Happy New Year, Fellow Dog Lovers!

Not surprisingly, the number of dog adoptions slowed between Christmas and New Year’s, but even so, we had a total of ten dogs starting 2015 in their new homes. Two of them were Blog Dogs. I was especially happy about ten-year-old Trusty Rusty, who had been waiting since early in December. He went home to a family with four wonderful kids. He’ll be such a happy boy!

 

I’m going to begin this blog post talking about three of my current favorite shelter dogs who also happen to have been waiting for their forever homes the longest.

 

I am really, really trying to improve my kennel presentation!

Mommis is a five-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix who was originally adopted from WHS, but in November was found as a stray and her owners could not be located. While Mommis is a real sweetheart, she is embarrassed to admit that her kennel presentation is not good. Potential adopters walk past her as she barks, trying to get their attention. (She is trying to work on this and has made progress.) But if someone looking for a smart, loving, loyal best friend would just spend some time with this girl, they would fall in love. Mommis has learned to politely sit and wait at doors until she is given permission to go out. She walks well on leash. She loves people and gives kisses. She would need to meet any dogs she would live with and would do very well as an only dog. We don’t know how she would do with cats. If you are looking for dog to share your life with, Mommis would like to meet you! Here she is today with volunteer Francis, one of her fans. You may find prettier girls, but you’ll not find a better friend!

 

 

 

Yep, still here. Still waiting for my new family!

Nico continues to patiently hang out at the shelter waiting for the perfect match to find him. In the meantime, he still enjoys his training sessions with volunteer Linda as well as his respites at her house. Nico is two years old and weighs about 50 pounds. He’s been at WHS since July. He is an Australian Kelpie mix. He’ll need a home with experienced owners (and no cats). And he’ll need a tall fence that he can’t climb. (He has been known to climb our chain-link fences at the shelter!) Nico loves people and is hoping just the right family will find him. He is an eager, smart boy, working on his manners. He has come soooo far and knows many commands, including sit, down, stay, and how to bow. We love this boy and are hoping his long wait will be over soon. Here he is after one of his training sessions with Linda last week. Such a serious boy!

Just so you know that he isn’t ALWAYS so serious, here he is with Alexis.

 

 

 

I’ve been waiting, too! I’m a little rough around the edges, but I’ll be a loyal and loving companion!

Parker is a two-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix who has been waiting for his perfect fit of a family since July 26th. He was adopted once, but returned, not being the right match for the family. He will need an experienced person. Parker loves people and is very treat-motivated, so learning new things is easy for this smart guy. He can be picky about his dog friends, so would need to meet any dog he might be living with. Parker would do best with someone who will continue the training he has been working on at WHS. He has lots of fans at the shelter who are hoping this boy will find his forever home very soon. Here are some of my favorite pictures I’ve taken of him during his long stay.

He’s a ham and never minds posing for my camera.

One of Parker’s biggest fans is Jolene. He loves to tell her jokes which he finds hilarious.

He enjoys playing in the big yard.

As you can tell, he wasn’t impressed with my request to wear antlers for the Christmas issue.

 

 

 

I’ve been here before. I’m hoping that this time I’ll find my forever home!

This sweet girl is Cali, a three-year-old American Bull Dog mix. She originally came to WHS from another shelter in April of 2013. She was adopted later that month. But she turned up again as a stray at Marion County Animal Shelter and was transferred back to us on December 19th. She is house-trained, knows several commands, and scored very well on her behavior assessment. She is simply a wonderful family dog. She is affectionate (see below), loves people and gets along with most other dogs. She had a blast in play group on Sunday. She would love an active family who would take her on adventures hiking, running, camping, you name it. Here she was with Laslo on Sunday.

I love her smile!

 

 

 

We may be little, but we’ll be a big part of your life!

This is Anna, a seven-year-old Chihuahua mix who, along with her best friend, Elsa, was found together as strays. Since they are bonded, WHS is hoping they can both go to the same home for the adoption fee of only one! Both dogs are active and very people-oriented. During Sunday’s playgroup, they would dash around the yard, but if I called them, they would come racing toward me as fast as their little short legs would carry them. They think of themselves as lap dogs, no surprise there! Here Anna is with Ian Sunday afternoon.

I’m Elsa, Anna’s BFF!

Elsa is also about seven years old. Here she is with Andrew on Sunday. Sure hope they can go home together!

Here the two of them were today with Sandra and Joan. I didn’t realize until this afternoon what delight Anna takes from teasing me when I’m trying to get a good shot!

This is more like it!

 

 

 

I’m new here, but I have already won everyone over!

