Fozzie (Noah 08-588)

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August 1, 2010We are welcoming back Fozzie with open hearts and open arms!! (and lots and lots of kisses)!  We are so happy he is a part of our RAGOM family again and I am sure he is thrilled too.  He has been at his new foster home for a week and frankly he is doing fabulous!!  Fozzie was surrendered because the family thought he had behavior issues with jumping fences, storm and fireworks anxiety and that he would not get into a car and was skittish.  I will admit the first day he arrived at our house, he was extremely shy, timid and scared.   He would flinch when you touched him and he basically walked around with his tail between his legs all day.  When he met our resident golden, Stefy, he perked up quite a bit and started to feel right at home.  By day 2, he was settling right in and you could see he was losing his fear by the hour. 
 
He is absolutely one of the best dogs I have ever met.  He is so loving and so kind and gentle I really don't know where to begin.  As each day passes he just gets more loving.  He adores our resident and follows her around the house and outside all over.  I could tell he was getting really comfortable here because he loves to sleep on our sofas.  He also sleeps in the master bedroom with our resident.  He starts on the bed for cuddles and kisses and then after I fall asleep, he jumps down to stretch out.  When I wake up in the morning, he has to jump back up and give kisses and cuddles.  Its such a great way to wake up!!!!!
 
On Thursday, we had a milestone day.  I made an appointment for Foz to go to the spa and have a good bath and hair cut.  I was very concerned about getting him into the car because of his history with not wanting to get in.  Well, I told him and Stefy we were going bye bye, (this is a term I use with Stefy and she gets soooo excited).  Well Stefy got so excited and jumped right in.  Foz was apprehensive at first, but as soon as I took out a treat and put it next to the backseat, behold, he jumped right in.  I was shocked.  What a champ.  He was at the spa for a few hours and then it was time to come home.  All I had to say was "up up" and both Stefy and Fozzie jumped right into the back seat - no treat needed.  WOW   I am wondering if its a car issue and maybe he doesn't like SUVs or vans.  We will test this theory with our SUV soon.
 
Also on Thursday, Fozzie had to be taken to the vet.  He has had terrible diarrhea and it fnally got very serious.  I called the vet and brought him in immediately.  The interesting part, I took him to the car without Stefy to see if he would just jump in, and he DID!!  All I had to say was "up up" and he was in the cars backseat with a huge smile.  He did great at the vet and it was determined that he was little dehydrated and the reason for the diarrhea was the change in food.  I put him on a high quality organic food which will improve the color and feel of his coat.  But the food tends to be a little rich, so the change had that negative effect on him, poor guy.  You wouldn't know he was sick though, he acts completely normal.  The vet gave him a couple prescriptions and we are back on the track to eating healthy food.
 
Also at the vet, he was heartworm tested, and the test was negative - yeah!!!  He was given Heartgard and Frontline for flea/tick prevention.  So, now Fozzie is all up to date on his shots and medications.  (AND when we left he jumped right back into the car - AMAZING)
 
Other info on Fozzie, he is a golden border collie mix.  He weighs 73 pounds, (and needs to lose about 10 pounds), neutered and completely adorable.  We have a 6 foot fenced back yard so I don't know about the jumping fences thing.  But I did hear he can clear a four foot fence.  I don't think he's a runner, I think he is just curious.  He met our 5 year old niece yesterday and did great.  Just lots of tail wags and kisses.  He is not aggressive at all.  He is awesome with our resident.  No food guarding or aggression at all.  He is very mellow and is getting acclimated to our toys.  It seems like he has not been exposed to many toys.  He is still working on playing and knowing its ok to play.  He is a great walker and loves his daily walks.  No gentle leader is needed for this boy.  My husband is going to take him for a run later this weekend, so we'll see how he does on that.  He has free roam of the house, even when we are gone.  He does awesome.  No chewing, no countersurfing, no bad behaviour at all.  He is simply a gem. 
 
He was fine through the storms that we had earlier in the week, but there was not a lot of thunder.  We will wait to see how he reacts when we get a bad storm.  I have no idea about fireworks and I am not going to buy any to find out.  He needs to get comfortable here before we start testing him like that.  Although I will say he is very close to perfect. 
 
We know he can swim because he fell into the pool on day 3.  He was kind of freaked out and wanted to get out right away.  He has not gone back into the pool, but he's only been here a week so we will see what happens in the future.
 
I have attached some pictures that show how pretty he is.  He is such a happy dog and that really comes through in the pictures. 
 
