Residents

A loving foster by the name of Molly, was taking care of Keats while looking for a permanent home for her. Keats had been picked up by Montgomery County Animal Control. Keats is a German Shepherd. Upon admission to our Sugar Land clinic, it was determined that she is severely disabled by spinal stenosis. She has great difficulty walking and is bowel incontinent. But…. it would be hard to find a more loving dog.  Keats has fit in well with the rest of our dogs and gets lots and lots of loving from our staff and volunteers. However, even though she is living at Dog Lodge, her medical evaluation continues. It is going to take a while to get her pain permanently under control in order for her to enjoy the quality of life that we strive to achieve for each and every one of our dogs.  Thank you to Molly for reaching out to us and giving us the opportunity to bring Keats into our program.

Martin and Maxtoo lived together in less than favorable conditions until their owner could no longer care for them.  Of the two, Martin was in somewhat better physical condition when he joined us. He had several oral issues that needed to be attended to but has made the adjustment to his new home very well.  Martin loves exploring when he is out on his walks. He is a bundle of joy who cannot get enough rubs, scratches and hugs from our volunteers. He certainly has a knack for putting a smile on your face….

When Maxtoo joined us at Dog Lodge, there was already a Max in residence so we just added “too” to his name and problem solved.  Maxtoo lived together with Martin for many years in less than favorable conditions until their owner could no longer care for them.  Initial medical evaluation showed that he had some pretty serious arthritic issues that were underlying his inability to take a stable step.  He also had serious dental problems that needed to be addressed. He will be taking medications for the rest of his life to keep him comfortable.  Of the two dogs, Maxtoo is much shyer and quieter. It took him a little bit longer to adjust to his new surroundings – in part, because he and Martin had been living in a very confined area and they just weren’t used to being in a place where there was so much room to move around freely.  Every day gets a little better for Maxtoo and he has decided that he wants his fair share of the affection that everyone gets at Dog Lodge……

Florence came out of the Houston Humane Society at the same time as Wolfie.  She had been an owner surrender. Florence is advanced in age and had difficulty walking due to serious arthritic issues in her shoulders.  Most of the time she was extremely uncomfortable. As a result, Florence made it clear that she did not want to be cuddled or, for that matter, even picked up.  Florence has had no problem getting along with all the other dogs but they have learned to give her room so that they don’t accidently bump her. Our vets have worked out a combination of medications that have successfully given Florence significant relief.  As one would expect, not being in constant pain has allowed her to be far more sociable and now she is one of the first to greet newcomers at the door…..

Cleo comes to us from Irving Animal Services in Irving, TX where she was surrendered by her owner, and then via Camo Rescue in Houston.  She is a tri-color Yorkshire terrier mix, approximately 7 years old. She weighs right around 11 pounds. Cleo is diabetic and has very opaque bilateral cataracts which significantly impair her vision.  What a sweetheart this little girl is!!  She is so quiet and calm. She gets along with all of her Sanctuary mates and loves the attention of all of the volunteers.  Cleo loves her time outside in the big yard.  It is almost an acre and she loves to sniff her way around exploring everything that she can.  She also likes to follow closely on the heels of the volunteers. She may be vision impaired but she doesn’t want to miss out on any of the action.

Do you see that look in his eye?  A clear indication of Hedwig’s personality. He is a 14 year old Yorkie who is a trip and a half.  Hedwig lived with a variety of different fosters over a period of time but was never able to find the one forever family. He has one now.  Hedwig may be the smallest of all of our residents but he certainly has no problem making his presence known. He gets along really well with his sanctuary mates.  He loves being outside in the paddock, lying on the grass in the sun.  Hedwig is very clever and right now he is working with one of our trainers to learn some basic obedience.  Even though he can be a little stubborn, he is learning his lessons well.  This little boy is too cute by half and we love having him with us…..

We were contacted about Jasper who was in BARC in Houston after being surrendered by his owner. Jasper is a yellow lab about 11 years old who just wants to be loved on. He loves to go for very slow walks, to sniff every square inch of the dog paddock and to take long, long naps. Jasper has a chronic pulmonary condition that causes him to breath very heavily when he is too active so we make sure that he stays calm which is not difficult. He does “calm” very well! One has only to look into Jasper’s eyes to see a gentle soul…
We’ll keep you posted….

Houston Humane Society contacted us about Maxx who was an owner surrender.  He was continually passed over by adopters, possibly because of his advanced age of 9-10 years, his really bad hips and his heartworm positive status.

We call Maxx a wooly mammoth because of all his hair and, though he is not a giant breed, he is certainly not small.  Picture a leonberger with shorter legs and that is kind of what Maxx looks like. Maxx has just had his first heartworm treatment and so we are keeping him very quiet right now.  Once we get past that, we can start working on an in-depth evaluation of his hind end. He has great difficulty walking, very little strength and intermittent pain.

Maxx, like our other residents, loves the attention he gets from the volunteers.  He likes to sniff around outside in the dog paddocks, enjoys his leashed walks and has no problem with taking regular naps.  This darling boy has won our hearts and we love having him as part of our group. Thank you to HHS for contacting us.

We’ll keep you posted….

Wolfie is a Chihuahua who is approximately 11 y.o. and has all kinds of personality. He came to us from the Houston Humane Society and has been a wonderful addition to our group. After a very nervous beginning, Wolfie has settled in and there is rarely a time when his tail is not wagging. He loves to be in a lap and scratching his neck gently will put him to sleep.  Wolfie loves to explore in the yards – he trots around with his nose in the air catching all the scents in the air keeping watch for the deer who graze at the edge of the woods. If he sees one, then he suddenly changes to his “Great Dane” persona, barking his warning that the deer had better not approach.  Visitors need to let Wolfie approach them. He feels more comfortable if he initiates the contact. But once he knows someone, they too get the loving greeting and snuggles that the little fellow bestows on his people.

Delilah was the first dog to enter the Dog Lodge Sanctuary program. She was originally found wandering the streets in Brazoria County in late March of 2018, picked up by Animal Control and taken to the Brazoria County Shelter. We found out about her from a good friend. Delilah is a sweet terrier mix, approximately 15 lbs., about 8-9 years old and totally blind. Her sight impairment is secondary to advanced glaucoma. She is also heartworm positive. She will be starting heartworm treatment soon. Being blind does not seem to slow this cutie down. It is not unusual to see her trotting, nose to the ground, looking for her “baby” so that she can shake it mercilessly, or her nylon bone that she enjoys gnawing on. However, as you can imagine, not being able to see has caused Delilah to be very cautious when another dog is close by. She needs to be the one who approaches which actually works well at the Sanctuary because the other dogs are pretty laid back and unreactive. Loving this little girl is so easy and we are thrilled to have her with us.
We’ll keep you posted….