They Say Love is Blind...Meet Hope!

Hope on an adventure at Home Depot

Meet Hope, a gorgeously unique American Staffordshire Terrier mix available for adoption through Fred's Friends Rescue. At one year old, Hope is fully grown at 38 pounds. She's a nice pocket-sized Staffie. She came into animal control back in March as a stray found wandering the streets. See those big, clear, green eyes? They don't work. At all. Turns out, Hope is blind as a bat. She seems to have been born that way. She also has a severe heart condition, pulmonic stenosis, that requires daily medication. Her cardiologist said that with the severity of her condition, Hope may live up to two years or she may live a full life. In other words, who knows. Given her blindness and heart condition, Fred's Friends suspects she is a product of bad breeding. Oddly enough, being blind (and thus relatively slow-going) sort of works in her favor with regard to keeping her heart from exploding. 

Hope on her favorite bed

Fred's Friends reached out to us about taking Hope when her previous foster family had to move suddenly. We're good friends with one of their volunteers who knew we'd fostered a blind dog (Buck) before and she thought we'd be a good fit for Hope. Special needs dogs hold a special place in our hearts - it's how we started fostering and it's what we enjoy most. We've gotten away from that for quite some time now, so it's nice to do a special needs case again. So, Hope moved in with us last Sunday.

We have a lot of stairs in our house and they have a lot of twists and turns. Hope learned how to go up the stairs on her first day here, no problem. Going downstairs proved to be a bit trickier, but she got the hang of that on day three. Now she goes up and down without any difficulty for every potty break, every meal, and every time she decides to follow us up or down. Just like with Buck, she'll run into something if it's moved out of place. That's to be expected and it just makes us keep things tidier; we are diligent about pushing our chairs in and not leaving things out in the middle of the floor. She knows where all the dog beds are around the house, where the water bowl is, where the stairs are, and where the gates are that block off the stairs. She also knows where the toy basket is and enjoys rooting through it on a regular basis. Hope loves her toys! She piles them up on her dog bed so she doesn't misplace them. Every now and then she'll forget where she put one or another dog will move one and she gets confused about it. It's entertaining. You can practically see the, "Hey, that's not where I left you!" look cross her face when she stumbles over a rogue toy. She likes squeakers, but she also likes bouncy toys because she can hear where they go as they bounce across the wood floor. She loves going for walks, too. We usually take her for a 1-2 mile walk each day, sometimes twice per day. She does well on leash and enjoys the fresh air. Other things Hope loves: cuddles, treats, antlers, meal time, naps, and her people. Emphasis on naps though. She really loves naps.

Who you callin' a goofball?

So yeah, Hope is a pretty easy dog. She's quite mellow and really isn't any different than a "normal" dog with sight. Sure, she'll get spooked by strange or loud noises every now and then and she may run into stuff in new environments, but that's pretty much it. Her blindness doesn't get in her way much at all. She gets really excited when she "finds" us around the house and likes to celebrate by licking the backs of our legs. She likes that our two foster Chihuahuas wear cat collars that have bells on them, so she knows where they are at all times. She goes potty in the yard just like everyone else and abides by "big dog" rules (no couch, no human bed). She knows "sit" and understands "step" for curbs and stairs. She knows what "leave it" means and is learning how to apply it. She has free roam of the house when we're away, along with our two old guys, and does just fine. She's not a troublemaker and she's not a barker. She does make this really cool wookie noise when she wants something! It's sort of her signature yodel. She does it when she wants to play, wants attention, wants to go for a walk, wants to eat, or just wants to be a goofball. It's pretty fantastic. Check out her video and get to hear her wookie yodel for yourself:

Having a blind dog isn't necessarily a greater challenge than having a sighted dog. It's more of an exercise in patience and compassion. It forces you to slow down and consider things more carefully from the dog's perspective. Hope is a great dog. She just needs someone who will treat her like a normal dog and not coddle her excessively because of her disabilities. If an adopter can understand that, they'll get a fantastic companion in return. In our house, all dogs are given boundaries, structure, and equal love. Hope is expected to toe the line just like all the rest and she does. With so many dogs around, newbies figure out their place pretty quickly. Hope needed some extra help learning the ropes up front, but now she's got it down pat. She seems pretty darned happy about it, too. We're sure happy to have her around! Hope is a gem and it is a pleasure to have her as part of our pack for a while. If you'd like to fill out an adoption application for Hope, please follow this link: http://www.fredsfriends.org/adoption-application.html

PUPDATE: Hope was adopted on October 21, 2015 by a wonderful couple! Her new mama works in child development with special needs children, so she was very ready to accept Hope's variety of challenges. Her words: "I work with special needs kids. This shouldn't be much different and if it is, I'm used to a good challenge!". Things were a bit rocky after several months for Hope when the couple learned they had a baby on the way, but they stayed true to their pledge to stand by Hope's side, challenges included, and found ways to make things work for their growing family. We are happy for Hope...she's a special girl who so deserves a loving family!

Ziggy: A Designer Dog in Need of Rescue

I got a call from St. Francis Animal Protection Society one afternoon, saying that they could use my help figuring out a quick solution to a sensitive case. After a couple phone calls and some speed dial networking, I was on standby to receive another foster dog under Jake's Wish Dog Rescue. Without sharing details, here's Ziggy's story. It's a great example of rescue networking and folks working together for animal welfare.

Ziggy came to us from a domestic violence situation. Although Ziggy was never harmed, his human mom had to flee her home and leave him behind. She bravely had a family member reach out to St. Francis APS and put together a plan for Ziggy's rescue. It took almost three weeks to get Ziggy out of his home and into foster with us, and once it happened it was very sudden. I had about an hour's notice before Ziggy was dropped off at my work in his crate, confused and stressed. 2 years old, 15 pounds, unaltered, full of fleas, overgrown nails, and eating grocery store food. Sigh.

