Dorg!

[mousme]

Sergeant (well, Sergent, but I think for the purposes of this LJ I'll stick to the English spelling) is now at home with me.



He's settling in pretty well. The cats are furious: Pan-Pan is hiding in the highest place he was able to find, Smudge has disappeared, and George is hissing sporadically at the proceedings from inside the recycling bin. Yeah, I don't know either.

Unfortunately, the poor guy is still waiting at the door for his Mommy and Daddy to come back. I'm going to take him for a walk in an hour or so in the hopes that this will cheer him up. His Mommy cried when she left, poor thing. I think this separation is going to be hard on all of them, but I have promised to email regular updates to them, and they live close enough that they can come visit if they want.

Comments

[blackmare.livejournal.com]

He's gorgeous. Such a sweet face.

Poor traumatized kitties! I hope they all adjust well, and soon. Oh, and I like the English spelling, which is the one that always looks correct to me even though I am American. I am not sure why this is; perhaps because I read a lot as a kid. I also think "cancelled" is correct.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

He's very sweet. The cats will adapt, I'm sure. ;)

What's the American spelling of sergeant? Is it not spelled the same way?

[blackmare.livejournal.com]

Er, I assumed it was the one without the "a," just because you'd specified Sergeant as the British spelling.

I'd have to look it up to be sure, though. Generally I am a human spellcheck program, but that's one of those few words I will consistently get confused on.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Hee! Oh, no, "Sergent" is the French spelling, it's not British. He comes from a French-Canadian family. :)

[elanya.livejournal.com]

OMG he is a beauuuutiful dog! I hope he settles in well!

[mousme.livejournal.com]

I hope so too! He's a great dog. :)

[sassy-fae.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, what a beautiful boy! He looks like a wonderful dog.

I feel bad that he and the cats are not settled, but I hope he'll enjoy the idea of having a new home and owner, and the cats will get over themselves ;)

I admit that I did laugh at the idea of George hissing in the recycling bin!

[mousme.livejournal.com]

He is very sweet, and I'm sure the cats will learn to cope. It's only been a few hours. We went for a walk and now the cats have all disappeared. ;)

[ai731.livejournal.com]

He's gorgeous! He's got more Husky looks in his face than Carter does, but the pattern & colouring on his chest & legs is very similar to Carter's. Once he has settled in, maybe you'll be able to bring him out here for a day so they can meet... If you need any advice on parenting a Husky/Collie, feel free to email us!

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Willdo absolutely. The poor guy is older than Carter was when you got him, and he's lived with his family for five years, so right now he's still waiting for them to come get him. I am trying to offer lots of pats but not really hover, and it's a difficult balance to strike.

I am sure he and Carter would have a great time on a play date together. If you guys are coming to Capricornucopia, we can chat about dates then. :)

[longpig.livejournal.com]

What a gorgeous boy. It may take him (and the cats!) a while to adjust but I am sure you all will do just fine. :) It took about 3 months for Sierra's true personality to come out completely after we got her - I guess it took her that long to realize she was staying with us for good. Sergent's circumstances are pretty different, though.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Isn't he handsome? I assume it'll take him a while to figure out that he's staying here with me instead of going back to his old home with his mummy and daddy. He's super sweet and good-natured, though, and it's hilarious to watch him try to make friends with the cats. I'm sure they'll all settle in eventually. The cats will emerge when they're hungry enough. ;)

[serenitylioness.livejournal.com]

awwwwww ♥ ♥ ♥

[mousme.livejournal.com]

He's cute, isn't he? :)

[primrose-1.livejournal.com]

What a gorgeous dog! How is the dog dealing with cats? We need to get a cat, but I'm afraid my dog would eat it.

[ai731.livejournal.com]

If your dog is generally good-natured and is good with children, then get a kitten. You'll need to watch them carefully for the first few days, just to make sure the dog doesn't accidentally hurt the kitten by stepping on it or something, but a smart dog understands that the kitten is a baby and will let it get away with murder. Our kitten would wrap all 4 paws around our dog's muzzle and chew on his gums.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

The dog is fascinated by the cats. Alas, they are reciprocating with unabashed hatred and much hissing and growling. I'm hoping they'll learn to cope. The dog is more interested in play than anything else.

[catsarah.livejournal.com]

What an absolutely gorgeous dog! Give him fluffy ruffles. <3

[catsarah.livejournal.com]

And also, he looks a bit like a husky/collie cross I had when I was young. We had Ruff from when I was about 4 or 5 til I was 14. Ruff was very loyal and hated when anyone cried. To demonstrate this to people we'd cover our face and pretend to cry. He'd leap on the cryer and force his muzzle between their hands so he could lick their faces like mad. It was a lovely endearing quality and I still miss him 30 years later.

And the cats will adjust. Once they discover the dog is not interested in them, or outright ignores him, they will get miffed and see if they can catch his interest again. I've seen this before. Hope it goes well. You might try Bach flower rescue remedy in their water though until you all settle. You too. It helps.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Heh. The dog is mesmerised by the cats and determined to make friends. Thus far about a dozen attempts at friendship have failed miserably, resulting in hissing, spitting, growling, and in one instance a determined attempt on Pan-Pan's part to eat the dog's face. The dog remains undeterred. The cats will cope, eventually.

Sergent is a sweet-natured dog, but he's having a lot of trouble adjusting to the fact that his mummy and daddy aren't coming back for him, so he spends a lot of time waiting by the front door for them.

[serenitylioness.livejournal.com]

My heart goes out to him, missing his family like that. I hope that, in time, he'll learn that they loved him enough to find him a loving human that is you. You might want to join a rescue-dog support forum online ... for asking questions about such transitions.

Acclimating

[ankhorite.livejournal.com]

Actually, I want to recommend a shortcut: take him running.

Take him running a lot.

It will be good for all concerned, in terms of shifting his allegiance and easing his home-sickness.

*sigh*

[mousme.livejournal.com]

We've been going to the dog park every day and playing a lot. I'm not in good enough shape to actually run with him yet, but we're going for walks as long as I can manage given the weather, and we frolic in the park together. :)

He seems to be slowly getting less homesick, too, so I'm cautiously optimistic.