This girl has had only one person write to ask about her in three weeks and they almost certainly sounded like a scammer. They evaded almost all questions asked. She is spayed. Due to some incidences an ad will not be placed in the local paper for her safety.

Does anyone know of some trustworthy northern breed rescues from around the state that could be contacted? Currently I'm waiting to hear back from a friend who knows a breeder (whom I've met in the past) that that might help with the rescue. (I'd trust this friend with my life and know where they stand on how animals should be treated, so i'm not worried.)

Here's the ad that was run on a national site...

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Koli is a three to five year old Malamute or Husky, possibly a mix. Black and white. About 50lbs. Stocky build. She was a stray picked up by the animal control so I know nothing of her background. I’ve been fostering her to find out about her personality. She is very loving to humans and somewhat submissive. She is very intelligent and a quick learner. She seems to understand almost every sentence you can utter. Seems to be OK with kids. She has a VERY high prey drive though so she won’t be going to a home with small children. She has been very successful in her hunts. She *might* be OK with birds, but I can’t guarantee that. She currently is afraid of other dogs and to counter that attacks them. We are working on this with her and we are enrolled in an obedience class. She needs lots of exercise and will run and not come back when you call her so she’ll need a securely fenced yard. She would LOVE a jogging partner or possibly someone experienced in working with her breed to give her a job to do. She enjoys being outside very much but also strives for the companionship and security the indoors offers. She is happiest when she gets to enjoy both on and off for a few hours at a time. (Two to four hours here, then there.) She would like someone that wants to share both worlds with her. (She does know how to get into trouble alone outside, but seems to be a well mannered house dog.) She seems to be house broken and when she chooses a spot to use outside she’ll return to that one spot if you clean it daily. Also, she is not for someone who wants a beautiful lawn. She is a turf thrower when she’s done going potty. And a turf thrower she is!

Update Nov. 14th, 2006: I might consider adopting Koli to people with small animals after all. They must understand the risk they’d be taking though and understand the commitment involved. She has shown a lot of self control the past few days in not going after the squirrels; even when I encouraged her to one time (she declined and instead asked to go inside for a treat.) Also, after reading my ad I realize I hardly described her as the cute and fuzzy lovable dog I fell in love with at the pound. She is a great cuddle bug and gives warm soft kisses on occasion when they mean something. She also knows when you are hurt most of the time and will see what she can do to help. She feels really bad if she was the one to cause the pain. (We get a bit riled up during play. One time she ran over my hand to chase a ball and she was already turning around by the time the “Owe” even escaped me.) She takes treats really gentle and is not food aggressive. I can put my hand right in her bowl (to make sure she doesn’t forget I do this once a week.) She was protective of her fresh kills though, but I wouldn’t have expected less. It wasn’t even so protective that I felt I had anything to worry about (I would have been worried though if it had been a child going up to her.) Her nose is a counter surfer, but her tongue and fangs don’t follow :- ) (Then again she knows I’ll give her some if she waits long enough.) We’ve had no incidents with her going in the trash, but I wouldn’t put it past her. I definitely have to say that she is house trained. She was sick this past week (my fault) and was able to make it out each time. She continues to not get into anything around the house that isn’t given to her.

More than likely I will not do out of state adoptions. For the right person, the surrounding states might be considered.

Process:
Read over the dog’s description (and requirements.) Talk with family members and see if they think she’ll fit into your lifestyle. Does everyone agree? Fill out the application and email it to me. If I approve, you can then come meet her with your ENTIRE family. I’ll think it over and get back to you in a few days. I’ll send you a copy of the adoption contract. If you think you can agree to the terms then we’ll then come do a home visit. This does not guarantee that she is yours! Her wellbeing and happiness is my priority. I am going to take my time in deciding. I will keep your application on file. When and if I decide that you are a great match, I’ll have you sign the adoption contract on the day we turn her over to you.

Requirements for adopting this dog:
You must fill out an adoption application.
You must be willing to sign the adoption contract and adhere to all of the statements with in.
You must be at least 18 years of age.
You must be able to financially care for this dog as with in the terms set forth by the contract and with in accordance to local guidelines.
Your WHOLE household must agree to this adoption.
Written permission from landlord if you are renting.
Give references with which you have received their permission for me to contact them.
Realize that this is a commitment for the natural life of this dog.
Be willing for me to do a home check on this dog at least annually (there'll be a few in the first year,) for the rest of the dog’s natural life. Be willing to release the dog back to me if I think it is living in substandard care.
Commit to exercising this dog every day.
Are not going to use it for fighting or as a bait dog.
This dog will NOT be adopted to a college setting. (Such as dorms or a frat house.)

If you would like to fill out an application or have any questions about Koli please write to earthfirenospam @ nomadinter.net (delete the spaces around the @ )

More info!

