Korra Black Labrador Retriever Female ~3 Years Old ID#2613

Korra arrived into Brookline’s care from a local shelter.  She was rescued by animal control after being abandoned in a storage shed.  Korra is estimated to be between 2-4 years old.  The staff at the shelter said she is lovable, happy, energetic and eager to please.  Please read her blog from the bottom up to learn more about her time in foster care.

January 2, 2024

Hi Everyone!  It’s me Korra.  I haven’t had any updates in a while because I moved to a new place in the city and tried apartment living for a while.  I really loved all the runs my new friend took me on while I lived there but I wasn’t really a fan of all the noise and let everyone know.  I’m happy to report that I’m now at a fun place called Kamp where I can play and brush up on some of my skills!I am still looking for my forever home, and hope that my match will come pick me up real soon.

October 11, 2023

Hi Everyone,

Korra has come a long way and is ready to find her forever home. She has been working on her manners and is now going for walks using a gentle leader. The difference is amazing. No more pulling.

Korra’s new home should be active. Korra is a big puppy so exercise keeps her out of trouble. She needs someone that can take her for long walks or runs. A good Korra is a tired Korra.

Korra likes other dogs but should be the only resident dog. She is fine having dog friends or going to daycare. She would do best with lower to moderate energy daycare friends.

Korra still is mouthy and needs to work on manners. She is a lot better but needs someone that will continue to work with her. Consistency is important.

Korra is very sweet loves her people. She is an excellent snuggler and loves a good belly rub. Korra takes treats gently. She is a wonderful girl. She is ready to be with her forever family. She needs a little work but is definitely worth it.

September 30, 2023

Hi Everyone,

Korra has been having lots of fun at daycare and in the play groups. She has met dogs with various energy. If they are low energy she does not get mouthy with them. With a high energy group of dogs, she gets wound up. She will get extremely mouthy with them like she does with Phoebe. We have been working with her to calm down by having her sit and soothe her. Once calm she can rejoin the play. She can be a little too much. It is helping, but a work in progress.

Because of this Korra is probably best suited to be an only dog with doggie friends coming over or attending daycare. Besides she loves attention from her people. She loves to crawl in your lap and give kisses and snuggle.

We worked on walking in the yard with the gentle leader. She wasn’t thrilled to be wearing it. I kept her focused on walking using treats. She would paw at it but I could redirect her with a treat.  She is very treat motivated. Next step going for walks in the neighborhood down the street. Eventually she will get used to it and won’t care.

She still wants to counter surf. We correct her and she listens unless there is an opportunity to snag food. My advice is not to leave food on the counter. The microwave is your friend. She loves pillows, brazenly taking them off the couch right in front of you repeatedly. Perhaps no pillows in her future.

Korra is doing well but will need someone to continue working with her obedience training. She reminds me of a 6 month old puppy with no impulse control at times. If she gets exercise then she is a different dog.

I will be posting Korra in a couple of weeks. I want to work with her using the gentle leader and have her attend a few more play sessions.

I think Korra would do best in an active home. Someone that really can tire her out or would let her attend daycare. She needs consistent exercise. I took her for a 3 mile walk and she was great for 4 or 5 hours. Then we threw the ball later for 10 minutes until she was tired again. She needs that level of exercise. The more the better. She would make a great hiking/running companion.

She can be mouthy so kids over 10 would be best. I do think being the only dog would be best but I am willing to consider a home with a resident dog as long as the dog was not high energy. We have left her alone up to 4 hrs. She is very good. I think if someone work from home or was home a few days a week she would be fine as long.

She is a lovely sweet girl. She knows lots of commands, takes treats gently, loves her people and wants a family that will cherish her. She deserves it.

September 28, 2023

Hi All,

Korra is making a lot of progress. I have taken her off her anti-anxiety medication and am substituting exercise. Korra has been attending half-days at daycare, 3x a week. One session is with Phoebe only to work on some behaviors, more about that later. We also go to drop in play sessions two 45 minutes session twice a week. Korra has been great and played well with all the dogs. She plays well with Phoebe but tends to get overly stimulated with just Phoebe and can be to rough when she plays bitey face. We are working with her at daycare and at home to deescalate before it get too crazy. I have been using a whistle to call them. When they come they get a treat. It seems to work as long as I catch it before it gets to rough. Phoebe is an instigator. Part (a lot) of it is her. I don’t know if Korra would match her energy to the resident at another home. She might. We are trying to figure this out and correct her. I can say that she is great at daycare with every dog. Even if she can’t have a resident dog in her new house she can have play sessions, walks, and go to daycare with other dogs. Let’s see what happens.

We have left Korra home alone a few times for 3 hrs. stints. Perfect angel. She was not crated. I think not being crated is a better option.  Crates are stressful for her since she was trapped in that shed. I do recommend not having pillows on the couch. She likes to play with them, when we are at home. Too tempting and fun. Yet she never touches the pillows on our bed.

Korra is sweet loving and affectionate. She loves people, love to go for car rides. I am able to put the gentle leader on her. We will go for walks soon. Korra will wait until I say okay to eat her breakfast. I am using the wait command to exit the car.

She is very smart and very food motivated. She can get mouthy occasionally. She may not be a good fit for little kids.

I do notice when she is anxious, if I take a toy away, she will pace around the room and it may take her awhile to settle. It happens less when she gets exercise. I think it is because they locked her in the shed for days. It was/is  a calming mechanism. Same with drinking water. She drinks like she will never get another opportunity to have water again.

