18 posts tagged “foster teddy”
It was bittersweet. Teddy went to his new home this evening. Monday would have made it four weeks with Teddy. He was certainly one of the longest fosters we've had. But he was also one of the best. He'll be missed. But he found a good home (hi Lies if you're reading this!).
Andrew and I really liked the couple that adopted Teddy. They have three cats (one was adopted from VPC a couple of years ago) and one dog. Teddy will have a canine playmate as well as some feline ones! He'll definitely like that. And he'll be spoiled in his new home. That's important. ;)
This morning we took Beacon, Haven, and Teddy to the old Boy Scout camp near our house. We stayed on the trails rather than having the dogs swim and fetch. Surprisingly Teddy did a lot of wandering on his own. He also didn't list as well as I would have thought based on how he was in the house and in our yard. Perhaps he was too elated about being in a big place to run off leash. I also thought he would have followed our dogs around a lot more than he did. But he still had fun. He was tired the rest of the afternoon.
In the 30-45 minutes we were out Beacon rolled in something smelly. I suspect deer poop. But that wasn't as bad as Haven. We got Beacon in the car. We were in the process of getting Teddy, who didn't want to come back to the car to go home, when Haven went on an adventure of her own. She found a fish.
She came back from the river and had black gunk all over her. And she smelled like a fish. I don't know if she was just rolling in whatever gross thing she found or if she also had a little snack. Both our dogs got a bath in the tub when we got home. While we worked on staining the deck all three dogs slept on various dog beds.
We wrapped up our staining for the day with a little time to hang out with Teddy before his adoption meeting. I gave him one last combing so he would be nice and soft. He and Kenya, his new sister, wandered around the Critter Cottage as they got to know each other. Kenya's a dog that has to take things in slowly. Her owners have worked with her a great deal to give her confidence. They're hoping that Teddy will further help with that. There was the typical butt sniffing (and we joked about what it would be like if humans had this behavior) and getting to know each other.
I think that once the two dogs get used to each other they'll enjoy each other's company. Teddy should adjust without any problems. And he's respectful enough that I think Kenya will get used to him pretty quickly. I hope to keep in touch with the couple often enough to know how Teddy is doing. I'll miss Teddy but wish him well.
Teddy's always so happy. He loves trotting around in the backyard. That is if he's not running around with Haven.
Hopefully this time tomorrow he'll be trotting around in his forever home. I've got an adoption meeting tomorrow for him. I'll write more about that after the meeting.
Teddy will be with us for a while longer. The person that was interested in him couldn't convince her twin daughters to consider him. I'm sure Teddy doesn't mind being here. When I told Andrew the news when he got home Teddy made a howling sound of sorts that we've never heard. I guess he was voicing his approval.
We picked him up Sunday after volunteering at the Grand Rapids Marathon. He was wiggly and happy to see us. But he was also tired. He slept most of last night and has been lazy today. He'll be back at work with me tomorrow and Wednesday.
We did have a lead on Teddy on Saturday. A woman came in and said that she really liked him. But two of her kids, twin 16 year olds, were looking for a puppy. She's not too keen on a puppy knowing that they're a lot of work. And she figures that the kids would slack on responsibility for the dog when the newness wears off.
It turns out that the finance of this woman works with Megan, who adopted Manitou!! Saturday night this woman, her finance, and her younger son (he's 11) took her finance's dog to meet Teddy. They went to Megan's house since that's where Teddy was spending the night. The son, finance, and his dog liked Teddy. Things looked good.
But I've yet to hear from the woman. Word has it that she has had issues with the twins. They're pouting over not getting a puppy. And they're being bratty 16 year olds. So who knows if there will be enough family peace so that they adopt Teddy. They're approved. I'm just waiting to hear from someone.
In Teddy's temporary home before he was officially returned to VPC he was living with at least one cat. We were told that he liked to carry the kitten around in his mouth and play with it.
Teddy loves watching the cats at the Critter Cottage. If they're running around he starts to bark and whine because he's jealous he can't play too. Teddy and Austin have a little talk through the door. It's like they were talking about to switch sides of the door.
Our days of having four dogs in the house will be ending soon. Amber's mom's plane lands at 9:30 tonight as long as it's on time. Since we'll be up late watching Game 1 of the World Series we told her that she can stop by even if it's late to pick up Amber. We know that she'll be eager to see her again since this is the first time that she has been away from her. If it gets to be too late due to flight delays she'll pick Amber up in the morning at the Critter Cottage since I'm working.
