Little Dude

Little Dude was found in a field in McCall on his own. He was brought to MCPAWS as a stray and no one claimed him. After he was seen by our vets, it was determined that Little Dude has a heart condition that could mean he doesn’t have much time left. We reached out to our supporters for a fospice home and we were so happy when he was picked up that same day and brought into a loving home where he will spend his remaining time. Here is an update on this adorable little   gentleman from his fospice family: 

“We love him so much. He’s settling into country life and the family very well. These last few days in particular he’s really turned the corner with lots of happy prancing and tail wags. His spirits have perked up so much. We are so proud of him! He’s a fighter and it’s like he was always meant to be in our family.

Last week Little Man aka Little Dude aka Littles, wanted to come on our evening walk. He did not want me to pick him up and he walked the entire 3 miles with us, even running at times. He also had his first town trip watching softball at Brown’s Park last week and loved the adventure. Since he completed his antibiotics, his demeanor has transformed into a spry, happy, funny little pup with lots of life still in him. Little Man is truly a sweetheart, you cannot help but fall in love with him. He loves to snuggle, he loves to burrow under the blankets, loves soft treats, drinking from the big boy bowl, and adventure outside.

Our other three dogs (two are MCPAWS pups) are all getting along swimmingly and our 20 chickens don’t bother him one bit! All critters seem to understand that Little Man is precious and who we dote on in the family. He has been the perfect addition and we feel that the other dogs and the excitement of the home has actually been great stimulation and comfort for him. Little Dude/Man is never without kisses and love here. We are so thankful we found him and can give him some wonderful years out in the country with us. “

Thank you so much for loving this special buddy.

 

Have you adopted a “MCPAWS Special” and want to share your Happy Tail? Send your story and three photos to Kattie at KKingsley@mcpaws.org!

Leo

We have had Leo in our home for 2 months now, but it seems like he has been part of our family forever. Leo is now part of a trio along with Tillie and Smokey, both Rat Terriers.  Tillie took a liking to Leo right away and is in love with him. Smokey, not so much. She is 17 years old and is not very impressed with the whipper snapper.

 

Leo has filled a void in all our hearts after losing our beloved Bill. I will have to be honest, never in my wildest dream did I think we would have a dog like Leo.  Our family had decided to wait on getting another dog until later this fall. We had discussed getting a lab puppy, but as luck would have it, my husband Kevin decided to stop in at MCPAWS on a whim while I was in an appointment.  Kevin took me back to MCPAWS and I was shocked when they brought Leo to meet me.  I looked at Kevin and said, “So this is the one?” with shock on my face. To my surprise, I instantly fell in love and knew that this was meant to be.  Leo makes us laugh every day.  We could not have gotten a better dog.  He is so gentle around our grandkids.  Leo hasn’t met another dog that is not his friend within minutes.

 

Leo is our first adoption.  In the beginning, we kept thinking we were going to see the reason why he was up for adoption, he had to have some kind of issue, but that never came.  He amazes us with his loving and gentle soul.  I can’t image our family without him.

We want to thank the staff at MCPAWS for all your help in adopting Leo.  You made everything so easy and smooth for us. Leo has made our home complete again.

Lucky

The 2020 pandemic has brought many changes—in our case, it brought us Lucky!

As the pandemic situation unfolded and the possibility of a stay-at-home order emerged—which would necessitate the shelter being emptied— the shelter requested emergency fosters. I put my name on the list—honestly never thinking such a thing would actually happen—and on March 26 I received the phone call. Game on!

When I swung by the shelter Christa came out with Lucky in his carrier and put him in the back of the car, just like a drive-through. I never saw or met him until I got home.

I had been warned that Lucky would be skittish, so I set him up in the back bedroom and left him alone. In the evenings I would go in with him for a while and before long he was creeping out from under the bed, eventually becoming brave enough to check out what I was doing. This became our evening routine and before long he was no longer “skittish,” but instead was aggressively friendly as he purred and stomped all over me.

I thought Lucky might be with us for a few weeks, but weeks turned into months and he was still here. I already have two cats at home and had no intention of adopting another, but as time went by and Lucky graduated from the back bedroom his superpower emerged—he gives absolutely the best hugs ever! In addition to being a wonderful lap cat, he loves to get up on the counter and then reach up and HUG, purring like a fiend the whole time. Who can’t appreciate a great hug during the uncertainty of 2020?

In addition to his role as therapy cat, Lucky is also my self-appointed defender. I can always count on him to rush to my defense if he sees our puppy or either of our two cats get out of line, thus earning him the nickname, “Sheriff.”

I’m a pretty firm believer that things work out the way they’re supposed to, and it didn’t take long to reach the conclusion that while Lucky needed a home, we needed him as well.

Rory

After being dog free for nearly 3 years, I decided it was time to find a new dog buddy. And of course, MCPAWS stepped up at just the right time, having received a “donation” of 16 puppies or so from 2 litters. Having had Malamute crosses for nearly 30 years, I wasn’t sure how a short-haired dog would work in McCall and my lifestyle. Rory, a Husky/Border Collie/Lab blend, has turned out to be fantastic! And no more bags and bags of shed fur like my Malamutes produced.
She loves her daily walks, meeting her buddies on the railroad trail where we walk frequently, and enjoys meeting every 2 and 4-legged animal crossing our path. She is great in the back country, enjoying herself fully, but staying close and checking in often. She does not chase deer, but did have an encounter with a skunk this spring. She especially adores women, going bonkers whenever my housekeeper or friends visit. She is extremely vocal, having different “voices” for different people/animals.
She loves another MCPAWS alum, a pitbull, for whom she has a special excited bark-yip-throaty utterance that begins as soon as I turn down their road. She dives out of the truck going full speed to find her friend.
In the house she is ideal–well behaved, calm and does not bark–except for visitors. All in all, she has been a fantastic addition to the household, even enjoying playing with my Siamese cat (another MCPAWS alum).

