Paloma
Updated 6/30/11
Paloma is heartworm free, an A+ graduate of Gateway Training, and all
ready for her forever home. Her foster mom gives this report:
I have nicknamed her
“Sweets,” because that is what she is.
She is such a sweet and gentle dog.
All she wants is a place to call home and a family to scratch her head as
much as possible. She’s an easy dog
to live with; she’s not demanding or overly curious/mischievous or too
excitable. What Paloma likes best of
all is being around people. When
friends come over, she works the room to get a head scratch from everyone; then
she lies down to nap with her toys. She has the most irresistible “puppy dog
eyes”! She has a special way
she tucks her head to pull on your heartstrings, so you just HAVE to do what she
wants. She uses her power very
sparingly, though, and only to get those head scratches.
Thank goodness! Who
knows what she could get out of me if she used it at will!
The only time she
got in trouble, she helped save a life.
I’d let her out in the yard one morning and then couldn’t find her; she
did not come when called. I finally spotted her lying in a flowerbed, went
outside to scold her—and heard someone calling “Help!”
A neighbor’s deck builder had had a stroke and was calling for help.
If Paloma hadn’t made me come outdoors, I would never have heard him—and
it would have taken a lot longer for someone to call 911.
This is a true story! Of course Paloma never got scolded for lying in the
flower bed.
She loves to carry
her toys around. She almost always
has one in her mouth. By day’s end she has quite a stockpile in her bed, too.
Paloma is very
reliable in the house. She is left
to roam during the day while we are at work.
She has never destroyed anything, never had one single accident.
She is the first one to go to bed at night.
She will wake us on the rare occasions that she has to go out at night.
Paloma can be
“bristly” when she sees other dogs, so GRR sent her to “boarding school” at
Gateway Training. They loved her! She responded perfectly to the “click to calm”
system, and the folks at Gateway will take her new family through it. In our
home, though, she hasn’t really had an issue; simple corrections have worked for
me when she gets feisty through the fence with neighbor dogs.
All in all, Paloma
is doing GREAT. She feels much
better now that the HW are gone, and her confidence grows every day.
She just needs a family who will love her for being the sweet soul she is
& give her all the head scratches she wants!
We will miss her when she is adopted, but she deserves a forever family
meant just for her.
Updated 5/9/11
Updated 4/5/11
“Resilient.” That’s the absolute best word to describe this girl. Even though we don’t know her whole story, we know she went through a lot before she came to GRR. And since she has been in foster care, she’s overcome an eyelid injury that required stitches—and she’s undergoing heartworm treatment. And still she wags her tail and sits calmly at your side while you pet her. Resilient.
Paloma is doing extremely well during HW treatment. Her energy and her spirits are good, if only it weren’t for that pesky activity restriction! But thanks to her calm personality, she is content to sit or lie quietly by your side while you pet her. It is really her foster brother who is having the hard time with Paloma’s activity restriction! No rough-housing for a while, darn it! She does miss her evening walks, though. And the enforced inactivity IS making her a little bored at times. The trash can, she has found, is an interesting place to explore and sometimes, well, she just has to find things to chew on. She is definitely requiring a lot of appropriate things to keep her mouth busy right now. We can’t wait for her to get through this so she can get back to her normal activities.
Paloma continues to be a sweet, loving girl. She is wonderful with our children and with guests. She is extremely playful with her foster brother, Dillon. But she definitely needs time to warm up to other dogs; she’ll growl at unfamiliar dogs, so slow and careful introductions are important.
Paloma also has great hearing, and tends to bark at noises, and at people and animals walking by. Luckily she stops when the action has passed. And have no fear, Paloma will ensure that you are kept safe from any squirrels and birds that may enter your yard! (Don’t worry, there really is not much danger to the squirrels and birds.)
Due to her missing hind leg, Paloma does not jump on people or on furniture. She can climb the three stairs to our front door without a problem, but she does not attempt the climb to the second floor. She seems scared of that. While I think she could do it, she is content to stay downstairs, even for the whole night. Maybe someday she’ll realize that three-legged dogs can do ANYTHING they want. Unfortunately, “anything” does include digging, and Paloma is already an accomplished digger! She can easily dig under the fence and get out, so her forever family will have to be careful of this.
Paloma is a sweet girl who will make a wonderful pet. Stay tuned for more updates as we get this girl through heartworm treatment and ready for a home.
Updated 2/22/11
Updated 2/18/11
Who is this gorgeous red-head with the soulful eyes who hops around the yard like a bunny? It’s Paloma, of course… a mysterious young lady who somehow landed in a kindly person’s backyard. Where she comes from and what her story is, no one exactly knows. What we do know is that we are lucky to have found each other.
There’s no doubt about one thing: Paloma has had a rough life. At some point, she must have had an accident (rumor has it she got tangled in barbed wire), and one of her back legs was amputated. She’s heartworm positive, had intestinal parasites, and had picked up kennel cough, too. And when she came into GRR care, she was just starting to go into heat and may have ended up pregnant without our intervention.
So, what does Paloma have to say about all of this? “Are you talking about me? There’s nothing a dog with four legs can do that *I* can’t do too!” She doesn’t know what the big deal is. She gets along fine with three legs… jumping onto people, or jumping out of cars. She can run, play, squat, chase a ball, and probably even swim.
It took a couple of days, but now Paloma gets along with other dogs and even cats. She clearly enjoys being a part of the family and rests comfortably on the floor nearby. She can be somewhat possessive of a toy if she thinks it’s “hers,” but she doesn’t obsess over it if it’s taken away.
She is a very sweet dog and very affectionate. She’ll climb into your lap if you let her, or she’ll lay her head on your leg. She loves to be petted. She is so happy to get attention that her tail makes a full sweep from side to side. Beware of leaving breakable objects on the coffee table!
With the proper care and medicine, Paloma will soon be back to good health. She will be an awesome companion for a family with or without dogs and cats. She’s sweet, affectionate, medium-energy, fun, and beautiful too. What’s not to love?
