Gata
Age: 6
Foster State: Maine
Neutered male
75 pounds
white
Natural ears
Docked tail
UTD--Yes
Dogs: Yes
cats: Yes
Kids Under 4: yes
Kids Over 4: yes
Crate trained--learning
House trained--yes
Obedience trained--some
Leash trained--some
Adoption Fee - $250
UPDATE 1/30/05 - Gator is doing AWESOME!!! He is the sweetest and most lovable guy. He has
adjusted so very well. He gets along great with Jazzy and even our neighbor's german shepherd,
'Taxi'. He loves to cuddle. He follows me around the house all day. If I go into my bedroom and shut
the door, he lays outside the door until I come out. The funny part is that he sticks his nose down on
the floor and makes his usual 'snotty' noises. You can always tell where he is. Gross.... but cute. We
love him to death and he is such a great addition to our family. I highly recommend a second boxer to
anyone. We did the BRAD today in Portsmouth, NH and things went well. Gator absolutely loves
seeing people and other dogs too. We had a great time. We will be going to obedience asap.
Hopefully we can work on his leash training. All in all--- an absolutely wonderful experience. Thank
you SCBR for giving us to him.
UPDATED 11/30/04 - Gator (aka-Gata) is doing awesome. He has to be the best dog in the
world!! I know that everyone says the same about their baby, but I couldn't resist. Gator is VERY
well mannered and gets along with everyone. We take daily walks, so when he knows what time it is
he will grab his leash and bring it to me. He then drops it and starts jumping up and down frantically.
He is absolutely adorable. When he has to go out, he will come to me and put a paw on me and start
"singing" a beautiful boxer song. He doesn't realize that he doesn't have the best voice!lol Who could
resist that face? He gets along awesome with Jazzy. It took a while, but now it seems fine. They play
nonstop. The only concern is that a few days ago I noticed that he was limping. I'm going to keep a
close eye on him to see if there are any changes. My family and I are going to Disney tomorrow for a
week, so we have a house/dog sitter staying with them. It's someone they know and LOVE. I'm still
waiting for a paper from the obedience trainer, so he is not signed up as of yet, but as soon as we get
back I will get on it. Thank you so very much for such a wonderful guy.
UPDATE 11/7/04 - Hello to you all. I just wanted to give an update on Gata, which we
have been calling 'Gator' because my daughter's name is Jada and he
would come every time that I called her. It seems to work. Anyway, he
has been with us now for a week and he is great. As you all may know,
we had adopted Mitzi and then dealt with her tragic death. We were
afraid that it would feel like we were replacing her, but that is
definately not the case. Gator has fit in just fine and he is just
wonderful. He gets along with our other boxer Jazzy. Although they do
not play as much as Jazz and Mitzi did. Jazz still seems different
now. Maybe more time is what she needs. So anyway, Gator has been so
much fun. Any time that you grab the leash he will stand at the door
and bounce up and down with all four legs off the ground. Very very
cute! He follows us everywhere and lays at your feet when you stop
moving. He's just a big ball of mush. He's great with our kids too.
The only thing that we have had a problem with is at night, he will
pee and/or poop on the floor. He does not tolerate a crate very well
so we have tried gating off a room for him, but he always escapes.
He's such a clever determined dog. We have tried letting the dogs
sleep with our kids, but that hasn't worked either. We have taken
away the food/water dishes before bed too. He doesn't do it during
the day at all--ever. If any of you have any suggestions on this
please let me know. He is an awesome boy, and I know that there is a
simple solution to this. Thankyou to everyone for your support with
Mitzi and for those who helped us get Gator. A GREAT GATOR GUY FOR
SURE!!!
10/30/04 - Gata has been adopted!
