ayb2101 Posted July 30, 2003 Share Posted July 30, 2003 We got Duke! We did the interview last night, and heres here with us now. They need to get many dogs adopted ASAP, since they are having problems with kennel cough, and there is no room left in the lower kennel where they would normally quarantine them in. Duke now has kennel cough, and has a fever of 104. Everyone commented on how long and thin he was. I measured him, and he's 6-7 ft from nose to tail. We got toys for him, then picked him up, then took him home, then took him to the vet. He does very well with strangers. He DID well with other dogs at the shelter, but at the vet, he wanted to go up to them, and barked at them. That's the ONLY time he's barked so far. We got him a package of Booda Velvet Bimples corn starch bones, a large Kong toy and Kong stuffing, a stuffed animal with ropes for arms, and a wiggly-giggly toy. He likes to eat the corn starch bones, and likes to lick stuffing out of the Kong, but otherwise, he doesn't want to play with them much. He didn't quite know what to do with a milkbone, but eventually he tried chewing it up and making a mess until he realized it was a food item :roll: He also likes the liver treats. There is one problem, and that is that he is scared of the indoor, open, carpeted steps at our house. There steps are just horizonal, and have no vertical backings, so you can see through them when you walk up them. He doesn't mind the outdoor steps onto the deck/entryway, but these are scary to him. Its hard to get him near the steps even. Does anyone have any ideas about this? He also was scared of getting into the car(he doesn't mind the ride, though), and getting on the floor scales at the vet. He had to be lifted both times. Also, we just got a call from the vet, and found out why he's so underweight. He's got hookworm, and they'll give us another medication tomorrow. He's a great dog, and he's very smart. I'll post some pictures in a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted July 30, 2003 Share Posted July 30, 2003 [b][size=7][color=blue]WELCOME TO YOUR NEW FAMILY DUKE[/color][/size][/b] :laola: :smilecolros: :laola: :smilecolros: Let's see pics soon. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellieangel Posted July 30, 2003 Share Posted July 30, 2003 oh I'm so pleased you got him !!! :angel: Good for you going straight to the vets :kciuki: What about putting a treat trail up the stairs ? Sounds like you are spoiling him already.......good for you :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abker17 Posted July 30, 2003 Share Posted July 30, 2003 Congrats on your new family member! Wishing u and him the best of luck! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 until he gets used to it, hang towels over the back of the steps (blocking him from being able to see thru) and then walk up with him. Once he is used to that. take one towel away at a time, starting at the top, so he doesnt see the opening until he's already up, then encourage him to cross the open space. Stay with him, with a lead if necessary, until he feels completely comfortable with the open spaces...dont pull him, just encourage him to cross. It may take a while. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Bitch Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 I don't blame him, there are a set of stairs like that on our Lakewalk here about a couple stories high. I am terrified of steps like that. :( I HATE heights. I have the totally irrational fear that I a going to fall through them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieLover Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 My dog will go up the stairs but not back down them, my stairs in my house are not carpeted they are tile and I guess he thinks that he gonna slide down them if he tries to come down so I have taught him not to go up there at all. Too many times of having to carry him back down the stairs and he is getting to big for that!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 Courtnek's advise about the stairs is great. As for not playing with the toys - just give it time - he may not be familiar with playing with toys, plus he's feeling poorly - once he's more comfortable I'm sure he will be delighted to learn about toys. [size=6][color=red]CONGRATS![/color][/size] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted July 31, 2003 Author Share Posted July 31, 2003 Our current biggest problem is having him go outside to go to the bathroom(go to the grass?). We took him outside about 10 times so far, the last time at 11PM, and he still hasn't gone at all. He'll sniff around, and has found some OTHER dogs poop. Its currently 1:30AM here(I'm staying up for a while), and its been at least 10 hours since we got him. I think this may be the problem the shelter workers had. They said he's sort-of housebroken. He'll whine and want to go outside when he needs to go, but he doesn't think he needs to at all until about 2 minutes before he absolutely needs to right NOW, so he has accidents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flypegasus Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 [b][i]Congratulations on your new family member!!! :Dog_run: :laola: [/i][/b] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
behle Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 I think it's just fantastic that Duke is part of your family now! Soon he will be spoiled and healthy and sassy! Looking forward to seeing pictures! :D :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosebud Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 :D What a wonderful thing you did by adopting Duke. Lots of love, encouragement and treats will settle the baby in and make him comfortable. :angel: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stacer126 Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 Congrats.. Can't wait to see pictures :bday: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted July 31, 2003 Author Share Posted July 31, 2003 He still hasn't gone to the bathroom at all. We've taken him outside many times, and he also hasn't had any accidents. He's been drinking a lot of water. I think it may be because of the diseases he picked up at the shelter. We know he's got hookworm and an upper respiratory infection. His nose is dry and hot, and the vet said he had a fever. I think he may be dehydrated because of it. I hope he'll get well soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisysmom Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 Poor baby!! You are wonderful for adopting him!!!! Just be patient, he will come around, especially after he is feeling better!