Eight Months with Hannah

February has been a great month for our girl!  There have been no trips to the vet (fingers crossed!) and she's been transitioning to a new food (we're at about half the prescription food now and half regular food I can buy at a pet store).  We've been able to successfully give her two doses of the worm prevention medication, so she hasn't had any problems with worms, either.  I looked at her yesterday and she's all filled out now, her shoulders are solid muscle, her coat is shiny and healthy with no patchiness, she's not scratching her skin or biting her feet, and I was so HAPPY for her.  She's healthy and wags her tail frequently now. 

We have only been to the dog park a couple of times in the last month because it was icy and dangerous for humans. She does love running around off leash and playing with other dogs, though. It's lovely to see her playing with other dogs from the big to the small. She's so happy to do so.

We've been going to obedience class on Tuesday nights and she's learning all kinds of useful skills, including getting up on a platform, putting her paws in boxes, and not barking at things with wheels. She's still very uncertain when she sees a bike or skaterboarder go by outside, but once things warm up and people do more of these types of activities, we're going to be doing some hardcore desensitization. She's so happy to go to obedience class - she loves to work with me and learning new skills.

Dr. BB and I frequently talk about how absolutely CRAZY it is that Hannah has only been with us for eight months. We've never had a spring with her! But she's such an important part of our daily lives and daily activity that I can't believe she hasn't been with us forever. It's like we look back at all the time we had without her and we know she wasn't there, but it just seems unimaginable to go back to that. Even Zelda seems to be sad on Tuesdays when Hannah goes to daycare and isn't around all day. 

We have mostly solved the sore feet issue. If Hannah is outside when it's below 20 or so, we put booties on her back paws and Musher's Secret, a wax, on her front paws. It has seemed to stop a lot of the irritation she was getting and has prevented her from getting any frostbite or other damage.  The wax has not irritated her sensitive skin, so if anyone else has a dog with sensitive skin, I think it's probably safe to at least try.

She's quickly becoming the best dog ever.