Nutmeg, a 3.5 year old chocolate female, came to us as a kennel favorite. She is a smart, energetic girl who requires exercise, but does pretty well on a leash with guidance and direction. She responds very well to people, including kids, and definitely looking for some stability. The kennel does not give her adequate opportunity to get sufficient exercise, and she will be so much happier with a home and family. Nutmeg spent a week with a residential trainer who thought she was wonderful. The trainer also offered to guide her new family on the best way to maintain appropriate behavior. She knows many commands: heel, come, stay, sit, down, climb, and place, so taking advantage of professional advice will help guarantee her transition to a new home. Consistency and maintenance of her obedience training will only benefit her adjustment and your relationship. It was also recommended that she would do best with either a younger sibling or as the only dog in the home. Do not misinterpret that she does not interact well with other dogs, as she has been socialized. Although Nutmeg requires discipline and continuity, that does inhibit her loving heart and beautiful soul.
FOSTER UPDATE: This is one special dog! While there is more to learn about Nutmeg (Ellie), ok, yes, we admit we changed her name to Ellie since we think she looks more like an Ellie; we think she is just terrific. She is really more gorgeous than her pictures on the CLR site depict. Shiny coat, intelligent amber eyes, and a good spirit about her. She rides very well in cars, the more wind blowing back her ears, the better she likes it. She knows her commands: sit, stay, place, heel, climb, and down. We took her on a 4 mile hike this past weekend, and she heeled beautifully the entire time, with minor guidance or corrections. She has easily adapted to our family routine by going into her crate at night, and staying in a down-stay when we need her to. She also has an “off” switch when she is inside. In my home office, she is happy to be at my feet taking a nap, and especially loved being my office mate when I moved in a dog bed for her…then she was really ready to clock in for the day. She relaxes more each day and seems to keep expanding her ability to experience joy and be herself. While I don’t know her story, she is exhibiting strong signs of trust, meaning she is not anxious or retreats when we reach down to pet her, or snap on her leash. We can walk next to her while she is lying down, and she doesn’t flinch. Most importantly, she is relaxed enough and trusts us enough to roll over and wants her belly rubbed – a sight to see. She loves her walks,and her exercise, and looks forward to these each day. Because of her love of walks, one area we continue to work on with her is her exuberance at a door. We have been firm to have her sit/stay while we open the door and lead the way. Not doing this, results in Ellie taking us for a walk, not what we had in mind. We took her out last evening at dusk for a walk around the neighborhood, and it was really lovely to see her look at the holiday lights on a number of houses; as she just totally enjoys being outside walking with her people. It was an awesome Nutmeg/Ellie moment! While most labs tend toward being very loyal, I would say this is especially true for Ellie. Because of her strongly developed sense of loyalty to her people, we think she would do best as an only dog since she will soak in all of the love and attention her new family can give. Ellie is an awesome girl, and I think would bond easily to her forever family.
Nutmeg bonding with one of our volunteers
Note: Nutmeg is a great girl, but we do recognize that she will prosper best as the only dog in the home.
