ACSPCA

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"Love me Tender"

Hello, Furiends!  My name is King and I would like to start off by thanking my brother from another Mother, Ray, for letting me have so much face time on his blog.  I know his friends have been missing his mug and I appreciate all the love and kindness I’ve been shown while I await my forever home.
I’d like to tell you a little bit about myself because there are things I’m just now discovering, too.  Up until about two weeks ago, I thought I was one thing, but it turns out I am another.  I was a part of a pack and there were 8 of us in all.  We were all chi-wow-ahs, I thought, but it turns out I’m something called an AmStaff.  I think that means really big chi-wow-ahs.  I’ve spent my whole first year of life thinking I was one of them, fitting in our nice little world but then my family said we were moving.  I didn’t realize that meant we were not all moving together to the same place.
They took me to a “homeless shelter” where the big hearted people there said they would find me another home, even better than the one I had before, and in the mean-time, they would take care of me and give me the things I need.  They even made sure my jingly bits went away.  I guess that’s ok, because I feel fine.
I found it to be very confusing there for awhile.  Lots of other dogs were telling me about themselves and lots of different people came to see me.  Ray’s mama comes to see me a lot and she said I could call her mama until I get my own.  She takes me for long walks and helps me mind my manners, even though she calls me Mr. Perfect a lot.  When we walk she makes the “uh-uh” sound and I’ve learned that when I hear that sound we stop walking.  I always stop and look at Mama to see why we’ve made the uh-uh stop but I think it’s just because she wants to see my handsome face so as soon as I show her my handsome face we get to walk again.  Sometimes we stop and I sit for a cookie.  The first couple of days, when she showed me the cookie, I wasn’t sure that she would give it to me but she gave it every time and all I had to do was sit!  She says I’m a master at something called “loose leash walking.”
I’d be happy to take that cookie!
I think we are going to learn other ways to get cookies too, if I’m here long enough.  Mama says she hopes we won’t have time but when she says that she seems kind of sad.  She says she loves how I greet her in a polite way.  I don’t jump on her and I don’t ever do sharky mouth, even when I’m looking for cookies that might be in her hand.  I’m just starting to ask her to play with me, but she is kind of a girl, so I take it easy with her and when she says “give Mama a kiss” I know exactly what she means.  I like to give kisses!

Anyhow, I’m ready to go to my home, but just as a little hint, my collar makes me look like I might belong in a peaceabull place, don’tchathink?

A note from Ray-Ray:  “if you are interested in adopting King, please contact the Allen County SPCA.  Now, please, before King becomes my little brother.”

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Reclaiming Some Time

Apparently, the only way to get a little face time on my own blog is to take over and write a little bit myself.  My mama has been so busy with all of the adoptable dogs at ACSPCA that she hasn’t even hardly written about the really important things in life me lately.  The Ray-Ray is still here, people! 

I thouht I would show you what my girlfriend sent me for Valentine’s Day.  My mama says she actually got it for me because she ordered it and my Daddy says he got it for me because he opened the en-ba-lope that came in the mails but I know better.  After all the ladies love cool Ray, so I know Athena asked her mama to send it to me because everyone knows how much fun a good game of tug can be.

It’s perfect because it is soft and easy for my old lovely mama to hang on to when we’re playing.  Plus it gets really long and stretchy so if I get a little over-excited, no one’s knuckles gets bumped by my big mouth.  Then the other day, my mama stuffed little chicken treaties in the braids and I got to “find it” in a fun way.

It was so much fun because when Mama and Daddy got tired of playing I could still play with it safely on my own for a while.  But then, I got sleepy from all the playing and took a little nappy with my new tuggie.

I gotta tell you, this is the bestest tug toy ever and you could probably get your Mama or Daddy to get you one too.
Even though it seems like my Mama hasn’t paid nearly enough attention to me, we did go for a nice walk on Sunday and it wasn’t even in our usual neighborhood.  Mama took me to a new walking place and I got to look at some art.

There were so many new smells to check out and all the new sights to see that all I wanted to do when we got home was sleep.  Mama says that makes me a good pup.  (Which we all knew anyway, right?)

 What did you get from your Valentine?

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The Best Laid Plans

I’m not usually a Friday dog walker, in fact I usually try to make Monday my usual day.  The shelter is closed to the public that day and less volunteers come, so I try to make a point of being there.  Because I really didn’t know how much interaction King would get and I still have a soft spot for Banjo, I’ve been ine every weekday this week except for Valentine’s day.

