Stray dogs

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Do they find you? Do you pretend you don't see them? If you've ever found a stray dog, what did you do?

We've checked him for a microchip (nope), put an ad in the paper, papered our neighborhood with signs, and registered him as a found dog with the pound, the SPCA, and another rescue group. Since he looks like he could be a Canaan dog, which is a rare breed, we contacted a breeder and a rescue person, but no word back from them so far. I don't want to take him to a shelter because he's just too nice of a dog.

Any tips?

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001

Answers

(Go here if you have no idea what I'm talking about.)

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001

I've only found stray cats myself, but I think you're already doing everything right with this dog. I'm surprised how much he looks like that purebred -- I'd have taken one look at him and said, "Mutt, maybe part border collie?" Breed rescue, if they'll get back to you, sounds ideal.

I've also been on the lost-animal side of the fence, and the only thing I can think of (besides crummy owners who didn't really want him) is that he's been missing so long they've stopped running ads and checking the paper and calling the humane society. I don't know what else you could possibly do to try to find them.

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001


I'm in love.

It's a good thing you live on the other coast, Beth.

My family has a tendency to adopt stray dogs. My parents have four poochies, of which 3 were originally strays.

So far, G and I have come close to adopting a stray here and a stray there, but our sucker neighbors got there first.

If I get laid off (possible), I'll probably adopt another dog.

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001


Beth,

You're a saint. Really. Jeremy too.

Its so wonderful that even with two dogs and three cats and tons of stress you still find it in your heart to take care of this other dog and go way out of your way to find it's owner.

I would love to take him off your hands, but I can't have a dog right now.

A buddy of mine back in Providence is looking at buying a house and I've talked about moving back there and going halfsies on it, so maybe I can get a dog then, cuz I'll finally be a real grown-up.

(actually, that might make a good thread of it's own)

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001


Oh, trust me, Dave, finding Crash was about the best thing that could have happened ... it completely took my mind off of the stuff that was depressing me. He's a funny little dog.

I don't get credit for recognizing the breed. I'd heard of Canaan dogs, but I didn't know what they looked like. H. identified him.

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001



And for those who are curious about the breed ... they're pretty cool dogs. Wish we had room for one more.

-- Anonymous, April 06, 2001

well, i read through the breed standard and ... yeah, it seems astonishingly likely.

if it were me, and i didn't hear back from the first breeder and rescue person, i'd write a short email saying that you're pretty sure you've found a lost caanan and asking for breed rescue assistance. and then bcc it to every breeder i could find (http://cdca.org/breeders.html). surely that would get the ball rolling. especially if you gush sincerely about how great a dog he is and how you'd hate to take him to a shelter, and make it clear that you're not looking for money or anything.

-- Anonymous, April 07, 2001


Crash is gorgeous! If Toby would let me I'd drive 2000 miles to get him... :) I've only ever found one stray, she was a cute puppy of approximately 4 months. It was raining and I was in a strange neighborhood walking my dog Toby. We found her hiding behind a telephone pole, shivering. I wrapped her up in my jacket and took her to every house for a mile around, no one wanted her or knew who's she was. So I took her with me. This made Toby extremely jealous (the reason I can never have another dog) but fortunately I was able to find a trucker on the CB radio who took her. His kids had been asking for a dog, and after looking her over he thought she would fit the bill. I have often wondered how she turned out.

-- Anonymous, April 08, 2001

I found a stray Bassett, (it followed me home while I was running) and gave it shots and kept it for a week. My other dog was sort of jealous, but they had fun since the bassett was a puppy. It took a huge poop as soon as it came in the house. I yelled and threw my shoe at it, and it never happened again!

A week later the owner saw my ad on the supermarket board. They lived less than a mile from me and had the same vet that gave it the shots I paid for. Turned out the dog followed everyone that ran by.

Your dogs owner may be closer than you think! Nevertheless I hope you keep it!

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001


Man, how do rescue people keep from getting attached? I am completely in love with this little guy. This convinces me that I could never foster dogs for a rescue group, because my dogs and I are completely attached. Jeremy is a rock, but I think Crash is getting to him, too. Mochi is going to go into mourning when he leaves.

But three dogs -- jeez louise, this houses is a den. The smell of dog could kill you. This week, everyone gets a bath.

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001



We had a visiting dog this weekend, and it made emotional innards do flippity flops when I saw Howard and Abby-girl sitting side by side looking out the front door.

Two dogs! Fun fun fun!

Of course, my love of two dogs was depleted somewhat when we took Abby to an outdoor festival (with her owner's permssion) and discovered that she is not crowd capable.

