Winter~Adopted

02/26/13 Dale Writes: Yea, so…..how cool is it that after only a week & a 1/2 Rider has learned my work schedule and is waiting out by the gate every day when I turn up, the driveway. Okay, now here’s the downside – cute but downside = It appears that when he comes out to sit & wait for me, he doesn’t care that it’s POURING DOWN RAIN !!! Yep, there sat my dedicated son, just as happy & excited to see me……soaking wet but he didn’t care – Daddy was home !

02/16/13:  Winter joined us in DeLand.  Visit White Dog Day and see more photos and video of him at the dog park!

02/08/13:  Winter has been adopted by Dale and Brenda, and living in DeLand with Dales pack!  Can’t wait for updates!

02/14/13:  Winter got a bath yesterday!  Doesn’t he look awesome!  You can continue to see updated photos of Winter on Facebook.

02/05/13 Foster Update:  Winter is wonderful.  He has the self-confidence he needs, he is playing like a maniac (thanks to Digit) and is just a very good boy!  He’s great with kids, unsure about cats, and loves dogs… all dogs!  He, like China, has incredible recall (most deaf dogs do).

Here’s his latest video.

History:

Dave told me yesterday there was a white Aussie boy in Seminole County’s Animal Control.  I got in touch with Kim Litz, Aussie rescuer, and offered to take him.  She sent me a few photos of him, and said he was a good boy.  He reminded me of Dundee (Chance) who was adopted by the Wilson family.  He looked familiar to me, as if he and Dundee might be related.

They estimate he might be four years old, but today we wondered if he was two.  Who knows, he might even be older, I’ll let Dr. Oliver decide.  He’s also heartworm negative!  Whew!

Judging by his dirty feet, he’s been on his own for a while.  Rumors have it a local farmer was looking for an un-socialized dog to work with his cattle, so he bought this dog from a breeder.  Woops!  I don’t think he meant to buy a totally deaf and visually impaired dog.  Well, obviously it didn’t work out!  I was also told that this boy has been a stray for a month or so.  Seems like animal control has been getting calls from people who have spotted him.  I don’t know if any of these facts are accurate or not, so if I hear something different, I’ll update it here!

I had a choice to get him neutered at the county, or just pull him right away.  I figured I had a appointment already, and I really wanted to meet him first, so I opted to proceed with my plan… off to Val-U-Vet.

When he walked in the door, the staff at Val-U-Vet popped their heads up, and were curious about this slow moving Aussie.  One by one, the ladies joined me in the main lobby, and we sat on the ground evaluating him.  It was really cool, because first Serena came out, and evaluated the condition of his coat.   His coat is dry, and full of sand.  It didn’t take long before several of the staff were interacting with the dog.  We did a rough test of his eyes, they both blink!  But we don’t think he can hear… at all!

He wasn’t afraid of us, but he was cautious, and he was a bit confused; unsure of his surroundings, which I would expect.  What we did notice is he did not want to left alone.  He followed whoever moved, and when he couldn’t find a human, he hugged the wall.  I video taped it to share with you, even though I know that this video may decrease his chances for adoption.  After all, it shows him being unsure and lacking confidence.  But that’s okay, I’ll also be sharing video of him a few days and weeks from now, which I’m sure will be totally different!

By the way I’d like to apologize, because I’m typing this so fast, not taking the time to proofread!

Kim recently wrote:  Evaluated this 3 yr old male and what a sweet thing! He was good with the two dogs he interacted with, an older male corgi mix who kept trying to get him to play and then wanted to hump him, it didn’t bother him, he just sat down. He also was fine with the young Catahoula mix girl who sniffed him all over (she is disabled so not able to run around). He just sniffed the cat and didn’t really pay her much attention after that (she hissed at him but of course he couldn’t hear that). He is deaf and does have some limited sight although when I dropped the leash he could follow me around and did so several times. He was quiet, I went slowly at first as not to startle him. I really liked this boy, he was sweet and gentle, no jumping. He let me look at his teeth, his ears, his toes and touch him all over.

I shared with the staff at Val-U-Vet my name ideas for the gentle boy.  You see, on the way to meet Kim, I had a bunch of names in my head!  I had emailed a few people today asking for name ideas.  Here’s was my list!

If he was lovey dovey I was going to name him Diamond Dave.

If he was regal and sophisticated I was going to name him Elton.

My son, Ryan first wanted to name him Chrome.  I saved that name in case he was playful.

Then, I thought if he’s super smart, I’d name him Anderson Cooper.

But none of those names will do.

My son begged me to name him Winter.  He said there was a song that he loves, called The Sound of Winter.  While the five of us standing in a circle, surrounding the dog took a vote, and we all voted unanimously; Winter.

He’s staying at Val-U-Vet tonight.  Tomorrow morning he will be lovingly groomed by Serena.  She will make him so white I’ll need sunglasses!  Also tomorrow his vision will be evaluated by Dr. Pinzon.  On Friday, he will be neutered.  I suspect that by the time I see him again, he’ll be a different dog!

