Monty's Busy Social Life

Well, Monty's had a busy week! First he and Chloe attended a fashion show at a Newport mansion-he made quite a few friends and he and Chloe were the calmest, most well behaved pooches there. He met his Aunt Jane for the first time and it was love at first sight for both of them! He snuggled on her lap and gave lots of kisses. Then he and Chloe went on a 3.5 mile pet walk at Roger Williams park- Chloe in her stroller of course- and Monty was just as spry at the end of the walk as he was when it started. Again lots of friends were made, including several Bostons. He really does so well with other dogs- and is so friendly with people. After all of that excitement he and Chloe took a LONG nap on the way home- another pet walk is planned for next Sunday to benefit a local rescue- and of course Monty will be there!

Monty's New Home

The shy little boy we brought home a month or so ago has settled right in with us- what a sweet, goofy gut he is! He's decided to be a watchdog and sits in the window "barking" at all who pass by, except his "bark" is more of a silly squeal than anything else, and would make any intruder die laughing. He LOVES his walks with Chloe and also loves to make friends of any sort, fur covered or human. He's much better with his greetings too and doesn't assume that being smothered with Monty kisses is everyone's idea of a good time. He also has begun to play with toys- especially squeakers! He goes a little nuts and is fascinated for hours with a soft orange ring- I don't think a hamster would be a good friend! We adore him with his quirks and lumps and silliness!

It's hard to believe it's only been a week since Monty moved in- he has settled in to such a nice routine with us and we feel like he's been here forever. He is the sweetest, gentlest and most well mannered[thanks Hanna!] little guy....He loves his walks, his cuddles, car rides and most of all his sunbeams.... if there is an inch of sunlight he'll find it! He is a wonderful match for our Chloe with his laid-back approach to life and they get along beautifully. We feel like we hit the jackpot! The FOHA is such a great organization- I am so grateful to them and to everyone at Petfinder for all of the work that they do. It takes soooo much time, money, hard work and love and there are so many wonderful animals that deserve good homes that it seems overwhelming. I wish I could save them all.... This is for sure Monty's forever home- we adore him!

Monty has been adopted!

Monty has found his forever home!
Wonderful Kate and Mike of Rhode Island adopted little blind Chloe (formerly Annie) from FOHA in February as a companion to their blind boston boy, but he unfortunately passed away recently and they wanted to get a new friend for Chloe. After meeting with another Boston that was not a good match they wanted to meet Monty, and boy was it love at first sight!


Monty was on his very best behavior, being a complete gentleman with little Chloe, nicely sharing the water bowl with her and the two of them sniffing around, and he was plenty generous with love and kisses to both Kate and Mike winning them right over!


They have adopted plenty of dogs in the past and understand that every dog needs time to adjust and for us to figure out their quirks to be able to help them, and they are the perfect home for Monty! I couldn't be happier! After they left on Sunday I was on cloud nine all day I was so happy with the match!

Kate send me an email the following morning:

Well, Monty has already been for 2 walks, made friends with Max, a pudgy BT who lives a few houses away, explored every inch of our house and yard, found the most comfortable chair in the house, ate supper right next to Chloe with no issues and been an absolutely perfect gentleman! It feels like he's lived here forever and we are so happy. He truly is a "turn key operation"- the easiest adoption ever. We feel like we hit the jackpot. And I LOVED meeting you and Rick and your pooches- I don't know which one is the most adorable. We were highly impressed with the "double spin!"- I really think that you need your own Animal Planet TV series because you are wonderful at what you do. I am going to be looking forward to reading your blogs about the other pups who are going to be lucky enought to be fostered by you and Rick.... Thanks SOOOO much for the wonderful work you have done with Monty.
Luv Kate and Mike

And we got another email a couple of days later:

Well, you were totally right about Monty as an escape artist! I put a bag of trash out the side door- a few minutes later noticed that he was not around- fortunately, he sticks to me like glue so it didn't take long to notice he was gone- after a few frantic moments I found him sittting calmly[in the rain] in the front yard. He's so light on his feet I didn't notice he snuck by me. Our new rule now is not to open the door without being totally aware of his whereabouts! What a great dog- so sweet and mellow. He has been great about begging, totally accepting of our "calm behavior before food" rule and he and Chloe have been getting along fine. He seems to appreciate just everything too- and we have nicknamed him Elmer cuz of his glue-like tendencies. A perfect fit for us! Thanks again for all that you did for him!
Luv Kate and Mike


Yay for happy endings! Monty truly deserves this and I know he will be much loved and very happy!
I look forward to hearing about all his adventures in the future...

