Adoption Update: Spartan!

An update from Spartan’s forever family!

It has been exactly one year since we drove to Lethbridge to meet the little Boston Terrier that has changed our lives.

Spartan was immediately in love with Kevin, and gave him kisses the second we walked into his foster home.

That hasn’t changed at all – Kevin is still his favourite human ever, and is never very far from his side – actually, his lap. The best spot in the world is in his Daddy’s lap as he works on the computer.

Spartan has the amazing ability to sleep for hours at a time. Once he has greeted us as we come in the door, and gotten his share of cuddles, he promptly zonks out in Daddy’s lap in the chair by the window.

He loves the black and white zebra blanket that is always on the couch in the TV room – we call it his camouflage spot, because when we first got him, he didn’t really come when we called his name, and we would search the whole house for him before we would notice his little ears poking above the blanket.

In May we celebrated his 4th birthday with some new squeaky toys (his favourites) and some Greenies (his other favourites). He is still shy around other dogs but is getting better at being around them as he gets more confident.

His first Halloween, I carved 2 large jack-o-lanterns. Once the trick-or-treaters were finished, I set them both on a low shelf. An hour later I heard something going on in the TV room and when I checked, he had eaten the face off both pumpkins. He looked guilty but happy with stringy pumpkin hanging from his mouth.

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Spartan has a huge yard to play in, but mostly he lays in the sunny spots. Every now and then we play squeaky-toy fetch with him – except he doesn’t fetch so we need a few toys to keep him running back and forth. You always know the game is over when he runs after the squeaky toy and grabs it and then runs into the house.

He is very funny with his squeaky toys – he forgets all about them for days at a time, then suddenly you will hear squeaking and jingling as he prances back and forth in the house, proudly showing it off. He doesn’t want to play – he just wants you to know he has it.

For Christmas I surprised both Spartan and his Daddy with a great gift – a BuddyRider (we saw it on Dragon’s Den and I secretly ordered one here). This cool invention allows the dog to ride with you on your bike, but between your arms over the handlebars so he can see the world around him, receive lots of attention from other folks on the bike path, and keep an eye out for rabbits. Spartan has seen miles and miles of the river valley without ever having to break a sweat.

Spartan almost never barks. When he first barked at the guy that reads the meters, we didn’t even recognize it as being our dog because we had never heard that sound come out of him before. Even now, the barking is so rare that it surprises us when it happens.

He has never tried to break out of his huge yard (he knows a good yard when he sees it) and never digs in the garden nor tramples flowers.

He has his own doggy door now, which gives him full run of the house and yard. Even this summer when we were working really long hours and had to leave him alone for long stretches, we would come home and nothing would be out of place: nothing chewed, no messes, no garbage digging. He is so well-behaved that we feel as lucky as he must feel to be sharing our lives with him.

He still hates thunder – the poor boy is terrified of extreme weather – but we purchased a Thunder Shirt which is supposed to relieve anxiety. And it seems to help calm him down.

He is very good about not begging for dinner while we eat – okay, he does always check it out but once we say “Not for puppies” he goes and eats his kibble. We have supper together every night.

The best time of all is when we settle down for the evening to watch TV – he jumps up and cuddles and kisses like crazy until he finally relaxes, dozing off with his head resting on a warm arm or leg, nestled in his zebra blanket.

The thing that makes him the cutest dog we have ever owned is his tongue. If he has been sleeping, it starts to hang out. So when he wakes up and looks at you, he is as cute as a cartoon dog – long tongue hanging out until he has his first drink of water.

We are so appreciative to the Boston Terrier Rescue Canada for helping Spartan out of a bad situation and setting him on the path that brought him into our home. Our days are full of smiles and his gentle spirit. He makes us laugh, and when he pours on the cute, he breaks our hearts. He is sweet and affectionate and well-behaved and quiet and clean and we simply couldn’t be happier. He makes coming home something we both look forward to, and makes our home a happier place to be.

Happy one-year anniversary, today, Spartan!
Love, your two Dads