PRINCE QUIRK

Our Prince is a bag of lovable quirks, so we have gleefully christened him Prince Quirk. He came to us from a loving couple nearly a month ago. Although these seasoned dog lovers were used to multi breed dogs, they were woefully unprepared for Prince Quirk. He had been purchased as the litter runt from a local breeder. By the age three, he had displayed some delightfully bizarre behaviors, including what appeared to be an eating disorder.

When we met Prince Quirk, he appeared to be malnourished despite his owner's diligent attempt to supply him with a wide variety of foods. Eventually, he selected one of the lower quality superstore foods as his favorite. Even then, his eating was sparse. As a result, Prince was quite underweight at 11.5 pounds, and his coat and skin reflected the malnourishment that we see in many rescue dogs whose diets are substandard.

Right before he came to our rescue, Prince's vet diagnosed a longstanding bacterial eye infection that had invaded his upper sinus cavity. Once this condition was treated, Prince's appetite improved and his diet is now healthy and rich in nutrients. Adopters will need to continue Prince on a healthy regimen of high quality protein based foods and Omega 3 and 6 supplements to maintain his skin and coat.

It was reported that Prince was a very light eater, terribly finicky and had to be hand fed. He also had to be alone except for his feeder. We established our ground rules on day one, and by day two Prince had learned that he was given his big meal in the morning in his crate and then dry kibble is available until evening. My dogs stayed in the kitchen with him for their breakfast. Prince looked very forlorn and pathetic and wouldn't eat. Being the typical intelligent Eskie he now knows he eats when the food is put down whether or not there is an audience. His appetite is improving to the point he brings a mouthful of dry kibble to me and drops it at my feet before eating. In another week I will re-weigh him and hope he has gained some weight.

Other dog relationships: What can I say? He's annoys them and they just don't care.

Prince is wonderful to play with and enjoys chasing balls in the backyard. Sometimes he brings them back to me and sometimes he stockpiles them out of reach. He lets me remove the toy from his mouth without protest. He is very fun and funny when he isn't being a brat. He loves to be held.

I have found no true aggression in Prince. He's been picked up, put down, bathed chased and crated. Prince is the consummate manipulator when it comes to pitifulness. He drops and grovels if corrected, if he isn't getting all the attention, if he can't jump and lick me, if the sun doesn't shine. That demeanor would break most hearts. This act is also correctable. He was not abused in his former home.

Prince has come a long way in 8 days of boot camp. He has learned to sit by me if he wants attention. He gets a lot of praise and loving when he does this. I even throw in love and praise on the "sit" command if he regresses to his cowering, pathetic ways as it does count towards his not jumping/licking badge.

All this said Prince can be a great dog with strict, consistent rules. As he has learned the basic rules here he has physically relaxed and played more. Although still bratty, the routine he has to follow with my dogs seems to keep him a little more grounded than when he arrived. Prince should not be the alpha dog to any other person or dog as his wild ways need to be tempered with strong leadership in his pack.

He is on Wellness, Innova or other high quality food. No store bought or human treats or cookies are given. Fresh ground flax seed is added to every dog's meal for the Omega 3 benefits. He will be bathed in a special conditioning shampoo made for his dry skin and fur condition.

Cindy