Entered: 12/08/2014
Status: Adopted
Age: 9
Color: Black/White
Weight: 68 lbs.
Gender: Altered Male
Location: State College, PA
Health: UTD, HW-, Lyme-, continuing treatment for skin infection, continuing ear improvement with medication and very frequent cleanings, benefiting from thyroid medication and joint supplements, losing to a healthy weight, small lipoma-like lump on chest that requires no treatment, dental complete
Temperament: Good with adults and teens, unknown with children, good with other dogs, unknown with cats
Update 03/24/2015: “I really, really love spending time on the couch with my people. I hope my forever parents like doing that, too!”
Seniors and special needs dogs are the best…just listen to what Yogie has to say:
“My name is Yogie and I’m not a bear, just in case you were concerned about that. In fact, I don’t even spell my name the same way as that picnic basket thief. I’m a Springer Spaniel and proud of it, although I don’t really spring much anymore since I’m an older, dignified gentleman.
I came to MAESSR with a few health concerns, but the good people here are helping me feel and look much better. My skin was really a problem but my foster mom gives me a weekly bath which keeps my light dandruff issue manageable. My fur has grown back and my ears are much better (aaahhh!) because my foster mom cleans them regularly. She gives me a pill for my thyroid, which is helping me lose some extra pounds (I’m looking pretty handsome!), and some supplements to help my joints stay healthy. MAESSR provides me with terrific health care benefits!
Did I mention my foster mom? She’s great! She really takes care of me. We have a pretty quiet household here, just my foster parents and some regular visits from older and younger adults. So, I can pretty much kick back and take it easy…unless a squirrel starts taunting me while I look out the window. That just makes me want to go give it a piece of my mind! I also have two canine friends who live here and they’re pretty nice, although a little pushy when it comes to dinnertime. I prefer a nice leisurely meal and they just like to inhale theirs. My foster parents defend my dinner bowl until I’m finished, and I appreciate that.
I really, really love spending time on the couch with my people. I hope my forever parents like doing that, too! At night I sleep on a dog bed with my foster sister next to the human bed. It’s been kind of cold this winter so my parents have this special heating pad to make our bed extra cozy and I LOVE that!
I have to admit that I don’t really know these “commands” that my parents keep trying to get me to learn, but I’ll come when they call me…most of the time. I’m working on sitting when told. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I think it’s just a suggestion…
If you have toys at your house, I won’t really be interested in balls or Frisbees; but lately I’ve been picking up a stuffed toy and I’ll even walk over to pick one up if it’s thrown to me. After about three or four rounds of that game I’m ready to lie down and pull some stuffing out of it.
There you have it: I’m a really laid back guy who just wants some quality time with my family. I think a quieter home might be best for me but I’m sociable, so who knows. My foster family is really great, but I’m hoping for my very own family to love me and cuddle with me on the couch. Remember, I’m not a bear, so you don’t have to worry about your food around me. I’m the guy who’s very civilized about eating meals. Let’s meet for lunch!
Love,
Yogie”
Update 02/24/2015: “In the current cold weather, Yogie’s favorite spot is on the couch in front of the fire with his foster dad.”
There’s great news to share for Yogie on all fronts! For openers, his skin is looking much, much better. The fur he has looks healthier, and, gradual slow regrowth of fur in some of his bald areas is occurring. He recently had a spa day at the groomers to even out his coat and had absolutely no issues with being groomed. His foster mother has also combed and trimmed him at home without any problem. Currently he gets a medicated bath and rinse once a week, is fed a skin-support kibble and is given an omega/vitamin supplement and a joint supplement to boost his progress.
His ear infections have improved but are continuing to be treated with antibiotics. His ears are also cleaned twice a week with an antiseptic/antifungal cleaner.
