Maye Yellow Labrador Retriever Mix Female 3.5 Months Old ID#3777

Meet Maye! This adorable Labrador mix had a hard start to life in the country side of Arkansas.  Her mom was a stray who was discovered by a great family who tried to gain her trust by feeding her in hopes of getting her to a rescue.  She was showing up everyday to the feeding station, but she suddenly stopped visiting. The family set out to look for her and stumbled upon her litter of puppies who were about 4 weeks old at the time.  Unfortunately, they also discovered her body a short distance away. Someone had shot her in the head. The family gathered up the puppies and contacted a local rescue for help. As that rescue is at full capacity, they reached out to Brookline for help in rehoming some of the litter. After about 4 weeks in transport delays, this adorable bunch (Drake, Maye, and Dancer) are now in Brookline foster homes.  Please read Maye’s blog from the bottom up to learn more about her.

February 21, 2026

It is hard to believe that Maye joined us only two weeks ago!

When she first arrived from Arkansas, she was not a fan of the white, cold stuff that covered as far as her eyes could see. She had no interest in going anywhere near the snow, but she also had no choice since it was EVERYWHERE. Luckily, FM and FD bought her a warm coat.It did not make the snow any less wet or cold, but it did keep her warm when playing in the back yard or joining the big dogs on daily walks around the neighborhood.Fast forward to today, and this girl enjoys nothing more than scaling the snow mountains that dot the landscape of our snow-covered yard. She is definitely adaptable!Maye also took some car rides this week. She enjoys having her blankets when she goes out for a ride because they give her a soft, warm place to cuddle. In order to keep her safe and secure, we used a “dog seatbelt” that easily clicks right into the car’s existing seatbelt system. Maye continues to live up to her namesake. And it’s lost on no one that Maye even rhymes with play!

Drake Maye plays with a football, but Maye is more partial to a large stick.Drake Maye plays quarterback, but Maye prefers to play defense. She relishes tackling the offensive line, but her favorite play is the quarterback sack.And just like Drake Maye is not afraid to sprint when carrying the ball, Maye is not afraid to sprint either.

Maye is smart and a big believer in the “work smarter, not harder” mantra. She knows that she does not need to follow Kevin all around the back yard if she can strategically cut him off at the pass. (Video proof will be added!)

We have had some visitors this week, and Maye has enthusiastically greeted each one. Everyone who meets her thinks she is a petite little darling, but Maye would disagree with the “petite” part. She lives with two big dogs, and as far as she is concerned, all three of them are the same size. This means that nothing is too daunting for Maye. There is no couch she will not climb, not bed she will not conquer. If she sees a couch- especially one with people on it- she will rear up on her back legs and climbs onto the couch and into their laps. And it’s not just with couches. Maye has learned the joy of lounging in a bed, and she does not need to wait for one of her people to pick her up and put her there. Maye will take a running jump, clearing the bed frame and landing gently on the soft comforter.

One last final thing about Maye over these last two weeks…she has grown! Her foster brother moved to Connecticut for his first job, and when he came back this weekend to pick up a few things he left behind…he could not believe how she had grown. Maye has gained 5 pounds over the last couple of weeks- going from 13 pounds to 19. The side benefit of this growth is that she sleeps even longer through the night before needing to go potty. Way to go Maye!

February 14, 2026

Maye has been with foster mom and dad for about a week, and she has fully settled into a routine of sleep, eat, bathroom, play, chew, play. Even though, at less than 20 pounds, Maye is the smallest of the pack, she does not let that hold her back at all when it comes to full on puppy energy play romps with foster-fur-brother Kevin.

They, of course, start with a play bow and then the shenanigans begin- usually on one of the dog beds.

Sometimes they dart back and forth towards each other until one of them takes off running and the other follows. Kevin will often show off some excited circles and Maye likes to dive the pile of “dog bed pillows” for a quick rest.

