It's been  a quiet few months here at Lake Jocelyn. In May while we had to go out of state for a wedding. A wonderful Ragom volunteer, Scott Blomgren, not only stayed with our Fuzzy the entire time we were gone, but, as shown here, he came by two or three times a week before to insure that she knew for sure she had found a new friend. They got along extremely well very much due to Scott's expertise and evident love, and respect for dogs of all types.

Meanwhile, by many conversations (not friendly) with other dogs, and many attempts to confer with various critters around here (chipmunks, squirrels, song birds, egrets and all manner of fish), and the number of times each week she has saved us from being murdered by post office deliverers, bicyclists, frogs, and whatever goes bump in the night, Jocelyn has finally got through to us that she wants to stay here. Mostly by her response to our behavioral training techniques (see other picture) she has said in effect, "Even though I never met a dog I like, and though I tend to snap a bit now and (infrequently) then; though loud noises make me shake, I'm still one of
the joys of your life and you two know it as well as I!

So, to make this ramble short, we will no longer be fostering Jocelyn. She arrived at her permanent home three years ago; it's just that none of us knew it. We do now, and are in the process of getting all the paper stuff to where it's supposed to go. She's been packed for the trip for a long time.

Welcome home Jocelyn! (You sly Fuzzy)

No more snowmobiles, ice boats, or skiers on the lake. But Jocelyn still manages to warn us of anything that might be of the slightest interest as she keeps watch from the couch. This morning she happily pointed to a couple geese and the first loon of the season. She is patiently waiting for us to get the dock in so she can get back into summer mode and bark at the minnows.

While Jocelyn is up for any kind of winter sport (snow angel, kayak sitting on the ice, barking at ice fish houses - all the usual stuff) lying by the stove watching the puppy bowl has got to be one of her favorites. Or if it isn't, she's perfectly content to join us. A kong filled with peanut butter is all the Superbowl snacks she needs.

We decided that this past summer began too late and ended too early. Jocelyn, ever eager to go along with whatever her family is up to, joined us in our last boat ride of the season.

fter a hard day chasing whatevers and barking at fish Jocelyn's favorite evening activity is settling down with (or, more often, on) a good book. It makes our book club reading go a bit slower, but it'll cut down on our need for extra layers on the couch this fall. Since we first got her in August and were told she was 10 then, we just celebrated her 12th birthday a few days ago.

Now that the dock is finally in Jocelyn has decided that fishing is her new love. She runs up and down the dock, leans over with her nose almost in the water, and barks. Then, every third time, she falls into the water, swims over to a ramp, climbs up onto the shore and begins the whole hunt over again. It's her type of catch-and-release except for the catch part. Otherwise her life is about the same. We have been able to get her to take walks with a gentle leader (not without a bit of struggle with the thing.) While it doesn't eliminate entirely her fear of other dogs, she seems to calm down sooner. Yesterday she even went by a rather large dog without barking.

Puppy steps, I guess.

Ok, so it looks like we're going to extend winter a bit longer. After dutifully warning us about any possible intruder from anywhere across the  still frozen lake, Jocelyn is quite content to play one of her indoor games. It's kinda like fetch the ball. We roll it around the house. She madly scrambles after it and then she brings it right back to...not us. She goes immediately into her doggy cave and plops down waiting patiently for the next round. Not much variety, but it's easier on her paws than most other winter games.

It’s been a long cold winter and we here in Fuzzy land are getting on in years. Jocelyn is, as far as we know, over 11 years old, and we all are aware that we don’t have the energy we had when the stuff that happened 50 years ago wasn’t so far back in the past. But that doesn’t mean we can’t get out and enjoy some age-appropriate winter activities. So the other day we all decided to plunge into that favorite sport of the chronologically enhanced – SNOW ANGELS! Perhaps not Jocelyn’s favorite activity, since it doesn’t involve madly dancing and yakking at the squirrels in the trees, but she played along with us, knowing that she would then be able to sit inside by the fire and chew on her treasured bear.

We also decided to invite Fuzzy to meet a woman who has had years of experience with folks of all sorts (two and four legged) and she told us some things which may help our girl calm down a bit. She suggested that we might not fully understand what is going through Fuzzy’s head, that what we were interpreting as signs of affection. Jumping up on the couch and licking our hand  might really be signs that she is agitated for some reason and is doing comforting actions to calm herself.

So we got some pointers on improving her life. We were told she might have some pain in her back right leg or foot and that her food might be a bit too high in protein. So we are giving her something for her possible pain and trying a new brand of high quality food. We were also introduced to Tellington Touch – a gentle form of massage shown to be calming to most animals. In addition, it was suggested that the “thunder shirt” we got to help with loud noises might also be helpful on a daily basis to aid in bringing down her stress level. So far all this seems to be improving her life a bit.

So, life with Jocelyn continues to be a mostly enjoyable learning experience.

