ADOPTED
Hello everyone, please allow me to introduce to you Tango!
Tango is an adorable female ShihTzu; she has fluffy white fur over most of her body with a few light brown patches with some gray accents on the tips of her ears. Tango seems to have a crooked smile, which makes her look very unique. Sometimes it’s even like she has her very 
own Elvis lip. She is approximately 3 years old, and about 12.5 lbs.
Tango’s name came to us fairly easily. While we were in the process of adopting PDR alum, Sierra. Tango arrived, my husband thought we should go with the military alphabet and Tango was next in line. We put the name to a family vote, and everyone agreed.
We have a very limited history on Tango, but from what we do know. She was rescued from a puppy mill along with about 40 other similar small breed dogs that where set to be culled due to lack of interest. A few other rescues helped out, and between them all we were able to place all of them in foster care and are currently working on forever homes. Because she was a mill dog, she is quite nervous, and it has taken her a while to warm up to our home and family members.
Tango is quite nervous around children. We have two ages 10 and 7, and once they get home from school and move around the house, she finds her voice and alerts us that she is unhappy. We are working on this with calm training and treats. We sit on the floor with the kids and get Tango to come closer and have the kids offer treats. Lots of encouragement and praise are helpful. Tango will need her forever home to be adult only with no regular visiting young children so that she can be at ease and not have to be worried when young children are around. Tango would greatly benefit from another canine friend in the home. Having a foster dog sibling in the home really helped her come out of her shell at the start. The only way we could get her outside in the backyard in the early days was if our dog Sierra went outside first, Tango would follow and learn the ropes that way. For this reason we feel a home with another calm and mature dog in the home would be a huge benefit for her!
Tango is getting used to our routine and schedule well. She is very accustomed to being in her crate and it doesn’t bother her at all. But she will squeak like a squirrel or bark if she is jealous of her stepsister getting out before her. We verbally correct the behaviour, but ignoring it helps too. She doesn’t continue it for long. When we have routine crate time with us in the home or not, she is quiet and content in her crate. She gets her meals in the crate, and she does sometimes make a mess with her kibble on the towel in her crate. Her water bowl is out in the living space, and she enjoys lots of water throughout the day. She even thinks she is a big dog and drinks out of her stepsister’s tall water feeder. Tango also seems to be a floor surfer; be it crumbs under the kitchen table, or crumbs leftover from her stepsisters meal under the feeder.
Tango doesn’t have many tell-tale signs of needing to use the bathroom. But there have been some mornings where she seems extra antsy in
her crate, which I didn’t realize was a poop dance. So, we learned from our miscommunication and if we see this behaviour, we let her outside in the yard and she will usually go. We have been accident free for a while now, and it seemed to just happen at the beginning when we were learning her habits. Accidents have only ever happened in her crate and never in our home. With the winter weather and snow everywhere, it seems that she tends to use the sidewalk to do her business on.
Tango doesn’t seem to mind winter or snow. She is very playful and manages to find mountains for climbing in the backyard and getting to where she wants to go. She has worn sweaters on very cold days, but she doesn’t complain without one. Tango is quite active for her size. She manages to go on the same walk we take PDR alum, Sierra on. It’s about 25 minutes long and they both go together, and they do great.
Tango unfortunately went into heat days before her scheduled spay so we had to hold off on this. Her heat is over now but she can’t safely be spayed for a few months. She will need to be returned to be spayed, in a few months, which needs to be done our veterinarian in Cambridge and is already paid for by her rescue. Anyone interested in adopting Tango needs to live within a 45min radius of Cambridge and be able to drop her off the morning of her spay and then pick her back up later that evening. She will be adopted out on a contract that enforces this mandatory spay return. We just feel that it’s time for Tango to find her forever home and waiting an extra few months in foster care until she can be safely spayed will only delay her happily ever after.
Tango doesn’t have any experience with cats, but she has had multiple meetings with other dogs around the neighbourhood that have all gone beautifully. She doesn’t get vocal when seeing other dogs on walks either. So far, she doesn’t have much interest in toys, if she has another dog to cuddle with that is enough for her. Our large breed dog at home is her pillow and step ladder. She is slowly starting to enjoy treats, but she still doesn’t trust to take it from our hand. We place it on the floor, and she will take it from there.
When it is just my husband and I around in the home she is very quiet. Again, we feel that she would be a perfect fit for a family without kids. We also feel that from previous experiences she would benefit having another dog buddy to hang out with and to learn the ropes of her new home and family. We don’t think the type of home matters; apartment or home would be just fine. Working family would be fine as well, she is good for the day in her crate. If you have a quiet, adult home and would love a little dog companion, then Tango might just be a great fit!