My dog Otis is a super hero.
Really. He saves lives.
It’s possible that your dog could also be a super hero.
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Is YOUR Dog a Super Hero?
Category: puppies
Movie Mutts and Parvo Puppies
This weekend we bleached the puppy fences, the crate, and the baby gate that we used with our ‘parvo pups’ last fall one last time and finally stowed them in the attic of the garage. They’d been wiped down with bleach last fall and then left stacked in the corner of our stone porch all winter. Even though they’d been bleached once, I was still wary of them. So afraid that in a crevice or a hinge, parvo virus still lingered.
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Which Way Does Your Tail Wag? (plus DNA results!)
There are a lot of wagging tails in this household, and Otis has just upped the ante.
He has a big, loose, 180-degree+, constant wag. His tail can make circles or figure eights. I’m fascinated by its repetoire.
Mia’s tail is also constant, and mostly back and forth, with her hips going just as fast.
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A Dog Who ALWAYS Comes When Called
After last week’s plea, I received so many great ideas via comments on the blog, Facebook, and a few emails, I feel a little like a deer in the headlights–where to start?
One suggestion was to write about raising a puppy.
Not that I’m an expert.
By a long shot.
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My Four-legged Silver Lining
We are down to just one foster.
Hard to remember when that was last the case. It leaves me wondering what I will write about on this blog. Although Mia is an incredibly interesting and entertaining dog, maybe it won’t be an issue. Just in case, I’m considering a few other ideas (and welcome yours!).
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A New Year of Fostering
What will fostering look like for us in 2021?
I honestly don’t know. Maybe one thing 2020 has taught me is that I can’t assume anything about the coming year.
I have many hopes for my ‘dog life’:
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Home for the Holidays
A puppy for Christmas is a pretty great present, especially if it’s these particular puppies. All of the puppies are medically cleared to go home on Christmas eve.
Lassie and Beethoven have eager adopters who have already come to meet them, who will take home their very special Christmas presents this Thursday. We are still processing adoption applications for Benji, but hopefully he will also go home.
And Otis?
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The Aftermath of Parvo
On Sunday afternoon, Nick and I went to Annette and Randy’s house to pick up Benji and Otis. They had been recovering there ever since being released from the hospital in Purcellville. Annette and Randy know a thing or two about helping parvo survivors. They adopted Kofi, who was only survivor of his litter of ten who broke with parvo. In the past eight years, they’ve fostered about 20 parvo pups, nursing them back to health and their forever homes.
Parvo is so insistently contagious that removing the virus from a home once it is infected is nearly impossible. Annette and Randy have chosen to be a foster home for parvo infected pups to come to recover from the virus. And it’s a great place to recover – warm, welcoming people who are smart and experienced, plus a handful of big, loving dogs who help shepherd sick puppies back to health. It’s a special place.
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The Lessons of Parvo
I’m not sure where to begin to write about this odyssey that began two weeks ago today and is still not over. I’ll try not to ramble, but I’m running on fumes after having spent the night in the puppy pen. I did catch a few hours sleep with puppies nestled against me (or Beethoven sprawled across my neck!).
I didn’t know a lot about parvo before this began—probably what most dog rescue people know. It’s a highly contagious virus that can be lethal, especially to unvaccinated puppies. But now I know so much more.
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Our War with Parvo
Where to begin? I’m exhausted and wired-awake at the same time. I feel a little like I’m in a war—anxious about the next assault, unable to mourn the current tragedy, and working so hard to prevent another.
My worst fears were realized last Wednesday when Hooch broke with parvovirus. This is the demon all puppy fosters fight against. It’s the reason we go through so much bleach, guard who handles our puppies, and count the days out of the shelter and the ones until we can vaccinate.
I suppose I have been incredibly lucky. I’m closing in on 200 fosters, and I hadn’t encountered parvo yet. So, maybe I was due. But, gosh, I would give anything to back this one up and get a different outcome.
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Another Good Dog™ 