Meet the Kiz

[ParNone]

This is Greta, as she appeared on petfinder.

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She'd been at the shelter for a few months. A kill shelter. I had every intention of going to Collie rescue for my next dog, but I was perusing petfinder and loved the look of a cute lab/terrier mix puppy. I also was intrigued by Greta's sister, Gretchen. I kind of passed on by Greta, because her picture didn't really grab me. Well I toodled on over to the shelter. The adorable lab/terrier puppy was of course gone, but Gretchen was there. I had them bring her out so I could get to know her. We didn't click. She wasn't paying me any attention. So we went back and I thought what the heck, let me meet Greta too.

We connected instantly. She had that look in her eyes that reminded me of Oz. So I could tell she was incredibly smart. She was also very friendly, outgoing and affectionate. Very kissy. She'd run off to greet people at the fence, then when I'd call, she'd come running straight back to me. She's a character too. I was squatted down on one of the recalls and she launched herself at me to land in my lap and we both tumbled backwards onto the ground. LOL I realized real quickly that this girl is something special and I couldn't leave her there on death row. I think she may be a GSD/Collie/Heeler mix, so it's almost like getting a Collie again. But I totally chose her based on personality and smarts. And look what I discovered when I got her home and started taking pics of her.

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She's absolutely beautiful. With her ears down, it didn't come shining thru at first. Took me two days, but I finally decided on Kiz/Kizzie for her name. Started out as a cross between Kismet and Kissy. Then after some research, I discovered Kizzie means light of heart and there's also a great character from Roots named Kizzy, so I can keep my TV/Movie/Literature theme of dog names going. Seems perfect for her.

I can't believe so many people passed this girl by. She is a keeper. No potty accidents. Not destroying anything. Soft and gentle mouth, not nippy or bitey. Calm in the house, but playful and can run like the wind outside. Not barky so far. She's picking up on everything I'm teaching her really fast. Except catching. She catches like Maddie and just lets the stuffie bounce off her forehead. :) So I'm not sure if she'll be a frisbee dog like Oz and Gull, but I'm thinking she might be really good at dog agility or maybe flyball. She's real attached to the ball and is getting the concept of fetch already. Next step is to get her into obedience class to continue socializing and training, then we'll see about agility or flyball maybe. So more pics of her with her ball in next post.

[ParNone]

Here she is with her ball:

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[Karen]

She looks like maybe Collie/Akita - and oh, those ears! She was definitely waiting for you, Par! Congratulations!

[lizbud]

Hello Kiz,

www, she's perfect and she is beautiful.:love: Hard to believe how she manages to fold those ears back.:)

[Alysser]

Oh Kizzie is precious!! I love her Ears! beautiful, congrats!:D

[dukedogsmom]

She is beautiful and sounds like a special girl. Congrats!

[Casper]

Kiz is SUCH a pretty girl. :love: Glad you decided to go ahead and meet her after her sister ended up not being a match. Isn't it funny how things work out? :)

Welcome to PT, Kiz!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Congrats!!!:D She's gorgeous.:) I'm so glad that you found a good match and that she's already doing well in your home.:)

[ParNone]

Thanks everybody! We're working on manners stuff, like four on the floor, especially when I'm eating, but she's way better behaved then I ever expected from a dog I didn't get a chance to raise as a puppy.

Since I finally decided on a name, I got her ID tag today. In the house I'm at now, there's a very small section of the fence that's only 4 ft. Was never a worry with Oz and Gull. They couldn't have jumped it, even if they had wanted too, but this girl can sky. She hasn't shown any interest in jumping the fence so far, but she could sail over it easily, if she wanted to. She's pretty much been a velcro dog so far, but I feel better that she's got ID on now.

[Bengalz]

A Perfect M(C)atch:love::D:cool: and a beauty too. Her ears are amazing and they suit her well - she is gorgeous!!

Congratulations Par - you need this love in your life and I am positive all your RB doggies are smiling and wagging their tails knowing that mom has a new doggie and bestest friend to love her :love:.

Welcome to PT Kiz - you are one lucky pup:D.

[ramanth]

Congrats!! Kiz is a stunner! These ears definitely pop! :love::cool::D

[CountryWolf07]

Love the name! Congratulations on your new addition. I bet she was sent to you by Oz and Gull. :) Everything happens for a reason.

[cassiesmom]

Hello, Kiz, pretty girl! I'm glad you have a wonderful new home! I am sending you a big Welcome Home hug!

I'm sure you will do great in your obedience classes, and you will also have all kinds of fun with your new family! That is a good story for the importance of having an ID tag, too. Your person decided you should wear one and I hope you never, ever need it - but just in case.

One more Welcome Home hug: (((HUG)))!

