And so the exodus of quality expats begins. This time it's personal

[Nienke]

..dle

and well, Lulu the poodle, female, estimated at about 2 years old.

Lovely little creature. Full of life. Rescued from a neglectful life by two wonderful ladies, Gill and Teresa, and now with me.

She goes quite well with dogs and cats. At Gill's place she has stayed with lots of cats with no problems. At my place she has been introduced to dogs of all sizes, from St. Bernard to Chihuahua size. Initially she felt intimidated by the big ones, but not anymore. Have taken her to both Tuskers and yesterday to the Writer's Club, and she loves all people young and old.

As being a rescue dog she comes with some baggage, though. She's had been treated for E. canis (tick disease) and pyoderma (infection of the uterus). Then she was spayed and operated for Patella luxation (problems with her knee caps; to put it in simple words). The latter doesn't prevent her from playing rough-and-tumble with the Chi, jumping on the cough, your lap, or ...ahum... over a 1,5 meter fence.

Her biggest problem is her craving for attention. This has turned into obsessive licking of hands arms and feet or any other body part she get reach. The behavior is a result of her insecurity. When this behavior is corrected with aversive methods her anxiety increases together with the obsessive licking. Also, when this attention seeking is not managed properly she may claim you as being hers and growls and snaps the other dogs away.

So, better to use positive reinforcement, ignore the undesired behavior and teach her how to relax. The method is, in fact, very easy. The difficulty lies in the consistency and patience, and giving her the time she needs to gain confidence and change her obsessive behavior in some other desired one, which can take several weeks to maybe a few months (but then thinking that raising a pup can take up to two years as well, where's the difference?). So far so good, as she hasn't growled or snapped at any of the dogs yet.

She loves clicker training and doing activities together with you or just lay next to you while you watch television or read a book.

Lulu would be most comfortable in a household as a single dog or with 1 or 2 other smaller dogs and/or cats with only adults or a family with older kids.

As said before young kids are fine, but for the parents it will give most probably more time and effort to modify her undesired behavior, which has to be kept in mind. And in a household with more dogs or cats and larger dogs, she most probably will need more time to adapt.

The adoption process goes through Teresa. So, if you are interested in this wonderful little creature, please give her a call: 087 zero 34 four067

For the pic's I needed to thigh her up (hence the chain you can see on the pic's), as it is a bit difficult to make good ones while she is in your lap. And her little friend insisted to be on the pic as well. NOT for adoption though.

[treesaregreen]

Thanks Nienke :jap:

Lulu looking a little overgrown... she's definitely in need of a groom which I know you already have planned

For anyone interested you can see how adorable she looks here when she's groomed:

http://picasaweb.goo...feat=directlink

or more info at:

http://www.carefordo...eter-than-this/

Her cute little friend seems to reeeealllly like her. Lulu doesn't look impressed... very funny!

Thanks for the outings to Tuskers etc. I bet she loved that. It seems you are becoming quite attached... careful, she's addictive. That's why I love her so much. I hope we can find the perfect home full of the love & attention she deserves soon. She's such a wonderful dog who will make the right person very happy.

(A slight correction on your post... the infection in her uterus was Pyometra, not Pyoderma).

If anyone is interested in Lulu then please call me on 087 034 4067.

Teresa

[Nienke]

Personally I like the 'wild' or 'overgrown' look of a poodle, making her look more like a dog than a toy.

But ... a little shorter than it is now makes it easier to take care. She just got a bath and this evening or tomorrow I'll cut her coat a bit shorter.

You're totally right about the pyometra. Slip of the mind, while I was cursing the internet connection this morning as it was bl**** slow.

And yes, little Star just loves his new friend (and vice versa). Very cute to see when they play tug-of-war with Lulu just a 'tad' stronger than he is, swinging him from side to side. And don't think he will let go of -what he thinks- is HIS toy. Quite a character, the little one.

[eek]

Nice title Nienke

Lulu's super long tongue cracks me up!

Hope she finds a happy home.

[treesaregreen]

Yes I agree about dogs looking like dogs although in this case I do think Lulu looks sweeter and better looking when her hair is shorter.

I'm very interested and happy to hear about Star with Lulu. I was just having a conversation with Gill today about Lulu with other dogs. Gill commented that Lulu is not interested in other dogs, only humans. Although she loves human affection, I have only seen her with female dogs and none of the situations was positive. The white poodle, Mimi, at her original home, the other dogs at Gill's house and Cookie at her last home were all female and she either ignored them or there was fighting between them. I've been interested to see her with male dogs. We all know that pairing dogs of opposite sex generally get along better. I'm really pleased to hear that she's playing like she should be with another dog. This is very healthy for her and I think will help with her progress and obsession for affection. This is something to consider for her adoption.

I know what you mean about the internet... driving me nuts

[treesaregreen]

yeah her tongue is hilarious!

Nice title Nienke

Lulu's super long tongue cracks me up!

Hope she finds a happy home.

[greasemonkey]

What a cute little doggy. AATISHOO!!!!!

Fine when I had dogs, now cant even stroke one. CHOO!

