Rayzr Gets A Home

I think most dog owners know the feeling of when that bond is made with your dog and you feel like they complete a part of your heart. When Dief came into my life, I developed an ever deeper bond with her then then I ever expected, and I did not think I could ever experience such a bond again. Sid proved me wrong. I knew the moment I first held him, that I had a companion for life. I think it is pretty obvious to anyone who sees us together, to be able to see the bond that I am speaking of. It has always been an amazing thing to experience, but I learned Sunday, it is an even more amazing thing to witness that bond being formed.

I was sent a message earlier in the weekend that someone wanted to come meet Rayzr at Sunday's event. After getting the details of the time, I arranged to be there early so Rayzr would be ready. I was pretty excited and nervous for him, as I know he is a special dog and deserves a very special home.

Valentino trying to steal someone's heart for a home

The event was at the Oldsmar Flea Market in a dedicated booth to help homeless animals. It is a great location for the animals to get seen, as there is a lot of foot traffic there. In the few hours I was there, so many people stopped by to see the dogs and ask questions.

The area is set up so multiple dogs can be there comfortably. People are able to come by and meet the dogs, play with them and get information on the breed as well as the rescue and see pictures of other available dogs for adoption that aren't at the event. If there is a particular dog someone wants to meet, from what I can tell, the best bet seems to be contacting the rescue and arranging to meet the dog at one of the many events that the rescue attends. Once I heard someone wanted to meet Rayzr, I knew I would make it out there at any time that was needed. After all, the purpose of bringing a foster into my home is to do what I can to help the rescue get the furbaby a forever home. I'm not required to be at all of the events, and I was told when I first talked to them about fostering that if I couldn't make it to an event that they needed a dog placed with me at, that they would help make arrangements to get the dog there. But my weekend plans are usually pretty loose, so I knew during this conversation, I would be able to get the dog to and from the events most of the time. I love spending my weekends taking Sid places, and it is twice as fun when a second dog is in tow.

We weren't there for very long when Rayzr got to meet his potential new Mom. I was a bit nervous at first. I knew Rayzr could win anyone over, but I wasn't sure if his personality was going to come out in all of the commotion of the Flea Market. I don't know why I was nervous, since Rayzr showed what a true teddy bear he really is.

In the beginning of this post, I spoke of the bond I got to watch form. After spending a little bit of time together, as someone on the outside looking in, it seemed as if they were made to be in each other's life. I would be lying if I didn't admit to tearing up a little bit when seeing this. I knew Rayzr had found his perfect home and his perfect human.

I always thought that the first time a foster got adopted would be hard on me. I thought I would be a little down because of missing the dog. While I do miss Rayzr, watching him get adopted was an uplifting experience. There were no sad feelings, and while I did have a few tears, they were tears of joy seeing this bond being formed in front of my eyes.

As I wait to hear about the next foster dog, I am enjoying special only child time with Sid and having my thoughts drift often to Rayzr in his new home. I know he is being showered with love every minute. I want to say congratulations to both Rayzr and Mom. Also, thank you for loving him so much. And don't forget, he likes chew toys. ;)

Rayzr and Mom already in love

Getting Into The Routine

We are coming up on two weeks since Rayzr has joined our home. He is starting to fall into the routine quite nicely. He is eating and drinking more regularly as he has settled in. He has even learned to use the adapter on the faucet outside. He has found not only is it good for a fresh drink, it is also good for a quick shower. He will often go over to the faucet and lean on it until he gets wet.

When he is inside, he is pretty good. We are still working with the begging, but he is learning, if he doesn't beg, he will get a treat after dinner. This method worked with breaking Sid of the begging. Though with Rayzr begging, Sid has become a bit more of a beggar lately as well. They are slowly calming down, depending on what is for dinner. I guess I can understand. There are certain foods I can't resist by the smell, so I guess they have their foods they really want because of the smell.

They are still improving greatly with chew toys and treats. They now know they are both getting the same, so they leave each other alone instead of investigating.

Rayzr relaxing with the tug rope

Rayzr is still finding which toys he likes to play with. He is happy if he has a chewy or a toy he can chew on. He seems to really like the one tug rope, but he still doesn't want to play tug. He has a thing about taking any toy to either the dog bed or under the table next to my chair. Sid has learned if he has a toy in one of those spots, it means that Rayzr wants to play by himself, and is getting better at leaving Rayzr alone. Now that they are getting into a routine and learning each other a bit better, it is making life pretty simple with them.

