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| Name: |
Raina
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Age: |
Two and a half years old
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| Gender: |
Female |
Breed: |
American Pit Bull Terrier |
| Home: |
Juneau, Alaska, USA |
We
got Raina when it became obvious that our Rottweiler, Moose, was
aging rapidly. She was 8 weeks old when she arrived via Alaska Airlines
to Juneau from Ohio, a two day trip for a very small dog. We could hear
her screaming from outside the air cargo building when we arrived to
pick her up. She quieted immediately once removed from her kennel
although she continued to shake violently until she was wrapped in a
towel and snuggled close by her new mommy.
We'd not had a puppy in the house for a long, long time, so in
anticipation of the new arrival, we built an inside enclosure to keep
her in when she was unsupervised. The box posed no problem for her, she
was out of it in a flash, jumping up and hooking her front legs over the
edge, then flailing around with the back feet until she scrambled over
the side to land with a thump on the floor.
It was almost bed time when she arrived, so after a few hours out of the
kennel, we tried to put her down for the night. She immediately began
screaming, so with her new mommy and big doggie brother Moose
keeping her company on a camp pad on the floor, she fell asleep. She
began crate training the second night with a minimal amount of
whimpering.
Smart as a whip, too smart for her own good, she was housebroken within
two days. She "knew" she had to do something when put outside, so if
she didn't have to pee, she took to squatting and pretending to pee so
she could come back in the house immediately. After all, Alaska is cold
compared to Ohio.
Because Pit Bulls are susceptible to Parvo, she was kept away from other
dogs and areas frequented by other dogs until she was 18 weeks old,
which meant walks in the woods on our private property. In this
picture, she just waiting for us to catch up. She was so small and with
her cammo coloring, she got lost several times, only to be found
immediately under foot, blending in perfectly with the sticks and leaves
on the ground.
Just a day shy of her one year birthday, she lost her big brother Moose
to cancer. She was a very sad puppy for a long time. Each evening she
would stand at the fence and stare at his outdoor kennel, sometimes for
30 minutes, until she gradually accepted the fact that she was now an
only dog and began to soak up all the spoiling that came with that
title. She quickly learned how to perfect her pout, and anyone who
thinks dogs can't stick their lower lip out needs to meet Raina.
With two knee surgeries under her collar, she has grown into an
exceptional dog, although she will never be the watch dog her big
brother was. She prefers to have the humans in the house check out
those strange noises or put Echo the cat back in line. She is sweet,
friendly, and loves to play. Her favorite toys are tennis balls, which
are popped immediately, or any other toy that can be used for a game of
keep away. Other favorite games include chasing the darn squirrel out
of BBQ grill on the front deck and keeping the stick away from anyone
who asks "Is that my stick?"
Raina deserves the Dog of the Day title for giving us almost another
full year with Moose, who perked up immediately after she came to live
with us, for not eating the cat even though she looks like small furry
prey, and for making us laugh no matter what.
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