Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

Due to an unexpected trip to Michigan, I was unable to write a blog post the last two weeks, but I’m back now and need to catch you up on our shelter dogs.

There were an amazing 42 dogs adopted since my last post. Among them were 16 puppies who had arrived from areas flooded in California. They came and went while I was gone and I only saw the last one briefly on Sunday just before she was taken home. Here are the dogs I took pictures of who were adopted.

Earl

Florence

Gomez

Yoda

Staff member Mackenzie sent me this going-home picture of Yoda. Looks like a perfect match!

Ezra

Andre

Elliott

Eva

Donnie

Elana

Parmesean

This was one of the many puppies adopted, and though I never met him, staff member Mackenzie sent me this going-home picture.

Rocky

Nanook

Marley

This little girl stole my heart on Sunday and I had planned to feature her, but she stole someone else’s heart on Monday.

Brolee

Felicity

Sebastian

Please Note: The dogs I feature in this section are available for adoption as of today, May 3, 2023. 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.

“The shelter is open for walk-through viewing and meet-and-greets 10 AM – 7 PM seven days per week. Meet-and-greets are done on a first-come/first-served basis. The shelter address is 4246 Turner Rd. SE, Salem.

When you come to the shelter and see a pet you are interested in meeting, please take note of the pet’s name and visit the front desk in the lobby. Our Customer Care team will be happy to assist you with the next steps.”

Do you need some action in your life? Are you hoping to find a friend who will keep you active and in good spirits at the same time? If so, you need to meet ME!

As often happens with shelter dogs, Thor came to us from another shelter, having been found as a stray. But what a hoot this happy boy is!

I met Thor for the first time on Sunday. He enjoyed being in Mary’s Place with all of us and definitely loves to play with stuffed toys.

Thor is a mixed breed dog who is between one and two years old. Because he was a stray, we don’t know about his past, but during his intake, staff wrote “Nice guy, friendly and outgoing.” In the exam room he was “loose and wiggly. He likes to smell everything, is happy and playful.” In his kennel, Thor can “be vocal when other dogs around are barking, but quiets eventually.” Thor is a “rough and rowdy player” with other dogs and will need to meet any canines he will be living with to see if their play styles are compatible.

Thor can be picky about his treats, though he did like my cheese bits. Dog walkers report, “Such a good boy! Not interested in treats but likes praise and pats.” He will pull on leash when walking, so will need to continue working on polite leash manners. He also sometimes “demand barks” in his kennel, meaning he wants visitors to stop so he can meet them.

We had a great time with him in Mary’s Place and Thor was not at a loss for words.

Thor didn’t have any hesitancy getting up close and personal with my camera.

If you think Thor would be a perfect addition to your life, come to the shelter and spend some time with this goofy, fun boy! He’s waiting for you.

Are you a person who prefers independent dogs rather than “Velcro” ones? That’s where I come in!

Odysseus is a handsome Siberian Husky mix with beautiful blue eyes. He is a big boy at 84 pounds, and we think he’s about three years old.

Something you need to know about Odysseus is that he has a history of wanderlust—the enjoyment of roaming about, or wandering. So, he will need a high-fenced yard where he can enjoy the seasons, but not head out on his own when the spirit moves him.

Odysseus won many friends when he arrived at the shelter. He had been good in the car, although he needs to work on his leash manners. Intake staff wrote, “Solicited attention, loose body, soft eyes and tail wags, pacing slightly. Handling sensitive but allowed us to process him with light restraint. Sniffed and did his own thing. Really liked cream cheese, treat-motivated.”

Several dog walkers have commented on Odysseus’ behavior. One wrote, “Calms down pretty well and not so pully on a longer walk.” Another reported, “Sweet boy. He was interested in the geese, but was easily redirected.”

On Sunday we took Odysseus into Mary’s Place. While he was not a cuddly boy, he did seem to enjoy hanging out with us.

He seemed to enjoy just listening to us visit.

When it was time to return to his kennel, he wanted to stop at the bench for a moment of meditation. Megan was happy to give him a little time.

