Channeling John Rawls

Ever heard of John Rawls?  It’s unlikely you have unless you’re a philosophy junkie like me but Rawley’s personality certainly channels the intellect and reserved nature of John Rawls.

Mr. Rawls

Since Rawley has been in our home, he has figured out how to move the baby gate out of the way of the stairs, open doors, move blinds and jingle metal to make sound.  This little guy is quite the sneaky one so don’t let appearances fool you.

Though Rawley is quite smart and will challenge you with his new discoveries, he like John Rawls, prefers to keep to his family and day-to-day activities.

Currently Rawley is working hard on learning how to adapt to change but I think his personality is better suited to a more stable and quiet home – perhaps a mature family with older or no children.  He does get along well with our dog but did become very intimidated by the dog park.  He did however handle himself beautifully during our trip to a cafe and dined with us al fresco with no problems at all – definitely channeling his inner philosopher

Rawley is definitely ready for his forever home so if you think you have a place in your heart and home for this lovable lab/hound dog, please email fostertails@gmail.com.

Video of Sophie & Rawley

Welcome Rawley!

As you can tell by the date of this post, we didn’t wait too long to take another foster pup into our home!  Rawley is an adorable ~4 year old, 45 pound, black lab/hound mix.  We will be keeping him for a few weeks while his primary foster Mom is having her kitchen remodeled.

About Rawley’s Personality – from his primary foster Mom

Rawley in his Bed

Rawley is a total love!  He adores pets and snuggles, and gets super excited for walks. He dances on his hind legs for meals, and leaps off the deck stairs and then bounds in the yard like a deer. And he can run FAST (see his video). As he became  secure with me, he became very affectionate.  He still is very reserved and gets overwhelmed easily with too much attention, so he needs a quite home without kids  (at least for now – he might be great with them later).  And he does still spend some time by himself, but he’s now often by my side giving kisses.  He’s learned to sit for food and to get a leash on, and is so good on walks I can handle him and my two dogs at the same time. He can get nervous and cry when he’s scared, and he will likely need several weeks to feel comfortable in his new home.  Rawley may never be a social butterfly, but he is ready to be someone’s best friend.

A Bittersweet Goodbye

My "Preshy"

On Friday, August 27th Lillibet departed our home for her forever home.

Brian and I knew her day would come but it was not easy to see her leave.  After 3 months of recovery, caring and nurturing, Lillibet grew into a happy  and confident pup.  She cherished every day like it was her last and loved unconditionally.

Lillibet’s New Home

Lillibet was adopted by a super sweet woman with a 12 year old collie xix who had just recently lost his “girlfriend”.  “Beth”, Lilli’s adoptive Mom, sought to find her permanent dog a playmate and found our blog.  Beth actually reached out in May when we just brought Lilli into our home but due to Lillibet’s need for further heartworm treatment and outstanding circumstances we didn’t get in touch with her until a few weeks ago.

Once we finally connected and met with her and her collie mix, it was love at sight for Lilli.  She treated them like long lost soul mates and trotted over to Beth and waited for a hug.  She also was very interested in the collie mix and played with him so well.  She was a completely different dog around them – carefree, happy and above all acted as if she had been finally reunited with her long lost family.

Their interaction was a spiritual moment.  I’m not super religious but I had been praying hard that Lilli would make it through the heartworm treatment and find a family who would love her for the rest of her life.  In the moment that Beth, Lillibet and the collie mix shared, all my prayers were answered.

*Names have been changed to protect privacy

Come Meet Lilli!

FOHA will be hosting an adoption event at the Petsmart in the Fair Lakes shopping center on July 30th from 6-9pm.  Hope to see you there!

Fair Lakes Petsmart

12971 Fair Lakes Cntr
Fairfax, VA 22033
703-802-1027

So much meaning in one pill

Today, Lillibet had her first dose of heartworm preventative since starting her deworming treatment. For most dogs, this monthly medicine is just one more step loving owners take towards protecting the health of their pets. But for Lillibet, this little pill has much more meaning.

For dogs that have been diagnosed with heartworms, as Lillibet has been, the treatment and eradication of the worms is a long and risky process.  Adult worms in the ventricles of the heart must first be exterminated via injections given to the dog.  Lillibet received these injections in early June and was kept under constant supervision for the first 24 hours before she was discharged.  Once home, her level of physical activity had to be severely restricted for one month to minimize the risk of clots being formed by the bodies of the worms as her immune system got to work breaking them down.

