Freaky Falafel

He dances from side to side in his crate. He screams and barks like he's having a fit. He poops and pees every morning in his crate.

He is Falafel, the freakazoid foster dog!

What does one do with a foster like Falafel? Well, not much. I can't take him to PetSmart to show him to potential adopters because he is a nutcase in a crate. I do crate him at night and when I'm away from the house, and he settles down in his crate the moment I am out of sight. But until that time, he is dancing and screaming.

My plan is to begin working with him, rewarding him when he quiets down in his crate, etc. I hope he finally understands that being quiet and calm is what I want from him. I believe that he thinks the dancing and screaming are how he should behave.

He isn't a particularly attractive dog, which also isn't great for him. He is a blondish/tanish, short-haired rat terrier/whippet? mix. He has been bony ever since we rescued him many, many months ago. Since he has been with me, he has put on a tiny bit of weight so that his bones aren't all visible and jutting out, threatening to break through his skin.

Yes, I hate his name. I do wish he didn't have that stupid name. I call him Fah mostly. I think when you are already a freaky dog, you really don't need a stupid name to go with it. I didn't have anything to do with naming him, but I (and poor Fah) am stuck with it.

When he was being boarded at the veterinary, they begged us to come get him, so another foster home complied. Bless her, she kept him for months and months and he improved there. I took him to try to train him to use a doggy door and not poop in his crate. He finally got the doggy door figured out, but still has no qualms about messing up his crate. Tomorrow I am moving him into a smaller crate in hopes that it makes it difficult for him to poop and pee in there.

Some foster dogs are pure pleasure. I take those in from time to time -- just adopted out two of those "easy" ones (see Templeton's photo) -- but I always have one or two of the difficult, long-term foster dogs. While they are challenging, I also know they will come around one day and become someone's faithful companion.

HE VS. SHE

Growing up, my parents convinced me that female dogs were sweeter and easier to potty train than boy dogs. It was only after volunteering to foster dogs for Animal Rescue Foundation that I realized that my parents were mistaken. I should have known before then because one of my best childhood friends had a boy dog named Tippy. He was a dachshund mix and quite a character. We all loved him and he was as sweet as he could be and housetrained.
My parents weren't the only ones working under the wrong assumption when it comes to females vs. males. Almost every week someone tells me that they must adopt a female because female dogs are:
1. sweeter
2. easier to train
3. get along better with other dogs

All three of these traits are 50 percent true and 50 percent false. It all depends on the dog and not the gender.

Since there seem to be more male dogs in shelters than female dogs, I realized fairly quickly that I would be fostering male dogs.

What I have discovered is that boy dogs are usually delightful (provided they are neutered) and are no more difficult to train than a female dog. As for getting along with other dogs . . .

I have a dominant female dog of my own and I can't bring another dominant female in to foster. Dominant male dogs are no problem, provided they are neutered. But a spayed dominant female can still be a prickly creature. Two spayed, headstrong female dogs can glance at each other and the fight is on!

So let's hear it for the boys. I still love the girls, of course, but I have learned that the boys often steal my heart and I remember them fondly long after they have been placed in forever homes.

Beautiful Manufactured Dogs

This Christmas I received as a gift from a friend a book she has treasured for 20 years. It is a book full of paintings of dogs from the earliest caveman depictions to present day. What's fascinating is how some dogs have changed and others haven't. It appears that rat terrier type dogs and greyhounds have been around for centuries. They must be hardy and helpful breeds. Some breeds have changed a lot -- and not for the benefit of their health.
For example, pekes and pugs have had their snouts shortened so that now they have breathing problems and allergies. They used to have pug noses, but they weren't flat up against their skulls the way they are now. People bred these dogs to look this way, and in the process, made the breeds less hardy.
Possibly the most damaged breed is the King Cavalier Spaniel. Breeders worked to create smaller and smaller dogs with tiny skulls. Because of this, these poor dogs now can have brain diseases. Their brains are too large for their skulls and they begin having seizures or fits. They scream in pain because it feels to them that thousands of knives are stabbing them all over their body. The only way to relieve them is to put them down. You can have a pup checked to see if it carries the gene for this problem, but some breeders hide it. One champion Cavalier won ribbons and trophies for being a perfect example of the breed and was retired early from the ring because it had this brain disease and had to be euthanized.
A few years ago, one of the top champions in the world was a tiny peke that fainted while its photo was being taken after it won Best of Show. They had two fans pointed it the dog, but it still overheated and fainted because its nose is so flat against its skull that it can barely breathe.
So, before you swoon over that 2-pound teacup chihuahua or yorkie or the cute peke or pug with no profile or the small, delicate Cavalier, remember that these dogs were manufactured by man and man is not always wise in how he manipulates nature. As the TV commercial used to admonish, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!"

Christmas Gifts

Did you ever get a dog or cat for Christmas?

I'm not sure this is a good idea. It looks nice in the movies or in commercials, but you are giving a living thing as a gift to someone. We have not had great results when this happens in ARF. I remember one woman who called right after Christmas and wanted to return her gift to us. She had said aloud one day that she might like to have a dog -- like the one she had just seen on TV. A well-trained, cute, dog. She was given a puppy for Christmas. A chewing, peeing, pooping, crying all night puppy. Not what that 78-year-old lady had in mind!

