Sparky

Little Sparky looks more like a toy than a dog.  He's about seven, mostly Maltese and.... how did this sweet little guy ever become a stray?  The world is a strange place.  Sparky was easy to harness since he's very comfortable with people, plus his cuddly sweater (stays on both in and out of the shelter) gives the harness a snug fit.  Interesting side note; I had just come from a lecture and sat next to a woman whose knitting group does  sweaters for the shelter's little dogs - kind, caring people are all around us.  Back to our outing.

We had gone just a short distance on our walk and Sparky let me know that his  feet liked smooth soft surfaces.  I think he has been mostly an inside dog.  He is wonderful on the leash, very responsive and easy to walk.  We stopped in the exercise yard on the way back where Sparky showed me that he could come and sit for treats (videos). He showed interest in other dogs but was not fearful or aggressive.  He was easy to return to his kennel; no gate charging, just bounced up toward the front to great some hall visitors.  He's really a cute little guy.  Let's hope he finds his new home with lots of comfortable inside time soon.

Rengar has found his forever home

The super smart wonderful puppy Rengar was adopted last week.  Lucky family, happy pup.

Rengar

According to the board, by mid afternoon just Rengar had not yet had a volunteer outing .  Looking a bit more closely at the notes:  Very high energy, work at calming him, work on basics, needs leash training; I could go on but I'm sure you're getting the picture.  Rengar is a big, mostly Siberian Husky, 9 month old puppy in a confined situation.  I loaded up with treats, crossed my fingers and went to meet Rengar.

Surprisingly he was not up on his hind legs to greet me. I entered his kennel, he ran the other direction.  He quickly dashed back for pets then, off again. It took a few minutes but I eventually got him harnessed.  Energy burn off in the exercise yard was absolutely essential.  Rengar just loved chasing balls and actually began dropping them within 3 to 4 feet of me.  After about 15 minutes of solid dashing around, I hoped that Rengar would be a bit more ready for a leash walk.  When I'm doing a leash training I let the dog go  mostly where he/she wants on the way out then do the training on the way back.  Rengar was all that his profile implied.  Wrapping himself in his leash, jerking, bolting, grabbing his leash; you name it, he tried it.

On the way back, training began.  When he walked quietly in front of me, initially for just a few seconds, I praised him.  He got it almost immediately.  Within just a few minutes he was walking nicely on the leash, loving hearing the kind words and getting petted (video).  Of course he had sniff stops but it was  a night and day difference from our outgoing walk.  He is so smart and eager to please. 

Our second stop in the exercise yard would be for more obedience.  My first couple of attempts at getting him to sit resulted in puzzled looks.  However once he did it and received a treat and lots of praise, he had it.  Getting him to come on command was easy since he is extremely affectionate and loves contact.  According to his profile he is  good with children other dogs and cats.  Though he will need a family  willing to keep up his training and see that he gets plenty of exercise, I know they will be very lucky to  have him.  Let's hope it happens soon.

Drew finds his forever home

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Sweet little Drew is now in a home of his own.  It took him a bit longer than most, since he had a bit of an attitude regarding other dogs. 

Barney

I don't know how to begin this one.  Sure wish I could say that Barney was going to have an easy time getting adopted but look at him.  It gets worse.  He now has a cone on his head and is so lonely he has barked himself hoarse.  I think this crummy weather is really getting to me.

I'll start again, a busy rainy day at the Shelter, visitors everywhere and Barney's "odd sounds" were piercing the room.  Barney is one of the dogs from the over crowded California shelter arriving here about ten days ago.  He a Terrier / Miniature Poodle mix and about two years old.  On the plus side, he is very good on the leash, and promising at come and sit.  According to the general profile of this group of the CA dogs, they all get along with other dogs and are all very social.

Once inside of Barney's kennel he snuggled close while I got him harnessed.  He was hard not to notice prancing down the hall, he  resembled a giant alien bug, at least in my opinion. You can weigh in on this too since I made a video.  Once outside we did the exercise yard and a short walk but Barney does not like cold wet feet.  After just about 20 minutes he started back toward the shelter in a determined strut.  We finished our visit in a get cozy get acquainted  room with lots of lap time.

As I returned Barney to his kennel, he cuddled and nuzzled but was not much interested in playing with toys.  I think Barney will make a sweet affectionate companion to the person who can see past his appearance challenges.