Posted over 5 months ago | Updated over 4 months ago
Frost
Frost and his siblings were found in small groups, over the course of a week, in rural town. They were sick, many of them with demodex mange (non-contagious, typically seen when animals are severely neglected and their immune systems are depleted), skinny, and terrified. They stayed in that shelter for a month, getting treatment, before ending up on their euthanasia list. We pulled them and they were then, still terrified, transported to Florida. When they got out of the car, they leaned on each other for safety and comfort, and tried to hide in the nearest bush anytime outside for the first 3 days. But after those 3 days, they have done nothing but FLOURISH!!! It is very clear they had never seen the inside of a home before as every new sound introduced, things we take for granted, was interesting or scary…but even when afraid, they are all still very curious. It is clear they want to be loved by people and they try very hard to push past new intimidating things, hoping for love, comfort, and praise by the people around them. Each of these five puppies have distinctive personalities which, is extremely unique given how long they’ve been together and how dependent they are on each other.
These are arguably our favorite litter of puppies we’ve ever fostered and, since we’ve been doing this for over 15 years, that’s saying something! My favorite time of day is when they’ve gone potty and you or another family come out of your room and they see you for the first time, they come quickly with so much puppy wiggling and their body language exudes they are smiling and so happy to see you!
Frost is the biggest boned, but not the tallest, and very much the most basset hound looking of the bunch. He is soulful and the leader but he is not dominant. He is confident in his role. He is one of the first to show the others something can be explored, even if he isn’t sure himself. He is loving and goofy. He likes to collect toys and put them in piles, then waits for his siblings to steal them before he happily goes and collects them again. His favorite game right now has been to “pounce” into a stack of pool floats. He’s not agile, graceful, or fast so it’s as enjoyable for us to watch as it is for him to do. He loves nylabones and regular bones. He looks forward to getting his nylabone in his crate right before bed.
This boy LOVES his food. When you touch his food bowl, he starts howl-singing in his excitement until fed. He also howl-sings when he’s ready to go potty. He is the most talkative of the bunch. He’s not howling, barking, or chirping just because – it definitely feels like he’s figured out a way to talk to you. I need to stress that it is impressive and makes us laugh and he uses it only at certain times, like his excitement to eat and wake up! He’s also a big fan of routine. He likes his crate and knows it equals chew toys, food, nap time or bedtime. He also loves walks…short walks…and no running included, usually. He wants to stroll and sniff all the smells in the air with that big hound nose of his!
He is crate trained, leash trained, and 90% potty trained. We have found that a walk, even a short one, sometime during the first half of the day has been crucial for his routine and building confidence and content in our home. He understands the word “no” and is not destructive by nature. He has been quick to learn what he can and cannot play with and typically does not go back after you’ve told him no to an item.
