Transport #33: Charlie, Charlene, and Chai

I signed up for this transport over two weeks ago. Who would resist puppy breath x 2? Which then became puppy breath x3? Not I, of course. I love puppies. Who doesn't? But when it comes to these little special needs guys, I just can't refuse those transports.

You see, all three of these pups were special needs. All were deaf; two were visually impaired as well. Charlie and Charlene, the older pups (8 weeks old) were going to be put down for their visual and hearing impairments. Their idiot BYB was selling his puppies in an open air market and these two were going to be put down. Luckily someone was able to convince him to turn them over to her and so now off to rescue they go. The third puppy, also deaf and visually impaired, was Chai. I don't know her story, but she's a bit younger than the others (6-7 weeks old) and so no doubt came from a pretty awful place. Despite where ever she came from, she was just the sweetest little ball of fluff ever.

I picked them up in Binghamton in the last light of the afternoon. I tried to frantically take pictures in the lousy light in the hopes of getting some good shots in. Lucky for me the flash made some pretty good pictures up in Syracuse. We loaded all three of them in the car pretty quickly and easily. Charlie and Charlene just wanted to play; Chai just wanted to curl up and sleep. They had very different personalities.

The trip up was pretty easy. One of them kept crying and I felt bad, but eventually all three settled down. When we arrived I had the biggest scare of my life. Charlie and Charlene were moving, but Chai was not. She was pressed up against the backseat and not moving at all. Prior to Charlie and Charlene getting up, they had been squished in there with her. I reached out and touched her. And did not get a response. I nearly panicked, afraid they had somehow suffocated the little girl and I didn't know. So I started to really push at Chai. And she woke up. Phew! Wow does that dog sleep hard. She didn't even try to snap at me or anything when I pushed her around and shook her a bit. You can't imagine my relief upon finding her alive and well.

I got all three puppies out of the car then. Getting them to the grass was a bit of a challenge. Charlie wanted to forge ahead, but Charlene was more cautious and Chai just did not want to move. Eventually I picked up Chai and let the other two walk. Charlene was a bit more bold than Chai with her brother at her side.

Once there, the puppies wanted to play and play and play some more. Charlie and Charlene were mostly interested in each other. And Chai was interested in me. She spent a lot of time crawling around my lap, playing tug with my pant leg, and trying to untie my shoes. So cute. I loved that little dog so much. Seriously. If I could have taken her home with me I would have. She was just so really awesome.

The most amusing thing about the whole situation were the Gulliver and the Lilliputian moments. They kept getting their leashes tangled around my ankles and they'd cross and go in the opposite direction around me, therefore coming close to knocking me over. It was amusing. Frustrating, but amusing nonetheless!

The person I was meeting finally showed up. He was a bit late. He had heard that the transport was running behind. That was yesterday's. Oops. It was kind of nice though as I got to play with the puppies.

I cried when I handed over Chai. I really loved that dog and I barely knew her.

Some pics.


Meet Charlie.



And his sister, Charlene.




And Chai.

Transport #32: Two Aussie pups

I don't know the back story on this one. Usually I do, but earlier this week I was simply contacted and asked to help out with a transport of two three-month old Aussie pups, litter mates. I'm not sure how purebred puppies from the same litter end up dumped at a shelter. Or abandoned. Or however they were found and then put on a transport to Ontario. But there they were. Two completely adorable Aussie pups. How can you not fall in love with those faces?

I met up with the previous person at the Super 8 motel in Henrietta, a common meeting spot for our Aussie transports (in fact, the person I met in Henrietta and the person I met in Syracuse I've done transports with in the past). There I was introduced to the dynamic duo, who the shelter was calling, apparently, Canoe and Kayak (I have to admit that I'm not fond of the names!). The boys looked virtually identical until I spent a little time studying them. one had more white on his face and once he was out of the crate and on the ground, I could see that he had much more white overall.

The shelter had sent the pair with slip leads, one of which was a silly looking Christmasy one made out of cloth. I hate slip leads. I really need to pick up a few cheap regular leashes and toss them in my car for future transports.

The boys were incredibly affectionate and just wanted to be in your lap giving you kisses, kisses, and more kisses. The larger of the two really loved being petted in the same way Dahlia does. He'd throw his head up with this total look of ecstasy on his face. Yep, he'll be eating up the belly rubs someday soon.

