Adopted

Lucy, age 3˝, showed up with her brother Shiloh from divorcing owners who could no longer keep the happy pair.   Lucy was clearly thrilled to be a housedog.  She loves other dogs, kids and even cats.  She is as close to perfect as you can get in the personality department.

Her foster Mom, says this about her first night:  “Lucy quietly snuggles up to me on the floor, as if she doesn’t quite believe I'm going to allow her to stay in the house.  As I pet her she watches me intently with these beautiful brown eyes. I can see she's soaking it in and making up for years of limited contact and petting.  I can almost hear her doggie prayers that it's not another backyard dream she'll wake up from to find herself alone & outside in the yard again." 

First thing noticed was she was the most bowlegged dog we’d ever seen.  Second thing was a large  skin wound on her neck.  Vet check revealed a long standing, deep-seated, infection.  Owner said she’d had it since puppy hood.  Antibiotics are expected to clear it up entirely.

X-rays of her back legs revealed good hips but bad conformation in the knee area.  Lucy's leg bones literally grew crooked and gave her the "bowlegged look".  There is not a surgery for this condition.  She gets along quite well now and was placed on Glucosamine to help long term.  Lucy will eventually get major arthritis in her knees from this defect.  She will have a shorter lifespan, maybe 4-6 more years at which point the vets estimate her quality of life will be impacted.

Lucy is as sweet as can be and will make a wonderful pet.  She will not have as long a life as other GR's her age, but she will make those years quite memorable for the lucky home that gets her.   Lucy is ready to love her new forever family that will overlook her imperfection and love her anyway!

Update on Lucy, 8/6/02

Lucy continues to do well and is enjoying our family while waiting for her forever family. She is so well-mannered in the house and never bothers any of the children's toys. She does enjoy chewing on a good dog bone though. Lucy is crate trained, does not bark, and is totally house trained. Lucy likes to put her nose up to see if there are any interesting leftovers for her on the table or counter. She has only taken one item in the whole time she has been here. A whole bag of fresh buns! We didn't even know she had taken them because she was so quiet about it. We were watching TV and heard a slight rustle of cellophane. When we checked it out, she was gingerly opening the bag, taking out just one bun at a time, and quietly nibbling on it until gone. No shredding the whole thing and gobbling it all down in one bite for her! She was enjoying each and every morsel. She was so polite and quiet about it that even our other dogs were unaware that they were missing out on such a good treat. Lucy is such a polite Lady! Lucy remains on rimadyl and glucosamine for her problem with bowed legs. As long as she gets her medicine, she is active and runs and plays with the other dogs. She does not appear to be in any pain at all. It is important to keep her weight down and keep her active with light activity. Running around the house and yard, taking walks and swimming are great for her. Very long walks, jogging/running and playing fetch for too many times are probably too rough on her knees.

Lovin' Lucy loves to give kisses. She likes everybody and is a great companion dog. She likes to stay close to you and after a couple minutes of petting and being fussed over, she will lie down next to wherever you are, and just enjoy being there with you. We really like Lucy. She is a sweetie and awfully cute, too!

 

View Pictures Here