This is his "I'm fancy" pose

Oh yeah, Ziggy happens to be a papered Designer Dog! He's a Pugillon - his sire was a Pug and his dam a Papillon. I wish I could share their full names because they're hilarious, but I'm afraid that might shed light on identities. I gave Ziggy a new name along with his fresh start in life. His old name was nowhere near as great as his parents', anyhow. Ziggy is a registered AKC Hybrid. In other words, he fancy. That underbite, that curled tail, that smushed face? Somebody paid big bucks for that mess. I'll admit - part of me took a small thrill in neutering a "designer dog". Hah. So here's this fancy pants breeder dog who came to me in worse shape than a lot of stray mutts I pull from the shelter. Frustrating.

We had some serious work to do with this little dog. He was very loved by his people, but I think when your husband is beating the crap out of you, bathing and training and caring for the dog takes a bit of a backseat. Ziggy was infested with fleas and had a terrible skin infection from scratching constantly. He was absolutely miserable. He also had crazy separation anxiety, no doubt as a result of being in a turbulent home environment for some time and now suddenly ripped away from his people. Barely a moment went by without Ziggy shrieking at the top of his lungs. I couldn't even shut the bathroom door without him losing his mind. The fact that we didn't receive any complaints from neighbors that first week is nothing short of a miracle sent from the dog gods. So, we got to work setting strict boundaries and teaching Ziggy proper manners. He needed to learn his place and figure out what it meant to be in a stable home where rules apply to everyone.

a structured Ziggy = a happy Ziggy

Our second week with Ziggy was much better. He'd gotten neutered and seemed to feel more confident around the house with us. He slept nicely in his crate next to our bed and no longer had a panic attack if I disappeared around the corner for a moment. He picked out some favorite toys and learned which of the dogs in our house enjoyed playing with him. He also learned which dogs didn't enjoy playing with him, which was an important lesson for him to grasp. I grew pretty darn fond of Ziggy while we had him, despite his neuroses. Someone else saw past the quirks and fell in love with his crazy mug...Ziggy was adopted after two weeks with us!

So, rescue isn't restricted to mutts in need. All breeds of dogs end up in shelters, sadly, and/or in need of rescue assistance from time to time. Looking for a specific breed? Get in touch with a local rescue group. They can help do some of the legwork for you. Obviously, we don't get Pugillons in the shelter every day, but as long as you have patience you will find what you're looking for. Hardly a week goes by where I don't see a Golden Retriever or a Boston Terrier or a ShihPoo or a Maltipoo stuck in the shelter. Hard knocks don't discriminate. Ziggy can tell you that firsthand, although he luckily avoided having to go to the shelter. Cheers to Jake's Wish & St. Francis APS for saving a life together!

Sunny & Sandy: Two Peas in a Pod

Sunny and Sandy are an adorable pair of tiny Chis who came to us as part of a foster trade. In an attempt to place Peppercorn in a more suitable environment, we exchanged him for these two little critters. Foster swapping, though emotionally difficult, is sometimes a really helpful thing to do. Peppercorn was no longer thriving with us and needed a quieter environment. Sandy & Sunny needed a bit more socialization. So, TA-DA! Foster swap.

Sunny and Sandy have an interesting story. A good samaritan witnessed somebody abandoning four Chihuahuas: Sandy, Sunny, and their two longhaired Chi friends (Surf and Cali). Instead of looking the other way, she scooped all four of them up and brought them to the San Jose shelter. I was at the shelter with Jake's Wish Dog Rescue when they came in for processing. They were so cute and sweet, despite being hitched to the wall and getting their intake photos taken. We knew we had to take them! One of the four - Surf - got adopted out by the shelter, but we took the remaining three under Jake's Wish. It turns out Cali was pregnant and had three teeny tiny Chihuahua puppies the night before we got them out of the shelter. She and her pups went into their own foster home. Mama Cali has since been adopted and her babies, Rio, Zelda, and Cruz, are now available for adoption through Jake's Wish. Meanwhile, Sandy and Sunny switched from their original foster home to come live with us until they're adopted so that Peppercorn can have a better foster experience. Whew, what a story!

Hanging out an adoption event

Sunny is a total lovebug. His teeny little face is just absolutely adorable! He weighs just about 3 pounds and is maybe 2 years old. Sandy is maybe 3 years old and about 6 pounds. She's shy at first, but boy does she love to play once she feels comfortable! The two of them together are really a hoot to watch. They keep each other entertained and are constantly by each other's side. Sunny actually passed behavior and health check at the shelter and was on his way into adoptions. Sandy didn't make the cut for adoptions due to her fearfulness at the shelter. I normally don't pull dogs who are already "safe" in the adoption gallery, but the shelter staff was pretty keen on us taking Sunny given that he's another brown Chihuahua (they have SO many of them...). Turns out, Sunny is Sandy's little security blanket. He has helped her come out of her shell so much since I first met these two. They really are two peas in a pod, birds of a feather, yin and yang, a bonded pair. They follow each other everywhere, snuggle together on the couch, sleep in the same crate, and even eat out of the same bowl each meal. I don't know if they're related or mates or what, but it's obvious that they care very much for each other. We're trying to market them as a "twofer" in hopes that they'll get adopted together.

