8/14/07 - Coco is doing so good!  Each day I can see he’s getting stronger and healthier.  I can’t get

 over how happy and friendly he is, right from day 1, even as sick as he was.  One of the times I

 took him out this weekend, the neighbor wife was outside, too, and Coco wanted SO much to go see

 her.  He was so excited he was even trying to kidney bean!  Not a tight bean, but he made a big U,

 where his butt was across from his head and at the same time trying to walk forward to be near the

 neighbor.  He does keep surprising me - I’ve not seen him do this, before, and it was so cute.

  Naturally, he had to kiss her (I warned her, but she let him).  He gets so excited to see people,

 ANY people, and he’s good with our Boxer and Boston girls.  Now and then he’s excited to see a

 kitty – sometimes he starts dancing and his butt wiggles, so I think it’s not chase in a bad

 way, but more often than not, he just sits and looks and doesn’t do anything.  If I want him to

 get away from his gate (I think the kitties walk close to the gate to tease him on purpose), I tell

 him “back,” and he will either back up or turn around and walk away.  (Sure, sometimes I may

 say it twice, or clap my hands once, but he does it, and I try to always use his name whenever he

 is not looking right at me and I want him to do something so he will know I am talking to him.)  

If I have food, he will walk over to see what it is, but will go away when I tell him to, and he

 doesn’t sit and stare or whimper at me to get some of it (like three other fur kids I know).

  When he does get a treat, he takes it ever so gently.  Not once has he snarfed at anything we’ve

 given him by hand.  Half the time he drops it because he takes it so lightly, whatever it may be –

 dry cookie or a piece of meat.   I spend a lot of time in Coco’s room (the computer is in

 there) and I’ve realized he doesn’t have the “gas emissions” a lot of Boxers (and Bostons) can

 generate.  I do put yogurt in his food like I do for the girls, but they can still put out, just

 not as bad as without the yogurt, and Coco doesn’t.  How nice for me!  J

He is very good walking on a short leash.  Right after he was so excited to see the neighbor, I

 used the short loop on his leash to walk him down the street, and when we passed her coming back, he

 did want to walk in her direction, but I said a clipped ‘nope’ (can be any quick sound) and

 give a small quick jerk on his leash (as instructed for a previous foster) and kept walking and he

 walked right beside me.  He knows when he’s on a long leash (he might tug a bit if he wants to

 go somewhere, like up to the neighbor, but not just walking), but he knows when he’s on a short

 leash and will walk with me, regardless of what (I know) he may want to do.  

One thing I was really surprised at is, he will stand very nicely when I am putting the e-collar

 on him.  I’ve not found other dogs to be so good about it.  (I take the collar off when I am in

 the room with him, on the computer, and can watch that he doesn’t try to get at his stitches,

 just to give him a break from it.)   I’ve written that Coco likes to sleep on his back, and he does

 this little routine where he rolls around on his comforter for a bit while rubbing both sides of

 his muzzle with his front paws at the same time (so funny to see a big guy doing that), then he

 slowly tips toward one side so that his back leg rests against the side of the crate and then goes

 to sleep on his back.  In the past week, he’s now and then making this very soft, low snore.  I

 like to hear dogs snore, but this also lets me know he’s breathing slow, deep and even –

 something he really hadn’t done at all up to that point (because of the heartworms).   He still

 breathes shallow a lot of the time, especially after being out or getting excited about something, but

 now it’s not constant.

Overall, I think he listens and behaves well.  Other than I would not yet let him roam the house

 with the kitties loose, there isn’t much that’s not positive about Coco.  Maybe I just

 haven’t seen a situation that might change that some, but he’s gone through a lot of different things

 while here - granted not ALL situations he may be in at some time - and so far, it’s almost all

 gold and silver stars for him.     

If everything looks good at his post-op checkup this Friday (and I have no reason to think it

 won’t), we will start his journey to his new foster home in NY the next day.   This is one sweet

 boy, for sure, and some day soon his forever family will find him and will love him as much as I know

 he will love them.

