Sugar arrived at her new foster home in Bloomington, MN on Sunday, March 20th. She was whooped from the trip to MN from Chicago and was very content to be a lap dog on Sunday night. That gave the rest of the crew, the two Golden Retrievers and house cat, plenty of time to check her out and welcome her in.

She's doing really, really well. On Monday I bought her a gentle leader for walking and it only took about 1/4 of a block for her to forget it was there. She walks like a champ! She's so pretty when she's walking.... she's almost always pointing.....

Sugar has enjoyed checking out her new playmates and big play pen (fenced in back yard). Her favorite toys so far are the Kong and Nylabones. When she's not busy with another dog or a toy, she's usually curled up next to me with her head nuzzled in tight... or over on her own couch. Dogs and cats are not a problem with Sugar... she just wags and wags.....

She's a real sweetie...

Videos!

We are having a great time with Miss Sugarland! She has lost 5 lbs and gained a lot of energy. She was never a tentative or nervous girl, but lately she has much more energy than when she first came to us. I'm posting a few videos, one of her watching the sea gulls from the deck (showing off her new figure), and one of her and Tucker playing with a kidnapped sock. I love these videos because you wouldn't know from watching them that she has any handicaps - she really is a fearless girl.

One of the family!

In less than a week with us Sugar is fully settled in. She immediately bonded with the people in the family, is eating and sleeping well, and has her favorite potty spot in the yard. She initially didn't pay much attention to furry foster brother Tucker but when I took her for blood work the day after she arrived she was very excited to see other dogs at the vet. It was primarily smaller dogs so of course I started thinking Tucker was too big for her (a common problem at 88lbs). Day 3 when I let them out, though, Sugar picked up one of his toys - making sure he saw her - and ran to the front of the house with it. Tucker took chase, and this opened up the floodgates. I believe that this smart little girl was just figuring him out...she likes to take all the toys and play keep away with him.

To the right she is playing keep away and above she is in "King of the couch" mode - note all the hoarded toys behind her!

Sugar is potty trained and does very well on a leash. She seems to really like men - the first day she met her dog walker she smothered him with love. We are trying to figure out some simple hand commands that will be easy for her to see. So far shaking a finger for "No" seems to work well - in only a few days she has learned not to jump up on us at the dinner table - very impressed with that!

Its hard to say how well she sees - she watches the neighbor's dogs out the window but will occasionally be surprised by a wall or person close to her. She also seems to hear some things, but certainly not much - for example, she does not wake if you call her while she is sleeping.

We did learn that Sugar is positive for both RMSF and Lyme Disease, and are treating her with the antibiotics she needs to fight both. I'm hoping that some of her hearing and vision issues can be helped a bit with that treatment, but only time will tell! We are all very happy to have this girl with us, and hope to post great news on her progress!

Sugarland arrives in Chicago!

Hellloooo there, I'm Sugarland! My new foster family calls me Sugar...maybe because I'm just as sweet as the real thing. ;)

I'm a Lemon and White English Pointer. In the fall my owner called IBR because she was too ill to keep me. I stayed there in KY with a very nice lady who keeps a kennel for a lot of other dogs like me - dogs waiting for a spot in a rescue. When a foster family in IL became available I rode up with another volunteer who was headed home from vacation and on Feb 20 I arrived here in Chicago! I have a great big furry foster brother and two human foster siblings (my foster mom tells me they are "moody pre-teens" but that must mean "extra loveable" because that's what they seem like to me)!

I am about two and a half years old and I have a few special needs...I do not hear or see well. I can hear some things, like the dog next door barking, but I don't really hear my name being called or know when you walk in the room if I don't see you. I definitely recognize shapes like other dogs, people, stairs, and doorways, but sometimes its hard for people to tell if I'm looking at them or not. There is nothing wrong with my sniffer though - I can certainly locate food and treats (which may be why I'm working on losing 10 or 15 pounds). My foster mom hopes that some of these issues are related to a tick born illness like Lyme Disease and might get a little better with antibiotic treatment. If not, it doesn't stop me from living so I'm OK staying this way!

Here I am in the car right after being picked up by my foster family...this is my "how does that camera taste?" look.