Uncle Chris's Foster Dog Academy: Selma

Uncle Chris's Foster Dog Academy

Hi!

Thanks for taking the time to check out Uncle Chris's Foster Dog Academy, where your new best friend learns the ropes of how to become a great pet. "Uncle" Chris and "Auntie" Kate have been fostering dogs in their home for local shelters and rescue groups since 2003. Rescue dogs sometimes just need a little help getting ready to be pets, and Uncle Chris just helps them get there.

Skills they often learn:

Housetraining & Crate Training - these are great skills to help a dog get adopted.
Stairs - some dogs have never been in a house before and need to learn the basics of how to live in a home.
Leash Walking - walking well on a leash is a great skill for a dog heading to a new family.
Basic Obedience - the dogs learn basics like Sit, Stay, and Down with positive-only reinforcement. While Uncle Chris isn't a certified dog trainer, he's trained almost 100 foster dogs to be excellent family members. Obedience is a fantastic way for a dog to understand their relationship with their new family.

How about a couple of examples?

Tucker on his way to Uncle Chris's house

Like Tucker, here. He had a bit of a rough landing in the shelter when his owner passed away, and needed a soft spot to get a fresh start. He polished up his home skills and got adopted at age 10 to go live his best life.

Poor Selma could barely walk.

Or Selma, who had been found as a stray and was discovered to have been eating gravel to try and survive. She got all fixed up (and recovered at UC's house from two shelter-provided surgeries - one that discovered the gravel in her tummy, the other to fix her ACL), learned some new skills, and got adopted into a loving home.

Selma turned out just fine after some good nutrition and love.

This is all about the dogs - they come in as fosters, often needing a little extra attention or help, they learn basic household and obedience skills, then they get adopted by awesome people like you and become fantastic family members. And most importantly? All the dogs are loved just like family and are welcome to stay however long it takes for them to find their perfect home.

How you can help: Share, Share, Share!! The way these pups get adopted is by being seen by as many people as possible. You can follow Uncle Chris on Facebook here - Uncle Chris's Facebook Page and Instagram here - Uncle Chris's Instagram Account.

Would you like to adopt one of the dogs you've seen? There is often information in the FB or IG posts about how to fill out an application - or just send a direct message on either of those platforms and UC will gladly send you more information.

Thanks so much for all your support!

"Uncle" Chris Miller

More Stories...

Pluto turned out to be a snuggle monster.

Pluto was struggling so much in the shelter that the staff was given an ultimatum: he needed a foster or permanent home, or he was going to be euthanized. He was going crazy in that shelter, doing backflips anytime a person walked by his kennel to try and get attention. He walked into Uncle Chris's house like he owned the place - crated easily, learned all his obedience skills in a snap, and walked like a professionally trained dog on the leash. He went from death row to being a cherished member of the family who adopted him.

Check out this video of his fantastic walking skills - https://youtu.be/bTASQo8ITeI

Eyes (AKA Charlie) is a recent foster and did great.

"Dyin Eyes" is a retired racing greyhound that came to stay with Uncle Chris and Auntie Kate. He came with some great skills already (stairs, leash skills, house/crate trained) and he flourished with his obedience training. He learned Down, Stay, and Sit - and he learned them so well! He's a good boy and is going to be fantastic in his new home with his Forever Family.

We hope you'll join us as we work towards putting great dogs in great homes!!

10:35 AM
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Where Are They Now Wednesday

Adopted

Congratulations to Danika on going HOME!

Do you know what a "Gotcha Day" is?

It's the day a homeless animal gets adopted - and then celebrated as an anniversary of sorts, often in lieu of an unknown birthday.

I'm so happy to announce that this past week saw our old friend, Danika, celebrate her Gotcha Day! You might remember she spent a short time fostering with Uncle Chris and Auntie Kate this past year. After the extensive work Danika did with professional trainer Loren Leffew, Danika is now a fun and energetic dog with excellent manners and a whole host of skills - along with a slew of awards from the AKC for her obedience talents and a Canine Good Citizen certification. And as of this past week she's also the latest addition to a loving family with a couple of kids to play with and a big fenced yard to play in. Congratulations to Danika and her new family, Loren, and the Humane Educational Society in Chattanooga for making all of this happen. Nice work, everyone!

It's Simeon and Garfunkel!

