carl

6 y.o., 20 pound, housetrained neutered Miniature Poodle/Pomeranian Mix

Carl is a wonderful little fellow who makes a great companion once you earn his trust. Carl often lies with his foster grandpa while he watches TV. With people he is comfortable with, Carl shows he is a friendly, affectionate, playful dog who (naturally) loves his treats, those made specifically for dogs or broccoli, carrots or cauliflower.

Our vet estimates that Carl is approximately 6 years old. We know virtually nothing about Carl’s past. He was picked up as a stray & taken to the local animal control as a scared boy who did not want to be touched. It took days for him to decompress in a foster home.

Carl likes to chase thrown balls. He doesn’t often return them. He chases, picks them up, turns & waits for you to throw another. He also likes to chew on sticks.

Carl’s anxiety is with unknown humans encountered outside his yard, not dogs. Carl gets along well with the other dogs in his foster home & has shown interest in other dogs he has met.

Carl has quickly become friends with a few people who met him at his foster home & strictly followed our meeting protocol. Once he gets to know & trust you, you remain his friend, even after you leave him at the vet for a procedure. Carl does love his foster grandpa. While Carl is quite fond of sitting or lying on his foster grandpa on the couch, he needs & loves to run and play. A small dog secure fenced yard is an ABSOLUTE NECESSITY for Carl. Carl likes to spend significant time outside every day. Carl likes car rides & to explore on a leash walk.

Carl will often bark at strangers, but calms down when not forced to interact. When he senses no danger, he will willingly walk with strangers with or without dogs. In the company of people he does not know, Carl naturally seeks reassurance from his foster grandpa.

Do not expect Carl to go out in the rain, without you attached to his leash.

Carl needs an active & patient adopter without children with whom he can thrive. While prospective adopters’ children & Carl may form a mutual admiration society, it’s too much to expect their friends to understand just how different Carl’s fear makes his behavior.

Carl’s trust in his foster grandpa has since achieved a level where his foster grandpa now shaves & cuts Carl’s coarse curls over a span of several days. Prior to that, Carl had to be sedated, completely knocked out to be groomed every 2 months. For nail trims, his foster grandpa puts a cloth muzzle on Carl & holds him while the vet tech snips as Carl does his best to get away.

We encourage you to see & learn more about Carl on his public Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61563018184933, or search FB on Carl Heather’s Foster Dogs.

If you are considering adding Carl to your family, please think about the unusual consequences of Carl’s fear of strangers. You are going to have to have a minimal stress strategy for grooming. You are going to have to figure out how periodic veterinary exams & vaccinations can be safely navigated. What will be the solution if Carl needs to be left in someone else’s care? You will be responsible for dealing successfully with such issues, not your vet, your groomer or anyone else.

Carl is housetrained, neutered & microchipped as well as up to date on his vaccinations & monthly heartworm, flea & tick preventatives.

Half of Carl’s $400 adoption fee has been sponsored.

If you believe Carl is for you, then using the menu at the top of the page, click on “Adoption Application” to find our electronic application.

Submit your completed application & you will be contacted. Submit your completed application & you will be contacted. No meetings will be scheduled without a reviewed application. The application serves as a basis for a conversation.

We will make arrangements to meet with prospective adopters for Carl only after a submitted application has been reviewed & a phone conversation has taken place.

***Please note that we are a foster based group located in the southern suburbs of Chicago. Carl’s adopter must live in the greater Chicago metropolitan area.***