New dog

13 years ago

Good things happen when you least expect them. A friend called and told me her tenant was moving and needed to re-home his dog since he was just awarded custody of his kids and the new apartment wouldn't let him have a dog. And when I spoke to him, he just wasn't going to have the time now that he had the kids too.

So Lily and I and my niece went to meet Rocky today, and it was an very uneventful meeting ... guess she was being protective of me at my house. So we loaded Rocky up, and his crate, and brought him home.

He's a smooth coated collie mix, a year old, not neutered nor been to the vet. I already have an appointment Monday ... and hope to neuter him next week. He's a happy squigly tail waving guy. He was raised with cats, YEAH! And is just a really good natured boy. He's used to his crate, so we'll keep that up ... he's a little skinny ... but we'll fill him out.

Lily thinks he's sometimes fun to play with, but she thinks he has too much energy sometimes too. But he repsects her when she says she's had enough.

Now I need to think of another name similar to Rocky, since I don't like that name.

Meet Rocky ...

{{!gwi}}

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Comments (22)

cal_dreamer
13 years ago
Oh, what a handsome boy!

Congratulations on your new addition to the family!
Ninapearl
13 years ago
awwww!! AWWWWW!!!! i am SO happy for you! he looks like a doll and what a lucky, lucky boy he is to have found you and lily!!

pssst...word to the wise if you don't mind me butting in...i see he's chewing on a rawhide. watch those because dogs don't digest them and they can cause all kinds of problems!

