#i have had 60 pounds of dog in my lap for the past 3 hours or so

[neondiamond]

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[robertkstone]

War of the Worlds: Tesla Model 3 Dual Motor Performance vs Jaguar I-Pace EV400 HSE vs Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

“Randy’s just gone off Turn 2,” the walkie-talkie barks. I look up from my laptop. What happened? Our Jaguar I-Pace is most definitely in the wrong place and has come to a stop amid drifting dust.

Today is just getting weirder and weirder—Randy Franklin Pobst never goes off a racetrack. For all the tire marks that spaghetti away from the Streets of Willow’s racing line and loopily disappear at its broken edges, they’re never the graffiti of our resident championship racing driver. Randy is a model of consistency.

A walkie-talkie hisses for a moment, and then … “The Jag suddenly put on its emergency brakes and sent me off the track.” Wait, what? The Motor Trend testing staffers eyeball each other. For the past two hours, Randy had been chasing software curveballs. Even through the metallic fidelity of our Motorolas, the terseness in his voice says he’s getting a little weary of it.

“At least it wasn’t just us,” mutters a Tesla-hatted voice behind me. Earlier, the Tesla Model 3 Performance with Track mode didn’t exactly stop as planned approaching Turn 10, going straight off at 90 mph, then bouncing through the bumpy desert terrain and sagebrush before re-entering the front straight and rolling into the pits, with a blown left rear tire courtesy of its off-road excursion.

We expected some surprises today. Bringing together two trackable battery-electric vehicles to challenge the best classical internal combustion sport sedan in the world right now—the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio—would be the beginning of a battle for the ages. Who knew it would also wind up a battle in the sages?

Let’s rewind the clouds of dust to earlier this morning.

It’s 8 a.m. in the California high desert, and already the sun has our asphalt stage brightly lit. To our left is “Big Willow” with its white-knuckle turns and village of backstage garages and paddocks needed for Willow Springs International Raceway’s blockbuster, high-speed productions. This, though, is “Streets,”  its more intimate second stage. A more technical setting for our trio of performers.

Amid the hiss of tire pressures being adjusted by co-evaluators Alan Lau and Derek Powell—and the rattle-grrrrrrrrr of photo czar Brian Vance’s incessant coffee bean grinding—I’m staring at the cars and unable to piece together a good argument for why the Alfa beats the Tesla around the track or the other way around.

It’s easy to pencil out why the Jag is going to lag behind: Compared to the Alfa, its motors’ combined 394 horsepower falls 22 percent shy of the Giulia’s output, while its 4,946-pound mass renders it 31 percent porkier. Those SEMA-ready 255/40R22 Pirelli P Zeros the Jag is wearing won’t erase the high-heeled physics of its crossover height. The Jag seems a preordained but not dishonorable third place around Streets. But the tea leaves from our real-world testing of the Giulia and Model 3 point in contradictory directions.

Leaf One tilts toward Tesla: The 505-hp Alfa’s 0–60 time is 3.8 seconds; the 450-hp Model 3 clocks at 3.3—its dual-motor AWD launches it like a rail gun. Leaf Two, to Alfa: The Giulia clings to corners like sweaty underwear, pulling a 0.98 g skidpad compared to the Model 3’s 0.95. Leaf Three, pick ’em: The Tesla stops shorter—but fractionally so. Leaf Four, mox nix: Their figure-eight lap times are identical at 24.2 seconds. Time to ditch the tea and grab some of Vance’s coffee.

The cars are prepped, and Randy is good to go. The Model 3’s cooling system is screaming as it pre-chills the battery and dual motors. Belted in, attired in his black helmet, black racing suit, and ever-bright mood, Randy asks the Tesla engineer leaning into the cockpit, “What do I do to set the handling?” The guy taps the do-everything center screen’s icon with the words “Track Mode.” That’s it. Randy raises his eyebrows. The guy climbs out; I lean in to check that our Vboxes are powered up and SD cards clicked in, then give the passenger door a good slam.

