Summer 2010 is not one I will soon forget.

Among the highlights is my annual visit from the nephews.

Also high on the list I think will be the addition of a new little soul to the ark! I had Ms. Davika with me for 3 days or so as a sort of “chemistry check”, and oh dear did we have a time.

Unfortunately for me, having lost my camera when out swimming with the boys on my b-day (a precious bit of film of BoomBoom swimming in a floatie is lost to the world!), all I have to document my time with this girly girl is some video footage. Actually, that really isn't so bad y'all,

We went to work, and as I was told by her current foster, Davi loves to watch the TV. I also heard she is particularly interested in dogs on TV. I resolved to see if a computer monitor could also bring out some interest in my ladyfriend by calling up a YouTube video of Rat Terrier puppies. Someone wants a litter pretty bad methinks!

We took several epic hikes over the weekend in order to see if thee faire lady would be up for the kinda kicks me and Boom Boom are partial too, and I can say without question that she is. We had a little problem getting her to want to walk the direction we were walking, but after a little work on getting her to keep up and keep with us things went swimmingly (I walked last and wouldn’t let her fall behind me – it was pretty easy)

We hit Leona Canyon in Alameda County with a full pack including Boom Boom and my nephew’s dog Taylor. To be honest, it is a little premature to be talking “Pack” in that there didn’t seem to be any particular interest on the part of any of the 3 pooches to be pack leader or even to really hang together pack-style. Each sorta walked their own path and did as they pleased. This is fine with me, I really don’t have the expectation that instant love was going to effuse out of Boom Boom. So far, a “chemistry check” really is just a function of making sure we can all get along.

On that front, so far so good. I have hopes that one day there will be lots of play and interaction with Boomie and Davika. I have decided that I am going to take the first step in adopting Davika. She really is a special little girly, and there is a high likelihood that the daily routine of shuttling Boom Boom to work with me everyday – in fact, everywhere with me everyday – is something I probably can’t sustain indefinitely. For example, I am on a biz trip for a few days as I type this. This is the first time I will be away from Mr. Boombastic for days. He sensed something was up as I packed the suitcase. He definitely sensed it when I got dropped off at the BART station. He’s a good kid. He can handle whatever, but I think he would handle it all much better if he had a buddy to hang with. I think the chances are good that Davika can be that buddy. That is my hope anyway. She has a Love Of Life that is very endearing. I can freely admit to being somewhat over-attached to my little brood, but with the departure of Kitty Kat #1 this spring, there is room in our lives for a gentle soul like Davika. She has had more than her share of ugly, and letting her get out with me & Master B very well could be a chance for her to catch a break.

To be fair, she does seem very happy in her current foster home. She lives among the redwoods in Marin, and in a way, I feel bad taking her out of there!. She is in a foster arrangement right now, and really does need something permanent, so on that account, what I lack in a domicile-among-the-redwoods, I will try to make up for in doggie park visitation and off-leash nature hikes, when and wherever possible. It is gonna take me awhile to get her under voice control, but on our weekend in the outback, once we were in a place where there was nowhere for her to run away to, she did very well off-leash. We had to coax her a few times to keep with us, but her instinct was to want to hang with us and go where we would go.

There is no way to know exactly how this will go until we go with it. If there is an epic disaster, I can return her, but that is an option not really to even be spoken of. There is no reason this can’t be mutually excellent for all the beasts and masters in our casa. Once I get home from this trip, I intend to head on over and pick her up and get things settled – at least to the degree that anything in my life is “settled”. I am pretty busy with work and playing host to guests, but my weekend with the girly holds enough promise that there is still plenty of time for good living for canine, feline, and homo sapiens alike. I hope to replace my camera very soon, and in doing so, prove it is so to all y’all too!