 Snow Angels – not quite an Olympic sport

Jocelyn’s friends the coots came back after being gone for a week. Seems like they still have a bit of coot-chow on the bottom of the lake. She doesn’t consider them real ducks, so she feels no obligation to roust them, or catch them or do anything but relax in the fall sun and watch them go by. When she’s finished with that chore she comes in and plops by me on the couch to help with the crossword puzzle. Not really a great help. She thinks the answer to every clue is a lick on the ear from her and an open-ended session of tummy rubs by me.

Jocelyn is saying goodbye to summer. The chipmunks have grown tired of her attempts to join their games. The ducks and geese have started moving south (at least to the south end of the lake). She had a good time trying to herd 2 or 3 hundred coots who were here for a week or so, but they too seem to have found better ways to spend their time. But, in between occasional dashes past the bird feeder to show the squirrels that their place is high in the trees and infrequent visits by her old friend the muskrat out in the lake, she seems content to sit on the shore and watch the last leaves fall and the afternoon sun reflected off the island. She is still waiting patiently for that special person who wants to give her a permanent home. She knows she is getting on in years (11), that she has a short temper with other dogs and that she is best with folks are willing to introduce themselves slowly to her, since she sometimes reacts to being startled by nipping. But she and we also know that she really wants to do mostly what we are doing. If we’re on the dock, so is she. If we rattle her leash, she’s ready to go on her sniffing trek. If we’re busy doing the many strange things she see no point to, she enjoys lying in the sun or by the fire or wherever. And she is content to amuse herself when we are not at home.  But her favorite activity is being on the couch on our laps on her back, getting her belly or ears scratched and trying to lick our faces while her head is up side down. She sees no reason why this should in any way interfere with book reading or puzzle doing. She thinks the cats are irrelevant. She’s fuzzy and affectionate; she answers to a half dozen commands; and she does whatever she can to please.

From Jocelyn's dog-sitter:

Hi Jocelyn Fans!!!

I was going through some photos and came across these beautiful pictures of sweet girl Jocelyn from one of our last doggie-sitting adventures together. She is such a peach!

Enjoy!!!!

Jocelyn hanging in the yard watching the world and the waves crash----she LOVES the water!

Of course--she is a cuddle bug to the core and LOVES to cuddle up next to you!

Jocelyn also LOVES a good hunt and by the looks of it---the chipmunks like a good game too---they seem to understand Jocelyn's limits but they do give her some good fun.

Jocelyn does very well with cats---she has two kitty friends in her home. She LOVES her people more than anything and would be content to do life as an only dog---though a sweet submissive little pup may work well too as Jocelyn had the most wonderful friend in Susie when she first arrived.

IF you are interested in meeting Jocelyn, please let your placement person know.

Hi Jocelyn Fans!!! I had the pleasure of meeting Jocelyn for lunch a few days last week while her foster family took a little vacation and totally enjoyed every minute with this sweet girl!!!
Jocelyn met me at the door each day with her tail waggin’ and belly ready for some rubbin’! 

Jocelyn is sooo happy to have a 2-legger to hang out with.   

Then outside we went and she was quick to check to see if her friends were hanging out on the lake.

After her “very fast” potty break, she was happy to sit in the sun with me and enjoy some cuddlin’ & kissin’

Cuddle Bug!

Quite the Kisser!

Jocelyn is just a sweet, beautiful, senior girl!  

Let's Play!

Every Bird has Jocelyn's eye

Jocelyn is the most wonderful companion----she loves the outdoors and is more than willing to hang out and enjoy the scenery.  She equally loves to cuddle in close for a good book or movie.  Jocelyn loves treats (LOVES TREATS!) and loves to receive love!  She is happy to hang with the cats but not too fond of other dogs.  Jocelyn would love to be someone’s very best friend and do life together!
If you are interested in meeting this “chocolate-covered” Golden Girl----please let us know!

IF SHE’S TOLD US ONCE,

SHE’S TOLD US A DOZEN TIMES…

So, one thing we’ve learned from folks who are more adept at doggyology than we are, is that our mysterious, never-before-heard-of Duck Toller-type has actually been sighted by many, and been a part of more households than we imagined.

This month Jocelyn has been telling us over and over that she really is a very talented girl and that she probably can toll duck with the best of them. A bit ago,on one of our romps on the lake, she snapped up what appeared to be part of a bird of some sort. Since we have been accustomed to old Grrshwin and Susie doing this, I immediately rushed over to try to pry whatever it was from her jaws before she and we had to rush to enhance the fortunes of our vet by needing him to perform life-saving extraction of sharp bones from her. The old dogs were in the habit of wolfing down anything they clamped on, stopped only with handfuls of treats tossed at them with shouts of “NO!” and “DropitDropit DROPPITTT!!!” So I was quite surprised when Jocelyn dropped it at my feet at the mere suggestion that she might consider doing so. She repeats this whenever she finds something – brings it over and drops it at our feet. She also seems to hold these things very lightly in her teeth. So, it would seem she has had a bit of hunting training and/or breeding.

