Everything is Different Now in Puppy Land

[JardinPrayer]

Some of you may remember this thread (http://www.theologyweb.com/campus/showthread.php?t=110661), where I got all emo about getting a white Lab puppy from a back yard breeder. Well, after months of phone calls, the woman first told me that she thought her dog was pregnant but it wasn't only now it is. She said mama dog was "huge" and though she didn't know the exact due date, she would call the day the pups were born. She further said we could have pick of the litter since we called so often and so early on in this particular pregnancy. That was three weeks ago. No call. Frankly, we're a bit fed up with this woman. So, lots of conversation has been taking place about where our next doggie will come from. I've been campaigning for going to the Animal Control Adoption Center in the middle of town. Craig and his son just want a BIG dog.

Sunday morning, Craig got out of the shower and looked out the bathroom window to see a little Mini Pinscher running across the front lawn. A few minutes later, when he went to get a cup of coffee, he saw our cat, Sarah, staring out the oval glass insert of our front door, her tail switching madly. He went over to investigate and the pup was curled up on our door mat, fast asleep. Craig could see he was an old pooch. He stayed there for well over a half hour and then it was time to leave for church. That's when he came and got me (I didn't go to service because my pastor has lost his mind and I can't sit through it right now...though I do watch live streaming video online). By the time I got to the door, the pup had reawakened and was running around our lawn. He came to us right away and looked up at Craig like he had know him forever! I took him in, fed him a little cat food (that's all I had) and tried to find someone at the Humane Society or even Animal Control who would answer the phone on Sunday. No luck. I knocked on all the doors in a reasonable distance from the house...nobody recognized him or claimed him. We agreed he would stay with us overnight and then I would have to call Animal Control to come get him this morning.

He's as small as my cats, house trained (in fact, leash trained...heels wonderfully). He's really old and a bit arthritic and has cataracts. He can see, but often walks right into things. He also likes to be underfoot in the kitchen, so we have to be careful when we back away from the counter when we're in a cooking frenzy. He and the cats got acclimated to one another almost immediately, though my alpha, Brian, tried to bully him out of dinner and nearly succeeded.

We had a peaceful night after a little whimpering about not being allowed in bed with us. He curled up next to my night table in a small pile of clothes I've been meaning to put away and stayed there all night.

I did make the call this morning and was told an officer would come get him as soon as possible...no guarantee it would be today. Craig kept insisting we take this measure because little dogs, in his opinion, are not dogs. Well, they didn't show up today. Tonight, while we were preparing dinner, Craig's son Matt and I were talking about what a cool little bugger this guy is and how he's exactly zero trouble and what a shame it would be to send him to the shelter. To my utter and complete amazement, Craig said the following things within a 10-minute period:


We can keep him
This won't interfere with our plans to get a BIG dog from the adoption center
He needs a dog bedWe named him Little Buddy...like he cares what we call him.

Here he is.

[Sparko]

cute!!

[Johnny MacManky]

Da doggy's nice too.

[JardinPrayer]

Gosh...you can really see his blindness in that pic.

[Kelp]

That's great. He needs a good home :smile:

[JardinPrayer]

Tomorrow, I'm gonna go buy him a little doggie bed for right next to my bed, a harness to replace that awful choke collar, and some good "mature dog" food.

[Nicholas]

Awww, that's so cute.

I think you did absolutely the right things, but I think that it's probably good that he found a loving home in your house, because I'm not sure how many people would adopt an older dog. Again, I am very happy for you and the dog, I guess he must have known that you would provide a good home.

[Zeluvia]

Did you check him for tatoos? I am glad you took him in, but a dog that was cared for long enough to get arthritis and cataracts may have loving owners going crazy trying to figure out what happened to him = (

[lao tzu]

Here he is.

I hate to be the bearer of cold water, but I can't believe a dog that well behaved was abandoned. I thought I heard you say you'd posted it as missing. Are you ready for when it's owner shows up?

*please don't shoot the messenger*

[Crow]

Hard to tell what's up with it. The dog might be lost, but I worked as a shelter volunteer for a year, and saw many old dogs turned in, some as old as 11 and 12 years old.

That dog looks healthy, though. Dogs that age don't stay healthy unless someone's taking really good care of them. He looks like someone's pet that wandered off, and you'd be suprised how far even an old dog can get if there is something interesting to chase. My 12 year old foxhound managed to tree a raccoon about 5 miles from home.

