Thursday
Jul012010
every dog has a story . . . Snickers
Thursday, July 1, 2010 at 09:35PM After a broken heart, Snickers finally finds his forever home!
Camp Cocker had first rescued Snickers from the South Central Los Angeles animal shelter in May of 2007. He was a moppy matted mess and once we got him out of the shelter and groomed, he was oh so gorgeous! In December of 2007, we adopted Snickers to a woman who seemed by outwardly appearances to be nice and sincere. She was a first time dog owner and also a renter, two things that we now understand are perhaps not the best combination for a long term stable home. When she moved, she didn't want to do the work to find a dog friendly place and Snickers was the first to go. We had some brief contact with her while she had Snickers staying in her parents' garage but after that, she stopped returning our calls.
We got quite anxious and wanted to come and pick up Snickers but she was unresponsive. Finally, she emailed us to say that Snickers was fine and not to worry. The next thing we knew, Snickers was picked up by animal control in an industrial neighborhood. No residential area anywhere around, it was obvious someone had dumped him there. Thank goodness that Camp Cocker keeps our info on all of our dogs' microchips because as soon as Snickers arrived at the shelter, we were called. We dropped everything and drove there immediately to pick him up. As we were walking through the shelter to look for him, we walked right past his kennel because we didn't recognize him. He was filthy dirty, matted from months and months, perhaps even a year of no brushing or grooming and he smelled really badly of urine. He recognized Cathy though as he started jumping up and barking at her after she passed his kennel. Good boy, Snickers, good boy! We got him out of the shelter, had to have him shaved down to get rid of the mats and start fresh.
This was in October of 2009 that Snickers came back to Camp Cocker. In January of 2010, a lovely woman by the name of Jill came along to adopt Snickers and this time it was to be his forever home. He has a beautiful cocker spaniel sister named Edith (she is in the pictures with him) and his new mommy dotes on him like he deserves! Don't you worry Snickers, we got it right this time around and you won't ever have to be in a shelter again!
We got quite anxious and wanted to come and pick up Snickers but she was unresponsive. Finally, she emailed us to say that Snickers was fine and not to worry. The next thing we knew, Snickers was picked up by animal control in an industrial neighborhood. No residential area anywhere around, it was obvious someone had dumped him there. Thank goodness that Camp Cocker keeps our info on all of our dogs' microchips because as soon as Snickers arrived at the shelter, we were called. We dropped everything and drove there immediately to pick him up. As we were walking through the shelter to look for him, we walked right past his kennel because we didn't recognize him. He was filthy dirty, matted from months and months, perhaps even a year of no brushing or grooming and he smelled really badly of urine. He recognized Cathy though as he started jumping up and barking at her after she passed his kennel. Good boy, Snickers, good boy! We got him out of the shelter, had to have him shaved down to get rid of the mats and start fresh.
This was in October of 2009 that Snickers came back to Camp Cocker. In January of 2010, a lovely woman by the name of Jill came along to adopt Snickers and this time it was to be his forever home. He has a beautiful cocker spaniel sister named Edith (she is in the pictures with him) and his new mommy dotes on him like he deserves! Don't you worry Snickers, we got it right this time around and you won't ever have to be in a shelter again!
It is interesting how many prospective adopters complain to us that we are too selective about whom we adopt to. If anything, it is a story like what happened to Snickers that really has inspired us to be more and more selective. We don't want to find a home for just now for each dog, we want to find a home that will be for the rest of that dog's life. We want to find a home that is stable and committed and prepared to do whatever it takes to keep that dog as a member of the family. Sometimes first time dog owners can be wonderful, in this case, it turned out to be a first time dog owner that was not. We can only imagine what he went through while he was there that his physical condition was so bad or how he ended up getting dumped in a bad neighborhood having to fend for himself out on the streets of Los Angeles. We just hope to learn from this and do better. The next time someone tells us we are too picky about whom we adopt to, we will thank them for the compliment because we know our motives are driven by how we can do the best that we can by each dog that comes through our rescue.
Snickers wrote a little story to share with all of you (we think his mommy might have done the typing for him!). Hope you enjoy it!
