Tag: Gardens Golden Retrievers
Happiness on Parade
Spring flowers – unfolding one by one – produce little pings of joy, but there is nothing like the thrill of the roses’ first bloom.
Rain showers, followed by brief blast of summer heat, set off a parade of color and scent over the course of a few days.
Magnificent against a still bright green landscape, our old friends returned looking fresh and rejuvenated.
The bare roots that were removed and gifted last spring from a Napa Valley home, survived their dusty, thirsty road to us and are finally flaunting their stuff in a glorious display.
But the parade of roses was only the first act this weekend.
“Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.” ~ Gerard de Nerval
The dogs that arrived by the van loads over the past few weeks have blossomed as well. And this weekend, quite a few of them marched out in a parade of happy tears!
Sunny and Shadow were a package deal that found a ready-made family!
Carma had good Karma, and found a wonderful new mom.
Charlie Valentine will finish his heartworm treatment under the watchful care of his new humans. Home is where he will find the quiet and rest he needs for many days of wild play ahead!
Both Ruby and Dixie were looking for active, adventuresome families. Perfect fits!
And the last of our two precious puppies got adopted – on the same day! Let there be no puppy left behind!
Now that’s a parade of happiness that rivals even first bloom!
Wordless Wednesday: Pooped Puppies
Learning to Dance in the Rain
“A single gentle rain makes the grass many shades greener. So our prospects brighten on the influx of better thoughts. We should be blessed if we lived in the present always, and took advantage of every accident that befell us.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
By accident, fate, or by design – life took some interesting twists and turns in the last few weeks. Some sad, some scary. But one thing I’ve learned: life just happens. When the storms come – you can let them drown you in sorrow and doubt, or you can learn to dance in the rain.
Dancing in the rain is what the garden did this weekend –
and the dogs. Nope. These are not Golden Retrievers. But that is another story.
I think the garden was a bit more appreciative of the puddles than Roger.
I know that many who read this blog are praying for an end to rain or snow, but we delight in the grey and gloom knowing that an endless stream of blue skies and hot, thirsty days await.
“Instead of complaining that the rosebush is full of thorns, be happy that the thorn bush has roses.” ~ Proverb
I’m grateful for the rain, just as I am grateful for the sunshine that brings warmth, and flowers, and light to life.
No point in wishing for one or the other. All we can do is live in the present, take advantage of each accident that befalls us, and dance in the rain.
Desta’s Week
A lot can happen here in a week. The roses can come into bloom,
Bees can find heaven in lavender again,
Grape leaves sprout from dormant canes,
And dogwoods –
and dogs – can blossom.
Desta was a stray found gorging on cat food left outdoors. A Good Samaritan captured and brought the clearly emaciated “puppy” to Homeward Bound’s vet. The “puppy” turned out to be a one-year-old, growth-stunted Golden who had clearly had an encounter with something unfriendly – most likely of the moving vehicle type.
Her skull is concave in spots as a result, and her limbs were pencil thin when found. Her tummy was engorged – the result of eating all that cat food. The tasty treats can wreak havoc on even a healthy dog. Desta required immediate care.
There’s no way to know how long she was out there on her own, but it had to be a while. Our Doc fixed her up and called us. She arrived last weekend, weak and terrified.
We bathed her and began loving on her, but had to carry her to the garden. She was too terrified to walk on a leash.
We put her within eyeshot of Cooper, an 11-month old that had been surrendered to a shelter for exhibiting some of the fears you usually see in feral dogs. He too could be a runner.
As it turns out, they were each others’ best medicine.
Alone, they were frightened little pups that would probably bolt at the first opportunity. Together, they could be brave.
We let them play together in the sunshine until they both collapse from exhaustion.
Part of that play includes socializing them to humans and just look at the progress in just a few days!
A lot can happen in a week.
Wordless Wednesday: A Girl and Her Dog
Surrendering, For Love
“I feel like a grief counselor,” she said. ‘She’ is our rescue President, Jody, speaking to me about handling surrenders.
As I explained in a previous blog, surrender was the part of our effort I abhorred. I was judgmental toward the people and sad for the dogs they left behind. I came to understand that things happen beyond our control and that a second chapter is often in the dog’s best interest, long-term. But my concern was for the dog, and – except in rare circumstances – not really for the human.
Sophie’s surrender changed that for me.
“Hello. I was just wondering if you had a golden female named Sophie there as of yesterday??? We are her family and had to give her up for adoption a few days ago.”
