This little fella may have once been well cared for, but that changed and Rambo required intervention by Animal Control to abate an Animal Cruelty situation.
Last Updated: May 18, 2021
Base Info
Arrival date: Feb 2, 2021
Breed: Shih Tzu
Sex: Male
Age: Senior
Birthdate: July 3, 2007
Weight: 14 pounds on Feb 2
15 pounds on Feb 8
Neutered: Yes
General Health: Fair
Temperament: Mild, calm, friendly, bossy
SAFER Testperformed: Yes – Passed
Departure date: May 18, 2021
History
Newport Animal Control was called in due to a reported case of neglect/cruelty. They found Little Rambo wandering around the house with his fur so matted they could not find his eyes or feet. He had feces caked in his fur and had a tumor the size of an orange hanging off his anus. And he STUNK! The owner agreed to surrender Rambo rather than facing a cruelty charge. Animal Control took Rambo to Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital.
C.V.H. staffer Amy Huff volunteered 4 hours of her own time to work with the A.C.O. to shave out the mats and get him ready for an examination. Dr. Sandra Manes removed the tumor and set up his wound care schedule.
Piney Mountain Foster stepped in to get Rambo out of the shelter environment and take over his medical care.
Adoption Information
Rambo has been adopted
Progress Summary
Detailed notes are found below.
Relational Behavior
Relates well to other dogs: Yes
Can eat food/treats near other dogs: Yes
Preferred style of play: He wanders
Is affectionate: Yes
Is good with: . Men: Yes . Women: Yes . Children: Yes . Cats: Yes
Jumps up on people: No
Mouths: No
Walks well on a leash: Yes
Commands
Comes when called: Yes with Stacey, No with Dennis
Sits on command: Not yet
Down / Off: Not yet
Shake / Paw: Not yet
Kennels on command: N/A
House Dog Training
Willingly enters his crate: Not yet
Is calm/quiet while in crate: He was at first, now NO.
Understands going outside to potty: Yes, but if its raining or really cold he will not go willingly.
Alerts me of need to go outside: Sometimes
Is destructive of bedding and/or toys: No
Engages in kitchen counter cruising: Ha, that’s funny!
Stays off people furniture: He can’t get up there by himself, but we (foster parents) built him some stairs so he can get up if he wants to.
Diet
He was accustomed to eating table scraps. We’ve tried various wet and dry foods. He will eat one for a while then wants something else. You’d think he is a cat! His foster home has him free-feeding on Purina Pro Small Bites.
Gallery
Progress Updates
Feb 2
Rambo’s ride here and first day have been uneventful. The plan is for this little fella to reside in a foster home, but he will stay here until that’s all arranged.
Rambo has a fairly involved wound care regimen, but he tolerates it well.
He did fine in his crate. I took him outside for a potty run every 3 hours. 8:30 rolled around and I included Rambo in our bed time potty run routine, then I went to sit in bed and read. Rambo was having none of that, he started barking.
Short version: I went to sit with him in the den. Not good enough, he wanted OUT of the crate. Eventually I caved in. He came and laid across my legs to get pets for a while, then began touring the dog beds in the room. Around midnight he settled on his favorite. I took the other one (the smaller one of course) and that’s where we spent the night.
Feb 3
Rambo had a good day with me here today. He spent some time wandering the yard with the other house dogs. Everyone was quite civil. Dennis and Stacy came by on their way home from work to pick up Rambo and his gear. I will post updates from them as I get the information.
What lies ahead? Once Rambo is healed up from his tumor removal he will need a blood panel done to test for cancer and organ failure, and a heart worm test, and if all that is good he will need to be neutered. When that’s healed up we’ll get the poor feller a good grooming so he looks nice. He’s pretty patchy-looking right now because of the neglect he suffered and subsequent matted fur removal.
Feb 5
Ah got mah hair did.
Rambo’s foster mom, Stacey, had Rambo groomed. He looks better! She says, “I think he feels better too. Most definitely smells better. I pulled into A&W to get a root beer float. You should have seen the happy dance he did. He knew where we were! I thought maybe he would eat a cheeseburger, but he didn’t. Picky little thing.”
Feb 8
Rambo went to Cedarwood for a rabies vaccination, a complete blood panel, and a surgical follow-up exam. The bloodwork looks good except for being anemic. He has a grade 3 heart murmur. He has a couple more nodules coming up on his butt. We will do a needle aspirate of these for biopsy to see if these are malignant or benign, and go from there.
Mar. 8
It has been a month since my last check-in. Rambo is doing well with Dennis and Stacey and they are quite fond of him. He gets along great with their whole pack, including the cats. He seeks out one kitten in particular when he wants to snuggle for a nap, and his feelings toward another cat are, lets say, more of an amorous nature. He’s confused, obviously!
When outdoors he will ramble off a ways, but when he gets beyond his comfort zone he just stops and waits for someone to retrieve him. Being a senior dog, his eyesight is weak. He can navigate well enough, but not see distance. Rambo is due to be neutered next week. Once that is done he can go up for adoption.
April 11
Rambo has been groomed a couple of times now and it looking great. His foster parents say “He is such a hoot!” Although he can’t see really well he’s always up for an adventure.
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This sweet trusting dog has spent his life being beaten and mistreated.
Yet he retains his loving spirit and trusting heart.
Last Updated: Aug. 8, 2020
Base Info:
Arrival date: July 13, 2020
Breed: Hound
Sex: Male
Age: Youth, Adult, Mature, Senior
Birthdate: 2009 (according to surrendering family)
Weight: @55 Pounds
Neutered: Yes
General Health: Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor
Temperament: Mild and gentle, affectionate, a true gentleman.
SAFER test performed? No.
Departure date: July 31 headed for Karen the Amazing via A.R.N.N.E.
History
Surrendered to Greenville Animal Control, this sweet trusting dog has spent his life being beaten and mistreated by a mentally handicapped resident of the group home where Smokie lived. Yet he retains his loving spirit and trusting heart. Because of GAC policy, Animal Control was going to put him down. But Jammie, of Cats In the Cradle in Mosheim TN, came to his rescue and pulled him out just in time. She asked for help and Animal Rescue Network of New England. stepped up. Piney Mountain is fostering him for A.R.N.N.E. We hope he can finally join a family who will appreciate his awesomeness.
Smokie’s (Archie’s) Progress Summary:
Detailed notes on this foster dog’s progress are posted below the summary.
Relational Behavior
Relates well to other dogs: Mostly
Can eat food/treats near other dogs: Yes
Preferred style of play: Walking. Does some frolicking with Josephine, our youngest
Is affectionate: Yes
Is good with:
. Men: Yes
. Women: Yes
. Children: Yes
. Cats: Unknown
Jumps up on people: No
Mouths: No
Walks well on a leash: Yes
House Dog Training
Willingly enters his crate: Needs mild encouragement
Heartworm preventative:
. 07/14/2020, Ivermectin orally, 0.6 ml
.
NOTES:
. Teeth are in good shape for his age.
. Has several fatty tumors, 2 large on his belly.
. Has several wart-like growths on his head.
. Has a hard mass on his left shoulder.
. Movement seems a bit stiff, starting on Synovi G4 supplements and 1200 mg Fish Oil caps
. 07/24 Trizultra+Keto ear wash used to break up waxy discharge. Right ear was the worst.
. A cyst came up in Archie’s left eye, lower lid. I’ve been treating it with Boric Acid solution, but that hasn’t helped much. Cedarwood prescribed NeoPolyDex Opth Solution for 7 days. I’ll treat until he leaves.
Diet
Started him on Mature formula kibble: HATED It!
Switched him to what everyone else eats (Victor Professional) and home-made stew: much better.
1¼ cups kibble & 3.5 oz stew per feeding (AM & PM)
He’s picky about treats too. His favorite is Canine Carry-outs Pot Roast Flavor. He’s become fond of our PMFC Peanut Butter treats too.
Gallery
In chronological order, newest at the bottom. Some pictures are linked to a more detailed Doggy Tale about that update, click those to open the related story.
That’s enough ‘outside’ I want back in.
