The face, brought to you by my internal instincts

The face. It is the same one that grabbed me when I saw it at online from Great Pyr rescue farm. White Dog had been gone 3 months and I really wasn’t “actively “ looking [insert eye rolling face] but well, why not just take a “peak” to see if something grabs me [more eye rolling]. 

I waited to contact the rescue, I didn't want to do a rebound adoption. Nothing could replace White Dog, he was such a strong spirit. I didn't want to bring in a dog and always be comparing him to White Dog, it would not be fair.

But days went by and week or two and I kept seeing Teddy's face. I truly believe White Dog was behind it. He knew that Teddy would carry on in work that White Dog had just shifted too-animal visits with the elders. White Dog was not as suited to go in the car, he wanted to be on patrol or in his farm element, but he began to visit elders when they came to the farm. He was a magnet for them. 

After he died, I talked to White Dog everyday as I went to the barn–he is buried under Old Apple. I’m so grateful both White Dog and Teddy kept nudging me as Teddy is so perfect for our life and mission.

Don't underestimate, don't ignore your internal 'feelings'. I have learned over and over to listen to them. If a feeling keeps coming to me over days and weeks, I know it is serious. That was how I moved to Portland, that was how I knew Martyn would be my husband on the day I met him, that was how I knew we had to move to Maine as soon as possible. 

And breaking news! Harry's pretty excited, as am I, that the Lovey Mobile is arriving next week. Stay tuned.

 

 

Teddy thrives as an ambassador of love

I took Teddy over to see our elder friends at Cove's yesterday. I opted not to take him on visits in summer since it is so hot. So we were happy to be out together again. He was the same old calm, loving guy as the last time...complete with drool which 99% of the residents find amusing and we get chuckles.  I know he was happy to go with me again. When I leave the farm he always looks at me so longingly, it's heartbreaking. So he will be out and about with me now through Spring. And I imagine he will be great in the upcoming Lovely Mobile.

It was a really nice visit. There is something about Teddy, as there was with White Dog, that attracts people to touch him. Perhaps it is his size, his fur, his bear like look...but he is a magnet for touch.

Just as White Dog would say, "Touch me," with his eyes, so does Teddy. Although Teddy also uses his nose to push your hand if you stop petting him. He got to visit with several new residents-some nice photos over on the IG page. One of the residents took my breath away, she looked so much like my mother who died at 87 in 2013. This resident was new and she was 101 and had the same haircut and look, the same smile too. When she was done visiting, she rolled her wheelchair over and starting pruning the petunias...puttering away all by herself–that too just reminded me so much of my mother. As someone noted, they come to us when we need them. Upon arriving home, there was a dove in the garden that flew out as I walked in–another visit from my mother. I think she was saying, "Do I really look 101?"

Teddy got to bring so much joy to one of the regulars there, a woman with advanced ALS who can't talk but smiles a lot when she is happy-and Teddy clearly made her so happy.

I still see Teddy as Teddy, not another version of White Dog. And he is very different that White Dog. But I do still believe White Dog helped bring us Teddy. White Dog had just started participating in elder visits here at the farm and he was a natural. Soon after, we discovered the bone cancer in his leg. He lived another 6 months and still did visits here and it was so beautiful and heartbreaking. I felt so...angry-sad that just like Birdie, and Opie, he was so well suited for this work, and Nature stepped in. Maybe the three of them were needed more elsewhere. But I told White Dog this, that it was not fair and I was mad the cancer came for him-we were a team. I really know White Dog knew I was going to be heartbroken when he did have to leave at some point, and he got the ball rolling for Teddy to find us. 

The visits at Cove's always have a mix of laughter and sadness. One woman was there for rehab after a fall. She wanted to go back to her home and hoped too. But she was grappling with how to continue to live on her own there, even with help three days a week. She was sharp as a tack. No matter how we want to age, it is only so much in our control.

 

Infrastructure-Boone and Biggs proof, hopefully

We have a lot of one or two day building projects in the barns-one to add a divider wall and gate in current Boone barn. We had used two cattle panels and it worked, until Biggs and Boone decided to Rambo them in gelding over play. They bent them up. Those things are expensive but they refuse to get a paper route. I have to get them No Chewed now before they eat them to the ground. Rascals.

Next up is putting the same divider wall and gate in the Llama Love Room where Luci and the sheep live. Then I'll have two nice roomy stall areas for winter and other needs.

