The Dog Liberatorâ„¢

The Dog Liberator rescues abandoned dogs throughout the Southeast. Based in Central Florida, this non-profit organization fosters all of their dogs in a home environment. Founded in 2009, all dogs are fully vetted, spayed or neutered prior to adoption. The Dog Liberator focuses in rescuing the herding breed, which consists of Border Collies, Shepherds, Sheepdogs, Aussies, Collies, and Deaf/Blind Dogs.

Maggie’s Puppies Begin Their Adventure! ~ Adopted!

Maggie’s Puppies Begin Their Adventure! ~ Adopted!
Maggie is a sweet 10 pound, 15 month Maltipoo that got knocked up by the family Bichipoo. (quick plug for spay and neutering earlier rather than later!). Maggie’s family are dear friends of The Dog Liberator and asked if we would whelp her for them. So of course we said yes. Maggie will go back home after she has weaned her litter. The puppies will be adopted through us.Maggie gave birth to 3 boys and 2 girls in the wee hours of June 8th. She performed like a champ, even when the last one was temporarily stuck in the birth canal. She tended her puppies between deliveries, cleaning up and stimulating each one as it was born. I’m very proud of her.

 

These photos were all taken minutes after the puppies were born. I will add photos to Maggie’s photo album so that everyone can see them as they mature.

~ Holly


11 June Update:

Maggie is an amazing mommy! I was so worried that, being a young as she is, she wouldn’t take to her puppies. Not so! She really does a wonderful job tending them (still in my closet) to the point that when she leaves for some “Maggie time” she shuts the door behind her! Oh, that must be the poodle in her ~ scary smart!

Today I gave her a bath for the first time since giving birth. She was so happy, she tore around the house, rolling on the couch, dancing at our feet. I took the opportunity to sneak in there and take some photos of the babies. They are growing like weeds! I can already the curl in their white coats. They are going to be beautiful!

 

19 June Update:

The puppies’ eyes have started to open! They are really growing, easily doubled in size, and have become rather mobile in the scooching kinda way. I’ve made a bumper that divides the crate in half so Maggie can have a little privacy away from her babies. No good! They keep climbing over it to get to her. I’ll have to figure something out. She is being such a good momma I don’t want her to get tired of them too soon!

 

22 June Update:

The puppies are 14 days old and have started to walk. It isn’t much of a walk, but still exciting to see! Here is a video of them taken today. So cute!

29 June Update: The puppies are 21 days old and growing like crazy. They are starting to wrestle with each other and make little barking noises. One of them even sounds like a tribble (for all you Star Trek fans).

 

 

Maggie the momma was looking so thin, I decided to start the puppies on regular food. It is a little earlier than I might like, but they were crying yesterday and this morning, so I don’t think Maggie’s milk can keep up with the demand. I soaked puppy kibble in boiling water to soften is then added warm goats milk to make it soupier and smell more like their momma. I fed them in my shower expecting a terrible mess but they actually did quite well! A video of the experience is posted on our Facebook.02 July Update:The puppies are doing alright with their puppy food but definitely prefer their mama! I had to get Maggie outside to take these photos of her babies ~ she gets very nervous when they are out of their crate. Three boys, two girls. There are more photos posted on their photo album.

9 July Update:Every time I think they can’t get cuter, they do! Would you believe that they are close to paper trained already? At four weeks? That must be the Poodle in them ~ Maltese and Bichons are infamous for being hard to potty train. The puppies are really developing their personalities. I usually know which one it is just by how they are behaving. Gosh, they’re adorable. Let me introduce you to my babies:

 


Caboose was the last born and is the runt of the litter. He was breached and got stuck halfway out so I had to help him a bit. His fur is quite white and curlier than the other boys. He doesn’t have a “runt” personality, but instead is fun-loving. Caboose was reserved on July 15th.



ChaCha
is the larger of the two girls. Her fur is wavy rather than curly. Her face is a bit longer which sometimes gives her a sadder look, which is quite the opposite of her true outlook. She makes a funny trill sound, rather like a tribble for you Star Trek fans. ChaCha was reserved on July 17th.

Donut is the middle boy, in birth order and size. In fur too, I guess ~ more wavy than curly or straight. He is always the last to wear out, still wanting to play when all the rest have fallen asleep. Donut was reserved on July 18th.

 

GinGin is the smaller of the two girls. Her fur is curlier than ChaCha’s, more like Caboose’s. She may be little, but she isn’t shy. She and ChaCha managed to clamber out of their crate a couple of nights ago! Adventure!!!! GinGin was reserved on July 15th.

