FREE WITH EVERY PUPPY...

It seems like every time I pick up a puppy from a shelter they always come with something extra, a case of kennel cough, and it was no different this time.

Poor Tonka, he was just neutered on Tuesday and now he's a sick little boy.  I started noticing some congestion and sneezing, so on Friday morning, when I was sure it wasn't just my worry-wart nature imagining what wasn't there, I called the Western PA Humane Society and they said I could pick up some antibiotics for him.

So this means Tonka will stay with us a bit longer than originally planned, as we'll have to make sure he's totally healthy and not able to infect any dogs that he comes into contact with at his new home.  Tonka is such a sweet, wonderful puppy that we don't mind keeping him around, but he needs to start his new life with his forever family as soon as possible.

Luckily, I always quarantine foster dogs that come to our home for a few days to a week or more depending on the circumstances they are coming from and so my dogs have had next to no contact with Tonka and should not get sick and I hope that that is the case. 

I'm disappointed that Tonka will be remaining in quarantine and not joining the rest of us for our evenings in the living room until it is safe for my dogs to be around him.  I am happy, though, that we were able to set up a puppy apartment for Tonka in the basement where he should stay happy and safe during his healing time.

About a week before Tonka came to us I had ordered and received an ex-pen in anticipation of getting my own puppy next year.  We also have a very large crate, large enough for a Great Dane, that we use when we have dogs staying for a day or two.  We fastened the ex-pen to the large crate so that he has the use of the crate and also a wonderful play area so that he is not stuck in a small crate for the majority of the day.  Tonka is paper trained, so we put down papers and are allowing him to have some freedom while he is sick.  It's an easy area to clean and it seems to be working out very well.

At night we have a smaller crate we put Tonka in and last night we brought it upstairs since it was a very chilly night.  He sleeps well in the smaller crate and never makes a mess in it.  Once he's well and able to come upstairs full time we'll keep him in the smaller crate and get him fully potty trained, a process that I think will be easy as he seems to have the basic idea.

We take time to exercise him outside as often as possible and I go downstairs to play with him a couple times a day.  Tonka continues to work on his sit, bite inhibition and name recognition.  He is a fast learner and loves attention.  He also loves to play tug and fetch with his toys and this morning I added a ball to his collection of toys.  

This pup is nothing but fun!  I see no signs of separation anxiety, food aggression or other problems often seen in dogs that come into rescue and I just can't imagine why and/or how someone could give him up.  He's the best!