Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

There were a lot of adoptions during the past week, but I don’t have all of the pictures. Some of those adopted were from the transfer of 16 puppies that OHS took in to escape the recent California floods. In total, 18 dogs went home with their new families since my last post! Here are the ones I have pictures of.

Silas

This face! 😂

Roxy

Sebastian

Peluchin

Pretzel

Blueberry

Caleb

We are THRILLED that our sweet Caleb has gone home! Thanks for the going-home picture, Customer Care Lead Sasha!

News Flash!

Sasha sent me these two pictures of Caleb on his first afternoon in his new home yesterday! He was transferred to us on April 15 from another shelter where he hadn’t been adopted. He’s been waiting a long time for this! Does our boy look happy or what?! We are over the moon!

Kobe

I have to put two pictures on of this stunning boy. What an affectionate Doberman Pinscher!

Beluga

Lola

Please Note: The dogs I feature in this section are available for adoption as of today, May 10, 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.”

You’ve read about me before, but no one has come to adopt me. Everyone here is trying to keep me happy, but I’m feeling stressed and am really eager for my forever person to find me. Could it be you?


I first wrote about Simon in my April 5th post. He arrived at the shelter March 15th from another shelter where he had been since February, having been found as a stray. It is no wonder that this handsome boy is showing stress in the shelter environment. This is one of the first pictures I took of him in March. I was touched by his sad, searching eyes.

Simon is a two-year-old American Pit Bull Terrier mix who has beautiful markings and lots of energy.

While we don’t know anything about his history, we have learned things about him as we’ve gotten to know him. He LOVES to play fetch and will play as long as you throw the ball. As one volunteer noted, “So playful, loved chasing tennis balls, so sweet.” Simon is a little embarrassed to admit he is working on his leash manners. When he hasn’t had enough exercise, he can be quite the puller. Another volunteer walker wrote, “He has a LOT of energy. Recommend taking him to a yard to run.” Simon is happiest when he is playing with his peeps outside of his kennel.

Sunday turned out to be a beautiful spring day and so we took Simon out to a yard for some games of fetch. He loved it!

Simon was adopted once, but he did not get along with the resident dog. So we now know he will need to be the only pet in the family, and he is not a dog-park dog. The family was sad to return Simon, as they had grown very attached to him and gave us some excellent information for Simon’s next family. “Simon is very loving with people. He was great with our older daughter and really chill if he could be by himself. He is a lovable lap dog.” He knows the cues for sit, stay, and come. He is crate-trained and he never had an accident in their house.

After fetch on Sunday, Megan, Kate, Marianne, Linda, and I all decided to get a few photos. As you will see, it took a little time to get everyone on the same page…

But patience and a little cheese paid off.

To see Simon’s first movie and to read more about him, check out my April 5th blog post here.

Simon has been waiting for his perfect fit of a family for a long time and he’s getting discouraged. If you are looking for a dog who will love you to the moon and back and needs to be your only pet, come and meet our sweet boy. He’ll be waiting for you in his kennel or outside playing fetch.

I know I need to work on my kennel presentation. You see, I get very anxious around new people looking at me in my kennel. They call it “barrier reactivity.” Don’t get me wrong, I warm up quickly to new human friends outside my kennel. Please don’t judge me until you meet me in person.

Olea was found as a stray and so we don’t know what her young life has been like or why she is so fearful of new people while in her kennel. But she is, and potential adopters pass her by. But look how relaxed she was when OHS trainer Skylar brought her out for pictures soon after she arrived at the shelter.

Olea is not a dog for the first-time dog person. She will need someone who is well-versed in canine body language, who can read her behavior when she is stressed or worried, and who knows what to do to ease her mind.

We think Olea is about two years old and is a Pit Bull Terrier mix. She does fine in a car and walks well on leash, however can become very uneasy around other dogs at the shelter resulting in her pulling. She can be sensitive about being overly touched, especially around her head.

But even with the challenges she faces, Olea LOVES being with her human friends. On Sunday we brought her into Mary’s Place to relax and relax she did! Here she was with one of her favorite staff members, Hannah.

She enjoyed going from person to person for attention, letting Marianne know that she wasn’t finished petting her just yet. We noticed she likes to connect to her peeps with her paw.

I love her sincere eyes and resting her paw on my foot.

After time in Mary’s Place, we took Olea outside for some fun. She has an interesting play style. She romps in short spurts—racing around the yard after a thrown tennis ball, then she’s over it. She made us all laugh.

When she’s done playing, she’s done, as she demonstrates in the short clip below.

She let us know it was time to head back inside. We stopped at the bench for a group shot, or so I hoped…

This one is more like it!

We decided to spend a little more time in Mary’s Place, and Olea was hopeful about finding her new people.

Olea is not the right dog for everyone. She will need a patient, understanding, and knowledgeable person who will support her in gaining confidence in new situations. In return, she will be a devoted best friend.

If you are that person, come and meet Olea. She can’t wait to meet you.

Are you wishing you had someone who made you laugh every day? Someone who would romp in delight but also cuddle with you after playing? And finally, are you up for a puppy? If you are, you’ve found me! Let’s go home!

Marley is a one-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix with an absolutely delightful personality. She was found as a stray and transferred to our shelter on April 29th. She is still very much a puppy in behavior and joy. I fell in love with her the moment I met her, even though I couldn’t get her to smile.

At only a year old, Marley still has a lot to learn, but what fun it will be to teach her with reward-based training. Since she loves treats (especially my cheese bits) she will learn quickly. Marley was adopted once, but was too exuberant for the family. They did, however, have some very nice things to say about her. “She is very cuddly and playful. She is affectionate, talkative and a lap dog. She likes to play with a soft toy and sleep on the couch when taking naps. She loved to cuddle near our other dog even though he didn’t quite like to be bothered.” Marley seems to get along well with other dogs and was even used as a “helper dog” to make new arrivals less stressed at her previous shelter. She does need to fine-tune her house-training.

Our staff has found her “dog social, likes to encourage other dogs to play.” She would love to be in a home with another dog who would enjoy her youthful enthusiasm and teach her how to be a great family dog. She needs to work on her leash manners, as she pulls, especially toward people to say hello. While Marley can be a bit shy at first meeting, she quickly warms up, as I found out when we brought her into Mary’s Place on Sunday.

While Marley can settle very nicely, don’t think she isn’t full of energy. She is! Marianne bought a new MFB (Medium Fluff Ball) and Marley could hardly contain herself, as you’ll see.

Marley is going to be such a fun new member for a family who has the time and patience to finish raising a puppy. The reward for their efforts will be a happy, affectionate, and much-loved addition to their lives. We hope she is adopted again quickly.

That’s it for this week!

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

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