OK, we’re going to start today’s report with good news. Did you see that? “Good news.” Doesn't mean animals aren't still in shelters or in need -- goes without saying around here. But we have had enough angst and anxiety and finally, I’ve got a couple of good news stories to report.
And, of course, we’re going to do some discussing today of a special breed of dog: the Texas Blue Lacy. Ever hear of it? I hadn’t – and I’m a native Texan who was once able to name all 254 counties. But this dog breed...well, read on and you can help this Texas Blue Lacy and other critters.
THE DOG WHO WENT TO COLLEGE: The first time Dianne Cole sent us a photo of the Mountain View College dog (above) you practically needed a set of binoculars to see the skittish rascal.
I’ve included that campus photo here. Stand-offish, you might say.
But Dianne, who works at Mountain View and has a tendency to rescue the tough-to-rescue, got the word out and sure enough, someone was interested in this beautiful dog.
That someone is Phyllis Tallett, who also works at Mountain View. And, now, she and her husband, Tal, have a brand new member of the family at their Waxahachie home.
As you can see from the photo, the once-skittish dog has taken to living the poolside life.
Dianne says that Koa “is one stunning looking dog -- just needs to gain a few pounds. He has the most beautiful golden eyes I've ever seen. I only spent a few minutes with him on a couple of occasions, but he seemed to have a great easy going temperament. Phyllis' husband is from Hawaii, hence the name Koa. It looks like he's living the life lounging by the pool, huh? He's got two doggie siblings to run and play with as well as two doggie cousins that are spending some time with them while their Mom is on vacation. He's one lucky dog.”
How did this happen?
For a couple of weeks, Dianne says, several of the Mountain View employees fed and watered the dog and gained his trust. Phyllis and Tal even drove up on the weekend to check on the dog.
“Poor thing was so scared for a while that if you even looked like you might take a step toward him, he’d run off. But he’d always come back to the same area.”
On Wednesday of last week Dianne was sitting under a tree with the dog and talking to him and trying to entice him with treats. She’d toss them and he’d eat them. But he wouldn’t get much closer than about 4 feet and he “never relaxed enough to lay his head down, but he closed his eyes and seemed to enjoy my company and the cool breeze. I was sitting right next to his water bowl and he got up and got a drink. I wanted to reach over and pet him, but was afraid I'd startle him and he'd take off so I just watched. He went back and lay down. I almost cried when I had to leave as he followed me a short way and then went back and lay down in the same spot.
“On Thursday afternoon I took him the salami and cheese out of my sandwich -- which he LOVED. LOL! I also had more treats for him. He ate everything right out of my hand and I continued to sit there and talk to him and he finally let me love on him which was quite an accomplishment, although Phyllis had already been able to pet him a little. He finally got brave enough to walk all around me and was sniffing my clothes and hair (guess he could smell my dogs). When I walked back to my car he was sitting there watching me go. I got to the car and when I turned around he was right behind me and I was completely surprised. When I opened the car door he went back to his spot under the tree and lay down and that's the last I saw him as I was off [the next day].”
A week ago tonight, Phyllis was able to get the dog. Dianne says that she “said it was quite a challenge as the storm was coming in and once she got him in the car she sat with him and then had to climb over the seats because she was afraid to open a door or he might bolt! LOL!
“Anyway, she has two dogs at home and she told me this morning they are getting along great. She says he wags his tell now and seems so happy. Her daughter is going on vacation and they are keeping her two dogs for a week and one of the daughter's small dogs and the Aussie have decided they really like each other. “Phyllis says it's really cute to watch them kissing each other.”
Now, here is the key. Diane says, “All it took was patience, a little TLC and some animal lovers to help a beautiful dog get a great home. I'd almost bet that he's full blood Australian shepherd with the most beautiful yellow eyes I've ever seen and he's probably only a year or two old. Sorry I rambled so much, but I'm just so happy this dog has a good home.”
Phyllis says that her hubby Tal had been reading “the Pets for Adoption feature every week in our Waxahachie paper for quite a while, so I knew he'd be open to this dog if I was able to gain his trust. It took me 7 days of going out during my work breaks, sitting on the ground, talking gently to him, coaxing him to come closer with bits of bacon. Anyway, being born and raised in Hawaii, Tal wanted to give the dog a Hawaiian name. We searched for Hawaiian dog names and their meanings online and settled on Koa, because it means strong, highly prized, & beautiful, like Koa wood and just like our new sweet dog.”
