The Good Life Rescue

19/01/2025

So do you have a plan in place in the event Tik Tok goes down again?! 😆

How about adding a few more enrichment activities to your dogs day!

When we think about providing fun and activities for our dogs, many people immediately think their dog needs to just play fetch, play with other dogs and run.
Those are just basic ideas to meet a dog's needs and doesn't over variety that your dog may crave. This is also a great way to help a dog with separation anxiety settle and feel safe or help stimulate that high energy dog.....or those teenagers. 🙂

🧩🦴Canine enrichment does come in many forms and a multitude of benefits to meet all of your dogs needs!

🔹Mental health: Enrichment can help reduce stress and anxiety, and improve resilience.

🔹Physical health: Enrichment can help manage a dog's energy and prevent undesirable behaviors.

🔹Social skills: Enrichment can help dogs build confidence and interact with other dogs and people.

🔹Bonding: Enrichment can help strengthen the bond between a dog and their owner.

🧩🧠Types of dog enrichment:

🔹Social enrichment: Activities that allow dogs to spend time with other dogs and people. Simply observing is fine too!

🔹Cognitive enrichment: Activities that engage a dog's brain, such as puzzles, hide and seek, and nose work.

🔹Physical enrichment: Activities that provide physical stimulation, such as playing fetch, tug of war, swimming and event agility.

🔹Sensory enrichment: Activities that engage a dog's senses, such as smelling things, chewing, lick mats or listening to sounds. (Dog TV on YouTube is a great resource!)

When introducing any type of new enrichment, there may be some aspects you may have to help teach a dog to work through it.

🐶 Share your favorite enrichment activities in the comments to help give others a few fun ideas to try!

19/01/2025

🚨Time for action!🚨

The hearing for these two individuals that hog tied a dog with zip ties and thrown in a canal to die, is Wednesday 1/22!

It's been continued twice and this is a time to be an advocate for this poor dog. He didn't deserve to die!

The court house will be closed Monday, but please take a few minutes to call or email the county attorney.

Remind him this dog's life mattered, we won't forget and the laws for animal cruelty need to be upheld...

Contact information is in the comments.

https://www.ksnblocal4.com/2024/08/23/st-paul-man-woman-charged-dogs-drowning-death/?fbclid=IwY2xjawH6HfNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHZSk-p7NOwBFhTjUDqQ5V66ulqtGZvqC8v70swwFw7gSC34mlRN0CISfIA_aem_1BWfKPNiVBwbkODOBgiIsA

A St. Paul man is accused of tying a dog’s legs and throwing it into an irrigation canal leading to the dog’s drowning death, court records show.

19/01/2025

🐶 Charlie Tater checking in to say a great big thank you for all his wish list goodies!! 💖

He is very treat motivated so those are coming in handy!! He’s probably never had a toy so he’s been figuring out that those are pretty nice too, along with having his very own bed and blanket!! We plan to test out the snuffle mat today!! We are so grateful to everyone who purchased from his list!!

Thank you! Thank you! He’s doing great and a fantastic snuggler!! If your name was on a gift tag, here’s a major shout out!! Bonnie Nurnberg, Julie McGooden, Marcia Ward, Marcia Adams, Roxie Gerdes, Ann Kildare, and Paula Rathman.

19/01/2025

Baby Moosey 🫎 update!

He’s feeling better ♥️ his pain is under control; hes no longer drooling or stiff in neck & jaw.

Dr Brandon thinks it’s all possibly liver shunt related but I’ll be honest, I can’t spell or even say the word he used 🙃🤪 but he said it’s a classic sign.
They believe he’s got a steroid deficiency and he is now back on pred. After bloodwork tomorrow we are hopeful he gets to come home 🙏🏼🥹

We’ve determined he’s going to be a medical and emotional rollercoaster, but we are here for it no matter what he needs.
We are very thankful for the support and love for Moose and for Beebout Veterinary Medical Center knowing when we call about Moose, it’s serious and squeezing him in to ensure we can figure out his latest mystery.

Our little peanut isn’t available for adoption and he might not ever be, but he’s very spoiled in his foster home and his mom is prepared to love him through whatever comes their way 🐾❤️

19/01/2025

These 4 kids joined the pack today! 🥰🐾

Welcome Brisbane, Poppy, Gumbo, and Jambalaya! 🥳

Thank you networkers, transporters, and fosters for saving their lives! ❤️

18/01/2025

💔 Anxiety in dogs 💔

Separation anxiety is the most common layer of anxiety in rescue dogs. Left untreated can feed into a wide variety of other behaviors.