The Model 3 whirs away. A minute later it reappears, slaloming past the apexes of the last four corners of Streets. Its tail is drifting dramatically, left, right, left, then it pitchy-hops midway around the last “skidpad” corner and tail-wags onto the straight. Everybody is watching—nobody has ever seen a Tesla handle like this.

Five minutes later, Randy climbs out, I grab the data cards, and Angus MacKenzie starts readying to try it himself.

The fastest EV ever at Streets was the Randy-driven Mitsubishi MiEV at a 1:10.90 … no, not the goofy Google-car you’re picturing but a sleek slicks-and-wings, Pikes Peak racing car we tested in 2014. The Model 3’s time appears on my screen—1:23.90. A production-car EV record. A blink quicker (0.07 second) than the Mustang GT Performance Pack 2. Process that. The Mustang GT PP2.

However, Randy needs to chime in: “It’s very easy to get understeer, the car’s handling is sometimes inconsistent, and there’s something weird happening when I lift off the brake.”

What Randy is feeling is a lingering deceleration after he releases the brake (before he’s moved his foot to the accelerator)—it’s the undepressed accelerator pedal’s heavy regenerative braking setting that’s confusing him during the transition. Compared to the car’s normal “heavy” rate of 0.2 g (matching that of the Jag), Track mode applies a more noticeable 0.3 g’s.

Angus rolls in from his hot laps: “It turns in quickly, especially with throttle lift, but there’s not a ton of feel from the front end. Get to the power too early, and the handling just devolves into massive understeer. The good news is a big lift off the accelerator will get the car to rotate. Roll on the power, and the Model 3 nicely drifts out of the corner. There’s never any sense it’s going to spin. Drive it like a rally car, and it’s fun. But for a traditional race driver, where smooth is fast, I can imagine it all feels a little discombobulating.”

The tall Jaguar goes out next and returns seven minutes’ worth of laps later. I pop out the SD cards from the Vboxes and open the file—a 1:27.00. No MiEV, but not bad for a 5,000-pound, five-passenger crossover that’s quicker than the Golf R and WRX STi. Geez.

“There’s a lot of understeer, and the brakes could be inconsistent,” Randy notes. Those two words—inconsistent and unpredictable—keep coming up during his Jaguar download.

Finally, it’s the big-dog Alfa’s moment to break the EV silence. We hear the Giulia’s bark and baritone as Randy warms the tires. Judgment time. Which will win? Twenty-one thousand gasoline combustions per lap, or software code swarming through silicon chips? The Alfa moves dartlike through the same corners the Tesla just drifted through. Randy pulls in wearing a smile we haven’t seen yet today. Mr. Consistency just laid down a 1:22.78. That’s 1.12 seconds quicker than the Tesla. “It just does exactly what you expect,” he says. “No surprises. Always predictable. Rear-wheel drive just gives me the control that I want.”

Then somebody notices the Alfa’s Pirelli P Zero Corsa AR Asimmetrico front tires. They’re asimmetrico, all right: Half of each tread block’s rubber is gone after two sets of three hard laps. The Tesla engineer points to his car’s Michelin Pilot Sport 4Ss that are at worst scuffed. “We could do that time if we were willing to destroy our tires,” he says. The Tesla’s rubber contains complex compounding across its tread for minimal rolling resistance but stickiness for corners (with foam glued into its interior to reduce noise). The technical investment in this tire—which can generate 0.95 g’s of cornering grip from a 4,078-pound car without significantly damaging the rubber and still deliver 310 miles on a charge—is remarkable.

Nevertheless, the conversation drifts toward imagining sliders on the Tesla touchscreen to fine-tune Track mode or tapping the names of tires you bring along to have their performance characteristics loaded. One idea I like: “Randy mode.” Ludicrous for the road racing set.

