Rosie has been adopted!

My sweet little Rosie-bear went home to her forever family last night!  She has a mom and a human brother and sister now.  The whole family was an absolute joy to be around, so I just know that Rosie is going to love them once she warms up to them! 

Very Important Jett Report!

Another bonus post this week!  I wanted to post today because I'm afraid I'll forget by my regular Sunday post, and this is very important.  Last night, my little Jett-pack rang the bells to go outside!  Yippee!  I knew that little bugger would catch on quickly.

This little man is learning how to request outdoor time!

Also, he didn't have any accidents in the house last night or this morning!  This is great progress!

Stay tuned for more updates!

Rosie likes Popcorn

Bonus post today.  Last night was the season premier of the Bachelorette (yippee!), so keeping with tradition I enjoyed a nice large bowl of popcorn.  The dogs love popcorn.  I don't know how they all know they love it, but every dog I've ever had has wanted it.  Weird.  But I can't resist those faces, so of course I give in and give them some.  Last night was Rosie's turn.  She sat on the floor next to me, with her cute under bite, and those eyes just screaming for popcorn.  So I decided to video myself teasing her, and it turned into me learning that Rosie has quite the impressive skill...catching popcorn in her mouth!  Watch and enjoy!

Rosie, Tippy, Ruthie, and Jett

This week I not only had a dog of my own and 4 fosters, but I also babysat 2 dogs for a friend who was going out of town.  Luckily they know me and are good dogs...so it wasn't too overwhelming with 7 dogs in the house!

Meet Chelsea (left) and Chuy (right)!

Chelsea and Chuy are English Bulldogs who are individually as big as the rest of the dogs combined.  But they are real sweethearts.  Chelsea loves to play, so she tried so hard to play with Ruthie and Jett, but every time she'd run at them they'd run away barking like they were dieing.  Chuy is more of a lover, so he just tried to cuddle with everybody.

Chuy and Ruthie napping together

Rosie is one week out from her surgery now, and her eye looks amazing.  We're still putting her eye medicine in for a few more days, but the difference has already been made.  She is a beauty.  Her haircut is another story.  I have now had 3 people make fun of her haircut!  I don't take it personally, of course...I know I'm terrible at giving doggy haircuts.  That's why I take Hardy to a groomer.  But I will work on Rosie so that her forever family can see how beautiful she is without a goofy cut.

Hardy actually let Rosie nap with him for once!

Tippy could also use a summer haircut.  But I wouldn't want to do him unless he lets me use the clippers.  No way am I trimming that ball of fluff with a scissors!  I'd be there for a week!  I bet he'd be very handsome with a short cut...I'm going to think on this.  Tipster is doing really well around the house.  I almost want to say he's housetrained, except that he still doesn't ring the bells to go outside!

Tippy napping in a sun spot on top of the couch.

Tippy doing his post-nap stretches

Ruthie is such a doll.  She can't stand to be a minute without having her human next to her.  And I mean right next to her...she must be touching you at all times.  Some may think it's annoying, I think it's adorable.  I think I mentioned in my initial Ruthie post that she had a bald spot near her butt where she had been itching?  Well I'm happy to report that she hasn't touched it since she came to live with me, and the hair is starting to fill back in. 

Ruthie, Jett, Rosie, and Hardy napping together

Ruthie, Rosie, and Jett napping...we sure do nap a lot around my house, don't we?!

Jett is really letting his personality come out, and boy is it a fun one!  He is ALWAYS playing.  Ruthie, Tippy, and Rosie are all playmates to him.  If one doesn't want to play, he'll find another.  He only likes to play with toys if someone else is playing with him.  We are still working on housebreaking, but he is improving so much.  If I see him doing his potty moves and quickly tell him to go outside, he will!  Accidents in the house are definitely on the decline.

