Entered: 09/29/2013
Status: Adopted
Age: 8 months
Color: Liver/White
Weight: 45 lbs.
Gender: Altered Male
Location: Bethlehem, PA
Health: UTD, HW-, overall good health
Temperament: Good with people as young as teens, reportedly lived with an 11 year old and has met toddlers well, good with other dogs, chases cats
Update 12/05/2013: “This handsome fellow is a fabulous Springer. He is sweet, loving, fun and very smart.”
Hero is proving to be a really special dog. He just loves people and will climb into the lap of anyone willing. He loves to get attention and is a true Velcro Springer.
Hero has certainly learned a great deal in his time in foster care. His tendency to jump is being discouraged by asking for a sit. He is 99.5% housetrained and, as long as he is in the kitchen, will ring the bells on the back door when he wants to go out. He does need to be watched when he is outside the kitchen area. His foster mom makes sure he gets out every few hours when they are out of the gated kitchen and that eliminates accidents. Hero gets a lot of treats as he works on manners, housetraining and car riding. His foster mom finds that his belly does best if she uses mostly kibble for the treats. He seems to be a dog that can’t tolerate too many changes in food.
Sometimes this young pup will ring the back door bells just to go out and play! He likes to run around the yard with a bone or stuffed toy. But, he also does a pretty good job of amusing himself indoors. He likes to chew bones and play with the other dogs. His personal favorite game is “chase me” but he is OK with a non-physical game of “mouth wrestling” with the ten year old resident Springer. He also likes to look out the front windows to see what is going on outdoors. Since the weather is now cold, Hero likes to bring a ball indoors to the basement for some fetch. He also likes to explore the basement where he finds old stuffed animals owned by the teens. He loves to carry them around and looks very silly when he finds a really large one.
Hero had a visit from a certified dog behavior consultant to help him work on his fear of riding in the car. The consultant has Hero working on many exercises in and around the car. He eats all his meals in the car while it is moving. He’s content to eat but, once the food is gone, he still wants out. He is very smart and knows when it’s a meal time trip versus a trip to doggie day care. He does fairly well if his foster mom sits in back with him but is reluctant to get in when it’s a non-meal trip even though treats are involved. His foster mom just got a Manners Minder remote-controlled treat dispenser and is going to start working with that.
The new family member spent Thanksgiving week at a doggie day care with the resident dogs. He had a great time; the day care staff said he was constantly on the go and just loves his foster brothers and sister. At night, they all curled up together in their “suite.” When Hero returned from the week away, he ate dinner and put himself right to bed. He hardly moved from bed the next day…….vacations are hard work!!
This handsome fellow is a fabulous Springer. He is sweet, loving, fun and very smart. He needs time to learn you can actually go pretty cool places in cars. The resident dogs absolutely love car rides and run into the van when given the chance. Hero’s foster mom is hoping the enthusiasm of the other dogs will rub off on Hero. Until then, he is looking for a family who will be patient with helping him through his car phobia. With the exception of this little issue, Hero is about the best dog anyone could hope to adopt.
Hero said to add that he would absolutely love another canine sibling and that he is hoping for a forever home for the holidays. Wouldn’t you love to find this sweetheart under your Christmas tree?
Last minute news and maybe the best………Hero went to the groomer recently to have a bath and to get his feet and ears cleaned up and his foundations trimmed. When his foster mom returned for him, the two groomers told her he was a wonderful boy. He was very good for it all but minded the work around his face a bit. They couldn’t believe how friendly and cuddly and loving he was. This trip was a longer excursion for Hero than his usual 5 minute drive to doggie day care. He still needs to be put into the car and buckled in, but he didn’t cry nearly as much as on his first rides. On the way home, he sat up a little to look out the window. A mini-milestone is that he even fell asleep for a few minutes and he was able to eat all the treats in the bag the groomer gave him. This is all progress for a boy that never learned it’s fun to go places in the car. Way to go Hero and way to go, foster family!!
Update 10/24/2013: “She has started feeding Hero his meals in the car and lets him chew a frozen marrow bone in the crate in the van for a few minutes every day. “
Young Hero has adjusted nicely in his foster home. He is proving to be a very special pup with a lovely temperament. Hero loves to be outside in the fenced yard running. He runs back and forth generally with a toy in his mouth. He would much prefer another dog engage in chase but is OK to go it alone. He often stays out in the yard by himself, watching the activity of the neighborhood.
Hero’s foster mom decided that it was too stressful to force Hero to go for car rides when it obviously made him nervous to get into the car. The fast food rewards just didn’t work. She has started feeding Hero his meals in the car and lets him chew a frozen marrow bone in the crate in the van for a few minutes every day. She is hoping that continued positive associations will erase his unease. He did get motion sickness a few times while driving, so that may be the basis of this problem. He may well be a boy that just isn’t going to be keen on car rides………..time will tell. If Hero has to go somewhere, it helps if he can sit in the back seat, next to a human, and safely belted in. He will continue to spend quality time in the unmoving car being treated for any time he decides to spend inside. The resident dogs all run into the van to drive the kids to school and Hero runs to the door, but doesn’t hop in. Every day his foster mom asks him if he wants to go, but he turns back into the kitchen. The positive side of this exercise is that Hero has proven to be OK when left home alone now that he feels safe. His foster mom is hoping that one day he’ll hop in because she can see him thinking about whether he wants to go or not. Every time his foster mom returns home and the dogs go back into the house, Hero always jumps into the van and looks around. She cannot figure out what he is checking for.
