Straydog UPDATE posted SATURDAY 2/8/03 at ~9:47 p.m. CT
Pat Arnold's Daily Dog Log
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 8 2003
Pixie is tentatively adopted but not at Adoption Day at PetsMart!
No dogs were adopted during our Adoption Day at PetsMart in Plano [Texas], but while our volunteer group was there with a van load of dogs, we had visitors come here to look at and hopefully adopt Muffin and/or Pixie.
A woman named Margaret called earlier this week inquiring about Pixie and Muffin, whose pictures she had seen on Petfinder.org, and she wanted to come out to see the dogs this afternoon. She has two male dogs and two cats, so the adoption of either Pixie or Muffin really depends on how the dog of her choice will get along with the family pets she already has.
Margaret and her sister arrived this afternoon, and we took a tour of our shelter, stopping to talk to the many dogs as we passed by their kennels, and we went in their respective kennels to visit with Pixie and Muffin.
Pixie is a four-year-old Basenji mix
She is a pretty, medium-size, black and white dog with short fur. She shares a big kennel with her pal, big Catahoola mix, Boomer. Pixie is usually a little standoffish with new people when she chooses to be, but she is playful, and she has had several kennel companions during her stay at our Happy Home for Strays, so she may adjust fairly easily to two new dog friends. Getting along with the cats is something we won't know about until we try.
Pixie took the dog treats from Margaret and then did her usual happy dancing around, just out of arms reach of the two visitors. This is how Pixie reacts to new people when they come into "her home." Once Pixie is away from "her territory" she will probably react much differently, and I think she will become more affectionate toward her new mom or dad much quicker.
Muffin is a beautiful, five-year-old Shepherd/Retriever mix with fluffy soft golden fur
Muffin can also be a little shy when meeting new people and often appears aloof, but it doesn't take her long to warm up to new folks she likes once she feels comfortable with them. Muffin shares a kennel with her best buddies, Fluffy and Buffy (who happen to be brother and sister, tho they don't look at all alike).
When the three of us went into the kennel with Muffy, Fluffy and Buffy, it was the brother and sister pair, Buffy and Fluffy, who were the ones to give the slurpy doggie kisses to the nice visitors, while Muffin stayed a short distance away most of the time. Muffin would come up to us for a tiny bit of petting from the "new people," but would then go to her favorite spot, preferring to just sit and watch her best friends (Buffy and Fluffy ) interact with the visitors.
Which dog to adopt (and she only wanted one) was a tough decision for Margaret to make
The personalities of both dogs are very similar, but because Pixie has had three kennel companions and may adjust more easily to new dog friends and a new home life, Margaret decided to adopt Pixie--that is, if all works out with the introduction of Pixie to her other pets.
We'll be in touch tomorrow to set up a time convenient for both of us to make the home visit, early this coming week.
Betsy is making a good recovery and will be able to come home Monday
Monday just can't come soon enough for us. We miss Betsy who has been at our vet clinic since this past Monday, recovering from the surgery the doctor performed to repair her broken leg on Tuesday. Betsy's brother, Buddy, misses his sister too, and even tho we've all given the big fellow lots of extra attention, we know he is wondering where his sister is.
I've checked on Betsy's condition every day, and because the clinic is closed on Saturdays and Sundays, Dr. Morton called me this morning to say that Betsy is feeling much better. She's off the strong drug (morphine) she was on to control the pain, and is on a milder drug now, and she is doing okay. Dr. Morton said that he'll call us again tomorrow (Sunday), and he's pretty sure that we can bring her home Monday.