The forever family that gets Fozzie will be a very lucky family.  He is just too awesome to describe - and he has only been with us for a week!!!  Contact placement if your interested in this sweet guy.


How can you resist me???
I am SOOOO happy!

I am SUCH a good boy.
I LOVE tummy rubs!

Life is pretty good!
My new best buddy.

At a Glance #08-588

Mixed Breed Born: June 2007
Male 60 lbs

Status: Adopted

Profile

August 1, 2010We are welcoming back Fozzie with open hearts and open arms!! (and lots and lots of kisses)!  We are so happy he is a part of our RAGOM family again and I am sure he is thrilled too.  He has been at his new foster home for a week and frankly he is doing fabulous!!  Fozzie was surrendered because the family thought he had behavior issues with jumping fences, storm and fireworks anxiety and that he would not get into a car and was skittish.  I will admit the first day he arrived at our house, he was extremely shy, timid and scared.   He would flinch when you touched him and he basically walked around with his tail between his legs all day.  When he met our resident golden, Stefy, he perked up quite a bit and started to feel right at home.  By day 2, he was settling right in and you could see he was losing his fear by the hour. 
 
He is absolutely one of the best dogs I have ever met.  He is so loving and so kind and gentle I really don't know where to begin.  As each day passes he just gets more loving.  He adores our resident and follows her around the house and outside all over.  I could tell he was getting really comfortable here because he loves to sleep on our sofas.  He also sleeps in the master bedroom with our resident.  He starts on the bed for cuddles and kisses and then after I fall asleep, he jumps down to stretch out.  When I wake up in the morning, he has to jump back up and give kisses and cuddles.  Its such a great way to wake up!!!!!
 
On Thursday, we had a milestone day.  I made an appointment for Foz to go to the spa and have a good bath and hair cut.  I was very concerned about getting him into the car because of his history with not wanting to get in.  Well, I told him and Stefy we were going bye bye, (this is a term I use with Stefy and she gets soooo excited).  Well Stefy got so excited and jumped right in.  Foz was apprehensive at first, but as soon as I took out a treat and put it next to the backseat, behold, he jumped right in.  I was shocked.  What a champ.  He was at the spa for a few hours and then it was time to come home.  All I had to say was "up up" and both Stefy and Fozzie jumped right into the back seat - no treat needed.  WOW   I am wondering if its a car issue and maybe he doesn't like SUVs or vans.  We will test this theory with our SUV soon.
 
Also on Thursday, Fozzie had to be taken to the vet.  He has had terrible diarrhea and it fnally got very serious.  I called the vet and brought him in immediately.  The interesting part, I took him to the car without Stefy to see if he would just jump in, and he DID!!  All I had to say was "up up" and he was in the cars backseat with a huge smile.  He did great at the vet and it was determined that he was little dehydrated and the reason for the diarrhea was the change in food.  I put him on a high quality organic food which will improve the color and feel of his coat.  But the food tends to be a little rich, so the change had that negative effect on him, poor guy.  You wouldn't know he was sick though, he acts completely normal.  The vet gave him a couple prescriptions and we are back on the track to eating healthy food.
 
Also at the vet, he was heartworm tested, and the test was negative - yeah!!!  He was given Heartgard and Frontline for flea/tick prevention.  So, now Fozzie is all up to date on his shots and medications.  (AND when we left he jumped right back into the car - AMAZING)
 
Other info on Fozzie, he is a golden border collie mix.  He weighs 73 pounds, (and needs to lose about 10 pounds), neutered and completely adorable.  We have a 6 foot fenced back yard so I don't know about the jumping fences thing.  But I did hear he can clear a four foot fence.  I don't think he's a runner, I think he is just curious.  He met our 5 year old niece yesterday and did great.  Just lots of tail wags and kisses.  He is not aggressive at all.  He is awesome with our resident.  No food guarding or aggression at all.  He is very mellow and is getting acclimated to our toys.  It seems like he has not been exposed to many toys.  He is still working on playing and knowing its ok to play.  He is a great walker and loves his daily walks.  No gentle leader is needed for this boy.  My husband is going to take him for a run later this weekend, so we'll see how he does on that.  He has free roam of the house, even when we are gone.  He does awesome.  No chewing, no countersurfing, no bad behaviour at all.  He is simply a gem. 
 
He was fine through the storms that we had earlier in the week, but there was not a lot of thunder.  We will wait to see how he reacts when we get a bad storm.  I have no idea about fireworks and I am not going to buy any to find out.  He needs to get comfortable here before we start testing him like that.  Although I will say he is very close to perfect. 
 
