Kate's New Life: Sequel to An
Impromptu Foster
by
Johnson
When I
first thought about looking for a rescue Poodle, I
knew that I had some specific parameters that needed
to be met because of all of the performance events
that I do. The dog would have to be between 6 months
to 3 years old, very friendly with people and other
dogs, outgoing, high energy, and loved car rides. I
looked at web sites all over the country and each
time I came away thinking I would have to go to a
breeder; I wasn't finding what I needed.
 As it happens, someone above must have
been watching over me because I bumped into a Poodle
rescue person in Florida. We had a conversation that
lasted an hour and a half and it ended with her
saying, "I think we may have what you are looking
for."
Enter Kate! Carolina Poodle Rescue sure knows their
poodles because Kate was everything I was looking
for! She has an enthusiasm for life that shows in
everything that she does. She came to me with
manners and nice tricks that Carole Van Ness, her
foster mom, had taught her. She was already a well
rounded dog. I've had so many dogs in my life but
Kate is the dog of all dog trainers' dreams! She is
one in a million--smart, willing, and she loves
everyone. She loves doing therapy work since she has
never met a stranger--canine or human.
To say that she does what is asked of her doesn't
begin to describe her. Together, we have
earned several titles in companion dog excellence,
rally excellence, and as a therapy dog. She earned
the new Canine Good Citizen Urban award. While
titles aren't my main goal, they show what Kate and
I can do together. We are bonded and we play well
together! At a practice trial, one judge said to me,
"Your dog is very good and knows what to do--you, on
the other hand, need more work!" That's my Kate!
Smarter than me!
In the summers, Kate and I travel in an RV all over
the country with my other standard poodle Merlin.
They turn a lot of heads as you don't see a lot of
standard poodles out traveling. They are so well
behaved and their silver and white colors together
are eye catching.
I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of the
work that went into Kate before I adopted her. I got
more than I ever could have expected when I went to
the rescue to meet Kate. Not only did I get a great
dog but I got a great friend too in her foster mom,
Carole. Carole and I keep in touch and I send her
updates on Kate. I want to thank Carole for all that
she did for Kate. I am a believer--just let CPR know
what you are looking for. They really know the dogs
and do a great job matching people and dogs. I wish
I could have many more dogs. For now, two is my
limit . . . but maybe one more when we stop
traveling so much!
In the May
issue of the CPR newsletter, Kate's foster mom,
Carole Van Ness, told the story of how Kate came to
her and ended up with CPR.
Our Story with Dory,
Part 1
by Laura
Belica
 On
March 28th our family of two parents,
one almost-8-year-old girl, and one
10-year-old toy poodle arrived on a
sunny Saturday at Dreamweaver Farms.
We came determined to adopt a poodle,
actually two, as Amy Pearson had told
us about two miniature poodles that
might be a good fit for our family. It
turned out those poodles were no
longer available and there begins our
story with Dory.
Dory (then spelled Dori) was the first
dog we met while CPR staff and
volunteers went to get several other
S.O.S. dogs for us. Our first
impression of Dory was marked by her
unexpected shape and size; with legs
much shorter than our leggy 9 lb. toy
poodle, Maddie, Dory was about twice
as long, at least three times as wide,
with a pot belly, she looked more like
a black badger with long ears as she
ambled about the office.
We were quickly overcome with our cat
allergies in the small office and
moved outside when the rest of the SOS
group joined the gathering and greeted
us. Maddie, our first baby, who had
spent her life as an only fur baby,
was a little off put by all the social
sniffing and stayed close to us while
the other dogs mingled and enjoyed the
yard. It was hot in the sun, and Dory,
with her black hair and extra padding,
drank frequently, often while lying
down, and sought shade under the lawn
chairs.
