. . . to show off this handsome furball we flash-fostered over the weekend!
When we heard that Lucky Dog needed overnight fosters for several dogs coming up from a rural shelter in South Carolina, we couldn’t help but agree to the challenge.
We wouldn’t even dream of abandoning our mission of only fostering pit bull type dogs, but this weekend, the pitties were all spoken for. So we ended up with Aspen!
Aspen is a 3-year-old Boykin Spaniel who had been staked out in a dusty yard on a heavy chain before his rescue. His fur is terribly matted and overgrown, and the poor guy is a little on the heavy side from eating whatever garbage his prior “caretakers” gave him and never getting any exercise.
Still, Aspen is a spunky character. He absolutely adores people, large and small, and is a big attention-seeker. If he detects even the slightest bit of attention from a person he immediately sits and flashes his most charming smile. Aspen likes other dogs, knows basic commands, and is nice and quiet in the house.
Our brief time with Aspen was not without its adventures, though. Given that we have only ever cared for short-haired, block-headed bully-type dogs, we had no idea how to even begin caring for a sweet spaniel with a giant afro. We spent what seems like hours combing out his fur with a de-matting brush, and then knitted several sweaters with our harvest. We gave him a bath, and then gave him another bath. When the second bath still didn’t leave him smelling entirely fresh, we spritzed him with a gentle and nicely-scented leave-in conditioner. The end result was a well-conditioned, poofy spaniel with a very odd haircut and a rather confusing scent. We whisked him away to an adoption even this morning where he didn’t meet his forever-family, but he was chosen by a long-term foster mom who plans to whip his tubby self into shape!
Sound like your kind of dog? Check him out at Lucky Dog here!
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Love and a Six-Foot Leash 
He is ADORABLE! Im sure he appreciated his spa day and you helping find him a long term foster!
Everyone loves to be pampered for a night 🙂 I hope this cutie pie finds his forever family soon!
Hopefully he finds a home soon, he sounds like a great dog. If it were not for all the hair I would have considered this breed more seriously. They are one of the more solid spaniels temperament wise and can’t need anymore exercise than Luna. But they have that whole pesky hair issue, so they were out pretty quickly when I was doing my research. Hair from our lab is enough to deal with.
Did you find him quicker to respond than most of the bully breeds you have had? The bird dogs tend to be pretty sharp and quick. But there are always the exceptions to each breed. You would have laughed at my attempts to teach wyatt tricks last night. I don’t know if he is capable of learning anything beyond sit, down, touch trick wise. Time will tell
Anna
http://www.akginspiration.com
this post made me laugh. i always joke that i have absolutely no future as a dog groomer, that stuff is hard (i tried to give basil a little trim once and i won’t ever do that again)! but he does look great and i’m sure he feels even better.
What a cutie!! How fun to have a guest for the weekend!! Hoping Aspen finds a forever home soon!
Oh, he reminds me a little bit of my Reginator when I first got him. I took him immediately to a groomer because he smelled so bad. I applaud you for it yourself. (The spaniel fur upkeep is a challenge!) Was there a lot of fur between his toes? That’s the worst. LOL!
Good luck Aspen! It sounds like you’ll make someone a wonderful companion.
He looks much improved from the pic you put on the FB page earlier in the weekend! I am sure that he’ll soon find his forever home, and will be ever grateful for his doggie spa weekend.
He is super-cute! So we’ve only done 2 fosters, but I do admire how you and Chick do open your home to so many dogs. We’re hoping to foster more often, but we always have to work around dog personalities and work schedules. You should share some of your tips about how you and Chick work to accommodate other dogs so regularly.
Oh, I LOVE spaniels! Wish I could come rescue him! What a smile!
My kids are begging to start fostering again, but Our Best Friend is a little territorial and I don’t think it would work very well… 😦
Aspen is so handsome! So happy he’s in a long term foster! Bet he enjoyed his time with you…you have a big heart!!
What a beautiful dog and I don’t think he’ll have a hard time getting adopted. I hate hearing about dogs having to live outside (although we have friends who have hunting dogs and they live in a huge outside kennel and get to run around their acreage on a daily basis). At least Aspen was fed, I’d rather see a fat dog than a malnourished one.
Awwww…he has the brightest, happiest smile EVER! Thanks for helping clean him up. (This is another reason I’m oh-so-happy to NOT have long furs. Having to have back-to-back BATHS sounds just super awful.)
My paws are crossed that he finds his furever home lickety-split!
Wiggles & Wags,
mayzie
Glad to hear the grooming went well (or at least well enough); too bad Keebler can’t meet him to learn some grooming-tolerance 🙂
I adore that last picture. Actually, I adore ALL your pictures. They’re all so … awesome.
Awww such a cutie!
I hear you about not being used to long haired dogs. We took care of our friend’s dog one weekend and she was a little smelly so we attempted to give her a bath…. Who knew it would take so long just to get her fur wet so we could lather her up. Even then I dont think we got deep enough and we didnt get her dry enough (just used a towel as we do for Darwin) and by the end she was back to smelling like wet dog. hahaha
Aspen is clearly a complete ham. I have such a soft spot for spaniels (and also for long haired, shaggy dogs). I’d lover a Clumber Spaniel if I weren’t allergic.
I sometimes envy those with ‘wash and wear’ dogs. Bathing the wheatens is an endeavour.
Cutie pie sure likes the pawparazzi
Benny & Lily
That is one smiling pup! Gorgeous!
Oh my gosh, he is so adorable. I’m sure he really appreciated his spa day at your house.
You are equal opportunity foster parents. Lucky dog!