They do love to play outside together. They do their running and wrestling outside. I am not sure how my neighbors feel about it, however, since Rayzr can be a talkative dog. He has made Sid a bit more vocal, and both like to howl and bark when they are playing. Because of this, they can't play much outside at night. While husky howling is music to my ears, I understand that not everyone else feels the same way. They get talkative inside too. Rayzr is actually pretty easy to get talking. He has a beautiful singing voice.

As part of falling into the routine, I took Rayzr out for his first outing this past week. Sid had a vet appointment and had to be left for tests. When it was time to pick Sid up, Rayzr rode along. He does very well on car rides. He likes to lay down and prefers if the window is cracked so he can get some fresh air. We stopped at the pet store on the way home, and then by my parents' house. Rayzr was very well behaved at the store. When we walked past the bunnies, Sid wanted to climb in with them. Rayzr ignored them.

Rayzr working my Dad for a furever home

Rayzr has taken quite a liking to my Dad. Once we got there, we opened up the screen doors to the porch so the dogs could come and go. Rayzr investigated the back yard for a few minutes, then went straight to my father for attention. After getting pet for awhile, he laid at his feet for most of the visit. When my parents come here, he usually stays pretty close to my father. While Rayzr loves everyone, he does seem to take to males very quickly. I think one day my father will accept that he is a husky person. All I wanted in life was to have a husky companion. Every husky in my life has always attached themselves to him when he is around. I think the breed chose him and he just hasn't realized it yet.

While at my parents, we did a small animal test with Rayzr. My sister's two birds were still there, so we took him inside on the leash to see how he would react. He ignored them. Once we were confident he wasn't going to go nuts, we took him pretty close to the cages. Even with the African Grey growling at him (he growls at all dogs, and brooms, and mops....), Rayzr had absolutely no interest.

Dief searching for Snowball

I know from my experiences with Dief, this is a huge deal. I use to keep small animals when I lived in VA. I could never leave Dief unattended, even with them in their cages. I used to put the cages up high and in a room I could shut off from her to get her to leave them alone. The ferret's cage was taller then me, so the ferret could get away from her. Dief would often sniff at the cage and then lick the ferret as if she was tasting it. Snowball was smart enough to avoid her. I had a carrier for Snowball that I left below her cage. One time after using it, Dief went exploring and got her head stuck in it. The picture was not staged. Most husky lovers know that they often have a high prey drive. Some can be taught to respect other animals as members of the pack. Dief was ok with cats because she was raised with one. However, she was also raised with small animals. She always seemed to think of them as dancing chicken nuggets and hot dogs. It is a breath of fresh air to see Rayzr with the smaller animals. He really just has no interest in them what so ever, whether they are in a cage or running through the backyard. He even ignores the squirrels. If someone wants a laid back husky with no prey drive, I don't think they will do much better then Rayzr. He truly is a great dog.

I know there are some dog friendly events coming up that I would normally take Sid to. Rayzr will be coming with as well. And both events, the rescue has on their schedule. Once I lock in the plans for sure, I will be notifying them that I will be there with Rayzr. Hopefully, he will be able to meet more people and show them just what a great dog he is.

Rayzr relaxing and showing off his good looks

It's playtime!

Now that everyone is getting settled in, Rayzr and Sid are becoming quite the pair. Playtime with the two ranges from singing with each other, to racing each other, to wrestling. Most of the time they keep it outside, however, sometimes they like to include us in on the fun.

Sid and Rayzr making sure to include me in on the fun

We aren't really experiencing any aggression issues either. Every now and again they don't want to share a toy with each other, the one with the toy will let out a faint growl and get up and move. It does not go any further. Rayzr definitely will let Sid know when Sid is becoming too much to handle. Rayzr also has a small grunt he does with us too. But it seems more to be a sign of play, then anything. Dief use to make the same noises. It still makes me smile.