We know he can swim because he fell into the pool on day 3.  He was kind of freaked out and wanted to get out right away.  He has not gone back into the pool, but he's only been here a week so we will see what happens in the future.
 
I have attached some pictures that show how pretty he is.  He is such a happy dog and that really comes through in the pictures. 
 
The forever family that gets Fozzie will be a very lucky family.  He is just too awesome to describe - and he has only been with us for a week!!!  Contact placement if your interested in this sweet guy.


How can you resist me???
I am SOOOO happy!

I am SUCH a good boy.
I LOVE tummy rubs!

Life is pretty good!
My new best buddy.

Updates

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Fozzie continues to be such an awesome dog.  I can't say enough about how gentle and wonderful he is.  Everyone who meets him instantly falls in love with him.   My 17 year old son's friends adore him and have all asked their parents if they could adopt him.  So far we are just waiting to see if any of the parents decide that Fozzie is their dog and then they have to go through the RAGOM adoption acceptance process. 
 
He just amazes me with how his prior fears and anxieties have seemed to disappear.  I had to bring our resident to the Vet this week and Fozzie would not let me get out of the door without him.  He jumps right into the back seat of the car like it's something he has done since he was a pup.  He loves car rides now.....go figure.   Also, he loves his kennel.  He continues to go in and out about 5 times a day.  I don't know what triggers it, but he goes into the kennel and just lays down and sleeps on the big cushy dog bed I have in there.  When he wakes up, he then moves to the sofa and then..maybe he will lay on kitchen floor.  Please keep in mind that I have not shut the door to the kennel yet so I am not sure how he would react to that.  We are taking things very slowly here so Fozzie knows he can trust us.  He still seems skittish with storms, but hugs and love take care of most of the anxiety.  He is so totally awesome!!!
 
His playtime is still a work in progress.  We still have to instigate play and let him know its ok and he won't get into trouble.  Our resident is also starting to egg him on, which is pretty funny.  He adores our resident and is never very far from her side.   They are both hunters as the bunnies and chipmunks now know.  They go nuts whenever one of them wonders into the back yard.  Fozzie's tail shoots straight up and you can tell he has only one thing on his mind.  Heaven help the bunny or chipmunk that he finally catches. 
 
He is pretty close to being the perfect dog - no counter surfing, although he does smell at the counter level, just no jumping up.  He walks on his leash great, knows his standard commands like sit, no, and up (to get into the car).  He still wakes me up every morning with his nose in my face and a kiss.  He is such a lovable dog that has so much love to give his forever family.   He melts my heart every time I wake up to his loving face in the morning and I know he will melt your heart too.
 
Contact placement for the dog of your dreams!!!!


Yes, I am in my kennel and loving it!
Can't a guy get a little shut-eye foster mom?!!?

I am such a handsome boy!


How can you resist that smile?!?!

 

Sunday, August 15, 2010

An amazing thing happened this week.  Fozzie actually went into his kennel ON HIS OWN!!!!  I have left the door to kennel open and have not pushed him to go into the kennel because of his prior issues with kennel anxiety.  I am soooo proud of him.  He goes in and sleeps on the comfy dog bed that I put in there.  He is in and out about 5 or 6 times a day.  What an awesome dog!!!!    Now, I am not advocating that he is "kennel trained" because I have not closed the kennel door and left him there.  I do not want to do that because I don't want him to think he is being punished.  We will let him get used to it for a while before I try that.  I also think that he feels comfortable in the kennel because it is a wire kennel that doesn't feel as restrictive as the plastic kennel that was used on him before.  I   know he is getting really comfortable here and he knows that he can trust us completely and that we will not hurt him.
 
Another discovery with Fozzie this week were the bad storms that we have been getting.  LOTS and lots of thunder and lightening.  He is doing great, although I can tell he does get nervous.  All I do is sit on the sofa and he climbs on my lap and I hold him and hug and pet him.  He settles right down and we just watch TV until the storm passes.  I think he likes the distraction of the noise of the TV and the love and attention I give him, so he figures the storms are not so bad after all. 
 
We've had many friends over including my sons friends, and Fozzie greats then all with tail wags and kisses.  No jumping up or shyness.  He meets people with full enthusiasm.  Everyone that meets him, thinks he is the most awesome dog (and very handsome too)!!
 
We continue to work on letting Foz know its OK to play and have fun.  He continues to get better with this but still needs a lot of encouragement to have fun.  Once he gets going though, you can tell he is totally happy and having a blast.  His forever home definitely needs another dog.  You can tell how he looks to our resident for direction and assurance.  He follows Stefy everywhere and is never very far from her side.  They play so great together and it is really fun to watch them really enjoying each other.
 
