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Community Corner

Mutts Matter: Marvelous Max

Max is a sweet and playful spaniel-terrier mix who needs a family to love and belong to.

Meet Max, an adorable spaniel-terrier mix who is about a year old and weighs 23 pounds. Max is a playful and affectionate dog who loves being part of a family, and thrives in an active home. He still has some puppy ways about him and is learning the rules of home life, but he’s a very sweet, good-natured dog and will make a great addition to any family.

Max is being fostered by the Jackson family in Lansdowne, which includes foster mom, Kim, three teenagers, three greyhounds, a sassy little pug mix and a kitty too. The Jackson's approach fostering as a family commitment, and Kim feels that fostering is a great lesson for her children about giving back, teaching them that life requires responsibility beyond just themselves. Fostering also creates valuable family time as they play with and walk the dogs together, and take turns feeding them. It’s another way for Kim to interact with her three teenagers that’s fun and focuses them on something positive.  

Kim was unfamiliar with fostering until she read Mutts Matter’s recent article about it in the Patch. She finds personal fulfillment in fostering and wants to help other families experience the joy and love that a dog brings. Max is the Jacksons’ second foster dog, and he’s come a long way in a short time in their care. He was picked up as a stray when he was still just a puppy, already worn down by life on the streets. When Kim first took Max in he was frail and lifeless, had a cough, and in her words looked like a tired old man. Now Kim describes him as “bouncy ball of shiny joy” and “you can see the sunshine coming out of his personality.”

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Max fit right in with the Jackson family and gets along great with everyone. He always wants to be near his people, whether it be lying next to Kim’s feet when she's on the computer, or snuggled up on one of the kid’s laps watching TV and waving his paws in the air to solicit a belly rub. He found an instant companion and soul mate in Gertie, the little pug mix who thinks she’s head dog in the pack, but Kim credits her five-year-old greyhound, April, with helping Max rehabilitate. “April brought him out of his shell,” she said, “and taught him how to have fun.”

When he’s not following Kim around, you'll typically find Max romping or playing catch with April, or moving his beloved squeaky toys from room to room. Max cherishes his toys, but shares both toys and food well with the other dogs. He’s a great pack mate. We feel that he needs canine companionship, and will do best in a home with another dog to help him settle in.

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Max is a young dog who is still learning his basic commands and manners. He’s crate-trained and mostly potty-trained, but still needs some work walking on a leash, which can be easily addressed with a little obedience training and some practice. He shows interest in other dogs on the walk, but isn’t aggressive; he’s mostly curious and excited to meet them, like most young dogs.  He needs an active family who will work with him and provide love, leadership, and a consistent routine.

To learn more about Max, go to the Mutts Matter Adoption Page and fill out an application, or you can contact Suzanne at suzanne@muttsmatterrescue.com

Follow Mutts Matter on Facebook to learn more about us and see new pups coming into the rescue!

We would like to thank all of the wonderful foster families like the Jacksons who unselfishly give their homes, love and time to help us save these sweet, deserving dogs. They make a real, tangible difference in the life of their foster dog and help prepare them for family life.

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