Clean 'em, Cage 'em and Get 'em Out

Those two rats I got last month are t.r.o.u.b.l.e.  They are very smart which makes my life a little more difficult.  They can get the cage doors open, take their toys off, take their food dishes off, water dishes off.  Basically their cage is a big rats nest.  I moved them to a larger temporary cage tonight.  I would've done it sooner but seeing how these last two weeks were, this was as soon as it was going to happen.  I also moved the last of the parakeets into the cockatiel cage.  Was a much smoother transition than I had expected.  I wasn't worried about my female, Violet as much as I was the male, Charlie.  Charlie doesn't like anybody, never has, never will but he puts up with them to an extent.  He has always liked to sit at the bottom of his cage and watch the parakeets eat so I was hoping before I put Romeo in there, that all would be well.  Charlie just hissed in his face a few times but seems to be leaving him alone otherwise.  Violet could care less. 

Doodle did go home today.  Her new mom seems really nice and like a good fit.  They bought an enormous amount of stuff at petsmart for her.  (and we all know how their prices are)  She has tons of new toys, a large doggy bed and a new harness.  They were planning on stopping halfway home at a rest stop to take her for a walk.  (I'm not sure if that was to get some of the restless energy out of the dog or the kids!)  It all went very well and I hope to have some updates from her some day.  I wasn't planning on staying the entire adoption event but we just got absolutely slammed the entire time I was there.  I always imagine how I would feel if I was the person that didn't have a choice to be stuck there and usually guilt myself into doing the "right" thing.  Damn conscience.  Most of the dogs we had at the event got adopted (one by someone I went to school with and know will make a great home), a few cats and all three of the guinea pigs.  For the first hour I was there I couldn't figure out for the life of me why I couldn't stop sneezing.  I was thinking oh that's just great I'm getting sick again.  It was the guinea pigs.  I had to stand as far away from them as possible to avoid sneezing fits.  I was so grateful when the last one left.  My director tried to get me to take home another foster today but I had already made up my mind that we were going to wait a bit.  I want to make sure my daughter understands what has happened with Doodle and can handle having any more fosters.  I was a bit offended when someone asked me if I really thought she would notice the dog was even gone since we have seven of our own.  My daughter is two, that doesn't affect her memory.  She was also quite fond of Doodle and would call her to follow her through the house.  (which Doodle would eventually give in and do but I think it was more to get Jas off her back)  I wanted to do a litter of kittens but my husband won't budge.  I can't stand puppies but love kittens.  (puppies are WAY too much work when I have seven other dogs along with every other animal under the sun) He's not a fan of cats and I can't say I blame him.  Some of ours have been downright rutheless about their litter habits.  (hence the outdoor living arrangements)  I also felt the dog they were pushing on me might have some issues with small children.  She didn't show any aggression towards kids but I was purposely pushing her buttons to see how she would react and it didn't take much to get her to react and nip me.  The only thing I can say for her is that she respected me more than anyone else in the organization by the time I left.  Sometimes we get so busy that a dog will just yap continuesly and no one makes them shut up.  I can not take that.  It drives me up a way.  Within an hour, I had her to the point of only barking when another dog was face to face with her cage.  It didn't take much.  I didn't need to yell or beat her.  I simply stayed near her cage, told her no BEFORE she would get a chance to bark and if she ignored me, I gently pinched her hind end to get her attention.  (also worth noting, she had NEVER been crated before this event and I kept her crated through most of it as I feared I would get suckered into taking her and didn't want to have to deal with her at the next event acting like a basketcase)  You may call me the mutt whisperer.  ;)  I'm really good with dogs that I don't have to own.  My dogs however are not highly trained at the moment.  They know the basics but Cash and Rocky both have issues with manners (your space, my space and when to just calm down) and the aussies have barking issues.  (typical of herding dogs)  However, I look like a friggin pro at events with the rescued dogs.