a new site

It's a time of movement and change, in many ways.
This site is closing as the site for Tara's Babies. Please go to http://fromtarasbabies.blogspot.com to stay in touch with us!
Thank you!

changes, large and small

Working with the feral dogs is so rewarding because the changes you witness, and have been part of the process in bringing about, are tiny and monumental all at once. I mean, we love all the dogs, but the ferals offer us a precious opportunity to transform their lives from entirely fear-based, to ones based on trust.
Some milestones, from my view:
Rose is a smaller medium dog, very timid and shy; perhaps a little non-descript in some ways, could be the painfully shy wallflower whose presence does not even register on on your mind. Nothing flashy or flamboyant about her. Some months ago - perhaps Thanksgiving or Christmas, we had turkey - I decided to try and get her to hand feed. Until that point she would feed with you sitting a foot or two away, but anything closer would send her scurrying off behind her house. It took quite a few days. I would offer the food in my hand, she would come forward a step or two, then retreat. Each day I tried it again and again, although allowing her to eat from the bowl after she had made some attempts to overcome her fear. Little by little, her panic receded, until she began to eat from my hand.
Some weeks later I upped the ante, holding out my empty hand for her to touch with her nose, before she got the food in my other hand. The lesson was more quickly learned, this time, although she would still run back and forth between mouthfuls. Next, I began moving my free hand while she ate, which startled her every time, her eyes round and worried, ready to bolt, and again sometimes retreating. One time I managed to touch her ear, fleetingly.
Well, yesterday, I began with her ear and by the end of the feed, I was able to stroke her head down past her collar while she kept feeding. This was such a joyful moment for me; this is the first time she has been petted in over a year, perhaps much much longer, given we know nothing of these dog's histories.
I am so proud of her, because it is very hard to shed that deep-seated fear, and she tries every day, again and again. Today there was a lot of building commotion going on - backhoe, people - so even to have her feed from my hand was a miracle, as normally such a big change in her environment would send her hiding. The entire time, she was looking, listening, jumping back, coming forward - but although it took longer, she ate it all.
Timmy is another one making great progress. He is a striking black and white pit/dalmation mix, who has spent almost the entire year - day and night - hiding in his igloo; we would hand feed him in there, his brown eyes big and uncertain. Scars on his face suggest he may have been a bait dog used to train fighters: his fear of people and dogs is enormous. Well, some weeks ago, we began to leash walk him: took some chasing around his yard the first couple of times, but now much less so.
A couple of days ago, while handing out treats, he ran to the fence and took one from me - right out in the open, straight from my hand. And several times now, when he has seen me coming at dinner time , he has come outside of his own volition, to greet me. He then retreats to safety, but will now hand feed with his entire body, bar his back legs, out side his igloo - stretched out like a spring ready to recoil, yet mustering his confidence and trust in us.
These dogs are remarkable, I cannot do justice to the efforts they put in to overcome months - a lifetime - of terror, and learn to feel safe with us. I appreciate every moment, every change, every time they hesitate for one second less. We teach each other so much, this is definitely a reciprocal relationship of patience, trust and developing love.
On another note, Raven unexpectedly decided to leave here, so I will be the sole writer, at least for a while. Karen, who also lives here, and I are caring for the troops right now - such a rowdy, loving bunch they can be, en masse - and soon some familiar faces will probably be back here, to continue caring for Tara's Babies.

SPRING HAS SPRUNG

It has been a longtime since I have written on the blog. It has been a busy winter so much has happened. My spring resolution is to write a blog a month. Even though we are still technically in winter til next week. Spring is in full force here at the valley. The weather has been warm and pleasant the air is full of bird song and pollen from the juniper trees float like clouds of smoke on the spring breeze. Flower and grass are starting to grow. And so has the trust of a lot of the feral here. All of the feral dogs with the exception of Hope our most feral will now trust us enough to be hand fed. Timmy a wonderful and timid Pit bull mix is starting to take walks daily with me and my pack. This is a major achievement for him as when he first came he was totally afraid of other dogs and would spend all of his time in his dog house. Over the last 6 months or so he has started coming out more. 2 weeks ago I started walking with him with Gwena, Wong Chong and my extended house guest Philly. He has taken a shine to them. Once we get far enough away from the hustle and bustle of the dog compound. He relaxes enough with us to sniff and romp like any dog. Philly has come along way also after about 4 months of living with me and the pirate pack she has learned to trust humans again. She walks well on a leash and will sit for her food. In the mornings she wakes me up with excited wags and kisses. She still is a little timid a times but has progressed enough that we can now find her a foster home or a forever home of her own. More wonderful stories are yet to come.

