SMASHpaw tags, the Shiba Meetup and Bathing Markus
Markus showing off his new SMASHpaw dog tag
Raising Markus is the series where we share stories about our time raising Markus. Said to be aggressive and having gone unadopted for over a year, Raising Markus is the story of a rescued dog from Korea given a second opportunity, now in Vancouver, Canada. This series will include the lessons, joys and struggles of dog owners fumbling our way through our first adoption. The hope is that if you're considering rescuing a dog of your own, our stories are useful to you.
Our SMASHpaw tags finally arrived this week and we're excited to tell you about them. Markus has also been making really good progress going to Shiba Meetups and we met another Jindo the last time we went. We also tried out Bosley's Self Serve Dog Wash for the first time and we really enjoyed it!
SMASHpaw Tags
Markus posing with his with SMASHpaw tag and Pine & Bone Bandana
Our order from SMASHpaw finally arrived and we're so happy with them! If you haven't seen what they're about, SMASHpaw makes custom handcrafted metal stamped dog tags that have adorable designs that remind us of the Pacific Northwest. We ordered one with a tree design and his name and we couldn't be happier with how they turned out. They included our phone number on the back of the tag in case of emergency, which is always a nice touch.
When the tags arrived, we really liked the way they were packaged. You can tell a lot of care goes into their product. When you peel open the package to get to the actual tag, you'll immediately notice that SMASHpaw dog tags are made to last. When you pick up the tag and hold the tag in your hand, you can feel the quality of the tag where the metal is thick and durable. There's a good weight to the tag and that's how you know it's quality. The design that we chose is neatly engraved into the metal with his name proudly displayed.
With so many designs on their Etsy site, there's definitely one for you. We're big fans of SMASHpaw's tags and their designs and something tells us we're going to be grabbing a second one soon.
Shiba Meetup
We're looking forward to going to the Shiba Meetup tomorrow. We've taken Markus to quite a number of these now and they've been really good for his development. I remember how unsure we were in the beginning when we first attended one of these meetups. Fast forward to today and it's nice to visit parks with other dogs that Markus is already familiar with. I underestimated how much of a difference that makes.
Since we've gotten to know the other owners too, we've had the chance to share Markus' history and his backstory. Now whenever Markus growls and barks at other dogs, they're understanding and supportive. In those moments where he clearly doesn't want to play with the other dog, I can honestly say that it helps so much to have other dog owners watching out with us. To let Markus freely play with other dogs without feeling the need to hover over him has allows him to develop, but it also teaches us to relax.
Markus is a very solo dog. Even though he'll run with other dogs when he first enters the park, he usually eventually loses interest and retreats on his own. He'll then start to explore the outer rim or quieter areas of the park. We're actually not sure what he's looking for when he does that. He seems to be interested in just exploring the park and its smells, though we sometimes wonder if he's just trying to figure out a way to escape.
Markus doesn't generally play well with other dogs. He's fine being around them and they'll sniff each other, but he doesn't normally play fully with the other dogs. This likely has to do with his time on the streets or being at the rescue shelter for too long where he didn't really play with the other dogs. Markus was labelled as aggressive in the rescue shelter, so there's a good chance they didn't feel comfortable letting him out to play with the other dogs.
Something really neat happened the last time we went to the Shiba Meetup - we met another Jindo! Up until then, we had yet to meet another Jindo. Shiba Inus are (very) common in Vancouver, but this was the first Jindo we came across. This Jindo was a white one named Bear. For a Jindo, he and Markus didn't look alike, but they got along right away. They walked and ran with each other as if they were old buddies even though they've never met before (as far as we know). This was really cool to see!
In speaking with the owners, we learned that Bear had also recently been adopted from South Korea, though not through the same organization. They told us that Bear was having trouble adjusting to life in North America and he’s easily scared around other people and dogs. They only bring him into the off-leash park occasionally and even then, they have yet to let him go fully off-leash. They too were surprised at how quickly their dog was able to get along with Markus.
We can't help but wonder if dogs are able to sense the history or past of the other dogs when something like this happens - as if they recognized they were both from South Korea and a trust factor comes with that. It just seems too coincidental that there are two Jindos in the park who have had a history of not getting along with other dogs now getting along with each other. If that’s possible, that’s a beautiful thing. We haven’t had many moments where we felt Markus was truly comfortable with another stranger dog, but this was one of them.
Washing Markus at a self serve dog wash
Markus looking so unimpressed being washed at Bosley’s Self Serve Dog Wash
Going to the groomers isn't cheap. The cost adds up so we bring him to the groomer's sparingly, but they definitely do a better job than we do. We haven’t been able to get as deep of a clean as we like to because Markus likes to fight us when we try to bathe him. I like to think that we're paying the groomers to do more than just clean him, but to have to fight him as well.
We have to take Markus someplace to bathe him since we don’t have a bathtub at our place. There’s a Bosley’s near us and we usually bring Markus there. They have a Self Serve Dog Wash which are actually really nice. At least for the one that we go to, $10 gets you your own gated area with a tub and warm running water, shampoo and conditioner if you need, fresh towels and a strong blow dryer. There are also treats in case you need to encourage your dog to behave!
We're not good at the washing thing. Part of it is that Markus doesn't like to get wet, so he struggles. The other part is that we're not good at cleaning his head because we're afraid of getting water and shampoo into his eyes, mouth or ears so we mostly just don’t go as hard there. Depending on the size and length of fur for your dog, it can be a lot of work, but the Self Serve Dog Wash makes it easier. At the very least, you’re saving quite a bit of money by washing your dog yourself.
We’re so grateful for your support of The Markus Project. We mostly choose our locations through searching and word of mouth. If you know of a park, trail or location you think we should check out, please share it with us. We’d love to know!