Howard just takes it in stride.

How do rescue people do it?

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001


Oh, yes, it definitely sucks to have one crowd-capable dog and one who's skittish. We wind up not taking either dog to any crowded places because of Mochi's fear issues. I hate leaving her at home alone, so we just leave Doc with her.

Crash does fine around crowds of people, but not so much with strange dogs. That's his only flaw, as far as I can tell.

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001


About ten years ago I saw a dog huddled on the side of the 29th-30th St. freeway at the top of one of the midtown on-ramps (this is in Sacramento, for you out-of-towners). I had to take the next exit, backtrack and drive up the ramp to get him. He jumped right into the car, and I took him home.

An ad in the paper did no good, but I found out about a rescue group that would, for a sizeable donation, guarantee that they would either find him a home, or keep him and feed him indefinitely (hence the sizeable donation). Keeping him wasn't an option, as we already had a dog and three cats.

And Beth, I'd love to give Crash a good home, but our household now consists of a cat and two dogs, and one more dog would, well, you know...

Good luck.

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001


Beth, three dogs isn't too much! It's just right! ;) We have three dogs (and two cats) and it's one big happy family. Actually, it's a zoo, but we love them all dearly. We adopted two of our dogs from shelters (and they are the *best* dogs), and we certainly didn't need one more. But then... I saw a sign in someone's yard for yellow lab puppies, and I made the mistake of stopping. I couldn't pass the little guy up. I'm glad we got him, because he just makes me happy. But one 50 lb. dog and two 100 lb. dogs can be a handful. :)

Once a stray dog was hanging out in my yard. He had a tag, but when I called, the answering machine said that they were on vacation! I called around to the local vets and told them the dog's name and breed. I actually found his vet (amazingly) and dropped him off there.

That's a thought... have you tried calling other vets to see if they could post the notice and ask them if any of their clients have lost a dog? That could be a daunting task though. Sacramento is a little bigger than my town. :)

-- Anonymous, April 09, 2001


Nope, not dogs, but yes, cats. Pearlie walked right up to us 3 years ago and she's just the sweetest baby girl. I'm even more attached to her in some ways than the others 'cos she came to us, whereas we went and got Shara and she came with the kittens.

I wish we could take him, but I'm pretty sure our landlady said 'no dogs' plus, though we have a yard, it's not fenced in.

He looks like a sweet friendly fella though and I hope you find someone for him.

-- Anonymous, April 11, 2001



Hey, Beth, is Crash still with you? How's he doing?

-- Anonymous, April 23, 2001

He's still here, and he's doing fine. Turns out this breed is too small to have much of a rescue program. A couple of people are sending info to people who want an adult dog, but so far nothing has worked out.

He's a great dog. He's definitely convinced me that I'll never get another puppy ... I was told by so many people that it was hard to adopt an older dog because they alreay have bad habits, but damn, his bad habits (minor dog aggression and some separation anxiety) are a breeze compared to housebreaking and training a puppy. And it's not like he was trained -- he didn't even know "sit," much less how to walk on a leash, but he learns everything very quickly and is just easier to live with than a puppy.

My next dog -- who hopefully will not come around for another dozen or so years -- will be at least a year old when it arrives here. Mark my words.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001


Beth, what will you do if you can't find someone to take him within X amount of time? Do you think there will be any convincing Jeremy at that point? You've had him for awhile now, he must be starting to become a normal part of the family by now.

I wish i could get a dog but the apartment complex doesn't allow them. Some people here have smaller dogs, but technically speaking, if someone made a complaint about the dog you'd have to get rid of it and that would kill me.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001


I wish I could take him home with me when I come to visit, but I'm not sure how my landlord would feel about me getting a dog and my "Stay out all night" lifestyle would not be compatable with treating a dog right.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001

I don't know how Jeremy feels. I'm kind of afraid to ask. I know he likes Crash, but he also thinks we have way too many dogs. I do know he's really depressed that no one wants the little guy. We know lots of people who want a dog, but they all want puppies, or girl dogs, or some other kind of dog.

We won't take him to the shelter, because the Sacramento animal shelter is a disgrace. It's so bad that no decent person would take an animal there at this point. I met a guy at the dog park this weekend who has five dogs, all rescues, plus another he's trying to find a home for. He had three of the dogs (including the new foster dog) with him, and they were all wonderful (and two of them were purebreds -- one golden retriever and one chow). He found all of them wandering around town and was unable to find owners, and wouldn't take them to the pound because it's so underfunded, overworked, and poorly run.

