Ike wanted to add another pup to his family and was looking for a good companion for his Lab, Maverick, who wasn’t too thrilled when dad was away from home. A lovely one-year-old Lab named Tia came for a visit and decided she would be delighted to stay on as the four-legged lady of the house. Tia takes her new position seriously and makes sure to give her big Lab brother equal parts of love and harassment daily, and she can often be found alongside Maverick on the sofa, keeping an eye on dad and overseeing the household activities.

Ike recently sent us an update on the kids: Tia and Maverick are doing well. I feel like I spoil them sometimes, by letting them lounge on the couch. I rescued Maverick from Safe Harbor many years ago. He was 2-ish when I got him. I have had him for 5-ish years now, he is grayer then he used to be, he still suffers from separation anxiety and hates kennels. Tia has helped with some of that, but mostly I think she just witnesses Maverick having meltdowns on the days I don’t work from home and they are in the kennel.

She loves him and abuses him all at the same time. Maverick LOVES tennis balls, Tia LOVES to take the tennis ball away from Maverick, even if she has to take out his legs. Maverick then tries to find another tennis ball, she then loses interest in the tennis ball and drops it, Maverick picks it up and then the process starts all over again. This translates in to hours of entertainment for all three of us.

When I got Tia you could see her ribs distinctly, and she was pretty skittish with deep male voices. She has fattened up quite a bit, you just see hints of ribs now. Time to maintain weight like the rest of us. She still is skittish when she hears a deep male human voice, but I think she is starting to come around; after all I have a deep voice BUT I feed her and rub her head a lot so it should just be a matter of time with that one. Tia appears to enjoy watching TV more then Maverick, I swear she looks like the dog from “mask” with the cone on her head.

tia