Progress Updates
Progress notes are listed below, in chronological order, newest at the bottom.
July 14
Smokie slept well last night, no baying or barking at all.
When I fed him this morning I let him out to free-range wander (figured I’d have no trouble catching him if I needed to and he’s definitely not going to climb over the fencing) while I fed the others. When I was done with that, Smokie was standing watching. I called him and he strolled over to get head scritchies and went right back in to his room to eat his breakfast.
The people who surrendered Smokie claim he’s 11 years old. Both Jammie and I feel he’s not that old — or he’s well preserved.
July 15
It got really hot today: 102° air temperature and when you add in the humidity we got a heat index of about 185° (joking here, but it was hot). Smokie, being an elderly gentleman, was not handling the heat well. So I set up a large crate in the house and risked the ire of The House Dogs by bringing him indoors.
Buddy Beagle and Callie Roo are forever fosters who have decided they are tired of the constant flow of foster dogs through THEIR house and get grumpy with them. Blondie Bear and Josephine (both are adopted rescues) are always ready to welcome new friends.
I use a baby gate to partition off areas to keep house guests and house dogs separate until they work out their issues. Smokie enjoyed being cooler. He was crated (except for the occasional yard run) while i was working during the day ( a lot of in and out as I tend to the dogs) but in the evening he got to come out and lounge around the den while I worked at my desk. He’d come over to me frequently to get scritchies. Nothing demanding, just come stand there and look at me with a “Pleeeease?” expression. It cooled off nicely that evening, but we decided to try letting Smoke stay indoors. He whined a little when we all went to bed, but then settled and slept soundly until I got up at 4:30. He went outside for a long yard break then settled in on a bed in the den while I updated our web site.
July 17
Smokie has become a house dog. For the past couple of days Smokie has been inside with us almost full time day and night. On Thursday Marie and I had to go run errands and it was in the morning: still cool, so we put Smoke in his kennel outside while we were away. But otherwise he’s hanging out in our den. He gets to explore the house when the House Dogs go outside for a potty run or to ward off a delivery truck or wandering cat.
Smokie is a picky eater, and I’m having trouble finding things he likes. But he’s pretty low-energy, so he probably doesn’t need to eat much. Or — maybe we just need to find the right bribe: Marie mixed some shredded cheese into his kibble and he gobbled them right down!
Learning to be a kitchen helper
Mastered Kitchen Helper
Enjoying movie snacks with the gang
On Friday nights Marie makes some home-made stir fry and we eat off tray tables in the living room to watch an old Sci-fi movie. The dogs get special treats too. Smokie (Archie) is fitting right in.
July 22
Archie is such a dear old fellow, and is now a free-range house dog. He sleeps wherever he wants at night and is free to wander the house all day – even when I go outside to work with the dogs there. We do crate him when Marie and i both go away for an extended period just like we do with Buddy and Callie Roo.
Who? Me?!
They’re all good dogs, but when left on their own for too long they tend to get together and cook up mischief. Mostly with Josephine. Josie is our chief mischief maker.
I got word yesterday that Archie has a ticket to ride the transport on July 31st. He’ll arrive at the quarantine center in NH (state requirement) on August 1st. His new Momma is also adopting Hunny, another senior Tennessee hound so they will at least have the same accent and will be able to relate well. They both do the “propeller tail” thing, so it will be interesting to see if the twirl their tails together.
Buddy Beagle was giving Archie a hard time for a while because Archie was trying to lay his head over Buddie’s back – a dominance move that says, “I’m the boss, you are under me” and Buddy took exception to that and I needed to intervene before it got ugly. But they’ve worked through that as Archie learned that in fact *I* am pack leader and Blondie Bear is Boss Dog under me. Although, she is a benevolent leader. In fact, Buddy and Archie often go out to wander the yard together — this is so one can pee on the same spots the other does but it’s done without conflict.
July 27th
Archie passed his health certification today. I have to go back tomorrow, so I’ll pick up the completed paperwork then rather than making us both sit outside in the heat while they fill that out — which can take a while since they’re doing that between phone calls, and running patients in and out, and processing payments, etc. This “New Normal” is hard on most everyone.
July 31
We had a going away party for Archie last night, with extra treats – which caused him to need to go outside at 11:00 and at 3:00 last night. He’s been quiet and reserved this morning, he knows somethings up. After the 3:00 run I settled in on the sofa to rest and Archie came and stood beside the sofa to get scritchies. I gave him scritchies until he couldn’t stand up anymore and went around the end of the sofa to lie on a plush runner rug that is there. We both dozed until the other dogs stared wanting out at their usual time of 4:30.
Archie has been really good about letting me put his eye drops in twice a day — as long as he gets his Pot Roast treat afterward. He does love those!
Archie enjoying his truck ride with us.
Happy Tails, Sir Archie!
Archie laid over at The Spa for a couple of days after his transport.
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Phoenix is so named because everyone who knows her believes that although she may have been found
in the ashes of her life, she WILL rise again.
Last Updated: April 28, 2020
Base Info:
Arrival date: Jan. 15, 2020
Breed: Grey Hound/Shepherd mix
Sex: Female
Age: Puppy, Young Adult, Mature, Senior
Weight: Records show 29.1 pounds at NAC intake!
. 34 Pounds at PMFC arrival
. 37.1 lbs Feb 3rd
. 39.1 lbs Feb 27
. 39.8 lbs Mar 5
. 40.1 lbs Mar 10
. 39.8 lbs Mar 19
. 40.5 lbs Apr 23
Spayed/Neutered: Yes
General Health: Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor
Temperament: Sweet, calm, affectionate, goofy
Departure date: April 24, 2020 Headed for a foster-to-adopt home through A.R.N.N.E.
History
Phoenix was spotted running loose behind Food City West in Newport and Animal Control was called in to catch her. She was scrawny, wormy, and extremely frightened, but not at all aggressive. She spent 25 days at Animal Control before PMFC pulled her on behalf of ARNNE. During that time she ate very little and was scared and depressed despite the NAC staff’s attempts to comfort her and provide an enticing diet.
Phoenix’s Progress Summary:
Detailed notes on this foster dog’s progress are posted below the summary.
Relational Behavior
Relates well to other dogs: Yes
Can eat food/treats near other dogs: Yes
Preferred style of play: Likes to run with Josie
Is affectionate: Yes
Is good with:
. Men: Yes
. Women: Yes
. Children: No Yes
. Cats: Yes (no reaction to cats at NAC)
Wormed: Dates | Product | Dose | By
. 12/20/2019 Pyrantel 3 cc NAC
. 01/14/2020 Proziquantel ?? NAC
. 01/14-16/2020 Panacur 8 ml NAC/PMFC
Rabies: 02/03/2020 (Cedarwood) #000090
Spay/Neuter: Was done long ago
Heartworm Test: 01/14/2020, Neg (Cedarwood)
Flea/Tick preventative:
. date, product, dose
Heartworm preventative:
. 01/16/2020, Ivermectin solution, 0.4 ml
. 02/17/2020, Ivermectin solution, 0.4 ml
. 03/17/2020, Ivermectin solution, 0.4 ml
. 04/16/2020, Ivermectin solution, 0.4 ml
NOTES:
.Microchip #982000409195236
Diet
We’ve switched her to home-made stew using recipes from my upcoming book. 03/03 Started feeding her Satin Balls for lunch (1/2 lb each) for this week to see if they help her gain weight faster. They did! 3/10 eliminated lunch, just two meals from now on. Cutting back on the fats. Sticking with the home made stew for now: 12 oz. stew twice each day. April 6, changed to 1/2 cup 4health Salmon and Potato kibble topped with 5 oz. home made stew in the AM and 3/4 cup kibble topped with 8 oz stew in the PM. This seems to suit her eating habits well.
Gallery
A heavy shirt to help keep her warm
A custom made hoodie does even better.
Happily resting in her “room” indoors.
Wandering the yard now.
Ready to go for a jog.
She’s a house dog now.
Progress Updates
Progress notes are listed below, in chronological order, newest at the bottom.
