Thursday, February 28, 2013

Walk a Dog in Need this Sunday!



On Sunday, March 3, Furry People will join The Barking Lot for Walk a Dog in Need, a doggie fitness event that promises a lot of fun for people too. The event starts at 1:00 p.m. and ends at 5:00 p.m. and the address is 486 Raleigh Ave in El Cajon. The event includes live music and refreshments as well as dog training exercises and something mysterious called “bet on a banana man.” We couldn’t even begin to guess what that means but it sounds like fun!


The Barking Lot is a 501(c)3 nonprofit animal rescue founded in 2007 by Stacy Parmer. They just recently opened the El Cajon “Barking Structure,” and TBL volunteers can be seen at events all over San Diego with adoptable dogs.  They rescued over five hundred dogs in 2012. Check out their website if you would like to adopt, foster, donate, or volunteer.  

Rescue events in East County are few and far between. During the past four years of covering pet rescue for the San Diego Examiner, we have only run into a few major events that were within reasonable driving distance of East County. Most events happen in the coastal cities, although many local rescues hold weekend adoptions at pet stores in El Cajon, Santee, and Rancho San Diego. However, East County residents can still foster for rescues as long as they are willing to travel to the occasional adoption event or to the rescue's home base to pick up fosters. To find San Diego rescues in need of fosters, search on Petfinder.

Adopt a Dog

 


Saturday, February 23, 2013

B.B.'s Journey to a Forever Home





B.B. traveled a long way to get to his forever home.  Over 1800 miles, in fact.  Transported from the Humane Society of South Mississippi, B.B. was a three-time shelter loser who might have been forgotten if the San Diego Humane Society had not believed in his adoptability. They rescued him twice—once from a shelter in the Deep South and a second time when his adopted family returned him.  Then they convinced me that this was the dog for our home.  Despite my misgivings, I believed them.  On December 11, 2008, at 2:54 PM, I paid his adoption fee and he hopped willingly into my car and stole our hearts.

My beloved Great Dane, Honey, had passed away at ten years old the previous February.  I had been looking for another Dane; however, both of the Great Dane rescues in Southern California turned me down because I was not a home owner.  Breed-specific rescues often have this requirement.  I searched in vain for a Great Dane in all of the shelters and all-breed rescues from San Diego to Los Angeles but could not find one.  Our home felt so empty without a dog.  A Dane had been so perfect for our lifestyle; intelligent, obedient, and affectionate, Danes are happy to sit on the couch with you and watch TV.  They are great companions for someone who works at home and likes leisurely walks. 

Labradors are quite different from Great Danes.  They are extremely intelligent and high energy.  They need at least sixty minutes of exercise per day, preferably running.  Labs are exuberant, pushy, and playful.  They are wonderful companions for active individuals, and are quick learners with a working dog’s mentality.  They are the perpetual puppies of the dog world, and if not given enough exercise, attention, and training, Labs can develop a number of annoying, even destructive behaviors.  In the right hands, they are probably one of the most wonderful dog breeds available.  They love an active owner who has lots of time and patience for outdoor activities. Consequently, I passed by B.B. at the Humane Society without a second glance.

According to the description on his suite, B.B. was an 85 pound Labrador/Shepherd mix. He was listed as high energy with a play style tending towards “rough and tumble.” he actually looked a lot like a Pit Bull mix to me, and I was under express instructions (from landlord and roommate) not to adopt a bully breed (I love Pitties, by the way but society’s prejudices prevail).  Instead, I was looking at a much smaller female Labrador mix in the same hallway.  I asked to visit her and she rolled over on her back and let me rub her belly.  She seemed calm, submissive, and gentle.  In other words, very Dane-like but lab size.

The adoptions counselor sat with us and asked questions about what kind of care we can provide, the size of our yard and fence and our lifestyle.  He was very thorough.  He took the female Labrador to the cat room to see how she responded to the cats since we had a nineteen year old cat at the time.  After talking with me for a while, he said that he thought another dog would fit better in our home.  I was open to suggestions, so we went to visit B.B. in the suite down the hall. The San Diego Humane Society has a beautiful, luxurious campus with large, home-like suites for the dogs and cats. B.B. had his own couch, and he was sitting on it like a king surveying his territory. 

B.B. was the opposite of calm, submissive, and gentle.  While the adoptions counselor and I sat on the couch, B.B. jumped back and forth between us, bonking us on the head with one of his squeaky toys.  We went over his history and the questionnaire provided by the previous owner. B.B. had been transported from the South Mississippi Humane Society in April, 2007 when he was only a few months old. He may have been born in the shelter or relinquished as part of an unwanted litter. A San Diego family adopted him in the summer of 2007 and returned him in late 2008.  They have listed numerous reasons for the relinquishment one of which was his rough play style.  He had some basic training and behaved well in the cat room. 

The adoptions counselor felt that the other dog would not be a good fit for our home because she had never lived in a house before. She had been an outside dog.  B.B. was house trained and, according to the previous owner, had slept in a child’s bedroom. The fact that we have a spacious fenced yard, and that I was willing to take a large dog may have prompted the adoptions counselor’s confidence that B.B. was the best choice.  I had a hard time believing this though, while this huge lab was jumping on my back and smacking his squeaky octopus on the top of my head.  We took him out in the parking lot for a walk and he nearly pulled me off my feet. “See,” said the counselor, “he walks great on a leash.”

In the end, I decided that B.B. needed me more than I needed a dog that suited my expectations and lifestyle to a T.  And he has many, many good qualities.  He is completely housebroken, and has never destroyed anything here. B.B. usually has human company, but he does not get anxious when left alone.  He always comes when called even in off-leash areas.  He learns commands quickly and responds very well to positive reinforcement.  Although he is still not a great walker (and we have outlawed squeaky toys), he is a wonderful companion and coexists well with other animals.  Over the past five years, B.B. has welcomed numerous fosters and boarders of all sizes, a new cat, and a Macaw. 

Sometimes I share B.B.’s misadventures for comic relief but he really is a good dog, and we are glad that he found us.

B.B. loves to have one or two boarders to keep him company. Check out our website for services and rates, or contact us with questions.

If you are looking for a Labrador, check out Labradors and Friends or search Petfinder for a dog needing rescue near you.