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My basic info
Breed
Bichon Frise
Color
White
Age
11 years 11 months old, Senior
Size
Small 25 lbs (11 kg) or less (when grown)
Weight
15 lbs (current)
Sex
Female
Pet ID
–
My details
Not good with kids
Good with dogs
Good with cats
Purebred
Needs experienced adopter
Shots current
Spayed / Neutered
My story
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Here's what the humans have to say about me:
PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE BIO BEFORE ASKING QUESTIONS OR SUBMITTING AN ADOPTION APPLICATION.
Joi is a puppy mill survivor. Until she came into rescue in November, she had never been in a house, never felt a kind touch and had never been outside. She is slowly learning to enjoy these things.
These are the requirements for Joi in her forever home:
She must have a very patient adopter with only 1 or 2 adults in the home. No young children. Experience with puppy mill survivors is a big plus.
Joi MUST have a securely fenced yard to run and play in.
Joi will need another small dog in her forever home to play with and learn from.
She will need work on house training with scheduled consistency and positive reinforcement.
Joi is an 9-year-old,16 lb. female Bichon who was released following a lifetime of caged breeding in a New York puppy mill. She does well with all the other dogs in her foster home, and there are many in a variety of breeds. She has even tried to initiate playing with a few of them. There is one cat in her foster home, and Joi seems to like her.
Her overall personality is quite mellow. She is still learning to trust humans and should be considered a flight risk. You need to catch her “off-guard” to pick her up, but when you do, she is not aggressive and will allow holding and petting for a bit before indicating she wants down. She sleeps alone in our living room and is quiet all night. Joi gets very excited at mealtime, usually darting back and forth in the kitchen with a wagging tail and a happy little bark.
Please note: Joi is NOT HOUSEBROKEN! This is something you may or may not be able to accomplish with her due to living 24/7 for 9 years inside a cage with no other place to go to do her business. She will go outside using the doggie door in her foster home, but it is more of an accident of timing if she potties in the yard. Of course, it doesn’t help that she arrived in winter with the snow and cold. Dogs like Joi should NOT be punished for inside accidents! It is not her fault. We want to find her a home where she can be comfortably and lovingly accommodated despite her accidents. If you can’t deal with this, please do not apply to adopt her.
Another note: Joi does NOT tolerate being crated. It puts her in panic mode. She will bark incessantly and try her best to claw her way out, even to the point of hurting herself. We realize this makes housebreaking more of a challenge, but not surprising after 9 years of total confinement.
She is spayed, had a dental and is up to date on vaccines. She is also heartworm negative and on preventative.
Although we have disclosed some issues that make placement somewhat challenging, we believe there is someone special out there willing to help her learn how her life SHOULD be and how wonderful it is to love and be loved.
If you are interested in adopting Joi, please go to https://www.gertiessmalldogrescue.org to complete and submit an adoption application. If you have any questions, you may contact her foster mom Lois at cnlklapp@verizon.net
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