OS HW- ACDX to be PTS 8/15!

{Ziggy sez 'whaaa'?}

As newbies, took us a week to figure out what some dog rescue forwards we received were saying...after a few weeks, things began to make sense. It would have been so nice to have a Beginners Guide to Rescue Talk. You'll catch on! 

(Breed)X - a mix, a mutt
OS - Owner Surrender
HW+ - HeartWorm Positive
HW- - HeartWorm Negative (and that's a good thing!)
PTS - Put To Sleep

DNA - Do Not Adopt (warnings about bad shelters/groups)

ResQ - Rescue
UTD - Up To Date (with shots)

And who knew that different dog breeds would have special abbreviations too?

ACD - Australian Cattle Dog

GSD - German Shepherd Dog

CHI - Chihuahua 

Dobie - Doberman

We're learning more everyday!

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We have Puppies!!!

Adeline, Roo, Annie (the sinking fluffball) and Arizona ZoZO are our first litter of foster puppies! They're going like hotfire - already everyone but Annie is spoken for. They are all adorable! Puppies are easy fosters too, especially these. They entertain themselves, sleep a lot, and only require us to go down to feed and clean them every few hours. And to play with them of course... Hard work that!

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Roomba, Roomba

. . . how we love our Roomba.

Roomba (You know, like the vacuum?) is our current one and only foster doggie. He literally only wants to be with you - 24-7. It's really hard to take his picture . . because he.will.not.get.out.of.your.lap. He could be president of 'Lap Dogs of America'.

I don't understand why he is still here!! He has been here for almost a month. But he is one of the most adoptable, most loveable puppy angels. He deserves to have a forever home sooon.

Roomba is made of AWESOME!

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Good Morning

This is Bill - pictures do not do his adorableness justice. Considering he looks really tough in this photo and he is really %100 teddy bear. He was especially emotionally hard for me. Mostly, because there is something about him that is much like my Bebe.

The first few days that Bill was at the shelter, he was heartbroken. I mean reeaallly depressed. Obviously belonging to someone.

Over the last few days he got better. With the help of some back rubs - Bill really loves back rubs. He also loved the 'sit' command. Very proud that he knew that. Would like to show it off all day. Everyday getting more and more lovable.

Bill was scheduled to be put down this morning. At the same time Mama got a call from a rescue group that wanted him - ah! First she called the shelter - no response. So rush, rush, hurry, hurry to find the Animal Control Officers cell number. Aha! Got it. The ACO had just sedated Bill and was about to give him his 'last rites'.

To make a wacky story short, the rescue group didn't take our Bill. Because, when he woke up (about 5 hours later - poor sleepy head) his real live owner had arrived to pick him up. And his little girlie too. So, happy Bill went home with his happy (but bawling) owners.

.THE END.

Moral of story:
1: Always, always check the shelter ASAP when you loose your pet.
2: God loves his pitty babies.

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Petfinder Scroller

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Dapples, brindles & calico

{Pied Beauty} 

Glory be to God for dappled things-- 

For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow; 

For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim; 

Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches' wings; 

Landscape plotted and pieced--fold, fallow, and plough; 

And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim. 

All things counter, original, spare, strange; 

Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?) 

With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim; 

He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change: 

Praise Him.

-Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889)

We get quite a few 'dappled things' into the shelter here. This poem made me think of them.

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Spring Adoption Weekend

We were able to attend our first Adoptathon at Petsmart . . . it was amazing! None of the dogs had to go back to the shelter! None, none, none. They all found most wonderful homes and two found happy foster homes. To say the least ~ we are all on cloud nine. ;)

You can view some Happy Tail photos here. . . that is if Petfinder decides to be nice.

Even our Eliza found a home Sunday . . . Yay!! *sniff sniff* Yay!! We miss her like crazy. But feel so good about her new family. Not sure if there could be a better home for her! Aside from having her new Forever Parents, she will have two doggie playmates and a cat.

And they all lived Happily Ever After.
Huge thanks to all of the peoples who made this possible!

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This is Eliza.

This is Eliza's signature look.

She's foster puppy number...ten? Her little mangy Shar Pei noggin just couldn't be left behind!

