Nick
Age: 8 months
AVAILABLE
Updated 2/17/2012
This just in from Nick’s new foster mom (he’s recently
moved foster homes):
Here is an updated story for Nick and some non-cone headed pics. He doesn't sit still for long so these are the best pics I could capture!
***
Hi, I am Nick and since Monday, February 13th,
I have been OFF exercise restriction. Woohoo! Best guess is I got hit by a car
which damaged my shoulder—but a great doc soon fixed me up (rah!), after which I
had to go through six long weeks of crate confinement, except for about an hour
a day (boo!). That was hard on a peppy young dog like me, but now I am good as
new! I had a stomach bug and a tooth to fix, too, but the people at GRR are
taking care of everything.
Now that I am out of the crate most of the day, I can be
a pure 1-year-old Golden boy at last! I run, fetch, and cause some mischief, but
my current foster family will attest that I haven’t met a person that I don’t
like or wag my tail for.
My foster mom says that I have exotic eyes, but what I
think she means is they are lighter colored, like me. After all, I have a
platinum blonde coat that the girls at the salon would envy. Oh, and of course I
have Cleopatra eyeliner, too, except mine is the permanent kind!
I do have a few rough edges that need to be smoothed out,
but learning commands and perfect
house manners will be no sweat after everything else I have gone through. Just
waiting for my forever home to help teach me these new tricks!
Updated 1/12/2012
It was Christmas night when the family stopped briefly in a parking lot, heading out of Austin after visiting relatives. In the trees just beyond the edge of the asphalt, they spotted something pale in the darkness—and moving closer, they realized they were looking at a cream-blonde young Golden. He attempted to run toward them… and collapsed. “He can’t put much weight at all on his right front leg,” finder Patti worriedly reported to our Hotline volunteer, “and he’s too skinny. I think he’s been on his own a while. When we got him home he ate voraciously and drank a lot! He’s super sweet and clearly just a young guy, has real pretty teeth. We went by the vet with him & they think he has a broken leg. We just adopted a dog 2 days ago or we would keep him ourselves. Could you possibly take him in and get him medical help?”
By the next day, Nick was at the vet’s for X-rays – and sure enough, he had a broken foreleg. The injury wasn’t new, but Central Texas Veterinary Specialty Hospital reviewed the films and told us Nick was still a candidate for surgery.Yay! In fact, they squeezed him into their schedule on December 28, just two days after he came to GRR. The operation went great, though the vet reported that Nick’s shoulder area had already built up quite a bit of scar tissue, which limited his range of motion. “But he’s a young fellow, and the scar tissue ought to stretch out eventually & increase his mobility, although he may always have a little stiffness.” And he added: “He was great to work with! Nice boy, well-mannered and friendly.”
In foster care, Nick is doing great. “He’s wonderful,” says Foster Dad simply. Nick is just about ready for his 2-week post-op recheck, and if he gets good marks, he’ll be able to start taking short walks a couple of times a day. Besides getting rehab for his recovery from surgery, he’s also being treated for the full complement of intestinal parasites (whipworms, hookworms, roundworms, and giardia too)… more evidence that he was likely fending for himself for a while before he got the very best Christmas present ever from a couple of very kind strangers: the chance for safe & happy new life.
Nick should be finished with rehab and ready for adoption by mid-February.