Rosie, Jett, Tippy, Ruthie, and Hardy all napping

Definitive Guide to Ruthie

Updated 18Mar16

Petfinder: Ruthie's Petfinder Profile
Age: ~3 years
Weight: ~14lbs
Food:   1C Purina One dry food (plus whatever crumbs she can find leftover in everyone else's bowls)
Treats:  Ruthie loves treats.  She likes all treats I've given her so far: Greenies, Milkbones, Canine Carry Outs, People Crackers...  When she is alone she is very polite about taking treats.  When there are other dogs around, she tends to be a little more pushy.
Good with Men: yes
Good with Women: yes
Good with Children: yes - but like all dogs, she needs to be monitored to make sure she's not put in an uncomfortable situation where she might lash out.
Good with Dogs: yes
Good with Cats: yes
Housebroken: Yes.  She scratches at the door (an attempt to ring the bells) when she needs to go out.  She is able to hold it all day (~9 hours) while I am at work.
Crate Trained: Yes.  She will go in on command.  I keep the crates in my computer room, and while I am in there she likes to go in her crate and relax.
Leash Trained: Ruthie is very good at walking on a leash.  However, she is not trained to walk next to her person yet.
Other Skills: She's very good at 'calm down.'  We use this when I open her crate to feed her in the morning, and also when I give the dogs treats.  We are still working on 'sit.'  She is very good when we're one-on-one, but when the other dogs are around she has too many distractions.
Personality: Ruthie is a lover.  She loves to cuddle with her person.  She always wants to be nearby, laying a head on your arm or shoulder.  With the other dogs she loves to play.  She gets along with everybody.  She's never mean toward people or other dogs, but she will play rough if the other dog is up for it (she will listen if you tell her to stop, though).  Ruthie is rather fearless (and a little bit reckless) when it comes to loud noised items (e.g. lawnmowers, weed eaters, and vacuum cleaners to name a few).  She will run right up to them and try to bite them (except the lawn mower, because obviously I don't let the dogs out while I'm doing that).  I try to tell her that she will get hurt, but she doesn't seem to care.  Just a warning to her future family, that the ol' trick of using the vacuum as a door barrier will not work on her.
Toys:  Ruthie prefers squeaky toys.  She has a plastic, squeaky lizard that she absolutely loves.  She also loves to play tug-of-war with ropes and stuffed animals.  She isn't a fan of playing with tennis balls, but she loves to destroy them.
Nicknames: Ruth-ball, Ruth
Ideal Family: Ruthie is looking for a family who loves to cuddle.  If she can't sit on the couch with you while you watch tv, you are not her family.  She is also somewhat high energy, so she would do well with a family with kids, or who likes to spend time outdoors.  A fenced in yard where she can run around and/or watch nature would be perfect!

Definitive Guide to Jett

Updated 14Dec15

Age: ~1 year
Weight: ~11lbs
Food:   1C Purina One dry food
Treats: Loves them.  He'll eat anything.  BIG fan of peanut butter!
Good with Men: yes
Good with Women: yes
Good with Children: yes
Good with Dogs: yes
Good with Cats: unknown
Housebroken: Yes.  He will let you know when he needs to go outside, but he hasn't yet learned to wait.  So if you aren't paying attention, he may still have accidents.
Crate Trained: Yes.  Jett goes into his crate on his own and doesn't make a sound once he's in there.
Leash Trained: Yes.  He loves to go for walks and gets very excited as soon as he sees his leash.
Other Skills: None yet.
Personality: Jett has a typical puppy personality.  He is interested in everything, he is very high energy, and he loves to play.  He started out very shy, but is now used to me and will cuddle with me on occasion.  He is one of the sweetest dogs I've ever fostered.
Toys:  Big fan of tennis balls, stuffed animals, and ropes.  He is perfectly content to play by himself, tug-of-war with another dog, or fetch with a person.
Nicknames: Jetpack
Ideal Family: Jett needs a family who is willing to train him (he is just a puppy!).  He wants someone who will play with him and give him lots of love.  He would be very happy with other dogs his size and activity level (he likes dogs of all sizes, but smaller dogs might be scared of his energy).  He is still shy and learning to trust people, so a family that understands that and is willing to work with him on it would be perfect!

