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JINGLE
HAPPY TAILS:
Hi Jen,

Jingle is fantastic, she's sitting next to me on the sofa
while I work on my laptop. I don't know if I told you earlier
that she passed her beginner obedience training and we're
now on to intermediate. It's been a bit tricky for me,
because I had to hire a dog walker due to my achilles
injury, so we're not getting a chance to work on "heel"
training the way I'd like, but she's so smart and is doing
really well with "recall" and she's a star at "wait", "leave it"
and "stay". I practice that with her inside the house and
she'll stay planted as I hop from kitchen to living room and
back again. I'm trying to work on fetch, and she does get
the idea of getting the toy, but she's just not bringing it
back to me. She brings it to her rug, which naturally, I
think is adorable, which is probably why she's not getting
it. LOL I tend to gush over her cleverness. And she is very
clever, even the trainer says so.

Zuzu, my cat, and Jingle are starting to work out their
territory issues. At first, Jingle didn't even seem interested
in Zuzu, there was so much going on and everything was
so different, that she just sort of sniffed and then ignored
her. But now Jingle loves Zuzu, and always wants to play
with her, though Zuzu is not always as eager to play with
Jingle.  Zuzu's only 6 1/2 lbs and I think she was a little
freaked out by "that big black thing" for a bit. Now
though, they are starting to play, and Zuzu has proven
that though she's small, she's a scrappy "fighter" and has
gained some hand. And slowly Jingle seems to understand there are times to just leave her alone. But when the
mood strikes them, it's a riot to watch them play. Zuzu will actually run and act all offended, but then she'll stake
out a place and taunt Jingle as she passes. And they are just like kids and get jealous if they see I'm giving
attention to the other. They will both line up, Zuzu on the kitchen counter and Jingle on the floor, and be ready
to perform little tricks to get treats. If one is getting treats, the other will always right there, wanting some too.

Jingle has also started sleeping under my bed at night (it's antique and rather high off the floor), and Zuzu will
sleep with me under the covers when she's cold. It's probably my favorite time, to have all the critters, snoozing
happily with me.

And Jingle has lots of friends! In addition to Chloe and Reid, the Irish Terriers next door, she met Teddy, a Westie,
at dog obedience class, and my friend Claire's dog Kenny the corgi. They have play dates in our fenced-in back
yard. Sigh. My garden has been given over to the dogs, and next spring I will have a lot of work re-seeding grass
and moving plants. I want to make it dog friendly, which means it probably won't be winning any garden prizes!
Jingle has worn a dirty groove through the plants and grass, where she likes to run, and she does have a taste for
digging! Oh, well, eventually, I want to bring in some training aides like jumps and tubes, because I think Jingle will
be fantastic at agility training, which she's gotten a little taste of in obedience class. She LOVES to run. She and
the Irish Terriers love to tear it up, it's a joy to see them play. And once I get back to walking and playing sports
again, I'm going to try and introduce her to the idea of running alongside a bicycle, since the doctor is telling me I
won't be able to do the 6 mile walk/runs for a long, long time.

And I've become a nutty dog person, who stands outside on cold or raining mornings in winter coat and pajamas
to make sure she goes potty. I have left parties at 12:30 a.m. as opposed to staying out late for another drink,
because I know I need to get up to take care of the dog. But she is so good, and for the most part, she's settled
into my routine. Though the past three nights she's taken to getting up and going downstairs and barking at the
boogie man at 3:00 a.m, I'm hoping that it's just a phase!

And the best part is seeing her walk around with her tail held high, a fully furled sail, that says she's happy,
confident and reminds me how far she has come from the scared, tail-tucked-under puppy she was in August. And
that's such a wonderful gift. I feel like I've done something really good and worthwhile. I've given this incredible
dog a happy, safe home and in return I am showered with love, affectionate kisses and is a wonderful companion
who is teaching me many lessons about life, about forgetting the past, about staying present and about what's
important in this moment.

So thank you for having the confidence in me and entrusting me with this magnificent creature. I feel very blessed.

