 Hope's Story
Gwen Arthur called me
last October and asked if we would foster a female wheaten
from a puppy mill in Missouri. She said the puppy mill had turned
the dog over to a woman who took the dogs that the puppy mill
People were going to put down and tried to place them
so their lives wouldn't end early. We said yes to fostering
the dog. On October 22, 2004 we were to meet the volunteer
from the Doxie group and get the female wheaten. While the
volunteer was driving back to Nebraska we got a call from her asking
if we knew that the dog had a tumor the size of a hen's egg on
it. Neither Gwen nor my husband and I had any clue
that the dog was sick. Right then and there my husband and I
decided we would foster the dog and give her at least a couple
months of living as a pet even if it was just for a short time. We
decided it was time to name this wheaten and we gave her the
name Hope.
When the volunteer pulled into the parking lot with the wheaten, I
cried, she had a beautiful Wheaten face. We raced to the car to see
our new foster only to back off from the smell of her. She smelled
like she had never had a bath in her 7 years of life. Her hair was
matted and her paws were red from trying to clean herself.
She was very neglected and scared to death of everything.
 We put her in the car and headed home. She actually wagged her
tail when she saw our two Wheatens in the house and headed into a
crate in the kitchen where she stayed the entire night, not
eating or drinking.
The next day it was off to the vet and the groomers. The vet
told us that
had she not been rescued she would have been a cripple within a
couple of months because of the sores on her feet. We gave her
all her shots and scheduled a time to have her spayed and
mammary gland stripped. Then it was off to Petco for a groom.
The woman at Petco was a breast cancer survivor and was
willing to do whatever it took to clean Hope up. She spent 9 1/2
hours grooming her. When Hope came home she looked like a
blonde lab puppy. She curled up in the crate and stayed there.
The next couple of weeks were a real learning experience. We
realized that Hope didn't have a clue what grass was, would
take quite a while to house train and even though she feared
everything else she would knock over a baby gate to join our two
wheatens when we were away from home. When Hope barked
the first time, it was about 5 weeks into her foster,
Walt and I both jumped out of bed and ran downstairs at 2 in the
morning to praise her for barking. Our two Wheatens were looking at
us wondering why she was getting praised for barking.
 The holidays came and went and Hope stocking hung on the fireplace
with Woody and Benny's socks. Walt told me if Hope would give us a
"kiss" we could keep her. She was actually warming up to us by
then but no kisses. Finally in January she gave me a kiss on
the hand for the first time. In February Hope became a permanent
member of the Conrad family.
We also mastered her potty training (can you tell I have a 2 year
old human kid in the house) by putting her out back alone and
turning out the lights. She still doesn't do her thing in
front of anyone. We use piddle pads at night in front of
the patio door and she always hits her pads. Just this week she
started tapping to go out.
I know this is long but I think Hope's story bears repeating
for those who are involved in rescue. Every time Hope
does something new, Walt and I marvel
at her ability to change and grow. Hope is still a scardy cat,
Walt wants a sign that says, "Please don't scare the guard dog."
Hope runs to her crate and doesn't come out when new People
are over. She does take treats from a select group of friends and
neighbors. Comes when called, steals a bone from her wheaten
brothers, rolls over to have her tummy scratched, jumps up on
the
couch for her snuggle time and even plays with a toy
occasionally.
For those of you who are thinking about a rescue dog from a puppy
mill I will tell you that it is work to get them to trust
humans, pee outside and adjust to being a pet. Is it worth it?
Oh yes it is. Watching Hope is like seeing a miracle
happen in front of your eyes. She gives us Hope and courage.
I have to thank Gwen and the wheaten People who have offered so
much support over the past year. To name all of you would make this
even longer. My husband also needs a big thank you because if
he didn't have such a big heart I would never have three middle aged
Wheatens, nor would I be able to walk all three. And last but
not least I must thank Woody and Benny, our two rescue boys who let
Hope take over their crates, bones and do whatever she wanted.
They seemed to understand that she is special.
For those of you who read all this thank you. I look forward to
writing about Hope and her adjustment to life on an island.
Thank you all for your work in saving wheatens.
Jacky, Walt, Nathan
Woody, Benny and Hope
|
