Izzy is a great dog. I’m so happy with her. Kalissa is teasing me that I am going to be a foster fail the first time out. HA! Who knows, I might be.
She is great in the kennel and has slept in there overnight without a single sound from her. I put her in at about 10:30 pm and let her out at 7 am and no accidents or whining. She doesn’t voluntarily go in the kennel when I say kennel up but she doesn’t fight it either. I’m taking that all as a win from a dog who has spent its entire life outside.
I have a few pictures from the day I picked Izzy up and thought I’d share them with you.
This is Izzy getting a bath. Even after her bath she still has a horse barn scent to her but that will all be better after grooming and if not, I’ll give her another bath then. I don’t want to dry out her skin with too many baths.
These are the other pups that came with Izzy. The other black gal is smaller and her name is Cookie. The mixed-color merle is named Porter. Both of them were very mellow at intake.
I’m guessing that Porter and Izzy were from the same litter. They are similar in size and looks but just not coloring. He’s slightly bigger but being a male, he just might be. Oh, I would love to know their lives before they got here…(well maybe not). They are supposed to be Aussie Doodles but under their circumstances, no one knows for sure. Cookie we’re thinking is much younger.
You can see Porter has two different colored eyes. At this point, he hadn’t had a bath. I love his coloring.
Here is Izzy after her bath and I combed her out. She still looked pretty rough.
Izzy has a groomer appointment tomorrow. I’ve never had a dog that has needed to be groomed so it’s a learning experience for me just like it is for Izzy. Thankfully she is super quiet in the car and not anxious like Rosie is.
We went on a walk last night. I’m trying really hard to train her and treat her exactly like I would my own dog. I want to make sure the family who gets her has her started on training.
One of the things I could do for her was to leash train her. Kalissa had called and asked what I was doing. I said I was going out the door and was going to walk Izzy. She said, “We’ll go with.” I told her I thought that was a bad idea as I wasn’t sure Izzy would make it down the block. My other attempts to take her outside to go potty were on a leash and Izzy didn’t think much of that. I was sure we’d only likely make it down the block….but Izzy surprised me!
She was an awesome walker…for the first time. She was scared of many of the sounds she heard… lawnmowers, barking dogs, cars, the bridge…so many things. She came from an Amish farm so of course all of these things were new and different. I think the bit of uncertainty made her want to be with me all the more and that kept her walking. We ended up making it the five blocks to Kalissa’s house.
Kalissa and the boys ended up wanting to go on a walk with us. They were so surprised to see Izzy with me. We ended up walking to the Event Center parking lot (the boys road bikes) and then the boys rode in the parking lot while Izzy learned about moving bikes.
Gannon continues to be totally in love with her and Izzy doesn’t mind him a bit.
Rosie is learning to take turns and Izzy was learning to sit. It’s so different having a dog that isn’t food hungry like Rosie is and all of the beagles I’ve had are.
You can see that Izzy doesn’t walk right up even with me but she totally follows along and for now, that’s progress. It might look a bit in the picture like I’m pulling her but I’m really not.
…and the longer we walked, the more she kept up with me.
She has great potential to be a cross-stitch dog. I put her on the dog bed on the couch and pulled it up next to me. She stayed right there and did great. She’s so calm.
Overnight she was in the kennel from 10:30 pm to 7 am. She didn’t fuss a peep. I had been a little worried as in the past we had foster dogs that howled overnight.
No accidents in the kennel…no accidents at all so far. That’s amazing to me as she lived her life outdoors. She is liking toys so that’s fun.
Rosie is doing okay with her. They aren’t huge buddies and play but they sniff an awful lot. As I am here writing this post, Rosie is on my left in a dog bed…
…and Izzy on the right.
So far everything is going fantastically…A little too good to be honest. Tomorrow Izzy goes to the groomer and I’m so curious how she’ll look after a trim.
For now, this is going AMAZING!! I’ll share more about Izzy and her new hairdo in an upcoming post.
Izzy sure sounds like an ideal little dog – so cute. I think you have the cutest one of those three. It must be really different for you to have such a calm dog after what you went through when Rosie was a pup. She is so cute with her hair/fur like it is, but she will still be cute after her “doo.”
Izzy sounds like the perfect houseguest and smart too! Maybe she’s found the perfect home?????
How sweet
Keep up the great job. You landed a “winner” in my book; so did Rosie and Izzy.
Hope Izzy continues to do great.
Looks like she’s adjusting good.
She’s so cute—and it is wonderful that she’s calm-likes kids and is doing so well with you. I wondered how Rosie reacted!! Anxious to see what she looks like after visit to groomer… hope that is a good experience.
This is so sweet. You are going to end up with Issy I’m sure! Or Gannon will!
Issy is one smart dog…..I am amazed that she has such a sense of how to be around people.. What a sweet dog…
Hi Jo, kudos to you being a foster mom! My daughter has an Aussie doodle that is (and has been since day one) very chill as well, and super smart! It’s a really great breed and wonderful with children. All the best to you all!