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted July 31, 2003 Author Share Posted July 31, 2003 Well, he had an accident this morning. He peed in the library, and then pooped in the hallway, and he didn't give us enough time to get him outside to do it. So we've started crate training him, and he's peed outside once so far. We picked up medicine to give him for three days to kill the hookworms. I wonder how long he's had them, since he was very skinny when he came into the shelter too. Its hard to see in this picture, but you can kind of get an idea of how skinny he is. His skin feels like its shrink-wrapped over his ribs and spine when you pet him. He's 71 lbs currently. Its also hard to see how long he is from the picture. He's got the body shape of a wolf, with long legs. [img]http://luminousdata.dyndns.org/hosted/duke4.jpg[/img] By the way, that's the wiggly-giggly toy I was talking about. Well wiggly-gigglies must be for little dogs without strong jaws because he broke part of it after about 4 minutes. He doesn't like milkbones much, but loves the freeze-dried liver treats. The only problem is that my fingers get the smell on them, and a few times he bites them before he realizes they aren't a second treat :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slim86 Posted July 31, 2003 Share Posted July 31, 2003 Congrats, on your new dog. He's a really good looking boy. I hope he gets feeling well soon. If you get him focused on the top of the stairs rather than on the actual stairs he would probably be more excited about going up them. Throw one of his toys around and let him fetch it. After a while, throw it up to the top of the stairs and he'll keep focused on getting to the top rather than looking at the individual stairs. He'll be looking ahead, so to speak and he wont be thinking about the part that scares him. Good luck with your new guy. Slim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted August 1, 2003 Share Posted August 1, 2003 [quote]and he's peed outside once so far.[/quote] :smilecolros: :bigok: Celebrate every success! Good for Duke! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted August 1, 2003 Author Share Posted August 1, 2003 So far he's peed three times outside and pooped once! And no accidents! He's doing well, especially considering that this is his second day! The only problem is that when he pees, he squats and doesn't lift his leg, and it sometimes hits his front paws :o What happened with the accident in the morning was that he walked away and went to the door, but we didn't realize why in time. He DOES go to the door when he needs to go, but doesn't whine like they said he would. He's still adjusting, and doing so very well considering that this was just his second day. The issue with the stairs is getting better. He now seems to be okay with the area beside the stairs. Before he'd just lay down when he got close to it. Now he'll keep walking. He's still a little worried about the actual stairs themselves. He'll get close to them, and he seems to be getting somewhat interested in them. I don't know if its the look, feel, or smell that bothers him. He's the same way about the car. Unfortunately, nobody sleeps on the ground floor, and his kennel had to be moved to the ground floor. He was going to sleep downstairs near my dad, but he doesn't want to go down there. The kennel is a giant sized metal one, and it won't fit in my bedroom. My bedrooms upstairs anyway, so the stair fear is still a problem. So he's not able to sleep near anyone for a while. I just put an old T-shirt of mine in his kennel, it has my smell on it, and should be nice for him to have. If people aren't around, he'll just lay down anywhere and nap. He has no preference over being in or outside of his kennel. If people aren't around, he'll just lay down and not move around much either way. He goes into it by himself sometimes if he's tired, and doesn't mind much. He's a fairly messy dog, though :) He eats, but he opens his mouth to pant without swallowing all the food, dropping bits all over the floor. He does the same thing with water. The pills are no problem for him, though. You just give it to him in your hand and he'll eat it right away. Anyways, we had to vacuum the kitchen floor, and he just came right up and sniffed the vacuum. He wasn't scared of it at all, he was just somewhat interested. When he doesn't want to do something though, he'll just lay down. He saw a bird today while I was walking him into the backyard. He tried to get it, but he didn't bark or growl, and he was still reasonably controllable. Health wise, his nose is dry and hot, but not as hot, so thats better. His sense of smell might be a little off too. He's had diarreah both times, and still has the hookworms, but should be better after a while. Eventually, he'll put on weight and be not so skinny. They said we should wait a month before we get him neutered. So his behavior may change a bit after that. All things considered, he's doing very well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted August 1, 2003 Share Posted August 1, 2003 Sounds like things are going great and especially good on the housetraining front given he just came from the shelter a couple days ago. He sounds so well mannered . . . just wait till he gets well though . . . :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mouseatthebusstop Posted August 1, 2003 Share Posted August 1, 2003 [size=7][color=blue]CONGRATULATIONS i HOPE YOU AND DUKE WILL BE VERY HAPPY :D [/color][/size] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted August 2, 2003 Author Share Posted August 2, 2003 Well, he had an accident in his kennel today :( We had to leave him in the kennel for about an hour and a half while I was at a doctor appointment. When we got back he'd pooped in the kennel. We had to wash the poor guy off and clean the kennel out really well :( We took him for a walk before we left. Since he's sick, it was just a small walk. He got tired and layed down about halfway through. He had about 50 minutes outside before we left when he could have gone to the bathroom. He peed when he got back, but he hadn't wanted to poop since last night. Eventually, he'll learn to go outside when he's there and not wait. Now, the good news. He now consistently sits on command :thumbs: , and we just taught him that today on his walk. He learned after about 10 times. He's still sick, but hopefully his hookworms will be gone by monday. On walks, the biggest problem is that he's very easily distracted. I've accidentally stepped on his feet or tripping over him a couple times because he walks too close and/or cuts me off. He's doing a bit better with this, though. Also, he loves to get sticks you throw. He brought one inside and chewed it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marble Posted August 2, 2003 Share Posted August 2, 2003 good for you for adopting :) and it sounds like you're being patient and doing a very good job with him, he sounds like such an awesome dog (and he is handsome too :)) i hope he continues to improve quickly, i'm impressed ( and jealous) that he learned sit that fast, sounds like a smartypants :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayb2101 Posted August 2, 2003 Author Share Posted August 2, 2003 Also, I didn't even have to use any treats to train him to sit. Since his ear muscles aren't 100% developed yet, I massage them to help so his ears will stand up. He really likes it, so its also a good reward. They are kind of ear-waxy and gross though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bk_blue Posted August 2, 2003 Share Posted August 2, 2003 Congrats on your new baby!!! I'm glad things are going well and with the love and care you're giving him he'll be better in no time. :bday: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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