Jan 18
I’ve let Phoenix settle in for the past few days. She is well behaved. Rarely barks at all. She acts like she’s been a house dog before. She’s scrawny, so it’s hard to keep her warm in the January days, so we’ve gone through a couple of iterations of outer wear for her. She loves her hoodie!
She sleeps inside in a crate at night and on the colder days. When it’s warmer she has a futon with a thick felt blanket atop it to lounge on. She needs to put on weight, but she eats so little that’s going to be hard.
Jan 24
Phoenix very much prefers to be indoors in her cushy crate where it is warm and dry and there is no wind. Because she is SO thin, she does not tolerate cold at all.
When she does come outside, on nice afternoons: some have been up in the 50 degree range, she gets a futon as a bed and a warm wool blanket to lay on. I hang a brood lamp above to provide warmth as well.
On those nice afternoons, Phoenix does like to wander the yard. Now that her depression is dissipating she is eating better. That gives her strength to go out walking around.
YUM, warm beef stew!
She is a picky eater. She won’t touch kibble yet, and the canned food has to be stew. In order to get her to eat the pate’ style dog food I have to chunk it up and add beef or chicken broth — effectively making it stew. And it has to be warm, she won’t eat cold stew. But then neither would I. So I warm it before I take it out to her.
She’s up to 21 cans of stew per week.
When she first arrived, I was doing well to get her to eat one can a day. She’s up to finishing three cans per day now. It’s hard to tell if she’s gained any weight just by looking at her, I need to take her to Cedarwood and put her on a scale. But her energy level is up and she’s developing a delightful, quirky personality. She has quite the sense of humor.
I have yet to hear her bark, but she is communicative through head tosses and mouth movements. She lets me know when she needs to go out, and when she’s ready to go back in. Her eye’s are brighter and she desires affection more now that she feeling better. Starvation does tend to take the fun out of life.
Jan 27
Normally Phoenix makes a quick trip outside to potty then wants back inside where it’s warm. But since I put a heated pad in her bed she is enjoying being outside much more.
I think maybe she is Shepherd mixed with some Grey Hound. Now that she’s developing a personality again, some of her mannerisms are decidedly Gra-Hooond.
Jan 29
Phoenix is a skinny gal who has been gradually increasing her food intake. She does not like kibble, so I feed her wet food. She prefers stew. Especially beef stew.
She is to where she will polish off a can at each of her three daily meals. Time to increase her portion to help her gain weight. I thought I’d try mixing 1/2 cup of kibble into her stew before I warm it up for her. It must be warm when I take it to her or she’ll leave it and go back to her heated bed.
She took a couple of bites then reared her head up and stared at the contents of her bowl for several moments. Turning her head she looked over her shoulder at me with a definite “What do you think you’re trying to pull here, bub?” look.
After a while she began to eat again, slowly. It took her quite a while to finish. When I collected her bowl, there in the bottom was almost 1/2 cup of kibbles that had been sucked clean and spit back out!
Okay, you win: no more kibbles!
Jan 30
We had a nice, warm, sunny afternoon today. The perfect chance to strip that hoodie off of Phoenix and launder it. She said, “I don’t LIKE being naked!” and was relieved when I brought her red hoodie back out to her.
Jan 31
Today I let her out of her kennel to use the yard while I went in the house to warm up her lunch. Previously she never moved faster than a leisurely walk, but when she saw me coming down the path with her bowl of warm salmon mush she trotted over and did a little happy dance. It made my heart SO happy to see her acting like a dog again.
Feb 2
Her level of activity and animation are WAY up the last few days (see video in Gallery above). This is great to see.
Feb 3
Phoenix went to Cedarwood for her physical and an estimate on the cost for getting her in good shape again. She did well, and everyone commented on how much better she looks now and how much more animated she is. Phoenix was friendly with the other people in the waiting room and the Shepherd pup who was waiting with us.
She rode well with me in the truck, and was highly conversant the whole way. She’s so funny!
Feb 16
I love this dog! She is so funny. I have yet to hear her bark, but she talks to me all the time with mouth movements, head shakes, and bouncing on her front legs.
She is gaining weight and I’d like to have the blood panel done on her as soon as we can afford it to see if she is a candidate for surgery. If she’s got weak kidneys or heart anesthesia could kill her, so we need to know that first.
Phoenix loves attention and walks well on a leash. She sleeps in a crate inside the heated bunkhouse, and is eager to go inside at 9:00 PM.
She can’t hold her bladder longer than from 9:00 PM to 4:30 AM, so I go out to walk her and put her back in her box until breakfast time at 5:30. If it’s warm enough, she comes out to her kennel to eat, if not she eats inside and I’ll bring her out when it warms up.
She needs walking every 2 hours during the day or she will be needing a blanket change and crate scrubbing.
Feb 18
I tried making some home-made stew as an alternative to canned food for Phoenix. Will she like it?
Feb 20
Phoenix was getting lonely sleeping in the bunkhouse alone at night, so I brought her (and her crate) into the house. She’s doing REALLY well. When she came in Phoenix immediately claimed this bed as “hers”. That will be contested, but for now that claim holds.
The whole PMFC gang came to say “Hi”, but Blondie Bear settled in to keep Phoenix company. Blonde Dogs must stick together.
She is SO sweet, gentle, and unassuming. In the evening I put her hoodie back on her and took her outside. She wandered off into the yard, I went back inside. She was gone for the longest time, so I went out to call her in because it was cold. When I called her she came BOUNDING back through the snow like a gazelle, “Oh! You’re letting me come back in!?” It’s hard to say what this girl has been through, but she doesn’t expect much from people.
Feb 25
That was GOOD! May I have more?
I’ve switched Phoenix to new stew recipe that uses potatoes, cheese, and chicken fat to help her gain weight. She LOVES it!
We’ve also launched a new fund-raising campaign to get the funds we need to pay for the vet care she needs. I’m having no luck at all with grants. Gonna have to do it the old fashioned way.
Skinny Dog Stew: chicken, potato, cheese, spinach, oats.
Phoenix is doing fabulously as a house dog. She has mostly stayed in the den, but has recently started coming out to wander a little. She does like to dine in the kitchen with the others, I have to stand guard to keep Josephine from trying to horn in on Phoenix’s meal. They all want some of THAT!
March 1
I have been discussing Phoenix’s “talking” with Christine from ARNNE. This motivated me to go out and check up on the characteristics of Greyhounds. Here are some of my favorite entries from that list:
Greyhounds are not barkers. If you have a barker, then you probably have a more insecure dog and he is barking because something has frightened him. … Greyhounds communicate with you by whining. Whining to be let in, to eat, to play, to get up on the bed — you name it and they’ll talk (whine) to you about it.
Grunt, growl, mmmmmmmph. These are the sounds greyhounds make when sleeping and dreaming. Don’t share a bed or couch with a dreaming greyhound. You could end up with a big harpoon of a leg in your side.
Contrary to popular belief, greyhounds do not need long walks or vast amounts of exercise. If your hobby is walking then your greyhound’s stamina can be built up over a couple of months. … For a normal greyhound, two, yes, two 20 minute walks per day are sufficient.
The greyhound is intelligent, gentle with a quiet disposition, and in spite of its great athletic ability, is content to spend most of the day sleeping.
Greyhounds are one of the oldest breeds of dogs, tracing back over 8,000 years to early cave drawings.
Phoenix’s safe place
As for my own observations, when she first arrived she did not like being touched and would flinch away if I did. Now she likes being petted gently and often comes to me to seek being stroked on the head.
Helping fix dinner
Phoenix is really smart and trains easily. She is doing better about holding her bladder at night and I’ve been letting her sleep on her bed in the den at night. I crate her only when we’re leaving the property for an extended period. Until recently she spent nearly all of her indoor time right here. She is happy to sleep away most of the day. Over the past few days she has started wandering out as she gains confidence that the other house dog’s aren’t trying to kill her with their rowdy play. She even comes out to the kitchen at meal times to watch preparation and enjoys eating her meals with the other dogs.
March 3
I started feeding Phoenix Satin Balls for lunch. Will carry this through the week and see if it helps her put on weight faster.
Phoenix has been “free-range sleeping” on her bed in the den. Not because we’re sequestering her but because she’s more comfortable there in her own space than in with the whole pack.
