Gizmo says...

...It's a dog's life!  Especially at nap time.  He's doing great!  Loves to romp with his Goldendoodle buddy in our friends' fenced two acres.  He's shed a few pounds, is very fit and active.  Has amazing energy and stamina for a dog his age.  Exercise is key.  Now, if I would get off my lazy fanny, I would be fit and trim, too!

Hope all is well with you and yours!

Boy oh boy, do we ever love our little Gizmo! We are so lucky! Of course, he has a whopping case of separation anxiety, having lost his lifelong home and lifelong buddies, but I expected that, having recalled you saying he followed you room to room and didn't want to stay outside by himself. So, I'm doing the "prescribed" anxiety desensitization exercises, and he's gaining more confidence daily. He'll now wander off into other rooms to take naps and will "stay" or "wait" quietly, if not patiently, when I go behind closed doors during the training exercises. And he now waits at the bottom of the steps when I go upstairs, rather than scrambling up after me. I don't know if he'll ever completely get over his anxiety, but his progress so far gives us hope. Poor little guy--our goal is for him to feel comfortable and not to worry, which is a tall order, given his history.

I'm also taking him everywhere dogs are allowed. He's been to the local coffee shop three times. A friend goes with us, and she stays outside with him while I go for the coffee. He sits with her on her side of the table all the time we're there; part of teaching him to be more independent of me. But the BIG news is that he went with me to the hairdresser yesterday. They
encourage their clients to bring their dogs, so I thought what the heck? He was perfect! He charmed everyone and was invited back! Go, Gizzy!

We're also spending a lot of time outside on long walks--want to take advantage of the good weather. He trots at almost four miles an hour (I clocked him), so I get good exercise, too. And he loves jogging with Paul on the weekends. I feel sorry I can't let him loose to chase squirrels here, as he would LOVE to do that, but when he sees one, we both run after it until it runs up a tree. We've let him loose in Paul's aunt's yard--he didn't find any squirrels, but he certainly did find something dead and sticky to roll in. Ick! Guess who got a sponge bath before he got back in the car...