MY NAME IS ANGEE

With economic times as they are, our rescue has encountered a number of difficult stories tied to dogs and their owners. Last Saturday we received a phone call from a woman in Portland who said she woke up to find a Scottish Terrier abandoned in a crate and left in front of her house. On the crate was a hand-written note introducing Angee.

Aberdeen Scottish Terrier Rescue immediately responded to the location of Angee, finding a very nervous and restless little dog. The woman who called ASTR was thankful that she had the option of turning Angee over to an organization with an interest in the rescue of abandoned dogs. That very afternoon Angee was in the hands of ASTR's veterinary staff for a quick checkup and scheduling of a spay procedure. Angee was in a loving and caring foster home within 24 hours of being discovered in a Portland frontyard.

During the week Angee has been in foster care she has been spayed, had her teeth cleaned and been caught up on her vaccinations. Her foster family reports she has calmed down a bit but is still a very active and playful Scotty. It may take several weeks before Angee's real personality comes out, so stay tuned.

BAILEY FINDS A NEW HOME

We are very happy to receive a photograph of one of our latest rescue placements. Bailey is a puppy-mill survivor who came to ASTR at the age of four years without having been house-trained, socialized with other dogs or taught how dogs play. During the several months he spent with his foster family, Bailey learned how to walk on leash, do his business outside and share the attention of an owner with brother and sister dogs. Bailey now lives with a doting family, complete with a sister Scotty named "Paisley", and several cats.

Bailey is one of many dogs that comes through our rescue each year, never blessed with the basics of proper training or an understanding of expectations. And like the other dogs, a bit of perseverance and focused attention has made him the loved and respected companion that Scotties are known to be. We wish Bailey and his new family well.

CAGE 20 IS A LUCKY DOG TODAY

As luck would have it, just as I was about to depart for Idaho I received a phone call from a woman representing Oregon Dog Rescue of Portland. She said she was at the shelter in Idaho and offered to bring "Cage 20" to Portland along with another dog. Oregon Dog Rescue had made arrangements with Alaska Airlines to fly the dogs non-stop from Boise to Portland, defeating all the severe weather issues. Oregon Dog Rescue was making it all happen through the generous assistance of a retired Alaska employee. She said she would get all the necessary veterinary paperwork together and that the dogs were scheduled to fly on March 1st.

And that is just what happened. I talked with Deb Bowen of Oregon Dog Rescue (http://www.oregondogrescue.org/about.php) on March 2nd. She said the transport went without a hitch despite all the weather-related problems. She said "Cage 20" was an adorable dog that would probably be adopted into her own family. Deb is currently trying to find a suitable Scottish name for the lucky guy. We hope to get a photograph and brief story of "Cage 20" once he is cleaned up and recovered.

CAGE 20

Our rescue organization recently learned of a small scotty found roaming the wilds of southern Idaho. The little adventurer was taken to the local animal shelter where he was given the dispassionate title "CAGE 20". Shelter employees said they would hold "CAGE 20" till March 1st for an owner to claim, after which time "CAGE 20" would be subject to euthanasia. It sounds pretty important we get over to the shelter right away.

Eastern Oregon is a difficult partner during the month of February. The National Weather Service has issued severe weather warnings for the Columbia Gorge and the mountains of Oregon. The primary route to Idaho, Interstate 84, rises more than 4,000 feet in elevation. High winds, snows and very cold temperatures commonly work together to close the roadway at Cabbage Hill or Deadman's Pass, or Ladd Canyon. Other options in this case are very few. No worries, though. Dealing with foul weather and long distances is only the beginning of what animal rescue is about. I just wish we had a name for this little fellow other than "CAGE 20".

ROSIE FINDS A HOME

We are always happy to receive letters from new adoptive families. Michael and Lacy have sent us an update on little Rosie, now living on beautifully fenced and landscaped acreage with her terrier brothers:

Rosie has found a home with her new Mommy and Daddy and her two Cairn Terrier brothers. Every day she gets better and better, more at home and more at ease with her new family. She recently visited the groomer with her two brothers and they all are looking quite spiffy. She is really looking (and acting) like the true little Scottie that she is.

After having been forced to live in a cage for the first three years of her life, she is thoroughly enjoying our acre piece of property. She runs from one end of the yard to the other end as fast as her little legs will carry

her. She plays, barks, and tracks every smell she can find.