Yogie’s foster family had struggled with his feeding. When a dental found his teeth to be in good condition and not the problem, he was started on a new kibble that targets skin support. This was initially mixed with a portion of canned dog food and baby food. His family has been gradually reducing the canned and baby food and now uses about a tablespoon with the goal of going completely to dry food….almost there! Yogie remains a slow and somewhat distracted eater, but is now consuming his meals in a reasonable ten minutes or so with some enthusiasm. He does absolutely no guarding of food and has to be shielded at mealtime from the two ravening resident Springers.
Regular walks have been limited some by the snow and sub-zero temps, but this handsome fella now has a fleece coat and is always happy to head out. He’s not particularly attuned to commands but, other than alerting on bunnies and squirrels, he walks nicely without pulling. He’s not been at all reactive to the few (very few in this cold!) other dogs that have passed by. He loves to flush the rabbits out from under the pines in the back yard when his foster family takes him on the long lead. While he comes reliably to his name in the house, his family is pretty sure he’d chase a rabbit or squirrel first, and look for his person later!! A Springer’s gotta do what a Springer’s gotta do! When he doesn’t want to move, he’s a weighty, rock-like lump but can be lured with a treat.
In the current cold weather, Yogie’s favorite spot is on the couch in front of the fire with his foster dad. Yogie sleeps on a heated dog bed with his foster sister beside his foster parents’ bed. He’s never trash dived or counter-surfed. He will come and sit by someone eating at the table and do a little quiet whine, but will eventually go lie down when ignored. He almost never barks. While not devoted to toys, this love has several times picked up a toy to chase when it’s tossed, bringing it back to fetch again
He hasn’t been around any small children or cats in his foster home but has been friendly and pleasant with all adults and teenagers. He’s totally submissive to his foster siblings, who are nearly twelve and thirteen years of age. He will periodically groom their ears or faces…Yogie knows to respect his elders!!This is a sweet guy whose personality is emerging as his health improves. He loves being where his people and sibling dogs are. His foster family loves him and will welcome him for as long as it takes to find him the perfect forever home…one willing to be vigilant in monitoring his skin, ears and thyroid status, and of course one that will love him as much as he will love them back.
Update 01/20/2015: “But, look out, squirrels and rabbits!! Yogie considers it his personal mission to send them off as quickly as a long leash will let him.”
Yogie is still a sweet, quiet guy who’s still discovering new things in his foster home. He actually got a toy from the crate and carried it out this past week…a first! As a typical Springer, “I love attention” kind of fellow, he’s always to be found where the people are.
Health wise, “Handsome’s” progressing. His fur has yet to grow back and his skin still sloughs off in scales over much of his body but it looks less sore and irritated. His ears are now much better and are being cleaned with antiseptic/antifungal cleaner every two to three days. He’s coming down in weight too with seven pounds lost since his arrival…way to go, Yogie!
For a dog that came in at his excessive weight, Yogie is the least enthusiastic eater his foster mom has come across. He is currently enjoying canned food and does better at eating in a timely fashion, but he still consumes pretty slowly by Springer standards and is easily distracted from the job of eating by any noise or activity. He’s had his teeth cleaned now. The vet didn’t find anything other than dirty teeth, so it seems there’s not an issue there. In his previous home, he may have been an on-demand feeder, eating all day, and is just taking a while to catch on to the twice-a-day routine. He’s always interested in any food activity in the kitchen, but takes anything, like a piece of carrot or liver treat, cautiously and usually drops it on the floor at least once before eating it…if he does.
The “quiet Keystone man” has had no accidents, has free movement in the house while the family is home, and is gated in the TV room with the two resident Springers when his folks are at work. Outside, he is a gentleman on his walks and passes by other dogs without any aggressiveness. But, look out, squirrels and rabbits!! Yogie considers it his personal mission to send them off as quickly as a long leash will let him.
