Monday, July 8, 2013

New addition...again

On Saturday, I convinced Steve that we should go look at the dogs needing homes in front of the local PetSmart. Although we wanted to take all of them, especially the pit bull mixes, none really called out as the perfect match.

Until we were about to leave.

Sitting in a cage, was Cesar, a wire haired terrier mix. I'm not a fan of long haired dogs and his cage was on top of another holding a pit bull, so I hadn't really noticed him. Steve, however, made not to subtle murmurings about how cute the dog was. We asked if we could take him out and say hello.

He's never really been on a leash before, or really had any training, so there's a bit of work to do, but it was instantly apparent that he is a very laid back and affectionate soul. We decided to get Zack and introduce them, see how they reacted to one another. It went well.

We haven't officially adopted him. We took him for a week to make sure it's a good fit, but we don't actually need the whole week. He's got his forever home.

Even though there's one little issue that's beginning to really drive me nuts: he keeps peeing inside.

It drives me up the wall! And of course, I can't watch him 24/7, and it's not as easy as with a puppy. With a puppy you can time it. There's no marking. And there's no bad habits. This little guy is 2 years old. We're getting him at the worst possible time: the teenage years. So, we're going to be relying heavily on Zack to help train him, and I'm not 100% sure Zack's up to it.

His name isn't Cesar anymore, either. His name is now Tobias Thorpe, Toby-wan, or just simply Toby. We had a day at the beach yesterday, and he's very good with other dogs, so maybe he'll help Zack to calm down a little. Asha, the cat, also seems to be dealing with him fairly well. I think it helps that she's bigger than he is.

Our first step before bringing him home on Saturday, though, was to wander over to the vet to get Toby checked out. After what we went through with Jack, we're a little gun shy about opening our hearts again. Aside from a bit of wax in his ears, filthy teeth, and a bum knee, he's in good health. We picked up some doggy toothpaste (because I haven't found the tube I bought a while back), and some ear cleaning solution. The knee will need supplements, but I suspect a bit of exercise will help as well.

The vet was also able to give us an update on Jack. His heart worm condition is pretty bad. He's in late stages, so his prognosis doesn't look good. They'll be doing a fundraiser, and Banfield (the vet company) has said they will match what the vets raise. His care is going to be expensive, but he couldn't be in a better place. Also, he's still living in the back of the vet office, but when he's able to, one of the vets is taking him home. He's got a lot of people who love him, and he's helping other animals who are scared and in a strange place. He's in pretty bad shape, but he's got the best possible chance he could get.

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