Introducing Licorice...

Licorice is a 2-3 month old 'kissy-face' Chihuahua pup with a spot of white on her chest and a bit of white underneath her jaw... Black dogs with dark eyes are a nightmare to photograph as you can see below:

They are also hard to get adopted at the shelter for humans connect to dogs via visual aspects... If you can't see a dog's eyes easily, we as humans have a tendency to stare into them harder (which in dog language is dominance)...

However, Licorice is as sweet as can be and all puppy (still), so hopefully she will find her furever home quickly... She's small at 4 pounds and shouldn't get much bigger, but 'playful' is her middle name...

I just had to post these two photos - she's not got a mean or vicious bone in her body but when she grabbed the camera strap and started to tug, it became an excellent opportunity to snap some photos of her face... LOL...

Too cute, huh?

Licorice is now spayed, up-to-date on her shots including rabies, microchipped and licensed for the County of Ventura... She is potty- and doggie-door trained... Licorice gets along well with other dogs, but as a puppy she would bother a very senior dog to an early grave - she is still VERY much a puppy with high energy levels.

Introducing Bambi....

Bambi is the epitome of what you would expect a Chihuahua to be - little, kissy face and loving, a lapdog extraordinaire and devoted companion... She was used for breeding by a backyard breeder and we found her at local shelter with Willie... 

This is one of my favorite photos of Bambi... it shows that side of Bambi we see all the time - curious and interested, alert to what is going on around her and not afraid to figure out how to further investigate what she is interested in!

Bambi is the finest example of what I say about Chihuahuas all the time - 5 pounds of weight and 100 pounds of attitude... But in Bambi's case, she is less than 5 pounds... However, she doesn't have a clue how little she is!... She is an AVID lap dog and if you sit down, she's there... Wherever you are, she wants to be...

She photographs exceptionally well and will pose to give you that majestic look of hers:

Always reminds of the Sphinx every time I see it!

Sophia and her pups

This is Sophia's normal look with the ears erect and attentive to you... She is SUCH a good girl!... Spayed now and up-to-date on her shots, Sophia has already received her rabies and is microchipped as well as being licensed for the County of Ventura...

We took these photos and then put her in the Xpen with 6 puppies - video to follow as soon as it is edited and up on YouTube... It is precious - what an endearing and gentle soul she is!  Stay tuned for the video...


Sophia's pups (Thelma and Louise) were born on 5/29, so they won't be 8 weeks old until 7/24/10... One is long-haired and fuzzy like their mom (Louise):

and the other is short-haired and looks like a typical Chi-Weenie cross puppy (Thelma)...

The puppies won't be spayed until 8/2 and not ready for adoption until that following Saturday (8/7/10)... But they are adorable - no doubt about that!

Khloe & Kourtney

Khloe & Kourtney are sisters... Maybe 'purebreds' (for whatever that term now means with all of the backyard breeders and Internet sellers) or maybe they are 'Chi-Weenies' (the newest fad)... They are 4-5 months old, spayed, up-to-date on their shots including rabies, microchipped and licensed for the County of Ventura... 

Siblings, they can be found throughout the day playing nonstop... We would like to adopt them together if possible (but not necessarily required) because they have bonded to each other... When dumped at the shelter, the owner told the staff that they bought the puppies and then realized their lifestyle did not have enough time to spare for puppies... (sigh)... 

Khloe and Kourtney are very much alike in appearance... Khloe is a tricolored Brindle...

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Khloe is the 'explorer' of the pair...  She's the first one to investigate any new toy or a dog dish's contents!

What's for dinner today, Mom?

And while Khloe is just as sweet as her sister, Kourtney - Kourtney is the one to hang back a bit and watch her sister's antics first!  Kourtney is a bi-color Tan & White (without the brindle aspect that her sister has)... 

I don't think I have ever laughed so much at a pair of dogs... They are an absolute riot to watch throughout the day... Kourtney is the first one to want up in your lap and cuddle, then sits and waits for Khloe to wind down and nap... Makes you wonder who has it all figured out, huh?  ...

Still puppies, both are potty- and doggie-door trained now... They are crate-trained for sleeping at night, but there is no telling where (and how) you will find them napping throughout the day!

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Both are fans of belly rubs and 'catch-me-if-you-can' games... 

In order to keep them together, ask one of the volunteers about a lowering of the adoption donation... Especially if you work during the day and have no other dogs (or your dog needs a companion or friend), these two would make a GREAT addition to any family or lifestyle!

RichieRich... what a sweetie!

This is how we found him at the shelter... confused and scared:

At 5 pounds and 18 months old, he seemed to be the most easily adoptable little pup... Why his time ran out at the shelter is beyond us!

All we can think of is that his previous owner must have fallen on hard times and could no longer keep him... With the economy downturn, it seems like the best ever dogs are showing up at the shelter without rhyme or reason!

RichieRich is potty trained along with doggie door trained... At TLC, we believe in telling you the good, the bad and the ugly about every dog in our foster program - no surprises later then!

