Blog

Robert "Bubba" Redford - 3/9/18

Name: Robert Redford - (7-10 y/o)

Family Members: Jeff & Staci - Dog Siblings: Chance & Stanley

How long has Robert Redford been in the family? Just over a year.

Professions: Jeff- Lawyer, Staci- Ad Manager

Location: Decatur, GA.

Nicknames: Bubba (This is what we call him 99% of the time)

5 words/phrases that best describe Bubba?

Opinionated
Ridiculous
Old dog learning new tricks
Snuggle Bug
Goofball

What makes Bubba unique? Bubba carries his bowls around and uses them to express his feelings. We can be in the basement and hear him throwing his bowl across the hardwood floors because he is upset that he can’t be with us. We will come home and he will be carrying a bowl to the front door because he is excited to see us. He will also take his bowls outside and hide them. This sometimes makes mealtime exciting since we have to find the bowl before we can put food in it.

Rescue Story: We had just adopted out a pit bull we had been fostering and the house felt a bit empty. We were in the process of selling our home and finding another so we didn’t want to take on another foster. Then we saw Robert Redford. PAWS Atlanta had put out a plea to find a forever foster/hospice situation for him on their Facebook page. Bubba had been pulled from Dekalb Animal Control and was heartworm positive. They had done the heartworm treatment but, unfortunately, the heartworms were too advanced and he went into heart failure. He was living in the cat cottage and the good people at PAWS wanted to make sure Bubba knew what a loving home was before he crossed the rainbow bridge. We couldn’t say no. His face was so sweet and sad. We knew we could help him for whatever time he had left. We were told three months tops and, if he made it to the summer, he’d likely decline quickly in the heat. We took him home, got some weight off of him through diet, exercise and made sure he stayed on his medications. More importantly, we loved him. Bubba has been with us for just over a year and showing signs of improvement every time we take him for his check-up. PAWS can’t believe how good of shape he is in now. We are starting to call him Benjamin Button. We sincerely hope that Bubba can give hope to others whose dogs have been given a scary diagnosis. You have to be prepared for the inevitable but these dogs can live a long, quality life until it’s their time.

What is your favorite pastime as a family? We take Bubba on very short walks and let him run around the back yard with his fur brother, Stan. He recently learned to play wrestle with Stan; it took him almost the full year to figure it out. Because of Bubba’s condition, we watch him closely and limit his exercise so he doesn’t over exert his heart. As a result, he’s become a very snuggly couch potato! He will also dig on the master bed until all the sheets and pillows are in the center for a nest so he can nap in optimum comfort. And, of course, his favorite pastime is moving his bowls around.

What is life like since you rescued Bubba? Full and unpredictable! Bubba is a spoiled pup now. He sleeps on the bed, is fed high end food, and gets delicious treats. He is told he is loved every day and gets ear scratches on demand. He has come a long way from AC and the cat cottage at PAWS! And we are honored that Bubba knows what real love is and that we were able to provide that. More importantly, Bubba has taught us a lot about resilience and defying the odds.

Photographers Note: Often my volunteers fill out the questionnaire a few weeks before I actually get to meet them and take their photos. Which means a lot can change in that time, especially for a dog like Bubba. When I arrived at Jeff and Staci's home, they had recent news from a vet appt that was a game changer for sure. It would seem that the cardiologist believed Bubba is no longer in heart failure. A dog that was given 3 months to live and was taken in as a Fospice case, now has a new lease on life. He is on his last few days of meds, as he being weened off and he has a couple of check up appts with the vet and cardiologist coming up but things are looking up for this handsome boy.

Knowing everything he has been through and then watching him run and play in the backyard with that big goofy pittie smile(with supervision of course), just brings a huge smile to your face. It's almost like he is learning to be a dog again and a happy one at that. Bubba's story is an amazing one and just goes to show what the power of love can do for a dog!

Skye - 3/8/17

Name: Skye - 3 y/o

How long has Skye been in the family? 2 years

Family Members: Kimberly, Kyle & daughter Sera

Professions: Kimberly is the National Director of Talent Acquisition for Encompass Health & Kyle owns his own auto insurance claim business.

