Saul Loves Panda

Saul is finally playing on pretty much a daily basis though he is not a good sharer!   We are working it.  He really loves soft little round toys - though I brought home some new toys today...Christmas ones that I won in the New Rattitude Auction and he grabbed the little santa hat and hid it in his crate :)  must be for later...

Here is he playing with the panda... we are going to work on getting him to "drop" it.  He loves chasing it so I'm sure he will figure it out fast.

Saul and Panda! - click to see video

i love this one even if he is nearly wrapped up in laptop and iphone cords

Saturday Snoozin'

Saul had an adventurous day today... went to the pet store!  He met a couple of min pins he seemed to really like and a little poodle gave him the brush off... he had fun though checking out all the toys and snacks and was the perfect gentleman... and I bought him a new dog bed!  He really likes it and slept in on the way home and now its comfortably snoozing in it... though he still likes to have a blanket put over him.

Got an ear up!  Finally managed to get a picture of it!

I saw these at the store... my dog Sasha would so not like them, the eyes and nose are the best part!

 Saul is now completely house trained with the doggie door.  No issues at all and I've left him a few times out while I've had errands and he's been great.

New discovery:  Saul has found that I keep my cats food up on a table.  And yes, he can jump up then for a tasty treat with a nimble leap.  We are working on letting him know that's not okay.  He's a fast learner, he will get it no time, but for now I'm having to keep an eye on if he wanders over to that area.   :)

Tucker Update!

oh my, I've missed little Tucker... but he is doing great with his new family here in Yakima.  He is loved very much and quickly has become a permanent part of their family.   They sent me a couple of pictures too!  He looks like he is doing wonderful!

look at that tail go!

Shelby Update!

Guess who is is having a fabulous life?  Shelbs as she is now called, is living the good life with her adoptive family in Renton and has really come out of her shell.  She is getting all the love and attention she deserves, going out to new places like football games and dog parks and is even getting confident enough to greet other dogs!  And sporting a fab pink harness to boot!  

Little Shelby when I got her, was breeder dog that was surrendered to a shelter, was under socialized, under weight, super scared and you just couldn't give her enough attention.  Now she is gaining confidence and learning to not be fearful and that she is loved (and a little spoiled too as she deserves) and can enjoy her life. 

Yeah for Shelby and her wonderful family!

I also heard from Tucker's family last week and he is settling in and loved by his new family.  I'm hoping for pictures soon! 

3rd time's a charm!

Another trip over to a friends house for dinner and took Saul over their to visit and play with their dogs.  He did super-duper.  He even became friends with Nate,who he was growling at the visit before... accepting carrots (which he promptly spit out) but was convinced Nate was his new BFF after a couple bites of chicken.  He even gave him a little kiss.   Saul played with their daughter who is 6.  She had a couple of friends come over, a boy and a girl... and while they made him nervous in the beginning, within 10 minutes he was begging them for neck scratches.  Saul just needs some warm up time to trust people (and tasty snacks, don't hurt either!). 

He didn't do much playing with the dogs, but did show off to Sheriff doing some rattie runs, showing off how fast he was... of course, inside the house and not in the big back yard... :) 

I finally got to trimming his nails and he did really well, no complaining at all.  so now he has some tidy toes too!

just lookin' cute

i love me some neck scratches!

he loves their wading pool.  I even bought one for my backyard, which he ignores, but always goes in theirs.

Chew Time!

Cassie came by to finish up a sewing project of belly bands and had to takea nap... Saul joined her... And what the poor Panda did to have to face the corner of the couch in a time out, I do not know, but it must has been bad!

yummm

he looks mad in this picture but he's not.. just a smiling for the camera

Crates r Us

Saul is learning to love his crate and now will go in most of the time on command...and is starting to go in on his own.   His blue blankie helps him sleep in there...   and at bedtime I do cover him with the blanket so he can be all cozy. 

