Raven #9 Black Labrador Retriever Mix Female ~4 Months Old ID#3599

Meet Raven.  Raven was found stray and brought to a high kill shelter in NJ.  Luckily, this sweet 4 month old girl was transferred to a Brookline foster home and is now safe from euthanasia.  Please read her blog from the bottom up to learn more about her while in foster care.

September 17, 2025

Raven has completely come out of her shell. She has had no accidents in the house or cage in the past week. She sleeps soundly with her teddy bear from her Brookline box and loves the puff treats. We have been working on wait for when it’s breakfast time (putting the bowl down) and she has slowly been getting the hang of it.She is thriving with a set structure and knows when it’s time to go to work with her Foster mom & siblings (other dogs.) She loves greeting everyone at work with a butt wiggle and a slight bark ( she is learning her voice.) After work she enjoys cuddling up on the couch for some quick zzz’s before playtime followed by dinner. Raven likes to graze for dinner so she gets 30 minutes in her play room then free range of the house. Bed time is at 8pm and she gets the rest of her food in her crate.

September 7, 2025

Update on Ravens adventures; Raven has had a very exciting week since Labor Day and we have discovered alot of likes and dislikes. Raven went to a BBQ on Labor Day where we discovered she does well with older children age 12-15 and likes to engage with a smaller group of people vs larger . She was romping around the yard only stopping for the occasional butterfly or insect she saw flying around, which she then turned into a cat trying to pounce on the insect. She was exhausted by the end of the night but was awoken by neighbors throwing off fireworks, which she was terrified of. She did fine with them while in the house but the loud noises made her nervous to go back outside.

Raven also had her  vet appointment this week which she passed with flying colors. The vet believes she is roughly 4-5 months. She received two vaccines Rabies & Bordetella along with microchipping her.  Raven wolfed down the treats for taking the shots like a champ. She has gained 2.4 lbs since being picked up on Saturday. She has an appetite, but does not wolf down her food like a typical lab. The vet does recommend that she gets a lepto vaccine in the future due to her habit of drinking water from puddles on her walks.Yesterday we ventured off to a brewery where she soaked up the attention. She sat like a perfect angel for people to pet her. She has gotten much better at not plopping down into a lay , and expects the treats for not jumping. There was one child (age approximately 2-3) which made her very nervous. Overall, Raven has been coming out of her shell and loves any interaction with people & dogs.

September 2, 2025

Today we went to the park for a short walk , where she did pretty well walking until another dog passed by causing her to pull and want to play. She is definitely more of a harness dog than a collar since she doesn’t care about the pulling. She’s has loads of energy for play, yet again she is a puppy. Her favorite toy is still the hedgehog which she hasn’t torn about vs her lambie and tennis ball.She has finally been accepted completely with the house dogs and likes snuggling up with them on the couch. Her favorite thing to do is run underneath them since she is tiny and fast.Raven lost a puppy tooth which we saved for the tooth fairy. Her gift from him was a strawberry which she loved chomping down on. Will keep updating on Ravens new adventures. She is going to work with me today so hopefully she has a good time.

August 30, 2025

This morning we picked up Raven for her rescue ride from Elizabeth, where she was found roaming the streets. She is a very friendly and outgoing 4 month old female black lab mix ! She was very curious to where to she was going and kept glancing out the window and peeping her head to the front of the car. We offered her a crate in the car as well which she occasionally took advantage of. Our ride was about an hour , but we made a pit stop for a quick bath & nail trim, which she was fantastic for. She does know sit very well which turns into a lay down as well. We will have to work on the jumping, but she is very treat motivated.

Raven did great meeting my pups and was trying to initiate play. We started through the fence and Raven was doing tiny zoomies , I think she was just happy to be out playing in the grass, which she kept rolling around in . She is currently sleeping peacefully in her crate, which she has had no problem going in or staying in. Will update tomorrow on how our first full day went .