A special thanks to Daisy May and her parents, Shelly and Ron. Daisy May was the inspiration behind PIN (Pet's In Need) which is a non-profit organization established to help nurse injured homeless animals back to good health. Ron, a skilled photographer, takes color photos of animals and donates a portion of the proceeds to PIN. This photo of Daisy May was taken in the Shenandoah Valley just minutes from Martin's Dog Farm. Please ask us about rescue dog discounts for farm services.

Sandy is a rescue from the Chesapeake Bay SPCA. Sandy recently moved to Fairfax, Virginia with her loving family of 5. Due to all of the commotion and confusion of the move, Sandy was a visitor on Martin's Farm for 6 days while her family got situated in their new home. We are excited to have Sandy back up on the farm for a week in August.

Sandy has a truly amazing rescue story. She and her pups were found on the waterfront behind a large rock structure. The pups seemed to be 7-8 weeks of age at the time of the rescue. As to be expected, Sandy was very protective of her litter and stood guard over them. One by one the pups came to the rescue team, leaving Sandy protecting an empty nest. Finally, to everyone's surprise, Sandy came running to a family who was just out for a leisurely walk on the beach. The connection was so wonderful the family ended up adopting lovely Sandy, who of course got her name from the sandy beach. Several food wrappers were found in the rock home Sandy was using for her pups. The SPCA staff was amazed that Sandy seemed to have given birth and cared for her pups in the dead of winter. What a dedicated mother she is! All of her puppies found loving homes in the Chesapeake area. Sandy's new family is planning to stay in touch with some of the families who adopted her puppies.

Many homeless dogs come with amazing stories and the staff at Martin's Farm is convinced that these rescued canines are forever grateful. We have seen so many wonderful connections between rescued canines and their human parents. Are you thinking about adopting a dog? PLEASE DO!!
Please check out Finders Keepers.

Note: We offer discounted rates for rescued canines!

Millie is just as sweet as they come. She is a purebred Golden Retriever who stayed up on Martin's Farm for two reasons: 1). Her family was going on a trip and 2). Millie suffered from severe separation anxiety. Her separation anxiety was getting so severe her family was considering finding a new home for her, but they wanted to see if the staff on Martin's Farm could offer some advice and training first. Millie was "tearing up the house, peeing on the floor and barking non-stop", her family reported.

More often than not, the severe separation anxiety cases we see are a direct result of unintentional improper conditioning from family members sometimes sending all sorts of mixed signals. As the mystery began to unwind, it turns out that all 4 family members would leave Millie within a 30-45 minute period of time each weekday, but on the weekends she was in the company of usually 2 or 3 family members all day - sometimes more. Millie was given treats and breakfast, told "NO" several times and was put in the kitchen while the last family member would make a mad dash for the front door. This must have been confusing and pretty scary for Millie. We were not surprised to hear that Millie didn't touch her food during the day.

The first step was to back up and start from square one. This process began up on Martin's Farm while Millie's family was vacationing. A new extra large crate was purchased for Millie that then went home with her after her stay on the farm. Millie was encouraged into the crate several times a day on the farm with one of her favorite "tuffy" chew bones (not with treats because of her negative association). The farm staff gradually increased her time in the crate making the process before and after her crate time enjoyable. She was given treats after she had spent time in the crate. Millie also had extensive exercise throughout her training process and, therefore, was naturally tired and began to associate her crate time with her nap time. Millie went home with a list of requirements for her family.

1. Exercise Millie for at least 30 minutes prior to crating her.
2. Always remove her collar before crating.
3. Make the leaving process a calm one. Speak softly, never say "NO".
4. Feed Millie separately from your leaving time - maybe in the evening?
5. On the weekends, always give Millie some crate time (nap time).
6. Hire a dog walker for a mid-day walk to break up the day for Millie.
7. REWARD her wonderful behavior with treats and LOTS of love.

Many times the undesirable behavior our canines depict is a direct result of misdirection, lack of training, lack of consistency and a lack of confidence. We are so happy to report that Millie now runs to her crate when her family begins to leave in the morning. We believe she associates her crate with safety and no longer feels abandoned. We are proud of Millie, her family and their accomplishments.

NOTE: Never leave your crated dog with something they can ingest.

"Hershey", a very sweet and cuddly Chocolate Lab, and his human family just welcomed sweet, little "Kiss" to their home. "Kiss" was rescued from a puppy mill in Southern Virginia along with 53 other dogs & puppies. Hershey is a very loyal friend & companion and frequently provides Kiss with a warm and smooshy place to sleep. We adore Hershey AND Kiss and were happy to have them stay on the farm for 10 days.