The great escape... almost!

So, we discovered that Monty is an escape artist! Well, he didn't go far, but I figured it was worth mentioning, it was too funny!

We have a small fenced in backyard, and last night I couldn't find him for the life of me! I was looking all around the house and all around the backyard (we have a doggie door he uses), but all doors and gates were closed and I just couldn't figure out where he'd gone! I started calling him (his recall is great BTW!) and I hear a scratching noise from behind our shed...

There is the tiniest little space, maybe 8-10 inches wide, between the shed and our back fence, and somehow he had squeezed behind it and was on his way into the neighbors yard! Mind you, he also had to climb over a giant rock I had put in front of the gap, but he was in an adventurous mood!

But he always come when you call and never goes far from the pack, so the second he heard me calling he came squeezing back through! I wish I could have seen the look on my face when I saw him crawling out! He looked very proud of himself, wagging his tiny stump of a tail!

Needless to say, there is now a board blocking the space behind the shed, not that I ever thought that I would need it! *haha*

Monty at Agatha & Louise!

Our good friends over at Agatha & Louise were kind enough to post Monty on their blog after we stopped by their showroom last week to say hello! They have always been great supporters of Friends Of Homeless Animals Inc., and we would highly recommend them to anyone!

Thank you so much Gray, Persephone, Posie & Gilkey for your continued support!

Dogs At Work Festival: Monty loves Planet Dog!

On Friday, June 26th 2009, Planet Dog organized their annual "Dogs At Work Festival" to commemorate Take Your Dog To Work Day in downtown Portland ME.

The event started off with a doggie parade from Brian Boru's and down to Tommy's Park in the heart of Portland, where the festivities continued with fun doggie events all day! Booths from local rescue groups and shelters, local dog businesses, face painting, adorable adoptable dogs, a special signing by artist and author Stephen Huneck, and tons more fun!


And of course we were there to represent Friends Of Homeless Animals, Inc.! Monty was dressed up in his fanciest FOHA garb, with an "Adopt Me" bandanna and all, ready to meet any potential adopters!


He was schmoozing people left and right, and was on his very best behavior! He was quite the crowd favorite and even made several photos ops, including not one, not two but THREE photos on the Planet Dog facebook page, and made the cover of their Flickr album! He also made Down East Dog's photo album of the event! (See images 16, 17 and 18)


Overall it was a wonderful event, and considering the horrible weather streak we've been in, we were so fortunate to have sun and nice weather! Everyone was having a great time, human and dogs like, and we are already looking forward to next years event! Thank you Planet Dog for putting on such a great time!


On our way home we stopped by our vet to drop off some fliers, and Monty, having had a long and eventful day, took the opportunity to sneak in a nap...

Monty on Dogster!

Monty is now on Dogster! Feel free to visit his profile, and cross post it to anyone you know who might be interested in adopting a sweet little boston terrier boy!
http://www.dogster.com/dogs/1003168

How do I adopt Monty...?

If you think Monty might be a good match for you, I suggest filling out an Online Adoption Application. The application is in no way binding, it helps us further the adoption process and figure out if you and Willy are a good match.

I also highly recommend putting down a deposit via Pay Pal along with the application. A deposit shows that you are serious and the dog will be put on hold for you until the adoption process is completed. It doesn't guarantee approval, and if for any reason the adoption does not go through, the deposit will be refunded to you in full.

Visit Monty on Petfinder.com to read more about Willy's adoption fee, etc.

Monty's first 2 weeks...

Monty has now been here for almost 2 weeks, and we have had a chance to get to know him better...

