Magnolia joined the family at the cabin for the Memorial Day weekend. She loved the new smells and fresh air. Before going up north, we introduced Magnolia to two other family dogs, Millie, a seven year old basset hound and Frankie, a fourteen year old submissive beagle. When Magnolia is around these older gals, it is clear that she still has a lot of puppy in her and still needs to learn to respect their space. For much of the weekend, she had positive interactions and lots of nice walks with the other girls. When Magnolia was playing a bit too rough or didn't take their cues that they weren't interested in playing, we would try to distract her with a game of fetch or remove her from the situation, allowing her to calm down a bit before returning her to the group. We kept the harness and loose leash on Magnolia for most of the weekend so if we had to move her away, it was easy to get her. Each day she spent with the group got a bit better. Looking ahead, I think Magnolia would love a home with another dog, but I think a dog that matches her energy level would be best.
During the weekend, the boys were busy with the chainsaw cutting down a tree. These sounds did not startle or bother her at all.
Magnolia was able to spend lots of quality time with my niece and nephew (ages 8 & 10). They have been around most of our fosters and are confident handling dogs. They enjoyed walking her and giving her lots of affection. Magnolia loved their attention and playing fetch with my nephew. If she got a bit over excited, she did jump a bit, so I think she would do best with kids their age or older.
Perhaps the most fun Maggie had at the cabin was at the lake. At home watering my garden, she has shown interest in the water coming out of the watering can, so I had a suspicion should would like the lake. She RAN right in and started swimming!!! I think the water was a bit cold and startled her, but that didn't stop her from going in a few more times. No swimming lessons were required. She knew what to do.