You might remember the post about Simeon and Garfunkel, the bonded pair of dogs who were the last of an animal hoarding situation? Good news for them, as well! Through some fantastic networking between the Humane Educational Society, the Eastern TN Alliance for Animals, a rescue group in Apple Valley, Wisconsin, and another group in New England? These two boys are headed for Massachusetts together. A family saw their story and fell in love. Congratulations, boys - your new life has been well earned!!

I wonder how Selma is doing? Oh - pretty good, I guess!

And last, but not least, on today's list is our sweet Selma. I got an update from her Mom last night with the above photo saying they had just returned from a nice walk. Selma is doing great! And you might notice she's even resting on what Uncle Chris likes to call a "Princess Bed." Remember the story about the Princess and the Pea? Our old greyhound used to love vacuuming day because I'd stack all his beds up, then he'd go crash on them. Seems like Selma has this skill down pat as well.

Stay Tuned:

Coming soon is another story about a special dog in foster care looking for a special home. It might be you... right?

Don't forget that the best way to support homeless animals is to click "SHARE" on posts like these!

Sincerely,

Uncle Chris

6:28 PM
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Successful Surgery for Selma

Selma

Aww, man... The Cone is never good.

Hi Everyone! Selma here with the latest news about your favorite girl.

I had surgery on Monday to repair an old injury to my knee. I was picked up by HES as a stray, remember? Well, being a stray dog is tough business, and sometimes there have been bumps and bruises that just never healed right.

That's what happened with my ACL in my knee. It was torn, but there was lots of other stuff that needed fixing on me first. So now that I'm all better and stuff, it was time to go back and get my knee fixed. So Uncle Chris and I went to see a special vet Doctor on Monday (it was an overnight road trip!) and I had my surgery. Then Tuesday morning UC came and picked me up and we came back to Chattanooga.

When we left the animal hospital, I was in THE CONE. You've heard the jokes - Everything is fun and games until somebody ends up in a cone.

Who invented this thing? Good grief.

I'm going to be fine - I've already started putting a little bit of weight on my leg to test out my new and improved knee, which the Dr said was good.

But let's just say I'm a little bit of a ConeDozer. I got it caught on the door, the grass, the back porch steps - everything.

Looking at me and the cone through the safety divider. It almost looks photoshopped.

How Humiliating.

Luckily both of UC's greyhounds back in the day had surgeries, too - so he has a secret weapon to battle the cone.

I had knee surgery, UC, not whiplash... What's with the neck thingy?

That thing is called a Bite-Not collar. It works kind of like a whiplash thing that people wear. It keeps me from bothering my owie, but without the collateral damage of the cone. It's okay, I guess. I haven't been bothering my stitches, anyway.

I'll spare you the up-close picture of my knee, but here's my pretty brindle-ness all shaved and relaxing on the cool wood floor.

Nice cool floor. Ahhhhh...

So after a busy couple of days, I'm resting and recovering. But I'm eating good and getting around fine.

Thanks for your support and well wishes - you are the best!

Rest and Recovery - the best thing for a puppy after surgery!

And don't forget - if you think I would make a good addition to your family? Just scroll down to the comments section and let me know! While you're down there, if you don't mind clicking on the SHARE button for me to help me find my Forever Family, I'd appreciate it. Or you can contact the nice people at www.heschatt.com and they'll put you in touch.

Love and Sleepy Kisses,

Selma

8:37 PM
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Selma the TV Star

Selma

Hello again!

Hi everyone - It's me, Selma!

I was super excited to get an invitation this week...

To be on TELEVISION!!

So Excited to be going on TV...

I was invited to be the pet guest of the week on Channel 3 WRCB here in Chattanooga! Me? Moi? This little country girl? Yep! So I got all dolled up (okay, I took a bath and Uncle Chris put a pretty flower on my collar) and we went to the TV station.

You know it's the big time...

When they have news vans! (the big vans were around the corner)

I can't even begin to explain how exited I was. This was the big time. My big chance.

That is a REALLY big dish.
I wonder if there's any kibble in it??

We went inside and we got to see the news happening - live. Like right there in front of us. Miss Natalie, the news anchor was there informing all of us 'Noogans about what was going on in the world. And then it was my turn.

Miss Natalie came over to the interview area where me and UC were sitting on the couch together and asked us all kinds of interesting questions: Name, age, breed, my story, what kind of family I would like - and she even said I was pretty and that she liked my flower. Gosh, I was blushing under my brindle fur!

