Poor
Freedom was an especially sad case.
Three-years-old and still intact for
breeding purposes, he came to us
straight from a puppy mill -- skinny,
malnourished, heartworm positive and
filled with intestinal parasites.
Behaviorally, he was completely naive to
the world, unhappy, excessively timid
and fearful, and totally unsocialized to
home life. Freedom didn't even have a
name when he was rescued -- he had been
given his very appropriate name by the
volunteers who had freed him from his
puppymill life.
Freedom was so frightened of the human
world that he crawled on his belly
instead of walking. A person merely
rising to a standing position was enough
to cause him to run or cower for cover.
He refused treats if they were still in
a person's hand, and wouldn't eat at all
unless no one was in the room. With all
his health and behavior problems,
Freedom just broke our hearts.
His
GRRI-NJ foster Mom, Teri Stewart, took
excellent care of him, seeing him
through his treatment for intestinal
parasites, two rounds heartworm
treatment, as well as a neuter.
Still, what Freedom really needed was a
loving forever home ... a family who
could provide him with the long term
security, care and training he would
need to become a happy dog someday. And
he found a great one.
Ann &
Stewart Fellman had one other dog, a
10-year-old cocker, and all the time,
love and commitment necessary to bring
him Freedom out of his shell. Freedom
went home with the Fellman's in mid
February, where he will no doubt be
spoiled rotten, just as he should be.
When
10-month-old Dora was rescued from the
puppy mill, she too had no name, was
intact for breeding purposes, and was
literally skin and bones. By the time
she arrived at GRRI-NJ, she'd already
begun treatment for hookworm and been
spayed, but still had whip worms,
infections on both thighs and one
nipple, and teeth that were so bad that
without treatment, she had a good chance
of losing them. Continuing vet care was
a priority.
Behaviorally, she was very timid and
fearful of her new surroundings. One of
the first things she did at her foster
home was jump on the couch and try to
fly through the picture window that's
right behind it. When that failed, she
laid down and refused to move, eat, or
relieve herself. That lasted several
days.
It
seemed that she considered the sofa her
territory, so one of the things her
foster parents, Heather & Joe Vena, did
was to take turns sleeping at night with
her there. It took a full week, but
eventually Dora began to warm up -- to
not only accept affection and play, but
to initiate it as well, including fun
and games with their other two Goldens,
Kati and Cali.
Eventually, she also discovered the joys
of good healthy food, and started eating
with relish and filling out. She also
got lessons on housebreaking, and began
to realize that a crate is actually a
safe comfortable place to be when her
family can't be with her.
Watching Dora bloom under their care,
her foster family fell head over heels
and decided Dora was home to stay; and
they adopted her!
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