It’s been a week! Allen from Finance came home with me on Tuesday and I have commenced looking for his forever home. Fostering a dog is no small feat. First, this guy, despite being an old dog, is a little machine! He needs a lot of exercise, which I am SO not used to. Me and my sleeper inner Daisy are never in a rush to get up in the morning, if we don’t have to. For obvious reasons, this guy is RAVENOUS, and when he wakes up in the morning (earrrrrrrly) he is HUNGRY.
Tuesday night, I closed the doggy gate to the laundry room and hunkered down on several blankets with my pillow, and kept my hand on him through the gate most of the night. We slept on and off from 10-2, with an outing at 2:11, and then from 2:30-5:15. We took a 10 minute walk of the neighborhood, and at 5:30, I convinced him to rest, and we snoozed until 8. Last night, we managed to sleep from 10:20 to 3:15, hand to paw, went out back to pee, came in and slept until 5:00, at which point we walked the neighborhood. We came back in to snooze, but he only slept until 6:45, so we went back out, and I came in and made him breakfast.
I’m not a vet, but I have had dogs for 20+ years. I took excellent care of my Wheatens, and Daisy has benefitted from the same level of care. Years of being a part of the Wheaten community has taught me a thing or two, and here’s what I am surmising about this sweet boy.
The positives: he is sweet as can be, very obedient (so far) and understands what you want of him, walks well on a leash, soft bite when taking treats, loves other people and other dogs.
The challenges: (with the caveat that he’s only been here two days) I predict advanced kidney disease - I’ve been taking him out once an hour or once every two hours. He pees A LOT, despite not having too much water. (Enough, but not too much.). His pee is more or less clear. He has marked my round chair three times. I have belly bands for him, and predict that they will be needed. He does tell you when he needs to go out, which is interesting. He doesn’t go to the door, but he starts whining and won’t settle. His bark is… awful, honestly. If I were to think the worst, I’d guess that someone had debarked him. His voice is scratchy, at best. He doesn’t bark much, but does whine a little.
He’s got a small mass on top of his right eye. That eye also does a lot of weeping. I haven’t ventured in to clean it because I don’t want to interfere with it just yet. He has cataracts in both eyes. It’s possible he’s blind in that right eye, as he has a head tilt… which also could be a sign of vestibular issues. This dog has been through it.
They gave him an antibiotic shot at the pound for his ears. They are still pretty inflamed looking, but don’t appear to be bothering him. Pretty much every place on his body itches him, which is probably a result of being shaved down and also allergies. His teeth are abysmal, but he hasn’t had any trouble eating food or treats.
I have been feeding him Under the Weather dehydrated/rehydrated food. His poop is yellow and unformed, which could be a result of many things. I don’t want to speculate beyond saying that that’s going to take some time. I have been adding a little bit of bentonite clay to get the poop a bit more solid, and it’s worked a tiny bit.
They (Animal Control) won’t test him for heartworm until he’s scheduled to get his neuter done on July 3rd. Depending on a lot of factors, I may get him tested before then, as well as getting a urinalysis, and liver and kidney function blood tests. If you have or have had dogs, you know this is not cheap. I’m inquiring with my vet about reduced fees. Fingers crossed for that.
This guy deserves the softest of landing spots. He’s higher energy than you’d expect and he LOVES other dogs. He would love to be best buds with another dog. He loves to play fetch. He loves to sit near you. He loves the breeze from the ceiling fan and the cold floor on his belly.
If you or someone you know might be interested in adopting this guy - they named him Allen from Finance at the pound, but I’ve been calling him Buddy and Bud and Sweet Pea, and Love Bug, please reach out. Please feel free to share this post, so we can find him the best place to live out his twilight years.
Location: I am located in central Maryland, between Baltimore and Annapolis.
Adoption is through Anne Arundel County Animal Care and Control - this link is to the animals currently in the shelter. Allen is #2.
And no, while I would normally consider adopting him, that’s not in the cards for me right now. He deserves more than I can provide for him.
And to close with a song:
Love to all the pets needing soft landing spots,
Kris
What a cutie!