Not Ready To Be A Full-time Parent, Be A Foster! #PetThursday

Winter storms have finally hit and there’s no better way to embrace this cold winter than with a four legged friend!

Before we get to our pups this week, Save Our Scruff will be participating in the 2016 Canadian Monster Jam Tour, which is happening this weekend (Jan 15th-17th) at the Rogers Centre! They’ll be there along with two dog-themed monster trucks, Scooby Doo and Monster Mutt Rottweiler, to promote dog adoption and fostering. They will also have 10 or so adoptable pups on site for patrons to meet, snuggle and potentially adopt! So if you are heading down to the Rogers Centre this weekend, make sure to snuggle some pups along the way!

Save Our Scruff rescued over 25 pups in the past week and is in desperate need of foster homes. Consider opening up your home to these bubbas and fill a foster application here.

Meet our friends at SOS that are still looking for a fuuuurever home

Meet ROKO! Another lover from Texas.. ROKO is pretty much obsessed with life and second chances. He is a 3 year old Smooth Collie Mix weighing in at a delicate 43lbs! This dude is the happiest about all the things! ROKO was like ‘k Ill be fearful for 3 minutes so that you give me treats and attention and then starting stealing our beds and your own dogs as my best friends’. He has low energy and likes chillin’ like a villin’. He’s a sucker for cuddles and is always down for some attention. He is pretty great with strangers bc he KNOWS he will get love, at least that’s what he heard about Canadians. He needs a walk or two daily but otherwise is not that active. He is dog social and likely cat/kid social — letting anyone steal his toys, pull at his ears or use him as a pillow. He has almost mastered his potty-training but just needs to understand and settle into a routine! He is good on a leash and is learning the basics. He would be great with a second dog as he is super social! His tail is always wagging when he is in and around companions so a constant partner in crime would be fun for him. He is also great home alone and is crate trained. Apartment or house will not matter for applicants as he chill enough for anything. Either way he will be sitting on your lap so space isn’t a big concern.

JERRY is ready for the spotlight! This guy came to us from Egypt and is lovvvvving his new world! Couches, treats, and cuddles?! What more can a street dog want? Well, this guy just wants LOVE! JERRY is a 5 year old Egyptian Baladi weighing in at 65lbs. He is absolutely the sweetest. He loves dogs, cats, pigeons, and of course your average Toronto raccoon. He has medium energy with adorable spurts of playfulness. He loves to nap the rest of the time and is your perfect apartment/companion dog! He’s a little timid at first but warms up quickly and is very loving! He is great/happy on walks, is obedient and pretty well house-trained. JERRY had a collar embedded in his neck as he outgrew it while on the streets. He has a scar around his neck that has recently reopened and could again in the future (#takeiteasy #vacationmode). SO he can only wear a harness! No collars allowed! It seemingly does not affect him at all and he actually will pull you on walks cause he thinks YOU are slowing him down! He is very responsive, intelligent and affectionate! He nuzzles his head under your hand until you will give him adequate amounts of head scratches. He also loves to rest his head on your lap. He is fine home alone as long as you promise him long walks when you get home. He is not suggested to go to a home with kids as he does sometimes get mouthy when he plays/gets excited. He is currently living it up in Toronto and is ready to meet potential adopters.

Kimi AKA Wanda from Rwanda is looking for a foster and/or forever home. She has spent some time in training since she was displaying lots of mouthing and puppy like behaviour but now that she’s completed her program she’s ready for adoption. The ideal foster home for Kimi will have other dogs since she’s incredibly dog friendly. She’s very human friendly and incredibly playful and affectionate. Kimi grew up in Rwanda and spent some time fending for herself so its recommended that she go to an experienced home that understands strong willed dogs. She’s very athletic and energetic so ideally someone active who can walk her frequently. Kimi will be sent with a detailed list of instructions from our trainers! Please contact jess@saveourscruff.org to inquire about her!!

Meet happy-go-lucky LILO! This dude is a 1.5 year old Chihuahua mix! LILO is very low-energy, super chill and THE BEST companion. In his past, LILO was hit by a car which left him paralyzed from the waist down. He still wants to be a part of the action so whether you carry him over or he has to crawl, he will be a part of your family. We are working on getting him a custom wheelchair so he can have more independence! Right now, he is perfectly content being by your side, laying on your lap or on soft blankies. Since LILO is currently crawling, he has sores on his body. He actually had his male parts removed to help reduce the amount of sores being created from dragging. He now wears a diaper full-time as he does not have control over his bowel movements. LILO’s diaper needs to be changed every hour to avoid skin irratations, sores and welts. This being said, LILO’s furever home will need to have someone available to him at ALL times! This means, someone home during the day or someone who can take him to work. LILO and his health will be a commitment for the rest of his life and potential adopters need to be aware of that. That being said, this boy has the biggest heart and is wanting to live life to the fullest he can. He enjoys being walked down the streets in your arms, LOVES being smothered with love, laying in sun patches close to the window and TREATS OF COURSE! LILO needs a patient owner who has nothing but care and love to give him. He is very thankful for his second chance and needs a furever home that is as positive as he is! He likes other calm dogs and will likely be good with a cat. Also, he may need dental work in the future. ALSO ALSO, he has feelings in his toes and may benefit from rehab but his future is UNKNOWN.

