Dina

Named for one of the key survivors in The Last of Us, Dina knows what it is to live through the apocalypse and still have hope. She is a puppy mill survivor, and is trying to catch up on all the human connection that she has missed in her life thus far. She is a petite apricot 8yr old spayed female cocker spaniel, who weighs 24lbs, up-to-date on her veterinary care, and is ready for a joyful new life!

Unlike many puppy mill dogs who live exclusively in a barn or pen, Dina does not have a fear of wide-open spaces. She has adapted to indoor home life quite well. After some gentle encouragement, she now navigates stairs with ease. She has no issues with different floor textures and outdoor substrates. Dina will occasionally jump or startle at a sudden sharp noise like an object being dropped but quickly recovers. She has not been fearful of the vacuum, various electronics or the television. Outdoors, some unfamiliar objects may give her but her curiosity always wins and she bravely confronts new stimuli. Dina is currently fostered in a mostly urban area and has had exposure to busier areas as well. We think the ideal setting for Dina at its busiest will be similar to what you can expect of a suburban neighbourhood with a school rather than a downtown core. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a very quiet street as she has not been afraid of people, bicycles, cars or larger vehicles out and about.

Coming from a puppy mill has not broken Dina’s spirit. She is one of the most affectionate dogs that we have ever met, and will gently sneak into your lap and up to your face for a kiss if you kneel down, and otherwise will gently bap at you with her paws for attention if you are standing up. She will always prefer to follow you from room to room, but is learning it is okay to rest on a bed nearby (always in eyesight if she has the choice) and relax without necessarily being all over you. On her level on the couch however she would easily jump down your throat to be as close to you as possible! She has been practicing how to relax on the couch without becoming overstimulated and after a little bit of time rests comfortably next to you without the need to pepper you with kisses. She is very puppy-like in her attention-seeking, and has the foundation of sitting down nicely for affection and waiting, but her enthusiasm does often get the better of her. Her little tail nub is quite literally always wagging. This level of affection flows towards complete strangers as well, everyone is a new friend in Dina’s world! That being said, Dina does not bond overly strongly to a single person as she enjoys the company of everyone, taking turns to visit each person in a group if she feels she has not given them enough of her undying attention.

Despite her need for physical affection and closeness, Dina is doing quite well with crate and independence training. She is quiet and calm in her crate overnight and when left alone for a standard workday, as long as she cannot see or hear family members. She is crated on the main floor with the bedroom upstairs, and quietly waits until about 7-8hrs later when she determines it is morning and time to wake up, when she very softly howls or barks. She usually settles down again if she is let out for a quick bathroom break. However, Dina does tend to be an early riser; be ready to seize the day! Her volume is still generally quite low so she should be fine in an attached dwelling as long as the walls are not thin. If she is crated in the same room overnight she tends to hit the crate door in attempts to get to you, but if it is daytime she fares much better and often asks to go into her exercise pen for a nap as long as you are in the same room, and will whine softly sometimes once you are out of eyesight before settling. She has also practiced remaining in her kennel during mealtimes, and is succeeding in being calm and relaxed for increasing durations of time even with people present. As Dina has tendencies that can eventually lead towards separation anxiety, it will be important to continue to give Dina solitary time to strengthen her ability to be alone. She is crated for varied periods of time throughout the day with positive associations like a special treat, so she continues to know that it is okay to be alone. Other than her morning serenade, Dina is a very quiet dog.

Together with her crate habits, housetraining is coming along quite well. The only issue we have is that she is often more interested in seeking attention from you than using the bathroom! She has no issues focusing on walks, but needs to be gently ignored to successfully eliminate outside if you go out with her in the yard, or be sent out alone into our secure yard for a few minutes. She knows to go to the back door to indicate when to go out, and we often send her out by herself to use the bathroom just due to her finding people so alluring and distracting. Dina is fairly regular with her bathroom habits, and with some reminders in her new home should pick up on appropriate places to eliminate quickly.