Today my plan was to walk Banjo and King, of course, and also take sweet Max out for a bit as well.  I know there’s  a pretty steady volunteer who comes on Fridays so I was pretty sure a lot of the dogs would have gotten some attention.  As luck would have it she was still there and gave me the low down on who she had already walked and we gushed on together about how great King is on leash.  What else she shared was that the two puppies kenneled together wouldn’t come out for a walk.  The larger one ran to the back of the kennel and huddled in the corner.  Ugh.  I don’t really want to “do” puppies because A) they’re puppies and B) they often have poo in their kennels.  Ok those aren’t good reasons, but I saw King and made some kissy faces at him and then entered the puppy kennel.  Sure enough, the little beagle/puggle was all waggin’ tail and happy while the other ran to her corner and sat wanting attention but not sure.

Yeah, the view from my lap.

I decided to just sit and play with the two of them so they could get some socialization and the bigger one, Sweetheart, could get more comfortable. 

I should say that even the coldest heart that doesn’t want to sit on a kennel floor with puppies can get sucked in pretty. darn. fast.  Go on, try to resist, I dare you.  Ireland the beagle-y pup played for awhile on my lap and eventually fell asleep. I seriously wanted to sit there all day with this soft little pudge bucket snuggled in my arms.

Sweetheart was so sweet and eager to be loved yet juuuust a little hesitant.  She was pretty happy to lie near me and play with my fingers, her leash, my coat, my boots, etc.

She was such a darling girl and very open to being snuggled with (when Ireland vacated my lap for a whole 10 seconds) and loved to be near me.


After the better part of an hour had passed and I really had no inclination to  move from the floor, I finally tore myself away for a brief spin about the neighborhood with King before heading back to work 

Puppies.  I tell ya, they’re sneaky little things that just steal your heart.

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Walking Wednesday

(Since I knew this wouldn’t be wordless.)

I thought I’d share with you a few pictures from my walks today and to let you know that Miss Delilah has left the building.  Good luck in your forever home, sweetie.

Since I didn’t have enough time to walk Banjo yesterday, he was my first date for today, though he nearly missed his chance again.  Banjo is 10 months old, while not too puppy-ish, he still gets wound up some.  He is kenneled with Max whom I haven’t really interacted with to date.  A secret, here, is that usually since I am walking dogs on my lunch break from work, I don’t often walk any dogs that are double kenneled.  I just think there is too much of a possibility for a wardrobe malfunction.  But today since I had mentally promised some time to Banjo, I entered the kennel he shares with Max…and was very impressed with Max.  While Banjo was running around with his leash and collar, Max cuddled right up against my legs and wagged his sweet little tail enough to make sure I’d be back to walk him too right after I brought the Banj-miester back. 

Outside, Banjo again delighted me with is great leash skills and his solid “sit.”  He was just such a pleasure to walk that I just don’t know if I can gush about him any more.  When we returned, Max was already out with another volunteer, so you know who I turned my attention to.

Not thrilled with the little picture taking box in my face, lady.

King does really, really well on the leash and takes correction easily with an “uh-uh” and a stop.  Now that he’s more settled in, he was much more interested in being treated, though was not at all interesed in learning “sit” for a treat.

Hey lady, you got any more of those nom noms in your pocket?

King is so sweet and thankful for the little treats I gave him but when I tried to lure him to a sit, he gave up pretty fast as if he didn’t really expect me to give them.  It was kind of sad and I’m a big push over so I just gave up the treats in exchange for a couple of hugs.

Both of these young gentlemen are still available to be your forever Valentine, just contact the ACSPCA for details.

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"Getting to Know You"

Have you ever been happy to see a dog in a shelter?  Do you find any irony at all in Lily, Pitbull Ambassador & Therapy dog winning an online contest run by The Denver Dog?  (Not intended to be mean-spirited…I’m happy she won this.)

The shelter I volunteer at sits in a neighborhood where the kennels could really be filled with one certain type of dog but they are not.  There are no breed restrictions but it is a limited intake shelter and I can honestly say the variety there has been vast.  One of the questions I asked before volunteering was about the policies and stance on  Pit bull types there.  There wasn’t a breed ban and I liked the answers well enough to lend any time or talent I could in order to help out.  I’ve seen small and large I’ve seen boxers, boxer mixes, lots of  retriever mixes and even a blocky headed “terrier mix” with a medium thick coat. 

But times, they are a-changing, folks.  Our new director’s focus is to save lives.  She is open, caring and tireless in her quest to not just turn animals out to homes for the numbers but to get the right animal into the right home for life.  Last week as we were messaging about another issue, she mentioned to me that since I was such a “bully -girl” that I “should hustle over to the shelter” because there were dogs sure to win my love.  I figured she meant Bullwinkle the boxer but she said no it isn’t him.  How long do you think the next morning was while I waited to take my lunch break?  How fast do you think I got to the shelter? 