We think she has been trained to other commands as well. She comes when called by name, sits when told to, and stays by the door until told to go out. She accepts most attempts to brush her, though to be safe we use a muzzle, since she does snap if a tangle snags. Who doesn’t? She is calm when fed and seems to take her time eating what’s in her dish. And she has consistently exhibited admirable housetraining. That’s why we were somewhat dismayed last month when she had a couple of accidents. Since she was in every way the perfect indoor dog, we suspected a bladder problem. Sure enough, with only a day or so into her antibiotic course she was back to her old self and she hasn’t had a problem since.

She has been enjoying sniffing trails of deer and small animals in the snow on our daily walks along the lake shore. She gets to roam as far as her thirty foot rope will let her, but we pull her in when we approach other dogs, since she still has less than elated feelings about them.

So, to repeat what we already know, Jocelyn is mostly a gentle, affectionate, fun-loving girl who would make an ideal pet where she is the only dog. She does seem to nip at folks unexpectedly on very rare occasions, and growls at other dogs she meets. So, it seems like she would fit well in a home where she is the only dog, and she would not be good around small children. But she has been fine with our 2 cats and teen age grandkids, and has enjoyed being included when friends have stopped by.

AND JUST WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?

Jocelyn has had a fine time making the adjustment from fall to winter. Once her summer friends the chipmunks and the muskrat took off for other adventures, she seamlessly switched her attention to squirrels and ducks to bark and wag at. Then the geese and swans grabbed her attention for a week or so. But now the lake is completely frozen over and her view through the fence is now full of skaters, ice boats, skiers, walkers, their dogs and other winter oddments. Now that we can all walk on water, we’re able to avoid salty, busy roads, and she gets to explore a wider path at the end of a 30 foot rope.

This Saturday we took her out to meet some neighbors who were out making a skating rink with the help of their two dogs. She seemed to handle her latest meet and greet with a bit more grace than we were used to. She still went up to them all wags and smiles, and she still got a bit snarly when they returned her sniffs, but after an initial growl she seemed to calm down and ignore them – quite a feat since they were not leashed, and she was.

One other positive outcome was some information the neighbors gave us. We’ve been trying to determine what breed she is. She wasn’t completely truthful when she gave the impression she is a Golden. We’ve always thought she is part bear with her thick chocolate brown fur. Others have guessed Newfoundland, Chesapeake, etc. But these neighbors each, at a single glance, said they are certain that she is a Duck Tolling Retriever. This made as much sense to us as calling her a Beezle Rallying Protractor, but we googled it, and sure enough there were numerous references to this Nova Scotia hunting retriever looking somewhat like a Golden, but with white webbed feet, a somewhat stocky build, a bushy tail and white chest, and a thick coat. Our gal seems to have all this, but she’s darker brown than her cousins.

They were bred to “toll” or lure ducks within range by running along shorelines creating a disturbance. They then retrieve the duck. They are also described as “great companion dogs as long as they get exercised” and “very sensible and loyal to their family”.

Jocelyn's Cousin?

Jocelyn (tolling skaters)

It’s been a lone time since we’ve brought you up to date on Jocelyn.The summer is gone as is the dock and boat from which she did her muskrat hunting. Her chipmunk friends long ago decided that she wasn’t really the barrel of laughs she seem to be and have seemingly left for more fun games elsewhere. But she still bounds out the door and makes a quick run around the periphery of the yard expecting…who knows? An occasional squirrel seems to prick her curiosity, but I think she misses the old chatter of her former playmates.

Things have changed dramatically around here the past couple of months. After Grrrshwin died, Susie seemed to be quite depressed, so we were anxious to bring in another furry friend as soon as possible to keep her spirits up. Enter Jocelyn, who is about as furry as you can get. It seemed to work out fine. Though they only got into real fun chasing-around-the-yard play a couple times, they seemed to be quite comfortable with each other. No fights over food or toys. And Jocelyn quickly got into the usual greeting routine at the front door with Susie. But then the unthinkable (for us) happened. Susie began to lose her appetite and developed a cough. A trip to the vet revealed horrible news – she had metastatic lung cancer. Within two weeks our companion of five years was gone.

So now we’ve gone from our usual three furry friends to just Jocelyn. She seemed to be a bit confused for a short while about just what her place is, as we are aware of how empty the house seems. But we think that all things considered, Jocelyn seems quite comfortable alone. She doesn’t like to greet other dogs on the road for more than a minute – still taking a short sniff, a bit of a wag and then she warns them off with a growl. She enjoys people-type visitors, but even with them she can at time be a bit short, sometimes growling and occasionally snapping, though she will roll over in a heart beat if she thinks she’ll get a tummy rub. With us she has never shown any sign of aggression or displeasure. She seems to like her kennel and has no objections to staying there when we’re gone for a few hours having gathered her collection of bones and toys into her comfy den. She seems quite content to be a part of anything going on, and when it isn’t, she likes to settle in the kennel or by the front door. Otherwise she is a cuddly bunch of fur, who continues to amuse us with her antics and to be mildly amused by ours.

Jocelyn thinking of summer.....

Thinking maybe fall is OK afterall......