Lizzie is a young dog, who looks like a pointer mix, and she weighs about 35 pounds, but probably needs to put on a few pounds. She has amber eyes and a beautiful reddish brown and white coat, which is surprisingly healthy given all the demands on her in the last couple months. She is a loving, gentle, easy going dog who is ready to fill a home with love.
We began fostering Lizzie on October 14. The next day, she delivered her 10 precious puppies, and she has been a devoted mother and the sweetest dog. I was able to learn a little about her background by connecting to Elizabeth, (the woman who rescued her and for whom Lizzie is named) on instagram. Lizzie was dumped in a church parking lot in Dyersburg, Tennessee in September. Like many dogs do, she sadly waited where she was dropped for her person to come back for her. She slept there at night and spent her days not far. Elizabeth, who lives next door to the church told me "She never ran with the other dogs..she was so sad. Her heart was broke. Then she showed signs of being pregnant. That made her even sadder I believe. She was so defeated. Elizabeth fed Lizzie like she fed the other strays nearby. Elizabeth knew Lizzie was a special dog though she could see Lizzie was broken and just became sadder and sadder. When it became apparent that Lizzie was pregnant, Elizabeth, who has a houseful of animals, said, "I knew I had to do something...I reached out to local shelters..no luck...so I started calling everywhere...turned down repeatedly..then Harleigh (Border Tails' founder and executive director) called me back...so thankful. Elizabeth and her son then drove Lizzie from Tennessee. When I met Lizzie, she was very shy and sad. Her tail was between her legs and she rarely made eye contact. I had to carry her up and down the stairs. By the next day, she had started perking up-which is a good thing because that's the day her puppies were born. In no time, Lizzie learned how to go up and down stairs, how to only go potty outside, the routine of our household, how to go in and out the doggy doors in our house. Her tail wags whenever she sees us. She is still very shy around new people, but nothing a few treats can't fix.
We have a regular schedule where she goes out to do her business and hang out with us for a while at regular times. Of course with the amount of food she needs to eat to feed 10 growing puppies, her schedule isn't always regular, but she lets us know when she has to go. When we foster a mom with puppies, we keep them in our big old fashioned laundry room with a closed door so she'll feel safe. If Lizzie has to go potty, she'll scratch on the door, and if we don't come right away, then she'll bark. From my experience fostering momma dogs, I would expect that as soon as she's not nursing her puppies and not eating enormous amounts, she would easily adjust her potty schedule to the household she is in.
She continues to come out of her shell day by day. She has always gotten along with the family dogs, but only recently has wanted to play a little. She never barks or reacts to other dogs on walks or in neighbors' yards even when they bark at her.
She is very affectionate to my husband and me. She loves to just put her head in our laps, and will sometimes almost fall asleep standing up with her head on our laps. Right now, she does not get on our furniture, though we would allow her to do so if she wanted to.
She is a very tidy dog. The puppies and their area are all immaculate at all times.
We don't think she had ever been on a walk before, and the first week, she was very reluctant to go anywhere on a leash. But now, she does her business in our backyard, comes back in the house, and runs to the front door to go for a walk.
She's a quiet dog, she very occasionally barks at squirrels and she barks if she's with her puppies and she hears an unusual sound.
She walks nicely on a leash, but I'm guessing that as she gains confidence, she'll start to pull more.
She is a very easy, undemanding dog without any bad habits except occasionally jumping to greet you. She is very treat motivated. I think she would fit nicely into almost any situation. Initially, she will need patience, but based on our experience here, she will come around very quickly.