[Scooter's Mom]

I think she is lovely. I couldn't have resisted that sweet face.
I showed her to my husband and he commented on her ears being so large. I think he'd spend all of is time petting them! :)

[shais_mom]

She is just GORGEOUS!! :D) I :love::love::love::love: her! And her name!!
I love your backstory as well. I love hearing how "the one" strikes us. Kinda like when I found my Brodie.
Looking forward to hearing more about her. Love her ears! :D):p

[wolf_Q]

Wow, she is gorgeous! I love her coloring and those ears. My first thought was akita/malinois. Love the name too. :)

[Roxyluvsme13]

She is beautiful! What a happy girl :).

[snakemama]

She is so beautiful! Congrats on such a splendid find, she is lucky to have you!

[Varga]

Oh wow, I thought Taggart's ears are big :eek: Those are huge! Make sure she doesn't lift off next time there is a strong wind, haha.

I also think there might be some Akita in there. At least the photo of her sitting looks very much like an Akita. Either way, she is extremely adorable and just from the pictures I can tell she has plenty of personality to spare! :love:

[AdoreMyDogs]

Beautiful! Congrats! Love her name (but I've loved all your pets' names!!) :)

[IRescue452]

OMG I want that dog! She reminds me of one of my favorite wild creatures, the African wild dog. I'm glad she's found a loving home. I agree she does kind of have an akita look to her whatever she may be.

[ParNone]

Thanks everybody for the compliments on my girl! She's keeping me hopping right now. :) Her personality is coming shining thru as she gets more comfortable and she's quite the character. She now yodels. Maddie use to yodel when she was happy, so I'm taking that as a good sign. She's caught her hedgie toy in the air, 4 times. So our frisbee hope is still alive. Big Yeah! Sometimes when she runs, she bounces like a deer. Very hilarious. She jumped up onto the bathroom counter yesterday to check out the adorable dog in the mirror. :) I don't think banana is going to be her thing. I gave her a bite from my smoothie and she was rolling it around on the floor like it was a toy. She had it smooshed all over her paw and the floor. I alternated between laughter and tears on that one. I have to keep reminding myself that she's not going to be Gull. She's going to be her own unique, special self and the discovery of who she is, is half the fun. And I also remind myself I cried the first 2 weeks I had Gull, because he wasn't Maddie. So here we are full circle.

This is the first rescue dog I've had and so far it seems very much like having a puppy. She's learning manners and her name and basic obedience right now. She's picking up on everything very fast though. I just can't believe somebody had her before and didn't even teach her to sit. She's so smart and is like a lil' sponge, with everything new you toss at her. So much potential they just wasted. shaking head. The only issue we're having is she's having a lil' separation anxiety, which I'm guessing is because she was abandoned. I never really had that issue with any of my other 4. I've been building up her time away from me. So hopefully we can work up to her being secure alone. I guess if worse came to worse, I could get a second dog.

So my vet thinks she's a Malinois/Basenji mix and after researching Basenjis online, I think he's right. She's got a lot of Basenji features. The wrinkly forehead. Her coloring and body look very much Basenji like and her coat is low shedding. That was a nice surprise after years of having to de-Collie-hair the house real quick, whenever anybody visited. While she does have a deep bark (the Malinois part I'm sure), she's very quiet most of the time, but she's got that adorable Basenji yodel (Hopefully I can get that on video at some point). She is a hunter. She's come close to nabbing a squirrel in the backyard, twice now. Boy, were they shocked. They were so use to Gull, who'd bark and announce he was coming as soon as he cleared the back door and was too slow to catch'em even without the announcement, that they'd mill around on the ground in the backyard and let him get really close to'em before they'd move. They were totally caught off guard when she came sailing out the back door after them. She got between the one and the tree so fast, you could see the panic on his face. The only thing that saved him was she had to slow up enough to duck under the swing in her pursuit of him. She's bolted after'em while we're out walking too. Onleash of course, luckily for the squirrels. :) So I'm having to shift my mindset from 10 years of having Collies, back to like having Cairns again. No offleash and working on waiting at doors and gates for Kizzie.

She's such a great dog. I love her to pieces already. I'll keep adding updates on our progress in here. And I'll post some more pics and vids too.

[ParNone]

Lil' update on the Kiz. Crating her while I'm gone, is a no go. Guess a couple of months or more couped up in the shelter was enough of being trapped for a lifetime for her. I left her last week to go out for 3 hrs and when I got home, she'd bent the bars of the crate, pulled part of my bedspread into the crate and chewed it up, knocked everything off the nitestand and managed to get the crate liner in the crate and under the crate across the room. We've been having more success with her being alone in the backyard. Lots of squirrels and bugs to watch and hunt and she loves Charlie, the Aussie mix next door. They touch noses thru the fence. So far (fingers crossed), there's been no barking or damage when left alone outside. She seems calm about it. So my sister helped me install a dog door yesterday. It leads to my closed off utility room. Once I've decided she's trustworthy in the house alone, I'll open the utility room door to give her full access to the rest of the house.