[Nienke]

I was just having a conversation with Gill today about Lulu with other dogs. Gill commented that Lulu is not interested in other dogs, only humans. Although she loves human affection, I have only seen her with female dogs and none of the situations was positive. The white poodle, Mimi, at her original home, the other dogs at Gill's house and Cookie at her last home were all female and she either ignored them or there was fighting between them. I've been interested to see her with male dogs.

Interesting about Lulu not going along with the females. Until now that's *not* my experience with her.

Star is a male, 4 1/2 months old and small and very playful. So, she doesn't see him as a threat.

The females she is around with are a German Shepherd, a Pyrenees Mountain dog, a boxer, and 2 pugs. The GSD is the top female, the Pyrenees is sweet and mellow, the boxer is very gentle but won't back down if provoked, and both pugs are pretty domineering. Next to that there are the males: a GSD, a Golden retriever and a lab/rottie mix.

In the beginning of her arrival she was quite anxious about all that was new to her and preferred either to stay under a chair or bench or crawl almost in me for protection. If I would have allowed the latter for sure problems would have occurred. That doesn't mean that I just left her on her own all the time. Not at all, I managed the moments I gave loving attention (soft words, gentle petting, massage) carefully, but would not go into any attention-demanding behavior.

Now, a little less than two weeks later, she is just walking around the dogs and resting in between them. Yesterday she even started to play with the boxer, who's about 4 years old. It started with some cautious mouth wrestling (which I observed carefully, watching Lulu's reaction to the boxer's gentle play invitations), then she gained confidence and suddenly she got an energy boost and starting running around in my house like crazy with the boxer running after her and the Pyrenees trying very gently to play as well. Lulu clearly had fun.

We all know that pairing dogs of opposite sex generally get along better. I'm really pleased to hear that she's playing like she should be with another dog. This is very healthy for her and I think will help with her progress and obsession for affection. This is something to consider for her adoption.

I totally agree that by putting dogs of opposite sex together there is less chance on trouble.

And through the interaction and play with the other dogs and me together with the clear guidelines that Lulu and the other dogs receive she is already becoming calmer.

However, what I want to establish in NOT that Lulu will play and run with the other dogs, but if that's what Lulu wants then it's perfectly fine with me. What I'm working at is that she feels relaxed and calm in between the other dogs and with people.

Not all dogs want to play. For example, my GSD female, older dog with cancer, does not want to play. My male GSD, top male, and the St. Bernard (not introduced to Lulu yet) and both older dogs, also do not play with the dogs. However, all feel very comfortable, calm and confident. What they want or not want to do is up to them, as long as there is peace and calmness within the pack. And that's what ALL dogs want. It's the duty of the leader/s-of-the-pack to establish and keep this calmness in the pack.

And here comes in the interaction with owner/caretaker and dog/s which plays a very important role in how a dog (over)reacts towards people, other dogs, other animals and anything else in his/her environment. In most cases, by changing the owner's behavior towards the dog his/her misbehavior can be modified into a behavior one wants.

This should be done in a positive reinforcing way. The clicker is often a major help in that, as is also the case with Lulu. She is not there yet, that would be a miracle in such a short time, but she is definitely on the right track.

[Nienke]

What a cute little doggy. AATISHOO!!!!!

Fine when I had dogs, now cant even stroke one. CHOO!

I'm sorry about that.

But if it would be a non-shedding coat, such as a poodle coat, would you be doing a lot of AATISHOO also?

Some people with an allergy for dog or cat coats do not have a problem when the coat is non-shedding.

Just wondering.

[Blinky Bill]

yeah her tongue is hilarious!

Nice title Nienke

Lulu's super long tongue cracks me up!

Hope she finds a happy home.

A doggy version of Gene Simmons. He cracked a few up as well.

Edited July 30, 2010 by Blinky Bill

[treesaregreen]

Sooo funny Blinky Bill,

perhaps we should have named her Gene.

It must be terrible to be allergic to dogs. Nienke has a good point, there are a few dog breeds that do not shed their coat. It's worth looking into. Good luck.

yeah her tongue is hilarious!

Nice title Nienke

Lulu's super long tongue cracks me up!

Hope she finds a happy home.

A doggy version of Gene Simmons. He cracked a few up as well.

[onnut]

My dad had a dog he called Lulu, I asked why he called her that, and he said coz she is fat blond and can't sing!

Haha they were the days.

[treesaregreen]

Thanks Nienke for your very informative reply.

I think Lulu's time with you is helping her tremendously. What a lovely mix of dogs she has to play with. I'll come to visit soon, I'd love to meet the pack and talk more.

Thank you for your perseverance, observation, dedication and love you are giving to Lulu :jap:

I was just having a conversation with Gill today about Lulu with other dogs. Gill commented that Lulu is not interested in other dogs, only humans. Although she loves human affection, I have only seen her with female dogs and none of the situations was positive. The white poodle, Mimi, at her original home, the other dogs at Gill's house and Cookie at her last home were all female and she either ignored them or there was fighting between them. I've been interested to see her with male dogs.

Interesting about Lulu not going along with the females. Until now that's *not* my experience with her.

