RESCUE STORIES

We had always gone to a breeder for our dogs. When Magic died from the Dog Food Recall of last year, we decided to try rescue for our next dog. Through a friend of a friend, we were put in touch with a Doodle Rescue Group in PA. That weekend I drove about an hour to pick up our girl. I had never met her and the hour drive home was quiet, she didn't move. When we got home, she sat in a corner of the kitchen and wouldn't move. She wouldn't eat or drink and had to be carried outside to do her business. She didn't know what to do with grass, was afraid of it. That night she started to cry. I went down a couple of times to reassure her and finally took her on my lap and slept with her in the Lazy Boy the rest of the night. That's when I knew this was going to be different.

When you rescue a dog, they come with "baggage" that you can't know. What did they go through? Who hurt, scared or even abused them? It takes time to bring them around. With Ginger it was about 2 weeks before she felt fully comfortable with everyone in our home. But if someone new was around, she would hide and shake. Our friends were told to leave her alone, let her come to them. Then only let her smell them. Slowly, she has become a trusting girl. Today, she has been with us 1 1/2 years and still is leary about new people or situations. But she is so much more relaxed and willing to meet new people than she was.

Rescue or rehome has to be approached differently then going to a loving breeder. You can't know what that dog went through, but have to be patient and calm and they will come around.

What are your rescue stories?

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AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:17pm

Comment by Jacquie Yorke and Blake on August 28, 2008 at 12:44pm
Blake was one of many Doodles rescued by the HSUS from an Amish puppy mill in Lancaster PA last year. He and the other Doodle pups of various size and color, all from this particular farm had grown too old to sell and were all scheduled to be euthanized with a bullet to the head their little bodies to be used as fertilizer on this farmers fields. (This is a common practice that most of the Amish "breeders" partake in and one not mentioned on Oprah's show about puppy mills. I suppose it was just too gruesome to reveal.)

I was made aware of this rescue by my sister who works for the HSUS in Washington DC. She knew that I was looking to adopt a Doodle and encouraged me to do so. She was visiting me on this particular weekend and together we made the trek up to Middletown HS in upstate NY where many were being housed. What we saw was disturbing and heartbreaking.

All of the rescued mill pups were sequestered to the back of the facility....I could not figure out why and wasn't given an explanation...(I would come to know why later that day....) We were shown quite a few Doodles ranging in size from extra large to mini....All were six month old males.....(The unsellable female pups were kept by the farmer as breeders.)

My sister had warned me about some of the things we would see and I knew what to expect but it was still upsetting to us both. Some of the Doodles were pacing back and forth, some were laying down lethargically staring into space, some were barking and crying incessantly...( all were eventually adopted )..... but one little cream colored guy was calmly standing all alone in his cage, curiously looking out through the cage door. He was shaved except for his face-his bald stick-like tail held proudly curled over his back and wagging. We made eye contact. He had the most amazing eyes that I had ever seen in a dog! They were pale green, piercing and human-like and while they were intelligent and deep eyes that told a story, there was no indication of trauma from the suffering he had endured. Without a sound he pressed his little paws on the cage door his tail wagging furiously....."Him." I said to the technician. "Can you let him out?" The technician revealed that the puppy's name was "Michael" and of all the rescued Doodles, he was his favorite. " Michael" immediately came over to me, jumped up wrapped his paws around my neck and rested his head on my shoulder-his little, bald butt shaking that stick tail all the while. That's all it took for me. I had found my Doodle....We had chosen each other. It was mutual LOVE... I filled out the paper work and prepared to take "Michael" home.

While talking with the facility Director I noticed that "Michael" was scratching incessantly, that he had raw, open patches, a red rash all over his body and a crusty build up on his ears. I asked the Director flat out if he had mange. She said "no...All the pups were given clean bills of health from a vet. It's just a rash from being in a filthy cage for his entire life. Bathe him gently when you get home and it will clear up in a week or so...." I took her word that was the case.....

