Four weeks ago, it was time for Katie Wiseman to bring home her first foster. She was given a few potential options, but once she met Ruth in the shelter office and her whole body wiggled with delight at every person who came in the office, she just had to bring that happiness into her home!
Since then, Ruth and Katie have settled into a wonderful routine. Katie describes their time together: “She is an incredibly intelligent dog so she is thriving on routines and “games”. We walk twice a day before meals. And she loves food games such as food under containers or muffin tin slots filled with food that are covered by tennis balls so she has to search for those items. She has been working on consistently responding to come, stay, lay down (she has sit mastered). AND SHE IS AMAZING IN A CAR! We like to drive to parks. 🙂 Additionally, she has been slowly getting exposed to more people, children and other dogs. She’s working on how to properly greet others, both human and dog alike!”
But while their life together is wonderful, it’s not always easy. “Ruth is a bit like a teen. When she has her mind set on something, she takes awhile to coax her to do what I want. On walks, she wants to smell that “pee-mail” or watch that dog so she will put on her brakes and back up to try to get out of her collar. As long as I have patience with her, I can ‘out wait’ her stubbornness!”
Thanks to Katie, Ruth is truly thriving. Their personalities just seem to mesh. But if you are worried about bringing a dog into your home that you know nothing about, Katie has this advice to share: “Start out by volunteering at the shelter. Learn about the dogs there (which also need fosters), learn about GPG, and learn that you have a great support within that GPG family. GPG only wants to set you and your temporary furbaby up for success!”
Thank you, Katie, for bringing this wiggle butt princess into your home until she can find her happily ever after! If you are interested in giving Ruth a forever home, visit www.gatewaypets.com/adopt. If you’d like to become a foster like Katie, visit www.gatewaypets.com/foster.
