Foster Fail: Mr. Bo Jangles/Cosmo Kramer

Most people would probably say that this was bound to happen.  We foster a lot of dogs.  We were bound to find one we just couldn’t give up.  However, I must say that I didn’t expect to get that feeling so fast.  Even with Henry, who we fostered-to-adopt- when Becca called after 2 weeks letting us know that there was another family that was interested in him- I hesitated.  Granted, he was still an 8-month old puppy peeing and pooping all over my house and was only starting to master basic commands but with the adorable 3 year old Henry J. Puppypants curled up next to me as  I write this I can’t begin to think about life without him.

One week ago we traded foster dogs.  After almost 2 months, I was starting to wonder if our home was the best place for Baba Ganoush.  He’s working on becoming more comfortable with people coming into his space and we just don’t have enough visitors to give him the exposure training he needs.  Days earlier we had learned that Mr. Bo Jangles, a 4 year old Rottweiler was in need of a new foster home.  We met Bo at a Secondhand Mutts fundraising event in November and Chris, Tracy and I instantly fell in love.  Bo’s mild temperament, gentle nature and soulful eyes could make any heart melt.  Frankly, after almost 3 months in the program, we couldn’t understand why he didn’t have a home.  Here he is at the Muttsquerade in October…

So, last  Wednesday, we brought him to our home.  He was the perfect guest.  No jumping, no accidents, no barking.  We were in doggie heaven. That’s when Chris started laying it on real thick about how he always wanted a big dog and how this dog could be HIS dog (though it was often unspoken, Chris now openly admits that Henry is really more often my dog than his).

On Thursday I worked from home and Bo was an angel, sleeping at my feet most of the day.  That was when I started considering keeping him as well.  How could it be that after only 18 hours, I was considering adopting one of our foster dogs?  I had made it through 13 other fosters without breaking!  Was I losing my touch?  Was this dog REALLY THAT AWESOME?!?!

By Friday we were talking about what we would rename him as Bo played at my office with Kayden, a coworker’s pitt mix.  We went through a few names.  First trying to stick with B-O names… Bowie, Bowser, Bosley…. but Chris and I couldn’t agree on any of them.  It wasn’t until we went back to a name that Chris has been claiming for “his dog” all along that we hit something we could agree upon… Cosmo Kramer.  Chris LOVES Seinfeld and can quote large portions of almost every episode.  For some reason, he has always wanted to name a dog Kramer.  And now he finally had the chance. By this time, I was convinced- we were adopting this dog.  I called Secondhand Mutts and told Becca that this was our dog.

So here we are, one week later, with a 70-pound Rottweiler to call our own.  We’ve come a long way… and so has Kramer.  When two Secondhand Mutts volunteers went to the Ashtabula APL to pick up 3 new dogs that were being admitted into the program, Kramer wasn’t on their list.  However, the volunteers were Rottie lovers and saw Kramer in a small yard where dogs are allowed to run around before they are put down. They just couldn’t leave him.  Can you image that?  Our sweet, mellow boy with eyes that could melt your heart was on the verge of being put to sleep!?

Obviously, we’ve still got a lot to learn about Kramer but I can honestly say that I don’t regret the decision to adopt him for one minute.  We’ll be taking a fostering break for a while as we get to know him better but based on his love of other dogs and easygoing temperament, we may be fostering again sooner than you think.  But MARK MY WORDS- we are not adopting any more dogs.  2 is the limit.  Kramer and Henry… that’s it… for as long as they want to call this place home.