Location: Midtown Atlanta, GA

Nicknames: Skye-Butt- Skye-Head- Monkey Butt, Queen of Sheba, My Velcro

5 words/phrases that best describe Skye?

Lover
Skittish
Does not know personal space
Toy Destroyer
Beautiful
Snuggle-butt

What makes Skye unique? Beautiful blue eyes hence the name Skye ;) She loves me SO much! She is also extremely athletic. She can vertically leap 6 feet over a concrete wall, as demonstrated at her “Doggy Day Care”.

Rescue Story: My husband Kyle and I got married in 2011 and I came with a fur daughter and he came with a human daughter. I rescued my Pedigree Chocolate Cocker Spaniel when she was 3 years old. I did not know much about the breed –found out quickly about them—I loved Olive- but she was not a lover or cuddler—she snarled and barked like a big mean dog and she was only around 18lbs. I loved her, and Kyle learned to love her and her odd traits. She passed away quickly a month before her 15th birthday.
I work from home and the house became very quiet quickly. We as a family knew we wanted to adopt again. Olive did not shed and we looked at breeds that did not (I know they are all dogs, they shed ;)) We found Cheyenne (now Skye) at the East Alabama Humane Society in Phenix City, AL.—she was listed as a Basenji mix and made the cover of the 2016 Calendar! We drove to Phenix City on a Friday after work to meet her. The Humane Society picked her up from the shelter after she had puppies and they all died. So sad, but we immediately fell in love as she jumped right into my lap, and we brought her home to Midtown that very same day!
Soon after returning to Atlanta, I introduced her to her new playground, Piedmont Park. People would say, “oh what a cute pocket pittie”—at this time my husband and I were not aware of the breed—we did some research to find that is a slang term – and they are in fact known as American Staffordshire Terriers. We decided to do the Wisdom Panel test and she came back 50% Boxer/50% American Staffordshire terrier.
Bottom line—Skye is the second dog I have had as an adult. Olive my Cocker Spaniel was beautiful, but not a lover at all. Now here we have adopted a “pittie mix”, and as I am writing this she is snuggled up almost on top of me! I love our new family member almost to the point of obsession, and I’m not afraid to admit it either! I am hoping that people will start to realize that the word Pit Bull is not a bad word. NOT AT ALL! Rather, they are the most loving, and cuddly breed that our family has ever encountered.

What is your favorite pastime as a family? We have a boat and a place at the lake. We love taking Skye there as she is a 100% swimming fanatic. Skye also enjoys trips to the Morningside Nature Preserve to “take a dip” and what we call- trying to eat all the water. Living in Midtown is wonderful as it is so doggie friendly—she joins us for dinner at many patios during the warmer seasons.

What is life like since you rescued Skye? As my husband always reminds me, I always longed for a snuggle puppy and Skye is that doggie. I believe Skye found her perfect and forever family- we are both lucky!

Photographers Note: It's always such a pleasure to be able to photograph these wonderful pups in Piedmont Park, which is my pups backyard as well. I met up with Skye and her family on a Friday evening when the light was perfect. Discovered pretty quickly that she is not a fan of having a camera pointed at her and the ears were a little allusive in the beginning but once we allowed her to explore around the water a bit and she was distracted by the ducks, then they appeared!! And those eyes, I mean they are just amazing and a photographers dream. I would have to say this sweet little girl is definitely living the high life now.

Nani - 3/2/18

Name: Nani - 12 y/o

How long has Nani been in the family? 5 years

Family Members (2 families): Leisa & Jimmy, Liz, Brian & Lucas (14mths)

Location: Macon, GA.

Nicknames: Hippo

5 words/phrases that best describe Nani?

Survivor
Diva
Happy
Companion
Trusting

What makes Nani unique? Nani has the kind of personality that when you meet her she wins you over and changes your opinion of her breed. She is capable of bringing people together to fight for her cause and because of her the people remain close like family; for a lifetime.