Sid has a favorite toy called a flirt pole. Rayzr isn't exactly sure what to make of it yet. He barks at it when we play with it, but he hasn't used it yet. Even when Sid takes the toy to him to try to get him to play. Maybe he will catch on, maybe he won't. Rayzr's favorite toy right now seems to be a kong toy. Sid keeps trying to get him to play tug with it, but so far, there hasn't been any success.

Rayzr with his favorite toy

When they are outside, wrestling and running seem to be their favorite activity. I am still waiting for them to knock each other in the pool since they will even wrestle on the pool deck. If one goes out, the other must follow, so each trip outside turns into playtime.

Rayzr raiding the toys

Rayzr has quickly found where the toy box is. He digs in there on a regular basis, still looking for other toys that he likes. As he comes out of his shell, he is a lot more playful then he originally seemed. He does not play rough in the house. Usually, he prefers to find a toy he can chew on in a quiet corner. But he has found that every time we move furniture to vacuum, more toys end up in the box. I am going to see if he will play fetch out in the yard next week, though I'm not expecting him to. He doesn't seem to be very interactive with toys. He found a tug rope earlier, and would not play tug. If I tried, he would let go of the rope. He is pretty good about letting us take things from him, whether it be food or toys. 

Now that they are getting better at sharing toys, they also appear to be getting better at sharing other things as well. Like I mentioned in an earlier post, we have a few bowls placed around the living room. Today, they both went over to the same bowl set. One ate, while the other drank. They ignored each other while they did their thing.

Rayzr and Sid sharing bowls

After a day full of play and attention, they usually settle down for the night pretty early. They will rotate around the room and take turns laying with each of us for some attention. I'm hoping tomorrow goes ok, as Sid has a vet appointment to get scans on his leg. I am expecting him to be a little out of it when he gets home since he has to be put under for the tests. I don't expect Rayzr to bother him, since Sid is usually the one who initiates play. I'm looking forward to a quiet, lazy day with the two when Sid comes home.

Bath Day

I wanted to wait a couple of days before I introduced brushing and bathing into the equation, as in my experience at least, neither Dief nor Sid enjoyed the process. I usually just call one of those companies that pull a van in front of the home and take care of it there when they really need it, but I have to keep up on it in between. Especially with the brushing. Let's face it, these dogs can shed. I have puffs of white fur everywhere. It makes me glad I have hard flooring, with a rug in the middle of the living room to give them traction for playing. It feels like just last month that I was dealing with undercoat blowing, but the weather just does not want to pick a direction, so it is happening again.

Rayzr putting up with being brushed.

I decided to do a quick pass with the furminator on both dogs, then take a brush to them. With a vacuum near by and hose at hand, I was hoping to keep the mess down to a minimum. First up was Sid. And as usual, he fought and fought. I was expecting the same from Rayzr. It didn't seem to be his favorite thing, but he did tolerate it. I didn't want to stress him too much, so I did a quick pass to try to get the worst of it. I figure over the next few days, I can add time to the brushing sessions until he gest to where he needs to be, with furminator passes every now and again to help out.

There has been debate over whether or not the furminator is a good thing to use or not. Some claim that it can damage the undercoat, just as shaving the dog can. Most people seem to be in the school of thought if you only do one or two passes in the same spot per session and don't over use it, that it is fine. I have found that I am comfortable with one pass and adding a second brush afterwards. Sure, it takes a bit longer, but I'd rather be safe then sorry. Most who know me, know that I can be a bit of an over protective mother with my furbabies. I don't see that changing anytime soon.

Next up was taking him into the bathroom for his bath. I have one of my showers equipped with a shower head attached to a hose to make bathing the dogs a bit easier. Dief would tolerate baths. Sid hates them. It can be sometimes a 3 person job to give him a bath if he really feels like showing his strength. I wasn't sure what to expect from Rayzr.

Rayzr getting a bath

Once the water temperature was set, we put Rayzr into the tub and I turned on the shower. The first thing to get wet was his front paws. He immediately tried to jump out of the shower. After a minute or two of coaxing, we got him back in the tub. After that, he didn't try to escape anymore. I don't think he loves having a bath, but he will tolerate it. That seems to be a good description for him with just about everything he doesn't like, that he will tolerate it. This again just shows what kind of temperament that this dog has.