And then it was over. Whoosh - my spotlight moment had passed. But I think I did really good for the camera, and UC said so too. It was so much fun! A big thanks to Miss Natalie and all the great people at WRCB for being such wonderful hosts and helping homeless animals in our community!

Is that me on the TV?? How do you like my flower?

I'll do my best to see if it will be available online somewhere so you can see it.

Would you like to have a TV star in your family? Just scroll down to the comments and say you'd like to meet me, or you can contact the nice people at www.heschatt.com, or you can send me a message on the Foster Dog Facebook Page! I would love to meet you (I'll give you kisses if you want :-)

More soon because I have another adventure this week - and don't forget to Share this please so I can find my Forever Family. They must be distraught to have been looking for me so long and not find me yet!

Love and Special Selma Kisses,
Selma

5:16 PM
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Tucker is HOME!

Adopted

4:52 PM
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I'm the Easter Bunny and Meeting a Special Boy - By Selma

Selma

Hi!

Hi again everyone! It's me, Selma, and boy have I got a fun update for you.

How was your Easter? Was it good?

Mine started out kind of slow, and not terribly exciting, but it sure changed for the better after that.

Do you like fun dogs? Everyone does, right?

Have I ever told you that I like to play? I love to play games and be silly! And I'm not shy about letting you know when it's play time for Selma. One of the silly things I do when I want to play his bounce up and down — I guess maybe I'm just a little bunny rabbit at heart.

Check out this video of me being the Easter Bunny and telling uncle Chris that it's time for him to play with me.

How much fun is that? My tail is wagging and I'm talking and jumping around like brindle striped rubber ball!

Did it work? Of course it worked! Uncle Chris put down that dumb phone thing of his and got down on the floor and played silly games with me. Then Tucker decided he wanted to come be a part of the fun, so he and I both played with Uncle Chris until it just became one big belly rub session. It was awesome!

Then it was time to hang out and maybe do some snoozing, so I parked my happy little self on Auntie Kate's new blankie. It's soft and makes me feel like we're almost kind of sorta touching (I'm such a cuddler...).

I call this sharing...

Auntie Kate gets some for her legs and feet, and I get some...

...to snuggle on.

Not to be outdone, sleepy-head Tucker decided that he would use her old blankie to nap on.

Tucker has napping down to a science!

Then it was time for our walk before the rain - remember the rain we had on Easter in the afternoon? We got out for a nice walk in the neighborhood right beforehand. And there was a picnic going on in the park! With two MoonBounce things - Omigosh - I wanted to go bounce in the moonbounce thing, but UC said I probably wasn't invited.

Then a super sweet thing happened!

A family was leaving the picnic all dressed in their Easter Sunday best - and one of their children, a little boy, saw my awesome Selma self and started running toward me! His Mom and siblings grabbed him, but he was intent on meeting me. So Uncle Chris and I wandered over and said hi to all of them. Mom explained that her little boy has a condition that makes it hard for him to deal with people sometimes (Autism), but he loves doggies! Well, lemme woof - I'm good with that. So he came over and said hello and petted me very gently. I was super patient and calm - and UC showed him how soft my ears were to touch and so he petted me there and on my silly noggin. He and I were instant friends! I'm so glad that I was able to be his special Easter friend, it really made me a happy pupper and I think it made him happy too!

I got to meet a couple other great kids on our way around the park. I loved it. Going for walks is almost as fun as playing catch with UC. And getting to meet kids while I'm out for a walk? WINNER!!! Sign this doggie up!

Can we play catch now?

I have so much fun playing - I bet you and I would have a great time playing!

Sooooo much fun!

Then it was time to get a little rest and maybe hang out with my buddy, Tucker.

Tucker and I are pals.

That's what's new with me!

I'm available for adoption, you know... Think you might like to meet me? I'm so ready. I'm house trained, crate trained, know my basic obedience stuff, I'm good with kids, I love to play.

And I do a pretty darned good impression of the Easter Bunny.

What more do you want in a dog? Hmmmmmm?

If you'd like to meet me, just comment below, or just send Uncle Chris a message on the Foster Facebook Page, or contact the nice people at the Humane Educational Society at www.heschatt.com.

And don't forget to please click on the Share buttons below to help me find my Forever Family - Thank you!!

I can't wait to see you! And kiss you - I love to give silly Selma kisses!

Love and Kissy Face,
Selma