Emmi has been with us for about 24 hours now and do we ever love her! We have so many wonderful things to say about her I don't even know where to start. She's the sweetest, cutest, friendliest, most well-behaved little dog.
Whatever Emmi is mixed with must be a smaller breed because she's quite petite. She only stands about 18" at the shoulder. She looks bigger, though, because of her nice fluffy fur. She has a gorgeous honey-colored, thick double coat. It's the type that will shed in clumps, rather than dropping individual hairs all over the house - bonus! She also has the cutest ears in the history of dogs. She can put them down or make them stand up, and when they stand up her left ear flops a little at the tip. It gives her the most adorable, quizzical look. She belongs on a greeting card.
Emmi has the best personality you could possibly ask for. She's calm, affectionate, well-mannered, confident and generally just as sweet as pie. I can't tell you how easy she is to have around. We think she must have lived in a house before because she hopped right up on the sofa for a snooze and wasn't concerned about the vacuum cleaner or any other household activities. She also seems to be crate trained. When we showed it to her she went in willingly and settled right in with no fuss. She slept all night without making a sound and waited quietly until we got up this morning. Such a good girl! She hasn't had any accidents and actually pawed at the door once to ask to go out, so she even seems to be housetrained. We'll render a final verdict on that after a few more days. We let Emmi have free roam while we were gone for a few hours this afternoon and she did great. No accidents or problems of any kind. She's the first visiting dog to earn that privilege so quickly, if that gives you an idea of how impressed we are with her.
Emmi is smart and has the classic GR desire to please so she'll be very easy to train. She works hard to figure out what we want and looks so pleased with herself when she gets it right. She's both treat and praise motivated so rewarding her is always easy. So far we've discovered that she knows "sit," "come," and "down." She's learning that at our house she needs to sit before she eats, before entering or exiting from outside, and when she wants attention. After only an afternoon of work she's really picking it up so I know she could be the star of any obedience class.
Emmi met our school-aged neighbor kids and absolutely loved them. She really enjoyed their attention. We don't have any babies or toddlers to test her with but she loves everyone and is so gentle and agreeable that I don't think it would be a problem. We've seen zero signs of resource guarding and she's been completely fine with any type of handling or prodding that we've tried. She's also doing a great job of getting along with the furry members of our household. She completely ignores the cats, even when they run right past her. She and our resident dog have had a few words about their likes and dislikes, but it was all appropriate "please don't do that" sorts of stuff. After those brief negotiations they've been getting along great and coexist very companionably. The staff at All Seasons also said that she got along beautifully with all the dogs she encountered there. She doesn't seem overly dependent on other dogs, though, so I think she'd be fine with or without another dog in her forever family.
Right now we still don't have a good sense of Emmi's exercise requirements. She's been very mellow and calm but that may change as she settles in and feels more at home. We'll update again once she lets us know what she needs.
By now you're thinking "could Emmi possibly be as good as they say?" and the answer is "yes!" However she does have two faults, if you can call them that. First, she counter surfs. But really, what dog doesn't? She's learning "off" and has been responding very well so I'm sure her surfing days will end soon. For now we just make sure that there's nothing up there for her to find and there's been no problems. Second, she jumps up when she wants attention. She's so small and adorable that it's tempting to let her do it, but we're trying to be be firm with her that all four feet must be on the floor if she wants to be petted. She still forgets herself sometimes but after only a day we're already starting to see a change so I'm sure that will go away soon. She wants to be petted so badly that she'll catch on quickly. The good news is that even if she does jump up she's too little to knock anyone over.
The most important thing to know about Emmi is that she's a lap dog. She absolutely loves, loves, LOVES to snuggle! If you sit on the floor she has to be in your lap or at least leaning against you, and when you sit in a chair she'll gaze at you longingly until you give in and invite her up. She's so much fun to cuddle. Her size is perfect for the sofa or a recliner and she's so light that even when she's draped across you it's still comfortable. Plus she makes a wonderful lap warmer in this cold weather. If you need someone to keep you toasty while you read or watch TV, Emmi is your girl! So, what is Emmi looking for in her forever home? At this point we think she'd do great in almost any environment and I don't think we have any specific requirements for her, other than someone who's willing to cuddle her and love her. A tough job, I know, but somebody's got to do it! :)
This little sweetheart is going to go quick so if you think you might be the right family for Emmi be sure to contact placement
ragom [dot] org right away!
