The Lucky Ones

We became active in Keeshond Rescue in the summer of 1999. Over the next few years, we were honored to be the foster parents of 13 rescue Keeshonden. Just a drop in the bucket. Although these Foster Kees are 'lucky to be alive', we are actually the lucky ones, to have had the experience of living with each one and getting to know their new families. Though each of the rescue Keeshonden we fostered has it's own personality and story, all have one thing in common. They were lost souls, some discarded by their owners, some just lost. In each case, you could see the gratitude and love that each had for the ones they seemed to know took them from death's door. Due to a family illness and a full house, we are currently unable to foster rescues. We continue to support those who do and highly recommend it if you feel the need to make a difference.

We jumped into rescue with both feet and no life jacket. Our first rescue experience involved driving nine hours from Waco, Texas to a shelter in Tulsa, Oklahoma.We picked up a stray and two owner-releases. All three were scheduled to be 'put to sleep' the next day. The stray did not have a name so we called her Tulsa, mistakenly thinking this would prevent us from getting too attached to her. Tulsa became a permanent fixture at our house. She lived with us until August 2004, when we lost her to lung cancer.You can read more about Tulsa by clicking on her photo below.

  The two owner turn-ins had names, but didn't know them. Bonnie and Clyde were in terrible shape. They were matted, very thin, and had rope or chain burns on their necks. They were brother and sister and had never been separated. All three seemed scared to death, but as soon as we drove away from the shelter they perked up and started giving us kisses! We brought them home, along with a nasty case of Kennel Cough, which spread through the rest of our crew. cleaned them up and nursed them back to health.

 

  Bonnie and Clyde were soon adopted by a wonderful woman in Talledega, Alabama. She had recently lost her sweet Keesie girl and chose to adopt both pups so they could stay together. They have become quite the celebrities. Bonnie and Clyde have been featured in their local newspaper twice and were also featured in the 2001 Keeshond Rescue Calendar. The "Little Gangsters" are spoiled rotten, and live with Faye Kemp and a third Kees, Shadow, who was adopted by their Mom from a local shelter.

 

There seemed to be an endless supply of homeless Keeshonden. Next came Pupper.

He was a young Keeshond who had was found beaten and chained to a tree in Houston. A neighbor rescued him and released him to Jo Ann Hoffpauir who had him vetted and taught him to trust. When she first got him, he was so afraid of people that he would not stand or walk on his own. Jo Ann used a towel to hold him up and a lot of love to teach him it was okay. Pupper also had red mange. He came to us and for the next couple of months he endured several trips to our vet for dipping and daily treatment at home.

He quickly overcame his past and is now living happily ever after with his new 'sister' Penny and family in Houston.

 

 

Smokey was with us at the same time as Pupper and they were great buddies. Smokey is a a small, sweet, and very pretty little boy. He was found wandering near North Dallas.

A veterinarian found him and located his owners, but they were not interested in keeping him.

He was initially adopted by a family in Dallas. They returned him to Rescue. Only days later he was adopted by a couple from Austin who happened to be visiting us with Maggie (see below). They fell in love with him and took him home. And it really is home this time!

Smokey lives with the Billups family in Austin, Texas.

 

 Bandit was released to rescue at the age of eight by his original owner. We were told that she had a grandson with asthma who was very allergic to him.

Bandit is really a sweetheart with lots of funny quirks and some health issues.

He has had severe allergies all of his life and requires constant attention to stay on top of his condition.

Bandit loves to talk and to crawl on his tummy.

He seems to always look as though he is laughing.

Bandit lives with Marta and a hoard of other rescues in Fort Worth.

Keeno is a beautiful Keeshond from a puppymill. Keeno was released to rescue because he was shedding on his owners' navy carpet. His original owners had purchased him from a Petland store in Houston, Texas. Keeno is a very happy boy. He smiles and wags his tail and talks to everyone he meets. Keeno lives with Schallenburgers in Arizona.

Ralph is an adorable small, older boy.

He was a stray rescued from a shelter in Fort Worth, Texas. Ralph had heartworms and had to undergo treatment. He is very cute and loves people.

When I was fostering Ralph, he would climb into my lap at every opportunity and growl at any other dog who wanted my attention.

Because Ralph was an older boy and I had several younger Kees available, I really expected that I would wind up keeping him.

