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A Border Collie came to the animal
shelter... She was so shy and afraid that it was difficult to get her out
of her kennel. Due to lack of space she was in danger of being put down, but as
fate 
would have it
a very nice and patient lady adopted her. In January, 2009, Trisha wrote: "I
promised to write once “Bella”, the sweet border collie mix that I adopted
from animal services almost two weeks ago, got settled in my home. I’m
attaching two photos I took of her this week, right after getting her spay
surgery collar off (I hated that thing as much as she did!). What a great dog
she is! We totally bonded about a day after she came home with me, and she
doesn’t leave my side. She’s already learned some basic obedience
commands, and I have her registered for obedience classes the first week in
February, with agility to follow in March. Bella and my cat get along just
fine, and I’ve had no house-training to do – she knows! The only
issue, and it’s no big deal, is that she hates for me to turn on my shower –
she runs out of my room until I’m done. Don’t know what that’s all
about. It’s sad that such a sweet, affectionate, and smart dog was abandoned,
but someone’s loss is certainly my gain. Thank you to you both for being
advocates of lost and abandoned animals!" And a couple weeks later
she added: "Bella looks terrific. And she is, too! We
had our first obedience class last week, and she was definitely the star pupil
out of the 9 or 10 dogs in class! She loves the practice, too. Thank you
for all you do to add joy to the lives of neglected animals and the lucky humans
who welcome them into their homes."
An older dog finds happiness at last...Rosie
was an older Shih Tzu mix dog that came to the Calaveras Humane Society from the
pound. Her coat was a matted mess and she had skin allergies and bad teeth. CHS
got her cleaned up and had her teeth worked on, and she went into foster care
with Dwight and Claire Clark. In 2008 she was adopted by her forever family. In
January, 2009, Rosie's loving Mom wrote: "Hi Amy, thought you might
enjoy an update on Rosie. She is quite the personality and very adorable. Still
on her monthly pills and up to date on her shots.
She has come a long way and thrives every day. She now plays with toys and
rearranges her blankets. We will sit on the same armchair watching TV, and
she'll be sleeping under the blanket. She still goes to the park every day, and
has special friends. She mingles with others. We have taken her to visit
friends, but she becomes the alpha. Sometimes OK, other times not. We love her a
lot; she is part of the family."
By taking in an older dog with problems, Rosie's new owners brought happiness to
themselves and to this previously unloved dog.
Christmas….a
time for family, good food, fellowship….well almost. I just couldn’t leave
them there. Five, 8 week old puppies were cold and wet at the pound in San
Andreas. It was 5 days before Christmas…I tried to talk myself out of taking
them out but I just couldn’t leave them.
They were an odd looking group; all black, yet all different. Three of the pups
were low and long; probably Dachshund mix. One was tall and lanky, and the fifth
was like the fourth except in miniature. Two had curly hair and the rest had
straight. Three of them had one blue eye. I set up a pen in my family room…..and
all my family helped to socialize them and play with them during the Holiday
vacation.
I named them Saphire, Opal, Ruby, Topaz and Diamond. Topaz was the first to go.
She went to a young couple who lived in San Leandro. Saphire went to a close
friend from Murphys . Diamond went to Sutter Creek and his sister Ruby went to
Arnold. Opal was committed to a family from Stockton. As luck would have it, the
adoption fell through, much to the joy of Debbie Guardian and Alex Gallegos from
San Francisco. They were the second family in line and were overjoyed to adopt
little Opal.
Debbie and Alex were fabulous…..totally committed to their pets. They wanted a
playmate for Nene, their cat. This time it would be a dog. It was a match made
in heaven, they were MAD for Opal, and she for them. As they drove away, I
prayed for more great families just like them to adopt other Calaveras pets.
One of the most rewarding things about fostering dogs is getting those wonderful
emails, cards and letters that tell us how much their dog has enriched their
lives…how much fun the dog is…and how grateful they are to us for taking
such good care of their canine loves. I got lots of updates from Debbie and
Alex. Pictures, cards and emails came every 6 months or so. They even created a
website for Opal.
This past summer, a little black dog ended up at the pound. Oh My Goodness! She
looked so much like Opal…we named her Trinket. It was a long shot…that they
were related, but they had that same long, low body and were about the same size
and age. Her mannerisms and personality were what made me contact them….
I sent Trink’s pictures to Alex and Debbie…..their response was immediate
and enthusiastic. They were convinced that Opal and Trinket were siblings….which
is a possibility. YES…YES….they wanted her…another baby to add to their
family. But….how would Opal, the City Princess, and Nene the Feline Queen,
adjust to an interloper?
