Whoohoo -- I got my dog today!

[chookie]

Thanks to all who held my hand as I waited for the shelter to release him (he had kennel cough).

When they opened the cage door, he jumped into my arms, and I decided to adopt him in about 5 seconds. He is even more wonderful than I thought he would be. We had a long ride home, and he just sat in my lap and smiled the whole way.

He is 7 years old, and was given up by an elderly woman who couldn't care for him any more. He is a pomeranian, but absolutely HUGE for the breed at 17 lbs (which is usually 6 lbs). He is black, with striking tan markings -- very handsome -- kind of a canine Viggo Mortensen. Very nice calm even temperment (makes a good contrast to me).

I figured out what to do about his name to -- I wanted to change it, because his given name was too common ("Rusty") -- so tentatively it is now "Rasta Mon".

I was so giddy after getting him home that when I saw Skinner's message in my DU inbox, I gave til it hurt.

Thanks to all who held my hand during the long week I waited for him.

[WillParkinson]

1. PICTURES!!!!!!

Pretty please?

[chookie]

8. Here's a photo

This is one the shelter took of him. His coat is absolutely amazing -- he's got beautiful Asian hair -- long, thick, shiny, strong, blue black.


He is such a good boy. He's very sweet and calm. I'm a little bit worried that he was not socialized in certain ways i.e. doesn't seem to know how to play fetch. Not a problem -- my sister has a puppy who is a real handful who will show him how to be a puppy again.

I wonder if I should be skeptical about the "little old lady" story though. With him being 17 lbs -- making him 3 times the size of the pomeranian breed, I am wondering if his drinking bowl was watered by a source near Three Mile Island Nuclear plant, or that he belonged to a football player, and got into his master's steroids....

[WillParkinson]

9. KYOOOOOOOOOOT!

Too sweet. Congrats to BOTH of you!

[CatWoman]

12. ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

look at that pretty guy!!!!!

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Valentines Day, Chookie!! :hi:

[SammyWinstonJack]

14. He is beautiful!

I have two poms. They are sisters, 8 and 9 years old. 17 pounds? Wow! My girls weight between 6 and 7 pounds. I love 'em dearly but they are incredibly noisy, barking at everything and everyone. Your pom is the prettiest I have ever seen.

[chookie]

19. They can be barkers!

When my sister adopted hers, her home on the street was referred to as The Barkers Residence. She adopted a 5 year old, who was never socialized with other dogs, and barks her fool head off. She took her to a dog trainer, and has a citronella anti-barking collar, but my sister lacks the spine to enforce good behavior. (Thank heavens she owns a pom, and not a Doberman, huh?)

Now she has a pom puppy, who is learning nuisance barking from the other one. Ay yi yi.

My Marigold however, is quiet -- raises an alarm when someone comes to the door, but is otherwise quiet -- thank heavens. Rusty also seems to be the exceptional non-barking pomeranian.

Rasta Mon *is* beautiful -- I can't help but feel very proud of him.

[rexcat]

21. Good luck teaching him to fetch...

We have a rescued blue tick coon hound (former breeder and hunter) and she never has learned how to fetch. Very frustrating!

And good luck with your new family member.

[FlaGranny]

22. My dog doesn't like to play fetch either.

Some dogs just don't go for it. She doesn't like balls or frisbees. Her favorite toys have always been those fake sheepskin thingys with squeakers in them. Mine's an American Eskimo, which is very close in breed to a Pomeranian. She loves tug-o-war though. Also likes to "rip" - if you remember the thread from a few days ago about dogs who act silly while running around like they've gone crazy. She also is a herder and always tries to make sure you get where you're going by giving you little nudges from behind.

[ChoralScholar]

27. I tried teaching my lab-mix Julie to fetch

If you throw a ball, she'll go get it but then she won't bring it back, she just stands there and then drops it. She looks at me as if to say "Daddy, I'm only half-retriever, so I'll only halfway retrieve it."

[flamingyouth]

25. Oooh, what a cutie!

Lucky you! :loveya:

[flamingyouth]

2. Congratulations!

And a big welcome to Rasta Mon! :loveya:

We want pictures!!

[oregonjen]

3. Congratulations!

We got our first dog last year and she is truly an amazing addition to our family!

[roguevalley]

4. Bravo. You saved a life. Mazel tov!

[papau]

5. Wonderful - I was wondering if I'd ever get another dog - I'm jealous!

with envy

and a few other sins

but it is great that you got your dog!

:-)

:toast:

:-)

[mmm]

6. Perhaps you could sing him this song:

Great, Big, Beautiful boy
you're a great big beautiful boy
YES! I am so glad I found you
Let... me put my arms around you

Great, Big, Beautiful boy
you're a great big beautiful boy...
you are an expert with a dog bone toy
you're the irrefutable, indisputable
Great! Big! Beautiful! booooy!

[chookie]

17. He'll enjoy that!

My sister and I sang some of our silly pomeranian songs for him, and he seemed to understand what it was all about.

None of our songs are as good as that one. I'll be sure to ham it up for him -- he'll love it.

[camero]

7. Congrats

Everyone should have a puppy at least once in their life. :)

[Wcross]

10. Thankyou!!!!!!

I am glad you saved this animal. If more people would go to the shelter and do the right thing (spay-nueter), there would be fewer animals that suffer.

