MEET "ROO"

[at6]

Introducing my new foster dog, Roo.She is a "special needs" dog because of a disc problem in her back.From what the Kings County shelter people told me, she is a Pug mix approximately 1 year old and had been at their shelter for 7 months. Based on that, I would have to say that she has pretty much spent her whole life there. At the Super Adoption event here in Fresno at Valley Animal Center, I was asked to foster her since we are better equipped to care for her and possibly get her adopted out. People looked at her Saturday and really liked her but the special needs killed the deal every time. That why she spent 7 months with them. I will foster her for as long needed.

 

[fubar57]

Nice looking little dog Larry. She's in very good hands

 

[Airframes]

Agreed.

 

[vikingBerserker]

Larry, you're a class act.

 

[Thorlifter]

Very nice!

 

[Old Wizard]

 

[Gnomey]

Nice one!

 

[mikewint]

Larry, it is a truly wonderful thing that you are doing. Her being so young and small should have seen her adopted long ago. Her lack of being adopted shows how few are the human willing to assume a "burden".
You are a very special person

 

[Capt. Vick]

Nice little pup!

 

[at6]

Thank you all. I can't adopt her as my own budget is stretched to the limit with my other three dogs. The "dole" just doesn't go as far as it used to. She will likely be with me until she's adopted, but if no one will take her due to her "special needs" status, she might be with me permanently. That remains to be seen. It's all up to the shelter from this point on. I'm having potty train her and being as smart as she is,she is starting catch on to the idea that the house is not a kennel. Even if I don't get to keep her, I hope that when and if she gets adopted that her next family will appreciate her special qualities as she is a really sweet little girl.

 

[Wayne Little]

Doin' a good thing...

 

[at6]

I'm supposed to find out soon whether or not she will be placed with me as a long term foster which could be a permanent foster. That will depend on what the shelter vets find when they examine her. She does have her challenges such as not always knowing when she will drop a Baby Ruth and then eating it before I can return with tissue to pick it up. I guess you know that she doesn't get to give kisses.

 

[mikewint]

I've heard that they will do that if something is missing in their diet, though with today's foods it's hard to fathom what that could be. Around here my pooches FAVORITE dessert treat is deer poop...must be better than steak the way the'll go after it

 

[at6]

I think poop eating is a habit from being in a shelter for most of her short life. She's still a puppy.

 

[mikewint]

When it occurs in puppies, coprophagia is generally considered part of the process of exploring the world around them. Most will be satisfied with a sniff, but a few will want, like human children, to put everything in their mouths. One bizarre fact: Dogs will rarely eat soft, poorly formed stools or diarrhea. They appear to be attracted most to hard stools. Frozen ones, in particular, are gulped down with relish. There is a reason why dog owners have coined the term, "poopsicle."
In his study, Hart made some other observations about why dogs eat poop:
Coprophagia was more common in multi-dog households. In single-dog homes, only 20 percent of dogs had the habit, while in homes with three dogs, that rose to 33 percent.
Poop eaters are no harder to house train than any other dogs.
Females are more likely to eat poop, and intact males were least likely.
92 percent of poop eaters want fresh stuff, only one to two days old.
85 percent of poop eaters will not eat their own feces, only that of other dogs.
Greedy eaters—dogs who steal food off tables—tend to also be poop eaters.

In many cases, dogs start to eat their own poop because of some kind of environmental stress or behavioral triggers, including:
Isolation: Studies have shown that dogs who are kept alone in kennels or basements are more likely to eat poop than those dogs who live close to their people.
Restrictive confinement: Spending too much time confined in a small spaces can cause the problem. It's not unusual to see coprophagia in dogs rescued from crowded shelters.
Anxiety: often a result of a person using punishment or harsh methods during housetraining. According to this theory, dogs may eliminate and then eat their own poop to get rid of the evidence, but then they are punished more. It becomes a vicious cycle.
Attention-seeking: Dogs eat their own poop to get a reaction from their humans, which they inevitably will. So if you see your dog doing this, don't overreact.
Inappropriate association with real food: Dogs who are fed in close proximity to their feces may make a connection between the odors of food and those of poop and will be unable to tell the difference.
Scenting it on their mothers: Lindsay writes that in some cases, puppies will get confused by sniffing fecal odors on their mother's breath after she has cleaned them. Also, sometimes mothers may regurgitate food that is mixed with puppy fecal matter. He calls this an "appetitive inoculation," which may set a puppy up to develop this bad habit.

Living with a sick or elderly dog: Sometimes a healthy dog will consume stools from a weaker canine member of the household, especially in cases of fecal incontinence. Scientists hypothesize that this may be related to the instinct to protect the pack from predators.

 

[Lucky13]

Nice one!
She's in good home now....