Ian

March 2008:
Ian
spent the first 5 years of his life in a small pen or cage except when he was
needed for breeding purposes. He was used up and thrown away basically. When
we got him he was so terrified of humans that he got in the back of the large
crate and shook in the corner. The next morning at the vet, we literally had to
turn the hard shell crate up on it's end and shake him out of it. Ian stayed at
the vet for days. He was immediately shaved and cleaned up with several baths
that day. They were able to leave a little hair around his face. Ian had ear
infections, skin infections, paw infections, worms and a urinary tract infection
so severe that he was urinating blood. He also had severe dental problems. Ian
was given several kinds of meds for his infections and other ailments. He was
given a complete dental and had some teeth extracted. He was neutered. Ian now
has a clean bill of health. His first real experience with freedom was when I
picked him up. I brought him home in the large hard shell crate. We picked up
the crate and took it in with him inside. When Ian saw a human, he saw
mistreatment. He was terrified of me. It broke my heart. In order to gain his
trust, I never reached in and snatched or forced him out, because that is what
was probably done to him by his breeders. I would open the crate door and sit
down in front of it and lean up against the wall about 2 feet away. I would
speak softly to him and plead with him to come out. He stood in the center of
the crate and shook so violently that the wire metal door on the front of the
crate jingled from his shaking. His little eyes had a blankness to them that
made me determined to find the little Westie that was in there somewhere. Every
couple of minutes, I would slowly reach my hand in and touch the top of his
head. He would cower and flinch each time. It took me about 30 minutes to get
him to come to the edge of the crate door. He was afraid to step out because a
lot of breeding dogs are punished severely for ever trying to get out of their
cages. It takes some of them a long time to be able to walk through a doorway
in their new homes. I continued to touch his head and whisper to him. I could
tell in his little eyes that he wanted so desperately to try out this new thing,
but his fear would not allow him to. Finally after petting his head and then
retreating away from him over and over again, he saw that it wasn't a trick to
be able to get my hands on him and inflict some sort of pain. He began to trust
me just a tiny bit and I knew that I had won the first battle. Each time it
would take me about 30 minutes to get him to come to the edge and then I would
pet him and praise him and offer him treats. He didn't know what a treat was.
I would put it up to his mouth and he didn't know how to take food from my
hand. If I laid it down in front of the crate, he would gingerly step out with
one front paw, eat the treat off the floor and then wait to see what I did
next. After about three days, I brought him up and introduced him to the three
female Westies here. They got along beautifully. Ian began to watch them and
do what they did. He would see them go to the always full food bowl and eat.
After they finished, he would saunter over and look around as if to say "are
you sure this is ok to do?". He began to eat with them, he learned how to
interact with them very quickly. It took about 10 days for him to walk through
the door to go out onto the deck. Before that, I would pick him up and take him
out. He doesn't like to be picked up just yet. He is still afraid. He doesn't
fuss or struggle, but his little body tenses up. I can tell he is afraid he is
going to fall. He didn't know what a toy was. The first time he walked up to a
tennis ball on the deck and poked it with his nose, it rolled and scared him to
death. I began to pick it up and gently roll it toward him and he would watch
it and jump around so funny. Now he rips and tears up and down the deck chasing
it. He gets it in his mouth and prances with it. He loves to be petted. He
stays right at my feet. He now loves to wrestle and play with the other dogs
and is a very loving little guy. He is like a stocky little linebacker and
solid muscle. He has grown into a happy little Westie boy.
Ian
has come a long way on his road towards understanding freedom and is a pleasure
to have here. I will miss him very much when he is adopted. Ian is still very
fragile as far as his ability to just take everyone at face value and relax and
enjoy his life. He is getting there, but not there yet. He needs a loving
owner to help him complete that journey. Ian is a one person dog right now and
I'm sure will grow into being around groups of people, but he needs his special
person to cling to in this transitional stage of his life.
One
reason Ian has progressed so well is his health. Thanks in part to WestieMed,
his poor health issues were taken care of. Ian feels great for the first time
in a long time is my guess. He is healthy and has a new found desire to focus
on learning how to be a pet and part of a family. It is such a day to day
blessing to watch his little face as he discovers life outside of a cage. Ian
is a work in progress and WestieMed is a large part of his progress. Thank you
WestieMed for helping little Ian feel well enough to march into his new life!
Update
March 29, 2008:
Wanted to let you know that Ian went to his new home today.
I think Ian and his new owner are a great match.
But I am sure going to miss him. When I wasn't
looking, he stole my heart!
Thanks,
Sherry
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