Vito Goes Home!

Vito and I went on the best road trip of his life today...we went to meet his new family!

He snuggled on my lap for a little while.

Took a nap.

Took a super nap!

Vito's tail went into a wagging blur when he saw his new people, and I handed him into his daddy's arms while his mommy kept exclaiming how CUTE he is.  Vito was all, "Don't I know it?"

I am SO happy for Vito.  He is going to be spoiled rotten and live the good life, just like he deserves.

It's weird to not have my little chihuahua donut curled up next to me, or trying to steal my food, but I do not feel sad.  A foster dog is a lot of work, and my lifestyle was not suited for the emotional needs of a chihuahua.  I was simply not home enough for Vito - and knowing that he has gone to an absolutely perfect situation makes me completely happy and at peace.  Puppy mill to the lap of luxury - GO VITO!

Chihuahua in a Sweater

Vito the House Dog

Vito is an exceptional little dog.  Resilient.  He is so optimistic about humans, he can't get enough.  The tail still has not stopped wagging.  He has not had an accident in the house since that first day home.  He is a true joy to foster.  He has wormed his way into my husband's heart for sure.

Project Liberty II

And where did Vito come from?  Vito is an ex-breeder chihuahua, one of 32 dogs taken in by Castaway Critters rescue and brought to Pet Bath and Beyond groom shop for clean up this past Saturday.  When puppy mill dogs can no longer breed, they are "disposed of" by the miller.  That is why these dogs are so lucky.  Instead of being eliminated in whatever horrific and thoughtless way that is easiest, the miller gave them away to rescue.  I do not know the ins and outs of how this arrangement came to be, but it is the second time that the rescue had the opportunity to help puppy mill dogs in this way.

No puppy mill was shut down here.  Tragically, the conditions these dogs were kept in are completely legal.  Food, shelter, water are needs.  Grooming, love, and respect are optional.
However, instead of being killed for the crime of having their bodies used up by greedy humans, these dogs were given a second chance.  A chance to live as dogs were meant to live.

The dogs were unloaded , triaged, and given names and temporary collars, crate after crate.  They were placed in ex-pens until they could be sent to their appropriate grooming area.  Since these were mostly male dogs, things got a little rowdy!  There was a lot of humping and marking going on, and it was a chore to keep the area clean and tempers from flaring.

I didn't go in expecting to foster.  But someone asked me for a dog whose nails needed to be dremeled.  I picked up a random chihuahua and passed him to the groom room.  I glanced back at him a little bit later and saw what looked like a snarl.  I was worried he was going to bite the groomer.  I realized it was a GRIN.  His tail was wagging.  I ended up bathing and blow drying him, and soon I didn't even want to put him down.  His tail would NOT stop wagging.  I begged and pleaded with my husband to foster him...and now he is curled up in a ball beside me while I type this.  From cold, heartless puppy mill to snuggled up by a warm fire.

I was asked to take photos, and here they are.

My man Vito on the right!

This breeder takes his job VERY seriously.  He spent all his time humping the other dogs!

Ewok Dog!

Welcome, Foster Dog Vito!

I picked up Vito, our new foster chihuahua, last night!  Vito and the 31 other dogs of Project Liberty II were all lucky enough to be placed in foster homes - and I feel honored to be one of those homes.

Vito is my third foster dog.  I find the first night home very overwhelming, and last night was no different.  Right after a very busy day at work, I made the hour and twenty minute drive to the pick up.  All 32 dogs arrived at once, straight from the vet's where they were altered.  They all had records, tags, microchip information, etc, etc, etc to be sorted out.  Additionally, I was picking up two additional dogs that my friend and her daughter are fostering.

Car after car was unloaded, and finally I saw my little waggy smiley Vito unloaded!

It was nearly 9 by the time I got home, hungry and road tired.

I got Vito out of his travelling crate and took him outside.  It was unproductive - puppy mill dogs don't really understand the concept of "going outside" to do their business.  Especially since they don't understand what "outside" is - grass, trees and fresh air are foreign things.

Vito was happy to be held.  I cuddled him up, and that little tail kept wagging like crazy.  He met my husband and wagged even harder, though he was a little bit shy of a new person (not that I wasn't a new person as well.)

Vito and Vince snugglin'.

We went into the basement, which would be Vito's new HQ.  I put him down to see what he would do.  He did some pacing behavior that looked like a dead ringer for a dog about to pee...and then he did pee. That was after a lot of exploring and trotting around.  Vito gives good warning when he has to go potty, he has been consistent with that.

After that was exploring the finished side of our basement.  He drank a bunch of water.  Then was snuggling on the couch, and we both dozed off.  When I woke up, I saw that my husband had relocated Vito into the recliner chair so that he could have a chance to snuggle with the little guy!

At about 3:30 AM I woke up and decided to take Vito and all of my other dogs outside for potty breaks.  Vito peed outside, no problem.  But once we came back to the couch (I decided to sleep with him for his whole first night), he wouldn't settle.  I let him down for some more exploring and...a poop.  Which he whipped around, lightning fast, and tried to EAT!  I was totally startled by that, but again, not abnormal for a puppy mill dog.

First night on a warm couch.

I decided to kennel Vito for the night (he has an XL dog crate with a cozy dog bed and puppy pad for his digs) and go to bed after all.

The morning brought a good appetite and a pee outside.  Vito joined me in the bathroom while I took my morning shower - he took a nap on my bathrobe in the corner.

So, little man is settling in really well!  Husband Vince had Vito out several times today and he has not had any accidents since his whoops poop in the wee hours.  I expected a lot of marking behavior out of a male mill dog, and many of the other Project Liberty II dogs have that particular problem.

I hope to see Vito build some muscle tone, stop walking with a crouched gait, learn what grass is and how to potty in it (he uses our walkway at the moment), and become more confident in general.  Vito is already extremely confident compared to other Mill dogs - he really seems to enjoy being around people.  He is drawn to them.

I hope that the perfect home finds him, just as the perfect home found Poppy when I fostered her last July.