Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

Sunday was another Shelter Storytime morning and I couldn’t resist taking more pictures of kids reading to our shelter dogs.

What a wonderful program for both the kids and our dogs!

 

We had it all decided before I arrived at WHS on Sunday, who we were going to spend extra time with to feature in this week’s post. We had chosen Luna, Sam, and Compass. The shelter was very busy with lots of people searching for their perfect new canine family member. Suddenly we realized that Luna was getting adopted (again)! I was delighted that I got to take her going-home pictures. We all think that this will be Luna’s perfect fit of a family.

 

We were so happy to see Luna head off with her new peeps. Later that evening, I got this picture from her family. Looks like she’s settling in just fine.

 

We decided to take Sam into Mary’s Place to get fresh pictures of her for this post. You may remember that Mia and Sam came to the shelter together and I featured them a couple of weeks ago. At first we thought they were bonded, but it turned out they weren’t, and Mia had been adopted earlier in the week. Marianne, Megan, and I had a great time playing with Sam.

Just as we were wrapping up her photoshoot, a staff member came to take Sam for a dog-to-dog meet with a potential canine sibling. The dog meet went great and, yep, off went Sam with her new family. We were so happy for her.

 

That left one of our original three potentially featured dogs left to spend time with. And we had a great time with her.

 

 

I’m smart, young, and I love life. Interested in agility? So am I! Let’s talk.

Compass was found as a stray and I have to believe her family felt a great sadness about losing her. She is an amazing dog.

 

 

Compass is about two years old and a Shepherd mix (a Belgian Malinois, perhaps). She won’t be the right dog for every family. She is definitely not a couch-potato kind of gal. She loves action! She already knows sit, down, stay, and probably much more. She is incredibly smart. We think she would excel in and love agility training. She would also thrive going hiking and, of course, playing a lot of fetch. She is treat-motivated (cheese is one of her favorites) and house-trained. She does need a little work on leash-walking, as she is excited to go ANYWHERE. For a dog-experienced family who appreciates an active, eager, and affectionate dog, Compass would be a great fit. She is rated for kids about ten and older. We took her out to the big yard to play and we all had a blast. She absolutely adored the pink ball we brought out.

She has done well in our playgroups with dogs her size, but would need to meet any she would be living with. I looked up Belgian Malinois and found this, which rings true to what we’ve learned about Compass so far. “If you have ever seen a Mal perform an obedience routine, you know firsthand what a smart and eager breed this is. Problems set in, though, when this people-oriented dog is underemployed and neglected. Exercise, and plenty of it, preferably side by side with their adored owner, is key to Mal happiness.” (https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/belgian-malinois/)

After several vigorous fetch games, it was time to relax.

 

 

Next I asked her to pose on the platform and she was perfect.

 

Back in Mary’s Place, we all relaxed.

 

Then it was time to head back to her kennel.

 

This shot was taken the week before, but I want to show you Compass’ tender side.

 

Compass will be such a wonderful dog for the right family. Maybe they are reading this post right now. Is it yours?

 

 

 

Have a yard and a couch? Need a dog? Together, we can make this work!

Maxwell is a two-year-old German Shepherd mix and is a very handsome boy.

 

He first came to WHS in September of 2019, having been an outdoor dog only. He was surrendered because he has chronic skin allergies. Medication at the shelter helped, and Maxwell was adopted in November. However, his new person lived in an apartment and Max was surrendered again in February because his person decided it was not fair for Max to be in an apartment all day while the owner worked.

Max is a delightful, playful dog who will entertain himself romping outside and then enjoy coming in and cuddling on the couch. He will need a family who can keep up with his skin medications, as he can quickly develop hair loss when not monitored.

We took Max out to a yard and all we had to do was stand back as he raced around throwing his toy up and catching it again. He was hilarious to watch.

 

Max is rated for kids about 13 and up due to his size, but he is quite gentle. He will need a cat-free home and he should meet any dogs he will be living with.

After his playtime, we took him into Mary’s Place to settle, and he loved just hanging out with us.

 

 

Max is hoping his new family will come soon. He’ll be waiting for you in his kennel.

 

 

 

 

I’ve been working on my manners and am improving every day!

Blue is a puppy—a very large puppy at seven months and 80 pounds. He is the son of our sweet Willow, who was adopted a couple of weeks ago. Blue is a Rottweiler/German Shepherd mix. He is a stunning youngster and one of Marianne’s current favorites.

As with all puppies, Blue has had a lot to learn through reward-based training. He has already come a long way and is continuing to working hard with our staff and volunteer trainers. Blue can be jumpy when excited, but has improved greatly in keeping his paws on the ground. Since he is very treat-motivated and smart, his trainers say he is a joy to work with. He now walks well on leash and sits when asked. He is house-trained and used a dog door in his former home. He will need to go home with a patient family who will devote the time to continue his positive training. He is a very social dog in our playgroups and loves to romp with his dog friends. Because of his size and age, he is rated for children 13 and older. Oh, and Blue has an excellent sense of humor.

Blue was anxious to show me what he’s been working on with his trainers. He now is learning to stop, sit, and wait before going through doors and how to sit patiently when outside.

 

He’s a very affectionate dog who likes to lean against his favorite people.

Blue is being shown through our training department. Please submit your application to meet him and they will contact you to set up an appointment. You can get the application here.

 

I call this my Three-Shepherd Post. And on that note, that’s it for this week!

 

All of the dogs I have featured today, along with other terrific dogs waiting to be adopted, can be found at Willamette Humane Society. Here is the link to the adoptable-dog page:

https://whs4pets.org/adopt-a-pet/dogs-2/

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