She informed my sister and I that "Michael" and many of these rescued mill pups could not walk when the had first arrived. Because they had no room in their cages at the puppy mill to move around they had never learned how and had to be taught!! "Michael" had never set foot out of a cage nor had he ever felt grass under his paws! The Director explaied that he would be disoriented and confussed by a new environment and new experiences. She showed us his paw pads. They were pink and raw in places. She explained that the rawness was a result of standing on wire mesh his entire life. Puppy mill cages do not have solid or soft bottoms because the mesh allows most feces to drop beneath the cage. The director mentioned that whatever doesn't fall through is usually reingested because of lack of food and nutrition. I was mortified. She explained that if I were to see "Michael" doing this in the beginning that I should not worry as he would soon stop once he was getting regular nutritious meals. She then popped a Capstar into his mouth, took my $200 adoption fee and bid us farewell.

While cautious about walking out the facility door and immediately curious about grass "Michael" was neither skitish or overwhelmed by his new experience of the outside world. I picked him up and placed him in the back of my car with a blanket for the 2 hour journey home. It was about a half an hour into the drive back that my sister and I noticed the crazed scratching and the smell...."Michael" now renamed "Blake" for my favorite poet and painter William Blake was now crying and yelping each time he scratched himself and he was beginning to draw blood. Using my cell phone I called every vet in Montclair. It was a Sunday and I knew that my chances of finding one who was actually open were slim to none...I hated the thought of the emergency vet but I could not let this poor dog suffer another instant. Fortunately one of the private vets in my town happen to be in his office that day and while not open he told me to bring Blake in as soon as I arrived back in the area....

This gentle elderly vet, Dr. Cameron turned out to be a lifesaver. We arrived at his offices and he immediately examined Blake. His first comment to me was " What a sweet, nice dog. You picked a good one!" he then went on to examine Blake thoroughly.

Luckily Blake pooped right there in the office and while to my horror it was bloody and runny diarhea, it conveniently provided a fresh stool sample for examination under a microscope. Dr Cameron weighed him, ( he was 16 lbs. and underweight for his bone structure) took blood and checked him for heartworm as well.

Bottom line- Blake had a terrible case of sarcoptic mange, giardia, round worm, hook worm AND whip worm as well as kennel cough and conjunctivitis. This explained why the rescued mill pups were separate from the other dogs in the shelter and why Michael/Blake was in a cage all by himself....I was again heartbroken but Dr. Cameron assured me that he and I could get Blake through all of this and that he would be just fine with a little care and patience and a lot of love.

He offered to place a call to Middletown Humane and give them a piece of his mind. After all they had released an animal with a contagious disease and assorted health issues. He said this was "criminal neglegence on their end."and explained that if I were to return Blake to the shelter that more than likely he would be euthanized. There was NO WAY I was bringing this little guy back there! We were already in each other's hearts.... So Middletown Humane agreed to reimburse my $250 vet bill after I refused to return Blake to them. It took three months for Blake to be completely well and for his hair to grow in and while he does suffer from occasional bouts of IBS ( Irritable Bowl Syndrome) he is healthy, happy, well adjusted and thriving.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:18pm

Comment by Suzanne on August 28, 2008 at 9:54am
Cole, our black labradoodle, is a rescue. He showed up in our yard....tired, hot, anxious, confused. Our vet swears that someone knew we had a doodle and dropped him off in our yard. I cannot imagine someone not wanting and abandoning him. He is the most loving, caring sole. We cannot imagine him not being part of our family! Molly, our chocolate doodle, and Cole are the loves of our lives and each others best friend.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:18pm

Comment by Helen on August 27, 2008 at 8:24am
Chester originally belonged to a local family who wanted a hypo-allergenic dog for their growing family. Unfortunately, their youngest son was allergic to Chester's saliva and boy is Chester a kisser. Any chance he will smother you in 100's of kisses!!