Last night just after 3:00 am I heard the soft huffing that is how Phoenix speaks to me and I woke up. She was standing next to the bed telling me she needs to go out to pee. Not something she normally does in the middle of the night, but … if she needs to go, she needs to go.
I let her out, she came back, got her treat and went back to bed.
I’m so proud of how far this girl has come. This was, as Marie put it, “A bold and courageous move” for her.
March 17
She’s wagging her tail occasionally. Normally it just hangs straight down, but today it has been up about half way and swinging side to side. So good to see!
March 20
Her tail is not wagging today. Yesterday she had her surgeries – or, as it turned out: surgery. As they were shaving her belly for the spay surgery they found an old, faint spay scar. Spay surgery unnecessary! As they were cleaning her teeth, they decided the molar they thought was bad was just really grungy and extraction was not needed. So all they ended up having to do, surgically, was the removal of the two lumps on her leg.
She started licking the incisions just before bed time, so I put her in a donut. As it turned out, I was up frequently through the night and was able to check on her often. She slept through the night. About 4:30 this morning she wanted to go out and pee.
She refused dinner last night, but ate some breakfast this morning. I made an appetizer for her with small pieces of Satin Balls (with her medications hidden inside). She’s been sleeping most of the time since. That’s the best thing for her. She will be feeling better soon.
March 27
Phoenix had her stitches removed yesterday. I took the cone off and she immediately started picking off scabs, so the cone went back on and I’m treating the bleeding spots with Chlorhexadine and Bacitracin.
Dr. Courtney informed me this morning that the histopathology on Phoenix’s lumps came back: both benign and both completely removed. Good News!
A.R.N.N.E. has made reservations on P.E.T.S. LLC for her to be picked up April 17th.
April 4
I removed Phoenix’s cone again. All her wounds are healed up to where she can’t do any more damage.
Kibbles topped with fish stew
Phoenix has decided that she’s being discriminated against since she gets a bowl of straight stew and everyone else gets kibble topped with stew. Keep in mind that previously Pheenie would not eat kibble if I gave it to her. But this morning she ate about 2/3 of her stew, then went and shouldered Blondie out of her bowl to eat her kibbles. Blondie said, “Okay then I’ll go eat your stew. Fair trade!” And they did. They’re both really good girls.
I’m hoping that now that Phoenix is not encumbered with that cone she and Josie will do some racing in the yard again. Phoenix is in good health now, but she needs exercise to tone up her muscles. She’s been convalescing for too long. I’ve got just under two weeks to get her shaped up and ready to go to her new family.
Phoenix’s roosting spot
As an update: Phoenix is not crated anymore. Even when we leave the property for an extended time I leave her loose in the house, just make sure she goes out right before we leave.
Until recently Phoenix pretty much stayed on her special bed in the den. But lately she will come wandering out when Marie and I are having dinner and stand staring at Marie, hoping for a hand-out. We don’t do that, but she hopes. At night when the rest of us are settling in the bedroom, she comes in and looks around the room like she would like to join us. She is welcome, and we encourage her to stay, but she goes back to her own place. Maybe now that she’s not dealing with the added burden of the cone she will choose to curl up in one of the empty beds and stay the night with us.
Phoenix is hard of hearing. Not surprising in an older dog. She is not deaf, but one has to speak loudly for her to hear us, and it’s easy to sneak up behind her and startle her (especially when she was in a cone). We have had to be mindful if this: she’s still unsure of her position in our home and spooks easily, sending her scampering back to her bed where she feels safe because I make the other dogs stay off of that one bed, leaving it always for her.
April 15
Every animal lover knows that a dogs tail tells volumes about what the dog is thinking or feeling. (If you don’t know, check this out: https://pineymountainfoster.org/dogs-tail-tells-a-tale/ ) so you will understand the happiness I feel over the recent changes in Phoenix.
Phoenix is … uncertain, about her surroundings and the other dogs, and at first about us. She has obviously had a hard life, including neglect (starved almost to death) and probably abuse. Her tail has hung straight down most of the time we’ve known her. And she spends most of her time camped out on the special bed I set up for her in our Den. Normally, all dog beds are shared property and all the dogs rotate through the 10 available beds (not counting blankets and crates). But I have judiciously maintained that THIS bed if for Phoenix. It is her one safe place since she no longer needs a crate. At all. She’s a wonderful house dog and I trust her to be loose even when we leave the property for a long while.
In the past week or so, Phoenix has been venturing out of the Den more often. First to take her meals with the other dogs. Then to hang around while Marie and I eat. To check on us if we’re in the living room watching a DVD. And most recently, to greet Marie when she gets home from work.
This is always a joyous occasion that sometimes turns into a rowdy party. Phoenix has been coming out to watch, standing in the end of the hallway where she is out of the fray. The past two days, she has joined in with the bouncing around – and TAIL WAGGING – as the whole pack greets (accosts) Marie. It does my heart good to see her tail up where a dog’s tail belongs and swinging side to side as she bounces on her front legs and sings, her soft, “har, har, harrrr” which is as close to barking as she ever gets.
Pheenie will be leaving us the end of this week. The long trip, quarantine for 2 days, then introduction to a new family and location may set her back a bit. But I know she’s going into a foster-to-adopt situation with a family who is experienced and has two other senior dogs. Phoenix will do well there, and I look forward to getting updates from them.
April 16
Transport run cancelled by the carrier. Her departure has been rescheduled to April 24. I’ll need to have her health certification done again since the current cert will be expired by the time she arrives on the 25th.
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Departure date: May 8th, headed directly to her forever home in New York!
History
Picked up as a stray July 31, 2019 and never claimed, Faith is in search of a loving home. After having been at Animal Control for too long, Dr. Sandra Manes DVM pulled her, to be sure she was safe, and asked Piney Mountain to foster her. Faith was overweight and in need of some serenity. We have been addressing both of those issues.
Faith Lou-Ellen’s Progress Summary:
Detailed notes on this foster dog’s progress are posted below the summary.
Dog to Dog Behavior
Relates well to other dogs: She now does well with all dogs. Avoids confrontation.
Can eat food/treats near other dogs: Yes Has done so in her kennel/crate with other dogs just outside. Have not tried free-ranging this yet.
Style of play: Her favorite thing to do while shes out in the play yard is to flip on her back and wiggle-scooch down a hill. Now that she’s losing weight she enjoys running. Bounces around a little with Blondie Bear.
Dog to People Behavior
Is affectionate: Yes
Is good with:
. Men: Yes
. Women: Yes
. Children: Yes
Jumps up on people: Yes – but getting better
Mouths: No
Walks well on a leash: Doing better – working on this. She likes to walk herself! (see Dec 16)
In chronological order, newest at the bottom. Some pictures are linked to a more detailed Doggy Tale about that update, click those to open the related story.
Sept 9
Faith was supposed to be coming here today, a foster dog who was supposed to be leaving on last weeks transport got bumped to next week’s run. So I don’t have a vacancy yet. This should be corrected on Thursday the 12th. Once she’s here I can begin the evaluation and provide more detailed information.
Sept 12
Faith has arrived. She rode well. When I let her out in the play yard she peed, pooped, then rolled on her back and wiggle-scooted all the way down the hill. She’s a hoot!
Due to a sudden change in The Plan a dog that was supposed to have left last week didn’t, and a change to Faith’s recent housing brought Faith here a little early and I do not have an empty kennel for her. But I will in a few hours. So Faith is lounging in a crate until Louis and Sable leave this afternoon. She seems content with that for now, and the whole gang has come by the say, “howdy!”
Sept 13
Yesterday I found blood on the floor of her kennel, and blood on her foot, though she wouldn’t let me have a good look. This morning I found her Benebone chew toy bloodied up. Her gum is bleeding around a tooth, left side, lower jaw, about half way back.
I removed the Benebone and replaced it with a rope toy. I’ve alerted Dr. Sandra, we will see what needs doing next week. This might be why she’s not eating the kibble too. I have some canned food. I’ll try that until she see’s her vet.
