Faith has obviously been someone’s pampered pet, but she is now in need of a new family to love … and a sofa to lie on.

 

Last Updated: May 19, 2020

Base Info:

• Arrival date: Sept. 12, 2019
• Breed: Boxer/Staffordshire mix
• Sex: Female
• Age: Puppy, Young Adult, Mature, Senior
• Weight:  69 Pounds at intake
  .               61.2 lbs 09/18/2019
  .               51.5 lbs 12/08/2019 (what!?)
  .               65.5 lbs 12/16/2019 (foot injury, laying around)
  .               63.5 lbs 12/19/2019
• Spayed: Yes
• General Health: Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor
• Temperament: Affectionate, submissive
• Gets Along with: Most Dogs, Cats, all People
• Crate Trained: Yes
• Housebroken: Yes
  
• 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.

Progress Updates

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.

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.

Oct 20

Another comfort upgrade came today as Marie completed a project she started a while back.  The kennel dogs got new pads for their dog houses or bed. Faith appreciates hers.
Details: http://pineymountainfoster.org/new-dog-bed-pads/
Special thanks to Fredia Haley of Foothills of the Smoky’s Quilt Shop.

Nov 11

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.

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.

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:

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

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:

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.

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!