Welcome Home, Hazel!

On Friday, Paul and I brought our newest foster dog, Hazel, home to get well. Hazel is about 1-2 years old, has severe Mange and though we thought we had escaped without an Upper Respiratory Infection, it seems we did not, as she is now coughing and sneezing quite a bit. Hazel is listed as a pit bull terrier mix, though, I’m not so sure I think she is, so, maybe this time, we will actually do a doggie DNA test. Not that it matters to us, I just am always curious. *I wonder about Rocco and Savannah, too, but, long ago decided that my amateur guesses will suffice* Looking at Hazel, I see more Bull Terrier, as she has a longish face, and some other breed with slightly longer hair. Also up for debate is what color her spots actually are, since her mange is so bad. You can see clear through to her pink inflamed skin almost everywhere, except for her face and ears. Hazel’s mange makes Jenga’s look like “no big whoop”..and Jenga’s was pretty bad. This poor girl is in rough shape, but, has a super-sweet nature and is super, super tired.
Hazel was at the shelter for about 3 weeks. She was surrendered by her owner who could not afford to take care of her and her skin issues. I will be honest and say this is something I used to judge pretty harshly on, but, in light of the financial difficulties Paul and I have gone through, am a bit more understanding of now. I also have the owner surrender sheet, on which her previous owner had only good things to say about her and it made me very sad. They had taken her to the PSPCA clinic for her mange and got one round of treatment, but, could not afford on-going care. It also made me sad for Hazel, obviously, as she is clearly is very uncomfortable and in a good amount of pain. She is safe now, and will be treated for everything, get lots of love, good food, supplements and meds. She can sleep until the stress has worn off and get lots of affection and love when she is awake.
I started working with Hazel right away on training and am focusing first on loose leash walking.  So far, one word: superstar! She stays focused on me and right at my left hip. Paul taught her to sit and today we will practice both some more, along with the multi- purpose “look” to get her attention. I also need to re-arrange the recovery room, so that there is more space and we can work on crate- training and she can spread out with her beloved rope toy and Nylabones.
She has been here less than 48 hours, but here’s what I know about Hazel so far: it feels really good to her to rub her neck on things…your leg, your arm, the ground. She doesn’t care, as long as it provides some relief from the itchies she will rub on it. She loves to look out the window in the car, which is refreshing after Jenga,who insisted on resting her giant head between Paul and I on the center console! Soft treats she will eat immediately, hard ones she buries and saves for later 🙂 She is good in the bathtub. She wags her tail when she eats. She gets more water on the floor than in her mouth when she takes a drink. And, my favorite of all, Hazel loves kisses and hugs.
Hazel will be here for a while before we start marketing her for adoption. She needs time to heal physically,emotionally and mentally. She needs training. She will get everything and more that she hasn’t had before in her short little life. We hope you will come along on the journey!
You can see just how pink and inflamed the poor girl’s skin is here. Her front paws are very swollen and she has some really crusty spots on her neck and back 😦
Here you can just see the sweetness 🙂