🔹Common signs:
-Barking/whining when separated from humans or kenneled.
-Destruction of kennels, furniture or other tangible objects.
- Pacing, panting, drooling, whale eyes and tense body.
- Persistent need to follow you from room to room or give you no personal space.
- Refusal to eat or use the bathroom without you near them.
- Increase of these behaviors and others just as you leave or while you are gone

Even then, there are so many other signs depending on the individual dog and this can also be accompanied by some resource guarding behaviors.

🔹The 3's philosophy is important with the prevention and starting your dog off on the right foot. When bringing home a new foster or adopted dog, wait at least a day or two before really giving them too much freedom - humans by nature are nurturing. Same as our human resource guarding post, it's best to ease into introductions and give them at least a day to decompress.

Reference the post here:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/161mfJHFkh/

🔹There are a few methods to help with separation anxiety, but it will depend on the dog, severity, time and your ability to be consistent.

📊 It is helpful if you are able to collect data on what they are doing as signs for Anxiety, what appears to make them the most anxious AND the duration of how long you are able to be away from them before the behaviors begin. This will give you and any professional you work with a baseline of where you'll need to start!

- Randomly move/put on your shoes, keys, bags while you are home.

- Practice leaving them for small moments to build up to lengthier separations. Check the mail, taking out trash, stepping outside for a few minutes. Sometimes talking to them through the dog is helpful.

- Keep the excitement around leaving or coming home VERY minimal or no interactions at all. No good-bye or hello. Quick treat thrown and leave. Ignore and allow them to settle when you get home.

- Prepare your belongings and put your shoes on in advance. 10 mins, 20 mins? An hour? That will depend on your dog. Remember to keep your anxiety and self through this.

- Kenneling and enrichment, sometimes also in advance. Puzzles, treat dispensing toys and even maybe something that you've recently worn near their kennel for scent. (But far enough they can't get to it) Also may be a good idea to make sure your kennel is escape proof and away from furniture.
Some dogs do well with a covered kennel, some don't. For wire kennels, I've sometimes covered with cardboard instead of a blanket.

- Playing calm music, TV on a timer or Dog TV on YouTube is also helpful for some dogs.

🔹 Separation Anxiety while you are home may feel just as difficult. But some methods above can also be utilized, in addition to:

- Feeding them in a separate room away from you, allow them to remain kenneled for 30 mins after.

- Rotate and take turns with different members of the home providing care. If possible, not just from one person because dogs will latch on and quickly become dependent.

- Even while you are home, give them small times away from you and slowly increase. In another room or kenneled with enrichment or quiet time. Meal times, self care, time with your personal dogs or one on one time with each and maybe even an hour before bed.

- Use your attention to really reinforce them when they are showing calm or self soothing behaviors! Reward the behavior you want to see, especially when working on kenneling.

- Teach them to give you space or distance. 'go away' throw a treat away from you and ignore. Also try to do this as soon as you notice them approaching, you can also do this when you first arrive home without the verbal cue.

- Provide plenty of exercise in addition to mental stimulation through enrichment!

🔹Calming aides, supplements, dog safe essential oils, collars and dog jackets also are extremely helpful. It's also not a bad idea to talk with your vet about the possibility of medication to help ease them through the first few months which generally are the most difficult.

Most importantly, please realize this is going to take time. There is no immediate magic fix, focusing on their negative behaviors are just going to make things worse. Give them grace and time. It's not uncommon to see an increase in these behaviors before they begin to decrease. Stay consistent, follow through even when it's hard and provide positive praise/reinforcement. 🦴🧸

Also, don't be afraid to seek assistance with this. This is the most common reason dogs end up on a shelter or rescue. It's absolutely no reason to give up on a dog - they just need help and it's ok to seek help! 💖

18/01/2025

Keeping your dog warm during winter: Step 1 – Buy them a cozy sweater. Step 2 – Endure the side eyes, sad eyes, and embarrassed eyes they give you as you put them in. Step 3 – Pretend you’re not worried about their frozen little paws while they judge you from the couch.

We hope everyone and all the furry friends are staying warm on this cold weekend!!

17/01/2025

Can young dogs go through a 'teenager' phase?

Much to our dismay, they absolutely do!

This is typically between the ages of 6 months to 24 months, depending on the dog individually.
Much like a human adolescent, they are going to have developmental milestones that they have to meet in their growing process.

When we think about those developmental stages, it is common to see a decline in some of the skills that they do know, while their body is preparing for a growth in a new area. Oftentimes you might see more accidents. You might see your teenage dog pick up some resource guarding behaviors, maybe more barking, etc. They could just be hitting a growth spurt physically or they could be increasing their ability to retain another skill.

It can super frustrating and it's not uncommon for people to assume there's no reason for the behavior. Behavior is deeper than what we see on the surface. There's a lot of inner workings under that iceberg, to keep it afloat.