One hot dog later and she got the concept of going in and out of the dog door. Here's a few photos of her, with new love. The dog door. I was making a game of it. That last photo is right before she plowed me over and we ended up in a heap on the ground, with me at her mercy as she licked me to death. :)

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She loves laying behind my boxwood shrubs.

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More photos coming in the next post.

[ParNone]

This is the fence she shares with Charlie. No sign of him today, so she's headed back to me.

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We're making a lot of progress on catch and fetch and I've got her going after frisbee rollers now. So one step closer to frisbee. Yeah! She got her rabies shot last week, so I've gotta sign her up for obedience this week. We'll see how that goes and than decide on agility.

She was not a fan of the car, so we made a trip to Sonic and I got a kids meal for her. One Jr. Burger later and she now thinks the car is the best. thing. ever! She hops right in now. She also got a Justice League toy, which she loves. We will be going back to Sonic to see what toy we can get next. :) Here's a couple of pics of her with it.

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As I''ve been typing up these posts, I bet she's been in and out the dog door 15 times. She runs out to check to see if Charlie's outside, than she runs back inside to see if I'm doing anything exciting yet. She's gonna be pooped tonite. I think I'm in love with the dog door too. :)

[Karen]

Oh, such fun you are having with her! Thanks for sharing her with us!

[shais_mom]

:)
love this update!

[cassiesmom]

Hi, Kiz! You did a great job of learning how the dog door works! I like your ears, and I like your darker face and your brown and white coat colors! I like pictures #2 and #3 of you demonstrating your dog door, because you look so happy! This update makes my whole face go like this :D Could you please have your mom give you a big hug from me? I bet you will do great in your obedience classes!

Thank you,
Elyse

[kaycountrygal]

I somehow missed this entire thread until now. What a good dog Kizzie is! I must say she has the biggest ears ever; she's sweet. Can you imagine (I'm sure you can) how great it is for her to be able to go in and out of your house and not be in a small area at the animal shelter? I bet she loves being outside and everything with you. Glad to hear everything is working out. It sounds as if you two are meant for each other. Love all the pics.

[robinh]

She is gorgeous! The reason she was passed up was that she was waiting for you. They know the right person. Congratulations!

[ParNone]

Thanks ya'll!

I think I've found her song. Crocodile Rock. When she gets really excited in play, she gets mouthy. A bit of the Malinois coming out I'm thinking. We've been working on more appropriate play and she's getting better. I've started calling her gator girl though. And today I was singing Crocodile Rock and she loved the Yaaahhh. YahYahYahYah. Yaaaahhh part. :)

I've really gotta get some video of her playing. She's vedy entertaining to watch.

[Vette]

That is one cute dog!

i love her giant ears an little freckles on her legs ^^

[micki76]

Par, she's gorgeous! And yes, she was waiting for you. I always think we end up with the furkids we have because that's how it's supposed to be. :)

[cloverfdx]

Hi there Kiz :). Par she is just gorgeous and meant to be I think. I too can see Maligator in her ;).

[ParNone]

Thanks guys! Hah Maligator. Love it! I'm going to have to use that cloverfdx. :)

Kiz caught the frisbee twice today. Very very short lil' catches, like a foot away, but I was beyond ecstatic. I'm sure the neighbors a couple blocks over know how happy I was too. :)

We start obedience on the 28th. I've already been teaching her quite a few commands on our own, but it'll be nice to keep her socialized around other people and dogs and introduce some distraction. After that, agility here we come I think.

[ParNone]

It's Kisbee Time!! :cool:


http://youtu.be/Kyo6ru2H55k

[Karen]

Good job, Kiz, you're getting it! :)

[cassiesmom]

Good job, Kiz, you're getting it! :)

Yay, Kiz! I would love to play Kisbee with you! This is what happened to my face as I watched you play => :D!

[WILDCATS]

:love::love: So glad you rescued Kiz she looks so happy and full of fun, a lovely ending for a beautiful girl.:love:

[RobiLee]

Hi Par!! Kiz is absolutely gorgeous!! I love hearing about her and seeing the photos of her. Sounds like you two are getting along great and I look forward to hearing and seeing lots more photos of your adventures with her. Welcome to Pet Talk, Kiz!!

[ParNone]

Wow it's been almost a year since I've posted about Kiz. Bad Poster *whack* :) So I now have another dog from the same shelter I got Kiz. Huckleberry, my lil' Texas Heeler. Such a sweetheart. I'll do a separate post about him a lil' later. In honor of one year together with Kizzie though, I wanted to pop in and share a lil' music video for the occasion. What a wonderful girl she is. She came into my life at just the right time and shined her bright light of a personality all over it.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcEUurWYytk

[lizbud]

Looks like Kiz has really blossomed in your care. She and Huckleberry make the perfect pair.:love::love:

[ParNone]

Thanks Liz!

I have a friend, who refers to them as the "snack pack" version of Oz and Gull. :)