Casey Liut, Iggy's new mom, answered our questions about how Iggy is fitting in since his adoption in March.
Why Iggy?
I have always had a love for shepherds as I had one growing
up. My husband has always had a love for Rottis, so when we read about the shep/Rotti cross, it perked our interest. After we read his bio, we
became really excited—he sounded like such a laid-back giant
goofball! He had also been living with a cat, which was a bonus for us
as we already have three cats in the house. When we finally got to meet him
and see just what a happy-go-lucky, playful dog he was, we were in love!
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| Iggy is a great photo model! |
We also knew we
didn't want to do the "puppy stage" but wanted a younger dog that could
keep up with our busy lifestyle. Iggy's bio suggested he was the perfect fit.
How is he fitting in?
He
has fit in quite well. He has always been very respectful of our cats
(we have two senior citizens). Iggy does get bullied by our youngest cat—the cat will block Iggy from going upstairs or will drink from Iggy's
water dish and not allow him near it until he is finished. Iggy is
quite content to be the low man on the totem pole and will just cry
if the cat is blocking him, so we know to go and move the cat.
Did he make friends with the members of the household and/or neighbourhood?
He
has made many friends! He gets along with our friend's border collie,
Tobey, as they are the same age. The two of them rip around my friend's
farm for hours. They go over horse jumps together and continue
chasing each other even in the house! Iggy gets groomed by my
stepsister and he has made lots of friends at her shop and gets along
with everyone he meets. He is quite loved by his aunties and
grandparents and is spoiled rotten every time he is with them. My stepsister's dog and he play well together. He mostly plays, and she tries
to herd him, but he doesn't care!
What's his favourite place in the house?
I think his
favourite place is our living room couch. Every afternoon I come home, and
this is where he can be found. He is also quite fond of our bedroom and
will lie on the bed at night and watch TV with us.
What is his favourite toy?
Iggy's
all-time favourite toy is his red dog that his foster mom left with
him. Although any new toy becomes the instant flavour of the day, he
always goes back to this toy, especially at 10:30 at night when he tries to convince you that you do indeed want to play with him and not go to bed!
I
will say he does appear to have a favourite outdoor toy—his Wubba Kong. He loves this one most as it has a very distinctive and loud squeak, and he loves playing fetch with it! It is a more "obnoxious" toy, so it
doesn't come inside the house, as it is also generally slobbery by the
time he's done!
How is his walking?
Iggy has much improved with walking
on the leash and goes for two to three walks a day. I did a lot of work with
him on the umbilical training and going through the kids' playground—he picked
up quite quickly to follow, as he didn't know what way we were going
and enjoys jumping objects and even going down the slide! I think we
will be trying out some agility in the near future! He has also become a
great running partner when we can run—stays right beside me and does
not try to cut me off! We are starting to wean him off his Gentle Leader
(which he quite detests!) and walking with a collar.
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| Iggy is focusing on a treat |
Did he pick up any funny habits?
Iggy
does like to watch the squirrels and even the birds as they fly
overhead, but his ultimate favourite animal to chase is bunnies. You
even mention the word "bunna," and he's on guard looking for one! He does
try to sneak up on them, not realizing they can see the
80 lb dog. But he tries really hard to be quiet and stealthy! I doubt
he wants to hurt the "bunnas"—he mostly just likes the fact that they are fun to
chase.
Iggy will steal wood from the woodpile to play with at
times. I suppose he figures we have created a giant stickpile just
for him.
As I said, he is not a fan of his Gentle Leader, likely because it works. He will stick his nose straight in
the air when you put it on him. He makes a face that is hard to
describe, but you can tell he is not happy about it. Almost like he
finds it humiliating to wear it! But once outside, all is forgotten!
Iggy
is big on conversation. He used to back-talk a lot! He seems
to have gotten over that, though. He still does like to
chat, especially about his breakfast! He has learned to speak on
command. As well, he is learning to use his "inside voice" and to "ask
nicely," and he does change his volume and tone when you tell him this!
Iggy has just figured out the "roll over" command and now does it with every
other possible trick for a treat. There is always a "comment" from Iggy when lying down, and then
he will roll over on his own.
His favourite
games are fetch and tug-of-war. He will play both for hours at a
time! He even helps my nephew practise his lacrosse defence—my nephew
gets his stick to cover the ball on the ground and then tries to
keep Iggy off the ball. Quite the challenge for him, but Iggy is happy
to practise with him!
He is quite the water dog—he has been in
my parents' pool several times! He enjoys my friend's pond every time we
are at her farm (no matter how hard we try to keep him out, he always
sneaks a swim in). He has no problems jumping right in and going under
water. He has also enjoyed the lake at the cottage, as there is a long
sandbar, and he can stroll in and touch the ground for some distance.
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| Iggy fits right in. |
Do you have any other funny stories to share?
Iggy
seems to love walking through the park in the afternoon and seeing all
the kids running around. I am sure he would love nothing more than
to have me let him off the leash to run with them. We came across a
toddler yesterday who was a bit unsure of Iggy but wanted to pet him. I
had Iggy lie down, and the child was happy to come up and pet Iggy's back
(Iggy just lay there). The baby then took the leash from my hand and
started to walk away, and Iggy was more than happy to follow him! I held on to the other end just in case!
When we were
packing to leave for a holiday, we were outside loading the trailer, and
Iggy suddenly appeared on the steps looking very upset and guilty. I was just thinking, Hey how did he get out? Then we realized, he went
right through the screen door! We couldn't be mad at him, though. We
instantly realized that with his history of being left behind, it was no
wonder he went through the screen. He was likely worried he would be left
behind again. Poor guy! We just let him hang out in the trailer while
we packed. He enjoyed a nice vacation with Grandma and Grandpa while we
were away and went to work with Grandpa every day and played with
another dog, Jake. Iggy was so tired at the end of the day, Grandpa had
to help him into the truck a few times!
He is also a huge fan of
belly rubs and getting his grooms. He actually jumps back on the
grooming table—something my stepsister tells me no other dog (except
for hers) ever does!
