Barkley Black Labrador Retriever Mix Male 4 Months Old ID #2852

BArkely is now about 5.5 months old.  Barkley had a change of foster of the other day, and it was a long day for all, but  we were able to get home right before dark so doggie intros to the three resident labs were done outside, one dog at a time, starting from calmest to least calm dog, before heading in.  Rumor had it that Barkley could be a little “snappy”  when meeting a new dog, so while we are prepared for that, he had zero issues and everyone was appropriately going nose to butt, tails curiously wagging, etc…  good boy Barkley.

 

Barkley has quite a sniffer on him, and it took him a long time to settle down as there were so many new smells to discover inside, but after satisfying himself that he knew the lay of the land (and he went in every room where he wasn’t met with a closed door), he hopped up on the sofa (my dogs aren’t allowed but he is clearly a furniture guy) and slept while we caught up the taped news and watched a show before bed.

Night time was a little rough- I’m not going to lie.  I was determined that he was going to sleep in a crate but he was equally determined that he was not going to sleep in the crate.  I slept with him in a guest room on one end of the house in the hopes that at least my husband and daughter could hopefully get a good night’s sleep.  But we had quite the stand off and after about an hour of non stop ear piercing barking, guess who caved first?  Of course –  me:)  Barkley spent the rest of the night on the bed, but he was unsettled and hopped off and on numerous times.  He also thought sleeping on me was a good idea.     The good news is that even with his freedom, there were zero accidents, and he didn’t chew or get into anything while he was off the bed. I consider that a big win!

Today is a new day and with a good strong cup of coffee in me, we were ready to tackle day 2 with Barkley.  He is a ravenous eater and I see a slow feeder bowl in his near future.  We next outfitted him with a size medium Freedom harness and off he went with my husband and three resident dogs, and all things considered, he did very well on leash and he had plenty of pep for the whole 3 miles.   He still wasn’t sleepy though, and we’ve been in and out numerous times (no accidents though) and he had one real play session with my 6 year old lab who loves to play chase.  So they romped around the yard with me hanging on for dear life.  He tried to hump her a few times but each time she verbally told him off and flipped around on him, and he was then appropriately respectful.  Now at 2pm he is finally taking a nap (on the couch of course) and we’re all getting a break from the tag team operation that is having a new pup in the house.  All in all I’d say we’re off to a good start;  yesterday had to be a really long day for the poor guy too.  Tonight I’m going to have one of the resident dogs in with us too and see if we can’t do any better in the sleep department.

It has been quite a week for Barkley!  A lot of firsts.

He received a box of toys and treats from the Rescue and has a lot of fun checking it out!

He is looking forward to growing into the new harness they sent!

He saw his first snow fall and although a little cautious at first and mesmerized by the white stuff falling from the sky, he took off with his foster family dogs and romped and slid and had a blast!  He didn’t seem to bothered by the cold.

Barkley met some of the neighbor children; we don’t even think that he had ever encountered a child as he was very cautious and obviously a bit distressed over this small human.  But we took our time and stayed very calm and let him sniff.  It didn’t take very long for him to approve and crawl into a waiting lap for some love.   We have purposely walked when we know the kids are out playing to keep him comfortable.  All good and he is a big fan of all the attention.

A visit to the vet was a bit scary but he did great and didn’t even flinch at the shots, probably because he was eating!  He is 31 pounds and the Vet thinks he will grow to around 50.  He already has some adult teeth.

And then, an early family Christmas with two new dogs to meet and play with and some new humans to love on! (Yes, we had 6 dogs in the house!)  Plus, new toys!   He is a toy hoarder, by the end of the day they are all in his crate!  He actually pulls them towards him when he is ready to nap so he is surrounded!   All of the excitement and running around was exhausting and eventually he took his own time out for a very long nap.  There was a lot of napping the next day as well.

Last night he actually watched the opening of Sound of Music.  Apparently, a Julie Andrews musical fan! Lost interest once the opening credits started.

Barkley is doing great with his house training, commands and leash walking.   He has his daily schedule and routine and has settled in very well.

So, now we know that Barkley is great with dogs (we have 3), great with kids and adults.  Plays well with others.  Prefers to sleep with the humans and not in his crate, but will go in to his crate if we are in the room and nap.

Barkley eats in his crate and when given a treat he actually takes it into his crate out of habit!  Smart boy!     He is always with one of us humans, even when the dogs are spread out around the house.  He also has developed a taste for some of the furniture and is not a fan of the taste of Bitter Apple.!  Oh, the fun of puppies and teething.

Barkley is becoming much more comfortable in our space and playing with the other dogs and toys in the house!  The best place for zoomies is on the bed to the floor, to the bed to the floor, to the bed to the floor!!  And then crash half in and half out of his bed!

He now has a harness and took his first walk around the neighborhood; there were so many smells!!    He did ok for his first time out with his foster brother Jackson and I think he do well on leashed walks going forward. 

He seems to be a very fast learner and we will start more intense training of basic commands now that he is comfortable in the house and with the other dogs.   I am sure he will be quite the show off with his new talents!

Barkley (previously known as Blackie) he will be 16 weeks next week.  He is around 30 pounds.

 

Welcome to Delaware Barkley!  Barkley’s first night was a bit crazy as he tried to figure out where he was, why Delaware does not yet smell like home, who are all these other dogs and those people!  But he quickly learned a persons lap is a good place to be, other dogs are kind of big and want to play too hard, except for the little one who just keeps an eye out. Barkley must not have ever been leashed walked as having the leash attached to his collar is very scary for him and he can alligator roll with the best!   We are anxiously waiting for his new harness, which will help, and we are going to start practicing inside for our evening walks outside.  We are also potty training and this morning’s major zoomy romp was his sign that he had to go out.  He was very proud of this!    Barkley is a huge love bug and a very happy boy.   He looks very much like a classic lab except for his white toes and chest and his little white goatee!   This adorable little pup should grow into a very handsome boy.   We are looking forward to seeing more of his happy personality develop and getting him ready for his forever home!