Once the bath was over, I towel dried him and used a hair dryer on low. He does not seem to be bothered by most noises such as hair dryers and vacuums. In fact, so far, I've only noticed him bothered by one of the vacuums in the house. And when that one comes on, he just moves away from it.

I figured it'd be about 3 to 7 days before he started coming out of his shell some, and he has started showing more of his personality. This includes the two bad habits that we have found. Neither are horrible, and I think with a little bit of work, both can be corrected.

The first is the way that he begs. He is not aggressive about it, but when we sit down to eat dinner, he likes to pick a person to sit next to and hit their knee with his paw periodically. When told no, he will walk away for a bit, but he usually comes back. He has not tried to steal food off of the table though. I think in time, he may pick up on the way Sid deals with dinner time, which is just lay at our feet. I usually give them a treat after dinner if they are good. Sid quickly learned that begging was pointless because of this. I am hoping that Rayzr does as well. Dief was a master beggar. She would bark and carry on and I don't care what we did, breaking her of the habit was not going to happen. Over time we learned to ignore her and if there were guests over for dinner, we would put her out back. While we find the paw to the knee cute, it is something that we are working to correct. I do not doubt that if food was left eye level and unattended he would swipe it. Sid does. But counter surfing does not appear to be a hobby of his, at least that he has shown us.

The hole after it was filled and restarted

The other bad habit I have found is that he is a digger. I know I said he didn't appear to be, but where he was digging, it was hard to see the quite impressive hole. I have kayaks racked up out back and he went under them to dig. Him and Sid have been taking turns on the hole. We are now working to correct this as well. Personally, I don't mind if my yard is dug up as long as it isn't near the fence, deck, or in a path that we walk, but I do understand not everyone is tolerant of this. I plan on building a sand area in one of the back corners for Sid to have an acceptable area to dig over the summer. If these two keep teaming up on holes, I may have to do the sand box a bit sooner then planned.

I do not think that the picture does the hole justice. But they were watched for a couple minutes on the camera taking turns. As soon as the hole was filled, they started working on it again. Tomorrow I will spray down the area with No Dig. We will have to keep an eye on him and correct him when he starts digging again.

Sid with his chew bone

I have found that Rayzr isn't a huge fan of toys. There are a couple he has found he likes, but he prefers chew bones, pig ears and stuff like that. Sid has always been hit and miss with them. I may give him one one day and he goes right through it, the next day, he will leave it sit for weeks.

Rayzr with his chew bone

After a long day of grooming and digging, I gave them a chew bone to settle down with for a bit and relax. Both dogs sat quietly for awhile, and when they were finished, they started making their rounds for attention. It doesn't matter what I am doing, when one shows up next to me wanting to be pet, I have to drop what I'm doing. Who can deny those eyes?

The weather change isn't only taking it's toll on their fur, it is also giving everyone in the house a bit of a cold. Fortunately, both Sid and Rayzr have been perfect angels when inside. They go out every few hours for a little bit of running and come back in to get attention and sleep. They are both slowly learning that sharing bones and food is not a bad thing, as there will always be more there if they need it. Even with separate bowls, they do tend to switch off here and there. It is almost as if they want to make sure that the other one isn't getting something better. Sid's jealousy of attention is still there, but also slowly getting better a little at a time. I would expect within the next week or so for most of it to be gone completely.

Rayzr making use of the dog bed

Tonight, the only thing Sid pouted about was when Rayzr decided to curl up on the dog bed. Sid hasn't used the bed in a few days. If both decide they want to start using the bed on a regular basis, I will bring another one into the living room, but for now, usually one is laying in one of the other favorite spots. 

The new crate for Sid also came today, as Sid didn't like the one we moved him to. I didn't like it much either. The new crate is nice. It's a black wire crate surrounded by a coffee table. This way we won't lose too much room in the house to crates and it won't look like a kennel in here. Rayzr has taken to the other crate quite well. We chose to give him the one that is more for travel, in case it was ever needed to transport him for whatever reason. The cat food is kept on top of the crate to keep it out of the dog's immediate line of sight. Sid never minded the cats coming and going while he was in the crate, and we were wondering how Rayzr would adapt to this. It is like he doesn't even notice. I know it is only three days in, but I think it's safe to say that he can coexist with cats, or at the very least, cats that will leave him alone. They ignore him, he ignores them. It's a nice arrangement.

