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still has plenty of puppy energy. At his vet visit, he weighed in at 62 lbs and was healthy as can be aside from hookworm and an ear infection, both of which have been treated and are now cleared up. His ears are still a bit dry from all the scratching he did with his ear infection, but they are healing up and bothering him less each day. Charlie may be deaf, but he catches on to things incredibly fast! He is such a SMART boy! He firmly knows his signs for “come” and “good/yay”. He is getting incredibly close with “sit” (last night, he did it all on his own after signing twice with no need to nudge his bottom down - yay!), and we think he knows “no”, but like any teenager, he’s a little choosy on when he wants to accept that. ;) We’re still working on “down”, but we think he’s starting to catch on. Charlie is a busy boy, so we’ve altered some of his signs slightly to be done in one motion/one-handed so we can get his attention before something else catches it. He is eager to please, incredibly smart, and looks for direction from his people, so I have no doubt he will catch on to most anything with a little time. Speaking of smart, Charlie has figured out how to open most of the gates in our house, but with a couple extra safety latches, we’re able to keep them closed when needed. He doesn’t try to hop anything and isn’t an escape artist – he just really wants to be able to follow his people wherever they go. He loves being with his people and being able to see them. Charlie loves a good game of fetch or tug-of-war and has picked out some favorite chew toys too! He’ll gladly chew on a treat or benebone but no destructive chewing for this guy! Aside from checking out what yummy goodies might be hanging out on the counter, Charlie is a well-behaved boy. Once settled in, I don’t think he would need to be crated, but he does ok in the crate when he needs to be in there. He sometimes barks/whines for about 10-15 minutes, but after that he will settle in and take a nap. Charlie LOVES to go on walks, and if you happen to be a runner, I think he would make an AMAZING running buddy! He has some leash work to do yet, but that’s mainly just because he’s playful and sometimes a plain ‘ole walk gets a bit boring…gotta spice it up with some of that good tug-of-war stuff…it’s LOTS of fun, after all! Charlie was also a pretty big fan of the dog park but is probably best doing solo trips until after his neuter/microchip appointment on 12/5. He gets a bit excited about new buddies right now, and takes a little time to learn everyone’s boundaries. Charlie is housetrained and has started to let us know when he needs to go out. He’s a little scared of the dark, so early morning/evening potty trips are better with a buddy with a flashlight, but he’s been getting more comfortable in the yard day by day. He has done really well both on the leash and on a tie out in the yard. He’s happy to stay next to his people, so a fence isn’t needed, although I’m sure he’d LOVE one to just be able to run and play. Despite what seems like a rough start to life, Charlie has loved every person he has met so far, young and old, and is just the sweetest. He's a huge snuggle bug and loves to be next to us on the couch or in bed. If he can be laying on your lap or cuddled up to you in bed, he is the HAPPIEST boy! He likes being close to his people and needs to know where everyone is at. Because of his energy level/playfulness and strength, he’d probably do best with older kids. He’s met younger kids and has been great and gentle with them, but when he gets playful, he forgets how big and strong he is, so he could accidentally knock them over. Charlie currently lives with two resident dogs (one male boxer and one female smaller dog, both seniors) and two resident cats. He really follows our other boxer’s lead for daily routines and would probably thrive in a home with another dog that is close in age/energy level. He does okay with the cats and doesn’t see them as prey/try to hurt them, but definitely enjoys a game of chase when he’s feeling playful, which he’s learned not all cats are a big fan of. When they’re sitting still, he’ll leave them be, but if they’re walking around, he’s prettttty sure they actually want to play with him, so he’s probably best with higher energy/dog-friendly cats that don’t mind a good game of chase now and then. All in all, after settling in, Charlie does great with most anyone and just needs a little time to learn everyone’s boundaries. PUPDATE 11.2.25 Today marks 1 week fostering Charlie! He is about 1.5 years old and still has plenty of "puppy energy" that is keeping us on our toes now that all the other fur kids in the house are in their "senior years". What he lacks in the hearing department, he definitely makes up for with his other senses - this boy is SMART! He has figured out how to open all the gates (cue a Saturday trip to Menards for some extra safety latches ), and is quickly catching on to the routines of a new place with new people, new dogs, and new cats (which oddly don't like to be chased). At the beginning of the week, we couldn't get him to eat and he would only drink water from the bathtub faucet but now at the end of the week, he's getting settled in and is happily eating his whole dish of food and drinking out of the water dish too. He's learning that the yard isn't too scary, as long as Ebben accompanies him and there's daylight. He seems to be a bit scared of the dark, so the evening/early morning potty trips require an escort with a flashlight to get to his preferred spot, but we're making progress. He had his first vet visit since his puppy shots yesterday and weighed in at a healthy 62 lbs with everything checking out great except for an ear infection and itchy ears. He's scheduled for his neuter & microchip the first week in December, and they'll check out the progress of his ears while he's under since he was not a big fan of them messing around in there. While us humans in the house still have a lot to learn about training with sign language, Charlie is catching on. He knows "come" and "good boy/yaaaay" already and we're working on "down" and "no", which he seems to be getting close on (did I mention he's smart?!). He seems eager to please, so I have no doubt he'll catch on to most anything after we figure out the best way to communicate with him. Despite what seems like a rough start to life, Charlie has loved every person he has met so far, young and old, and is just the sweetest. He's a huge snuggle bug and loves to be next to us on the couch or in bed. He likes being close to his people and needs to know where everyone is at. He loves a good game of fetch or tug-of-war and has picked out a couple favorite chew toys already too. Stay tuned for more Charlie updates as we all continue to settle in and get to know each other! NEW TO RRESCUE 10.26.25: I'm a very happy guy who loves everyone and every dog I meet. I got scared by a bunny so I might be ok with cats. I appear house trained and crate trained. I don't go on furniture, but I will sleep at the foot of your bed. I'm dead and learning sign language. My favorite thing to do is play with the other dogs and run in the yard.