ABMC Malinois Rescue Blog

Checking in here from the Land of Bluegrass! Max and Erma are flourishing! Max has gained ten pounds! I don’t know where he puts it, he still looks rail thin to me. We went to the Vet the other day and Max was a perfect gentleman. There were two Chihuahuas yapping away and Max just watched them with an amused look on his face. The Vet was amazed that he was a rescue because he was so level headed. He rolled over on his back and let her cut his sutures out without so much as a wiggle.

I have a friend that owns 1200 beautiful acres of Kentucky’s finest scenery that is completely fenced in. On the property there is a trail that meanders around a creek. Its the perfect playground for Malinois! Max and Erma ran like the day would never end, never getting more than 50 yards from us. Erma loves the water and will plow right in. Max wasn’t sure at first. He would race up and down the bed barely dipping his toes in. It wasn’t too long before Max was diving in right alongside Erma. She couldn’t have all the fun!

As we were walking we notice a metal plate in the water. My son pointed it out to Max and convinced him to go get it. Max noticed the shiny plate in the water and he and Erma pawed at it enthusiastically. When it became obvious that pawing at the water was not the most efficient way to retrieve the plate Max buried his face in the water and burst out of the water sputtering and proudly laid the plate at my feet. Wagging his whole body, ready for me to toss it back in!

The walk was not with out incident of course, I was traveling with Malinois! As we were coming up to one of the pastures Max noticed COWS! He took off across the pasture like a rocket was tied to his back, my children racing behind him screaming his name. I was hurrying along, careful not to break a hip, Erma at my side, a look of sympathy on her face as she watched me struggle.

Like a miracle sent from God just about 20 feet from the cows, Max came to a dead stop. His barks ceased, his head down. I thought my hoarse cries had found his mercy. No such luck. The cows were moving and like a well trained border collie Max bolted to the left, barking but keeping distance from the cows. It was surreal. My poor little Hoarder dog turned a herd of 20 cows away from the creek and through a gate into a pasture. As I huffed along, Erma encouraging me, I was still convinced it was a case of chasing coincidence. The cows knew the pasture was a safe place and ran there when the dog chased them. My theory was dashed as Max turned like a cat stalking a bird, his head down, and then bursting out in a flurry of barks and action to move the stragglers, two cows with their calves that had run the other way, to join the herd. By then my winded son, terrified the cows would remove Max’s head with a well placed kick slammed the gate shut behind them. Max tried to look professional. Lapped at the water. No big deal. You know I am a herding dog.

My son thinks if they had a band they could use that picture for their album cover.
It’s hard to believe its been 18 days since the Florida pups came home with us. They fit into our life like a missing puzzle piece. Erma the happy whimsical dainty girl, chasing butterflies and rolling joyfully in the grass. Max the ever present masculine force, guarding the perimeter and chasing off derelict squirrels and trespassing blue jays. His bark is deep and intimidating, the loiterers in the neighborhood have moved on. He doesn’t want anyone to know it but behind closed doors he is the worlds largest lap dog. Clamoring up for kisses and hugs. Silly old bear.

We are still accident free. The nights are quiet, not a peep. Around 6:30 I can hear Max, restless in his crate, bounding outside to relieve himself, with the girls trot, trot, trot, behind. They eat anything I throw their way. Three meals a day and they are still rail thin! Max loves pizza crusts. Erma loves rawhides, but Max just doesn’t get it. He carries it around until Erma can sneak away with it for her chewing pleasure.

Ella feels like she is having an endless sleep over. She is so happy to have someone to play with but she doesn’t much like sharing her food. She has had a six inch reach advantage over any dog she has ever played with. The first day she ‘boxed’ Max on the head with her paw he returned the courtesy with out so much as blink of the eye. She was stunned! She has met her match! He is every bit as quick, strong and long as she is. They roll, wrestle, pant, and wallow to exhaustion with sweet Erma skipping by and occasionally cheering them on.

Even though I already love them more than I thought possible, I hope they both find a home where they can have their own people and find new adventures. The both have so much to give. I can’t believe they were almost lost to us.

Feb 24th 2008

Hello from the land of Bluegrass and Exuberant Malinois!

