Billy Ray~Adopted

A desperate email was sent to Becky, and she forwarded it to me, asking for our help.  It read:

Hi Becky,

I was wondering if you might be able to help me, I wondered if Gisele might have room for these babies, which I was told look very border collie…… the male that we think got the mama pregnant looks like a full blooded border collie and is black and white.

They are part of a mama and four puppy stray family I have been trying to catch in a very bad neighborhood in my town; the local kids were shooting at them with BB guns and the adults were throwing things at them to try to chase them off. One of the puppies was run over before we could get them and there is still one puppy and the poor mama at large, I have been going every day for about 4 hours after work trying to trap the mama and the other pup but I am losing hope.

I did manage to catch two of the pups on separate days last week and I need somewhere for them to go as soon as possible. They are very scared of people but have come a long way, they still hide under my bathroom sink alcove when we go into the bathroom but they let us pet them and will tolerate us holding them short periods too. They are obviously depressed and even more scared without their mom and I feel horrible at having to had to separate them from her, but they were sure to die out there in that neighborhood.

I would be willing to drive them to Gisele if she will take them but I need to be sure they are going somewhere where the rescuer will understand their past and work with them, they are not like most puppies that are bubbly and silly and all, they have had a rough life and will need someone who understands and will give them that patience. I have only ever heard great things about Gisele and wondered if she might have room.

I am still going out there daily to try to catch the mama and other puppy until I think there is no chance, but in the last three weeks we have had no luck for them.

I would be so grateful if you could talk with Gisele or anyone else you think might be able to take them in and bring them on out of their shells, they are having to live in my bathroom 24 hours a day and I know they are bored and unhappy there, just want what is best for them.

Thanks for any help you can give them.  ~ Melissa in Ozark

 

So this little boy comes to us from Melissa from Ozark, Alabama.  He appears to be VERY healthy, but he is shy.  Much like Brittney’s Mystery, once you hold him, he feels safe and secure.  So is she really shy, or just unsure?  He is really enjoying the little Aussie pup that joined him on transport.  I want to thank our Sarah Buxbaum for bringing him to us from the airport yesterday, and Jeff Bennett for his life-saving flight!

At first we thought he was like Shy Sharon, a fear biter, but that’s not the case at all.    Once I put a leash on him, and he saw the puppy, he wagged his tail, and felt comfortable to come out.  I picked him up without any issues.  He did hide a lot in the back yard, under furniture, and then he wandered off to the shed where he sat and watched us.  My son Ryan, picked him up, and he immediately relaxed.  He didn’t try to wiggle out of his arms, he was very content to be there.

This little boy is going to find his self-confidence really fast!  He’s going to be an awesome little Border Collie.  For now, he does have an achy breaky heart, so after tossing around some name ideas we decided to name him Billy Ray!  For while he’s sad today, it won’t last… he’ll be TDL star soon!

Check out his photos on Facebook.

10/21/13 Update:  I received an email from Lisa who was interested in knowing more about Billy Ray.  She shared with me photos of her former Border Collie, Baja Boy.  Baja Boy was adopted from a Border Collie rescue while they lived in Arizona.  They moved here, and embarked on adventures on the beach, teaching Baja Boy to paddle board!  When on one day at the beach, Lisa shared with me over the phone what happened.  A man was walking back and forth on the beach, Lisa would waive at him, being friendly and trying to say hi.  The man didn’t waive back.  Baja Boy was minding his own business enjoying the beach when it happened.  She wrote in one of her emails: