Entered: 04/28/2013
Status: Adopted
Age: 10
Color: Black/White/Tan
Weight: 37 lbs.
Gender: Altered Male
Location: Bloomsburg, PA
Health: UTD, HW-, overall good health
Temperament: Good with adults, unknown with children, good with other dogs, ignores cats
Update 05/22/2013: “He enjoys good health and a winning personality, all neatly packaged in a strikingly handsome furry form that begs for petting.”
Possibly missing out on lots of fun, Shadow packed his things and moved to a new foster home because his original foster family was expecting out-of-town guests and their 3 dogs. Fortunately, he resettled well and is enjoying the new people and new dogs in his life.
Shadow will be 10 on June 7th and his birthday wish is a new loving family. He is a true Velcro Springer that enjoys being with his people. He gets along very well with the resident youngsters in his new home, one a 2 year-old and the second a 3-year old ESS. He eats in the laundry room along side the 2 residents with no food aggression and respectfully waits until they are done to make sure their bowls are truly clean.
Shadow is laid back and enjoys sitting with you or just being close. His new family doesn’t have small children but can not imagine him not being good with them. Shadow walks very nicely on a leash and does not pull. He enjoys good health and a winning personality, all neatly packaged in a strikingly handsome furry form that begs for petting. He is a real sweetheart and will make a great companion for some lucky family!
Original: “Trash issues are not a problem since his foster home’s trash cans are “Springer-proofed”!”
For many years Shadow and his kennel mate Susie along with three other hunting dogs lived outside in a dog pen on his owner’s Pennsylvania property. During bad weather they were crated in the kitchen of the family’s home. Things changed radically early in 2013, when their hunter companion and owner died suddenly. Remaining family members worked full time and could not manage to care for the five dogs. Some of the hunting pack went to other breed rescue and Shadow and Susie became MAESSR dogs.
Very social with other dogs and people, Shadow is adjusting nicely to life in his foster home and he is currently running well with his new pack. Wisely, he honors the pecking order of his new group. Fed with the rest of the pack, Shadow shows no food aggression with them. Good boy! He is also good with the resident cats in his foster home; he has no interest in them and just ignores them.
Although Shadow had little house experience prior to coming into foster care, he is adapting well to life in his new inside environment and is learning to be part of a family. His intrinsic curiosity and willingness to learn help him to thrive in this loving home. His very friendly disposition has endeared him to the adults and teen members of his foster family. He has yet to meet any younger children, but his foster mom doesn’t anticipate that Shadow would have a problem with them.
Shadow’s housetraining has gone very well and he signals his need to go out. Since he was already crate trained and comfortable there, Shadow is crated when his foster family is not at home. At night he chooses to sleep on the floor. Although he is not a chewer, he is curious about things new to him. Shadow has a mild counter-surfing habit but is responsive to correction. Trash issues are not a problem since his foster home’s trash cans are “Springer-proofed”! Shadow does not get on furniture and is happy with his blanket on the floor. His transition from being an outside dog to being an indoor one is going well! He just has not caught on to going up and down a full flight of stairs, though. He will walk up with help, but tries to surf down them no matter what human assistance is offered.
Energetic for a ten year old but not considered a high-energy dog, Shadow does enjoy being outside and going for walks. He does pull on his lead and his foster family is sorting out what commands he has been taught. His foster mom suspects his particular training command vocabulary may just be different from his foster family’s conventional training vocabulary. Shadow is eager to learn and he is responding to his own name already. He was taught to greet people in a gentle up stance. His nature is to be submissive but he does not have a fearful temperament. This social, calm seasoned Springer behaves well with the groomer as well as at the vet. Shadow also behaves nicely in the car, but has a slightly queasy tummy when out for a ride.
As Shadow continues to gain experience as an indoor dog and continues to learn what being a family member is all about, this diamond in the rough will come out of the shadows to become a more sparkling gem who will fill your life with love and happiness.