Fosters see the best and the worst of their temporary companions. For every maddening moment there is at least one joyous moment that makes it all worth it. And here, we present the best and worst of Chance, in handy list form:
The good:
-Chance loves people. So much. So, so, so much.
-Chance is a very smart dog. He picks up on commands and such with little repetition.
-Though he is a puppy and therefore chews constantly, he's decided not to chew on our house (Scotch chewed every corner in the house, most of the chairs, the bookshelves, etc.). We appreciate it!
-He loves fetch, he loves to catch a ball, and he'll play tug for as long as you're willing.
-He gets along with cats. Our cats are pretty indifferent in general, and he'll definitely chase them when they'll deign to run (usually after his helpful nosings), but he's never tried to hurt them and will snuggle happily with them when he's tuckered out.
-Chance seems to get along with kids of all ages, based on our interactions in the neighborhood on walks.
-No resource guarding from humans whatsoever. He also knows the command "drop/leave it."
-He is an excellent walker, both on a Gentle Leader and on a leash. He is also a very good jogging companion.
-Chance is a snuggle dog - he loves to snuggle and sleeps very well in a bed with and without people (no inappropriate chewing or accidents).
-Chance is completely housebroken - he's never had an accident, even on days when he's had to stay in the crate for hours on end.
-Chance likes riding in the car. He is the classic "car dog" - sticks his head out the window, ears flapping in the breeze. He doesn't understand the windshield - why is it that he can't go see that person ahead of us? He can see them but somehow can't get to them - what is this in his way?
-Chance will let me wipe his feet when he comes in, sparing the house at least a little puppy mud! He is also pretty good about having his nails trimmed, though he does better if he has one person to hold him so the trimming isn't governed by his short attention span (one nail here, one nail there, taking the entire day to finish).
The bad:
-Chance digs. We haven't had the time to break him of this habit yet, but we've started and he's doing better.
-Chance still occasionally countersurfs. Bitter apple spray coupled with not leaving tempting things on the counter has reduced the frequency, but he still has the urge.
-Chance whines for 5-10 minutes after being put in his crate if there are people in the house. He's better about it if he has a rawhide or Kong in there with him, but otherwise he wants to be where people are and doesn't understand why he can't be.
-He still sometimes jumps up on people, especially if they are holding treats. He knows better than this but he forgets.
-Chance really loves garbage. He is not pleased that we figured out a way to stop him from getting into it and I can see the wheels turning in his head whenever he looks at that garbage can. If he could, he'd eat it all. The same for any food left out, pretty much no matter what it is. He is a garbage disposal!
The maybe good, maybe bad:
-Chance is an alpha dog and he wants everyone to know it! He has the associated behaviors with that - growling, snapping, and rasslin' until he establishes dominance. After that, he is fine, except for the resource guarding from other dogs (not from people).
-Chance will destroy stuffed toys - he'll just rip their guts right out. We don't even bother at this point - he likes other toys that he can't destroy, too!
As you can see, the "bad" is fixable with some targeted training, and the list of notable good things is much longer!
And here are some photos from late March, when Chance decided to sample our apparently extremely delicious flour (He is the second foster to do so - Scotch has never gone for the flour, but the fosters always do. At least we are better about not leaving the pantry door open now!). Luckily, we have an excellent vacuum cleaner!
Sleepy pets!