All of the dogs have done really well together. Beacon of course has had the worst adjustment period. He's cranky and looks annoyed a lot of the time. He doesn't appreciate Amber batting his nose with her paws even though she's submitting. Andrew took him fetching and swimming in the river yesterday so that he could have some fun and some alone time. He seemed more relaxed last night.
Teddy is more energetic with Amber around. We wonder if Teddy weren't here if Amber would have adjusted more to our house and Beacon may not have been as cranky. At least the two guests could play with each other and keep each other busy and tired. They finally have figured out that they don't have to play all.of.the.time. Either that or they're finally too worn out to play at all times.
Haven has been having fun playing with Amber and Teddy. She'll watch them play and join in on a chase if she feels like it. It's nice seeing her be more assertive, which she usually doesn't do. Since Beacon has been sticking to himself she feels that she can take over as top dog.
Has it been more difficult with four dogs in the house? On some levels, yes. But I think a lot of that is because two of the dogs are guests. If we had four dogs in the house (or even three) on a permanent basis we'd all adjust. Feeding time was the most challenging. Not because the dogs fought over food or were hard to control but because we had to be mindful of who was eating where. Beacon and Haven were good about sitting in their usual spots until the "get it" command was given. We had to put Teddy and Amber in the kitchen and watch them. Amber seemed to like what all of the other dogs were eating rather than the food that was brought for her. Many times she and Teddy would switch bowls toward the end of their meals. Haven learned that both dogs would often leave morsels behind so she became a vulture circling and waiting for an opportunity to "clean up".
Overall though it hasn't really been an issue having an extra (or two) dog in the house. All four of them are well behaved and listen. None of them get into things that they shouldn't. Even at night they all did well sleeping on the floor in our bedroom. We kept the dogs on a routine so they knew what to expect. They had plenty of time to play inside and in the backyard. Amber enjoyed taking all of the toys out of the toy box. The house is littered with even more dog toys than usual right now. All of the dogs' personalities were such that they got along. Even "sheriff Beacon" tolerated Teddy and Amber when he was cranky.
I think Amber will be happy to see her mom when she returns. She certainly has had fun with us and hasn't been a problem. But at times it's like she's looking around and is tired of the other dogs. Hopefully we'll have another opportunity to watch her in the future.
Amber arrived yesterday morning around 9:30. At first she didn't seem to notice that she was in a different place and that her mom had left. It wasn't until we went to bed that I think she realized she had to actually stay with us for a while.
Teddy and Amber love playing. Love it. They played for 5-6 hours straight!! There were a handful of brief resting moments but overall they were on the go. Even as they got tired they continued to play. It was funny and entertaining watching them on their sides and backs pawing and play biting at each other. Both dogs were full of slobber. Good times.
Sometimes I wonder if Amber remembers us. She seems pretty comfortable with us and in our house. She listens to us. And she really likes Andrew. If I remember correctly when we fostered her as a puppy before she was adopted she was one of the few dogs that liked Andrew better than me. Most of the dogs follow me around. Mainly because I typically spend the most time with them. But there have been a few that have connected with Andrew more.
Beacon and Haven will usually let Amber and Teddy play. Beacon looks somewhat annoyed that there's another dog in the house. And Amber likes to tease him. She'll crawl up to him and use her paws to hit his head and nose, which he doesn't appreciate at all. But his growls and barks don't deter her. On Sunday Haven was still recovering from the Doggie Dash the day before so she just looked tired. She would run around with the guest dogs for a little bit but then go off to rest on her own.
Haven has shown some backbone when she has been playing with Teddy and Amber. She's really good at chasing and ambushing. In the beginning Amber was the target but that has changed to the girls going after Teddy. And I think Amber and Teddy are still trying to work out who is the top dog between the two of them. It seems that Amber is the winner when she wants to be.
Teddy is at work with me today. Amber is crated. Hopefully she'll be fine. She's used to being crated during the day. I'm off tomorrow but have a dentist appointment. I think we'll bring the second crate we have in the basement upstairs so that I can crate Teddy and Amber even though we've left Teddy out a few times without coming home to a mess.
Last night I think all of the dogs were so tired that they didn't care about where they slept. Amber did try and get into bed with us, where she sleeps at home. And she whined for a short time. But then she settled in and things were quiet.
Amber arrived this morning for her visit until Wednesday night or Thursday morning. I've been taking a lot of photos that I'll have to post sometime in addition to ones that I took at the Doggie Dash yesterday.
Amber and Teddy love to play. Haven gets in on the action from time to time. So will Beacon but most of the time he leaves the antics to the other dogs. Here Haven and Amber watch Teddy and wait so that they can gang up on him.
It was another lazy day at the Critter Cottage, even for Teddy. He looks rather bored.