Sept 16
I made an appointment with Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital to sedate Faith and have a good look at her teeth – and trim her toenails. Since I removed the Benebone I’ve seen no blood on the floor or in her mouth. She is eating kibble now too, apparently without discomfort.
Sept 18
I took Faith to Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital this morning. I put her in a harness to avoid choking her when she pulled on the leash. She rode well and did well in the reception area.
Faith allowed the good folks at Cedarwood to examine her teeth and gums without being sedated. They found indications that she had scratched her gums (probably with that chew toy) but that had healed. Her teeth and gums are in great shape with only level 2 tartar. She’s also down to around 61 pounds! Yay!
Sept 23
Faith is doing better with the “come” command. She is settled into her kennel and seems to like spending time in her dog house. She lays on her Kuranda dog bed in the afternoons when it gets warm.
Faith & Blondie “play”
Hiding from the hose as I clean neighboring kennel
Being my gardening assistant
Siesta time
Sunning while I clean her room.
Sept 25
Yesterday I bought a couple of Bully Horns for the doggos to chew on. I particularly wanted one for Faith because the Benebones I bought them tend to “fuzz up” and that roughness was scratching her gums and making them bleed. So I took it away and gave her a ropey toy. She would rather have a proper chew toy and has tried to steal Rosco’s through their common wall.
I was hoping to post a video yesterday of how much Faith liked this new chew toy, but, alas, she ignored it all afternoon and evening. But this morning, when I went out to clean kennels, she was doing this:
Oct 4
It’s a brisk 68° this morning and Faith is running all over the place. The nice cool temps help, but so does the fact that she’s lost about 8 pounds since intake.
Oct 11
Since Faith has been here, she has been going out into the yard with Blondie Bear. Faith pretty much ignored Blondie until this past week. One day early in the week I noticed the two of them bouncing around and playing a bit while I cleaned Faith’s kennel. It didn’t last long then, Faith wandered off. A couple of days later they were at it again, and I got my camera out to record their fun. But as soon as I turned my attention to them, Faith’s attitude changed:
As you can see her tail is low and slow,her eyes are round, mouth closed, and she’s licking her lips. All signs of tension. Violence was about to break out. This is not the first time with Faith, she has gone after Major and Callie because they were close to me. This is jealousy driven. Acting this way toward Blondie Bear is new.
I called Faith with a happy, excited voice. Faith broke off from the impeding confrontation and came running over to me. I kept her in her kennel while I finished cleaning.
The next day, everything was back to normal as the girls ignored one another. Faith was happy to lay in the sunshine. The following day they were again playing and seemed to be keeping it civil. So I kept an eye on them, but out of the corner of my eye, not looking directly at them, and I skirted around them as I cleaned the yard. They played for a while, then Faith came to see if her room was done and I had a treat for her. Much better!
Oct 17
It’s been getting chilly at night – and will get chillier in a couple of days – and Faith has short fur and a bare-naked belly. So a couple of mornings I took two old polar fleece blankets out and put them in her dog house after I cleaned her kennel. Faith saw me carrying the blankets and was excited by them. When I let her back in her room she flew right past me and her treat, dove into the dog house, ran a couple of laps inside, then settled in the door, “THANK YOU!”
Poor Faith is accustomed to finer living. She obviously was a house dog, house broken, accustomed to furniture privileges and a lot of attention. But because she needs to be an only dog (she gets jealous with *some* dogs) the rescues we’ve approached won’t take her. She needs to be good with *all* dogs for them to want her. She is not a mean dog and if she were integrated properly into a house with another dog as she bonded with the people it should work out fine. We were not able to do that with her here because we already had FIVE dogs in our little house.
We’ve started bringing Faith inside at night. She and Callie have had issues and one major spat, so I cannot allow Faith to roam the house until we get that issue resolved. But Faith is delighted to be inside, even if it’s just barely inside. And she likes Glen Miller music, she even keeps rhythm with her tail.
Nov 15
Faith has done well in allowing the other dogs to parade past her crate on their way to and from the door to the outside. Weekends are special times for us at PMFC, a time of extra togetherness. Faith has been moved from the laundry room to the main room where she can see and — to a limited extent — participate in these increased activities.
Over the weekend we will experiment with letting Faith out – on a very short leash – to interact with the other dogs. If she does well, it will be a major step in certifying her as “adoptable”.
Nov. 24
This week Faith received another housing upgrade: she moved into a wire crate to allow her to be more “connected” with the other dogs. And by setting up the space heater near her crate we encourage the other dogs to come camp out near her so she gets used to their presence.
Buddy Beagle is fine with her being here as long as she is in her crate, when I take her out to go potty, get a drink, or have some free-play time Buddy has to go outdoors to a kennel or he bays and hollers at her. She pays him no mind, but it annoys me. All the others have adapted to her, and she is mostly tolerant of them. Two incidents of her grousing at the others: one awoke her from a sound sleep and may have been triggered by a dream. The other, Josephine was sniffing at Faith’s hoofie, which had gotten shoved into a corner of her crate. No issues at feeding time, though Blondie and Josie routinely eat right beside Faith’s crate.
Typically Faith paws at her crate door only if she needs to go out to potty or if she needs to get a drink. The rest of the time she lounges peacefully, grateful to be in the house with us.
I want snuggles too!
Today after church, she pawed at the door. I secured the loudmouth dog and closed room doors leaving the way to the backdoor clear, then I let her out of her crate.
But she didn’t trot off to the back door so she could potty. She didn’t scamper around the kitchen island to get a drink. She rushed to where Marie had settled to pet Josephine, Faith wanted snuggles too.
Nov. 30
Faith is getting depressed. Too many grey days, too much time spent in her crate while 5 other dogs get free-run of the house. So this morning I crated everyone but Blondie and Josephine and let Faith out to free-range for a while. She decided all she really wanted was to spend some time in my company. So we snuggled for a while as she got some scritchies. Then she settled in nearby while I took care of some bookkeeping and communications work.
Faith really needs to find a home to call her own. The safest bet would be a home with with no assertive dogs. She does fine with mild-mannered dogs, but reacts badly to dogs who get in her face. Other than that, she is an absolute sweetheart, exceptionally loving, and calm most of the time. She’s also a complete homebody. She likes to lay in the sun when that’s available, but otherwise prefers to be indoors.
Dec 9
Faith injured her right front foot end of last week. Of course, injuries ALWAYS occur right before the weekend while the vet is closed. I took her in this morning for an exam and eval. Currently waiting for a call-back …
Over the weekend, Faith enjoyed some added freedom in the form of free-ranging in the house. She has been doing MUCH better about not getting jealous and possessive of The Peoples attention. She has had weeks of resting in her wire crate, watching how family dynamics are supposed to work, and has decided she’d like to be part of that.
Sharing with Josie
Not begging
After meal scritchies
Snuggles from Marie
The word came: they don’t know WHAT that is. She came home with an antibiotic and I’m to keep her from licking at it, and they’ll recheck in a week. Dr. Sandra suggested putting a baby sock on it — everyone has baby socks laying around — to cushion it when she walks.
Since we never had (human) children we have no grandchildren and no baby socks laying around. So Marie bought some. I doubled a pair (one inside the other) and we managed to get it on her and held loosely in place with medical tape. So far she’s being really good about leaving it alone. When she goes outside in the snow and mud to potty I secure a baggie over her sock while she’s outside. Doggie galoshes. Or Galosh, since it’s just one.
Dec 15
Poor Faith’s foot is still sore. We’ve tried a number of things to cushion it and to keep her from licking at it. The socks worked well until she started licking at the sock, then that would get wet from the saliva. I coned her for a day, but had to relent on that because she practically went catatonic on us.
On the positive side, Faith has been integrating well into our gang. I suppose I should say that our gang is accepting her, since the tensions were coming from Buddy and Callie, not Faith. But Faith would react to those tensions. Faith is no longer reacting, and the grumpy ones have backed off.
So much so that Faith and her nemesis, Callie Roo actually shared a sun puddle today. Partly because there is a shortage of indoor sun puddles, but also because these two have put their rocky history behind them. They once got into a tussle and chewed each other up a little. Callie holds grudges.