[Tara_Hallie]

Awwwe...he's adorable! Congrats on your new addition!! :)

[JardinPrayer]

Well, I called about half a dozen local vets to ask if his description sounded familiar. I'll bring him along to one of them today to have him scanned for a chip. He's accustomed to being walked on a leash and prefers it to just being let out in the yard. Under no circumstances does he want to just be let out without a person with him. All he wants to do is sleep at someone's feet or next to someone...anyone. I don't see him wandering off since it appears he stuck very close to whomever his owner was. I did post a sign and call the vets. Animal Control wants me to drive into the unsavory downtown area and post a sign there...they won't do it for me with a telephone description. I'm pretty sure that's not happening.

Hey, if someone claims him from the efforts I've made, I'm more than happy to return him to his rightful owner - particularly because he has a fondness for 6:00 a.m. for his first walk of the day! We're guessing his owner passed on and the family turned the little fella out. Just a guess, of course, but this is not a critter that leaves his master's side much.

[JardinPrayer]

*please don't shoot the messenger*

Don't worry, Jesse...I'm over my hissy fit!

[Crow]

Well, I called about half a dozen local vets to ask if his description sounded familiar. I'll bring him along to one of them today to have him scanned for a chip. He's accustomed to being walked on a leash and prefers it to just being let out in the yard. Under no circumstances does he want to just be let out without a person with him. All he wants to do is sleep at someone's feet or next to someone...anyone. I don't see him wandering off since it appears he stuck very close to whomever his owner was. I did post a sign and call the vets. Animal Control wants me to drive into the unsavory downtown area and post a sign there...they won't do it for me with a telephone description. I'm pretty sure that's not happening.

Hey, if someone claims him from the efforts I've made, I'm more than happy to return him to his rightful owner - particularly because he has a fondness for 6:00 a.m. for his first walk of the day! We're guessing his owner passed on and the family turned the little fella out. Just a guess, of course, but this is not a critter that leaves his master's side much.

It sounds as if however it works out, the dog has a good home.

[JardinPrayer]

I stopped by my vet and had him scanned for a microchip. There is none. My sister has worked for vets her entire life and has quite a menagerie of her own. Although she now works for a private breeder, she has a stockpile of injectable arthritis medication for her aging Dachshund and will share it with me. I bought the food, treats, harness, and doggie bed today. Poor little thing actually has trouble climbing into the dog bed...the lip is a little high for him. He lays the upper half of his body in it and his hind legs on the floor. We'll have to work on that.

[Brandalf85]

I know the dog will appreciate whatever love and care you give to him, however old he is and however long he's with you. They appreciate it.

My cat became very blind in the last few months of her life and her living situation just got worse until she passed. In her last moments she let out one little purr as she lay on my mom's lap. Almost like a "Thank you for everything." :bawl: Ok better stop now before I start getting emotional...

[Kelp]

:hug::bawl:

[Crow]

Poor little thing actually has trouble climbing into the dog bed...the lip is a little high for him. He lays the upper half of his body in it and his hind legs on the floor. We'll have to work on that.

I've had that problem with an ancient dog. If you lay an old flat worn out pillow in front of the bed, it helps. A folded up rug or blanket works as well.

[JardinPrayer]

I tried a towel and the first thing he did last night was claw it out of the way, hop in, and curl up with his pointy nose firmly embedded in one fleecy corner. Honestly, I don't know how he breathes! But, he seems to have arthritic moments and then a bunch of good spells, so I'm not very worried here. I found that if I snap my fingers twice and point to the bed, he goes right in it. He's teaching me who he is a little more every day.

As I told Kelp in IM this morning, he slept on my lap for the entire duration of "Indiana Jones & The Temple of Doom," last night, which really put my Sarah out. She usually sleeps on Craig's lap but this was too freaky for her.

[Sparko]

he sounds very well trained and cared for, Jardin. His owners might really be missing him. Have you put up any posters in the neighborhood?

When my brother found that Visla, the animal shelter told him to take out an ad in the paper, and do whatever he could (contact vets, and put up poster) and then if nobody claimed him in 3 weeks he could officially keep the dog. Nobody ever claimed her, so now he is allowed to keep the dog even if the original owners did show up (but he said he would probably give her back if he could tell they were good owners)

[JardinPrayer]

I put up a poster at the entrance to my community, called a few vets, and drove over to the next block - where our back yards are open to theirs if there is no fencing - to ask around. I'd give him back if someone claimed him, for sure. I may do an ad in the local paper, too.

