Do you have a type?

You can like them lean and handsome, scruffy and wise, young and nubile, or edgy and dark. Dogs, like humans, come in all shapes and sizes. No doubt most of us love all dogs unconditionally, but is there one certain type that goes straight to the soft spot in your heart?

An obvious start would be the big dog vs small dog battle that seems to divide most of us, but there may be more to it than that. Do you like big fluffy dogs with brown hair? Or small dogs with spots and sassy attitudes? The list continues with young dogs, adolescent dogs, old dogs, parti-colors, brindles, wire-haired, short-haired, bossy, laid-back...oh my!

While shadowing Deb (one amazing lady and volunteer!) I got to take a peek at her daily interactions with the dogs, and in the process, discovered her type! While we were taking the dogs out for some exercise and love, there was one adolescent puppy in particular who had captured her heart. Hunter is a gorgeous black pit-bull puppy, heading into his adolescent phase, and with lots of love to spare. Watching them work together, I saw a lot of the depth of emotion that passes between each of these volunteers and their animals. Despite how long they are in the shelter, or whatever the outcome may be, GADAB volunteers treat these animals like their own, with all of the nurturing and love that the animals can handle.

As I watched them together, and saw such genuine affection pass between them, I got to thinking about my own "type". I'd have to say that I'm a sucker for fluffy black and white dogs with goofy personalities, but I still manage to fall in love with animals of all shapes and sizes. Type or no type, these dogs are loved to the maximum capacity of each volunteer, and let me tell you, these volunteers have pretty huge hearts.

Squeaky Faucet? Nope, that's just Squeakers.

One of my most favorite things about volunteering at Give a Dog a Bone is finding the very thing that ROCKS a custody dog's world! Sometimes it's just hanging out in the park offering some TLC, for other dogs it's fetching a ball and learning a new agility trick.

This last Sunday, we found Squeaker's very favorite thing--so simple, so refreshing...the water hose!



Squeaker is a red Merle and LOVES to chase and bite the water straight from the hose. Now, doesn't that look like fun? Yay Squeaky Squeaker McSqueakerton!!

Update: Danni the Great

Now, this is a happy ending.

Do you remember Dandelion? She's the adorable girl who came in to Give a Dog a Bone under some unfortunate circumstances. She was instantly a favorite...and how could she not be? All love, this little girl wanted nothing but affection, attention, and to crawl into a lap. She was very lucky to be fostered by some very kind and patient foster parents while she was put up for adoption through Grateful Dogs Rescue.

I just so happened to be Dandy's biggest fan, and sent out an email to friends and coworkers, touting her adorableness (is that a word?). A very good friend of mine from Sacramento happened to share this email with her friend/coworker, who just happened to be looking for a 3rd dog to join their family.

A few days later, Barbara was on her way down to San Francisco.

Now, no story doesn't have a few bumps, and there were a few little bumps when Dandy, now deemed Danni, joined her new family. The dogs all had to adjust to the new dynamic. But, because they were committed to making it work, Barbara and her husband took the time to learn how to make all of the dogs comfortable in their roles in the family. And soon, the dogs were doing great, and Danni was even going to doggie school, and from what I hear, was the best dog in the class.

Plenty of exercise, dog companions, loving owners...this girl hit the jackpot.

"I am so excited to have her, she brings such great energy to our family," said Barbara in an email to me, and I have to say...it makes me a little verklempt every time I think about Danni, starting out behind the bars of the shelter, and now...well, look for yourself...







So, thanks to Corinne for running a program that allows such happy endings to occur, and thanks to Jordan and Ellie for being great foster parents, thanks to Grateful Dogs Rescue for putting Danni in their program...and thanks to Barbara for giving the girl a chance...and for making a special little pittie's dreams come true!

OUR CHRISTMAS STORY

AN ANIMAL HERO EMERGES

Is there a rule somewhere that says before one is twice blessed, one must endure pain and suffering? For our newly named little Pippin, a puppy somewhere between three and four months old, one wonders if maybe such a rule did exist. But on October 12, 2008, her life and luck changed.

A thirteen year old young man celebrating his birthday became a Hero that day. He was on a San Francisco city bus, on his way to church to meet his grandmother, and saw something that suddenly made him pull the string and request a stop. A group of young males were beating a puppy. The puppy was Pippin and our young Hero stepped in and rescued her. He took her to his grandmother at church and together they brought her home to call San Francisco Animal Care and Control. The responding officer took the young pup to the emergency for a complete examination, treating not only the possible injuries inflicted by the beating, but also a severe case of long neglected non-contagious mange.

