"Carmen"

I've been Adopted!!

• 2/23/00 - Carmen's new family writes: "Just wanted to give you an update on Carmen (we call her "Carmi" now).  In short:  SHE'S WONDERFUL.  Carmi is a perfect little lady -- she loves to be petted, cuddled and invited to sit or sleep next to any of us on our beds or sofa.  Our 2 daughters (ages 3-1/2 and 7-1/2) love her and love to play with her.  She does really well with little kids -- enduring their gentle (and sometimes, "not so gentle") exploration of pats, kisses and hugs;  when she has had enough, she calmly removes herself from them and crawls under the dining room table!  We've been able to leave her alone with her toys during the day.  She's done some minor damage (chewing, food exploring), but we've learned how to "dog proof" the house, and now she has less opportunity to get into trouble.  When we get home in the afternoon, Carmi greets us with wiggles, licks and hugs.  She's eating well, gained some weight since we adopted her last month, and she looks beautiful.  All in all, I can't understand why someone surrendered such a wonderful animal. But we are very glad that they did!"
  
• 1/16/2000 - Carmen's foster home writes: "She is out of her shell and is wonderful!  She loves to cuddle and has to be with everybody when we're doing something. She and Mugs (our dog) are fast friends. The play and rumble for an hour straight!  Carmen ha gained weight well and looks fabulous. She weighed in at the vet at 60 lbs. I've taken her off puppy food and put her on regular.

  She has done very well with other dogs. She is a little bossy on her own turf, but in the woods she was wonderful. She is a little leash aggressive, but calms down when she meets a dog for the second time. She is well behaved and wants to play. In the back yard she was a little bossy at first but was having fun very soon after.  She is very into marking her turf, especially covering everybody else's pee.  This explains why she drinks so much! I don't ever remember seeing a female do this!

  As far as the leash goes, she pulled us around Boston on Friday big time.  She does very well in crowds, with loud noises, and all the goings on don't bother her much. We spent the afternoon checking out the ice sculptures for First Night.  My arm was 5 inches longer than it was before by evening. On Saturday we decided to put a choke collar on her just to see what happened.  It was obvious in second she had seen one of these before!  She was a perfect lady all of a sudden!  Apparently she knew what it was all about, she just didn't think I knew about them.  I didn't even have to do anything.  Just wearing it is enough of a reminder. I've actually taken it off her and she behaves very well. Problem solved!

  She can be very vocal when she needs to tell me something. She has found her spot in the yard and does her business very quickly.  She is very smart and learns very fast.  I've started work on a "down" command and should have it very soon. Stay is next. She is going to make someone a wonderful pet.

  She is also great with kids. She is not as hyper/active as Mugsy and would do well with young kids.  She checked out our friends 1 year old and promptly licked his face, sat down and stood guard!  She was wonderful with my boys (7&10) and other kids she meet. She's very quiet with them, but loves to be provoked.  She is very mature!  She is not as kid crazy as Wrinkles was (he'd pull me over to every kid and want to wash their faces) but will interact and play well.

  We left her alone on Saturday. At first she barked and scratched at the door. We stood outside, banged once on the door and hollered NO!   She sat quieted down immediately. We came in 3 minutes or so, gave her a big "Good girl" and a biscuit.  We repeated the exercise an hour later. She didn't scratch at the door and we stayed out about 15 minutes. She sat on the couch and watched us walk up the street.  We left her last evening for about 5 hours and she was perfect. Didn't do any damage, no barking or whining and was a perfect girl. She gave a great greeting when we came in.  I'm sure she can be left alone for long periods. I leave her with a Nyla Bone and she's happy. She hasn't been doing any table surfing and has stayed away from the trash.  We haven't given her much opportunity either.

  We have since been leaving her on her own all day, sometimes from 7 in the morning till 6 at night when we come home. She doesn't touch a thing!  The house is fine and no evidence of food hunting.  She ignores the kitchen table!  She does make a beeline for the back door to go out when we get home. She does well in the crate and she's OK loose also. We've been crating her at night only because she likes to sneak in bed with Mugs and us and it’s getting a bit crowded!

  She is fine in the car also. She stays in her place and looks out the windows. More nose prints! 

  By the way, Her coat is very short. Maybe a quarter to half an inch and very soft.  I've been putting Linatone oil in her food to get her shine back.  She is scheduled to be spayed on the 26th and get the rest of her shots."

• 1/2/2000 - Carmen is a 4 yr old brindle and white female Boxer with natural ears who weighs about 50 pounds.  Her owners surrendered her to a shelter because they said she kept having puppies. She is supposed to be good with kids and other dogs, and we have not seen anything that would indicate otherwise.  This sweet girl needed a bath badly, did very well in the tub, and now looks wonderful!  She is still a bit shy/shell shocked but is coming around nicely. She is a little thin (but has started to eat), is house trained, and whines and dances at the door when she wants to go out. She is very sweet and quiet, is beginning to perk up a bit, and has begun to give kisses. Sitting and giving her paw comes easy for her, but she is a real tug boat on the leash. Although she has had some training, a refresher obedience course will be needed. Playing ball is a favorite, and she has begun to wrestle/box a bit. We will learn more about her after she settles into her foster home a little more. 

    
  Click on any image for a full size photo.

    Go Back

For Additional Information on this dog, contact:

NORTHEASTERN BOXER RESCUE
JANE SCOTT
P.O. Box 95
Sunderland Massachusetts 01375-0095
413-367-9292 Voice / Fax

E-mail: scotty@javanet.com