Kenji

Kenji is a very special dog. He was quite shy and aloof at first. If you want to get his attention, you need to leave him alone instead of showing him how much you love him. Most of my friends have met him and I told them to ignore him when they first meet so Kenji can be less protective. After almost four months, he is finally comfortable around me. Now he knows that I’m the one to take him home after playing, so he comes to me after he is done at the dog park and waits by me to take him home. 

I love him a lot! He looks like a little fox (actually somebody insisted he is a fox). He is a great emotional supporter. Whenever I come home frustrated or tired, he will wait patiently to be walked and occasionally smile (with treats). 

He loves a lot of things. His favorite toys are the ones that squeak. He would get them and destroy them to a point where they can’t squeak anymore. He also LOVES walking and nature a lot. He will try to get out whenever he has a chance and he cries a little when you say no. He has lots of friends at the dog park in our neighborhood. He prefers small dogs over large dogs. His best friend is the other Shiba Inu that lives here.  

He is also a famous dog now on my social media among my friends and family. A friend of mine drew a very cute picture of him that features three cute photos of Kenji. He was scared when we put a sweater on him and froze for five minutes without moving a bit. Then we took him to Starbucks to get a Puppuccino. He was also being cuddly by showing his belly. 

Do you have a happy MCPAWS adoption story? We’d love to hear from you! Please contact Kattie Kingsley if you’d like to be featured in our monthly newsletter kkingsley@mcpaws.org! 

Bailey

Bailey, formerly Hazel, has been in her new home for almost four months. Even though she is an inside dog, she has her own fenced in yard with bunnies, squirrels, and birds to chase when she is not busy playing ball. She also loves to go fishing and hiking. 

Bailey is the best. She is extremely smart and so loyal. She is still quite wary and nippy with strangers, but seems to be improving. Her smiles and kisses are never ending and free to give out after her brushing at night before bedtime. I was very hesitant to keep her at first because I had just lost my black Lab that week. Chelsea, my granddaughter who works at MCPAWS, called to tell me she had the perfect dog for me that needed a special home (quiet with no dogs or children.) 

I am so grateful to her for Bailey. She has really been such a blessing for me. She is loved as much as she loves, which is endless. Thank you Chelsea, and the staff at MCPAWS. I have the most precious, smart, beautiful, loving, and loyal girl in the whole world. May God bless all of you for blessing Bailey. XXOO 

– Mary & Bailey 

Chester

We first found Chester in January when he arrived at MCPAWS.  We had just moved into our apartment and were unable to adopt him right away, but we kept our eye on him until we were able to. He eventually came home with us on February 12th. It took a few weeks of gentle coaxing to get him to quit hiding from us, but now that he’s comfortable, spending time with us is his favorite activity!

Chester loves to play with fling toys and strips of leather,take long naps and eat lots of food. He is very spoiled, and only drinks the finest Brita filtered water! He is very cuddly and is often times found napping on our laps. Chester never turns down pets, and the quickest way to his heart is by scratching the base of his tail.  His eyes close halfway and his tongue starts to flap and hang out every time! We love Chester and could not have asked for a better kitty!

Louie

It’s been a joy helping/watching Louie gain his confidence. The world outside the shelter is big, new and sometimes very scary for him, but he’s facing it head on. He couldn’t wait to see Christa (the manager at MCPAWS) and show her that her faith in him wasn’t wasted.

I have to say, after the two little bits in the first few minutes of our meeting, I had wondered if I was ready to take on the task. And I questioned myself as I was signing the papers with white knuckles. But, some believed me to be a bit of a hard case too, and where would I be if no one believed in me and took a chance?

I often wonder what was going through his head when I took the picture of him on our drive home. Louie is growing into his own and in leaps and bounds he’s doing well facing a new world. Louie has learned several basic commands. Sit, stay and lay down are his best and he’s wonderful on a leash. His favorite thing, besides treats, is our hikes together. He loves to run and explore the new world around him. And Louie has a girlfriend. Thank you guys. I couldn’t ask for a better friend and companion.

Stan

Stan joined our family in May 2013. We fell in love with him the first second we met him at MCPAWS. Stan was kind enough to consider us as decent people for a few hours, but only definitively decided he was going stick with us when he saw us cooking bacon for dinner.

Stan spent quite a bit of time at the shelter, he was brought back a couple of times and we were eager to make sure we were doing all that we could to become the right family for him. At the end of the day, Stan has been the one who made sure he was the right family for us. Since the first minute we adopted him from MCPAWS, he has given us love and happiness. No matter what we are doing, Stan is there with us and happy to take part in our activities, as long as we never forget that playing ball is the most important thing in life!

Despite having some anxiety issues for situations he is not familiar with, Stan does everything we do and much more. While we were living in the US, Stan joined our canoe trips with all his courage in the summer. He went through the rude Midwestern Winter without a complaint, as long as the Frisbee did not freeze.

Two years ago, we moved to Europe and Stan bravely followed us. While we cannot say he enjoyed his transatlantic flight very much, he has since then been an aficionado of our European Grand Tour. He ran after cows in Switzerland, jumped into muddy ponds in Munich, said “hi” to ducks in England, chased the waves in Spain and the birds in Italy, and the list goes on. Paris seems not to be made for Stan, there is nothing to chase apart from the pavement.