Sometimes both dogs wander over to the toy bin and decide they want to chew on the same toy…and they playfully grab it and run from each other over and over again. Sometimes, if foster mom or dad have found a minute to sit down, they run over for pets, and since there is such a size difference, Maye uses Kevin or Gracie to balance against as she stands on her hind legs. Her goal is to get closer to the hands that are giving all of the pets, and from there, she is more than happy to join you in your lap.Maye is very smart. She readily responds to her name and is getting better at ‘sit” and “come”. She has started to Kevin and Gracie (resident dog) on longer walks. Sometimes these walks take a little longer than anticipated because whenever Maye sees a car, she sits until after it passes by, so we all wait. The walks really do tire them all out- especially Maye because when Kevin and Gracie take one step, Maye has to take three or four steps to keep up, so she expends a lot more energy.

This is the perfect activity to do before foster mom or dad have any important work meetings. Foster mom had a 90-minute meeting yesterday, and it was clearly very boring for the pups: Maye is very social. She likes to engage with both dogs and to snuggle up with foster mom and dad too. She is pretty fearless (including around the vacuum), and she loves to explore. She does need to go out to the bathroom fairly often. That is understandable because she still has lots of growing to do, and right now her tiny bladder gets filled rather quickly. All in all, she has been doing a good job with potty training- most days she has zero accidents and has never pooped in the house.Overall, Maye is a very easy puppy. Once you catch on to her patterns, she becomes predictable. Every morning, she goes outside and pees, then comes inside and eats, then goes outside to poop and pee again. Although she is not able to sleep all the way through the night yet, she sleeps for multiple hours at a time, wakes to alert you she needs to go potty, and settles back down into her crate after. She is learning how to walk on a leash, and if it gets tangled in her legs, she works to quickly free herself. Due to her age, she does a lot of mouthing and chewing, but she is easily redirected and will outgrow that in time. She loves to find treats hidden in dog puzzles, she loves to chase a ball, she enjoys chewing on stuffed animals but does not destroy them. She loves being wrapped in a blanket when settling down to naps or for bedtime and seems to enjoy the heartbeat snuggle puppy as well. She has not been tested with cats, but she would do well in a home with another dog. She would do well with children- as long as everyone understood she is still a puppy and is learning what she should and shouldn’t chew. She’s gentle on walks- no pulling at all. She would benefit from having a fenced-in-yard since she still is going out to potty often, but she could also be trained on an electric fence. Adopting Maye will be like a day at the carnival where you go home with all the toys.

February 9, 2026

Even though Maye was unable to rally her team to beat the Seahawks, Maye is still a star in our eyes, and she definitely deserves a big toy as a trophy. Maye is doing a great job going to the bathroom outside. Foster mom and dad try to take Maye out frequently for potty breaks, and she has really caught on to the joys of taking a quick bathroom break and then running back in the house. Maye is very smart- responding to her name and sitting on command. She is definitely coming out of her shell and enjoys things like chasing tennis balls around the kitchen, jumping up on her hind legs and annoying her fur-siblings Kevin (9 months) and Gracie (8 years). Kevin is much more tolerant of this play than Gracie is!Maye has quickly settled into her new pack and has not shown any resource guarding when it comes to food or to favorite toys.

It’s a good thing that neither Gracie nor Kevin are food aggressive because not only has Maye been known to hop up on her back legs to see the food in their “up high” bowls, but she has been known to try and steal a piece of kibble before lowering herself back to the floor. It’s also good that none of the dogs are overly protecting of their toys because if Maye sees a toy that looks fun, she does not hesitate to take it in her mouth and move it to one of the beds to play with it. Miss Maye will walk right past the puppy size Benebone or the puppy size chew toy and grab the “big dog” one. These toys might be close to her weight or longer than her body, but this girl has spirit and she finds a way to move it somewhere that she can sit there and enjoy it. Maye is also a fan of the “puppy maze” where she has to find the treats hidden beneath different objects. When she gets stuck, Kevin or Gracie will help her…and help themselves to the treats they find!

