Meet our most recent family acquisition! For two years I've been searching for a dog to help us take care of varmint control of our hobby farm after our beloved Aussie Dog passed away.
Choosing a potential family member is serious business for me...I won't make a commitment that I am unsure of in 'hope' that it will all work out. I've witnessed hasty pet purchases turn to disaster in short order because the human did not do the research of which breed, age, and sex of dog would best suit their living situation. After experiencing life with the perfect dog for many years, it seemed impossible that we would find that perfect match again.
I would routinely visit Petfinders to see what dogs were available for adoption in our area and always checked the "Pets" in the classified ads. I almost purchased an older Collie pup from a local pet store, but couldn't bring myself to encourage the ' puppy mill' business that it originally came from.
It couldn't be a hunting dog (tons of mixed Labs desperatly needing homes in area shelters) because we have free range chickens and other livestock. But we really needed a dog to chase off wild critters that want to winter in our outbuildings....
And then I saw a photo posted by our Humane Society that showed a Treeing Walker Coonhound that was abandoned by a shattered divorced family that couldn't get away from each other fast enough, and didn't care if the animals left behind lived or died. After the family left the acreage, a neighbor noticed that the family dog had been left behind and for weeks would sit at the end of the driveway waiting for his family to come home. Eventually he took the dog home with him when he realized there was no food or water available and the dog was surviving on eating grass.
As a courtesy, the Humane Society agreed to post the dog's story on their website, but would not take custody of the dog as they didn't have any more foster homes available.
When I read the profile of this dog I began to get a strange feeling of knowing... knowing that I needed to respond. He was four years old, raised around a variety of livestock, got along well with cats and other dogs. Excellent with children and adults. Needs companionship.
I Googled the dog breed to educate myself on the needs of this kind of dog and found more information that convinced me that the dog, our farm, and our family would all benefit from being together.
I called Husband and GirlKid to the computer and showed them the profile and breed information. They agreed that this dog could be the one....so I called the number.
I thought that if the dog was still available the people would be eager to find a home for him. I asked a lot of questions regarding the dog's behavior and personality. I was surprised and impressed that when I was done asking my questions, THEY had even more questions for me. Where do we live? (in the country, Check). How many hours are we away from the home each day?(I'm a SAHM, Check) . Do we have any children?(we have GirlKid and I did childcare for two more children, Check). Why do we want this dog? (we need help with varmit control and livestock protection, and we really missed our old farm dog's company, Check).
Apparently the man had received many calls from people willing to adopt the dog, but most of them were living in town and/or were away from home a great deal each day. He felt a responsibility to find this dog a home that would meet his physical and emotional needs. His own family already adopted an elderly shepard and owned two or three other dogs, and quite frankly I don't think they could spend one more dime on dog food each week. After visiting a while on the phone the man had that knowing feeling too, and I was invited to make the drive to meet and/or bring the dog home the very next day.
It has been a couple of months now, and once Homer got over his intense abandonment issues with a little "Cesaer" training for me, I can't believe our good fortune. He loves the kittys, walks right by the chickens in the yard, liked to visit the pigs, chased off a woodchuck, racoon, and oppossum in the first two weeks, doesn't let the kids out of his sight if we're outside, and so much more. We love his gangly long legs, his smooth coat, and floppy ears. He is absolutely nothing like our perfect Aussie Dog, so there is no comparing the two. I think that is the way it needed to be, so we can fully appreciate him for being the best coon hound and family companion we could hope for.
And isn't he handsome...?
