Max's first physical socialization encounter with dogs

I had always believed that Max never had an opportunity to socialise with other dogs, humans and environment when he was a puppy before I found him. He was merely 2 months old when I took him in. I guess he was separated from his mother at a very early stage of his life. At home here, he had to be taught a painful lesson on social hierarchy manners by Jon. Max does not know how to differentiate between hostile and friendly dogs. He will readily approach dogs which fiercely bark at us from their houses. Dog behaviorists say that a senior dog in the household would be the role model for the newly arrived younger dog, but this theory does not apply to Max and Jon. Jon is anti-social to all dogs. Over time, he has tolerated Max's presence, but will never play or interact with him. In effect, Max has not learnt anything about the canine world from Jon.

A month ago, I temporarily brought in a puppy home, which was one of six puppies born to Teri - a Wire-Haired Terrier. Being a male, this puppy was very dominant. I figured it would be enjoyable for him - and educational to Max - if they interacted with each other. It took less than ten minutes for them to warm up to each other. Initially, Max had no idea of how to begin, but the hyperactive puppy made the ice-breaking process easier.

It did not take much time for these two dogs to playfight.  The duration of sessions were not short. That is because the puppy had all the energy in him. There were occasions that Max avoided the puppy because he was exhausted.

The puppy was with us for one week until someone adopted him. On the first night when he was gone, Max was depressed and listless. For three days, he would come into the house and sniff at the cage, as if hoping the puppy would appear.

Nevertheless, it was an important event for Max, as it was his first physical contact with a dog.

Update on Teri's Pups - Week 4

This female pup is the smallest of the lot. And the most daring. By the way, the container was clean.

Update on Teri's Pups- Week 3

The puppies are growing tremendously fast every week. They move faster too, and I have to be really quick in handling them. It is not possible to clean the cage they are in without putting them in a box. As soon as I open the gate, they rush out simultaneously, and even after dropping to the floor, they just continue on.

The pups are beginning to feed on soft kibbles even after having had their milk. I wonder if Teri is producing enough milk for them. It must be very taxing for Teri because she weighs a mere 8 kg. She looks malnourished as a result of feeding her babies. It is not noticeable due to her long fur. However, the spine can be felt easily. Otherwise, she is full of energy.

I always joke about her when she resists going into the cage when I send her back in after walking with her. I say that she doesn't love her children, and that she prefer to be outside than to attend to them.

This is the biggest sibling, and he hasn't had enough

Feasting on kibbles

Feels good to empty the bladder after a satisfying meal.

Doesn't it look like a hamster?

Update on Teri and puppies

This is the smallest pup, and the only one with a single color. The rest have white & brown

Practising at a young age to display puppy-look effectively when it is older

Teri at full alert of other dogs in the vet. She even snapped at an Alsation.

Teri's Puppies

Yesterday evening I got a call from the vet - where Teri is currently boarding - that the dog had given birth to six puppies. There were four females and two males.

Not one of these puppies looked like Teri. Well, except for the white color composition. I wonder if the father is actually one of her buddies - GR - which was featured in Canine Brotherhood.

As for Teri, she was healthy. She appeared longer and was aggressive toward other dogs. While she was tied outside the cage while the cage was being cleaned, she keeps looking into the empty cage to look for her babies. The vet assistant and me dare not show her that the pups were in a box.

Teri the Wire-Haired Terrier

In a recent post Canine Brotherhood, I mentioned that there were three dogs which were always together. However, during this mating season, the terrier was nowhere to be seen. I thought this could be due to her being on heat. During my next visit, I spotted her roaming around at one of the roads. She was pregnant. That explains her disappearance.

I had always wanted to rescue these three dogs, but only after they fully get used to my  presence. Besides, I will be holding a leash and a collar, and they will definitely freak out upon seeing it. But the terrier's pregnancy accelerated the need to take her off the streets. A few days later, the intent of my visit was clear. Get the terrier. After work, I went over at 6pm to look for her. She was not around. I took my chance to  just wait for her at an area of 50 meter radius. It was 45 minutes later that I saw her rummaging for food at a garbage disposal bin. I attracted her attention and waved a bag of kibbles. I made sure that when she came over, we will be near my car. She did come over and I let her eat. Since she had an old collar on her, it was easy for me to attach the leash. She was not surprised and did not struggle to free herself when she realised that she had been leashed. Nevertheless, she refused to budge when I pulled the leash. She just remained seated. Not sure if she will bite me if I carried her to my car, I patiently nudged her seated rump toward the car. Every nudge moved her for about 6 inches. When she was about 1 foot from the car, I decided to carry  her. I was ready to risk getting bitten. I would have waited longer if she had been larger. She did not resist and I thanked her for her cooperation.

I drove to the vet and asked if he could take care of the dog and her soon-to-be-delivered pups. The vet measured her weight (10kg), and did some blood tests. He said she could be around 2-3 years old, and that she is a Wire-Haired Terrier. She could be due to deliver in about 2 weeks.

I had decided to name this dog Teri. I have put her up for adoption on http://www.petfinder.com.my/, and will do the same for her puppies. In the meantime, I feed her eggs and chicken wings whenever I visit her. I hope her delivery turns out well, and shall see what is the next course of action. In the meantime, I plan to get the other two remaining dogs.