Monday, June 2, 2014
To be fair to Zeta
I worry sometimes that by being so cautious on her behaviors that need work that I sometimes neglect to share how great she is.
Zeta is house-trained, crate-trained, good with dogs and okay with cats. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body, even when she's eating or chewing on an antler. She's very tolerant of friends invading her personal space, though that means she really has no concept of "I don't want to snuggle right now." That includes getting her nails done and her ears cleaned; she's so good that can be done by one person.
Whoever can see past Zeta's stranger danger will get unconditional love in return, and she sure has a lot to give.
GorDon outside video
GorDon loves going outside. He will run out any open doors if he gets a chance. He's small enough now that we can just watch him, but soon we'll have to fit him with the harness to keep him safe. Hopefully he can find a home where he has a safe way to go outside. He is definitely an INDOOR kitten!
Sunday, June 1, 2014
What I learned about Zeta
I took Zeta to a big adoption event yesterday afternoon. I learned that her fear issues trump her territorial issues. She only gets ugly once she is comfortable in a place, which is why it's such an issue at home and not other places nearly as much.
She was very excited to get in the car to go somewhere (she loves "to go", doesn't matter where) and very excited when we "got there", but once she realized she didn't know where she was, she got scared and didn't want to leave the car. Once I got her out, she walked up to the building just fine.
We walked around a little on our own and sat down somewhere out of the way to give her some time to adjust. Once she relaxed a little, she took a few treats from me. A couple people came up to her very carefully and gently pet her and spoke softly to her, and also gave her a couple treats. We moved closer to the door, where there was a table set up and another foster parent with a WCAC dog, Gretchen (who was adopted at the event!). Zeta is usually very excited to see other dogs, but she was so scared she just ran right up to Gretchen, a strange dog she'd never met, and stood right next to her, leaning on her. Didn't sniff, didn't say "hello", just stood close. Gretchen sniffed and was very interested, but Zeta did not react. Gretchen is about the same size as Honey. When I tried to get her into the building, she would get spooked by a clump of balloons and circle back around to Gretchen. We even tried going into the parking lot and she just pancaked.
With a lot of coaxing we made it into the door, onto the rug in the entrance. She made a friend who pet her and gave her some treats. She really didn't want to leave the tile, but she saw a potential friend, a Honey-shaped dog, and went right up. That dog got over excited, but again Zeta didn't react. She tried to buddy up to another dog who snapped at her and she backed off but didn't react negatively.
The whole time we were there, there was only one incidence where she snapped at a puppy, and that was on our way out. The handler was petting Zeta and then the puppy jumped all over her, and she let the puppy know she didn't appreciate it. It was the second or third puppy to do so and the only one she reacted negatively to. I was actually pretty proud of her and surprised at just how fearful she is. She's a sweet girl and wants attention badly, she just doesn't know how to express it or accept it.
She went to a cook out at our friend's house and did very well. She seems to do well in new situations; it's just at home that she thinks she has to dominate all new people and dogs. She even met our neighbor's huge 60 lb dog and was playing with him outside, but when he tried to come in the house she snapped at him and scared him away.
Zeta needs a strong leader and a family willing to work with her. The reward is great, and she such a sweet girl.
She was very excited to get in the car to go somewhere (she loves "to go", doesn't matter where) and very excited when we "got there", but once she realized she didn't know where she was, she got scared and didn't want to leave the car. Once I got her out, she walked up to the building just fine.
We walked around a little on our own and sat down somewhere out of the way to give her some time to adjust. Once she relaxed a little, she took a few treats from me. A couple people came up to her very carefully and gently pet her and spoke softly to her, and also gave her a couple treats. We moved closer to the door, where there was a table set up and another foster parent with a WCAC dog, Gretchen (who was adopted at the event!). Zeta is usually very excited to see other dogs, but she was so scared she just ran right up to Gretchen, a strange dog she'd never met, and stood right next to her, leaning on her. Didn't sniff, didn't say "hello", just stood close. Gretchen sniffed and was very interested, but Zeta did not react. Gretchen is about the same size as Honey. When I tried to get her into the building, she would get spooked by a clump of balloons and circle back around to Gretchen. We even tried going into the parking lot and she just pancaked.
With a lot of coaxing we made it into the door, onto the rug in the entrance. She made a friend who pet her and gave her some treats. She really didn't want to leave the tile, but she saw a potential friend, a Honey-shaped dog, and went right up. That dog got over excited, but again Zeta didn't react. She tried to buddy up to another dog who snapped at her and she backed off but didn't react negatively.
The whole time we were there, there was only one incidence where she snapped at a puppy, and that was on our way out. The handler was petting Zeta and then the puppy jumped all over her, and she let the puppy know she didn't appreciate it. It was the second or third puppy to do so and the only one she reacted negatively to. I was actually pretty proud of her and surprised at just how fearful she is. She's a sweet girl and wants attention badly, she just doesn't know how to express it or accept it.
She went to a cook out at our friend's house and did very well. She seems to do well in new situations; it's just at home that she thinks she has to dominate all new people and dogs. She even met our neighbor's huge 60 lb dog and was playing with him outside, but when he tried to come in the house she snapped at him and scared him away.
Zeta needs a strong leader and a family willing to work with her. The reward is great, and she such a sweet girl.
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