Ellie Mae

- This is a special little dog with a story that as difficult to read as it was to write, but with a happy ending. And one that needs to be told. When folks ask why we started and spend so much time and money on this program; well, here is the answer. As you read this it will both make your blood boil and put an ache in your heart. If not, you should go to the hospital and have Becky check you heart, because you may not have one. - Webmaster

Aug. 1, 2006

Little Ellie Mae, as Margaret has named her, started school today. She has spent the last two months in the Amador County Animal Control shelter where the good folks there nursed her back to health. Those two months passed quickly for this little girl and she was more than ready for school. She needed to learn to trust people again and how to behave in order to get the love and attention she so wanted.

Ellie is about a year old and is a cross between a German Shepherd and Border Collie. Her temperament is very sweet, and although she has all the energy to be expected from a year old puppy, she really just craves attention and love. She is also bursting with curiosity, and can't wait to explore her surroundings and see what each new area has to offer.

But, life has not always been so pleasant for our little girl. She came into the world full of wonder and potential, as all puppies should. But somewhere along the line she fell into cruel hands. That happiness, joy and wonder at her new world was quickly replaced with pain, neglect and abuse. She couldn't understand why this was happening to her. All she wanted was to play and romp, but she was chained up and unable investigate or explore anywhere. The chain around her neck kept digging in and the pain was excruciating. Every time she tried to go anywhere all she could feel was that metal biting deeper and deeper into her thin neck. Time went on and the days became a blur of pain, hunger and thirst. Then, the fleas came. She was covered, from nose to tail with thousands of the insects biting her skin. She surely felt as if she were on fire, much of her hair fell out and every time she moved to scratch, that damn chain bit further into her neck. She must have wished for the peace of death rather than continue to endure the hell her short life had become.
 

Someone must have been listening to her soul crying out because the good folks at the shelter rescued her. They took her from this horrible situation and whisked her off to the vet hospital. This is how she looked when she was first rescued:

After her hospital visit, Ellie began her recovery. The staff at the shelter all came together to help Ellie survive, which is amazing in itself. But survive she did. Under their loving care she began to gain weight from the 29 lbs she was left with when she arrived. Ellie started to look less like a skeleton and more like a dog. The flea infestation was treated and they looked like handfuls of ground pepper as they fell off. Through it all, she somehow started showing the happy personality that she was born with. She began to solicit attention and quickly learned how to get the staff and volunteers to come a see her. But she was almost too smart and learned all the bad habits the other shelter dogs had to teach her.
 

She recovered, her neck healed and time came for her to go off to school. That's when we had the good fortune to pick her up Monday morning and get her settled in. From the beginning she was happy and full of curiosity and couldn't wait to explore the ranch. In the pictures below, her expression simply says it all.

Her tail is back up and she is ready to see what this place is all about. She was having so much fun that we thought we would start her training early. Usually we wait a day or so for the new students to settle in, but Miss Ellie Mae seemed like she had been with us for weeks.

Here she learns what "sit" means. And she evens holds the position, with a little help. But, that is fine with her... there was something interesting to look at the end of the field. But, for Miss Ellie, not too much work on her first day. She was so delighted with her regular kennel, we thought we would see how she would like the largest kennel. So she moved up to "Ben's Place", our largest kennel with an outside fenced area that is almost a half an acre.

We expected her to look and explore a little with us as we walked the area. But not Ellie! She dove into the area and charged out into the outside run. Here you can see her sheer delight at being free... probably for the first time in her life.

It didn't take long for her to find the pool! She dove right in, and took all the dust and dirt with her! But, that's OK, a nice cool soak after a run never felt better, even if the water is a little brown.

How could it get any better than this? How about a friend? Things had gone so well, that we thought "What the heck, maybe she would like a roommate?" So, here comes Hunter, the big crazy lab that we like to call Lumpy. Think they had fun?
 

Sometimes, it seems like things happen for a reason. Ellie Mae has brought us heightened motivation and again renewed commitment to the Second Chance program. Although her story is not unique and, sadly, happens far too often, she is our special girl and I think we are very lucky to have her. As of this writing, she is at the vet's to be spayed and to have a naval hernia repaired. And, like everything so far, the timing of her surgery is very fortuitous because she was just starting to come into season... the last thing she needed was a litter of puppies!

Ellie Mae should be ready for her forever home in a couple of weeks or so. She is very happy and loves to learn. She will do best in a family environment where she has lots of people and maybe her own kids to play with. She gets along well with other dogs, but at the vet hospital was a little too interested in the cats. Although all she wanted to do was play, the cats wanted no part of that and I am sure that she would chase them if they ran. So she will need some work in that area and would probably he happiest in a home without the cats.

She is a very special girl that has been through a lot; too much for her short life. So we will be very particular about where she goes. But if you are looking for a very sweet dog to join your family, please give us a call or send an email in order to come out and meet Miss Ellie. She loves people and would very much enjoy meeting a new friend. She will warm you heart, I promise.

Ellie Update, August 30, 2006

	Miss Ellie has been having a great time here in school. And we have too, especially with her joy and willingness to try new things. Here, she takes her first try at the agility course. She was not sure about the equipment at first, but was soon romping all over and having a howling good time.

* For more information or to set a time to come and see Ellie please call (209) 223-3194 or sent a note to info@twincedark9.com