congrats, can't wait for more pictures!
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Old dog poops when new dog came home
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I also agree about elevating the older dog to a dominant position in the house. When our dog died, and we brought in a new companion for Ricky, we intentionally always went to Ricky first, and said so. Ricky, let's go outside. Our pup learned to "wait for Ricky" as he would walk proudly out the door first. When we fed them, we would say Ricky eats first. Actually we only set down his bowl first, then fed the pup. Even now a year later, we always let Ricky go first and make a big deal of it. Blaze knows nothing else. Ricky leaves and enters the house first. He eats first and gets in and out of the van first. We brush him first and pet him first. Even if Blaze runs up to us to the gate first, we often will stop petting him and pet Ricky when he arrives. All of our dogs are lap dogs. We just sit on the floor. In time when the older one feels more comfortable, the little dog may be a more exclusive lap dog, but for now, I would sit on the floor, and pet the older one first. We keep our dogs in the most popular area of our house, so we go to them. They are rarely alone, but we do not allow them into our living room or bedrooms. Those are off limits, so we don't have dogs with us 24 hours, and we sleep without dog dander since we are very allergic. Therefore we can easily declare that Ricky is first in whatever we do. I don't think you will have a problem after a couple of weeks. If you do, you might consider discussing this with the Vet to see if there is a mild medication you can give your older dog for anxiety. One more thing - when we were walking our dogs, Ricky used to always poop. We would scoop it up, and walk with it. Once my husband hurt his back and had to stop walking with us for a couple of weeks, I quickly got tired of this process. Before our walks I would take the dogs out as usual, and I began telling Ricky to do his business. He would walk inside, and I would call him out. I kept telling him to do his business, and he began doing it. Now he understand that he must do it before we walk. We haven't needed the bags for about 6 weeks. It may be that your dog is performing for you in a more dramatic fashion than the pup can do. You might keep the dog outside with you (and not the young dog), and insist that he poops before he comes in. Even give him a treat if he performs for you. We all know that a dog's brain is wired completely different from ours. Sammy
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Fl-CountryB, You are in a difficult situation. You miss Rocky. You miss her more than Holly does. Holly misses her but dogs seem to have a sense of acceptance about death that we as humans don't. I suspect bringing Buddy home was more for your comfort. This is okay. Thousands of dog lovers do this. We can't help it. We love our dog packs. I have had the good fortune of always adding a puppy to the pack. The puppy has to work for and learn who is boss. I will say I have one male who still tries to challenge the top female. She is old and frail but she is still top dog and number 2 knows this. No one has ever bitten. But there was plenty of wrestling, playing and at times a nip would occur that would make someone yelp. Biting means they have forgotten you are the TRUE boss. It's easy to do. You had two old dogs and they knew the routine. Now, you have to start all over. I would not fret too much. Things will work out but you have to be the Top Alpha in this pack family of yours. Hard work but you can do it. There are two ways to go with this. Different dog trainers use different paths. 1) The first path is You are the alpha who choose the totem pole order.... Holly needs to respect your orders not act like she can push Buddy around. This does not mean that Buddy should not be pushed. He needs to learn your top dog. Buddy is trying to find his place and push her to the max. He wants to find his boundaries. All new dogs and puppies do this. And you can decide which should be number 2. If you decide it is Holly. Buddy will need to visit the crate more often for time outs, he will need to be fed 2nd, get in the car 2nd, he will need to be leashed more and respectful of his place. Since you are the alpha you dictate who does what, where, when, how. Holly will feel happy not to be displaced. She might even be nice to Buddy when you are not looking. And in time she may come to take a nap next to him. Give her time to realize her place will always be #1. Buddy will have to accept this and he will come to respect Holly or he goes to the crate. I personally think this path is the best in your situation because Holly is older and needs your support being top girl. And with her happy, Buddy will fall into acceptance. he is the new roomie after all. 2) The second path or dog training option is to let them work it out.... ( I do not think this path is for you but let me explain so you can decide.) This may be the most difficult . It hurts to watch nature. This is easy to do when adding a new puppy. Puppies never challenge an alpha so the order is set. 2 adult dogs vying for the Alpha spot. Holly has a lot to loose and Buddy wants to survive. All interesting dynamics with a violent nature. If you have a big yard that is the place to "fight it out". Have a friend nearby to help watch them play and possibly call 911 if you get hurt separating them. They COULD work it out. I say COULD because with two adult dogs the fighting could start up again a month from now. Or even 6 months from now. The unknowns are there. If Buddy does win you need to let him be the new top dog. This means Holly has given up. She may be injured when she does this.. I must warn you it is painful to watch. It will be very hard because you are still mourning Rocky. We mourn our dogs centuries later. I still miss my first. But this is the nature of canines. If Buddy becomes number 1 he will need to be treated as such. You will mourn this change terribly with Holly. This is my personal reason for thinking you should go with number 1 path. You are the Alpha in number 1 and making a natural pecking order. Easier to do. Best of luck and don't give up on this. You can make a great home for both. Sorry to be so long, but I truly understand your woes. ~boxerpups
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So cute!!! You have gotten some very good advice here. Just remember, she is a rescue. That means she doesn't know you and your family yet. She may grieve for her first home, so be understanding. She doesn't know which door to use to go out for potty, so take her every few hours though the same door. Tell her it is potty time (or whatever you want to call it) and praise her when she does her job. Remember that she does not know how to tell you that she needs to go, so watch her for signals. My Emma will nudge me or sit in front of the leash at the door. I will say "do you need to potty?" and if so, she get excite that I understood. Feed her in the same spot, at the same time everyday. If she does not eat, pick it up after 1/2 hour. No healthy dog will starve to death! When she eats, praise again. Show her where her toys are located. Play with her to help bonding. (My Dylan, at 2 years old, never learned to play as a puppy with the first owners. It was so sad to see that) Take her on walks around the neighborhood, introduce her to the neighbors so they know she lives with you if she gets out and wanders. Let her meet the doggy neighbors too. When walking back home, tell her she is going home, repeatedly. She will learn where she lives that way. Soon, she will lead you home! Bring her to the vet you use for a non-medical visit. It takes the scary away for a med visit. Go for car rides to dog friendly places, like the pet store, hairdresser, senior centers. bank drive throughs. It builds her confidence. Rescues come with "baggage". Help her work through it and forget the past. And most importantly, thank you for giving Penny a forever home. May you have many years of love with her.
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weed30 St. Louis
13 years ago
Congratulations! He is GORGEOUS! Name him anything you want - he will learn quickly, guaranteed. Please keep us posted often about his progress.

And I agree about the rawhide. They can cause blockages, and the bleached ones probably have been treated with stuff you don't want your dog to be eating. Many rawhides are also made in China.
prairie_love
13 years ago
Love the tail action! Congratulations to both of you for a perfect match.

I agree that the name doesn't even have to be similar - as soon as he learns that "new name" is associated with love and treats and all things good, he will adopt that name.
User
13 years ago
He looks good at that weight! With all due respect to long time owners, many people keep too much weight on their dogs. It is very easy to add weight if necessary, and quite difficult to take it off.

