Thursday

 

First things first. We renamed our dog. He's now Toby. We had two dozen names that we liked and used most of them for his first day with us. (We like to keep our dogs a little confused.) After spending  the day with him, Toby seemed to fit him the best.

I got his records from Paw Print Hearts (pet adoption organization) today, so here's his story. He was born June 20, 2020 in Walton County in the town of DeFuniak Springs, Florida, a small town in the Florida panhandle between Panama City and Ft. Walton Beach, close to the Alabama border. He was turned in to the Walton County shelter on Sept. 11, at the age of 13 weeks, 6 days, by the owner. (No reason given on the form.) The Walton County Shelter did not have anyone to adopt him. (It's a small town.) The shelter works with adoption organizations throughout the state, one of which is Paw Print Hearts out of Tampa. 

Paw Prints took possession on Sept. 12, got him up-to-date on his vaccinations and shots and had him micro-chipped.

The next month was spent getting medical care and in foster homes. The first foster kept him for two nights and then sent him to the foster that contacted us. We were told that the first foster couldn't stand the high-pitched crying and squealing at night while he was in his crate.

The second foster had him for two and a half weeks. She took him to one "meet and greet" with a family, but they decided he was too young and high-energy for their young child. We were the second interested family to consider adopting him.

No one seems to be sure what his breed is, other than it's a mix, probably of some sort of terrier (pit, bull, American??) and some sort of hound. A guy on the causeway told us he looked like a Doggo Argentino. Another said he looked like Spuds McKenzie (Budweiser dog). Another said he looked like the target dog with the bulls-eye on his eye. I guess, like with Dee Dee, we'll never know for sure.

He's got pretty eyes. In the picture above, you can see that they are hazel, brown shifting to green.

 We purchased a crate and bed to help with house training and to secure him when we leave the house. The first time we put him in, we walked around the block. We didn't hear any noise. According to his second foster, he settles in about 10-15 minutes. She never had any problem with him. He is anxious to get out in the mornings to pee, she said. Fosters have to use crates for sleeping, eating, and avoiding chaos. Our foster had three dogs, only one of her own.

We got him a squeaky toy to go along with the toys the foster brought. We took him to the pet store, so he could pick out what he wanted. He chose this squid/alien creature.

It's pretty easy to redirect him, so that he chews on the right things.

We took him to the Dunedin Causeway this morning to walk. He was great. He passed half a dozen dogs without incident. He greeted one puppy nose-to-nose without incident. He never barked or lunged, and he was inundated with people, bikes, dogs, cars, baby carriages, etc. He navigated past them all without incident. If he keeps this up, this will be our first dog that doesn't have dog issues. He loves people. He got lots of compliments. Who doesn't love a puppy, right?

His foster told us that he threw up on his first two car rides. She picked him up with four other dogs in Ocala. (John says everyone in Ocala needs rescuing. Ha.) He did not throw up when his foster brought him to our house last night. He did well today on his car rides, especially after the first one. The trips were short and ended with fun activities for him. He wasn't sure what was going on with the first car trip.

He crossed two bridges that have narrow sidewalks without issues. He was a little spooked on the draw bridge because it bounces, and when cars cross, it makes a loud roar. He hesitated, then continued to walk. We've seen dogs who refused to cross, and we've seen dogs who insist on walking on the concrete side and not the rail side, but he crossed and was able to do it on the inside or outside (near the rails).

He was exhausted when he got back and slept the rest of the morning, most of the afternoon and evening.

This morning, he followed me to the bathroom!

This is how he was during dinner tonight. I remember Dexter's first dinner at our house. He barked and tried to climb up on us!

 John got up and left the table to run an errand. I finished eating, cleaned up the kitchen, brushed my teeth, and Toby is still sleeping at the table.

He finally woke up and noticed everyone had left. He came and joined me in the office, laying down at my feet. 

Tucking in for a long snooze.

So . . . , what's he like so far, temperament wise?

It's hard to describe without comparing him to Dexter and Dee Dee. 

1. He is NOT dog aggressive.
2. He's shy and careful when meeting a new person or dog, but not overly so. He will approach both carefully.
   
3. He's not an alpha dog. He will walk behind me if John has him on the leash behind me. He doesn't try to get in front, as Dexter and Dee Dee did.
4. He wants to please, so he's very attentive when being redirected. He gives up destructive behavior quickly (gnawing on the carpet or office chair leg).
   
5. He naps a lot. He's very chill.
   
6. He settles down quickly.
7. He doesn't run around the house.
8. We played a game to teach him his (last) new name. John sat at one end of the lanai and I sat at the other. We both had a hand full of treats. We called Toby, and when he came, he got a treat. This goes back and forth until all the treats are gone. If they learn the pattern, then you call them twice with their name and the other person doesn't call them. Dexter loved this game and would run full speed and turn on a dime if you changed the pattern. Toby saunters. If you change the pattern, he looks a little miffed that he has to walk all the way back to get a treat. He never begged for more. Dexter figured out you had a hand full and would try to get them all in one trip. With Dexter, we could play the game in different rooms on different floors, even. Toby would only play if we were in the same room.
   
9. He likes to fetch, but he's not obsessed with it like Dexter. He brings the ball back to you, unlike Dee Dee.
10. He doesn't bark at people or other dogs.
11. He whines once or twice when he first gets in the car, but settles quickly.
12. He is a nervous eater. He likes to graze instead of eating all at once. Dexter and Dee Dee ate every meal in under 20 seconds. He's a messy eater and drinker. Food and water go everywhere. These may be puppy habits that will change.
13. He startles easily in some situations. He doesn't like to be picked up. He will spontaneously pee. I hope this will change as he learns the routines and we develop trust.
14. He walks much better on a leash than Dexter did at his age.
15. When walking on the leash, he gets wrapped up around poles and trees, unlike Dee Dee who would always figure out what to do to avoid that scenario. (Dexter didn't care. He knew you would get him untangled. He just wondered what took you so long.) Toby may learn to anticipate obstacles and compensate.
16. He slept in the bed with us. He's used to sleeping in a crate, so we weren't sure how he'd do. He woke up at 2:00 and was a little squirmy, but I took him out to pee and he settled back down. His preferred sleeping position seems to be near your legs. He fell asleep quickly and was the last one out of the bed this morning.
    
17. He was so anxious and wound up when the foster brought him over last night. He cried and tried to get back in the car with her. He kept going to our front door to leave after she had gone. He had two other dogs to play with at his foster home. I'm sure that transitions are tough when you don't understand what's going on. Everything you know changes in an instant.
    

Bottom line: Toby appears to be an old soul. He's calm and self-possessed. That's my impression after less than 24 hours.

Miles walked: 7
Miles biked: 0 (We are researching a dog trailer for our bikes, so we can take him with us on our bike rides. I think he'll enjoy that, especially if we go to interesting places, like the dog beach, Wall Springs Park, and downtown.)