And then there were two!

It's been a while since I've been on here and I have an update:  We have another deaf dog!  Her name is Nea.  Now, I bet you're wondering a few things about Nea.  First of all, her name.  We wanted to name her "Ice Cream" so we could have Pickles and Ice Cream but that sounded stupid so we thought about Neapolitan (which is an ice cream) so we shortened it to Nea.

Where did she come from?  Montclair, NJ Animal Shelter.  Wow, Mac, that's a really long way to go for a dog. How did you find her?  We found her on www.Petfinder.com.  You can narrow your search down to what type of animal you want and whether or not they have special needs so that's what we did.  There were several deaf dogs on the list but some were from rescues which is okay but for some reason, they charge about $400.00 to adopt an animal.  I understand that they have to recoup some of the expenses for fosters and that is great but that's kinda expensive.  The drive to New Jersey was no less expensive but Nea (whose previous name was Diamond...yuck) had been in the shelter there since Thanksgiving!  The staff there was extremely helpful and they discounted the adoption fee because Nea is special needs but that didn't matter to me.  We really didn't think about bringing Pickles' crate so we could crate one of them but the shelter gave us a crate and a collar and leash for Nea!

The trip back was really fun.  Pickles whining to get to Nea, GPS putting us off of the interstate and onto 1-9 in Jersey that took us through Trenton in a downpour and having to drive through foot deep water because the storm drains were stopped up (thanks, Jersey).  But we made it home and after some 14 hours on the road and almost 700 miles, we now have deaf dog number two...Nea!

The first night was great because they went right to sleep but the next couple of days have been a bit troublesome.  They play roughly and that play turns into fighting but only a couple of times has it been bad.  Just a few battle scars.  It's getting better but I know it's going to take some more time.  Pickles is the head dog but Nea has such a strong personality, just like Pickles, that neither of them want to give up.  Some of the problem, too, is that they are deaf and one cannot hear the other one growl or bark.  When Pickles goes to the park and plays, I notice the same thing but at the park the other dogs can hear so they know when to back off of Pickles but she doesn't have that same luxury.  Here, neither of them have it.

Right now, I'm outside writing this because they need more space.  They seem to do well when they can get some of the playing out of their system and get away from each other so I can see individual walks and trips to the park for a while...at least until they can behave together.

We also ordered an E collar for Nea.  I know there is a certain population out there that thinks those things are cruel but for a deaf dog, they can be a lifesaver.  If a hearing dogs gets out of its yard or away from its human, the human can call the dog back.  How do you call a deaf dog?  You can't!  And if that dog is running toward the street, then what?  With the E collar, you can call the dog to you or, if necessary, issue a shock to make the dog think about something else or do something else.  So far, with Pickles, it has worked fairly well; I just need to work with her a bit more everyday to improve her response.

Well, that's it for now.  Stay tuned for more adventures for Pickles and Nea(politan ice cream)!

Check out their new Facebook page at Pickles and Nea: The Deaf Dogs.