This baby girl needs the right home carefully chosen with all her needs in mind. Zoe really requires someone who can give her the time and patience for training. Her behavior was managed during the short time she worked with a behaviorist, however, she must have commitment and dedication to that effort for her to have a chance to thrive.
Breed: YELLOW LAB MIX
Current age: Estimated 2 years old
Current weight: 52 lbs (60 ideal; gained 8 lbs in last 6 months)
Owners Name: Jana Dock
Owners Location: Springfield, Missouri
Dogs location): Springfield, Missouri
Rescue
Boarding
DVM
Foster Home
√ Owner
Contact Information (if other than this FB Group):
Home Phone:
Cell Phone: 417-234-3844
Email/Gmail: jaanay@juno.com
Timeframe needed to find a home:
As soon as possible, but must be a good fit
Where and how I got this dog:
Apparently dumped in late February/early March 2013 when she was a young 1 year old
A man kept her for 4-5 weeks while his family tried to find her owners
He had two other dogs and couldn’t keep her
His co-worker adopted her on April 6, 2013, but quickly discovered she had a medical issue
Megaesophagus diagnosed April 15
Medical information (spay/neuter, chipped, other health conditions if any, etc):
Successfully treated for whip worms in April
Has had blood work
Free of heart worms – on prevention (Frontline)
Up-to-date for Rabies vaccine, Parvo/Distempter, and Bordatella
Confirmed Megaesophagus
Not chipped
Spayed May, 2013
Where and how was ME diagnosed:
Animal hospital (give name if known): Dr. Heath Wiseman at Springfield Veterinary Center
X-rays or barium swallow: Performed a barium study with X-Rays of her esophagus on April 15, 2013; ME was
diagnosed at that time; Negative for Myasthenia Gravis
Food brands and consistency (meatballs, milkshake, pureed, etc):
Eats 1 1/4 c. Canidae senior dry kibble (senior due to lower fat, which is easier for her to digest) twice a day mixed with at least 2 c. cold water Pureed in a blender and 3 to 3 1/2 T of Thick-It is added and stirred in (almost to pudding consistency). Also gets 2 heaping T of 100% canned pumpkin stirred in to help firm her stools
Fed how many times per day in what position and timeframe:
- Eats twice a day but would do best with the same amount of food spread over three meals a day
- She sits nicely in her Bailey chair for at least 30 minutes at each meal but does best with 40 or 45 minutes when time allows
- If she could get her 2 1/2 to 3 cups of dry kibble mixed with water spread over 3 times a day, 30 minutes each time in her chair should work well
- Gets a Reglan pureed in each meal for motility and swallows a Prilosec pill each morning just before eating breakfast for reflux
- Takes Sucralfate as needed for inflamed esophagus and has had AP once, in late June, and was successfully treated with four weeks of antibiotics
- Has one week’s worth of antibiotics on hand in case of emergency
- Occasionally gets a few ice cubes or some water immediately following a meal while still in her chair
Meds currently taken:
- Reglan with each meal
- Prilosec each morning
- Heartguard monthly (1st day of each month) pureed into dinner
- Frontline every 6-8 weeks
- Sucralfate as needed
- Cephalexin (antibiotic for AP) as needed
Hydration method and consistency (Knox Blox, SubQ, Thick It, etc):
- Primarily gets hydration from the water pureed with her food, all of it thickened with Thick-It
- Can have 5 ice cubes immediately after eating while still in her chair, or a few laps of water
- After activity on a hot day, she can drink water and sit in her chair for 10-15 minutes
Items that will go with her:
- Blender
- Pro Collar
- Collar
- Leash
- Gentle Leader
- Bailey Chair
- 1 week of emergency Cephalexin
- Some Thick-It, Reglan, Sucralfate, and Prilosec
- Several Nylabones and ropes
Exercise preferred (if any) and level (high, moderate, low):
- Very high energy
- Is taken for a 1-3 mile walk most days, weather permitting (doesn’t do too well in temps over 85 or 90 and humidity)
- Loves to play fetch and is a very fast runner
- Needs to be active before a meal, but too much activity can cause regurgitation
Miscellaneous Info (reaction to children, other dogs, cats, walks well with leash, housebroken, crate trained, needs Pro Collar, needs elevation at night, etc):
- Hasn’t been around children much in the last six months but does well with them
- Very long-legged and jumps
- Playful with children but can be too hyper and overpowering to them
- Loves all other dogs but wants to play rough and hard and older dogs don’t respond well to that
- Dominant often
- No idea how she would react to a cat
- Is very submissive to the Gentle Leader and walks quite well with it
- Has been housebroken since getting here in April – had two accidents at the beginning but I think it was more of a dominance thing than anything; knows to go outside to do her business
- Has spent time in a crate but hates it – gets anxious and regurgitates and scratches and claws trying to get out
- Uses a Pro Collar at night and doesn’t usually have any nighttime regurgitation
- Regurgitation occurs when she eats grass or something else she shouldn’t, gets into water, or barks or is too active following a meal
- Doesn’t bark much – usually only when she really wants to play or gets upset that she’s told “No”
NOTES (any other pertinent information that will help you decide if you might be safe, loving her forever home):
“Zoe is very sweet most of the time. She likes to play, sometimes a little too hard. Zoe is a chewer. She will find anything she can to chew. She has five Nylabones that she often chews on but loves shoes, books, pillows, dog beds, and anything else she can get her teeth on. She needs someone who is home often to feed her properly and give her the attention she wants and needs. It would be best to not have small children in her home not only due to her size and activity level, but due to solid food landing on the floor, which is not good for her.
Zoe always wants to go with me when I leave the house. She has clawed through a screen door trying to get to me. She will find a way to get loose and thinks it’s a fun game of chase to keep me from leaving the house. She’s fast and won’t come when called. She never runs away, but she’ll run up and down the street several houses in each direction and can keep herself from being caught. She will get hit by a car if I keep her. Once I win and take her home and tell her she can’t go with me or scold her for any reason, she gets angry. She has bitten me with a growl several times but doesn’t really break the skin. She bruises me. Her fits of anger are always short lived.
As long as you’re near, she’s wonderful in her Bailey chair. It’s where she gets food. She gets sleepy in there.
Zoe likes to sleep in bed with me but can easily be trained not to. She doesn’t usually get on furniture, as she knows it’s not allowed.
I took Zoe to a few puppy training classes using a clicker and toys and praise (since she can’t eat treats or Lickety Stix) but that failed miserably. She knows “sit” but only does it if she wants to. She thinks she’s dominant to me. She won’t come when called but will if she thinks I’m leaving her or leaving her out of fun. A dog whisperer spent four hours with us and helped us with her loose leash walking and being submissive to me. She did amazing with him, but she needs that kind of training consistently and I haven’t been able to provide that consistent work with her.
I have to vacuum when Zoe is in her chair. She’s dominant to the vacuum cleaner and barks at it until she regurgitates several times. The dog whisperer said the vacuum cleaner is her biggest challenge. I haven’t been able to tackle it with her.
Zoe is the smartest dog I’ve ever known. She has so much potential. She’s full of life and wants to have a lot of fun. Her feelings are hurt easily. She needs someone who is authoritative but loving and who is home often. It would be best for her to be an only dog or for her doggie siblings to also be young and playful. She’s really a pretty sweet girl and it breaks my heart to let her go.”
