Entered: 03/09/2019
Status: Adopted
Age: 6; born 06/03/2012
Color: Liver/White/Tan
Weight: 51 lbs.
Gender: Altered Female
Location: Springfield, VA
Health: UTD, HW-, benefiting from anti-anxiety medication; treatment for UTI, hookworms, ear infections complete; complete recovery from spay surgery and mastectomy with clean margins; dental cleaning to remove deep tartar complete; losing to a healthy weight
Temperament: Good with adults, unknown with children, good with dogs and respectful of the resident cat
Update 06/11/2019: “Her foster family can see that her curiosity is slowly overtaking her extreme caution.”
Trixie is making a slow but steady transition to household living. She watches the resident female Springer for ques and will follow accordingly. Out of the ordinary noises or actions will startle Trixie, but she does not retreat if the resident Springers seem undisturbed.
Trixie has a very consistent routine day in and day out with her foster family. This seems to help her gain confidence with living inside a home. Trixie has staked out one dog bed area in the living room as her favorite spot and even sleeps there through the night. Her house manners are excellent, and she has never chewed inappropriately, counter-surfed or knocked down trash cans.
One night, Trixie brought all the dog toys from a backroom storage area over to her dog bed and played with each one. She even dragged over an extra cat bed thinking it was an oversized dog toy. Trixie makes discoveries like this every day.
She is happy to go on walks with the two resident Springers. Trixie has very good stamina and would love to chase down the errant squirrels who cross the path. She is very strong and becomes a challenge to control only when these pesky squirrels are running around. On subsequent walks in the same areas, Trixie still looks for those squirrels; she is very focused. When Trixie meets people outside, she stays by her foster mom and does not want to be close to new people. She passes by other dogs quietly and without much interest.
Trixie is very cautious when visitors come inside. She will warm up to new people but needs encouragement to engage. For now, she will run into another room, but circle back to see what is going on. Her foster family can see that her curiosity is slowly overtaking her extreme caution.
Recently, Trixie took a car ride and had a professional grooming. This was a major event for Trixie, but she cooperated and was content during the trip. The grooming session was a successful outing, and Trixie seemed to enjoy the attention. The resident Springers were with her as well. A weigh in revealed that Trixie is down to 51 pounds – that’s a healthy nine pound loss!
Even though Trixie has been through dramatic changes and lots of demands have been made of her, she has proven to be a very sweet Springer who is happy to live with her Springer companions and very patient foster family.
Original: “After spending a week in a quieter foster home, Trixie has settled into a routine that finds her staying close by the two resident Springers and her foster family.”
When Trixie arrived in MAESSRland, she left behind a life in a breeding kennel in Virginia. Now she has bright prospects for a new life with a loving family of her own.
Initially, Trixie spent a month in a MAESSR foster home that had many dogs and she did not adapt well to the activity level there. Trixie became an anxious, isolated watcher and did not want to stay close by the other dogs or her foster family.
After spending a week in a quieter foster home, Trixie has settled into a routine that finds her staying close by the two resident Springers and her foster family. To help with her anxiety and to ease the transition to the new lifestyle, Trixie receives a prescription medicine which her adopting family will have to keep her on for a minimum of six months.
Trixie seems to recognize that her life options are much improved. In one week, she has mastered many household skills including sprinting up and down the stairs now that she is not afraid of them, meeting the resident cat, testing soft toys, eating twice daily without much coaxing, choosing her favorite dog bed, and lining up for treats which she takes very softly. She has learned to use the backyard for exploration and recreation, scanning the yard for errant squirrels and running down white moths who stray into her acute radar at night. She loves to charge up and down the backyard hill if she sees something worth chasing; she can be very active when she is over her initial caution.
Trixie’s favorite activity is receiving attention from her foster family. She relishes brushing sessions and stood perfectly still for a brief grooming with clippers which revealed an extremely soft satiny coat under sun bleached, dry hair. While Trixie was apprehensive about a full bathing, she did not try to jump out of the tub. A full grooming appointment is in Trixie’s near future.
When adults came by to visit her and her foster family, Trixie did well with the encouragement of a few treats. She is still overly cautious about anything that is new or loud. Words of encouragement and a petting session seem to help her move forward.
Trixie is leash walked with the resident female Springer, since her foster family cannot take all three dogs together at once. When she is the one left behind, Trixie runs to her safe dog bed, but can be found at the door for her turn when everyone returns. Once she sees the leash, Trixie turns and runs away, but then comes willingly once leashed. A couple of times, her foster family heard Trixie barking when left home alone. This seems to be isolated and she does not appear to have any separation anxiety.
With impeccable house manners, Trixie did not seem interested in a crate. She has freedom to move about the house and seems to gravitate to a dog bed for a good snooze when the foster family leaves. She has been left like this for up to four or five hours.
Trixie readily responds to her name, but does not appear to fully understand any basic commands. She definitely understands a firm “no.” Her foster family is starting with some basics and Trixie appears to be a quick study.
Trixie’s foster family is working with her to get over her Greta Garbo moments of “I want to be left alone.” She has become more of a joiner and seems to enjoy being part of the MAESSR party. Trixie’s adopting family will need steady patience in helping her move forward. Daily, Trixie is moving two steps forward and no steps back. Trixie seems to be very adaptable when provided calm encouragement and would be an adoring companion.