Koda 2

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Koda is a five month old Springer/cocker mix who came to MAESSR from Maryland. Koda was very shy when meeting the humans during his transport and at his foster home, but was totally comfortable with the resident dogs. He gets along well with all of them and respects his place in the pack. Now that he has been in his foster home for a bit, Koda is much more relaxed and comfortable with people. He is a pretty mellow pup, but likes to play and run as fast as he can in the backyard!

What a joy Koda is! He loves to run and play with the resident dogs and chase after ball or any other kind of toy. Koda is an enthusiastic pup with a real wiggle butt! When Koda is excited about his foster mom’s return home, he greets her with a half smile, almost like an Elvis grin. This boy is too cute!

Learning the doggy door was relatively easy for Koda since the resident dogs had already worn the flap off the door. With this hurdle conquered, his housebreaking is going great! He has picked out one spot in the backyard to do his business and goes to that particular place every time. When his foster mom is away, Koda stays in a puppy pen. There, he always uses the puppy pad to do his business. Good boy, Koda!

This smart boy has learned sit with a hand command, shake paw and come. Even more impressive is that Koda learned all of these things WITHOUT treats! Of course, if a treat is offered, he gets even more excited and will hop up and down before performing either the sit or shake paw command. Koda also gets excited at feeding time and will sometimes jump up at the counter. His foster mom is teaching him that he must be patient and wait. Once the bowls start moving, Koda takes off and runs right to his puppy pen, awaiting his meal!

At first, Koda whined a little bit when he was put in his crate for the night. Now that he knows what it is all about, he runs right in to wait for his nighttime snack. Koda then adjusts his blanket as he wants it and he is down for the night. For as well as Koda does in his crate at night, he does not like to be penned in when his foster mom goes to work. He will cry and bark for a little bit and then settle down. Koda readily goes into his open puppy pen to nap or play with a toy when his people are home. 

This sweet boy has done well meeting kids as young as three years old. He also met some cats at his foster home. He was not too sure about those strange creatures and barked at them, but made no movement to investigate further. Koda will not go into the baby pool by himself. If his foster mom throws a ball to entice him to jump in, he waits patiently for his ball to float within reach and then retrieves it without getting his feet wet! If his foster mom puts him in the pool herself, he will stand there for a few seconds before getting out. 

Koda walks very well on the leash, and loves to go for rides. In the car, he just finds a spot on the floor and stays there until he reaches his destination. Koda attended a recent MAESSR event and did very well with everyone he met. He was one tired pup that night! 

An absolutely adorable little dog, Koda will do well in a home with children who are old enough to respect a puppy. He would also love to have a canine companion and would have no problem residing with a cat. Koda’s name is the Dakota Sioux word for “friend” and this sweet boy is looking for that special person who will love him and take him to puppy obedience classes as required by MAESSR so he can grow into a wonderful adult dog! Could you be the friend Koda seeks?