Sunny

Sandy

These two are seriously the easiest Chihuahuas we've ever had. They're so ridiculously sweet and loving - they wouldn't even think of snapping or nipping even if scared. It's crazy how good-tempered they are! Add them together and you don't even have a ten pound dog, so I'm really hoping someone out there sees what a great pair they are and decides to take the plunge for both of them together. These guys would be perfect for pretty much anybody: first time dogs, family dogs, apartment dwellers, elderly folks, home with cats or other dogs or small animals, etc. Sunny is a smidge fragile due to his tininess, so maybe not super young kids, but that's about the only restriction I can come up with. Anybody would really be lucky to have these guys in their family. They're full of love and laughs. We've certainly enjoyed having them! Check out their video below and help us share so that they can find the forever home they deserve.

Flutter, Pinkie, & mama Heather

PUPDATE: Sandy & Sunny got a little doggy brand refresh...we ended up calling them Shrimp & Grits! It seemed to generate a bit more attention from them, but still nothing fruitful in the way of adoption interest. We were stumped - how could it be that no one realized just how special these two little critters were? We had them for 8 months, which is a significant foster period length for us because the only other foster we'd had that long is Oliver, and you all know what happened with Oliver...he's ours. SO, we started to get a bit nervous that we inadvertently turned our three brown dogs into five brown dogs. Then out of the blue, Heather and David came along. I held my breath and tried not to get my hopes up just in case, but it turned out that Heather and David are the absolute perfect family for S&S. They invited us into their home with open arms, eager to learn everything about the two little lives bouncing around their living room. It seemed a solid match. We were cautiously THRILLED.

Is she gonna call?

After our visit, we waited - and waited - and waited for what seemed like an eternity to hear back from Heather with her decision. We waited so long (it felt...only 5 days, but that's pretty long in rescue!) that when my phone finally rang, I was certain it was a rejection call. Much to my astonishment and bittersweet joy, Heather told me that she and David decided they needed my two little brown chis in their lives. I was over the moon and heartbroken all at the same time - you know the drill by now. Yet I wasn't the least bit worried; I knew Heather had a heart full of love, compassion, and gentle understanding and that she would care for my two littles no matter what. 

Driving to our new home!

I asked for a couple days to prepare and when the weekend came, we made the drive over to Los Altos Hills for the delivery. Drew by my side, I held strong and handed them over to their new mom. I knew they'd be cared for like a prince and princess, cherished and pampered but expected to learn a set of rules and toe the line. I knew Heather to be a great mother and a strong woman who would protect them and make sure everything in the environment was safe for them. I knew they would have an absolutely wonderful life full of love and laughter ahead for many years. Despite all of this, I let myself grieve once we got back in the car and drove out of sight. We waved and waved, until we couldn't see them anymore. Their confused little faces wrought with concern blurred as tears welled in my eyes and threatened to pour. Shrimp gave me that face of his - that tiny little face - and I let go. These two dogs will always hold a most special place in my heart, right there with Herman from a full year before. We went to dinner and I placed a new patch on my freshly broken heart, now cracked and stitched back together more times than I can count.

I am so incredibly lucky that Shrimp & Grits wound up with Heather and David. They've had us back into their home a couple times post-adoption to visit. Shrimp had to have a horrible partial penectomy surgery (look it up if you dare) and had a truly terrible recovery through which we offered what little support we could for Heather as she "mama beared" her way through the difficulties. We brought her lunch on her birthday and sat at the table like a family while Shrimp lay in his crate with the tiniest e-collar I've ever seen in life. I brought them teeny tiny freeze dried shrimp cat treats and got to feed him gently. He was upset that he couldn't sit in our laps or run around and play, but he was doing much better. After a full recovery, Heather built Shrimp & Grits (now Flutter and Pinkie, respectively, after David's favorite TV show) an enclosed lounge space in the yard so that they could sun safely without the worry of large birds picking them up. Needless to say, they live like royalty and they are so tremendously loved! I couldn't ask for anything more for them. Flutter & Pinkie are home forever and I am so grateful to Heather and David for everything. Now that we're on the other side of things, this one seems more open-ended than most adoptions I've done. Perhaps it's because Heather's so great about staying in touch, perhaps it's because we got to visit them afterward, perhaps I just feel that good about it. I'm not sure, but whatever the reason, I'm very thankful.

Remembering Barkley

Some very sad news to share - we learned of our first foster loss yesterday. Barkley (aka Benji), our second foster dog, got away from his dog walker Saturday and ran into traffic. He didn't make it. His mom, Susan, is absolutely devastated by the horrible loss of her best friend. Barkley had a wonderful two years with her - adventures at the beach, trips to the snow, hikes, dog parks, epic Halloween costumes, and SO much love. He was an only child, the apple of his mom's eye, and her constant companion. That's what we have to focus on: all the good things this dog experienced because of his rescue and adoption.

We have a lot of foster dogs out there living their forever lives, so it's sort of inevitable that we get this type of news at some point. I just didn't expect it to be Barkley. He was maybe a year old when we pulled him from the shelter, so he'd be around 3-4 years old now. It's heartbreaking to think of his life being stolen like this, but it's comforting to think of how much he is missed. This little unwanted dog who was so shy and shutdown in the shelter went from a life of the unknown to a life of love and joy. Barkley brought us so much joy during the month we fostered him and I know his mom feels the same way about their time together. I just wish it could have been 12 years together instead of 2. Regardless, knowing that he got to have this amazing life full of love is what we all must remember. Susan - you rescued a dog who deserved your love and you'd have given him the moon if you could have. Thank you so much, from the bottom of our hearts, for loving Benji. We are so sorry it ends this way, but eternally grateful that it ever even began in the first place.