Tucker was the first born and the largest in the litter. His coat is somewhat straighter and more golden than everyone else’s. He is self-confident and a leader. Tucker was reserved on July 8th.

I feel that I know the puppies well enough now to start taking deposits. Their adoption fee is $650; the deposit is $350 of which $50 is non-refundable. I realize that this is higher than most rescue puppies, but we do not really consider them “rescues.” You’ll remember that the mother, Maggie, is going back to her owners who simply asked our help in whelping and placing the litter. They are donating the fee back to us in appreciation. For those who want to compare them to “pet store” puppies, remember that those are from puppy mills where they lived in wire cages like inventory; they are not socialized, they are not paper trained, and they are not fixed. These puppies have been under my care and nurturing since before they were born. I will not place them in homes lightly. If you have any questions about the adoption fee, please read my blog of July 7th.

14 July Update:

The puppies are as busy as can be. I’ve started taking them outside to play on the grass and they are loving it! Of course, they are smart enough to not wander too far away from me, a good thing since we have eagles in the area. I tried to get a video of them playing, but filming puppies is like herding cats! So it isn’t great, but this is the best I could do:


15 July Update:
I tell people that one of my goals in fostering puppies is that when they leave my home they are self-confident. This is especially important in small breeds. I just can’t abide yappy obnoxious little dogs. They usually end up that way because of poor leadership by their owners. So I do what I can to help them believe that they are “big dogs” so that they don’t have to be scared, and therefore yappy, all the time. There is a small possibility that I am too successful at this! Check out this photo of little Tucker and my Gus. Gus loves to play with the puppies, but he is a Basset/Bulldog mix and therefore not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Sometimes he can get carried away. Well, Tucker has decided that he can give back just as well! Doesn’t Gus look a bit surprised? I love this photo! Thank you to Ashley N. for sharing it with me.20 July Update:

All of the puppies have been spoken for but they will stay with me until they are old enough to be fixed ~ we don’t want another Maggie/Buddy incident!!! Their families are anxious to get them, but it will be a few weeks yet. Meanwhile, I’ll keep updating this blog page so we can all continue to watch them grow.
This morning my husband was playing with them in the grass. You know what you get when you mix together fluffy white puppies, morning dew and a garden? Muddy puppies! It’s a little alarming how much they enjoyed it. A bath in the immediate future is forecasted….

 

Adopting Families


Tucker was adopted on August 13th by Chandra and Dwight. Missy, their 14-year-old shepherd, had recently died and, although they wanted another dog, they knew it would have to be a smaller one so that it could travel more easily with them in their retired years. They came over to meet Maggie’s girls, but I suggested that they sit on the floor and let their puppy pick them. Much to their surprise, it was Tucker all the way! The puppies all greated them and played, but Tucker was ga-ga for them! He won’t replace Missy by any means, but puppy kisses go a long way to healing broken hearts!

Caboose and GinGin were adopted on August 20th. Chris and Troy, with their daughters Aliyah and Kiandra, have counted down the days, waiting anxiously to bring the puppies home. This family has never had a dog before and have bravely opted for two! I have no doubt they’ll do great; they’ve already arranged for Mike Shamp of Bark Busters to come and train…. them or the dogs????? Oh, this is going to be a wonderful family for my babies!!!

Donut – November 9th, 2010 Update

Hello and Autumnal Greetings,

Well it has been more than two months since our little Loukoumi Donut came home. He is 5 months old and has more than doubled his take home weight. He is now 14.5 lbs. Donut is a very social, excitable, happy,and loving dog. He loves ALL people and ALL dogs. He is part comedian,thespian and professor. Steve says he looks a little like Einstein. I wonder that he may actually be Einstein! He always wants to play play play. He is way too smart and has quickly taken to obedience training. Within the first few days of being home he had already learned sit, come, down, and the ever important, off! This week he graduated from his eight week puppy class. He is very good at “wait”.Donut is not fond of the leash unless he is biting it. As a matter of fact, he loves to bite everything, especially our clothes! He recently lost all his upper teeth and during the Halloween weekend he lost both of his lower canines. So, in the spirit of the season, I give you not only a few of his growing up photos…. but the very mouthy Count Donut the Vampire!!
Love to all
Melony

 

Donut 11/29/14 Update!

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We recently received another update on Donut. Can you believe it has been 4 years since this little guy was adopted? My they grow up so fast…

Here are some recent pictures of Donut with his loving family! Special thanks to them for continuing to send updates. You guys rock!

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