Inside she has the run of the house and sleeps under our bed at night. Late at night, before bedtime, she loves to lay on her new Daddy’s lap and snuggle close. It’s only a matter of time before she’ll start “giving kisses.”

She still has a little problem with a parasite but she is getting medicine for that and will be fine in a week or so. Her checkup otherwise showed that she is a happy, healthy little Scottie in spite of the cage scars on her little nose.

She loves to take walks and she has no problem with bathroom manners in the house. She has her own car seat

now with the other two pups and she can’t wait to go for a ride. She also loves her toys, especially the squeek toy that makes the most noise.

All in all, Rosie is now in her forever home with her forever family. She will never again have to worry about food, or mistreatment, or any other type of abuse. She is loved.

GIVING ROSIE A SECOND LIFE

Meet Rosie, a 16 pound, 3 year old Scottie who has the makings of a wonderful little companion. Due to her previous life in a cage, Rosie's behavior is just a a bit unusual as she seems to have no interest in things like squirrels or cats or toys. She is fearful of life out of a cage and runs from hiding spot to hiding spot throughout the house. To this point we have seen no response on her part to anything we say. I am pretty sure her hearing is fine, but she just doesn't seem to pay attention to anything we say, even her name. Part of that is just from being a Scottie, and part may be from her being a bit overwhelmed in a totally new environment. She has shown some jealousy when other dogs approach us in her presence.

Rosie was undernourished with a case of tapeworms, a problem that exaggerated the size of her head in proportion to the rest of her body. She now seems to show a lot of excitement about meals and is not a picky eater. With proper exercise and nutrition she will fill out to a proper 20 pound Scottie. Rosie is not completely housebroken and we are working on getting her to let us know when she needs to go out.

Last week Rosie went to the veterinarian for a general examination and received all the necessary vaccinations. In early December, after she has had an opportunity to put on some weight, she will be spayed and have her teeth cleaned. She should be available for adoption soon after that.

After watching Rosie interact with our own dogs, we are developing the opinion that she would probably fit best with a family that has no other dogs and are familiar with the Scottie personality. We believe the adoptive family will have to spend considerable time training her as she did not develop the behavior of a normal Scottie in her early life. She is a charming little dog that is truly in need of a constant, life-long companion.

ABERDEEN SCOTTISH TERRIER RESCUE....IN ACTION

Yesterday afternoon we received word that Earlene Holmstrom, the coordinator of Aberdeen Scottish Terrier Rescue, was about an hour away from Vancouver with a carload of very dirty little Scottish Terriers. Earlene had been working with other rescue groups in an attempt to give assistance to some Scottish Terriers that had been recovered from the operator of a puppy mill. It was time to activate the ASTR volunteers for an afternoon of washing little terriers at the local dogwash. At 2:30 that afternoon all the volunteers were assembled and ready to work when Earlene arrived with four very cute, but very dirty, little terriers.

Everyone took a Scottie straight to a bath tub. Once you got a smell of one there was absolutely no delay. Each Scottie was scrubbed not once, not twice, but at least three times, in an effort to remove months of dirt and caked excrement from the very skinny and strangely quiet terriers. Months of life in cages had caused each of the Scotties to develop a nasty stench that just wouldn't completely go away. We were all wondering if that smell would be a permanent feature to Earlene's new car. One of the dogs was barely able to walk.

The Scotties were amazingly well-behaved. We had expected a bunch of unsocialized little terrors, but nothing could have been further from the truth. They did seem wary in the strange circumstances of the dogwash, but none of them barked or growled about anything. And, as you would expect of neglected dogs, they seemed almost dazed and emotionless. But after a good scrubbing and drying each dog was perfectly happy to be held by a volunteer and go to sleep while wrapped in a towel. Each of us left the dogwash with the feeling that we had made a big difference in the lives of some small new friends.

Today each Scottie will have a complete examination at our local veterinary hospital. We know that most have eye infections and problems with worms and malnutrition. Hopefully their awkward movements will simply be the result of too little exercise and that, in time, they will act like other frisky terriers. Each will get a thorough examination and each probably scheduled for dental cleaning.

For the indefinite future each Scottie will be fostered in a healthy, social environment along with other Scotties belonging to the foster families. The goal is that each little rescue, with time, will learn how to live like a normal Scottish Terrier. They may have been through hell in the past, but things are looking better for them now.

If you think you would be interested in working as a volunteer with ASTR, contact Coordinator Earlene Holmstrom through the CONTACT US link at our web site. There are so many dogs that can be helped in so many ways.