Peppercorn's Plight: Overcoming Undesirability

Chihuahuas. San Jose is absolutely overrun with them. The "market" is thoroughly saturated. Chis are a dime a dozen out here. Nobody wants them, especially if they're less than perfect. You mark? You bark? You've got a heart murmur? Luxating patella? Bad skin/coat? Allergies? You're less than perfectly socialized? You're a tan/brown male? Forget it. Those are just some of the initial obstacles so many of our Chihuahuas face. Nobody wants any of that. It's easier to find rescue for Chis who weigh four pounds or less; their teeny tiny size ups their desirability factor. It's easier to find rescue for Chis with super cool coloring or some kind of unique feature. When you're plain old tan or brown and look like every other Chi on the street, you get overlooked. It's easier to find rescue for super duper friendly Chis. If you've got half a brain in your head and prefer to warm up to people as you get to know them, you're a disappointment. So why in the world do we work so hard to save these less than desirable Chis that nobody wants and will be a struggle to get adopted? Why do we bother? Peppercorn's story explains it quite well.

Pepper's intake photo

Shelter staff found Peppercorn left in a box with some junky kibble outside the owner surrender door. He came in neutered and already knew how to sit on command, so it seems he belonged to someone at some point. We'll never know if his former owners were the people who left him in the box, or if someone else found him as a stray and turned him in like that. Either way, people failed Pepper somewhere along the line. He was terrified, fear aggressive, and shelter staff were unable to handle him to even find out if he was male or female. He was 938188, "Unknown" of "unknown age" and "unknown sex". This happens a lot, but his intake photo was so pathetic that I had to go check him out.

When I met Peppercorn, he was lying toward the back of his kennel on a blanket, throwing some serious side-eye shade just like in his intake photo. He let us leash him up and trotted out just fine. Once we got in the courtyard, he explored the perimeter and didn't show much interest in either of us. He responded well to treats and took them from me without breaking eye contact - still so distrustful, understandably. I pet him a couple times, but he made it clear that he preferred to keep his distance and sit a few feet from me. When it came time to put him back in his kennel, he flipped his lid and threw a tantrum about being leashed. It wasn't pretty. Still, something about him resonated with me. His eyes? Everyone says it's his eyes. I don't know. I think it's just that I know all too well the likely fate of these guys. That combined with being pretty certain that this was someone's dog at one point. I knew advocating this one wasn't going to be easy - he was a homely, unfriendly, average sized male Chihuahua who had nothing really going for him at all. That sounds awful, but it's the hard truth. I knew I had to break out the big guns and really find a way to pull on people's heartstrings if I wanted a shot at saving this one. And even then, I knew I'd be unlikely to succeed. So, I made the saddest video montage I could possibly manage and we began networking the dickens out of him. We settled on the name "Peppercorn" because he's small, black, and just a tad spicy. You've got to watch his sad video in order to appreciate his situation. I promise, there are happy ones to balance it. Here it is:

I don't usually make videos so sad like that, but desperate times call for desperate measures. It got people's attention. I can't do it like that every time, or it loses its effect. I usually like to make them happy and cute so that folks are more inclined to watch. When everything is sad and hard to watch, people stop paying attention. Fortunately, a little well-timed sadness proved helpful to Pepper. Turns out, Pepper's sad video got over 7,000 views thanks to San Jose Animal Advocates. Now we just needed the right person to see his video and feel moved enough to help us help him. The shelter staff extended his date so many times for me and kept working on socializing him. They made such a huge difference for Pepper - when we finally found someone interested in fostering him, he was practically a different dog thanks to the shelter staff's efforts. Had they not have spent time working with him, I seriously doubt the foster meet & greet would have gone so well. Tina and Alyssa - thank you. The potential foster mom brought her little long-haired Chihuahua (Marshmallow) to the shelter to meet Pepper, along with another "test" dog (Taco) to help break the ice. Check out what a difference the shelter staff made with him and how much he enjoyed meeting the other dogs:

After sleeping on it for a night, Jenna decided to foster Peppercorn. Turns out, even though he wouldn't let her pet him until an hour into our visit, she fell in love with his haunting eyes. Thanks to Jake's Wish Dog Rescue, I pulled him the next day and brought him home with me to get cleaned up. After a shower, a nail trim, and an ear cleaning, Pepper slept like a rock on his first night out of the shelter. We outfitted him with a proper collar and harness and delivered him to Jenna the next day.

We would not have been able to save this dog without Jenna. He had no rescue interest and we had no other foster candidates. He was so out of time it wasn't even funny. I had so little hope of saving him from the get go that I didn't even want to give him a name. Thank you, Georgia, for that. Because Jenna decided to take the plunge, Pepper gets to live.

Jenna has done an amazing job with Pepper so far. Taking on a difficult case like this as a first time foster mom is no small task. She's a rockstar and Pepper is showing so much progress day after day. He absolutely loves his foster brother, Marshmallow, and even adores his human foster sister, Alyssa. Alyssa is a special 12 year old - she has a deep understanding of animals and Pepper is obviously able to pick up on her sensitivity. Alyssa reports that Pepper loves head rubs and neck rubs. She even wrote his Petfinder page biography!