Who ever said “lightening can't strike twice in the same place” was wrong. If you were familiar with the Camp Cocker website toward the end of 2009, you might have seen me. I was the black and tan cocker with the white blaze on my chest and the broken heart that Camp Cocker rescued twice. It's true...Camp Cocker sprung me from the pound 2 years ago and found what they thought was a loving home for me. I still don't know what I did wrong. My “loving home” didn't last and I was once again picked up by animal control, this time at an industrial site near Los Angeles...not a very safe place for a little dog like me. When my human didn't return their calls, Animal Control contacted Camp Cocker (my micro-chip has both contacts on it) and they wasted no time in getting me out. This time, I waited over 3 months before anyone came for me.
Cathy Stanley puts a lot of time and thought into putting the right adopter with the perfect dog. She has real match-making proclivities. Cathy knows my favorite thing to do is “sit on the sofa and watch my programs”. It's true, I am the original couch potato and with my new mommy and sister I have a match made in heaven. I even fall asleep when Mom brushes me.
Mom is a 2-cocker human and until last year, shared a home with Edith, my new sister, also a black cocker and Ernie, my brother, who was blonde and passed away last year. (Mom recently developed a penchant for naming pets after authors whose names begin with the letter “E”...hence “Edith” Wharton and “Ernest” Hemingway.) So it should come as no surprise that the names, “Edgar” “Emerson” and “Elliot” were in the wings awaiting the arrival of the newcomer. Enter me...I'm older and I came with a name to which I respond. So much for tradition. I'm hoping for another sister and that we can call her “Baby Ruth”. I love the ladies. I especially love giving the ladies my famous “Snickers' facials”. Edith is gradually warming up to my facials. A couple more weeks and she'll be putty in my paws.
My sedate personality actually fits in very nicely with Edith, who is a ball of energy. She was adopted 4 years ago from another rescue group after her first “forever” adopter brought her back and “exchanged” her for another dog because she was “too hyper”. She's not hyper...she's just fun and frighteningly smart. We have that “rescued twice” thing in common...at least her first adopter brought her back...mine just dumped me.
I like to think of myself as a rather petite cocker, that is...“petite” in height and length, but not in girth or weight. Mom says I resemble a chubby little tramp wearing a dirty tuxedo, sooty socks and an expression of “pure pathos.” (Whatever that is...I've got the look down pat.) Add to that, the white around my mouth and she says I look like I just finished off a box of powdered sugar donuts. Mom says she falls in love with me all over again every time she looks at my “sad, little face.” See, I told you, I've got “the look” down pat. Mom's boyfriend calls me, “Applehead” because of my perfectly dome-shaped noggin.
At first, I tried to tell everyone that I just have a thyroid problem, so Mom hurried me off to the vet as soon as we got home...but my thyroid appears to be fine, (I just like to eat). In fact, I like to eat so much that when I'm not lounging on the sofa or in one of the 7 dog beds scattered around the house watching the History Channel, I hang out in the laundry room where the dog food and treats are kept. Earlier this week Mom purchased a rather large bag of bison kibble. She carried it from the car to the house, put it on the steps leading into the spa and let Edith and me out while she went back to get more groceries. While she was gone I got on the spa steps and cozied up to the unopened bag of “Taste of the Wild”. (I learned to read while watching TV.)
It's only been a little over four months and Mom says she can't imagine life without me. As for me...I'm adjusting quite fine to the venison, bottled water, bison kibble, salmon treats (the carrots, too), the 7 dog beds, all the furniture, the cool grass and warm sun in the back yard, sleeping in late and all the lap time I get with Mom. If only she'd get a great, big flat screen TV, life would be PERFECT!!!
At first, I tried to tell everyone that I just have a thyroid problem, so Mom hurried me off to the vet as soon as we got home...but my thyroid appears to be fine, (I just like to eat). In fact, I like to eat so much that when I'm not lounging on the sofa or in one of the 7 dog beds scattered around the house watching the History Channel, I hang out in the laundry room where the dog food and treats are kept. Earlier this week Mom purchased a rather large bag of bison kibble. She carried it from the car to the house, put it on the steps leading into the spa and let Edith and me out while she went back to get more groceries. While she was gone I got on the spa steps and cozied up to the unopened bag of “Taste of the Wild”. (I learned to read while watching TV.)
It's only been a little over four months and Mom says she can't imagine life without me. As for me...I'm adjusting quite fine to the venison, bottled water, bison kibble, salmon treats (the carrots, too), the 7 dog beds, all the furniture, the cool grass and warm sun in the back yard, sleeping in late and all the lap time I get with Mom. If only she'd get a great, big flat screen TV, life would be PERFECT!!!
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