Looking back at the first week...

Wilson looking his best while soaking up some sun.

So here we are. Tomorrow will be Wilson's seventh day from when he arrived. He's adjusted remarkably well to his foster home. He's learned how to interact with his foster sister Jolene, he's learned that sleeping in a crate is not a bad thing, and he's learned that he can't pee on someone's shoes to claim said person as his property.

But we've learned some things too.

We've learned that he's alpha. We've learned that he takes discipline well. We've learned that he's got more energy than your everyday basset hound.

Wilson is not "alpha" in the sense of being aggressive. He's alpha in the sense that, when we call them in from outside, Wilson has to be the first one through the door. He also has to be the first one to eat. So we're working with him on that and, of course, finding alternative ways to feed Jolene.

He's really taken to discipline well. A few nights ago, Jolene was chewing on a bone that he apparently wanted. He came over to steal it from her and my wife and I lept off the couch. I got to him first, held the scruff of his neck while turning him over on his side (Thanks Ceasar Milan!). I told him "no!" and he seemed to get the message. Especially after trying the same thing one more time just a few minutes later. From that point on, we haven't had any problems with him wanting something Jolene has.

Lastly, he's not a sleeper. Jolene is. So it's interesting to watch these two play all night long. Jolene wants to find a place and go to sleep but absolutely must know what Wilson is doing at all times. And since Wilson doesn't want to sleep, he plays fetch or chews a bone or whatever. Jolene has to keep a close eye because she might miss something so she doesn't get the sleep she used to. Now, that being said, we've seen this kind of behavior before in Jolene. When we take her up to Lynn's parents house in Ohio, she used to be exhausted all the time as she always had to inspect every little noise that happened in the house. After three years of doing that, now she just picks her head up from the couch, decides it's not worth the effort, and lays back down. We're hoping that's the path she'll take with Wilson eventually.

He really is a sweet boy. He loves to play, chew on bones and run around with Jolene in the backyard. Plus he's handsome. He really should get adopted soon. He still needs to work on a few things though. He can be a bit of a bully when he wants something Jolene has, he pulls out all the stops if you have some food he'd really like and he hasn't learned our method of telling us when he needs to go outside.

He's only had one accident in the house (the aforementioned shoe incident) but he hasn't embraced the "clicking" that we've taught Jolene and any other dogs that we pet sit or foster. But it's only been a week so maybe that'll come around.

Either way, he's a delight to have in the house now that he's starting to adjust to our lifestyle.

Wilson lays at the front door watching the world go by.