Our adventures as a foster dog family
From Marley’s point of view, people just don’t understand. What she’d like is a person (preferably a man) to be devoted to her in the same way that she is devoted to him. She’d like someone she could stick close to when he’s home and a safe, comfy crate to hang out in when he’s gone. Maybe a few long walks to sniff stuff, a few treats after she sits when asked, and a couch to snuggle on during movie marathons.
She’s a pretty simple girl.
Continue reading “Looking for that Adoption Magic”
Puppies.
What can I write that I haven’t written before?
This bunch is unique only in that they are all boys. I’ve never had a litter of all one sex. I came close with Edith’s litter of eleven girls and one boy.
Continue reading “Puppies!”
Current Foster Roll: 7 kittens, 5 puppies, 3 dogs
Yesterday morning, I met the 6am vet transport and delivered my seven kittens to be spayed/neutered at Anicira in Harrisonburg. I waited all day to find out if Addie and I were correct in our designation of who is a boy and who is a girl. I know it should be obvious, but I’m here to tell you, when you’re looking at a tiny, fuzzy, squirming kitten, it isn’t so clear. Thankfully, we were correct!
(Finally, I got something right with these kittens! I’ve managed to screw up the deworming schedule, the vaccine schedule, and the dosage for meds to treat their Upper Respiratory Infection. No real harm was done, except to my belief that I know what I’m doing. The HSSC may never ask me to foster kittens again. Nick doesn’t think that’s a bad thing.)
Continue reading “One Out, One In”
Puppies are coming.
Finally.
I have missed fostering puppies, but I just didn’t have the space or the time during our two-year relocation adventure. Now that we’re settled in the Shenandoah Valley, I’m ready.
Continue reading “Did Someone Say Puppies?”
A picture is worth a thousand words. Or a picture can launch a love affair. Either way, a good picture can be the key to a dog finding a family.
Often people tell me that when they saw a picture of their current dog, it was love at first sight. Capturing a dog’s personality as well as its physical features in a picture can work magic. It’s why shelters and rescues love when photographers volunteer their time (and why it would be great if more did!). For dogs coming out of shelters in the south, that initial picture is often all a rescue has to go on when deciding which lives to save. Suffice it to say, pictures matter.
Both of my current foster dogs, Argus and Marley, are adorable, but you might not know that from my pictures.
My snaps didn’t do them justice, so I asked my friend Caitlin, who is an incredibly talented photographer, to do a photo shoot.
Caitlin confessed right up front that beyond one lost dog and her own animals, she’s never spent a lot of time photographing dogs. If only we all could do this well out of the gate…
It’s been tricky to get good pictures of Argus, partly because he’s a puppy so he’s always in motion and partly because he’s a little on the insecure side. Just like that friend who always cringes or blinks when you pull out a camera, he often looked awkward in my pictures. Honestly, though, he is awkward. He’s like that gangly teen who is easily embarrassed and always apologizing for bumping into things as he learns to navigate the world with a growing body and mind.
He also sticks out his tongue when anxious, and even the tip of it appears when he’s distracted or thinking hard. He’s also a little shy around new people. So, not an easy dog to photograph.
Luckily, he warmed up quickly to Caitlin because she’s such a gentle, encouraging soul.
Marley, on the other hand, is friendly as an experienced salesman, ready to be your best friend upon introduction. The challenge with her was to make her look not so frantic – it’s mostly the blue eye that makes her pictures look a little manic. She is so much cuter in person than in pictures.
Her gray muzzle and those mismatched eyes do not come across well on camera, but I promise you, she is adorable. She’s also devoted, often she was too close to photograph well. And she has very light brindle stripes in her coat that look like wrinkles or dirt, also limiting her photogenicness. If you’re looking to adopt an Instagram star she’s probably not your dog, on the other hand, maybe her odd look on camera might work for you. She’s definitely got the personality for it.
Thanks so much to Caitlin Garvey (you can find her on Instagram at caitlingarvey_photography – look her up, you’ll be glad you did) for lending your time and your talent (and your patience) to help us find families for these two special dogs.
If you’re interested in adopting Marley, contact the Humane Society of Shenandoah County, and if you’re interested in Argus, contact Operation Paws for Homes. For more information about either of them, feel free to reach out to me.
And while you’re here, please wish a happy birthday to Argus who turned one this month!
Until Each One Has a Home,
Cara
For information on me, my writing, and books, visit CaraWrites.com.
If you’d like regular updates of all our foster dogs past and present, plus occasional dog care/training tips, and occasional foster cat updates (!) be sure to join the Facebook group, Another Good Dog.
And if you’d like to know where all these dogs come from and how you can help solve the crisis of too many unwanted dogs in our shelters, visit WhoWillLetTheDogsOut.org and subscribe to our blog where we share stories of our travels to shelters, rescues, and dog pounds.
If you can’t get enough foster dog stories, check out my book: Another Good Dog: One Family and Fifty Foster Dogs . Or its follow up that takes you to the shelters in the south One Hundred Dogs & Counting: One Woman, Ten Thousand Miles, and a Journey Into the Heart of Shelters and Rescues.
I love to hear from readers and dog-hearted people! Email me at carasueachterberg@gmail.com.
Foster dogs come and go, but our place is rarely empty. After my last post, I realized I left a few plot lines hanging…I never told you what became of Roofus and Ladybug, or updated you on the barn cat/possum outcome. So before I tell you more about Argus and our newest foster, Marley, let me end the mystery.
Ladybug and Roofus have been relocated to another foster home. Not because they aren’t wonderful dogs or because I didn’t enjoy their hounddog charms, but because I care about my neighbors.
Continue reading “Dogs (and Cats) Come and Go”
And just like that, the foster dog of dogs, is gone.
Having Gina here was such a treat. Both Nick and I agreed that if we didn’t already have three dogs, we would have seriously considered foster-failing.
So, it’s awesome that she got the perfect home, right here in the valley.
Continue reading “Forever Homes”
Rescuing animals can be is overwhelming.
I know that first hand, as does anyone in the rescue world. It’s part and parcel to the whole rescue mentality – you want to help and you can easily over-extend. You can’t bear for animals to suffer.
And sadly, lately, that proclivity to take on more and more has led to rescues turning into hoarding cases.
Two different situations came through my world this weekend that I could do nothing about, but a local wannabe rescuer’s overwhelm did spill into my world, or to be exact, my not-quite-finished foster cottage.
Continue reading “When the Rescuer Needs Rescue”
After three weeks with Moose, I’ve learned a few things about our big boy (who lost five pounds and is now only 87 pounds!).
Moose has no idea that he is enormous. He never uses his muscle or size to break in or out of places. Initially, we put him in our ‘tiger crate’, the giant steel dog crate we purchased after a previous foster broke out of (and in the processed destroyed) two large wire crates.
Moose wasn’t crate-trained when he arrived, so it seemed like the safest place to put him, knowing that at 92 pounds, he could easily force the wire crate open if he wanted to. This week I transitioned him into a regular crate and he’s never challenged it, even when left alone overnight.
Continue reading “The Moose Project”
I’ve tried. Hard. For the sake of my family and our new home and the holidays and my husband’s patience.
I’ve tried not to foster.
The plan we made (and I agreed on) was once we were settled in our new house, put up a dog fence, and renovated the cottage, then I would start fostering again.
So, we’re here. Mostly settled.
And the dog fence went in last week.
Continue reading “Moose Moves In”
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