Saturday was lovely, so I hooked up the team and took a wild ride down the forest trail! In lead was Freya and Yukon, with Samantha and Demon in wheel. It was our best run yet! Freya made an awesome lead with Yukon! She took direction well, and didn't let the team stop for distractions. She kept them running the whole way! Need to work on "come around" commands with her, but other than that, she was spectacular!
Unfortunately, I think the success and praise went to her head! Freya has been out of heat for almost a week, but after the Saturday run she teased the boys mercilessly and goaded them in to a mating frenzy so badly Yukon and Demon, who are normally very loving towards each other as brothers, fought over her. We managed to catch them before it became too serious, but not before Demon had a cut on his lip, and a watery eye. We had to separate them from each other for a while and take Freya out of the picture. Poor Samantha was beside herself, trying to stop the boys from fighting. When Freya tried to interfere, though, Samantha was wise and pinned Freya to the ground and wouldn't let her get near the boys. What a great pack mom!
A bucket of cold water stopped the boys in their tracks, and I was able to put Demon in the pen, and take Yukon inside.
I brought each of the boys in for a thorough examination and found only bruises on Yukon despite the blood that was on him. It was all on his surface fur, so I cleaned him up and let him out. Demon loves his brother, I guess, and wouldn't really want to hurt him, but Yukon on the other hand was not so kind to Demon. What an odd dichotomy as Yukon is normally the gentler of the two! I guess it is the quiet ones you have to watch out for!
Demon had a cut on his lip that looked like a tooth impact, but did not puncture all the way through, however, his nose was swollen on that side and his eye watery (thankfully not an eye injury!). He had more bruises around his front shoulders and a very slight nick on his chest. His lip was bleeding profusely, so I cleaned him up with warm water, put bactine and neosporin on the wound. Demon was not happy about being held still for so long and away from Freya his playmate, but he suffered through it.
With the boys seen to, I kept Freya in my room with Samantha and G'kar for a while, and Jim kept Demon with him and Yukon outside until they all calmed down. I guess running lead with Freya has given Yukon the idea that she is his and no one else's. When I let them socialize under my careful supervision, Yukon stood over Freya the whole time, blocking her from Demon who growled at Yukon. Sigh...
The good news is, removing Freya from the picture, and the boys were their amiable selves again, licking eachother's faces in appology, or some doggy equivalent.
In all of that, I managed to get about half of our three acres of grass mowed, and picked up the wood I needed to finish the floor and three walls of the shed. But, when we got back, the sun was dipping low behind the mountains, so I went in and socialized with the boys while Jim and James took the girls for a walk.
Sunday it rained all day, and we had to keep the boys outside. They have dry places to go, doghouses, under the porch, but preferred to run in and out of the rain, getting the porch all slick with mud and wet. Poor boys, but having them in the same place with Freya was out of the question. Ensuring their water was fresh and their foodbowl full, I did some work on the block of wood that will become my new leather tool holder while watching some movies. Every once in a while, though, I went out to be with the boys and check on Demon's lip. It was still swollen, but didn't seem to be bothering him. I cleaned it again, put more bactine on it then some more neosporin.
This morning I checked on Demon's lip before going to work. The swelling had gone down a lot, and he seemed a bit more like his goofy self. But Freya's hormones still have them whipped into a frenzy, and I could not let them be with her or come in the house. Jim spoke to the vet this morning and they will be able to take Demon to be neutered October 2nd, and they can use the new laser surgery technique. It will cost an extra $70 for the laser surgery, but is better for him, so I told them to go ahead and schedule laser surgery. He also talked to her about Freya's behavior and the vet said that this can sometimes happen and will put her back in to heat if she mates.... joy... Never had this happen before with my previous dogs, and Samantha doesn't seem to have this issue, but thought that might be the case.
So, Freya will just have to be without her playmates for at least another week. Guess that means more exercise for James and I to keep her occupied.
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