Can you believe this??? VERY LONG POST FOR A NEEDY BOY NAMED RICHARD IN TX!
Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and stray basset hound lovers. Sigh……….
OK – this is just to strange for words but you all know how many of those I have. OK, we all remember Gabe who finally found a perfect forever home.
OK – this is not about Gabe. He is doing great and loving life. His foster family made sure of that.
Now for the kicker………..This came in the same day that Gabe found a forever home from Chaps’s Auntie, Audra, in TX. Her and her family fostered Gabe and really needed to get him a home because of the Elders they had. It was just too much for them!
Middle of e-mail after telling me about Gabe……….
“NOW, you need to sit down, if your not already………take a deep breath………..because you won’t believe what I am about to tell you now. This evening some man came by my Mom’s house (she had met him last week when he was walking by and they talked about Gabe and the Bassets) and he told her he had seen another basset walking down the highway near their house. He picked it up and didn’t know what to do with it, but remembered she had Gabe and rescued bassets. So………..you know the rest. It’s at my Mom’s house right now. It was in TERRIBLE SHAPE. So thirsty, so hungry, ticks, and it appeared to have never had his nails trimmed. They were curving around his toes, in fact his feet were already growing that way from the long nails. He must of tripped all the time, because his nose was bleeding and his chin was all scraped up. He’s not neutered, and my mom thinks he was use for a stud service. One of his eyes are a little cloudy, but he is so lovable and just wags his tail all the time. He appears to be about 7 years old.
Can you believe this?????????? I told Basset Buddies about him, but they don’t have any room to foster him. They are bursting at the seams. My mom did want me to ask you about The House of Puddles. Do they take old bassets in like this? I’m not quite sure about their program? We can try to get him adopted out, but I’m afraid he might be too old. He also has a knot on his neck, so I will have to get that checked out too. Well, let me know your thoughts. We are going to take him to the vet hopefully Friday to get shots, neuter surgery, heartworm check, etc. I’ll keep you posted.
End of middle of e-mail………Oh for the love of God.
They have named him Richard…….
4-16-09 UPDATE
E- mail from Audra who is a part of the foster family……
Hi Cat…..just wanted to check in to let you know how Richard is doing. He had his surgery yesterday and boy did he have surgery!!!!! Let’s see he was given all his shots, tested Heartworm negative (YEA!), neutered, had the rather large skin tag hanging from his chest removed, along with another one on his stomach, then had a large cyst removed from his neck and 3 others on his underside, and all the little skin warts hanging on him (they looked like ticks) burned off. He also had his ears checked, another nail trim, his anal glands drained and a dental cleaning. The vet said his teeth looked great, didn’t need any pulled and they cleaned, scraped, polished and sealed his teeth. He has some cataracts starting in both eyes, and they estimate his age anywhere between 6-8 years old.
He is doing really well after surgery, just has a lot of staples in him everywhere. He is eating fine and getting along well with Bailey and Clancy, although my Mom keeps him in a separate part of her house and then puts him in a kennel at night.
He obviously has never been cared for his entire life. If you notice in one of the photos his little right foot curves to the side. We believe it grew this way because of the way he was walking due to his long toenails. He walks fine, however favors that foot a little.
My Mom is trying to socialize him as much as she can. Richard has become very attached to her and her only. He seems to favor women over men. He took well to me and Jourdan when we went over to visit and Colby…….and Abby, well Abby doesn’t like anyone, she’s got her own issues from her past. After she showed her teeth and growled at him, he finally left her alone.
We really need to find a home for Richard. Someone that would be willing to have a senior dog and understand that he doesn’t want to go for long walks or play a lot,,,,,,,he doesn’t even need a large yard………he would just be happy to have a soft bed (which he has never had…….you can tell because of all the callouses on his elbows, he must of always laid on a rough surface). He is quiet, learning how to receive love (something he didn’t know existed), eats well, potty trained, and he gives you a sincere look of gratitude for showing him there is more to life than he ever knew! He picked up a toy the other day and threw it in the air……..the first sign of him showing he was comfortable enough to enjoy a little fun time.
I have contacted Basset Buddies and they have him posted, but you know the older ones are harder to adopt out. They are going to try and move him into a foster family after he gets his staples out in about 10 days. I was hoping you could maybe do a blog on him, to see if his family is out there………waiting to give Richard a home — something he really never has had.
Here are some new pictures of Richard…..