After about a half an hour, it was
clear that Dory was the only one that
understood Maddie needed her personal
space. While she approached Maddie
with curiosity, Dory always kept a
respectful distance and didn't push
her. We asked to take Dory for a walk
with Maddie around the farm, since
daily long walks are a big part of our
family routine. Dory was enthusiastic,
curious, seemed tireless, and was
good-natured throughout. She wanted to
explore everywhere and say hello to
everyone, greeting every person and
every dog she met with friendliness.
Dory didn't growl or elicit any
growls, and while Maddie kept a safe
distance, Dory approached everyone
wagging happily. She was clearly a
sweet dog and well-socialized, and we
were perplexed by how she ended up at
CPR as an S.O.S. case.
 We
wondered if there were health issues
with Dory, as she was extremely
overweight, had thin hair on her back,
displayed extreme thirst, had trouble
using her back legs (getting up the
stairs was difficult for her), and her
age had been estimated at 16 years. We
were concerned she had Cushings
disease or another serious disorder.
As parents of a sweet child who was
looking forward to having a four
legged companion, we were more than a
little concerned that if we adopted
her there would be sadness and grief
all too soon. But Dory seemed like the
best match for our family, and we knew
she needed a home, so we hoped for the
best and brought her home.
It was a worrisome couple of days
while we waited for our vet
appointment, especially after she
frenetically licked the car seat most
of the way home and continued to drink
a lot of water. As it turned out the
car seat licking was just nervousness,
the hair loss was likely from poor
care formerly, and the thirst was
related to her size, so our worries
were unfounded. Except for needing
several teeth extracted, the usual
de-worming, and needing to lose about
30% of her body weight - she was
A-Okay according to our vet.
After Dory came home with us, we
signed up for an obedience class that
began in just one week, thinking it
would help us all get to know one
another and learn how to communicate
effectively. The class trainer joked
about her being very motivated by
food, but she was good girl, just
eager to please, and quickly
demonstrated she remembered many basic
commands. She had been house trained
previously as well, and we later
learned she must have been making a
huge effort not to have an accident
those first few days as she had both
giardia and hook worms when we brought
her home. Day after day, we couldn't
believe how hard she tried to earn our
love. She was so attentive, obedient,
and always trying to please us. It was
easy to love her more every day, and
we showered her with the attention and
affection she was so hungry for.
Part 2 of Our Story with Dory will
appear in the July CPR newsletter!
Don't miss it!
We need
your stories! Do you have a
happy homecoming that you'd
like to share? Please send it
to
newsletter@carolinapoodlerescue.org.
Looking for Resources about Dogs?
Last
month we had an article about finding high
quality and safe food for your dog! Following
up on that, here are a few online resources
with information about dog foods, training,
and general care for dogs! If you have a
resource that you'd like to share, please send
it to newsletter@carolinapoodlerescue.org.
 Food
Training
Books
- The Other End of the Leash by
Patricia McConnell
- For the Love of a Dog by
Patrica McConnell
- Bones Would Rain from the Sky:
Deepening Our Relationship with
Dogs by Suzanne Clothier
- Inside of a Dog: What Dogs
See, Smell, and Know by
Alexandra Horowitz
Feature Pet of
the Month
Meet Sammy!
 Sammy is about 2
or 3 years old and a spaniel
mix. He is very shy at first, so
he will need a lot of time to
settle in to a new environment.
He would do best with another
dog or dogs in his home because
he loves other animals!
He is sweet and quiet, though
playful with other dogs. When he
came to CPR, he had chronic ear
infections but that has finally
been resolved! His ears were
surgically closed up (does not
affect his hearing) so the
infections are gone for good.
Although Sammy was positive for
heart worms, he has been treated
for them and now is showing as
heart worm negative.
Sammy is a great guy--he needs
someone who is willing to help
him come out of his shell. He
needs someone willing to give
him time and to be patient and
kind. Someone who is home a lot
would help too. He has been with
us for going on two years now
and he's ready to move in and
find a forever home of his own.
If you are interested in Sammy,
please visit our adoption
application page.