I manage social media for the rescue – increasingly, this is how people communicate with us. She went on to explain that she was in the middle of a difficult divorce. With five children, life was changing dramatically along with their home. Sophie would no longer have a yard, much less her beloved pool. “I felt it was in Sophie’s best interest that we gave her a chance to find a loving family that would give her what we could not at this time. Our family is seriously hurting, and we miss her so much. All I am asking is if we could be notified when she finds her new family so we can be more at ease. Thank you so much.”
Over the next couple of weeks, we communicated often. I reassured her that Sophie had arrived safely, that she had seen our vet, and that our team was taking great care of her.
Sophie was a model visitor. She adapted quickly, was absolutely no trouble, and had clearly been raised well. But she always had a searching look in her eyes. I did not share that part. Sophie waited, patiently.
“Are you able to let me know when she is adopted so we can be more at peace? As you can see, we have had her since she was born, so it’s very hard for us right now,” she wrote, attaching photos of Sophie as a puppy. “A loving family, that’s all I want.”
As I suspected, our president hand-picked Sophie’s new family. One with kids, security, stability, lots of love – and a pool. The new family was beyond generous, sending photos and an update for me to relay to Sophie’s original family. They shared her enthusiasm for swimming with all the kids, and a special relationship that was blossoming for both: “My daughter and Sophie have really bonded and snuggled all day Monday and slept together on the floor. She is settling in great.”
“So happy to hear,” her first mom wrote back. “Homeward Bound was a great idea. I am glad I made the right decision.”
You can approach rescue from anger or pity, but neither contributes meaningfully to creating change. Action, empathy, and education matter. When Jody speaks to someone who is surrendering their dog with a sincere heart, she absorbs their grief and guilt and lets them know that – someday – they will be in a position to make a life-changing difference for another dog. She’s been at this long enough to see them return and do exactly that.
Certainly, there are clueless people you wish you could prevent from ever having another animal. But most are simply in a difficult and unplanned circumstance. That they have sought out a rescue instead of dumping a dog at a shelter, should be commended, not scorned.
I don’t think that dogs forget – but they can move on. Sophie lost her searching look. She found a perfect friend to help her begin a new life chapter. And a family found peace with their difficult decision.
Rescue changes us. Consider me a grief counselor – in training.
Love comforteth after the rain
“The storm starts, when the drops start dropping; When the drops stop dropping then the storm starts stopping.” ~ Dr. Seuss
After a bone-dry February, the skies have opened up again and gifted California with a good long soak. Actually, a bit more like a deluge. But no one here is complaining.
Just as our rivers have swollen, the pond had overflown its banks converging with the flooded rice fields next door…
and the garden looks like a series of small islands in a large lake.
Thank goodness we raised the beds last fall!
While there are a few drought-tolerants that are unhappy about too much of a good thing, overall, the garden is drinking it in and exploding with joyous spring color.
“Love comforteth like sunshine after rain.” – William Shakespeare
Between breaks in the downpours – and even during them – love came forth in buckets of comfort this week. There were lots of “Going Homes” to celebrate, emptying the kennels about as fast as we filled them. But one on Saturday was a double delight.
Our adoption counselor brought Rudy out to the garden for his going home photo. The family was clearly in love.
And then Rudy whispered something to his new mom: “Someone is missing.”
Rudy and his sister, Daisy – both nine – were surrendered together in Southern California when their family could no longer keep them. Declaring them honorary Golden Retrievers, Homeward Bound agreed to take them. Concerned that we would not be able to place two older dogs together, we made the difficult decision that we would not require them to be placed together. However, when the family learned that Rudy had a sister, they asked to meet her.
These people of good and generous hearts took only a few minute to come to the decision that Rudy and his sister must be adopted together.
Which is how Rudy ended up with two Going Home photos – and Daisy, one. The best one.
There was not a dry eye in the place…and we’re talking tears of joy…not rain drops!
Ned: Of Golden Heart
His file read: “Young, male, mix. Gentle, affectionate, can be insistent when you stop petting him.”
Who wouldn’t adopt a dog like this?
“Emaciated, with multiple scars. Malnourished, neglected, possible previous animal attacks.”
This – and a horrifying photo on social media – is how Neo came to our attention. I won’t share the photo. It is in his past now.
“It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person dog then.” ~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
He is not a Golden Retriever by any stretch of the imagination. But who could leave him like that in a shelter? Not our rescuers.
