Nelly !
A note from Nelly's foster Mom:
Nelly has been here for 24 hrs and here are our impressions:
She is a quick learner, quite confident, but not pushy. She's very social, likes to play and snuggle with people as well as with our dog.
When introduced to something new - like an automatic lawn sprinkler going off on our walk, she was cautious but curious and reasonably bold in trying to investigate the strange new thing.
On leash, she did start out pulling but by the end of a 1/2 hour walk, with lots of positive reinforcement, she was walking mostly with a loose leash. She's very attentive to the person walking her, and very treat motivated, so easy to teach!
She saw a loose dog running on a field and
got very excited - barking and jumping. She would benefit from lots of positive
experiences and instruction on how to manage polite on-leash greetings.
She does not resource guard from people or the resident dog. She is still a youngster and needs a bit of help making the right decisions about what is suitable chewing stuff - but it's easy to take things away from her & trade for a suitable chew toy.
She is not mouthy but occasionally gets too excited and nibbles a bit with her front teeth, like a herding dog; she's easily redirected from this behaviour. There are no problems handling her paws or ears.
She rarely jumps up - only when the
excitement gets too much! She doesn't bark much. She was quiet at night,
sleeping peacefully at the foot of our bed, cuddled up to our dog.
She's mostly housetrained - only had a couple accidents during play when she got too excited. I think she knows she should go outside but she doesn't know how to communicate that she needs to go yet; her humans need to take responsibility at first to watch her and give her regular potty breaks.
She likes to play and romp but also takes long nice regular naps, cuddled up to either a person or a dog. She also enjoys spending quiet time chewing on a toy.
She's a super girl!
Update:
June 25
Nelly is a youngster with a lot of energy. She needs to be taken on interesting outings, to play fun games with her nose, to be given a challenge (like taking the stuffing out of a soft toy). She enjoys playing with the resident dog and she wants to play with the cat too - even though the cat doesn't want to play!
She likes to wake us up in the morning by licking our feet. She wiggles all over with happiness when we finally get out bed. She's a happy, joyous dog full of play and mischief and energy. And she looks lovely and sweet when she finally crashes for her nap.
More Pictures: 8 July
Update: 22 July
Congratulations Paul, Tanya and family on finding your new best friend Nelly! We know you will have years of sweet smiles with this girl.
If you are interested in adopting Nelly please send an e-mail to spiritsmission@shaw.ca
Puppies are so cute, BUT !...
Puppies require a tremendous amount of time and effort on your part.
Puppies need to be fed three or four times a day.
Puppies need to be house trained and will probably have "accidents" in your home.
Puppies may cry and keep you up at night.
Puppies chew and they might just chew up your favourite chair.
Puppies dig and they might just dig up your newly planted rose bush.
Puppies jump up and scratch you or others with their sharp claws.
Puppies nip and their sharp teeth hurt.
Puppies need obedience training and they may still ignore you when you tell them "no".
Puppies need you at home with them, so they can learn what love means.
AND... puppies will grow into dogs!
Note: Big Heart adopts within a 2 hour drive of the Lower Mainland, and on Vancouver / Gulf Islands, only.
Contact Big Heart Rescue for more information.
