The other side of fear

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One of the first signs that Ceili had more serious fear and anxiety issues than the usual ‘settling in’ to a new home nervousness came on one of our early morning walks. As we walked along a quiet path towards some woodland, we spotted a neighbor and his two dogs, maybe 20 or 30 feet ahead of us.

Ceili froze. She couldn’t go forward and she couldn’t go back. She was stuck – totally paralyzed by her fear of these dogs.  While our neighbor’s dogs are big, they are also the epitome of laidback calm. They had absolutely zero interest in Ceili.

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Lessons from a rescue dog

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A year ago we signed the adoption papers on a dog who has changed our lives in ways we never expected.

The journey to her adoption wasn’t straightforward. To be honest, it was fraught with doubts, fierce debate and the devastating loss of another dog last summer, a dog who despite being in our home for only a short while had become part of the family.

And then along came Ceili. Continue reading “Lessons from a rescue dog”

Of dogs and expats

Freya dog - from shelter dog to world traveler
Freya dog – from shelter dog to world traveler

Our expat adventures have been dominated by discussions about dogs.

When we made the decision to begin this craziness, one of the hardest decisions was whether to take our dog, Mackinaw. At the time, she was a lady of a certain age, with a heart condition and dodgy hips. We had just begun to think about what life might be like after she’d gone. Moving to a country where the winter temperature was far below what any of us was used to and a shortage of dog friendly housing and landlords posed a real dilemma for us.

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