Practical and Professional Training For Your Pooch
Who are those cute poochies on the Home page?
Every other month we feature a special pooch (or pooches) who we have trained or who we know. We like connecting to the pets we meet (and their humans), and the stories behind each one is something that we hope you appreciate, because we do!
The Story of Milo & Nova
Milo is the big brother to Nova, whose human mama is Pam. When he as adopted at 8 weeks old, he went to where Pam worked. Before his arrival, she had already named herself as Milo's Godmother, and marked a spot in chalk on the floor near her desk where he would nap.
At the time, Pam's brother had been fighting an ever-so nasty battle of cancer, and her life consisted of working a minimum of 60 hours each week, going home to Skype with her brother in Korea, going to bed and doing it all over the next day. This lasted months. Eventually and fortunately, she left her job, but she was still able to have a standing weekly date with Milo. She took him to fun spots every week. She exposed him to the beach, to the city streets, dog parks, rivers and the forest. Every date was special.
Pam ended up taking a year off from work to recuperate from the eventual death of her brother, and regain her personal life and focus. Her dogship with Milo was pretty much one of the only comforts she had. During that time off, she realized that the best time to get a puppy would be when she had time to devote everyday to one by not working full-time. Out of vague curiosity, she asked Milo's breeders if they'd be having a new litter in the near future. Ironically, they had held back one special pup from their last litter, in hopes of breeding her. Her name was Nova. The breeders had decided that they'd simply have too many dogs if they kept her. This unexpected news came right before a trip to the UK, quickly followed by moving house upon the return. The decision had to be made before going to the UK, and ultimately sight-unseen, Nova was adopted with hopes that she would be, "the right one."
Nova was adopted at four months old in late January 2017, and has since been the source of humour, love and affection (both ways, not just Pam being overbearing with affection). Spending everyday together and getting through a period of dealing with death was an enormously big break. They went on excursions and made many other dog friends and humans.
Sometimes when people aren't working, it's easy to get depressed from lack of routine and lack of social interaction. But there were none of those problems, and only the feeling of how life itself, outside of the pressures at work and some of the facades that are required to perform a job. The enjoyment of life without work but spending days interacting with other animal lovers is something we hope you can do, even if only to a certain degree. Animals enter human lives at interesting times, and can have an indescribable affect on them that nothing else can match.
What's a Lagotto???
Nova and Milo. They're siblings but from different litters. Same mother, same father but Milo was born one litter before Nova. They came from Wasmuth Family Lagottos in Langley, BC.
Many people tend to guess that they're some form of a Doodle or Poodle. But they're neither. The name of their breed is Lagotto Romagnolo, and they are water dogs from Romagna, Italy. They were used as duck hunters, but these days they are best known for being truffle hunters. Digging and sniffing is their specialty.
Their non-shedding, sheep-like coat is soft and curly. Their temperaments are super sweet and their minds are exceptionally sharp and clever. This is not a dog you bring to the office and expect to just lie there all day (this has been tested on Nova and it did NOT work!). Lagotti (plural for Lagotto) are working dogs so their minds need to be engaged and challenged, and they need to be physically active on a daily basis, requiring at least two hours of physical activity everyday.
They're loveable, easily trainable and a breed that is growing in popularity. To connect with other Lagotti in the Lower Mainland, join the Facebook group! And if you're interested in a puppy, contact the Wasmuths. They just had a litter of eight on May 12th, so be sure to get in touch with them to find out whether or not they're the best breed for your lifestyle before they're all gone!
