Linda and I have been looking for a new dog for about a year now. She would love an emotional support dog, and I need a trainer/hiking buddy. But dogs in the size and age range we were looking are few and far between.
And, given our circumstances, there were many reasons why we had to be picky. There are a huge number of dogs in rescue facilities here and around the world, but most of them are too big, too young, or of inappropriate breeds.
I haven’t been looking too hard, lately, but I was on several rescue-oriented Facebook pages. We came close about a month ago with a real sweetheart from 100Tails, but some other lucky family got him first. So, Tuesday afternoon I was enthused to see a 100Tails post from Sonya Sokolova that had only been up for two hours. She had a dog that fitted our profile, and so far, nobody had commented. I immediately went back to my mail program, found the email from Sonya from the last try, and got her phone number and called her.
Now, I should mention that one of the restrictions I had placed on my hunt was that I would not take a dog sight unseen. Too many chances for trouble. So, I needed a dog that was on the ground in B.C.
Well, this dog wasn’t exactly on the ground. Yet. She was flying in at 5:00 that evening from Georgia! (The country, not the state.) So, I looked at the excellent images and videos that 100Tails had posted, and decided this girl was worth a 25-minute drive to the airport.
It went down like a drug deal: the meeting in the Cell Phone Waiting Area. The contact. Waiting while they came through customs and immigration. And finally, the opening of the crate and there she was.
A bit of an anticlimax. Geeta was so discombobulated she really couldn’t function. She was afraid of everything, tangled in the leash, and tried to get away from the car when we opened the door. But in between triggered incidents, she was docile and obedient. She walked well on the leash, not exactly heeling, but not pulling away. Even in panic mode she didn’t bite or even nip.
I had to make up my mind, and despite the problems, I was getting the right vibes. 100Paws has a two-week money-back trial period, so I decided to go for it.
The bottom line was that I was home by seven p.m. with our new dog.
Heritage
Geeta is a mixed breed, but I went online anyway, trying to find an Eastern European dog that she resembles. It turns out there is only one. She’s a dead ringer for a Carpathian Shepherd, as you can see from the picture. Except it’s three times her size. So, we’re calling her a Carpathian Shepherd cross. She has no tail (not cropped, just no tail) so maybe she’s part Corgi 😊There are several Australian Shepherd types that are tailless, so who knows?
Trauma
Until you’ve been through it, you have no idea how traumatized a dog is in circumstances like this. She had been taken out of the foster home where she had lived for four or five years, put into a crate (which she doesn’t like) for an 18-hour flight from Tblisi through Istanbul. When she gets out, everything is strange, the language is different, and she’s sent to a strange house with strange people, strange food, and on top of it all, she’s completely jet lagged.
Symptoms
So, she was completely frozen. She had to be lifted into and out of the back of the car. In the house, she refused to move. She wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t go outside, wouldn’t react to anyone except with complete subservience.
Treatment
I had come as prepared as I could. I brought an old dog bed from home to put her on in the car, and brought plenty of treats. She wasn’t interested in food, but she attached herself to that bed and spent most of the next three days in it. The only time she acted normal was when we were out walking. She was mildly interested in other dogs, but not people.
Coming Around
I got good responses from the 100Tails staff, and I was able to get some diet advice, so by Wednesday night she was eating. However, I took off the short leash that I had left trailing on her harness, and promptly spend ten minutes of slow-motion tag around the living room, finally luring her into a dead end to catch her again.
But the big turnaround was our hike on Friday. I had asked my group to do a dog-friendly walk, so we hiked in North Vancouver, through all the trails below the Cleveland Dam.
From the very start she was perked up. My fellow hikers were all dog-aware, and they took the right line with her, paying very little attention unless she wanted it. By lunch time she was comfortable with all of them, and lay quietly under the table at coffee shop at a very busy street corner, ears up, checking out the scene. I had been concerned for her stamina, because she’s still not eating regularly, but she had no trouble doing nine kilometres. She did sleep for an hour in the car on the way home.
Her only consistent reaction to the group was that she insisted on walking at the back, and if anybody stopped, she circled behind them. Shepherd instinct, I guess. It obviously made her feel better, anyway!
Home Again
Back at home she regressed some, but moved around the house a bit more. Up until this point, she had paid very little attention to Linda. However, that night she walked into the TV room and hopped right up onto the “dog spot” next to Linda on the chesterfield, curled up, and stayed there the rest of the evening. As you can see from the picture, for her Saturday morning walk on the beach she was all “ears up” and interested in the world.
Grandchildren
The real test was the grandkids. They have met various dogs at our place, but this was a special situation where they had no experience. However, they played it cool and kept their distance, and soon Avery (age 8) was “walking” her around the yard. (Basically, holding the leash and following the dog.)
To Date
Sunday morning, when we finished breakfast and went to the TV room to read the paper and drink our coffee, Geeta got up and came into the room, came up to me for a pat, then went over to Linda for her ration of attention. The first time she has actually sought either of us out.
The Bottom Line
As you can see, it’s all baby steps at the moment, but every time she takes a new step ahead, she shows more of her real personality, which seems sweet and loving. I think today I’ll try taking the leash off again.
Just for a while.
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