All good wishes,
Stephanie & Jingle & Zuzu
Dear Jen-

I know it's been quite a while since my last installment
of the "ResQ Files", but trust me...it will be worth the wait.
Now I would like to give time to those of you who desire to
get popcorn, soda, and/or chips, in order to thoroughly
enjoy this  "tail" I am about to wag.  Everyone Ready?

First allow me to state again how deeply appreciative we
are and forever indebted to the United Action 4 Animals
Organization, for assisting us in locating the addition
to our family, so suited he fits like glove to hand, like ice
to cube, like white to rice...once bleached.  Never did we
imagine our lives would change as drastically as it has
with this little man in our lives. Having a son already
prepared us for the responsibilities one undertakes when
attaining an additional mouth to feed, a new body to
cuddle, a fresh mind to raise/train.

ResQ has been such a comfortable fit, even our neighbors
love him. The kids in the block are afraid of him, and
believe he is mean. We attribute this to the fact that his
gate is that of a big cat stalking his prey. We know one
of his breeds is derived from African Basenji, which is
also prone to characteristic behaviors most resembling
that of a cat...but this was ridiculous. It is almost to the degree where we felt we were scammed. We thought
you gave us a cat and passed him off as a dog. Never have we seen a dog lick, and clean his self the way
ResQ grooms his body. It is fascinating to watch. He even gets in between his toes...with intense
concentration, and detail...wow. Anyway....I digress.  We are glad the kids around here feel the way they do,
since they are often mean to dogs.  He has totally extinguished that idea from their warped little minds.  As
we walk him, everyone notices his head is in a prowling position all the time, along with his serious, no
bull$h!# stares.  His front legs stealthily stepping, with shoulders rising and falling like a lion in high
grass preying on a gazelle.  It is a sight to witness.  And it makes everyone move to the other side...we love it.

Now please don't misunderstand...we aren't the type of mommies who advocate fighting, as that is not us,
but in our neighborhood, with the amount of dogs, he had to let them know he wasn't going to back down,
and when we call his name and say "Enough" immediately he calms down and we resume the walk as if
there isn't even another dog in the street. They make their point, and he makes his point, all the while the
humans smile and converse, and after a few moments off we go.

There are several kids in our building who come up to him and pet him and he sits and lets them with no
problem. But for the most part, he doesn't trust kids.  He shies away from them and goes out of their
eyesight.  Sitting directly behind us until they leave, after which he emerges.  Some kids back home must
have done terrible things to him leaving permanent scars in his memory.  He won't even walk next to them.  
As they approach from the other direction, he moves in and walks behind us single file until they pass, after
which he returns to his position next to us.  It kills us inside.  We cry deep down inside every time it happens.
 I've even cried a couple of time outside in the street, and once I return home. The thought of someone hurting
him, makes me want to get a plane and have him point out the culprit, so I can plant my size nine in their
butts.

Ok on to happier "Tails"......What is he like now.....Oh I forgot....the Vet Visit.....

Well...we took him to the vet.  He was a little apprehensive, at first, to get on the table, but we were right there
and he did just fine. Once they got him on it, they checked him out, and were inquiring as to the type of
dog. They had never seen a dog of his type before. This is the type of thing we hear most every day. We told
them he was part Canaan, part African Basenji. The gentleman assisting the other female assistant said, 'he
could tell the Basenji part by his muzzle.' they weighed him, and he was 39 lbs. he got on the scale like a
champ, and sat. he was fantastic. never barked, whimpered or tried to escape. he was wonderful and a sheer
delight.  

They told us we had to brush his teeth everyday, and they told us how demonstrating on him. he was so
cool...he let them without a struggle. now if only he wouldn't run from us when we try it, would be great....
but you know kids are always better behaving with strangers then their own parents, lol. We purchased a
toothbrush and toothpaste for our little man. They also told us to get greenies, and of course you know when
we returned home I promptly went online and purchased three boxes of them. I even got the greenie biscuits.
he loves them...however, that's another story...and I'll get to that one in a minute.