Rescue Story: It was January 2013. I (Leisa) own a business in Macon, GA on San Carlos Blvd. The housing area near where my business is located is called “The Peach Orchard”. This area is a dumping ground for unwanted dogs most of them pregnant females. I feed several feral strays so they would not starve. Nani showed up one day and waited until all the others had eaten and left. Then with her tail between her legs she walked up to the bowl to see if anything was left. I never let any of the strays go hungry so when I saw her I refilled the bowl. You could tell she was pregnant because her belly hung low but her ribs still showed. At that time she did not have a name but the first picture we took of her she looked like a baby hippo. On January 21, 2013 she dragged her overly pregnant body onto our sidewalk to eat along with the other strays. She literally sucked her food down like a Hoover vacuum. Little did we know at the time, she had no teeth. She was so heavy with babies that she could just barely hold herself up. My friend (Chad) walked up to her and began to pet her, the look in her eyes told us her whole story. She had obviously been beaten, abused, overbred, underfed, neglected, forgotten, and abandoned. In those few seconds her eyes said, "Please help me" and "Please don't hurt me" all at the same time. Not knowing how she would react, Chad picked her up and carried her to a pen to await transport to the vet. She trusted him not to hurt her. To gain the trust of a stray animal (especially a pregnant stray animal that has been abused) is absolutely special. She was transported immediately to our vet in Perry, GA. They told us that she was at least 7 years old, heavily heartworm positive and that she had mastitis and a severe infection. The vet started her on antibiotics immediately and told us it would be a miracle if she made it thru the birth of her puppies. We needed to be prepared because if they had to do an emergency “C” section they would and all the puppies that survived would have to be bottle fed. Three days later on January 25, 2013, she gave birth to 13 puppies. If I remember correctly 10 survived and surprisingly so did she. A rescue stepped up and found a foster for her and the puppies. Thankfully she was able to nurse her puppies. The puppies were only a few days old when a heartworm exploded and Nani had to be rushed back to the vet. The puppies had to be bottle fed by the foster. The puppies were all put up for adoption by the rescue and they went quickly. Nani did not get adopted. When she had puppies she was very protective of them and she was leery of most people. The rescue decided she was un-adoptable and recommended putting her down. I was not about to let that happen so I decided to foster her myself until I could find her a home. So, I picked her up from the vet and she has been with me ever since. I was told she would not survive the heartworm treatment, she did. She had hip surgery, I was told she would not survive it, but she did. She had to have one of her eyes removed because it was dying; the vet said it looked like someone had poked a stick in her eye. I was told she would not survive, but she did. Her original foster (Liz) was very fond of her. She contacted me and we actually share Nani now. Sometimes Nani stays with me and sometimes she stays with Liz. Nani has brought both of our families together and we are very close. Nani was looked upon as a broken, un-adoptable, scary pit pull, but she is not. Nani is a survivor. She is a survivor from abuse, neglect, being over bred and under fed, with an unknown future. Then when she was old, sick and used up she was tossed out like garbage.

What is your favorite pastime as a family? Nani loves to chase tennis balls, but it has to be yellow.

What is life like since you rescued Nani? Life for Nani has never been better. She is loved, she is happy and she has two families that love her. Our lives are enriched beyond what I can explain. She has shown the world what love can do. She is much loved and returns it every day.

Photographers Note: Dogs like Nani amaze me. A dog that has been let down, abused and neglected by humans but yet still finds it in their hearts to forgive. Leisa mentioned Nani might take a little time to get use to me and trust me. (who can blame her). Pretty quickly, she was lumbering up to me while I sat on the ground and even gave me a sweet kiss. Whenever a dog with a history like Nani's allows me this sort of attention and trust, I am always honored. This is not a reflection on me, but a reflection on Nani and the type of resilient, good and trusting dog that she is. All she wants is to be loved.

To add to Nani's story, she was also asked to be in an Apoquel national infomercial. (as Leisa said to me, how often do you hear of a one-eyed fat pit bull being chosen for a national commerical) https://www.apoqueldogs.com/dog-owner-testimonials.aspx She also has some pretty loyal fans out there following her journey on her Facebook page (Nani Nelson-Hartley- if you would like to follow her). This girls celebrity status continues to grow. She definitely has another huge fan in me!

