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Buddy – Adopted

You must complete an adoption application with WBCR before we will consider you for one of our Border Collies (under the “adoption” link). Then go to our PayPal link to pay the $15.00 application fee. One of our volunteers will check your references, and then another will come to your home to meet you & your family in person before the board will vote on your application. If you are approved, we will arrange a time for you to meet the dog(s) you are interested in. If you decide he/she is perfect for you and the board agrees, we will schedule a day for you to pick up your Border Collie, sign adoption paperwork, and pay the $350 minimum adoption donation. This whole process may take a month or more, as all WBCR members are volunteers and we’re committed to making a perfect match for our border collies. Thanks for your patience!

Please contact Amy/Fran for more information on Buddy3 Year Old Male (Rochelle, IL) – Adoption Pending!

December 30

Buddy thoroughly enjoys his time at the dog park. Our yard is very small so we go often to let the dogs run. On the rare occasion that there‘s another dog there, Buddy makes friends quickly. He has great dog skills and finds confidence in being around other dogs. He seems to watch them to see how he should react in new situations. We heard him bark for the first time this past week when my dogs barked at someone pulling into our driveway. When Steve arrived at the dog park last week, Buddy was super happy to see him but had to greet the dogs before the human (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c5KrHY_HlYk). He also demonstrated how much he’s been enjoying toys lately, and how he doesn’t like to share 🙂 (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FIrvzqiaYlc)

December 26

Buddy was quite overwhelmed with our adult children being here for Christmas Eve. It’s typically just my husband, the dogs, and I at home, but suddenly there were 5 additional adults and an infant here, talking and laughing. Buddy retreated to another room and we allowed him to remain wherever he was comfortable. We could’ve crated him, but I wanted to give him the option of joining us if he got more comfortable as time went on. He did peek in on us a few times and switched rooms when we did, but he was certainly happy to see them leave. He has met new people and new dogs at the dog park – one or two at a time – without issue, but this amount of activity inside our house was a lot for him to handle.

Buddy’s Christmas Day was full of happy firsts though! He discovered the comforts of lounging on the couch. Although he might have lounged on the couch at his first home, in the time he’s been in foster care, he hasn’t even tried to jump up on ours. Our dogs are allowed on certain furniture at our house so he’s watched them do it for weeks. Buddy jumped up on the love seat and wiggled around until I thought he got comfortable (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=88fMJVXPAdI), only to switch to the other side and wiggle around so much that he fell off (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c-InMQZefBk). It didn’t deter him from later jumping up on the couch to snuggle beside my husband though. 🙂

He got his nails trimmed for the first time yesterday, too. He was very calm and permissive so I’m positive his previous family did this often. Everything new terrifies Buddy so the fact that he didn’t act like we were attempting to kill him tells us he’s used to grooming. His shorter hair makes brushing a breeze, but nail trims can be scary for some dogs. It was a nice surprise to find this is not something we have to teach him to accept.

Speaking of being terrified, Buddy is making strides in the car department. Regardless of where we’re headed or if our own dogs jump in first or not, Buddy has balked at even approaching the car. It takes several minutes and lots of happy encouragement just to get him within a few feet. The week before Christmas, I was able to put his (reluctant) front feet on the bumper and he jumped up from there. Yesterday, as we were leaving the dog park, Buddy jumped right up into the car for the first time, all by himself! We had a little party before shutting the door and heading home for yet another first: Buddy’s first bath at our house. He rolled in something disgusting at the dog park so, into the tub he went. Although he wasn’t relaxed, he only tried to jump out once. He smelled and looked so much better afterwards!

December 18

In the week Buddy’s been here, he’s worn a belly band while he’s loose in the house. Some days it stays dry, and some days it doesn’t. We went to the dog park to run (and pee!) freely a couple times last week but, so far, he’s just exploring, not really engaging with toys or the other dogs much. To be fair, the only dogs that are ever there are ones he’s living with so they’re kind of boring. After playing there for an hour though, he slept all afternoon and evening, snuggled up on a giant, fluffy dog bed.

Buddy did pick up a ball at our house over the weekend, but he seemed to want to chew it rather than play with it. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LUpUt7hZttE It was nice to see him start acting more like a dog though. This weekend he also started putting his paws on us when he got excited He’s getting braver! He’s a pro on both sets of our stairs now, but car rides are still very scary. We have to pick him up and put him in the car, and he continues to drool excessively the entire ride. Buddy went to the vet for a check-up and neuter surgery today, and he was incredibly scared to get in the car and to enter the building. Once there, he stayed low and slow but sniffed around the lobby and entered the exam room on his own accord. His ears stayed back and his eyes stayed wide, but he took it all in and eventually relaxed on the floor with his head on my leg. He even took a treat before walking to the back to get his blood drawn. The tech called me after surgery to let me know “sweet Buddy” was doing very well although she said he’s very timid. Once he recovers from surgery, we’ll dig deeper into socializing him. He requires a lot of time and patience right now in order to process new things on his own terms.

December 9

Buddy, a 3-year-old male, was one of 9 dogs that lived with a woman who rapidly developed dementia and was no longer able to care for herself or the pets she loved so much. By the time assistance was brought in, the dogs were being crated 23 hours/day, covered in feces, and literally dripping wet with urine. One saint of a woman coordinated rescue efforts for all the dogs as well as 3 horses. She was told Buddy has papers, but the family has been unable to locate them. She was also told Buddy has some herding experience although we don’t know how much.

Buddy was pretty stressed when he arrived at his foster home yesterday – excessively drooling, lip licking, yawning, and flattening himself over new things. And everything seems to be new. Buddy was thought to have never left the farm before rescue arrived. People are new. Noises are new. Stairs are new…and very, very scary. He had to be carried up and down the stairs for the first few hours but, with lots of patience and encouragement, by bedtime he was walking up AND down them – albeit tentatively. Everything else simply takes him a minute to gather his courage and another minute to realize his bravery was worth it. For example, taking the coffee mugs out of the cabinet this morning caused him to run in the opposite direction. When we held one out for him to sniff, he stood still to think about it for a few seconds, cautiously leaned towards it with his back feet anchored, sniffed the air, retreated, then, on his second approach, decided it wasn’t so bad and sat at my feet to be petted. The noise of the coffee grinder made him pee a little though so I brought him upstairs while that went on. No need to push him too much this early.

Other dogs are not new to Buddy so individual introductions to his foster siblings were simple and uneventful. He even got a tail wag from the 16-year-old arthritic dog 🙂 Buddy spent almost an hour out in the yard, wrestling and playing with the resident 3-year-old. Being the same age with similar play styles, they played pretty rough, but I never felt I had to break it up. They were both having lots of fun! Buddy readily ate his dinner, enters his crate willingly, and waits to be leashed before exiting his crate. He was quiet all night long but thought it wasn’t fair that he was still in his crate while the others played after breakfast. For now, Buddy has to be crated when we can’t pay 100% attention to him because he marks (ie: lifts his leg and pees a little). We’re teaching him that’s not acceptable in the house, and he will be neutered next week, but we have to be diligent so he doesn’t learn wrong things. He’s a super sweet guy that loves to be pet and gives tiny little kisses. He laid his head in my lap last night when I sat on the floor, and he started to fall asleep as I stroked his head. Our main focus at this point is socializing him, exposing him to all life has to offer, and showing him how great the world can be.