[Nicholas]

How's the new puppy doing, Jardin? Are your cats accepting their new friend?

[JardinPrayer]

The cats are quite put out, actually. Sarah and Brian spend a lot of time together...which was previously unheard of. They're creating a unified front. Brian tries to steal his food every time I try to feed him.

However, nobody is hissing, growling, biting, or otherwise doing anything that would prevent me from leaving them loose in the house together when I go out.

[JardinPrayer]

Well, yesterday I thought I'd post an ad on Craigslist to see if anyone was missing Little Buddy. In the process, I found a national MinPin rescue whose local chapter was posting for volunteers. I emailed them and asked for advice and was very surprised at the results. The local volunteer wrote me that this breed is extremely fragile, especially when old, and needs a lot of medical attention and asked me to seriously consider surrendering the dog to her. I asked what that entailed. She said the dog would be given all needed medical attention and even obedience training (???) and then placed in a foster home with people who are familiar with the breed. If he is deemed "un-adoptable," he will live out his natural life in the foster home. Otherwise, his information would be posted on their website and he would be adopted.

Craig and I discussed it and decided this is probably the best thing for the sweetheart. We're on the verge of getting a puppy...and we want a large dog. We're concerned a rambunctious puppy larger than Little Buddy would hurt him. So, I reached out to the volunteer this morning and am waiting to hear.

:sigh:

[JardinPrayer]

The MinPin Rescue people have said that Little Buddy will be better of in one of their foster homes. They insist this breed needs special care, especially if they are senior pups. The volunteer I spoke with convinced me fairly easily that a home that is accustomed to fostering MinPins (some that only take senior dogs) would provide him with a quality environment for the rest of his natural life, plus he would receive more medical care than I'm prepared to provide (lots of blood work, dental work, etc.). So, they'll come get him on Tuesday. I'm apparently required to keep him for 10 days in case someone claims him, but I'm not expecting that at this point. Since I was prepared to keep him forever, 10 days is no problem at all...except for the bonding. Craig took this shot yesterday afternoon.

[Nicholas]

The MinPin Rescue people have said that Little Buddy will be better of in one of their foster homes. They insist this breed needs special care, especially if they are senior pups. The volunteer I spoke with convinced me fairly easily that a home that is accustomed to fostering MinPins (some that only take senior dogs) would provide him with a quality environment for the rest of his natural life, plus he would receive more medical care than I'm prepared to provide (lots of blood work, dental work, etc.). So, they'll come get him on Tuesday. I'm apparently required to keep him for 10 days in case someone claims him, but I'm not expecting that at this point. Since I was prepared to keep him forever, 10 days is no problem at all...except for the bonding. Craig took this shot yesterday afternoon.

Awww, such a cute puppy...


But yeah, I guess it's probably for the best. Atleast he was lucky enough to find a family that would do what was best for him.

[JardinPrayer]

NEWS FLASH:

We finally bought our puppy today! My parents and sister were on their way to church this morning and saw a sign by the side of the road that said, "Lab Pups," with a phone number. We called it this afternoon and went to look at the litter of 9-week-olds. We chose the largest male and put a deposit down on him. It's the mama's first litter...she's not quite 2 years old. She seems more than ready to let the babes out of the nest! It was a litter of 13! Most of them were black and Craig's got a soft spot for those anyway. As soon as the MinPin is safely off to his new foster home, we'll go pick up the pup and begin our new life with him.

We decided to name him Benjamin. Benj for short.

He's been raised with his siblings in a pen inside a barn, so he's never experienced air conditioning. So, we haven't had much chance to get to know his personality yet, but he did seem a bit calmer than the others. It's been over 90 degrees the last few days, so none of them were running around enthusiastically. The owner has horses and exotic birds and all kinds of bizarre stuff.

My sister is coming with me to see the litter tomorrow to make sure all is cool there before we pay the full price. She's worked in veterinary care all her life, so if her alarm bells go off, I'll ask for my deposit back and we'll start again.

He looks pretty much like this:

[Nicholas]

Awwww, such a cute wittle puppy wuppy face.

[JardinPrayer]

Meanwhile, this was the scene at our house this afternoon. My cat Sarah, who has been very jealous that someone has replaced her on lap duty during evening tv time, has finally decided she's going to take her piece of the action one way or another.

[JardinPrayer]

I am starting a new thread about the new pup!