"Update Nov. 24th, 2006: Koli now has her own webpage on Yahoo! Groups and Geocities. There is much work to be done on them yet, but it should make everything a bit more user friendly. I know the application was a nightmare to read on Petfinder (the reason why I switched to having people email me for it.) Y!Group will have updates and such. http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/adopt_koli/ The application is now online so anyone can see it. http://www.geocities.com/adopt_koli/adopt_koli_app.html You may still contact me at the old email, but it’s been having problems. The new email is adopt_koli@yahoo.com I may not check it as often, but your mail is less likely to get bounced, and vice versa. Also, some of Koli’s original rescuers may be getting on board and able to help answer emails too.

Update Nov. 24th, 2006 II: I forgot to mention; I’ve been training her with hand signals as well as voice."

PICTURES are finally here!!!

The adopt Koli board ( http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/adopt_koli/ ) is having problems so i'll post the message here. One can be seen on the front page though.

"Finally got the pictures developed! Yay! And finally got the scanner
to work. (Not a full fix, but we worked around the problems.)

Sorry, but due to the limitations of the security settings only people
who join the board can see the pictures. I'd change this if I could.

Please join and see what Koli looks like! Hope you enjoy!

If you don't want to join, feel free to email us
and we'll see what we can do about emailing you a photo or two."

adopt_koli@yahoo.com

Update: Tip: I found that if it says folder is unavailable, hit refresh and the photos will usually show up.

Yay!!! Thank you so much Sheri! Koli now finally has her own tiny spot in the main Petfinder.com universe!

http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displa...i?petid=7479441

(General notice I've been sending out.)

Yahoo Mail Problems

Something is going on with Yahoo Mail. I'll get an alert saying we
have new mail, but when I check there is none. This has happened
twice. Thankfully I was expecting it one of those times and knew who
to write back to and had another way to reach them. If you don't hear
back from us with in 24 hours, try to reach us at
earthfirenospam*AT*nomadinter.net (replace the *AT* with a @ of course.)

(Oyh! Here we go again. This time though, I hope this is final. Team Adopt Koli is going to get nothing accomplish for this poor girl if we have to keep switching the contact info.)

"Update: Scratch all of that. Just made an account at Care2. Their email has been reliable in the past we're going to try it now. We figured it was better than waiting around and seeing if either server were going to get their act together. We're very sorry for the inconvenience. There will be a few pro-environment ads that come with the Care2 mail, but Care2 has a strict no Spam policy and can be counted on for security. The web pages mentioned previously are still in effect though! Here is the new email address and profile... adopt_koli@care2.com http://my.care2.com/adopt_koli "

GREAT NEWS!!! KOLI GOT HER FIRST TWO PHONE CALLS TODAY!!!

I placed an ad in the Midland newspaper. It started its run today, but they messed up on the email so i have to call them in the morning.

I got a call about 4P from a guy who read the ad. Promised a dog to his 7yr. old if he stayed on good behavior and kept his room clean for six months. To his surprise and delight the kid has been an angel. I'm not sure about this choice, but i'll continue to talk to them if they want to continue the conversation.

Then about 7PM i get another call. His voice sounds exactly like the same guy, but then he starts talking about all this other stuff and that he lives near Detroit. Definitely someone else. Then he mentioned that he found the ad on Petfinder! {Of ALL things!!! The first day my ad runs in a tiny local paper someone replies to the Petfinder ad!} He's looked at her ad a few times now, but they are trying to make sure the dog they get is the right one so are taking their time deciding. We talked for almost an hour, but we had been on our way out the door at 7. We would have talked longer. They sound great despite a few things that i'm taking with a grain of salt. For example I said she will NOT be adopted to a home with small kids. They have a 2 and 4 yr. old. ...AND three cats! But these people sound REALLLLLY dedicated and responsible. Half an hour into the phone conversation and questions and answers his wife hopped on the internet and was filling out the application.

I keep having to "check" myself as you would an over excited horse. Yes, they sound great; but i shouldn't be pushing Koli out the door either. (That's how one of the best kitties in the whole wide world ended up dead. :- ( *quivery lip* *WAH!!!* )

Wish me luck!

Oh, and i wanted to ask: Any advice on talking to their vets and other references? Questions i should be asking. Points i should be listening for?

If everything there checks out fine and i set up a meeting and a home check and those turn out good, how long of a cooling period should i give them and myself? Would a week be fine for emotions to ease and logic to do its work?

When checking their vet reference there are a few basic questions.

1) Is their current pet (or their past pets) up to date on routine vaccines and altered? And in a timely manner.

2) Do they do routine heartworm checks and buy preventative?

3) If the clinic know them by name and has good things to say right away, that's a very good sign.

4) I always ask the person I am talking to if they look like good pet owners according to their records?

Hope that helps a little.

Not to sound critical, you know the dog best. If you set parameters like "no small children" then you bypass this, are you setting the dog up for failure?? Is the dog going to be returned,dumped or pts, because of something it did, when it could have been avoided in the beginning? Just something to think about.