I have been doing some digging on the internet and found out today that Chester was bred by Suzan Gaston, over in the Beaumont Area, her website is www.labradoodlebabies.com. I would love to hear from any owners of her puppies.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:19pm

Comment by George Trachier on August 10, 2008 at 8:24pm
Chance is a rescue doodle. We rescued him after the breader died, and her son who inheriated the business was going to have all 100+ dogs put down since he did not want them. Chance went from a scared dog to the most out going freindly dog I have ever owned. A little over a year ago we found that Chance had a geat gift, I suffer from some medical problem that cause me to have deminished cognitive capasity and chance has a gift that allows him to warn me before they happen and the smarts to notify my wife if I am in danger. Chance is more than a dog he is our second kid.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:19pm

Comment by Shelley, Traveller & Zuzi on August 5, 2008 at 1:14pm
Liberty was two years old when her family could no longer keep her. We went to their house to meet her and Traveller hit it off right away. Liberty, then known as Maggie, was very timid and wouldn't even come near us. She paced and paced around us, afraid to come close.

We knew another family was interested in her but we got the call that they thought Maggie should be placed with us. We changed Maggie's name to Liberty and she and Traveller became best of friends immediately.

Traveller was instrumental in having her become a better adjusted dog. She is still fearful of strange men, but she warms up to women so much quicker than I ever thought possible. She even plays ball with strange men now. She might not get close enough to pet, but they can throw her ball anytime. LOL Our male neighbors can finally pet her even if they have to sit down to be able to do it. They seem happy that she feels safe enough for her to come close to them.

She has become a great backpacker like Traveller and she enjoys romps in the woods and swims and lays down in streams anytime she can. She is so affectionate and lovable. She loves to stare into our eyes with her beautiful long lashed golden eyes. We wouldn't trade her in for anything. She is our special girl with some special needs and we love her.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:21pm

Comment by Amy Shaw on August 3, 2008 at 11:09am
Our rescued labradoodle, Sherpa, came to us three years ago as a very sick puppy--horrible mange, intestinal illness. He is now very, very happy and healthy (despite inhalant allergies--just like my husband and me). We love Sherpa! People are so surprised when we tell them that he was a rescue--I think they think that doodles are prized and somehow immune from the perils of disreputable breeders and puppy mills. We'd get another labradoodle in a heartbeat! This is a great site and I'm so happy to read about other doodles who have found good homes!

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:21pm

Comment by Tricia Campbell on July 31, 2008 at 1:02pm
Hi All,
I adopted Duffy from a woman who rescues puppies
from breeders. When contacting this woman I described
all the qualities I wanted our new family member to have.
I wanted a lick facing , go everywhere, love everyone,
lap dog. Well within 24 hours she called & offered me
Duffy an 11 week old Mini Goldendoodle. To be honest I
didn't know what a Goldendoodle was, I had heard
of Labradoodles but not Goldendoodles. Anyway, Duffy
is everything I wanted & more. We are just so in love
with him, of cause we are dealing with all the puppy
issues like everyone else.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:22pm

Comment by Madonna on July 30, 2008 at 5:01pm
Hi - thanks for the invite! I have Euro - a 2 1/2 year old that I purchased from a breeder and I rescued Kroner from a (*&*(& breeder - actually 4 of us on the Zoo rescued 4 from this person. Kroner has come so far since he was rescued in September. I couldn't believe the "stuff" he was pooping out (sorry!) that he had to eat where he was from. Clothing, toys, cat stuff. Ate his poop - think he had to do that in order to survive. I got him off that habit - thank God! Peed on my couch all the time - ruined that - but I think i have that under control! Not very good at walking - taking that slowly - he is the most cuddly dog I have ever known - we dance every day - literally - he prefers slow music :). Anyway - thanks for the invite - I hope to learn stuff from all you other rescuer's!