I've found that whether rawhide causes a problem or not is strictly on the individual dog. I've used rawhide bones with several of our dogs. The current two do not get them, however. Molly is allergic and Max actually does not like them.
Lily316
13 years ago
Congratulations.. Thing do happen very quickly and unexpectedly sometimes. Last week I had one dog and was supposed to meet a Dachshund the next day and tonight he has been here almost a week. I didn't expect to get him the day I saw him but this rescuer must have talked to my other dog's and my references weren't called. Don't worry about the name change. My guy is 3?? and his name was Parker. He has a huge red heart tag that says Wally, short for Walter. Suits him better. He was just neutered 10 days ago. I agree about the rawhide. I gave them to my dog once a week as a treat. Vet says NO, could cause blockage so I never do anymore. Good luck. My guys ignored each other but now are playing more. He was never crated but my dog came with a wire crate and loves it at night so I ordered the exact crate for this guy and he's in it right now on his own accord. It has a flat down pillow and a soft blanket on top.
mazer415
13 years ago
How about calling him Jester - he look like a card. BTW I love smooth coateds they are wonderful dogs easy to train, wonderful personalities - congrats and KUDOS to you for getting a dog in need of a new home
homebodymom
13 years ago
congratulations- he looks like a sweetheart. what a lucky dog!
christine1950
13 years ago
What a sweet new fur baby. I'm so happy he has found his forever home, your the best!!!
calliope
13 years ago
Agree with Handymac. This dog looks weight appropriate for his body-type. He's a gorgeous animal. Thrifty, clean appearance, great markings and good shape.
pamghatten
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks everyone ... so it's been a whole day! LOL!

He and Lily are buddies ... sometimes she has to put him in his place because he's still so young. But he is submissive to her, and she likes that.

That picture does make him look very good, it's different viewing him from the top .. but we'll see what the vet thinks Monday.

He's just a great happy dog ... we're all very happy!
Lily316
13 years ago
It always works out in the end. What was meant to be will be. You lost the other dog from someone's mistake, and I lost the dog I wanted because too many others wanted him. Now we have two different yet perfect dogs.Well.. almost. Wally does love to chase squirrels.
cindyandmocha
13 years ago
Oh my gosh what a handsome boy! He looks perfect. Please send us more pics of him interacting. I think you have a winner there!
petaloid
13 years ago
Darling doggie!
pamghatten
Original Author
13 years ago
He needs to sit still long enough to take pictures! LOL! He's such a wiggly guy. But I'll get more ...
pamghatten
Original Author
13 years ago
Here's one I managed to get ... he stood still for a couple of seconds ... LOL!

{{!gwi}}
kim_okla
13 years ago
Congratulations. He's beautiful. I like the blurry action of his tail, shows it's moving rapidly.

The last male I got I wanted to name Nate. Then I thought Nate, crate, that won't work. Wouldn't have mattered since I say "go kennel". Now I like the name Omar. But most of my dogs have ended in a Y. Roxy, Murphy, Buddy, Chelsey.
weed30 St. Louis
13 years ago
He looks like a 'Ben' to me.
donaldsg
13 years ago
Call him Loki. Then you'll have Lilly and Loki (nice alliteration!) and it sounds close enough to Rocky that he might recognize it as his name easily. Or Rory is a good Scottish name for a collie :-) but he won't recognize it as easily. Or Robbie (also Scots) and that will sound a bit more like Rocky. Or Jock, but maybe that's too much of a Scottish Terrier name. (I'm just running with the Scottish theme here; I wish I still had my baby name books to look up more))

On the rawhide issue: my dogs (spaniels) have had no trouble with the flat strips, but I only give them one a day so maybe that is why I haven't seen any digestive problems. I find with the rolled up bone-shaped ones they tend to chew down to the knot and then the knot becomes a choking hazard. (Maybe if the dog does swallow the knot it can cause blockages, but otherwise they can digest them - it is just animal protein, after all) And those pressed composite type ones seem to cause the runs in my dogs so we avoid those as well.
And they absolutely love pigs ears and will devour them FAST, but those are fatty so keep them off your carpets!
Lily316
13 years ago
Google dog or old fashioned people names. All my pets have two syllables and end in ie or y. I say their names 100's of times a year and need something I like to say. My dog's name was Parker. My GS wanted Willie but I have a Lily so I went with Walter(Wally) because I needed an ID tag quickly. He's been here 8 days and already knows his new name. Other dog was Baily and I changed it to Ziggy. He learned his name in three days.
mazer415
13 years ago
Loki = Norse god of chaos or destruction.....eeep
flyingflower
13 years ago
A one year old dog who's never been to a vet, sheesh, good thing he won't have to live with that guy any longer. The vet will tell you if he's underweight or not. the expression on his face as he's looking into the camera is too cute. Congratulations, many happy years together!

New dog

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