Dear Fellow Dog Lovers,

First, some very happy news about one of our long-termers!

 

 

There was a wonderful adoption last week! Champ, who has been waiting since January to find his perfect fit of a family, found them! Staff sent me this picture of them going home.

 

They stopped into WHS on Monday and reported that he’s doing great! Marianne snapped this picture for me. How we love happy endings for our long-termers!

 

 

 

What a great time we had playing with shelter dogs on Sunday! After taking pictures of the new arrivals, we settled in with three dogs who have been waiting a long time for their perfect match of a family.

 

We’re both looking for quiet retirement homes where we’ll be loved. How about yours?

Jazz and Zinger are ten-year-old Miniature Pinschers. Jazz is almost seven pounds and Zinger is only five. On Sunday afternoon, Marianne, Ayla, and I fell totally in love with them both. Although they came from the same home, they are not bonded and can be adopted separately. We took them into Mary’s Place, one at a time, for some quality attention and pictures. They have not had a very social life. When their person died, they and two other Min Pins came to us. Because they have not been exposed to much of the world, they are shy at first meeting and neither is totally house-trained. They will need patient and understanding families.

When Jazz came into Mary’s Place, she paced, seeming nervous and uneasy. She has a cataract on her left eye, and we aren’t sure how much she can see out of it. She acted a bit aloof, not wanting to be touched. But after about a half an hour, suddenly she relaxed and became a totally different dog.

 

 

She solicited our attention and pets. She loved my cheese bits. She wanted to crawl into Marianne’s lap where she promptly fell asleep, nestled in her arms. This sweet senior will be such a wonderful companion for someone who is looking for a quiet, affectionate little dog. All she needs is a little time to settle and trust.

 

When it was time to take her back to her kennel, she didn’t want to go and stayed leaning against Marianne. Jazz will bond quickly with her new family.

 

 

Next it was Zinger’s turn in Mary’s Place. He also came in feeling uneasy.

 

But Ayla and Marianne took it slow, giving him time to trust, and it paid off!

 

 

 

Both of these little dogs deserve retirement homes where they feel safe and loved. They will never be up for big adventures, but they will be wonderful companions for some lucky adopters willing to take a senior home.

 

 

 

This is my second time here at the shelter. I’m hoping my next home will be forever!

Terry is a three-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier mix. He first came to WHS as a stray in September of 2018. He was adopted the following October, but his family’s life changed, and they could no longer take care of him. So he is back with us to find another home. Terry is up for any adventure, in this case, dress-up!

 

Terry LOVES people. He’s not so crazy about other dogs. In fact, he is dog-selective and would be happy to be an only pet.

Terry is not the right dog for everybody. He is a big boy who has not gotten the rewards-based training he should have, and so pulls when going for walks. At 75 pounds, he can pull hard. He is working on this and trying to do better. The fact that he loves cheese bits will help in training him. Terry can also be possessive of his toys. Because of this he will need to go home with dog-savvy people and older kids.

Terry enjoys hanging out in Mary’s Place with his fans like Marianne and Caroline.

 

He also LOVES to play fetch outside. So I decided you needed to see this happy boy in action. Here he is.

 

Terry hopes that the perfect person will see his movie and realize they just discovered their new best friend.

 

 

 

 

 

Every now and then a dog arrives at WHS who is a huge teddybear. Winston is such a dog. He is a 95-pound American Bulldog mix. Here he is with Ayla. The boy has a gigantic head!

 

 

 

 

Archie is a one-year-old Staffordshire Terrier mix, here with Megan.

 

 

 

Teddy is still waiting for his perfect family fit. He is an eleven-month-old Akita mix, here with Kaylee and Angie.

 

 

 

 

Cybil, an eight-year-old Shepherd mix, is still waiting for her retirement forever home, here with Layla.

 

 

 

 

 

Winston was such a hoot during his photo shoot on Sunday! He kept us all laughing during the entire time! He seemed to enjoy to clown for my camera.

 

 

 

 

 

There are two very special updates this week. One is from a recent adoption and one is from quite some time ago. Both were dogs who waited a long time for their perfect families and both dogs found them.