I’ve asked the Wilson family to foster him for me, but whether he stays with me or stays with the Wilsons, he will get the best of care, and he will be introduced to play.  We will work on trust, and expose him to new things, and hopefully increase his self-esteem.

One thing is obvious, Winter is a velcro dog.  He needs the closeness of a human.  And please don’t tell me that deaf dogs don’t make good guard dogs, because it’s my China that’s the first to bark at a stranger (ferociously I might add).  I think because Ozzie and Lady Di can actually hear the intruder, or maybe they can see the intruder from the window, they don’t even bother to get up!  Because China can’t hear them, or see them very well, everyone is a stranger to her, until she can smell them, and until that happens, she guards her castle!

I’ll be anxious to update Winter’s page, I’m confident that we can help him, and I’m confident he will find the perfect home.  Thank you Kim!  I’m also glad that I made the decision to keep my appointment.  I know that at night, when the crowds leave, the folks at Val-U-Vet really interact with my dogs!  You can see more photos of him on Facebook.

I was getting ready to publish this post, and when I looked on Facebook, Kathy K. left a comment:

Kathy K:  If so, I am so thankful. I have seen him late at night on my way home from work and tried to catch several times. Took food I left once but other times just ran. Followed him once during the day for about an hour until he ran into the woods. No one seemed to know where he came from but talked to several people that tried to catch him. If not, still glad another baby has been saved.

So it’s true, it takes a village.

Update:  Winter’s veterinary care has been sponsored by Dusty, who adopted China’s Twin, Lilly!  Woo Hoo for Winter!  He’s getting the full spa treatment today, bath, ears, nails blow-dry and comb out!  Tomorrow he gets neutered.  Thank you Dusty!

01/31/13:  Winter will not get a bath today, and his surgery has been cancelled. He is having an upper respiratory infection.  Some vitamins, antibiotics and cough medicine are in order. I’m picking him up shortly and he’ll chill out and relax for a few days before we reschedule!

I brought Winter home.  He does have a pretty hefty cough, and I’m glad he was not neutered yesterday by Animal Control.  My vet said he wouldn’t really eat, so I popped open a can of Andi’s chicken stew… he gobbled it!  I’ve taken him outside, he’s very needy, and starting to show affection.  He follows me around everywhere, like I’m his security blanket.

I picked up the girls from school, and we took Winter outside to introduce him to the yard.  He is shy at first, but once he gets a chance to smell you, and knows that you mean him no harm, he warms up VERY quickly, giving kisses and wanting to hug.  You can see more photos of him on Facebook. 

02/01/13:  Winter is doing well, very well!  He’s eating good, so I’m not concerned, but his cough is bad.  He is starting to play, and he barks for attention!  What a great sign!  He is very affectionate, and he licks my feet just to tell me he likes me!  I will share more very soon!

 

02/03/13:  Winter’s cough is almost completely gone.  He loves to run with the pack, and is very playful.  He does not try to escape from the yard; so why was he on the run on his own for so long?  Maybe a female in heat caused him to leave the safety of his home?  Maybe he was dumped.  Winter is great in his crate, and barks occasionally to check if we’re hear!  I’ve been leaving the light on for him at night; it helped!  He is great with the kids and is gaining a lot of self-confidence.

We have many new photos of him on Facebook.

 

 

Flash Back:  It’s February 11, 2013 and I’m just going through all of my old messages.  I re-read Kathy’s comments on Winter’s photo album on Facebook, when it dawned on me.  Last November, she sent me a private message:

November 30, 2012: Not sure that you can help but maybe you have heard if someone is missing this dog. I saw a white with small gray markings and very light blue eyes, Australian Shepherd running loose in the Longwood area. He/she was running on Rangeline road and then onto Church Ave. He/she is very dirty. Does not seem aggressive but would not come to me. I followed it for a ways with food and it would just cross the road and kept running. It was running in traffic. Several of us tried to catch it to no avail. I followed it to the woody area by Pet Country ( a boarding place on Church). I asked if they were missing a dog and they said that it had been running for about 4 days and that no one has been able to catch it. I then spoke to another lady walking a dog and she said the same thing. I checked with the Vet I take my kitties to and they did not know of anyone missing a dog. I now have to go to work and sadly I don’t live in the area the dog is running in or I would leave food out. It is a dirty beauty and i am so scared it will get hit. I will look for it again tomorrow. Please let me know if you have heard of anyone missing such dog. Thank you for your time. Kathy

 

Not knowing if the dog was a male or a female, I wrote her back, giving her some advice:  Keep looking! If you see her, sit on the ground, and turn your back on her, avoiding eye contact. Extend your hand out, and see if she’ll come to you. If she’s scared, she will approach from the back or the side. Bring food. Bring a braided slip leash, it’ll take time.  You can call my cell if you need me.   Also, she may have puppies so check her belly if you can. If she’s nursing, you can not remove her.

Now it all makes sense, why Kathy was so excited when we got Winter.  I have chills!

 

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