Rio

Yesterday we met up with Rio for his Assessment. He is a charming, two year old, twenty-five pound, Shetland Sheepdog. This "Sheltie-dude" did fabulous inside of The Fort's Medium Roll. From there, he explored the facility calmly yet alertly... When it was time to meet the pack, Rio did so skillfully. Within minutes, he turned his canine acquaintances in to rebel-rousing-playmates. It was a sight to see, Rio, enjoying himself so much, so quickly! Now obviously, we are wee bit biased when it comes to Shetland Sheepdogs around here lol, however, we also understand that they are "a lot of dog" and sometimes, due to their "work ethic", can have a plethora of issues. Lucky for us, Rio didn't exhibit any of the bad/stereotypical Sheltie behavior (skittishness, excessive, barking, etc...). He is quite a well mannered and fun-loving gent, who didn't vocalize once during his visit. We look forward to having Rio at Fort Fido again. Good on ya boy!

Take a look at this little clip of Rio hamming it up with Captain and Cooper:

Be well,

-Grant

Sheltie Power!

 

Man, it has been awesome around these parts lately... We've had quite the influx of one of my favorite dog breeds, The Shetland Sheepdog. This morning marked the fourth "Sheltie" that The Fort has assessed in the last two months. Woo hoo! It's funny, because after eight years of being in business, we've only seen three other shelties before the current four. So including my dog, Gibson, there are currently six Shetland Sheepdogs here at Fort Fido. Maybe their popularity is on the rise once again? They were definitely most popular in the 80's/early 90's, and were Japan's most popular breed for years up until recently. I'm chalking it up to celebs getting them... Thanks Miley lol!

Ok, now in all seriousness, meet our latest recruit, Augie! He is a energy-filled, seven month old, fourteen pound, Sheltie. We had Augie try out the Little Roll upstairs, just to see how it'd go, knowing that he'd most likely graduate to the Medium Roll... Sure enough, he was too much for the tykes up there. He did nothing wrong, he just needs more room, more stimulation, and more rough and tumble types of playmates. So after a couple of minutes upstairs, Augie headed to the Medium Play Area. Waiting there, was the absolutely perfect dog to meet Augie, and match his energy level, it was none other than, Georgie. The twosome sniffed each other for about ten seconds, before the sprinting and chase games ensued. Augie's owner was not joking when she said he was a "wild one". All in good fun, Augie continued to make new canine buddies and play hard throughout his stay. Although quite a live-wire, Augie, did a great job here today. With time and consistency, Augie and his owner can get quite a lot out of Dog Daycare. It will sharpen his social skills, and will most definetly take away "some" of his energy. Hopefully he's "down a notch" after today's visit, haha!

In the following clip, Augie and Georgie, meet for the first time:

Have a nice weekend,

-Grant

Willow... This one's a heart-melter!

If you enjoy cute puppies (Lol who doesn't?), and or Shetland Sheep Dogs. There are a few Sheltie fans around these parts...

Meet the wonderful Willow! She is a thee month old, seven pound, Bi-Blue, Shetland Sheepdog, who was in for her assessment this morning. Very excited, Grant, eagerly waited for Willow to arrive haha. Upon her arrival, he did everything he could to keep cool, and not fawn all over her. As many of you know, here at Fort Fido we want each and every dog to have the best day possible. We want each guest to "be a dog", fit in with the pack, and have fun. We strive to approach and assist each canine in a certain way, helping them to stay calm and balanced throughout their visit. Puppy "comings and goings" and how we handle them, are of the utmost importance. To aid in avoiding the dreaded S.A., we must set the right example (no fawning, no baby talk, etc...), and be quite diligent. Surprisingly, and despite Willow's best efforts of "extreme cuteness", Grant did good... Good thing Gary was there lol.

Now back to Willow! This little doll went directly to The Fort's Medium Roll, once therein, it was clear that she wanted to meet the pack, and be with other dogs right away. Although small, we wanted Willow to be with slightly larger dogs right away, Shelties are tough and we know she could handle it. Especially since she has a Collie "sibling" at home. Willow is a cute pup and showed her ability to adjust in new situations. Willow seemed to enjoy the pack and communicated well with the others. She had quite a bit of fun while relaxing around the other dogs. Willow didn't fully play, however she did a few slight "hit and run" play styles (which is where she doesn't fully play, but attempts to). With some more time, I think that Willow will be playing with the rest of the pack and having a fantastic time.