We got the veggie garden tilled but I'm behind! I usually plant by 5/10 or so but it got away from me this year. We've had chilly nights so it isn't a big deal. I do hope my sunflowers do better this year and that I've controlled the rats better. They literally ate almost all my sunflower seeds. Mama Bear was ticked, and sad. I bought my sunflower seeds early as a lot of people are planting them in support of Ukraine which is great. I'll mainly do lettuces and beets and tomatoes. I stay away from squash here since the upkeep of keeping squash bugs off is intense. Of course we'll do herbs and pumpkins and maybe more beans since they are so fun to grow. Martyn has bravely admitted he planted way too many beans last year, mine had all been eaten by rats [last year was bad and I did not eradicate them like I usually do].

We also invested in $1000 of more split rail for the back equine areas. Those split rails were here when we bought the place and have weathered about twenty Maine winters so we are adding and fixing about 20 rails. We also have pasture fence up on it, but it looks nice so we opted to keep it. 

I got the front goat stall's deep bedding cleared out, took me three days. Teddy helped because he can smell the rats under the barn and in their tunnels. He actually did me a favor to loosen up the bottom layer of buildup. 

We still have to get the large dead tree off the coop, and fix the broken areas of the coop.

May is just that way. So much to do. But then at some point it gets a bit, a tish, less manic....until something breaks again or Pickles and Puddles decide to build a go cart.

I'm hoping to start getting elders out here! We were able to snag a porta-potty, not an easy task. I think this summer is going to be heavy tourist traffic. People are pent up. To be honest, every time I think of setting a date for an art sale in my Lovey Hut, I get queezy. I'm still a bit concerned about the virus.

I guess we need more Teapot & Teddy Days

I had gone to the outer barn to get The Teapot, to take her to Cove's Edge to visit Linda, and other elders. As I was standing there getting a halter, a large white puffball showed up...Teddy! He had jumped another fence, this time a pasture fence without wood. The wire was not hot since Buddy had recently chewed the ground wire.

I know he jumped the fence because he wanted to be there in that barn with me, since that is the same barn he goes to every morning with me. He was upset he wasn't going and wondered "why" is she going there without me?

I know a good rule of thumb in working with animals is, what is the motive behind the behavior? Is he jumping fences because he's scared, because he wants me, or because he senses he should investigate?  I don't think he's scared. And as much as he likes me, I think it is a combination of the latter two. He spends his mornings with me in that area and barn, so this is the first time he witnessed me go there without him.

And for the record, Martyn spent all weekend adding taller fencing and getting the wire running again. I spent the morning adjusting some areas too and now I feel good about that one goat paddock. It took a year or so before I really trusted White Dog out west [and before he trusted me, I guess].

So I walked The Teapot out and went to put Teddy in his safe spot, his stall with large kennel. But he refused entrance. I tried many maneuvers, but finally gave in, and said, "Fine, you can come too."

It's something I would have done sooner or later, but since I was on my own that day had intended to leave Teddy home so I could focus on The Teapot, and the elders. But Teddy came and he and The Teapot were both great. There was no trouble walking them together and it was a really good accident that turned out well. The Teapot does great when she is on hard ground and can't be swayed by grass. She seems to really like the attention - unlike sassy pants, Captain Sparkle, who gets fresh [but in the cutest way!].

So I was really happy about this.

Linda, our elder friend who is in hospice, and also went blind a few years ago, gets a lot out these visits. They help her anxiety and she simply loves animals, and was an avid horse person in earlier years. We'd both been waiting for a warm day and it was sunny and 66! Oh was that nice. I was also happy to see how well both of them did when I handed the lead rope to my Girl Friday-there was no bad behavior.

We will have to do more Teapot & Teddy Days!

Teddy continues to share love

Teddy visited Cove's last week and we saw Linda, our elder friend who is in hospice care, and blind. She loves animals. We haven't been able to get The Teapot to her {she loves horses} due to weather but Teddy is almost as big as a pony so it helps her a lot. Teddy loves to be brushed too.

We also met a new resident and she was sweet as can be. Despite memory issues, she understood what an animal was and is and she enjoyed touching him and petting him. Next week Teddy will visit Lincoln Home for the first time.

He is doing well here. But we discovered he is capable of jumping very high fences if they are wood-he can propel himself over with his strong hind legs and claws. My farrier and I witnessed it and it was amazing. So we've had to adjust many areas so he can't get out. He wants to be with me 24/7! I knew he loved people and it is clear this is not an exaggeration. In fact, he's almost dismissive of the other animals, even Marcella. They get along but he clearly would rather be with me. I have been crating him in his stall at night [which Martyn reinforced for me this weekend] and it works well, as his crate is his safe harbor. I'm a firm believer in crate training. He is afraid of loud storms too and his crate will help him feel safe. I put Marcella in with him in the stall and then in the day I've got them together in a goat paddock. I thought Marcella would help him settle, and to be honest, I think it is more that he needs to know each day I will come out and be there. Once I leave the paddock, he cries for a few seconds, and settles. I've been putting him inside during rain because he's not that demonstrative with the goats and if it gets stormy I'm afraid he could panic.

