Saturday, July 21, 2012

Thanks for the Pictures Piper :)

I'm spoiled rotten and don't have to take my own pictures! Thanks for the great photos on my new fosters Piper. :)

I was supposed to be fostering Brady and Ginger, but as usual there was a little turn of events. Brady was adopted instead of Max, so Max came home with me. He is a good boy, is easily handled, makes good eye contact, is social with the little dogs, was nice and gentle with an eight year old on the ferry and so far hasn't met a big female dog he doesn't like. Unfortunately, he's got the evil stinky eye out for Beckett. Hoping to break that soon. For now, I'm just treating it as the transition period. Safety first! I'm lucky in that I can easily direct Beckett wherever I want, and no matter the behaviour another dog seems to throw at him, he ignores. Hopefully Max does better with the other male dogs at daycare on Monday.

On the brighter he got furminated and licked me throughout the whole half hour I was doing it, went for a two hour walk to integrate with our pack (he's still not quite there, but there's progress), and met the chickens with no interest, and showed no interest in the barn cats, though he didn't go nose to nose. With basic direction and a firm approach, he walks well on a leash though is somewhat leash-reactive with other male dogs his size and bigger. He needs to learn introduction skills.


MAX: "THANKS FOR THE PHOTO OP"

He's supposed to be a Bernese x Collie, but I see a lot of husky in him -sled dog style, not really a sib. The tail curl, the stubborn streak.He doesn't have the body type though. I do see Bernese too. He seems so far like quite a laid back dog inside, doesn't seem to need a lot of exercise (that might change as he gets adjusted). He is a little shorter than Beckett, but probably weighs about 60 pounds.

Our other foster waltzed in like she'd always been here. Ginger is a lovely, sweet girl, who is quite horrible on a leash! I'm used to pulling the shy ones out, but today, I felt like a leaf on the end of her pulling me. :P Tomorrow, we get a halti! She is super social, was very excited to see so many people at the ferry, and is LAZY. Chickens, cats, other dogs, whatever, she takes it all in the typical stride of a Great Pyrenese. She adores Beckett so far, and cause she's a lumbering slow girl, we dropped her long leash so she could go run (well okay, she more trotted) around with Beckett. She is just a little bit taller than him, but is about 75 pounds to Beckett's 50. She likes to body slam. They play really well together.

We had her to my friend Ashley who's a groomer and also my co-worker at K9HQ. A lot of the matts were taken off of her. She looks a little funny with a few almost bald patches but she is feeling much better. Once her elbows were shaved down she was very eager to jump in the car. It must have hurt before.

Here are the picture Piper took. I'll take some more in the next few days.

Gorgeous face shot. Ginger needs to be on a calendar :)

Ginger showing the Great Pyrenese roots. Most people today thought
she was just a great big Golden Retriever, but I see the Pyrenese :) Her
elbows have been shaved down now, as you can see the matting.
More as it comes. I think Ginger would do well in almost any home, but will definitely need someone who will train her not to pull on a leash and keep up some grooming. She'd make an excellent farm dog, and EXCELLENT family dog. She reminds me of Nana from Peter Pan actually. Just a big, loveable, super friendly, quite lazy girl.

I'll know more about Max as he settles in. I'm hopeful with firm boundaries, guidance and patience, the edge from his travel will come off. Safety though, will have to come first.

3 comments:

Piper said...

You're very welcome :)
I held Ginger's leash for a while, so I know what you mean! She's has a beautiful look like a lion and pulls like one too! But is oh so sweet :)

Anonymous said...

the pictures are Great Piper! & Ginger is so beautiful ' i too see the mix but i'lov that she is golden in every way '' meaning lovely !! Max is adorable ' very handsome' Pollyb

turtlegardens said...

Ginger was an outside yard dog - she has never been on a leash except to go to the vet for her vaccinations and for loading up. As Max was an outside tied up guy! Both learning to be indoor city cogs! Cool!