Mya is a six-year-old Doberman Pinscher/Lab mix who is one special girl. I first met her a week ago and immediately was drawn to her cheerful demeanor and her eagerness to please. She loved my hot dog bits, sat when asked, and smiled! She walks pretty well on leash and loves attention. Here she was with Laslo. What a beautiful girl she is! She will be a great dog for a family with older children.

Here she was with Joan last week. Mya is gaining quite a fan club.

 

 

 

Yep, I really am this happy!

A newbie to the shelter last week was Casey, a three-year-old Pit Bull Terrier/Shar Pei mix. Although he hates to admit it, he could lose a few pounds, as he’s let himself get a little, shall we say, “chunky.” But being adopted by an active family who would make sure this boy gets the exercise he needs, would trim him down perfectly. As you can see, Casey is one happy boy. He is house-trained and loves people’s attention. He walks well on leash, but doesn’t seem to know many commands. Since he is treat-motivated, learning new skills should be a breeze. Here he was on Sunday with Marianne who couldn’t wait for me to meet this terrific boy.

 

 

 

Do you need a big guy to go on adventures with? Then come meet me!

The first dog I took out to walk today was Duke, a two-year-old Chow Chow/Lab mix. Duke is a very handsome boy with lots of energy. His kennel presentation isn’t the best, so he is located in the stray kennels, but is still very much adoptable. He loves to go outside and walks on leash politely. He is very food-motivated and is a quick learner, so training him will be both fun and easy. After our walk today, we went into the big yard and he happily posed for my camera. Duke is house-trained, knows several commands, and loves to be with people. He does like to go on adventures with or without you, and can jump a six-foot fence, so secure and tall fencing is a must for this character. When he is excited, he can be mouthy, so he should go home with older kids. I really enjoyed my time with Duke today. He’ll make the right person a loyal, cheerful best friend.

 

 

 

Yep, I’m a puppy! Up for the challenge of puppyhood? Then come on in and take me home!

I laughed out loud when I saw this extremely cute little guy today. His name is Joe and he is a six-month-old Dachshund/Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix. He scored extremely well on his behavior assessment and I could certainly see why when Jolene and I met him today. He is a delightful little guy who already knows how to sit when asked, how to take treats gently, and how to walk on a leash. He’ll still need to be trained on what to chew and what not to, and to continue learning house-training. But he is definitely treat-motivated, so training should be pretty easy. I have a feeling little Joe won’t be at the shelter for long! I’m glad I got to meet him.

I love how his forehead wrinkles!

 

 

 

Updates!

Buddy the Elf/Buddy

Buddy won the hearts of everyone when he arrived at WHS. This nine-year-old boy had been an outdoor dog his entire life. We couldn’t wait for someone to adopt him and take him inside!

And then someone did! I was thrilled when I got this update from Buddy’s new family!

“It has been great having Buddy be part of our family.  The first few minutes Buddy was in the house, I grew concerned because he desperately tried to get my Cockatiel, Lucky! But, after those first few minutes, there have been no problems.  Once in a while Buddy looks at her intently, but I just say, “No Buddy, Lucky is part of our family.” He seems to understand, and leaves her alone. And Buddy is getting along great with Casey and Dakota, our other dogs.

I needed to go to Gladstone on Monday, and I did not yet know how Buddy would be staying at home, so I took him with me.  My Mom and Dad doted on Buddy the whole day.  He is a huge hit with my parents!  Buddy also got along great with their dog, Ruby.

The next day I had some appointments, and needed to do some shopping.  I left the 3 dogs and 1 bird home alone for about an hour the first time.  Everything was fine.  Then I left to go shopping and was gone about 3 hours, and everything was fine.  Whew!! 

He loves to eat. He is still very skinny, but he won’t be for long!

My nephew (20 years old) has been staying over the last couple of nights and he LOVES Buddy so much.  We go camping together about 3 times during the summer.  We are looking forward to going with Buddy this year, too! 

I want you and everyone at WHS to know that Buddy now has a forever home, where he lives inside with us.  I haven’t gone on many walks with him yet, but once the holidays are over, we will go at least 2 to 3 times a week.

Thank you again for posting his picture. I am so happy to have Buddy in my family.

PS Isn’t it precious the way he crosses his legs? :-)”

 

Destiny

And I just got these cute pics of Destiny with her sibling, Sheeba, with the caption: “Definitely meant to be sisters!!!”

So on this New Year’s Eve, my hope for all of our wonderful shelter dogs is that they will soon be in their own loving forever families.

 

Remember, if you see a dog on my blog whom you are interested in meeting, try to make arrangements to get to the Willamette Humane Society soon. Some dogs are adopted more quickly than you might think.

You can reach me at adoptanoregondog14@yahoo.com