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Wheatens In NeedŽ Success Stories - 2009
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Luke and Lucy
Last July, I lost my beloved Wheaten rescue pup, Copper. In the six
years I had him, Copper suffered three herniated disks after falling
from a grooming table, and then we coped with the long term effects
of PLN. Copper had the best Wheaten characteristics ... he was sweet
and vulnerable, and the house was too, too quiet without him.
I had grown to love the breed so much, that almost immediately after
Copper's passing, I surfed the internet and found Wheatens In Need
and put in an application for a rescue dog. Shortly after, I
received a call from Susan Pippin, the rescue coordinator for the
North Carolina area. She understood my grieving and vowed to find me
a Wheaten rescue.
Less then two months later, I received a wonderful call from Susan
telling me that Hurricane Ike in Texas had displaced many dogs and
that Gwen Arthur was housing 11 dogs as a result. She had rescued
Luke (probably age 7) and his daughter Lucy (a puppy about 6 months
of age) from a kill shelter and she wanted to place them together.
Apparently Lucy was very dependent on Luke and she couldn't bear to
have her Daddy out of her sight. While a number of people had
expressed interest in Lucy because she was a puppy, Luke wasn't
quite as marketable because of his age.
Gwen sent me a photo of Luke, and he had so many similar features to
Copper, that I immediately said I would take both dogs. Gwen and her
husband went to extraordinary lengths to have the dogs vetted and
transported to Houston for air transport to Raleigh.
It's hard for me to imagine why the previous owners of these dogs
didn't search harder or longer for these special pups. They were
probably puppy mill bred, as they are smaller wheatens ... "wheatables"
and they are the sweetest dogs I have ever owned. Luke and Lucy love
each other, and they like to cuddle with each other on their bed or
in their crate. Lucy likes to show her puppylike qualities by
wrestling with Luke and she loves to play hide and seek. Luke is a
cuddler ... he is content to sit next to you and snort with
satisfaction. Luke and Lucy have never met a stranger and they love
all of the children in the neighborhood. They are terrific
travellers and our home is full of love because these pups have
joined the family.
While we will never know Lucy's actual birthday, we decided that we
would celebrate on March 22nd. 45 neighbors and friends came to the
house. The 18 children present received "dog" tattoos and "doggie"
treat bags. Lucy wore her party hat and she received lots of
presents, including chew toys, and treats. While none of the adults
had ever been to a dog's birthday party before, everyone agreed that
it was a great fun!
Thanks to Gwen, Don, Susan and everyone who supports the rescue
efforts for Wheaten Terriers. We are so grateful to have love back
in our home.
Elizabeth
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