Today was also vet day for his final bit of vet care and to get his microchip inserted.. He was very brave though nervous.  He sure was happy to see me afterwords though!   Next we went to the pet store and he had alot of fun sniffing all the bones and food but just couldn't pick one he liked best.  I bought him an antler though so far he hasn't shown any interest in it.  He's not a big chewer of things though.   He did well in the store and with Spot, the owner's little pug dog, though when he had enough of the butt sniffing, he let a small growl out to let Spot know enough was enough.  He did let out a bark when two men came in and was a bit on alert while they were there. 

Nubby Wubby!

So sue me, I just love his little nubby tail!

So off we went again over to Amber's house where Saul got to play in the pool and did a little play with Sadie, one of their dogs.  He really likes their yard and did some running around super fast too.  It took him a little while to warm up to them and it was only when I was out there with them, he started to play.. when I was inside, he mostly just whined to get back in the house.  

When Amber's husband came into the family room where we all were, Saul did some barking and growling at him.  I'm not sure if Saul is not a fan of men in general or just Nate in particular (We did have an incident with Nate the first day Saul was in my care where Nate snuck up on all of us  - not on purpose, we were all just busy doing stuff - but scared me half to death and scared Saul too) but we are going to take him back over there and around other guys to get Saul's ease and trust up. 

Another thing we discovered is that Saul doesn't like anyone but me to touch him while he's sleeping under a blanket, especially when Cassie does it.  So we have been working on that.  He has to get down (he is learning the word down from me) when he does and he is slowing learning that it's not okay to growl under the blanket or he doesn't get to go under there.. and he really wants to go under there.  :)

He is doing really well in his crate... No accidents or complaints.  He's even started to go in there on his own to nap (now that I've put a blanket he can snuggle under).  He's waits really patiently for me to get him out of his crate when I come home, which is great, because it gives me time to get settled and get their food ready without doggies under foot.  Once he's out, he does a bit of jumping and greeting, but he settles fairly quickly so he can eat!

Checking out the yard, looking for the perfect pee spot! (which is usually my irises right to the left of him:)

Saul Snuggles

This is Saul getting ready for a nap...He loves to be under a cover or blanket. If he can't find a blanket to snuggle under, he just looks at me until I get him one (I'm a sucker, I know)...He will nap without one, but he prefers to be under something...

 And sometimes he will peek out just to see what's going on...

Summer fun in Yakima

Guess who knows how to roll over?  I didnt' teach him this, he knew it already and it's adorable.  Is it wrong to just make him roll over all day?  

Saul is pretty cute... He was pretty mellow all day (it was super hot today in Yakima so we were all pretty much indoors with the air conditioning staying out of the heat) but perked right up when it was treat time. 

Morning Stretches

 Even though it was 100 degrees outside, he would do a 15 minute nap outside after a potty break before coming back inside.

I have a whole yard of grass but he prefers the dirt!

Just being adorable

I love his coat.. when sitting it looks like a heart

Saul really really needs his toenails clipped and I can't find my clippers anywhere!  So, I've been doing alot of feet touching getting him ready until I find them. He is doing really well and will really let me mess with them with no reaction.   I'm gonna give up and buy some new ones this week if I can't find them.  It'll be good to take him out and about to the Pet Store anyway.  I tried the Pedi Paw on him and he was really scared of it - my dog Sasha does great with it but she is used to it.  But he needs clippers anyway - they are getting way out of control!!!

Saul's new friend...

I haven't been able to find a toy that Saul likes other than chewing on the Kong toy.  Doesn't like tennis balls, stuffed animals, tug toys.. nothing... until Mr. Panda came out and he promptly lost his mind playing with it.  Very cool!  He will chase it, kick it around with his paws, nibble on it, carrying it around.  At first he wouldn't let us take it from him, trying to run away with it, but quickly learned that us throwing it and him chasing it was FUN FUN FUN.   