Track Mode

Four years ago, I drove our long-term Tesla Model S P85+ to Laguna Seca for a similar lapping day. When I arrived, I unloaded 17 bags of ice from a 7-Eleven along Route 68, plus a dusty roll of bubble wrap I found at Home Depot. We shoved the ice bags under the car until they were stacked up against the battery, then I encircled the car with bubble wrap like a floor-length insulating skirt, taped it to the bodywork, and waited for the car to charge. We had tried to lap the Tesla a few months before, but it couldn’t get to the hilly track’s Turn 11 before it self-limited its power output, due to heat buildup. This time it would start refrigerated.

Thermodynamic experimentation be damned, the Tesla power-limited at just about the same spot anyway. And our photo of the wrapped car touched a nerve with Tesla. The “Teslas can’t lap” rap has remained a thorny issue with Elon’s crew, so a month ago Tesla invited me up to Marina Airport after Monterey Car Week to finally sample its solution.

Rather than a vender-sourced patchwork of stability- and traction-control systems, Track mode is a holistic solution to enthusiast EV driving. It begins with a unified piece of clean-screen, Tesla-written software. Rather than look up tables of approximated data to pick a prerecorded response to steering and chassis angle, the system simulates each tire’s available grip in real time (it estimates the force on each contact patch from the car’s acceleration, braking, or cornering rate). The result is a higher-resolution picture of those patches, exploitable by each axle’s precisely controlled, fast-reacting electric motors; laterally, it’s vectored by individual brake dabs (the differentials are open). Track mode’s agility is like a cat with espresso in its water bowl—but it’s also alert to nervous-looking inputs and decreases the chassis’ cornering angles until they cease.

As to the heat problem that limited our early Model S lapping at Laguna, Tesla has a solution. Before the car heads out, setting Track mode tempers the overheating issue by launching into a (loud) coolant-chilling frenzy of both the low-temperature battery system and the high-temperature motors. Unlike in the Models S and X, both of the Model 3’s cooling circuits can be merged, allowing the hotter motors to briefly use the giant battery as a heat sink. For how long? Maybe four or five continuous laps. Weekend warrior Derek Powell makes a face. “Track sessions are normally 20 to 25 minutes,” he says, “and there are four or five sessions per day.” I don’t think he’s impressed.

We’ve figure-eighted the Model 3 Performance with and without Track mode. I did a 24.3-second lap sans assistance but a 24.2 with it. A teensy time difference, but to moi at the helm, the car’s cornering attitude suddenly became open to playful interpretation—almost to distraction. As Angus noted during our lapping at Streets, big, drifty angles are more about fun than fast.

Technology

If there were a book simply titled The History of the Sport Sedan, you’d find a dramatic picture of this exact blue Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio on its last page. The story line building up to it would ping-pong between Turin and Munich, and with every turned page there’d be episodes of engineers finding new ways to polish the sport sedan’s ingredients to a perfect gloss. Like this car’s twin-turbo V-6 engine, eight-speed paddle-shift transmission, multilink rear suspension, and 505 horsepower laser-beamed to two rear tires.

Tesla nods, closes the book, and places it on the shelf with the rest of automotive history. Park the Giulia next to the Model 3, and Leonardo da Vinci beside Robert Oppenheimer. The ultimate artist-engineer meets the calculating disrupter of worlds.

The other day, I read Bob Lutz espouse that “Tesla has no tech advantage, no software advantage, no battery advantage. No advantages whatsoever.” With all due respect, Bob, that’s bull. As I sat in the plugged-in Model 3 at the Supercharger station in a Valencia, California, parking lot, I watched a number grow on the car’s multitouch screen. That’s so cool. Just by plugging the charger in, the Supercharge from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 https://ift.tt/2NWW5WH via IFTTT

[thedailyducky]

50 mile Ultra Trail Race

So this weekend I ran the Sulphur Springs Trail race 50 miler, while my boyfriend, Leo ran the 100 mile race. 