WRONG EXIT, RIGHT STOP: We recently told the story of how longtime rescuer Stephanie Mosby was traveling on a highway near Terrell and missed her exit. When she went that extra bit of highway, she found a momma dog, a live puppy and a dead puppy. It was a poignant discovery.
If you wonder what has happened to Mom and her surviving puppy, we have what is the beginning of a happy ending for this pair.
Ashley Pickering writes to us, “They are now both safe and cozy in my home. I am a foster for Collin County Humane Society. The Momma is now known as Sarafina (meaning ‘fierce one’ - because she had to be fierce to protect her baby in the wild and against the Texas weather) and her pup is known as Zeus.
“Both are getting acclimated to ‘family’ life as I have 4 dogs of my own, 1 other
foster puppy from a truck-yard litter we rescued, 2 cats, 3 kids, and one husband.
“Sarafina is doing very well. She loves to rest on the nice big, comfy dog bed and Zeus loves to play with all our dog toys. They are both gradually putting on weight. Zeus is definitely a gawky little puppy that is doing his best to figure out how to get on couches, go up stairs and get on beds.
“The only thing left to do is to find them a forever home that will hopefully take them both together - because they are completely bonded, Zeus won't sleep in a crate by himself. He just cries until we put him in with his Mom. She makes sure he is always within sight of her - such a great Momma!”
You can ask giving these two dogs their best home ever by going to the Collin County Humane Society website HERE or by e-mailing [email protected].
And, you just have to look at this as an instance where an angel was meant to miss an exit on a Texas highway.
WILLOW AND OLLIE REPORT: You may recall the Yorkie in the Farmers Branch animal shelter – young, blind, afraid. Tossed out in the shelter parking lot, Kathy Nichols reported. A woman came to the shelter and adopted Willow yesterday. “Despite the fact that Willow had an awful night of seizures or some sort of neurological episode, this lady was undaunted and willing to do whatever it takes to give her the very best care, and life, possible. Of course, I asked to be updated constantly....”
On the Ollie front (you recall Kathy’s Italian Greyhound, Ollie, vanished from her yard)...She reports that she “went by the local PetsMart in Addison tonight [Thursday] to post a flyer and it turns out that a regular customer was there a couple of days ago talking about the ‘stray’ that his wife had picked up this week. They were trying to decide if he's a Whippet or an Italian Greyhound. Well, that sounds like Ollie and I have my hopes up that we can make contact with these folks. They sound like good people who think they're providing a home to a stray.” (Click on the poster to make it larger.)
BLISS IS THE NAME: Bliss is a Canaan Dog and she’s got a story about how she wound up in the care of the Companion Animal Network. She’s one of the many dogs that CAN’s Gail Whelan is trying to find a good home for before she shuts down the
rescue network. As many readers may recall, Gail, who has labored hard and long to keep CAN vibrant, has been laid off from her job and the burden of rescue is now more than her finances and strength can handle.
She tells me that she still will insist that the dogs go to the right home – you’ll have to pass an audition.
The story on Bliss is she was adopted from the SPCA of Texas. “Within a few months, her adoptive owners took her to a vet clinic to be boarded and never came back,” the report goes. “The clinic tried to find a home for her but was unsuccessful, so Bliss was headed to the pound.”
Gail got Bliss. She found a good home and at the age of 2 Bliss was adopted. Then tragedy struck and, according to CAN’s story, “One day, Bliss' mom went to sleep, but never awakened. Bliss stayed by her mom's side, just hoping someone would come and help her wake her mom up. After several days, someone finally found them. And once again Bliss was alone. “
Bliss is 5, weighs about 55 pounds and is good with cats, dogs and kids. She’s house-trained, leash-trained and crate-trained and she is healthy and current on all shots. She’s also micro-chipped.
She just doesn’t have a home. To give her one, call 214-200-6236 or e-mail [email protected]. Gail has many other dogs she can offer, also, just in case you have a friend who needs a dog.
FROM HEMPSTEAD: Yesterday we wrote about four dogs who’d been “stored” in a horse trailer and threatened with shooting near Hempstead. Angela Sera of Downtown Ranch Sanctuary, Recue & Rehab reports, “Smiling Dog Farms stepped up to take these guys! Give them a round of applause, please.” Smiling Dog Farms is a sanctuary at Wharton.