I can recall other times when families called in January to ask us to take back the dog or puppy they adopted at Christmas. The holidays were over and they were "over" having a pet.

It is better, I think, to add a member of the family when you are not drunk on holiday cheer or teary-eyed after watching a Christmas special. It is more responsible to bring a new member of the family home when things are back to normal -- no Christmas tree to wreck and pee on, no presents to tear up, no ornaments to destroy, no bowls of candy to eat and get sick (or die) on.

Santa should never bring any child a puppy or kitten. Think about it. He flew the poor darlings in on his sled? How comfortable is that for the little ones?

For Christmas, give underwear, gloves, games, knitted hats, and flat-screen TVS. Save the kittens and puppies for later in the year.

Throw Away Animals

We have a dog in the system now that was "kicked out" of his home because his owner got married and his new wife's doxie doesn't get along with Cozmo. Cozmo is a Great Pyrennes mix. Housetrained, leash trained, very sweet. The owner dumped him on his "grandparents" and they called ARF. They will keep him for a couple of more weeks and then they are going out of town, so that means Cozmo will go to a shelter.
ARF doesn't have a space for him. He won't tolerate a crate and he has been known to fight with small, bossy dogs.
It's infuriating to be in this position. But it happens all too frequently. Instead of taking responsibility, people dump dogs and cats as if they are not living creatures. Cozmo seems lonley and confused. They show him on Saturdays for half a day at PetSmart and he seems to be asking, "Why are we here? When am I going home?"
Breaks my heart.
If people could dump their unruly kids on volunteers like ARF, there would be tens of thousands of kids asking, "When am I going home?" The only thing that keeps a lot of people from dumping their kids is the social stigma and the law.
Pets aren't so fortunate.

Toot, Toot, Tootsie

It's been a big week or two for older and the less fortunate dogs we have been tending to in ARF. My oldest foster -- a dear snoodle named Tootsie who records say is 10 and maybe 11 years old -- was adopted. Toots has congestive heart disease. She often acts like a much younger dog -- an 8 year old, perhaps. I have adopted her out twice before to senior citizens who kept her a year or two and then asked ARF to take her back because they could no longer care for her.

I always took her back with no reservation because Toots is a good girl. I just felt terrible for her. It seemed that no one in the extended families wanted to take her in. That is bothersome to me. You would think that a son or daughter would take in a family member in need.

This time I had decided Tootsie was staying with me unless someone very special came along, which I sincerely doubted would happen.

But it did happen. Along comes a nice woman in her late 50s, early 60s who has had dogs with cancer and congestive heart disease before and has no problem letting them live comfortably with her until it is their time to depart. She e-mailed me about Toots and I e-mailed back, thinking that would be the end of it. But she persisted. She filled out an application and met Tootsie. Toots had just come from the groomers and was looking especially gorgeous with purple toe nails and a purple bow in her hair. Also a hot pink and purple scarf around her neck. The lady liked her and decided to adopt her.

I just received an e-mail from her that Tootsie has settled in quite nicely. Toots was always good about that. Bless her. She said that Toots does a happy poodle dance when she comes home from work. She said watching the dance and how Tootsie runs around and barks happily makes her think she is a much younger dog.

It makes me think that there are many, many special people in this old world.

Don't shop! Rescue!

ARF to the Rescue!

ARF members have been Rescue Rangers extrodinaire lately. One little dog, named Koehler after the doctor who helped patch him back together, is now available for adoption. He came to us with a badly broken pelvis and leg. Veterinarians and plastic surgeons (!)worked hard on him and pieced him back together. He is a sweet guy anyone would love.

Another little dog was rescued after ARF members saw it hit by a car in heavy traffic on a main street in Tulsa. They stopped traffic long enough to pick up the wounded, unconscious, 4 pound dog. They rushed him to Bent Arrow Veterinary Clinic. He came to and stirred, but was in great pain. His leg was broken in a couple of places. ARF footed the bill and he was put back together again. "Lucky" is recovering nicely and up for adoption.

What can you say about people who will go above and beyond for innocent animals who are caught in traffic, scared, hungry, helpless? The motorist who hit the little dog didn't even tap his brakes and kept on trucking. Thank heavens for people who give a darn and stop to help. And for the wonderful veterinarians and other medical personnel who donate their time and discount their fees to help rescue groups like ARF save more dogs from being euthanized.

The ARF president helped round up a pomeranian that was loose in traffic around a shoppping mall in Tulsa. When she finally caught it, she was shocked to see that it had an ARF tattoo. She checked the ARF line and, sure enough, the new adopter had left a message about how her new dog had slipped from its harness and had raced off. She returned the pom to the owner with a stern warning about cinching up a harness or collar so that the dog is secure but not uncomfortable.


This month is Spay and Neuter Month. Please spread the word to spay and neuter pets. Do a good deed this month by making a donation to a rescue group like ARF or telling your veterinarian that you will pay for a spay/neuter for a client the veterinarian feels needs financial help to do the right thing for his/her dog or cat. You will earn your stars in heaven and become a RESCUE RANGER yourself!