They arrived at my home in the morning….driving the 3 plus hours with nervous
apprehension. Trink loved Opal! Opal was friendly, but more interested in all
the smells of the yard. Trinket crawled into Debbie’s lap….and the rest is
history.
Opal and Trinket (now Dixie) are inseparable. They both sleep with Nene. Debbie
cooks all their meals herself. She even makes their treats. Going to the dog
park is where they shine. Running in circles…..rolling and playing….playing
and rolling. They are the STARS of the park. Everyone loves the 2 little black
dogs with the short legs and long bodies.
Are they related? We don’t know and never will. BUT…we do know that they
were meant to be a family; all five of them, Debbie, Alex, Nene, Opal and Dixie,
(the 2 Calaveras County Girls), together forever.
From among the 30 cats and kittens that come into the AC shelter weekly in San Andreas, I noticed this little 10 week old, gray kitten who had been pulled out of the Drop Box. She was in the isolation area of the shelter (a converted storage room) where she was housed along with many sick cats and kittens. Unfortunately, the upper respiratory infections are highly contagious and within a few days little GRACE was sneezing.
About a week later, while picking up some kitties at Dr Black’s in SA, the staff there told me about a kitten who had been adopted and spayed, but was so sickly, she had to have IV fluids for dehydration. It was Gracie…the little gray haired girl from the drop box. The adopter was willing to nurse her at home so Gracie went home to convalesce.
The following week when I went to volunteer at the shelter, there was Gracie, sick and weak…she had been dumped AGAIN into the drop box, with her spay stitches still in her tummy. The vet also found a small bump on her stomach…..she had been shot with a pellet gun! She was one skinny, sick little girl, so I immediately took her back to the vet where we found she was running a temp of 104 degrees, was dehydrated and full of upper respiratory infection. At this point, her life hung in the balance; a total coin toss. I took her home and isolated her in my husband’s office and gave her subcutaneous fluid 3 times per day. With the assistance of some high powered antibiotics and much TLC, little Gracie is on the mend and now looking for her “forever home”.
She’s just a simple gray kitten….but what a Survivor she is! She was dumped twice at the shelter, shot…..deathly sick and yet, with God’s good Grace she lives. A true testament to her species. Despite all that happened to her……Gracie LOVES her humans and all she wants is a little gift…..someone to give her a HOME…forever.
***This story was written some time ago. With the grace of God, Gracie did eventually find a family to adopt and love her.***
The Volunteers of the CHs
A Sad Story…By all accounts, Frankie should not be friendly, affectionate or trusting; but he is. A Good Samaritan found Frankie wandering in a sparsely populated area of Calaveras County with a broken chain dangling from his neck. On closer inspection, the chain was actually around his neck, attached to itself forming a “collar”. Not a smooth choke chain, but the cheap, rough kind of chain you buy by-the-foot at the local hardware store. You know the kind I mean; it has the sharp ends every few inches.
Well, this boy’s “collar” was so deeply imbedded that it was barely visible; it took hours of surgery to dig out the chain. The graphic photos of flesh still attached to the chain disgusted me. They were taken in case the owner ever came forward, so a case of animal cruelty could be made against them. Needless to say, no one came to claim him.
He was frightened, skittish, underweight, had wounds on his ears and was covered in ticks—he obviously had not been socialized and had minimal people contact. After a second surgery to close the wound, Frankie was a completely
different dog: he was affectionate and
was ready to play. This was the worst case of it’s kind the vet had ever seen…….within
another two weeks of normal puppy growth, the chain would have grown into his
airway and killed
him.The veterinary staff affectionately named him, Frankie….short for Frankenstein. Frankie recovered quickly. He will always have an extra “mane” of skin/scar tissue around his neck. Not bad for his horrendous neglect.
Thanks to you a happy ending…
After a few weeks of recovery and loving care in one of our foster homes, Frankie was adopted by a Calaveras family who loves his goofy antics and is thankful to have him in their lives.
It was the kind of phone call I HATE to get; an abandonded dog left at a house. But the news was not all bad….I was told that she’s a beautiful Australian Shepherd. Ah…me thinks….”She’ll be easy to place”. Not so fast there Adoption Queen…..she was abandoned because her owner couldn’t catch her.
HUH? If she won’t come to the owner….how would she come to me or another volunteer?