8/1/07 - I just wanted to say that Coco looks AWESOME.  When I picked him up in Sturbridge from Angela, I was shocked because my dogs always looked so good; shiny, clean, happy, and healthy.   Poor Coco  looked so exhausted, dirty, and just like a plain old "junkyard dog".  I couldn't believe how awesome he looked.  Sandy did a great job in taking care of this old boy.  If I didn't have a hip problem right now, I would scoop him up in a minute since he is about 20 minutes from my house.   Just needed to tell you  how happy I am to see that Coco looks so awesome.  I saw how tired and run down he looked.   Sandy is AWESOME.   She is so wearing a HALO!!!!!!!!!!!    Sharon

7/30/07 - Coco has had more activity this weekend than the first 4 weeks combined.  For starters, yesterday we had him outside with my BAR baby, SoBe.  She was first, since she is usually the last to warm up to my fosters.  Coco  wanted to play right away, but as usual, SoBe had to tell him who’s who around here – she can be a bit snippy when it comes to being nice to my fosters without the gate between them.  It usually only lasts 5-10 minutes, when she thinks whichever foster it is, “understands.”  (One foster didn’t want to, for a while, but that all worked out.)  When we tried
 to do the “sniff test,” neither wanted much to do with that part.  Was too funny; whomever was about to be sniffed would sit down.  We did the walk end to end and then next to each other, and that went well.  They ended up just sitting next to each other, which is a good thing.  Inside for some water, and then a long nap for Coco.  It looks like he doesn’t have any problem with other dogs, but we’re still going to go a bit slow with letting all of them together outside, since the girls can really get the play going and he still tires out a bit easily (although I can see him continually getting stronger, health wise).  He’s still not centered on going after a kitty when he sees one.  

Later in the day, we had a vet visit.  I think it was big-dog day.  There were three big labs already in there when we arrived (and two little guys), so I waited out in the foyer (it’s not a very big place).  When they walked by to leave, Coco was fine, other than I could tell he wanted to go up to each one (wagging nub is a dead giveaway).  No barking or lunging.  The two little ones went out first then the big guys a few minutes later, and he stayed right by me.  The vet thought Coco is a very good looking Boxer, and is in good shape.  He has two small black growths, one on the bottom edge of his ear and one low on his side; neither one is obvious.  She said there was no rush to take them off and that could be done when he’s neutered.  (We should find out soon when that can be done.)  One of my other fosters had the same thing on his side; it was tested when it was removed; it wasn’t anything of concern, and it didn’t come back.  Coco loved everyone at the office, and they him – of course, he wanted to kiss everyone - and was even good staying by me while I had to be at the desk before leaving.  He was pretty good in the car.  He will sit for a long while, then go between the side windows for a bit.  He would rather be in the front seat, so I tie his leash so he can’t do that, but can walk back and forth.  He got in and out of the car well enough, with just a bit of help getting in one time (it’s a Blazer, and somewhat high from the ground).  His dysplasia is less noticeable, too.  He’s narrow in the hip because of it, but
 he’s taking stairs much better (and quicker) and can get a little trot going, when he’s allowed to have some leash. 

Today, my parents came by to see Coco, and get some pix.  We waited to do the visit because I know how excited Coco gets with people, and he needed a month of quiet.  After some coffee and chat, mom got the camera and the fun started.  All Coco wanted to do was go back and forth between them and give kisses – not conducive to taking fuzz-less pix.  (With all the kissing he likes to do, it’s nice he doesn’t seem to have stinky breath!  Even his teeth look good, said the vet, and he doesn’t seem to have the bumpy gums a couple of my older guys have had.).  We finally got Coco
 to slow down with bits of cookie.  He would even lie down and try to roll over!  I know he likes to sleep on his back (which makes me smile when I see him do it), but I didn’t expect tricks for treats.  We still kept the girls on the other side of the gate – would be much too much for all of them to be mulling in a bunch, since the girls get very excited, too, when my parents come over.  In the end, we did get a few good enough to post, and after about ½ hour, Coco went to his room for another nap.  Coco seems to like sleeping on the hardwood floor as much as sleeping on his comforter in the crate.  Go figure!  I used to also have a comforter on the floor next to the crate, but he’d sleep on the hard floor, and go into the crate on his own when he wanted something softer.

All around, Coco seems like a really great senior guy.  He walks well on leash, will wait for his food, doesn’t really bark (only three times in 4 weeks), doesn’t jump, doesn’t destroy anything in his room, is good in the crate, and is extremely friendly – that nub never seems to stop when he’s awake, and he can get the wiggle going. 

7/28/07 - Coco has finished with his heartworm treatments and is now available for adoption.