The most important thing to do when your dog is in that age range is to remain consistent and it's not a bad idea to work them more. Give him more opportunities for mental stimulation and enrichment. Push those training skills a bit harder or work on a new trick! Exercise also is important to help make sure you're meeting their needs and to settle that silliness. 🙂

This age is where you also want to hone in on appropriate social skills. Positive interactions with other dogs - reinforce the calm, redirect the over excited. Add steps for appropriate greetings with humans and on leash, rather than pushing social boundaries.

Remember, behavior goes where the reinforcement flows.

So as you are doing all of that enrichment and increased physical activity, reinforce the small instances of behavior you do see that you want. The more you randomly reinforce the good behavior, you're going to help them navigate out of a behavior they may be trying to revert back to or pick up.

Depending on the behavior trying to manifest, you can either ignore that negative behavior or you can take the time to teach the replacement behavior. Think about the opposite behavior you want them to do instead, break it down into steps, teach and reinforce. Try not to focus solely on the behavior you want to stop and shift your mindset to what you want them to do instead.

Training and behavior intervention is all about management and finding ways to shift the environment, in order to teach a new skill or help maintain.

Sometimes the biggest component in that is us. They cannot learn to be the great dogs we want them to be without our help and guidance. 🙂

Stay consistent, stay firm and love them hard when they do show the good behaviors you want them to do! 🐾💕🐾💕

17/01/2025

CUTEST PUPPIES EVER ALERT! 😍😍😍

These cute faces need a new place to call home (temporarily) - Who wants to foster?!

Born in October, dad is a shiba & mom is a cocker/shiba
Black pup is a female, tan are all males

We cover the vetting and provide the supplies, you just provide the love & guidance! 🥹
*mom is getting spayed

📍 central Nebraska

Foster app below!
https://www.shelterluv.com/matchme/foster/TGLR/Dog

***all resident pets must be altered & current on vaccines & preventatives, unless otherwise noted by a vet. Your application will not be approved if these are not done.

17/01/2025

Our little Moosey could use some prayers, juju, vibes or whatever you believe in… he has been “off” for the past week or so, but this morning it went south and south fast.

Moose’s jaw and neck were very stiff and he was drooling. His vision seemed impaired and he was zombie like; he appeared to be in pain, so his foster took him in immediately.

We don’t know what caused today’s episode, but he’s feeling a bit better tonight. He can move his head and his drooling has subsided. He has pain meds and fluids on board and we hope he has a peaceful nights rest 🥺

He’s been a medical mystery from day one… but we aren’t done trying to figure him out, keep fighting little Moose 🫎🥹♥️

Thanks for your continued support and love for our dogs!

16/01/2025

Resource Guarding: A complex behavior with many layers. 🦴🧸🐕

Resource guarding goes beyond just food, toys, and kennels. Dogs may also guard favorite people, spaces, furniture, and even access to the house.

When adopting or fostering a dog with a neglectful past, it's natural to want to overload them with love, attention and free access to everything in between. However, this can create a dependency that will morph into guarding humans, among other things. Not to mention, it can be mistaken for protectiveness and sometimes also presents as separation anxiety.

🔹Some signs of human guarding include:

- Growling/snapping/biting at other dogs or humans near you

- Pushing between you and another dog

- Demand for constant attention and proximity (Wanting to be held or carried included)

There are so many more signs that can be broken down, but these are just a few.

🔹To prevent resource guarding, start with a calm and structured approach. Follow the 3's philosophy as soon as possible:

1. Provide a quiet day for decompression and self-regulation when you first bring them home. This is how we help teach self-regulation.

2. Use attention as motivation to reward desired skills. Ignore them when they are being pushy or persistent. Verbally praise when they are able to find something to do on their own and settle.

3. Ensure intermittent separate time away from you. Yes that means kennel time even if you are home. Meals and even 30 mins after. This also could be while you are eating, self-care, down time before bed. Keep this routine and reinforce the calm kennel behavior.

4. Teach them to 'go away' or 'go play'. Throw a treat away from you and immediately use the verbal redirect and you walk the opposite direction, then ignore.

5.Don't let them hover and limit the need to be your shadow. If you are sitting, get up walk away (with a verbal redirect)

6. Praise the calm around other dogs if that's where the issue lies. If it's with humans, someone else in the house needs to offer the reinforcers and care when possible.

7. Limit how much you are carrying small dogs and puppies. Let them walk and learn to navigate your home on their own two feet.

By setting clear boundaries and a calm environment, you can help prevent resource guarding and set them up for success. It's 10 times harder to break a unwanted behavior than it is to start strong.

Am I saying that they need to be kenneled 24/7 and no love or attention at all? Absolutely not, but at the beginning (and when this behavior manifests) you need to nip it in the bud now. Then as there is progress, maybe fade back. Also remember things take time. Days, weeks, months, sometimes longer. Stay the route.