The race was completed in 20km loops, 4 for me, 8 for Leo. 

The First 3 Laps

My first lap, I ran with Adam, a friend of Leo’s, who was running the 100 miler as well. The pace felt very comfortable, although I knew Adam was a way better athlete than me, I figured he was running twice as far, so it was OK to roll with him for a bit since it felt more than easy. I’m not sure whether or not this was a mistake in retrospect, but in any case, I cruised in to the drop bin/supply area after the first loop a whole hour under my planned pace (about 2 hours, when I had planned on starting VERY conservatively at 3). This first lap, all the hills felt super easy, the climbing seemed negligible to me (~600m elevation gain per loop). It was all good.

The second lap, I started in still feeling great. I had a relatively fast first 7km or so. Soon though, some of my muscles started to react to the pounding and the climbing. I was in a little bit of pain, but overall though, it wasn’t too bad. I gave myself some leeway to walk a bit longer if I needed to, after the climbs. Even so, I STILL came in under 3 hours for that second lap. I mentioned to Leo’s pit crew (Kevin and Joe, they were AMAZING) that I was beginning to feel it a little bit, but hoped to have a second wind soon.

Meanwhile, the sun was getting higher, and the day was starting to really heat up. I got in to my 3rd lap feeling Ok, but not great. I’m not sure if my pace was just not sustainable, or if it was the heat, or what, but after about the 50k mark (about halfway in to lap 3), things started to go sideways. 

Things Went Badly

My nutrition plan was to take in between 50-100 cals every half hour. You NEED to keep up the calorie intake to get this sort of thing done, so my plan was to trickle food, rather than bomb down 200-300 cals every hour (some people do this). At around 50km my body just started rejecting food. Everything I put in would come up shortly after. I tried waiting a little bit longer, maybe 45 mins, before trying again, and I puked almost as soon as I swallowed an electrolyte jelly candy. This had me worried, as it was hot, and I was creeping up on an hour without food. I tried drinking a little, and that was OK, but overall I was feeling very nauseous and uneasy.

When I hit 60k, I was still not back (the loops were closer to 23km, rather than exactly 20) and I became very worried about my state. I wasn’t taking in food, it was very hot, and I couldn’t get my body moving very fast. I decided around then that I would make it back and then drop out. It had been too long since I had any calories, I was feeling very nauseous, and my body was rebelling. It was smarter to just pack it in.

I arrived at the supply area after a roughly 3:30 loop. I sat in the tent while Leo’s pit crew and friends tried to convince me to go back out. I declined, as I didn’t want to wreck my body, and I was happy with my 60+km day.

I went to the race director and chip timers to let them know I was pulling out, and they said “hey you know, if you start feeling better, you can always jump back in” since the cutoff for the 50miler and the 100 miler was the same: 30hrs. I said “OK” thinking “yeah that will never happen” and went back to the tent to get an update on Leo and start helping his pit crew.

Meanwhile...Leo’s Race

Leo was doing phenomenally well. He was in the lead, ripping a ridiculous pace, and came in to the 50 mile mark at about 8 hours, which was just absurd. His pit crew got him in and out super quickly, and everyone spectating the race was excited and amazed at his time.

As the lead group was expected for the end of the 5th lap though, things changed. The previously chasing group came in, as we continued to wait for Leo. Finally he arrived, but he was not in great shape. He had hurt his foot, and he was falling behind on his nutrition. Hit pit crew did their best to sort him out, with the help of his friends and coworkers from his gym. He changed shoes and set out again. 

In the meantime, I had finally started taking food in, and had gone to the hotel, picked up ducky, was walking her around back at the race area. The beating on my feet and muscles and joints was starting to catch up to me, but otherwise I was feeling a bit better once I had some energy coming back in to my body. I was happy to help Leo and chill at the drop area with my dog.