Buddy Beagle has finally decided he doesn’t need to scream “INTRUDER INTRUDER” every time she comes in, or goes out, or moves from one room to another. I don’t know what makes that old boy do that, it’s just Buddy’s way.
Dec 16
We’re off to see the veterinarian about her foot again, but Faith says, “I’m a big girl, I can walk myself.”
It appears Faith is going to need surgery to remove that growth from between her foot pads. That’s not good news to her or us. But at least she did get to stretch out on this thick rubber mat. That’s her favorite part of a vet visit … next to the truck ride. She LOVES truck rides.
Dec 19
Faith spend the day at Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital today, where Dr. Courtney Phillips and the support team removed that mass from Faith’s foot. She is home now and resting. Blondie Bear is filling her usual role as nurse.
We used a Kong Cloud e-collar instead of a cone because when we tried a cone to keep her from licking her foot a few days ago she shut down completely, refusing to move at all. She’s doing much better with this … if it is effective in keeping her away from that foot.
The incision needs to be open to the air to promote drying out and healing. We’ll put a boot on her to keep it clean when she goes outside. But otherwise, the Doctor wants the air to be able to get to it.
We took out a Care Credit loan to pay for the surgery and are hoping donors will step up and help us make the payments on the $515.00 charge.
Dec 26
Faith Lou-Ellen is recovering from foot surgery. To keep her from licking I affix a baby sock. THis also cushions her foot as she walks around. To keep that clean and dry when she goes outside I fashion a boot out of a sandwich bag and duct tape.
Dec 29
The histopathology report on Faith’s foot lump came back — benign neoplasm. Doing a happy dance! Neoplasm means “new growth” and most are caused by some abnormal cell reproduction – often cancer. But benign means that even if it is some sort of cancer it is not malignant: not likely to spread.
The final analysis:
COMMENT Histiocytomas are benign neoplasms that often occur in young dogs, although dogs of any age can be affected. Despite incomplete excision, recurrence and regrowth are unlikely.
Good news indeed!
Also, Christine Plouffe of A.R.N.N.E. sent us a proper boot for Faith to wear to protect her foot while outside. Faith thinks it’s hilarious and really enjoys going flump-klomp, flump-klomp, flump-klomp, as she runs around in it. The duct tape and baggie boots I’ve been making make a swish-swish sound that is not nearly so satisfying to her.
Jan 14
Faith Lou-Ellen’s foot is all healed up and the biopsy came back as “Benign, and should nor recurr”. We’re sending out a big “Thank You” to those who contributed to the Faithy’s Foot Fund. A balance due remains, so if you wanted to help before and couldn’t but can now … we’d sure appreciate it.
Faith is again seeking a home. She is the sweetest thing, would love to snuggle with you and discuss her day. She is quite the chatty one, in her cute grumble-speak. She gets along with most dogs, cats, people, but probably not monkeys: monkeys are annoying.
Faith is an older gal but still has plenty of life and vigor in her. She just wants someone to love.
Jan 20
Hanging out with Cheyan
Hanging out with Blondie Bear.
Helping Doug bake dog cookies.
Feb 8
We had a snowy day today. A great opportunity to recline with Marie by the fireplace and just relax.
Feb 17
Buddy and Faith have been getting along fine today. Until they didn’t. There have been a couple of times where Buddy was coming in and Faith wanted to go out and I let them “pass in the night” at the doorway. I also found that Buddy doesn’t yell at her for being loose in the house if he’s not in his crate.
I was feeling really hopeful when they ended up sharing a sunny spot in the den. Faith was on a bed, Buddy was on the carpet. Josephine was at the door wanting in, so I got up to go take care of that. No sooner had I left the room but I heard Buddy issue one sharp bark and Faith came scooting out of the den ran to her room and sat there looking sheepish. I closed her in and went to see about Buddy. He was on the dog bed in the sun looking quite self satisfied. My suspicion is that he bullied her into giving up the sun-bed. So he’s spending some time in his crate too.
March 9
Meal times at Piney Mountain Foster Care are an adventure: some dogs get this kibble some get that kibble, some get stew, some get canned food, some get a combination of these, some get additives like glucosamine, or fish oil, or liver powder, or medications. Often, every bowl is different. Faith Lou-Ellen Snugglebug gets straight kibble. But she smells the other yummy stuff and if I place a bowl of plain kibble in front of her she gives me this look:
But … there’s nothing special in MY bowl.
So I always have to remember to give her a dab of something tasty even though she doesn’t need it. Just because she is SUCH a sweetie. And this sweetie really needs a home to call her own. Won’t anyone adopt Faithy?
March 20
I’ve been crating Callie and letting Faith out to wander the house while I’m inside to monitor. She’s done really well: challenged no one. Even when Buddy Beagle walks up and grumps at her, “I want that bed, you move.” she DOES! So it’s just Callie she doesn’t get along with, and Callie starts that.
I posted Faith to PetFinder.com. Maybe they can help us find her a home.
April 17
Faith Lou-Ellen Snugglebug has slept in a crate at night since she became a house dog. She has been earning Good Dog points and has earned the right to roam freely during the day, so she can pick any of the available dog beds to rest in during the day.
Sometimes she still chooses to rest in her crate, with the door open, especially if I’m in the kitchen cooking.
Then Faithy decided to start calling me to let her out 2, 3, sometimes 4 times during the night, claiming a need to go outside. But it became clear, when it was chilly or raining out, that her need was not to go use the yard, but just to get out of her crate. So I decided to expand her bedroom at night, giving her access to the living room and the snuggle beds in there. But I warned her that if I caught her on the sofa, it was back to the crate for her. She has complied with that edict, so she remained able to call the living room hers at night. Until last night.
Faithy Lou spent the evening snoozing on a bed in the den with Phoenix. Time for bed rolled around and I began running dogs outside for their bedtime potty run. Faith declined. She had been out recently and I know from experience that if she does not need to go, she will just stand on the porch staring at the door, then expect a treat when she comes in because she WAS outside. So I encouraged her to move to the living room so I could erect her barrier to keep Callie from causing trouble in the night. Probably unnecessary because once Callie goes to sleep she is usually out for the night and won’t move again until morning. Usually, but not always. So I barricade for safety.
But Faith was comfy where she was and began “mooing” at me in her funny grumble-speak that she wanted to have a sleep-over with Phoenix. Phoenix said she would enjoy the company too. So I dispensed bed-time cookies, tucked Faith in, barricaded the den door, and went to bed.
The night was quiet, no interruptions to my sleep. At least not by canines, my bladder woke me once. And I checked on everyone. Everyone was fine.
After breakfast Faith and Pheenie went back to their positions and even when Blondie Bear brought her stick-treat in the den to eat it, Faith didn’t budge. She’s a good girl, and becoming more of an accomplished house dog all the time.
April 22
When Faith Lou-Ellen first arrived here she was accustomed to being the only dog and was jealous of any other dog getting attention. She was demanding when she wanted something another dog had – like a bed or toy. This led to several confrontations, a couple of them bloody.
But she has since learned to get along well with everyone except Callie. Callie hold grudges. But any animosity between them is entirely on Callie.
Here is an example: Faithy has become accustomed to hanging out in the den with some of the other dogs when I’m in there working. She is particularly fond of the bed closest to my book case. Today she walked in and found Buddy sacked out on her favorite bed and all the other beds taken. But rather than make a stink, she accepted what was left: a completely sub-standard resting place, but at least she’s in here with the rest of us. She could have gone into the bedroom and had her choice of cushy beds, but she’d be alone. Sometimes, she’s fine with that. Today she wanted company and was willing to compromise to get it. Good Girl!
May 1
A few weeks ago a family who has adopted one of our dogs before (also a boxer) said they would like to adopt Faith as a companion and playmate to him. But travel restrictions in their state have blocked that happening until now. So I have scheduled an appointment for a health certification so Faith can travel interstate and we hope to have her on her way next Friday, May 8th.
May 11
Faith Lou-Ellen’s health certification and transport went off without a hitch, and she is settling in with her new family. Faith’s Mom has been keeping in touch, supplying photos and descriptions.