There are many other methods to safely and ethically work through this type of behavior. Consistency and management from you as a whole is the biggest component. A dog is going to revert right back to those same tendencies if you give in and let them have their way. If you aren't sure and are struggling, reach out for assistance.

It won't hurt them working through this process, it just sometimes hurts our hearts. But again, the end goal is to set them up for success! 💖

16/01/2025

🤭Cornelius’ foster’s dog sat a baby basset for a few days… and needless to say he’s less than impressed. 🤪

This kid can’t hide his feelings, he wears them on his face at all times… and his 😒 feeling is too cute not to share!

Corn 🌽 came to us from a small shelter about a year ago… he was next on the euthanasia list for fear 😞 being scared is no reason to die, so we were lucky and had space for him.
He had to be carried outside for about a month, then he finally gained the confidence to walk outdoors on his own. He LOVES other dogs, they give him the confidence to be a dog. He plays and lays with them 🥹 but humans still scare him, especially men.
He warms up to women much faster ♥️ his ideal home would have another playful, confident dog, at least one woman, and either no men or an incredibly patient and kind man.
We don’t know where his fears stem from, but they are very real. He retreats to his kennel (safe space) and chooses to not interact.

We know his home is a unicorn home, but we firmly believe he’s worth looking and finding the perfect fit. He’s got a great personality and his foster family has done an amazing job with him; he even cuddles his foster mom 🥰 and those eyes…. He’s truly a stunner and is a phenomenal dog 🥹🐾

He’s dog & cat friendly, older kids who don’t scare him would be best, a fenced yard, and a women only home or one with a very patient & kind hearted man to win him over ♥️

If you’re the unicorn home, please apply below to meet him - we will walk you through each step of him being integrated into your home 🏠
Your home isn’t a good fit, please share his cute RBF, maybe someone you know is!

https://www.shelterluv.com/matchme/adopt/TGLR/Dog

16/01/2025

🥺🥺

16/01/2025

⏳rescue tags or fosters needed 😞

These puppies didn’t ask to be born; and they certainly didn’t ask to be born to a homeless mother 🥺
Momma did the best she could with what she had, she had them near humans, at a construction site and begged for help.

They reached out to a local networker who took them in before the storm hit; but now these 3 need a rescue tag 🏷️

Momma (who is heart worm positive) and some of the babies got rescue; but rescue is SO hard right now that the rescue is struggling to find fosters for these 3.
When we are foster based, our intake depends on our fosters capablilites and capacities.

So they are asking for help… with these tiny little lives 🥹
They are 11 weeks old, and mom is a 40ish pound heeler mix. Dad is unknown.

If you can tag one or all, please message me.

If you want to foster one and live in Nebraska, please ask me for a foster application.

Transport help available. 🚙

15/01/2025

Jet is still hoping to get a foster home 🏠

Boarding will save him, but a foster home is preferred 🥹

15/01/2025

Peep 🥹

Meet Peep, a spirited young pup who embodies bravery and independence. His zest for life is contagious, as he loves to explore and play with boundless energy.
Peep's courageous spirit shines through in his determination to conquer any challenge.
He's a little shy around new dogs, but ready to lead the pack in a fun game of tug-of-war or a playful romp in the yard. Despite his youthful exuberance, Peep also knows when it's time to settle down and enjoys a good cuddle session.
Peep's independent streak ensures he's just as happy entertaining himself with a toy as he is interacting with others. He's a perfect blend of adventurous and self-sufficient, making him a great companion for those who appreciate a dog with a strong personality.
Peep needs another playful dog to match his energy; and he’s way too much for kitties. He thinks it’s fun to pick on them 🫠
He gets a bit mouthy when excited, so older kiddos might be best, too!

Adopt Peep to add a dash of joy and a sprinkle of adventure to your everyday life; someone needs this big personality in a tiny package! 🎁 🐾

https://www.shelterluv.com/matchme/adopt/TGLR/Dog

15/01/2025

Right in the middle of cold weather season, fundraisers are hard - we can’t out guess the weather and some days it’s not safe for humans or dogs to be out and about…
We came up with a warm, safe way to raise some rescue funds & awareness all while sitting at home in your matching jammies with your pets 🐾

Best part is, they are shipped right to your door! 🚪 so you don’t have to get out in the cold either! 🥶

Design links below! 👇🏽 thanks ahead of time for your support! 🥰

https://www.bonfire.com/front-logo-design/

https://www.bonfire.com/be-their-voice-51/

https://www.bonfire.com/rescue-172/

https://www.bonfire.com/the-good-life-rescue160/

https://www.bonfire.com/dogs-are-my-love-language-3/

https://www.bonfire.com/the-good-life-rescue-4/

https://www.bonfire.com/the-good-life-rescue-4/

https://www.bonfire.com/the-good-life-rescue-5/