We have had Max for a Month now, and he has come quite a way. In regards to house training/ spraying in the house:
At two weeks max had stopped sniffing to mark as we walked through the house, so we gave him a little more space, walking more slowly, letting him off of his bed, while still on the leash in the house. He sprayed the couch that night. So back onto the bed he went for another week. At week two he got a little more space again, and that night he marked a bed post. Now keep in mind ...

Continue reading ...

Max has been here for a week and a half, and we have definitely turned a corner!

Max has learned to go potty as soon as he goes outside, and to run and play while out there, rather than just run around marking. He is still on leash or on his line while outside, but he has learned that fun things happen on it, so he likes it.

Using the line has also helped in teaching Max to be more tolerant. He is learning not to bark every time he does not get what he wants. At first I thought that Max was b...

Continue reading ...

Continue reading ...

It has been a very long time since I have had an "only dog". Basically Riley is back to how he was when he was a puppy: play with me, play with me, play with me, play with me, I'm bored, I'm bored, I'm bored, I'm bored. Needless to say that it is driving me crazy! I exercise him and play with him multiple times a day, but he just is not getting what he needs, even if he goes to the dog park. He would need to go multiple times a day, every day to be fully happy. So we have been on the lookout ...
Continue reading ...

This morning I went to pick up our new foster Rocco. He is a 230lb Bullmastiff. When I picked him up, I knew that he was food aggressive and was becoming dog aggressive. When I did an evaluation at the shelter I found out that he was eager to please, and had a very calm, stable personality. I thought that his issues were probably from lack of leadership and direction, and that he had a good prognosis of overcoming these issues with patience and the right approach. So I brought him home. We ha...

Continue reading ...

 

So, lately I have been running into trouble with wanting to follow my code of ethics when it comes to picking the family for my latest foster dog. In my code of ethics, I list that it is not my job to "pick" the perfect owners for my foster dogs...that is God's job. It is my job to care for and teach these dogs to the best of my ability, and then advertise for new owners and portray the clearest possible picture of the dog's good and bad behavior and personality traits. Then the first fam...

Continue reading ...

June 9, 2009

Once I learned of Riley's struggle, I was faced with the question: Do I continue to foster dogs with no homes and risk Riley's recovery, or do I stop fostering, and just focus on the dogs that I have?  I was stuggling with this decision a few weeks ago, when I ran into the Stockon Animal Shelter foster program coordinator at the dog park (my other dog was in serious need of play). He understood my predicament, but then told me about two australian cattledog pups about 5 months old...
Continue reading ...