Pet of the Week: Bosco’s goodness shines through

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Bosco

Updated: January 20, 2012 11:16AM

Bosco is an adorable young black lab mix looking for a home of his own. It’s not that his present foster family doesn’t love him – they do. But they have dogs of their own and want Bosco to have a wonderful home before they are too attached to give him up.

All too often, foster families “fail,” in that they adopt their foster. That’s great for the dog or cat getting adopted, but the rescue group loses a foster home, which is a huge blow.

This foster family took Bosco in and with patience and love got him to the point where he is perfectly housebroken and doesn’t need to be crated.

He is not destructive at all in the house. However, Bosco is not the“instant” dog that I sometimes tout. He has been overlooked for a while because he doesn’t warm up to people instantly.

He’s not going to meet you and jump in your lap. Does he jump in his foster mom’s lap? All the time -- now. But it took a few weeks for him to really bond with her. It helped that she works from home and is around a lot.

It took a bit longer for Bosco to bond with her husband. Actually, it took a few months, but now he sleeps plastered up against said husband in the bed, so it’s safe to assume they are well bonded.

Whatever Bosco endured before arriving in the safe hands of Placing Paws, his experiences made him a little scared of new surroundings, new noises and new people.

But his goodness shines through. No matter the slamming of cabinets, the rough handling of young children at adoption events – Bosco has never shown any aggression, never. That’s a sweet dog.

So when you first meet Bosco, know that he won’t run up to you and wag his tail. But also know that once he knows you, there will be plenty of tail wagging and cuddling in laps.

Bosco’s foster mom thinks he would do great in a home with another dog. He does take cues from the other dogs in the family about how he should react and behave in situations like when the door bell rings.

He just loves other dogs and will play in the yard for hours – fetching, running after the ball, roughhousing with the other dogs. He also gets very excited when it’s time for a walk and he jumps up and down while waiting for the leash or harness.

Because of Bosco’s personality, he might be better in a home with older children (or a home with a very quiet, gentle child). He would also greatly benefit from obedience training. He does know “sit,” but working on training helps the bonding process and will help Bosco with his confidence.

There is an absolutely adorable video of Bosco on Petfinder at: http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/19856595.

Bosco is in foster care with Placing Paws of Illinois. If you are interested in adopting Bosco, please fill out an application at www.placingpawsrescue.org. The adoption fee for Bosco includes age appropriate shots, deworming, micro-chip, flea and tick preventative, and spay.

As is the case with all reputable animal rescue organizations, Placing Paws will carefully interview you and your family to make sure that neither you nor Blossom is disappointed by the match not working out. It is in the best interest of all parties that this be a perfect match! If you have questions, call 224-433-6537 or email placingpaws@yahoo.com.

Pet of the Week is written by Pamela Kramer. You may also email any animal questions to me at Pamanimalrescue@gmx.com. If you adopted through Pet of the Week and want to let me know how your dog or cat is doing, please send me an email!

Remember: Adopt a dog or cat! There are tens of thousands of homeless animals in the Chicago area alone that are waiting for a loving home. Here are some of the places to visit when looking for a family addition.

Adopt-a-Pet, www.adoptapet-il.org/; Illinois Doberman Rescue, www.ildoberescue.com; German Shepherd Rescue, Skokie, (847) 677-0561; Evanston Animal Shelter, (847) 866-5080; Orphans of the Storm, Deerfield, (847) 945-0235; Placing Paws, www.placingpawsrescue.org, Save-a-Pet, Grayslake, (847) 740-7788; All pets: www.Petfinder.org; Bird Rescue, Northbrook, http://www.rescuethebirds.org/.