Willow Oak

[Willow Oak]

Taz' behavior when I arrived home yesterday wasn't as bad as it was the day before. He did cut up for a few minutes, but he calmed down much more quickly yesterday that he had the day before.

Today I shall continue the story of how I came to have all of these animals by introducing you to Oscar. Below is a birds-eye view of my property taken from Yahoo Maps:



I've made a rough outline of my place in black, and as you can see I am in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by woods. You can see the two willow oak trees in the yard in front of my house.

Over the past few years I have found several litters of puppies in the woods, and how they got there who can tell? One of those puppies I found by himself, and he is the only one of those that I have found who is still with me. The rest I delivered safely to our local shelter.

I knew from the beginning that Oscar would not be a good candidate for adoption at the local shelter: he is a large breed dog and he is black. For some reason, that kind of dog doesn't get adopted as readily. Oscar had another problem: he was all over eaten up with mange. I treat dogs for mange by giving them about a half cc of Ivomec (Ivermectin) each day for up to two weeks. That will do it (ivermectin is toxic to a collie).

In the beginning, Oscar was in a bad way, and I actually contracted the mange from him. He and I both were in quarantine for several days while we recovered. I can testify personally to the extreme discomfort of having mange. I would bathe Oscar in the kitchen sink, dry him off, and sprinkle him with Gold Bond powder to lessen the itch (I did the same for myself). He did suffer so those first few days!

Eventually, Oscar recovered from his bout of the mange (as did I, thankfully), and today Oscar is a big, healthy, vibrant, and happy boy. See for yourself:







This is one of my favorite pictures of Oscar, running with his pals, Fred and Sam. I love to see that smile on his face:



Oscar is a gentle soul, as you can see from this picture of him with Thumper the cat:



Before I erected the fence in the front yard I let the dogs run free. After all, I live in the country. Even so, I still would have a dog come up missing now and then, and there is a road in front of my house. Then one day I stepped out my front door to find Oscar lying at the door all covered in blood. He had been shot with a shot gun. He survived that one okay, but I knew then that even in the country it is not a good idea to let your dogs run loose. So up the fence went, and now running around outside is safe for all of my animals.

[Willow Oak]

"Mister! Mister! Help me, mister! I am all alone in this world, and I don't have nobody to help me, mister, and I'm afraid, mister! Please help me, mister!"

I had stopped at a convenience store in the country to get directions, and here he was, begging me to help him. Inside the store I inquired about the kitty. No, he didn't belong to any of them, and no they didn't know from whence he came; but the owner of the store hd gone home to retrieve his gun, because the kitty was bothering the patrons and scratching their cars, etc., etc.

So, on my way back to my vehicle I scooped him up. My intention was to deliver him to the shelter. I have a policy of delivering all animals I find away from home that I deem adoptable to the shelter. This one would be no different. Except that it would be a few days before I would be able to get over that way. In the meantime he would have to reside at my house.

That is almost always a mistake, because most of the time the critter ends up staying permanently. So this is how Cougar came to live with me. A sweeter, kindler, gentler kitty has not existed. If any have ever shown their appreciation for being rescued Cougar certainly has. In time he would be found to have a gum disease and have all his teeth extracted. But it would take me a time to realize his pain.

Cougar is a laid-back kitty:




Cougar began to show signs of bad teeth, but it took me a time to realize it:



This picture is one of those that really opened my eyes to the problem of Cougar's teeth:



I spent a lot of money on Cougar, but it was worth every penny. Here he is after one of his three visits to have his teeth extracted. As you can see, he is much more perky:



Cougar is one of 12 (or so) cats who have taken up residence at Willow Oak. I'm so glad he did.

[Edwina's Secretary]

I am enjoying your writing. I hope you will keep going!

[Karen]

Awww! Not many would have gone to the expense of all that fencing, but I am glad you did, I am sure you sleep more soundly at night now!

[jennielynn1970]

I'm really enjoying your writing and your pictures. Can't wait to read more!

Big hugs to all your guys!

[Willow Oak]

Thanks for the complementary responses.

Before I moved to where I am living now, about seven years ago, I never cared about or cared for an animal. Yes, I had the occasional pet when I was a child. Our family had our share of dogs and cats, but after I grew up I never got involved with animals.

Things for me got started when I observed a neighbor-relative of mine not doing a proper job of caring for her animals. She is what is referred to as a "horder." She has probably had as many as a hundred dogs and cats at one time. For years I observed from a distance, all the time thinking what a wonderful thing she was doing. It is only now, after I have had a few years experience that I realize how what she was doing, though done with good intentions, was really not a good thing at all. Most of those animals would have been better off left alone. Even if they had died in the wilderness, they would have died with more dignity than they eventually did. She kept them alive with food and water, but many of them suffered horrible diseases, and would have died and been put out of their misery much sooner, had they just been left alone.

She would not take them to the animals shelter, because she felt that they would have been euthanized, and to her that would be a bad thing. Of course, I do not like the idea of euthanization, but in the face of long-term suffering, being put to sleep is not such a bad thing.

In the end, I managed to rescue nearly all of the animals from her. Most of them are in heaven now, but I still have a few with me. I took Bonnie from her about seven years ago. Bonnie was the first dog I took. She was all matted and had a bloody ear. About three years ago she began to develop a mild seizure. Today Bonnie takes phenobarbital twice a day. Bonnie is a very happy and well-adjusted puppy. What do you think?



A few years after Bonnie came to live with me, her brother, Clyde, came on board. Clyde is afraid of "funders":



Although he isn't the alpha male on the premises, Clyde thinks he is. Here he is growling at Fred, who is a chow mix. As you can see, Fred is a bit intimidated:

[Willow Oak]

Taking a break from talking about the animals I have now, take a look at the following couple:



They aren't mine. They live down the road from me, and their owenrs don't keep a good job of keeping them up. Here they are after I gathered them in from wandering around on the road where I live. One of these days I am going to find one or both of them run over. Occasionally, I have to chase them down and confine them until I can get in touch with their owners and get them delivered home. One of these days I may decide not to return them.

Anyways, the minipin is very sweet and affectionate. The Jack Russell follows the other one around wherever he goes, and they are inseparable. It's a site to see, but as I've said, their owners can't seem to keep them confined to the place where they live. We do live on a busy country road, with lots of "racers."

Anybody here want a minipin/Jack Russell pair?