So while we were there, I had the chance to talk to Kris about rotating foster dogs. I sort of have a built in "timer" right now, because I'm going to Dallas in mid-April, and I don't want Randall having to come pick me up with Skeeter, Elvis AND a foster dog. Kris said this was something they were trying out, so I asked if this little senior Chihuahua mix named Oracle was available and would he be a good candidate.
Yes indeed. He would be. So Kris called Emily (who handles most of the cats that come through), and she brought him up for us to see and gave us a bit of his history.
Oracle is a senior, and I do mean senior, Chihuahua mix who was picked up as a stray in February. Emily had posted on her Facebook page that he was depressed and really needed a foster. This was late in February, and he'd been haunting me. There have been two dogs up there that have stayed in my mind. The first was a senior rat terrier bitch who got dumped by her owner because he got new carpet (I was there that day and could have killed him). The second was OC (I have trouble getting my half a tongue around the full name, so he's nicked *g*)
He's listed as 10 on his profile, but I'd honestly go older with him. 12? Maybe 13? He's got some cloudy eyes going on, and he also has a slight heart murmur. He's also intact. He's active and moves well, but you can tell he was originally a tricolor whose tan has faded to grey, and the grizzling has moved up on his head to behind his ears and down on his legs.
Bringing him home brought the same problems we had with Skeeter and Snickers. Skeeter is the alpha male and he won't let anyone forget it. He has been busy posturing and generally being a pain. Pretty much what I expect, but annoying nevertheless.
From just a few hours with OC, what I can tell is he is used to being outside and probably fending for himself. He goes outside, and you can plan on him being out for an hour. He does NOT want to come in. Part of this may be that today is the first day he's had an extended period of time where he's been free outside, but even so, something tells me that's the environment he's used to.
He's quite reserved. Don't get me wrong, he's a very sweet boy with a very gentle nature, but he doesn't push himself on you. Part of that may be that he's in a new situation and is unsure of himself, but I think as he gets comfortable with his surroundings he's still going to be a dog who doesn't pester people. You come to him, and he's very happy.
He does like women. He'd pinged in on Emily at the shelter, and he's pinged in on me. Because of Skeeter's possessiveness with Randall, I'm encouraging OC to stay in here with Haley and me. No problem there. He's got the blanket and he's loving the comfort. If I sit down on the floor and he's not so comfortable he doesn't want to move, he gently climbs into my lap. He's jumped up on my chair, too, to get my attention, but he's very light-footed. A gentleman, really.
Tomorrow he gets a bath (he's rank), and I'll get a weight on him. I'd put him at around 9 pounds, but it needs to shift and he could stand to gain a bit. Being on good food should help him, too.
There's a good chance he'll be neutered next week. Because of the heart murmur, he'll have to go out to Dr. Walthall's for the operation, but that's fine with me. The shelter is going to try to raise the funds, so hopefully they can get them fairly soon. He'll be happier all the way around if the family jewels are missing. :)
I will be making changes to this blog this weekend, so that Snickers information is replaced by OC's. Even though I only expect him to be here until early April when I go to Dallas, I want him to have the blog devoted to him alone.
I did get a few pictures today, so I'll post a few. I should get more over the next few days, too.