7/22/07 - I decided it was time to give Coco a bath today – he wasn’t noticeably dirty, but his skin felt it.  Usually I find if there’s a problem giving a dog a bath, it’s keeping him/her in the tub (even our own).  Coco was the opposite.  I don’t know what kind of association he has with being in a big tub (my regular bathtub), but it wasn’t easy to get him in on the first try.  For the second attempt, I decided to put his back end in first, then the front, and that seemed to work.  I didn’t have a problem keeping him in, but for the first few minutes, he was actually standing on his nails!  I just went slow - talked a few minutes, then ran the hand shower without getting him wet.  Instead of wetting him down all at once, I did a body quarter at a time, then his head last; he was relaxing by the second front leg.  He sure liked the rubdown afterward to get dried off - no problem there, even drying between his toes.  A treat after drying (a bunch of kisses for me), some dinner, then in to his crate (on his own) for a nice long nap.   I can’t get over how shiny and soft his coat is!
We came in last night to find a kitty sitting on the bottom step of the stairs in front of his room.  I stopped about 4 feet from the kitty, and Coco didn’t even notice him at first.  When he did, it was kind of, huh! wha? with a tiny back step – a surprise to him.  I still had Coco on leash, and simply said, “no kitty,” and he just stood there – nice and relaxed, even when the kitty turned and ran up the stairs.  A nice surprise - my other fosters would all try to drag me toward any kitty when we saw one.  I don’t know if that is going to be the norm.  We shall see after a few more up-close sightings.  At least, he doesn’t seem to want to attack them.
After those two nights of a few barks, Coco has been quiet, again.  Don’t know why.  He’s still his kissing, wiggling self, extremely happy to see everyone, whether up close or down the street.  He’s eating well, and behaving himself really well in his room.   He’s been a super  “guest” so far.  We’ll be doing some walks with our girls this week, and visiting the vet next weekend, and see how he does in those two new situations.

7/18/07 - Thing are pretty much status quo with Coco.  Nothing new really going on.  He’s found his voice, tho.  A couple nights ago he decided to let us know he really didn’t want to go to bed when we did.  At first, I took him back out after some whimpering and a few yelps, thinking I didn’t keep him out long enough, so out we went, but nothing but some looking around and sniffing the air.  Next night, I let him do his thing, and he stopped after 5 minutes and about six separate actual barks.  Third time, I waited outside his room after putting out all the lights and gave him a “stop” after the first bark, and not another sound.  We shall see where it goes from here.  It was good to know he’s feeling good enough to bark after 15 days, but it would have been nice if he hadn’t waited until we were all upstairs in bed to show us!
He’s eating well, and has definitely put on a few pounds.  He goes to the vet next weekend to check out how he’s doing after a month, and I can get an accurate weight, but he’s somewhere between 65 & 70 lbs, I think, comparing him to our Harley who is about 65 lbs. 
He only has the “normal” Boxer drool after drinking water.  No more of the (Turner and) Hooch stuff that was going on the first week or so.  I wasn’t sure if that was his all-the-time slobber, or a result of the treatments; happily, it was the latter.   Coco has been allowed to stay free in his room on afternoons that we don’t need a/c to cool it off in there by leaving the door open, and he is still behaving – nothing disturbed.
So, we’re basically checking in here to let everyone know Coco is doing well.  In another week, we’re going to start to let getting him together for very short periods with each of our girls, one at a time outside on potty breaks (and leashes).  He’s quite eager to be with them, and they with him, so we shall see how if it goes as well as when they meet at the gate to his room.  I have noticed when the kitties are running up the stairs, Coco will get a bit excited about it.  It doesn’t appear to be the same sort of “bad” excitement a couple of my fosters exhibited; i.e., he doesn’t get into any predatory stances or stares, just some dancing and hopping.   If they’re sitting or walking and he catches sight of them, there’s no reaction from him.  When they run, he gets interested.  So, I’d say it’s a decision a family would need to make, but my own BAR baby, SoBe, was a kitty chaser for a few days when I first brought her home, but with some
 “instruction,” she’s been fine ever since, and it’s been more than 3 years; they even sleep together.  However, SoBe, and our other two, will chase anything that runs when they are outside (usually kitties, but sadly, sometimes skunks; they can’t catch the kitties, but skunks don’t run very fast  :-\   I will try to find out more in another week or so, with some controlled meetings between Coco and the kitties.  The fact that the kitties come downstairs leads me to think they aren’t afraid to be around him, since they haven’t done that with all my fosters.  Time will tell.
He is still very much a people lover – any people.  If you like lots of Boxer kisses, and a pretty much low-maintenance senior fur kid, Coco may be your boy.