Peppercorn is getting closer to being ready for his forever home every day. He needs to go to a home with at least one other small dog. He values Marshmallow's companionship and draws a great deal of confidence and comfort from his presence. Little Marshy, at 2.8 pounds, is Pepper's role model. How cute is that?! He has brought Pepper out of his shell and helped remind him how to DOG, as we say. Pepper's really blossoming into a good little dog. He's learning to trust his people more each day and his behavior at home is really spot on. He's not a barker - even when his foster mom comes home after a long day at work, Pepper just quietly bounces up and down waiting for her affection. No barking, no crying. He takes his treats gently, eats his food like a champ, goes potty where he's supposed to, and goes straight into his crate at bedtime without hesitation. Don't believe it? See for yourself how far he's come in this video:

See? Told you his foster mom is a rockstar! The only thing Pepper is still working on is trusting people outside of the home. Remember, he's a little spicy as we say, so once he's had enough he lets you know he's done. That's ok though - it's very valuable to have a dog who gives good warnings like that. Growling is Pepper's way of communicating to us that he has had enough social time and would like his space now. That's honestly no different than with people. At home, he can go to his bed or his crate when he needs his space. He's doing a good job with that. When he's at an adoption event, it's a bit tougher for him to cope because there's no break from the action. So, Pepper needs all the help he can get finding a forever home. He needs people who can see past his scared exterior to the endearing little dog that lives beneath the facade. We know that may take some time, longer than most, but that's ok. We will wait as long as needed for Pepper's perfect match to find him. He has the luxury of time now, you see? Time, patience, love, and commitment. Those are so important to success for any dog, but especially for dogs like Pepper who need a little extra. Thank you, Jenna, for giving him these things in preparation for his furever. If you're interested in applying to adopt Pepper, please email info@jakeswishrescue.org for more information. In the meantime, please share this post, his videos, his photos, and his Petfinder page far and wide to help us find his furever home: https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/31950316

So, why do we bother with "undesirable" Chihuahuas like Peppercorn? Because they need our help the most. We worked overtime for Pepper because we knew there was more to him than sadness. He deserves a chance at happiness and comfort just as much as those three pound Chihuahuas, those happy go lucky puppies, those purebred pedigreed show dogs, and every other creature out there. He just needs a little extra help getting there. That's what we do. That's what rescue is all about. If I stop advocating dogs like Peppercorn, I lose a big part of my purpose. Thank you, Jake's Wish, for taking a stand with me and committing to yet another underdog like Peppercorn. Thank you, Jenna, for opening your home to him and working so hard to make him "desirable". His furever will come.

6/6/15 PUPDATE on Peppercorn: Drew

and I are now fostering Pepper. After spending a month with Jenna, he had to come to us when her dog started having health troubles. Pepper is still quite "peppery" (read: temperamental, cranky, particular, and prone to temper tantrums), but he is progressing a bit each day. He still spends most of his time in his crate (of his own volition - it's his comfort zone), but he's starting to come out more and more. His favorite spot is on the arm of the couch next to the sliding glass door where he can nap in the sun and watch hummingbirds drinking from the balcony feeder. He's becoming more open to cuddling and loves blankets. Once in a while, if he's in a good mood, he'll play a round of tug. For Pepper, tug involves a lot of nasty noises and frustration release. He still tries to get the other dogs to play with him, although they aren't interested. We are working on potty training - he still marks if we don't keep an eye on him. Pepper went to the vet last week and got a clean bill of health other than dental tartar. The vet said his ears look ragged because they were chewed up by another animal. Who knows for sure, but the bottom line is that there's nothing we can do to make them look better. They're just a testament to his hard knocks. Anyhow, Pepper isn't ready for adoption just yet, but he is making strides in that direction. We will continue to work on socialization and everyday coping skills in the meantime. It's going to be a challenge to get him adopted. We will need all the help we can get spreading the word about Pepper's plight. Stay tuned for more pupdates on Peppercorn!

8/3/15 UPDATE: After a couple months with us, Peppercorn's behavior seemed to plateau. He wasn't showing much improvement and seemed to be withdrawn all the time. He spent most of his time in his crate (voluntarily) or on a dog bed in a corner with his back toward everyone else. I began to wonder whether he'd do better as an only dog in a quieter home. We do have a lot of dogs and while he did ok with them, I wanted to make sure he had a chance to reach his full potential. He'd become super easy and part of our routine, so no extra bother to us, but he just wasn't becoming more adoptable. Given these observations, we made the decision to "trade" Peppercorn with another foster home in exchange for the two foster Chis that this other foster person had. He's now the only dog in his foster home and enjoys that immensely. When he comes to events and is around other dogs, he has the capacity to behave nicely around them because he's not burnt out from having so many dogs around constantly. His foster dad understands that he's not a snuggler and is completely ok with that. Pepper appreciates the space and respect he's given and they seem to really have a well-balanced relationship. He sleeps at the foot of his foster dad's bed and waits for him by the door when he comes home from work. Pepper prefers human males over females and he definitely seems to do better as an only critter. He needs an adopter who won't mind that he isn't overly affectionate - someone who doesn't want to cuddle much or pick him up and baby talk to him. That's just not his jam. And that's ok. So, I'm really glad he's doing well. It was hard to let him go, but this is definitely a step in the right direction for Peppercorn. Paws crossed we can find someone like his foster dad who is looking to adopt!

Pupdate: Shiva!

Thought I'd give a quick pupdate on Shiva, now named Ayla. She's doing great with her foster mom, who says Ayla makes a wonderful companion. They enjoy the outdoors together and Ayla loves hiking just as much as her mom does. They spend a lot of time outdoors adventuring together on trails and taking in the fresh air and scenic views. Ayla also enjoys going to the local dog park and playing with dogs big and small. I'm so glad to hear that all of our hard work socializing her with our pack paid off! It seems our diligence took a firm hold and that she's really well-behaved. Her mom says she cracks up watching her toss toys in the air for herself and play soccer with tennis balls. She still favors her leg on and off again, but the vet says it will improve with more time. Ayla's mom also reports that she's learning to not chase the cats and is attending obedience school. Pretty pawsome if you ask me! I'm thrilled that she's living the good life and is well-matched to her mommy. Thanks, Tammy, for the photos and pupdate. Paws up for Ayla!

