Tereasa had me pull a young boxer mix from the local shelter where he was scheduled to be put down. She wanted me to find him a foster until she could get him scheduled for a transport north. Everyone was busy or "dogged out" so we decided to keep him ourselves it would only be a couple of weeks. Well we called him Bensen. He was a really beautiful and active 1 year old boxer mix. He settled into the pack okay but within two days had gotten out of the yard and killed 2 of my little chickens that run around our yard outside of the dog yard. He was fast, smart and powerful. I have one chicken yard that is up against the dog yard fence at the end of the yard. Our dogs could care less about the chickens but Bensen was totally consumed with scaring them by jumping against the gate. I used to have an electric fence that around the perimeter of the dog yard to discourage digging out from under the fence and it worked real well. We have not had to use it in years but to keep our chickens safe from Bensen, I set up a short piece along the side of the chicken fence and actually wrapped it around the gate where he liked to jump up against.
It did not take long to convince him that the chickens were really not that much fun. After the second run in with the electric fence he actually lost interest in the chickens the other side of the fence.
He was much easier to get along with after that. His transport day came and we entertained Tereasa and a van load of dogs and puppies on the road to new forever homes in the north. Early the next morning We loaded the last of the ones we had collected and I followed her to the Shelter where Alice was waiting with a couple last minute puppies that needed to go north also.
We had about a month and a half to enjoy the return to normal here on the Third Hill. As the fates would have it we received a call from Tereasa in Michigan. She had heard from Alice, (the Patron Saint of Dogs and Cats), at our local shelter and she had a really wonderful boxer mix that had been there too long and was going to be put down unless she could find a rescue to take her. She had grown very close to this dog as it would stay with her in the office when she worked and was a great ambassador of good will.
I again tried all my friends but "there was no room at the inn". Lexis was six years old and surrendered by her owner. They claimed she was a fence jumper and could not keep her home. While at the shelter Alice had her tested for Heart Worm and she was positive for them.
We had our dogs on Heart Worm preventative and were not worried about them so we took Miss Lexis home to meet our pack. She fit in almost immediately and within 24 hours had picked out her favorite spot on the couch.
We knew we had a month to wait for the transport so decided to talk with Tereasa about having her heart worm condition treated while she was with us. It would make it easier to place her if she traveled as a healthy dog and not in need of treatment.
Tereasa is part of an online group that I have come to learn helps out dogs with financial donations to get treatment for dogs in need with no sponsorship. This group of wonderful souls came together and came up with the funds for Lexis's treatment.
Tereasa and the group thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and treat her for heart worms before she went on the transport.
We took her to the vets and got an xray to see how far advanced her heart worms had progressed. We found that she had not become "Clinical" yet but there was some enlarging of the heart and arteries that these worms infest.
By not being "Clinical" she likely would respond to a single treatment of the meds and not have to do a second shot.
We put her on Doxycycline which keeps the adult female worms from being able to give off more eggs and to fight secondary infections.
Two days later we took Miss Lexis in to the vets for her treatment. This is the same vets that had saved the lives of the two Parvo puppies from back in the winter. We left her overnight and I called early next morning to see how she was doing. The response was positive and she was doing well.
We brought her home that afternoon with instructions to keep her quite and on a leash for the next 30 days.
Also that the next few days would be critical as this is when they will be dying and things could go wrong. We kept her on a leash for 30 days but at the beginning it was a learning experience. I was with her 24/7 and Dave would help out on the weekends. The first time I took her into the back yard at night, it was in the wee hours of he morning. All the dogs wanted to go out so I put Lexis on her leash and we walked out into the early morning mist and very dark back yard. Lexis has that wonderful nose to help guide her and all I had was an uneasy feeling that I would run afoul of some of the bushes in the back yard.
We proceeded into the dark yard with Lexis in the lead and me following like a sightless man on the end of the tether that bound us together.
Lexis was doing good as she searched for the perfect place to go to the bathroom, I on the other hand was trying to do my best to not trip over something and fall flat on my face or a pile of dog poop. Lexis walks very good on my left side and she guided me through the dark and foggy back yard. All of a sudden I was attacked by the cold, wet hanging branches of our Butterfly Bush. Lexis never missed a step as she passed to the left of it and just dragged me straight though the cold, wet limbs of the vicious Butterfly Bush in the dark. The only good thing with getting dragged though a cold and wet Butterfly Bush is that I was now sure where we were in the layout of the back yard.
She stopped right after the Butterfly Bush and did her business and made a U turn and led me back to the the safety of the motion light at the end of the porch which turned on right in my face blinding me.
Once back in the warmth of our living room, Lexis hopped back up on her end of he couch, settled down and resumed her nap.
I, on the other hand, had to go and get a towel and get the wet Butterfly Bush off of my shirt and head.
About the second week into her treatment Lexis had made herself part of the pack and was doing really wonderful. She had settled in with all 5 of the other dogs and even the cats gave their approval by ignoring her.
One evening Dave and I were at the sink doing dishes and Lexis was setting on the rug behind us watching to see if we dropped any crumbs. I looked down at her sweet face and said to him, "are we going to be able to give her up when it comes time for her transport?" He said, "I don;'t think so."
That was all it took and we started the wheels rolling to adopt her. I called Tereasa and told her of our decision and she said Great!! She was happy as she still did not have a rescue committed to her up there and she was a free agent.
Tereasa posted on the group that had paid for her treatment and fees to get her out of jail and asked if they would mind if Dave and I adopt her. We had been giving them updates on her and they were more than happy to see her adopted by us. One person actually told us that we have become Foster Failures by falling in love with this wonderful animal and adopting her. Well if that is a failure, I am proud to own it. She has been a real treat to have as part of our family and loves being here. She even has no interest in the chickens which is a relief. She does want to be with you as long as you are home and prefers following us around rather than being with the pack on the porch.
We are so lucky to have this sweet girl come into our lives and take up residence.
Here are a few shots of her.
Lexis and Lucy Sharing the couch.
How could you not love a face like this.
Oh good, another pillow I can sleep on.
I have received so many emails in the last few days and the need for homes and fosters is at a real high. Dogs and cats everywhere are flooding the shelters and ending up dead. We are so thankful we could save this girl and all the others that we have had a hand in sending North. I am so in awe of the number of people so committed to saving these wonderful animals in fostering, transporting, rescuing or just looking after them in the shelters.
It really does take a pack to save a dog and we are really proud to be Foster Failures and members of our pack.
Roy and Dave
From the third hill pack.
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