We are excited to have her back, and can't wait to see that cute face!
- Zach

))) The Canter Wolves (((

 

My long time, good friend, Robbie Canter, is one awesome individual. He is the type of person that puts 100% of himself (heart, soul, body, mind, etc...), into everything he does. With that being said, his values make him an exciting friend to have. Most definitely an exciting friend to watch live life. At times, you can't help but live vicariously through him lol. ;)

Robbie and I have know each other since elementary school. We meet up once a month or so and always have a good time. He is the owner and operator of RcMedia and lives in Gig Harbor, WA with his animals. My most recent visit, a couple of weeks ago, had an agenda... Rather than just catching up on what was new and laughing at old times, I had to meet The Wolves! I knew the pictures alone would make a very happenin' blog post. So here ya go... As always, click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Working with the WCC, and closely with Songdog Rescue, Robbie has built and amazing wolf den/ animal enclosure and opened his home to not one, but two, high-content Wolf Hybrids! I'm talking, more or less straight up wolves lol. 95%+ Gray Wolf or Timber Wolf, with the left out tiny percentage being a domestic Northern breed like the Husky/Malamute/etc...

Upon arrival, I must admit I was slightly hesitant on meeting them. However, being a dog professional, I knew that wasn't the correct energy to have. Once I got my bearings and entered the enclosure, I was completely at peace. The wolves were cautious at first, then curious and kind, like many of the dogs we deal with at Fort Fido. Almost shocked by this, I began to interact with Koda and Blitz more and more as the night went on. Later, we all went inside the house, where the wolves sleep in their own individual beds at night, and hung out.

It was rather exhilarating and funny to watch the young pup, Blitz, play with the more wolf-like Koda and Robbie's old man-Pit bull, Alpha Pack Leader, Indy (who Robbie rescued off the streets years ago). Blitz was loving, spunky, and slightly annoying, to Koda and Indy. He was exactly like your average canine puppy dog. The two older pack members had to constantly play with and wrangle him, it was precious, mostly hilarious!

Koda, with the more intimidating appearance, kept coming to check me out while I sat at a table. Maybe it was because I was new to him and smelt like a thousand "wolves"? I think so haha. I got close enough with him to pet him and have some understanding of trust. It was truly amazing. The trust, was even to the point of Koda allowing me touch his beautiful, 2" canine teeth (no exaggeration). Ay caramba! But alas, looking past his immense stature, huge teeth, and yellow eyes... He was just another dog to me. Even if he dwarfed the infamous, Marco Polo, and even Brutus, in many ways.

Wolf Puppy Blitz and I didn't really get to know one another as much. We certainly weren't fearful of each other, but he wasn't sure what to make of me, and I egged him on a wee bit. It was pure comedy. When his "pops" Robbie was around, he would let me near, and or act like I was part of the pack... Yet as soon as Robbie left the room for something, Blitz would look at me funny, kinda bark, kinda play-bow, then run. Just like any young puppy that hasn't quite gotten your vibe. He wasn't sure of me, so I didn't push myself on him too much. Even though it was hard not to, due to his cute baby-dog ways lol.

All in all, the meet and greet was quite a pleasurable experience. Awesome job, Robbie my friend, on rescuing, raising and loving these fantastic animals. I can't wait to meet up with you all again, although I gotta tell ya, I'm sticking to Shelties man! Hahaha!

 

Be well everyone,

-Grant
P.S. Now don't worry, Koda, Blitz and Indy won't be attending Doggy Daycare anytime soon... ;)

Aye! A laddy from the Shetland Isles...

 

The Shetland Sheepdog or "Sheltie", not to be confused as a Miniature Collie (There is no such thing btw lol.)... Love them or leave them... We all know that I am biased, and in favor of this amazing breed. So when Mickey rolled into The Fort today, I'll admit, I was elated!

 

Mickey, is a handsome, six year old, thirty-five pound, Tri-Colored, Shetland Sheepdog. Mickey tried our Medium Roll on for size and thrived. This high-energy herding dog, had a surprisingly calm and balanced disposition, Gibson, you should really start taking cues from Mickey haha!

Anyway, Mickey, unfortunately didn't engage in any lively play, however he did interact with the pack flawlessly. His canine communication skills are outstanding! He had no signs of stress in his stay and just sort of took it all in. With regular attendance, we believe Mickey will begin to really enjoy Dog Daycare. He is currently in a transitional period of life, with different things to digest and adjust to. Luckily, canines are quite adaptable, and Mickey seems to be no exception. He is an absolutely gorgeous specimen, that we look forward to having here at Fort Fido.

Take care,

-Grant

Snow?

Whoa! Woke up this morning to the sound of crunchy ice under car tires... I thought to myself, "No way!". But sure enough, it snowed last night lol, just in case you didn't notice. Luckily the light dusting we received didn't put a damper onto any Fort Fido plan, twas smooth sailing today. Very nice!

Pops (David) went on a trip to get some new dogs toys. The majority of our toys come from a "cash and carry" type of place that specializes and only carries pet supplies. Ahhh Toy Day. It's a bit of fun and work rolled into one. You have to budget, pick out what you think will sell, what you think people will like, price each item and then organize the whole lot into our small retail space. It takes a couple of hours and we usually take turns. I'll post up a picture with some of the new merch soon.

