Bigby's New Home
So, we adopted a doggie from the county shelter - yesterday. Bigby, a 22 month Cavalier King Charles spaniel mixed with something else (he just looks to me like a large version of that breed). Here's the whole story:
I went to the shelter last week on Thursday and had play time with a few dogs. I picked the spaniel (at the time named, "Lassie") as one of two dogs I was interested in (though he was my favorite). Later that day, Steve went back with me and he wasn't fond of one of the dogs I picked (a Jack Russel Terrier), but there was another dog that had come in that afternoon - a Norfolk/Cairn Terrier that was super skittish and shy, matted fur so bad it looked like dreads; the poor dog looked neglected or possibly abused. So it was down to the Spaniel or the Norfolk Terrier.
I went back last Saturday to spend a little more time with them before making a decision. The terrier was much better, a bright little bounce in her walk, a lot of curiosity, and no noticeable fear. I also noticed that she didn't look underweight or physically hurt at all. However, she was a lot more barky and yappy. I played with the spaniel some more and he was just incredibly friendly and lovable.
Spaniel was relinquished by his owner, but they later found a microchip. That's why I couldn't just adopt him on Thursday because they had to track the owner information on the chip and make sure a jealous girlfriend wasn't trying to give her ex's dog away or something. By Saturday, they found out the chip had never been activated, but that the dog was originally sold from a pet store. So they had to get the pet store to say he wasn't stolen. Now they were waiting for someone at the store to answer the phone. But they were going to call again that day. So I hung around and check in every 2 hours or so.
In the meantime, I went back to see the terrier and she was gone. Her kennel was empty, her card was gone, and the back door to the kennel was open. Since she was a stray and couldn't be adopted till Wednesday, I asked where she was. Apparently, her owner came by and claimed her. So that narrowed my list down to the one doggie. Yay! (though there was also a 3-legged cocker spaniel at the Human Society that was just the sweetest thing ever).
To make a long story short (too late), they never got around to calling the pet store on Saturday, and I had to wait till yesterday to pick the spaniel up. We immediately took him for a nice long walk around the shelter to let him get rid of some excess energy and to go potty. Then, with a new leash and collar, we went to Petco to get all the basics (they have a coupon book specifically for newly adopted pets). At the stuffed toy section, he sniffed and pulled a stuffed reindeer off the shelf, so we got that one since he picked it out (and it's been his favorite so far). He was very well behaved the whole time and he got lots of compliments from employees and other customers.
Then we came home and played for a while: fetch, tug of war, tickles, etc. Later, we went to the dog park and ran and ran. He met a lot of other dogs and was really well socialized. Great fun.
Here's the thing, when Steve and I just sit around the house watching tv or working on the computer, I feel so sorry for Bigby. He just sits in the same room, or lies down on the floor. I feel like I should be doing something with him all the time or at least have something that he can do on his own. I took Wed-Sun off from work so I can help him adjust to his new home, but now I'm ridden with guilt about when he'll be all alone at the house.
I went to the shelter last week on Thursday and had play time with a few dogs. I picked the spaniel (at the time named, "Lassie") as one of two dogs I was interested in (though he was my favorite). Later that day, Steve went back with me and he wasn't fond of one of the dogs I picked (a Jack Russel Terrier), but there was another dog that had come in that afternoon - a Norfolk/Cairn Terrier that was super skittish and shy, matted fur so bad it looked like dreads; the poor dog looked neglected or possibly abused. So it was down to the Spaniel or the Norfolk Terrier.
I went back last Saturday to spend a little more time with them before making a decision. The terrier was much better, a bright little bounce in her walk, a lot of curiosity, and no noticeable fear. I also noticed that she didn't look underweight or physically hurt at all. However, she was a lot more barky and yappy. I played with the spaniel some more and he was just incredibly friendly and lovable.
Spaniel was relinquished by his owner, but they later found a microchip. That's why I couldn't just adopt him on Thursday because they had to track the owner information on the chip and make sure a jealous girlfriend wasn't trying to give her ex's dog away or something. By Saturday, they found out the chip had never been activated, but that the dog was originally sold from a pet store. So they had to get the pet store to say he wasn't stolen. Now they were waiting for someone at the store to answer the phone. But they were going to call again that day. So I hung around and check in every 2 hours or so.
In the meantime, I went back to see the terrier and she was gone. Her kennel was empty, her card was gone, and the back door to the kennel was open. Since she was a stray and couldn't be adopted till Wednesday, I asked where she was. Apparently, her owner came by and claimed her. So that narrowed my list down to the one doggie. Yay! (though there was also a 3-legged cocker spaniel at the Human Society that was just the sweetest thing ever).
To make a long story short (too late), they never got around to calling the pet store on Saturday, and I had to wait till yesterday to pick the spaniel up. We immediately took him for a nice long walk around the shelter to let him get rid of some excess energy and to go potty. Then, with a new leash and collar, we went to Petco to get all the basics (they have a coupon book specifically for newly adopted pets). At the stuffed toy section, he sniffed and pulled a stuffed reindeer off the shelf, so we got that one since he picked it out (and it's been his favorite so far). He was very well behaved the whole time and he got lots of compliments from employees and other customers.
Then we came home and played for a while: fetch, tug of war, tickles, etc. Later, we went to the dog park and ran and ran. He met a lot of other dogs and was really well socialized. Great fun.
Here's the thing, when Steve and I just sit around the house watching tv or working on the computer, I feel so sorry for Bigby. He just sits in the same room, or lies down on the floor. I feel like I should be doing something with him all the time or at least have something that he can do on his own. I took Wed-Sun off from work so I can help him adjust to his new home, but now I'm ridden with guilt about when he'll be all alone at the house.