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ABBY UPDATE
January 25, 2008
Abby has been with
her current foster home for several weeks now and is ready to find her
forever home; so, we asked her foster home for an update about how
she’s doing. One trait that everyone mentions about Abby is her
intelligence; she’s currently learning how to play with a Frisbee and
kept retrieving it for almost 45 minutes after learning this new
game. We already knew that she loves fetching a tennis ball or stick,
going for long walks and playing in the snow, and new we can add
Frisbee-fetching to her talents.
There’s also a new
puppy in Abby’s foster home; a Golden Retriever female, who was a
Christmas gift from close friends. Abby doesn’t seem to mind sharing
her special bed with the pup and will go get one of her own toys when
she feels the youngster is getting all the attention.
Mostly, though,
Abby just wants to be near her person, joining in with whatever is
going on. Do you feel like going for a walk or working in the yard?
Abby is right there at the door, tail wagging, to go with you. Is it
time to slow down and relax? Abby will lean into you for some petting
and will then lie down nearby. It’s time for her to be found by
someone who understands German Shepherds, knows how to set boundaries
and establish a routine she can count on and who will give her the
same loyalty and devotion that she has to share.
ABBY’S RETURN
Following a
trial period with a potential adopter, Abby has come back to GSRNE.
The low prey drive she exhibited towards cats outside the home turned
into HIGH prey drive once she was actually living with a cat.
Her adopter
tried six weeks of clicker training with an obedience trainer, and
Abby polished her good responses to “sit, down, up, stay, come.” When
the resident cat ventured into the room, however, all those commands
went right out of Abby’s head.
So, Abby is once
again waiting for her forever home…one with someone who either works
at home or is retired and can be home more often than not. Abby bonds
very, very closely with her people and can become upset if suddenly
left alone. In her foster home, she did well with the resident male
German Shepherd, who was confident and would not let her become a
bully. Once Abby trusts her new person and learns that she’s not
going to be abandoned, she relaxes and will do fine when left for a
few hours at a time.
Abby lived her
first seven years in a loving home, with four children and a male
dog. When her owners got a divorce, her world was split in half; the
two dogs stayed with the husband, and the children went with the
wife. Abby had loved “her kids” and missed them, but she still had
her canine buddy. The new arrangement was short-lived, however,
because there was a bad fire in the home. Abby’s owner couldn’t live
there any longer, and he turned to a friend, who owned Abby’s
sister/littermate, and asked him to take Abby. This arrangement
didn’t work out, because the sister was jealous and kept attacking
Abby. The new owner was worried about her safety and tried keeping
Abby in a crate, which she hated; she kept breaking out in order to be
near him. He turned to GSRNE and asked that we find Abby a real home
of her own.
Abby was about
20 pounds overweight when she came into GSRNE, and her foster parents
helped her lose some of that weight by taking her for daily walks and
keeping her from counter surfing to sneak treats. After Abby was
adopted, she trimmed off the rest of those 20 pounds through lots of
activity, training, regular walks and small, low-calorie treats.
While in foster
care, Abby was examined by a Veterinary Dermatologist to find the
cause of the ear infection that caused the Hematoma which resulted in
one ear no longer being able to stand up. She had both ears cleaned
thoroughly, and by staying on a regular program of cleaning them once
a week, and putting in drops two times a week, she hasn’t had any more
problems with her ears. She was tested to find the cause of her
allergies, and there are several environmental triggers. In the warm
weather, Abby will need regular baths, with a special shampoo and
conditioner, to keep her skin from feeling itchy. She’s used to going
to a groomer for baths and to have her undercoat brushed out, and she
seems to enjoy the experience. Trimming her nails, however, has been
a challenge and Abby will benefit from a slow desensitization program.
According to her
foster parents, Abby likes: walks, attention and affection (she will
follow you anywhere), hearing your voice, food of all kinds, water
coming from the hose, fetching and chewing sticks, being given
directions and a job.
Abby dislikes:
squirrels and birds (and now we know that includes cats), going to the
vet, being left all alone, being in the crate when alone,
thunderstorms, fireworks, or anything that sounds like either.
Everyone who has
met Abby agrees that she’ll be standoffish at first; but once she gets
to know you, she can be an incredibly sweet girl who LOVES affection.
She might use her nose or her paw to demand attention, but she’ll stop
if you ignore the behavior for a second or two. Once she gives you
her heart, she just wants to be near you as much as possible.
If you can provide this loyal, sweet girl with the leadership she
craves and would value her companionship, please ask us about meeting
Abby.
"Hi all, I'm Abby. Sadly, I lost
my family of seven years to a divorce, then my dad
and my house burned down
and I had no where to live and I'm STILL family-less"
"Luckily, I found some friends at GSRNE who brought me to safety."
"Having a loving foster family kept me sane and happy for awhile."
"And then my foster mom told me they found me MY OWN new family!"
"Yeaahhhh, I was so excited I couldn't wait to meet them."
"I said, 'hello new family. I'm Abby, very pleased to meet you'."
"But then BAD news on top of GOOD news..."
"...my new family discovered
I don't like cats and I
really don't want to share my new home with them."
"And despite behavior modification, I STILL tried to terrorize the cat."
"So I had to return to GSRNE, who gently told me
that my previous fosters were no longer available..."
"...and that sadly, B-B-BOARDING is the only option right now."
"But I don't want to go to boarding."
"Please, PLEEEASE don't make me go to boarding!"
"I'm sure they're nice in there but boarding isn't a REAL FAMILY!"
"I'm BEGGING, please, I'll do ANYTHING you
want if you find me a REAL mom and
dad again."
"This is just all too much for me."
"Fine, I submit, board away."
"Well, as depressed as I am, I did find some nice friends here at boarding."
"I'm especially fond of Matt."
"Sorry, Steph, it's just that I like MEN better."
"Tara is ok too but I'm really all about having a man in my life."
"Ya see, I love to HIKE with my man."
"And EXPLORE with my man."
"And JOKE with my man."
"And DINE with my man."
"And experience that gentle TOUCH from my man."
"And to keep VIGIL as my man sleeps."
"I love and respect my man because he is an EXCELLENT LEADER."
"In fact, I wish Matt could BE MY man, but he told me he's already taken."
"So, THIS is getting VERY depressing."
"Over time, I've watched as so many friends..."
"...find their true soul mates."
"While I only get to DREAM about mine."
"So how far must I SEARCH?"
"And how long must I BEG?"
"And how much more can I TAKE?"
"Will I always be JUST a WALL FLOWER?"
"Or will that SPECIAL someone appear?"
"Who will make all my DREAMS COME TRUE?!!"
"For now, as Matt coaxes me BACK to my boarding chambers..."
"...playing ball with a REAL FAMILY...."
"Will remain ONLY in my DISTANT DREAMS, and so I AM DEVASTATED."
Abby was adopted!
Check out her Happy Tail
to see her life now.
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