I had to laugh about Rosie on the right, a Dion song came to mind, The Wanderer..
Oh well I’m the type of guy who will never settle down
Where pretty girls are well, you know that I’m around
I kiss ’em and I love ’em ’cause to me they’re all the same
I hug ’em and I squeeze ’em they don’t even know my name
They call me the wanderer, yeah the wanderer
I roam around around around
Oh well there’s Flo on my left and there’s Mary on my right
And Janie is the girl with that I’ll be with tonight
And when she asks me which one I love the best
I tear open my shirt I got Rosie on my chest
‘Cause I’m the wanderer yeah the wanderer
I roam around around around
I Shouldn’t be reading these posts. I had a brother and sister Shiatsu and had to leave them in Montana when I left there and moved to MN.That was so hard, I had had them for 11 years. I still tear up. I am living in a senior apartment now, we can have pets for a fee, My best friend has a small Shiatsu mix, she was a rescue too. She stops at my apartment each night after her last trip outside for her Cheerio treats!! Seeing these pictures make me want to drive down and get her! I said I wouldn’t get another dog. i will be praying
She is made up of the 2 most intelligent breeds. Sounds like she’s living up to both pedigrees. Both are very active/playful so I suspect she will enjoy a good run/play when she’s gotten her sea legs. Now, I’m a retired groomer and hoping you’re not taking her to a chain, they train on the job and use cage dryers which may be too much for Izzy right now. Ask if they dry by hand (with a forced air dryer). Has she been checked/treated for fleas and ticks? An outside dog nearly always has at least 1 of them. Make sure they check her and remove the ticks. Decide now how you want her cut. I suggest shaved paws, head and tail left long but trimmed, ears trimmed, and legs cut close. A generalized poodle cut. She has less chance of tangles and matting this way and may not need another groom for 3-4 months, depends how much poodle hair she has. Make sure they understand her history so they take some extra time with her. A busy shop will have her at least 4 hrs. and it’s a noisy place. Give her extra love when you pick her up, she’ll need it. Dogs who’ve been groomed since pups are usually fine with visits but an older dog or 1 who gets groomed once in a while can get really traumatized. She’s bright, she will probably do great and just take it all in but this has been a lot of stuff thrown at her in a short time. I groomed in my home so they could have the run of the house or play with my dog if they had to wait. I had a cage…I think I used it once for a dog so shy she would always hide from me, lol! I’m looking forward to the pictures of her new look. Oh, I have a feeling this will be a foster fail, she’s a special dog.
This is such great advice.
No worries Charlotte. We live very rural. There are not dog chain groomers within an hours drive. The groomer was great with her. I stayed and visited with the groomer the whole time she worked.
That sweet little pup has fallen in love with you – she’s eager to please you and wants to be with you all the time. How wonderful that the two pups are good together. I would not be surprised in the least if you end up keeping her for yourself! She’s just as sweet as Rosie is!
That sweet little pup has fallen in love with you – she’s eager to please you and wants to be with you all the time. How wonderful that the two pups are good together. I would not be surprised in the least if you end up keeping her for yourself! She’s just as sweet as Rosie is.
What a dear, loyal creature you have on your hands. Her personality and habits are appealing and loveable. It would be so difficult to part with such a sweetheart.
Izzy is fortunate that she has you and that you are setting her for future successes in her dog life.
I think you both won the lottery! New beginnings and happy endings. Blessings!
She’s adorable!! She’s in a good home and she’s a lucky pup. Hugs,
I think Gannon has made a huge connection that is very healthy for him. I think Gannon has an Izzy and Izzy has a Gannon
We had our Pete for 14 years he passed over the rainbow bridge 6 month ago. We miss him still, we would like another puppy but the right one hasn’t come around yet.. I think you are great to take Izzy in. Won’t you get attached to him and want to keep him?
Jo, Izzy is too awesome not to keep! God bless you for taking her in.
OMG. Saw her grooming on Heart, Even more adorable.
Izzy is a sweetie. I even inquired if Heart adopts out of state, and they do! I’m going to fill out the adoption form.
She is so cute. Sadly, I have never heard anything good about Amish dog breeders.
I love your blog but it no longer comes to my email address and I have re signed up a half dozen times. I miss your adventures. I have been a fan of yours for a long time now.
OMG, I’m smitten! Izzy is so adorable and Porter and Cookie. I love the ‘bad hair day’ look in dogs!
Izzy seems to be an awesome dog and it sounds like she and Rosie will be best buds! For the dog/barn odor, try Chi shampoo for dogs. I use it on both my dogs and they will smell great for up to a couple weeks! One of my dogs is a doodle also. When we get him groomed, I ask for a doodle cut. Most groomers know what that is. Best of luck to you, Izzy and Rosie and most importantly, have fun!