If I started fostering as a way to find a permanent addition to my family, I would stop right here. Rayzr is so well behaved. He loves everyone. He doesn't get into much, other then the holes he digs. He's been great with Sid and the cats. 

This week, to get him out of the house, I may take him over to my parents. I try to get Sid out a couple of times a week for a change of scenery, and my parents only live a half of a mile from me. On nice days, it's an easy walk. My sister has her birds staying at my mom's right now, so if we do go over, I will be able to report on how he reacts to caged animals. The dogs stay leashed and are never allowed close to the cages, so the birds will be fine. Both birds shared a home with a dog at one time as well. I know it can often be tough to deal with caged animals with a husky from personal experience, but if Rayzr is going to go on the walks for visits with me, it will be nice to see if he ignores the birds the way he ignores the cats. Usually, once we get there, we sit out on the back porch and let the dogs run in the yard and come and go from the back porch. They don't have free access to go into the living room where the birds are located.

Friday, we will also see how Rayzr does in the home without Sid, as Sid will be at the vets having tests done on his leg from an injury at a dog park. Sid can be a bit hyper and likes to jump over other dogs. He didn't quite clear a great dane and hurt his leg. It acts up from time to time and we need to check it out before I can do some activities that I would like to do with both dogs.

Tomorrow should be a quiet day, but if we are all over this cold on Saturday or Sunday, we will be taking both dogs to Enterprise Dog Park and hopefully, we will get some great pictures of Rayzr to share. I hope Rayzr enjoys that dog park as much as Sid does.

Welcome to the pack Rayzr

Yesterday, I picked up my first foster. His name is Rayzr and he is the sweetest husky I have ever met. He is between the age of 3 and 5. There was not a lot of history on him, but the little bit that was known made me positive he would fit in well in the home, even though he has a lot less energy then Sid. Though, I haven't met many dogs with Sid's energy level. The two do seem to be balancing each other out quite nicely.

The day started with heading to an event that Husky Haven has where people can come out and meet adoptable huskies. We showed up mid way through the event so we could get him use to us and learn a bit about him. We stayed close to the event end so he could get as much exposure as possible for the day.

Our first meeting

From the first meeting, it was pretty obvious that all he wanted to do was sit and be loved. There is plenty of that to go around in the house for any of our furry friends. He is very docile, but I was still nervous about him meeting Sid for the first time as well as the cats. I opted to leave Sid at home for the pick up, to try and make things a bit easier for Rayzr.

While all of the supplies can be provided, after I got the call that I would be getting him this weekend, I started setting up a foster kit. There are a few things I knew Sid probably wouldn't want to share, toy wise, so I wanted to make sure there were two in the house to avoid problems. I already had a second crate that I set up. I still wanted to pick up a few odds and ends supply wise. Nothing major. But things to make the adjustment on Rayzr and future fosters easier, at least I hope. We picked both dogs up a bone for later in the week. I want to make sure there is no real resource aggression going on before I put these out for the two. If there is going to be problems with the bones, then I can separate the dogs or make them night time toys for when they are in their crates.

Laying in the lamp stand

Rayzr doesn't really need to be crated as he really doesn't get into much. He is trying to crawl into little cubby holes in the house and has explored the trash, though not getting into it. I am opting to continue to crate him for a few reasons. First being, Sid is crated and I think if we leave Rayzr out at night and crate Sid, it could cause problems. Second, I don't want him getting hurt trying to crawl into a cubby hole unattended if he happens to knock something over. He is still looking for what he considers his safe space. I think the crate helps him feel like he does have a safe space as well. And third, while there doesn't seem to be an issue with the cats, I would prefer one not arise when everyone is sleeping or not home.

Sid and Rayzr introducing themselves

After we picked him up, we brought him home to meet Sid and the cats. We were planning on doing the introductions slow, but Rayzr just kind of dove in. We kept him leashed for the initial introductions. Sid and Rayzr sniffed each other, while the cats kept their distance. Lolita decided to go hide in her favorite room while Simon stayed in the living room watching. Rayzr ignored Simon, and still does ignore both of the cats. When we removed the leash, they continued to sniff and circle at each other, with no growling or signs of aggression. Everything went very smooth, more then I was expecting and more then I could have asked for.


