Frankie
ADOPTED!
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Sunday July 20th, 2003

Frankie had a rough night last night. He cried and howled most of the way home and messed in his crate. We stopped at a gas station to clean him up and then had him ride in my lap the rest of the way home. Our four dogs all loved him (even KITA - she has been protecting him from the other dogs!) but he wasn't too thrilled with them. He snapped at both Tundra and Sirus and growled any time one of the four dogs came too close. He ate really well for us (boiled hamburger and rice mixed with a little dog food). Ed gave him seconds, Frankie still wanted more, but we were afraid he would be sick if he ate too much. He really hates his crate (as well as the play yard and the fence in the backyard) and spent most of the night crying. Ed finally took him out of the crate and let him sleep in the bed. He fell asleep around dawn and slept for about three hours. We are trying to keep him awake this afternoon so he will be tired tonight.

He seems to be a lot calmer this morning. We have even been able to let him down on the floor around the other dogs (with close supervision) and everyone is getting along okay. Sirus desperately wants to play with him, but we are discouraging that for now as Sirus tends to play rough and is so much bigger than Frankie. He ate a good breakfast and had a second bath (for which he was very good). He has only had one accident in the house and that was really my fault. I knew he needed to go out, but I wanted to get at least one bite of my breakfast since we didn't have time for dinner last night - I knew I shouldn't have waited!

He doesn't like walking on the leash - just sits down and stares at me when I try to get him to go with me. I took him for a short walk around the block (we also ran part of the way which he loved) and he did much better. He only balked a couple of times. We will take him out for a longer walk tonight with the other four dogs. Hopefully, if we can really tire him out, he will do better in his crate tonight.

He is such a sweetheart - he loves to cuddle up in your lap and give lots of kisses.

Tuesday July 22, 2003

Over the last few days, Frankie has really opened up and started acting like a husky puppy. He wants to play and run with the older dogs, but gets scared easily when they start making noise. He will nip and snap at the youngest of the 4 to start trouble, but when the bigger dog goes after him (playing), Frankie hi-tails it out of there and hides behind something - usually one of us. We are teaching the other dogs to play gentle and supervising very closely. He is eating great. It's nice to see a dog who appreciates food! The queen dog of the house is such a finicky eater. But then again, she has never been without. Today Frankie is playing with toys for the first time. He will chase a ball in the back yard and chew on a rope toy in his pen. We have had him out on numerous walks and he is doing very nicely. No leash issues yet. He has met a few people along the way - even some other dogs. Frankie loves everyone he meets and like all husky puppies, is the center of attention and loving every second of it!

He is much better about being in his crate now, sleeping through the night. Also, he will lie down and sleep and let you walk from his sight without freaking out. He has been extremely good about not going potty in the house. He has his signals to let you know he needs out. ALL inside accidents have been our fault (Ok Sheryl, mostly mine). I won't take the blame for one of them though. Sirus came charging at the pen Frankie was in and he decided to go - I saw him squat and scoped him up but wasn't fast enough. He gets a puppy pass for that one. The only real problem remaining is when he needs to be in the crate for extended periods. Even though he is in the same room with the other 4 he is very freaked out when you go get him out. Fortunately, for the next week and a half he will have very limited alone time in the crate. Hopefully time will get him better at this. We are going slowly here as well.

Tuesday July 29, 2003

He is one of the gang now. He runs with the pack and his play is improving each day. He doesn't seem to run and hide as much when the going gets rough. His walking distance is getting better - the funny thing is he refuses to go to far with out the rest of the guys there. He just sits down looking back at the house saying " Okay - where is everybody - I'm not going if they aren't". He has somewhat regressed in the crate department as well as house breaking. He was doing so well too. He needs to be tired out to go in the crate and sleep - if he's not ready for bed - forget it. As always - A tired Husky is a good Husky! He has had a few potty accidents lately inside. Haven't figured out exactly why yet. He goes in for his neutering tomorrow morning.

Wednesday September 3, 2003

Frankie has turned into quite the little man. He now has no problems in the crate. He usually disappears in his crate and is asleep before we get ready for bed. During our work hours he follows the big dogs to the crate area and now goes in without a fuss and settles in. Housebreaking is 100% better. While out for walks he keeps up pace with the older dogs and can go as far and as fast as they can. He has gained 11 pounds since his rescue from NJ - he is now up to 27 pound. He is still eating great with no fuss. No picky eater here. He is the biggest instigator during play - he holds his own with the big boys!