Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

Happy March! The promise of Spring is in the air in Salem. Even with the rain, the temperatures are getting much more comfortable. We had 13 dog adoptions over the past week; these were the Blog Dogs who went home.

I want to mention one adoption that was especially happy. It was a dog who found a new home before I could put him in a blog post. His name is Boston and I met him on Sunday when I took his “official” picture for the WHS website. He is ten years old, and I was instantly worried that with his old-age issues, he would not be adopted easily. I was wrong. This wonderful boy went home to live with another older dog in his new family. It made me once again marvel at the amazing hearts of dog lovers.

The staff sent me this photo of Boston going home.

Here are more staff pics of happy dogs leaving the shelter with their new people.

Destiny

Skittles

Zoomie

Chatter

The one word to describe play group on Sunday? WET! But we didn’t let a little rain stop us.

Dre is a big boy! He’s a Bull Dog/Mastiff mix and he’s only a year old. At 95 pounds, he made quite an impression with the group! Kya was a little taken aback at first, but they soon were all romping happily around the yard.

I overheard some encouraging words from Malachai to the bonded pair Peanut and Cosmo.

My heart melted when the two of them then looked up at me.

If you’ve ever wondered if we humans enjoy play group, wonder no more…Kim, Taya and Cassidy. Rain? What rain?

Enough said…

Little Ruby had no clue that she was about to find her forever family and go home.

When it was time to go back inside, with the exception of Molly, there was little doubt that everyone had had enough of the rain.

Have you been wishing for someone to play fetch with? Eureka! You found me!

The first adoptable dog I want to tell you about today is Dixon, a three-year-old Australian Cattle Dog mix. I first met Dixon when he was serving his “stray time” before being put up for adoption. Dixon was found wandering, scared and confused. I fell for this boy as soon as Emelynn and I took him out of his kennel and into a big yard. This boy LIVES to play fetch! I was so happy when he was able to be on the adoption floor and am hoping a perfect family will find this gem. He walks well on leash, takes treats politely, and drops the tennis ball at your feet. Here are the pictures I took of him that day. Some family is going to be VERY lucky!

Notice the TWO balls in his mouth? He was trotting back to me with the one I had thrown when he saw another one lying in the grass. He stopped, picked it up, and continued back to me with both. Such a funny boy!

Emelynn’s Pick of the Week!

And here Dixon was today. After being neutered, he has to wear a cone, and though he is not happy about it, he still smiled for the camera.Later after all of the dogs had been walked, Emelynn spent some time with Dixon in his kennel. She tried to get some schoolwork done, reading A Separate Peace, but Dixon had other plans for her attention. Emelynn didn’t mind.

We’re a bonded pair and are looking for one family for the two of us!

Malachai and Molly are purebred Cocker Spaniels and are brother and sister. They have lived together their whole lives and need to go to their new home together. They are five and four years old, respectively. They have had fun in play group and are well-mannered, affectionate dogs—a good pair for first-time dog owners. They are nervous around small children, so need to go to an adult home or one with older kids. Today they enjoyed time with Joan and Carol. I have taken a lot of pictures of them and Malachai seemed to be tired of my camera!

Speaking of bonded pairs…

Cosmo and Peanut are still waiting for their perfect family to find them. They are such a fun combo! They romp happily in play group, like everyone, and are polite, gentle boys. Cosmo is a Lab mix (yes, he’s very short for a Lab!) and is six years old. Peanut is also six, and is a Chihuahua mix. Joan and Steve had a great time with them this afternoon. They are S.T.A.R.T. dogs from California. They have become such favorites at the shelter. We’re all hoping they will go home soon.

No one is sure of what mix I am, but they all agree, I’m a sweetheart!

This is Ava, a two-year-old Pointer/Shar-Pei mix? Perhaps a touch of Greyhound? No one knows for sure, but what we do know is that Ava is hoping for a new family in Oregon. She came from a shelter in California and so we don’t know her history. She is quite shy at first meeting, but warms up with a little time. We could tell she had something on her mind and confided in Emelynn. She would like a calm home with older kids or adults.

I’m still here! But I’m thinking my new family is out there somewhere!

Destiny,  a three-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix, is back at the shelter after spending a week at Sevadog Rescue in Eugene. Taya and I took her there so they could evaluate what kind of home would be best for this girl. She rode perfectly in the car on the way.

Sevadog’s evaluation was that Destiny is a people dog. She loves to be with her peeps and really doesn’t care about playing with other dogs. She could live with another dog if the dog was well balanced and if they met and hit it off, but she’s not a dog park kind of girl. Here she was today with Grommet. While she didn’t mind him being with her, she much preferred to hang out with us humans.

And here she was later in the afternoon with Emelynn and me. We’re hoping the right family will discover this bundle of energy and fun very soon!

Here she was when I was about to leave and stopped to tell her goodbye. She has such sincere eyes!

I’m sweet Molly. I’m going home soon.

When I met Molly-Mae, an eight-year-old English Springer Spaniel, I knew she wouldn’t be at the shelter for long. What a beauty! She has a hold, so we’re hoping she’ll be going home very soon. Today Joan took her out, and although Molly is not happy about her cone, she enjoyed her time with Joan.

I really hate this cone. I mean I REALLY hate it!

This is poor Angel, a gentle eight-year-old Pit Bull Terrier mix, who can’t wait to get the pesky cone off of his head. He sits in his kennel, dejected, but once he knows he’s going outside, he’s happy once more. Today Carol took him out first. As you can see, the cone had seen better days. But when I mentioned hot dog bits, it was instantly forgotten. Later when I took him in to get a new cone, I was told it was his fifth one. He really hates his cone.

Before I left for the day, I took Angel out again. We hung out in a small yard where he sat looking up at me and munched hot dog bits. He also loved putting his huge head in my lap as I scratched his ears. This boy is a keeper. I hope he’ll soon be spending time with a new family.

Update

Remember little Sammy, the one-eyed S.T.A.R.T. dog?

Her new family sent this wonderful update.

“Hello! My name is Pickle (formerly Sammy), I also go by Pickle Pants and Pickle Wickle. I was adopted from the Willamette Humane Society just over 3 weeks ago. My parents said they were told they had to wait until the next day due to the snow storm and that they wouldn’t make it in time to do the meet and greet AND adoption. But my dad loaded up all 3 of my siblings and drove down there despite that, and they made time for me to get adopted! My mom was so happy when he brought me home and we all enjoyed being snowed in together.”

“This is me and one of my brothers, Ammo (my mom said I had to include this picture because it’s the only one of me awake), she says I’m a very lazy doggy who sleeps all the time. 🙂

I was house trained in a week and my mom told me that makes me very smart! 🙂 I love it here so much and love my siblings. Here we all are cuddling!

I’m so happy to have a home I even smile in my sleep.

Thanks for taking care of me WHS, until my family came!
Love,
Ms. Pickle Pants”

I am heading to Wyoming for a visit on Sunday, so my next blog post will be in two weeks! I’m hoping I’ll have lots of adoptions to report!

Remember, if you see a dog on my blog whom you are interested in meeting, try to make arrangements to get to the Willamette Humane Society soon. Some dogs are adopted more quickly than you might think.

You can reach me at adoptanoregondog14@yahoo.com