Our adventures as a foster dog family
Okay, I don’t really think I’m a terrible foster mom.
But I want to share the mishaps/mistakes that I made in this last week fostering. Basically, to show you that we are all learning as we go and that no matter how long you’ve been doing this, you still mess up.
And that’s okay.
My worst day saving dogs is better than someone else’s best day wishing they could save them.
Continue reading “Confessions of a Terrible Foster Mom”
Last one left is a….wonderful puppy.
I never really know why a person picks one puppy instead of another. I suppose it’s kismet or karma or whim. What I tend to believe is that there is almost always adoption magic afoot. People tend to find the dog they need (and vice versa).
I have only one foster puppy left looking for her forever family. And she is a gem. Becca is crazy smart but eager to please and VERY food motivated, so training this baby will be fun. The sky’s the limit. With her long legs and athletic body, I’d bet she’d be an ace at agility.
Continue reading “Last one left is a….wonderful puppy.”
Who is hoping to find a puppy under the Christmas tree?
I’ve got some pretty adorable puppies looking for a home of their own. The ABC pups – Alex, Becca, and Cassie – arrived this past week from Mississippi.
Leche is still here. She’s had two almost-adoptions in which her status changed to ‘adoption pending’ for nearly a week, and then the adopter never followed through (or even came to meet her). This is why, people, if you see a dog you want to adopt and it’s listed as ‘adoption pending,’ you should still apply. Adoption pending can, too often, never finish pending.
Many potential adopters are looking on multiple sites and often have multiple applications submitted at the same time. That’s normal. And on occasion, people apply on impulse, but in the cold gray light of day, they think, Maybe I really can’t handle a gorgeous Husky dog who is probably smarter than me.
Huskies are special. Leche is the second Husky we’ve fostered. The last one was equally special. Special dogs require special adopters.
Which is why so many Huskies land in shelters. The combined intelligence, athleticism, curiosity, and drive is both a joy and a challenge to live with. In the five days we’ve had Leche with us, I’ve already heard from multiple Husky owners and met several when we’ve taken Leche out with us. They all tell me how much they love the breed, how special they are, how beautiful Leche is, and then I hear stories of the Huskies they’ve loved. It’s like a club.
Continue reading “Huskies are special.”
Dogs just aren’t moving. Like everyone else’s, my foster dogs linger as adoptions have slowed down all over the country.
There are lots of theories about why this is happening, and I wrote about that this week on the Who Will Let the Dogs Out Blog.
‘Ann’ had a healthy baby boy and is doing well, but it is still undertermined whether she’ll be able to find work and housing that will allow Diamond to finally go home. This sweet girl is challenged by allergies and we are working through it, but treatment ideas are welcomed. She is red and itchy between her toes, and it’s quite a torment for her. I’ve cut out all chicken and chicken by-products in her diet, and that has helped but not eliminated the issue. She’s not a fan of probiotic wipes, but we’re trying that too.
Nancy was here to join me on the latest shelter tour and took some great pictures of this sweet, wiggle-butt:
Continue reading “Lingering Foster Dogs”
We have a new foster dog keeping Diamond company these days. Berry traveled a long way to join us here. He’s from Kosovo!
OPH has an international dog program, pulling dogs from countries where they are often treated as ‘pests’ rather than sentient beings. They pull a small number of street dogs from India, Kosovo, and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Dogs living in the streets in these countries live in terrible conditions, dying in large numbers from disease, malnutrition, and car accidents.
While there are many who question why a rescue would pull dogs from another country when so many are dying here, OPH’s stance is, “In our eyes, rescue has no borders or boundaries.”
More important than that powerful value, their explanation of ‘the ripple effect’ is compelling:
Continue reading “Newest Foster Dog (from Kosovo!)”
It’s been a week with these little mice puppies, and while they have gotten bigger, they’re still tiny.
At seven weeks, the smallest (Chrystanthemum) is 2 pounds, four ounces and the largest (Gus Gus and Norman) are 3 pounds, 13 ounces. Which, if you trust a puppy growth calculator means they will grow to be 16 pounds and 27 pounds.
So, they’ll be small dogs when they grow up, which is why I’m kind of surprised, and not, that they don’t have adopters yet. This is typically a slow time of year for adoptions. But because these puppies will grow to be small dogs, I did think they’d have a better chance than most of finding a family quickly.
Continue reading “A Puppy Just for You”
I hadn’t planned on taking any puppies this summer. I wanted to be able to do some camping, kayaking, traveling…but then the heat/drought arrived and my youngest got a promotion that has him moving back to the east coast in August (2.5 hours from us).
I don’t think the temperatures will come down anytime soon if the Weather Channel is to be trusted, and Ian will need us (or at least our truck) for his big move. The water levels are so low that kayaking is out of the question, and frankly, I couldn’t justify staying on the sidelines while shelters are completely overwhelmed and the ‘euthanasia’ numbers continue to climb.
Continue reading “Summer Puppies: The Literary Mice”
It’s the little moments that feel like big progress with Bonnie and Clyde. Having spent their entire life until now in a small, poop-covered room, they are like giant, bewildered puppies most of the time.
In the early days, we worked on eye contact and impulse control (sit before being let out of crate or out the door or having dinner served). I improved my ability to be patient and learned to respond to the tiniest improvement. Now, over a month later, they’ve both more or less mastered those big asks.
Continue reading “Little Moments Equal Big Progress”
Another Good Dog™ 