dogs but when Harley is around, they both just chill...
Harley's owner got him about a month ago. Unfortunately, he is also looking to rehome him right now because of various factors. Here is the craigslist ad (It is a long ad. However, it describes everything you need to know about Harley). If anyone is interested, please do reach out to us. In the event the ad gets removed or gets flagged. Below is the ad in its entirety.
We thought Rainier was big. Harley is 175lbs!
Again, if you are interested in a 2 yr old Great Dane, let us know.
this is the craigslist ad:
2 yr Great Dane (Seattle)
Date: 2012-06-19, 3:34PM PDT Reply to: psbj7-3088379564@comm.craigslist.org[Errors when replying to ads?]
I want to pre-face this by addressing the flaggers. Keep in mind this is
an expensive dog to keep, so cheap adoption fee people stay away. I
want this animal to have a great life and it has already improved and he
is worth it. If you can't afford daycare, quality food and expect this
animal to drink out of the toilet and eat Purina then you will be at
odds with everything about him including his adoption fee. Granted IF he
was a rescue and $60 dollars then that is one perspective. He is pure
bred with papers and as I stated not cheap to house due to his size,
diet and some separation anxiety...therefore I want to ensure that
anyone adopting him has the means to support him. So to the Craigslist
Pet Adoption Flagger Police if you don't agree with people doing
something different than you believe in, then perhaps a free, public
forum is a poor place to troll day in and day out...really lol.
This dog is a fairly recent adoption. Part of the equation was that
there was a successful integration between my beloved long term cat and
this dog. It has been not so bad as the dog listens well and is well
behaved but has reached a point where I have to give my cat his home
back. To the dogs defense my cat is the reason for the issue as the dog
is fine with the neighbor cat who is socialized a bit better. My cat is
not socialized and has made it clear he does not want to be socialized
with a 175lb dog.
He listens very well, needs some further work but is awesome and is the
sweetest guy ever. He does not want to be left alone right now,
understandably so. He came from a family environment and I am a working
professional. I feel a family with older children would be a great fit.
He was raised around little ones but is so big he poses a knock down
risk with babies as he doesn't realize his size. However children can do
anything to him and he will be the much bigger person about it. If
someone is at home for him that is perfect, otherwise he will need some
daycare until he can feel comfortable about not being abandonded. He is
an INDOOR dog and does not like to be left outside. He does not like
rain.
Mid sized, neutered male dogs sometimes pick fights with him. If the dog
is a barker and barks at everyone's dog at the park, then that is the
dog that is going to pick a fight with him. He has never responded and
wants to shy away, but I wouldn't want to test that theory for very
long. He is also un-altered and this contributes to neutered male dogs
finding issue with him. However being the biggest dog at the park is not
always the easiest cross to bare. If he was fixed then this would help
that though he doesn't have the typical issues un-altered males
frequently have...again he is a pretty awesome dog.
He knows sit, stay, lay down, come, go to bed, get in car. He is awesome
at night and will go to his bed for more or less the entire night. The
other commands he just needs more endurance with but if you ask him he
will stay etc. He will stop doing something if you address his name. I
feel with dedicated, healthy non aggressive training he would make a lot
of progress. I have been using a clicker and treats and lot's of
positive praise with good success. He could use some car manners, or
just a separate, larger car for transport. He feels he should ride
between the seats with his head on your shoulder or arm. Not cool or
safe! Also have a plenty of drool rags handy for the ride, and your
shoulder. He only barks if...someone comes to door, and then usually
once...but it is a BIG bark. He will whine, howl and pull door handle
off if left alone for too long...as I said he has some separation
anxiety. He is better at being left in car, 45 minutes or so but doesn't
really get upset there unless he is excluded from something.
He prefers, calm, in control, kind personalities. He is not aggressive
ever but does not like sketchy or aggressive people and will bark and
huff at them, Tweakers scare him a lot...and I mean he gets scared and
will become very stand off'ish and protective.
He likes limited play and lots of nap time. He is napping now after a
short walk, bowl of water and some car training. This normal for him and
he is an indoor dog with great potty skills. Does not like to poo on
leash but will if he has to but you need to ask him to and he much
prefers to poo free of restraints (I mean who doesn't).
He has a pretty funny personality and a bit of a foot fetish...I know
huh??? He likes to trap your foot and then lick them...if you try and
move it he will wrap his legs around it and trap it between his head.
Loves feet!!! Does not like spray things, like water bottles, hoses,
super soakers etc. I think someone used water to discipline him. Also no
lazer lights....he is obsessed with shadows/reflection so we do not
play those games in hopes he will out grow them.
He is good on leash unless excited or has to go to bathroom bad. If the
pulling is at a plus 10% then it's a bathroom issue and once he goes
potty he will be back to normal. If he is excited then best for him to
calm down some before walking...He is STRONG, sideways control on leash
is crucial as his front shoulders power him. If you control the
head/shoulders then awesome, new muzzle leash is good...previous owner
said prong collar but I won't use one and he does great for me.
I am going to be pretty careful about re-homing him and feel that maybe a
weeks worth of daycare would be ideal. That way the transition isn't
such a shock to him as he LUVS me lots and I am kinda heartbroken that
it didn't work out because of his awesomeness. I could drop him off and
pick him up everyday and that gives you an opportunity to see if it's a
good fit for you as well.
Sorry for the novel but...I want to be honest and clear so that you can
make an honest evaluation and not just decide it's a great idea to have a
175lb baby to take care of.
Thanks
Location: Seattle
it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
We attended the Seattle Animal Shelter Furry 5K.
Rainier and I were supposed to walk it, while Jessica volunteered for the Shelter. However, Jessica had the opportunity to set up a booth for Luxe Paws Studio and so, Rainier and I landed up manning the booth.
Obviously, there were tons of dogs...
There was also a CAT!
Hahahahaha!
Ok, but there really were tons of doggies...