7/10/07 - It was a rough first 5 days for Coco from side effects of the HW treatments, but he’s been doing so much better since then.  He’s eating good-sized meals, now, which is a big relief, since he wouldn’t eat anything for almost 4 days.  It looks like he’s put on maybe 4-5 pounds, already.  He could use a few more, but I don’t want him to get overweight at all, with his funky hips, which he’s doing quite well with the past week.  He does a bit of slip-and-slide trying to take corners on the hardwood floors, so I let him go at his own pace, but he likes going outside and gets in a bit of rush, sometimes.  He still needs to be kept very quiet for at least 2 more weeks before he will be allowed to do anything more than wiggle his butt at everyone.  I will let him give my (adult) son a few kisses, but more than that, and Coco starts to get really into it and gets all kinds of excited.  He loves giving kisses!!  If he can’t reach your face, he’ll look for other skin – arms, legs (once in a while when I won’t let him get into giving me too many kisses, he’ll lick my clothes, but he doesn’t like that as much).  The other afternoon, I stopped for a moment to talk to my neighbor next door, and he got kissed when he bent down to say “hi” to Coco; it’s the first time they’ve met.  The neighbor’s 2 year old(?) grandson came running unexpectedly out their front door a few feet from us and stopped within a foot of Coco (the boy wasn’t quite as tall as Coco).  He didn’t try to jump on or pull to get closer to the boy, but since he only had swimming trunks on, Coco so wanted to lick him!!  (He licks the air until he connects.  Coco has been watching the boy playing from the window in his room.)  That was the time to get back in the house!  Too much going on for Coco’s good.  So, he apparently wouldn’t hurt little ones, but kids who are around Coco’s height might get nudged over, by his licking if nothing else. 
He’s still hasn’t barked, which is good thing, since that would probably mean he’s excited about something.  I heard a couple of whimpers when I put him in the crate before going to work the first time after he got here (this was new to him, after my spending 5 days at home).  Now he knows the routine (that we will come home), he even splits his “free” time between sleeping on his blanket and in the crate (going in on his own).  He is still sleeping a LOT, but that’s also a good thing.  And still not even one accident in house or crate.
He would really like to be with our three girls – and it seems, they with him.  We let them rub noses/sniff at the gate to his room as long as everyone is calm.  Any signs of starting to play and I close over the door so they can’t see/touch.  Everyone seems to be okay together, which bodes well for when he can be with them.
The first day I went to work after Coco’s arrival, my son felt bad about putting him back in the crate after their noon walk, so he let Coco stay uncrated in the room with the door shut.  4-5 hours later when we both got home, not a thing in the room was touched (there’s nothing that should hurt him, but things he could “play” with that are not toys).  He doesn’t show much interest in things/toys.  He does LOVE attention, but he is not constantly looking for it; however, he will take as much as you want to give, when you want to give it, and when you say “that’s enough,” he will go lay down. 
Coco is such a sweet and friendly boy.  He will be a great companion.   

7/4/07 - Coco is doing so much better today!  Maybe a sneeze now and then, but that should stop soon, too.  He’s such a laid-back guy.  Nothing much seems to faze him.  The girls can be barking at someone at the door (or anything for that matter – doesn’t take much), or the dog next door can be barking and Coco stays as quiet and calm as can be.  All three girls barking suddenly at the same time may get him to pop his eyes open if he’s sleeping, but he doesn’t get up or get excited about it.  When we’re outside, if he sees someone down the street, his nub starts wagging like it’s an old friend, and it’s usually just someone going to another house or around the corner.  No pulling to get closer or barking as the girls do when it’s a stranger.  If you do meet up with him and bend down to talk to him, be prepared to be kissed!  Doesn’t matter who you are.  He’s not a jumper, but he’s hopped with his front legs a couple times.  Not very high, but he’s happy to see you and wants you to know. 

He likes to sleep on his back now and then.  I wasn’t expecting him to get in that position without my having to be rubbing his belly.  And when he’s really deep asleep, his tongue will stick out about a little bit in front – so cute.  We were out for his last walk last night, and someone up the hill tossed one of those single-bang firecrackers.  It was only about 50 feet from us, and was very sharp and loud.  His only reaction was a slight start; I told him it was okay, we kept walking (in the other direction), and he was fine.  He didn’t get the jitters or want to be wrapped around me like our Harley does (she actually vibrates from loud things like thunder; our other two could care less).

He doesn’t have the need to get up every time I do, or stand at the door until I go back into his room (my previous four foster guys all did this, even the two seniors).  No anxiety of any kind.  He’s quite content to have a soft bed or blanket to lie on, especially if it can be next to someone.  When we go outside for his potty breaks, sometimes he likes to do some walking and check out all the trees and bushes and just look around, other times he just wants to do his thing and head back inside to his bed (so far, I we take him out four times a day, but he probably would be okay without going out at noon since he sleeps 8-9 hours at night; it just happens that someone is here around that time).  I don’t think he’s a long walker.  He’s only just starting to eat after 3 days, so that could change a bit when he has more stamina and energy, but I don’t know that he’ll comfortably be able to go for a mile-type walk.  We shall see how he does after a week of eating regular size meals (although we don’t go for long walks as a rule, I can try him out going around the block so we won’t be too far from the house if he starts to look uncomfortable).   