Hero has finally turned the corner on housetraining. His foster mom gated off the kitchen and keeps Hero leashed when outside the kitchen area moving around the house. He is taken outside on a regular basis and treated when he goes. Hero isn’t asking to go out so he does need to be in a controlled environment with someone watching him. He has been accident-free for several days. Yea Hero!
This youngster is very much a pup and does need to be watched. His foster mom finds that if Hero gets time outside and then time to play tug or mouth wrestling with another dog, he is good in the house. He does like to chew up boxes and is tall enough to actually be an expert counter surfer, but no food is kept out for temptation. Hero barks generally when he wants what the other dogs have. He is a bit bratty and often wants the bone one of the resident dogs is chewing. Otherwise, his barking is infrequent. He does jump up on people, which is being discouraged. He can also get worked up if the young teens run around the house, especially if they scream. Hero is still pulling on leash and various training articles are being tried to reduce this.
Any family would be very lucky to have this amazingly sweet boy join them. Ask about Hero today?
Original: “……….Will you be my Hero baby?”
So the song says, “Will you be my Hero baby?” Hero is looking for someone to be his hero! First time Maryland dog owners purchased Hero and his littermate Diva as pups. Unfortunately, Hero and Diva proved to be too much for the novice owners to handle and, even though they loved the dogs, they decided that the pair would be better off in MAESSR’s capable hands.
Hero is currently living in a foster home with three other English Springer Spaniels, two males and a female. He gets along well with all the dogs. His play style is friskier than the resident dogs prefer, but he is also really good about grabbing a toy and going and playing by himself. Hero loves, loves, loves to play! While outdoors he will run around and throw a toy up in the air. It seems like each day he is running a bit faster. Maybe he’s training to be a running partner for his forever family! In the yard he is happy to check out the neighbor’s dog or greet people that might walk by the fence. He is an extremely good-natured pup. When play time is over, this extremely good natured pup loves to get onto the laps of the two young adults in the home to cuddle. Such a lover boy!
In the past Hero spent a lot of time crated, but he is making good progress in learning in-home behavior. His foster mom is using a clicker and treats to reward him when he pees outside since he is not yet reliably housetrained. Kept on a strict puppy schedule and watched like a hawk, Hero is just beginning to understand that when told to “go pee,” he should relieve himself and then will get a tasty treat. Since his belly has adjusted to a new kibble, he is pretty regular in the “poo” department and is taken out at the opportune time. Recently, he walked over to the door to signal he wanted to go out which made his foster mom giddy with excitement! Hero is only crated when his foster mom goes out, but otherwise is kept very close by her. He is allowed to sleep on the bed with the other dogs at night, although in this October heat spell, he is often found on the cool bathroom tile floor. Hero does not like to be crated all alone. He is much happier when another Springer is crated beside him.
Hero is actually much better behaved in the house than his foster mom had expected. His foster home keeps non-dog items off the floor and lots and lots of dog toys available. Hero likes to chew and will choose a bone to occupy him, but he shows no resource guarding. Good boy! His foster mom watches him closely and he is easily corrected if he should happen to attempt to chew a non-dog item. Hero does jump up to look at what is on the counters, but food is kept well out of his reach. He is not getting into trash, but the majority of the trashcans are kept out of his reach. He will jump up onto the furniture following the lead of the resident Springers.
Outside on walks, Hero does pull on leash so he needs work in this area. He is so excited to be outside and constantly looks all around at everything. Once, a loose dog approached Hero as he was walking and he only responded with curiosity while the resident female gave a few grumbles to the other rude dog. More training awaits Hero since MAESSR only places puppies in homes that are committed to training andbonding with the pup in obedience classes. Puppies require a lot of care, attention, and patience, and they do chew on things! The decision to get a puppy and raise it to be a healthy, happy, and well-adjusted dog is a serious commitment. To reinforce this commitment, MAESSR requires all adopters of dogs under 1 year old to enroll their puppy in obedience classes within 60 days of adoption. Hero will really enjoy this training.
At this point, Hero does not enjoy car rides. He is being taken out every day for a brief ride to acclimate him. In the car he needs to be harnessed and belted. He cried during his first rides even though the other three dogs were right beside him. During his daily car outings, his foster mom stops by the local fast food restaurant for a sausage muffin! Hero was so upset the first day, he couldn’t eat it but has gotten better every day and is now enjoying being fed tiny tidbits of sausage in the parking lot. His foster mom has also been spending a few minutes sitting in the van in the garage every day and gives him treats if he puts his feet on the floor and looks in. Progress is slow but definitely moving forward. This is an area that will need to continue to be worked on.
Hero has not been groomed since his coat and feathering are only just starting to grow in. He was excellent for ear cleaning and seemed to enjoy the attention. At mealtime, Hero eats with gusto. His foster mom is asking him to sit and wait a moment before she fills his bowl. He is getting a bit better at waiting and seems to realize he will get plenty of food. He doesn’t mind if his foster mom approaches his bowl.
This Springer pup has an average energy level and as such needs an opportunity to run and play every day. If he doesn’t run around enough every day, he’s wound up when it’s time for bed. Hero has been attending doggie day care one day a week. He has a ball that he takes with him and when he gets home, he is wiped out. He is an excellent player with good social skills.
Ideally, this handsome, amiable pup will need a family that is committed to train and mold him into an excellent adult and give him plenty of exercise daily. Hero would love having another dog for company in his forever family as he gets a little anxious when he is alone. Be his hero and bring this loving pup into your life!