Meet COOPER! He’s a 2 year old Cocker/Lab (our best guess) and is ready to see what life in Canada has to offer! COOPER is looking for a home with lots of activity, kids, pets, and of course FUN! He’s kind of like the perfect road tripper/cottage guy.. other than having no recall whatsoever (BYE COOPER.. Hope you find your dad!) He’s super SOFT, friendly, and adaptable. You could dress him up and have a tea party with him for all he cares. He is dog and kid social and is possibly looking for a big family! He is not tested with cats but is great with everything so we don’t think it will be a problem. He is a lover, not a fighter. He is potty trained and good on a leash, and he needs help with basic commands. He has some separation anxiety at night and is working on it with his foster. We would like his adopter to continue this in his furever home! He has medium energy, likes to play and go for walks but also likes to take ‘er easy and nap around the crib. HE’S SO CHILL AND IS JUST A SOFT LITTLE BLOB OF HAPPINESS! P.S. He has an adorable snaggle tooth on one side.

Meet SHILOH! This cutie is A-DOR-A-BLE. Right?! A 1 year old lab mix from Quebec, this girl is ready for a furever family for the long run! She is high energy and would love a place to run and burn it off! She is overly excited about every human, animal and dust bunny she meets so giving her lots of opportunity to tire out is helpful for her training. She is learning her manners but always comes from a place of love and happiness. She is potty trained and is learning basic commands. She has mild separation anxiety but is improving daily. She loves fetch and playing. She is definitely a talker — she just loves to tell you about her day, when to play with her and how horrible the American Idol auditions are. She’s super friendly to every dog, cat, bird, squirrel, child, etc but note that she is very excitable. Her perfect home will have lots of space to play, a place to give her lots of attention/guidance, with someone who enjoys being outside as much as she does!

We LOVE anniversaries!!!! What a successful first year it’s been for theses rescues.

Happy one-year anniversary!! “It has been a full year since we adopted this bundle of cuteness! Hunter, now known as Coconut has settled in nicely. I’ll admit I was a little hesitant when my girlfriend wanted to get a rescue. We already had three cats and an older black lab. He may be the cutest pup I have ever seen, but I knew the work would out weigh his cuteness. I kept hearing “you never know what you’re getting when you get a rescue” but do you ever really know what you’re getting when you bring a new dog into your home? Coconut came with some trust issues (other terms: he didn’t like humans) especially when he was on lead. With patience, guidance, a whole lot of love and a ton of dog park days his circle of human friends expanded as did his trust. This was a huge surprise to me. I did not think you could get a two year old pup to change his demeanor in such a short period. Coconut is now a celebrity at the dog park. Once he realized that this was his forever home and there would be no more bouncing from house to house and new human to new human he was able to find a comfort place, not only on our couch, but in his head and heart. I remember reading on his vet papers from California (where he was found on the streets eating scraps that never made it to the garbage cans) that he was to be euthanized because of aggressive behaviour. He didn’t have aggressive behaviour problems, he had no one loved him problems. Thanks to Save Our Scruff Coconut has found his forever comfort zone and we get to cherish his happy wagging tail everyday. Coconut has brought the sense of fulfillment and the reality of happiness to our home”. The meaning of rescue!! P.S. COOL SHIRT!!

Happy one-year adoption anniversary to NANA! And also, congrats on the move and the new adventures to come! “From the minute we first picked Nala up from the airport we knew there was no way she was being adopted by anybody else. Originally she adjusted to the downtown city life quickly and loved exploring and meeting new friends at High Park. Nala just made a big move to the Northwest Territories and seems to be loving it here as well. She’s curious, brave and has one hell of a personality. Most importantly- Nala and her sister Marlowe have bonded and are inseparable. We know for a fact that buying a puppy from a breeder is just not an option for us- adopting will always be our method for finding new members to join our pack. There are so many dogs in need and adopting from SOS was the best decision we’ve ever made. From the Dominican to Toronto to NWT- Nala and our families adventures are only just beginning and we are lucky to have her apart of the journey!”

Happy one-year anniversary to LOLA! “The day we got LOLA our lives changed for the better. She has become our bff , daughter and shadow. Lola traveled all the way from Eygpt in the middle of December of last year. She had only been in Canada for one week by the time we got her. She wasn’t house trained and was afraid of the snow. She was the sweetest most timid dog ever and always had her tail between her legs. Basic/ house training was the easy part- she’s a smartie pants! Once she started to become more confident and comfortable her hilarious and loving personality started to shine; however, so did her fear aggression and territory issues. She was aggressive with multiple friends of ours and also towards ourselves. I would never for a second regret keeping our little baby, but that’s not to say it hasn’t been hard. We’ve put in countless hours on training and research and have even hired a behaviorist. I do believe that if Lola had gone to an inexperienced dog owner she would end up back in a Canadian shelter. We believe 100% in adopting animals – whether you buy a dog or adopt one it is going to be hard work. Lola went from living on the streets in Eygpt to hiking every day and sleeping on her many comfy resting places. She has improved so much – sometimes even we are shocked at how amazing she has become. We still have to be careful and patient because she’s still working on trusting humans. That being said we feel she hit the lottery and so did we; both of our lives have been enriched and I don’t know what we do without each other . Thank- you Save Our Scruff for bringing this babe into our lives” We believe that all dogs need support not only when transitioning into their new home but continuously to help promote behaviours that fit into your family. Owning a dog is not “a walk in the park”. Rescue is a second chance, help make it happy for everyone

If you want to adopt a dog, start fostering or make a donation, email adopt@saveourscruff.org!

Also visit saveourscruff.org, the Save Our Scruff Facebook Page, and Instagram!

BLAKE & WYLDE