Merry Christmas!
from David, Libby, Marshall, and Lily

Libby's been exercising, reading, playing Sodoku, tending to her upside-down tomato plants, and probably playing some Wii. I've been exercising, cleaning up some backups, and plan on doing some coding this afternoon. We know how to celebrate our country's independence!

We've been busy helping Dory stay healthy and find her a new home. Libby's been to Arizona and back where she gave a presentation about her research. I've been working with TriPUG to see if we can re-invigorate attendance and presentations.

7 dogs arrived at our home last night after riding 9 hours up from Georgia. Another NC member left at 3am to make the trip there and back in one day. The dogs were dirty and scared, but good tempered and quiet. They all got baths, teeth scraping, ear cleanings, nail tripms, and flea preventive. By the time it was all said and done it was 1:30am. Four went to stay with Pam and three were picked up today by Libby's dedicated foster homes. Some pictures are on our Gallery.

Merry Christmas to all from Park City, Utah.

Yesterday, Lily and Marshall competed in their first agility trial in Youngsville, NC. They each competed in three events: Jumpers, Standard (all obstacles), and Tunnelers. You can look at pictures or for the full effect you can watch them in action.

The results were far better than we'd hoped. Lily and Marshall each qualified in the Tunnelers event and Lily qualified in the Jumpers event. They finished all the courses and both the pups and Libby had oodles of fun. The other participants kept asking Libby if she was addicted yet. Something tells me this isn't the last time they'll compete.

Congratulations to Libby, Lily, and Marshall.

It's been quite a while since I've posted an update. Been really busy at work, taking care of the 5 puppies, and traveling.

At this point, we're taking care of Sadie and Samson who are a refreshing break from the puppies. Jessie, a standard, came from a breeder who's leaving the business.

Libby's back from New York again and picked up 3 dachshund puppies for us to foster. Gabe, Alice, and Izzy warm our hearts daily. Lily and Marshall are doing everything they can to be good big brothers and sisters.

In other news, Libby has put a great deal of work into building up the content in her website TrainaDox. She'll be putting all sorts of training and DRNA information up there.

It should be a busy next few months including John and Angel's wedding in Champaign in September, the Carrboro Weiner Dog Day at the beginning of October, and the Mid-atlantic Dachshund Picnic in October.

We've just returned from a lovely trip out west to see Houston, Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, and Park City. We had a great time including camping for two nights in Zion and Bryce Canyon Nation Parks, seeing Jack and Sally (Libby's aunt and uncle in Vegas), and meeting up with Libby's family in Park City. It is, however, wonderful to return the comfort and routine of home particularly recharged with fresh air and the outdoors. I will be putting up the photos (and videos) soon.

Libby completed her Prelim review of her doctoral research on Friday. Her committee really put her through the ringer, but her project was approved and she's excited about getting going. They did want to nail down some of her specific goals which she'll be working on starting this week. Congratulations to Libby!

About two weeks ago Libby noticed a lump on Lillian's posterior and we took her in on Saturday February 11th to have it examined. Our vet felt and then aspirated the lump and was disappointed to find some granules in the sample. Unfortunately, these are characteristic of a mast cell tumor. Lily had a mast cell tumor removed a few years ago from the back of her neck. We were able to schedule her for surgery on Monday February 13th to have the tumor removed. The surgery was very sucessful and it was excised with an ample margin.

Today, we heard the results of the pathology. They confirmed that it was indeed a mast cell tumor grade 2. We'll be taking her to an oncologist as soon as we can. From what we've read there are a number of tests we can do to determine the extent to which the tumor has spread. The small size of the tumor, the successful surgery, and the long time between these incidents are all good signs. Obviously we've been worried about her since we heard this, but we can only hope for the bset and do everything in our power to assure her speedy recovery.

I've started a new blog for my management, software, and technology interests. This way, I can spare all of those who just care about what Libby and I are up in daily life from all the geeky things I care about.

Over the weekend Libby attempted to arrange two adoptions. One turned out not to get along with the other dog. The second person just wasn't quite ready until she'd spoken with her family. While they were hear meeting the fosters, another DRNA member also picked up a fear aggressive pup, Amigo. As everyone was on their way out Amigo was cornered and bit Libby's hand pretty badly. Today she ended up at the doctor to get some antibiotics. Tomorrow she heads out to New York to collaborate on some research.