While my husband and I knew that we wanted a dog eventually, we were trying to keep ourselves content with following puppy accounts on Instagram and pointing out cute dogs we saw on our walks to the beach. Still, we found ourselves occasionally checking PetFinder and other sites.
It was on one of these sites that Jon first saw Terry. We looked at his cute face, fluffy tail, and big smile and made the same high pitched ‘awww’ sound—love at first sight, I guess! We filled out an adoption application on the Free Korean Dogs site immediately.
After a nerve-wracking 24 hours or so, EK called to do a preliminary interview and set up a home visit. She came by, shared what would all be involved in the adoption process, and less than a week since we first saw his picture, we were officially in the process of adopting Terry.
When Terry first arrived at our home, off the back of a long flight, he was so nervous he was shaking. He carefully stalked around the room, smelling everything. The first few days we were gentle and tried to let him come to us. (He would jump every time we touched him!) Eventually he became comfortable with us.
The biggest turning point was when we began to take him outside. Terry loves to be out in the fresh air. He’s an energetic pup–we might have to take up running to keep up with him! After taking him out to sniff around the yard or for a walk he follows us around with a big smile on his face.
We have had Terry for almost three weeks now and are still learning his quirks. We’ve found treats he loves, he’s learning how to play with/chew on his toys, and are slowly teaching him to eat out of his bowl instead of off the floor.
It’s such a joy seeing his personality come out as he gets used to us and his new surroundings. When he first came to Canada, he was afraid of every little thing! Now, he wants to go on every walk, sniffing everything along the way and running reconnaissance on the comings and goings of all the squirrels and neighborhood dogs. We’re starting to see that he’s quite the social butterfly, wanting to greet and play with every dog he sees, and we’re eager for him to learn enough and be comfortable with us so he can!
While it’s certainly been a process helping Terry adjust in his new home, we’re astounded at how far he’s come in just a few weeks. He’s already gone from only taking spoon fed meals, to eating his fill off the floor (once we figured out he actually would eat that way!) to now eating almost fully out of his bowl. We’ve been able to teach him to sit, lay down, and (mostly) stay, and he’s already getting into the routine of our expectations when we take him out for walks and sniffs.
We’ve never met such a serious dog! When he’s out in the parks, he’s a man on a mission, taking in and following every scent, marking the local message board trees, and mapping out more and more neighborhood. He’s still a little bored guy sometimes at home, because he doesn’t quite know how to play, inside or out! We’re working with him on why he should ever want to put a ball in his mouth (a prospect he seems baffled by) so we can play fetch, and he’s finally figuring out that he can put his paws on his Kong instead of just licking at it a bit. He’s discovered in our bed the most comfortable place he’s ever been, and seems to really enjoy cuddle time in the mornings and evenings, but gets a little too sleepy sometimes at night and has to be lovingly carried out to his space in the living room while Jon sings him a lullaby.
We’re so excited to have Terry as an addition to our family, and so happy that we can be the ones to walk with him and run him in the park, watching him explore Canada for the first time.
Written by Joelle Kidd
