Entered: 05/24/2006
Status: Adopted
Age: 12
Color: Liver/White
Weight:
Gender: Altered Female
Location: Ashburn, VA
Health: UTD, HW-, on medication to assist with an ACL tear, deaf but cueing in well to activity around her
Temperament: Good with people as young as one year old, good with dogs, cat’s unknown
Original: Maggie is an amazing older girl. She had lived with her previous owner for the past 10 years before his physical ailments forced him to give her up. Maggie has some physical issues of her own. Her new family will have to be willing to manage them for her well-being, but none require anything extraordinary. First of all, she is deaf. Likely, repeated ear infections have taken their toll, but she doesn’t seem to be in pain and regular cleaning is all that is necessary to keep her comfortable. Maggie looks for cues from the resident dogs as to what is going on and for hand signals from her people to help direct her where to go. Also, a good stomp on the floor lets her know to look in your direction.
Another little issue is that, a few years back, Maggie most likely suffered an ACL tear that was never fixed. This has resulted in her having a limitation in use of that leg. It does not stop her from getting around pretty well, but a home with fewer steps is preferred. She is on a medication and joint supplements to help with this. Since she loves water, swim therapy would be useful to help strengthen the muscles too. You can already see she is using the leg more with the additional exercise she is getting in her foster home. Her family had been lifting her up onto their bed where she settles for a really good night’s sleep. But, in just the last few days, she is jumping up on the bed by herself, it’s both cute and heartening to see her take a running jump!
Maggie’s teeth are in good shape. However, a few of the smaller front ones are worn and a bit sensitive. Her foster dad has been mixing some wet food with her kibble. With this simple effort, she has no problems eating and is maintaining a healthy weight of around 60 pounds. Maggie eats right next to the resident dogs and has let her foster dad hold her bowl so she can a better angle to finish her meal. She also likes treats and takes them very nicely.
Maggie gets along with the three resident dogs and will engage in play with them when asked. She is also content to just hang out and watch them play. She especially loves lounging in the kiddie pool on these hot summer days. She has not been around cats, but with her limited mobility, catching one would likely only happen in her dreams. She has been around children, ages one through 12, while in foster care and has been fine with them.
Most of the time Maggie is a quiet girl, but she has let out a couple of barks. She will also grumble to communicate if she is not happy and wishes more tender handling. This has happened when care was being given to clean her eyes or massage her leg. She has never made an attempt to bite but does let one know to be a bit more gentle.
Maggie is so comfortable living in a loving home and has the manners to match. In her foster home she is left alone for up to 4 hours and has done up to 10, but she would prefer to have someone around during the day. She is crate trained but is given free run of her foster home. She can usually be found lounging on one the dog beds. Maggie sleeps well through the night and will sleep on the floor, but she really enjoys that “on the bed” experience. She will scratch at the back door to let you know she needs to go out and come back in. She is good in the car but may need a little boost into higher vehicles.
This distinguished older gal will make someone so very happy. She likes to wag her tiny tail when she sees something she likes or someone she wants to flirt with. She has lots of spunk and love still left to give and needs a family worthy of her affections. She’d love to sleep at the foot of your bed and promises not to snore.