Once upon a time I was a normal person with one dog and two cats. One night I was sitting on the couch, wasting time on facebook as I am known to do, when I saw a posting from someone about an elderbull named Cypha at the NYC ACC. The post was via a page on facebook called "Urgent Part 2" which is made up of volunteers who advocate on behalf of the dogs of death row in the New York City shelter system. It's a crazy world unto itself where every night they post "the list" of the dogs scheduled to be killed the following day, and rescue groups, people called "cross-posters" and just concerned citizens, share, pledge and try to rescue as many of those dogs as possible. Cypha was an 8 year old dog who had been within the ACC system for an unheard of 3 months and who had managed to survive "the list" a couple of times, and had been transferred at one point from the Brooklyn shelter to what is considered the safer shelter in Staten Island.
I had had the thought of rescuing a senior male pit and on that particular night as I looked at Cypha's face and read his profile I thought, sure, let's go for it. They said he was a mellow guy but there was no information as to whether he could live with cats. He had been surrendered due to "landlord issues" which is a sad and common story due to discriminatory housing policies against pit bulls but also other large dogs. This is a link to his original posting. I asked a few questions, was put in touch with a wonderful woman named Jackie who volunteered at the SI shelter and had met Cypha, and she put me in touch with a rescue group who would "pull him" for me on a foster to adopt basis (just in case the whole cat thing didn't work out).
I did the necessary paperwork, reference checks, home check etc and Cypha was scheduled to be neutered and then delivered to me in a few days. I ended up picking him up unneutered because a hurricane was headed our way and they were evacuating the SI shelter and moving all the dogs to Brooklyn. I made a plea and was able to pick him up the morning before the storm hit. My Mom and I drove to Staten Island and I will never forget the first time I saw him. He was bigger and stronger than I thought, and after 3 mos in the shelter he was a little bit shut down and afraid to look at me.
We headed back to Long Island with Cy (I decided to just shorten up his name) and in the car he ignored me but at one point made eye contact with my Mom. We got home and did a very rushed intro with Rory out in the street, transitioned to the backyard and fortunately, they took to each other right away! Here they are during the hurricane watching out the front door as the rain was picking up. We still kept a leash on Cy for a few days and seperated them when I wasn't home etc but they never had an issue these two.
I had had the thought of rescuing a senior male pit and on that particular night as I looked at Cypha's face and read his profile I thought, sure, let's go for it. They said he was a mellow guy but there was no information as to whether he could live with cats. He had been surrendered due to "landlord issues" which is a sad and common story due to discriminatory housing policies against pit bulls but also other large dogs. This is a link to his original posting. I asked a few questions, was put in touch with a wonderful woman named Jackie who volunteered at the SI shelter and had met Cypha, and she put me in touch with a rescue group who would "pull him" for me on a foster to adopt basis (just in case the whole cat thing didn't work out).
I did the necessary paperwork, reference checks, home check etc and Cypha was scheduled to be neutered and then delivered to me in a few days. I ended up picking him up unneutered because a hurricane was headed our way and they were evacuating the SI shelter and moving all the dogs to Brooklyn. I made a plea and was able to pick him up the morning before the storm hit. My Mom and I drove to Staten Island and I will never forget the first time I saw him. He was bigger and stronger than I thought, and after 3 mos in the shelter he was a little bit shut down and afraid to look at me.
We headed back to Long Island with Cy (I decided to just shorten up his name) and in the car he ignored me but at one point made eye contact with my Mom. We got home and did a very rushed intro with Rory out in the street, transitioned to the backyard and fortunately, they took to each other right away! Here they are during the hurricane watching out the front door as the rain was picking up. We still kept a leash on Cy for a few days and seperated them when I wasn't home etc but they never had an issue these two.
Now acclimating Cy with my two cats at the time Henry and Jake was a whole other issue, one that I will write about in another post because teaching dogs to live with cats is something I have done twice now. I will say that it was 2 month process in which for the safety of the cats, Cy was kept separate from them. Today I can say both Cy and Rory could give two shits about cats in the house and truthfully, they are afraid of them!
Fast forward now 2 1/2 years and my old man is about 11 years old. He is one of the great loves of my life for sure and while I wish he had never lost his home in the first place, I am so grateful he came into my life. He is a smart, stable, loving dog and the favorite among most of my female houseguests. In particular he has stolen the heart of our petsitter Beth who considers him to be a son. He now has another baby sister Cookie who adores him and doesn't leave him alone for a second. He loves to share food with me (when he first came home he was very leery of people food) and eats everything from kale stalks to bananas, pizza crusts, cherry tomatoes, carrots and his favorite, peanut butter. He loves to lick the dirty dishes in the dishwasher and he loves taking a walk in the morning with his two sisters. He follows me from room to room no matter what, even when I vacuum. When we go to the vet all the vet techs come out into the waiting room to say hi to him.
Sadly my old man has been battling stage 3 mast cell tumors for about 6 months now and he's finally starting to slow down. He is so strong and tough, and aside from the giant tumor he has right now you would think he is a young guy. I will write a post about cancer someday soon but for now just wanted to tell you all about my boy, and ask you if you can to say a prayer for him. I also want to encourage anyone reading this to consider adopting a senior dog. As much as I love my young guys, adopting a senior is such a gift. A gift to the dog you rescue but also a gift and blessing for your life.
Fast forward now 2 1/2 years and my old man is about 11 years old. He is one of the great loves of my life for sure and while I wish he had never lost his home in the first place, I am so grateful he came into my life. He is a smart, stable, loving dog and the favorite among most of my female houseguests. In particular he has stolen the heart of our petsitter Beth who considers him to be a son. He now has another baby sister Cookie who adores him and doesn't leave him alone for a second. He loves to share food with me (when he first came home he was very leery of people food) and eats everything from kale stalks to bananas, pizza crusts, cherry tomatoes, carrots and his favorite, peanut butter. He loves to lick the dirty dishes in the dishwasher and he loves taking a walk in the morning with his two sisters. He follows me from room to room no matter what, even when I vacuum. When we go to the vet all the vet techs come out into the waiting room to say hi to him.
Sadly my old man has been battling stage 3 mast cell tumors for about 6 months now and he's finally starting to slow down. He is so strong and tough, and aside from the giant tumor he has right now you would think he is a young guy. I will write a post about cancer someday soon but for now just wanted to tell you all about my boy, and ask you if you can to say a prayer for him. I also want to encourage anyone reading this to consider adopting a senior dog. As much as I love my young guys, adopting a senior is such a gift. A gift to the dog you rescue but also a gift and blessing for your life.
RSS Feed