We came to learn that his open wounds and scars were inflicted by the family’s other dog. Their interactions throughout Neo’s life were obviously ignored, as were his injuries. The best thing his “family” did for him was to leave him at the shelter. The best thing that ever happened to him was to be rescued by Homeward Bound’s angels.
Misreading his file, he was renamed ‘Ned’ upon his arrival. It suits him better, and leaves the past firmly behind. His wounds and skin were treated; he was fed; and walked; and cared about, quickly becoming a favorite.
What is amazing is his loving and forgiving nature. For as much scarring as he had on his body, it is not evident at all in his personality. He does not exhibit fear or anxiety. He still likes other dogs. But mostly, he wants to be with humans. Kind and loving humans…who carry cookies!
With weekly baths, his hair is beginning to grow back in and you can begin to see the dog he will be on the outside.
Inside, he is pure gold.
Some people will look at him and fear for his past.
But someone special will look at him and see only his golden heart – and future.
Ned will be waiting with us for that special someone. He’ll be the best thing that ever happened to them.
To share or adopt Ned, you can view his profile here.
Petaloso: Full of Petals
Have you heard about the eight-year-old Italian boy who invented a new Italian word?
In a classroom assignment, Matteo unsed an unfamiliar word. He described a flower as a “petaloso” – full of petals. While “petaloso” does not officially exist in the Italian dictionary, it made sense – combining “petalo” (“petal”) and the suffix “-oso” (meaning “full of”).
It is similar to the English word, “petalous” – meaning of flowers having petals. But so much more descriptive.
His teacher marked it as incorrect – but beautiful. And then she helped Matteo petition the instituion that oversees the use of the Italian language for their thoughts.
“The word you invented is well formed and could be used in the Italian language,” they replied. “It is beautiful and clear.”
In order for it to be accepted as an official Italian word, it would need to be used and understood by a large number of people.
Thus, the hoped-to-be word “petaloso” is being shared all over social media.
Help Matteo have his word become accepted and published in the next Italian dictionary.
How many ways can you use “petaloso?”
What’s Blooming in the Garden
Tulips
Hyacinth
Ceanothus
Lavatera
Anemone
Love. ❤
Catching up to Forever
Alice: “How long is forever?”
White Rabbit: “Sometimes, just one second.” ~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
I have been away from the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden for what feels like forever. Actually, it has only been a week. But when spring approaches, everything changes in the blink of an eye.
Making an appearance this week: Bradford Pear Blossoms, Daffodils, Iris, Calendula, Anemone, Hyacinth, Rosemary, Snapdragons, Ranunculus…
and very soon…Tulips!
Winnie the Pooh: “Did you ever wonder what it’s like being a flower living underground all winter and coming up in the spring?”
Eeyore: “Very uncomfortable. I shouldn’t wonder.” ~ A.A. Milne, Winnie the Pooh
The flowers are not the only things I miss by not being at the rescue daily. So many dogs! They have been coming and going so fast, it is impossible to keep up! Playing catch up…here are just a few:
Truffles was appropriately adopted on Valentine’s Day, because what better Valentine is there than a chocolate Truffles?
Samson was, sadly, surrendered by his family. I hope they will be relieved to know that we had a great one waiting for him, and that they feel blessed to have him in their lives.
Alice will be assisting at a local assisted living center that we have worked with before. She will be one spoiled and well-loved girl!
Max was a long-time resident of ours and one of the many who benefited from the love and support of “Foster Daddy” aka, Rob.
Without his intervention, Max might still be with us. But the help of Rob and all of our volunteers, Max is home.
And Issac.
Rescued and transported by our volunteer, Fred, who wrote this touching post about his experience:
“Yesterday I was asked to transport a dog from an animal shelter to Homeward Bound. At the shelter I was told the dog had not been temper-tested and could bite. I sat with the dog for a while and then the lady from the shelter said if you do not take it, the dog will be euthanized. When I heard that I slowly put a collar on him wondering if I was going to get bit. I did not get bit, and when I got the dog out of the shelter it kind of danced on the leash and was just so happy. The Golden then jumped into my car and I think both of us were smiling on the hour and a half trip to Homeward Bound. So many volunteers have helped and saved the lives of so many dogs. I know I have helped some dogs but this was the first dog I know I saved the life of. Yesterday was a good day for the dog – and it was a good day for me. I just thought I would share this.” ~ Fred S.
On that day, Issac adopted Fred by putting his faith and trust in a total stranger.
Today, Fred adopted Issac and brought him home…
for forever.
Gardens For Goldens 