He wasn’t available yet, he wasn’t even neutered so I couldn’t talk about him but the Volunteer Manager snuck me back to the staff only area to see him and I saw his big happy face.

I heard the high pitched whine, the cry for companionship and I knew.  I saw the big block head and I knew.  I saw the deep chest and I knew.  There was no disguising this guy as a ” terrier mix” because he was pretty much undisguisable. 

So now that this handsome guy is officially without his jingles and on the adoption page, I am proud and excited to share with you King.

King is pretty good on a leash.  We took a nearly one hour walk today and not once did he bark or try to chase any squirrels or other dogs.  He did show interest but not too much  in other dogs, and so far he doesn’t seem to be too treat motivated but he caught on pretty quickly that if he pulled on the leash, I stopped walking until we got some slack. 

Yes, it’s a new day and in this case, I’m happy to see a dog like King in the shelter.  He’ll be loved and well taken care of while awaiting his perfect forever home and if you are in our area and are interested in making this boy the King of your home, contact the Allen County SPCA for details.

*extra credit if you know why this post is titled this way.
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Caring, Sharing (Every Little Thing That We Are Wearing)

As we mentioned on Friday, LL Cool Ray and I were pretty excited for him to don his new superhero bow tie from Little Bow Pup and go on some more weekend adventures.  However as fate would have it,  an adoption even came up rather suddenly which left Mr. Ray-Ray at home and bow tie-less.  Always willing to help, Ray loaned out his Mama and his new bow tie in order to help a fellow out. 

I saw Banjo both on the SPCA website and also when I went to volunteer earlier in the week and I can honestly say, he was (to me) overlookable.  Just going on looks alone, he was not my type (German wirehaired pointer and “rolling stone”) and since  he had already been walked when I arrived I didn’t spend any time with him.  But when I went to pick him up on Saturday?  Oh. Em. Gee, people.  I mean it.  Soulful eyes, easy disposition and very mellow for a seven month old puppy.  I was in lurrrrve and could have kissed his wiry little schnoz all day long.

Banjo was great.  He has a solid “sit” and is attracted to children.  He liked other dogs, but honestly, not all other dogs and while he was extremely approachable by humans while he was chomping on his bully stick, he was a little annoyed if another dog came near it.  All in all a sa-weetie pie.
The other dog at the event with us was the darling Delilah.  I had seen  Delilah at the kennels as well earlier in the week and although she is a Basset hound which would make her not one of my top favorite breeds, I saw her personality shine through in about a half a milisecond.  This girl is divine!  Delilah has the za-za-zoo in spades and I’d be shocked if she isn’t adopted within the next 24 hours.  I think we ended up handing out 2 applications for her and received a filled out app right away. 
So bye, bye, bye, Delilah.  Under these circumstances, I have to say, I’m glad I only knew you for a short time.
Don’t feel too badly for Cool Ray, though.  Even though he had to model the neck tutu that Delilah is wearing, he still got to go out on the town Sunday and get his fair share of lovin’.


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Rumor Has It

What is “It” and who is Rumor, you ask?  Well, if you’ve read here at least once or twice, you can deduce that Rumor is a homeless soul waiting at the SPCA for her forever home.  I met Rumor recently and I can tell you, IT is loads of energy and bucketfuls of personality. 

She was the last dog to be exercised or walked on the day I met her.  Actually there were only a few left and when I was up to her, I stopped at her kennel door and watched her bounce.  Up and down, up and down.  With a sigh, I got her leashed up and decided to make the best of it by taking her out to the play yard rather than walking around the muddy neighborhood with a jumping bean.  Let me tell you, that was the Best. Decision. Ever.  Had I decided to walk her, I probably would not have seen much of her spunky, playful personality but in the yard I quickly discovered that our girl of the week luuurves herself a game of fetch with some tennis balls. 

We played with two so that as soon as she chased one down and brought it back, I was ready with the other and to my delighted surprise, she was so well-mannered in the exchange.  She scampered after those tennis balls back and forth, letting me take them from her and waiting really well for them to be thrown again and again.  Thoroughly delightful. 

I hope she finds an active person or family to love and play with her because she is truly a wonderful little sprout who will truly blossom in the right place.

If you know someone looking for a fun and fabulous little companion and can throw a mean tennis ball, have them contact the Allen County SPCA to meet Miss Rumor.

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Forgiven

I guess Mama is forgiven.  She told me about the place that she volunteers at that has doggies who are waiting for their forever homes and she said those doggies won’t have the same kind of Christmas that I will.   She said not every dog is a spoiled rotten little heathen well loved puppy with a home of their own like me and that we need to give back to others.  That’s why she organized an antler drive with her sorority alumnae sisters.  I’m not sure what that means, and  I know that antlers don’t drive but they sure are tasty and great to chew on.   She even brought home some pictures to show  me and said I could share  them  too. 