Please check with your local shelter for wonderful canines looking for a loving home. WE OFFER RESCUE DOG DISCOUNTS for canine care on
Martin's Dog Farm.

CLICK BELOW FOR DOG ADOPTIONS IN YOUR AREA!
www.co.fairfax.va.us/ps/ac/adoptoth.htm
www.loudoun.gov/animals/shelter.htm
www.fauquierspca.com
www.animalcenter.org
www.washhumane.org

Walker was adopted from the D.C. Animal Shelter in November of 2004 by David & Breanne. Originally David & Breanne were searching for a younger pooch, but saw Walker on an internet shelter pet finder listing and the rest was history.

Walker continues to warm the hearts of both his parents and the staff on Martin's Dog Farm. Since his adoption, Walker has become a regular on the farm and is always very well behaved and extremely active for a 7 year old pooch.

Sweet Walker was recently diagnosed with Cushing's Disease, an abnormality of the pituitary gland. Fortunately, Walker's blood levels of the hormone cortisol are low and he is being treated with medicine. We were all relieved to find out that Walker's disease is treatable. We thank David & Breanne for their continued loving care and devotion to Walker. He thanks them, too!

For more information about Cushing's Disease in canines, click here.

ADOPT A POOCH FROM YOUR LOCAL SHELTER!

Blue is a very sweet and special 13 year old Dachshund who is the first blind dog to stay on Martin's Dog Farm. Blue's Glaucoma began as a partial vision impairment in one eye and eventually took his sight in both eyes although it appears that he still partially sees shadows and movement. Despite his sight disability, Blue finds his way around just fine and loves to explore all the
smells and sounds outside. Blue has exceptional hearing and is constantly wagging his little tail, particularly when you use his name. On many occasions Blue would find the nearest human leg and begin to climb. This of course always resulted in getting picked up and receiving lots of cuddles and kisses. All the staff on the farm fell in love with the little guy and wanted to put him in their pockets and take him home. We are thrilled to have him back on the farm in December along with his housemate buddies, Shadow and Peanut.

Little Dymond and Flash first visited the farm in October of 2004. At that time Flash was settling into her new home with her parents Lisa, Bryce and her new Beagle sister, Dymond. Flash is a Greyhound who was rescued from a race track in Florida after hurricane Irene. The destruction of the track gave the Greyhound rescue a perfect opportunity to save Flash and other Greyhounds. Dymond and Flash have become the best of friends. Flash takes her "big sister" role very seriously and always is aware of where Dymond is when they visit the farm. We found out during Dymond & Flash's most recent visit that Flash has developed a unique concern for ALL Beagles, not just Dymond. For one weekend we had a total of 4 Beagles, all from different homes, staying on the farm. The slightest Beagle bark resulted in speedy Flash by their side within seconds. Flash has such a warm and sweet nature. Since Flash's adoption both Lisa & Bryce have become active in the Virginia Greyhound Adoption League providing advice and home studies for future Greyhound owners. We are so glad that Lisa & Bryce opened their home and their hearts for both Dymond and Flash. We love both of their girls and always look forward to their visits on Martin's Dog Farm!

For more information about Greyhound Adoptions please contact the Virginia Greyhound Adoption League:

www.virginiagreyhounds.org

We usually highlight farm guest dogs, but this was a unique story:

Frances is a sweet Border Collie Mix who was rescued in May of 2003 in Warren County, Virginia. It didn't take long for Frances to become a permanent part of Martin's Dog Farm along with her loving Mother, Maddie. Both girls were in need of rehabilitation, especially "Mamma Maddie" who was a mere 18 pounds and frightened of people when she was rescued.

Frances spends much of her outside time patrolling the property and herding the guest dogs on Martin's Farm. Many of the guest dogs who stay on the farm seem to just enjoy doing "dog things" - running, fetching, slobbering, napping, eating, etc. Frances, on the other had, has always possessed the drive to work. She often has an expression, if we might personify, of concern and frequently tells on the other dogs if they are playing too rough.

Late one afternoon Frances began barking non- stop at the corner of the farm property. She was relentless and wouldn't move from her location. Thinking that she had spotted a squirrel, we encouraged her to come inside. Frances would have no part of that. She continued to bark. After approximately 5 minutes Frances stopped barking long enough for us to hear someone yelling "HELP". We leashed Frances and headed out the gate towards the yelling. It turns out that approximately ½ mile into the neighboring farm an elderly farmer had fallen off of his ladder when he was pruning a tree limb. Dan had broken his wrist and dislocated his shoulder. We are pleased to report that Dan continues to feel better each day. Frances has a new friend who now puts Milkbone treats on his shopping list.