| IRIS |
UPDATE 10/22/11 - Unfortunately, I am writing this to tell you that we euthanized Iris this morning. She
started losing muscle control slowly over the last few months & it was getting worse. Started having trouble
with stairs over the summer, and by fall she would fall down just getting off the couch or would fall over
while crouching to pee. At first we (and the vet) assumed that it was Old Dog Vestibular Disease, but it
became apparent that there were other factors & that it was not getting better. Her vision & hearing started
to fail & she often walked into walls. We made the difficult decision to let her go before she got badly hurt
or started to suffer.
Iris was a member of our family for 3 years, and we were lucky to have her. I hope she had a better life
with us than she did as a younger dog (she was found abandoned at a rest stop in PA with porcupine quills
stuck all over her; it was assumed that she had been a breeding dog at an Amish puppy mill.) Her age was
estimated to be 9-10 years old at that time, so she ended up living a good long life. She will be missed!!!
UPDATE 12/20/09 - I apologize for not updating more often. I wanted to let everyone know that Iris is still
doing well. We've had a huge change in our home since Iris joined our family last year - Mark & I
welcomed our daughter Olivia on 9/9/09. The first few weeks after we brought Olivia home, Iris would
take off to another room every time the baby started crying, but since then she's adjusted quite well. She
has increased some negative behaviors (counter surfing, tearing up clean diapers, etc.) but we are working
on that by trying to give Iris extra attention whenever we can.
It is a challenge to make sure our fur baby gets enough attention when our human baby needs so much right
now, but we are trying our best. It's a blessing that Iris is a senior girl & is usually content to lay on the
couch with us!
We had Iris to the vet not long ago, since it seemed she wasn't feeling well (vomiting, tired, a bit weak.)
Whatever the problem was resolved itself, and routine bloodwork showed that she's a very healthy dog.
Vet agreed that she's at least 10 years old but in pretty good shape considering her age & history (what we
know of it anyway.)
We are once again so happy with our decision to adopt through SCBR. Special thanks to Matt for taking
such good care of Iris while she waited for her forever home, and to Jill for her help with training.
UPDATE 1/12/09 - 2 months go by so fast! I don't have much exciting & new to say about Iris - she's still
the best dog we could hope for. Very calm & friendly, loves to snuggle. Lots of wiggles when we get home
from work too. We had some family members stay with us in our tiny house for almost 2 weeks over the
holidays, including 2 kids under the age of 3 & she did great! I wouldn't say she loved it (she looked really
upset that people were on "her" couch) but no behavior problems whatsoever. Can't wait for the weather to
improve so we co out for more walks & Iris can meet our friends' dogs - we are eager to set up a "play
date" with Jill's pups when it's a bit warmer out!
UPDATE 12/1/08 - A month goes by so quickly, doesn't it? Everyone will be happy to know that this "old
girl" is doing great! The first few days were a bit stressful, as we were assessing how she would be with our
2 cats. 1 cat didn't seem to care that Iris had moved in, but the other went into hiding for 3 days!!! All is
well now, although Iris occasionally gets pretty excited & likes to stalk them - I keep telling them she only
wants to play but they're not going for it, lol.
We've started obedience training with Jill & we can't believe how quickly Iris is catching on. Either she's
had some training in her past life, or foster dad Matt did a phenomenal job while she lived with him! No
negative behaviors to speak of - evidence of an occasional counter surf here & there, so we just make sure
to keep those areas clear. She is a bit whiny, but it's a minor annoyance - she just wants to be loved. She
LOVES the couch, won't even sleep on the dog beds, lol. That's OK, we put a blanket on there for her &
she settles right in. I think her favorite time of day is the evening, when we're all settled in on the couch
watching TV, her head on one of our laps, snoring away. I think she's prefer to have the whole couch to
herself though - it can get pretty cramped! Iris enjoys her walks so much, and hardly pulls at all unless she
sees another animal. For being a "senior" dog, she has plenty of energy! Lots of wiggles too!
We are so happy that we adopted a senior dog again. She has fit in so well with our family & our lifestyle.
If you are thinking that a senior dog might work for you, I cannot urge you strongly enough to go for it. You
will not be disappointed.
11/1/08 - Iris has been adopted!
8/7/08 - Iris continues to be the model foster. She listens so well and is so easy going. She looks so good
and has come along way since she came in. No more quills have shown up. Iris is very well mannered no
jumping up on bed or couch unless she gets the invite. And she does of course. I hope she finds a loving
home but is welcome to stay as long as needed.