With other dogs, Dina is curious and friendly, and quickly co-exists. She is fostered with two medium female dogs that are slightly larger than her, and had a very polite introduction before immediately becoming friends. She does tend to display some of her puppy-like tendencies in that she will tromp all over other dogs in her attempts to get to people on the couch, and does not really realize such things may be considered rude. Dina also likes to lick their faces and stand very closely. Any dogs in her forever home must be very tolerant of their space being shared (on stepped on), as our dogs do not correct this kind of behaviour before we do. She has occasionally played with our dogs but does not quite seem to know what to do yet, and has mostly engaged in run-and-chase play. Dina has not demonstrated resource guarding with other pets and has been happy to share the couch, human affection, and eat treats and food in the presence of other animals, so ideally any canine companions should be equally tolerant of such sharing. On walks outside, if dogs bark at her she may slow down to see what the noise is about, but is quick to leave it in favour of walking with her family, and is not reactive at this time. Dina does not necessarily need to live with another dog as she is so people-focused, but she would not be against a tolerant dog sibling either.

Dina is also cat friendly. She gently sniffed our two cats upon arrival, and has seen them as family since. She is happy to share her space with the cats, and step upon them like she would to dogs: all are welcome here! For this reason, cats in her forever home should be dog-tolerant. Our cats are very dog-savvy and not bothered by her puppy-like clumsiness for the most part.  

Given her puppy-like enthusiasm for her new life, Dina has shown some interest in toys already. She tends to like small plush toys and will pick them up and carry them around. She loves to bring them over to show you and is quite pleased if you take note of her toy. She happily relinquishes toys and has not displayed resource guarding of toys with people or our pets. She is generally very gentle with toys. Dina will need some reminders as to what is and isn’t a toy, as her curiosity does sometimes get the better of her and she will occasionally pick up random objects like shoe inserts, dropped paper products, a sock, etc. to nibble at, although she tends to do this only if you are looking or directly next to her, and she is easily redirected with a verbal “uh oh.” Dina has not been destructive in the home. No one said she wasn’t resourceful though! 

On walks, Dina is extremely well-mannered, especially for a dog with little exposure to the greater world. She generally likes to walk quite close to you, so adapting to leash walking has not been a challenge for her. She can be a bit of a tripping hazard at times until you are used to walking with her. Dina walks close to your side and does not pull, except in the odd instance where she is startled by a sharp sound and may dash forward very briefly in flight response. For this reason, she is walked on a martingale collar to prevent her slipping her collar. Dina has walked solo and with other dogs in a group walk, and performs equally well. Dina has been curious about birds outside but has not demonstrated any prey drive otherwise, and passes wildlife (and the birds) with ease. Dina is best described as a medium energy dog, and she is walked about 30 minutes to 1 hour daily. She is still calm and able to relax in the home without a walk, but she will be happiest with someone who enjoys regular walks. 

Being mostly praise and physical affection motivated, Dina has been very biddable and trainable. She accepts treats very gently as rewards but would sooner spit them out in favour of a pat and a “good job!” We have reinforced her behaviour of offering a sit for affection, but she does not know many formal cues beyond handling and directional cues. Dina will benefit from basic obedience training to help build confidence and cement a bond with her forever family.

 Given that Dina loves to be touched, she is very good for handling. She tolerates nail trims, baths and brushing well, although she may need some reminders to stay in the tub for bathtime. She does not have any body handling sensitivities that we have noted at this time and does not mind being picked up. As Dina is a cocker spaniel, she will require professional grooming to keep her apricot waves clean and mat-free. She has not visited a professional groomer yet, as she was shaved very short prior to her rescue, but we anticipate a gentle, low volume/small business groomer will not have issues handling her. Cocker spaniels generally require home maintenance between grooms, as they tend to develop ear infections and skin infections if not well-cared for, and her forever home should be prepared should these issues arise, although Dina has not encountered these difficulties thus far.

Dina is an excellent car traveller. She is crated in the car for safety, and she knows to enter her crate in the car. We generally lift her into the car just to avoid her having to jump in, and she goes into her car crate right away. You can often hear her gentle snores as she sleeps for the entire drive. Dina has travelled on shorter city drives and longer highway drives with very minimal (if any) travel anxiety. She has not been nauseous or distressed on her car rides with us. 

In the end, Dina is a very lovely dog who is as sweet as she looks. She really is the type of dog that wants to do whatever you are doing. She will be suitable for a first time dog owner, and her family can include children around 8 years and older. Additional photos and videos of Dina over her foster journey can be found @twiceluckyfosters. Thank you for considering a rescue dog!