Luke

Hi Everyone,

My son Brett said you did not get the first email so we will try this again and hopefully it works this time.

Luke has been home with us for just over a week and we already love him so much. He is SO smart and very well behaved - well most of the time. His car manners need some work - he gets VERY excited and can't sit still when we get close to a parking lot and when we get close to home and he wants to jump right out. We have been working with him and have already seen a big improvement.

Our one year old kitten (Mika) that we adopted in January from the Surrey SPCA came out of hiding after the first night but they still mostly avoid each other but we are hoping they will be good friends soon. We put up a gate in the doorway to our laundry room and Mika has her food & box in there. She will sit on one side of the gate & Luke on the other and they just watch each other. She also has the run of the bedrooms upstairs and Luke has been really good at not going into the bedrooms . Luke has the run of the downstairs and his own brand new bed with a blanket and toys - but usually ends up on my chair - good thing I am good at sharing.

Luke has made friends with the Jack Russel, Rascal, next door. Our neighbour came over the couple of days that Rich & I had to work and took him out with her & Rascal for a walk and spent time with him. She has agreed to come over any time we need and the dogs get along great so this has been a real blessing.

We have been having so much fun with Luke. We have a great dog park just a few blocks from our house so we have been taking Luke there. We kept him on his leash for the first week and carefully watched how he reacted to new people and dogs. The other night it was raining when we went out (which sure doesn't faze him at all) and there was only one other dog & owner at the park. I let Luke off the leash and he was great. He would run & play but always watched for where I was and came right back when called. This afternoon the dog park had lots of dogs & people and I was nervous but Luke had a ball. He ran around and played and seemed to be smiling the whole time. I was worried he wouldn't listen or come when called but he amazes me every time at how quick he is to listen.

We want to thank you all for taking such wonderful care of Luke while he was with you and to assure you that he will receive the best care and all our love and attention always.

Our family really feels complete now and we are so happy.
We will come visit you soon.

Thank you so much!!
Marie, Rich, Brett & Luke

Our new puppy Kona (Klondike)

To Everyone at the Richmond Animal Shelter,

I would first of all like to thank you all for bringing Kona (Klondike) into our lives. We are now a family and he warms my heart everyday. He has adjusted really well, still full of spit and vinegar but he is learning really fast. He is a very happy boy as he usually gets to go to the beach or long walks more than twice a day :) I have never seen a puppy smile as much as he does! We have had so much love and support from our family and friends, he is a little rockstar and everyone loves him. He is rarely left alone (so far only once for 15mins) so he is getting all the attention and love that he deserves. I've attached some pictures here for you all to see ;)

Thank you all so much for being a part in bringing Kona into our lives, I don't know what I would do without him!

Sincerely,

Bree and Sasha

Kisu Update

Dear RAPS,

First, congratulations to Carol on having been honoured with the Ethel Tibbits Woman of Distinction Award in the business category. It is a richly deserved honour which recognizes her outstanding contributions to the community and the important work of RAPS. Well done Carol!

Now an update on Kisu (formerly Tawny). Seven weeks have passed since I adopted her and she continues to thrive. Walking with Kisu is like escorting a super model. Wherever she goes, she draws raves: "What a beautiful dog!" "She's gorgeous!" "What a wonderful coat!" I've concluded that the best description of Kisu is that she looks like a large cappucino with extra foam and topped with cinnamon.

Kisu appears to have spent most of her previous life indoors and in an urban environment, as it was evident that she had had very little exposure to forests, creeks and the ocean. Happily, true to her husky instincts, she has taken to the great outdoors like a duck to water, and we spend hours every day, rain or shine, exploring the woods and beaches of the Lower Mainland. She loves trekking along forest trails, sniffing different plants and splashing around in creeks, and is mesmerized by the rhythm of the ocean waves. And, of course, she was in husky heaven when it snowed in February.

Because of the husky tendency to wander and run away, many websites advise against ever letting a husky off leash except in a yard surrounded by a six-foot fence. Kisu is an apparent exception to that rule. She loves to explore the woods off-trail, but is very quick to come racing back when called. The only issues have occurred because of her friendly "social butterfly" nature, when she meets, plays doggy tag with and follows other dogs. But she's getting much better about that. There is just still a lot of playful puppy in her. A watchdog she is definitely not. If a burglar came to my home, Kisu would offer to take him on a guided tour and show him where I keep my wallet.

Kisu and I have bonded incredibly quickly and strongly. So much so that the only real problem has been separation anxiety. She thinks we are joined at the hip, and becomes very anxious when left alone at home, although she is fine if left in the car while I go shopping and run errands. We are working on this. We are also working on her shedding which began quite suddenly a week or so ago. Suddenly my floors and the interior of my car looked like they'd been hit by a blizzard. Fortunately a helpful salesperson at a pet store recommended a Furminator Deshedding tool. I was taken aback by the price but have found that it is worth every penny. The amount of hair I removed from Kisu today was astounding - you could make a nice area rug from it - and she loved it. She even laid down on each side as I was grooming her, and if she was a cat she would have purred contentedly.

Finally I'm attaching 3 recent photos of Kisu, reflecting her personality and nature. One shows her contemplating beside a tumbling mountain stream. In another, reminiscent of a scene from the movie "Eight Below" about a team of huskies that survived an Antarctic winter on their own (which she has watched), Kisu is merrily chasing gulls on a mudflat. And finally, Kisu is nuzzling a tiny pink ceramic pig which she has apparently adopted. Her jaws are so powerful, she is able to quickly crunch through the hardest bones and she has completely destroyed a seemingly indestructible thick rubber squeaky toy in 15 minutes. However, she gently removes the little pig from a bookshelf and carefully carries it in her mouth to her bed. She has never touched anything else on the shelves!

All the best, and again congratulations to Carol!

Abe