Sunday, November 17, 2013

A Safe Home for the little Prince

Our little family has some news. What's not news-for the past few months I've been spending a lot of my time at the local animal control/pound. I have really been enjoying it! I can honestly say it is the best thing I have ever done with my time. I LOVE snuggling and petting the pups and feeding them excessive amounts of treats, and the cats too! I never thought I was a cat person, but we have so many sweet kitties at the pound, I couldn't help falling in love! 

You may recall that back in late May, early June we took in a rescue dog in NC-Henry. Henry was a very sweet boy and we quickly fell for him. Once we brought him home, we quickly realized that he had a serious aversion to Darren-and really any man he came in contact with around us. We have no idea why-we can only speculate that he was either abused-I really hope not-by a man, or he had only really only spent the first few years of his life with women.  It got to the point where if Darren was in the house, Henry was growling and barking at him the entire time, he wouldn't relax, and of course, Darren couldn't either. We were broken hearted. This dog that we thought we could give a good home, well, we couldn't. He was unhappy, and Darren couldn't be happy in his home either-even with a dog he had quickly fell in love with. So with many tears and much regret, we let the foster/rescue manager take him back. She was so kind. Her top priority was to make sure Henry was happy, and we were too. She completely understood. I am so grateful for how wonderful she was through the entire process. It took several months for us to "get over" what happened. We are happy to say that Henry has been adopted and found his forever home now! :) 

We've been wanting a second dog since we started dating, and we just couldn't seem to find "the one." As much as we ADORE Miss Coco, we really didn't want to go to a breeder again. I've learned a lot about the importance of spaying your pups since I got Coco, and we ultimately just couldn't imagine purchasing a pup when there are millions of dogs in need out there. We were hesitant though-after our sad story with Henry-we weren't sure what to do. Would the next rescue dog get along with both of us? Would they get along with Coco? 

Fast forward to now-after many days spent at the pound, falling in love with ALL of their animals, we were waiting for "the one" to pop up. We quickly fell in love with a Pit Bull there-KJ. Sadly, his breed is not allowed where we live, so we couldn't bring him home. I wish there could be a way for us to take him, but we just can't. While we can't bring him home, I can at least spend my days loving on him at the pound. KJ has been there for over a year now. As much as I love seeing him there each time I go, I do hope he gets a good home soon. This brings us to our news...

A few weeks ago, a cute little Pomeranian was at the pound. When I met him, I just got this feeling-maybe he's the one. I assumed his owner would be back to pick him up soon though, so no need falling in love. I can't get my hopes up again. This sweet little boy was found in a restaurant parking lot wandering near a very busy road. Someone was kind enough to put him in their car and give Animal Control a call.  I could tell at the pound that he was well behaved and very friendly-so I tested him-I brought Darren in to meet him. Darren instantly liked him, and he loved Darren.  His owner did pick him up several days later...but less than two weeks later, he was found again, this time wandering in the middle of a very busy road. It is truly a miracle that he wasn't hit by a car. Again I thought, we should take him. He needs to be safe. We sat down and thought about how he got along so well with both of us. Could we take in another dog right now? Would he get along with Coco? We ultimately decided that this dog needed a safe home that would keep him leashed for outside walks so he'd always be safe, and a warm home...and maybe a little spoiling. After speaking with the original owner a few times, who was a self proclaimed breeder, we decided to take him in. After meeting with her and seeing his living conditions, we are very glad we did. Once we got him home, we quickly realized that he was not in good shape. While he seemed happy, he was in desperate need of a bath and a serious haircut-he had awful matting, especially in and around his tail area. As soon as we put him in the bath, we also noticed that he was covered in fleas. After two flea baths and a brushing and blow dry, we quickly realized we were going to have to take him to a pro. Luckily, we were able to get an emergency appointment for the following morning. I knew he'd look completely different...he was already several shades whiter just from the baths we had given him. 

As we bathed him and brushed him, Coco was right there with us, trying her best to comfort him. We knew then that we'd made the right decision. He got along with us, he got along with Coco, and he was in desperate need of a safe home. 

We took him in for his grooming session the following morning, and the groomer did her best to try to save his coat, but it was too far gone. We didn't care. We were positive before we brought him in that he'd need to be completely shaved down, and we were fine with it. She also did her best to get rid of the fleas. After much work, we are pretty sure they are gone! She also pointed out that one of his nails had grown so long, that it had curled and grown back into his paw, so she had to take care of that. She also pointed out that there were several teeth mark scars from where he appeared to be attacked by a large dog. His previous owner confirmed that their large dog attacked him several times. :( We also think at some point his tail was broken. There is a kink in the end and that part can't move. It may have already healed and reset-we'll be sure to ask the vet. The groomer said he was very well behaved and she was so glad that we gave him the safe home he needed. 

It's Sunday, and we got him on Friday night. We have already fallen in love with him. He's getting along great with Coco-aside from a bit of jealousy when it's snuggle time with momma. Coco has taught him his place, and they've established that she's the dominant one. I'll be calling the vet first thing in the morning to get an exam, all his shots and have him neutered. The only shot he's had since his first year is his rabies shot, so we have a lot of catching up to do. We are crossing our fingers that he doesn't have any issues-but we are aware that he could have worms, heartworms, lyme disease, or any number of things from not being vaccinated or ever given heartworm or flea and tick preventative. We've already started him on his first dose of these. 

He is settling right in-currently snuggling beside me and Coco on the couch. Since he's so cold and not used to not having much hair, we picked him up a couple of fleece shirts. He looks adorable! We went back and forth about a name. His original name was Skyy...but he didn't answer to it, and after seeing his previous situation, we wanted him to have a fresh start. He prances when he walks, so Mike suggested Prince. It seemed so fitting. But my good friend's dog is also a Prince. We joked about Jack...he'd be Jack Daniels ;) It wasn't royal enough. Nothing else seemed to fit. If Coco is royalty, shouldn't he be as well? So last night Darren confirmed, Prince it is. We all know how ridiculous I am about my dog...so of course he can't just have one name. Without further ado, meet...

HRH Prince Sebastian Fluffybottom Daniels-Prince for short ;)


When we first met at the pound































4 1/2 years old, 11 lb Pomeranian-and the Prince of the Daniels home. As my friend Marina said..."The owner wanted to meet you to make sure you are good with dogs??? They must not realize this dog is about to go to the freaking Doggy Kingdom!"

Amen! 


Isn't he sweet???







Coming home! He couldn't quite figure out the car seat :)

























Some of his matting :(

First bath!


After the groomer. He loves car rides!

Handsome Prince-Feels so much better!



After we gave him his new toys, blanket, and clothes.
He's not used to all this, but he's liking it!!!

Getting sleepy...

Going down....

And out!

We found some awesome deals on his stuff. So thankful!
Perfect for our little Prince

Brother and Sister

Be still my heart!

My Heaven

Sunday morning snuggles on Mommas legs








2 comments:

Unknown said...

OMG this is the best post ever!!! Horray hooray for Prince "fluffy bottom" Daniels....welcome to the Furdom :)

p.s. the before (shave)/after (shave) pictures made me laugh so hard

Jen said...

Hehehe thank you Olivia! :) He is already settling in nicely and getting spoiled rotten of course, as royalty should be! :)

Yeah his haircut cracked me up! So glad he's feeling better and no fleas or mats anymore! :)

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