One day I took Ralph and a couple of other fosters to meet a family in Pflugerville, Texas. I was sure they would pick one of the other dogs. They chose Ralph. I cried all the way home. Imagine, eight dogs in your house, and you are wondering who will sit in your lap!

Ralph is loved by Priddy family in Pflugerville, Texas.

And then there is Thunder . . .Thunder's owners turned him in to a Shelter in Austin, Texas. He was five years old and had heartworms. When he saw John he perked up and came strutting up to him as if to say "WHERE have you BEEN? I've been waiting for you to come and get me." He gave us kisses all the way home. We had his heartworms treated and shaved off his coat (which filled a large leaf bag, and included many leaves, twigs, and dead bugs). We posted Thunder on the Rescue Website, and several people inquired about him, but they always chose one of the other fosters. Meanwhile, Thunder represented Keeshond Rescue at "Dog Day Afternoon" in Dallas and in the Rescue Parade at the 2001 Keeshond National Specialty. He still lives with us. I guess he was right, we were there at the shelter to take him home. Thunder (a.k.a. Pudge) is definitely a couch potato. He loves to pile up all the pillows on the couch and lie in the middle of them. He is one of the sweetest dogs I have ever known, and is always so happy just to be here.


 Maggie also came from a shelter in Austin. She was a stray; picked up roaming with a smaller dog (not a Kees). Maggie has loads of charm and personality.

She is a smiler, and does so at almost every opportunity.

Maggie had a hematoma on one of her ears, and though it healed after treatment, it does not stand up like her other ear. It just ads to her charm.

She always looks comical with one ear up and a big Keesie grin on her face.

Maggie lives with the Val, Elizabeth and baby Josie Billups in Austin.

The Billups family also adopted Smokey from us.

We look forward to Maggie's visits, and when we puppysit over the holidays, she and Smokey get to have their picture taken with Santa!

Missy was an owner release to the shelter in Waco, Texas. She is a very sweet girl, but a little shy. Missy stayed with us for a few months. Several people showed interest, but as in Thunder's case, they always chose another foster. When we placed her with the Atteberrys in Pottsboro, Texas, we were concerned that she might be shy when she met them. Nope, she knew she was home. She jumped right in the truck with her new brother Herman, a Schnauzer, and hasn't looked back.

 Winston came to us from a shelter in Dallas, Texas.

He had an unusually bad case of heartworms. You would have never guessed from his personality. He was friendly and playful from the start. He had to take a liver stimulant and some antibiotics for a month before the vet felt he was healthy enough for the heartworm treatment.

After he recovered from the heartworm treatment, we put Winston on the Rescue Website. Cute little Winston was popular with prospective families.

Winston (with a little help from us) chose to live with Gayle Ferguson and another rescue Kees, Molly. Winston, Molly and dad Gayle live in Corpus Christi, Texas.

We picked Angel up from a shelter in Austin, Texas. She had been a stray and was scheduled to be 'put to sleep' because they felt she was unadoptable due to aggression. One of the shelter workers contacted us and said she thought she could be rehabilitated. When we arrived at the shelter we met a large, young, very frightened girl. She let us pet her with no problem and readily went home with us. We named her Angel because she nearly was one. (Note to self: naming dogs is not your forte) When we got home, our Golden Retriever, BJ, sensed her fear and brought a bone and laid it at her feet as a gift. The image still makes me teary eyed. It wasn't long before Angel began to feel at home. It turns out that the folks who evaluated her at the shelter were not far off. Though, not agressive, Angel is very excitable and will snap when excited or if you attempt to restrain her (for instance, to groom her). She also does not like the other female Kees. She does get along splendidly with the boys and loves to wrestle with Boomer and BJ. Angel is by far the most intelligent dog in our house. She can escape from most of the crates and has figured out how to unscrew the lid from the jar of peanut butter she steals off the counter. She has done this twice. She is very loving, gives hugs, and is eager to please. Angel still lives with us in Waco, Texas. Because of her temperament we are unwilling to place her. Because of our temperament, we are unwilling to give up on her.

Duke was a found roaming in San Angelo, Texas. A kind woman picked him up and had him vetted, groomed and boarded and then contacted Keeshond Rescue. Duke came to us a very shy young man. He is very sweet and loves attention, just isn't sure that it is okay to approach people. He made great improvements and even began to initiate play with us and the other dogs at our house. Duke was adopted by the McMenemys in Austin Texas. Unfortunately his shy tendencies came back with the change to a new home. He is blessed with a new family who are helping him work through his insecurity.