After getting permission from the property owner, Blondie and I went down to assess the situation. This beautiful girl was living under a large shed. We tried feeding her twice a day hoping she would become trusting enough to come out of her hiding spot and let us leash her. This was not to be… AND the situation took on a real urgency when we noticed that she looked pregnant. If she gave birth under that shed…..we would NEVER get her and the puppies out of there.
Well it was our friend, Animal Control Officer Stacey Vavzincak, to the rescue, with his trusty trap. We told him how we had tried to lure her out with wonderful treats like cooked chicken. Stacey poo-pooed our meager efforts and told us that cat food was the key. Cat food? Yep, cat food….it had her in that trap within an hour. What a relief it was….AND she was licking his hand through the wire. We smiled for this gift.
We called her Rainy…and one of our foster angels, Debbie Orbe, of Mt Ranch took her in. Within a week Rainy had whelped 5 beautiful puppies. This was not her first litter and we felt that this girl had been primarily bred and kenneled and as a result, was not very well socialized.
She was a good Momma and she let Debbie care for her and the puppies. After 7 weeks in foster care, at the Orbe’s ranch, Rainy and her babies went to Australian Shepherd Rescue in Placerville. There the pups were all adopted to great homes and after more time and socialization so was Rainy.
A heart wrenching story for sure….yet it is the heart that leads us to reach out to these creatures and give of our time and our homes…to take them in…to mend them….and then, after they have stolen a piece of our hearts….to give them away.
One of those cases came to our table a few months ago, when Colleen Bailey, one of our volunteers from Valley Springs, was sent to a home to meet 6 dogs that needed re-homing. They were all over 7 years old and very thin. The 12 year old was blind and diabetic. One poor old fellow was 15 and quite feeble. In this case the human family consisted of an elderly husband and a very ill wife. They had to move in order to be closer to the wife’s approved hospital for further treatment. All of the dogs were rescues from over the years, and were living outside in a large pen, with access to a garage. Care for the animals had become secondary to the constant care and attention needed by the wife. Colleen was touched by the sincere caring and love shared by this couple.
We told the couple we would help with the dogs as best we could. They ended up humanely putting down the oldest dog and the blind dog, with the help of their veterinarian. That left 4 dogs over the age of 8, at least one of whom was 10. We bit the bullet and took the 4 into our care, after finding them negative for heartworm disease.
One dog was an English Setter named Rudy. When Colleen first went to meet him, he was somewhat aggressive and definitely not friendly. We wondered if we could place him or even put him into foster care. I immediately went online looking for a Breed Rescue Group to take Rudy, since he was either purebred or close to it. Meanwhile, Rudy was put into safe keeping at Jay Tee Kennels in Burson. Joyce and Missy, from Jay Tee, worked tirelessly to socialize Rudy and take the edge off his temperament. With 3 squares a day and lots of love and vitamins, Rudy progressed nicely.
After two weeks of emails and phone calls I finally found a foster home for Rudy; it was with Kelley from English Setter Club Rescue. Unfortunately, she lived in Boise, Idaho.
After more emails to our “internet membership”, I found that one of our Foster Volunteers, Karen Willis, was making a trip to Boise after Christmas. Karen & Jim Willis were taking their truck and camping along the way with their dog Rita. Hey….what’s one more dog?
What JOY!! Rudy had a ride! All parties involved were tickled pink that Rudy would be finally taking that next step to a “forever” home.
So, one cold winter day after Christmas, Colleen brought Rudy up to the shelter in San Andreas to meet up with Karen, Jim and Rita for the big trip.
Before I knew it, I had received an email from Kelley saying that Rudy and the Willis’ had made it safely. Kelley fell for him immediately and already had an interested party for Rudy.
You might wonder why we go to such great lengths for a dog….an older dog at that. My only answer is to say that it took a total team effort AND that it was achievable. The former family got Rudy tested and brought current on shots. Colleen worked with the owner and transported Rudy when needed. The gals at Jay Tee Kennels socialized Rudy and kept him safe for the weeks until the big ride. Jim & Karen took on the extra burden of a second dog on their trip. I did the phone calls, emails and coordinating. Lastly, Kelley opened up her home and her heart to take this old fellow. A happy ending to a 3 month job……and a new beginning for Rudy!
You may be wondering what happened to the other three dogs? Coco, the Cocker Spaniel was transferred to the San Francisco SPCA and found a loving family through their Adoption Center.
IMAX, a sweet Flatcoat Retriever and Topper, a gentle Border Collie spent some time in foster care in Valley Springs until they, too, were finally adopted into forever homes.
Amy Munson, Dog Program Coordinator
More Good News Success Stories