1/17/07 - Digi has been adopted

1/7/07 - Digi has been doing well here with us learning all sorts of new things. And he is a good, fast learner.
We are still having some problems with Digi and the crate. I have been in touch with Kim Whittle, our Foster home mentor. We have discussed Digi's uneasiness with being in the crate. Kim gave me some good training tips which we have been implementing religiously. It was suggested that I "step up" my Leadership role with Digi and continue to follow through. The belief being that any dog will "take" leadership if they perceive that there is not any consistent leadership from the humans. We all fall into the....."I feel so badly for him, I want to baby him"...and in this case with Digi, it was not a helpful thing for him.
I have taken leadership back from him and altho' he does not like it, he is doing very well with it. I have seen changes in him, tho' not with the crate business yet. We have "upgraded" Digi to a VeriKennel and  thankfully, he has not gotten out of it. He is still VERY nervous when he is put in it and I see signs of stress (slobber all over the crate) when I come home from work or errands. On advice from Kim, I am trying to make the crate a "friendly" experience for Digi. I am leaving the door open & putting his food in there, morning & night. He goes in to eat, he is happy, he comes out and we go on about the business of the house. No drama, just a good experience. Digi goes in to eat, no stress shown, walks out after and all is good.
Digi is a sweet soul of a boy, he only wants to learn and be loved. He is a comical show of his own. When you engage him in play, it can be as simple as a paper towel tube..he is such a comedian! Digi  LOVES to play with stuffed animals, cardboard boxes, BALLS!! Digi LOVES balls!  Digi and Porche still continue to get along very well. They do play like homewreckers tho'...so I make em' stop and take a time out.
I would suggest that Digi may not be o.k. with cats. I have MANY squirrels that frequent my yard and this boy is Fast as HECK when he sees one of them outside. He actually looks for them first thing out the door.
I still have not been able to make an app't with the Vet as last Tuesday, my day off, was a National Day of Honor for Gerald Ford, so the Vet was closed. We will be making that app't for as soon as possible.
Digi is very healthy, put on some nice weight, I have even decreased him by a cup for each day's feeding. He gets yogurt & apple biscuits and raw mini carrots. He is hysterical with the carrots. It must be thrown to him so he can bounce around with it for a bit before he eats it. Digi looks forward to that carrot toss after each meal!
Keep on reading about this wonderful boy, as I know you don't want to miss out on having Digi for your Forever baby...he is loyal, he is a fast learner and all he wants to do is to make you happy. A very easy boy to have in your life and one who is unforgettable in your heart. Don't miss out on your chance to make memories for a lifetime.
~~Until then......yes, even with the need for training......we are enjoying him immensely!

12/28/06 - Digi continues to thrive here at Mama Lady's Boxer Retreat. Digi had what seems to be his first Christmas experience. He was real excited about the Christmas Tree. He stuck his nose in it the first day it
was here. I told him, NO, no tree. He did stay out of it..physically thank goodness! Digi did manage to snatch a few ornaments on a day when I had to work for 9 hours. Digi does still prove to be mischievous in the house when left not crated. After the ornament heist, we went back to crating him with a bit more ingenuity. Digi fears, it would seem (although I see him getting calmer about it this past week) having to go into the crate. He knows my morning routine and as soon as I start for the counter to pour my coffee, he starts to pace. He scurries down the hall & will go into my bedroom. But run right back out to see what I am doing. His nose starts to run & he starts to kinda snort & sneeze. He does go in without a big fuss but you can tell it has upset him. Digi has bashed himself out of the crate 2 times. Did not do damage in the house but got into stuff. I thought if I attach him to a leash which is attached to my couch, he would not be confined, but still be "confined" He did very well with that except he did drag stuff out of places and had it all over. Saturday, I did the same thing and in his defense, it was 9 hours but that is when he annialated the ornaments. So, he had to go back to trying the crate. I attached a leash under the leg of the couch, ran it thru the crate and attached him to it. He is safe, he stays inside and I believe it is helping with him laying down & relaxing for the day. I don;t hear him trying to dig out any longer & he is not whining. Hopefully, it is that he is becoming more comfortable. Now, in Digi's defense, altho' he wiped out the ornaments, he has NEVER done damage to anything in the house. And Digi takes correction very well. He does pout......funniest to see but I am the "stern Mama Lady" when it comes to teaching him yeses & no's in the house.  Digi has adapted to our routine very well. He has full run of the house when someone is home. He is in a routine for outside, even asks if he needs an extra trip outside. Digi has not counter surfed, attempted to go into the garbage once but backed off immediately when told NO. Digi knows when he gets the signal (verbal & hand) to leave the room. Digi sits VERY well, first timed asked. We are teaching Digi lay down (signal as well) and he is "getting" it. Digi is a bit of a beggar when it comes to us eating but knows on command to leave the room & go lay down. He goes into the other room and sleeps.
