Humane Society of Shenandoah County

Ehrlichia, foster cats, foster dogs, fostering, Humane Society of Shenandoah County, mama dogs, oph, puppies

A Puppy Just for You

July 25, 2024 Cara Achterberg

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.

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adopters, foster dogs, puppies

Knowing Where They Come From

May 10, 2024 Cara Achterberg

I don’t usually know where my foster dogs come from. Well, that’s not exactly right, I know it’s a shelter or maybe another foster home, but not much about their story.

I don’t know their parents or their previous owners.

When I foster puppies (and dogs), everyone wants to know what breed they are. But that’s another detail I don’t know and can only guess.

Not so, with the dogs and puppies I have fostered so far this year. All of them have come from local hoarding/eviction situations.

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adopters, dog rescue, fostering dogs, puppies

Puppy-palooza!

May 3, 2024 Cara Achterberg

It’s a regular puppy-palooza at this foster cottage. I was home from the latest shelter tour only a few hours when the deluge began.

Nancy and I picked up Sampson from the house of a new HSSC foster where he’d been with his mom for the last ten days. Tina told us that he’s a doll but he was driving her older dog a little nuts. She would continue to foster Sampson’s mama (Beatrix’s sister!) because she’s so easy and good, but would be grateful if I could take the youngster off her hands.

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fosterdogs, Humane Society of Shenandoah County, Long Term Dog, mama dogs, puppies

Small Dog Puppies and Big Dog Puppies

April 5, 2024 Cara Achterberg

Oh my gosh, small dog puppies are SO much easier than big dog puppies. At least in large quantities.

Clean up takes a fraction of the time and the correlating stink is also much lighter!

Maybe the best part is that I can hold three of four of them on my lap at a time (which still leaves two yelling for my attentions).

And talk about cuteness – why are small things so much cuter than large things?

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adopters, dog rescue, foster dogs, fostering, hard to adopt, puppies, returned dogs

Looking for that Adoption Magic

January 13, 2024January 12, 2024 Cara Achterberg

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.

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adopters, dog rescue, foster dogs, fostering, hard to adopt, heartworms, hound dogs, Humane Society of Shenandoah County, multiple dogs, puppies

The House of Bark

January 5, 2024 Cara Achterberg

I’m currently working in the house of bark.

It’s rarely like this, but for the next nine hours, until our temporary foster takes off for his new life, there doesn’t seem to be a way around it. I’m trying to breathe calmly and exude still energy, but nothing really helps with this particular combination of dog.

I’m fairly sure he’s a Husky mix because of his need to ‘talk’ all the time, his crazy smarts, and his style of play (chasing anything and everything but not bringing it back). At nine months, Steele is a bundle of energy and curiosity.

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adopters, dog rescue, fosterdogs, hound dogs, litters, mama dogs, puppies, worms

Down to the Wire with These Puppies

December 22, 2023 Cara Achterberg

We are getting down to the wire with these puppies, matching them with adopters, microchipping (tomorrow!), and I just slogged through the multi-day Safeguard deworming protocol (none of us enjoyed it). They’ll get their second set of vaccines and be ready to go home as early as December 30^th.

Every day I grow more convinced that they are hound dogs. As a foster, I try very hard to dodge fostering hound dog puppies. Not because they aren’t cute, oh my gosh, they are. And not because they aren’t fun or sweet or snuggly – they’ve got that in spades. But because they are messy.

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adopters, dog rescue, fostering, Humane Society of Shenandoah County, puppies, training

Love is Not Enough When It Comes to Puppies

December 15, 2023 Cara Achterberg

Love is not enough. At least when it comes to puppies (maybe when it comes to anything…).

Raising a good dog means putting in the work when they are puppies. The genes and individuality of your puppy are out of your control, but there’s lots more that is within your control.

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puppies

And Then There Were Puppies

November 11, 2023December 1, 2023 Cara Achterberg

And then there were puppies…despite the best guesses of vets and my assessment of Krimpet’s size/activity, she sure fooled me. Which just goes to show, it’s pretty much impossible to predict an outcome when it involves animals. (I spent a few summers working on a racetrack, so I should have known that already.)

Last Thursday, I was writing at my desk and Krimpet was having her turn being loose to wander in/out the dog door between the dog yard and my office. I was mildly concerned because instead of periodically trying to steal my planner off my desk, which had been her habit, she was stretched out full length on the futon.

When I ducked out to do something, forgetting it was Krimpet and not Gracie Lou I’d left out, I raced back expecting to find my planner in bits on the floor (like happened to one of my notebooks, several important notes on my desk, and a dozen of the rack cards I give out a book signings), my planner sat where I left it and Krimpet thumped her tail from where she still lay on the futon. But now, she looked different and it sounded like her teeth were chattering.

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