[chookie]

15. There were 3 purebred pomeranians there that day

I was astonished that they had 3 beautiful pommies there -- at a small WV shelter. 2 had been given up, one had been found as a stray.

As a pomeranian fan, of course these guys caught my eye, but the place was full of fine dogs of all breeds.

LOTS of stuff to pick from at a shelter -- and with you, I urge people looking to adopt to try this kind of source first.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

11. Aw I am so happy for the new love in your life!

He sounds sweet and wonderful. Having recently gotten wed to a new dog myself, I can sense the affinity you are feeling.

I recently had a 2 and a half year old RAMBUNCIOUS golden retriver enter my life. IT was TOUGH because he had some REALLY bad manners and habits, but all the hard work it has taken to come to terms with him makes me love him even more.

I'm really glad for you.

Happy Valentine's day, Chookie :grouphug:

[chookie]

16. Our first rescue pommie

Yikes. We discovered him at our vet's office, where he was living at the time. He was about 12 yrs old, maybe older, and been abandoned by being tied to the doorknob in the back of his office. We were warned he had "issues" but we felt so sorry for him we adopted him anyway.

He certainly had issues -- terrible food aggression, and unpredictable biting. He bit all of us at one time! He bit my thumbnail right through, and I required medical treatment and a couple months of healing! (Luckily -- no kids around.) But we accepted that he had been traumatized, and that abuse often leaves scars, and so we let him be. Like you, I consulted a pro dog trainer, who showed me how to gradually desensitize him.

After about 5 months with us, he turned around -- became a cuddly teddy bear, a furry bit of sunshine. Sadly, we did not have him long -- poor little guy developed horrific epilepsy, which despite the best medical care we could get for him -- he finally succumbed. That was 2 years ago, and we are still mourning the little guy.

[bleedingheart]

13. He is adorable!

[silverlib]

18. A shelter story for you...

I initially read your post before I opened any email this morning, and immediately, when I opened this I thought of you...
********
Puppy Size

"Danielle keeps repeating it over and over again. We've been back to this animal shelter at least five times. It has been weeks now since we started all of this," the mother told the volunteer.

"What is it she keeps asking for?" the volunteer asked.

"Puppy size!" replied the mother.
"Well, we have plenty of puppies, if that's what she's looking for."
"I know...we have seen most of them," the mom said in frustration...

Just then Danielle came walking into the office.

"Well, did you find one?" asked her mom. "No, not this time," Danielle said with sadness in her voice. "Can we come back on the weekend?"
The two women looked at each other, shook their heads and laughed.
"You never know when we will get more dogs. Unfortunately, there's always a supply," the volunteer said.

Danielle took her mother by the hand and headed to the door. "Don't worry, I'll find one this weekend," she said.

Over the next few days both mom and dad had long conversations with her. They both felt she was being too particular. "It's this weekend or we're not looking any more," Dad finally said in frustration. "We don't want to hear anything more about puppy size either," Mom added.
Sure enough, they were the first ones in the shelter on Saturday morning. By now Danielle knew her way around, so she ran right for the section that housed the smaller dogs. Tired of the routine, mom sat in the small waiting room at the end of the first row of cages.
There was an observation window so you could see the animals during times when visitors weren't permitted. Danielle walked slowly from cage to cage, kneeling periodically to take a closer look.
One by one the dogs were brought out and she held each one. One by one she said, "Sorry, you're not the one."
It was the last cage on this last day in search of the perfect pup. The volunteer opened the cage door and the child carefully picked up the dog and held it closely.
This time she took a little longer.
"Mom, that's it! I found the right puppy! He's the one! I know it!" she screamed with joy. "It's the puppy size!"

"But it's the same size as all the other puppies you held over the last few weeks," Mom said.

"No not size ---- the sighs. When I held him in my arms, he
sighed," she said.

"Don't you remember? When I asked you one day what love is, you
told me love depends on the sighs of your heart. The more you love, the bigger the sigh!"

The two women looked at each other for a moment. Mom didn't know whether to laugh or cry. As she stooped down to hug the child, she did a little of both.

"Mom, every time you hold me, I sigh. When you and Daddy come home from work and hug each other, you both sigh. I knew I would find the right puppy if it sighed when I held it in my arms," she said. Then holding the puppy up close to her face she said, "Mom, he loves me. I heard the sighs of his heart!"

[chookie]

20. Awww

You know -- it was like that when I met him! He jumped into my arms, and let out a big sigh, and I think I did too. We knew we were meant to be together.

Thanks for posting that. I have a friend who is gradually working through his grief over losing his beloved dog and is now ready to adopt again, and is confused about what to look for. I'll forward that lovely story onto him.

[Papillon]

26. I loved this story.

Three years ago I adopted a 7 yr old Maltese. He's my best friend, and every time I pick him up, he sighs.

[Flaxbee]

23. My niece used to call them "Pomerasians"

and she wanted one reeeeaaaallll baaaaad. I'd break down in helpless laughter every time she talked about getting a "Pomerasian"; she and my sister ended up rescuing a Corgi, but I have no doubt my niece will one day have her very own Pomerasian.

[RebelOne]

24. I am so happy when I hear that someone has adopted a shelter dog.

He looks like a very sweet dog. Best of luck with him and I am sure he will have a happy home with you.

[ChoralScholar]

28. Canine Viggo Mortensen

Thats a good one... Very beautiful dog - hope you have many happy years together.

[NJCher]

29. what a cutie

I'm so happy for you, chookie.


Cher