Post by Volunteer Amy

Magnum, Ora & Henna

The beginning
I never really thought of myself as a “dog” person. We never had one growing up, although not for lack of asking. But, with seven children plus a daycare business in the home, my mom felt she had enough chaos to deal with. When we “older siblings” moved out, one of my uncle’s surprised the family with a Miniature Dachshund for Christmas. (Folks at home, NEVER surprise ANYONE with an animal of any kind - that should be in the rule book somewhere) Anyway, everyone in the house loved Jordan (R.I.P. my sweet buddy) but nobody really bonded with him like I did. This was a little odd and awkward, being that I didn’t live there anymore. But, I still visited daily and took over the main care of Jordan for several years - until the “younger sibling” were old enough to take on the responsibility on their own.

That’s where is started. The love of dogs. Well, the love of small dogs. I always said that when I moved to a place where I could have animals that I was going to get a little dog of my very own to love. I kept this intention even after I met me husband, Larry, who was in love with Rottweilers. He had recently lost his male Rottie, Loki, to cancer. He informed me that he was going to get another soon after we got our house. I said, “Fine. You can have a Rottweiler as long as I get to pick a small dog for our family, too.” He agreed, even though he never really liked carpet buffaloes. What’s fair is fair. So, we looked for a Rottie puppy, and after doing what we thought was our due diligence found a litter of pups ready to go.

Who can relate to love at fist site? That was my baby boy Magnum! I cant express the joy he brought into our lives. Not knowing much about the breed, I started researching and soaking up anything Rottie related. Of course, it was a total shock to me when my cute little bear cub kept growing. Was he ever going to stop? He was close to 100 lbs when he turned a year old, and we knew that even with our training and rules, he was lacking something fundamental - doggie socialization. Ok, so we started out fostering a little on the selfish side. We thought it would be great to get Magnum a friend, find out for ourselves what it would be like living in a two-dog household, and if we helped a dog in need - all the better.

Rescue
Since we knew Rottweilers, we looked for a Rottie in need at a local rescue. He and Magnum didn’t hit it off, but they had another little guy in need of a foster home. Along came Charlie. He was a cute little shepherd mix, and our first foster experience. Well, I guess you can say we caught the bug. We had Charlie for a couple of weeks, until he was adopted. Unfortunately, he was “returned” - a story for another day - and we gladly took him back to help him on his journey. We fostered three more times for that rescue, two Rotties and an Akita/Chow mix. Can you see how the little dogs were going to the wayside? It was a very rewarding experience for us, and Magnum was becoming more and more confident with each dog that was paraded through the house.

ARLP
Of course in my research of local Rottweiler rescues, I came across A Rotta Love Plus. I loved what they were doing and the message they were spreading, so we offered to start fostering Rottweilers for them. I must say I was a bit surprised when asked if we wanted to foster a Pit Bull. We were expecting another mellow Rott in the house for a bit - and what we got was Ora.

Oh, Ora! She was part of a large animal control seizure two years ago. She had no manners (typical shelter animal) health issues, and on top of all that she didnt really like other dogs. Well, she liked Magnum, but come on - who doesnt like Magnum. Even with all that, we were dedicated to her. With time, patience, tears, and training, Ora became a wonderful little girl and found a home. Again, our beloved foster dog was “returned” - yuck, I have too many of those stories. We were all over ourselves to take her back. This time, she wouldn’t be leaving. We decided to adopt Ora from ARLP last summer, and couldnt be happier!

The Other dogs
We were pretty much sure our fostering days were over with Ora’s bitchy attitude toward many other dogs. Don’t get the wrong idea, she has many doggie friends, it just takes her a couple days to a week to warm up to some dogs. Not to mention, two big dogs in the house is a lot. But, that didnt stop me from screaming “Yes!” when the rescue asked if we were willing to take in a puppy. To back track, we fostered Zander the Rottie puppy, in between Ora’s placement. With such a cute Rott puppy face, he was adopted out to a wonderful family very soon.

Sidenote: Oh, I love puppies - puppies are my thang. So sad that someone would “throw away” such innocent little babies. I love to spoil them with all the love and attention thay need, and at the same time prepare them for their forever home. Plus, Ora finds puppies less threatening to her Diva Status.

We had a sprinkling of short term foster Pit Bulls and Rotts after that. Last fall, we had Pit Bull Puppy Pandemonium in our house. We took in Henna and Wonky, then Wonky and Brodie, then Henna and Brodie in a series of foster house switches - all puppies around 8-9 weeks. That’s when my friends and family proclaimed I had gone over the edge. I just like to think of Larry and I as dedicated dog enthusiasts.

Henna was our last permanent foster dog to leave a couple months ago. I still miss my little mischievous baby! Since then, we have had foster “guests” in the house for shorter durations. When we counted, around 18 dogs have come through our house in the past four years. Whew! Um, I guess I can see where people would think we are crazy. But, the truth of it is, working with the dogs has really kept us sane.

Letting Go
It is always hard to let the dogs go. It’s the only part of fostering I dont like. (ok, besides cleaning carpets after puppy accidents) I think it is natural to feel a loss when you have have loved something so much. Truth be told, I cry for several days. Often cry myself to sleep at night wondering if they are ok. Do they miss us? Are they being good? Did I remember to tell their new parents about that cute little thing they do? But, just getting an update telling us how much love and joy the pup is bringing to the new family makes it all worth it. We often get updates on dogs that have passed through, and I cherish every one!

So the tears dry up, I take a breath, and say, “Yes, we have room for another dog”….

Filed under: Observations & Reflection