For Leo’s 6th lap we adjusted our expectations to look for him after almost 3 hours.  When it came close to time to expect Leo, we went back over to the checkpoint/pit area and waited. We waited and waited... Leo was way behind pace. He came in almost an hour later (almost a 4 hour lap). It was NOT looking good. He had begun to really hurt. Nutrition plan still out of whack, muscles rebelling, ankle injured, feet hurting. He set out on his 7th lap hobbling and hurting.

At this point, Kevin and Joe (Leo’s pit crew) and I had to discuss what to do. Leo had one lap left and was falling apart hard. He was clocking much slower laps, he was having mechanical problems (problems you can’t solve by forcing food down or covering yourself in ice). Joe had to leave eventually, as he had work Sunday morning (it was the middle of the night Saturday night, at this point) and Kevin was his ride. We felt that it was inevitable that Leo would either have to drop, or head out with a pacer for safety. Kevin and Joe were each willing to go (although only one pacer was allowed), but the concern was growing that they wouldn’t have the TIME to pace Leo and still have time to get Joe back to the city for work. 

Un-pulling out. Re-entering the race

I decided that I would offer to finish my last lap with Leo, to help him finish his own. I was worried about Leo’s safety, and I knew that he would not accept dropping unless he was dead or comatose. I was also worried that he would die or fall into a coma alone in the woods halfway through. So Joe drove me back to the hotel to drop off Ducky, and change back into racing clothes.

When I got back to the race site, we didn’t expect Leo for another hour. 

I sat in the tent and thought about what I was planning to do. My body hurt, I was dead tired, both from the 60km I had already run, and the sleep deprivation (having woken up at 3:30 that morning, and coming up on 1 am). A part of me hoped Leo would decline my offer, drop out, or miraculously get a second wind and come charging through ready to rip the last lap. 

When we thought he might be close, we headed over to the pit area, and kept a lookout. We waited and waited and waited... It wasn’t until after 2AM that Leo finally came shuffling up the hill. He was in very rough shape. I asked him what he wanted to do. 

He wanted me to come with him, to get it done together.

I went over to the race director and chip timers and asked them if I could still go back out. “Yes of course” they said, I still had plenty of time, but naturally my last lap would clock the entire elapsed time since I finished my 3rd (which by then was already 12 hours!!)

I headed out with Leo, coaxing him along, trying to get him to hit at least a 12:00min/km pace. Even that proved too fast. He was slightly delirious, in pain, exhausted.

I made my focus his survival, basically. I knew it would help us both get through. I badgered him to eat and drink almost every 15 minutes. Monitored his pee, forced him to get up the numerous times he just plunked down on the ground in exhaustion and agony.

We trudged through the dead of night, and watched the sun rise. We spotted some deer, got eaten alive by mosquitos and finally

We Finished.

Almost as soon as I crossed the finish line, a dull ache in my foot that I had been feeling for at least 10km went into overdrive. Suddenly that foot could barely bear weight, and I realized it was exceptionally swollen.

It Was Not Over...

Leo went to sit down in the pit area, while I hobbled over to find our stuff which Kevin and Joe had neatly piled before heading back to the city (like I said, they were AMAZING). The pain in my foot was steadily growing, and the thought of going back and forth from the tent area to the car with all the heavy bags and crap almost made me want to cry. I genuinely didn’t know if I could do it. But I knew I had to soon, because we had to get to the hotel and get Ducky before the check out deadline at the hotel.

I hobbled back over to Leo to see how he was. As he sat, and the adrenaline wore off, he suddenly began to crash. Medics had to lift him onto a stretcher after he lost consciousness and slumped off the chair.

I gave them answers to all his identity and health questions while I internally freaked out. I sat out of the way in a chair while the pain pulsed in my foot and Leo’s head lolled about and he slurred some jokes about running another 100 tomorrow. The three medics were amazingly kind and helpful. He was in good hands.

Once it was clear Leo was stable, I knew I had to get to the car and go to the hotel and get Ducky. It would be awfully weird for the cleaning crew to find a little dog in what they thought was a vacated hotel room!

