All about Galvin!

1.  Galvin is very smart.  During our first few meals, he jumped around and dove at his dish.  I decided he needed meal manners.  Look at him now!  (Please ignore that Nelle began eating before I told her she could)

2.  In addition to sitting and waiting for his food, he knows "sit" and "down."  He knows his name well and comes when called.

3.  He is very good about telling you when he has to go potty.  He will sit by the door and whimper.

4.  He is getting along well with the cat.

5.  He loves to stretch out when he's sleeping at night: hope you have a king-sized bed!

It's time to get up, pups!

6.  I've only heard him bark when he's playing with Nelle (yes, they began playing!) and when he sees a squirrel.

Fostering for REACH Rescue

I moved to Lake Forest, IL in August and am now settled and decided it was time to get back into volunteering with a local rescue organization.  On Saturday, November 14th I went to REACH Rescue's Adoption Event with the intention of assisting them just during events for the time being.  By the end of the event, I had agreed to take home my first foster: Galvin!

What a great dog!  He's bonds quickly and is a very happy-go-lucky pup.  Galvin isn't much into playing, mostly he's content with unpacking the doggy toy box, chewing on bones, and snoozing on the couch.  He's definitely a couch potato!  And, he's the quietest beagle I've ever met!

Just chewing on toys with my foster sister!

He also LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to snuggle.  If you are sitting or laying down, Galvin must be next to you.  He's an attention hog and loves people.  He's friendly with everyone he meets.  I think he would make a GREAT therapy dog!

I love to snuggle!

He is listed as a "children over 10 years" dog and it's certainly not because of his disposition.  He's met multiple children and he loves them.  What we do know is that we have been told that he has some resource guarding tendencies.  Other than growling once to protect a bone, I have not seen anything extreme.  But, it would best to make sure that children in the home know that they cannot take things away from him.  It would also be best for adults in the home to work with him on lessening his need to guard.  For instance:

• Practice trading with him (taking a toy and giving him a higher value new one, taking a toy and giving him a higher value treat)
• Feed him by hand (so that he learns that his human holds the power over the food, not him)
• Feed him away from other dogs

He is being fostered with another dog right now- a small female.  He's doing very well with her and there has been very little aggression (only some "give me space" warnings) and he's responded well to correction. In his past home, he was housed with multiple male dogs and did not enjoy that.  As mentioned before, he's an attention hog and doesn't like to share attention, so a home by himself or a home with a more passive female dog would be ideal.

Foster Family Selfie

Nelle agrees: "We love Galvin!"

Pics of Jolie

Foster Mom, please let me sleep!

My dad getting lots of love from the pups and Jolie is, of course, right in the middle of it all!

So good in her crate!

She loves cuddling under the covers!

Potty Update

Yesterday, was a very exciting day!

• We had no accidents inside! (Unfortunately, the same did not hold for today, she had a #2 accident this morning... but let's focus on the good news: she's gone #2 three out of the four last times outside and she's gone #1 outside every time since Sunday!)
• Jolie also got another bath and her scabs are nearly all gone and healing well. 
• She learned "sit" yesterday.  It's really helping her with focusing.  We are also working on "turn," "paw," and "off."  She's such a quick learner!

Welcome Jolie!

Jolie arrived on Saturday and Bodey (my dog, whom I adopted in November) absolutely adores her.  The two of them play constantly, although like any siblings they always want whatever toy the other has.  This morning, they brought me every ball in the house while I got ready in the bathroom.  She is also very respectful of my cat, in fact, here's a picture of her and Bodey watching Lincoln eat (they aren't allowed to "clean" his bowl until he's done).

Jolie is settling into our household's daily routine.  She understands "go potty" means that we're going outside and yesterday we had a very good potty day- only one accident in the house; she doesn't seem to like going #2 outside yet.  I've been watching her behavior carefully to figure out how she acts when she has to go #2 and was able to get her go #2 twice outside yesterday (and all #1s). 

Jolie loves walks and cuddling.  If you are on the couch, she is next to you.  She likes to keep her humans in sight, but is doing well when put in her crate. I am keeping her in there at night and when I am not at home. She'll cry a little bit at first, but she quiets down quickly and sleeps through the night.  When let out, she runs cute laps throughout the house, she's so excited that it's morning or that you're home.

It amazes me how resilient dogs are! Jolie was obviously abused prior to coming to Canine Cupids, but she doesn't hold any grudges. She loves with her whole heart! Jolie's wounds are healing well (I'm using coconut oil on the burns and cuts) and I think in a few weeks her coat will grow out and her skin will feel better.

For now, she's enjoying life in a loving foster home with lots of attention and belly rubs. She can't wait to be adopted, though! 

Playtime at the Press Household

Mack is feeling a lot better and hasn't coughed much since Friday.  He LOVES getting a little bit of wet food in the morning.  Mack also loves Lincoln (my cat) who's the same size as him; he constantly wants to play with Lincoln.  Every morning, Mack races around the house to find him (he's usually in the sock drawer).  I'm not sure Lincoln feels the same was towards Mack, but he's a great cat who puts up with all these foster pups.  Usually, Lincoln just ignores them.  But, he'll actually play a little with Mack.  Here's a funny video from the other day:

Mack Update

Guess what?!?! Mack hasn't had an accident in the house since Sunday! I'm so proud of him!  He's been staying home without a diaper while I am at work the past two days and no accidents (the days prior to that he was wearing a diaper when I wasn't home). I think it's safe to say he's housebroken! (Although I'd still recommend his future family buy a belly band to put on him for when you visit new places).

On the not so great news end, Mack is coughing and seems to have picked up kennel cough during his transport from AL to WI. There's nothing that we can really do for this since it's like a cold that needs to run it's course (supposedly about 10 days).  Even though he has his coughing fits, Mack seems to think he's hit the jackpot with this virus! He's getting a little bit of soft food everyday to wet his throat more, fish oil for a boost in omega 3s, and a spoonful of maple syrup everyday (it's supposed to lubricate his throat like cough syrup would).  Needless to say, he's in heaven with these "medicines!"