She's about 4-5 months old and appears to be mostly Shep Pei (1/2 German Shepherd, 1/2 Shar Pei). That makes her sweet and smart. Within a day, she'd picked up sit! She loves to play fetch, but thinks her leash is the greatest toy in the world and doesn't understand why she can't sit in peoples' laps.

The demodex on her face is healing up nicely. This weekend she endured a borax/peroxide bath like a little angel.

Soon she'll get to go to adopt-a-thons - I'm sure she'll be a star!

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First Foster Bunny

For months and months . . wait . . no years! ;) I have longed to foster a bunny. I love bunnies. Bunnies are my 'thing'. I have had them since I was six years old.

Bunnies are awesome and wonderful . . . and mis-judged, mis-treated and mis-used.

I have spent the last 6 years working with a very traumatized bunny. My darling, dear Abby~Gail. Who now trusts me completely. There is nothing quite so rewarding as a bunny's trust. Way too many people miss out on this . . .

So one of my goal was to Foster darlings . . . help warm them up to trusting people again. And sharing the bunny love! ;) I have studied and studied and studied . . .

Well, this Mr. kinda ruined my lovely speech up there. ;) Because he is already a friendly, people loving darling. We have a few small issues we gots to iron out. But other than that . . . . all he needs is TLC. And we are having toooo much fun with that.

His owners sadly had to send him to the shelter, due to financial problems. His name is Dusty! But he has no idea.

I wanted to name all of my bunny fosters after herbs . . . like Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme. So he may be Mr. Comfrey. I haven't decided . . or he may be Dusty still. :) What do you think?

First steps into his new suite. He is lovin all the space to dance!

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Testing new cell phone blogging
- s a r a -

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Delilah

♪ A thousand miles seems pretty far

But they've got planes and trains and cars ♪

♪ Delilah I can promise you

That by the time we get through
The world will never ever be the same
And you're to blame ♪

We were able to send this darlin Delilah, on her way to a foster home tonight . . .

It makes me happy.

Thought I would share. :)

I adore dogs named after songs! There was another American Bulldog that we named a song title and I very much regret it. The darling didn't make it and now I bawl my eyes out every time I hear that song. Not good. I love this breed. It breaks my heart how many rarely walk out of shelters.

But 'Hey There Delilah' is forever a good song! I'm so happy for this sweetie and that she will have the opportunity to live a happy life!

You may listen to 'Hey There Delilah' over at ActuallyLaura.

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The Beagle Brigade

So, I'm reading this book: 

Being a regular peruser of the pet shelf at the library, I was surprised to see a whole book dedicated to one of our favorite breeds. (It must be new...or else there is a serious beagle aficionado in town!) 

Did you know that the word "beagle" is similar to French and Gaelic words for "useless, of odd appearance, of little value"? Not so! They make enchanting companions and... did you know that beagles are used in airports to detect contraband food goods? Finally - the Beagle stomach put to use! Yep, they're called The Beagle Brigade and have nice little vests and everything. You can read more about it in National Geographic.

There are two great beagle boys down at the shelter this week: Cliff and Cash (like, you know, Johnny). Cash was the newspaper's Featured Dog of the week and, since he's a sweet baby, I'm sure somebody will snatch him right up. Beagle Brigade dogs are judged by

• Self-confidence
  
• Soundness
  
• High food drive
  
• Sociability
  
• Adaptability 
  

I think that Cliff would fit right in. 

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Princess

Princess is our...7th foster pup (3rd if you don't count the puppies or the two that were here for just a few hours). She was turned into the shelter with her mum and two siblings - having markings and color, she was the odd one out and her big brown eyes got to us every time we went. 
So when things got tight and no one came to rescue this Princess, we swooped in. Daddy could handle a little companionship up at the old house, right? Of course! 

Turns out this pup is another real sweetie: she stays quietly in her crate during the day, goes out nicely on the leash for walks. She's a funny mix of shyness and confidence. She hasn't barked yet, but makes tiny purr/grunt/snorts when she kisses you. 

