Say Hello to Bambi, aka Jellybean! Her foster loves to call her Jilly! She is a sweet girl who loves the backyard at her foster home. She loves to run around with her foster sisters and enjoy all the sniffs. She hasn’t gotten to do that until recently because she was a mill dog and we rescued her off the auction block. Part of an ear is missing. She also needed vet care for her ears and paws, and they feel so much better now. Moving forward, her ears will need constant vigilance, and cleaning. Her right ear especially as it is missing the protective ear flap. Both ears are malformed. She hears well.
Jilly has a very sweet and gentle disposition, but she needs work with socialization, house training, leash training. Jilly is good about going potty outside. She has pee accidents sometimes because she is still learning about being inside a house all the time. Jilly says:” I’m working on being a ‘people’ dog. I’m curious about all people, but leery. I am learning that people means good food, nice blankets, and TREATS. I am curious about big people and small people. Sometimes there are small people behind my backyard. They run and play, someday I might want to run and play with them because it looks like fun! My foster sisters get very excited and run to the back fence to see them. They call me, and right now I am just going to wag my tail to let them know I am thinking about coming to the fence. Sometimes big people come to the house, but I just stand and look. Unless they have TREATS, then I will come close to get one. There is a very small person who comes, and my foster sisters LOVE her. I’m just watching though. I don’t know how she will treat me”. While Jilly does like being outside, it’s pretty much on her own terms right now. She is learning how to be on a leash but has not had many good experiences with leashes. So, a lot of patience and gentleness will help her going forward.
Jelly is still very skittish. Anti-anxiety meds are helping. She will come out to eat, if she hears the dogs barking, or if she hears me up and around and moving in the kitchen (treats!). If I call her and say “outside”, she will come. I tell her ‘Good girl!’ as often as possible. Most of the time right now, she is back in the corner of my room sleeping on the floor or she will get on the bed and sleep there. I am going to start blocking off the hallway so she will need to stay out with the dogs and I and start some socialization. She has the leash on for 30 minutes a day, I am breaking it up into 10- and 15-minute chunks. Mostly she just sits or lies on the floor and shakes. I am giving her a small treat as I put the leash on, and when I take it off. I have not put her in a kennel or crate, there isn’t one in the house now. Jelly rides ok in the car. She shakes but other than that lays on the seat. She probably hasn’t had many ‘good’ car rides. If I am sitting, she will come up and give my leg a nose bump if I do not look at or acknowledge her.
Jilly says: “I like my food, and my warm bed. Foster Mom lets me lay on her big bed with my foster sisters, but I still want to sleep on my own blankets. The rescue gave me a dental and I lost a few teeth but now that my mouth feels better, I like the chewy treats too. Going forward, I will need to have softer food, i.e. soaked kibble or canned food. I still have several teeth left but the vet has recommended that I do not eat hard kibble”. “It seems like life is going to be happier, and I need a family to help me on that journey! Another doggy around would be nice, but I would be ok on my own, too. I like quiet because a lot of noise and commotion reminds me of the old scary life, but I will need some encouragement to be more social. I hope that someone will want me to be their waggy tail and new love”!
The best home for Jilly should be one where: She can be outside several times a day. She hasn’t pooped inside but has peed several times. She does like to run around, chase the squirrels, and watch what is happening outside of the fence. “The best thing is the squirrels. If I stand very still, they come close... One day, I might catch one”! Jilly has made no attempt to escape. A fenced yard is a must since she will not yet accept a leash. Someone who is home and committed to taking her out frequently once she is comfortable on the leash will help as well.
Jilly can be around all types of people. She hasn’t shown any particular fear toward men or women, and she doesn’t seem to be frightened of children. Just very cautious about all people overall. Very watchful. She is good with dogs her size; I don’t know about bigger or smaller dogs. There are no cats in the house, but my dogs chase the ones that come into the yard as well as the squirrels. Jelly has seen this and might not differentiate.
