Learning to be a puppy (warning: contains pictures of injury)

Joey was found as a 5-6 week old puppy with a damaged paw. I have never learned if he had siblings or what happened to his mother. What I do know is he was in an industrial area and they presume it was crushed.

The rescue worked for 8 weeks to heal him up enough to amputate the limb, and another 6 weeks after that before he came to me.

Now he gets the chance to try and be a real puppy.

When I first got him home I noticed that he wasn’t standing as straight as I felt he should. I would not allow him to play too rough or run much, but he soon strengthened that leg and is standing straighter and running better. Fortunately my older dogs are happy to tolerate puppy behavior and are willing to tell him no when needed.

Daisy tolerating a pup

Now we get to work on his socialization and manners.