After being temporarily ensconced in a kennel at Give a Dog a Bone with toys, soft blankets, and chews, our lucky little lassie now lives with her foster mom, a foster brother, and a big sister who maintains a semblance of order in the household. She is learning proper doggie house rules, play skills, and most of all, is well loved and well cared for. Lively, active, and still a lover of people, we’re hoping that that this little pittie will be twice blessed with a loving, breed-savvy home.

For those of us who witness instances of animal abuse, neglect and brutality every day, it is truly inspiring to encounter a young man in our community with such heart, strength and compassion. With barely any time to think about doing the right thing, he did. Decisions that can make a difference and lead to such lasting change in our community can be quite simple. Give A Dog A Bone’s mission is to foster just that.


Together, we can help encourage more Heroes and make San Francisco an even better place for us all to call home.

May all of us be as blessed as Miss Pippin during this season and the forthcoming year.

Underbites and Puppy Love

I've recently returned to volunteering Sunday mornings for Give a Dog a Bone. Boy, did I miss these pups. It's so great to be back. First thing I did: Belly rubs, massages, treats, and genuine affection for Chiqi, the dachshund with an *award winning underbite*. One look at this little man and he will steal your heart for good. THEN...puppy shuttle tour! Yada and Dollar are 3-month-old white pitbull puppies..(yep, puppy smell!).
Give a Dog a Bone works to socialize puppies that are in the custody dog program as much as possible. We tour the shelter with the Puppy Shuttle by introducing them to all kinds of people, environments, sounds, and smells. I was so impressed with how fast these two little ones learn - they aleady know that when they sit, good things happen. Even little Yada who is deaf!

Take a look at this cute overload!

READ ALL ABOUT US !!!!!

We had a wonderful article written about us. It's been a while since we've received any serious publicity, and of course, I am hoping that it generates interest in Give a Dog a Bone. I feel that the author, Eileen Mitchell, speaks well about who we are and what we do . . . she also writes frequently about her rescue Greyhound, Elvis - he's quite a character!

Enjoy and please leave a comment at the end of the article if you feel like doing so!

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/14/HO2F13S3MH.DTL

arf!

The Nothing-in-Life-is-Free Club

is not, by any means, exclusive. Not at all. Any ill-mannered dog should join, if they don't, they're headed for trouble.

If a pup is not taught manners, it may mean that her life will be spent in a back yard with no understanding of why she is not in her home with her people pack because, after all, when she was a puppy, her people family thought all of that nipping and jumping up was cute. A cute puppy jumping up on your child means an adult dog jumping up on your child. If dogs are not taught manners, it can mean the difference between a good life, a lonely, distressed life, or death. We are all social creatures.

What NILF does is let our pups, and some adults, know that impulse control is a good thing. It's part of our quality of life practices. It's absolutely a given that quality of life directly impacts adoptability. The bond between our two species is only enhanced when both species understand how to live with each other.

I'm not sure why C.K. looks worried here, could it be that he's looking at his treasured squeaky stuffed toy while Christine is taking his photo and wondering why he can't have it RIGHT NOW? Our little redhead is learning that he can't grab toys from our hands, that by being mannerly at doors will get him through that door, and that jumping up gets him - nothing. Nothing. We just ignore that behavior. We know that he knows better and we have a lot of patience. Dogs like little C.K. have taught us lots of patience.

Both he and our little Pippin are reminded over and over again that rewards for good behavior are many and varied. They've learned to sit, to watch (making eye contact with people is huge), C.K. has learned down and roll-over, and done some "agility jumping". Miss Pippin, being newer to GADAB, is still learning down, learning to use her mouth on objects, and has a good watch working. She loves to chase stuffies - it is her main joy in life. She is also a very funny dog - just look at her little froggie imitation, and that's only one of the many ways in which she makes us laugh.

Pippin's ugly destiny was changed forever when she was rescued by an unlikely hero. Like too many of the dogs whom we see, she has a hideous case of demodex (non-contagious mange), but our little froggie love bunny's skin is slowly getting better, with both traditional and alternative medical treatments. Our shelter vet does the traditional; we do the alternative. She's going to be a big girl - she's only 3 1/2 months old in this photo!

Both of these confident, fearless tykes, who came in as cruelty cases, love other dogs and will learn proper play skills in their new foster homes. Yes, they're outta here! They have been adopted by Grateful Dogs Rescue, and their fosters, carefully selected, will continue to socialize, train, and love them until they find their forever homes.

Stay well, little treasures!