In entered the Vet...Dr. Butler. She automatically complimented him on his kind gentle behavior. and his
non barking,  We told her we adopted him from the Cayman Islands and she was very impressed at his
docile demeanor.  Again we hear those wonderful words, this time out of her mouth ..."What type of dog is he?
In my 20 yrs of being a vet, I have never ever come across a dog like this." We told her, and she was still
amazed at the composition of his two breeds. Then came time for her to examine him.... all went fine.  Next
was his microchip implant procedure. She said, "its going to hurt him, so you ladies try to distract him or
keep him calm the best you can...it will hurt a little." the assistant held him around his torso, and peaches
and I stroked his head and talked to him calmly, and quietly. He simply stared into our eyes, and never
broke his view from the two of us the entire time. After a minute, the implant was in, and he didn't make a
peep. The doc told us we were fantastic distracters. we were nervous for him, but we didn't let him know it.
{Thanks Caesar Milan for all your television training for us humans}. She's going to remove that mole his
next visit. she examined it and it wasn't wet or excreting any liquids, so she wasn't alarmed about it. She
wants us to return in one month because she was concerned about him being as underweight as he was. At
that time she is going to take blood, and clean his teeth. She gave us heartworm med for him to take once a
month. his visit was great.

Once we returned to the waiting room we were met with new patients awaiting their turn. a large 1 yr old
black lab was having a time trying to get to ResQ, barking and trying to get off her leash. Her mommie
tried all she could to hold her. ResQ just sat there and stared at her, as if she was crazy or something. But at
one instance the woman didn't hold the leash close enough to her, and her lab was able to get a little closer,
lets say about two inches closer, although she was sitting on the other end of the room. ResQ slowly rose to
his feet and began to growl deeply from his throat. the room came to attention, even the lab stopped barking.
I never said a word, I merely walked over to ResQ and stood between the view of him and the lab. I kept
walking towards him until he began to walk backwards, and I eventually backed him into the corner, which
caused him to submissively walk away and sit, which then turned into lying down at the end of the row of
benches, with his head facing the wall. then I walked away.

The lab was having a fit in there yelping and crying, climbing up and down on the bench. pulling and
tugging from her mom, she was a mess. Her mom explained, "She is very impatient, and hates to wait for
anything. When we are home waiting for the elevator to go to our apartment, she does this very same thing
then too." of course it turned ResQ off immensely. he doesn't like noise at all. he's getting use to our noise in
the house, but outside noise, he is not cool with it at all. So we sat and waited for our bill, all the while the
three of us, watching the lab entertain us with her unnecessary tantrums.  Time to go home.  We left
Harlem, and returned home....

Now to the stories as to how ResQ is adjusting to New York life, and his new life with his new mommies,
and his new additional family members.

What can we say about ResQ???? he is a "fairytail" story every day. in fact as I type this lengthy missive,
he is sleeping behind my computer chair, so close that I am unable to even move it....{awwwww...I know
right?}. We find ourselves calling one another, just to let the other know the new things he has done, almost
at every moment of the day. We are truly proud parents. It's beginning to make my sister sick. Not the one
who USED to be afraid of dogs..."used to be" being the operative phrase in that sentence. Yes, I'm pleased to
announce, once she got a gander of ResQ, she has lost her fear of dogs, {well this one anyway}, and even
allows herself to pet him without gloves of any kind on her hands. HUGE PROGRESS!!!

He has two toys we purchased for him. one is a parrot that chirps when you squeeze his tummy, and the
other is an octopus that squeaks when pressed in his body. he loves them both. he throws them in the air and
tussles with them and then sleeps with them. we find him charging to his bed, leaping in, and grabbing his
toys then up in the air they go landing God knows where. He is Sooooooo funny with them. I just came in
from buying him another one that lights up and flashes when jostled...but that one he just looked at, so I put
it in his bed. Give him a day, he'll be throwing it in the air too....trust me.

He is very fond of his bed. the first one, we didn't like for him, and gave it to someone who has a Chihuahua.
its incredibly huge for her, but we wanted for him to have as much space as we do in our bed. Wait a
minute...our bed is full size, and the two of us are in it simultaneously...so I guess you can say, he has
MORE space in his bed than WE do in ours....hmmmmmm. Whatever we give him to eat...snack-wise, he
gently takes from us, runs in the room, and takes to his bed to devour them there. that is definitely his
domain. but don't think he sleeps there all the time....nope not this little character. he will be sleeping in his
bed for a long while, then up he staggers, plopping on the cool parquet floors near our beds. Then after a while
he moves to the foot of the bed on the floor and sleeps there. then...he moves to the thresh hold of the room,
blocking the entrance with his sleeping body. after a while he moves to the living room, and sleeps in there.
Still more, he moves to the foyer, and sleeps by the door. his final stop {sometimes} is back to his bed. this is
all done only if we are in the room together with him.