Alot of times I say Kathye is too picky on the apps, but so far in the many adoptions we've had, only 2 have been returned. Did we set them up for failure? Absolutly. The first one we were hesitant, but I convinced Kath it would be okay. Come to find out, he nipped a kid running past the house. All he wanted was attention. They tied him outside for the 6 months they had him. They were nice enough to move him to the tie-out next to the window at night. Had we known and if we would have talked maybe a little more, we would have found this out.
The 2nd one was a pup adopted to a home with a small child. I think Kath and I both were worried, but the first couple days seemed fine, then all of a sudden she is too much for them.

When we set up limits, we stick to them not for us, but for the dog. They have already been through too much in their lives.

We had one adopter a few weeks ago wanting to adopt a black lab mix. She lived in Detroit in a loft. She had money, but how much time was going to be devoted to the dog? We nicely asked her to go to Detroit Animal Control and see if she saw anything there first, as they were killing daily. She went, saw and adopted.

Some vet offices won't release info, so be prepared. Kritter has given you some very valuable pointers/questions.

Kevin

I wanted to get things started this morning and didn't have any replies yet so i went ahead on my own. Yay! I asked most of those questions... Thank you.

I asked about vaccinations, but totally forgot about preventatives!

I also checked with the other references... and found the advantage of permission to call not received in advance. No staged answers! (I forgot to remind the people to let their references know I'd be calling. Despite going against social graces, i actually like this way better. I think i may continue this way. Seems to give a much more detailed painting of the adopters' lives.)

Well, when it comes to kids we've only got to see her up close and personal with one kid. She did GREAT, but it was only for five minutes and the kid is well behaved. It's just the prey drive that worries me.

(But from past experience i know that prey drive varies from each individual to what their drive is geared for. King for example would kill an outside cat in a blink of an eye, but practically adored them if they were inside. My Rat Terrier would hunt rabbits, but played with the squirrels and cats. And by play i actually mean playing tag for a half an hour in the back yard on the ground. Sometime they'd even take naps together out there.) So i wonder if her prey drive wouldn't even cross over onto a human child? (5 minutes total time really isn't much to evaluate one behavior by thoroughly if you ask me.) However when she sees other kids when we're out on our walks she's never once gone into her stalk mode. Always her happy to see you play mode with the I love you yip. (She's reserved that for S.O, myself, and a few of our friends.)

Most people i wouldn't even consider even saying maybe to. There's something about these people though. They seem completely responsible and ready to commit to being there every second. I have no bad feeling about this one household. Everything I've heard from their references has reiterated how great they are. Of course i still have to meet them in person, but they sound like the kind of people that just about every rescue prays for.

I know my gut instinct better than i do Koli's personality.

I'm not trying to argue. I plan on for the most part taking your advice with every person that applies. I just think though that sometimes there are exceptions to the rule. Also, as i stated... I really actually DON'T know Koli all that well.

As things stand, if i couldn't find her a home in the next two months we were going to have her PTS anyhow. It's just been too much stress on me. And it's not fair to her for the little amount of exercise I can provide. (I could provide a lot more if she were dog friendly.) I didn't want to do it since she is such a sweet dog otherwise. Until yesterday though it looked like we were getting stuck with a dog we never wanted. Trying to do the right thing backfired on me. ...and i figured having her PTS was a LOT more humane than handing her over to someone who is just going to tie her up in a back yard.

I do not take your words lightly. All the stories I've heard of dogs abondoned that could have been prevented if a right match had been there to begin with ran through my head over and over and over again. ("pre-order your puppy now!" makes my head hurt on so many levels.)

Trust me... after one bad foster experience I was traumatized and swore I'd never foster again. I just didn't think i was cut out for it. I never wanted to doom another animal to it's death. As heart wrenching as the ordeal was it was a learning experience and serves to remind me to never ignore my gut feeling. To never rush things.

If things just don't seem right, i won't go forward with the adoption.

I've only done one other placement myself and assisted with a second one since my bad experience. As far as i know the second one went well. I've wanted to check up on that, but all the contact information was on my old computer. As for the placement i did myself... That is doing GREAT! I get to see the awesome little kitty about four times a year. The only thing the owners didn't stick with are the feeding requirements that i gave. Other then that he's never abused, receives regular vet visits, and is an inside cat. He might even be getting a catwalk thingy all around the living room and computer room soon! Did i forget to mention... He's spoiled rotten.

Oh, and with Koli i'm not making the same mistake i did with the others. I AM making the new owners sign a contract/adoption agreement. Never ever again will i not use one.

[That is why i'm not a writer. My thoughts bounce around too much. I guess that's why editors exist. I couldn't stand having my hard work torn to shreds though. Constructive criticism on message boards is one thing, but with books and essays it's different for me.]

I also thought of another topic I haven't covered much with them. Their financial situation. I want to ask this more as a general statement than about a particular applicant.

