Happy Ending Story for Linus
 February 20th, 2007 was Linus’s
first anniversary in his new forever home. He was a little worried that he
might be too old for most people, but ten years old was just about right for
us two senior citizens. We had just lost our Basenji after ten years, at the
age of 13, and after a three-month hiatus in our family; Linus was the
perfect addition to our home to fill the void. Transportation was no
problem, his foster home was only 1 ½ hours away.
Linus’s previous home was growing up with a ten-year-old
girl until it was time for her to leave home. At that time he also had to
find a new place to live. He has found it with us and he entertains us with
his antics. Watch out for your wash cloth and bath towel, because Linus
likes to wash his face every morning and then dry it in the towel. Even when
visiting he will make use of towels hanging on a doorknob.
 He had to do some training himself and he insists that I
have to pay a ransom to get into my bed at night. If I call him he will jump
off the bed and shake hands with me in order to receive his treat. This
gives me the opportunity to jump into bed and get under the covers. If I
forget to play the game, he will vigorously defend the territory (my bed)
and not let me in.
Before we got to know Linus, we did not know if we could
trust him home alone so we left him in a crate. Much to our dismay, we would
find any cloth lining the crate in shreds by the time we returned. We did
not think he was distressed being locked in the crate, he willingly entered
and received his treat and when we returned he was happy to see us. To
investigate the reason for the shredding, I set up a video camera one day,
and to our horror we saw for ourselves how unhappy he was during our
absence. He started by whining, then trying to get out and eventually
shredding the towel, rug or sheet inside the cage. Needless to say, we
folded up the crate, and have never had a reason to regret leaving him free
in the house while we were away.
Adopting an older dog means there may be some
psychological problems the reasons for which we don’t understand. Since we
never will understand, we accept him as he is and enjoy him as a permanent
member of the family.
Martha A. Covi
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