I have a feeling that she'll be going to her forever home soon, (seriously - a dog this good?? Someone has to want her!) but we'd still love to know what's what in her mutt-DNA.

So, Q&A time:  what breed do you think Princess is?

Leave a comment and let us know what you think!

(Clue: her mum/siblings were black with white muzzles and upright ears.)

Photos by ActuallyLaura.

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Newly Listed

Check out the newly adoptable dogs listed on our Petfinder!

Life of Riley Rescue

We've got two sweet pits, a REALLY CUTE beagle boy who just won't sit for pictures, a noble Great Dane and his friend Cedar (whose coat is pure gorgeous), and two old Lab girls who were out on an adventure.

Adopt me today!

(Remember: if you see something you love, let us know right away! Time is short for these babies. The TC Animal Shelter is really small and really full. Act now!)

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Life in the Doghouse

For a few hours yesterday, we were a 5-dog house.

How did this happen? Simple enough. This week, we got to work with the local animal shelter, photographing the pups and then putting them online at Petfinder. The results: %100 of the adoptable dogs that week were placed! How wonderful is that?? Of course, we can't take all the credit. Cute puppies help a lot. ;)

There was a family of beagle/dachshunds among the lot. Two of the puppies were adopted right off and while the mum and dad waited for their transport to a foster home, they sat in our den. The third puppy, Ginger, a golden fluffball, has excited adoptive parents coming to pick her up on Monday. So guess who gets to keep her until then? Yup. You should see me now, Bebe on one side, Judy on the other, little miss Ginger snoozing in her crate just a few feet away....

We're a 3-beaglemutt house. And it's pretty awesome.

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February is for Bunnies

It's slightly late notice, but Eli and Abby (the resident house bunnies) would like for you to know that February is Adopt-a-Rescue-Rabbit-Month. If you are looking for a pet, rabbits are a quiet (usually), clean and lovable addition to a home. Giving them time and attention, you will find them full of personality. (Not much tops a bunny kiss.) Search for 'rabbits' at www.petfinder.com or your local shelter/rescue.

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Judy and the Jacket

This little gal, she likes to quilt (and to sit upon quilts). She curled up behind me today in the floor and snoozed while I worked on part of Bebe's jacket.

(...Continued @ QueSara...)

Meanwhile, Judy the Pocket Beagle says that she would like one in yellow paisley, please ma'am. She pulled the fabric out of the stack herself!

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The detectives - aka vacuum cleaners

Tis most amusing having two hounds in the house.

I think if we ever own another beagle . . . we need to name it something like Oreck, Kirby or Roomba.

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Foster Puppy #2

This is Jude (or Judy, rather) the beagle. She came in last night. She's only 10" tall (that's full-grown!). She's very shy, so - shhh!

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Hey Jude

"Take a sad song and make it better."

Meet Jude our new foster puppy! We are calling her Judie though . . The master of the waterworks. She is such a heart breaker. Judie was on an urgent email we got on Thursday night . . . the list of dear doggies that were on the euthanize list for Friday. She arrived safe and sound last night.Whew! Dear sweet baby. She was extremely scared when she first got here . . . obviously has been abused at some point in her life. Today is already better! She's beginning to like being petted quite a bit. Even nudged my hand today. *melts* Lots of wagging and wiggle-beagle walks.

(Did I mention she's a mini beagle?)

Bebe adores her. She was ecstatic when we were getting ready for Jude to come. She's beginning to realize the signs of 'new puppy coming'. Judie isn't scared of Bebe at all. The first time she wagged her tail and got really excited, was when Bebe came downstairs. She finds Bebe comforting. They are the most adorable puppy pair. Judie finds Bebe very inspiring. lol . I think they both having fun being a 'Beagle Pack'.

She walks very slowly, due to her left leg being hurt. Slow as in snail pace. The sweetie has a lot of ouchies . . . like she's been running through briers. As well as heart worms. She is such a little trooper.

Before we got the email about Jude we were already planning on another "baby" coming Monday. Our first time with two foster doggies . . . *gulp* It'll be fun.

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I'll hide the camera if you'll come back . . .

Bumped into this photo today - that I took using our web cam the night before Cammy left.