How do you usually go about this? Do you ask for proof?

I already ask on the application about employment status.

Would it be kosher to ask to see their latest pay stubs (as proof that they are currently employed.?)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I want to thank everyone again for your replies. They have meant so much to me!!! I know I can seem ornery and stubborn at times, but please believe that your words are not falling on deaf ears.

I know this is off topic a bit, but i really want to share.

Another message board I'm on just lost one of our dear members. She lived in CA so i never got to meet her in person. I talked to her a lot though and felt like i already knew her.

She was Koli's second biggest financial contributer. With out her contribution Koli would not be alive today.

I kind of already felt and knew... though we had been told otherwise. Her passing was announced officially just this past evening. She passed away this Saturday the 13th. (She's been suffereing an illness for the past two years and pretty much kept quiet of it until recently. We appreciate her saying goodbye.)

It wasn't until Sunday that i received that wonderful phone call. As i was posting to the other message board about it, I swear i could feel her hand on my shoulder and her smiling down at me. (Even though we hadn't been told she had gone, I felt it in instincts.) I really believe that if the other realm exists she definitely played a part in nudging these people to call. They said they've been looking at Koli for almost three months (but had called on other Huskies that seemed to fit their lifestyle better. ...Only to agree that the other dogs weren't quite right for them after all.) Then the previous evening they decided to call and ask questions about Koli just in case.

I just wish that in life (S) had gotten to see Koli adopted. This last month all i did was complain about her for the most part. It's really hard for me not to believe that (S) didn't play a part in these people calling. The timing is just too coincidental. In my heart i believe that (S) has already has gotten to see Koli get adopted. I just don't know it yet. ;-)

The home check is this Sunday. We'll see.

Here it is Because General get so busy I will move it to foster animals updates One of the

reasons we created this form is because General was too busy and fosters had to search to put an update up

Thank you. I would have moved it, but i haven't been able to do that for a couple months now.

I was like "Yay! Koli gets to play with all the other foster doggies on the message board now." It was so lonely down there on General ;-)

11AM

This week has been an emotional roller coaster. It’s been almost two weeks since Koli got a call from a caring family who would take good care of her. This past Sunday we went and did a home check and meet & greet. At first the oldest child was scared, but by the end of the visit she was petting Koli and asking to give her treats. Monday the people were calling to see what we thought and to let us know that their eldest daughter was asking about Koli and where she was. Yesterday I called to let them know that my appointment had been cancelled and they could adopt her this weekend. (Yay!!!) Today i get the call that their oldest daughter is just too afraid of Koli. (Wah!!!)

By no fault of her own, Koli is no longer going to her forever home. She was absolutely wonderful around the children. If it wasn’t for the fact that irresponsible people and misbehaving kids exist in the world I’d take the “no small children” out of her ad in a heartbeat.

*sigh* *head in hands* I’ve been crying for the past two hours. I never thought i would say this about a dog aggressive dog, but she is such a sweetheart and is so wonderful. She has the only qualities that i missed having in King (to consider him absolutely perfect.) She is very sensitive to your emotions and is a willing foot warmer. I’ve never known such a great cuddle bug.

I just mentally can’t handle her fear aggression towards other dogs. I’ve tried and i just can’t deal with it. I’m sure all she needs is time. Probably being separated from other dogs, but can get with in inches of them with a barrier in between. She only got exposed to other dogs in a controlled setting twice. The improvement she made with those two sessions was nothing short of amazing. Unfortunately the class was only once a month and is currently on hiatus.

If anyone knows someone that may be able to take her PLEASE let me know.

With a heavy heart I’m going to have to “let her go” soon.

I'm so sorry to hear about Koli's bad luck. Wish I knew of someone who could take her.

Let me post her to Husky rescue

I already contacted just about every Husky and Malamute rescue in the state (before) and almost no one was willing to even post her on their site.

Still, it might make a difference with you contacting them. I highly appreciate this!

I'm sorry you're having such an emotional ride with Koli, having a big heart is hard sometimes. *hug* She looks so beautiful and sweet in her pictures.
I guess i'm a bit slow or out of the loop or something, please let me know if i've got this right:
Koli is a big girl that you saved from a kill shelter and have been fostering.
She's very good and has even learned to curb her "prey" instincts quite a bit.
She is loving and sweet and cuddly.
She's fear/aggressive of other dogs that you believe could be resolved with time. How aggressive are we talking here? (if you think this would be better answered in private, please do so.

You obviously care a great deal about this girl and have spent alot of time with her. Do you have other dogs that are causing a problem with her? Is your situation such that she needs to move on asap rather than stay a bit longer?

How is she when she's left on her own (while an owner would be at work)?

becki

Your summery described her to a T.

