Hedgesville Hounds Blog

Worried

We have a dog that absolutely no one seems to want, and this worries us. Molly is a really sweet hound who loves children, is energetic and has been well-trained.

Her problem is that because of airborne allergies, she must be on a special diet. Not an expensive one, just one where she shouldn't have certain ingredients. There are many dog foods and treats that don't have these ingredients.

However, it's an extra challenge for pet owners who have other dogs, since they would have to either make sure that Molly doesn't get their other dogs' treats (if they have the wrong ingredient), or they'd have to switch their dogs over to what Molly is eating.

And Molly has a few other small challenges, too -- she is a big happy girl who needs to romp and play each day. meaning she is not an apartment dog or a good dog for someone who doesn't want to commit to getting her the physical activity she needs. She also needs to be monitored for flareups of her allergies, which fortunately are managed right now.

We took Molly because someone came to us asking for help for this sweet dog who at the time had skin problems that rendered her unadoptable. We have a soft spot for dogs like this, because of another dog that we tried to help but were unable to do. His name was Lenny, and his skin problems, which were entirely different from Molly's, were so bad that we had to put him down. We all loved Lenny, and it broke our hearts to lose him. When we saw Molly with her raw red skin and sad face, we were reminded of Lenny, and decided to take her in honor of him.

That was six months ago.

We're still glad to have taken Molly in, but we haven't been able to find a new foster for her (her current amazing foster, who has nursed her through her skin problems, works longer hours and isn't the right home for Molly, who craves more exercise.) A lot of our fosters would love to take her, but some of them work long hours or have small apartments or older arthritic dogs who couldn't keep up with the bouncy, enthusiastic Molly. Or they have cats, a no-no for Molly.

So we are kind of despairing that things will change for Molly. We won't give up on her, but right now things look pretty gloomy.

Thanks for listening.

New dogs! (UPDATED 11/14)

 Great news! Logan and Colby have been adopted!

Over the next few days, we are going to be posting information on some new additions to our flock (or some dogs that our volunteers are fostering for other groups). For the moment, here's a bit about them...

Monty, chihuahua mix, 13 pounds, 2 years should probably put on a pound or so. Sweet and enthusiastic. A lapdog half the time. Ridiculously cute. Monty came from an overloaded West Virginia shelter.

Logan, fine-boned retriever mix, age 2. Beautiful feathery coat. He gets along really well with other dogs -- a true doggy diplomat. He's almost serene at times -- a laid-back guy (when he's not playing with other dogs). He's also quite compact -- about 35 pounds. Logan came from the same shelter where Monty was.

Sammy, Papillon, young, former puppy mill dog -- shy and sweet, needs love and protection, making progress all the time.
 

Colby, setter/lab, 50 pounds, 11 months -- another really elegant looking dog. Colby has wonderful natural instincts, and is very sweet-natured, has been learning very quickly and gets along well with dogs and cats. Colby's owner couldn't take care of him and surrendered him to the authorities. Although he wasn't getting enough care, it was clear he was never treated harshly -- he really likes people.

And finally, Lucky, a beautifully behaved 10-year-old beagle. He is perfectly housebroken, non-destructive and loves the finer things in life, like a nice long walk or a snuggle with a human who is watching TV. Lucky was given up due to reversals in his family home, but he was clearly valued greatly and he has no issues (except that as a beagle, he does love his food and sniffing). He is happy with his life in that "suburban country squire" way that beagles sometimes project -- he loves going out for a long leisurely walk, sniffing with great importance at everything nature has to offer, but then he loves to come home to a plush bed and a warm home.

 

  

Fosters Needed

In addition to the beautiful  and wistful Molly, we've been contacted by a rural shelter we have worked with in the past. They are in desperate need of help and have  asked us to find rescues or adopters or fosters for two of the 30+ dogs they need to help.

The two dogs pictured here are Lucky and Chloe. Lucky is a beagle mix of some sort -- easygoing, peaceable and a bit shameless. He's about 2 years  old, short legged and medium-sized. Chloe is a shep/hound mix who is also about 2 years  old. She is incredibly sweet, which  makes it even harder to fathom that someone tossed her out of a moving car. Chloe's breed combination is a great one -- by the way -- smarter than the average hound, but less ambitious than the average shep.

Please let us know if you can help in  any way.

New Pictures of Dewey!

 

Here  are some fantastic pictures of Dewey. His foster used a green background, which really highlights Dewey's coat and markings. We normally don't like to do outdoor shots because we want to emphasize that our dogs are being kept in a home environment. However, with black dogs we have had a lot of success with the outdoor shots.

Also, Dewey is a really sweet, uncomplicated and enthusiastic little guy who loves to romp and play outside, so these pictures really reflect his personality. 

  

 

 

For  more information about this swell little guy, here is a link to his Petfinder description.

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=13307830

Missy Needs A Home

Missy is about the cutest little dog you could possibly imagine. Here is a new picture her foster mom took.

To see more of our pets, click here.