Accidentally off-leash - and she was great!!!

Halle really impressed me and I've just got to share!

Yesterday I was super distracted as I was bringing in my groceries and I didn't close the door all the way. Halle spotted the cracked door and decided she'd go check out what was going on outside! I immediately noticed her happily trotting out my door and threw down my groceries to go after her!! The second I was out the door I saw her happily running around sniffing the flowers in my front yard and I frantically yelled, "Halle NO!! Come HERE!!". This is where the little gal made me so proud: she stopped dead in her tracks and came right back to me!! I have been working with Halle on "sit" and "here" (we use "here" instead of "come" in my house), but I have never let her off-leash before without a fence. I was sooo proud of her for minding me and so happy that this little accident ended up not being a big deal at all. She sure is easy to love!!

First trip to the dog park!

When Halle first came to her new foster home it took her a few days to get used to her new GSP foster brother and Labrador sister. By the end of their first week together Halle was doing well with the other dogs, but Halle was away last week, so I planned to reintroduce her to my dogs slowly. She hasn't been well socialized with other dogs, so I expected her to take some time getting used to my dogs again. Boy was I wrong! It took about 30 seconds and a couple of greeting sniffs before Halle was treating my dogs like old pals.

Since Halle did so well getting reacquainted with my dogs we decided to let her tag along on our weekly trip to a big, fenced-in dog park. We weren't expecting much and we were prepared to leave quickly if she wasn't ready to be off-leash with other pups, but we were pleasantly surprised by this little gal! We stayed at the dog park for an hour and she was fine the whole time!! She wasn't too interested in playing with other dogs, but she was okay with off-leash greetings (sniffs) from other dogs, and she was very happy to trot around the park taking in all the sights and smells. At one point a group of pups playing chase ran over in her direction and she briefly joined them! It was really excited to see her join in on the fun! She stuck pretty close to her people most of the time we were there. When we sat down she stayed near us and when we walked around the park she'd follow us.

We will continue to work on teaching Halle how to play with other dogs and hopefully she'll be a fun-loving puppy playmate soon!

Sleeping on the stairs

Who needs a dog bed when you fit perfectly on a step? :) Halle loves to sleep on my stairs and I finally got a picture of her doing it last night. Halle's foster brother and sister are way too big to fit on a step, but she's just a little gal and fits perfectly!! We think its pretty cute. :)

Getting settled in...

Halle is settling in well in her new foster home. She LOVES her new foster parents and wants to be by their side or in their laps as often as possible. Her love of people extends far beyond just her foster parents though. She loves everybody!! Halle went to the vet on Monday and she greeted every person that walked in the door with a wagging tail and an invitation to pet her. She is not the kind of dog that jumps up on you and tries to lick your face off, she is more of a, "Here I am. I'll just stand her and smile and wag my tail, and if you'd like to pet me that would be lovely!" kind of gal. :)

All dogs have to learn how to appropriately socialize with other dogs and Halle doesn't seem to have previously learned how to do that. That's okay though, because she's got a Labrador foster sister and a GSP foster brother who are going to help her learn! She's still a bit unsure of her fellow pups, but everyone is peacefully co-existing for now. There are a few "getting-to-know-you" sniffs taking place, but for the most part Halle keeps some breathing room between her and the other 4-leggers in the house. She's getting more and more curious about the other dogs and I can see her working up her courage to go interact with them, but we're taking it slow and letting her learn at her own pace. :)

Halle is definitely not an exuberant, high-energy, GSP. She loves it in the house and she loves to be with her people. She's not the kind of dog that you need to run 4 miles everyday just so they will go to bed at night (Halle's foster brother is that kind of dog!!). She likes to be outside if you are outside with her, but when you come in she'd very much prefer to come in with you than to stay in the yard by herself. :) Halle would make a great companion pet. This girl is looking for her new best friend and she's got tons of love to give to whoever that may be!! :)

This is the sweet, young face
(with very clean teeth!) of Miss Halle!

Meet Halle!

Halle is a sweet, young German Shorthaired Pointer. She is a small gal, weighing in at a little over 30lbs right now. Halle's age is estimated to be about 1 year old, but she could easily be younger than that and she might still be growing. Time will tell! :) Halle was spayed last week and is not yet feeling up to playing with the other dogs in her foster home, but she is very happy to snuggle with her new foster parents. She loves nothing better than climbing into a lap and letting somebody pet on her. :) Halle is very affectionate and is happiest when she gets to hang out with her foster parents, but she'll settle for a nap in her crate if she has to. She doesn't particularly want to get in her crate, but with a little nudge she goes right in and lays down. :) Halle seems mostly house-trained. She doesn't know exactly how to tell us that she needs out quite yet, but we are learning to read her cues and I don't think it will be more than a day or two before we all understand each other. :) Luckily, she never makes a mess in her crate (even when she's in there all night). Halle doesn't seem to know any commands, but she is very happy to learn, especially if you have a treat in your hand!

This little sweetheart is not a high-energy dog, as many GSP's can be. She is a pretty mellow gal, which makes her a great in-door dog! She may be young, but she doesn't act like the average, unruly puppy. She hasn't chewed on anything, or gotten herself into any other mischief either! Given her small size, she would probably do well living in an apartment or any other "no-backyard" housing.

To meet Halle contact the GSP Rescue of Texas at:
http://www.texasgsp.org/