As far as her aggression goes she has pulled hard to get away from me to go attack other dogs and when she got out of the yard it was the first thing she did... Run and track down another dog to attack. She makes an awful show of motion and sound... but does no damage to the other dog (so far); as soon as she makes the move on the other dog she runs off and doesn't go back. She absolutely can't fathom getting along with large black dogs. At the dog park she was tolerant of other dogs... until they sniffed her for longer than two seconds. ...Or if they were a big black dog. In obedience class she could learn to ignore other dogs. The trainer's dog was laying only two feet from us for most of one class. We really think that she is just fear aggressive and needs a LOT more exercise.

No dogs around to give her problems. There are dogs around the neighborhood, but no immediate neighbors have dogs.

My mental and physical health have been suffering. That i would feel more comfortable discussing in detail in a private email if need be. S.O. and i discussed it and we agreed that we can only keep her to the end of Feb at longest. That is an extension over when we first gave her.

Had she not had sponsors and i didn't see any hope in rehabbing her i would have put her down after the second incident of her going after another dog. I've always been firmly against dog aggressive dogs no matter why that dog was aggressive towards others. I've been shown a whole other side of the coin. I can now understand how these dogs' people say they are sweethearts. People in the neighborhood have shown me patience and kindness that i never would have shown someone in my shoes. As the owner of the dog getting attacked, I would have been furious! Instead I had owners telling me that "things happen," and some of them going out of their way to try and help me catch her after she got loose. (I still can't get the images of her going after the Jack Russell out of my head. Or the sounds of Bear's yelps as she terrorized him. If he's outside and we walk by he still huddles into a ball and starts trembling. And it pains me... A dog *I* saved from the pound did this.)

I can't reiterate enough what a perfect house dog Koli is and how wonderful her manners are. (Though something in the trash could persuade her otherwise, she's only gone in it once.) With someone home, or her alone she can be trusted indoors. She hasn't touched anything that wasn't directly given to her. Even outside you have to re-gift her toys back to her about once a week (If is something you haven't played with in a while.) Inside is a no game zone. Play is for outside. Things can get broken and messed up in the house. I've tried initiating calm games in the house and she'll have none of it. Well, she'll play a micro game of tag, and then tussle on the bed but that's about it... and she tries to get you to take it outside. I'm sorry, but when i just woke up, am going to bed, or it's 1F outside; I don't want to go out.

Thank you Becki for writing back!

I've been thinking of this for over a week now, but watching Underdogs on PBS gave me strength. I just would have no idea of who to contact.

C&P:
"Please, if anyone knows of a service group (such as search & rescue) or a reputable acting agency let me know ASAP or send them Koli’s information. She is very intelligent and highly adaptable. She just needs someone who can work with her. I had zero tolerance for dogs with dog aggression. She has shown me though why some people try so hard to rehabilitate some of them. She is a diamond in the rough; she just needs to be polished."

I'm thinking she'd be great for SAR for when conditions are too cold for other SAR dogs. I'm thinking particularly looking for lost hikers in the snow covered mountains.

Well, we have a tad bit of good news. Someone is going to be working with us on socializing Koli!

We're in Bay City and they're in Livonia, but we've worked out a halfway point. I thought for sure I was going to be writing here tonight to ask if anyone knew someone around the flint area... but things worked out.

Yipppeeee!!!

So this next weekend may or may not be an eval. point.

I know if she does good that a whole door is going to open up for her getting adopted. I'm so excited. (If she does good I'll even consider keeping her for an even longer extended period of time!)

Wish me luck, and pray for Koli keeping her nerves steady and opening her heart to the possibilities. Pray for her fear to melt away.

Halfway might be around me, if you need a place to stop or want to meet by the xpressway for a soda or something, drop me a message, i'm sort of between exit 136 and 132. I'd love to meet Koli (without Jazzi of course for now) and you. If not now, then maybe in a couple weeks?

I'm glad you've found someone to help you continue to get this girl straightened out. If she overcomes her aggression that'll be great! I'll keep my fingers crossed for Koli to catch on fast and i know you've got to feel alot better now that you've got some way to try and help her with! *HUG*

GREAT NEWS!!! Koli CAN get along with other dogs!!!

We end up meeting with a friend of the person who originally offered help. The other dog's personality was calm, but he wasn't about to put up with any shenanigans either. Koli was definitely testing the boundaries. There were a few hair raising scary sounding scuffles but no blood was shed. By the end of the hour she'd walk up to him like she was going to start something. When he wouldn't do anything she'd just leave him alone and go sniff something else. By the end of the hour she had conceded to being beta. He got first dibs on cashes and he had last say on marking posts.

So PLEASE spread the word, Koli CAN get along with non-violent dogs.

We're going to meet up again next weekend. Again with the same dog and another one that is a tiny bit less tolerant (if she does well with this one again.)

God, i could see her working instinct kick in!!! It was near the beginning of the hour. We were walking down a trail. They hadn't worked out the pecking order yet and Koli was still likely to pick a dominance "talk" with him. She walked right next to him no problem. It was as if i could see the rigging hooked up to them. She was as happy as could be to be in a team!

