Bella's First Week

Bella has transitioned well into her new home and is now showing an interest in play (she was pretty mellow the first two days... not sure if she wasn't feeling well, a bit sad about missing her pup, or just the trauma of all the new things happening at once).  Now she is very energized about going on her walks and loves to play with her "toys," two in particular: a small tug rope and a small stuffed mouse cat toy.  She loves to play fetch with the mouse.  Here's a cute video of her:

Other updates: she is definitely housebroken.  She hasn't had a single accident and has a regular bathroom schedule (meaning I know that she'll need to go #2 on our second walk in the morning, after breakfast, and again later in the evening, after dinner).

As I mentioned in my first blog, she does know her name and comes immediately when called.  We are working on "sit" and "quiet" (she likes to try to scare the big dogs on our walks).  Today, she "quiet"ed very well when we walked past a house with two very barky dogs and as soon as she started barking and I told her to "quiet," she did and continued to walk past the house ignoring them.  Then, when we walked past again on our way home, she ignored them again. 

Meet Bella!

Bella arrived today from Alabama and what a great dog she's been so far.  I thought Blakesley was tiny, but Bella is even smaller!  A whopping 7 pounds!  She's a shih tzu poodle mix and just had a baby three months ago... talk about losing the baby weight! :)

She's had quite a day today: driving all the way from AL to WI, having a bath, getting micro-chipped, taking her heartworm medication, and getting a Frontline treatment.  She then met her foster siblings, Lincoln and Lily (two giant cats), and went to visit my sister, brother-in-law and niece (who's one and a half).  She did great, meeting and playing with everyone.  I have no concerns about her ability to do well with other animals or small children!

What I've learned about her so far:

• she knows her name very well and comes immediately when called
• she gets along with other cats and dogs
• she does well with small children
• she hates motorcycles
• she loves to go for walks and walks well on a leash
• she loves to be by her people
• she has a hearty appetite and is very clean about eating (unlike many small dogs)
• she loves to nap and hates waking up :) (watch her video and see; she's so funny!)

Fourth of July with Blakesley

This weekend we went up north and Blakesley had a great time! She loved being outside and did great off leash. As you can see from the pictures, she even went on the water and did very well! 

She doesn't recognize her name (since it's new to her), but does come quickly when I say "come, come." Blakesley also knows the commands "go potty, "quiet," and "up." She doesn't like treats, but she LOVES meat (chicken, turkey, fish). 

Blakesly spent the weekend with five other dogs and, while she was a bit jealous at first, she got used to them. There was a toddler on the trip as well and Blakesley was very anxious around her and would growl. She's been around older children (6+) and seemed to be fine. 

Blakesley

Blakesley has been a wonderful little pup since I picked her up on Sunday.  She absolutely loves everyone she meets!  I've taken her around town, on walks, and to various family and friend's homes and she's done well in every environment- greeting each person or animal with a sniff and a tail wag.  Blakesley loves being around people and is a little shadow; she will quietly follow you from room to room and lay down to watch whatever you're doing.  She respects her foster-siblings (two cats) and leaves them alone.  Blakesley absolutely loves car rides and walks; as soon as she sees her leash being picked up she is overjoyed! 

She's a very quiet pup, barking only on the following occasions: a) she wants to go outside or b) she wants to go to bed.  So far, she seems to be housebroken; she hasn't had a single accident yet and does come let me know when she wants to go out! 

Interested in adopting her?  Fill out an application on the Fluffy Dog Rescue website: http://rescue.fluffydog.net/Adoptable_dogs.html