Gummy Bear!

We have an update on the Snickers trying to bite strangers situation! a positive one:)  in the last 2 days FOUR different people have pet Snickers despite his fearsome snarling/snapping routine, they called his bluff and still have all their digits, they reported "gumming" and "I felt teeth but, he's not really biting", the consensus is that the little guy is kind of a faker (with a caveat: I'm sure if he felt truly threatened instead of semi antisocial he could deliver a pretty good nip but this bodes well for the average interaction outside the house, inside the house he may try to protect his turf) :)  My friend Derick declared Snickers his official friend after about 3 hours and a 1 treat in.  So pet Snickers and you have a 90% chance of keeping your fingers;)

hiking again, he's king of the mountain

heading home, they're wiped!

The Snickers report

We tell no lies here on Fosteroni so here is the good the bad and the ugly on my little buddy Snickers.  I love him to pieces but he's not perfect (yet!).

Bad news first? yeah, let's get it out of the way.

1. Snickers is very protective of his home.  My friend Tracey came over yesterday, who he had met last weekend (she was petting him and everything) but not at his house and he totally barked, growled, and was snappy at her for the first 15 minutes she was here, after that he was mostly cool.  I did my best to correct this behavior, he was told no and bad dog and she was given treats to give him when he was being good etc... Tracey was not intimidated and told him to "quit it" which did discourage him and she was able to pet him at points.  I feel like this is a problem that would be helped by repeated exposure to visitors (I haven't had a ton of people over since he's been with me), lots of treat bearing visitors and being mindful of not backing him up when he acts this way i.e. not picking him up and coddling him, telling him NO etc... he's not nasty he's just a scaredy cat, if everybody ignores his growling and gives him treats when he behaves this may be phased out pretty easily.  He also came with me to Audrey's house the other night (my friends are my foster dog guinea pigs, thanks you guys!) and she gave him a bunch of treats to butter him up and was able to pet him and he even snuggled up next to her, but every once in awhile he would growl and snapped at her at one point.  Because everyone pulls their hands aways when he snaps (as they should!) I can't tell if he would bite for reals or if it would be the thing he does to dogs where he bites near them without making actual contact?  either way it's off putting and needs to be worked on obviously.

2. People outside?  different story, he's pretty much indifferent to everyone outside, ignores strangers totally if he can.  If they try to pet him it's 50/50, some people he doesn't mind, doesn't love it but doesn't mind, other people he will growl at a little.  Dogs same thing, he'll ignore them if he can, if he can't he'll growl a little and snap near them without making actual contact.

3.  While I now consider him housebroken and trust him as far as my place is concerned he did pee at my friend Audrey's the other night, he was marking, he had been outside only an hour or two before.  He peed inside about 3 times at my place during the first couple days and after that I think he realized this was his place too and has been good ever since.  I've never really spent a lot of time with male dogs so I'm not sure what this is all about, if I take him visiting in the future I'll be keeping him on a leash so I can correct him if he goes to lift his leg.

4.  Due to his general salty behavior and small size we will not consider adopting him to a household with children.

That's the worst of it, not unusual Chihuahua behavior, certainly not the worst I've seen!

Now for how awesome he is!  and he really is pretty great!

1.  Anyone who has read the earlier posts knows I love me some Snickers!  He didn't make a great first impression with me either (grrrrr), but after day 3 or 4 I was his one and only and I have been the happy recipient of that concentrated Chihuahua affection.  He is a lovebug, totally cuddlesome and loyal to those he loves and trusts.  I can do just about anything to him and he will not bite me.

2.  Easy to care for, he walks well on a leash, isn't food aggressive, good in the car, doesn't eat much.

3.  For a Chihuahua he is surprisingly quiet!  if there is something going on in the hallway he may bark, or something extra crazy outside he'll go off but is easily quieted down when you tell him no and quiet.
Yeah, I thought I was in for some serious yappies fostering a Chihuahua but was pleasantly surprised.

4.  He's really pretty good with other animals, at my house he lives with Josie the cat and Pasha the dog and there really haven't been any major problems.  He used to be growly with Pasha but now they are like siblings who annoy each other occasionally and have little squabbles, I totally trust them together and they both seem to enjoy the company.  He has gone after the cat once or twice, she'll just turn around and swat him and that's the end of it, usually they just ignore each other, they have been left alone in the same space together without incident and have even come close to snuggling once or twice.  I think he'd do great living with other animals, he doesn't whine when I go out and I think that has a lot to do with having a friend to stay with.

see:) look how sweet.

