Collie (short coat) : : Male : : Adult : : Medium
Gaucho was one of the lucky ones. He was still alive when the 139 Tomball, Texas Collies were liberated from their Hell Hole outside of Houston in late September of 2014. Essentially feral, a full-sized smooth Collie weighing less than 30#, with heart worm disease, it was imperative that we tackle all of his health problems immediately. But where to begin? As the Director, I often get foster dogs that will be long term medical cases or long term emotional rehabs. My primary vet in Pueblo West, Colorado felt that if we could not get his bloody diarrhea to resolve, we could not even begin to tackle all of the other health issues. Parasites that we don't see in Colorado were the first order of business. Hookworms! Arghh!
Southern Colorado Internal Medicine Specialists helped us tackle the reason for the intermittent bloody stools. Ruling diseases out with the aid of a colonoscopy (who knew you could do that for a dog??!!), the definitive diagnosis is Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Gaucho has been on a strict regimen of Royal Canin Digestive Lowfat kibble with lowfat cottage cheese (yum!), canned pumpkin and a product called RX Clay. We have weaned him down from a fairly high dose of prednisone twice a day to a 5 mg tab once a day and we will continue to see if that can be reduced even further. At some point, he will have the return of some symptoms. That will give us his permanent dose of steroid in order to keep him stable. Not bad.
If you were to meet Gaucho today, you might think that we had substituted another dog for the physical and emotional wreck I have previously described. He is here with me in my study, with his head resting on my right foot as I pound away on the keyboard. It has taken him the better part of a year's time for this miracle to take place. And I believe he will always have a little PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) and need to be reassured that everything is okay and he is safe.
Gaucho has been neutered, is current on all vaccinations, has completed his heartworm treatment and is microchipped. He is sleek and handsome and will run in and out the dog door as if he owns the joint. He plays with his foster dog siblings and is enjoying tug-of-war and tag the most but is always willing to watch a new game to see what the rules are. He is still shy about going new places and meeting new people but he will hop into my van if another doggie friend is with him. Housebreaking was a bit of a challenge but by watching the other dogs and patterning after them, he is now reliably house-trained. I knew we were making great strides when Gaucho grabbed my sandal the other day, tossed it in the air, caught it and took off at a gallop with me laughing and running behind him. I was so proud! LOL
Gaucho has watched quite a few dogs meet prospective adopters and pack up their belongings to head to their forever homes. It is his turn to get ready for a new adventure with his forever family. He needs to have a couple of companionable dog friends that will show him the rest of the way to becoming a well-adjusted family dog. He needs a stay-at-home human to remind him that life is good and that he is loved. He will do best in an adult only household without a lot of commotion. Calm and gentle humans would be best. He must be a full-fledged member of the family. Sleeping on a cushy dogbed in the bedroom with mom snoring away is one of life's little pleasures. He will even roll over on his back and snore in unison.
I will be pleased to coach the right family in Gaucho Doggie Care 101. And I promise to always be here for Gaucho and his humans for any reason for his lifetime. That is what I promised Gaucho on the day that I met him.
Please begin the process for adoption by reading our Policies and Guidelines and, if we sound like the right group for you, proceed to the online Adoption Application. From there, our receipt of your completed application will be confirmed by email. You then will receive a follow-up phone call if we feel you are a good potential applicant for the dog. Lots of good conversation with the foster family, a reference from your veterinarian, and a home visit round out the screening process. We take dog adoption very seriously. Please put a lot of thought into why you want to adopt a dog, and help us make a good match for your family. We appreciate your taking the time to visit with us. We will look forward to hearing from you as well. Please begin the process for adoption by reading our Adoption Policies and, if we sound like the right group for you, fill out our online Adoption Application. From there, our receipt of your completed application will be confirmed by email. You then will receive a follow-up phone call if we feel you are a good potential applicant for the dog. Lots of good conversation with the foster family, a reference from your veterinarian, and a home visit round out the screening process. We take dog adoption very seriously. Please put a lot of thought into why you want to adopt a dog, and help us make a good match for your family. We appreciate your taking the time to visit with us. We will look forward to hearing from you as well. Other Pictures of Gaucho (click to see larger version):
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