Waldo (aka Gonzo Bunny-Ears) likes to hide at the top of the steps and peer curiously down at us when we go into the basement to fetch the dog food. I can’t say that I blame him . . . those stairs are steep, and there are spiders!
For more info about adopting Gonzo Bunny-Ears, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com or through Partnership for Animal Welfare.
Well, Gonzo had his first playdate last night, and everyone agrees it was a big success. It was awesome not only because Gonzo is tiny and white while his playmate is big and black, but also because they are both wicked-cute, and because his playmate’s mom is one of our favorite pit bull lovers around!
I first met Sarah through the StubbyDog project, when I did a photo session of her and her adorable pup Blackie for the cause:
Not only are Sarah and Blackie the cutest human-dog combo I’ve ever met, but they are also wonderful pit bull advocates and keep a great blog, iLove-A-Bull.
Sarah and Blackie came over for dinner last night, and Blackie and Gonzo had a blast zooming back and forth and wrestling around on our deck and yard. As you probably know, Gonzo’s superstar foster brother Chick is a great mentor in good behavior and cuddling, but his days of playing with youngsters have passed. Not so for Gonzo. Nor for Blackie.
I would like to say that the evening was a lot like this:
But in reality, it was a lot more like this:
is your shutter super slow, or are those dogs bouncing at the speed of light? actually, both are the case here.
is Blackie launching an air-tackle of Gonzo? yes, he sure is.
is Gonzo retaliating with the biggest play-nip his mouth is capable of? why yes, he sure is.
Gonzo fell asleep swiftly tonight, after all this fun and excitement. Thanks for the visit, Blackie. We hope to see you again soon!
For more info about adopting Gonzo Bunny-Ears, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com or through Partnership for Animal Welfare.
Gonzo and Chick, sitting in a tree.
t-o-l-e-r-a-t-i-n-g!
As long-term blog-readers know, our own loverboy Chick is a patient, wise, and gentle soul, but he does not like fostering as much as we humans do. Still, he puts up with it and the other dogs we bring into the house.
On the other hand, Gonzo’s attitude couldn’t be more different. He looks at the world with an attitude that says “Let’s Party!” He is always trying to play with Chick or at least be near him, and while Chick is reluctant, he is starting to warm up a little, as you can see below.
So we ask of you: what kind of narrative is going on between these two in the following series?
For more info about adopting Gonzo Bunny-Ears, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com or through Partnership for Animal Welfare.
Gonzo’s guilty pleasure is sleeping in my lap while I drive. My guilty pleasure is letting him.
For more info about adopting Gonzo Bunny-Ears, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com or through Partnership for Animal Welfare.
I’m sure not every dog can be taught how to cuddle, but we have had good luck with our fosters so far.
Miss Lollie Wonderdog had probably never lived in a house or experienced any human kindness before her rescue and subsequent foster life with us. Â So when a human came toward her with a hand raised to pet her, she would cower and shake like a leaf. Â But once in our home, she learned quickly that people weren’t all so scary.
Our current foster, Mr. Gonzo Bunny-Ears, had lived in a house and been cared for — at least to some extent — but was not accustomed to human affection when he moved in with us a few weeks ago. He would tolerate petting and ear scratches, but never really got into it.
And now?
He’s into it.
For more info about adopting Gonzo Bunny-Ears, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com or through Partnership for Animal Welfare.
Well, a very promising application for Mr. Ears was foiled this week, because of the apartment complex’s archaic breed ban on pit bulls and similar mixes, among other breeds.
It’s a real shame, too. The family really connected with Mr. Ears, and were very excited to make him a part of their family. We loved that they were a combo of experienced dog people and first-time dog owners: Gonzo is a very easy and worry-free dog so he would be great for first-timers, but rescues always love adopting dogs to families with dog experience, too.
We don’t know for sure whether Gonzo is a pit bull mix or not, but one frustrating thing (of many!) about breed bans is that they are enforced not based on actual genetic composition, but rather on appearance. Â And lucky or not, Gonzo looks to be part bully breed.
And so, the search for Gonzo’s forever-family goes on.
As you can imagine, we hear a lot of “what kind of dog is that?” when we parade around proudly with dear Gonzo Bunny-Ears. Although we are very curious, Fosterdad and I are too cheap to buy a DNA test for Mr. Ears, so we’re going to have to figure this one out using good common sense.
We have heard a lot of ideas bounced around, including the illustrated ones below (clockwise from top left, chihuahua, boston terrier, french bulldog, pit bull). Is Mr. Ears a combo of some of these, with possibly a splash of bunny rabbit? Are there other breeds we should take into consideration?
Let’s crack this one, friends!
For more info on adopting Gonzo, contact us at DCpetographer [at] gmail [dot] com, or click here.
Turns out I am not the only one fascinated with the rather diminutive size of our adorable foster dog, Mr. Gonzo Bunny-Ears. His official chart says he weighs 38, but to me he seems like he’s in the low 30s. Barely more than half our Chick’s size (Chick weighs 52).
Regardless of the actual number, we can’t get enough of how little he is, and we love picking him up and carrying him around. We are almost starting to understand why people like getting tiny dogs and putting them in purses!
Fostermom and dad enjoy fostering for the reasons we have already explained and the reasons we will explain next time we have the time to sit down and write about them, but as for Mr. Chick, our own loverboy, he is not so sure.
Of course, he has dog friends. He even has dog kindred spirits, like his uncle Tex the lab, and his old Texas pal Pancho the mexican bandito. But for the most part, Chick’s attitude toward other four-leggers of the canine variety is one of reluctant tolerance. He will leave them in peace, and ask the same in return.
You can tell by his utterly unimpressed and squinty expression in this sorry excuse for a portrait of him and Mr. Gonzo Bunny-Ears:
The only good thing in the photo is that it gives you a little bit of a sense of how very small Mr. Ears is, when compared to the very normal-sized Mr. Chick. Note how Chick has his legs all the way down on the step below, Â and he’s just as tall as an upright Mr. Ears.
Chick’s real complaint with fostering Mr. Ears in particular is that Gonzo is full of boundless energy and is constantly running up to Chick, bodyslamming his tiny body against Chick’s, and saying (with his body language) “hey bro, wanna play? huh? huh? huh?” To this, Chick squints his eyes unamusedly, sighs, and saunters off to another room.
Gonzo has also learned that Chick’s back is the perfect height for putting your paws up on, especially if you are trying to reach, with your tongue, a cooking utensil in your foster mom’s hand. Chick does not find this entirely entertaining, but bears it stoically.
Not that Chick doesn’t like fun. It’s just that Chick takes his energy in small, very enthusiastic bursts, and when he’s not in a burst, he prefers to have fun by reading the paper and sipping a cup of joe. And he’d prefer if you would refrain from wrinkling his paper or spilling his coffee, thank you very much.
Mr. Gonzo Bunny-Ears has excellent house manners, but in the first few days with us, he revealed to us his strong preference for sitting in chairs — it seems that in his old home, he may have had a little perch in a living room chair. Over his first week in our home he tested out the options here, and we had to have a talking to about dog beds being for dogs and chairs being for humans.
He eventually understood the new rules, but in the interim, we found him in various chairs around the house, looking very cute and very defiant.
you knew i was cute, but did you know about my freckles?
love, gonzo bunny-ears
Love and a Six-Foot Leash 