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:22pm

Comment by KingstonTodd on July 28, 2008 at 2:14pm
Hi,
We have a rescue of sorts. Our black F1 Labradoodle Gus was put up for rehome by his first family at 4 months old because he belonged to their teenage son, who had wanted a dog all his life and when he finally got one, he decided he would rather sit in the basement and smoke up than socialize and exercise a puppy. We were able to adopt Gus at 4 months old, and he is the best little brother to our Hershey (1 yr older F1 Labradoodle) and my favourite couch cuddler. They were also very upset at some of his behaviours, he chewed eveything they said, but only supplied him with a few rubber toys of his own. We found that as long as there is a bone somewhere to chew, all our possesions (minus sock and undies!!) are much safer.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:22pm

Comment by Clarke's on July 28, 2008 at 5:20am
Our Marley is a rescue. He's a 6 month old mini-goldendoodle surrendered from a puppy mill to a rescue org. in Pa. as he is bowlegged. We got him at 12 weeks. This seemed perfect for us as I'd be reluctant to rescue an older dog with a sketchy history while I have young children and another dog to consider. We wanted a companion for Ziggy. Seemed unfair to have only 1 doodle being they are sooo social! Ziggy is a 2 1/2 year old standard goldendoodle from a good breeder in Pa. He loves Marley! When we brought Marley home he waddled like a duck and ran like a bunny. He was happy and sweet though. Within a few days he was getting around much better and can now go on at least a 2 mile hike with us. We weren't sure he'd be able to join us on some adventures which are more vigorous. He'd been in a crate for those first 12 weeks though with very few exceptions. He's smaller than we expected (but with some growing yet to do). He's also a little slower with training than Ziggy. Not sure if that's due to breeding, mini's being different than standards, or his past. He's getting it now though; clicker training is speeding up the process. Anyway, he's a wonderful addition to our family!

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:23pm

Comment by TJ on July 23, 2008 at 3:10pm
Caesar is a rescue also. Actually, all the dogs my wife and I have owned have been rescues.

We were actually looking for a Standard Poodle at the time but not having much luck finding one in our price range. One morning, my wife happened to be looking at the website of a local rescue group and found his litter. Neither one of us had ever heard of a Labradoodle before but figured 3/4 was close enough to a full Standard! We went over to see the pups and thought we had it narrowed down to two, which was good because we would have second pick. When the day came to decide, we had to go with our gut and ended up selecting a pup that had not even been in the running previously. Five years later and we are still sure we got the dog we were supposed to.

Caesar’s tail is a bit unique compared to the rest of his fur. The owners of his parents were an elderly couple and the wife had died a couple of days before the litter was born. The distraught husband had no idea that the pups had arrived. When his son came to visit a few days later, he found the pups in pretty rough shape (one had already died). The mother had an infection so the pups were mal-nourished and all of them had all developed a staph infection on their tail. When we took Caesar home, the fur had not started to grow in yet so it looked like a rat tail. As he grew and got stronger, the fur on his tail began to grow back. But unlike the natural curl of the rest of his coat, the fur on his tail grew in straight as an arrow.

Thanks to my parents, he has never spent much time in a kennel. While away on a trip, my mother ‘introduced him’ to life on the bed at night. Now his place at night is on our bed, usually curled in a tight ball, nose tucked under that long flowing tail of his. His dark brown eyes speak volumes that make it very difficult to leave him when we go someplace. And like other dogs, they also speak of mischief and happiness, both accented by how he wags his tail.

AdminPermalink Reply by LM Fowler - Admin on January 19, 2009 at 8:24pm

Comment by theresa on July 23, 2008 at 2:24pm
My doodle rudie is a rescue. i was looking for a small terrier dog on petfinder. found one in georgetown, sc. e-mailed them about the terrier,but he had a lot of problems & they told me about a 4 month old puppy terrier. did i want to see his picture before they put him on petfinder. i said yes send it to me. well when i saw his picture i said i have to have him. took care of paper work online, send it to them by e-mail & within 15 min. they had called my vet & then called me & told me i could adopt him. sent them a check & told them when i would be at the beach & i would be down to pick him up! no one know what he was they said he was a mixed terrier. so got back to the campground we walk on the beach & people would ask me if he was a doodle. never heard of a doodle before. found out last year he was a doodle. rudie has been a member of our family now for two years!!!