Entered: 02/22/2015
Status: Adopted
Age: 2
Color: Liver/White
Weight: 34 lbs.
Gender: Altered Female
Location: Fayetteville, WV
Health: UTD, HW-, treatment for intestinal worms and mild ear infection complete, gaining to a healthy weight
Temperament: Good with adults, unknown with children, good with other dogs, unknown with cats
Update 04/08/2015: “At home or away, Holly doesn’t really seem afraid of a thing, but she can be amusing when something she’s familiar with changes.”
“Holly-gan” continues to grow into new opportunities. With improving leash skills, she departed the quiet downtown that she had gotten used to and began visiting the town park. A half-mile exercise loop there passes basketball courts, baseball fields, a skate board arena, and a playground, and, of course, there are other leashed dogs that are out with their people. A goal was to walk the loop at increasingly busy times of day without barking at anyone. Holly has accomplished that one. She sniffs her way along while noticing everything going on around her. She’s always eager to meet anyone who makes eye contact and sends a smile her way. If the person is dog-friendly and invites her to put her feet up in greeting, she may still do that, but increasingly, as she meets dog-savvy people, she can be guided to a more appropriate meeting with 4 paws on the ground.
Along with the busyness of the town park, Holly has added visits to dog parks and several dog-friendly businesses in a nearby city to her beat. She’s done well with meeting new dogs off-leash; she’s initially a bit subdued but will sniff and accept normal doggie sniffs toward getting acquainted. From there, if a dog wants to chase, she takes off for the fun. If she meets dogs who are less interested in play and prefer to stroll around off-leash, she’s been polite about stepping back and going about her own business. Shopping opportunities have included pet supply stores and a large hardware store/garden center. She’s been easy to walk aisles with, will redirect away from another dog if needed, and hasn’t bought a thing!
At home Holly continues to benefit from daily off-leash time. On rainy days when that doesn’t happen, her family can expect extended wrestling in the living room after dinner! At home or away, Holly doesn’t really seem afraid of a thing, but she can be amusing when something she’s familiar with changes. A recent hoot was her reaction to furniture rearrangement at home. Holly had seen, smelled, and retrieved balls from around a rocker since her arrival. When it moved from a bedroom to the living room, her first response when noticing was to stop in her tracks and bark at it. By mid-day, she could scurry past it with a little growl. By evening when her foster mom sat down in it, Holly made peace with the rocker. She accepted an invitation up, laid down on a lap with her front feet and head draped over a rocker arm and went to sleep……..day-long amusement with Holly!
With consistent correction, usually removal of hands and a firm “uh-uh”, Holly has learned not to mouth her foster mom’s hands. She rarely tries it with other people, except when really excited for an extended time. If that happens, it’s time to redirect her and can be easily done. She’s a healthier gal with another month in foster care too. Intestinal worming has sparked a steadier appetite for Holly and treatment for a minor ear infection is complete.
Holly has heard about the fun at MAESSR’s Springerfests; being the good traveler that she is, she’s packing for the road trip to Richmond. She’ll surely meet the most Springers in one place that she’s ever seen. Up to the opportunity? Yes, she’s ready for a big picnic and, soon, for an adopting family. If you’re ready for a lively companion who has proven she can grow into opportunity, watch this gal. Holly’s a dolly!
Original: “There she greets a dog-savvy clerk who understands the value of 4 on the floor and gives Holly lots of attention when she doesn’t jump…great reinforcement help for her!“In the spirit of mid-March, Holly is answering to “Holly-gan” in her foster home. This petite lass has a lively wag and a jig in her step. If sizing up a new situation, she can be quiet and shy but more often, she’s dancing ahead with an engaging step. She excites at every smile coming her way, whether from visitors to her home, at the vet’s office, or when out on the streets of her small town.
Holly-gan lives with 2 Springers, a 3- and a 10-year old. The older one offered the first play bow. Holly seemed uncertain of his intent but, with persistence over a few days, he gained her trust and the two became excellent playmates. This took a little longer with the younger Springer. Holly-gan skirted him widely for a week. Then, from a tentative start have come high-spirited wrestling matches daily. Chase is the outdoor game. When her foster mom steps into the mix with a tug rope or stick, Holly is equally as willing to play with her. Back inside, the toy basket is always full of Kongs. When her buddies play out, Holly will grab a chew toy and occupy herself or nap.
Her house manners must stem from living indoors until recently. She arrived with flawless housetraining, is crate trained, and doesn’t seek out trash cans. The counters are of no interest. She has run of the house much of the time when her family is home. When no one is home, she crates and, at night, she either crates or sleeps on a dog bed beside the people bed. She crates easily for road trips; there’s not a peep from her on short runs or journeys of several hours.
With many basics in place, Holly-gan began work on 2 remaining areas: leash training and her meet-and-greet skills. She’ll sit politely and step into a harness lead for leashed walking now. Making turns comes easier each day and, if she pulls, she redirects easily. Much of her leashed walking happens 5 minutes from home, on the streets of a small town. This offers the chance to help Holly tune her skills when meeting people too. She’s a head-turner; folks notice her. There’s no need to put feet on people to get some petting. With growing encounters, she’s getting the idea. She’s welcomed in a pet-friendly business daily. There she greets a dog-savvy clerk who understands the value of 4 on the floor and gives Holly lots of attention when she doesn’t jump…great reinforcement for her!
Holly also sees other dogs when walking in town. She’s usually eager to meet them but, as with people, becomes very excited by some. With others, she’ll remain calm and pass them by…most easily done when they’re across the street!
Holly-gan hasn’t met children in her foster home. Her walks take her close to an elementary school, and, if children are on the playground, she’s noticeably drawn in their direction. Children might eventually be great playmates for Holly but, at this point, she could easily topple or frighten smaller kids with her vigorous “hellos.” She also tends to become a bit mouthy when excited; she is not aggressive but needs adult playmates who will help her extinguish this behavior. She’s much improved at home in two weeks and should continue progress with consistent leadership.
If someone said that Holly was an 8-month old, it would be believable. To the contrary, Holly’s full vetting history arrived with her, confirming her age at a little over 2 years. She’d been with her original family in West Virginia until changes resulted in her moving outdoors and receiving less attention. When a kind neighbor asked about her, the process began and she was surrendered to MAESSR by her owner. She visited the vet and, yes, she got very excited there too. When it was time for her exam, though, she stood still and was cooperative, if a little wary. The vet complimented her for excellent muscle tone and felt all she needed was to add a few pounds. Toward that end, Holly’s eating 3-4 moderate meals a day and will look perfect with a gain of 3-4 pounds. She’s also completing treatment for a minor ear infection.
A visit to the groomer resulted in a masterful shave-down. Her coat was too badly matted to salvage, but the skin underneath remained healthy. She’s already growing out and is downy soft. It will be fun to watch her full loveliness emerge over the coming months.
A “dolly-kin” with a wonderful temperament, Holly will soon be ready for new playmates. Though not a requirement, she’s perfectly poised for some formal obedience work with her people. It will help her build her repertoire of basic commands and move bonding ahead quickly. Daily on- and off-leash time will be as important as playtime. She values sofa time on her own terms and is just beginning to settle for cuddle time there when invited up by her family. Though lucky to have found MAESSR, Holly won’t need the luck of the Irish going forward. Where luck is involved, it will be the family who adopts her who will be lucky!!