I secured them in my car, not an easy task with two wriggling Aussie boys both wanting to kiss you. While hooking up one of them I ended up with quite the tongue bath! Silly dogs.

They settled right down for the trip and slept most of the way out to Syracuse. I realized on the way out that the easiest transports are puppies and older dogs. It's the teenagers, the 1-2 year old dogs, who are the most difficult to deal with! They're fully grown puppies who often want to chew everything or crawl into your lap. The Aussie pups were content to curl up together in the back seat and sleep.

When we got out of the car in Syracuse, there was a woman there with a friend and her pit bull. Who was wearing a pink coat to keep her warm. The dog was incredibly sweet and good-natured. She would jump up on her owner when she asked her to and give her a hug. I got a kiss from her and she just adored the Aussie pups. She was a rescue too. Apparently dumped when pregnant, had her pups, had recently weaned them, and was then adopted by this woman. She still looks very much like the mama dog. Just a sweetheart. It was fun seeing the Aussie pups play with her.

Then the Aussie pups hit he grass to do their business and get down to some serious puppy play. They had a blast rolling around in the grass together. Sadly, the next person showed up and after a quick exchange, off they went to rescue.

I know these little pups will quickly find a home!

Aussie pup #1






Aussie pup #2






The two together














The pit bull we met

Transport #30: Gypsy and Carly

Like the last couple transports, when one came up for a couple Australian shepherds I just couldn't resist. No bones about it, Aussies are one of my favourite breeds! This particular transport was for Gypsy, a 2-3 year old blue merle and Carly, a 14 week old red and white. Carly also happened to be blind, though after spending a little time with her, we figured she wasn't 100% blind. It seemed like she could at least see shapes, though it was obvious she could see little else.

The ride out to Rochester was harrowing for a number of reasons. There was a lot of construction. And by "a lot" I mean miles upon miles of narrowed roads blocked on both sides with large concrete slabs. People, of course, insisted on driving fast through it regardless of the construction. And then I got an extremely aggressive (and here you must pardon my French) "Masshole" behind me. He was one of those sorts that really just wanted to intimidate you. He'd get right up and tailgate and then when you got over to let him pass, he'd just hang in your blind spot and never pass. This happened 3-4 times as I would then get behind someone going slower, so I'd speed up, get back in front of him, and the whole process would repeat. Finally we got to a 3-lane section of the road, I slowed WAY down and he was forced to get over and around me. Phew!

Then to top it off, I got to Rochester and it was starting to rain and it looked like a storm was headed our way. Luckily, the dogs had already been walked and given water and so we simply tossed them in my car and I was on my way.

The two dogs were incredibly sweet. They both wanted to give me all sorts of kisses and I got quite the face washing before I took off.

The drive back to Syracuse was easy. Both dogs settled right down and slept. Carly curled up facing the back seat with her little rabbit and Gypsy settled down next to her. Carly cries if Gypsy is away from her. I think she'll have to go to a home where there are other dogs. She gets very lonely when she's all alone, poor girl.

We made good time back to Syracuse and managed to outrun the storm. I was a bit early and the people meeting me ended up being a bit late (they had to meet someone ahead in Syracuse and ended up getting turned around trying to get to the proper exit). So I had some time to spend with the dogs. I first got Gypsy out of the car and let her explore a bit, but poor Carly was crying, so I went back for her and held onto them both for a time. Carly was hilarious. She really wanted to play tug of war with a leash, but she kept choosing to tug on Gypsy's, this pulling Gypsy with her where ever she wanted to go. Gypsy was calm and just let her do it, not a warning growl or anything. Which I found amazing as they put a choke collar on Gypsy. I hate those things. Really hate them. This is the second dog I've had to deal with being hooked up to one of those devices and I'm considering bringing along some collars in various sizes so next time I can hook the dog up to a proper collar. I do not like hearing a dog gag as she tries to tug you along places. I get it. She pulls. They were worried about her pulling out of a collar, but they had said she was coming with a Martingale, not a choke. And on top of that she was FUZZY to the extreme. From what I understand metal chokes can pull on the fur of long-haired dogs, making it even more painful. I kept reaching over and loosening the collar and trying to keep her from pulling it tight.