If I am on the computer and Peaches is in the room sleeping or watching TV, he will keep coming out to get
me to come in the room with them, by nudging me on the back of my leg with his cold moist nose. I pet him
for about 15 minutes, then he has had enough love, and returns to his bed, or on the floor under Peaches
head, which is at the foot of the bed, if she's watching TV. every half hour he returns and repeats this until I
give up and come to bed. he simply must have all of us together to actually sleep soundly...and when I mean
soundly, I mean SNORING.  he is a big snorer...you guys didn't let us know that little tidbit. but it's
cool...he fits right in with us.

He is very considerate of others. almost too considerate of others. he moves to the other side for people with
strollers, carriages, waits for me patiently, and doesn't pull me hard. he checks to see if we are pleased with
his walking habits by constantly looking over his shoulder. if we want him to go in a certain spot, and he
doesn't want to, he will stop look around and then look up at us, and sit. it melts our hearts every time he
does it. we just want to pick him up and hug him up tight. he has the patience of a much older dog, but then
we realized, he has the patience of a dog who has seen much, lived the streets, and survived them alone, so
wisdom is to his credit, as well as patience and consideration are afforded to him through trial and error,
and mostly, unfortunately, at his own expense.  he even had to scratch, and was sitting in front of Peaches,
and stopped his self, ran to his bed, and scratched over there. it almost brought tears to our eyes.

When we feed him, we have to feed him and walk away, otherwise he will follow us, and not finish his food.
he almost acts as if he feels he is inconveniencing us. it is precious to watch. so now we feed him and walk
away and make little to no noise so he can enjoy his meal without assuming someone is coming to take it
away, or he is not deserving of his meal. Our son, his older brother Carl, comes over twice a week and runs
him all over the block. he loves Carl. whenever he sees him, he knows he is going for a long sprint.

We have a groomer for him, who lives only seven blocks away. he goes there every week. he didn't go this
week due to my massive migraine, but the grooming he attained the last week, held up great. this week
coming is groomer time for him. He likes to go there, and likes the groomer. However, I must confess, I am no
longer allowed to go with them when Peaches takes him to the groomer. He carries on as if we are leaving him
for good, trying eagerly to get away from the groomer, pulling his head out of his collar, and pushing away
from his door. The groomer has to physically pick him up and bring him inside, and I cry so much causing
me to have massive migraines for days on end, she now forbids me from accompanying them anymore, as
she brings him to the groomers.

I can't take it...I'm a punk....ok............ I admit it.....yes I am.

But I am allowed, to pick him up. that part I do with pride. he jumps all over me, and we scamper home
together happy as two peas in a pod. One day I will get better at leaving him, but not any time soon I gather.
I am getting better at leaving him to go to the store, and the such. he used to block the door so I couldn't
leave without him, and we had to trick him, by having Peaches take him in the room, and close the door so I
could sneak out. but now I have gotten to the point where he will walk me to the door and sit there, I will say
"Stay", and he does. even after I am gone, I am told, he is still sitting there waiting for me to return.. then he
goes to his bed to lay down. but after a few minutes he is up at the door hoping I am coming through it. he
runs to it when eh hears people in the lobby, assuming it is me...so I am told by Peaches. She calls me and
tells me so when I am out. and of course, I call after a few minutes of being out, and ask, "So what did he do
when I left?" I know we are so into him, its pathetic.

As we come to the end of this ongoing Saga, we part with the answers to two questions, left lingering on the
minds of all friends, family, and onlookers....As far as him being happy.....I believe that goes without
saying. As far as we feeling he was the right choice. That definitely goes without mentioning. This is our
motto for this Amazing organization.....UAA...Helps Give Wonderful Pets A Better Way......Of Life"