August 15, 2005
Hi Jan,
I've been thinking about you and trying to get a picture of Alfie to send to you. We managed to get one yesterday. He was groomed for the first time last Friday. He's so cute and looks so different now with his summer cut. It may be a little while before I get a picture to you as we don't have a digital camera. But he's doing fine, except he was doing a lot of itching and licking of his paws and private parts and neck yesterday, so I'm taking him to the vet today to see what's going on. We walked thru some fertilizer on the sidewalk Saturday. I wiped his paws off when we got back home, but I may not have done a good enough job.
We're going to dog obedience school now once a week for seven weeks. He must have had some training before because he seemed to know "sit" immediately. And he responds to "come" right away now. He loves to go for walks and in the car. We have the potty thing pretty much down now. I also know what to do now when it storms, and that's hold him close, even when I can barely hear the rain and the thunder and lightening.
He also loves to sit on Bob's lap or in between his legs on the lounge chair. He still doesn't eat all that much. But everyone says that's good because a little under weight is better than over weight. He likes Milk Bones and the Beef Jerky treats. And he likes to play with the towel when I give him a bath. I think what he really likes to do is bite my fingers thru the towel, but he never bites down. He also likes to play with a old sock that Bob fixed up for him. These things are probably softer and easier for his lack of teeth.
My parents have babysat him, and they really like him too. He's just really good around people whether they're familiar or strangers.
He's just a sweetheart, and we're so glad we found him. Thanks so much, Jan.
Falinda

July 5, 2005
Hi, Jan
I hope you enjoyed the lovely July 4th week end. We had a lot of company for Alfie to enjoy. But, I think, he definitely likes Kevin best. Kevin stayed overnight with us Saturday night, and I went downstairs to get Alphie, so he could sleep with me. But he had observed Kevin getting into bed, so as soon as I put him down on our bed, he jumped off and made a beeline back downstairs to Kevin and stayed with him all night. I had to go get him in the morning for our walk. I thought about changing his name to Benedict Arnold. He's so cute though. Everyone loves him. He appeared ready to go with either my daughter or my sister when they left yesterday. He was ready to get into either one of their cars. He's back not eating again. I mean, he eats about half of his daily ration. Perhaps there's still too much newness for him. He continues to drink water and eliminate well. And he does like our walks.
Falinda

July 4, 2005
Hi, Jan
Yesterday Alfie ate his entire two portions. It took him all day and most of the evening, but he did it. He seemed to enjoy having more people around, as my daughter, son-in-law, Bob, and Kevin were all here. We have left him alone now three times for about an hour each time, and twice he has pooped. Is that just poor timing on our part, is he nervous, or is he trying to tell us something? He's confined in the kitchen with his bed, beach towel, quilt, and food and water. He seems very happy to see us upon our return. I don't say anything to him, of course. I just take him outside, and then clean up the mess, which isn't hard because of the texture of his bowel movements. I'm assuming and hoping this too will pass.
Other than that, we continue to get to know each other and having fun. He helped me change the bed this morning. He's funny when he rolls on his back and wiggles.
Falinda

July 2, 2005
Thanks for the tip, Jan. I think I know what you mean. I've done that to myself to prevent myself from sneezing.
Alfie is eating a little better today, but not much. He had his first "test" of staying alone this morning. Bob and I went shopping for an hour. He was so happy to see us. I've noticed that when he's happy, he has a little bit to eat. So as he gets more adjusted, hopefully he'll start eating again.
We've had the screen door to the deck open today because it's so beautiful. He can hear more outside noises, so he's been barking a little bit. But not much or for long.
He seems to like everyone. He's very happy to see Bob and is sitting on his lap quite a bit. And he likes my son, Kevin. They play together. Today, he meets my daughter and son-in-law. He also briefly met my sister, nephew, mom, and dad.
Falinda

July 1, 2005
Hi, Jan
I'm sorry I didn't write yesterday. I didn't make it to my computer because we were so busy. I finally tackled the dirty refrigerator, and Alfie was busy either watching me or being with my husband or son. He also had his first bath, which I can't say he enjoyed, but he was a good boy. In the morning as I wasn't up yet, he managed to tell my husband that he needed to go outside. He did his business near the pee post, which was good. But a little bit later, when I was up, he scratched my foot ( I was standing by the bathroom sink washing my fact) and acted anxious. So I thought he wanted to go outside again. I tried to take him out, but by then it was raining pretty steadily, so he hesitated and I didn't make him go out. So to make a long story short, he had an accident. But thank goodness it was in the bathroom on the tile, so it was very easy to clean up. Then in between thunderstorms, we managed to get our walk in, and he did his business a couple of more times. He sure likes to walk. He sat by the front door yesterday evening until I took him out again. He's got the morning walk down already. He knows when to turn toward our house and what driveway to turn into. We think that's a hoot. The only other concern we have is he's still not eating. Yesterday he ate only 2/3 cup. We did give him half a jerky twice, once at about 1:30 p.m. and then again after his bath at about 5:30 p.m. He kind of coughs every once in awhile too. He is drinking water well. I change that two or three times a day.
Falinda

June 29, 2005
Good morning, Jan
So far so good, actually beyond good. Alfie has exceeded our expectations. He really is a good and loving little boy. He rode very calmly and nicely on my lap all the way home. When we got home, he seemed much more interested in the outside than the inside, so we went on a walk. I just let him lead, so he "marked" a lot. But he also did his business, so that was nice. On the way back he knew where to turn on the cul de sac and into our driveway without any direction from me. So I was impressed with how quickly he learned.
I wasn't sure whether you had fed him, so I offered him some food. But he wasn't interested. He did drink some water and a carrot. We woke up about 7 a.m. this morning. I took him outside to the pee post, but the timing was bad with the sprinkling system. So we both ended up wet and not much else happened.
He greeted Bob with enthusiasm last night. He likes the leather of the couch, but will also lay on his new quilt on the sofa. We put down a beach towel on the kitchen floor, so he can move more easily from the carpet of the family room to the area rug under the kitchen table, where I put his food mat and bowls. I wanted him to sleep in a little bed on top of our bed, but no surprise to you, he wasn't interested in a bed of his own. But he did figure out what I wanted very quickly and laid down in it. But when I woke up about 1:30 a.m., he wasn't in it, which is all right. I really just want it to be a place of his own to go to when he is alone.
This morning we went on our usual 1.5 mile walk. He seemed to be dragging at the end. But he did do his business twice. Maybe he's not used to walking that long? I picked him up a couple of times. Should I do that? And what about marking? How much of that do I let him do? He has shown no signs of doing that in the house and used the pee post last night before going to bed. So so far so good. Should I offer him more treats to put some weight on him, since he's not eating that much, or is that a bad thing to start since he responds so well without treats?
Falinda