Star is a male, 4 1/2 months old and small and very playful. So, she doesn't see him as a threat.

The females she is around with are a German Shepherd, a Pyrenees Mountain dog, a boxer, and 2 pugs. The GSD is the top female, the Pyrenees is sweet and mellow, the boxer is very gentle but won't back down if provoked, and both pugs are pretty domineering. Next to that there are the males: a GSD, a Golden retriever and a lab/rottie mix.

In the beginning of her arrival she was quite anxious about all that was new to her and preferred either to stay under a chair or bench or crawl almost in me for protection. If I would have allowed the latter for sure problems would have occurred. That doesn't mean that I just left her on her own all the time. Not at all, I managed the moments I gave loving attention (soft words, gentle petting, massage) carefully, but would not go into any attention-demanding behavior.

Now, a little less than two weeks later, she is just walking around the dogs and resting in between them. Yesterday she even started to play with the boxer, who's about 4 years old. It started with some cautious mouth wrestling (which I observed carefully, watching Lulu's reaction to the boxer's gentle play invitations), then she gained confidence and suddenly she got an energy boost and starting running around in my house like crazy with the boxer running after her and the Pyrenees trying very gently to play as well. Lulu clearly had fun.

We all know that pairing dogs of opposite sex generally get along better. I'm really pleased to hear that she's playing like she should be with another dog. This is very healthy for her and I think will help with her progress and obsession for affection. This is something to consider for her adoption.

I totally agree that by putting dogs of opposite sex together there is less chance on trouble.

And through the interaction and play with the other dogs and me together with the clear guidelines that Lulu and the other dogs receive she is already becoming calmer.

However, what I want to establish in NOT that Lulu will play and run with the other dogs, but if that's what Lulu wants then it's perfectly fine with me. What I'm working at is that she feels relaxed and calm in between the other dogs and with people.

Not all dogs want to play. For example, my GSD female, older dog with cancer, does not want to play. My male GSD, top male, and the St. Bernard (not introduced to Lulu yet) and both older dogs, also do not play with the dogs. However, all feel very comfortable, calm and confident. What they want or not want to do is up to them, as long as there is peace and calmness within the pack. And that's what ALL dogs want. It's the duty of the leader/s-of-the-pack to establish and keep this calmness in the pack.

And here comes in the interaction with owner/caretaker and dog/s which plays a very important role in how a dog (over)reacts towards people, other dogs, other animals and anything else in his/her environment. In most cases, by changing the owner's behavior towards the dog his/her misbehavior can be modified into a behavior one wants.

This should be done in a positive reinforcing way. The clicker is often a major help in that, as is also the case with Lulu. She is not there yet, that would be a miracle in such a short time, but she is definitely on the right track.

[isanbirder]

Toy poodles can be lovely little dogs. I have a GSX, and a couple of months ago a black poodle landed on my doorstep. She's livening up the GSX no end, forcing him to go on walks, playing with him all times of the day (and most times of the night). A moment ago, she was sitting between his front paws watching me. If your dog is a bit lethargic, which mine was for various good reasons, get a toy poodle to liven him up. Only one drawback... I think my maid would whip her off home if given a chance!

[isanbirder]

Sorry... triplicate post!

Edited July 30, 2010 by isanbirder

[isanbirder]

Duplicate post!!

Edited July 30, 2010 by isanbirder

[isanbirder]

Quadruplicate post... I hit a chain reaction !

Edited July 30, 2010 by isanbirder

[treesaregreen]

Lulu is definitely a bundle of energy!!

Toy poodles can be lovely little dogs. I have a GSX, and a couple of months ago a black poodle landed on my doorstep. She's livening up the GSX no end, forcing him to go on walks, playing with him all times of the day (and most times of the night). A moment ago, she was sitting between his front paws watching me. If your dog is a bit lethargic, which mine was for various good reasons, get a toy poodle to liven him up. Only one drawback... I think my maid would whip her off home if given a chance!

[Nienke]

Bumping this thread as Lulu is still looking for a new home.

Lulu is doing a lot better behavioral-wise. She feels comfortable around the dogs and is having fun with them, running around the garden with the golden, the pyrenees, the boxer and the pug chasing after her. When it becomes too much, after all 3 of the other dogs are much bigger than she is, she disappears under the car, only to return and do the catch-me-if-you-can thing again a little later.

Obedience-wise she has improved as well. I only need to call her once and she is right at my feet. Haven't tried that out yet outside off-lead, though. She is perfectly toilet-trained. And her lick-obsession has decreased a lot also.

All in all, there's actually nothing wrong with this doggy other than she is still awaiting a permanent loving home.

If you are interested in Lulu, please call: 087 zero34 4zero67

[Nienke]

Bumping this thread, only to say that Lulu is adopted by a young lovely family!

Wonderful!

[SadieMBeagle]

Congratulations to Lulu and her new family!!!

Nienke, I will be calling you soon to help me with some issues regarding Sadie's new sister, Sweetie! They get along great, that's not the problem. But Sweetie is exhibiting the behaviors that you mentioned above - demanding attention and separation anxiety.

Talk to you soon...

M