Walking to the car hurt like hell. Driving hurt like hell. When I got Ducky, I thanked the Me of the past for packing up our stuff the night before. I loaded Ducky into the car and headed back to the race site again.

The medics helped us get our stuff into the car. Then they loaded Leo in as well. 

In the car, Leo was able to book us an extra day at the hotel. So we headed back there and just went back to our same room (shoutout to the staff at that Super8 for being hella nice), ordered pizza, and laid down. 

Final Thoughts

Overall I give it a 6/10. 

Ten points because the race was organized so well, the organizers were so incredibly nice, the trail was cool and beautiful and easy non-technical terrain, the other runners were supportive and kind and cool. 

But I’ll take away points for my own experience and choices: I want to finish a 50miler the proper way (without a 12 hour break in the middle), I want to prepare my body better for the calorie management, and for the pounding my feet and legs will take (In my training, I definitely needed more time on my feet overall: longer runs, higher km weeks), AND most of all, I want LEO AND I BOTH to learn to not push just for the sake of pushing. I don’t actually think it was at all worth it for Leo to finish in the shape he was in, and to be honest, the shit my foot took at the end there was unwarranted too.

I am lucky that it seems to be improving. Advil, wrapping and rest seem to have improved the swelling and pain dramatically, but it is still swollen, and I am not sure yet if the injury is serious. The moral of the story is, its OK to pull out sometimes and save your body for next time. Things don’t always go as planned and it’s not a big deal to pack it in a try again later.

I am glad though that I was able to finish after all, and to do it while helping Leo make it through too. 

[tlcrescuepa]

New Post has been published on To Love a Canine Rescue

New Post has been published on https://tlcrescuepa.com/week-end-update-kismet/

Week-End Update: Kismet

Making sure that dogs and families are a great, mutual, match for one another is something we at TLC work hard to accomplish. We know that some times, it just seems to take a while to find just the right family and, some times, people who thought one dog would be the one realize that someone else is actually the best match. When things are meant to be, they’re just meant to be and this week’s adoption featured a lot of that “yup, this was worth the wait” moments.

Our little Jedi master, Tink, waited patiently for the right family to come along and the worth was definitely worth it! Chico II also hung around a little longer than we expected but, once he met his new family, it became clear that the universe was doing him a solid for being so patient.  Some things are just mean to be. The Chihuahua mixes weren’t the only lucky pups celebrating gotcha days this week: Cilantro (now Charlie), Delilah, Diana (now Luna Tonks), Gabbana (now Faith – the last of Guess’s pups), Otis, Penny, Shayna & Sheba (now Pippin) were adopted this week, as was Anna Lee’s pup, Chewy.

Two of the pups already have TLC alumni family connections: Diana’s new big sister is Mady FKA Tamber of the Ta litter from March/April 2014 & Sheba’s new cousin is TLC alumn Samwise FKA Wrangler.

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Chico II

Cilantro now Charlie

Delilah

Diana now Luna Tonks & Mady FKA Tamber

Gabbana now Faith

Otis

Penny

Shayna

Sheba now Pippin

Tink

  We have some great updates (including some DNA results) to share!

Baby

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“Hi everyone, Baby’s DNA results came back. It was a 27 page report. She is 37.5 lab, 25 chow chow, and 37.5 mixed breed (sporting, guard, and terrier groups). She tested normal for MDR 1 (multi-drug sensitivity). She is a carrier for exercise-induced collapse. It’s an interesting report to read. You can see her family tree. Have a good one!”

  Taffy FKA Cherry

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“Hi! I wanted to show you how cherry looks . . . she now goes by “Taffy” and had a little haircut today . . . they told me she may actually be an Australian Terrier. We have all fallen in !!!”

