Lucy aka Bailey

Share your experiences of rescuing a Chow Chow from this site.

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mrtdwt
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Lucy aka Bailey

Post by mrtdwt »

Originally posted in April, 2006

Two weeks ago tonight, I came to this site like I always do - reading about your beautiful chows, hearing about everything that they do, going through your joys and hardships and learning something each day from all of you.

This day was a bit different - Karen S had posted that she had a girl chow puppy that needed a home and she was in Houston - just about 3 hours away from us in Austin.

We've always had chows. Bubba - our first baby - came to us when he was 3 months old. I had always wanted a chow chow and he existed in my mind years before I ever laid eyes on him. Luckily, my new husband (back in 1990) was OK with us getting a small teddy bear to love and keep me company while he studied for his CPA exam. He was such a doll and so smart. He graduated first in his training classes and got such accolades from the others in the class. Simply put, he was my love. Later that year I decided that he needed a mate, someone to be with him when I couldn't, and Emma came to live with us. She was a little fat snuggle-bear of a girl. Once these creatures - little beasties - get into your heart there is no getting them out, not that you'd want to. Well, being new dog owners we didn't realize that she could go into heat so soon (shame on us), and got knocked up by Bubba. And that is how Chelsea came to be with us and we became a 3 chow chow home.

Our family thought we were crazy. Three dogs! But they didn't understand that they weren't dogs. They were our children.

Time goes by as it does - life and death visits us. Emma passed back in 2003 followed shortly after by Bubba. The hole that their passing left was huge. I knew I would have to give my love to more of their kind. They were cinnamon chows. It only felt right to look for another color - they couldn't be and won't ever be replaced and I didn't want to dishonor their memories.

I started looking for a cream chow the end of 2003. I happened upon a breeder's site and on April 2, 2004 Maxx was born. We picked him up from East Texas in May of 2005 and he has been a gift from heaven. So different from the others and yet so alike. All-knowing, loving, smart, you all know. Chelsea liked him from the start. She was an older chow showing the newbie the ropes. Our family was complete again - for a while. Chelsea passed on to be with her mom and dad late last year.

It was hard to believe that our original family was gone. But you go on and make new memories and at the beginning of this year I was ready to look for another family member. I had been searching Petfinder.org for months and the West Texas Chow Rescue all to no avail. No one felt exactly right.

And then on April 1 Karen S. posted about her cream chow in Houston. I immediately emailed her and told her we were in Austin. Could she please tell me more info and send pictures of her dog, we were interested.

We emailed back and forth the next day - Sunday - and she sent photos and bits of information. She had had her for 3 months and she was sweet and loved kids and belly rubs. They had gotten her spayed and she was a bit dirty in her photos because they couldn't bathe her yet. Lucy looked like she had entropian and it was just something my husband didn't want to deal with and I was nervous about because of what I had read here and on the internet. I told Karen S that we were going to pass - and she said she had others interested in her. No problem... but she could assure me that Lucy didn't have entropian because her vet assured her. So, the universe had me drive to Houston the next day, Monday, and of course Lucy came back with me, sleeping the whole way. I didn't even know what her bark sounded like until we got home and she met Maxx. She's a cutie and sweet as honey and just perfect to us. We did take her to our vet right when we got back to Austin that day and they felt she probably does have entropian or something not quite right with her eyes and gave us some antibiotics and the name of an eye specialist. She has an appointment in a week and a half. We'll see what happens with that, but regardless she's our baby now and we're going to do whatever is necessary for her.

If you're still reading now, here's where it gets weird. On March 1, I made my first post ever to this forum. I had been looking at Petfinder.org (just like I did every day) and I came across these 2 cream chow chow girls available in Dallas that had been found on a country road, Morgan and Bailey. I posted them here because I was hoping someone would be interested in them. If you want to read what I posted about them, go to March 1 "Cream Chow girls available in Dallas".

Now recall Lucy came to live with us on April 2. On April 5 Matsuro posted to my entry and brought the subject to the top of the list. I read it and read about those girls, Morgan and Bailey, totally forgetting that I was the one that had originally posted about them. I clicked through to look at their pictures and lo and behold, there was my Lucy, only they were calling her Bailey. Then I realized that it was me who had posted about them and got very suspicious of Karen S.

She had stopped emailing me after I had further inquired about Lucy's rabies tag and health records. This would explain why. If you will recall, Karen S said she had gotten this dog from a breeder in the Woodlands and had paid $950 for her and couldn't keep her because of allergies by her daughter. Well, Thursday morning I googled the vet's name on the records that Karen S had given me. The vet was in Plano outside of Dallas. I called and they confirmed, without me telling them the story, that "Bailey" had been spayed there just a week before. Karen S had adopted the dog from Dallas just that Saturday morning before she posted her here as available on Saturday night.

The people at the rescue group were furious and in all kinds of disbelief at Karen S. The rescue group had driven from Dallas to Houston to do a home check. They had checked with her vet. They had done everything they could to ensure that "Bailey" would get a good home and she didn't even have the dog for a full day before she had posted her here trying to get rid of her. Donna at the rescue group told me (yes, it was such a story that I had to let the rescue group know where "Bailey" really was - with me) that Karen S had called her after they picked her up in Austin on that Saturday (a short 20 miles from me) and told her someone had seen her new puppy and told her that she had entropion and that it was very expensive to fix.

While we're not absolutely sure that's why she didn't keep the puppy, she never called Donna at the rescue group back after several calls from Donna and Donna had even told her that if for any reason the dog didn't work out, Donna would come and get her from Houston. When I talked to Donna last, Karen S. had some 'splaining to do for sure!

So, Lucy (was Bailey) is now in our home and will be for the rest of her life, which we hope will be a very long one.

She has fit in perfectly - it's like she's always been here and she knows this is where she is supposed to be. She and Maxx love each other - they play and sleep near each other and it's just beautiful to see. My heart is full and my eyes are full of tears when I think about how lucky we are.

So, before I even knew about her, I was trying to find her a home among us chow lovers and by the grace of God, she found a home with us. What a beautiful beginning to her story!

Wow - sorry it's so long but it's all relevant. Our love for chows has led us to this board and to this beautiful girl having a loving home.

P.S. Donna tells me that her sister Morgan has a wonderful new home as well. Her now momma is going to spoil her rotten, as she should.


April 22, 2007

Lucy has been with us just for a year and 20 days now. There are no words for how much I love this baby girl. Her eyes are fine, her head just had to grow a bit to catch up with her eyes. Every now and then, in jest, we call her our roadside trash, since that's where her and Morgan were dumped. She will be forever loved right here with us!
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Salandra
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Post by Salandra »

I'm glad Lucy found a forever home, and her sister is also with a forever family. How blessed are happy stories!
~ Sally
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Dogdad
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Post by Dogdad »

What a wonderful story. I am so glad you found eachother

David
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chowlover
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Post by chowlover »

awwwww. That is so sweet.
chowlover
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