Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

In this post, I’m going to write about four dogs waiting for specific types of homes. Each one has a wonderful personality, but has quirks that make them not the right fit for just any home. However, there are adopters of shelter dogs who are not looking for the “perfect” dog, but instead, a dog who has waited longer than others for a loving home.

Want to laugh? Got toys? I will keep you and me entertained!

Benny is a six-year-old Chihuahua mix who arrived at WHS in early December. He was adopted but returned in early January. We took him into Mary’s Place on Sunday and spent most of our time with him laughing.

 

Benny LOVES to play with toys. It doesn’t matter what toy it is, or how big. We just sat back and watched as he jumped, rolled, twisted, and flipped himself over.

 

Then it was time for some calm poses with his friends, Megan and Marianne.

Benny loves people. He can be a tad shy at first meeting, but quickly warms up and as you saw, is quite the ham. Benny is house-trained and has done well in our playgroups. Benny’s quirk is that as a puppy, he never was taught to share with other dogs. In his home, he resource-guarded toys, food, and his bed from the other resident dogs. He tolerated the other dogs as long as his food, toys and bed were kept separate from the others. So Benny would probably do best as the only dog in his new home. And cats? Benny wants nothing to do with them and will need a feline-free home. Benny also wants to be able to be left alone at times. In his former home, he would go to his bed when he wanted some space and the family knew not to bother him. Because children can forget Benny’s needs, he requires an adult-only home. We know the perfect home for Benny is out there. The right person just needs to meet him.

 

 

 

 

I’m not young anymore. I’m not cute anymore. But I will be the best friend you ever had.

Sapphire is a gentle old soul at nine years. She is a lab mix who was found as a stray and brought to the shelter on January 10th. As always happens when an older dog arrives, she quickly became a favorite of volunteers.

 

I first met her when Megan brought her out for pictures in early January.

 

Sapphire has the usual old-lady quirks. She has some lumps, a graying muzzle, and arthritis in her left elbow. She has done well in our playgroups with other mellow dogs. She was adopted once and we were thrilled, but the family had quite a few stairs and they realized that it was too hard on Sapphire and she started to limp so they sadly returned her. On Sunday we took her into Mary’s Place where she thoroughly enjoyed some relaxing time.

 

 

She seemed to enjoy posing for pictures, here with Megan and Linda.

 

 

She liked my cheese bits.

 

She decided it was time for some snuggling with Marianne.

 

Sapphire is an affectionate, gentle senior who is looking for a retirement home with very few stairs. She would do fine with respectful children about eight and older who would understand her age limitations. Of course she is house-trained, has been for years! This girl can’t wait to meet her new family and hopes they come soon.

 

 

 

Looking for a partner in agility? I’m one smart cookie and am ready to go!

Meet Yogi, a Belgian Malinois mix who is five years old. She is a beauty!

 

 

I first met Yogi when she arrived in December. Here she was with Ayla. Notice the tennis ball in her mouth. You will see it again!

 

Since I didn’t know anything about the Belgian Malinois breed, I looked it up and found fascinating information about these amazing dogs.

“Originally developed in Malines, Belgium, Malinois have a great deal of stamina and truly enjoy working. They are intelligent and very active dogs that excel at many tasks. In addition to herding, they also do well with police work, search and rescue, and in performance events, such as agility. Because of their energy level and sensitivity, Malinois are recommended for people who have previously owned dogs and have experience with dog training. Malinois are very intense dogs who like to be included in all of the family activities. They aren’t well suited for people who work long hours. Belgian Malinois are dogs that are play-oriented and sensitive. Training should be fun, consistent, and positive.” (https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/belgian-malinois#/slide/1)

Yogi fits this description to a T. She is highly intelligent and loves learning new things. She is also sensitive and can be shy and fearful around loud noises and children. She resource-guards at times from other dogs and people, so an experienced person would be best for Yogi. Because she is fearful of children, she needs to go to an adult home or with older (15 and up) teens. Yogi knows that her kennel presentation needs work. She barks a lot, trying to get people to notice and interact with her (remember, she is extremely smart!). Once we took her in Mary’s Place on Sunday, she didn’t make a peep and thoroughly enjoyed our attention. And remember the tennis ball earlier? She loved showing us she could fit TWO in her mouth at once!

