Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

This week’s post is exciting! There are many happy adoptions to report, three wonderful dogs to feature, and two updates about three very special WHS alumni who were much loved while at the shelter.

Prince Harvey

This boy is so regal. Such a nice dog.

Dapper

This big puppy will keep his new family active and entertained!

Steven

We knew this little guy wouldn’t be at the shelter long. Here he was with volunteer Linda.

Bo

Bo went home with a wonderful young couple. He’s going to have a such a happy life. I was glad I was there to take his going-home pictures!

Reno and Kona

We were over the moon when our senior bonded pair, Reno and Kona, were adopted. We’re so happy they are finally in a new home.

Caleb

Our sweet hospice Caleb went to his retirement home today! We are thrilled for this special boy we all love so much.

Gizmo

A very shy boy, and such a cutie, we knew he’d be adopted soon.

Sarah

Our happy youngster, Sarah, was adopted on Tuesday. She will keep her family laughing and active!

 Please Note: The dogs I feature in this section are available for adoption as of today, August 10, 2022. But things change fast and our goal is always to find wonderful homes for our dogs as quickly as possible. To see if today’s featured dogs are still available and to see other available dogs, click on the link to the currently available dogs here.

Are you looking for an active, bouncy dog? No? How about me, then. I do everything in slow motion!

Last Sunday we spent a long time with Peaches, a three-year-old Hound mix, and she had us laughing the whole time. What a delightful dog she is! Look at this face!

Peaches is a big girl at 81 pounds. She was found as a stray, so we don’t know anything about her past. The officer who picked her up, reported, “She is VERY SHY, friendly when she warms up, good car rider.” Since she has been at OHS, Peaches has warmed up and she has shown her true personality. She’s an affectionate, playful dog—in slow motion. She walks pretty well on leash, though at times will pull a little.

We first spent time in Mary’s Place. It turns out Peaches loves the couch and takes up most of it when she stretches out.

But she’s happy to share it, too, here with Marianne.

We discovered she loves pillows.

She also liked the green ball. So we decided to see if she’d play fetch. She did—slowly. Yes, the following video is in real time.

She does enjoy treats, cheese is a favorite.

She seemed to enjoy posing for my camera, here with Megan.

Since is was such a beautiful day outside, we decided to have some Blanket Time, which we hadn’t done since the Pandemic began. Peaches loved it.

Peaches is a peach of a dog. She will need a home without small animals and a family who will enjoy her laid-back lifestyle. We don’t know her history with other dogs, so she will need to meet any dog she will be going home with. If you think your home might be the perfect fit for Peaches, fill out the Adoption Questionnaire by clicking on her picture and then on the link Adopt Me found on this page: https://whs4pets.org/dogs/. 

My friends here cannot understand why I haven’t been adopted yet. I’m stumped, too!

I first wrote about Max in my June 22nd post. I was so sure he’d be adopted quickly, I didn’t worry about him. But he is still waiting for his new family, so we decided to feature him again, hoping that this time he will be scooped up and taken home.

Max is a three-year-old American Pit Bull Terrier/Shar-Pei mix with drooping ears, big brown eyes, and a huge grin.

Max was surrendered because the other dog in the home has serious health issues, and Max has not gotten the attention he deserves. His family reported that he is “sweet, very content and docile when he is getting attention.” He has gotten along very well with other dogs but is afraid of cats. He is “very patient with children and their rowdiness, but is not spatially aware” and can accidentally knock little ones over. 

Max is not a fan of car rides. He is easily startled by loud noises and a bit shy at first meeting strangers. His favorite thing to do is play fetch and he loves big tennis balls and chew toys. Max is crate-trained and slept in one at night. He does need some fine-tuning in house-training. And in the spirit of full disclosure, he is a bit of an escape artist and has gotten out of his yard, so a secure fence will be important. We think that the reason Max hasn’t gotten adopted yet is his less-than-stellar kennel presentation. He is so excited to see people, he forgets himself and barks, causing people to walk on by. But once out of his kennel, Max is a pure delight. He’s become a favorite of many volunteers. Here are a couple of their comments: “If I didn’t have three dogs already, I’d adopt Max on the spot. Absolutely a wonderful, energetic dog. Does amazing in the turnout.” “Really sweet boy! Was wiggly in his kennel. Great outside. Really likes the turnout. Good at playing ball and likes lots of petting.”

Max has an excellent history with children and has been a star at Camp Paw Paw, an OHS day camp for elementary children. The kids loved him and he was wonderful with them.

We had a great time with Max on Sunday. He’s such a clown and all-around great dog.

First, Marianne played fetch with him.

He does great, though doesn’t always bring the ball right back to you. Here he is in action!

Max is very affectionate, here he is with Linda.

Kate also is a fan.

After romping in the yard, we headed into Mary’s Place for a little relaxation.

He demonstrated his Army crawl.

