I was a treasurer at an animal shelter for about a year. My Shitzu of 14 years had to be put down due to blindness, deafness and then cancer. I had a little Maltese who was now lonesome but doing okay. A month went by and I decided to just devote all my attention to him.
Then one afternoon the shelter called me at work. They said a breeder came in and said, this dog is blind, here you go! Then they left him…. He was 7 weeks old. The shelter wasn’t sure what to do with him, as he was frightened and with all the barking, it was no place for a tiny puppy. They asked if I could foster him. I said sure, I would pick him up after work.
When I went to pick him up, I couldn’t believe how tiny he was, the size of the palm of my hand, and ribs were showing. I made sure he was vaccinated and wrapped him in a blanket and took him home. When I got home, I realized he couldn’t eat puppy food as he didn’t have teeth yet, so I went and purchased a tiny bottle and formula. He quickly figured out what to do with that.
So for two weeks I fed the little guy a bottle four times a day, hoping to fatten him up. At the end of the two weeks, he pushed the bottle away and I started him on puppy kibble and water. He knew exactly what to do.
I took him to his vet appointments and asked if they thought he was blind…. The first vet. said yes…. The second vet said he wasn’t blind. He had some sight restrictions, but he had some neurological damage as he likes to pace when he is stressed.
Noises stress him out, different people stress him out, etc. At first you couldn’t hold him, he would fight you to get down and then pace very fast. As time went on, with lots of patience and love, he now trusts me. He comes and sits in my lap on the floor and allows me to brush him, he allows me to pick him up and hold him briefly now, he gives me kisses and jumps for me to pick him up.
That little dog went from not trusting anyone to being my baby! I love him with all my heart. Just goes to show that love and patience can make an animal give you his heart, too!
EPHRATA, WA