He is such a sweet calm guy! He gets along wonderfully with all of our dogs, including our pushy young male. He puts up with rough housing without any protest, only when stepped on has he occasionally growled, but I think I would have too if I were him! He doesn't really play with the other dogs, but thoroughly enjoys their company! He's run along when they chase each other through the house, and he especially likes to snuggle in one giant pile on the couch!

The warning we had been given was about his mouthiness, which has turned out to be no issue at all! Most likely, he has previously never been taught bite inhibition, so he will "grab" your hand when he wants something, but it's very gentle and absolutely NOT a bite!! He is a very sweet gentle dog who just wants some guidance. With a quick "ah-ah" he catches the drift very quickly! He's a clever dog who just wants to please...



We don't feed him people food EVER! In my opinion this is a bad habit for any dog, the same rule applies to our dogs as well as all our fosters. In Monty's case, not letting him eat from the table will help him learn not to be so food obsessive. We were warned about his food obsession (very common for former stray dogs), and we still feed him in the den to keep things calm. I highly doubt that he would fight for any food, but we're also not gonna rush anything. We are teaching him to sit and wait for his food, and he is learning quickly! All this will help him become calmer around food.

He can be a bit pushy with affection. Again, he probably never had any rules in his previous life. So we are pretty strict with him pushing for affection. If he jumps on the couch and tries to get in our faces, he is gently asked off the couch without incident, and when he is calm we invite him back up and he gets snuggles! Again, he is catching on very quickly!

We were also told that he does not like to get picked up. We have gently picked him up when necessary, and although he stiffens up and doesn't particularly enjoy it, he tolerates it. I wouldn't recommend picking him up all the time though, since he is uncomfortable. Gentle desensitization is key!



He also let him give him a bath without protest! Like many dogs, he wasn't exactly thrilled, but he let me bathe him without incident, and there were no areas of his body that he seemed uncomfortable with (the bath is a good place to check for sore joints, sensitive areas, etc.). And he LOVED getting towel dried after! He just soaks up any affection he can get!

He does seem to have some slight food allergies. On a regular diet his stools were a little loose, his coat looks a bit dull, and tends to be a bit oily and his skin flaky. He also licks his paws a lot, which can be a sign of allergies. We have switched him to a hypoallergenic food (grain-free duck/sweet potato), I will update in about a week or so when he's had a chance to adjust, and we'll see if it makes any difference...

Monty is a very easy foster and we adore him! He is very calm, never barks, 100% housebroken (not a single accident!), wonderful on a leash... He's probably better off in a home without young children since he does tend to be a bit mouthy, and a child could mistake it for him being scary. He would do great in a home with other dogs, we have been told that he chases cats though. A home with some rules and boundaries would be the ideal for him, and he will make someone a wonderful pet!

Adopt Monty!

Monty is our current fosterdog who just arrived here today. This is his stoty on Petfinder.com":


Monty will require an experienced person to adopt him - he was traumatized during a trial adoption and has not been the same since. His foster mom, a behaviorist in training, is working with him and hopefully he will learn to trust again soon...

- Adoption donation is $100
- Located in Portland, ME.
- 21 lbs,
- Approx 4-7 years old
- Up to date on Bordatella, Rabies,and 7 in 1 shots.
- Heartworm/lyme/erlichia NEGATIVE!
- Children: not tested
- House trained: YES
- Good with other Dogs
- No cats!

Beaumont is a wonderful dog! Quiet, laid back and friendly to all the dogs here. He just wants to be someone's best buddy. Housebroken and is now 21 lbs. Just wants to sit beside you. Walks very well on the leash. Just a great dog!!
Monty gets along fine with the dogs here, is crate trained, housebroken. He has never chewed anything here.

- Monty should not be picked up as he does not like it. Maybe due to the scar on his shoulder.
- He should not be on anyone's lap as he is unpredictable when asked to get down.
- Monty should not be fed any food by hand as he will try to put his mouth on any available hand, not always gently, as he is always looking for the treats.
- Monty takes time to wake up if sleeping on the couch or his bed. He should be called to come to you as he is unpredictable if you approach him to wake him up or touch him.

He needs to have rules so that he does not try to be the leader. I feed him in the crate. He is not a needy dog and is content to just hang out sleeping or looking out doors or windows with the other guys. No cats for him.

I will updating shortly on his progress!