Sunday Open Mike: Meet Butters! (Dogs, Continued)

Continued from Part One, last week

Butters hasn't learned yet not to beg
(that's the edge of my plate in the foreground)

When I walked into the dog room at the Humane Animal Welfare Society (HAWS) shelter last week, I was pleased to see that there were relatively few dogs there. That means that adoptions are strong and new dogs aren't being turned away because of overcrowding, which is good. I stopped to talk to one of the kennel workers while I petted a massive but friendly pit bull.

In the next enclosure was a gangly white dog wearing a lime green bandana that matched his striking yell0w-green eyes. He came ambling amiably to the door of his enclosure and gave me a delicate little lick as if to say "hey, bud," his tail waving casually. I'm used to looking at appealing dogs in the shelter, and I had no thought for bringing this one home. He was too big, too young, and probably too energetic for us. But he sure was an appealing fella.

Name, Butters. Sex, male. Age, 7 months. Breed, Labrador mix. Origin: stray. Medical profile: healthy, all shots, neutered.

A day later my son came home from his first full year at college. I told Xander about Butters, and Xander really wanted to see him, so the next day we went back to the shelter. We ended up "meeting" Butters in what is for all intents and purposes an interview room. When we asked about adoption, we were told that the next step would be to introduce him to our existing dog, Lulu, a boxer/pit mix we adopted at about the same age as Butters is now. Lulu will be eight later this year, near as we can figure.

Well, Lulu was in the car. Seemed like that process would be interesting, at least.

It was. We first put the two dogs into adjacent runs separated by chain link to see if there would be any aggressiveness issues. Then the HAWS trainer/behaviorist, an attractive, well-spoken, and self-assured young woman named Leann, kept Butters on his leash while we brought Lulu into the same dog run. By dropping Lulu's leash, we allowed Lulu to control the meeting. 

The two dogs got along great, alternately wrestling playfully and ignoring each other, or walking around together side-by-side. During the time, Leanne kept up a running commentary decoding their behavior for us, and describing what she knew of Butters.

It turned out that Butters was a special favorite of hers—she said she was a bit conflicted between wanting Butters to find a good home, on the one hand, and not wanting to see him go on the other. For my part, I felt I could almost detect the point when she decided we were the right placement for her charge—her reserve and wariness of us subsided and she got enthusiastic and friendly. Maybe she'll read this and share the story from her own perspective. It was mainly the dogs who made the decision for both of us, though, I'm guessing—they just seemed to like each other so well and get along so naturally. They seemed like a match. It wasn't hard to see.

I really don't know at what stage "this sure is a nice puppy" morphed into "we're adopting this nice puppy." But a couple of days later, adoption papers signed, we brought Butters home.

To reintroduce them, I left Xander, his girlfriend Jenna, and Butters on the corner at the end of the alley. Then I went to get Lulu as if I were taking her on an ordinary walk. That way the two dogs encounter each other on neutral territory. They remembered each other, of course, and were very happy to reunite.

Second meeting—both dogs very interested!

Then we took them on a long walk to get them used to each other and scrub a bit of excess energy off. The introduction to the house was smooth as silk—no issues.

The new Johnston "pack." Our long walk just beat the rain.

It can be exhausting and anxiety-provoking to bring a new puppy into the household, especially one who's nearly full size. I have to say it went about as well as I could possibly imagine—both dogs just took to each other. Butters is remarkably smart and almost effortlessly trainable, and he seems just overjoyed to be here. He's very affectionate, to both of us and to Lulu.

His only issue is a bit of separation anxiety, not too bad but definitely present. The longest we've left them in their crates so far is about two hours. He gets especially anxious when Xander is not home and I disappear into the mysterious basement to play pool! So he's not feeling secure yet—but then, he did just come off more than two months at a shelter.

By Day 2 most of my anxiety had dissipated—Butters had quickly sussed out the lay of the land and was swiftly adapting to our routines. He's adjusting just great.

I'm actually a bit more worried about Lulu. At first she was protective and proprietary of the puppy, and they played together exceptionally affectionately, even tenderly. She kept looking at me pleadingly, as if to say "please don't take him away." But by Day 4 she was showing some definite signs of needing some alone time. We've had a couple of eruptions of more serious, er, adjustments between them—one of which was my fault, a lapse of attention when feeding. "Resource competition" between dogs and humans is not to be tolerated, but resource competition between dogs can be too ingrained to eliminate. And they're both jealous of me—when I give Lulu "loves," Butters comes running to interrupt, and vice-versa. I guess I am a "resource" too in a sense! So I'm being very careful to give them both affection.

We're also trying to alter Lulu's routine as little as possible. Part of her disruption, of course, is simply that she's suddenly a lot more active and getting a lot less sleep. It will be good for her in the long run, but right now she's a little stressed.

Although Butters is energetic, his personality is much more laid back than Lulu's was at that age—Lulu was an extremely intense puppy (if Gabi, her original rescuer, sees this post, she can attest to that). Butters already has a natural "soft mouth" (i.e., won't bite down on humans). Lulu's soft mouth is now very reliable, but it took well over a year of work when she was young. "No bites!" was a command she heard a thousand times. Age is dulling Lulu's intensity, but she's naturally aggressive and assertive. (And just as intensely loyal and owner-centric, so I'm not complaining.)

Overall—and so far—I'm enormously pleased. We got very lucky with Lulu (in my opinion)—she's been a great big positive in our lives. As we near the end of our first week with Butters, it looks like we've gotten lucky again.

Oh, and my barber loved the story! (See last week's post if you want to know what that means.)