5.  As I mentioned above I do consider him house trained now, but I'm sure he will mark a new house though so be prepared for that.  I kept him confined for awhile when he first got here, he was in the bathroom when I wasn't home and kept close to me or at least in the same room when I was home, when I caught him lifting his leg I was there to scold him.  

6.  He's a good sport! he loves going for regular walks and even better loves joining Pasha and I on hikes, he is getting very bold in the woods and is becoming quite the mini athlete, he will run right through streams and jump off rocks and everything.  He's not just a lap dog, he won't be happy hanging out on a pink pillow!

7.  He really excels at snuggling and affection, he will make somebody a very lovable little companion. Loves sleeping under the covers at night, I have named this maneuver "Hot Pockets", he's my little heating pad:)  Also very sweet is when he gets into one of his spontaneous smoochie moods, he will look at you and then charge over and lick your whole chin with his tiny little tongue, he is very earnest about it so I let him do it for a bit even though I don't love doggie kisses.

Hot Pockets

did I mention he snores?? loudly, like an old fat man.

leave me alone I'm sleeping.

I do my best to give you the most honest information on my foster dogs and their behavior/problems.  I want them to go to the most appropriate/prepared homes possible and to be adopted ONCE with no unpleasant surprises for their new families (none that I knew about anyway), some dogs are super well adjusted and could go almost anywhere but some need a little extra work and Snickers is one of them.  But that's the worst of it for the little guy, needs a little work on his social skills is all and pay attention to the house marking in the beginning and when visiting.  He's such a sweetie that I think he's definitely worth the effort!

-April  

Can you relate?

Sent to me and Pasha by my good friend Audrey, and no thankfully Pasha is not that simple!  enjoy, these doggie inspired blogposts by Allie Brosh!

it's a good thing pasha's not this simple!
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2011/04/wild-animal-simple-dog-goes-for-joy.html

also these!  with some good tips on how to tell if your dog is retarded.  ;)
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/07/dog.html

http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/11/dogs-dont-understand-basic-concepts.html

Daytrippers!

Since our Sunday hike was such a blast I took advantage of the nice weather Monday (nice when we left the house anyway) to take the dogs to the woods again.  Snickers really had the hang of it this time and impressed me by boldly charging through streams of chest high freezing water (chest high on a chihuahua)!

Going down the stairs is always very exciting for him, not sure why?  

Check out the stallion dance on his hind legs;)

lakeside stroll

awwww.... they're little buddies

we took a break by the stream and I had some time to draw.

They were both feeling very mellow.

driving back home. 

Snickers likes to stand behind my left arm so he can see everything.

Siiiiigh.... somebody adopt Snickers before I do...  I'm serious.  and to tempt you to do just that here's some adorable bonus footage from the next day at the dog run.  As you can see he is learning to play, and becoming a bit more social, at one point he ran for the ball with a bunch of dogs (although I didn't get that part on tape).  Pasha is a real superstar at the dog run, she is so freakin' fast that she almost always gets the ball, even when they are thrown to other dogs which has made her unpopular with some dog owners :/  

just let him have it Pasha, it's good for his self esteem!

Over the river and through the woods and into the bathtub we go!

Most Sundays I have standing hiking plans with my old college roommate Tracey and her dog Max, she's one of the few people I know who has a dog, has a car and can be on the road by 8:30am (although yesterday she was a liiiitle hung over so we got a late start and an early finish).  It was a chilly morning and after some doubts about whether it was a good idea to take Snickers along we decided to go for it and hope for the best.  He LOVED it!  We went to Harriman State Park and everyone (well maybe not poor Tracey) had a great little hike, nothing crazy maybe 2 miles and little Snickers totally kept up and enjoyed the crap out of himself!  He climbed rocks, he ran through little streams, he peed on every tree/rock/bush he passed (I was amazed he didn't turn into a raisin from the loss of moisture), and he was off leash the whole time and stayed with his people!

If you are interested in adopting a little dog it's important to realize that they are still REAL DOGS and they do still love the exercise and the stimulation of a good romp in the woods, my maltese Lulu would hike and swim and climb rocks and seemed so proud of herself that she was no lap princess, she was a miniature rugged mountain beast!  After seeing how much he truly enjoyed himself I would love to place him with someone with that kind of outlet, he probably wouldn't be a good option if you are hiking the Appalachian trail or anything but he'd be game for a leisurely hike any day!

you're a natural little man!

he's got the hang of it now for sure, one of the gang!
(sorry about all the jostling, the iphone doesn't really have a steadycam feature)!

Max just had his 7th birthday last week.

Happy birthday Maxi-pad;)

why do you smell like Tequila aunt Tracey?

next week same time same place, 

unless Snickers is adopted of course!

since he doesn't have any flea control on it's into the bathtub...

