Tiki Black Labrador Retriever Female 5 Years Old ID #3693

Tiki is a 5-year-old mini black lab who comes to Brookline after she and her siblings were surrendered due to their owner having health challenges and becoming unable to care for the dogs. The health challenges had been going on for a while, and the owner had not been able to regularly feed the dogs,  Tiki and her siblings became underweight. Now that she is in Brookline’s care, she is regularly eating and has already gained a few pounds. Tiki is a sweet tempered, frisbee loving, kissing bandit who will gladly lie down for some belly rubs. Tiki had her Rescue Ride last week, and though we had to help her into the car, she soon decided it was a pretty comfy ride and settled down for the trip to her new home. Please read her blog from the bottom up.

June 28, 2026

Good morning from Tiki! This wiggly-waggly sweetheart wakes up every morning ready for pets and ready to play.Tiki is crate trained and continues to sleep peacefully through the night. Not only does she sleep there, but FM recently learned that she is used to being fed in her crate too. Once FM clued into that preference, there has been no going back. When it’s time to eat, Tiki eagerly hops into her crate and awaits her meal delivery service (FM). After that, we go outside for some potty time and to fill the bird bath with water…and to throw her frisbee.Tiki regularly does her business in the back yard and has had no inside accidents. Although we can leave her in her crate if FM and FD are running errands, she has been so trustworthy that we have started giving her free run of the house for a few hours at a time. We have learned that, if we leave our socks on the floor, Tiki will often pick them up and carry them around, so we make sure to close all of the bathroom and bedroom doors before leaving her on free roam. She thoroughly navigates all stair challenges and is truly queen of all she surveys.

This week, Tiki went to the vet. She and her sister charmed everyone they met at the vet office. It was a very busy day at the vet! Tiki showed an interest- but no reactivity- to the other dogs in the waiting area.There were a couple of cats in cat carriers, but she did not show any curiosity or interest. She was happy to sit or stand (with her sister) near FM’s side and get lots of pets for being such a good girl. Once we were called back to an exam room, Tiki easily stepped on the scale to get a weight. The vet was pleased to see she had gained some weight, but she should gain another 10 pounds to be at a healthy body weight. Throughout the exam, she waited calmly and patiently as the vet checked her legs, body, teeth, and face. She had to have some shots, but she was completely unbothered the entire time. One thing that did bother Tiki was when her sister was a little too perky on the car ride home and interrupted Tiki’s nap.Tiki continues to enjoy her morning walks, and she is doing really well on the leash.

Though our neighborhood has an assortment of deer, rabbits, birds, and other outdoor friends, Tiki has not shown any interest in chasing them when we are on our walks. Tiki seems to enjoy the flat parts and the downhills better than the uphill part of the walk; FM and FD can relate!

Tiki and her ball have been patiently waiting as FM has been on her computer. She’s been so good and so patient, in fact, that she fell back asleep!

June 20, 2026

When we arrived home, Tiki and Gracie (our 9-year-old resident lab) were introduced on a walk around the neighborhood. Gracie showed Tiki around the neighborhood block before we headed into the back yard so they could play and explore. Once that time went well, we went into the house where Tiki had a quick snack and then decided it was time to play. Tiki can be a vocal dog. She will bring a ball or a frisbee to you and do some gentle whining to cajole you to go outside and play with her. Once is never enough when playing fetch, so Tiki always brings the toy right back to throw it again.

Tiki was new to “home life”- especially one with stairs. Though she would easily go up and down the steps to the back deck, it took her a couple of days before she wanted to go up and down the inside steps. At this point, she is now an expert and navigates all stairs with ease. Speaking of ease, Tiki has eased her way into our home and our hearts- even our resident lab Gracie (9 years old) agrees that Tiki is the pick of the litter! We ran some errands the other day, and both dogs were happy to sit side-by-side in the car.

The car is not the only place they are happy to be side-by-side; that is the way they enjoy our morning walks.

Tiki loves her people- not just Foster Mom and Foster Dad, but three of her foster siblings have come home to meet her. Tiki has also ingratiated herself with our next door neighbors and their three little kids (two preschoolers and a toddler). Tiki was happy to lay down on the grass and let them pet her. She gave them some “thank you kisses” before we headed back to exploring our yard. Now, when the dogs hear the neighbor kids are outside, they stand at the fence until we let them go play.

These last few days, we have learned lots of things about Tiki. After sleeping through the night in her crate, she wakes up and goes outside right away to play a couple of rounds of fetch. Then, she scarfs down some food (a slow feeder helped to slow her down a bit) before we head out on a morning walk. She does her business right away and then continues to explore her new neighborhood. We come back inside, and she drinks some water and then will happily watch as breakfast is being made. Tiki is a big fan of working from home and will happily plant herself right next to the workspace.

Sometimes, during meetings, she likes to simultaneously take a big stretch and get some pets…so she often ends up briefly (and unintentionally?) attending a Teams meeting. From day one, Tiki has done all of her potty business outside. In other good news, Tiki does not mind a vacuum.

This week, Tiki is looking forward to watching some of the World Cup games and a visit to meet the vet. Stay tuned for more about Tiki and her adventures.