Getting Alli Outfitted

When we lived on eight acres out in the country in Alabama, Alli had plenty of room to roam. Now we have about an acre here in Show Low, Arizona, more than half of it with a high fence. She’s still got room to run and play, but she hasn’t had a lot of socialization with other dogs yet. She’s not aggressive with them, but when she sees another dog, she wants to run up and check it out. As it turns out, a lot of dogs don’t like seeing another dog running toward them. Especially not one the size of a German Shepherd. So I wanted to get her outfitted with some equipment that I can use to safely take her out and about to meet more people and more animals.

Last week I ordered a ShawnCo Essential Dog Harness from Amazon. It’s a very sturdy vest design with three large clips and a handle across the back for better control of a dog when needed. It’s easy to put on and take off, and Alli doesn’t seem to mind it at all. However, when I take her for a walk, she still tries to pull more than I want her to.

Then our neighbor Virginia told me about the Halti Headcoller. Made from strong but lightweight nylon webbing, the headcoller has a padded neoprene noseband that slips over Alli’s snout and doesn’t interfere with panting, eating, or drinking. What it does is give me total control. Alli didn’t like it the first couple of times I put it on her, and she tried to paw it off, but wasn’t too successful with that. Then she doesn’t seem to mind it at all.

When I tried to walk her with it, she immediately tried to pull away, but all it took was a gentle tug and she straightened right up. Folks, I have to tell you, the transformation was amazing. A couple of times since getting it. I’ve walked her the length of our street and when we encounter another dog or a cat, she doesn’t even try to run up to them. She stops and looks at them with her ears cocked forward, wanting to check them out, but there’s no pulling and no tug of war between us. This thing is a game changer!

Obviously, neither picture is of Alli. Whenever I try to put either of them on her, she thinks we’re going to go for a walk and is prancing around so much I can’t get a picture. But both products were well worth the money, and I would recommend them to anyone.

Congratulations Cathy Morrison, winner of our drawing for an autographed copy of Tinder Street, the first book in my Tinder Street family saga. A simple trip to town, a chance meeting with a pretty young woman, and a few words were all it took for Lucas Wirtz to flee his family farm and the abusive father who dominated it. Following Rachel McNally to the big city, he had no idea how much his life and the world around him would change.

Chronicling the days leading up to World War I and the events that followed, Tinder Street is the first book in a saga that will take readers from rural farms to a major industrial city in the Midwest, across an ocean where German U-boats lurk waiting for a target to come within range of their deadly torpedoes, to the bloody trench warfare of France, and home again. Lucas was one of those soldiers, a man who hated the thought of killing, but did his duty. A duty that would haunt him long after the last shots were fired.

This is also the story of the simple working-class people who built America. Farmers, factory workers, streetcar conductors, midwives, and public servants. Their joys and sorrows, their wins and losses, and how these people who struggled together to build a better life for themselves and their children changed a place named Tinder Street to Tender Street, a reflection of one family’s devotion to their neighbors.

We had 54 entries this time around. Stay tuned, a new contest starts soon! Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed. After 30 days, unclaimed prizes revert back to the drawing pool for a future contest.

Did you know that you can find all of my books and sign up for my free author’s newsletter on my website at www.nickrussellbooks.com?

Thought For The Day – The world around you is beautiful when the world within you is peaceful.