SirOliversMom
01-24-2006, 02:52 PM
I think we'll start right at the beginning of this story. It's not a long story because we only adopted Tammy on May 1st, 2005. Tammy was rescued from a puppymill in Texas at the beginning of 2005. She was estimated to be 6 years old and had apparently been a prisoner of greed her whole life. She made her way to Mississippi where she was fostered by our own DBB member Heide. Heide had 5 fosters at the time (yes 5!) plus her own crew. When Heide posted a pic of Tammy, I replied that it was too bad I lived so far away because I would so have loved to meet her. I thought that was the end of the story...She was fostered at Heide's for several months and became quite attached to her foster mom..the only home and human contact she had ever experienced in her life. The day of my birthday I got an email from Onebigmickeyfan telling me that her and Heide had been conspiring and they wanted to know if I was interested in taking Tammy. I could hardly believe my eyes. What a birthday that was! Lori is from Ohio and she would pick Tammy up and bring her to her house where I would then be able to go pick her up. We scheduled a pick-up for May 1st. We arrived in Ohio after an 8 hour drive, and, of course Tammy would have nothing to do with us.
Tammy was the most timid scared girl I had ever met in my life. After meeting her I sincerely wondered if I was up to the task. Just looking at her made her shake. When I picked her up I was appalled at the lack of muscle tone. She had so much loose skin hanging off of her frame. She is missing teeth and the tip of her tail is broken and permanently bent. I can only imagine what she looked like before she spent those precious months in Heide's care. I shudder everytime I imagine what her poor little life was like before she came into rescue.
How can I possible explain the joy I felt everytime I saw Tammy triumph over one of her fears no matter how minor? She barked at every strange noise. When you've lived in a cage all of your life all home noise is a strange noise. She cowered if people approached her widly looking for a place to hide (behind me). Then she discovered soft plush toys and how to play with them. She used Oliver as her mentor, he potties..she potties, he runs, she runs. We never pushed her to do more than she could handle. I made sure that I was consistent in my handling of her. Even though I was a novice at this I felt that routine and repetition were the keys to helping her with her self-confidence and it paid off big dividends. We had daily "us" time, where all we would do is sit and cuddle together on the couch. I would talk to her the whole time and she would look right into my eyes like she understood every word I was saying.
Tammy has been forever home now for 8 months. She no longer shakes when new people approach her but she will always be shy and timid with strangers. Her eyes are clear, her muscle tone has greatly improved and zoomies are the order of the day around here. She is fast becoming a real dachshund princess like she was always meant to be. She has selective hearing, a propensity for begging and a big hound's bark. She loves noisy toys the best, soft blankets, the couch and most of all the BIG bed.
She has such a gentle soul that she brings out the protective instinct in everyone who meets her including her brother Oliver. She has stolen my heart. We realize that we cannot wipe out the years she spent as a prisoner of greed. All we can do is ensure that she feels safe and secure and loved and that the rest of her years are filled with happiness.
Tammy begs everyone to help get the word out..do not support these prisons of greed, never buy babies from petstores.
Tammy was the most timid scared girl I had ever met in my life. After meeting her I sincerely wondered if I was up to the task. Just looking at her made her shake. When I picked her up I was appalled at the lack of muscle tone. She had so much loose skin hanging off of her frame. She is missing teeth and the tip of her tail is broken and permanently bent. I can only imagine what she looked like before she spent those precious months in Heide's care. I shudder everytime I imagine what her poor little life was like before she came into rescue.
How can I possible explain the joy I felt everytime I saw Tammy triumph over one of her fears no matter how minor? She barked at every strange noise. When you've lived in a cage all of your life all home noise is a strange noise. She cowered if people approached her widly looking for a place to hide (behind me). Then she discovered soft plush toys and how to play with them. She used Oliver as her mentor, he potties..she potties, he runs, she runs. We never pushed her to do more than she could handle. I made sure that I was consistent in my handling of her. Even though I was a novice at this I felt that routine and repetition were the keys to helping her with her self-confidence and it paid off big dividends. We had daily "us" time, where all we would do is sit and cuddle together on the couch. I would talk to her the whole time and she would look right into my eyes like she understood every word I was saying.
Tammy has been forever home now for 8 months. She no longer shakes when new people approach her but she will always be shy and timid with strangers. Her eyes are clear, her muscle tone has greatly improved and zoomies are the order of the day around here. She is fast becoming a real dachshund princess like she was always meant to be. She has selective hearing, a propensity for begging and a big hound's bark. She loves noisy toys the best, soft blankets, the couch and most of all the BIG bed.
She has such a gentle soul that she brings out the protective instinct in everyone who meets her including her brother Oliver. She has stolen my heart. We realize that we cannot wipe out the years she spent as a prisoner of greed. All we can do is ensure that she feels safe and secure and loved and that the rest of her years are filled with happiness.
Tammy begs everyone to help get the word out..do not support these prisons of greed, never buy babies from petstores.