The only 'bad' thing about RichieRich is that he has a high pitched bark (when he barks)... He's not a barker per sec, but when he does bark to alert you that someone is at the door, he is so small that it seems to be squeezed up out of him... And is much higher in pitch than you normally experience with a Chihuahua... 

Dunno, but I'd hate to think this is what got him into the shelter to begin with... Can you imagine if your vocal tone got you put in jail without warning?... (I can think of a few celebrities that would be jailed immediately if this was the case!  smile...)

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RichieRich is a well mannered little guy... He listens to obedience commands and because of his young age, the only way is forward!... He does not mark nor chew... 

He gets along well with other little dogs and plays throughout the day!... RichieRich would make a great addition to an active lifestyle or family... And while he has all the energy of a puppy, you don't have to go through that 'puppy potty training stage' either - whew!

Richie Rich is now neutered, up-to-date on all of his shots including rabies, microchipped and licensed for the County of Ventura... 

He is also the traditional Chihuahua sunbather in the mornings... Pretty common for this breed, RichieRich can be found every morning enjoying the warmth of the sun and fresh air outside... 

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He tends to play so hard with one of the other fosters throughout the day, that we have discovered buckle collars just don't withstand the fray!  More than once we have found his collar amongst the toys after an intense play session!

But he is a major love bug and hands out kisses with abandon... Trained to sleep in a crate at night, RichieRich would sleep in someone's bed if given just a second's hesitation - he loves to curl up and cuddle... What a sweet, sweet little soul he is!

We're all better now!

Their coats have completely grown back in now and these two are the sweetest pups ever!... Where you find one, you'll find the other... And they play all day long... Ah, the energy of puppies!... Finally slowing down to take a nap, they curled up on a doggie bed with the TLC mascot (Nacho) and used him as a pillow to boot!

 

Lazy dog days of summer...

The addition of the 'pup tent' proved too much for the fosters on a recent warm afternoon day... One climbed inside, another on the side, but SnickerDoodle picked the entrance to lay down at... 

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Didn't take too much of the warm breezes and gentle sun for Snickers to decide this was the perfect time to take a nap!

We have been remiss with this blog... Sorry!

We have been remiss with this blog since joining P.A.P.A. - we've been VERY busy! 

BTW, here is the P.A.P.A. website: http://www.vcpapa.org and at TLC, we are more a part of the Alliance (one of the 9 'spokes' of a no-kill solution) - the Alliance's website is here: http://www.papa-alliance.org.  Since our joining PAPA and the Alliance, this group has managed to save over 150 dogs (many were Chihuahuas) from death at our county's shelter... They are now living in great furever homes in Manhattan (NY), Boston and the Northwest as far as Oregon and Washington (state).  These areas of the nation are hard pressed to find the small breeds and we in SoCal have a glut of the them - especially Chihuahuas - so it is a 'win-win' all the way around, as long as we can continue to raise the funds to transport them to welcoming arms around the nation!

And now for a bit of humor... In the 'where's Waldo' vein of comedy... Can you find the 2nd Chihuahua in the toy box?  (smile)

Update on ChinChin...

Two wheelchair companies have decided that ChinChin is not a candidate for their product despite the fact he is now swimming with both front feet full on each day... So?... Determination is the mother of invention, I always say!

Needing to be very lightweight but able to hold up the bulk of his body until his front legs can eventually strengthen up, we came up with this improvisation of a quad wheelie for him until we can find a company who can make one... 

ChinChin wasn't that excited about it initially... As you can tell from the expression on his face!  But it didn't take him very long to put weight on both front feet... Baby steps, baby steps, ya know?

There was a time when the only position ChinChin knew was upright... Now he moves around a LOT and readily rolls over for a belly rub... Who said he was going to be a live pillow the rest of his life?  Not us, for we believe he will eventually be walking on those two front legs yet!

 

Meet Sophia...

We found Sophia at a local shelter with her litter of pups... She is some kind of fuzzy wuzzy cross... Wire-haired Terrier/Chi mix?  Chi-Weenie with Terrier thrown in?... She has none of the annoying Terrier traits, so we are dumbfounded as to her exact mix, but that coat of hers is definitely fuzzy wuzzy!... She must have some Terrier in her background because despite as fuzzy as that coat is, she doesn't leave hair all over the place (a common benefit Terriers lovers rave about)...

She is such a calm and gentle spirit... Our guess is that she ended up in the shelter because she was pregnant... For she has no bad habits and such a pleasing personality... 

This is a video of Sophia and her two pups taken when they were but a month old... Sophia is ten times sweeter in person that she appears in digital form... She is a quiet and loving dog who always has a wagging tail to greet you...

I don't believe I've ever seen a more easy going dog before...

Such a well-behaved little guy!

Snickers is such a well-behaved little guy... He learned 'sit' with only three tries and now knows other obedience commands as well (stay, no, off, back, quiet, lay down, etc.)... He learns very quickly and also gets along great with the other fosters... Snickers will make someone a great companion and family member... He loves to walk (and walks well on lead without pulling)... Although he is now crate-trained to sleep in at night, he'd prefer to sleep in your bed at the drop of a hat!