Today, Lillibet took the next step towards becoming completely free of heartworms with this first heartworm preventative pill.  The medicine contained in the preventative pills targets the heartworm eggs (larvae) that might be in her blood.  Again, the danger here is the possibility of clots forming or an allergic reaction to the active ingredient in the heartworm preventative (Ivermectin).

Lillibet took the medicine at 8am this morning and we are just now exiting the 8-hour “danger zone” when any complications are most likely to occur.  Lillibet still needs to be kept quiet for the next day or so, but for now (knock on wood!) things are looking extremely positive.  Lillibet is such a fighter!

New videos of Lillibet!

Lillibet’s Profile

 

She's On Watch!

Personality:

Lillibet is a super sweet dog.  She is easy-going, laid-back and very calm inside and outside of a house.  She does have a lot of spunk  – she enjoys playing with her toys, getting walked and playing with other dogs.  Though she enjoys interacting with humans and dogs alike, she does enjoy her time alone and is pretty independent.  She appears to be great with children as she doesn’t mind her ears, feet or body played with or her hair pulled on.  She has never shown any signs of aggression to us, strangers, children or our dog while in our care.  She’s also used to be groomed so she has no issue with being brushed or having her ears cleaned.

Best environment:  We feel that Lillibet would do well in a busy home with small children or other animals.  She would also make an excellent first-time dog.  Her laid-back demeanor and low to medium energy level means that she will interact with a family but not be high maintenance.  She loves be pet, snuggled and kissed so feel that having small children around may give her some of the extra attention she deserves.

Special considerations:  Lillibet does have some medical issues that may need future attention.  She has recently received her second round of heartworm therapy and will need another treatment in July.  She also has Lyme disease which will need to be monitored.  Lillibet also has some behavioral issues; she was a stray and has a tendency to bolt out an open door.  She also shows emotional signs of being abused; she will cower if you raise your voice or make sudden arm movements.  She also takes longer to warm-up to men.  While in our home, we have worked with her to mitigate these issues.  She has responded very well to training, especially in regards to the open door, but she will never be a dog you can take off a leash.     

 If this sounds like the right dog for you and your family, please contact us at fostertails@gmail.com.   

Lillibet’s Story

In all the craziness of getting Lillibet home and settled, we never provided her story.  Lillibet is a sweet and loveable 4 year old Border Collie mix from North Carolina.  She was picked up by a kill shelter there as a stray in 2009.  Set to be euthanized because of her bad health, FOHA rescued her in January and began treating her Lyme disease and heartworms.  She entered a foster home for a little while during the winter but ended up back in the FOHA shelter to continue her recovery.  We picked her up in May and have had her with us ever since.   

Without the generosity of FOHA donors and volunteers, Lillibet would no longer be with us.  If you are interested in sponsoring a dog like Lillibet or are interested in adopting this dog, please contact us at fostertails@gmail.com.

Open Doors & Strays

Lillibet has an interesting quark that we’ve heard is not unique to her – if she sees an open door, she’s through it.  Brian and I first discovered this part of her personality when we brought her home for the first time. 

 Our dog Sophie has been trained to leave the car and go straight into the house, even if the garage door is open.  In the house, she knows she has to respect the door by remaining a few feet away from it.  Lillibet has not had that same training, yet. 

After we pulled into the garage and before we had the garage door shut, we opened the car door to let Lillibet out.  Instead of heading toward the house, Lillibet bolted out of the open garage door.  We caught her before she went anywhere but it made us realize that strays are different – they yearn for the freedom they had before they entered a house. 

 We’ve also had to be much more cautious about people coming to the door because she’s sneaky.  We’ve practiced having her learn to respect and open door but last night, after the pizza man arrived, she snuck up behind me and attempted to escape!  

We’re going to continue with her training but she will most likely need a family that has experience with sneaky dogs or is willing to continue teaching her how to respect an open door.

Heartworm Treatment Update

It’s been a while since we provided an update but Lillibet is doing very well.  In early June she received her 2^nd round of heartworm treatment.  She had to stay with the vet for about 3 days and during that time we missed her terribly.  After coming home, she was doing alright, in pain but managing.  It’s been about a week since her treatment and she seems to be doing a lot better.  In early July she’ll be receiving her (hopefully) last treatment and will be able to then resume a normal doggy life full of activity and play sessions.