Mama said some  of the doggies were so happy to have an antler of their very own that they took it right away to their bed to have a nice snuggle and a chew.

Some of the doggies were very excited and they celebrated with their roommates.

She said some of these pups didn’t even know what to do with their antler at first, but they all got the hang of it quickly.

Some of them were so happy to have antlers that they did a little happy dance.

Some of them are what Mommy calls “vigorous chewers” like me.  (I think that means they are extra cute.) 

My Mommy said she never felt more humbled to be able to give so little and create this  much happiness to those who mean so much to her and that she felt almost a little selfish in how good it made her feel to see so many happy doggies.

Mama said we would  post more of the pictures of happy dogs on my Facebook page, too, and that if you fall in love with any of these antler-chewing cuties that you should talk to the folks at ACSPCA about taking them home.

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Guilty

Nothing irks me more than when people make assumptions about Pit Bull types.  Original, huh?  I know, I know.  All of us who are blessed with Pit Bull ownership and tasked with breed advocacy probably live and breath this sentiment, but bear with me here.  I find that I’ve been guilty of breed bias and not only have I been guilty of it, I’ve been called out in a most good natured way.

I was grateful for the four day weekend which allowed me to do “the family thing,” do “the shopping thing,” volunteer and decorate on each day respectively.  When I found that I would be able to schedule myself for one of the Community Outreach Adoption Events, I was pretty thrilled on several levels.  The dogs at ACSPCA have been unavailable due to many coming down with a cough, so I have not been able to interact with many of them and when I found that some would be able to make it to the Outreach event, I jumped at the opportunity. 

I knew my gal, Honor, was not one of the coughers and might possibly be the one I handled.

I kind of doubted it though because she is now living in foster, so the chances were pretty high that if she was at the event, she might be handled by her foster.  I was getting excited wondering who I’d be paired with that day.  It’s kind of like Christmas for me each time I go.  I never know who I will find there! 

When I arrived, I was greeted apologeticly by E.  “You’ll be handling Rico today.  Don’t be mad at me!”  she said with a pleasant smirk.  “I know you like the big dogs, but Rico is the only one left who can go.”  (One)

To be honest, I was momentarily chagrined, but when I saw Rico’s good natured little face and happy tail, I couldn’t help but crush on him just a wee bit.  We made our way through the lobby and our Volunteer Manager M, said, “That’s quite a change for you!” and I heard him comment to the staff there reiterating my preferences for a larger breed dog.  (Two)

So Rico and I took a little spin about the yard to make sure all biological functions were addressed before embarking and I popped him into the back seat of my Dakota.  I have a nice dog proof cover on the back seat and that is generally where all of my furry passengers ride, including Ray-Ray.  As we were preparing to leave, the Director came running out with a grin to ask me if I was “mentally prepared for handling Rico today.”  (Three) 

Rico, however after exploring the back seat from left to right, decided he might not want to ride “like a dog.”

So after investigating all possible seating options, Rico settled quite nicely as my co-pilot for the ride.

Not only was I completely won over by this little man, but he set about busting all of my preconceived notions about little dogs.  Yappy dogs.  Ankle biters.  Little dog complex dogs.  Rico was a perfect gentleman.  He was good natured, cuddly, friendly to dogs, cats, birds and humans alike.  He crawled into the laps of several children and greeted everyone in the store.  He exibited THE. MOST. ADORABLE. play bow to a pair of Yorkies that I’ve ever seen and he did not bark even once the entire time we were together.  I stand abashedly corrected in my sweeping generalizations of certain breeds thanks to the wonderful company of Mr. Rico Sua-vay!

If you are interested in this three year old stereotype buster, contact the Allen County SPCA today!

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A Wiggly Jiggly Mush Bucket

His name is Storm and he could have been the love of my life, but he is definitely the love of my week.  We all know that my photographic skills are sketchy, so take this picture with a grain of salt.  This little block head is sweet, affectionate and eager to please.  If you’re not interested in being beaten with a constantly wagging happy tail, Storm may not be for you. On our walk if he was starting to get a little too far ahead or strain at the leash I’d stop, say his name and he’d walk back and sit, looking at me waiting for direction. 

When encountering strange sounds he walked directly beside me, touching my leg and when more comfortable, walked slighly away on a great loose leash for the most part.  At first I struggled with a title for this post, but when I thought about how he behaved whenever I pet him or spoke to him it came to me.  He’s a little wiggly, jiggly mush bucket.  I found it hard to not grab this little guy and take him home with me. 

If you would like your own little wiggly, jiggly mush bucket, run over to ACSPCA  and meet this fella.  What you don’t see in my photograph, you will understand as soon as you meet him.