10/28/04 Gata welcomed the newest re-addition to the Riverview Boxer-hostel with the gentlemanly
manners that I was confident he would show. Tiny little Cassandra came back last night, and Gata
was happy to see her, but respectful of her size and timidity--he didn't overwhelm her with his
playfulness! He has been very gentle and not at all overbearing. Of course he continues to play like a
three year old with Tika. She needs the exercise, so its a great thing for both of them. He is such a
great guy! A happy, loving companion in the house, and a playful, bouncing Boxer boy outside who
loves to go for rides and walks--and he is MUCH better on the leash. He responds nicely to a choke
collar, and will accept the Gentle Leader if he knows thats what it takes to get the walk that he loves
10/24/04 - Gata had alot of fun at the BRAD at Petco yesterday. He was happy to greet everyone
he saw, young, old, big, small, human or canine. And as usual he impressed everyone with his great
personality. We tried to get a few better pictures of him taken, so that all of you can decide how cute
YOU think he is! His Virginia mom emailed me. She is following him on our website, and said she
calls his bouncing up and down his "kangaroo" imitation. She also let me know that not only did he get
along with her cats, he was really best friends with one of them. She also noted that while he didn't
live with any young children, he did spend time with some (she has grandchildren) and was as
wonderful with them as I would have guessed he'd be. This is a Great Gata Guy!
10/18/04 Gata is a great guy! And I love how that sounds so I am often saying "you're a great guy
Gata". He has settled in wonderfully here at the Riverview. Gata loves everyone who comes to visit.
When Claire came by, he was so excited to meet her that he was springing up and down on his four
legs like he was on Pogo Sticks! He doesn't jump on people, he just jumps in front of them in his
happiness. And he is a happy fellow. When I come home from work, he lets me know that I was
very much missed. Of course he misses me if I go outside to warm up the car before work, too, and
that only takes a minute! Gata gets slong fantastically with my two. He will even curl up a dog bed
with Tika.. The other night he was so cute. He climbed up onto the dog bed with her, and rested his
head on her hip like it was a pillow. (Of course Tika is well padded so maybe it felt like one!) He has
even tried to cuddle up with Rocky, who is big and old and arthritic and prefers his own space! But
with plenty of dog beds strewn throughout the living room, everyone can be comfy. I learned that
Gata lived with a cat in his former life in Virginia. He has been in the same house as mine, and has not
shown any interest in her. He hasn't tried to snuggle up with her either, but I don't think she'd let him
do that anyway. All in all, I am really surprised that someone hasn't snapped this great guy up yet.
We love having him here at the Riverview, but you don't know what you're missing!
10/4/04 Gata has settled in wonderfully at the Riverview, and gets along great with Rocky and Tika.
He loves to run and play with Tika in the back yard--he can even leap right over her! We took a
LONG walk this weekend. Gata was not thrilled with his Gentle Leader, but he did tolerate it and
loved being taken for a walk. Without it, I would not be able to walk him--he is very strong. I learned
why he cmae to SCBR--apparently Gata had been a well-loved and cared for boy in Virginia. But his
dad was killed in a car accident, and his mom had back surgery and was ordered by the doctor to
give him up to save her back. Gata is all up to date now, and is Heartworm free. My Boxer-loving
vet thought he was wonderful (which he is). Gata does not love his crate, but with a great deal of
encouragement (a big push) he will go in and then is fine. He also spends alot of time out of the crate
as my son and I work opposite shifts. He has had a couple of accidents near the door to go out but
none lately so I think he just needed to get used to living here. Gata is a real love-bug, and loves
company.
9/24/04 Gata arrived at the Riverview Boxer-hostel last night after two days of travelling from
Virginia! He is a gorgeous white boy and he is BIG! He is a real sweetie, and
well-mannered. Apparently he was an owner surrender to a shelter down there, and came to
SCBR by way of another rescue. WE even know his birthday--7/21/98. It is obvious that
he was well-loved and well taken care of. He knows how to take treats very gently, and
doesn't have any issues about people or other dogs around food or water. He already met
TIka and Rocky, and likes to run and play chase in the back yard. He hasn't met the
resident cat yet, but Tiger (the cat) came into the house which is a good sign that he'll
be OK with her. Gata needs a little work on his leash manners--he is very strong and
doesn't know not to pull. We also haven't tried a crate yet--he is so big that I have to
bring in an Extra-large size one before I will try to get him to go in. Today while I am
at work he is gated into the kitchen, and he spent half of last night on a dog bed in my
bedroom, and the other half curled up with my son in his bed. (It was a cold night up
here in Maine, and our furnace isn't turned on for the winter yet!)