The Old Folks Have Moved In

BUDDY & FELLA

We now have two new senior foster dogs: Buddy and Fella. Fella is 16 years old, and Buddy is 11 years old. Between having Senior Ding-Dong and two dogs who limp around a bit, are both nearly blind, and need lots of extra special attention, our house is very busy. But, the two old guys surely come with a lot of personality.

Senior Ding-Dong and Buddy on the Couch

Buddy, the black and white cocker spaniel, likes to be near humans and will follow Dominic and I around the house, you can be sure wherever you are Buddy is right next to you. Buddy also has a hard time settling down, so if we are sitting on the couch he will just walk in circles around the house until you pick him up and put him on the couch with you. Buddy was just was released from the veterinarian clinic at Maxfund and is getting over pancreatitis. But, we finally got him to eat his food by adding a little bit of warm rice to it. Because of his recovery he also came with a whole medicine cabinet, but he is really good about accepting pills. Buddy is also a bit playful, and seems to prance around a bit when he walks.

BUDDY

On the other hand, Fella, the corgi mix, is very strong willed and set in his ways. He is very good at just being content and doing his own thing. But that also means that Fella does not want pills, and he does not want to be picked up or shown the way when he is lost. However, Fella is nearly blind and the many windows in our house and the multiple doors leading outside are very confusing to him. Fella does try to snap at you if you are doing something that he doesn't like, but he is just too slow to actually ever get you. Fella enjoys treats and having belly rubs.

FELLA

Our biggest struggle has been trying to teach the old-timers about the doggie door. My Grandpa (who has the same personality as Fella) even built them a little carpeted step to help the dogs gradually get in and out. However, the two dogs are still just trying to figure out their surroundings. Yesterday, after leaving the dogs outside in the sun for an hour while I ran some errands, I returned to find Fella in the house, meaning that he actually used the dog dog door with the flaps taped up. I do believe it is just a matter of time before they really figure it out and use it regularly. We haven't had any accidents in the house yet, so I do believe that they are potty trained.

Buddy and Fella came to Maxfund after their owner went into hospice care. I know they are sad, and have certainly had their lives turned upside down. As challenging as they may be, we are happy that we are able to care for them and provide them with a loving home until they find their own forever home. If you know anyone who is looking for two old guys to share their home, please let them know about Buddy and Fella, they deserve the best.

Buddy and Fella tucked into bed.

Gracie Update

Yesterday, Dominic and I decided to leave the two dogs, Gracie and Senior Ding-Dong, alone for the first time while we went to get some breakfast. As we were paying for our breakfast I got a call: "Hello, is this Sadie? This is your neighbor from across the street. We found Gracie and she is at our house."

Yep, you've got it—Gracie, our perfect girl, jumped our front fence. Who knew a 70 pound lab with minor hip problems could get over a 5 foot fence. I don't know why she jumped the fence: wither she was scared, lonely, saw a squirrel, saw a cat, or something else encouraged her to take the leap.

When we got to our neighbors house she was there to greet us. We explained to our neighbors that she was our foster dog and that she was staying with us until she found her forever home. And they said, "We'll take her." We thought they were kidding, but it is true they fell in love with her, just as we did.

Grace spent the day at their house, even though our neighbor said that Gracie was looking out the window at our house most of the day. She seemed to get a long well with Tootie, their 12 year old lab/beagle mix. And they are seriously considering giving her her much needed forever home.

That evening our neighbor brought Gracie back, and Senior Ding-Dong and Gracie were very excited to see each other. They played and played while we were talking about Gracie's potential future at the neighbor's house. But, we knew because of the fence issue that she would not be able to stay with us.

This morning we woke up. Gracie was full of love as always. Senior Ding-Dong, Gracie, and I went for a walk around the park, and then it was time to take her back to Maxfund. After talking to the staff at Maxfund, I learned that our neighbor is one of two people who had called about adopting Gracie, so I feel very hopeful that she will find her home soon.

However, when we walked into Maxfund, and the staff came to return her to the large dog area she gave me the saddest eyes. She stood her ground and really did not want to go back. She broke my heart. I am now just another person on the list of many who brought her to Maxfund and left her there. It absolutely breaks my heart that she will have to be there another night. I would much rather having her laying on the floor next to our bed, and getting endless amounts of belly rubs.

The good news is that both people that were interested in Gracie visited Maxfund today; however, they both only filled out foster applications and not adoption applications. I really hope she will be living across the street, and I will have the opportunity to see her all the time. But as of now, she is still without a home and at the shelter.

Gracie- Our House Guest

Today Dominic and I became foster parents to the most wonderful black lab mix from Maxfund, named Gracie. She is loving, kind, sweet, obedient, walks perfectly on a leash, loves belly rubs, is great in the car, enjoys playing with Senior Ding-Dong, gives the most precious kisses, and is simply an all around love bug. According to the wonderful staff at Maxfund, she just doesn't so much care for cats, and her last owner discovered this the hard way after she killed the family cat. It is hard to imagine that she could even harm a fly, but that incident brought her back to Maxfund for the second time. She had been very sad about this transition and that is how she became a foster candidate.

I have now been volunteering at Maxfund for a little over a year, and I absolutely love it. We decided that it was time that we find a playmate for Ding-Dong and the perfect way to do that would be to foster a doggie. Maxfund is a no-kill shelter; any dog that comes to Maxfund has a place there until they find their forever home. But, if all the runs are full they are forced to say no to dogs that really deserve a second chance. Maxfund often takes dogs from high-kill shelters to save them from euthanasia. But, fostering doesn't just help free up a little extra space at the shelter it also helps dogs during transition from the shelter to their forever home.

At the shelter it is loud, scary, and very intimidating to dogs. Dogs that come in from family turnovers often lose their spunk, and their true personality, merely because of the shelter conditions. This makes it hard to impress their potential adopters. At a foster home they get all the benefits of a loved dog: a warm house, a family to walk them, someone to rub their belly, and they are able to maintain, or even gain, good behaviors.

Gracie was certainly depressed at the shelter, and even after one day at our house I have seen the light in her eyes change. Today she got to play as much as she wanted, sleep in a warm and quiet house, get a nice relaxing bath and a good brushing, learn what doggie doors are all about (However, the doggie door is still a bit intimidating to her, but we will keep working on it.), run in the grass, and get not one, but two car rides. I assume it is just a matter of time before this 70 pound girl finds her forever home, but until then she will certainly be a nice addition in our lives.

Ultimately what Gracie needs is a loving home and a good family. If you are interested in adopting Gracie please don't hesitate to contact me or Maxfund. Her bio is linked to her name at the beginning of this post.