Entered: 07/25/2015
Status: Adopted
Age: 7
Color: Liver/White
Weight: 60 lbs.
Gender: Altered Female
Location: Glen Burnie, MD
Health: UTD, HW-, treatment for pneumonia and a urinary tract infection complete, small fatty tumor in her mouth is not problematic at this time, losing to a healthy weight
Temperament: Good with adults, not good with children, good with dogs, unknown with cats
Original: “For fun this girl LOVES her tennis balls…and if her human is sitting on the floor, this love bug will try to climb onto a lap.”
Melody was taken to a shelter in Delaware because her family was moving and could not take her with them. Given her condition, it is entirely possible that she was having accidents in the home which lead to the relinquishment. Poor Melody was very stinky and her whole belly was stained yellow. Once she was a MAESSR girl it was determined that she was suffering from a UTI and a serious case of pneumonia.
Melody’s foster parents question whether her name was truly Melody since she doesn’t appear to respond to it. What she does respond to is receiving attention from her people. Now that his little lady is beginning to feel better, she loves to give kisses and is quite the Velcro Springer. Although she loves adults, Melody is not enamored with young children. She was grumbling at her foster mom’s four year old nephew who wasn’t even trying to pet her. So, she would be best in a child-free home.
After being so sick, she’s starting to perk up, too, and is enjoying going for walks. Out in the yard, she likes to trit-trot around with a tennis ball in her mouth and her tail going a mile a minute. Following a long walk with her foster dad, Melody is just fine with relaxing and taking it easy, happy to be with her people. Although she carries her weight well, at 60 pounds she could stand to lose a few; continued activity when she’s feeling100% should be the remedy for a little weight loss. Like many Springers, Melody is quite food motivated. Her foster parents have found that they can trick her with “water cookies” (ice cubes) which are a very slimming snack! Melody does have a small fatty tumor in her mouth which does not affect her eating nickel-sized kibble.
Now that her UTI is clearing up, it is obvious that Melody is housetrained. There were a few accidents in the home that are believed to be result of the infection. She does not really signal to go out, but her parents let the dogs out regularly. If she drinks a lot, they make sure to take her out 20 minutes after her drink. Her foster parents monitor her with water at night since she will drink an entire bowl if allowed.
Melody is crate trained and gets into her crate willingly. If she needs a potty break while crated she will bark and whine as a signal to go out. She is crated when her people are not home because of the UTI. At bedtime she also sleeps in the crate, which MUST be in their bedroom…being in her crate in another room at nighttime does not sit well with her! As long as her crate is near her parents she is very happy sleeping in there for eight hours. During the day Melody is crated for no more than four hours due to work schedules that allow one of her parents to be with her a good part of the day.
Melody is very good with her two canine foster brothers. While she doesn’t resource guard, one of the resident dogs isn’t fond of her being close to his food while eating. For this reason she is fed in her crate and has her own water bowl in another room in the house, away from her foster brother’s dishes. She plays with the resident dogs a bit, and her foster parents think that will increase when she’s fully healthy. For fun this girl LOVES her tennis balls…and if her human is sitting on the floor, this love bug will try to climb onto a lap.
It does not appear that Melody knows any commands. So far, however, her house manners are very good. There is no counter-surfing, trash picking, getting up or furniture or inappropriate chewing. Good girl! She’s a dream riding in the back seat of a vehicle, lying down with an occasional head popping up to see what’s happening. While she walks well on the leash, Melody will need a little training since she doesn’t care to stay on the sidewalks. At the moment she can complete a mile walk in 20 minutes or so…being sick is hard! If meeting others on a walk, Melody is fine, if a bit indifferent to them, and doesn’t appear to have interest in squirrels or rabbits as well.
An angel at the vet, Melody allows everyone to do what needs to be done. She is fine with having her ears cleaned and her nails trimmed. It’s possible that she’s never had experience going to a groomer, but her foster parents don’t believe it would be a problem.
Her foster family feels that an ideal home for Melody would be an older couple who could give her much time, affection, and long walks. Another canine friend would be recommended if her humans were not home the majority of the time. Melody’s foster mom can’t emphasize how very sweet and loving she is. Once Melody fully regains her health, she should make a family very, very happy.