Meet Ziggy

This spring has been a sad time in our pet family with Dozer, the senior Lab, being put down, Lacey, our very old cat dying under the pool in the big storm, and then on Monday, Jake, our rescue mutt, having to be put down. Jake had changed from an energetic oldster (12) to an ailing oldster in a short amount of time. Initially we thought it was Lyme disease. Even though he had been vaccinated, it is not foolproof, and we began treating him with antibiotics. The vet found no abnormalities in his blood work, but when he sent us home, he said, "Let's hope it's Lyme. If not, it's probably something worse."

It was something worse. Jake quit eating, he began throwing up, and a second trip to the vet showed he had a huge tumor on his spleen. We asked the vet if we could put Jake in the car as if he was going home, and he euthanized him there. He died with his head on my  husband's lap.  Jake's death left a huge hole in the family and my heart. He'd been a challenging rescue, but he'd also been my shadow. Fang, aka princess Chihuahua, was left with no dog buddies, and I knew I better find another dog to share our lives with before school started and we had less time.

Meet Ziggy. Part bat (check out his ears in the photo below), part mini-pin, part Chihuahua. He came from Caring for Creatures, a fabulous rescue organization that plucks dogs and cats from high-kill shelters before they are put down. Ziggy's  time was up. He is only one-year-old, he was at CFC for six weeks, and at least a month at the shelter where he came in as a stray, so I can't imagine what his brief life has been like. Fang and I met him at CFC (above) and although I knew Ziggy would be challenging because he was shy and afraid of men, we brought him home.

It's been four days, and I've learned quickly how to be leader of the pack to help reassure Ziggy that he is safe. Here he is resting after his fifth walk (and it's only lunchtime!) Fortunately, he's smart and learning quickly. Challenges are house-training--I haven't picked up on his "I need to go" cues--despite all the walks, and 'stranger' issues. He's super-sensitive to sounds and sights. I have no idea how he coped at the busy, noisy shelters.  But I am learning what he needs, and he's learning all the rules that I (leader of the pack) have set down, Fang loves playing with him (growls added when he gets too rough), he loves my daughter, and he and my husband are slowly bonding.

Now if he can just find that CAT.

If anyone has a mini-pin, please send ANY suggestions on training. I have read they can be a handful. Ziggy seems to have enough of something "else" in him that he is eager to please, so my fingers are crossed. I do get the feeling he can  never be allowed off-leash (Fang, aka princess, never has to be on a leash so I have been spoiled.). If he spots something moving, he wants to be after it in a flash.

Thank you for letting me share one more depressing "pet death" story, and I hope next post, to have  great news on Ziggy's adjustment.