Foster Dog No.3
He was originally found as a stray, wandering about, fending for himself. He was taken in by a rescue group, BARK, which successfully found him an adoptive home. His adoptive-owners returned him soon afterward, having discovered an "issue" of serious proportions with the dog: he's a biter. BARK installed him in a kennel for a number of weeks as they hadn't sufficient foster homes to place all of the stray and unwanted dogs they were absorbing. Finally, after the second dog she was fostering was adopted she agreed to take in this little animal as well, and went off to the kennel to pick him up.
His name is Buddy and he answers to it nicely. He has a light tan coat, which has had to be shaved because it was incredibly tangled, but this had the benefit of showing off his wonderful conformation. He is neutered, something BARK insists upon for all its rescued animals, a Cocker Spaniel, with a seemingly good disposition (until, presumably, his independence is threatened or he feels himself otherwise under threat). His tendency upon meeting someone new is to wag his tail in the most friendly, inquisitively manner. He is about two years old, full of nervous energy, and uncertain. Which can be readily understood, given his sad history.
He is also rather smelly. The conditions relating to hygiene at the kennel left something to be desired and he smells heavily of ammonia, uric acid and who knows what else? He hasn't settled in yet, but he does need to be bathed, and as things turn out he's most agreeable to the process and lends himself handily to being washed and soaped, and rinsed. He's a little less happy about the process whereby his ear flaps are lifted and his ears cleaned out. As for the cleaning of his teeth, he's downright unhappy and makes every attempt to protect himself from this clearly unwanted attention.
He snarls, turns sharply and tries to bite her. She will have none of it, tells him firmly that he will not dominate her, she is the boss here. She makes another attempt, and his immediate response is another attempt to bite. She repeats the process until he becomes quiet and reluctantly lends himself to this new adventure. She makes an attempt to persuade him to lie down flat from his sitting position, but he remains unwilling so she does what she can while he sits before her. She allows him to have one of her hands held in his mouth as she uses it to hold his head steady using the other to scrape the black coating off his teeth.
He applies pressure to her hand, not breaking the skin, but enough to let her know he isn't happy, and it's enough so that she knows she will sport some bruising on that hand for a few days. She's been through this before. She has enough rescue dogs of her own, dogs that had been maltreated and whose personalities had been shaped by their previous owners' behaviours toward them. It's not difficult to admire her confidence, her deliberate actions, her refusal to accept the dog's behaviour - and she is determined to train him away from this proclivity to bite, knowing full well that with that reputation it will be difficult to find him a permanent home.
When he submits himself to her careful ministrations he is rewarded with her soothing, quiet voice praising him, telling him how good he is, what a sweet dog he is. She brings her face close to his and he gives her a tentative lick. She hugs him and the exchange of warmth surely does this dog a world of good. It has that effect on her, most certainly.
She had earlier taken him into the house, unpacking the few things that BARK supplies for its fosters. He drank thirstily, he was eager to look about, careful to wind his way around the other dogs, most of whom take little notice of his presence, save for the alpha dog, a large Malamute/German Shepherd rescued from Iqaluit three years earlier whose growls are intended to inform this interloper exactly what his place in the pack is: very low down on the totem pole, for now.
Buddy follows her about everywhere. He gladly accepts a few biscuit treats, watches as she busies herself around her kitchen. And is happy to follow her back outside, where she begins the process of washing him. When everything has been done, and he's wet and clean, she encourages him to trot about to dry off, but calls him back repeatedly from the back of the house where, like all the other dogs, he's intrigued by the wetland sitting there, but has yet to learn as have the others that it is verbotten territory.
Her ten-year-old daughter, throws her large inflatable ball, and Buddy happily lopes after it, yet stops when he hears the dismay in the little girl's voice. She puts her inflatable ball away and takes another one, a volleyball-type, which Buddy's teeth and claws won't slash, and throws it directly toward him. He races forward to meet it, thrusts it forward with the clever use of his front legs and paws and tumbles about with it. When the little girl goes into the house, the dog follows her to the door, asking to enter with her, and she invites him in.
Through the course of the following few hours it becomes clear that Buddy has adopted the little girl, and wants to be where she is. Not surprising, since the previous two foster dogs did the same, finding in the child's careless acceptance of their presence among her many pets something appealing. When her mother enters the house briefly Buddy lopes after her, then sits disconsolately beside the door, whining, until she exits to join the group.
At one juncture, Buddy makes an attempt to draw the tiny Pomeranian beneath him, and a sharp reprimand from the mother stops his activity. Following which an outraged Malamute/German Shepherd, having witnessed the scene, trots forward to snarl and growl and let the newcomer know that such behaviour cannot be sanctioned and that should he repeat that infraction he will pay the consequences. Buddy appears concerned momentarily, then veers off once again to join the little girl in her playball activities.
We're hoping Buddy will be yet another quick adoptee. Despite some obvious issues, he is a beautiful dog with a potentially sweet disposition and outlook on life.
posted by Pieface @ Sunday, August 06, 2006
<< Home