Saul is also an under the covers sleeper... LOVES to be under a blanket when wanting to nap.  You just lift a blanket up and he will come up and bury himself in it.  Sometimes he will poke his head out, but usually not.  :)

trying to sleep here.. this is not picture time!

Mellow Saul takes a moment to be "unmellowed"

Saul went to the vet today and got an exam. The vet says he is 4 years old, not 6 as previously thought.  I'm not sure if he was happy to be out of the vets office or just had some energy to burn - but Saul definately got his play on tonight over at Amber's with her dogs, Sadie and Sasha - check out the video... He is a speedy little fellow when he wants to be. And he seems to like the water well enough.  And when he got home - he passed right out...

We also tried to get him to howl by howling with him tonight when an ambulance went by... poor little Saul - he lifted his head up, opened his mouth and nothing came out at all!  He seems really dissappointed that he coudn't howl with us!

Barkin' Saul

So we think Saul has been debarked because he's got a really raspy bark... Poor thing, but it doesn't seem to bother him at all.  And at least its easy enough to tell the difference between him and Sasha.  :)  he's not really a barker, but turns out you can get him going if you want.  And so can Sasha... she can be such a little trouble maker!

Saul Barking

Saul is off to the vets tomorrow to check on his incision from his neuter surgery.  I think he is a secret licker and needs some antibiotics too keep it from getting infected as it looks pretty irritated.  Looks like I might have to use the cone on him to get that all healed up.  But he is really super sweet and really bonding to my daughter Cassie but I'm going to clip his nails tonight as they are pretty scratchy when he plays with her.  So it will probably be a bit longer before he likes me! 

I'm Sasha and Can I Have Some Attention too?

okay.. she's not a foster dog, but my own dog and while we were taking pictures of Saul, Sasha got jealous and got extra cute, so we snapped some of her too.  I think she is pretty adorable and I love my fuzzy dog.  She is really being a great sport with all these fosters coming in and out of the house over the past 4 months. 

Who you looking at?

Got this elephant at the NR reunion and it's Sasha's new favorite toy

MINE!

I'm getting my elephant back!

yumm - elephant noses!

The Many Faces of Saul

busy day or two for Saul... He is getting into the routine of things.  He doesn't understand the doggie door yet, but so far is completely housetrained.  He is pretty mellow - though when he thought I wasn't looking, he did some running around the house and got in the play stance (two front legs down, butt in the air) to try to get Sasha to play (she pretended she didn't see).  He loves Cassie and they have been playing alot and he loves the Kong toy.    We've been giving him lots of ear scratches which he loves and when we find the right spot, he is just in heaven. 

When I walked him this afternoon - he met all the neighborhood kids (ages 3 - 12) and he let them pet him and seemed generally uninterested until I gave them some cheese to give him and he became their best friend and the kids had fun getting him to sit and to shake.   He also met the neighboor Fancy - she is a rat terrier/dachshund mix and they did some sniffing and I think she wanted to play but all he did was some weird growl/purring noise at her... I think he was tired after all the kids and hungry... We will try another time. 



how do dogs always find your not put away clothes to lay on?

Love this one - Cassie took all these piuctures.. she takes great pictures!

Welcome to Yakima Saul!

Saul has made it Yakima!  He was picked up in Federal Way where Carol was fostering him and brought to CleElum by my friend Marta.  We took him to meet my dad and hang out in his yard for a bit before heading back to Yakima. 

Introductions to Sasha went well - little fuss.  He hasn't met the cat Sarah yet.  We took him over to Amber's tonight and he did fine with her dogs though he didn't really want to play.  he did give a littele snarl to Sadie the female who was getting in his face and she just gave it back and that was that.   He pretty much ignored her cats, though he was interested in their food! 

He really likes Cassie who has gotten him to play and gotten some kisses from.  Not yet any for me though he likes the treats i give him.  He will sit and shake for them.  :)  Enjoys the ear rubs and beinbg scratched.   He is a pretty sweet little boy!. 

Checking out my dad's yard

tired after a long day