My bleeding heart is getting me in trouble again

After adopting Chip through PAWS I'm really supportive of encouraging dog adoption through shelters rather than randomly picking up a dog through craigslist or some other website. Similarly, I think that people who need to give up their animals should do so through shelters. This ensures the animals have proper nutrition, medical treatment and will go to vetted, loving, responsible homes, rather than get chucked around from home to home.

Yesterday I saw an add on our local craigslist for a "free dog". The very cute chihuahua-rat terrier mix has recently found itself without a home because of its owner's financial hardship, and so she was trying to find the little guy a good home online. I sent her all of the information for our local PAWS shelter but she responded that she didn't have a car or means to get the dog to the shelter.

This morning I called my only contact at PAWS (a wonderful woman who could have been upset with me for messing up the order of things, but instead was absolutely lovely), and she put me in touch with the right people. We figured out that PAWS is severely understaffed (both paid staff and volunteers) and have they have no place to house the little dog. However if we could serve as a foster home, then they would gladly accept him and find him a forever home.

So, Sunday I (or we) will be driving to Lewistown to pick up a 10 month old mutt. Then, Monday I'll take him into the shelter to get up-to-date on shots, and hopefully plan a time for him to be neutered. The woman who is giving the dog up mentioned that her husband used to be abusive to her and the dog, so I'm hoping we can start to heal some of that damage. Hopefully Chip will play nice, and like his temporary friend.

In a somewhat-related train of thought, here's a really snazzy slow-motion video of a variety of dogs. I am amazed at what we can capture on film now.