Cassie & Rascal - 3/2/18

Names: Cassie (11 y/o) & Rascal (8 y/o)

Family Members: Cleo, Andrew & Dwayne
5 more dogs: Snickers & Scooter (are brothers they are my bottle babies and they are 6 years old), Busy Bee & Myra (5 y/o) & Jack (2 y/o), & 4 cats: Gabby (17 y/o), Boots, Mittens & Hunter (all around 10 y/o) All rescues.

How long have Cassie & Rascal been in the family? Cassie has been in the family 10 years and Rascal 8 years.

Profession: Cleo - Office Administrator at Fred White Construction.

Location: Macon, GA.

Nicknames: Cassie: Cassie Coo

Rascal: Ruby Do (because he is a Jewel of a dog)

5 words/phrases that best describe Cassie & Rascal:

Cassie:

Beautiful - white with green eyes and white eye lashes.
Intelligent - capable of opening a baby/pet gate that most people cannot open.
Loving - Cassie is a very affection girl, she loves all people and dogs.
Survivor - She is a cancer survivor.
Loyal Service dog - Cassie has trained herself to be my husband's service dog. Andrew cannot speak so she speaks for him. She stays by his side and looks after him.

Rascal:

Faithful - Brown and White with beautiful brown soul searching eyes
Intelligent - passed first in his class during puppy training
Loyal & Devoted companion - Rascal is always by my side. He is always in the same room with me when I am home, if I am outside so is he. He sleeps with me at night. Rascal can be depended on to go anywhere with me at the drop of a hat. He does not care where he goes or how long it takes as long as he is with me.
Loving - Rascal is one of the most loving dogs I have. He is very affectionate and he is always there when I need someone to talk to and let me cry in his fur when I need it.
Nanny Dog - I foster puppies and Rascal is the best Nanny dog ever. He lets them climb all over him and he never gets cross with them. He teaches them how to potty outside and play with toys. He lets them pull on his ears and bite his tail. Rascal gets very excited when I bring fosters home. He will set outside their pen and let them get use to him for hours if necessary making sure they are not afraid of him.

What makes Cassie & Rascal unique? Cassie has taught me to always listen to my dogs. Cassie is dedicated to my husband. If there is anything wrong she notifies me right away. Andrew is on coumadin. One day I was working in the backyard and she came outside. She ran to me and was barking furiously and then headed back to the house. I thought this was odd because she can open the back door going both in and out. When I got to the back door, I opened it and let her inside. She ran inside and I went back to work in the yard. She came back outside and did the same thing. I went to the back door and let her in again and went back to work in the yard. When she did this the third time I went inside with her. She ran straight to Andrew’s room and that is when I realized that she was trying to tell me that Andrew had cut himself and was bleeding and needed help. That is when I decided that you should always listen to your dog. When he gets up in the middle of the night she wakes me up to let me know. If he gets up off the bed and goes to the other room she clears all the other dogs out of his path and announcing he is coming by barking. I put up a pet gate to keep the dogs out of Andrew’s room so that he will not trip and fall. Cassie refuses to be away from him, she knows how to open the pet gate.

Rascal is a big 80 pound marshmallow. His love and affection never ends. He is dedicated to me and he is one of the best representatives of his breed there is. He loves to have his head, ears and neck rubbed and he lets you know when he is content by a long soft sigh. Rascal loves puppies and he is wonderful with kids. Rascal has never met a stranger. He was put through puppy training and he still knows all his commands.