mud-puddling

The weather has definitely been winter: snow, rain, sleet. And underfoot: mud! thick, oozing, slippery. Mud!
And one of our boys, Khen, seems to love it. The first of our two Lethal Aussie residents (white, and almost completely blind and deaf), he splashes and digs and roams in his run, to the extent that from paw to underbelly, white quickly transforms to black. But his huge smile never diminishes!
Khen has transformed in himself since his arrival a couple of months ago. He is large, maybe 90lbs, and strong, and walking him was very difficult, as he pulled, sightless, here and there. He also escaped , what - 6 times? - from his run in the first day, by chewing through the wire. For his safety, we covered the lower half with thick plywood and the gate with tin, making his presence almost invisible, except when he stood on his long back legs, his beautiful snout sniffing through the wire, trying to detect your precise location. But the plywood also kept the sun from effectively drying the ground out.
When you enter his run, his sniffer seeks you out and he leaps with joy - his paws reach almost to my shoulders (I am 5ft 9"). And whatever was on his paws (mud, and you know what else it could be) smears on your coat, but with such exuberant joy, its almost OK!
Well, even though he still leaps - too much happiness to contain - now, if you firmly stroke his long body, he will sit before going out the gate, and on his walks, with leash correctly on his neck, he stays gently right by your side, the entire way. He has obviously settled in and learned to trust, becoming less anxious.
After the recent weather, his smallish run was one of the worst - black mud and puddles - from his constant playing and running, and searching/digging/pouncing for his toys when he misplaces them.
We decided to move him to a larger, drier run. We re-shuffled the field a little - causing great interest amongst all the residents - and placed a thick layer of straw on the ground of his new home. And we decided to see how he went with exposed wire, no plywood defence.
Well, I walked him today - clear blue skies - and how joyful he is. The sun was streaming in the whole huge yard, his paws were light brown only to short-sock length, and he was roaming back and forth, tail wagging. Still mud-puddling where he could, but it is so very different: the space so open and large. He has not tried to escape, and now he doesn't have to jump up to sniff out what is going on. He is part of the visible family.
I love this dog! Admittedly, his eyes, 3/4 sheathed with white inner lids, opaque eyeballs visible only in the very corners, are at first a little odd to behold. But his smile, and the way he tilts his magnificent head when he knows you are there, and pokes his broad pink-tipped nose to the fence, wagging his tail! And even the leaps of joy, mud and all. He is so exuberant, it is infectious. With a little more training, he will make someone the perfect, loving, playful friend; when that time comes, I will be a little bit saddened to see him go

wishing you all the best!

Well, technically this is called a dog blog, but in fact when Tara's Babies began post- Katrina, we were also the home for 7 rescued cats; in the future we will again be a feline sanctuary, so it seems only fair to let Katie feature here.

Katie was one of the 6 that spent time at Dakini Valley (the seventh went straight to a new home). A smoochy, purring beauty, whenever i went into "The Cat Room", she would always look for loving attention; her compatriots were more varied in their responses - the wildeyed tabby would just as likely leap onto your shoulder, or race up a cat tree, the big white old tom, Casper, would walk in a deliberate and regal manner down the stairs. It was not a very big room, but had a loft and access to an enclosed outside run, and we had lots of fun building a myriad of contraptions to keep them occupied, so that no fights ever erupted.

Two of the cats became re-unites - the tabby, and a short-haired calico - the very last one to leave, to whom I had grown most attached. Reminded me somewhat of my precious old cat, Texas, still living in Australia.