7/8/08 - Iris is doing great!She really has bounced back from everything she has been through. She is such
a good girl that listens so well. The longer I have her the more puppy that seems to come out of her. She
loves to play in short bursts in the yard with Penny but cant keep up with her speed. She has not had one
accident in the house since Ive had her. She will make a great addition to any family.
6/24/08 - Iris has bounced back from her surgery! For a older girl she still has her wiggle! She loves to play
ball and go for walks. She listens so good and follows me everywhere. I cant think of one bad habit she
has. She has gained weight and know weighs 60 pounds and looks great. She always gets compliments on
our walks. This girl would love to have a home of her own. She will show you much love and obedience in
exchange for a family of her own.
6/20/08 - Iris is now home from her spay. She was spayed and had a mammory tumor removed!For a
older girl she did great. We found out that the reason she had a seizure was they gave her ace which is a no
no for boxers. She is resting now and will bounce back fine in sure. She is the nicest dog and so easy to
foster.
6/10/08 - Bad day so far here! Iris went in for her spay but had a seizure and they would not operate. Then
when I went back to get her she had a quill sticking out of her Eye lid, ouch! On top of that the Dr says she
has a mammory glad tumor that needs to come off. Lots of doggie drama here. She is resting fine now and
they said if she doesn't have another seizure to call back in a week to reschedule the spay.
6/9/08 - It's been just over a week with Iris. It is a shame know one looked for her. She is such a sweet
dog. She listens to all commands come ,sit ,stay. She is real easy going but still has her wiggle. She plays
with Penny and loves it. She was brought to the vet and has gained 15 pounds. She looks so much better.
Iris would be a great dog for a home that wants to help a old girl out. She will be spayed on Tues this week
and ready to go home this weekend!
6/1/08 - Thanks to Jeri Quill dog now known as Iris made it here late last night!She is such a nice girl!
Everything is good Penny loves her and not one problem to speak of. She will need to put on a little weight
and get spayed though.VERY easy foster so far. More to come.
started losing muscle control slowly over the last few months & it was getting worse. Started having trouble
with stairs over the summer, and by fall she would fall down just getting off the couch or would fall over
while crouching to pee. At first we (and the vet) assumed that it was Old Dog Vestibular Disease, but it
became apparent that there were other factors & that it was not getting better. Her vision & hearing started
to fail & she often walked into walls. We made the difficult decision to let her go before she got badly hurt
or started to suffer.
Iris was a member of our family for 3 years, and we were lucky to have her. I hope she had a better life
with us than she did as a younger dog (she was found abandoned at a rest stop in PA with porcupine quills
stuck all over her; it was assumed that she had been a breeding dog at an Amish puppy mill.) Her age was
estimated to be 9-10 years old at that time, so she ended up living a good long life. She will be missed!!!
UPDATE 12/20/09 - I apologize for not updating more often. I wanted to let everyone know that Iris is still
doing well. We've had a huge change in our home since Iris joined our family last year - Mark & I
welcomed our daughter Olivia on 9/9/09. The first few weeks after we brought Olivia home, Iris would
take off to another room every time the baby started crying, but since then she's adjusted quite well. She
has increased some negative behaviors (counter surfing, tearing up clean diapers, etc.) but we are working
on that by trying to give Iris extra attention whenever we can.
It is a challenge to make sure our fur baby gets enough attention when our human baby needs so much right
now, but we are trying our best. It's a blessing that Iris is a senior girl & is usually content to lay on the
couch with us!
We had Iris to the vet not long ago, since it seemed she wasn't feeling well (vomiting, tired, a bit weak.)
Whatever the problem was resolved itself, and routine bloodwork showed that she's a very healthy dog.
Vet agreed that she's at least 10 years old but in pretty good shape considering her age & history (what we
know of it anyway.)
We are once again so happy with our decision to adopt through SCBR. Special thanks to Matt for taking
such good care of Iris while she waited for her forever home, and to Jill for her help with training.
UPDATE 1/12/09 - 2 months go by so fast! I don't have much exciting & new to say about Iris - she's still
the best dog we could hope for. Very calm & friendly, loves to snuggle. Lots of wiggles when we get home
from work too. We had some family members stay with us in our tiny house for almost 2 weeks over the
holidays, including 2 kids under the age of 3 & she did great! I wouldn't say she loved it (she looked really
upset that people were on "her" couch) but no behavior problems whatsoever. Can't wait for the weather to
improve so we co out for more walks & Iris can meet our friends' dogs - we are eager to set up a "play
date" with Jill's pups when it's a bit warmer out!
