Memphis Blues the Blue-Eyed Puppy ~ Adopted

His personality is quite complex. He is incredibly sweet, and mellow, and takes him awhile to get him warmed up and ready for play. As you know, he was labeled as a “fear-biter” and “special needs” while he was at the shelter, but after spending a day with him I can say this simply just isn’t the case. He DOES have mouthing issues, but what three month old puppy doesn’t? He has not lost any canine teeth, but the second set of his upper incisors have been lost, and his teeth a growing so naturally, he is going to chew.

It is very clear he loves to be loved, and in most situations his teething is that of an average puppy. His complexity arises when he becomes too excited, or overstimulated, and this is where his original threat of biting comes in to play. Once he is excited, he is very hard to reel back in–he is like a big-engined truck–there is a lot of power in this puppy. When he gets in to this extreme play mood, he does bite. Touching him, or attempting to correct him is very difficult, and he tends to snap and bite repeatedly. As clarification, he does not bite angrily, but just out of uncontrolled excitement. He does have a great play drive, and he loves his toys, and to wrestle with my big dog out in the yard. He is extremely affectionate with me, excepting the times where he has become too riled up. When these times occur, I’ve found it’s best just to ignore him. I put the other dogs away, and sit cross-legged, with my hands in my lap. I do not attempt to touch or pet him until he has calmed down, and then he is back to being sweet and loving again.

I’ve found that this is the case with him in EVERY situation. I even had my Godson come over to see him, and he was just as gentle and as laid back as he could be. He laid in complete silence as my Godson set up his wooden train tracks around his entire body, and continued to lay passively as my Godson loved and hugged all over him. His attitude only changed when a friend of mine began to roughhouse with him, where he went from docile to extremely rambunctious in a series of seconds. When my Godson came back to give Memphis a pat, I witnessed the exact same serious of snapping that I had witnessed during my visit with him at the shelter. It is in these moments where he is the MOST aware of hand motion, and will snap.

Given about ten minutes to cool off, Memphis was eager to be loved on again, and plopped himself between myself and my Godson as he colored in his coloringbook. Taking him to the on-site dog park at our apartment yielded the same results, as did introductions to the cat, and my other dog. A minor exception to this is when unfamiliar men are around. His body language (which is always relaxed, even when he’s in a play-fit) tenses slightly, and he is unwilling to approach the person unless the person lowers themselves to his level.

Once the initial introductions are over, he is completely amiable to all surroundings. He LOVES the ball, and he loves to run–although he’s very clumsy with those big feet! I was shocked to see what a loverboy he was after all the things I heard about him from the shelter workers, but I can say now for sure that his problem is non-aggressive, and something that will just need a steady, dog-savvy hand to get over.

He is not housebroken, but he is very smart. When outside, he knows to go to the door when he is done with his business, and even when accidents happen inside, they are by the door. So the general idea is there, lol. He eats calmly, and as you can see by his photos he’s no stranger to food! He’s a portly little guy. As I mentioned before he loves to run and romp, so a fenced in yard would be a good idea for this guy. He was picked up as a stray, and he has ZERO concerns about the outdoor world that I have seen so far. He loves the creek, he loves the dirt–he just loves the outdoors. He tends to play pretty rough, and he is going to get MUCH bigger, so when thinking about homing him with other dogs I would say small dogs are an out. He is totally blase to cats. While I do not think children younger than three would be a good idea for Memphis, I think as long as it’s a responsible child who knows not to pull on tails/ears/or prod eyeballs he will do fine. All in all, he’s a good little (for now) dog, he just needs some guidance.

A worker in the shelter nearly cried as Memphis walked out the door, and having him only for a short three days, I understand why. This dog is the silver lining to all the sad shelter stories we hear about. He has such a need to be loved on that it’s infectious. I managed not to cry when they all shipped out this morning, but I made sure to get all my cuddle time with him in last night! 😉 I am holding out with hope that he finds a family soon, because if he doesn’t, TDL can expect an email from Steve and I. ~ Khaz 

Memphis Blues was escorted from Khaz and Steve to my door by the wonderful Larry and Joyce. They were bubbling with enthusiasm about him.

Memphis is a sweetie and very athletic. He was a perfect traveler. He a gorgeous dog! ~ Joyce

Paul Newman eyes – Michael Jordan athleticism plus smarts! ~ Larry

So this is what I know. First, this is a gorgeous puppy. His eyes are blue on the very rims, grey on the inside, and green in the center. He has a true presence to himself. You remember Sam the sheepdog in the cartoons that would sit at the top of the hill overlooking the sheep? Memphis Blues sits exactly the same way, very erect, chest out, chin tucked in. Rather than a herding instinct, he seems to have a protective instinct. Decent size paws too. Yes, I think that there might be some Great Pyrenees hanging out in the family tree! I’m guessing 60 pounds as an adult.

When Memphis Blues jumped out of the car with Joyce and Larry, he acted like he had been with them his whole life. He had no hesitancy about me whatsoever, in fact, he became my shadow right away. Being a puppy, he gets riled up when roughhousing or when there is too much excitement. I have found that calm works work much better than a scolding. He is very affectionate. Although picked up as a stray and comfortable outside, I believe he lived in a home as he knows what side of the sliding glass door he prefers to be on!

This is a wonderful puppy. He is going to make a stunning dog! I have lots of photos of him in his photo album. Memphis Blues is being fostered in Winter Park. If you are interested in adopting him, please review our adoption process, then e-mail holly.thedogliberator@gmail.com

 

April 21 Update:

Memphis Blues have found his forever home!  Denise and Peter are both biologists and dog lovers.  They have two cocker spaniels and an akita.  Room for one more!  Memphis Blues is has been renamed Baloo and now lives in Tampa!