Sunday, August 26, 2012

Koko!

Hello again!



I have only had Koko for a little over 24 hours, but so far he is proving himself to be a sucky boy!

He has had a bath and a HUGE brushing and he is looking very spiffy, and there is a new spring in his step!



He seems to be a pretty mellow guy who just wants to love and be loved!


Koko is crate fearful and should not be crated. But Koko is non-destructive, and is fine when left free in the house while alone.


He loves to be with his people and he is very sweet! He doesn't jump up, though he may give a tiny hop or two when excited. He loves to snuggle in for a good cuddle and lay on your feet. But also loves to find a nice spot to curl up in while the family is just hanging out. He loves to be where his people are, and do what his people do.


Because he wants to bond so much with his people he can be possessive of his people if dogs get too close. So far it seems he only does this if the dogs get right up in his face and his person's space. Then Koko will tell them to back off. He gets along with other dogs when introduced properly, and he greets dogs on the walk well.

~As a side note... Greeting face to face is rude in dog language, so make sure whenever your dog meets another they have enough slack to get to the other dogs bum and discourage behaviour where they focus too much on the other dogs face.

He is very good on leash! He walks nicely at your side on a loose leash, though he likes to walk so close sometimes he will lean on your leg a bit so make sure you're not on the edge of the road ;)

Koko knows his name for sure! I would actually recommend that his future adopters do not change his name, because he has such great recall - even around distractions!

When he is unsure about a situation or nervous/anxious he will come right over to you and look for assurance and guidance.

Koko is just a big suck and loves to be brushed and fussed over!





As I get to know him over the next weeks I will keep you all updated - he's proving to be a great family companion!



Friday, August 24, 2012

Next Dog - Koko!

So tomorrow Bambi is going to be heading to her foster on the island, and tomorrow is also the dog run, which means....

Another Foster Dog!

Tomorrow I will begin fostering Koko!

A 20 Month old Belgian Malinois Mix.

His Dad is Rafiki!

I am very excited :)

Can't wait!

I will miss cutie-pie Bambi though! I woke up every day with a smile on my face, and she always kept me laughing! Now she can brighten the days of her island foster home :)

Will post more soon!

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Bambi - Doggy Play!

I took Bambi to the park early morning today and she made a new friend!
Her name is Lily and she is a year old Golden and my she was pretty! And they got along famously!

I was so proud of Bambi, because this was the first time I've watched her play and she was so polite in her play and never one fussed or got too rambunctious! Even Lily's mom was saying how sweet she was! And she also commented on Bambi's speed! She said, and I quote "I don't think I have ever seen any other dog who was faster than Lily, but she is - she's faster!"

With her speed, and agile nature, she would be so great at agility! When we're out and about she loves to run over things and jump over things and loves simply running! She would make a great agility prospect! And even if she got into it just for fun, I know Bambi would love it! :)

Here is a link to the video of Lily and Bambi playing!



And tuckered Bambi afterward :)




Will post more soon! :)

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Bambi - Photos and Vids

Here is BAMBI! :D


My goodness! That is all I can say! This dog is just THAT cute! She is super sweet and bubbly and is always making us laugh! She has an expression for every emotion and you always know what she's thinking!

My dad, who is not a huge "dog person", really likes her! And every time I come home he's telling me another funny story about what she did while I was at work!

She is a great size at about 35lbs (about the size of a small border collie). We are really thinking she is a border collie x Husky. And she looks very much like a "miniature husky"! (Super cute!)






She is very smart and will even entertain herself if you are boring her! She will find her toy and play my throwing it and catching it, and she loves to run around! But if you want to play with her she loves that too! And is very gentle!


When she is relaxed she will drop her tail from its curl and it hangs and it makes her look almost like a mini wolf because its so fluffy! ;)

She loves to play! With the dogs we've encountered at the parks, she always play bows and jumps around trying to get them to play! And she is always happy to see a toy in your hand and just can't wait for you to let her play with it :) She is the only other foster dog besides Scotty (now Farley) to play with all the toys I bring out! She is fair and loves all her toys equally :P


She does have some separation anxiety when people leave, but she calms down pretty fast. She just gives a few whines and may give a half-bark (a breathy quiet bark).
When you come back she circles around you and then looks at the back door because she loves to hang out outside :)

She may vocalize here or there when excited, but it's not much and she is pretty easy to quiet down.

She has very good house manners - she never even once tried to jump onto my bed, she never even looked at the bed! I put a blanket down beside my bed and turned the fan on (my room was pretty warm) and she curled up and went to sleep.
Then at about 7am she got up and I felt a wet nose against my face and she gave me one lick and I opened one eye a bit, saw her staring at me and then closed my eyes. Then she lay back down and went to sleep :P


I just know her perfect family is out there because she is just so adorable and sweet and if I was able to adopt a dog, she would be top on my list, and it's only been two days! That should tell you how awesome she is! However, as I cannot adopt a dog, I hope a great home applies for her and she finds her forever home!

She is going to the island on the 25th to continue her fostering, and then she will be up for adoption :)



And here are some extra photos!

Bed Time


This antler is NOT too big!



