Tag Archives: rescue dogs

Shih Tzu Day 172: Personalized Dog Tags for the Shih Tzus

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which dog tags for the shih tzus 

dog tags and collars for Christmas.I have been saying for months that I wanted to get the shih tzus personalized dog tags. When we adopted Candy, Flower and Dottie from BFF Rescue, they came with a generic red collar and tags saying BFF Rescue, with the animal rescue’s number. Nigel did too.

I didn’t think about it that often, but sometimes when I saw a tag in a picture, I would think that it looked like they were still rescue dogs, and not dogs that had found their forever home.

Buying tags — and collars to match — for four shih tzus is slightly more expensive than buying them for one dog, so I kept putting it off. Today was our wedding anniversary, and after we celebrated with a nice Italian lunch, we did some Christmas shopping for our furry children. John and I looked at PetSmart for tags, but I wasn’t that thrilled about any of them. We went into Petco and I liked their selection better. It took us a while to decide what we wanted, but I eventually got Flower a peace tag, Candy a princess tag, Dottie one with a crown and Nigel one that said “stud.” We picked out a purple collar decorated with flowers for Flower, a pink one with polka dots for Dottie, a black one with skulls for Nigel and a blue one with a pink, paisley design for Candy.

I know the dogs won’t understand the significance of personalized dog tags, but I am happy that we finally accomplished that task. Of course, I hope no one ever has to identify the shih tzus by their tags, but just in case.

Shih Tzu Day 87: Sadie Shih Tzu Calling

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Goodnight Candy

shih tzu on porchWe did an experiment with Candy last night. When we went up to bed, I brought her up with me and sat her between us. She sat there, perfectly still. I didn’t think she would stay with us, but I wanted to see how long she would remain where I put her. When we turned out the lights, she sat there for about five minutes, and then silently wandered to the bottom of the bed and jumped off.

Who is that Man?

shih tzu on carpetEvidence that three dogs had peed on the training pads again this morning. Yeah! Another victory. Also, this morning, while we sat outside during the girls’ breakfast, John remarked that Flower hadn’t been barking at him when he came outside, like he used to do.

I realized that was true. That doesn’t mean that he never barks at him. He still does that, when he comes home from work, and if he puts on a visor or his glasses. I think he thinks he’s a different person then.

Pet Me!

Flower came up to me while we were outside, and as I petted her, John started petting her too. She didn’t back away. I don’t know if she didn’t know he was petting her, or if it was okay as long as I was petting her too.

shih tzu on carpetJohn and I went for a 30-mile bike ride this morning, and we were gone for three hours. We got home, took the dogs outside for a treat, and then left to go to lunch. After we came back, we decided we were a little tired and were going to take a nap.

Well, we tried. Dottie came up to get me. I could hear her nose sniffing in the hall. I finally decided I didn’t need a nap, and went downstairs to visit with them.

When I settled in on the couch, Flower jumped up, wanting her petting session. When I had to put my hands back on the keyboard she jumped down, but Faithful Dottie stayed. Candy came up to the couch, and I thought she might jump up, but she didn’t.

Sadie Shih Tzu Guest Blog

The Shih Tzu Sisters got a request today from Sadie Shih Tzu to guest blog on her blog. She said she wanted them to tell her readers what it is like being a rescue dog. I told her they would be happy to tell their story! Maybe it will encourage other people to adopt rescue dogs. We need to get her an article and pictures by October 1.

Shih Tzu Day 45: Foster Dog Difficulties

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our foster dog

I am still waiting for my forever home. We have been talking to Delores for a while about BFF Rescue finding Shiloh a more suitable dog foster home. I think that he would make someone a wonderful foster dog or “regular” dog. I don’t, however, think that we’re a good fit as dog foster parents for him.

Anyone who has come to visit over the three and a half weeks that Shiloh has been here has liked our foster dog. Everybody loves the fact that he is so playful. I like that he is playful, too, although I don’t like that the playfulness causes lots of scratches on my legs and arms.

This foster dog loves attention, and it is hard for me to divide my attention between the shih tzus and him. He also loves to ride in the car with me, but pet-friendly places are out, since he barks aggressively at other dogs. I like the fact that he wants to sleep with us, since the shih tzus haven’t shown that desire, but it does make for tension in the morning when I am trying to play with the shih tzus when they come upstairs and he jumps into the middle in his clumsy and playful way.

Delores agrees that the girls have waited for a good forever home for a while, and that things might be better without a foster dog around. She suggested we take him and another BFF Rescue foster dog, Oliver, to the farmers market in Golden and walk around, with the foster dogs in their “adopt me” harnesses, to see if anyone might be interested in adopting one of the rescue dogs.

It was a good idea, but Shiloh was the wrong foster dog to bring. He exhibited dog aggression, barking at random dogs. Delores suggested he might be barking at non-neutered dogs, and it did seem like that was mostly the case, although not all the time. We decided our foster dog wasn’t making many friends and ended up putting him in the car for a while. I think Lia is right in that Shiloh could benefit from discipline classes. Oliver, on the other hand, displayed a sweet disposition, and a few people stopped to inquire about him.

Dotty fights the leash again

Being at the farmers market and seeing all of the amiable dogs wandering around made me more determined to teach the shih tzus to walk on a leash. I brought Dottie out back and put the leash on her. She did go a few steps, in her attempt to get away from me, and then fought me. Candy was next. She actually ran around the yard a little, again, trying to escape, but making me believe that she might be the first leash dog. If it had been cooler out, I would have tried a little more, but I thought that was enough practice for the day.

Since Candy was nicely groomed and all ready on her leash, I picked her up and carried her next door, where the neighbors were having a post-wedding party. I didn’t set her down on the ground while we were there, but I did keep her there for about ten minutes. She didn’t seem to be nervous or afraid. I set her down when we got ready to leave, and she trotted back home behind us. Too bad I didn’t have my camcorder or camera handy.

When we came back home, I noticed that we had a call. Delores had talked to another foster parent and she was willing to take Shiloh in for a while. She came by and picked him up at 6. She asked if she could take the safety gate back that we had taken from Barbara’s. We had hooked it to ours to keep the dogs from climbing up the landscaped area in back and getting out of the yard, but we realized that Shiloh was the only one who could or would try. We unhooked it and rearranged the fencing

When Delores left, John cooked up the rest of the steak from last night’s dinner and used it for quesadillas. We shared a little of it with Candy and Dottie. For some reason, Flower wouldn’t come to get any. She is acting afraid of John again. When he called them, they ran right to him; she ran out of their safe zone with them, but ran right past, and then turned around and ran back to Shih Tzu Central. Some times I wonder if she’s just a little bit off — in a very cute way, though.