Miso, (we think she may be a lab mixed with something else like a Rottie) is just an adorable, chubby bundle of happiness and enthusiasm. To say that she loves people is an understatement.  Her entire life goal, at the moment, (besides eating) is curling up in your lap. She is also a big kissing machine and relishes playing and exploring outside. She really appreciates hanging out with people and is not one to be happy when left on her own for a long period of time.

This little girl enjoys chasing and wrestling with her littermates and hanging out with the human kids in her foster home. (She particularly seems to love drinking out of garden hoses and fishing Barbie dolls out of kiddie pools to chew on their heads. She is also quick to figure out complicated maneuvers that seem interesting to her, such as turning a wheel with her mouth, climbing a small ladder and sliding down a slide. )

If you are looking for a dog to protect you against anything evil Miso is NOT going to be your gal. She tends to be a bit fearful of people at first and will often approach new people by crawling over to say hi. Once she realizes that you’re not going to hurt her, then she immediately turns into your best buddy!  (She responds amazingly to soft voices and folks who crouch down and are happy to give belly rubs. ) Once she is confident in her surroundings, she will happily chase off cats and small animals and may even do battle with an ant crawling over your feet in the summer- but, even then, the ant might win. 

Expect this little girl to greet you with a toy in her mouth all ready to play any time you are. But, whenever she hears or sees something scary (to her) also be ready for her to run right back to you for reassurance. (Kind of like Scooby Doo, actually . . . ) 

She loves to go on car rides and have new adventures but she does have a tendency to get carsick once or twice on the way to your destination. So, just be ready for that with a few paper towels and bags for cleaning up. We have found that she does much better riding shotgun in the front seat then she does in a crate or kennel in the back and she loves to lounge next to you while you drive, getting ear scratches and (usually) falling asleep with her head on the arm rest.  

Miso has met the pet chickens in her foster home and, although friendly-seeming and curious, she gets very excited when they run around. (The same goes for kitties.) This may mean that she has a higher prey drive that may need to be tempered in order for her to live peacefully and safely in a house with other non-dog pets. 

She is currently doing great going potty outside- often completing her business very quickly with a prompt or two. But this is a work in progress and will still require consistent attention to master. She also is learning to sit nicely and wait for her food, to keep 4 paws on the floor when she wants attention, coming when called over, leaving things alone that she would prefer to eat (like dirty socks) and relaxing comfortably when strange people and dogs walk by. Since Miso still tends to get super excited at the very fact that there is a real, live human being who wants to hang out with her, or people or dogs nearby that could be new friends, all of this training will likely take quite a bit of repetition and reinforcement for her to become consistent with. But, so far, Miso is just a huge, goofy, sweet, potato-shaped ball of delight to be around. 

Miso has played with other friendly dogs both bigger and smaller than herself. In the beginning, she can sound a bit growly and may come on a bit too strongly to other, smaller, dogs. But she tends to quickly mellow out and enjoy the company of running around with new buddies. 

Because she doesn’t really know her own size and strength, a family with kids older than 5 will likely be the best fit for this gal. She would also love a home with another dog to play and romp with. A calm, confident, older dog sibling could also go a far way in helping Miso learn to be more confident herself- assuming that the same dog can also handle the puppy energy she brings along with her. Living situations that come with breed, size or noise restrictions will not work for Miso. 

All of our foster puppies are consistently worked with from day 1 using hand feeding techniques, treat balls with their kibble inside and toys that are designed to encourage them to use their minds smelling and problem solving skills. They love to figure out puzzles and always enjoy relaxing with a good stuffed kong or a frozen licky mat after a  long walk or romp outside.

We work very hard to encourage positive socialization and friendly adaptive skills in our foster pups. To the extent they are comfortable and able to handle it, we carefully expose them to the sights/sounds of a busy family household in a more urban environment. (This includes kids and people of all types, cats, small animals and backyard chickens. As appropriate, we also introduce them to friendly neighborhood dogs and people, car rides, different textures and surfaces and other busy environmental stimuli.)

HDDCR requires a spay/neuter contract by the adopter if puppies and kittens in our care are too young for sterilization. This is a form the adopter signs at the time of adoption, confirming that they will get the pet spayed/neutered by a certain date. We will hold a $50 deposit on top of the adoption fee until we receive proof from a veterinarian that the dog was spayed/neutered. The $50 deposit will then be refunded to the adopter.​