New Foster Dog

Clayton and I went to the dog pound this morning, after dropping the kids off at school, to see what lucky pup would be joining our family for a while. I stared at them all and kept noticing a medium-sized, light yellow dog sitting at the fence, looking out with sad eyes. She was the only one not jumping and not barking.

I walked over to her and knelt down to let her smell me and "feel my energy" as Cesar would say. She stuck her nose through the fence to sniff me and gently reached her paw out to try to pull me closer. That was a great sign. When dogs 'paw' at you in a gentle and submissive way, it is there way of saying, "I want to be in your pack," or "I want to be close to you."

That sealed the deal for me. I looped a simple black leash around her neck to make a collar/leash combo, and walked her out of the gate.

She was so unsure of everything, but after a few moments, she was following me and accepting me as her new pack leader. She was gentle and loving with Samuel from the start. I loaded her up in the front seat of the van and we headed home.

When we got here, I immediately put Samuel in the stroller and put Bella and Lincoln on their leashes to go for our first walk as a pack. My two dogs were a little taken aback by this new pooch that had been thrust into their family. Within five minutes of a fast paced walk, they all found their stride and were following like champs. Even the pack of four small, yappy dogs down the road ceased to phase them. They were in the zone!

We got home and I bathed the stinky foster dog with the water hose outside. She wasn't too fond of being sprayed off, but loved the attention that came from being soaped up. One rinse and towel dry later, she smelled much better and her coat was much healthier looking.

Currently I think she has some health problems that have stemmed from her growing up without proper nutrition. According to the pound, she had been running around there for months before she finally came to the overhang for shelter from the rain. He said she was extremely thin when he got her. I'll take her to the vet next week and hopefully he'll say with love and food she'll be good as new.

I'll post pictures of her as soon as I can. She appears to be a yellow lab/pit mix... but, who knows. She's a mix for sure. Those make the best dogs! Especially the ones that have never had the love of a family before. They just appreciate each pat on the head and each bowl of food.