THE ROADSIDE CAT: Usually Deborah Trevino is writing to tell us about dogs such as Sadie and Charlie and Hambone who are the victims of dumping on a stretch of Malloy Bridge Road
This time she’s got a photo of a cat. Chloe is the name. “She is one of four adult cats, along with 4 kittens on the property where Charlie is. In fact, when he sees the cats beating him to the food, he charges up. Anyway, this little girl has separated herself from the others. According to the man living nearby, she was dumped on the property with an already existing injury to her left eye. There is no eyeball in the socket. But, it is an old injury or birth defect which is clean with no infection. Can anyone take her and give her a forever home? After working with her for several weeks, I can now catch her. She puts up a small fight but soon calms down after being picked up.”
To offer to help this one-eyed cat in the land of roaming dogs, or to offer to help the roaming dogs in the land of the one-eyed cat, e-mail [email protected].
A NEW ONE ON ME AND AN OLD DUMPING PROBLEM WITH A TWIST: In the opening today, I mentioned a Texas Blue Lacy. And, as it turns out, the Texas Blue Lacy is the State Dog Breed of Texas. I had to look it up and the Texas Almanac notes that the 79th Legislature voted to designate the official breed in 2005. It is a Texas breed – but it is not an American Kennel Club breed – though fans of the breed are working on getting the AKC label.
How this comes up is that Readlarrypowell.com got an e-mail from Amy Pelzel, the vigorous volunteer at the Denton Animal Shelter. “Yesterday we picked up the cutest Texas Blue Lacy mix puppy near Dallas Drive in Denton. He was limping badly so we took him to our vet. Turns out, his paw was broken. The Doctor splinted his arm/paw and it is expected to heal in a few (3) weeks. He is about 3 months old, super sweet and loves people. Simply adorable. We need a great home or rescue for him to go to.”
What’s his name? What else – Blue.
Now, Denton also has a dog with a hard luck case – and this is one of those stories where you just can’t believe what has happened. (Is that not a great jailhouse dog photo? I don't know who took it, but someone at the Denton shelter caught a moment that speaks volumes.)
Amy says, “We have a sweet girl named Hoku who was adopted from us about a year ago when she was a 3-month-old cute little puppy.
“The family had her for a few months then decided they were going to move to Hawaii and had to quarantine their dog for over 6 months before taking her there.
“Their plans changed.”
Hoku spent “almost 7 months in a tiny cage never to have seen sunlight outside,” Amy says.
The family retrieved the dog from quarantine last week. “They now don't want to ‘deal with her,’ Amy says.
Why is that? They said, “She has changed,” Amy tells us. “She is now scared and frightened.
“Can you imagine having spent almost half of your life in a cage?
“Good thing is she is out of that home! We have her and now are looking for a new forever, safe, loving home for her. She is fully vetted, heartworm negative and ready to go to a home today.
“She is warming up to all of us and does well with the other dogs at the shelter. She will need some love, attention and basically TLC over the next few weeks or months.”
To ask about either of these dogs or any critter at the Denton shelter, e-mail [email protected].
And Google that Texas Blue Lacy – you’ll find out it is a breed that allegedly comes from a happy hookup in Marble Falls – the mix of breeds that gave the state the Blue Lacy, the Texas Almanac says, is Greyhound, scent-hound and “coyote stock.”
CONTEMPLATIONS: Exercise is a boring event – I had a TV in front of my treadmill in the garage, but the United States of America changed the method of broadcasting and now I can’t watch TV on the treadmill without spending a bunch of money on a converter. The White House is against fat people, it is apparent. I wonder if there’s a White House program to fund TV converters to help fat people lose weight on treadmills. ... Ask yourself: Do I really care about the Dallas Cowboys’ football practice? Ever been to a football practice of any kind? Turns a game into tedium. Wait, I’m going to take liberties with the language and say it turns a game into tedia – that may be the plural of tedium and we need it because football practice is more than one kind of tedious. ... I’m still chuckling about being a native Texan and never having heard of the Blue Lacy. I just wonder how in the world that got through the Legislature when so many animal-related bills can’t. You can see other official Texas State Symbols by clicking on this Texas Almanac LINK. Texas has two state peppers, two state mammals and a Legislature that meets only every other year. That’s probably a good thing.
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