Good news that breaks my heart General Chat

I've been looking after a gaggle of greys for the past few months while they waited for a place in rescue.Four of them proved to be small animal friendly and quickly became house dogs.One was very ill,seriously I've never seen anything that thin that was still breathing.He had bleeding dire rear too so was named Pooh.He is now fine after a few truckfuls of tlc but of course I became very attached to him and the other sods that have been pushing me off the sofa for most of the winter.
There is now a place for them in rescue and they'll be off in a few weeks.The spoilt brat part of my nature says Pooh stays!
The grown up bit (called the missus) says there's plenty more where they came from and you'll be the exact same about them.
She's right.She usually is and they'll all go off to fabulous new homes but WAAAAAH!!!!!

AWE It's so hard to give them up isn't it? Congrats and my condolences!

Specially when you've sat up with them night after night trying desperately to pull them back from the brink,watching the terrified look leave their eyes,then seeing them start to be able to stagger to the food bowl alone,then start to show an interest in playing and then that first magical time when they come flying into the room tail lashing,eyes shining,make a huge leap onto my lap and land all 4 feet right on my bollix...

I KNOW there's no way I'd gve him up... It's going to be very tough for you!!! Oliver was supposed to be a foster... Yeah right, that lasted a day and a half! LOL to be fair though, Once I had him, and knew how bad his issues were, I wouldn't have trusted anyone to have him/train him.

Awww he trust you......keep him. xxxxxxx

Well done. Fosterers are angels to the dogs they help.

If I keep him there's that much less room for the next one that needs help.He's not the first I've fallen for and I'd be very surprised if he's the last.He's not even the only one of this bunch! He was surely the saddest one I've ever seen though.

A wee "angel" sent to an angel to make better

And being a complete tart (like most greys) HE won't look back as soon as his new person gives him a bellyful of grub and the best armchair!
I have kept a number of fosters who for various reasons weren't suitable for homing or nobody wanted them but never just because they stole my heart...I'd be up to my armpits in dogs if I kept every dog I fell for and then I wouldn't be able to foster any more.Some are extra special,not just to me but in and of themselves.
I count it an honour to have known them and a privilege to hand them over to someone who is about to discover the joy of that creature's specialness.Rubbish grammar but you know what I mean.
My BIG wish is that more people who adopt a rescue dog would send news back to the rescue of how they're getting on.My very favourite photos and letters are from the next poor sods getting their voices made high and squeaky by one of 'mine'.Sadly these are few and far between.There's the phone calls to say the dog's okay and they love it to bits etc but it's not the same...
Thanks Velvetboxer but the missus is choking on her tea at the thought of me with a halo!

Thank heaven for people like you. Sadly, as your OH says - there are always more waiting for a chance.

Oh bless you for being so kind to your gaggle! And well done for bringing Pooh back from the brink. I love people like you!!
It will be sad to see them go (I am a failed fosterer!! ) but as your OH says....you will have space for many more over the years! Well done you

Well done for caring for Pooh you're a star.

As for advice re keeping him, I'm the worst one to ask, as we have just adopted another - our 7th failed foster

Aren't you just WONDERFUL!

The funny thing is the ones I have kept.The two breeds I would have SWORN I wouldn't ever own - SBTs (coz they're not famous for living well in packs) and boxers (I just don't like the squish face breeds and I'm not crazy about super bouncy dogs either - there's only so much a man's b........ can take)
Of course the two SBT x's (see Pics of terriers on the Terriers forum) got stuck here - no one wanted them and the white boxer although not deaf has some expensive health issues and no one wanted her either.
One of the SBT x's is DA and takes some managing but he spends most of his time in the pack and I adore all 3 of them.
My dobe bitch is bitch aggressive,she has to live out in the kennels where she shares with the male Rott who has some serious people issues.They're not safe to rehome.The rott bitch was 10 when she arrived with nipples down to her ankles.Lovely natured dog but no one wants them at that age.The mastiff x's aren't the safest with strangers,they stayed.My own grey - well I have to have ONE to call my own!Ditto with the lurcher- actually a longdog if you want to get pedantic.The mini terrier - there's a thread about him that explains why he's still here to stay..
I've left a few out but I've still kept plenty so when there's a chance to get homes for greys I take it.It's particularly hard this time but it has to be done.For the sake of the dogs.

Good lord - how many have you got?

Canine : Permanent residents,14.Guests 9 Feline ermanent residents 5 Guests 7
Equine :Just the one.
Four of the canine guests are out in the kennels and two of my own because of DA issues.We're not talking little wooden huts by the way,they're purpose brick built,insulated and heated with covered runs and access to 1/4 acre paddock with 8' fence sunk in concrete and paved edges for keeping claws worn down.That's aside from the big dog paddock that everyone gets (supervised) turns in.
The glories of early retirement..And selling the farm BEFORE the crash!

WOW!! Doggy heaven, you sound a lovely person and you are doing a wonderful thing for these dogs xx

We actually built the kennels for our own dogs for when we go travelling.There's a lovely German lady in the village who's dotty about the dogs and has known them for years.She couldn't manage them as a pack but she's very good with them in smaller bunches.She moves in to our guest cottage when we go away and we move everyone out to the kennels.They don't stress about being away from home because they're not,they're well looked after,they're safe and we get a clean INTACT house to come home to.The aggressive Rott male is a relatively new addition but the kennels have drop down doors between the sleeping area and the run which operate from the corridor so hopefully she'll be able to manage him on our next holiday.We'll have some dry runs first to be sure! She likes Romeo but he doesn't like her...or anyone else for that matter. He's been good as gold with me from the start,he grumbled a bit the first night but by the next morning I was able to rough house play with him.That's when I noticed his broken hock joint.It's an old injury and he's not lame on it but the way it set it doesn't look like a vet was involved in the healing of it.Heaven knows what sort of a life he'd had.He was awfully thin too.He's 5 years old and I fear he's pretty much as good as he's going to get though I'll work on it.I don't need a guard dog after all- not when the missus is about anyway! I'd like to bring him into the house,the signs are good for him getting on with the other dogs but I don't yet trust him not to eat the missus.He goes ballistic when anyone goes near his run.What we're doing at the moment is I go in with him and get the bravest of volunteers to approach the run not looking at him while I stay in with him calling him away from the wire.It's not working yet.I tell him he's a good boy when he stops the guard behaviour and comes to me but there's only seconds of it before he's back trying to eat through the chain link to get at whoever is outside.The next step will be to try him in the paddock with a muzzle on but there's a shortage of volunteers for that process strangely enough!Even Eva,the German lady, doesn't want to be part of that.I don't get it at all.A muzzled dog can't hurt anyone but that's folks for you.:-o

Oh I'm so envious of you!!! My dream is to have a place with loads of animals...mainly greyhounds and lurchers of course!! Throw in a few goats and chickens and I'll be happy!!

I'm thinking there's quite a few people on this forum that would be doing exactly what I'm doing if they had the place to do it in.
Have you ever kept goats Zoe?Smelliest feet in creation and it's a little advertised fact of goatkeeping that you have to get up close and personal with those reeking hooves very regularly to trim them.I wouldn't do it without a gas mask personally...