Update on Rosie's Surgery

As I mentioned yesterday, Rosie's surgery went well.  I picked her up yesterday afternoon and she was so upset with me!  I was the mean lady who left her with those people who poked and prodded!  She didn't even want to come with me to say hello.  I was a little hurt, but I understood.

Her eye is beautiful now.  No more giant red blob!  She looks like the gorgeous dog I knew she was!

Look at this girl with 2 good eyes!

I thought with the pain medicine she's on she would sleep all evening...I was wrong.  It has been non-stop playing since Rosie got home.  She must have really missed her buddies!

Benji update!

Sweet Benji is doing great in his new home.  He has started to go to daycare during the day, where he has made a lot of friends who apparently wear him out!  That little bugger is probably the most popular pup in his daycare.  Such a good, friendly dog!

Here are some cute pictures his mom sent:

I love his jacket.  He looks very good in red!

Doesn't Benji look happy with his stuffed animal?

Benji is definitely having good dreams...look at that cute smile!

Rosie, Tippy, Ruthie, and Jett

I'm a nervous wreck today.  I just dropped my Rosie-bear off at the vet for her Cherry Eye surgery.  Everyone keep your fingers crossed that all goes well!
Update: Rosie is out of surgery and doing well (according to the vet)!   I will be picking her up in a few hours...better believe she'll be getting lots of cuddles and treats tonight!

I received an update on Benji this weekend.  I think I'll do a post on that tomorrow.  There are some very cute pictures to share. :-)

Saturday we had the Doggy Meet & Greet at the daycare in Hartland.  There were a lot of dogs, and a lot of visitors.  It was a really great turnout.  I know from talking to a handful of people that quite a few dogs there are getting applications, so that's great news!  My pups each had several people come and look at them.  A few seemed interested, so we'll see if we get any apps too!

Aside from the surgery, Rosie is doing really well.  For the most part, she was very content at the Meet & Greet.  There were a few people (mostly kids) that she shied away from, but then there were other people who she walked right up to to sniff and let them pet her.  At home she's really getting along with the other dogs.  She plays with everyone (well, tries to play with Hardy).  She has gotten in the habit of stealing one of my slippers lately, which worries me a bit.  But she doesn't chew on it.  She just takes it and drops it on the couch.  I'll be keeping an eye on her to make sure that she doesn't start chewing on it.

Tippy is like a little stuffed animal.  He's so good at home.  Nearly housebroken, he doesn't have any accidents indoors anymore, we still just need to work on figuring out what his alert is to go outside.  Lately he's just been really good about holding it until I open the door for one of the other dogs.  He's really getting along with the others also.  He likes to play with Jett, they run around play fighting all the time.  When he's not playing, he's found himself a really comfy place on a couch away from all the action (my regular couch is currently exiled to an out of the way corner of the living room until I work up the energy to reupholster it in dog friendly fabrics).  I really think he's the perfect kind of dog for an older or less active couple.  Of course, he would definitely get along with kids, I just don't see him wanting kids around full time.  Tippy also did well at the Meet & Greet.  He got a little excited (Jett worked him up a bit I think), and was barking quite a bit.  But that's not how he typically is.  I think it was just the excitement of all the other dogs and all the new people.  He was very happy to let people pet him, even the kids.  As long as he could sniff them first, of course.

Ruthie is still awesome.  She got so many compliments on her looks at the Meet & Greet.  Everyone just loved her coloring, and I can't say I disagree.  She is a beauty.  She absolutely loved it when kids came over.  She let anyone who wanted to pet her, do it.  I don't know that she barked at all while we were there, either.  She did manage to escape me twice, but they were both my fault.  I was trying to manage 4 leashes, and both times I dropped hers and she took off to meet other dogs.  Luckily for me, she ran toward dogs, and not the road, and both dogs she ran to were friendly.  Or maybe they just thought she was a cutie. :-)  At home Ruthie is so affectionate.  She cuddles next to me anytime I'm sitting or laying down.  And she loves to lay under blankets.  At night I let her sleep in my bed, and she'll crawl under the blanket and stick her head out right by mine so we share the pillow.  I think she thinks she's a person.