Faith is stand-offish at first.
Their other dog, Julian, is (as I expected) being just wonderful with Faith. She was a little touchy at first about his curiosity (and sniffing) but he gave her some space and they are now friends and companions. Not really playmates yet, Faith has never been much into play. She’s a cuddle baby.
Julian has always been “Daddy’s Boy” and Faith is showing a preference for the Mom, who loves Faith too. Faith wants to be with Mom, who is working from home, all the time but is uneasy with the flight of stairs she must scale to get to the upper level. Faith always did fine with the 4 steps on our back porch, but a whole flight of stairs is probably daunting to a stumpy legged gal. Losing a few more pounds would probably help. I’m sure she will get past that inhibition.
But she has no trouble getting up on their sofa! Faith DOES love sofa snoozing!
The family also have a couple of teen-aged younguns to help entertain and care for Faith so she should have no lack of companionship.
It’s been a long road for Miss Faithy, but she’s finally home.
May 19
Faith and Julian have become great friends. Their Mom posted a video of Faith taking Julian for a walk: she has the leash in her teeth (as she is accustomed to doing with her own leash) and is leading Jules all over the place, and he seems pleased as punch to play along with this game. What a great pair they make!
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Callie has been through a rough time but is as sweet as can be. Abandoned by her original family, rescued by a kind-hearted soul, then brought to the Humane Society of Jefferson County (now C.A.R.E.), Callie quickly became a staff favorite. Testing positive for heartworms can be a death sentence for a shelter dog: treatment is expensive and requires a calm environment and close supervision, which are not available in most shelters. But this was not to be the case for Callie: the shelter staff made magic happen for her.
Last updated: March 6, 2020
To see what adventures Callie has had since then, Click Here to pull up a list.
Base Info:
Date of arrival: December 29th, 2017
Breed: Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Sex: Female
Age: 8 years
Weight: Approx 65 pounds
Spayed: Yes
General Health: Good except for being heartworm positive. Treatment for that is why she’s here at Piney Mountain Foster. That’s our specialty.
After treatment, she’s doing GREAT!
Temperament: Extra sweet, gentle, and loving. A great sense of humor!
History
A good deal of info has been posted to Facebook about Callie and her history. The following is my distillation of those accounts. You may read the original texts in the comments at the bottom of this page.
Callie was originally the family dog of a couple with kids. It appears Callie was kept pregnant much of the time and they sold the puppies. The couple split up and he left, leaving Callie and the kids with her. She claims Callie was his dog, and it seems she took out her feelings about this break-up on Callie, exiling her to existence outside the home.
The Mom and kids went away for 3 weeks, leaving Callie outside with no shelter, food or water. A gentleman who lives nearby took pity on Callie and started leaving food, water, and a blanket for her to lie on outside his door. When he passed away, his son came to clear out the house, found Callie and took her home with him. They fell in love with her.
Callie was pregnant and close to delivering. While Callie seemed gentle and calm, she did snap at the family’s Boston Terrier when he got too close once. The husband feared that their kids might get in the middle of a dog fight if they let her stay and took Callie to the Humane Society of Jefferson County.
H.S.J.C. (now C.A.R.E.) placed Callie with one of their long-time foster homes until Callie’s puppies were delivered and weaned. They had no incidents, indeed they loved her.
Once Callie came back to H.S.J.C. to seek adoption, she tested positive for heartworms. Being a “pit bull”, seven years old, and H.W. positive could have been her “three strikes: you’re out” that would send her to the euthanasia room. But because everyone loved her so much, members of the shelter staff determined to save her. Donors were contacted for the funds needed to pay for her H.W. treatment and Marie and I agreed to foster her through recovery.
This is what rescue is about: people working together, each doing what we can, to save the lives of abandoned or abused furbabies like Callie.
Known Issues & Progress
Callie has obviously littered several times. For all she’s been through, her temperament is surprisingly gentle and trusting.
Callie is heartworm positive, but the test was just slightly positive. We hoped to use a slow-kill method of treatment that will be less risky for an older dog. After seven months of treatment she is still testing positive. Slow kill *can* take up to two YEARS to clear a dog of heartworms. No one wants her to wait that long to find a forever home, so we’re starting the regular heartworm treatment process.
Housebreaking
Both former care-givers say she is already reliably housebroken. We too find this to be the case. No work to do here!
Gets Along With Other Dogs
Yes. She has already met all my dogs, large and small, and she has no trouble with any of them. Even Ricky (who barked menacingly at her when she arrived) has decided she’s a sweetheart and wants to play. Callie never returned menace for menace, generally just retreated and hid.
In the past week Callie has begun engaging in play: mostly with Josephine but sometimes with Blondie and occasionally she’ll try Cochise. She and Josie get pretty rough sometimes, but Josie instigates that.
People Skills
Callie is exceptionally loving, trusting, and affectionate. She likes to snuggle. She’s great with adults and kids. She desperately wants to be with people who will return her love.
A former caretaker’s daughter went to stay with her friend all weekend. When she came home Callie couldn’t stop loving on her and wagging that tail.
For the first couple of weeks, Callie was my shadow. She went everywhere I went: and ONLY where I went. Even when she needed to go outside to relieve herself, she would not leave the porch unless I went out to the yard with her. This was uncomfortable at 2:00 in the morning with me in just my PJs and 20 some-odd degree temps outside. In the last few days she has become comfortable enough to consider herself part of the “gang” and has been running outside with the other dogs, leaving me in the house. She no longer follows me everywhere, including the bathroom, but she does like to know exactly where I am at all times.
Miscellaneous
I have found Callie to be quite bright and eager to please, that makes her easy to train. She has learned our daily routine, and a few commands.
Yesterday I had Callie in the play yard. It was cold. The leash I use to move her from the bunk house to the play yard was looped in one hand as I watched her. When she had taken care of business and wanted to go back where it is warm, she walked up and slipped her head through the loop of the leash and looked up at me, “I’m ready to go in now. May we please go?” What a sweetie! She has since graduated to House Dog.
Callie became a Steele Away Home dog on January 20th because we were concerned about the length of time it was taking to get her treatment started. Slow kill is safe to do only if you catch it early. Julie at HSJC agreed and transferred her to us.
Just as we were ready to begin the Immiticide injections, Cedarwood Veterinary tested her to confirm a HW+ condition and the test came back NEGATIVE. We repeated the test to be sure, but Callie is clear of heartworms! We started her on a monthly preventative to keep her that way and thanked God that she did not have to go through the normal treatment.
Diet
4health Salmon and Potato kibble until March, 2020, then Southern States Naturals Lamb & Rice kibble.
In roughly chronological order, newest at the bottom. Click the thumbnails to enlarge.
Some pictures are linked to Doggy Tales about Callie, click those to open the related story.
Callie’s original home: a window well!
Callie says, I LIKE this chair! Taken at a former home.
All snuggled in! Taken at a former home.
The Girls all go on a potty run together. Callie sports her new outer wear that helps ward off the cold.
Callie wants to help edit the video I’m working on.
But she can be bribed with sufficient amounts of cush.
There is a story to go with this: click da pic to read it.
Callie joins the “Around the table gang”
Looking MIGHTY comfortable now!
Callie earns bedroom sleeping privileges.
Yummm … may I have some of THAT?
Oops, BUSTED! No dogs on the sofa, and she knows it. But who could be angry with this face?
Callie and her friend Buddy are ardent sun worshipers.
Callie: Sun Puppy
Callie says, “Ears up girls.” Blondie says, “Okay.” Josie says,”Hey, no fair!”
Weasel Hunter! (click me video)
“In the Mood” to play (and dance) Video
Who — me? NO, I wasn’t wrestling with this blanket.
Callie and Rainy peaceably share space at treat time.
Tell me a bedtime story?
I ask, “Who wants to go outside with me”? (vid)
Callie loves her new ropey toy (vid)
Callie LOVES truck-riding! Especially up front.
Callie and Josie are bestest buds!
I have a BOOOONE!
Sitting like a lady
Callie tries negotiating with Rebel.
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To see what adventures Callie has had since then, Click Here to pull up a list.