UPDATE 12/1/08 - A month goes by so quickly, doesn't it? Everyone will be happy to know that this "old
girl" is doing great! The first few days were a bit stressful, as we were assessing how she would be with our
2 cats. 1 cat didn't seem to care that Iris had moved in, but the other went into hiding for 3 days!!! All is
well now, although Iris occasionally gets pretty excited & likes to stalk them - I keep telling them she only
wants to play but they're not going for it, lol.
We've started obedience training with Jill & we can't believe how quickly Iris is catching on. Either she's
had some training in her past life, or foster dad Matt did a phenomenal job while she lived with him! No
negative behaviors to speak of - evidence of an occasional counter surf here & there, so we just make sure
to keep those areas clear. She is a bit whiny, but it's a minor annoyance - she just wants to be loved. She
LOVES the couch, won't even sleep on the dog beds, lol. That's OK, we put a blanket on there for her &
she settles right in. I think her favorite time of day is the evening, when we're all settled in on the couch
watching TV, her head on one of our laps, snoring away. I think she's prefer to have the whole couch to
herself though - it can get pretty cramped! Iris enjoys her walks so much, and hardly pulls at all unless she
sees another animal. For being a "senior" dog, she has plenty of energy! Lots of wiggles too!
We are so happy that we adopted a senior dog again. She has fit in so well with our family & our lifestyle.
If you are thinking that a senior dog might work for you, I cannot urge you strongly enough to go for it. You
will not be disappointed.
11/1/08 - Iris has been adopted!
8/7/08 - Iris continues to be the model foster. She listens so well and is so easy going. She looks so good
and has come along way since she came in. No more quills have shown up. Iris is very well mannered no
jumping up on bed or couch unless she gets the invite. And she does of course. I hope she finds a loving
home but is welcome to stay as long as needed.
7/8/08 - Iris is doing great!She really has bounced back from everything she has been through. She is such
a good girl that listens so well. The longer I have her the more puppy that seems to come out of her. She
loves to play in short bursts in the yard with Penny but cant keep up with her speed. She has not had one
accident in the house since Ive had her. She will make a great addition to any family.
6/24/08 - Iris has bounced back from her surgery! For a older girl she still has her wiggle! She loves to play
ball and go for walks. She listens so good and follows me everywhere. I cant think of one bad habit she
has. She has gained weight and know weighs 60 pounds and looks great. She always gets compliments on
our walks. This girl would love to have a home of her own. She will show you much love and obedience in
exchange for a family of her own.
6/20/08 - Iris is now home from her spay. She was spayed and had a mammory tumor removed!For a
older girl she did great. We found out that the reason she had a seizure was they gave her ace which is a no
no for boxers. She is resting now and will bounce back fine in sure. She is the nicest dog and so easy to
foster.
6/10/08 - Bad day so far here! Iris went in for her spay but had a seizure and they would not operate. Then
when I went back to get her she had a quill sticking out of her Eye lid, ouch! On top of that the Dr says she
has a mammory glad tumor that needs to come off. Lots of doggie drama here. She is resting fine now and
they said if she doesn't have another seizure to call back in a week to reschedule the spay.
6/9/08 - It's been just over a week with Iris. It is a shame know one looked for her. She is such a sweet
dog. She listens to all commands come ,sit ,stay. She is real easy going but still has her wiggle. She plays
with Penny and loves it. She was brought to the vet and has gained 15 pounds. She looks so much better.
Iris would be a great dog for a home that wants to help a old girl out. She will be spayed on Tues this week
and ready to go home this weekend!
6/1/08 - Thanks to Jeri Quill dog now known as Iris made it here late last night!She is such a nice girl!
Everything is good Penny loves her and not one problem to speak of. She will need to put on a little weight
and get spayed though.VERY easy foster so far. More to come.
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State:NY
Age:7-8 years
Weight: 60 lbs
Sex:Female
Neut/utd: Yes/Yes
Coat:Fawn
Tail:docked
Ears:natural
Children under 4:probably
Children over 4:yes
Other dogs:yes
Cats:unsure
Crate Trained:yes
House Trained:yes
Obedience Trained: Unsure
Leash trained:Yes
FEE: $150 (FEE WAIVED IF YOU ADOPTED FROM SCBR IN THE PAST!)
Age:7-8 years
Weight: 60 lbs
Sex:Female
Neut/utd: Yes/Yes
Coat:Fawn
Tail:docked
Ears:natural
Children under 4:probably
Children over 4:yes
Other dogs:yes
Cats:unsure
Crate Trained:yes
House Trained:yes
Obedience Trained: Unsure
Leash trained:Yes
FEE: $150 (FEE WAIVED IF YOU ADOPTED FROM SCBR IN THE PAST!)
