You may recognize Mario the dog from Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation’s (SASF) Furry 5K event promotion back in the summer. Mario was featured as one of the adoptable dogs during Furry 5K and received many sponsorships to participate in the fun run/walk. Before he was the star of the annual 5k, he was working closely with Seattle Animal Shelter’s (SAS) animal behaviorist, Kimberlee Spicer, to address his behavioral issues.
Mario was brought to SAS in late November 2020 and stayed at the shelter for seven months before being adopted in June 2021. During Mario’s time at SAS, Kimberlee and the dog behavior team (DBT) worked with him almost every day (sometimes even twice a day!) to address some of his behavioral issues. Mario was wary of strangers and would occasionally display reactivity to strangers while out on walks. He would also play tug with his leash and jump on his handlers while mouthing their arms and hands.
In addition to these behavioral tendencies, Mario would often try to eat non-food items such as dog toys. He had two foreign body removal surgeries during his time at SAS. After his second foreign body removal surgery, SAS veterinarians deemed him unfit to be left alone with any bedding or toys unsupervised – since that risked him eating something and requiring another surgery.
Thanks to the dedication and time of Kimberlee and the DBT, they were able to address many of these issues — and got creative with solutions. These solutions included:
— Providing Mario with a double kennel with only a durable bed. Over the months, Kimberlee and the DBT would slowly introduce hard, durable Nylabone-type toys that he could have in his kennel.
— Getting creative with kennel enrichment. Kimberlee would freeze his meals in large containers so that his kibble and wet food would become a large ice cube. Mario was also provided with regular ice cubes and music.
— Taking a plushy toy on walks. With his mouth occupied, Mario was less likely to tug on his leash or mouth his handlers. Sometimes he’d even carry two or three toys in his mouth!
— Spending office time with Kimberlee.
— Training on specific things, like introductions to strangers, four on the floor, crate training, pattern games, and walking on a leash without tugging or mouthing.
There was a point during his stay when Kimberlee and her team wanted to see how Mario would do in a home. Since he was brought in as a stray, there was no home history available for him. “I ended up doing field trips with Mario in his last couple of months at the shelter to my house,” shares Kimberlee. “On days that my son was in school and husband was at work, I brought him to my house once a week for four hours. He got to play in the yard, hang out on the deck or couch, do some enrichment and go for neighborhood walks. He was a gem, and we didn’t see any of the wanting to eat non-food items in my home.” Shortly after that, Mario was able to go to a foster home for a couple weeks so the team could learn even more about him.
On June 12, 2021, Mario was adopted. The happy ending to his journey through SAS would not have been possible without the nearly 300 sessions with Kimberlee and nearly 80 training sessions with the DBT volunteers. It also would not have been possible without the support of SASF’s loyal donors who provide support for programs such as the DBT and staff like Kimberlee.
“Mario was a complete goof ball at heart and bonds strongly with his people. He has SO many amazing qualities. He, like a lot of our behavior dogs, may not have had such a happy ending if it weren’t for the donors that support my position and the entire behavior program! It is them that I say thank you to for giving me the opportunity to work with Mario.”
-Kimberlee Spicer
If you are interested in supporting success stories like Mario’s, consider donating to the Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation.