  Photo Comments "Hi! I've grown up a lot since my last pics, haven't I? I'm 10 months old now and love to drive mom nuts. It's so much fun! ;)"
Age: 3 Years Sex: Female Weight: 26-50 lbs
 Photo Comments
 Photo Comments
 Photo Comments
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 Photo Comments "Here I am with big brother Xander. We're not supposed to go into the kitchen. I dunno why, though, I mean, we're MORE than willing to help out with all the food!"
 Photo Comments "Just another "beauty shot" - and aren't we a gorgeous pair?" [See My DogsterPlus Photo Book]
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Leave a bone for Laika
Doggie Dynamics:
| | | | | | | | | Energy | | | | | | Intelligence | | | | | | Friendliness | | | | | | Playfulness | | | | | | Disposition | | | |
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Sun Sign: 
Gotcha Date:
February 7th 2009
Birthday:
November 20th 2008
Likes:
So far, everything! She's just starting to exlore the world!
Favorite Toy:
Yellow tennis balls, Xander (our other dog)
Favorite Food:
Milk Bone treats
Arrival Story:
Some people may think we moved too soon to get a new puppy after Tasha's leaving us (3 days ago), but poor Xander has just been absolutely LOST without her, and Hubby & I felt we were ready to bring a new little girl into our home. As devastated as losing Tasha was, talking to our vet, who assured that letting her go was definitely the best thing we could do for her, did a lot to ease our doubts and our grief.
So, today, we brought Laika (pronounced "LYi-kah") home! We located her through the Adopt-a-pet.com website. She's two months old, EXTREMELY curious, friendly, loving and all around amazing. Xander seems to adore her already and while she's a little wary of him - he IS about 20 times her size at the moment - LOL - she's clearly not afraid of him. Right now she's on our bed behind me, totally conked out. It's been a busy day. Her foster mother from our local Humane Society had taken her to one of the PetSmart stores in the area so people could meet her, then, after agreeing to let us adopt her, had to give her another one of her vaccine shots and then brought her over to our home, where she got to meet the whole family!
Bio:
We had some real rough spots over Laika's first two years. Starting when she was about 6 months old or so, she started getting really aggressive with me - and ONLY me. Of course, I'd never maltreated her, so we had no idea what was going on. We hired a trainer and started working with our vet. Eventually, we started her on some anti-depressants to see if that would help anything, and after spending a few months trying to adjust the dose while she finished growing, she's finally stabilized for the most part and is back to being an amazing girl.
The one thing that really kept me going was that anytime something frightened her (like a vacuum cleaner and such) I was always the person she'd run to for protection. She'd jump up next to me and just press herself up against me as hard as she could, snaking her head between my arm and my body, and licking my hand as it was wrapped around her. I *knew* that down deep she trusted me and that once we were able to get her meds right, things would be fine, and they are!
Forums Motto:
What do you mean it's not a chew toy?!?
About her Name:
The original Laika was a "street mutt" that the Soviet space program used in the first test of sending a living creature into space. At the time, they hadn't developed anyway to bring a capsule back, so Laika was sent out there with the knowledge that she would die in space. They had included enough food for 7 days and had poisoned the last ration so she wouldn't starve to death, but, sadly, she died the on the first day from fright. (They had sensors on her sending back info on her heart rate, temperature and so forth, so they could see how hard her heart was pounding during the trip up.) Since then, the man who had cared for her from the time she was selected until she was sent into space has said that over the years, sending her into space has become one of his greatest regrets and that while they did learn some from the experiment, it wasn't enough to have been worth a dog's life. She was the very first "Earthling" to go into space, and I think her sacrifice deserves to be remembered and honoured.
I've Been On Dogster Since:
| February 7th 2009 |
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More than 3 years! |
Rosette, Star and Special Gift History
Dogster Id:
954986
 for 2081 days
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