Crow
Thats Great news, I hope that everything works out for you & Koli. That was my biggest fear when I brought Cooper home that Granny or Shannon wouldnt get along with him. It was if I ignore it, it isnt there and it went that way for three days. Then I walked out in the living room and here he was with Granny on the (Her) couch so I knew that she had accepted a new subject. LOLOLOLOL Granny REX.

Crow, I'm sorry i didn't get to hook up with you, for some reason i didn't even see the msg from you til after the weekend *grumbles* I'm so happy for you both and hope it's the beginning of the end for Koli as far as her search for a new home. Maybe, since she's out and about, someone will see her or know of someone she'd be just PERFECT for! Let me know when you're heading out again, i'd love to meet up and see this good girl who seems to be trying hard to please!

I don't think we're going out tonight (Both the person we're working with and ourselves are very hard people to get ahold of and are VERY busy.) Tomorrow however I think we're meeting in the afternoon at a pet store in Chesaning. He wants to see how she does in public and see this bad behavior I talk of... since he didn't really get to see it last weekend *grin*

That's as detailed as i can get as that is all i know. (I'll post an edit if things change.)



Edit: Things in Chesaning didn't pan out, BUT we are meeting at PetsMart in Saganiw at 1PM. Unless the storm is realllllly bad we're making it snow or shine. Might be heading to Bark Park after that. (West on Tittabawassee, then south two miles on 47/Midland Rd.

Good luck on your transport lorie!!!

If anyone wants to meet Koli feel free to come on out.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Copy of email I sent to the person who introduced me to J***
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

J*** and I met up again today and all things considered it went quite well again today.

Koli actually was playing with K***. Playing!

However, both K*** and K**** were leery of Koli and she took advantage of it and tried bossing them around. K*** didn't put up with it, but she bullied K****. J*** says that is really out of character for him. We end up having to put K**** in the air lock to save him from Koli. (We met up at Petsmart in Saginaw then ventured to Bark Park.)

When we were in the store Koli wasn't a complete spazz like she used to be. Last weekend worked a miracle on her. We had avoided taking her to pet stores because of the way she acted before, but I think it would be OK now.

Last week I was just starting to have hope I could place her with another dog. After today I definitely feel confident placing her in a home with another dog that can hold their own. Not sure about placing her with a submissive dog (or overly dominant either of course,) though.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

J also commented on something that I've noticed. Koli has one heck of a herding instinct. She looks like a Border Collie or Aussie out there. Some of her moves belie that she's a Husky, sometimes she moves more like one of the aforementioned breeds.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Did i forget to mention, Koli was playing with another dog!?

You know, I thought I'd be ecstatic when this day would arrive. Things have changed though. Well, at least my perspective. Why has it changed? Because i now know that Koli is capable of getting along with other dogs. I'm not as stressed anymore. So what am i talking about? No, she's not getting adopted... yet. *sigh* However I get a week long vacation from her! She is going to a different foster home for a week! Well, more like her socialization is getting taken to the next level. I'm so excited. This should help her out a LOT. Not only that, but i get someone else's perspective on what it's like to have her as a house guest. (And if all goes well hopefully word will spread about how terrific she is.)

I never imagined that i would get an offer for someone else to foster her, but i am certainly delighted!

Oh, and he jokingly reiterated that this is ONLY for one week. I assured him that we'll take her back next weekend. (He knows how much we want her gone and that i have my heart already set on another dog.)

First off, some bad news. *sniffle* Some people that i were considering adopting Koli to; their dog passed away. "hemorrhage from a perforated intestine. Despite emergency surgery she did not make it." They're not up to having another dog right now and i completely sympathize with them.

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Now on to the good news... Koli's eval from John... Which I'm adding to the other sites as we speak.

Tue, 6 Mar 2007 (private email update to me.)

The worst thing to happen so far occurred Sunday night. After getting on together all afternoon, just before I went to bed P**** needed to assert himself to Koli. He strode up to her at broadsides like warships of old. With his face at the level of her face, he emitted a low growl. Koli understood his demand and hung her head still lower as she stepped away from him. P**** moved his broadside in close again and repeated the growl. Again she moved away giving submissive body language. Yet again P**** presented his broadsides and Koli moved off. P**** was going to do this routine still again but I interceded. I brought P**** into the bedroom and he laid down for the night.

Monday morning Koli used the pet door while I was at ______. This evening P**** was almost playing with her. He seemed to want her to chase him but she was herding him.

We have not met any other dogs on our visits to the pet food store or TSC. Koli has met several adults and a few young children, though. In all situations, at home and elsewhere, she has been splendid.

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Tue, 13 Mar 2007 (overview he wrote up for the public.)

