Cat Ballou is in hew new home

She found a home. Her new owners picked her up Sunday, 12/19/04. 

Your webmaster was lucky enough to keep her for a few days, and the following are my observations:

She will make an excellent working dog, excelling in search and rescue, tracking or any location or detection work.

Cat is a very confident little girl. Each new experience, whether a new environment, toy or another dog, is greeted by curious looks, interest and her tail up. The first thing she does in a new location is explore. She's not worried by new experiences or different places.

She also has a very steady temperament. One of her favorite activities is playing with my 12 year old Rat Terrier mix, Nacho. When Nacho gets tired and tells Cat "no", in no uncertain terms, all Cat does is shrug and walk off...  for a little while. When she returns to torment Nacho, a simple "no" is all it takes from me and Cat stops. Then I give her a squeaky toy to work on. Her favorite reward is a laugh and she is good at getting it.

She will fuss when she is put somewhere she does not want to be, such as when she goes into her pen at bedtime, or into her crate for a car ride. But her fussing has never lasted longer that 3 to 5 minutes. Then she settles down. She sleeps quietly all night and rides fine in the car.  She sleeps inside, in the bedroom in a portable x-pen.

She will thrive in an environment where she has training. True to her roots, this is a working dog and needs a job. Around here. her job is a walk down around the property. She greatly enjoys this, and when she falls into the heel position, if rewarded with a "good cat" and a picked up pace, she gets into her "zone". Her tail is way up and she gets into her happy trot as if saying this is what I was meant to do.  Another favorite is a hide and seek game with pieces of her kibble. Hide a few pieces, then walk around with her and point is the general location of the treat. When she gets it, she'll run around with you to find the next ones.

If properly trained she will be an excellent service dog. Be it search and rescue, detection or AkC fun events such as Rally-O or obedience. She will be outstanding. The owner will be rewarded with years of service and companionship from this loyal little girl.