At any rate, the dogs had a fun time out on the lawn and then they were off with the next folks. I grabbed Carly's rabbit and handed it to her, saying "Now don't forget this -- carry it to the car." And she did. Adorable. She really loves that stuffed rabbit!

These dogs were really fantastic. Gypsy reminded me a lot, personality-wise, of Dahlia. She was calm and cool and really mellow. She had an adorable natural bob-tail and just a sweet, quiet personality. I think Dahlia would have liked her!

And, of course, I bring you pictures.

Gypsy







Carly







Both of them together

Transport #29: Tucker

I can't resist an Aussie. But even more, I can't resist an Aussie puppy. And even more than that I can't resist a deaf Aussie puppy. So when a transport came up for a 4-month old deaf Australian Shepherd, I jumped on it. The folks who work for and transport for ARPH (the Aussie Rescue and Placement Helpline) are also awesome folks so I love working with them. They're really easy-going and just love their breed. I don't blame them. Aussies are awesome dogs!

Tucker, the young man in question, was being transported from New Jersey up to Ontario, where no doubt someone will quickly adopt him. How could they not? He's incredibly sweet.

I met up with the transport in Syracuse, which means driving down from the north side of Oneida Lake as we had spent the night up there. It was a bit more travel than usual, but it was well worth it. I got to the meeting spot a bit ahead of time and the folks meeting me pulled in just a couple minutes later. We were running a good 15-20 minutes ahead. Tucker and one of the transporters raced off to burn a little energy and hopefully pee, while I chatted with the other transporter for a moment. We got all his stuff loaded up (food, but most importantly his paperwork -- without that it would be tough to cross the border into Canada!) and then got Tucker into the car. He jumped right in, no problem.

The first part of the trip was a little worrisome. He was down behind my seat and I could see him, it felt like the leash tying him to my backseat was really taut, and he wasn't moving around...at all. He was a 4 month old puppy so I expected more out of him. Since I had to visit a restroom anyway, I got off at the nearest exit and high-tailed it to a gas station. When I pulled in and stopped, I leaned around the seat to see if he was ok. And there he was, all curled up. He had been sleeping! Phew. I quickly hit the restroom (luckily today's temps are only in the 60s, it's overcast, and really breeze...he was fine in the car for a couple minutes) and then we were on our way. Luckily he got up on the seat where I could see his back end. He promptly fell asleep again and not another peep was heard out of him until we arrived in Watertown.

I was a good 20-25 minutes early and since I knew the person before me was doing a wee bit of shopping, I decided to just get Tucker out and burn off some energy. We raced across a big field of grass (which was unfortunately rather wet!) and I discovered his current favourite game: "attack the leash." He really wanted to play tug of war with it. So we did. A few times he jumped up to get the leash and almost got my hand in the process (and once he did get my coat -- I didn't see any holes in it amazingly). I played a bit of fetch with his Nylabone and eventually we sat down on the pavement (where he proceeded to eat rocks -- I had to rescue a few from his mouth -- luckily no signs of resource guarding there!).

The other transporter finally arrived and it was a quick and easy shot to get him into her car and into a crate (mostly to stop him from eating the food in the back with him as he was quite into trying to get the treats). And then they were off to head into Canada and I was off to head back to Syracuse.

All in al it was an easy transport, but I was sad to see him go. He was a really cute and really nice dog!

All of my pics from the transport can be found here. A few of my favourites are below.

Transport #27: Phoebe

This began as a very confusing transport. I had no contact from the coordinator at all beyond my volunteering and her putting me down. When Friday evening rolled around and I had heard nothing, I was pretty sure it wasn't going to fly. It was a HUGE transport. 36 dogs and a crate of kittens in all, with multiple drivers for many of the legs. I wrote on Friday and found out the run had been filled. I didn't get a contact sheet for the run until 11pm Saturday night. Talk about cutting it close! Luckily, the coordinator had also coordinated where each meeting place was so I didn't have to set up the places to meet. Phew!

My leg of the transport was for only one dog. It was the end of the road for this one. I was meeting the rescue to give her to them. It was nice being the "ending point" for once, though she still had a bit of a drive up to Canada. All I knew of Phoebe prior to meeting her was this: Phoebe, female Aussie/Catahoula mix, 25-30 lbs.

