London

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Update 10/18/10:

London has settled into foster care just beautifully. He has learned the ropes and, while he is still working on keeping four feet on the floor and not on people or the counters when he gets excited, he’s otherwise learned lots of new things. He’s been working on the “down” command and has mastered “sit” and “watch me,” which means to sit and stay sitting while making eye contact. He is a very loving and cuddly dog and loves to be petted, have his ears scratched and, if you’re willing, he’d love to sit next to you or even in your lap!

Like any good Springer, London is very food motivated, which makes training quite easy! He is crate trained and dives into his crate for treats. He is happy to sleep there, and has also been allowed to sleep on a dog bed, either in the kitchen or in his foster mom’s room. On a recent trip to MAESSR’s Little Buffalo State Park picnic, he decided sleeping on the floor in the hotel room was not good enough and he hopped in the bed, curled up and fell fast asleep.

Being neutered turned out to be quite an experience for London, as he had a reaction to the sutures and infection set in. Fortunately, a course of antibiotics cleared the infection right up and now he’s ready to go! His ears are no longer red and are feeling better as well. London was good to get his manicure and sat patiently without complaint during this nail trimming by his foster mom.

In addition to the MAESSR picnic, London also made a trip to Fido Fest in New Jersey and did great with walking around this big event among hundreds of dogs and people of all ages, shapes, and sizes. While there, his foster mom took him through an agility course to see how he would like it and he is a natural. With a little encouragement, he ran through the tunnels and came out leaping for joy into his foster mom’s arms! It was a sight to see this boy so happy when doing something like this for the first time and loving the encouragement and praise from his foster mom!

London is ready to make the trip to his forever home. Will it be yours?

Original:

London is a beautiful field bred boy with deep liver coloring that is almost black and with a full tail that appears to be field docked as it is quite dainty on the end. He and his mate France were taken to a shelter in Pennsylvania when their family decided they were too much for them. While in the shelter, London was very stressed and nervous. He desperately wanted to get out of his run, which he kept very clean. As soon as London hit the outdoors after a MAESSR volunteer took him out of his run, he immediately went potty.

After being whisked off to his foster home, London got a much-needed bath and a nice towel drying and was very good for both. He was also started on some ear medication as he has a mild yeast infection in his ears. London recognized the bottle of medication and gave a submissive belly-up gesture to his foster mom, which let her know to tread lightly as he didn’t really want her to mess with his ears. As it turns out, moving slowly was all that was needed and in no time, he was happy to get his cookie for allowing his foster mom to put the meds in. London was also good while his foster mom clipped his nails.

London is housetrained and so far has whimpered when he has to go out. On his first night, he cried just a bit in his crate before sleeping peacefully through the night. During the day, he is either crated or stays in the kitchen behind a gate when his foster mom leaves the house. He is not a digger, nor does he bark a lot unless he hears strange noises. At those times, he settles within a few seconds once he is told it’s okay. London rides nicely while tethered in the car. His leash manners may need a little work, as he does pull when he is excited. London is not food aggressive at all, even letting his foster mom pet him while he ate his special hamburger snack on their way home from the shelter. While eating his breakfast of dry kibble, he doesn’t care if another dog comes near or if his foster mom picks up his bowl. Good boy!

London enjoys meeting new dogs. He hasn’t had a chance to meet any cats yet, but he ignored the giant parrot that was at the vet’s office. He is submissive to the other dogs in his foster home and immediately retreats if another dog growls or snaps at him. He does not get on the furniture generally, but when his foster mom put a blanket on the couch, he took it as an invitation and dove onto the blanket with sheer joy. He got off the couch when asked and sat and received lots of praise. Perhaps a blanket on the couch was an invitation in his old home.

Although London barks at strangers, he quickly bonded to his foster mom and follows her around the house, napping at her feet while she works. London’s foster mom is working with him on not jumping up on people. Because he has a solid “sit,” this is coming along nicely, but sometimes his curiosity to investigate the counters gets the best of him. He has learned the command “down” and is even learning “take a nap” with ease. His foster mom’™s lesson plans for London also includes the command “off” which is used to teach him to keep “four on the floor” instead of on the couch, table, counters, or a person.

London has a touch of a cough which may be a reaction to his vaccine or an actual cold due to his stay in the shelter. His foster family is monitoring this as it may delay his neutering.

Stay tuned for more on this sweet boy. Everyone who meets him thinks he’s a charmer. Will he charm his way into your heart?