Elvis: 9 year old neutered male black Lab/hound mix, ~ 60 pounds

　　If the name Elvis brings to mind the Elvis Presley song Hound Dog, well put that out of your mind! Elvis isnt crying all the time, (although he would probably be quite interested in a rabbit!) but one look at the lovely Lab face with the longer hound ears, and youll be singing his praises! Elvis was found in Tuolumne and sent off to the shelter in San Jose.

　　Hes a sweet boy. He has a wonderful bark thats half bark/half bay, which makes you laugh to hear it. Hes a beautiful black color with brindle highlights. He gets along well with his foster siblings, and is learning the rules of the house, including how to walk well on a correction collar. He is attracted to squirrels and cats when they walk by but hes learning!

　　We think Elvis once had a home with someone who cared for him, as he responds to correction and does know some commands (and he likes to sit on the couch!). How he ended up lost is a mystery to us, but his foster mom has noticed that if something interests him, he will bolt after it, and his recall is not great. (Were working on it!).

　　Elvis has a super sweet personality, but his physical needs have clearly been neglected. Hes super skinny and needs to add a few pounds (which his foster mom is happily doing). We took Elvis to our vet for a once over and a heartworm test, which came back positive. That could partially explain his thinness. Weve started him on the treatment to get rid of the heartworm. The treatment is pretty time consuming and requires a lot of structure and little exercise during the 60-90 days it takes to get those darn worms safely out of his body. Hes also had bloodwork (in addition to his heartworm test) and xrays of his spine and hips done, which show that he has signs of arthritis, muscle atrophy and some compromised discs, which are all part of aging. His bloodwork all came back fine (other than the heartworms).

　　What Elviss foster mom says:

　　We gladly welcomed Elvis into our family the week before Christmas and he has truly been a gift! Every day we learn something new about him and I imagine he may feel the same way about the new world he is in. Elvis came to Lab Rescue as a stray, for how long no one knows, but he is street savvy, meaning he knows how to scavenge for food, whether it is on the kitchen counter or out on the sidewalk. He knows how to tip over our kitchen recycling can (he only did this once and knows now that it is not ok) and loves any opportunity he can find to lick the hibachi (we are now keeping the hibachi out of reach!) We understand why he does this---he has a history of not knowing where his next meal is coming from. So, we correct him lovingly but firmly. We feed him extra, including turkey, chicken, etc., to put some fat on his bones and to let him know that he does not need to search for food. (Oh, did I say he loves to eat?!)

　　He really is a hidden gem: he is gangly----all legs--- and wiggles all over when he wants to eat or go out on a walk. His bark/bay is hilarious: every squirrel or cat or chicken will know he is around!!

　　He acclimated relatively quickly to our two senior labs and enjoys his daily walks (restricted due to the heartworm positive treatment) with them. He has good leash manners on a pinch collar and we know he was taught how to sit. He does well in a crate when need be. He takes his meds with a soft mouth, and loves to curl up in his dog bed for an afternoon nap.

　　Elvis is a survivor with a huge heart, happy tail, dancing, gangling legs and a bark/bay that says, Hi, Im E-L-V-I-S!!!!! We know he is adaptable because we have seen it. We know he has a good spirit, because we have lived it. We know he is happy, because we see him wag his tail, shake his legs and bounce and wiggle every day. Elvis has a lot of love to share and we know despite how hard it will be to say so long to him, that the right family will bring him the love, fun and stability he needs and in turn, he will bring them the joy they want.

　　What Elviss Rescue Rep says:

　　Its hard not to fall in love with this boy, in spite of everything going on with him!

　　Elvis is not a super active dog under normal circumstances but he has good energy for his age. Even when hes healthy, hes not going to require long fast walks or extensive hikes to keep him fit and trim; a few moderate walks a day should be enough (again, this is once his heartworm is gone). He is very strong, and his new family will have to work with him on his leash walking. Hes housebroken, learning to sit on command and responsive to correction. He definitely notices cats and squirrels, which suggests a strong prey drive, so he should not go to a home on a farm or with cats. He has a tendency to bolt if you open the door and dont have him on leash, although we are working on that with him.

　　Elvis is a pretty easygoing dog. The ideal family for him is one that has the patience to get him through the remainder of his heartworm treatment, and can maintain the structure necessary for successful completion. Once cured, his family should take him on short on-leash (remember hes an escape artist!) walks 2 to 3 times/day; he doesnt need lengthy hikes or jogs! A retired couple or a family where someone is home with him most of the day would be ideal. Elvis gets along well with his foster siblings and would be very happy with another dog to hang out with, or as an only dog with stay at home people to hang out with. Due to his strong prey drive, Elvis needs to go to a home without cats or farm animals (he is obsessed with chickens!). Most of all, we want a loving family for Elvis, one that understands the needs of an older dog and is committed to keeping him happy, healthy and safe. He is crate trained.

　　Medical Information:

　　For the duration of his heartworm treatment, Elviss activity level will have to be closely managed. For the first 30 days (Day 1 was December 23rd) his exercise is limited to on leash walks; he cant get excited which means watching the environment for distractions like squirrels and keeping him from noticing. As his treatments ramp up his activity level will be further reduced, until the heartworms are all gone. We have some suggestions for keeping his mind busy when you cant count on exercise to wear him out.

　　Elvis is neutered, current on vaccinations, and micro-chipped. Whoever adopts Elvis will need to commit to seeing him through whatever remains of his heartworm treatment at that time, which will be done at Lab Rescues vet and through a very generous grant from SJACS (San Jose Animal Care Services). We will thoroughly brief Elviss new owners as to what the treatment entails. Heartworm is not contagious and cant be passed on to other dogs through dog to dog contact.

　　Elvis is located in Fairfield.

　　If you would like to make this wonderful boy a part of your family, call Rescue Rep Debbi

　　or email [email protected].

　　(Please keep in mind we are all volunteers, most of us work full time and we all have personal lives. I do call everyone back within 2-3 days so please be patient and I will be back in touch with you. When the dogs are in foster homes then it may take longer as we need to touch base with the fosters for updates on the dogs. We work very hard to make the right matches for the dogs and for the new owners. We get 3-5 dogs per week and we do not have a facility that we keep the dogs housed in. They are scattered all over the Bay Area.)