ADOPTED
Click on the pictures below to see a larger picture!
Bear
8-10 month old Bear
is a big goofy 8-10 month old puppy in a big dog body that loves to play! Bear
is doing well. His new name seems to suit him well as he is cuddly and chews a
lot. We were thinking about renaming him "Beethoven" as we are reminded of the
Saint Bernard of that name and how slobbery they are. Talk about being a sloppy
drinker. Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy and slobbery, and by the way, did I mention
sloppy?!
Drinking Water:
When he takes a drink, his whole mouth goes into the bowl and lots of water
comes out. On the floor, his chin, our clothes, everywhere! We currently have a
lake in the kitchen with a river flowing into the living room. We have taken to
keeping a towel close by his water bowl to wipe his chin after a drink. If you
haven't heard from us in the next few days, please check to make sure we haven't
drowned!
Mouthy:
From his nature, we think he's between 8-10 months. He is definitely a puppy.
Fairly mouthy, gentle but mouthy nonetheless when he's looking for attention. He
gingerly grabs at hands, wrists, clothes, towels, blankets, etc. We are working
on curbing these bad habits.
Counter Surfer:
He is a counter surfer. We have also found that he likes remote controls, pens,
markers, tissues and tissue boxes, loose paper, you name it. We have dog proofed
for the most part, but if there is something I've missed, and it's lying around,
it finds its way into his mouth. Fortunately, I keep catching him in the early
stages and so far he has not caused any serious damage. We are working on
curbing these bad habits too.
Interaction:
Bear likes stuffed toys, balls, fetching and roughhousing with our dog Cecil.
Bear plays well with other dogs as well. He has had no interaction with children
or cats since he's been with us. Aside from his over eagerness and hyper nature
of being a puppy, I believe he would do well with children over 7. Anyone
smaller would probably be knocked over or accidentally injured by his
playfulness.
Crate:
Bear does not like being crated. Initially, he did not want to enter the crate
at all. I had to place him and quickly close the door behind him. He would bark
relentlessly and scratch continuously to get out. Kept us up most of the night
for the first 3 nights. Since then, I have made a game of it using treats to
coax him in and out of the crate. This has worked well, and
he now immediately follows treats into the crate. I generally reinforce his
actions with several more treats once he's locked inside He is definitely
getting better and he now sleeps through the night.
We have started to let him stay uncreated during the day unattended, and over night as well with no problems, although, most of the bedroom, bathroom and closet doors are kept closed. This is just to prevent him from being tempted to get into any trouble.
Leash Walking & Training:
He is very strong and has no clue of what a walk on a leash is, except to drag
and pull you down the street. He seems to be intelligent but didn't know what a
leash was, or what it is for except to chew on.
Training is going fairly well. He is smart and responsive. At this point we have worked with, and he partially understands, sit, stay, wait, paw, heel, off, down, outside, inside, come, go for a walk, good boy and NO, some of course better than others.
Update Jan 27, 2002:
Hi, my name is Bear. I came to Ralph and Bonnie’s home just before Christmas. It’s been great here, and I’ve learned a lot, but Cecil (he’s the golden who’s been teaching me the ropes) says it’s time for me to find my own forever home. Somewhere with a kid, maybe, but not too small. I’m kinda big, and exuberant. That’s what Ralph says, Bonnie says I’m just plain goofy! I really like it here, but I’m the second kid, Cecil’s the big kahuna, and I really think I want to be #1 in someone’s heart.
When I first got here I didn’t know anything. I don’t even think I had a name! Bonnie said I looked like a teddy bear and that’s how they chose my name. I’m a big boy. I don’t know how old I am, but the vet thinks I’m almost one. Anyway, I guess that’s why I don’t know very much, or maybe it’s because no one ever paid much attention to me before. I am learning a whole bunch from my foster folks. Bonnie won’t give you a treat unless you’re sitting down, (she won’t feed you either) so I learned to sit really quickly. There are lots of treats here and I wouldn’t want to miss one. She also taught me “other room” which means “get out of the kitchen.” And Ralph likes to play a game called “Come.” He says “Bear, come” and if I do, he gets all excited and rubs my belly and tells me what a good boy I am – So I come even when Bonnie says it, cause I like all the attention I get. They are teaching me to be a gentleman too. Like when they sit down to dinner, I just curl up and wait for them to finish, cuz they get really mad if you try to share.
When I first came here, they put me in a crate. I didn’t much like that, but since I didn’t know where to potty, they said I couldn’t be trusted. Now I learned to potty outside, and I don’t get put in the crate anymore. Even when they leave the house Cecil and I get to stay in the living room with the TV on. We don’t watch much, but sometimes I do. I like animal shows a lot. At night we all sleep in the same room. I like to sleep in Cecil’s bed when he lets me. I have my own, but I like Cecil’s better. I also like playing with other dogs, because sometimes Cecil gets cranky. When we go for a walk, I am learning not to pull too much, but I’m very strong, and sometimes I forget not to pull when I see one of my friends. Bonnie doesn’t like that at all. She says it must be one of my St Bernard traits. Oh, I forgot to tell you that, huh? You see it’s this water thing. When I drink water a lot of it seems to slop around the room, and I SOMETIMES leave a water trail in my wake. My people don’t seem to mind too much though, (they keep a towel handy) unless Bonnie’s all dressed up and I rest my chin on her. Then, she gets kinda fussy about it – actually, she yells really loud, and says words I don’t think you’re supposed to say!
I don’t want to say “I’m perfect” ‘cause if I did, and you took me home, you would find out that I’m not…but I bet I could be.
Well, that’s my story. I’ll be the bestest pup you ever got, and I promise if you are my forever home, I will learn all the things you care to teach me. I’ll be your best buddy and your cuddliest hug. So how ‘bout it, huh?