Pepsi 1
Pepsi 2
Entered: 07/16/2022
Status: Adopted
Age: 5; born 05/07/2017
Color: Liver/White
Weight: 39.5 lbs.
Gender: Altered Male
Location: Alexandria, VA
Health: UTD, HW-, skin infection cleared, bald patch on rear end continues to fill in, gaining to a healthy weight
Temperament: Good with adults, unknown with children, initially skittish with other dogs, unknown with cats
Update 09/02/2022: “He has shown himself to have both the energy to play with the two-year-old resident Springer and the mellowness to get along with the two inside/outside cats.”
When Pepsi’s original foster parents had to go out of town, he moved into a temporary foster home with a prospective adoptive family. Pepsi has continued to learn and thrive in this new environment. He was initially shy but quickly started seeking out the humans for pets and brushing. He has shown himself to have both the energy to play with the two-year-old resident Springer and the mellowness to get along with the two inside/outside cats. He’s even been swapping kisses with one of the cats. He is learning to play with a range of toys and the resident Springer is happy to have such an agreeable playmate.
A follow up visit to the vet found that Pepsi’s skin condition is cleared and his hair on his back continues to grow in. And, he is gaining weight. Housetraining is still a work in progress but he is much better about remembering that dogs poop outside, having only had two accidents in the house. Belly bands have been a helpful aid to help him understand that marking in the house is not acceptable.
Stay tuned for more updates on Pepsi as this love bug continues to show his new foster family who he is.
Original: “Pepsi really likes being outside where he can run around the yard picking up sticks and sniffing everywhere.”
Pepsi had been living on a farm in Virginia that raised Springers. The breeder passed away and the family reached out to have the kennel’s dogs adopted through MAESSR.
Living inside a house is a new experience for Pepsi. Being a kennel dog in his previous life, he was not housetrained so his foster family is working with him on that. He seems to hold his urine but will poop inside every few days. As he is frequently being let outside to relieve himself, he is gradually catching on that outside is where dogs eliminate. He does not soil in his crate. He is having fewer accidents as time passes. He does not have a signal yet to indicate he needs to go out but that will come.
Recently, his foster family’s dog passed and Pepsi must still smell his presence since he will mark areas in the kitchen to claim it. His foster family is working with him to stop this behavior. Once he is neutered, this marking tendency should cease.
At night he sleeps in a large crate in the family room. During the day he sleeps there or on a sofa that is covered by beach towels. Because housetraining is still a work in progress, Pepsi is limited just to the main level of the house including the family room and kitchen. In the morning he’s very happy to see his foster parents and bounds out of the crate to the fenced back yard to do his business, followed by eating his breakfast.
Pepsi really likes being outside where he can run around the yard picking up sticks and sniffing everywhere. Sticks seem to be his favorite toy; he unfortunately ignores the new toys his foster family purchased for him. Not quite understanding the rules of fetch, Pepsi will run after a thrown stick but drops it quickly without bringing it back.
He likes long walks in the neighborhood and has adapted quickly to walking on a leash. He just loves hanging out with his people and is very friendly with those he meets on his walks, rarely jumping up in greeting. He’s never met a stranger! If he encounters another dog, he is a bit skittish but he does not show any aggression and rarely barks. Pepsi is a gentle dog!
For a former kennel dog, Pepsi has good house manners. He does not do any counter-surfing nor does he get into the trash. He is fed in the kitchen and is allowed to get up on the covered sofa in the family room. He has a good appetite, likes his dog food, but is very sloppy when drinking his water from a bowl in the kitchen.
This sweet Springer loves to learn new things and has “sit” and “stay” now in his repertoire with more commands coming! It seems that he has little experience riding in a car, but he is good in the back seat when crated there. He was good at both the vet and the groomer and has no problem with someone handling his feet and ears. He is such a handsome boy!
Pepsi is a wonderful, loving dog. His ideal family would include people who like to take dog walks several times a day and most importantly love to cuddle with him!