In the very near future, we will be carrying an absolutely outstanding line of locally made collars and leads. They are made, by hand, by none other than Jinx's dad, Mike. He specializes in custom work and I assure you, these are the coolest dog leads and collars ever! Not only do they look awesome, they are extremely functional, comfortable and super-heavy-duty yet light. All of us at The Fort are quite excited about getting them in and we think y'all will enjoy them too . Gibson is going to get a custom one made for sure! :)

I'll leave ya with a few clips.

From the Big Roll... Love was in the air, Golden Retriever Love that is! Benny and Mollie were a hot item haha.



The Medium Roll was more fun than a barrel of monkeys!



In the Little Roll, Dwayne hooked up with Little Pearl and busted out even more! Every dog upstairs seemed to be having a blast today.



Cheers,

-Grant

Linkage

Over the weekend I stumbled on a cool link from King5. It's Seattle's top 10 dog breeds, have a look, I'm not too surprised with the list.

Here are a few links from the news today:

The 40th Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race - There are some spectacular photos in this one.

Dog survives 53 days in the wild - Of course Dooley made it, he's a Sheltie for Pete's sake lol!

Tips for helping your dog drop that winter weight - Fort Fido can also help with that one ;) .

Dog registered to vote - No comment on this one hahaha.

Naming your dog often a matter of breeding - Great article.

Hope your week has started off well,

-Grant

Sad yet incredible...

We are all aware of the tragic events in Japan. Our hearts go out to all of the people engulfed in the crisis.

I was sent a sad yet incredible video clip today that was shot amid the destruction of Japan's devastating Earthquake and Tsunami. It is of a loyal canine who will not leave his deceased companion behind. Here is the link that translates the story.



Later today in a search, I found a neat article about some US Search and Rescue dog teams deployed in Japan. Here is the link, In a battered Japan, dogs search for human survivors.

On a lighter note, I found an informative website that describes dog breeds of the world. I thought I would research the native dogs of Japan. Here at Fort Fido, we have an Akita named Kyoshi and a Japanese Chin (arguably Chinese in origin) named Charlie. In the past we've had a few Shiba Inu Mixes.

One of the most popular dog breeds in Japan, actually #1 throughout the 80's and early 90's, is the Shetland Sheepdog. Obviously it is the greatest dog breed ever. ;)

Take care,

-Grant

Finally!

Me and my new pup Gibson! Here he is checking out the Medium Roll... He is a neat little Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie), almost four months old. So exciting!



Have a great day,

-Grant

Rope leads / British style slip lead

By popular demand we've started carrying the "rope leads", known in the Doggie World as British style slip leads, we use in the day to day operations of the fort. I really like these. They are basically a collar and lead in one, VERY easy on the hands. They come in Red, Green and Blue, check them out!

Also, I scrounged up another pic of my old pal Sabrina the Sheltie, R.I.P. :)



Enjoy your weekend,

-Grant

Kickin it old school

I thought everyone would enjoy this picture of me and my first love Sabrina (Taken around 1993). She had a good paw in raising me lol (followed me everywhere until her last days) and there are some funny stories of our antics. Sabrina (a Shetland Sheepdog) was with our family for 13 years and died of natural causes. We planted a beautiful Dogwood Tree in our backyard honoring her.

Take care,

-Grant

Walter from Taiwan

(Maybe Walter rummaged through this Taiwanese alley before, who knows?)

Fort Fido has had all kinds of rescue dogs attend daycare. It feels great to see a rescue dog having a blast here! This morning's assessment is a neat example. Walter was rescued from the streets of Taiwan! Let's just say his first six months of life were pretty rough... Now he has a wonderful setup that includes a kind and loving family. Walter is a spunky Shetland Sheepdog / German Shepherd mix, he is 14 months and about 25 pounds. This guy thought he had died and gone to heaven lol, Walter went non-stop in the Medium Roll, I hope he is tired! He played nicely with the others, we look forward to seeing more of him.

Have a nice weekend,

-Grant

Chewy!

There is no doubt that this morning's assessment was a winner. The delightful Chewy started today and he did excellent! I'm partial to Aussie's and Sheltie's so that definitely helped him hahaha... He is a Tri-colored, Miniature Australian Shepherd mix, 28 pounds and eight months old. My guess is that the mix is Shetland Sheepdog but who knows? Check out some clips of Chewy below, he fell in love with our little Boston Terrier mix Sofee, she can give any dog a run for it's money!





Enjoy the sunshine this weekend,

-Grant
P.S. Mr. Teddy, a Shih Tzu/Daschund mix, is two years old today. Happy Birthday Ted!