The first time I saw Chief my heart did flip-flops. Even from a distance I could see that he is special. I stood and watched hm move about the yard for a while. He didn’t seem quite right. That’s not unusual for new arrivals at Homeward Bound, of course. Many of our dogs have been through a lot by the time they make their way here. I found out later that Chief had endured the soul-crushing experience of being dumped by his owner.
The next day I went looking for Chief in the kennels. Turns out he was not at all happy to see me as evidence by the furious barking that greeted me from the other side of the door. I paused and then headed back out knowing that Chief and I would meet again … and often. Many new dogs at HB don’t much care for me. I’m used to that. Some, like Chief, don’t seem to care much for man in general. I later went to his kennel a couple times to take him out but he clearly wasn’t ready for that so went on my way.
What Chief didn’t know at the time is that he would be seeing me every day whether he like it or not. I started having one of the women volunteers hook him up and then pass the leash to me outside. Sure, I probably could have leashed him myself but I prefer to respect their fears and ease into it.
On our first walks Chief mostly smelled everything around him and ignored me completely. I’m used to that too. I’d take him to the big yard to make it easy for him to avoid me. He was good at it. I slipped him the occasional cookie to let him know I wasn’t completely evil. The first couple times I had him out I even let someone else return him to his kennel. After that he started jumping off his bed when he saw me in the kennels. The next time we went out, he leaned against while I was talking to someone. But still no eye contact, and he would play in the yard with me as he did with the women.
I had been wanting to see if Scrappy would play with Chief. Scrappy tends to like big dogs and Chief looks to be part Lab and part Great Pyrenees. Maybe. Anyway, he’s a big boy. Today I got my chance as we were doing dog testing with our recent arrivals. Scrappy was very interested from the start — perhaps overly interested for Chief’s taste. Chief always seemed interested in other dogs but now that one was in front of him perhaps he wasn’t so sure. Patience ruled and eventually Chief started enjoying himself. As did Scrappy. It was immensely gratifying to see Chief so relaxed and enjoying life.
ROB & DOG 
[…] decided to introduce Yule to Chief (see previous post) this time. They are similar sizes, and because they are both part Great Pyrenees I figured they […]
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Great patience on your part, Rob. I suspect that soon you’ll have Chief in your back pocket. I love the photos, especially the one showing Scrappy with his head underneath Chief’s chin! So sweet! ❤
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Today he was out in a yard and saw me coming. He ran to the fence with a smile on his face. First time that happened.
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Aw, that must have made your heart swell! 😀
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You did great! Glad that Chief is doing so good and hope that he gets a forever home soon!
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Thank you. Everybody here loves Chief. I’d take him home if I could.
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You are so wonderfully patient Rob! Love all these action shots. Love Scrappy-doo!!
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Thank you. You’re very kind.
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The photos are great. I could almost hear Scrappy and Chief laughing and talking to each other. Hope Chief finds a good loving home where he will never be discarded again.
I have to say, you are awesome at catching those action shots along with the wonderful expressions in the pups faces. Really love your photos.
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Thank you very much. I have to get Scrappy back over for a play date soon. The rain has made that difficult.
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This was such a great experience yesterday, to see Chief so happy was just heart warming! Love these photos Rob!
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Your presence probably had a lot to do with Chief getting relaxed enough to play.
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nice to see the progression on getting Chief out into the yard to accept you. It looks like they are great playmates. The pictures really show the size of Chief. He is a LARGE dog. Could be part great Dane.
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Very exciting! Chief is pretty big, for sure. I don’t have to reach over to put my hand on his head.
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Your approach to Chief was identical to my approach to Ray. I saw him daily and respected his “space” and, after a few weeks, he walked over to me and touched his nose to mine! You can probably imagine the emotions subsequently triggered! Without that approach, and his subsequent response, his book “Who Said I was up for Adoption?” would never have been written. Keep up the excellent work. Regards. Colin. 🙂
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Colin, it’s amazing how simple so much of this work is. But not always easy despite that. It can be a struggle not to overreact when a dog finally lets you in.
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I think these two could be very good friends. In several of the pictures they seem to really like each other. Wonderful story and pictures as always. I hope Chief finds a loving home soon. Maybe with you??
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I think they would be friends much like Scrappy and Yule are buddies.
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