Can you believe this story? How the chain of events lead all of us to each other. This old guy was desperate with a banged up chin and his life changed with this group of folks.
Oh my sweet circle of friends. One more old guy can find a home with the power of love, the internet, and most importantly, A FOSTER FAMILY………
It is my honor and great joy to showcase……….RICHARD! A true joy and survivor. Is he your best friend? Let’s help him find the life he deserves just like all of the bassets at Basset Buddies Rescue of TX
More Richard news later………Love, Cat, Chaps and Emma
Comments(16)
You might check with Wendie Prince at Senior Hounds Abound in FL.
Good luck Richard hope you continue to improve.
Bless Audra and her folks for going above and beyond to help this sweet basset. God’s incredible timing to wait and bring Richard to them after Gabe found a home. The two elder bassets probably would have frowned on having two visitors at the same time.
Poor dog, hurting from hunger, sore feet and lack of love … no creature should be this mistreated or this alone. Surely God has a perfect home for Richard, we just have to find them and let them know that Richard has been looking for them everywhere.
So sad. 🙁
6 – 8 years old isn’t that bad. You’d be surprised at the people who will adopt older dogs. I originally wanted a dog the same age as Jethro when I adopted Rugs. Jethro was 3 and Rugs was going to be 5 in a month when I adopted him. At that time I thought 5 was a little older than what I wanted to adopt but when I met Rugs I had to bring him home. It was the best decision I have ever made. So, even though it may take a little longer to get him adopted out I have no doubt that he’ll find his forever home. Older dogs are better for older people. And a lot of older people adopt. Houston is a big city and Basset Buddies will do a good job advertising him. Good luck Richard!
I’ve featured Richard at OneMom this morning. Poor old dog.
This story both breaks my heart and lifts my heart. Richard is quite a handsome Basset, and I don’t think six or eight is really that old.
I am so glad to read that he is being loved and cared for.
Hi Cat,
Thank you for posting Richard. Also thank OneMom for her feature too. It is so hard to foster, I get so attached to the Hounds. But I’m so thankful that Richard fell on my door step that day.
I’m so proud of Emma, that she is doing so well. I know you and your mom had a lot to do with her doing so good. We are keeping all of you in our prayers.
Love,
Charlene
Hi Charlene – we will do everything we can to help find Richard a home. Keep those pictures and updates coming. Cindy, who comments here very often, is with basset buddies so she is a huge help. Thanks Cindy!
Cat
Thank you Kerry (One Mom) for doing that. Every bit of networking is essential when a homeless hound is looking for a forever home. He looks like such a gentle soul.
Cat
Hey Cindy! I was waiting for your input on Richard. You are right Houston is very big and that is in Richard’s favor. Basset Buddies does a great job and Richard is lucky to have them in his corner.
Cat
I know Kerry – I feel exactly like you do. That old guy sure hit pay dirt when Audra and her folks took him in. It’s really like winning the lottery for a homeless basset.
Cat
Well, I have to say that I’m not as involved with BBR as I used to be. I’m fostering Oz and Harriet and help out with home visits and a little transport here and there. Things happen in life and things change. But I still support BBR and they do very good work. And they know I’m available to do what I can in the south. There’s not very many of us down south so I am sometimes called on to get bassets out of shelters down here and to the vet. And I do home visits down here. I actually have one to do tomorrow morning. So hopefully we’ll get an adoption when she meets the basset of her dreams on Sunday. As Chaps would say…”YES!”
Best of luck Richard. You are so handsome. The folks you meet here at BHT restore my faith in humanity.
Hugs to all helping Richard,
Kip, Gus, Bonnie and Charlie Bear
[…] in the country – there is always a way to get a rescued hound to their forever home), please visit Basset Hound Town and Basset Buddies Rescue of Texas to read the rest of Richard’s story and how to adopt […]
Richard looks like he is doing wonderfully!
Senior Houndsabound is full, but I have no doubt this fellow can be adopted. 6-8 is prime time for hounds, IMO. We really do not take in hounds under 10 yrs of age here, as again, IMO, that is a senior hound, although vets like to put a senior as 7 and over.
I look forward to reading about his forever family soon!
Thanks Wendi – We really have no idea how old he is. That is just a best guess. I will keep everyone updated about Richard. Thanks for stopping by.
Cat
[…] CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS??? VERY LONG POST FOR A NEEDY BOY NAMED RICHARD IN TX […]