  Annalee FKA Anna Lee

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“We are so happy that Annalee is part of our family. She is the sweetest, funniest little girl. We kept her name because she answers to it and also because Annalee is the name of a river in county Cavan Ireland and I always wanted a dog with an Irish name or connection. I think we are meant to be together. It just seems like she fits right in and has always belonged here. I’m attaching some pictures. Please excuse the one in the dress, a friend gave it to us and we just had to take a picture with her in it. I never imagined I’d be someone who dresses up their pet but here I am lol!

Thank you so much to TLC for the gift that is Annalee. We are so grateful. “

  Tito FKA Thor (aka Annalee’s baby daddy)

Tito FKA Thor

“Tito (aka Thor) Is our little sidekick. He goes everywhereeee with us.”

          Samantha

“Samantha is doing great! Wed did keep her name. She is really attached to my daughter Ava!  My entire family has already met her and she loved the attention!”

Sydney

“Things are going well. We kept the name Sydney because we really like that name. We had her first vet visit this past Saturday and the said everything looked good! She is sleeping in her crate at night and we are averaging 2 pee breaks throughout the night.  She loves playing with my other dog, Roxy, as they play for hours on end.

Thank you for everything”

  Wendy FKA Windy (mom to Brinley, Tank, Bleu FKA Blue & Junior)

“Wendy is doing great. We are all being trained so that our walks are a bit nicer. Other than some barking and excitement, she’s been a dream. “

  Bowie FKA Wolf

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“Our dog has settled in pretty well and has quickly found a place in our hearts.  After much deliberation for the week we’ve reached agreement and have changed his name from Wolf to Bowie.  He has enjoyed numerous walks and has met most of the neighbors and their dogs.  We have plans to get him to the vet soon.  I’m not very good with social media but have attached some pictures to this email.  Please thank the foster family and all of the volunteers at TLC for the wonderful care he’s received.  We feel extremely fortunate.”

  Wilson FKA Boomer

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“We had a little birthday party for Wilson and celebrated with a homemade “cake” of vanilla ice cream, peanut butter & milkbones. We also got our fence and he loves how free he can roam. ❤🐾”

  Chip FKA Terk

“Chip is doing very well, he’s a little scared of all the cars and subway grates in the city but he’s getting better every day!  I’ve attached a few pictures, he was very curious about the fountains in Logan Square Park!”

  Lila Grace FKA Haley

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“We love our Lila Grace so much, and she and Bodhi  get along spectacularly well.

Right now they are playing i’m making adorable, playful sounds.

Lila is such a sweet girl who loves to give & receive love. Thank you so much for bringing her into our lives.  “ 

  Zoey FKA Mabel

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“Yes, the time’s flown by and I can’t believe that Zoey’s been with us for 7 months now. When she came to us she was a reticent dog who didn’t like to be touched or cuddled and would bare her teeth at the smallest instance. Today, she’s a loving dog who loves to go on car rides, enjoys vanilla ice cream, loves chicken jerky and doesn’t leave my son’s side. We have really been busy over the last few months and in the chaos and our ups and downs she’s helped us stay sane. She’s just wonderful! Here are some pics for you and the amazing TLC team. Btw – that’s my son’s lap if you haven’t guessed that already. She’s happiest when she’s with him. “

Remember those stinkin’ cute fluffballs in the La litter from January? They’re about 6 months old now

Piper FKA Lally

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“Today is Piper’s six month birthday (we think) and we wanted to send an update on how she’s doing!

Piper is now up to 27 pounds, growing long and wide but not very tall

She was originally described to us as “independent and confident” and she has definitely displayed those characteristics at the Agility classes she has been taking at Zoom Room in Philadelphia

Piper is a social butterfly always excited to meet new dogs in the city and to see her normal doggy friends at the local dog parks

Our biggest challenge with Piper has been due to her protective instincts as she is always on alert for strangers walking by – and makes sure that they hear her bark!

We would love to hear about any of Piper’s siblings if you have any updates on them.”

keep reading because sharing Piper’s update set off a cascade of updates from the extended family

Cooper FKA Laddie

Cooper FKA Laddie

“I just sent Cooper.   Hopefully you got it. 