OMG! I do not like this :/

resigned...

but look how handsome and sparkly you turned out!

I love this little fart, you will too if you meet him and give him a few minutes (and maybe some cheese) till he stops growling and being afraid of you.  Extra impressive was that he was a good sport about the bath, didn't growl at me once, he usually doesn't but if ever there was an occasion for a toothy protest I thought this would be it!

out and about!

It's been just over a weeks since lil' Schnickers has joined our household!  He is no trouble at all, behaves kind of like a house cat, hangs out looking cute, not very demanding, comes over when he's wanting some love and snugglin!  Fine little watchdog too, barks when there's extra interesting stuff going on in the hallway or outside but most definitely not a yapper!  Other good points, walks very nicely on the leash, good with the cat, not food aggressive.  He's a funny little guy, verrrry cautious with new people, usually ignores them if he can or watches from a distance, will "bite" if they insist on petting him before he's decided they're alright and they have ignored his initial growlies ("bite" meaning teeth grazing skin with zero pressure, I'd tell you if he actually bit people, honest!), of course once he decides he likes you he reeeeeeally LIKES YOU, he is a happy silly lovebug with me now and he's warming up to people more quickly, especially if they are carrying treats!  As for other dogs he is sort of indifferent but behaves pretty well if they make advances, as long as they have good manners, if not they get the growly bluff, he doesn't know what to do with other dogs because he doesn't seem to know how to play?!  We've been spending a lot of time at our dog run lately and today he started lingering by the crowds of people and dogs a bit more instead of roaming around alone like he did the first few times, he's interested, that's a start.

united front!

Pretty Pasha enjoying the heather garden.

this was a few days ago, Snickers the lone ranger....  

I'll post some more recent dog run videos when I take them later, you'll see the improvement.

even ignored all the sexy ladies...

No man is an island;)

I called it! snuggling within 3 days...  I'd love to see Mr. Snickers in a 2 dog family, despite the occasional tazmanian devil noises he isn't actually aggressive and as you can see is enjoying the doggie company!   They were left alone today, actually LEFT alone isn't quite right, he escaped his bathroom area to join her in her hallway area, wanted to keep them separated till I totally trusted them alone but mini houdini had other plans... at any rate there was some camaraderie when I came home:) Also likes people (though definitely timid at first!), I have 2 shadows now and double the kisses!

close, closer...

snuggling;)

Little Sneezy is settling in nicely!

Leetle Schnickers is such a good little guy!  He's still under the weather (ubiquitous kennel cough, every foster I've gotten has had it but his sneezes are the most dramatic I've heard!) and a little unsure his new situation but his lovable personality is showing itself in snippets!  last night he forgot himself and gave me a few smooches on the chin;)  Sometimes he also forgets to growl at Pasha, sometimes they are even touching and he might sniff her, also sniffed the cat...  You're not fooling anybody Snickers, you are a mushy little man.

looking guilty.

zzzzzzzzzzzz's

It'll take a few days to know whether he is on the calm side cause he doesn't feel so great or because that's how he actually is, but for a Chihuahua he is pretty mellow so far!  He spends a lot of time watching me from across the room, sometimes he'll come over for some affection, also an excellent bed buddy, likes to burrow under the covers (very cute!), definitely feeling more friendly he gets verrry happy when I come home and sometimes he wags his tail when I look at him (sounds stupid but he was not so waggity when he first got here.).  He also seems extra excited to be in the car, fond memories perhaps?  Loves going for walks, prances down the street, doesn't seem worried about the dogs or people we pass, he is neither friendly nor aggressive.  At home he seems ok with my cat, they more or less ignore each other, I did hear that he snapped at the cat in his previous foster home though, he does snap at my dog if she invades his space (she is much bigger, he may be a little scared), I'm not too worried about this, it's noise and bluster and I haven't seen any teeth/skin contact and it is happening less frequently and I think he could totally be adopted by someone with cats or dogs in the household and would find his place in a few days.

He's a sweet little furball, can't wait to see what he's like in a few more days!

Meet Schnickerrrs!

This morning I picked up my very first foster since I adopted the last one, a little Chihuahua named Snickers!  I don't have much info on him except that he is 4 or 5 and fixed (I should have the rest later on).  He's been here with us all afternoon and is still a little unsure of his new situation, but occasionally he forgets that and sits on my lap or starts to play, then he remembers to growl a little ;)  the growling is just noise and he never makes any actual contact.  What a goober, I give him 3 days before he's playing with me and snuggled up to Pasha!

the little guy!  

He looks like a bat and a teddy bear had a baby;)