Jett is aptly named.  Jett Pack might be better.  He has so much energy!  He was a little fireball at the Meet & Greet.  Luckily, there was a spare volunteer there who helped me out with him.  I'm pretty sure he fell in love with her.  He crawled in her lap and relaxed.  If he was barking and she asked him to stop, he (usually) would.  Every person that came over to our area was forced to meet Jett, whether they wanted to or now.  He was so friendly.  He was very barky there, but like with Tippy I think it was just the excitement of all the other dogs and people.  He's pretty quiet at home.  He is getting better with his housebreaking.  He's still having accidents, but he's definitely getting better.  I'm getting pretty good at noticing his signs, so if I see him making a move I jump up and say "let's go outside!" and he follows me.  So I really don't think it'll take long before he's got it all figured out.

Mocha has been adopted (again)!

I didn't even get a week with my Mocha-bear before he found a new forever home!  But I know he'll be very happy with this couple.  They were very excited to hear that Mocha is a cuddle bug, so I know he'll be very happy with them.  I think he survives off of cuddles.

Best of luck to Mocha and his new family!  I can't wait to get pictures!

Doggy Meet & Greet

Zuzu (Queenie) update

What a happy update!  I do love all my fosters, but Zuzu really warmed my heart in a way that most of the other dogs don't.  And she wasn't even with me all that long!  But I was so happy to hear from her mom yesterday.  She is doing so well and has really transitioned into a little princess.  Her mom also happened to see my blog yesterday about dogs getting along with cats, and she wanted to share her experience with me.  For this I am so grateful.  I can tell potential adopters to just give it time until I'm blue in the face, but I think having someone who adopted explain their story just works so much better.  So here the update and Zuzu's story about getting along with cats:

A little update on Zuzu (Queenie): She has been a joy to have around and she is now officially spoiled. She even has her own stylist at Petco, who always makes room in his schedule for her because he says she's so much fun to groom. 

Winter was a challenge for our little Southern Belle because it took her a while to get used to cold-weather Wisconsin. I bought a ton of fancy sweaters, but she wouldn't wear any of them. Finally, my stepmother hand-knit two sweaters for her -- and those Zuzu loved. Seems she prefers her clothes custom-made. ;)

On another note, I read on the blog that you had a foster dog returned because he didn't like the new owner's cat. I thought I would share our experience with you, in case you wanted to share this information with future owners. We have two older cats who were used to our older dog, who passed away last summer. When we brought Zuzu home, the cats didn't take too well to Zuzu's puppy-energy level. That was last August, and nine months later we are still working with Zuzu to remind her not to chase the kitties. She wants to play with the kitties, but of course they want no such thing. However, the cats have adjusted to our family's "new normal" -- they have figured out where they need to go to stay out of the dog's way. We keep them separate during the day when no one is home. And, at the recommendation of our vet, we established "Zuzu-free zones" for the kitties to retreat to when they need time to themselves. One kitty in particular stays holed up in one part of the house, so I make sure to give her special one-on-one time every day.

So, my point is this: The adjustment period takes time, sometimes a very long time. When we first brought Zuzu home, our vet advised that it could take up to a year for all the animals to learn to get along. I'm glad we took her advice, as it is paying off.

I know everyone's situation is different, but I just wanted to share our story with you.

 

And here is a picture of Princess Zuzu with her human sister:

Just look at that face!  I want to pinch her cheeks and just cuddle with her all day!

Mocha is back!

You read that correctly...my dear Mocha-bear is back on the market.  His adoptive mom absolutely loved him, but he wasn't getting along with the cat.  I wasn't there, so I don't know the situation, but my advice to any future adopters with cats would be to give them a chance to work it out on their own.  It might take a day, it might take a month, but I have no doubts that Mocha could eventually live in harmony with anyone.

Mocha did get a full body shave when he came back.  Silly me, I forgot to take pictures last night, but I think they took some at the daycare and are planning on updating his petfinder listing.  He looks completely different!  But so stinkin' cute!