So he is a very different dog than White Dog, and that is okay. One has to adjust to a new dog and we are. I just want him to be safe, and I also want to be able to sleep well knowing he is safe in his crate which he is. The crate we got is huge, made for Danes. He can stand in it and move around. It also means he can eat in peace, and Marcella can eat in peace. These dogs don't like interaction when they are eating, trust me. 

But he loves to know when we are going in the truck. He is going to be making lots of love visits.

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Teddy's maiden voyage

 

It was meant to be. It worked out just as it was meant to. White Dog helped, I know it. But there were other invisible forces going on too. The rescue that had Teddy had been working with him for over a year, making sure they understood what Teddy's true calling was so he would be placed properly in the best situation. He really loved Teddy and after I shared photos of Teddy on his first visit to the elders, he wrote me back and was so at peace with the fact he waited until the right fit came, a fit he would sense and feel was right. I guess several other adopters came along but for whatever reason, he felt they would not be a good fit for Teddy.

We visited our friend Linda on Wednesday and Teddy was great. Linda is our elder friend who is in hospice care and has several medical issues but also went blind several years ago. It really helps her to hold animals, and we spent two hours with her, all the while Teddy stood and was brushed and hugged and loved on. 

Teddy and I are doing great and our routine together is becoming clearer to Teddy and it shows in his demeanor-he seems much less anxious about 'where are you' when I leave the barn to do chores. The routine is becoming consistent for him. Teddy gets to be a dog, Teddy gets to bark in his field in the day if he feels he should, and then Teddy get his own palatial stall to sleep in. I also started bringing White Dog in at night in his final year-there are donkeys and llamas out there and really no need for night time guard since we don't raise animals anymore, and all the goats are up near Marcella.

To be honest, I like this. I like knowing Teddy is safe inside. I have become a wuss, to be honest. It also helps me see how well, or not, he is eating. He is like White Dog, he grazes, or takes days to eat. So I switched foods and that seems to have been a hit, and, wait for it...I've been poaching boneless chicken breasts chucks for him. Gads, I'm getting soft! But he needs to put on weight.

To look out and see him in the snow today, in the storm, it is like white Dog and he were having a brief conversation,

"Teddy, you are doing great, thank you for helping her," White Dog says.

"White Dog, thank you for helping me get here."

Visit Instagram to see more of Teddy's first week.

He has arrived...introducing my heart dog...Teddy!

 

I knew it was meant to be. I knew White Dog was helping make this connection. I know White Dog felt my pain after he died. He could feel my pain when he was alive and in death I know he knew I needed something huge, a project.

And the I saw Teddy. And I kept thinking of his face, and I ended up adopting him from the Pyr rescue in Virginia, where they had worked with him for over a year to determine what would be the best job for him. I alos found out when he arrived that his first owner, his only owner, was an elderly woman who lost her husband and she had to sell her farm,, and she sent Teddy tot he rescue. My understanding is he went everywhere with her as well as guard her goats and hens. When I hear his first owner was a loving elder who had to give him up, I think maybe she too had asked the spirits to help Teddy land in the right place.

He arrive yesterday, we are forever grateful for the rescue to have driven him all the way here for a very fair fee. We felt it was best for Teddy, so we are so happy he did. I have a secure suite in barn next to MArcella for him. He did just fine on his first day, and night. I couldn't wait to get to him in morning. When I opened the stall door, he was lying about and at first his face looked sort of sad, but then it's like he remembered me and was happy. I did chores in barn while he ate, and then took him out to equine barn where he can be in field and come and go to see me. He definitely is still wondering where he is, but he's happy. I still don't want to put him in pasture alone until he settles more so he is going out in increments with me.

Today I took him to visit Martyn at work. He rides great! SO great for our healing visits to elders. He is unfased by chain saw and loud sounds too.

He is not White Dog, but there are moments where it is like they both merge in and out-when I look out in field and see him. White Dog was more an explorer, more brave, Teddy seems more like he needs my reassurance. He is not timid in the least, he just loves people.

While White Dog was my spirit dog, Teddy feels like he is my heart dog...and White Dog knew I needed him. He is the dog I need. I was thinking how Bear was going to be that, but once Covid hit, and we got Buddy for Bear, I feel like Buddy and Bear are a team, and they need each other. In time I think they will be possible candidates for visits, but not right now.

Teddy is a stoic guy who simply loves touch. How perfect for our elder friends. Stay tuned. And visit Instagram for an overabundance of videos and photos.