He’s Much bigger than piper!  Look at his legs!

Cooper is 37 lbs.  He’s also very protective especially around tall men. 

He’s been a great puppy.  Loves walks and gets along great with other dogs. 

He’s very independent and is going through a chewing stage.  

He’s not very affectionate but I’m hoping that changes.  The vet said he could be

Part corgi and chow.  She thinks he might be 60 lbs!  Yikes!”

  Endor FKA Lawler

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“Endor (FKA Lawler) is doing great. We had a rough start with him, but we found an excellent local trainer, and it’s really helped a lot. Endor has two kids, 5.5 and just-turned 1, and two cats. (We have our hands full!!) Every day he enjoys going to the bus stop to see all of his neighborhood friends; he’s very popular. We’ve even had people stop their cars to ask what he is and where they can get one.

He’s a bit unsure of strangers, especially men, but we’re working on that. He loves to play fetch with a number of frisbees outside and one particular tennis ball inside. He seems to be a water dog; he’s  always digging in his water bowl and playing in our little garden pond. I can’t wait to get him a baby pool.  Right now he’s a very hot puppy with this heat wave. We’re looking forward to hearing about his adorable siblings!”

  Luna FKA Laurie

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“Luna is doing great! She’s up to 25 pounds and is extremely intelligent! She is still very wiry of new people and can be a bit protective at times but she has her big bulldog sister to reassure her! The two are always together! She eats like a horse and loves car rides but can’t help but get sick if it’s too long. She LOVES attention and always has to sit right next to you or right on top of you! She learned many of her tricks while she was very young at only 12 weeks! She knows how to shake with each paw, lay, roll over, wave, and dance! She also knows to sit before I open the door outside so that she will never rush out of the house. We went away over the weekend one time so far since we have had Luna and it took her quite a bit to trust the family member we left her with so she takes time to warm up to others when alone with them but she comes around and loves other dogs! She is overall an amazing intelligent dog! We have so happy to have her as a part of our family!  “ 

speaking of family updates, Faith FKA Gabbana’s mom and a couple of brothers sent an update this week too

Zoey FKA Guess

Zoey FKA Guess (r)

“Zoey is settling in very well! She took no time in making herself right at home. We’re so happy with how well she fits into our family. We have a vet appointment scheduled. Thanks for everything!”

        Chewie FKA Armani (Guess’s pup)

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“Chewie is doing great!  He was at the vet yesterday for a checkup and his shots.  He is now weighing it at almost 30lbs.  Attached are some pictures.  His new hobbies include naps on the couch, playing with Roxie and eating bunny poop in the yard!”

Kors FKA Versace (Guess’s pup) & Bandit FKA McCall (Mc pups from March 2017)

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Versace FKA Kors

Bandit FKA McCall

“Yes, we are all doing well and McCall and Kors have settled in nicely. We are into a regular routine of going potty and playing outdoors.

My son initially wanted to adopt Versace but he was taken…so he has renamed Kors. He is Versace now but I call him cuddlebug and chunky spunky monkey! He’s full of energy and loves playing with McCall. They play tug of war daily over rope toys, bones and sticks. Versace has a big, loud mouth and when he is sleeping, we whisper and tip toe so we don’t wake him.! He is crate training and learning quickly to hold it until he gets outside. He is a joy!

McCall has also been renamed. He is Bandit now. It is very fitting too! He runs really fast, like a bullet. Versace and Smokey try hard to keep up but bandit leaves them in the dust. Just like the movie characters, we have our own Smokey and the Bandit. Bandit is a sweet heart. He is very curious and enjoys exploring the house and yard. He has boundless energy and loves to get the others to chase him. He is also protective of our home and is quick to bark at anyone passing by our house. He loves to jump on the couch, cuddle up and sleep next to us. I have attached a few pics for you to show their foster Moms.”