Before

After

Update:
It's one thing for me to describe Mocha, to say how wonderful he is and to tell everyone that he'd be the perfect adoptee...but it's quite another to have someone outside the organization give their opinion on him.  After his adoptive mom brought him back (and I can tell from speaking to her that it was a very difficult decision), she sent me the following email, which I am copying here with her permission:

Dear Savannah,

This morning  I took  Mocha to the Day Care Center. Last night was there high anxiety. 

Please believe me when I say he is a perfect dog.  He is completely housebroken.....he rarely left my side.

He is affectionate and loving.  He was devoted to me.   We spent a great deal of time out side these past two days.

He LOVES to go out and walk and investigate....meet other dogs. I met many neighbors, I sat or stood and talked with them holding Mocha....he was very comfortable......If I sat on a chair  he sat on my lap ....absolutely, no problem.  I must share
he would not take to a crate here......

I don't think he ever saw a cat.....he ran  like  heck and barked  and barked ..following that he began to look for him.

I picked up a baby gate yesterday.... to separate ...they each had their own spaces from the get go
Last night it accelerated....Mokie  almost caught him couple of times. lHe was stressed and confused.....

I felt he is perfect as he is..... he just isn't  into cats........why should he have to adjust to a new set problems.

He loved the the discs to chew and hide....he likes piano music....he was beginning to sit.....he is smart and
supersensitive....almost always trying to please.... he likes a little canned food.  I love himand I know he is soooo
ready for a home he has had enough hard times....
Thank you for everything.....


Sincerely,

Rosie, Tippy, Ruthie, and Jett

Big changes around my house this week!  2 dogs gone, 2 dogs added.  I've also started using the dog room more and more because the weather is finally nice!

The dog room.  Last week I had used it a couple times during the day while I was at work.  It wasn't particularly warm out, so I didn't open any windows.  Yesterday I was headed down to the daycare for a couple hours, so I put the dogs in there, and decided to open the windows because it was supposed to be over 70 degrees.  I quickly discovered that whoever designed that room was a fool...they put the screens on the inside of the window (meaning I had to remove them to open the window, then put them back in).  As I was running a bit behind, I only had time to open one window, and then I also opened the window in the door so there cold be a little bit of air flow.  I put a fan in the window, partly to help the air flow, partly to provide noise so they wouldn't bark the whole time, and partly to block the window because I had a slight fear they would break through the screen and escape.  Well, I got home about 3 hours later to find that my window with fan was still in tact (yay!), but they had completely destroyed the screen in the door.  I don't even know how they managed that.

This is how I discovered the screen door when I came home.

Needless to say, I switched all the windows in the room so that they open from the top now.  So no chances of dogs breaking through screens to escape.

Last week I was at the daycare 3 times!  Thursday I was in the area with Rosie for a vet appt, so I stopped by to pick up Ruthie.  Before I left Lori gave me a ton of doggy clothes.  So you will be seeing pictures over the next few weeks of dogs wearing various outfits I think. 

Rosie in a t-shirt, Tippy checking it out, and Ruthie in a t-shirt of her own.

My little Rosie-bear did have an interested family last week.  Unfortunately she was so shy when they came to visit that she wouldn't even go near them.  Even with the lure of treats she was very hesitant.  So even though I thought they were a wonderful family, Rosie was just not the pup for them.  But this brings up an excellent point that I should make to anyone who is interested in Rosie in the future.  On your initial meeting she will be extremely shy.  She was like that when she first came to the daycare, and she was like that when she first came to my house.  But look at her with me now!  She's my cuddle bug!  She follows me everywhere, she listens to me, she has even learned to sit on command!  When I have guests, she is very shy around them at first.  But given an hour or two, she warms up enough to at least sit near them, sometimes even on them!  I know that seeing past that initial meeting when a dog won't even come to you is very difficult, and I don't fault anyone for being turned off by that, but just trust me when I say that Rosie is an exceptional dog and it will get better. 

