Three's a Crowd

I wanted to clarify more about Alvin staying here.  As some of you read, he was going to go back to his former foster home so that he had more canine companionship.  I do think that Alvin enjoys dogs more than humans because other than when dogs chase him, he has no fear of dogs and so they don't serve as sources of anxiety, along with pleasure, as humans do.  I had some reservations about him going back there simply because of Brady and Eli and their propensity to play too hard and scare him.  But there were many pluses, along with the foster mom who treats dogs better than any human I have ever known.  Since it fell through at the last minute, I was able to reevaluate the situation and even if a spot opens, I am not going to have him go back unless Brady and Eli are gone, which is not likely because they need to be adopted together and they both have a seizure disorder.  So I think we're back to him staying here until he is adopted and even then, it is really going to have to be an ideal home for him, comprised of very patient humans and at least one friendly dog. 

I am sure some of you are wondering why I don't just break down and get another dog for Alvin and I can't tell you how tempted I am but I live in a home that is less than 800 square feet and having three dogs and a cat becomes terribly crowded.  I did it before and the house is just too small for that many animals.  Plus, if I were to foster a third dog there is no guarantee that he/she will serve as a playmate for Alvin and if not, then I am faced with sending a dog back to boarding, which I have been faced with before and I just couldn't do it. An example of this is that when I first fostered Timmie, the first night he marked 16 times in my house, had no concept of potty training, attacked my blind, deaf dog, tried to attack my cat, managed to dig under the fence and got out, and was a chronic barker.  I spent the first month sleeping on my hide-a-bed because I couldn't have Timmie in a bedroom with carpet and I had to keep the two dogs separated by my body at night.  With all of that, I just couldn't send him back to boarding and so I am entirely confident that any dog that came in here would stay until adopted and all I would need is to have three dogs here and still no playmate for Alvin.  In my quest to try to find a dog for my cat and now a playmate for Alvin, I could end up with Noah's Ark, except worse because there was a cap on only two of each species in that situations.  I wish he would learn to play with a hamster but then he would suffer the trauma of watching his playmate get eaten by the cat.  I am realizing that it was a blessing I didn't make it to San Luis Obispo because there was a crowd of dogs needing foster homes and knowing my luck, Alvin would find his perfect playmate.  The other factor would be that his playmate would be a foster dog and most foster dogs get adopted far quicker than my dynamic duo, with Stevie being here almost a year and Alvin coming up on eight months.  Can you imagine how pitiful it would be if he bonded with a friend again and then he/she got adopted?  I don't think my floor could withstand the circling and my heart couldn't withstand him staring at the floor (because if you remember he stares at the floor instead of the door), watching for his friend.  So, all of our hope is now on Cricket who has already displayed a disinterest in other dogs, with the exception of Timmie, although Alvin's a cheap date because all he requires is a dog that will let him follow her around.  So, keep your fingers crossed that Cricket is smitten by Alvin or at least wants to run around a lot with another dog having his nose glued to her butt.  I don't know what's popular in the dog world but let's all hope that nose/butt gluing is it!