Cash (Tian Tian 19-224C)
Profile
At a Glance #19-224C
| Golden Retriever | Born: November 2016 |
| Male | 64 lbs |
Status: Adopted
Profile
Updates
Saturday, February 22, 2020
Tian Tian had been adopted by the M family. He will have a younger fur-brother, a mom, a dad, and a grandpa who will all love him. His new mom is a veterinary technician, so he will also get excellent medical care. Gulliver, Mei Mei, and I will all miss his goofy antics and major snuggling powers.
Sunday, February 9, 2020
I am happy to report that Tian Tian is closing in on 70 pounds and looking fantastic. Yay, Tian Tian! The added weight is helping him to better tolerate the cold, and all the play time with my two dogs is helping with his muscle tone and endurance.
A lot of the fur on his legs and feet had been worn off while living in a dirt enclosure in China. With a healthy diet and living indoors, his fur is coming back in quite nicely, although his tail still isn’t as bushy as it could be. The feathering on his legs is starting to grow out as well, so maybe the fur on his tail will follow.
It has been an eventful six weeks for Tian Tian. He had some cracked teeth removed, so now he looks like a hockey player when he smiles. The good things are that his breath is greatly improved and he's perkier with the lack of dental pain. Everything healed up quite well, and the missing teeth don’t affect his playtime. He loves chewing on a Kong and playing tug-o-war with my two dogs.
We have begun obedience training to stimulate his mind and see if we can lessen his tendency to want to give hugs to everyone he meets. He loves people! While his sweetness is adorable, not everyone wants dog hugs and I’d be worried if he tried to hug a small child.
He also pulls and barks when meeting new dogs because everyone should be his friend. If he is allowed to meet other dogs and get to know them, the barking stops and he readily plays nicely.
A very special thanks to Marcia B. who graciously donated acupuncture sessions at St. Francis Integrative Services. We are trying these procedures to see if they help with his myoclonus or muscle spasms. I have friends who swear by acupuncture for their own dogs, so I’m hoping this helps him. If so, it would be something that his adoptive family could do periodically to keep things in check.
Tian Tian also loves to be massaged while getting ear scratches, and that is part of his treatment plan.
When people meet Tian Tian, they cannot immediately see the muscle spasms. They are less obvious when he is wagging his tail and seeking ear scratches. However, they become obvious when he settles down. While most dogs occasionally run in their dreams, he does it quite frequently. The myoclonus heightens the leg movements.
For this reason, Tian Tian cannot be crated or kenneled for fear of injury. Because his movements are quite loud, it might be best if his adoptive family did not try to have him sleep in the same room unless they are very heavy sleepers. As long as there is a warm, comfy bed somewhere, he is more than content to sleep away from the crowd. He stays in his bed until the household is awake.
In spite of his muscle spasms, Tian Tian is a happy, lovable, and playful boy who would make an excellent addition to his forever family.
Thursday, January 30, 2020
Tian Tian continues to be a sweetheart. We have determined that he would do best in a home with another dog. However, this requirement could be waived if someone was home all day with him or if he wasn't left alone for more than three hours.
We are learning more about his myoclonus. Our next step is to see if medication lessens the frequency and severity of his muscle spasms.
In the meantime, Tian Tian is available to interview interested applicants!
Thursday, December 19, 2019
Tian Tian (pronounced T-N, T-N) arrived from China three weeks ago. He had a whole laundry list of issues including ear infections, ringworm/hookworm, alopecia, itchy skin, and myoclonus (muscle spasms that look like hiccups). He was treated for the infections and worms.
As for the muscle spasms, the neurologist we saw seems to think this is a result of either the ringworm or having had distemper when he was younger. After three weeks of high-quality food and fish oil, his fur is starting to fill out and he is not as itchy.
His spasms are also less intense than they were initially. We are hoping that giving him good nutrition will continue to help as there are few medical treatments available. It is likely that he will always have these spasms to some degree, but they do not affect his quality of life.
Tian Tian has long legs, big feet, and a blocky head. His ideal weight is somewhere around 75 pounds, so he still needs to put on more weight.
Despite all these issues, he is an absolute sweetheart. He loves his ear scratches, offers the “Golden paw,” and constantly wags his tail. He is a loving, happy boy and does not seem to be troubled by the involuntary spasms.
He loves to sit back on his haunches and put his paw on your leg or arm for pets. Or, he’ll rest his chin on your leg and give you “puppy dog eyes” until you get the hint and give him ear scratches.
He also likes to stand and put his paws on my chest to give kisses. I am trying not to reinforce this behavior, because he could easily knock over a small child. He is quickly picking up English and is learning new words every day.
After three weeks, he is settling into our routine and gets along wonderfully with my two resident dogs.
A couple of days after he arrived, he began barking very early one morning. I went downstairs and he was in the kitchen. Apparently, the automatic timer started the coffee maker and he was making sure it did not have malicious intent. He still occasionally barks at strange noises, or in response to neighborhood dogs barking.
He does not have any resource/food guarding behaviors and patiently waits for foods and treats. He has learned that he will not get food, a cookie, or slice of cheese until he sits nicely.
While he plays nicely with Gulliver, he has a special relationship with Mei Mei. It could be because Mei Mei is female, or because she is smaller than he is, or because she too came from China in February. Either way, she has really taken him under her wing and helped him adjust.
While the weather has not been friendly towards walks, he does love to run and play in the snow if it’s not too cold. However, he also loves to play with toys. One day as I silently watched him, he went around the living room gathering up all the toys and placed them all on a dog bed before laying down. He was overwhelmed with choices and could not decide which one to play with first.
Tian Tian’s forever family should have someone home often or periodically throughout the day. He is happy and content to lay on a comfy bed and snooze, but he begins barking if left alone too long. At this point, I do not think he has separation anxiety; it’s more that he is still unsure of his new environment and the fact that he loves people and other dogs.
It took a while to fully reinforce potty training, but he has become adept at giving signals that he needs to go outside. Once he is out, he does his business quickly. Because his fur coat is still a bit thin, he is not a fan of the cold weather.
A fenced yard is not a necessity—I think he would be fine with a tie out. However, he has tried to climb my 4-foot chain-link fence to visit the neighbor’s dog, so he is never outside without being supervised. A 6-foot privacy fence would be ideal, as he also gets excited when he sees people walking their dogs on the path behind my house.
He would be fine in a home with kids 8 years or older and has not yet been cat tested.
Tian Tian has been microchipped and brought up to date on all medications.