FELIPE

FELIPE HAS BEEN ADOPTED! THANKS PHILLIPS FAMILY OF MA! FELIPE IS NOT AT THE HUMANE SOCIETY ANIMAL SHELTER. THIS IS A COURTESY POSTING FOR A FELLOW RESCUER. DO NOT CALL THE SHELTER FOR INFO ON FELIPE. YOU MAY CALL KIM PERRY AT (606) 483-2959 FOR MORE INFORMATION. This sleek fellow was picked up as a stray by a southern Ohio Dog Warden on 5/8/09. By law in that Appalachian area jurisdiction, a stray must be retained 5 days before euthanasia in order to provide the owner an opportunity to reclaim their dog. This handsome boy's retention period expired 5/13/09.

The routine WEEKLY MASS EUTHANASIA at this shelter (to make room for the inevitable influx before the next weekly kill day) is scheduled for Tuesdays to coincide with garbage pick up day. Therefore, Felipe (then nameless) was scheduled for euthanasia on 5/19/09; but his [future] foster mom saw this laid-back gentleman the week before and told the shelter manager that she would pull him if no one else rescued him before that Tuesday morning's euthanasia session. After having the pound get Felipe castrated, his foster mom picked him up 5/22/09.

On 5/27/09, Felipe weighed 69 lbs. and was estimated by the vet to be about 1.5 years of age. Felipe stands 24" tall (at the top of the shoulders) with a torso of the same length (24" long from the base of his neck to the base of his friendly tail which is usually angled out from the body like a hammock). Felipe's face depicts his Collie heritage, while his coat color and shorter hair appears to be influenced by his Labrador Retriever ancestors. His foster mom thought his face had a Spanish look to it--like he should be wearing a brightly colored sombrero to show off his sleek black coat; hence the Hispanic name Felipe.

Like Golden Retrievers, Collies can be prone to skin problems. When Felipe was rescued from the pound, he had multiple areas on his lower torso where hair was sparse. A skin scrape by the vet revealed no mites, and the problem was determined to be flea allergy dermatitis. He was put on 200 mg of the antibiotic Simplicef once a day for 14 days and given the new Comfortis flea preventive pills to clear up his problem.

Obedience training is always recommended for bonding and safety's sake for any new canine addition to a family, and this smart boy should excel with gentle, reward-based training techniques. Both the Lab and Collie breeds are very intelligent and love to please their people. Since Felipe is a 70 lb. puppy at heart, he still has a desire to chew occasionally. Obedience training will be a big help in redirecting any chewing to "designated" objects. Collies should be given plenty of chewing exercise and routine dental maintenance as their teeth go quickly otherwise.

Felipe's gentle personality would make him an EXCELLENT companion for well-mannered, respectful elementary school age children. Collies, like Labs, generally love everyone, especially children and other animals. Felipe is very compatible with all the other dogs in his foster home but isn't particularly inclined to participate in their rough-and-tumble activies. He doesn't seem to have any interest in cats beyond quizzically glancing at their silly antics. One of his most endearing mannerisms is how he gets closer and closer to the human object of his affection. When he is sitting upright next to his person, he will almost unnoticeably scoot, scoot, and scoot til he cannot get any closer to his human.

Felipe has been started on heartworm preventative, vaccinated, and neutered, in readiness to join his adoptive family. As a precaution, because Collies may have seizures as a result of their sensitivity to Ivermectin, it is recommended that Felipe not be given Heartgard heartworm preventive or any other heartworm preventive which contains Ivermectin.

FELIPE NO HABLO ESPANOL BUT WOULD WELCOME A TOY PINADA TO CHEW.

For more info on Felipe, please contact Kim Perry at (606) 483-2959 or email [email protected].