We start obedience class on Tuesday evening, with the same Leann who managed Butters and Lulu's first meeting. I've never actually been through formal training with any dog, so I'm sure to learn a few tricks and get some "training" myself. I'm looking forward to it.

Mike

"Open Mike" is the often off-topic "editorial page" of TOP. It appears only, but not always, on Sunday.

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Tom Frost: "Hooray for you and the dogs! Adoption is the best way to get a dog; far too many breeders out there trying to make a buck and creating dogs with problems. All five of our dogs have been rescue or shelter dogs. Currently have a husky and a labradoodle. Also have two rescued cats, one of whom is curled in my lap, making it hard to type."

Roger Bradbury: "What a nice story. Just this morning I visited a friend who looks after the occasional rescue dog, short term. The inevitable happened and she now owns two dogs instead of one. Meanwhile, a friend in a village about eight miles away has finally taught his second dog not to act like a blacksmith; it doesn't make a bolt for the gate any more, when it's in the garden.  :-]  I know it's a dreadful old joke, but it's an important step forward. Both of his terrier type dogs were rescued, and they had bad habits caused by previous owners. That isn't the case with all rescue dogs, by the way."

Comments

[Bob Rosinsky]

Nice pup--red nose and light-colored eyes. It looks like he may have a tad wee bit of the pit DNA. The term "pit bull" really applies to one of several slightly different breeds.

The saying "dogs choose us" has some merit. Every dog we've ever taken in selected us by displaying sociability, good manners, nice appearance, a sweet lick and a casual wag o' the tale.

I wish you and your new pack all the best. Two dogs are better than one. We're about ready to test out the three dogs are better than two concept.

[Stephen Scharf]

Well, this is a great story, too, and Butters is just beautiful. He looks so happy in the photograph of your walk. You're very lucky to have two wonderful companions.

I've never seen a dog with such green eyes before...striking.

[Eric Onore]

Congratulations on the new addition to your family! I am the proud father of a rescue pit bull and he is the best dog I've ever had. I also volunteer for several rescue groups, including a couple which transport dogs from kill shelters in the deep south, to adopters and rescue groups in the northeast. I am constantly amazed at just how family ready so many of the dogs are. There's nothing wrong with them, no behavioral issues, they're just down on their luck and need a break. Good job giving your two that break.

Eric

[Greg]

"I've never actually been through formal training with any dog, so I'm sure to learn a few tricks and get some "training" myself."

You are correct. Training is about "training the trainer", not so much the dog. Having rescued and provided a home for some 11 English Cockers in the past 15 years (curently 6 in residence) getting out and training has been paramount for myself as much as them.

Congratulations on taking in Butter...

[Yvonne]

Wow, wonderful. Great story. I sure miss having a dog. Maybe again one day. Lots of wags and walks, have fun!

[H Bernstein]

We've only had rescued dogs; currently we have two including our third greyhound. It's a great way of selecting the right companion.

This is the start, for you all and Butters, of a beautiful friendship.

Congratulations.

[Dave in NM]

He's got a good face, Mike.
Congratulations to both you and Lulu!

[darr]

How wonderful for everyone, and he sure is a good looking dude! His name is a bit of a surprise. I have a friend that has a Pomeranian named Butters and my uncle once owned a mountain lion named, Buttercup, (my uncle owned and trained lions for Hollywood way back in the day), but both are/were females. I guess Butters is a soft kind of guy. Well if ya'all lived a bit closer, there would be toys and cookies served to Queen Lulu, Prince Butters, and the other guy. Congratulations, and I am so happy for Butters.

[Thanks much, darr. I think the name comes from his coloring--he has large, very faint brownish spots on his back which might darken in time. The trainer, Leann, actually requested we not change his kennel name, because he had learned so well to respond to it. Asked and granted! --Mike]

[Mahn England]

Is this story further proof that dogs choose their owners? If Lulu chose you and Butters likewise then they have a great deal in common and are bound to be good friends.

[Dave]

Great Mike. Happy to see you have a new family member. Also, it's good to see spring has finally arrived in Wisconsin.

[Andreas Friedl]

Looks like a great dog. Congratulations!
Xander sure has grown up. I remember him as a teenager serving us at that Japanese restaurant a few years back at the TOP regional get-together.

[Kenneth Tanaka]

What a face! Those eyes and that "smile" (or "frown") are lethal. And what a terrific name, "Butters"!

Congrats on your new addition. (Now you need even MORE space, eh?)

[Jean]

Wonderful and happy story, Mike and the Johnston pack!

[Steve Jacob]

Is that Butters short for "Butter wouldn't melt"?

Labs (and most Lab mixes) are big soppy dollops that have bull-in-a-china-shop enthusiasm but bottomless gluttony. They are the frat-house party animals of the dog world.

Great that Butters and Lulu get along. She probably feels a little maternal streak, given that he's still a puppy and not territorial.

A cautionary tale though. If he has lab tendencies, he will have a very catholic palate and eat just about anything, from manure to rat poison.

[Elisabeth Spector]

Congratulations to all! It's wonderful to see the pictures of the very handsome Butters--and lovely Lulu, of course--and to hear that everything has gone so smoothly. We have 2 shelter dogs of our own, along with a formerly-stray kitty cat who adopted us last fall. I really believe that rescues recognize how lucky they are and are extra-appreciative. Best of luck to all of you, and I hope we get to see many more pictures of Butters and Lulu. (Really nice to see Xander, too.)

[Tim]

Yay! Hello Butters, welcome welcome. :)

[Ken Ford]

What a sweetheart! Good on you and Xander for adopting him - he sounds like a good one. We are serial adopters ourselves, currently on Greyhounds 11 and 12.

[robert e]

What a great story. Congratulations and best of luck to all concerned!