Happy Tail: Cheddar Cheese Man!

Farewell photo

Woohoo, Cheddar found his forever home today! He was one of several JW pups adopted out at the We Dog Care First Birthday Bash this afternoon. I'll be sure to make a post on that soon so everyone can see how awesome WDC is, but for now, we'll focus on Cheddar. I'm thrilled for him to be in a household that's active and playful. Our home is quiet again, this time for a while as we're taking a break for a month due to travel plans. We'll miss Cheddar, but it's awesome knowing he won't be bored anymore and it's nice for our dogs to get some peace and quiet. They really put up with a lot from the crazy red-tailed firefox!

Cheddar & his new family!

Cheese Man hit the jackpot with his new folks. You see, Cheddar is all smiles and wags at home, but as soon as he gets outside of his comfort zone he retreats into a nervous shell. Meeting his adopters at WDC was very scary for him, but they fell head over heels despite his tail-tucked first impression. I'm super grateful that his new people were able to look past the scared little dog they met today and imagine the "real" Cheddar with all of his spunkiness and joy. I am so excited for them to meet that Cheddar once he gets settled in with them at home. Out of all the dogs we've fostered, Cheddar did the most drastic 180 from shelter to home. His personality completely changed. I can't wait for his new family to see that side of him - the cheesy Cheddar who springboards off furniture, grins from ear to ear, rabid dog runs around the living room at 100mph, and entertains nonstop with his antics. Oh, Cheddar also gets a canine sibling out of the deal! His new Husky sister, Banksy, will surely keep him busy wrestling and playing day after day. Paws up for Cheddar and his first day of furever!

Settling in together

Siblings out for a walk

PUPDATE! Cheddar's first day in his furever home went very well. His mom says he and Banksy are well-matched energetically and even insisted on holding Cheddar's leash on their evening walk. They're playing great together and Cheddar is settling in well. Yay, Cheddar! Check out all the pawsome photos of him enjoying Banksy's company.

Playtime!

Introducing Cheddar: Say Cheese!

Me & Cheddar at the shelter

Meet Mr. Cheddar Cheese Man! He's a 2ish year old Red Tailed Firefox PapiPom (that's a Papillon / Pomeranian mix for you newbs). Cheddar has a double sided backstory. He originally came into the San Jose shelter as a stray back in January. He made his way into adoptions with his cute looks and sweet demeanor. Things were looking up for Cheddar, until his 88 year old adopter realized she couldn't keep up with his energy and acknowledged the danger of her tripping and falling over Cheddar. So, Cheddar found himself back at the shelter, this time as an owner surrender. Unfortunately, he didn't pass his behavioral evaluation this go around. Instead of the happy go lucky red dog they'd seen the first time, Cheddar was tense and nervous. He didn't make it into adoptions and found himself on the needs rescue list with a date on his head. You know how this story goes - I went in to do assessments and fell in love with Cheddar when he crawled into my lap. I always feel kind of bad taking an easy foster, but he was out of time and ready to roll. So, we rolled.

Cheddar is a nut. He runs around the house like a tasmanian devil. He thinks it's great fun to leap onto my lap and smother me with kisses until I can't breathe anymore. Also ears. He thinks ears taste delicious. He's a pretty intense little critter when it comes to affection, but he's so quiet it sort of balances out. We've had him for almost a week now and still haven't heard him bark once. He might whine occasionally or give a little "play with me" whimper, but no barking. He just smiles. All the time. That's how we settled on the name Cheddar, because he's always cheesin'.

Say cheese!

Even though our three guys are old geezers who don't really care to play much, Oliver is a good sport when Cheddar ambushes him. He tolerates Cheddar jumping up and down on him, chewing on his neck fat, chomping at his ankles, and licking his face trying to rile him up. Once in a while Oliver will give in and romp with him for a few, but usually he just stands there until Cheddar gives up and moves on to the next best thing. He's definitely a young dog who would really like some kids or another playful pup to wear him out throughout the day.

Although Cheddar didn't really need us per say, he needed out. The shelter was so tight on small dog space that week that I couldn't very well leave him behind, fully vetted and ready for adoption. So he's crashing with us for a while. I'm sure he'll get adopted super fast. He's a pretty easy little guy and would make a great first dog, apartment dog, kids' dog, multi-dog family dog, etc. I'm just glad he gets a third chance. That's all for now - stay tuned to hear how things turn out for Cheddar!

Happy Tails: Waffles & Koa!

This weekend brought happy tails for everyone! Both of our foster dogs, Waffles and Koa, found their forever families. It's nice and quiet at the Bowen house with just our three old geezers. We'll see how long that lasts...I think we're going to shoot for a week off here if possible. Anyhow, we're super happy for Waffles and Koa! They've both got fantastic lives ahead of them.

Waffles and his mommy

Waffles, foot healed and good as new, wound up as an only child. His mom is retired, so he's got all her time and affection all to himself. How nice! He'll love being the star, but hopefully she'll take him to daycare or the dog park every so often so he can get his crazy play on. He does love to socialize. His mom said they'll come in to my store and visit every now and then. I'll be sure and do a pupdate post on him after they come visit so you can hear how he's doing. Waffles is a nervous little guy when he first meets people, but he gave his new mom a face full of kisses right away. How awesome is that? His mom instantly fell in love with him and was moved to tears by his story, gentleness, and affection. Oh, and she's keeping the name "Waffles"! Love it when that happens! 

