Odette is a- (when we got her) 9 week old
- 2.365 kg light
- Collie mix (whose face also looks like she may be a Cocker Spaniel, her coat reminds me a bit of a German Shepherd and the vet said she might be a Beagle too...)
Sam and I picked her up on January 7th right after we got back from Europe - Odette just needed a home for some TLC (tender loving care) to fatten up before she got spayed. She came from a shelter in Quinte along with her brother (who was double her size) and before she could go out to adoption she had to be spayed, but for that she had to gain some more weight.
How did we get her:
Before Sam and I left we brought back Watson, we also told the THS people, that if they ever had a dog with behavioural issues I would love to try it out - or of course puppies are always welcome as an easy break. I got an email a few days before we left that there was a puppy in need of a foster home for 1-2 weeks (which in the end turned out to be 5-6 weeks), we immediately agreed and picked her up the day after we got back from Europe.
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| Cuddling at 9 weeks |
The reason she is our last foster is because we are going to adopt her. When we re-named her from Rose to Odette on the second day we kind of realized she wasn't going back.
The daily life:
I know with our last puppy (Anook) I deemed them all as stupid. This puppy is crazy smart ! She knows to go outside and after 2 weeks of us properly trying to teach her not to pee inside, she only has an accident when we forget to take her out. She first only ate food that had cat food in it, now we got her on the healthy stuff, which is awesome. I've also been doing clicker-training with her and she already knows how to sit on command (and to stay and she does it REALLY well) and we are working on "heel" and "down" - oh and she's bilingual because I can't decide on a language I want to use with her.
The dog:
Odette is crazy smart. She learns very quickly and she is very obedient. She loves to play with her toys and when she's done she always brings one after the other back to her little bed. In the morning and at night she wants to come into the bed (not to cuddle but to destroy you). The moments when you want to cuddle most, she wants to play and bites your hand... During the night and when we leave her alone she's in her little kennel and it is locked. She is not anxious when we leave and she is completely quiet. She loves absolutely every person and every animal (especially cats !!).
As for second and third name, we don't really have one yet so I'll update it once we do.
As for the last 2 sections, they will not happen here as we are not giving her back. It has been an amazing time to foster and we have met the most amazing and good-hearted dogs. We have also met dogs that weren't as good-hearted and that had attitude issues (Polly) but they showed us that any dog can be dealt with and that every dog will find a home (speaking of, Pretty is still waiting for adoption !!).
This blog will now be turned into a blog about Odette, her adventures, especially if I end up turning her into a SAR - search and rescue - dog as I have planned. I will also continue the series of "thinking of getting a dog" - now with even more personal experience ! It will include more sections on money, how to deal with behavioural issues, how to train your dog, what it takes to travel with your dog to other countries, etc...
I hope that everyone who has visited this blog regularly will continue to do so. The ads are on here for a reason - I get money for them. When I reach $100 I get a cheque and that money will go towards the Toronto Humane Society, so please keep reading !
A little update, we officially adopted her on February 13th !
A little update, we officially adopted her on February 13th !
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| 9 weeks old and already knows when she did something bad... |
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| This was on the first day, after bringing her home. |