Fozzie does have the prey instinct.  He loves to chase the chipmunks and bunnies that happen to make a bad choice and come into our back yard.  He hasn't caught one yet, so I am not sure what he will do with one if he does finally get one.
 
I can't say enough about how great he is.  He is such a wonderful joy to have around.  Let placement know if you like to meet this very special boy.


I always sit nicely.


I am never too far from my foster sister!


I still enjoy eating while laying down.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

 
Fozzie has been with us for a couple weeks now and is really starting to settle in nicely.  I should first explain why I am calling him Fozzie and not Noah.  When Fozzie first came into RAGOM a year and half ago, he was a stray and living on the streets in the coldest months of the winter.  It took animal control 2 weeks to get him to trust them enough so they could finally catch him.  He was taken in by RAGOM and was placed in foster care for the first time.  The Foster mom said he was so soft and fuzzy, that she started calling him Fozzie and the name just stuck. 
 
As we get to know Fozzie better, it is clear that he has been abused and neglected in his past.  He is so starved for love that it breaks my heart.  But that is changing in our house.  He gets a ton of love and attention and even our resident can't help but adore him. 
 
We are working on a few things with Fozzie.  We are trying to get him to play and have fun as a dog should.  He does not seem to have been exposed to any toys and playtime, so we are instigating play as often as we can.  He is starting to catch on and I can tell he is now starting to relax and have fun.  He is so much fun to have around.  We are also making strides in trust.  He needs to know that its ok to come up for pets and tummy rubs.  Each day I can tell he is trusting us more and more and knowing that everything he does is just fine.  He really is a pretty perfect dog.  He does not jump up unless we instigate it.  He does not counter surf, he doesn't bark - although the other day he heard the mailman and gave one bark to let us know we got our mail.  He respects baby gates but he has full roam of the house all the time, so the only time we use a baby gate is at night when he sleeps in the master bedroom with me. 
 
The only negative animal trait that Fozzie has, is he is the messiest eater and drinker I have ever seen.  He slops water and I have to have a towel next to his dish to wipe up after he is done drinking.  The floor around his water dish is the cleanest in the house!!!  Aside from that, he really is such a joy to have around.
 
Now that I know him better, I can tell you that his forever home should have the following things to make sure everyone is happy.
 
- A fenced yard, higher than 4 feet.  He can clear a 4 foot chain link fence with no problem.  Preferably a 6 foot fence.
 
- A lot of time and patience to understand that Fozzie has trust issues.  He needs unconditional love and understanding.  No yelling at him.  I would never yell at any of my dogs, but he understands "no" and does just fine with that. 
 
- No kids under age 6.  The chaos of little ones would not be good for him.  I know he would never hurt little kids, but the chaos of having them running around could cause him to be a bit skittish.
 
- Due to prior issues, Fozzie can not be crated.  He has a high crate anxiety and I don't even try to crate him.  He doesn't need it anyway as he is so awesome around the house.  He is not destructive at all and I fully trust him to have free roam.
 
- Another resident dog is also preferable.  He follows my resident all over and really looks to her for direction on playtime, and just being a loved and happy dog. 
 
Each day that passes Fozzie seems to grow more and more settled.  He doesn't flinch anymore when we pet him.  He is confident enough to jump on the furniture to take a nap and now he knows that its ok to have the run of the house.  We have finally found a great nutritious dog food that doesn't upset his stomach so his coat should start showing some improvement very soon.  He is such a handsome boy and I know once the food kicks in he will be as soft as our golden.  He is such a loving and attentive boy.  I just can't say enough about how sweet and awesome he is.  His kisses are absolutely the best!!
 
One last thing, when I think I have seen it all with Fozzie, he gives me another thing to chuckle at.  The other day when I fed him, he started eating like normal, standing up.....then he must have gotten tired, or bored, or who knows, but the next time I looked at him, he was laying down in front of his bowl, with his front legs on either side of the bowl and his head in his bowl eating.  Well he just thought this was great, kind of like breakfast in bed - only this was on the floor!!!!!   What a great dog!!!!!!
 
I know the pictures of him eating in his bowl are little fuzzy, but you can get the general idea.  Too Funny!!!
 
Contact placement if you would like to meet Fozzie and have him completely melt your heart!!
 


Let's Play!


I like this comfy sofa.....

Breakfast on the floor
Everyone should eat like this!