Waffles was sort of a co-foster effort. We pulled him and got his foot on the right track, then traded dogs with another foster family we're good friends with after about three weeks. Anne-Laure and Steed had been fostering a difficult Chihuahua named Mischa for a few months. Mischa hates men and was really having a rough time. We traded Mischa for Waffles to see if the change in scenery / routine would help at all and to give Anne-Laure and Steed a much deserved break. Waffles was a pretty easy dog - always happy, joyful, sweet, and playful. Sometimes you need a morale boost after dealing with a tough case for a while. Waffles gave them just that. Mischa's a story for another day. Anyway, Anne-Laure and Steed did a fantastic job with Waffles. They loved his carefree spirit just as much as we did. They continued helping his foot heal by giving him medicated foot soaks twice each day for a week (no joke...they're troopers) and making sure he took his antibiotics to ward off infection. Before long, his foot looked nearly perfect. We dog-sat Waffles for a few weekends here and there from that point on, but Anne-Laure and Steed remained his primary foster parents. It's been really cool to share the load so to speak with such good friends. Waffles became sort of a joint custody project, giving us all the opportunity to be touched by this sweet little dog's wonderful spirit.

Here's what Anne-Laure has to say about Waffles: "When Waffles first came into our house, he brought his liveliness and energy with him. Being used to Chihuahuas, we were a little unprepared for his athleticism when we left a plate of chocolate chip cookies on the coffee table. What would have been out of reach for a Chi definitely wasn't out of reach for the determined Waffle-nator's fast jaws. He ate all the food he could manage to get his paws/nose on. When there's no food around, he chomps on ice cubes after playing with them for a while first. This playful dog puts all his focus into whatever he's doing right right at the very minute he's doing it. If you take him on a car ride, it's his favorite thing ever. But so are walks, play time, belly rubs, cuddle time, dinner time, sleepy time, whatever! He loves it all! When he's content, he gently puts his chin on your arm and lets out a long sigh. He's the easiest, most loving little dog we've been lucky enough to have for a few days. He so wants love. I've never seen him show any sign of dislike toward anyone. One of my friends brought her 15 month old toddler over. She's scared of dogs so we were a little apprehensive, especially because Waffles has a much bigger bark than his size. He approached her very gently and rubbed his head on her, asking to be pet. When she felt safer, he chased her and she chased him back. When she picked up a little branch, he sat a few feet away from her with his eyes begging her to throw it. She didn't, so he very gently pulled the branch from her hand and threw it in the air for himself. He did that a few times, determined to teach her how to play fetch. This special little dog reassured my friend, I think, that dogs and toddlers are not incompatible. His gentleness combined with his puppy-ish love for play and passion for cuddle makes him the perfect dog in my book."

Derpfest!

None of us were able to make the adoption event this past Saturday. Anne-Laure dropped Waffles off at our house Friday night, planning to pick him up after the event on Saturday evening.. We snuggled, played, and enjoyed his company as usual. He's such a fun dog. We gave him a bath and cut his nails in prep for the event so he'd look his best. He'd had zero interest so far, which none of us understood given his endearing personality and extremely goofy cuteness. Saturday morning, I dropped him off at daycare on my way to work. He was transported to the event later that day. When I texted to ask how Waffles did, I nearly jumped out of my skin to hear that he was getting adopted. A lady had been pre-approved to adopt another Jake's Wish dog, but when she came to the event and saw Waffles it was love at first sight. We miss this happy little guy already, but we're so glad he's on to his forever! Best of luck to you, Waffle Cone!

Koa & her new momma!

Koa got the forever family of her dreams! She's got two canine brothers: Kielbasa the pittie and Sausage the Chihuahua. Sounds pretty perfect for her! Kielbasa needed a playmate. I'm sure he and Koa are running and wrestling as I type this. Koa's new people are great with training and consistency. The dogs have to wait for them to say "good morning" as the release phrase for coming out of their crates each morning! Too cute. Once per week, they're all allowed to sleep in bed with the people for a special night of snuggles. I'm so happy for Koa. I don't have as much to say about her happily ever after as I did for Waffles because we only had her for a week, but it's awesome to see this itty bitty happy pittie pup surrounded by love. I'm hoping we'll get photos of her once she's fully grown. If so, I'll be sure to share. Kisses, Koa!

Bonus: Waffles photo-bombing Koa in the backyard!

Meet Koa: An Itty Bitty Happy Pittie!

Such sparkly eyes!

This adorable little girl's name is Koa. She came into Santa Clara County Animal Control as a stray and Jake's Wish couldn't resist her sparkly eyes. Koa is 4 months old, 30 pounds, and just oh so sweet. She has a very mild case of demodectic mange. It's localized to just a couple patches here on her side and feet, so the vets are hopeful it will simply clear up on its own as she matures. All dogs carry demodex mites. Whether they develop mange is a matter of how overrun with the mites they become and how well their immune system is able to battle the mite population. Young dogs that are in stressful situations are more prone to developing a case of mange. It always seems like it's most often pitties that have demodex, but all breeds are equally susceptible. Perhaps it's just because pitties make up a larger percentage of the stray population. Puppies get the mites from their mother as they're born. Not all puppies in a litter may end up with mange, just the ones that have weaker immune systems. Basically, it's more of a sensitivity than anything else. Demodex isn't contagious like scabies (sarcoptic mange is highly contagious...our Bunkin had this when we got him). We saw some seriously horrible mange cases back in Atlanta: dogs with no fur left and their skin reduced to a full-body oozing scab, reeking of decay, dying of secondary infection and organ failure. Koa's will never be like this. You probably won't even notice anything in her photos.