Rescue Stories: Cassie was left abandoned tied to a dog house in the backyard of my son’s neighbor. They just moved off and left her. My son (Anthony) noticed that the house was empty and she was still there. He watered her and feed her for two weeks waiting for them to come back for her. Her dog house had a hole in the roof and when it rained she got soaked through and through. After two weeks he climbed over the fence and got her and brought her to me. At the time I did not have any dogs. My last dog had died Thanksgiving that year and my house seemed very empty. Cassie had every kind of internal parasite that you can name and she was also covered in fleas. Her fur was missing in several places and her pink skin was showing. Cassie was skin and bones. Anthony (my son) brought her to my house and put her in my backyard. We bought her a dog house and her vetting was started immediately. Cassie thought she hated cats and I had four. But it did not take Cassie long to learn that if she wanted to be a house dog, then she would have to learn to love the cats. Cassie very much wanted to be a house dog and she made the transition in record time. Within weeks of my having Cassie she was spayed. Cassie was only 8 months old when she was rescued.

Rascal was rescued straight off the streets of Macon, GA. Where he was running down the middle of the road, he was searching for food. A friend of mine (Leisa) rushed out and picked him up. Since I was a puppy foster she brought him to me. Rascal was only six weeks old, he had fleas on him bigger than he was and an extremely bloated belly full of worms. I washed him three times in the sink at work trying to get as many fleas off of him as I could before I took him home. Rascal was vetted and put up for adoption. I took him to an adoption event in Macon. Georgia and a young lady fell in love with him and another puppy. She put in an application for his adoption and I was waiting on the home check and the adoption application to be approved. Until approval of the application he was to stay with me. I cried all the way home and all night long because he was being adopted. A few days later I got an email and said that the adoption was approved but they had decided on the lab puppy. I cried again, this time for sheer joy, because Rascal never attended another adoption event. I kept him.

Rascal just pulled off the streets. (no "before" photo of Cassie available)

What is your favorite pastime as a family? Cassie loves to sit in the swing in the front yard. Her place is next to my husband. If anyone tries to sit next to him she wedges herself between them. While Rascal loves to go. He jumps up and down at the sight of his collar and lead. His head pops up and he runs for the door if you say, "you want to go with mommy." Rascal does not care if it is around the block, to the vet or to pick up fast food. He loves to go.

What is life like since you rescued Cassie & Rascal? Cassie has had cancer and it was malignant. We were told that it would most likely return. Cassie had another lump show up on her side a few years later. I took her back to the vet and they said it was most likely cancer again and so I agreed to let them do surgery on her again. This time it turned out to be something called internal skin tags and it was not malignant. Cassie now has lumps and bumps on her everywhere and due to her age we will not be doing another surgery. Even with all that, Cassie's life changed 100% for the better the day she was rescued. She is loved, she is happy, she has never been thirsty or hungry again, she does not have to go out in the rain and she has a roof over her head.

Rascal's life changed from street stray to living the life of luxury in my home. He has never been hungry or thirsty again and he is one of the most loving, laid back dogs on this earth. Rascal has been my rock many times, we have shared lots of secrets and heart breaks. Rascal sleeps with me on my bed at night, he makes an excellent dog blanket. I am not sure with Rascal who rescued who.

Photographers Note: Cassie and Rascal were the 2nd family of the Macon 3 trip! Their Mom was the planner and organizer for it all. She helped me a ton on getting everyone's stories and coordinating times and location. Then bonus, I got to meet and photograph two of her babies! Rascal and Cassie were so funny during the shoot. Cassie, not the most cooperative or a fan of the camera; but with each treat she warmed to the idea. Then there is Rascal who would pose every which way to be sure I got his best side.

Cassie's self designation as Andrew's (not pictured) service dog is just an amazing story. This sweet pup knows her job and does it well. The more stories we collect for this project, with the unique traits of these pups really does support the fact that every dog is an individual.

Patch & Moses - 3/2/18

Names: Patch (13 y/o) & Moses (8 y/o)

How long have Patch & Moses been in the family? Patch - 12 years & Moses - 3 years

Family Members: Bobby, 4-legged Family: Millie - Female dog (8 y/o), Callie - Female dog (8 y/o), Molly - Female dog (3 y/o), Miz Daisy - Female dog (5 y/o) & Ziggy - male cat (4 y/o)

Profession: Truck Driver

Location: Macon, GA.

Nicknames: Patch: N/A

Moses: Red

5 words/phrases that best describe Patch & Moses?