 Chloe's
Corner
by Chloe
Winburn,
S.O.S. Dog
Reporter from the Poodle News Network
Recently my mom was helping a new Virtual
Adopter choose an SOS dog to sponsor. The
Virtual Adopter picked out a cute little
poodle girl, but then changed her mind
because the poodle was in a foster home.
The Virtual Adopter's reasoning was that
since the poodle girl was in a foster home
she didn't need as much help as the SOS
dogs at Dreamweaver Farms. This is not
true.
 All SOS dogs, no
matter where they live, are the
responsibility of Carolina Poodle Rescue.
We are lucky enough to have some wonderful
homes that can pay for all the dog's
needs, but they are rare. Most all medical
and grooming bills are paid for by CPR,
and they can be quite expensive. The
foster homes are there to provide the
love, security, and emotional help these
dogs need. They usually provide food and
transportation to appointments also, but
some foster homes request assistance with
that too.
Meet Sophie--our newest SOS dog. She came
to CPR in 2011. She's a poodle mix who is
somewhere around 13 years old. Found as a
stray in Manassas Virginia, Sophie has no
eyes. She was found that way. Apparently
they were surgically removed. She can be a
bit grouchy but can you blame her? She
really doesn't like to be picked up or
bothered, and doesn't think much of other
dogs either. Sophie has been in a foster
home since she came to CPR, and foster mom
has been trying to take care of all her
needs. Her foster mom says that she is the
only one who can pick her up and love on
Sophie. She hates being groomed and hates
even more having her face touched, but
they manage.
Sophie has had some ongoing medical
problems--urinary tract and ear
infections. Medications and vet visits are
expensive and her foster mom says she can
no longer take care of the mounting bills.
Can you give a little blind girl a hand?
If you are
interested in virtually adopting
(sponsoring) any of these our SOS
dogs, please go to our new website.
There are instructions on the site for
how to set up your sponsorship.
CPR Virtual Adoptions
Join CPR's
Facebook Page for Friends &
Family
Why join
another Facebook group? Well, if
you love poodles or rescue dogs in
general, if you want to keep in
closer touch with the CPR
community and everything that is
going on at the Farm, with the
current dogs, with adopted dogs,
and with incoming dogs, then this
is the place to be. We asked some
of the members of the CPR
Friends and Family Page why
they love being a part of the
page:
Hope to
see you there! https://www.facebook.com/groups/122083703951/
Please
Stay in Touch
If you have
moved or plan to move in the
near feature, please drop a
line to CPR and let us know!
We don't want to lose touch.
Just send an email with your
new mailing address and/or
email address to
cprmail@carolinapoodlerescue.org.
We always love hearing from
the CPR community!
And if you
have a story about your CPR dog
(or cat), we'd love for you to
share it--happy homecomings,
travel adventures, training
achievements, or simply a story
that you'd like to share about
your CPR family member. Please
send it to
newsletter@carolinapoodlerescue.org.
The Rainbow Bridge
Dedicated to
those who have passed
over.
"Aaron"
Dreamweaver
Farms--Pacolet,
SC |
"Baby Doll"
Jeremy and Trina Jones--Boiling Springs, SC
Dreamweaver
Farms--Pacolet,
SC
|
"Bruno"
Judy Adcock--West Port, ON
Memorial
image by Bobby
Clark |
"Chai"
Chuck and Lynette Hodges--Fayetteville, NC |
"Harley"
Kristy Thomas--Chesnee, SC
Dreamweaver
Farms--Pacolet,
SC |
"Jester"
Donna Keaton Lindsey-- SC
|
"Lucy"
Nancy
Headley--Richmond,
VA |
"Nemo"
Deby
Rabi--Cary, NC
Dreamweaver
Farms--Pacolet,
SC |
"Peppermint Patti"
Jennifer and Tom
Smith--Raleigh,
NC
|
"Zach"
Dreamweaver
Farms--Pacolet,
SC
Many
thanks to
Zach's virtual
adopters--
Cathy
and Ben G.,
Barbara &
Neil H.
|
|
