ODIE'S STORY

I'm sad to tell you that Odie has bladder cancer.

Odie is one of the early rescue foster dogs (1999) and the first one with real issues that I worked with. Odie was owned by an elderly couple who loved him. The lady died and the man lived alone with Odie. Then one day he put Odie outside and went in the house and died. Odie was outdoors for about 3 days before someone finally discovered his owner's death. Animal control took him and his extended family got him back but boarded him with a local vet until they could figure out what to do with Odie.

Odie came into foster care through the vet who took him in and found rescue. When I picked him up, Odie was so scared to be outdoors that he could hardly walk to the car. When we got to it, he tried to crawl under it. He was up North near Saginaw and we had a long ride home. They told me he would be fine riding in the car but he chewed the doggie harness about in half in his efforts to join me in the front seat. (After that I took a crate every time!) He was okay while the car was moving but he barked like crazy whenever we stopped. Unfortunately there was a lot of stop and go traffic that day and I sure was glad to get home.

For the first month, the only place he was willing to go outdoors was in the dog pen off my deck. That seemed to be secure enough for him but if I tried to take him for a walk, he would do everything he could to get back to the house. He would always "hug" any building he was near.

After several weeks, with Deb Duncan's help and advice (www.thedogspeaks.com), I took him out one day with a huge supply of cut up hotdogs. We went for a walk by laying down a piece of hotdog every foot or so. It took about an hour to get maybe 1/2 a block. Then he laid down in a ditch and looked all around him for a few minutes. Finally he got up and he walked quite nicely the rest of the way to my friend's home! Apparently he figured out that the boogie man was not going to get him! Going home he did quite well and after that we began to really make progress.

Odie was one of the many Westies who was unhappy about being lifted. I took him to a club member's house for a grooming day and when I lifted him to the grooming table, everyone in the room was scared he was going to bite. But he was really mostly all talk. (He was also the dog who taught me not to reach under the bed for a hiding dog, though!)

I didn't think we would ever place him. But one day I got an application from Chris (now an associate member of our Club). She was very interested in Odie. She met him and really liked him. He sat in her lap and she fell in love. But when she and her existing dog, Mac, came to visit, the two dogs got into a spat and her own dog bit her when she tried to break it up. I figured that was the end of it with this adopter. But a couple of days later she called and said she wanted to try it. She was sure she could teach the two to get along. I was leery of the fact that she also had cats but she was so sure of it and I didn't see any other adopters on the horizon so we decided to give it a try. The rest is history. Odie and Mac became good friends and Odie learned quickly to accept the cats. She has since adopted a little girl from us also. Chris recently bought a house with a fenced yard and Odie loves to go out and lay in the sun.

I'm so sad to learn that Odie is sick. Bladder cancer has become very common in these smaller breeds. It is especially high in Scotties and I've heard that they suspect pesticides to be a culprit in this particular cancer. Odie is on meds and they think they can keep him with them comfortably for some time to come. He is now 12 years old and I am so grateful that he has had these wonderful years. Even though he may soon leave us, we will have the knowledge that he was a success story. He was able to overcome his fears and go on to live a happy, fulfilled life and to give and receive love.

Odie, it is little ones like you that give us the most gray hairs and at the same time, the biggest rewards.