Skittish Monty (Oldies Club Sponsor Dog)

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Monty is a tiny (3.2kg) 12 years old Maltese who came into Oldies Club care at the beginning of July 2024.  His elderly owners had sadly passed away within a week of each other and the family who had taken him on unfortunately didn’t really have the time to dedicate to him.
When Monty first arrived at his foster home he was absolutely terrified. As soon as they brought him into the house he ran in their bedroom and hid under the dressing table. The fosterers’ got a pillow for him and that has become his safe place.  Due to his stress if the fosterers went near him he would bite them so advice was given to leave him to decompress. The poor little lad appeared completely shut down and didn’t show any signs of being house trained.
Monty would spend his times either hiding or running around like a younger dog trying to escape. The fosterers thought providing him with a crate as a den would help provide him with a secure spot. Unfortunately this hasn’t worked as it is possible he may have spent quite some time in his past being crated. He returns to their bedroom whenever he needs time out.
Attempting to take Monty to the vets was an experience for his poor fosterers. He truly seems terrified of the outside world. He creates if they attempt to put on his harness or lead and tries to bite. For his age Monty is in relatively good health although he required a much needed dental. Once at home, he paced around then took himself straight to bed without eating his dinner. He had three teeth extracted leaving him with only one but its suspected they were causing him pain as he became happier once recovered.
Monty also does not like going for walks. He seems to have no clue what to do, he constantly spins around, doesn’t check ‘pee-mail’ or sniff anything, he just runs round in circles.  He is also super anxious of getting in the car.
Due to Monty’s severe anxiety Oldies Club made the decision to place him in our sponsor dog scheme which means he will remain at his lovely foster home where he is beginning to feel safe on a permanent basis, with the charity paying his vet bills for the rest of his lives.
Thankfully with time things have been improving with Monty. He has got the hang of doing his business in the garden and even asks to go out during the night if he needs to. He has been fine when left for an hour, no accidents or barking. Monty has now taken to sleeping in the lounge overnight and drags his donut bed into the middle of the room before he settles down. Monty has also started to play and loves his squeaky toys.
When Monty first arrived he was not bothered by the resident pets. The cat quickly got used to Monty’s presence and became happy to be in the house with him but the fosterers’ blind dog was still giving him a wide berth. As Monty settled this changed and now he has become very bonded with fosterers dog and cat. He seems to realise that Poppy is blind and has taken it upon himself to lead her around the garden.
Monty’s  life consists of sleeping, eating (he loves his food) and going into the garden. He seems to have settled himself into his own little routine and is happy in his own way. Monty doesn’t wag his tail or give wet sloppy kisses but he now runs about and has a spring in his step as opposed to the frantic pacing up and down when he first arrived.
Monty’s behaviour has seen improvement with him bonding more with his male fosterer who can now pick him up without Monty struggling too much or being bitten. Monty’s eyes had started to get gunky and he was able to clean them with warm water which Monty tolerates. He is also making small steps with coming to his fosterers for a fuss and has started to occasionally sit on their laps. Hopefully over time in a secure home Monty will continue to come out of his shell.

If you would love to offer a home to an oldie but your circumstances aren’t suitable, perhaps you would be kind enough to sponsor Monty, or one of the other special oldies we are caring for in our sponsor dog scheme.

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