In a couple weeks, I plan to start taking him outside with the girls instead of separately, but still leashed until his month of “enforced quiet” is up.  I think they will be fine – they all met calmly at his gate for half a minute yesterday, and there were nub wags all around – yeah, the Boston seems to be coming around after she realized he’s wasn’t just hanging around for a day or two.   There’s still not been a close encounter with a cat, or anything small and furry outside (we have lots of squirrels and a few stray cats, and of course skunks at night), so we don’t know about that yet, but he’s just so calm about everything else, I don’t know if he’ll care when that does happen.

Coco would be a good companion for someone or a family who would like a Boxer to spend time with taking it easy, and who wants the great feeling of giving a loving, senior guy a bit of the good life, in a life that, until a week ago, doesn’t sound like it was.  

7/2/07 - Coco made his way to me Saturday afternoon, with a lot of help from some BAR friends. He was the male of a pair of Boxers a so-called breeder put into the shelter when he was evicted from where he lived. Until that time, he was kept outside, and for lack of being given simple, monthly heartworm meds, now has that disease. Some breeder, eh? His ears are cropped very short. My first thought was, someone did that to make him look mean; they seem too small for a surgeon to have done them. He certainly doesn’t look mean, or act it. He’s very weak and tired from the treatments, being just neutered, and his 5-6 hour trip from NY, but so far he been a very calm, loving boy who has a very sweet face. He’s great meeting people (a friend and an in-law came outside while I was taking him on a short walk after he arrived, and he went right to them). He loves affection – he’s a big-time kissing machine, and can wag his nub with the best of them and he’s quick to do so. There’s not too much Boxer wiggle in his butt – at least not yet; his paper from the vet indicates dysplasia, so he’s weak in his hips, and after the long trip in five cars, being on the thin side for a boy his size, and being drained from the treatments, it was very prominent his first day. He seems to be doing better with it 24+ hours later – not as shaky. He can do the few steps to my front door in his own way, but I don’t know about long stairways, yet. Obviously, this is all very early in his stay, here. I’m hoping he gets more strength back after a couple of weeks. He seems fine on the leash. He can lean into the leash in the direction we are going (not really pulling), but he stayed beside me when I shortened up the leash, and will turn when I do; he doesn’t try to go where I don’t let him go. He’s not eating much, but he’s drinking a reasonable amount of water, which he really needs right now. He doesn’t want to go out much, and there have not been any accidents in the house or crate. He is fine with being in the crate; he was quiet all night, and he’s fine when I put him in there when I leave the room. He needs to be kept as quiet as possible, so even tho he doesn’t seem interested in getting into anything in the room, I don’t want to leave him out unless I can be with him. I also have a blanket on the floor next to the crate that he sleeps on when I’m in the room with him (it’s also the computer room). He hasn’t barked at all, even when the girls are barking in the next room at something/someone – he sleeps through that, and noises don’t seem to bother him. He does a lot of short-time sleeping in between all the uncomfortable side effects of HW treatments - trying to breathe through a runny nose, and waking up to sneeze, among them – all of which should be gone in about 1 month, hopefully a lot sooner. For all that he’s been through, he has a good-looking coat – a bit dusty, but soft, smooth, thick, and no fur loss in any spots. 

Our Boxer girls are getting used to him more so than the Boston, who gets frenetic when she sees the stranger who invaded her space (when I take him outside; we put the girls behind another gate blocking the kitchen/dining area from the front), but he doesn’t react to her antics at all. Nor did he do anything when he saw one of the cats sitting near the bottom of the stairs to the second floor (right across from the doorway to his room; he was in the closed crate, and I had opened to door to let the girls start to get his scent while I could keep watch). None of them have been up close at all. Much too soon to put him through any “testing.” He needs as restricted a month’s rest as I can give him, which is what he is here for. 

This boy is so deserving of a warm and loving home to live his senior years, and make up for all the nastiness of his first 8. BAR started that process by getting him HW treatments and out of the shelter, and we, here, all hope in a month he will be HW free and ready for a person/family to adopt and treat him as he should have been treated all his life. Can’t happen soon enough for Coco, I’m sure. Be assured that I will keep everyone updated on this sweetheart, so you can see if your family might be the right one for him.