I write in the blog because I want all the people who work to rescue these beautiful dogs that their work is appreciated. They are making a difference. And I write because I want people who are considering welcoming a Malinois into their forever home that these dogs have endless possibilites. Every day really is an adventure. Ella gives so much more than she takes. I cannot stand on my soap box long enough. Thank you ABMC Rescue.

Well we had our first sanctioned Rally Match and Ella was the true angel she has grown into. The match was in a warehouse and the echoes were booming. Ella was a little anxious but we walked around to get used to all the funny noises, smells and sounds. There were 23 dogs entered and she was several down the line, 15th.

This was my first official rally and I was mostly concerned that I would get lost. I walked the course a few times and as we were waiting I was going over the pattern in my head. After the initial excitement Ella settled down and fell asleep at my feet while I mumbled incomprehensible commands, come, come, come, heel….

We were on deck waiting our turn when the dog right before us experienced an ‘accident’. The clean up crew rushed in as the offender was whisked out. Before I knew it the judge was asking me if I was ready. I looked down at my dance partner and she wagged her tail in anticipation. Yes!

When I stepped off and started the pattern she was prancing right at my side her tail ticking back and forth with every step like a metronome. Not too fast, not too slow. I continued at a brisk pace from station to station and she never took her eyes off me, she popped every sit sharply with explosive exuberance. Unfortunately when we went over the wet spot, burning with chemical cleaners, she paused for a second like a princess not wanting to get her precious paws wet, and leapt to catch up. The other snag in our pattern was the come with a right finish. She has a fantastic left flip finish but her right finish was shaky and she ended up with a crooked sit. Not too shady for a first try. When we walked out everyone was congratulating us on an excellent run.

Outside the ring they post the scores after every entry and I was thrilled to see Ella scored a 98 out of a possible 100!!! They also time the runs and she had the fastest time of the day! We scored third place!! The best part was people were coming up to me and asking me questions and asking me if I knew any Malinois breeders in the area. This is a big step for a dog that has been snubbed and avoided at every function we have attended. People were shocked and amazed she was a rescue and I spread the word about all the great Mals available. One lady stated she wanted a puppy and I told her that they had some mal puppies too! Finally, Ella is the ambassador I knew she could be!

So now the big announcement, this Friday, March 7th Ella is entered in her first AKC show. She is making her debut in Tennessee, entered in the Novice Rally class. Keep your fingers crossed!

January 20th, 2008

Well the big day has finally come, Ellas first show! It seems like just yesterday I was picking Ella up from Kristen. She has come so far in such a short time! Every other Saturday we track and we have obedience class on Tuesdays. It was only 8 degrees today when we left the house. I bundled up in layer upon layer. Ella seemed immune the cold. She was just excited to go for a ride! We got to the expo hall and it was HUGE! At least 8 rings with both obedience and conformation going on. They were thump! dump! dropping the mats and the gates, people were rolling crates filled with excited barking dogs by and people were buzzing us in golf cards. Ella literally lost it. She was overwhelmed!

She quickly dragged me over to registration. The little old ladies taking money were cowering behind their table, you are going to show that dog? Yes, ma’am that is my intention….lunge, bark, hack, slobber, lunge again…. in what class?…. Jump, drag, poke,whine, lunge….obedience! Of course! The ladies took my money warily. Good luck they said meekly. I think they meant it…

When I went to check in at my ring I asked when my class would be. What class? Pre-novice. Its first up. Oh gosh, dont make me first, please, please, please. How about second? Sigh… wrestle wrestle… Okay. How much time do I have? Thirty minutes. Boy thats not enough to get my dog off the ceiling….

So in a desperate attempt to take the edge off I took Ella out across the parking lot for a freezing game of ball. She was unaffected by the cold arctic blast but my tail was freezing. Her little seal whiskers became frosted white with the frozen slobber. Her tongue longed and she seemed to smile. Maybe now she would calm down? Love springs hope eternal.

Back in the building, someone’s loose springer spaniel races to brawl with Ella. Poor Ella, with a booming No!! I string her up to prevent her from extinguishing said spaniel. I don’t think she would actually bite him but I couldn’t be sure he wouldn’t bite her.