If you are looking for a dog who would love to go on adventures with you and will happily hang out near you in the evening, but won’t crowd your space, come and meet our sweet boy, Odysseus.

They say I’m a comedian. I don’t know what that means, but I love to make people laugh!

I bet you can’t look at this face and not smile.

Introducing Caleb, a three-year-old American Pit Bull Terrier mix. He, too, was found as a stray, so we only know him from the shelter. He is getting stressed, having been waiting for his new family since April 15th. And frankly, we don’t understand why he hasn’t been adopted yet.

Caleb LOVES people. It seems his favorite things to do are spend time with his peeps and play fetch. Speaking of fetch, this boy is a hoot. He returns the ball to you, and then either noses it toward you, or keeps backing up so you will throw it again.

Caleb has become a favorite of staff and volunteers. In fact one dog walker left this message a couple of days ago on my shelter FB page: “I may have missed it but have you featured Caleb yet? He REALLY is a great dog and I feel he’s been overlooked. He plays nicely, he’s totally lovable, and oh my gosh, THAT FACE. He is a handsome guy. But more, he is a great dog. I know you cannot do all of them all at once but I hope he gets some PR soon. Thank you.” I had already planned to feature him this week, so his many fans will be very happy.

During his intake, staff wrote, “Caleb walks well on leash, slight pull when he wants to smell something specific, but does not take your arm off. He is highly treat-motivated, knows sit.”

Other dog walkers recently wrote, “Very ball motivated! Could use some playing and running time.”; “Very sweet and loves treats.”; “Beefy boy. Loves to mouth tennis balls.”

Caleb has shown some reactivity toward other dogs at the shelter, so would need to meet any he would be living with.

On Sunday we took him outside and had a blast.

But to fully appreciate this boy, you need to see him in action.

As you saw at the end of his movie, he also loves hanging out with us in Mary’s Place.

Staff member Mack stopped in to say hi and Caleb took advantage of their visit.

Caleb also enjoyed posing with Marianne outside before returning to his kennel.

Interested in meeting this goofy, wonderful boy? If so, come to the shelter and spend some time with him. We have a feeling you will fall in love.

If you are a regular reader of my posts, you will remember Cooper, our senior who had everyone at the shelter wrapped around his paw, including Kate.

We were so hoping he would get a wonderful home and he did! Here is an update I got this week!

“After just two weeks in his new home, Cooper is already like a forever part of our family. We tell him every day that we’re so glad he decided to adopt us. We had recently lost our big boy dog to kidney failure and our hearts were lonely and hurting. This funny, loving guy makes us all smile.

Our very elderly pibble girl is often picky about her dog friends, but when she met Cooper at the shelter she was instantly smitten. Cooper’s three new feline brothers took a little longer to warm up to him, and he had to learn that they don’t want to play chase. It took sooo much self control, but with the help of ample cheese treats and lots of praise, Cooper learned to chill out when the kitties sprint around the house. He’s a super smart guy and very sensitive. It hurts his great big feelers if we disapprove of what he’s doing. Sometimes he’ll flop his giant self across his dad’s lap for reassurance. He’s the biggest lap dog we’ve ever seen. He still sometimes wears his leash around the house so we can remind him if he forgets his no-chasing promise, but you can see the cats are pretty comfy with him now.

Thank you to everyone at the shelter who took such good care of this big guy and who posted about him on Facebook so we could see what a special personality he is. He’s a perfect fit with our family and we love him so much!

He has a great big backyard that’s perfect for playing fetch a few times a day, and he insists on taking his humans to the neighborhood park every day. He’s already met the special neighbor who brings treats to the fence and the lovely coffee ladies who give kisses and snacks. He thinks it’s a pretty good gig.”

We are thrilled that Cooper landed a jackpot of a retirement home.

That’s it for this week!

As always, thanks to my photo team volunteers Marianne, Megan, Linda, Kate, and staff members Mac and Mackenzie.

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 at this link.

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