Patch:

Great Personality - to know him is to love him
Intelligent - Patch is smart on his own. He lets me know what he wants.
Loyal - He will guard me and if someone is getting to close he will come between me and them.
Sings - When I play my harmonica he sings along.
Popular - He is so sweet, people come by to see him not me.

Moses:

Beautiful - Red nose, gold eyes with beautiful red fur.
Intelligent - he came from the streets and is street smart.
Loyal - He is always there for me even when I am in a bad mood.
Loving - Moses loves to give love and be loved.
Spoiled - Moses enjoys being a house dog, he loves his bed and his couch.

What makes Patch & Moses unique? Patch is a reincarnated human. He seems to know what I am telling him. While Moses sweetness towards people and other animals is what makes him unique.

Rescue Stories: I bought a piece of land in early 2000. Found that people were dumping dogs there so I started feeding them. One Saturday I heard one eating and I walked around the shed and saw Patch, nothing but a bag of bones with one of his eyes hanging out of his head. It was late Saturday evening and I stressed all weekend about his condition. I skipped work on Monday, went and got him. I took him to the vet and they removed his eye. When he was ready to leave I brought him home with me and here he still is. He was around 7 months old at the time. I named him Patch because he only had one eye.

Moses and his running mate Millie had a litter of puppies under an abandoned house on Fulton Street in Macon, GA. I was running my truck route and caught a glimpse of them out of the corner of my eye. I started feeding them and at first they were too scared to let me near them but would eat after I left. I never gave up and after a while of sitting and talking to them softly; both he and Millie came to me. The puppies disappeared, all but one and I am not sure what happened to that one. Moses and Millie were in bad shape. I decided to take them to the vet and get them treated for worms, fleas, shots, etc. They were both skin and bones, plus Moses had an injury to his chest. I spent over $600.00 on them. It turned out that Moses had been shot and he had to have surgery on his chest to remove broken shattered chest and rib bones. I had Millie spayed and Moses neutered. So, no more puppies for them. I had no place for them to go so I released them back to the streets where I could continue taking care of them while I found a place for them. Before I could get anything worked out they went missing. I went to the Macon pound and sure enough there they were. I bailed them out of doggie jail took them home with me and they have been with me ever since and here with me is where they will live out the rest of their lives as spoiled rotten house dogs. I wasn’t about to take any more chances of them being picked up by the pound. Moses has had to have surgery on his chest three times to get all the shattered bones out, the last one in 2017. He has scars all over his chest, but he is still beautiful to me. I love them both.

Moses before his forever home. (no before photo of Patch available)

What is your favorite pastime as a family? Patch loves to ride and he would chase me down in my tow truck. I pulled over and he jumped on to the back of my truck and from that point on he would jump on the back if I wanted him or not. He rode in the back of the truck like he was in a parade and people would remark on how beautiful he was.

Moses loves to get out of the fence and explore. I let him go but keep my eye on him and just let him have fun. There is a lake near where I live and he loves to chase the ducks. Moses loves to sit close to me while I watch TV.

What is life like since you adopted/saved Patch & Moses? Patch is great. He has made my life happier. Now he is old and I hope he lives a lot longer than his 13 years.

Moses lived on the streets for a long time, he was hungry and thirsty; until I found him he had to scavenge for anything he needed. He slept under an abandoned house and human contact was something he feared. It took me a while to win Moses over but when he learned I could be trusted he put his whole life in my hands. He trusts me completely. Moses makes me happy, he brings peace and tranquility to my life. Moses is my best friend.

Photographers Note: These two sweet pups definitely had tough starts to their lives, but it would appear they made the right choice in crossing Bobby's path. They live in a home with many 4 legged siblings and a person that loves them to pieces. Patch is an older gentlemen now (almost 14), with some health issues, but he is as sweet and happy as could be. Moses with his beautiful coloring and golden eyes, was a little shy at first but after a bit of time warmed up to me, unless I was pointing the camera at him...that he wasn't so thrilled about. Both of these pups have the marks of age and a tough life but it takes special people like Bobby, to see beyond that and just see family.