"GRADY" the West Highland Terrier

Hey! Y'owl remember awhile back one of our Readers wrote us about the rescued Westie that was so traumatized and skeered from being abused that he wouldint come out of the corners? And he wouldint eat his dinner anywhere but in his crate? And Mom wrote back to the lady with some suggestions for the little fella?

Last weekend, Mom and Dad went to meet Grady. They stayed a long time and let him get used to having strangers in the house. He wouldint come out of his crate so Mom went in and got him. Yes, she did. And she held him in her lap and fed him some bits of well done steak from her dinner plate. She also put some butter on the top of her hand and let him lick it off while she taught him the word "kiss". Pretty soon, Grady was licking Mom's hand and arm everytime she said "kiss" even if there wuzzent any butter there to lick.Then she took him in the living room and rocked him on her shoulder and sang "there was a farmer had a dog and Bingo was his name-o".

The Westies' hoomans thought Mom was whacked.

After awhile, though, Mom brought Grady back into the kitchen and told his man 2-legged to fix Grady's supper and put it in his bowl. The man did. Mom picked up the bowl and set it and Grady down on the floor near the dining room table. Then Mom sat down at the table and started talking about the weather. The man said, "He won't eat it."

Mom said, "Wait". She kept the conversation around the table going for a coupla minutes and then without changing the tone of her voice, she motioned for the man and woman to look at Grady. Then Mom took this picksure of Grady eating in the kitchen from his bowl for the first time.

It's gonna take awhile, maybe a long while, 

but he is gonna be okay. 

DEAR HOOLIGAN HOUSE

DEAR HOOLIGAN HOUSE,

Dad's and Mom's beloved Westie (West Highland Terrier) died of old age and kidney failure. Zack was Mom's reason for getting up everyday. My sister and I decided that they needed a new dog. I went on Petfinder and found a Westie rescue group in N. Al. It happened that the lady in charge was delivering 2 dogs last Thur and she had a dog she thought perfect for them.

My husband and I drove to Montgomey to pick him up. He was a puppy mill reject. They called him Chops as someone had cut off his tail. He was found a month ago after he was attacked by dogs and then tossed in a dumpster to die. he is appox. 4 yr old and only 14 pounds. He is very sweet but very very nervous. He shakes from fear and hides in corners. We went out to dinner and before we left he was in a crate that had been stuffed with a huge pillow. The door was left open. Dad put out a bowl of food. He gets canned mixed with warm water as they have not seen him drink. When we got back the bowl was empty and he was hiding in dad's office in a corner between the bookshelf and the wall. There was only enough room for him to sit.

If you have any ideas on how to help this little guy, PLEASE let me know. Thank you.

Nancy

Dear Nancy,

Thank Heavens for Rescue Groups! It breaks my heart to hear stories like this. Someday, maybe, there will be no more puppy mills.

I do have suggestions on initial help for this dog. You have to proceed as though he is in triage, as though this is an emergency situation. And I have very firm rules about how to help him.

First of all get him completely checked out by a vet, blood work and all. Then, don't force anything on him - not even affection. Go about life as usual and pay him as little attention as possible. Don’t leave food down all the time. Two meals a day at set times so he gets used to a routine. Give him a week or so to start adjusting. Your parents need to be committed to letting him figure out on his own that he is safe and can trust them.

After about a week or ten days, please get in touch with me. I will be glad to help in any way I can.

Mom of Hooligans