Koli's foster home wanted a break for a bit and asked for some help. I am John, a malamute person. We met for several hours over a couple of Saturdays, Koli first meeting my Malamute then meeting two of my former foster Malamutes. These meets worked so well that I substitute-fostered Koli for a week. This is my overview of Koli.

Koli is a very good looking little girl. She is from easy to walk to not too difficult. When she wants to investigate something, she may pull determinedly. I view walking a dog not as exercise but as an expedition for the dog. I allow the dog to pursue it's interest within limits that I set. Koli's only stout pulling for me involved her wanting to meet other dogs or other animals. She really wanted to interact with the wee folk at the pet shops.

This little girl is very affectionate and likes humans of all sizes. Children look at her bright, smart face and find her adorable; as she does them. (Even as children playing together can become too rough without intending to hurt anyone, so too can a dog playing with a child become too rough with out intending harm. Be aware while children are playing). Koli is very gentle when taking offerings from humans and she very much appreciates the thought. At home, she may follow her person around with interest but she is not needy. Neither is this kid hyper. Of course, she does get excited when she is about to go walking. Everyone needs to get out of the house and into less familiar surroundings regularly.

Koli likes to play. Chasing a ball is great fun. Tag is grand fun too. She will come alive with a child who wants someone to play with. She can play her most energetic with other dogs. With others of her kind the action can be enormously fun to watch. Koli seems almost to try to herd the other dog while in games of chase.

Sometimes one may wonder if Koli really is attacking the other dog. I suspect that Koli has a bit of the school yard bully in her with respect to other dogs but I also feel that in spite of this she does not intend harm to the other dog. I have watched her interaction with dogs from tiny breeds to three and four times her own size. She likes to see if she can get a game going. If she finds that she can intimidate the other dogs, she thinks that is fun too. This little girl had a one hundred pound malamute running to me for protection from the pestering she gave him. In spite of the blood chilling language and non-contact snapping he was giving her, she wouldn't stop. (I have seen this malamute effortlessly throw my own one hundred thirty pound malamute on his back). She did not hurt him in the least.

Koli played very well with a slightly larger malamute. They ran and wrestled all across the yard. When either of them got too rough, he or she was informed by voice or movement. Neither of them tried getting even. While Koli was playing with a somewhat smaller dog she moderated her force very well to what that dog could deal with. They had a grand time. An uniformed observer may wonder if Koli is fighting. She is one of those dogs who employs lots of theatrics in her play. Most dogs have very active imaginations.

She also tried playing with what may be a Yorki. This is where the school yard bull thing really presented. Koli was mouthing the tiny dog as if to pick it up. I am confident that she had no wish to harm the little one but even a sleight wrong move could have a sorry result. The worst thing this wee guy experienced from Koli was a partially unintended body slam. Koli ran toward the kid and stopped a step too late, knocking him over. I believe that with experience and guidance Koli would moderate herself around tiny dogs.

In play Koli is sometimes load, but far and away most of the time she is silent Other than in play when she talks the statements are pleasant and very cute. Koli is not destructive and seems not to be much of a digger. She is a very easy and enjoyable dog to live with.

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Koli's thread now has just over 500 page views. Thank you everyone for your interest in Koli!

*sigh* another deleted post i have to try and make up for.

Three days ago i realized that yesterday the 26th was Koli's six month anniversary of being sprung from the pound.

since I was already here posting i also decided to post a tiny update from the other day.

email to a friend...

"S.O. was walking her this evening when a border collie came charging up and attacker her. S.O. said that Koli was happy the whole time and started fighting the other dog. He said she really seemed to be enjoying herself though. He checked her over for damage and didn't find any. The people swear their dog had never done that before. Koli came home and she was telling me all about it. she was alllll smiles and wags. *me rolling eyes* After they had gotten away from the other dog and were continuing home they turned the corner and almost walked into a lady and her golden. The lady was so apologetic saying she just rescued her dog from the pound a few days ago and had no idea what it would do. (LOL... Been there!) Koli and her just sniffed noses, wagged tails and that was that. ...Even though Koli was still pumped from the fight.

I guess the other dog had Koli by the neck twice, S.O. stopped it from getting a hold of a leg, and then it attacked her butt.

Update in a day of having Koli."

Miss Koli is going to her first adoption event. Yes, you read that correctly. She gets to meet the public.

Koli has been invited to come to Few Steps From Home 's adoption day on Sunday, April 15th from Noon to 4:00PM at the Tractor Farm Supply store on Bay Road in Saginaw.

I am so excited! Koli's first "Open House"

YEAH !

WAY TO GO KOLI AND CROW!!


Dang, i'll be in FL but will be thinking of you both. Please, take pictures of her at her debut party??

I'll try to remember to at least take the camera.

I'm more of an in the moment person. Even when i go on vacation it's something if i use 12 frames. I'll try to have S.O. take a picture when we get set up. (I'm not sure if he's sticking around or going elsewhere.)




Thank you Lorrie and Doc

L, stay safe in FL!