So by the time we make it back to the ring she is firmly placed back on the ceiling. I pull off all my layers down to my new sweater. It is gold and tan and black. We look quite stunning together. But the sleeves were a little long. My daughter said its the style. Almost to my fingers. But it is toasty…

Now at this point I have several concerns… Namely, stand for exam, this could go either way. Sometimes she just doesn’t like men. I was considering asking to skip this part, but it was a fun match right? The other concern was the figure 8. I had been there for forty minutes and she had lunged at every person that came with in 5 feet of her. I shuddered to think of those poor ladies standing as posts enduring 65 pounds of malinois hurdling in their direction…

Number 107….number 107, Ella? Here goes nothing. At least her heeling is strong… my last thoughts entering the ring. The judge seemed kind enough. Reminded me that I could not correct my dog. I understood. I looked down on her as we were about to begin. An angel, she looked at me just like an angel, filled with adoration in her eyes. It was going to be alright…

My first three strides Ella was po-go-ing it on two hind legs. I have never seen such a sight. People were gasping. I tried to calmly with out due force request her to off. At which point she looked down and notice my shoe laces. Now I have worn the same shoes to train her in the past few months but today she noticed that I had fun looking laces and she promptly started pulling on them as we walked. I was completely flabbergasted! I lost sight of my heeling pattern and was concentrating on stopping that behavior and not falling down. Once we came back to our senses and we were back on track we made the final about turn and she noticed…. an new sweater!! And its long! at which point to my horror she started playing tug of war with the left sleeve of my sweater. I kept trodding on, praying the sweater didnt rip apart and I would blind the audience (who was now growing at the spectacle.) topless. She kept up quite deftly grrring and tugging along. Right then I was praying for lightning or spontaneous combustion or any way out of the ring.

After completing? the heeling pattern it was time for the dreaded figure 8. The two stewards scuffled out to their posts like dead men walking. There was fear in the air. Nervously they stood, cringing as much as a post can cringe, bracing for the inevitable. The judge asked if I was ready, I hope so… And beyond all expectations, Ella did the figure 8 perfectly! No lagging, no forging, no tug of war, sitting perfectly, smiling up at me, her tongue hanging out to one side. The audience broke out in applause! The judge asked me if that was the same dog… I think so… maybe the demons took leave.

And the stand for exam, perfect! She didnt move one toe, she barely licked sweetly when he offered his hand to her. Maybe the demons had left… I thought too soon, the recall was more like a tackle. She came bounding to me jumped up paws on my chest, eye to eye and then plopping down on my feet. The finish was explosive she burst up and around and once again the audience clapped.

On the long sit and down she was next to a papillon and I think she spent the entire time trying to decide if that was a dog or a cat. She didnt move but she did stare intensely making me and the dogs owner quite nervous. So all in all it was an educational experience.

We came, we saw, we conquered. Well kinda.
Colleen

I would like to introduce you to my pride and joy Ella. Also known as Ellie the Gazelle, Ella Blue and Oh No!!!! I adopted her from ABMC Malinois Rescue. I don’t know if I rescued her or she rescued me. I do know life has been an adventure since she arrived in October.

The first time I went into Petsmart I thought we would be banned for life. She tried to jump everything moving and somethings that weren’t. Mothers were clutching their children and brave dogs cowered. I can’t bear to tell you what happened in the Science diet aisle. Lets just say, it happens.

So it was off to obedience school. The clutching and cowering continued but we went every week. Ella is a sponge! She wants so badly to please and to have fun. Her bat ears and determination always makes me smile. By the third week people started to talk to us. They did stay a safe distance away but they would smile meekly and nod.

By the end of the six weeks Ella was the Star Pupil. She put pizazz in her heeling. She performed every command with explosive energy. The true test came after graduation. It was back to Petsmart! The cashier saw her as she entered the doors, I could see her catch her breath in anticipation. Ella looked left, she looked right, I braced myself and she looked into my eyes with a smile and sat sweetly. Miss Ella Blue has arrived.

More to come on the Adventures of Ella