Katie - then known as Mama Kitty - was fortunate to be fostered by Jenny, a kind and generous woman from Phoenix, who also took Honey, an old yellowlab with special needs. Mama Kitty was so named because her vet check post rescue identified her as pregnant, but kittens never transpired, so it may be the trauma of the Hurricane meant she lost them. Jenny cared for the two for some months, but eventually needed to find a more permanent home for the cuddly cat. Enter Tooky, one of our resilient volunteers who had spent several weeks here in the bitter cold last year, when we had many many more dogs than now, and work days were very long and tiring. A resident of Utah, with the softest heart for animals, I knew her senior cat had recently passed away, and suggested she might like to consider taking in our Hurricane baby.

Without much delay, Tooky and Howard agreed, so the soon-to-be-named-as Katie made her last journey across a state border, into her new, forever home. There she is spoiled and loved and very content, as this photo proves.

At this season of holidays, the closing of the year, the time of family and reflection, Katie, plump and playful under the Xmas tree, reminds me of all the connections we have made with people and animals over the last year. Transcending geography, and sometimes only brief, they represent the harmony and loving-kindness of so many. Animals seem to open our hearts, to touch a chord, to become a language we all understand. This is the great gift they offer and we can share. So, we at Tara's Babies thank everyone who has ever helped an animal in need; with your support, we will continue to grow in strength and kindness.

Have a wonderful holiday season, and a joyful, bountiful new year!

a bicycle built for two

Raven cannot drive, so has been trekking the road - perhaps a quarter mile each way? - from the main base of Tara's Babies to the residence where the computer is located, and where I also live. This, at least once every day. Not that he ever complained - it is a beautiful walk, and he is resilient, but it also takes time, and on days where the back and forth is repeated several times, I am sure it got tedious.
The Sommerville family, friends of Tara's Babies, just donated a fabulous 10-speed mountain bike, and our 2 stalwart volunteers, Tom and Mary, delivered it yesterday. Raven is stoked, it makes life just that little bit easier. But here's the even better news - he told me he is using it to walk the highly energetic pitbulls!
It takes a bit of manouvering, as they haven't learned the road rules of not weaving to and fro in front of the tires. And Grendel thinks biting them could be a good game, almost as much fun as his blue ball (he is our soccer player extraordinare!). But Princess, our pogo dog who bounces endlessly with joy when you go to her gate, was tuckered out after several runs up and down the road. What a great and fun way to use up that dynamic get-up-and-go they all display, every day. Not to mention teaching them new skills, always a plus.
Of course, if it continues to snow we may have to re-think the plan - perhaps they could pull a sled?! - but on mornings like today, chilly but clear, what a wonderful method for everyone to have fun!

a few bales of straw

Winter's icy tendrils have begun to curl through the valley. The nights are usually well below freezing, the days can still be sunny, although interspersed with brisk, gusty winds that seem to spin the very thoughts within your mind. Snow or sleet has been forecast, the sky becomes heavy, but as yet the ground remains clear.
The dogs have plastic igloos to sleep in, padded on the outside by bales of hay, as extra insulation. But we have had no clean fresh straw to create a warm insulated nest for them inside. Their homes looked so bare and barren.
Today that changed! Ani Miranda kindly organised Eric, someone she knows in Sedona, to haul out 20 bales of fresh straw. Karen, Raven and I spent some hours in the morning wheeling the old straw (now heavy beyond measure!), and dispersing it on an unused field littered with tumbleweed. We then set up palletes and unloaded the clean, cream coloured straw. What a delight!
This afternoon Raven went door-to-door, kennel-to-kennel, refurbishing their homes. And afterwards we witnessed the most touching and joyful moment I have felt in some days - almost all the dogs were snuggled inside the homes, sometimes their head just barely visible through the mountain of straw. The atmosphere was one of peaceful contentment, each one happily in his or her nest. Safe, warm, at rest.
Nine bales of straw, that is all it took to make these dogs' day. How simple it can be to change a life and bring such joy!