Monday, April 12, 2010

Introducing Chloe The Great....

Disclaimer: Our lawnmower was broken.  With the recent rain we've had, our backyard suddenly turned into a jungle.  Please don't judge me because of the height of the grass in the following pictures.  The day after these pictures were taken, we bought a new lawnmower and the backyard is back to being just a backyard.  You will see this in tomorrow's pictures.  So please, pretend this isn't my backyard - pretend it's a park with a terrible groundskeeping service.  Then we'll both be happy.  Thank you.


Last Saturday there was a Great Dane at one of our adoption events.  Her name is Chloe, and she was very skinny. 

I like Great Danes.  I have to, since I own one.  It's like a rule.  So I inquired about fostering Chloe.  She was staying at an area shelter, but she wasn't eating very well.  So they let me take her home.  And honestly, I immediately thought I made a bad decision.  Because Chloe has some issues. 

In the first 24 hours after I brought her home, Chloe barked for at least 9 of those hours.  She may have barked the entire time I was at work too - I'm not sure.  She also ate an entire bag of potato chips. (Hey, I was doing my part to fatten her up!)  She had multiple bouts of diarrhea. (I'm sure it wasn't the potato chips...right?)  She was scared of the other dogs, and she was scared of being left alone.  She paced constantly and wouldn't eat wet or dry dog food.  She was not having an easy time adjusting to being in a new home. 

Fortunately I have the best husband in the world when it comes to dog-dog introductions.  He helped Chloe and Noelle meet each other and when I got home from work the next day, Chloe was getting along great with all of the dogs (Remi, Noelle, Ziggy and Freckles).  Wow - I was super-impressed.  I was also very relieved because it meant she wouldn't bark all night since she was able to be in the room with us.  So suddenly things were looking up.  

Over the next few days, we worked with Chloe to try to find the magic combination that would cause her to eat.  Some days it was dry food with wet food mixed in.  Other days that didn't work, but plain dry food on the floor without a bowl would work.  Some days she'd eat from my hand and other days she wouldn't. But overall, I felt satisfied that she was getting enough nutrition and would eventually gain weight. 
Soon it was Saturday, and time for another PetSmart adoption event.  I took Chloe and Freckles, and Freckles quickly found his forever home.  A few hours into the adoption event, a couple arrived.  They had been volunteers for a dog transport, to get a dog from its temporary home to a new rescue group or adoptive home several states away.  The couple lived in Kansas City, and they had heard about Chloe from another transport volunteer who is also an All Paws Rescue volunteer.  So they visited with Chloe, and decided to make her a part of their family!  

Wow - both of my foster dogs adopted in the same day.  And both of them I had less than a week!  And both of them went to families that I really liked, and felt like they would be a perfect fit.  It was an amazing day. 

But don't worry - I'm not really back to Ziggy as my only foster dog.  About three hours after I left PetSmart, two new foster dogs showed up at my house.  I'll tell you about them tomorrow. 

18 comments:

Dexter said...

How do you do it? So many doggies in and out of your house. I was glad to see that Chloe got a new home. It made me sad seeing such a big fine gal looking all skinny like that.

Slobbers,
Mango

Tucker said...

I'm glad both were adoopted. Us great Danes can be very picky eaters, I know I am.

woof - Tucker

Anonymous said...

Oh, Chloe is SOOOOO beautiful! Imagine what she'll looks like after she gets some meat on those bones! I'm very much glad she found her Most Perfect Home that Ever Was so fast!

Wiggles & Wags,
Mayzie

Remington said...

Thank you for being you and helping all of these guys out! Poor Chole -- they get so confused and scared. They can't help it -- I wish with all of my heart that people would do a better job of evaluating their life and the pros and cons of bringing a pet into their life BEFORE they actually do it so these poor souls didn't get dumped! Really bugs me! But many thanks for the kindness and love you and your husband are willing to give them! Bravo!

brooke said...

You (and your hubby) do amazing things for these pets!
So glad Chloe was able to find a home so quickly! Hopefully she'll get some weight put on and adjust well to her new home!

3 doxies said...

Chloe is beautiful...but horribly thin. Thank you for doing what you do. This has to be one of the most selfless acts ever, to be able to bring in an animal and then let it go to another home. Bless you for all you do.
Puddls Mum

JacksDad said...

Yea Chloe! And yea Mom and Dad for all the good things they do!!!
(See - 3 exclamation points. That means it's REALLY good!).

Martine said...

We are really glad Chloe found her home.

xo martine & the kiddlets

Lola and also Franklin, too said...

You and your husband are quite impressive humans. Fostering some dogs must be hard work. Not me, of course. I wasn't fostered but if I had been I would have been easy to deal with.

I want to thank you for coming by my blog to visit. Blog Mom has to run back to the hospital now but when things settle down I look forward to following the doings at your house and reading back to learn more about you all.

Thanks again. Wags, Lola

pibble said...

It's like a revolving door - I can't keep up! Which is a good thing. :)

Amy & the house of cats said...

Oh this is a wonderful thing to read - I am so glad that Chloe had found a good forever home - with someone who transports - you know they have to love animals! And it is great that Freckles found a good home too - what a good day! I hope that Chole will be happy in her new home so she can eat and gain some weight - she is too too skinny right now!

Love Meow said...

You guys are amazing. Thank you so much for helping these beautiful doggies.

we are so glad that Chloe has found a forever home. :)

the booker man said...

hooray for pretty miss chloe!! i'm so happy she found a nice family!!
i know her family will figure out what kind of foodables she likes so she can get a little squish on herself. :)
*woof*
the booker man

havetailwillwag said...

yay for chloe!!!!!!

Kari in Alaska said...

she's beautiful! glad she was adopted :)

Two Pitties in the City said...

I love hearing about your foster stories. And you get such beautiful dogs.

ocmist said...

We're so glad these doggies found good homes and that you are willing to share your home with them until they did. It can be hard to foster... Grammy's sister and another lady run a Rescue in this area, and we sometimes foster the overflow while they are waiting to take them to no-kill shelters or new homes, so we know. We wish all doggies had a chance to find wonderful forever homes with people who will love them, like our people love us! The Country Corgis

Great Dane said...

You have an amazing work with those dogs. It's good to know that there are people like you who take time to take care of dogs and find them good homes. Though sometimes, dogs like Great Danes can have issues. To learn more about Great Danes, visit http://www.trainpetdog.com/Great-Dane/about-great-dane.html, and http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/greatdane.htm.