ZzzzzZzzzz

Koa is a super mellow pup, which is of course awesome. Most of the time she just follows us around the house or rests on one of the dog beds in the living room. She knows what antlers and nylabones are for and she'll spend a good while chewing on them while she lounges. When she is feeling playful, she entertains herself by tossing ropes and other toys in the air and chasing them. At most, she'll do a couple gallops across the living room and maybe try to convince Oliver to play with her. That's pretty much it! She does enjoying going to We Dog Care doggy daycare and getting to be a little rowdy with her friends every now and then, but she certainly doesn't need to do that every day. Other than having to potty train and watch out for inappropriate chewing, it doesn't much feel like we have a puppy in the house. Fine by me! She's just a really good girl.

Koa at Hermitage

One of Koa's nicknames is Baby Hippo. She's none too graceful, she guzzles water, weighs a good solid beefcake ton, and makes these ridiculous deep snorting noises when she's excited. In fact, I think she learned to answer to Hippo before Koa, but that's ok. She knows both now. At We Dog, they call her Baby Shark because of her smooth sleek silvery coat and sharp puppy teeth. Every time I go to pick her up from daycare, one of the handlers is always holding her. I get home and wonder why she's not entirely pooped out - it's because all she does at daycare is snuggle with the hoomans! Silly Hippo. Everybody loves her and she loves everybody. She even gets along with cats. This pup is a piece of cake. We took her to Hermitage Brewery with us the other day and people just took turns asking if they could walk her the whole time. It was pretty great. Easy tip for getting dogs adopted: brewery photos. Works every time (knock on wood).

Who you callin' Hippo?!

Other than Zeke and Girl, both of which were super quick cases I did 1,000 years ago before knowing anything about rescue, we've never had a pittie before. Koa is our first. I don't know how we've gotten this deep without ever fostering a pittie, as they're the breed in the most need. Shortly after we moved here, someone said to me, "Oh, but you guys don't do pit bulls though!" and I said "What?!" before I realized we hadn't done one. We've fostered so many dogs that at this point it looked like we actually made an effort to not foster pits. I had to fix that! I'm not great at the whole "you shouldn't care what other people think" thing to begin with, but jeez I can't stand to have folks thinking that about us. We foster everybody and give them all the love they deserve. Just so happened that Jake's Wish needed a place for Miss Hippo, so there ya have it.

Pit bulls: they'll snuggle you to death

Cue crash course in being a pit bull [foster] parent. It hasn't even been a week and I've already had abundant opportunity to receive ignorant comments from folks about my [foster] dog. Within 5 minutes of arriving at the brewery, a lady asked us, "Is that a pit bull?" and then saying "how lucky we are to have gotten her before she was abused". I just smiled begrudgingly and explained that she's just as much of a blank slate as any other puppy. The next day at work, a customer and I were chatting about his teething puppy over nylabones. I laughed and, in an attempt to commiserate with him, mentioned that I've got a pittie puppy at home who likes to run with her mouth open, so I feel his pain about sharp puppy teeth. Instead of understanding the happy goofy puppy image I was going for, the guy looked horrified and warned me to "watch out for that" because "those dogs can turn dangerous fast when they're not raised right". Another WTF moment. My puppy teething is no different than your puppy teething, but because mine's a pit and yours is a lab, I can't talk about mine without incurring a safety lecture. Well, that's stupid. Today I ran across a lady who was absolutely certain Koa couldn't possibly be good with cats, no matter how many times I affirmed that she is. None of this is surprising to me in theory because I know how the story goes, but it's been interesting to experience firsthand. Mind you, Koa is a beautiful, super sweet, affectionate, quiet, well-behaved puppy. If people say stupid garbage like this about her now, I can only imagine what it'll be like when she weighs 50 pounds and loses her derpy baby face.

The struggle is real. My friends who are real pittie parents carry around an extra burden: an added level of accountability that is based solely on the breed of their dog and the ignorant generalizations surrounding it. See, I'm a bad pet parent: Oliver and Bunkin go to the dog park without their rabies tags on their collars sometimes. Just their name tags with my phone number. I know exactly where they are - at home, tucked away in the office filing cabinet. If something happened, I'd have to run home and get them on the way to the shelter / vet / wherever. No big deal, right? **[And yes, I know I really shouldn't do this]** Pittie parents don't have the luxury of being lax or negligent like that. They know their dogs don't go

anywhere without all their tags and licensing, because if something happens, it's going to be their fault. They aren't treated the same as terriers and retrievers.  Any dog might react differently in stressful situations than they'd normally act (getting startled, tail stepped on, a jerky dog at the park, etc), but if a pit bull gets scared and bites someone or someone else's pet, there will be a witch hunt. It's a daily fear for pittie parents that their dog gets in a tussle with another dog or person and not only gets blamed, but "proves" the breed stereotype right. It's sort of like waking up every day feeling like you've got to prove yourself. This may be your amazing, beloved, sweet-hearted couch dog, but there's still that nagging fear in the back

of your mind every day that if he ever does anything less than perfect, it's over. It's not just a risk for your one dog that you're worried about, it's the ramifications on all the other amazing bully breeds out there that's truly terrifying. Nobody else has to carry that burden. People know my Chihuahua is a jerk, but they don't just assume all Chis are like that. Unfortunately, pitties are victims of gross generalization. The pit never gets the benefit of the doubt, a second chance, an even shake, or any of that stuff. Just because he's a pit. It's not fair. 

It's one of my many doggy hopes that bully breeds someday soon regain their status as America's family dog. My hat goes off to all of you who advocate for these guys. Koa sends hippo kisses to Bruce, Bailey, Thor, Zaxby, Grace, Lacey, Rosie, Tank, and our other often misunderstood friends. Koa's proud to be a pit bull and we're proud to be her foster parents. For more information on adopting Koa, visit www.jakeswishrescue.org

To learn more about advocacy for misunderstood dog breeds, click here: http://imnotamonster.org/