*laughs*

*wails*

We miss you Cammy grump-po!!!

It's still no fun having no idea where she is or if she's adjusting to her new family well. Nada. Nothing. Except that she went on a transfer to VA. We joke about the whole "top secret" stuff about Cammy's transfer . . . We pretend it's so secret because she's going to the White House. haha. Just a joke. But it's a funny picture isn't it? I can just see her stamping her feets at the white house for her supper. Oh dear.

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Something to Entertain You

I'm supposed to be working on a new story, but Petfinder.com distracted me with it's entirely unexpected and far too cute Mutt-Maker. What does your dream mutt look like?

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Cammy

Cammy likes her profile lots.
She got very excited after I took this photo . . . as if to ask "Did you get it?!?! Did you get it?!?" I did. But took it again . . . just because she is so cuuute. Then she wagged her tail in contentment. She knows how adorable she is. Yes, sirree and adores being reminded.

Dear, dear Cammy was picked up this morning at 7. Must go back to the shelter and get ready for her transfer to VA, to her happy forever home. It would have been so much easier to hand her to the happy forever family ourselves. But que sera, sera. As long as it's happy indeed . . . we are happy.

Bebe was such a good trooper. . . most doggies would be pretty upset about this whole foster thing. Oh no, not Bebe. She was excited from the minute Cammy got here. She likes being 'the dog' muchly, but adores having guests. Poor Bebe, fell into a mini depression after Miss Evelyn left with Cammy. Couldn't tell . . . was she sad that her new friend left? Or that Miss Evelyn didn't take her? hehe. She loves Miss Evelyn very much.

We miss Cammy already. It has been a very sad day. But it was so worth it. We are all looking forward to fostering again . . . hopefully next time he/she will tolerate Daddy? Yes. That would be nice.

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Quick, before the taters are done...

Being a stray and all, Cammy doesn't seem to respond to the name Cammy. Inspired by our groomer, we've been playing a game of calling her all sorts of names. "Emily?" "Gizmo?" "Heidi?" Nope. (Bebe, meanwhile, responds enthusiastically to all of the above. Love that dog!)

So...if you had a dog like this, what would you call her?

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First Foster Doggie

Introducing our very first foster pet . . .

Cammy!!

She got here last night around 9. Cammy is an absolute darling!! She shows her appreciation about meals. Likes those lots. She likes being near people. Head rubs are definitely her thing.

This experience has been rather heart wrenching. But it literally feels so good . . . finally being able to foster and help. This baby is a sweet lovable and just good dog. It would have been a complete waste to lose dear Cammy. She is going to make her future family SO happy.

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She's Here!

...And sleeping behind me, stretched out on the floor. (Shih Tzu paws are pretty cute, just so you know.)

Bebe's doing her best at coping with not being the only dog. (She liked that, just so you know!)

I'm enjoying having a small dog patter after me for a few days. (It makes one feel quite vain, just so you know. ;D )

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As We Were Saying...

This story begins several weeks ago, in the fall, when Laura, our niece De'Anna and me were walking back from the park. We happened upon a little black dog wandering around the streets. He looked old and sick and when we went back to check a while later, he was still there. We took him home and posted flyers all up and down the street. We contacted a local realtor, who has a heart for helping strays and generously offered to take him to a vet, but the little black dog didn't last through the night. About two weeks later, we got a call from the owners. His name was Sonny and he had been very sick for a very long time.

The experience was wrenching, but inspired us to help other dogs in the future. The realtor promised to write us the next time a fostering opportunity came up and yesterday she did!

A Shih Tzu mix named Cammy was in transport (something like an Underground Railroad for dogs) and needed a place to stay for two weeks. This we could do! You can't get too attached in two weeks, right?

There was some drama involved with getting her... (She's already fostered! No, she's adopted! No, they came, they saw, they left) which threw Cammy off the transport and put her on the euthanize list for this afternoon. But now she's safe and by 3 o'clock should be on her way here!

This is her Petfinder page here: Cammy.

I'm so excited to help watch this baby until her next transport to a forever home! Anyone need a little dog? (This little dog is going to need a bath! And a bow...)

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