Yogie’s personality is such that he would be best with the companionship of another dog if his humans went to work each day, or, he’d perhaps do well as an only dog if someone was at home most of the time. He’s had a lot of change in his life this last year, but has shown he can blend easily with a new household….a home with 2 dogs, a college-aged son who comes and goes, and 2 adults who work full and part-time. While his skin and ears currently require attention from his foster family, this love is accepting of the kindness shown him; he’s responding to treatment and caring. Good times are ahead for this senior and his furever family. Check back for coming improvements…
Original: “Overall, Yogie is a sweet, calm dog who loves being with people, seems to enjoy the resident dogs’ company, and who will hopefully steadily progress towards a healthier status.”
A divorce in his family changed not just the lives of the splitting couple, but that of their senior Springer Yogie as well. Becoming part of the MAESSR family will ensure that Yogie will find a wonderful forever home where he can enjoy his senior years with a loving family who will make sure he gets the best of care.
Since Yogie’s weighed 78 pounds when he entered foster care, it was immediately apparent to his foster parents and their vet that there was something amiss. A blood screen showed that he had hypothyroidism or poor thyroid function. He was started on a thyroid supplement and will be rechecked periodically to see if his thyroid level is in the normal range. His weight should drop as a result of his taking this thyroid supplement. Another sign of this condition is poor coat condition and that is true in Yogie’s case, also. He had a yeast infection of his ears and skin, and was started a course of oral antibiotics, ear antibiotic/antifungal medication, antifungal ear cleaner, and bi-weekly medicated shampoo that hopefully will taper to a weekly shampoo. Yogie has very little fur over his torso and upper legs. Hopefully, with his thyroid supplements and his infections being treated, his skin and coat will start to improve. As is not uncommon with aging Springers, Yogie has some lipomas on his body, the largest one being fist sized on his chest. These fatty tumors will be watched for any changes, but the vet is not concerned about them. Yogi’s hematocrit was low and he does have a history of some urinary bleeding last spring (according to a previous vet record) but the low hematocrit could also be related to his thyroid, so a “wait and observe how he responds to the current treatment” approach is being followed for now.
Yogie is a calm, quiet gentleman who has yet to bark. He gets along nicely with the two resident Springers who are also seniors with health issues. His only fussing has been briefly at night when he thinks maybe he should get on his foster parents’ bed; however, this fussing doesn’t last more than a few minutes and then he settles on the dog bed at the side of the humans’ bed. This dog bed has been the bed of the senior tripod girl but Yogie believes in sharing. He steps over her to wedge himself in. This arrangement lasts for a while until he stretches out all of his 78 pounds and all 43 pounds of her get too crowded. So, she leaves for the couch! Mind you, there are other dog beds available, but of course everyone wants the same one! During the workday Yogie is crated in a large wire crate with a bed in it. The crate is in the gated TV room where the resident dogs are gated also. Since he’s had no accidents and has not shown any destructive behavior, he will likely graduate to being gated only and not be enclosed in his crate.
Friendly with all the adults he has met so far, Yogie was even happy at his vet appointment. He was good at having his toenails trimmed and calmly tolerates his medicated baths and ear care. He loves to have a snuggle with his people on the couch when the resident pair are getting loving too. Although he does not resource guard at all with his foster family, Yogie is fed separately from the resident dogs at present. This is done primarily because they eat quickly and Yogie eats slowly and would let them take over. When Yogie gets his kibble twice a day some chicken baby food is added in along with some freeze-dried chicken liver to work up some enthusiasm for his meals. The chicken baby food is used for the administration of his meds since he is pretty indifferent to peanut butter.
Yogie is now going on regular walks. These have started out slow and short but the goal is to build them up in duration and pace. He loves his walks whether around the yard or around the neighborhood and perks right up for any bunny or squirrel sightings. At this point Yogie has shown no interest in toys but that may change as he loses weight and his endurance and strength increase.
Overall, Yogie is a sweet, calm dog who loves being with people, seems to enjoy the resident dogs’ company, and who will hopefully steadily progress towards a healthier status.