After Rayzr explored the home for a bit, we let him out back with Sid to use the yard. I should explain that the main way I let the dogs in and out, is through the pool cage. There is a dog door installed in the pool cage so they can come and go from the grassy area as they want to. The pool cage has an insulated roof on part of it with ceiling fans to keep on during the summer. On the faucet, a spicket that a dog can get a drink out of at any time is attached. So there is plenty of fresh water for play time. And during the summer if the animals want to sit out while I'm in the pool, there is plenty of creature comforts of shading and a nice breeze. The pool does not have a liner, so I don't mind if the dogs would want to swim during good weather. Sid isn't a pool dog, he prefers the beach. I was nervous that Rayzr was going to go right for the pool on the first time through the pool cage, but he didn't. He did however, not see the screen and ran into it. I think every dog that has been in this house since the cage was put up has done that. We let Sid show him where the dog door is located, and he caught on within a couple of minutes. He can now come and go as he pleases. We have cameras up in the backyard, which allows me to keep an eye on the dogs if they want to stay out for a little longer and play. He has already picked up on the bell that is on the front door to alert us when he wants to go outside. Right now, he will not let us lead him to the door or follow us there unless if we put the leash on him. When he comes in, he can get distracted about coming back to the area in the house set up for the dogs. The first time he came in, he ran into the room where Lolita was hiding and jumped right in the bed. He didn't see Lolita, and almost landed on her. She hissed and ran away. He ignored her. I think it's safe to say that he is good with cats.

Rayzr and Sid relaxing

One thing that is quite amusing about the two dogs together, is how similar they look. With a quick glance, or from a distance, it's pretty easy to get them confused. Looking directly at them, it is also easy to tell them apart. Sid seems to love having a playmate. He is use to being a spoiled only child though, so is still adjusting to the sharing. He tends to pout if Rayzr is using a toy that Sid likes or laying where Sid wants to lay. Separate food bowls makes feeding time easy, however, they do like to swap bowls mid eating. It's almost as if they want to see that they both have the same thing. If they don't fight, I will let them take the lead on that.

Outside, there is really no problem. He seems to like to throw dirt around, but not dig the giant holes like Sid does. They both like to run with each other. They do sing together, both inside and out. I don't know if my neighbors find it as beautiful as I do, so if they are singing outside, I do go out and either quiet them down or bring them in, instead of letting it go on too long. Usually, once they come in, they settle down and go to sleep pretty quickly.

Sid is having more trouble sharing me then his toys though. When Rayzr comes to me for attention, Sid comes and walks in between us and tries to nudge Rayzr away. Rayzr doesn't fight him, but still stays near me for attention. Sid has never done this before when he has been around other dogs at dog parks and other dog friendly events, but I guess in his house, it can be a little different. I understand that this is a learning process for him as well. I expect him to keep getting better.

I am grateful that I do have experience integrating new dogs into the mix though. It makes understanding what they are doing a lot easier. I am even more grateful there isn't any real problems though. Sid only had one incident since we brought Rayzr in, which was peeing on the floor. I was kind of expecting that, as my other male dog I had awhile ago would often mark territory inside the house whenever my mom brought her male dog when she came to visit.

Speaking of visits, the family stopped by at different times to meet him. He greeted everyone with love. He was not skittish at all.

Tomorrow if the weather is warmer then it's been, Rayzr will be getting a bath. Both dogs will get a brush out as well. I tried to give him a bit of time to adjust before adding grooming into the mix. I will also be adding weekly furminator sessions to the mix when needed in addition to normal brush outs. I want to show off just how handsome this boy really is.

Dog park visits are also planned, and there are some dog friendly events coming up that I would normally take Sid to, so I will be bringing both of them along. The rescue is actually going to be at some of these events so we can hang out with them so he is able to meet as many people as possible.

As the second night comes to an end, they are resting, and I will use the quiet time to do the same. It is becoming much easier to relax as each hour passes and Rayzr gets better adjusted to being here. If someone is looking for a calm husky who thinks that he is a lap dog and wants non stop petting and kisses, they will not find a better match. He deserves nothing less then a home with a lot of love and humans who will spoil him.

Good night from Rayzr