It went rather well, but not too many people showed interest in Koli. She did get many comments on how beautiful she is though. One application was taken.

On the other hand Heather really wanted to take her home At least she realizes she has her hands full. It was just wishful thinking.

I pray that after the long wait, both Petey and Koli will both get the perfect home

How long has Petey been with OA? He seems like such a sweetie.

I forget which on it is, but FSFH has one pitty mix that has been with them for over a year. :-(

They also have a deaf 10+ year old senior. She's a real sweetie. Click If I didn't have Koli I'd offer to 'foster' her in a heart beat.

Hey, those elderly guys and girls STILL have alot to give, just ask the Granny Setter, she will tell you that she is my "Heat Therapy" dog. Every time my back is messed up Granny will stretch out full length against it
all that it takes is about an hour and next day I am fine. It is her idea, not mine. LOLOLOL somehow she just knows.

Koli is going to be going to a lot more meet and greet events since she did so well. She's already gone to a second one today and will be at a third on Tuesday. Rather than posting these all here I'm going to just refer you to her Petfinder ad for those that are interested. I'll try and keep the listing at the top updated. I'm really hoping someone will find her.

In the mean time I'm falling in love with other poor sweethearts with out forever homes. gah!

She is BEAUTIFUL ! it shouldnt be long before she finds a forever home.

Yes, she is beautiful and you have worked hard with her. I am sure the right person will come along soon. I am keeping my fingers crossed for Koli (and for you).

We need prayers that when the right people DO come along that tragedy does not befall them.

Two homes already that Koli could have gone to. *sigh* The first incident could have been preventable, but wasn't foreseeable. The second incident... Well i cry every time i think about what happened to them. They may still be a potential home for Koli... just not right now. That is one family i have not been able to shake from my mind and I've not forgotten to keep them in my thoughts and prayers.

Koli almost has seemed like a bad luck charm. If there is such a thing we need to pray for her to turn in to a good luck charm.

etc.

etc.

etc.

Prayers, positive vibes, etc. etc. etc.

Today I woke up after about five hours of sleep feeling fully awake (despite a threatening sugar crash.) I felt like i needed to be up for something. Normally at the time i woke up I'd be comatose and nothing would wake me up. I decided to get a quick bite to eat and head to the computer. I was going to check email but got a strong urge to keep the phone line free. 20 minutes after waking up the phone rings. (Long story here... funny to tell in person, but too personal to post online.) Anyhow, it was a guy who saw Koli's Petfinder ad a few times over the past few months and is really interested in her. I'll probably be talking with him again tomorrow.

I had such a good feeling about it that I ran outside and told Koli.

I don't know if this is it, but I'm really happy that there is someone out there (not involved in rescue) that cares so much about Koli's well being and future.

Thank goodness for my "gut feelings!"

If she does go to this home she'll have an adoption Husky brother to play with!

(No progress yet from the meet and greets.)

Fingers crossed and a little prayer to St. Francis for his help in getting Koli her forever home.

Well, Koli was a life saver today. At least in my opinion.

I had another night terror. (My third or fourth one.) (Some of the things that happened in the first one and in this one sometimes make me wonder if there's more to it spiritually.)

Before i woke up Koli was barking aggressively at the things in the dream.

When i woke up she was on the bed. She's never on the bed with out permission (well, not since like the first and second week with us.) S.O. says the second i started screaming Koli was at my feet on the bed. (There was no time between my screaming and her being up there... She normally sleeps in the living room. She would have had to wake up, run to the bedroom, then hoist herself up. Nope, she was RIGHT there... as if she knew what was going on.) She just sat there staring at me with a worried look on her face. She let me pet her like crazy. No begging for belly rubs. Just staring at me with serious worry in her face. Every now and then looking over her shoulder at about the area where the things were in my dream. After i calmed down she turned around and just sat/laid sentinel and watched the two spaces where the things were.

(Also in the dream I heard King whisper to her to keep me safe from those things. At first she had no idea what they were, but after he told her that she was one of the best guards i could ask for. / King was still alive for my first one and didn't leave my side all day.)

I'm grateful to have such a great pooch around. (And to be honest I'm almost scared to get rid of her now. Who knows if my next dog will be able to save me from those things. ..Yeah Yeah... I know it is supposedly just a night terror... but it seems so real. ...especially with how the dogs act about them.)

*goes off to hug Koli again*

Well, everyone must be doing a really good job of praying. It's been two months since i had any serious inquiries. Now yesterday and today we got some. Thank you!!!

Today started out as a horrible day and continued to be a horrible day. However early in the evening things started to change for the better. Some business business went much better than expected. Then after S.O. and i got home and were relaxing we got a call... for Koli. It was a woman this time. She sounded really nice. Has a young Golden for Koli to play with and a HUGE fenced in yard. I'll be sending out an application to her tonight. I just wish my head wasn't in a cloud, usually i have more questions to ask people.