Laika's a civilian now, Part I:
It has been so many months since my last post, but I had hit a dry spell in my writing which is ironic because so much has happened here at home. Our little family is safe, happy, and healthy.When I last checked in, we were about to adopt Laika, a retired MWD from Lackland Airforce Base in San Antonio. Travel eight months later and little Laika has nestled into her new home very well. Hubby and I are sure she appreciates the soft, warm bed and cushions since her life was spent in a concrete kennel. Laika is ten and has spent her entire life as a military pup. She was a detection dog, patrol dog and training aid during her career. A long career spent serving her country.
While I know how very important the military dog program is, I must voice my concern over the comfort conditions for the dogs. When we picked our girl up, she was underweight with deep calluses on all of her legs. She wreaked of urine and I was surprised at the condition of her teeth.
My husband and I took her straight home (a six hour drive), introduced her to our house and bathed her. I took her to our vet for a routine check-up the next week which went very well. Laika is a healthy girl despite her appearance (one of the vet techs asked me if she was a rescue). For the next few months I worked with her one-on-one to acclimate her to civilian life. She paced constantly so I attached her collar to a leash and looped that around my waist so she stayed by me as I did household tasks. During the night she slept in her crate in which we put a cushioned floor. I was careful about putting weight on her too quickly but gradually changed her food over to a wheat-free, good protein sourced food. And she needed house trained. Bless her heart, she had never lived in a home and would relieve herself anywhere. I had never house-trained a dog before, but thankfully she is one smart cookie. It took about a month to break her indoor urinating. Here she is today:
We love her very much. She is a sweet soul and loves affection. She and I have bonded; J says she is my dog and I am so happy with that.
As for how Laika and Chief interact, well that is another post altogether.She truly enjoys the outdoors!