Kevin is about 6 months older than Maye, and he has willing stepped into a big brother role- hanging out with her in her room, chewing on her things, and hogging her blanket. Maye does not seem to mind that Kevin does this because Maye knows that if she wants to play chase or jump around with Kevin when she has the zoomies, he will happily do that with her. And after that, they rest… We took Maye out for one more trip to the bathroom, and now she is resting in her crate. We are hoping she’s had enough fun today that she sleeps through the night.

February 8, 2026

It’s Superbowl Sunday, and to celebrate, we would like to introduce everyone to Maye!Through no fault of their own, Maye and her littermates found themselves in need to some help. Luckily, 2nd Chance Fur Dogs in Arkansas took them in and provided great love and care. After being delayed a few times due to storms and other events, Maye and company hopped into a transport van and made the long drive to the northeast where they settled into Brookline’s care.

Maye is such a spunky little sweetheart that you might assume she was born on Valentine’s Day, but she was born this past Halloween- making her 14 weeks old. She weighs almost 14 pounds and is growing every day.

Yesterday, foster mom, dad, and brother picked up Maye- who immediately curled up and slept in foster dad’s lap- arriving back home in the early afternoon. Maye awoke refreshed from her car ride nap and eager to meet and greet Gracie (resident dog) and Kevin (foster dog). Of course, this involved lots and lots of curious sniffs between all three dogs, but it was worth it because Gracie (left, 8 years) and Kevin (middle, 9 months) eagerly welcomed Maye into their pack. Maye quickly started making herself at home by getting acquainted with her new digs (basically, the kitchen in her foster home) by sniffing every inch of the floor before launching into an exploration all of the nooks and crannies her nose and paws could reach.Foster mom and dad had set up an inside fence, so Maye would have her own space to be in if she needed a break. We had thought this would be a great plan for some solo space but soon learned that Gracie and Kevin wanted to check out the space and give their opinions before blessing it as suitable for sweet Maye.Maye was hungry and thirsty from all of her travel. After eating, we all headed outside for a bit. It was well below freezing, and the winds that were strong enough to shake and rattle the trees. Maye knew she was not in Arkansas anymore! Weatherwise, she might not be thrilled with this change, but on the bright side, she quickly figured out which doors lead inside! Foster mom and dad set up a plan where Maye goes outside every 45-60 minutes- an opportunity for outside time and to use the bathroom. We also take her outside right after she wakes up from a nap. It’s early days, but we are happy to report that. while she did have one accident inside, every other time she has gone to the bathroom outside. We are counting that as success!

Maye enjoys being active and spends most of her time alternating between chewing on Benebones, playing with her crinkly dolphin stuffy (Thanks, Brookline!), batting around a tennis ball, curling up on laps for cuddles, and finding the comfiest spot on her bedding to take a nap. Maye is too young to make it through the night without needing a potty break, so she had one at 11pm and 2:30am. We are just getting to know Maye, so we don’t always know if her behavior is about being somewhere new or if she is trying to tell us something. However, it does seem like Maye’s whining at 2:30am was to let foster dad know she needed to go outside to pee. It was a quick break, and she needed about 15-20 minutes of time after before falling back asleep.Foster mom, Gracie, and Kevin started the day at 5am, and Maye was happy to see everyone, eat breakfast, and enjoy some time at the water bowls before heading outside. Foster mom walked Maye out onto the snow (she’s light enough to walk on it without it collapsing). She relieved herself quickly before heading back up the stairs and directly to the deck door and inside. Everyone engaged in some more “good morning sniffs” before enjoying some belly rubs; this was followed by some “chew time” before each dog settled onto something comfortable and drifted back to sleep. After all, it was still dark outside!

A couple of hours later, Jack (foster brother) came downstairs, and everyone crowded around him for their good morning pets.Today has been going well. Maye continues to enjoy her toys, playing with the other dogs, spending time cuddling, and her naps. She’s very excited for the Superbowl tonight! She has already made sure her fancy outfit is ready for the game and is looking forward to supporting her namesake once the Patriots take the field!

                                                                                                  Go Pats!!