Rufus
Age: 2
Weight: 72 lbs
State: Maine
Small Children Under 4?: unsure
Children Over 4?: yes
Separation Anxiety?: No
Neutered/UTD?: yes/yes
Microchipped?: Yes
Other Dogs?: yes
Cats?: Unsure
Crate Trained?: yes
House Trained?: Yes
Obedience Trained?: no
Leash Trained?: learning
Attending Obedience At Foster Home?: No
Adoption Donation?: $270
UPDATED 8/11/04 - Rufus has been with us a year already! This year went by fast, seems
like he's been here forever! We love Rufus. Rufus & my husband Doug have a very special
relationship, it's a guy thing. He knows what Doug's truck sounds like & starts "kidney
beaning" as soon as he hears it. He loves riding in the car & truck. As soon as he hears us
picking up our keys, he is up and at 'em. He loves to stick his head out the car window for a
bit of fresh air, when people see him, they look twice at this big ol boxer!
When we cant take him, he looks so rejected, with those big ol boxer eyes of his. We had
to put up a baby gate by the door because he will sit right by the door & not move until we
put a leash on him. Rufus is a big boy & it's hard getting by him to open the door. He has
now figured out how to lift the gate off the hook, so we had to attach a latch that he hasn't
figured out how to open (yet) Rufus still has his allergies and a yeast ear infection at least
every other month. We clean his ears frequently, but somehow the yeast still finds his big ol
ear. He doesn't seem to mind, he loves going to the vet, who is a boxer doctor! Dr Hutchins
& his staff loves "goofy Rufie" too!
We have taken Rufus to several obedience classes & he is a stubborn curmudgeon. He is a
defiant (rebel) old soul, but he will do anything for food, especially hot dogs. One trainer
said he is very smart (of course, he is a boxer!) & he is trying to push our buttons, he must
have learned that from our teenager! Needless to say, we have a big supply of hot dogs in
the 'fridge.
All is well. Life is good!
8/13/03 Rufus has been adopted!
7/25/03 Rufus just continues to thrive in foster care. In the 2 and a 1/2 months he has been
here he has learned so much. Mostly due to the fact that he is so eager to please.When
Rufus first got here he was completely untrained. The first time I took him to the vet my
sister went with me to help hold him in the waiting room. She sat on the bench and braced
herself and hung on for dear life while I tried to fill out paper work and Rufus tried to give
kisses to all the people and dogs in the room. Last week we went back to the vet. This time
just Rufus and I. Rufus wearing the gentle leader sat next to me and waited patiently while I
filled out paper work. He has always been prety well behaved but now he also knows some
comands and responds to them. Rufus only has one bad habit that I have not been able to
break him of. For some reason he is fascinated with soda bottles and if my husband leaves
one on his end table Rufus will pretend to bump in so it falls down. Then he takes off with it
and removes the cover. Luckily he only does this to empty bottles. Rufus has also been
patiently trying to make friends with our dog Cajun. He has tried everything but Cajun wants
nothing to do with him. I think Rufus would do wonderfully in a home with another dog. I
have really enjoyed having Rufus as a guest but it is time for him to move on and have a
family of his own. Are you that special family that deserves to have Rufus as a part of your
life.
7/7/03 Its been awhile since I wrote an update on Rufus so alot has happened. He has been
very itchy ever since he got here so I took him to the vet. The vet thinks he has pollen
allergies. Now he is on Benadryl and getting better every day.He also gets baths every other
day with a special shampoo. Thankfuly we are almost done with those. He is very good
about standing still and lettting me soap him up but he hates to have water dumped on him
when it comes time to rinse. Rufus did get a chance to have some fun this weekend. He
went to the Second Chance picnic and met lots of new people and dogs. He behaved very
well and loved everyone he met especialy the kids. He even got some extra practice walking
on a leash wearing a gentle leader. He did pull some but only because he wanted to go play
with the other dogs and he would settle right down when he was spoken to. Rufus is an
absolutely terrific boy and he is making every day he spends here a lot of fun for our whole
family. He is always doing something silly that makes us laugh. All the people who met him
at the picnic thought he was very well behaved.
6/10/03 - Rufus has made some big strides in his training. I have been working with him at
home trying to teach him some of the basics and in a really short time he has learned to sit.
He is a smart boy and will do almost anything for treats. He has also learned to catch. I have
tried the gentle leader on him a couple of times but that is going to take some time for him to
get comfortable wearing it. I think once he is he will be much easier to walk. I don't think
anyone in his former life had a lot of time for him because he is very trainable given a little
time and patience.In the time he has been here he has also learned to recognize the phrase
"want to go out". The most important thing he knows though is off because he is a great big
baby who loves to climb in my lap and cuddle. He also gives lots of kisses. Rufus is a gentle
giant wh! o needs a family of his own to give him lots of love.
5/29/03 - Rufus has been here a couple of weeks now and is really starting to come out of
his shell. The more I get to know him the more I like him.He is so sweet and eager to
please.His temperment is perfect which is a good thing because Rufus is much larger than
the average boxer. He weighs 72lbs but that is 72 very lean pounds of muscle.He has a very
big head and long legs. He also still has his tail. It was never docked,so from the end of his
nose to the tip of his tail he is about five feet long.The only thing bigger than his body is his
heart. Sometimes when he plays he hits with his feet like most boxers do. One time he hit me
trying to get a toy away from me, I said ouch and pretended to cry. Rufus stopped playing
and kissed my face. He felt so bad about hurting me. Rufus will do almost anything for love.
He is just a great big teddy bear. Rufus will make a wonderful addition to any family that
likes large dogs and has time to train him properly. He knows how to behave.I accidently
left him alone in the kitchen with a steak thawing on the side board. When I came back he
was laying on the floor right near the counter where I had left the steak looking up at it but
he had not touched it.This from a dog who had not even had enough training or attention
when he got here to know what sit meant or reconize his own name.He is truely
amazing.Rufus also loves kids and just lights up at the sight of my son. He plays very gently
with him for such a big young dog.I have evaluated him several times and he has passed
every test perfectly. He is one great dog!
5/18/03 Rufus has been here for about a week now and I have had time to get to know him
a little better. I can tell he has had very little training because he does not understand even
the simplest commands like sit. In spite of this he is very well behaved and wants to
please.He does not get into the trash or counter surf. When I leave him in a room by himself
he just lays down and takes a nap. Rufus has two favorite things cuddling and kids. He
never seems to get enough love. He isn't to pushy about it but he does love to climb up in
my lap and give big wet kisses. Luckily he is starting to learn what off means. I think he is
wonderful. He still has some of the puppy energy left but is not overly hyper. The best of
both worlds.
5/10/03 - The stray boy from a nice NJ shelter we work with has arrived safely in Maine
after a long day of riding. He seems to be in pretty good shape except for sore red feet and
some dried blood in his ears and near his eye. We have decided to call him Rufus because
he just looks like a Rufus. We don't have any info on him execpt that we believe he is UTD.
He has a long tail His ears have not been docked and if I had to guess I think he weighs
about 75lbs. So far he seems very friendly very active and very untrained in even the basics.
I have a feeling his past owners put off training him until he got too big for them to handle.
With a little time and patience he will make someone a great friend. He does thankfully seem
to be house broken, at least so far so good. We will know more about Rufus after a couple
of days so watch for updates & pictures soon!