Joey

Joey was one of our all-time favorite dogs and we worried about him ever getting adopted. He arrived from Hawaii in November. He was adopted in January, but returned after a few weeks because he was not fully house-trained. We worried about who would have the patience to help Joey. Then in April, they came.

 

 

I was thrilled when I got this email last week.

“We adopted Joey on April 7th. He has been a lot of fun in the two weeks that we have added him to our household. Our daughter, Anna, loves to take him out in the yard to play. Joey is also enjoying getting to know our neighborhood through morning and evening walks. He likes playing with toys, but also loves a good tummy rub!

Joey and our two cats are getting adjusted to each other. One of the cats can be around him pretty much anytime, while the other is still a bit of a “fraidy cat.” Joey likes to lie around and take it easy as well, lying on the floor when we are watching TV, or sitting under the desk when I am working on the computer. Our backyard is fenced in and we have an enclosed courtyard in front, so Joey has multiple chances to be outside in a safe setting.

Other than some issues with marking behavior (peeing in the house – which we are working on!), Joey is a sweet dog, and we love him very much. We think he loves us too!”

 

 

 

Echo: A Very Special Story

Echo first arrived at WHS in 2005. She was found as a stray at the beginning of January and brought to the shelter. She was adopted later that month. Then in March of 2012, Echo was surrendered when her family said they didn’t have enough time for her anymore. That is when volunteer Sarah and I first met her and fell in love. This is what I wrote about her in my March 21, 2012 post:

Another new arrival to the shelter is Echo, an extremely shy yet charming girl who is seven years old. She is so overwhelmed at the shelter, she does not present well in her kennel. At first she would not accept any treats and had her tail tucked under her. But later in our shift, Emelynn, Sarah and I took her into the training room, spread down a blanket and just let her hang out with us. She gradually relaxed, untucked her tail and munched on some hot dog bits. She is a very sweet girl who is waiting for a patient, loving family to make her feel safe and secure.

 

 

Echo waited and waited for her perfect family and I kept writing about her. On April 4th, I wrote:

Sarah arrived from a respite with Echo. Echo is so frightened and stressed in her kennel. Sarah happily reported that once away from the shelter, Echo is a totally different dog. Her tail and ears came up and there was a spring in her step. Returning this afternoon, Echo was very sad. Because of her insecurities, Echo does not present well in her kennel. We hope that an understanding person will see what a sweet and loving dog is underneath the nervous exterior and take her home where she will blossom. Echo is an eight-year-old American Bulldog mix.

Because Echo was so sad at the shelter, Sarah took her home to foster.

Finally, on April 22, 2012, Echo found her forever family. Here’s what I wrote about it:

On Sunday, volunteer Sarah brought her foster dog, Echo, to WHS as usual, and she helped me take pictures of new shelter dogs. During the afternoon, a couple saw Echo and fell in love. They went home to get their Lab (a WHS alumnus) for a dog-to-dog meet. The play date went well and Echo finally has a forever home! The most touching moment was when shy Echo offered her paw to her new person. I was so happy I caught the moment with my camera. The bonding has begun! 

 

 

Over the years, Echo and her family have sent me updates. But this week’s is extra special.

“Hi Martha, 

As you know Echo turned 15 the 11th of this month. We decided to have a low-key celebration at home with her canine siblings. She is doing good for her age, but she no longer can go on long walks and she gets crabby often. The past 7 years with her have been so wonderful, she taught me that adopting a senior dog is such a rewarding experience and it makes it so much easier to get used to them being a part of your family. At the end of November we lost Cloud (her best friend, he was close to being 14) and since then she seems a bit lost and sleeps a lot more. She adores Xander (another one of my foster failures from WHS) and tolerates the rest.

Today we had her “party” and I wanted to share a couple of pictures with you. She didn’t care to play with her new toys but she did enjoy her cake (dog friendly) and once she was done it was time for her nap. That’s all for now, thanks so much for always remembering her and asking me to update you.”

 

Happy Birthday, sweet Echo.

 

And that’s it for this week!

 

All of the dogs I have featured today, along with other terrific dogs waiting to be adopted, can be found at Willamette Humane Society. Here is the link to the adoptable-dog page:

https://whs4pets.org/adopt-a-pet/dogs-2/

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