REUNITED!

As some of you may have noticed, I haven't been taking in any new fosters lately.  I made the decision to take a fostering break, to give my Hardy some peace for his last few months (his final chemo treatment is next week, and the doctors predict he has until the end of the year after that).

Well, on Tuesday I got an email from Fluffy Dog asking me if I could take in a pup.  Normally I'd say no.  But this pup happens to be Minaki's last un-adopted baby!  So obviously I couldn't say no to the possibility of reuniting these 2...they're family!

Pudgie Pie (I'm calling her Pudge, even though it doesn't describe her in the least), has a non-contagious form of mange, called Demodex.  I want to emphasize that it is non-contagious.  Considering Hardy's weakened immune system right now, I verified with my vet that it would even be safe for Pudge to be in the house.  They confirmed that there is no chance of Demodex spreading to other dogs (it's passed from mother to pup during birth).  She has surprisingly few sores, I assume she was well taken care of before I got her, and she doesn't appear to be itchy.  We do have her on medicine, and expect it to be completely gone in a month or two.

And that is the one negative I have about Pudge right now.  She introduced into my house (Hardy + Minaki + Dexter, who is a dog I'm currently dogsitting) as if she had been there the whole time.  Unfortunately, there was no mother-daughter, long-lost family member moment.  They just sniffed each other as normal introductions go, and moved on.  Pudge and Dexter became immediate frenemies.  They play together like they are best friends (Pudge LOVES to run around outside), but then fight over who gets the big dog bed (don't worry, no physical fighting just a lot of growling and posturing).  I bet Pudge is sad when Dexter goes home tomorrow.

Pudge is just slightly bigger than her momma, and has much lighter fur, almost white.  She also doesn't have Minaki's striking heterochromic eyes...but her dark eyes are still very striking against her light fur.  She may be housebroken - we had one accident the first night, but that's actually better than I expect when I introduce a new foster.  She also may be crate trained - I've been crating her at night with 0 issues/whining.  I'll put together a definitive guide over the next couple of weeks as we get to know each other.

In the meantime, enjoy this picture of Pudge (left) and Minaki (right).  Do they look like family!?

I think the ears give it away.  :-)

Gus (fka Owen) Update!

Gus (previously known as Owen) has now been with his family for a few weeks.  They did say it started off a bit rough, but I am so glad they chose to stick it out with him.  It takes time for a dog to adapt to entirely new people and surroundings, and with a dog with a history like Owen, we knew that wouldn't happen instantaneously.  So for him to find a family that is willing to work with him until he gets comfortable is absolutely amazing!

I did receive another update on him last week...it sounds like he's already making improvements, though still not perfect.  I have no doubts that this guy will be a bundle of love shortly though.  He and I had our moments when I first brought him to my house, but after we both spent some time training, I found him to be a huge lovebug.  And the fact that his moms loved him enough to stick it out with him through the tough times is enough to tell me that he'll eventually find his place.  They took him to get groomed already...and the following photo is yet more proof that I need to stop being so stingy with the scissors.  I am always so afraid that if I cut them too short that I'll be stealing a part of their identity...their personality even.  But when I see pictures like this (and this happens every time I get an update after a grooming session), I realize how much better they look and probably feel!  Just look how happy Gus looks on the right!  That is a dapper dog!

Left: Before
Right: After
(if it isn't obvious)

I also received a video of Gus doing some tricks.  The only trick I worked on with him was sit (he was about 50/50 on it with me).  Maybe a little bit of 'come,' but that was mostly just calling the dogs in from outside...not so much something I actually sat down to train him on.  I made some attempts to teach him shake, but he never seemed interested in that one.  Well, it looks like someone taught him to shake!  He's already a 'come, sit, shake' expert!

I love to see how Gus's story is progressing!  Can't wait to give you all more updates on him!

Owen has been Adopted!

That's right...after just over a year with me, my sweet Owen-bear has found his forever family.  I can't even begin to express how excited I am for the whole family!  He has moved to Minnesota, so hopefully he doesn't become a Vikings or Twins fan!  He's going to be an only child, but I'm told that the neighborhood is very dog friendly, so he'll be making a ton of new friends.

I can't wait to start receiving updates to see how he's doing!  It'll be great to see how he responds to finally being the center of attention (as he's always wanted)!




As an interesting side note: now 2 of my favorite/most memorable fosters are living in MN.  Is that the cool place to be!?!?