This one from a huge great dane labeled cage aggressive and scheduled for euthanasia. It took many hours and days and weeks of work to find the right place for him, but worth it as you can see below
I just wanted to say thank you so much for introducing us to Smith, who we
adopted from Adopt A Lab in late August. Hopefully you remember him! It
has been a wonderful and crazy couple of months and I just wanted to say
that all the great volunteers with Adopt A Lab have brought such humor and
joy and adventure into our lives.
He has had many achievements during the past two months: he graduated from
beginner's obedience class (through http://www.especiallyforpets.
gained about 7-9 pounds (he doesn't look so skinny anymore and the vet said
his weight is now just about right!), he went on a grand trip through
Vermont for leaf watching including a stop at a local fair involving hot
dogs (yum), has discovered many local parks, bewitched our family, has
impressed everyone at the vet's office with his good behavior during nail
clipping, and has such an impressively accurate internal clock that we no
longer need to set an alarm for the morning (he sleeps in our room and
always wakes us up at 7:15 sharp).
At first he really did not want to be left alone, and would get very upset
when we had to go out. It felt like we tried everything, but in the end it
seems all he needed was time. I think once he realized we were always going
to come back, he didn't mind so much when we had to go out. It's such an
improvement now--when I come home for lunch for example (I work nearby), I
walk in to the living room and find him lounging smugly on the couch, tail
wagging. He looks at me, stretches leisurely, and then (and only then!) gets
up for his lunch treats and bathroom break. A month ago he would have been
all worked up but now he is cool and laid back.
We are still working on some things with him. His response to commands when
he's distracted (usually by food, or rabbits or squirrels, or too many
people) is spotty, so we have him signed up for intermediate obedience with
the same great trainer that led our beginner class. But he is so smart (too
smart, sometimes!) that we know he'll keep learning as long as we keep
working with him. The other main thing is that he is such a
guarder--whenever the doorbell rings, or if a large person approaches us
while we are walking him, he gets very tense and sometimes barks or growls.
He's getting better however, and we'll continue to work to help him feel
more relaxed with strangers. We have also learned that he cannot really be
trusted alone around any garbage can containing food! We now keep the
kitchen trash on our 3-season porch so that was easily fixed.
He is so loving and affectionate and is always ready to run or play or
snuggle with us while we lounge. Everyone loves his happy disposition, his
mischievous antics, and his uncanny ability to hear a peanut butter jar
opening from three rooms away. Tonight he had us laughing like crazy--we
tried to play keep-away with his favorite toy (a stuffed rabbit that makes
a honking sound), but after only 3 or 4 throws, he realized the pattern, and
when I had the rabbit, he wouldn't try to come closer to me to get
it...because he knew I would just throw it to Dan, so he would stay near Dan
and try to intercept it when I threw it back! A clever boy for sure.
Thanks again to you and everyone with Adopt A Lab.
Paulette, Dan, and Smith
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