Adjusting Well

Looking cute after stealing my seat

This week JJ and Rori have been acting as if they have always been together. He plays with her loves on her and follows her around. She has shown a lot of love to him and constantly reminds us that he is her "JJ puppy". He has one habit that when it catches me off guard scares the crap out of me, he "smiles". At first when he did it when thought he was acting aggressive but nothing in his body language said he was aggressive, just a flash of his teeth. After looking it up online and talking to some breeders we figured out he's "smiling" which apparently according to dog behavior is a sign of submission to who ever he smiles at. Even knowing that I still feel a little uneasy when he does it. Maybe it's because it's ingrained in us that when a dog shows he teeth he is going to attack, or maybe it's left over from when I was a kid and attacked by the neighbors German Sheppard. I don't know but I watch him closely nonetheless just in case.

A girl and her best friend

 Rori's favorite pastime is going outside and playing with him and the other dogs. She chases them around the yard and giggles as the tackle each other. Sometimes she throws a ball for them, JJ isn't too big on the ball thing, but we have discovered that he loves squeaky toys. The louder the better. He will fetch them and loves to hear them squeak. He actually howled and danced the first time I brought them outside to our play session.

Taking a break from a game of Fetch the Squeaky

Rori has worked out a routine for him that works. When we get up he gets breakfast and potty time then we do our morning stuff including watching some cartoons and snuggling. Then after lunch it's outside time (weather permitting) where she brushes him out and then has playtime with him and the other dogs. We haven't been able to do it for the last two days because I had appointments first thing in the morning and didn't get home until the afternoon. We both look forward to this time together just us and the dogs.

"Sorry Mom I know you were only gone for a minute but it's my seat now"

Tomorrow JJ has his first vet appointment and hopefully we will get some answers about him.

Getting Settled In

Checking on his girl while playing in the back yard

After his first night JJ looked more at ease in his new home. During outside time Beau (our 100 lb mutt) actually started playing with JJ. Rori thought this was wonderful and chased them around the back yard giggling and laughing. He still shied away from Drew but showed his devotion to Rori by following her everywhere and putting himself between Rori and Drew whenever she got into trouble. 

Letting Rori put her feet in his face

It was obvious that JJ and Rori's bond was growing stronger and that they had finally found their best friends.  He started to roam the house with more ease and felt more comfortable going up to people in the house.We took him, Rori, and Belle (the pit mix) to the park to walk and bond as a family. He rode perfectly in the car, no whining, barking or pacing; getting him out of the car was another story. He refused to let Drew take him out of the car and crawled to my side of the car instead causing Belle to get free from my grip and take off running. After catching her and doing our walk Rori went to play in the playground while Drew and I watched. Every few minutes JJ looked up from where he was sitting to see where Rori was and make sure she was safe. I couldn't imagine a more perfect dog for my little girl.

JJ letting Rori cuddle him during nap time

Backstory

JJ on the first night we brought him into the house.

Meet JJ the newest member of our pack and Rori's first dog. JJ's story is vastly unknown but he has proven to be a sweet, loving, and loyal addition to the family. What we do know is that the Monday before Thanksgiving 2012 JJ was dumped across the street from our house by an eight year old kid and his mom, who was driving a dark colored SUV. We know this because myself and Drew were awake watching it happen. We called the police department but all they did was call Animal Control. Animal Control went looking for him but was unable to find him. Then Black Friday Drew saw him while coming home from the store. He then went out to catch JJ so that we could take him to the no kill shelter. When we went to take him, the shelter was closed and would not open until the next morning. So we all decided he could stay for the night but we would take him to the shelter the next morning, but first he needed a bath and badly!

JJ resting his head on Rori's feet the first night he was in our home.

After a good bath and meal he immediately took to Rori licking her face and laying his head on her lap. She was delighted and giggled a lot. We could all see that they just clicked and bonded instantly. So it was decided that even though our pack was already large (a pit mix, a 100 lb mutt, and soon a lab mix) he could stay.
The first night he stayed in Drew and my bedroom so that we could see his temperament before putting him in Rori's room. The next day we watched him closely as him and Rori interacted to be sure that he wasn't aggressive toward her at all. I tested to see if he had any food aggression or toy aggression and found none. So it was decided that we would put him in Rori's room. Drew and I barely slept that night and checked in on them often. Every time we looked in JJ would snap his head up and see who it was and when he saw it was just us he would lay back down sigh and close his eyes. This behavior helped set our minds at ease and we felt good about him being Rori's dog...