Here is a couple videos of her playing in the backyard with her toys! ZOOMIES :D
(She likes to entertain herself :P)




Bambi

Hello All!

Over the next couple weeks I'll be fostering a few different dogs! So you will all have lots to read about! :)

I even have a new foster, TODAY! She came to me this morning, though I am only a temporary foster as she will be going to her foster home on the island in a week.

Her name is Bambi!
If you follow Turtle Gardens' blog you may remember her from back in July! She was an outdoor dog whose owners gave her up once she went into heat.
She was since adopted by a really nice, well-meaning couple. They did some really good work with her leash work, and manners, but they were first time dog owners, and were still learning "the ropes" of dog ownership and training, and after a few weeks they realized Bambi may be better off with a more dog-experienced family. They really loved her and were very sad to see her go, but she was just becoming a bit much for them, and they are happy that she will get to go to a home with more dog experience who can continue her training, and help her be the best dog she can be :)

So far having her here for only a few hours, she's been great :) She is not sure of whats happening yet, thats for sure, as she is doing a bit of whining and pacing, but she has settled down a lot in the last couple hours. At first she would whine and scratch at the door and run back and forth in the room. But now with me coming in and out and moving around with her, she hardly gives even a little whine anymore, even when left for longer periods of time, after a minute or so you can hear her lie down and settle.
- The first day is always the hardest when transitioning dogs, so overall I'd say she's been quite good all things considered!

We walked to the park and she met a big lab there and he wanted to play SO BAD but they were both on leash so they couldn't, also I'd only had her maybe 20 mins at that point and I was pretty sure she wouldn't be listening/ recalling to me yet ;P but Bambi wanted to get over there badly as well, but I just held the leash with some tension for a minute and in seconds she'd settled and was relaxed looking around the park, no longer really caring that the dog was there.

She LOVES to sniff and will sniff everywhere if you let her :)

I have a cute video of her on the walk wanting to sniff everywhere!

She also does zoomies when she has a toy at the park - too bad I didn't have a long leash with me :( So she kind of just ran in circles on a 6ft leash haha!

She's a medium size dog - about the size of a sheltie? She's only 35 lbs and most of that is fur as she is very slight. She's almost like a miniature husky! She is only 9 months old so she's still a puppy, and she loves to play, but likes to relax too. But she is very smart (maybe some Border Collie?) and I think she would actually make a very good agility prospect, or any other dog sport! She tried to play with my hands once, but I just ignored her and held onto her leash (what Kathy Gibson of Custom Canine taught me to do with Jaycee) and she realized it was getting her no where and stopped and hasn't tried since! :D told you she was smart!

I'm pretty much just giving her time to settle in herself, ignoring the anxiety behaviors, just keeping her on a leash, and giving her a couple pets when shes relaxed (but not to much so I don't get her worked up and over stimulated) and she's been a sweet lady, and I'm exited to learn more about her over the next few days :)

She's right now lying on my feet while I right this, having a little snooze :)

Please leave comments about any questions about Bambi or anything else!

I shall write more soon!
(I shall post the pics and video soon!)

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Post-Expo!

I had a BLAST at the Delta Animal Expo! It was  a lot of fun talking about Turtle Gardens to new people as well as having fun and chatting with Denise, Lisa, and Ashley and many other TG'ers that stopped by!

We raised just under $500! That will go a long way to helping with the surgeries! :) 

I LOVED hanging out with Winna especially :) She will steal your heart in a minute :) So I took her on walks with me around all the other booths, and she loved walking around and sniffing :) She wasn't a huge fan of dogs coming too much into her space, but by the end of the day she had no problem walking around other dogs and hanging out at different dog booths, and she even sniffed and said hello to a few of them! Her favourite was a twelve week old boxer puppy! It seemed like the puppy interested her because he was still learning all his dog language and was all feet :P

We also stopped off at the Off-Leash Photography booth and we got a great shot of Winna! :)


Isn't she just super cute?!

Everyone there loved her and she is just such a loyal and sweet dog! We hope she finds her forever home soon! She'd do best in a quiet home where she can enjoy the rest of her life with walks and love! :)

Now I'm looking forward to my next foster dog! Who shall it be? :)

Will post more soon!

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Delta Animal Expo!

Hello All!

Tomorrow is the Delta Community Animal Expo at Ladner Memorial Park in BC!

It is going to be sunny and great and tons of fun! There will be shows and TONS of booths set up from many different rescue groups, food distributors, and toys and treats galore!

Turtle Gardens will have a booth there and we will have volunteers and adoptable dogs just waiting for some loving attention!
We are raising money for Turtle Gardens, but the bulk of the money will be going to two really special TG dogs! Sid and Nellie!
 You can read more about their story here: http://www.turtlegardens.org/blog/?p=30609

I will be there as well with my Homemade Dog Toys and Treats to give to people who donate to Turtle Gardens as well as samples for everyone! :)

All my treats are wheat free, and made myself so no preservatives what-so-ever!



It's at a park so dogs are welcome!! :D
Stop by our booth and I can give your pups a snack :)
And you can help Sid and Nellie get back their health!

Hope to see you all there!