Tippy is quite the little ham lately.  He's certainly not a puppy, but with all these young dogs I have now he acts like it.  He plays and runs around with them like it's his job!  He doesn't have any accidents in the house anymore, and he also hasn't been marking his territory.  I don't want to say he's housebroken yet, because he doesn't let me know when he needs to go outside...my fault, considering I leave the door open so he can just go whenever he wants without letting me know.  But him recognizing that he needs to go out rather than having accidents indoors is a huge accomplishment.

Ruthie might just be one of the best looking dogs I have ever fostered.  She has such a rich brown color that I love.  I might be biased because that's the same brown Hardy was when he was a  pup.  She's also quite the sweetheart.  She was a little shy of me at first when I brought her home, but she very quickly warmed up to me, and now whenever I'm sitting or laying down she is right next to me with her head laying on me.  As I mentioned yesterday, they said while she was at the daycare she was a nonstop barker.  I think that may have made her a little hoarse.  I'll be keeping my eye on her to see if her barking improves or if this is something that sticks around.  Otherwise, she has such a fun personality.  I have this little squeaky lizard that she just loves.  She likes to toss that thing around all the time.  She is also very good with the other dogs.  She and Rosie play quite a bit, and this morning she was playing with Jett.  She occasionally tries to get Hardy to play, but he is the biggest party pooper and won't give in. 

Ruthie playing with her squeaky lizard:

Ruthie running around, playing:

Jett is just a ball of energy.  I think he's the youngest pup I've ever fostered.  He seriously just bounces around all the time.  He's still getting used to the concept of sitting on couches, I don't know how many times he rolled off last night.  But it was so funny.  He would roll off, stand up, look around like he didn't know what just happened, then jump back up.  10 minutes later...same thing.  He is adorable!  Another thing that I think is because he's so young...he hasn't figured out how to lift his leg to pee, and he doesn't mark territory.  Both are going to make the transition into living in a house very easy for me (no marking from him means no re-marking from Tippy and Hardy).  He's not housebroken at all yet, but being so young I have no doubts that he'll learn quickly.  He also follows Rosie around, which is really good, because she's a great potty mentor for him.  Speaking of Rosie, doesn't he look like her little mini-me?  There were a couple times last night that I had to do a double take because I thought I was talking to Rosie and it turned out to be Jett or the other way around.  I did put Jett in a crate to sleep last night.  Being a puppy who isn't housebroken, and who fell off a couch several times, I just didn't want to risk all the things that could happen leaving him loose.  So at first I put him in a crate in the dog room.  He was not happy with that at all.  So I moved his crate into my bedroom, right next to the head of my bed so he could still see me.  He whined for about 5 minutes, then laid down to sleep and was silent until I let him out this morning.  That is very impressive.  I see no problems getting him crate trained!

Jett!  Also a sneak peak of Rosie's cherry eye.

Jett wore himself out with all his playing last night.

Sleepy guy!

Jett playing with Ruthie and Rosie:

 Rosie, Tippy, Ruthie, and Hardy eating their breakfast:

 Rosie, Tippy, Ruthie, and Hardy with their t-shirts:

Mocha has been adopted! And introducing Ruthie and Jett!

It's true...my Mocha-bear has been adopted!  He has found him self a very loving mommy and now also has a big cat-brother!  I'm so excited for all of them, and can't wait to get pictures!

With 2 adoptions last week, I also have 2 new pups to add:

Ruthie is just a sweetheart.  She's almost too cute to bear.  She LOVES to be affectionate.  Always resting her head on my leg or shoulder.  I've been letting her sleep with me too, and she likes to sleep right next to my face.  I heard that in the daycare she was just barking non-stop, but I haven't had that experience with her.  In fact, this morning was the first time I had heard her bark in the 3 days I've had her.

Ruthie wearing a cute t-shirt!

Jett is brand new in the house (we just got home about an hour ago).  He is just a bundle of energy!  He's still very much a puppy, so that is to be expected.  He's trying to play with everyone, so far only Hardy has disapproved.  He's very, very cute.  He has a beard that is half black and half white, and the hair on his head is just wild, even after a combing.

It's hard to get a non-blurry shot with this active boy!