Finley Care.md

Finley Care.md

Finley Care

Finley is a 7-year-old, 60 lb Keeshond with a laid-back temperament. While he enjoys his walks and playtime, he also loves relaxing and staying cool.

• ❤️ Health

  • 🥣 Allergies
    It has been discovered that Finley had a yeast infection in his ear and has been treated for it via some drops that we got from the store you go to in Littleton. They recommended to finish the bottle. Please add 6 drops per meal (12 a day) into his food.

  • 🐰 Past Medical Issues
    He's neutered and has had a growth removed from his eye and a skin tag from his abdomen. There are no ongoing issues from these procedures.

  • 😷 Medications
    Finley is not on any regular medications.

  • 🏥 Vet
    Finley doesn't have a regular vet in Denver. If necessary, please take him to the nearest recommended vet. His vet in Chicago is My Vet Animal Hospital. Their phone number is 773-235-8387

• 🪥 Hygiene

  • Wipe eye boogers every day.
  • Offer him a dental bone once a day.
  • Brush his teeth as required.

• 👟 Walking

  • Finley needs to go out three times a day, usually for pooping. A 15-minute walk daily is ideal, adjusted for heat due to his thick coat.
  • He enjoys playing fetch but may bring the ball back sometimes unless you have treats.
  • He tends to pee on multiple objects during his walks.
  • Use a chain collar for walks, keeping it moderately tight to control pulling.
  • Finley does enjoy sniffing but he also has the stamina and energy for long walks as long as it is not hot out. He is very much so a snow dog and gets very energized when the temperatures are low. However, a crisp morning or a nice cool evening walk would probably work out well.
  • He does love water, and he likes to take dips into creeks, lakes, etc. He never ventures very far out into the water. He is not one to stray too far away from you, but his recall could use some work. If you have treats on you, he will definitely listen.

• 🍽 Food

  • smallbatchdog: Freeze-dried but transitioning to smallbatchdog frozen raw.
    • Any protein, except for beef. He does not like eating beef.
  • Finley eats twice a day. He generally eats once in the morning whenever we wake up and once after work around 5 PM.
  • He is comfortable with a crate and would be OK to eat his food in it.
  • Occasionally, we make him wait until the food is ready. Indicate readiness with an "ok" command.

• 😴 Sleeping

  • Finley prefers cold spots to sleep, so ensure a cool place is accessible. He usually sleeps on the bathroom floor.

• 😸 Other Animals

  • He's generally friendly but sometimes indifferent, preferring human interaction. He might bark when excited. If dogs get too close to his face, he can become protective due to a past incident.
  • He hasn't had much exposure to small children, so please be sure to keep an eye on him if there are small children around.

• 🏡 Leaving him at Home

  • Finley has some separation anxiety. When leaving, offer him a long-lasting treat or a frozen marrow-bone and put on an audiobook for comfort. When he is experiencing separation anxiety, his breathing gets faster, he starts whining and pouting and sometimes will start barking in protest.
  • You can put any kind of treats with dog peanut butter. I tend to freeze it so that it takes a bit more time for him to get through it.
  • I think if you decide to crate him next to Hazel, he would do better. Also, he is very well behaved when we leave him minus the separation anxiety. The only thing that we personally do is put up barriers to the couches, because he likes to eat his treats on the couches.

• 🎒 Taking him Places

  • Finley enjoys car rides and outings. Ensure he's safely secured during drives.
  • He doesn’t have a harness anymore since he pulls a lot with that. We make him lie down for the ride in which you might have to tell him once or twice, because he gets excited and gets up.

• 💈 Grooming

  • Brush him weekly with a wire brush.
  • I have him scheduled for a groom right before we leave so I think he’ll be fine until we get back. He generally gets professionally groomed once a month.

• 🤪 Quirks

  • Morning excitement often results in foot licking.
  • If you oversleep, expect him to sit beside you and possibly pout.
  • Sometimes in the morning, he will try to hug your legs 🦵
  • He will refuse to go up or down stairs first. He needs encouragement to go first or will follow you.
  • Sometimes he will run into your legs while going down stairs with him. Be careful.
  • When he gets really excited, he does a jump straight up

• 🗣 Language

  • Commands he recognizes include: "Sit", "Lie down", "Paw", "Other paw", "Stay", "Wait", "Come", and "Ok".

• 📞 Contact Info

  • Primary: Minnie Lee, 303-667-3800
  • Secondary: Tino Espinoza, 303-328-5371

Packing List

• Food & Meds
  • smallbatch lightly cooked food
  • Dental bones: Whimzees
  • Frozen marrow bones
  • Origin freeze-dried treats
  • Ear drops (in case he gets itchy due to allergies)
• Grooming
  • Washcloths
  • Toothbrush
  • Toothpaste
  • Wire brush
  • Metal comb
• Traveling
  • Chain collar
  • Regular leash
  • Snap collar (for day-care)
  • Poop bags
• Sleeping
  • Finley's dog bed
  • Blanket
• Toys
  • 🐛 Caterpillar
  • Kong

Allergies

• Please show me in person exactly where on his ear to monitor for any itchy spots and how I would apply ear drops if he needs them.

Walking

• Does he enjoy and is able to do longer walks/hikes? Gigi goes sniffing for ~30 mins a day and Hazel walks 1-3 miles a day in the neighborhood/parks currently. As it gets cooler we will transition to hiking and doing longer hikes. Finley can come with one or both of them, which would suit him better? I can also try him out with both and gauge his energy level based on weather. Do you know at what temperature he might become more energetic?
• Does he like to and is able to swim? Is it ok to take him to the Chatfield Dog Park to swim? Is he reasonably behaved off leash with decent recall?

Food

• Are his two meals breakfast and dinner?
• How many patties does he eat and how do you usually prepare it?
• I only have freezer space for maybe 1-2 weeks of food at a time. I can get more from Hero's Pets in Littleton as needed but one of us will need to place an order for them ahead of time bc not a lot of places here keep the smallbatch lightly cooked in stock.
• I'd like to offer him a crate and at least feed him in it to give everyone personal eating space. Would that be ok with you and him?

Leaving him at Home

• What behaviors does he do out of separation anxiety? (barking, pacing, chewing, etc)
• What kinds of foods are ok to stuff in his kong?
• Do you think crating him next to Hazel in her crate would make his separation anxiety better or worse? Or gating them in together in the living room

Taking him Places

• Does he come with a specific seatbelt setup? I have a Kurgo tether he can use, but it's not crash tested and needs to attach to a harness.

Grooming

• Please show me how to brush him with the wire brush in person.
• Do I do his monthly hair trimming or does he need to go to a professional groomer?