We started our rescue journey really on February 15, 2014, when our beloved 17 year old schipperke, Paco Bear or Paco Taco the horsie dog, passed away. No, it was way before that. His older brother, Pepe aka Amigo de la noche, another schipperke, passed away in September 2012 at the age of 16. There is never enough time with your beloved pets and best friends. You have to enjoy every single moment you get and never ever ever take them for granted.
I am not new to rescue dogs, my father, with the aid of my little sister, Nipper (how appropriate is that nickname?) rescued many many unwanted animals. I mean really unwanted, I remember in particular a great dane who had a bad skin issue. He loved and cared for that dog from the time she was a puppy. There was Mr. Christian, our beloved Beagle, who was attacked by wild dogs after we moved into the country and had to have one of his back legs amputated. Mr. C lived many many years after that with 3 legs and romped around like a puppy up until shortly before he passed away.
My kids are both animal lovers and dog people. Henry is a lot like my Dad in that he has a natural way with animals, they like him, they listen to him and for a big dude, he has an amazing gentleness about him, but is still unmistakably the Pack Leader. They rescued Half Pint, a 6 year old dacshund that they found in a drainage ditch, where he had built his own hut. He had a piece missing out of his ear and a heart murmur. I was not a fan of the breed. He stole my heart in about a minute flat! Smartest dog, knew who paid the bills and who was in charge. A true gentleman. He developed an aneuryism after a dental cleaning and once he recovered from that he slipped a disc in his back. Sadly we had to let him go because I couldn't afford the surgery to make him better. He was 11, but we had 5 amazing years with him. I still remember telling him to go find Nana and G-Pa in heaven because they were waiting for him.
After Pint passed, Pepe was lonely. Pepe was a rescue too. The guy who had him hit him because he peed in the flower bed! I've not seen the dog yet trained to flush the toilet and I'm not looking for him.
Pepe came to us because a dear friend of mine owned two schipperkes that she and her husband worshipped. Because they owned schipperkes, when this little boy was dumped to the shelter, the lady contacted Kay. Kay knew I was looking for a schipperke but knew that as a single mother, I could not afford the $600 price tag.
So Peppy went to Kay and then to me. He was promptly renamed Pepe because I have a natural aversion to anything bouncy and perky and cheery! Of course, he eventually became all of these things. When we first got him he was afraid, he was timid, he was just a shaking little mess of fur. I spent the first 30 days primarily on the floor on my belly getting to know him. At the end of the first month, he was no longer timid, he was no longer shy and he was a joy! Not that everything went perfect, it didn't, but you get the point.
Dogs, like people, may have issues. When you rescue a dog you seldom know what those issues are and you have to exert patience, common sense, knowledge and your pocket book to incorporate that being into your family and home.
Paco was at the Dallas Shelter. He had been eluding the dog catcher for 3 weeks, he was skinny and hungry. One of his litter mates, Maggie, was hit by a car. Schipperke rescue stepped in. Maggie went to Washington State. Paco (who was then called Ponce de Leon) developed kennel cough and was going to be euthanized. They put out a call, we responded. Through kindness of schipperke rescue, they picked him up at the shelter and fostered him through the weekend when they drove to Georgetown to meet us so we could pick him up. Every time I pass that McDonalds, I remember that skinny little thing with the long tongue. You couldn't touch the top of his head or his neck and he was afraid. My son drove home, I rode in the back with Paco soothing him all the way. It was love at first site.
We had to keep him isolated though, so we bought one of those igloo dog houses and he had to stay in the back yard (thank goodness April is relatively warm in Corpus Christi). He had the run of the back patio area, but he and his new brother, Pepe, could only talk through the door. You could tell they were anxious to meet each other.
After the vet cleared him and we got him "tutored" he and his brother were finally united and were together for the next 14 years until Pepe passed away.
The point is Pepe had fear issues, he didn't like bald men and he wasn't terribly fond of kids either (until the first grandchild-- he seemed to instinctively know Hailey was alright). We worked to help him over come those and boy, did he. He may have been under 20 pounds but he thought he was huge! Fiercely loyal and protective.
Paco had issues with food, you had to make sure you didn't touch his food while he was eating and you couldn't leave any food down because he would eat it hungry or not. You couldn't touch the back of his head and you had to be careful how you touched him.
We didn't throw him back because he had issues, we learned how to deal with the issues and how to help him overcome. He taught me a lot more than I ever taught him. Also fiercely loyal, a guardian and a protector up until the end. Even on our last visit to Corpus Christi, he got to meet my newest granddaughter, Kahlia, and while he may have been old and slow getting up and down, he sat next to that playpen while she was sleeping and kept a steady eye.
His passing in February was harder on me than I thought it would be. After all, I suffered through Pepe's passing almost two years ago. But each one takes their own place in your heart. That saying that they leave their paw prints on your heart is so true. It amazes me that there is still room for new paw prints.
Faith was my son's dog. A beautiful little miniature poodle. I never wanted a foo foo dog, but truth is, like Uncle Si, I never gave one a chance. My son did a good job with her, Faith is amazing. Smart, attentive, loving and mindful. They had a break-in at their house on Christmas. They had just moved in. The kids' things were taken, faith was locked in the garage. They ended up moving and couldn't take Faith with them, she came to me.
It was supposed to be a temporary foster, but not long after she got here we bonded and I told me son, you're not getting her back! She has me wrapped around her little paw and she is a joy. She is the first official female pooper nacho! (Story for another day).
With Paco's passing in February, Faith has been a little lost. She only recently started eating normally and has been more playful. There's only so much TV an intelligent being can watch during the day! So we checked the shelter. Found the cutest little poodle mix, but she was gone right away. Watched and saw a little girl that needed help and was on the Euthanize list, so decided to go and get her, but something happened, she was aggressive and they would only release her to rescue. So we watched and waited, found another and since I couldn't get another day off, my son went instead. That one was snapped up (Thank Goodness). He found Gracie. He adopted her but when they went to spay her found out she was already spayed and they had to hold her longer in case her owners came to claim her.
I will admit that while I thought she was cute I was not happy that she was 8 years old. There is a certain pain in known that you might love this animal for only 2 - 6 years and then have to say goodbye. But something about this little girl moved my son's heart. That was enough for me. Besides 2-6 years is better than 0.
So finally after being on pins and needles all week and waiting to see if someone would claim her, we got the word, if you want her she's yours. We were already on the way!
Since Faith hadn't met her, Henry picked her up and took her to the adjacent dog park, I bought Faith to the dog park and they sniffed each other and didn't really care one way or the other. That's actually how it is supposed to be. It is not supposed to be a big deal, the dog is supposed to fit into the pack! Yeah, she did!
So we are thrilled to have Gracie Tzu in our family. It's only day 2 and she is adjusting but I'll write more on that later.
My main point for today is what is the common denominator in rescue or adoption? LOVE and lots of it. There is a lot of uncertainty, there is sometimes pain and anxiety, sometimes expensive, but there is most definitely and without question a lot of LOVE.
Good Night, Faithy Poodle Pooh
Good Night, Gracie Tzu
Good Night, Momma.
Let's all cuddle up in Mom's bed and close our eyes, thank God for the creatures he allows me to take care of. They take better care of me I am sure, but I love them to pieces.
Gracie Tzu taken after haircut on day 1 and before she knew she was going to McDonalds!