She is really doing well; she has survived this horrible trauma. She will get there. She is a remarkable girl.

September 23, 2023

Korra has been to a few play groups this week. She met lots of new people. She loved everyone.  She also met new dog friends. She and a Weimaraner, Grip, really hit it off and played some bitey face. She did really well with all the dogs. There was even a 4 month old puppy. I was really pleased.

Then on Friday she joined Phoebe at daycare and made more friends. She is getting well socialized. She is very tired at the end of the day. That keeps her puppy behaviors at bay.

She does get too rough with Phoebe at times. They start off playing tug then she uses Phoebe’s face as the tug toy. I have to intervene before it gets escalated. Phoebe does not correct her and this is not a game we want encourage. This morning I worked with her telling her off when she grabbed Phoebe then giving the toy and praising. It will take some time. Korra is going to be attending daycare three times a week with Phoebe.

I have been working with her on leave it. She wants to steal non dog items, shoes, glasses, socks. I have been tossing things then telling her leave it. When she does she gets a treat and praise. I think she is improving. Counter surfing is less frequent. I am seeing small changes in her behavior. Prior Korra had difficulty settling. She would pace around the room. She just couldn’t relax. I am seeing less of this. She still will do it but it doesn’t last as long. All positive changes.

We have more work to do but she is doing a good job. This morning we began gentle leader training. I basically put the strap unhooked on her nose remove and treat. That was all we did just to get her comfortable.  We will repeat this process again until she doesn’t care. Then I will hook the backstrap on her neck, take it off and do it until it doesn’t phase her. She will get lots of treat. Only then will we go for a short walk in the yard. It takes time but it’s the best way to be successful. Walking her on the harness is not fun.

Korra is very sweet; she loves to snuggle. She is a really nice girl.

I don’t know if having a resident dog is necessary. I need to see how she progresses with us. She definitely needs exercise. Whether it’s hiking, running, swimming with a family, or going to daycare a few times a week. She needs to expend her energy, just like a puppy.

I have attached a few pictures from daycare yesterday.

She was a model student. Korra is wearing the green harness. I was told she had a blast and was a very good girl. She is a very good girl.

September 20, 2023

Korra has been with us for 5 days now. She has settled in to our routine. The best way to describe her is a 6 month old puppy brain in a dog’s body.

We have gone on a few walks. She definitely pulls like a champ. Right now, I am using a harness but I need to switch her to a gentle leader. She is very strong.  She is really sweet but needs to work on listening skills. She and Phoebe love to wrestle. Bitey face turns into something from the movie Alien. Phoebe wants her to play tug and chase Korra wants to play Alien bitey face.  Play starts off as tug then turns into bitey face.

She knows a lot of commands sit, down, wait. Leave it is becoming my go to phrase. She wants to counter surf and grabs non-dog items. It’s mostly puppy stuff.

She needs to get tired out. We are going to start going to drop in play dates so we can get her used to playing with other dogs and burn some of her energy. I am hoping a tired dog is a good dog. She is a good dog; she is in the terrible teens phase. She gets in trouble left to her own devices.

She has been accident free. She takes treats very gently. She really is a nice dog, very Velcro at times. She wants to be close for a bit then she needs to go to her own couch for some space.

She loves to play ball and get belly rubs. She is great in the car. She sleeps with us. She sleeps by my feet and will come up in the morning to snuggle.

She will need to get a lot of exercise in her new home. I took her on a 3 mile walk the other day and she passed out for 4 hours.  We just played fetch for a good 15 minutes and that seems to have tired her out for the moment. I would like to take her swimming which would be great exercise. That is on the agenda.

Let’s see how she does in the play group without Phoebe. I am going to work with her using a gentle leader.

Stay tuned.

September 17, 2023

Korra has joined our household.

Korra had been here for 24 hrs. She is very beautiful with soft thick black fur. She knows a lots of basic obedience commands. She takes treats very gently. She shows her belly for scratches. She is a really nice girl.

She and Phoebe are playing. She was a little unsure in the beginning but now the two of them are wrestle maniacs. We have to intervene so it doesn’t get out of control. They are having fun and it tires them out. If Phoebe can convince Korra to chase her then then she will be happy.

So far no accidents. She is an unabashed counter surfer. She is learning that’s not acceptable. She needs to work on off with food. We will continue her training. Stay tuned

August 28, 2023

Korra is a 2 – 4 year old, 80lb. black Lab with a soft shiny coat. Brookline sprung her from the NJ Animal Shelter 8/14/23. She had been found by Animal Control in a locked Rubbermaid shed. There is no way to tell how long she’d been in there, but we do know she was hyperthermic, with a high level of anxiety.In the two weeks Korra has been with us, we have found her to be smart, inquisitive, playful, friendly and energetic. At some point in her life before the shelter, she was loved and cared for. She already knew commands Sit, Down, Wait and Off. She has been enthusiastically playing with one of our resident labs and has been friendly when meeting other dogs. She also loves to be with and please her people. Korra can also be mouthy, prone to jumping on people and has episodes where she can get wild & crazy, especially loving to play keep away with remote control devices. Since she still has a certain level of anxiety, she is currently on an anti-anxiety medication.Brookline has engaged a trainer to help us help her reduce her anxiety and both teach her and help her remember her manners. Although, in typical lab fashion, Korra can be food motivated, she is also equally motivated by praise, pets and ball play.She is a smart dog, and in the few days since the trainer came out, we’ve already seen improvements with some of her manners. This girl is truly a diamond in the rough.