What I didn't know was that she was a puppy! Only 6 months old. Everyone say "awwwww."

When I met up with the people who had her before me, the first thing she said to me was, "You don't have a crate?" I thought...uh oh! Chewer? It turns out she has carsickness. The woman told me she threw up in a couple people's crates and pooped in someone else's. My thought? Maybe the crates make her uncomfortable. I put down a blanket just in case and decided to hope for the best!

And then I got to meet little Phoebe, who was just the most striking of dogs. Her colouring is beautiful and she was incredibly sweet and soft. She gave me puppy kisses and then rushed off to explore for a short bit. She easily got into my car. She definitely wasn't a shy dog, but she was a calm and adorable and sweet one.

The drive up to Watertown was easy. Phoebe rested in the back pretty comfortably and would, every once in awhile, stick her head up in between the seats and give me kisses or shove her head under my hand for some petting. She was just so sweet. She had no problems with getting sick.

We spent a little time on the grass outside of Cracker Barrel, just wandering around and playing. She started play bowing for me and running around me. I think she was just happy to be out of the car and to have a chance to run around a bit. I finally called the woman we were to meet, who was inside Cracker Barrel doing a bit of shopping and she came out to get her.

I was incredibly sad to see Phoebe go. She's just an awesome dog. Quiet, calm, sweet, loving, and so soft. She has 7 applications in on her already, so she'll be off to a new home before she knows it. I know whomever ends up with her will just be so thrilled with her.

And now some pictures:

Transport #19: Sebastian, Willie, and Jett

This transport turned out to be the one that was perhaps the MOST fun I've ever had on a transport. I ended up laughing and giggling and talking to the dogs the entire trip. It started out with an easy drive out to Victor to meet up with the person driving before me. The only problem? We agreed to meet at Chili's and she drove to TJIFriday's because that was where she met someone last. Oops! After a bit of a miscommunication, she pulled into Chili's and we did the handoff. The dogs this time were Willie, a 6 month old Brittany pup, Jett, an 8-month old something (all black, funny ears, no clue what his mix really was), and Sebastian, a 4-year-old Border collie/Brittany mix. We got Willie and Jett out first and the two hadn't had a chance to meet yet. They were hilarious together, bounding over each other and wanting to play. I decided to put the two of them in the back seat together and see how they did. As soon as we got them in, they started to play, jumping on each other in the car. They amused me terribly! Then we got out Sebastian, who was 30 lbs of underweight border collie. I'm almost positive that dog doesn't have a bit of Brittany in him. He looks 100% pure border collie and as a huge border collie lover, I was thrilled. He was just as sweet as could be. I got him up into the front seat without any problem.

Much of the trip was spent laughing at Willie and Jett in the back and petting Sebastian, who decided that my lap was where his head belonged. He didn't try to crawl all the way onto my lap (which he could have). Instead, he put his head, and sometimes his paws, on my thigh and looked up at me with very happy brown eyes. I was in love! Totally. I wanted to bring that dog home with me. He was just so wonderful.

Partway through the trip, I stopped paying attention to Willie and Jett and suddenly found myself with TWO dogs on the front passenger seat. Willie had jumped up there, pushing Sebastian off my lap and against the door. Sebastian looked none too happy but took it ok. Willie crawled around and finally Sebastian had had enough. He crawled OVER Willie and put his head back in my lap! He successfully managed to trap the guy on the seat. He couldn't get back to Jett (who seemed somewhat lonely in the back by this time!). Eventually, after crawling around and Sebastian keeping himself tight to my lap, Willie settled down and fell asleep laying on Sebastian. So. darned. cute.

Jett laid down and relaxed in the back and the last 10 minutes of the trip were quiet in the car.

I really adored those three dogs and especially Sebastian. I really would have taken him home with me if I could have more than one dog. I was none too happy to pass them off, especially since the people after me didn't seem to care about my wanting to say goodbye to the dogs. Ah well. They're off to their foster homes now and I hope they all find wonderful homes!

As always, some pictures! The rest can be found here.

Sebastian





Willie





Jett





More than one dog