Max will be such a great dog for an active family with kids who will play fetch with him in the back yard, then let him curl up next to them for some quiet petting time. So when you get to Max’s kennel, ignore his excited barking and take him out to spend some time getting to know this wonderful boy.

To see more pictures of Max in action, read his feature on my June 22nd post here. If you’d like to find out more about Max and see if he might be a good fit for your family, fill out the Adoption Questionnaire by clicking on his picture and then on the link Adopt Me found on this page: https://whs4pets.org/dogs/.

Everyone here says I’m so well-behaved and a good boy. So why am I still waiting for my new family?

That’s a good question. Scout is a six-year-old mixed breed (any guesses?) who was brought to the shelter after the death of his person with whom he had lived since puppyhood.

He was cared for by the owner’s friend, however, his traveling prevents him from keeping Scout. But what a glowing recommendation he gave him, “Scout is the friendliest dog ever.” Staff and volunteers at the shelter agree. Intake staff wrote, “Scout was well behaved and friendly. He tolerated medical handling well, but was fearful of the vaccine poke.” A volunteer wrote, “Super sweet dog, very easy to walk.” Scout has gotten along with other dogs at the shelter, but will still need to meet any he would be going home with.

Scout is such a cooperative boy and seemed to enjoy his first photoshoot with Linda.

He knows several cues including sit and down.

We took Scout into Mary’s Place on Sunday and he had a great time. First he posed for pictures.

Then he played.

After that, a little training was in order with Linda.

Scout is an absolutely terrific dog. He is smart, affectionate, well-trained, and loves everyone he meets. If this sounds like the dog you have been wishing for, fill out the Adoption Questionnaire by clicking on his picture and then on the link Adopt Me found on this page: https://whs4pets.org/dogs/.

Juicy and Raider/Rosie and Radar

If you are a regular reader of my posts, you’ll remember the memorial I recently wrote for Thor. He and Gunner were adopted from WHS. The family was heartbroken when Gunner died a year ago and Thor a few weeks ago. I had been thinking of writing to Kim, their adopter, and telling her about Juicy and Raider, but thought maybe it was too soon.

Then Kim emailed me and asked what I thought about Juicy and Raider—did they get along? We decided to find out. Yep!

That was it! On July 1st, Kim and her family came and took these two big lugs home. Juicy had been waiting since May 10th, and Raider since May 22nd. Both are about eight years old. Their new names are Rosie and Radar. We were so grateful that once again a family was willing to take not only one, but two long-term seniors home and give them the best rest of their lives.

Last week I got this happy update!

“Thought I’d send a quick update. These are amazing dogs! Radar is just a lover and cuddler! He gets super excited when we get home and he does that Elvis smile when he gets excited. He is a super smart dog. He had to have had some training at some point. Loves, loves car rides and his walks. Rosie is a little spit fire. She’s not much of a cuddler, but wants to be near you. Her being hard of hearing is a challenge, but she watches Radar a lot. She loves, loves her walks and car rides as well! Radar has been introduced to the cats and does fine when we’re with him. I think it would be different alone. Rosie is pretty interested in them so that’s going really slowly. Oh, and Radar is down to 85 pounds, and Rosie 68 pounds! And they are besties! It’s hard to believe that they didn’t know each other.”

What a wonderful life these two long-term shelter dogs now have!

Rocky

Remember our ultra-shy Rocky? Here he was with Megan. He was so afraid of my camera, that I had to sneak pictures when he was distracted. We all adored this timid boy who, once he knew you, was such a clown. We were thrilled when he finally got adopted on July 5th.

We were excited when we got this fantastic update about him.

“We got extremely blessed with the opportunity to add Rocky as the newest member to our family. We got so lucky! He has a 26-acre area to run almost every morning and daily walks. It only took a few days to get him fully leash- and car-trained (he wasn’t so sure at first). He still won’t eat any treats for us, but has decided that he loves Starbucks pup cups!

In the month that we have had him, Rocky has had many “firsts.” He has learned how to golf (video attached!), he wears a shark towel after bath time, he gets lavender oil massages (spoiled) from his mama, he went kayaking with a life jacket, and he gets to go to work where sometimes he is fancy in his bowtie! He is loved by everyone and is getting more comfortable by the day (even in his batman suit).

He’s a great little brother to our 11-year-old daughter and a great love for all of us. We cannot wait for more adventures with him and to see him blossom into his full potential! We love him!”

Wait for it…

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

As always, my thanks to my photo team volunteers Marianne, Megan, Linda, and Kate. Also special thanks to Adoption Specialist Sasha for going-home pictures.

All of the dogs I have featured today, along with other terrific dogs waiting to be adopted, can be found at Oregon Humane Society Salem Campus. Here is the link to the adoptable-dog page: https://whs4pets.org/dogs/

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

You can reach me at  adoptanoregondog14@yahoo.com