Popsicle Stick

So we are going to give it another try...this whole dog adoption/rescue process. I am almost afraid to get too into it because the last one did not work out. Turns out that little Nip Tuck blog was a little too accurate. "Riley" as I had begun to call him nipped or bit or something while in foster and got labelled "too aggressive" for adoption right now. So he is being sent to doggie bootcamp and may or may not graduate to adoption. I could comment more on this, but I'm going to leave it alone and just wish Riley well.

So Carolyn, the dog rescuer for Riley, referred me to another rescue group - http://www.animalsrule.org/ to go look at an older dachshund named Poppi. And yes, he's twice the age of Riley and yes, I am hesitant about that because I want him to outlive my grandmother. Of course there was no guarantee that Riley would do that either...Grandma has relatives that have lived well past 100...so theoretically she could get a puppy now and outlive it. Go figure that.

But here's the deal about rescuing an animal. There are no guarantees other than some little dog needs a forever home as they call them. A place to be loved and live an easier life than the one they had before they found their people. So even if little Poppi only lives a year...it should be the best year he's had in a while. So my hope is that Grandma will see beyond his gray hairs and opaque eyeballs...and see the gentle soul he is and just give him a good home to live out those final years and a split-second of letting him be spoiled...even if they are just months.

I see so many seniors at my mom's senior condo complex that are lonely...and I always wonder why most agencies haven't tapped into this huge resource. Why are schools failing to utilize this segment of the population that have lived half a century of more and can share stories and knowledge of a time almost unknown unless you Google it.

And why aren't dog rescue groups mobilizing their functions to these little condo complexes and having not only a pet adoption day, but a day of free services...get your dog/cat groomed, vaccinated, microchipped, etc. Call up some of these seniors to volunteer or foster these animals...or the tiniest kittens and puppies that have to be bottle fed every few hours. These people have time, need to feel involved in life again...rather than watching it go by day-by-day...awaiting the grim reaper. I don't understand our collective level of ignorance and failure. Anyway, I digress. I get upset when I see the inefficiencies in our modern world to connect with one another.

Back to Poppi...or Popsicle as I now call him. Here's his little advertising blurb that hopefully will be permanently removed from the rescue website on Saturday afternoon:

"Poppi is a 10 years old and weighs about 9 pounds. He is a cool senior dog. He is a beautiful miniature blue dapple Dachshund who came to us after his owner passed away. The extended family did not step up to the plate for this little guy. We currently have him in a foster home where he is doing very well. He loves the attention and nightly walks his foster mom gives him. Poppi is so cute and loves to stand on his hind legs to beg for attention, food or to be picked up. He is a sweet little guy who is content on your lap or next to you on the couch while you watch TV, read a book, or just hang out. He has a low energy level and is a typical Doxie, true to the breed. He is fine with other dogs. Poppi came from a home with no children, so if you have children we would like them to be over the age of 12 please. Poppi has had a dental, is current on his vaccinations, has been groomed, has been dewormed, neutered and microchipped."

I don't know all of his story. I do know he has escaped a yard at least once which is why tomorrow, in the rain no less, I will be out reinforcing the crappy picket fence that surrounds grandma's front yard with wire mesh. I doubt Popsicle Stick will be spending many hours out in the front and never unsupervised, but its the rescue "law" and already something that has been on my list because Bailey can squeeze through too. And Bailey can run...like the wind during one of those southern state's hurricanes. She thinks catching her is a game so I never, ever want to have to play that game of chase with her so close to a 4-lane main road...which is what fronts grandma's house. But back to Pops...

He's a little itty-bitty thing...they say he might have gained some weight and be close to Bailey's 11 pounds by now. He looks like the same length from the pictures, but you never know until you pull out a tape measure. Bailey is actually as long as Bean, but if you look at them together you'd swear Bean is longer. Pops is also a dapple...a blue dapple at that. Blue dapples are fairly rare in the dachshund world - prone to s slew of genetic health problems in order to breed in that dappled coat and the Bowie eyes (one blue/one brown).

On Poppi the 10 year old dapple coat was described by Grandma as looking "dirty"..."yeah Grandma...please don't say that out loud on Saturday when we pick him up." She also says he looks like a mouse...I don't get that...maybe because he's got a lot of gray in him from well, being an older blue dappled dachshund? I think this little field mouse will make a good companion for her though. He apparently likes to cuddle and hang out with his person when they watch TV. I just hope he really likes crime forensic shows because that's about all she watches these days. Maybe he had dreams of being a K9 dog and can live vicariously thru the tube now...as I am positive she has every intention of coming back in her next life as CSI.

So, rather than go to Luke's birthday party this Saturday...and in all fairness its a long drive in the rain to do that....we will be down in San Pedro picking up Popsicle. So to all the grandkids out there with kids...Popsicle is not used to short squeaky people so be mindful that things need to be prepared before you come over. And any financial help you can give to G'ma in the way of dog food or helping out with those little vet bills that we will have for basic maintenance will be appreciated. More importantly, I think G'ma just needs positive reinforcement that everything is going to work out and that she did a good thing rescuing an older dog. She really can talk herself out of anything, even if she does want it...there is always some practical reason not to execute. And damn if I didn't get a bit of her DNA on that one. On the flip side of that coin though you should know that she is really excited about having a dog...which I guess still surprises me, but then again maybe that's some DNA influence too.

Ok, not to jinx this little dealy-o any further - I am going to sign off until we update everyone with the weekend arrival of the little dappled field mouse.