I can't even picture taking him to the shelter. But having him here, and contemplating what we're going to do with him, has made me decide to put the city shelter on my Christmas list from now on:

That we kill animals in alarming numbers in response to owner irresponsibility, that we put them to death rather than control overpopulation, that breeders breed more animals than the public wants, is absolutely absurd. It's a reality shelter workers can barely stomach.

The truth: Shelters in the Sacramento area put down 30,000 to 40,000 unwanted animals a year, most of them former pets, according to a report last year from the Sacramento Area Animal Coalition. Of that number only about 6,000 are unadoptable because they are vicious or otherwise unsuitable.

In the city shelter last year, 9,000 animals were euthanized, the equivalent of one from every 17.5 households in the city. Real people have to do this work. In fact, state law now requires euthanasia by lethal injection, which is more humane for animals, but emotionally rough on staff. One person holds; another injects. It's close up and personal.

"You have a little puppy giving you kisses while you're putting him down," said volunteer Geri Wickham. "It's very, very difficult."



-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001

Ok, I think I'm going to have to stop reading any threads with "dog" in the title, they keep making me cry.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001

Beth, you should have asked me, and I would have told you all about the joys of incorporating an adult dog into your home. I can't imagine actually having to housetrain a dog. Howard came fully equipped with the drive to go outside for his business and the bladder capacity to follow through.

It's like the older ones (even the non-strays) know just how good they've got it.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001


...."You have a little puppy giving you kisses while you're putting him down," said volunteer Geri Wickham. "It's very, very difficult."

Saddest. Thing. Ever. I am not reading the pet threads any longer, either - this one is making me cry.

-- Anonymous, April 24, 2001


I'm sorry I made all of you cry. Here is a happier dog link. They only rescue a few at a time, but they do such a good job with them. Any dog from this program comes pre-trained and socialized. Very cool.

-- Anonymous, April 25, 2001

Another happy rescue link is pet orphans.

-- Anonymous, April 26, 2001

Yay! Thank you.

-- Anonymous, April 27, 2001

I'm posting this for a friend of a friend, I haven't seen the dog myself. But this seemed like maybe a place to find a home for a dog in the Boston/D.C. corridor area. I'm cutting the woman's name and phone number out of this, but if you're interested in the dog, email me and I'll pass the contact information along.

"About a week ago I found a beautiful female Siberian Husky. She came trotting out of Prospect park near 15th Street and into traffic. She had a leash and collar, but no tags. Her feet were cut up, elbows bloodied. In all likelihood (so the area vets and animal activist tell me) she had been dumped-possibly tied up-in the park, and hurt herself trying to break free/find her way home.

I put up flyers, contacted all the shelters, etc. but so far no one has claimed her. I would love to keep her, but I have a cat and my co- op forbids dogs. So I need to find her a good home; even so- called "no kill" shelters do when they are overcrowded, which they all are. She's about 1 year of age, unspayed.(I can get her spayed for cheap.) Gray coat, black ears, white face and belly. Beautiful blue eyes. She's extremely sweet. Her feet are now healed, elbows on the mend. She's housebroken. She now has had all her shots. She comes with flea, tick, and worm protection for one year, as well as various toys, etc. "London" is a real dog person's dog. The uninitiated, the timid, those whose idea of exercise is a stroll to the deli to get a pack of cigarettes, this is not the dog for you. She's a very strong, very clever dog that needs to be run as well as walked. Huskies by nature are independent, stubborn dogs. London is at the age where she tries to figure out her pecking order in the pack (i.e. your household), so she can exhibit aggression and looks for chinks in your armor. In other words, she's a teenager. She's also been traumatized, god knows to what degree, and can be unpredictable, territorial about food, though already these qualities are abating. Ninety percent of the time her personality is loving, even joyful.

London has shown no signs of separation anxiety when left home for a few hours, but on one occasion she became frantic when tied up outside a restaurant. Still, she's been put through her socialization paces (the office, bars, restaurants, dog runs, parks, kids) and has done very well.

I honestly believe that given stability, love, consistency, and training, London will be an outstanding companion. She will get you back in shape. Ladies, she will free you to run at night. Singles, she's a babe/boy magnet. But the greatest satisfaction will come from stroking her unbelievably soft face, looking into her blue eyes, and knowing that you saved her.

I will transport her anywhere along the D.C.-Boston corridor, Upstate, etc., and will take her back if you feel you've made a hasty decision. Please forward this to anyone you feel might be interested, or know someone who's interested, in adopting a dog.

-- Anonymous, May 29, 2001


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