This boy is just really a great dog. He is playful, you just have to be aware that he is a youngin so if his paws happens to catch you in the kisser.....oops.Mom, didn't mean that. He is a beefy boy and has nooooo
problem leaning his 65 lbs. all over you. He actually will come up on the couch, in the morning while I am watching at the window for my son's bus to leave, turn himself around and sit his lard butt in my lap! And
then   leeeeeeaaaaaaannnnnnnnn. He is a character and a very easy boy to train. Digi is hysterical when he plays..with Porche & just by himself with anything at all. Cardboard boxes, envelopes, paper bags..hysteria
Digi is up to date on his shots. We will be having a re-check done on the tapeworm he was treated for while in the hospital. We will be getting a HeartWorm test down next week. Digi will be neutered as soon as he
has the "clearance" due to his bout with pneumonia. The doctor requires a month's time of recovery before they would think about surgery. Don't let that deter you, Digi can be adopted without having been neutered
yet as long as you sign a waiver that you will have it done within a certain timeline.
Get your application in for this sweetheart of a soul. I know that now that the holiday hubbub is over, more people are going to be peeking for their potential baby and Digi will be snatched up by his Forever Family.
Until then..........  :o)   We are enjoying the "Hippopotamus" immensely!  Ask us about The Hippopotamus song  when you come 'acallin  for your boy! You get a real cute show, as Digi knows we are signing that song
to him, about him!    ~~Til then.................

12/12/06 - Digi is feeling 100% better! No more cough, no more discharge....just good stuff for this sweet boy.  Thankfully, the meds he was taking, did the trick for that nasty kennel cough & pneumonia. Digi can even
play.....full-tilt Bozo with Porche and not have a coughing episode. There has been no coughing from him in over a week now. Thank goodness! He really was a very sick lil' boy and I felt bad that he felt so
miserable. He finished his 10 days on the Cephalexin (sp?) and it worked like a charm for him. Digi is having a grand time "living it up" with Porche. They play very well together and my Porche has always
been a rough & tumble sort of girl. When she plays...you would think, from the sound of her, that she is trying to kill the other dog, just who Porche is and has always been. Digi takes it in stride. At first
he was a bit nervous with her vocalness but now...LOL...he just swats her down when he has had enough. A eye-opener for sure, for Porche. He is not too rough, but he lets her know when she is taking advantage
of his laid back personality. Digi LOVES to play, with human or animal. He is a RIOT with the raw carrots that I feed them for a treat. He will only take it if you toss it, then he plays "soccer" with it for
a bit before he eats it...hysterical to watch! Digi has come to know what treats are and appreciates getting them.
As I have written in his last update, Digi has shown some misbehaviors in the past week in the house, when left not crated. But. he also takes very well to corrections. Digi does at first, cower, as I am certain
now, that in his past life, he was mistreated by those that had him. He gets VERY nervous when you raise your voice, move your arms too fast, he cowers and stares at you, almost seeming to say...Please don't hit
me.
Digi was having problems being put in the crate. As I wrote before, he bashed the crate until the back wall came down & he got out. He did not do damage in the house but he did mess with things that he was not supposed to. I "secured" the crate with wires on all four corners, as I feel he needs to understand that he cannot be left out of the crate until he "masters' not getting into mischief when left alone. As I havesaid, he has NOT destroyed anything, he just gets into mischief. I put him in the crate when I have to leave, he does not want to go in willingly, but I grab his butt up & get him in, he starts to whine and paw at the crate and I tell him firmly.......NO.........lay down Digi, and he does. I praise him when we come home and remind him what a good boy he is when in the crate. These past few days, Digi has not even tried to get out of the crate and he lies down inside the crate when I tell him "No, lie down!"
Digi is really almost the perfect dog....I say 'almost" as he only has to learn proper behavior in the house. Digi has learned sooooo much in the short time that he has been here, it really is rather amazing.
He walks beautifully on the leash, he has learned so many commands in his short time here, he LOVES LOVES everyone that he comes in contact with. Seems to prefer the men, he cried & cried to get out into the back
yard when he saw my son's Father out there doing work. He just wanted to be near him & well.......heck, he only met him 2x before that!
Digi is VERY good with the younger folks too. Last weekend, my sister was here with her almost 4 year old Grandson and Digi was enamored with Patrick, he followed him everywhere, just giving him kisses! As muscular
as Digi is, he never even once approached Patrick in a way that would knock Patrick down. He gave Patrick such sweet kisses that Patrick said....."Aunt Debby.....I love your big doggie."
