Fostering Miss Frankie

thanks y'all. She's pretty anxious when I leave- not separation anxiety but definitely stressed. Like, I left food out for her (left her loose in my "dog room" with just a couch and a table and an open crate in it) and she didn't eat any of it. She didn't chew on anything or mess in the room, but she obviously wasn't comfortable enough to have breakfast either. She enjoyed a short (its HOT) afternoon walk though and is currently sniffing the yard.

Practicing for when the IOC adds Synchronized Napping as a sport


In other news... she ate her breakfast today when she was left alone. Not during breakfast time, but at least sometime during they day. And she spent another day in the "dog room" without destroying anything which is a good sign.

She's starting to play with Chester and we took our first trip to the big park yesterday since the temps are finally pleasant before 9 pm at night.
Cell phone pics...

Is your foster coming directly from a shelter? Particularly a city (municipal) shelter? If so, I recommend a 1-2 week semi-quarantine period as a time for both a health and temperament evaluation. Sometimes they come with kennel cough (generally not a serious thing and I'd assume Tsavo is vaccinated which reduces chances of getting it or it being serious) and sometimes they have skin issues. Basically, keep them separate, provide separate water bowls and wash your hands between interacting with the dogs. Use different areas for potty. You should also watch for any issues like resource guarding or aggression or fear during this time.

If the dog is coming from a foster home or regular boarding facility and has had a vet check and at least some "known" personality traits, then I always do an on-leash meet-and-greet outside (park, city street) and then for the first 2-3 days I let the foster drag a leash around (on a harness) when the dogs are in the house together and I don't yet allow them to play in the yard together (I have two fenced sections so they can have yard time, just not loose together).

After that though, my rescue at least highly encourages plenty of supervised positive interaction between the fosters and the household dogs, assuming of course the dogs are good with that (both health and personality- for example if the foster dog has an injury or was recently spayed, they get separate time). It helps us learn more about the dogs, it gives them an energy outlet, it provides a good example (since most of our household dogs are fairly well trained and steady/confident dogs), and of course, it is simply less time consuming.

We don't leave the dogs loose and alone together ever though.

If you haven't read it, read the thread "Luna the foster pit bull" for a more informative look on one fostering experience.

Oh, and this

he basically let two small breeds (min pin and a chihauha/terrier mix) just jump all over him and bite his legs while he did his spin moves and puppy barks, making sure to not hurt either of them

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is exactly how Chester is with small dogs. His whole play style and movement is completely different than with big, rowdy dogs (anything over about 40 lbs). He's had several TINY dogs run up to him and under him etc and the owners are always relieved to see how gentle he is. Keep up the good work on having him play/meet dogs of all sizes.

We did a pack walk this weekend. Frankie had a blast with the other pitties and assorted breeds.




She really liked this big guy who is one of our other rescues (if Frankie gets adopted before he does, he will be coming to stay with me)

Chester had another vet visit today so I took the day off work- My wallet is hurting but the dogs sure benefited though as we spent plenty of time at the park

I swear she has got the adorable look down pat. So kawaii.

Frankie is still here and doing great. She and Chester are enjoying playing freely in the full yard (when the fosters are more recent, they only get the run of part of the yard) and she hasn't been any problems. She'll be staying with the rescue coordinator next week for a few days so we'll get to see how she does with the two female dogs there.

iPhone pics so less than full quality but some fun and cute ones I think...

ThoseWordsAtBest said:

Oh no I don't check around the forum enough and almost missed this one. Hopefully someone grabs her up soon.

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Considering that even my parents think she's a well behaved, awesome dog, it is hard to believe she's still here (okay, it has only been not even 6 weeks...)

Chase time:




and her and Chester "shake" in tandem

Actions shots!




and lack of action shot

We are making a big adoption push for Frankie this month so I took a bunch of photos to show her off and for the rescue to share around.

And one of the dynamic duo at the end of a nice hike

ThoseWordsAtBest said:

I keep hoping you're topping because she's been adopted! I thought of you because we're doing an "adoptabully" month of October where all the fees on our Pits and Pit mixes are reduced.

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I wish! She's such a little charmer. We've got a few events later this month so maybe then....

Bully breed adoption event at the Harley-Davidson dealership. "Big hearts, big heads, big hogs" Some promising leads on a pup or two and another adult dog, but no real action on Frankie. I fear she is just so polite and well mannered that she actually gets overlooked because of that. She sits and says hi but then ignores everything to be all calm and serene. Considering the rainy and chilly weather though, the day was a success.