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Buddy Beagle, is an 8 year old beagle who was picked up by Animal Control on August 1st 2017. While in their care he was attacked by three large dogs. An eye witness said Buddy didn’t fight back, the others were going to kill him and he was going to let them. That’s how sweet-natured this guy is.
Until recently Buddy looked like something out of a Frankenstein movie: criss-crossed by lines of sutures where Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital’s staff cleaned up his torn flesh and stitched him back together. He had a flap of flesh three-fingers deep hanging off his neck that left is trachea and neck tendons exposed. His rump was torn up just as badly. Cedarwood’s staff was not sure he was going to live; many vets would have just put him down, but they tried … and succeeded!
He’s also had some plastic surgery to deal with granulations and scar tissue. Buddy Beagle has been in intensive care at Cedarwood for a month, but now he is ready to go into rehabilitation and can be moved to a medically aware foster home. That’s where we come in.
Sylvia is a 7 year old Shar Pei mix with a checkered past. She is affectionate but not clingy. She shares the yard with most other dogs, but does not usually engage in play other than running.
She’s kind of a loner.
Last updated: Nov 11, 2017
Fast Facts
She has been spayed and all her shots are up to date except rabies and she is on heartworm preventative.
She has been crate trained and pee pad trained.
Sylvie currently bunks in a pen and has had multiple neighbors: male and female. She has gotten along just fine with all of them.
Amy says Sylvia gets along great with CATS.
She does show strong alpha-dog tendencies including an insistence on peeing on all the spots the male dogs have marked.
Sylvia’s Story
Sylvia is one of 20+ dogs taken to the Humane Society of Jefferson County after Animal Control removed them all from a single hoarding situation. Most of them are Shar Pei mixes. All of them exhibited some degree of fearfulness. Some of them had never had ANY human contact and had had to fight for the little food that was occasionally tossed out for them. During Sylvia’s stay she tested positive for heartworm and the shelter was not equipped to properly care for a dog going through HW treatment so they appealed to Steele Away Home – Canine Foster and Rescue for help. But not before she stole the hearts of the shelter staff.
Sylvia and another dog in the group had recently given birth to litters of puppies. The other momma dog attacked Sylvia’s litter and killed several of them and wounded Sylvie. The other momma had to be euthanized because of her “killer” behavior, leaving her pups motherless so the staff tried giving them to Sylvia. She eagerly adopted them and mothered them until weaned. But she needed special accommodations because she was so protective she’d charge the fencing if any dog was walked by. Once her foster mother duties were completed, she went into foster care herself for treatment.
Amy Huff was her first foster home and brought her a long ways from the terrified, defensive dog she was. Amy had cats, which Sylvie got along with just fine, but no dogs. Sylvie needed more group interaction, so Amy began bringing Sylvie here to play in our yard, meet our dogs and to meet me. That went well and after a few weeks of visits, Sylvie came here to live, and I’ve been working on socializing her further.
Sylvia is now quite accepting and friendly with both me and my wife, Marie, and has been friendly to strangers who visited. She has gotten along well with all of our dogs … except Blondie Bear. At first Sylvie ignored Blondie while they were in the yard together. But after a while Sylvie decided to challenge her:
I needed to step in quickly to avert a potential fight. That antagonism continues, but only toward Blondie Bear – and we don’t know why. Blondie is the sweetest, most gentle thing you can imagine.
This means she cannot come in our house because Blondie lives in the house, so further house-manners training is out of the program unless I can resolve this. She does, however, dance on her fencing with a toy clutched in her mouth when the others are in the yard, “I want to play too, I want to play too. See: I have a TOY! Let me play too.” She really wants to get along, but her insecurity gets the better of her on the rare occasion.
Sylvia plays with “The Gang” in the yard. Cochise is missing: he’s taking a nap. (This was shot a while back)
She plays better with Julian when Josie is not in the mix. She doesn’t like to compete for the attention of her playmate.
As you can see, Sylvie can play well with others.
Enjoying a dip in her pool
Sylvia knows how to cool off on a hot July afternoon! She stayed in there for the longest time, then stepped out, shook off, and went to sunbathe on the doggie-cabin’s front porch.
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Buddy is a 92 pound, senior, Golden Retriever picked up by Animal Control as a stray and delivered to an animal shelter. The shelter vet looked at him and decided he didn’t have any obvious, serious health problems, but could not tell for sure what shape he was in without a good examination and blood tests. Because he’s a senior, and because he does have skin issues and wounds on his feet, it’s not likely the shelter will invest limited resources in that examination, nor is it likely he will survive long in an over-crowded shelter. So I brought him home as a foster-project.
June 30, 2017
I took him to Cedarwood Veterinary Hospital right away and it was no trick at all to find out that we has infested with fleas and ticks (even I could see that) but he also had three large hot spots where the skin was raw and the flies had laid eggs, resulting in those areas being infested by maggots. Two vet techs and I gloved up and worked for over an hour and a half to pull around two dozen ticks off and cut away the fur to expose the hot spots and clean out the maggots.
Most of our foster dogs don’t like being penned and use every trick in the book to slip out every chance they get. Sometimes they play on the People’s sympathy, sometimes they use subterfuge, sometimes they attempt brute force. Not Tinker: he likes his “room”. He especially likes that Coolaroo and spent most of his time lounging on it his first day or two here.
Nearly all the foster dogs who were house-trained while here, came inside with the idea in their head that being allowed inside meant they could do anything they like, any time they like. Life for a house-dog is one big party. I’m pretty sure it’s Blondie who tells them this, but none have ratted her out yet.
We have to clamp down on that idea with heavy restrictions like being crated except for short, closely supervised “play periods” until they learn the rules. As they learn, we allow them more and more freedom until they are full-time, free-ranging house dogs like Blondie and I. When they break a rule, they go back a step.
Tinker is an exception. Tinker is an older dog (around 8 years) and was a house dog before being surrendered (aka “booted out”) by his family. We have found him to be quite calm and responsible. We actually have to encourage him to loosen up and have some fun. He IS allowed to sleep on the dog beds. He IS allowed to play with us (when we want to). He IS allowed to come into the house (or go outside) when he wants to. Blondie taught him to scratch on the metal part of the storm door when he wants in. He’s done that a couple of times, but mostly he just sits next to the door and waits for someone to notice him. I feel sorry for him sometimes.
This morning Tinker went outside to take care of business. NiceLady was asleep. HairyFace was in the den working at his button-thingie. I trotted into the room and started talking to him, “Rowr, rar, rar, rouf” and went toward the door.
Hairy said, “You want to go out, Chief?” (He sometimes calls me Chief) and followed me through the laundry room to the door.
Tinker was standing outside peering in.
“Oh, Tinker’s back.” observed the brilliant and deductive HairyFace. He opened the door.
My job done, I spun around and left.
Tinker said, “Thanks, Cochise, I was getting cold out there.”
Peoples can be so oblivious.
In the time he’s been here he has come out of his shell and is becoming a lot of fun. But we’ve never had to scold him for going counter-cruising, or getting on the people furniture. He considers carpeting ‘off-limits”. He is just now accepting that we have furniture of our own that he can rest on. He’s not fond of being crated, but when told to go “in his room” he does and is calm and quiet all night long. He is bright and obedient.
While food is being prepared he sits quietly and watches. He is interested, he is eager, but he stays out of the way and lets the Peoples get the food ready. He even keeps Millie company while they wait. Most newbies are underfoot hoping that something will get dropped. He already has a place at the table at meal times.
He eats slowly and in small amounts. Hairy worries that Tinker isn’t getting enough to eat and puts extra stuff like shredded cheese or chicken broth in his kibbles to encourage him to eat more. (I wonder why I didn’t think of that.) When he’s done, Tinker never tries to raid our dishes. He may sniff up at the table, but never tries to go after anything.
In short, there’s not much Blondie and I can teach him that he doesn’t already know. In fact, he taught us something new the other day.
How’s that for a role (roll?) reversal?
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Sylvia is a 7 year old Shar Pei mix with a checkered past. She is affectionate but not clingy. She shares the yard with most other dogs, but does not usually engage in play other than running.
