Summer

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Update 08/12/12:

Summer was relinquished by her adopting family when their work schedules changed and they found she was being left home for 10 hours a day. They knew this was unfair to Summer and made a tough decision to return her to MAESSR.

In her adopting home Summer lived with 4 cats. She wanted to play with all of them, but only one cat returned her affection. In her foster home she is living with a male resident Springer and enjoys being with another dog. The two bonded very quickly. Summer seems willing to share toys. It’s entertaining to watch her tease her buddy with toys to entice him to play. When treats are being offered to them both, she displays her best manners and patiently for her turn. 

Summer is completely housetrained and indicates her need to go out by sitting at the door. Her foster family has not crated her. She has full access to the house while they are away; no trash-digging or counter-surfing is going to happen on her watch! Summer has been allowed on the furniture in all of her homes but will get down when asked. Currently she sleeps on a pillow in the master bedroom but she’d much rather be up on the big bed with her people. Not surprisingly, it occasionally takes a bit of coaxing to get her down.

Right now recall is sketchy at best because Summer is so thrilled to be able to run off-leash. She is easily distracted with so much new stuff to investigate, so it takes a few tries to get her to return. Fortunately, she has a fenced yard to explore and shouldn’t be trusted off leash without boundaries at this time. As a Springer she has natural hunting instincts and will take off after birds, squirrels, chip monks and rabbits; that’s just sooooooo much fun! When on leash, Summer does pull. Her family is working on this with her, making her a work in progress!

Summer remains unknown with children at this time. When meeting adults she becomes very excited and does jump up (something else her family is working on with her) so a home without young children would be best. She does NOT know any strangers and delights in offering her self for belly rubs. During quiet time at home Summer is glued to her foster mom, earning her the distinction of being a “super industrial strength” variety of Springer…….:))!

This young gal is beautiful, inside and out. She’s healthy and will thrive with a family that has time every day to give her attention, a little training and, of course, a full measure of tummy rubs. With so much going for her, Summer is sure to be in an adopting home before summer’s end!

Original:

When financial difficulties beset Summer’s Maryland owners, they had to move into a small apartment that did not allow pets. While heartbroken that they couldn’t keep her with them, they loved Summer enough to make the best arrangements for her care. So, she became a MAESSR girl.

Summer has adjusted wonderfully to foster care. She loves being around people and is content sitting next to her foster parents on the couch or on the floor at their feet. Crate-trained and housetrained, Summer has been accident free in her new environment. She likes to eat in her crate and lets her foster parents know once she is done. When she needs to go out, Summer goes to the back door to signal her need. Summer is crated when her foster family is not home; however, when her people are only gone for a little while, she is left out and there have been no issues. At night Summer sleeps quietly in her foster family’s bedroom until morning. 

Although Summer was submissive at first with the two resident Springers, she quickly warmed up to them and wanted to play, like any older puppy does. Now they are buddies. When she greets her people, she will jump up, eager to say “hi”, so her foster family is working on her manners. When meeting strangers on a walk, Summer rolls on her back to let them rub her tummy. An ongoing training challenge is leash walking since she likes to pull on the leash. She is getting better each time she goes out so progress is being made there. Eager to please, Summer knows the commands……”sit”, “down”, and “shake.” She is excellent while being groomed and has no problems when having her nails trimmed or her ears cleaned. 

Far from being a wild child, Summer is extremely laid back. She does love to play, but will settle right down when it is quiet time. When her foster parents play ball with her, Summer needs some encouragement to bring the ball back so the game can continue. If errands need to be run, Summer is eager to go along since she loves car rides and will quietly lie on the seat or look out the window. She has nice house manners and does not counter-surf or get into the trash. She is allowed on the furniture in her foster home, but if she is asked to get off, she complies immediately.

Summer would love to be someone’s cuddle-bug. While technically still a puppy, she loves to sit next to her people and get lots of belly rubs. Although she has not met any children while in foster care, Summer’s foster mom thinks she would fit into a household with children or other pets, but would be just as happy being a companion to a single adult.

Would you like to bring a little Summer into your winter months? If you’re looking for a companion to cuddle with and keep you warm on these long winter nights, Summer’s the dog for you.