This is a beauty of a dog! One that would make anyone's life fulfilled and all he is looking to do, is to do just that, fullfill your life with love and adoration. Digi is one really easy dog to welcome into your home.
Whether you have had a Boxer in your life before, or not......Digi is the one that will make you love this breed "EVEN MORE". A Gentle Giant for sure!
Thanx for peeking at Digi again, get your application in......'cause Digi is THEE one that will capture your heart! I love this Boy  and I am 100% certain that there is NO doubt that you would feel the same way,
the moment that you met him.
Until next time.........

12/6/06 - Digi is doing wonderfully with his upper respiratory infection/pneumonia. The meds. that he was put on, along with the "nebulizing" treatments that were advised, seem to have done him very well. He is not coughing any longer, nothing boogering out of his nose, nothing affecting his eyes any longer either. Digi can actually go "full-tilt Bozo" with Porche now & not have to stop because he is coughing too hard.
So, of course, as anticipated, once they feel better, certain behaviors become apparent. Not a bad thing, in this case, as Digi just wants to please.  We left him out of the crate on Monday as he kinda "abused" the crate on Sunday when we went to the local Christmas Parade, he actually bent the metal bars. He also had cut his toe-nail & there was blood so I was worried about him injuring himself, so Monday we decided to try him out of the crate. The only thing that he did was find a bag of clothing that I had stashed that was going to The Salvation Army and he dragged it all around the house, no holes, nothing ripped up..just distributed where Digi thought it "ought" to go. And, he did pee. O.k., no big deal! I reprimanded him for this, told him it is not acceptable.
Tuesday, my day off, I let him out of the crate when I went to do my errands and the same clothes were distributed thru-out the house, again...but no damage to those.  And, he did pee again in the house.  I reprimanded him for this and told him he would have to be crated, if he could not be trusted. I had to go an hour away (there & back) to pick up my son, I crated Digi and when we came home, he managed to knock
down the back panel of the crate, get out and distribute the same bag of clothing around the house. Thankfully, this time, no bleeding on his part. He was reprimanded as soon as we came home, he was attached to a leash on the couch and no-one "paid him any mind" the rest of the night. Digi is accustomed now to coming into my room when it is bedtime, but I kept him in the living room, attached to the leash, by himself.
He cried when I turned the lights off, I told him, NO. He quieted down. He cried when he heard me close my bedroom door, I said NO....and he quieted down. Not another peep all night long.
We started today off with a "clean slate" loving him & making a fuss over him this morning and when I left for work, I left him out of the crate. I took his face into my hands and I told him...we expect good behavior from you, if you want to be out of this crate. NO PEE IN THE HOUSE< NO CHEWING NOTHING! I told him, I will find a way for you to remain in that crate  if it is necessary! I called the house about 11 a.m. knowing my answering machine would pick up  and I said..."DIGI, you better be a good boy! No pee pee in the house, no chewing nothing!" My son got home at 2p.m., called me, surprised that I left Digi out. I asked him, was there any mess...............he said NO MOm.......nothing! I praised him like no-one could imagine when I got home.....he touched nothing & he peed nowhere! This boy aims to please.
I was told a long time ago, with my Bogey...that when they become attached to you and you leave them, say for work or errands, that they will take your belongings......just to have you near to them. I believethat Digi feels the same way.....he did not destroy anything......and most of the clothing in the bag belonged to me.......he just wanted me near him!
Digi  amazes me with all the commands  that he has learned so far.......!! He has learned voice commands  & hand signal/commands. He knows Sit..voice & signal, he knows lay-down...voice & signal, he know   stay/voice & signal...he knows   Come.......voice & signal. As I have written before, this is one Lil'...well....alright , not Little...boy that just wants to please. Any family that takes him as their own will be amazed at what a character, yet gentle  soul he is. If you are  "up for loving, kissing, body rolls, body hugs, sitting on your feet, leaning against you with all his  might. rolling on his back, begging you to scratch his belly and kissing you while you are doing that...........this is your boy! We, my 2 son's & me, have decided that when he rolls on his back, for you to scratch his belly.......his jowls are so
large that he looks like a crocodile, pretty funny to see.
Digi is one of the best Foster babies that I have had, because he learns so rapidly, so well. He only wants to make you happy and that makes him very happy. This beautiful boy is not one to be "missed". He will steal your heart  & soul.
Don't miss out on this beautiful boy by not filling out your application.....
Digi waits patiently for his Forever family........  Til' next time...........we are loving having him here with us!