 

 

We all had a blast. Yogi was a very polite and a good listener for Linda.

 

Then we had a little tennis ball fun with Megan.

 

After that we settled for some quiet conversation.

 

Remember how I said Yogi’s breed is very intelligent?

 

Yogi will be an absolutely amazing partner for the right person. Hoping that person will find her soon.

 

 

 

I got my own movie!

I’ve written about Sunny a lot in recent posts. We were thrilled when she got to go to a foster home for a break from the kennels. She is spending some time with her foster brother, Tank, who was another special case adopted last May. When I got some wonderful video from her foster family, I knew I had to make a movie about our sweet girl.

Sunny is an eleven-month-old mixed breed girl. She can be reactive when she sees other dogs on leash, but once she is allowed to play with them, she has a blast. She is house-trained and a quick learner. She knows some basic commands like sit and down. Because of her youthful exuberance, she is recommended for a family with older kids.

 

 

 

This week’s Outtakes!

Can YOU find Yogi in this picture?

 

Not quite sure what she was thinking…

 

 

 

 

Heidi/Maggie

After featuring four dogs who are not the right match for everybody, I am so happy to have this update about the adoption of another dog who had some quirks, Heidi. There ARE homes out there for our quirky dogs.

When Heidi arrived at WHS last August, she was extremely shy, wary, and nervous. She did not want to be handled, was fearful of other dogs, strangers, loud noises and sudden movements. But over time, her true personality began to shine through. But she would always be a dog who would need a patient, understanding family willing to work with her to help her build confidence. She needed to be the only pet in the home. But oh, what a beauty she was!

 

Because she needed a special home, she waited. Finally on December 15th, her perfect family found her and took her home. They named her Maggie (she likes it much better than Heidi) and here is their update on this wonderful girl.

“We adopted Maggie just before Christmas. My daughter, Sydnie, had a German Shepherd growing up who passed a year ago. Sydnie is now 17 years old and still misses her dog dearly. I’d been kind of looking to get her another dog. I just happened to be in Salem one day and opened the WHS website and the very second I saw Heidi, I knew she had to come home with me for my daughter. My fiancé, Shea, and I drove over and waited almost two hours for the doors to open. I had to be first in line, I didn’t want anyone to adopt her before I got the chance. 

When I met her, I noticed that she was pretty scared with new people, but I also knew Sydnie would be the perfect match for her. She rode in the car great all the way home. When we got her out of the car, my daughter was standing in the window and saw her. She burst into tears. And then we all cried. Poor Heidi didn’t know what to do with all of us crying and hugging.

We struggled for several days trying to get her to respond to the given name “Heidi” with no luck. I called her Maggie about night three and she perked up and came right to me. Sydnie liked the name and it stuck. 

Maggie has gone from being very skittish about pretty much everything and everybody except Sydnie, to loving our family as if she has been here forever. She still doesn’t care for new people, but she doesn’t hide anymore. She is very playful. She LOVES to play tag. She’s also put on some weight finally and gets weekly baths and she enjoys those. She is such a happy dog we are all so very happy we have her. 

She knows several commands and is learning more. She loves riding in the car and goes everywhere with whoever is leaving. She is home with Shea mostly and they have a great bond. Shea has been sick for a few days and she lies in bed with him all snuggled up. When no one is home, she is in her girl’s bed waiting for her return home from school. She is so caring! Not only did she find a loving home, we found the perfect pup for not only my daughter, but the whole family.”

 

On that happy note, that’s it for this week!

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