Well we survived Friday the 13th and a full moon in Dogdom (although I think every Friday feels like Friday the 13th with a full moon!).  The big event of the week was the addition of an HDD (Huge Dumb Dog) to the daycare pack.  HDD's differ from BDD's (Big Dumb Dogs) by about 20 to 30 pounds.  The story is similar almost every time we take in an HDD.  Someone adopts or purchases an adorable little pup.  By six months of age, said adorable pup weighs over 80 pounds and has become completely unmanageable.  By eight months of age the not so gentle giant is in the animal shelter waiting for a human with more experience and considerably more tolerance (the previous humans having given up after many successful escapes from kitchens, crates and kennels, which in turn resulted in several furniture, carpet and garden casualties).  By one year of age (or so) the new human companion of said beast has dropped in or called to inquire about our facility (particularly the size and strength of our fencing) and if we accept giant breed dogs.  For the new human companion, taking on an HDD is a bit like buying a used car that has been equally neglected or mistreated.  In this case, the hidden costs (beyond the usual veterinary bills and furniture replacement associated with rescuing any dog) include extensive and serious training (none of this treat based nonsense) and doggy daycare.  I am always impressed with the dedication of these folks as they seek to undo the damage of a year or more of neglect/abuse in a dog that often weighs upwards of 120 pounds.  Our new Baby Huey weighs in at about 125 lbs. with the enthusiasm and energy of kid in a candy store (after having eaten the candy!).  He came in the play area like he was shot out of a cannon!  The wind was immediately taken out of his sails as he was greeted by our resident alpha dog, a 40 lb. poodle named Yoda (we can refer to him by his real name, as he is my dog and practically perfect in every way!).  Although skinny and cripple (he had surgery a few years ago in which the femoral head, the ball that fits into the socket of the hip joint, was removed) there has yet to be a dog who will challenge Yoda.  So, when Baby Huey came thundering in, Yoda sauntered over, curled his lip, snapped his teeth, and sauntered away.  A now bewildered Baby Huey took a few minutes to re-evaluate the scene and chose to make friends with a large breed pup who is destined to be a BDD is a few more months!  All in all, Baby Huey is a fine fellow with dedicated humans and I am confident (with Yoda's help) we can teach him manners and help him as he continues to grow (the HDD's usually are done growing around three years of age) to respect the boundaries (fences, furniture, etc.) that his human companions establish.

As I am writing this on an unseasonably cold Saturday (57 degrees in the middle of June, seriously?) I am avoiding the work still to be done on our upper back porch project.  I would rather work in 90 degree heat than in this miserably damp cold.  Global Warming, my ass!  However, the ever disciplined husband is high up on a ladder working diligently, so as soon as I am done I will reluctantly join him.  Ugh.

The end of the second book in the Orphans and Inmates series is well established in my head, but not yet on my hard drive.  There is too much going on between home renovation/repair, research projects and dogs to find time to sit down and just write until it is finished.  My plan is to wrap up all projects (manual labor and scholarly) by the end of June, finish the second book by the end of July, make edits in response to beta reader comments by September, final copy edit and revisions by November and release by Christmas.  So, I'd better stop blogging and start stripping (wood, remember?) if I am to keep to my schedule!