1.) Share a story about a stray you took in or an animal you once rescued.
This is a story about a dog named Zipper. Zipper is the one and only dog I have fostered, well the only dog I've fostered to be someone's pet. My regular readers know I spend 99.9% of my time raising guide dogs for the blind.
Anyway, Zipper was not planned. I already had a puppy in training and saw no reason to add to my school, work, train and socialize puppy load. But my neighbors had other plans. It was around 10:00pm on Monday evening, when I heard a knock on my front door. This was strange because the back door of my house, faces the street/driveway, so most people come to that door, not to mention most people knocking on the door at that time of night, were people I knew, so after corralling my vicious watch dog (read: Miniature Dachshund)
I opened the door with my Lab/Golden mix in tow. I was surprised to see my scruffy neighbor and his granddaughter on my porch, holding a very nervous chihuahua mix. Over the next few minutes I got the story. Apparently the girls father didn't want her to have a dog, and was threatening to kill it if they didn't get rid of it that.night. After trying to give them some options they could try, I realized they didn't want to leave my house with the dog in tow. I, of course, being the only logical person to take her.
I was admittedly between a rock and hard place, I didn't want to bring some un-known dog into my house, but I didn't want her to die either. She was a little thing, I reasoned, so what could it hurt? I would contact some rescue groups, and have her gone by the end of the week. Simple. So I agreed to find the dog a home.Worst. Decision. Of Life.
It was worth it just to see the look on my roommates face when I told her I'd gotten her a new dog. (My roommate isn't a dog lover, she tolerated my dogs) Horrified barely describes it.
Needless to say, I couldn't find a rescue group that would take her off my hands.."We usually have our people foster dogs they find.." I didn't want to do the shelter route, as I knew that would prohibit me from adopting there in the future. So we wound up fostering her.
The next three months of my life were pure torture.
Zipper had no obedience training
Zipper had no potty training
Zipper had no leash skills
Zipper had no crate training
Zipper had no boundries (no fence too high or too low could stop her)
Zipper had dog-to-dog issues
The first four items on that list, weren't bad at all, in fact the marjoirty of the dogs I get, have none of these skillz. Zipper was a quick study when it came to clicker training, she accepted crating easily and learned some leash skills. However the straw that broke the camel's back was the last two items. She could get over/under any obstacle, and was fast about it. She also was very aggressive towards my dogs. Which meant she had to stay separated from my dogs, 80% of the time. That. was tough my friends.
The week before Zips found her forever home, I called the rescue and told them a couple of things. First I was not placing this dog with a family that had multiple dogs (we had a potential family who wanted her but they had three other dogs) and that she was going to need to leave my house ASAP. My dogs couldn't take it any more. She attacked on of my sleeping dachshunds, and was getting into fights with my other female at least several times a day (before I placed her on mandatory separation) My roommate was almost living at her parents house and I was going crazy.
Thankfully within a week of that ultimatum being issued, a lovely young lady contacted me, that fit the bill perfectly. I explained to her all of Zipper's issues, and she was very positive about working with her on them.
It was love at first sight (for her and Zipper) and they rode off happily into the sunset.
Zipper gets to go to work with her new Momma, has added a Daddy and brother and is living the good life.
Will I foster again?
Probably.
But I WILL.NEVER. Take in a dog like that again.
The End.
Some things.. YODO (You only do once..) :)
