Brownie's rescue

Hi, and thank you for checking out Brownie's story. This isn't necessarily a short one, but it isn't complicated either.

Our adventure began December 27, 2013. Our dear friend sent out a plea for help over Facebook to help find homes for 2 dogs she rescued on the side of the road. From her post; ".we found her along the side of Spring Stuebner with 3 other little dogs. Two of them were hit by cars and killed." Of the 4 dogs traveling together, 2 were killed. As soon as I saw Brownie and saw the sad story, I wanted to help! I asked my husband (hereafter known as "hubs") if we could meet the dog and see if she would be a good fit for us. It was completely unplanned, and we had only just recently talked of seriously getting a dog. We had a few criteria; female, small, minimal (or no) shedding, good natured, and good with kids.

This is the original picture from my friend.



So off to their house we drove with the girls. Brownie was scared, timid, and very malnourished. After talking for a few minutes about it, we agreed to take her home. We were so excited! (at least, I was!) I knew it would take Brownie a little while to come around and let her personality shine.

This picture was taken as we left the Petco. We drove straight there from our friends house to get her some doggie basics. Like a bed! And some shampoo - that dog smelled awful.

Brownie getting settled in

Second stop was to my friends house to borrow a dog kennel they were not using. They have been so generous in letting us use this kennel for as long as need! (which has turned into over a year - sometimes I forget we are borrowing it, I hope they don't forget either)

Why the kennel? For some fairly obvious reasons;
1) We are current apartment dwellers - we are very limited on living space for animals.
2) Having no clue if this dog has ever been potty trained before, I couldn't have her pooping and peeing all over the carpets. Or the kitchen floor. Yuck!
3) Brownie would need a place to escape the girls, specifically, Olivia. Olivia loves animals so much, but has a tendency to turn into Elmyra from Tiny Tunes. I had originally envisioned having the kennel out in the dining room/living room area, so she could roam around the apartment during the day. (this turned out to be a folly dream)




We picked Brownie up on a Friday, and took her to the vet that afternoon. She was underweight at 7.2 pounds, had tape worms, and heart worms. Poor thing was as sweet as could be at the vet office. She never once growled, or snapped at anyone. Just a scared little thing. At home, she didn't move off of the dog bed we had purchased her.



 The following week we had her spayed - poor girl. Surgery went without incident and we brought her back to heal. She was the saddest dog ever. I gave her a scrap of flannel material I had lying around, and it became her blanket. (well, until she pooped and barfed all over it several months later - I decided to just throw it out)



She recovered very well from surgery, and was so happy to get that darn cone off. We felt bad, she couldn't get inside the kennel to sleep due to the cone.  During this time, we began her pre-treatment of Doxycycline in preparation for heart worm treatment. January 31 was her first injection, and thus began her strict confinement (which would not end until April 25, nearly 3 months later). She took her treatment as good as can be expected. Her kennel became her safe haven, which she still loves to this day.

 During this time of confinement, she had the chance to become familiar with us. I picked her up and walked her to a small patch of grass multiple times a day. She was so scared, she would not walk outside on the leash - she kept trying to hide in the bushes. I would set her on the grass, she would do both businesses, and I would pick her up and take her inside. Every day. Five to seven times a day. It didn't take long to potty train her, but she did struggle from time to time to not pee or poop in the kitchen. Ever so slowly, she would perk up with us. It was very encouraging.

Some stats

Brownie is mixed breed, though we are not sure which. We have speculated Chihuahua with....well, who knows!!   We are "guesstimating" her to be about 2-2½ years old at this point. Her typical weight range will be anywhere from 11-12 pounds. (she weighed in at just over 12 pounds in January, which looks to be the right weight)

I am VERY happy to report that Brownie's heart worm treatment worked!! As of January 2015, her blood work is negative for heart worms. We have kept her on heart worm prevention every month. We get the Trifexis 3-in-1 pills - a little pricey, but I don't have to buy anything else for fleas or mosquitos. It will cost approx $129 every 6 months. (we just go in every 6 months, we haven't had enough cash in hand to buy a 12 month supply)

 Brownie is up-to-date on her rabies shots, and next year will be due for her 3 year USDA licensed vaccine.

 Her teeth are very healthy, her ears have never had bugs, and her skin/fur have always been healthy. She does have a few silly "bald" spots. We can't figure out why her fur won't grow in those places. It appears to be normal, and has never been a concern to us or her vet (skin looks healthy).

 We feed her twice a day; ½ cup food in the morning, ½ cup food in the evening. We keep lots of treats on hand as well, though cheese and apple bits are definitely her favorite. She will adapt to any feeding schedule you need, this schedule worked well for us as we tried to put weight on her in the beginning. It just kind of stuck.

Training Brownie

Some dogs are easy to train. Some people have a knack for training dogs. We have found it difficult to fine-tune our training for Brownie. I am no expert, and the hubs works long, odd hours - making it hard to get in some good training time.

 I will say this for Brownie: she is SWEET. I have 3 kiddos, and never once has she growled, barked, or nipped/bitten the kids. Miss O is in her face, and the Abster is constantly crawling in her kennel trying to take over. Brownie puts up with it, or just moves somewhere else.

 The potty thing has been an occasional issue for us - we do not have a backyard for her to regularly go out and do her potty thing at her leisure. We have to take her out on a leash, and she doesn't always want to take care of all her bathroom business if you know what I mean.  We feel that if she had a backyard to regularly run around in, the potty issue would stop.

 A few things Brownie can typically do;
 -sit
 -stay (needs improvement)
 -the wait game (I hold a treat out, before she goes to eat it, I tell her "wait" - she patiently waits until I say "good girl", at which point she gently takes the treat from me and eats it)
 -wait to exit/enter the home last - the rest of the family goes first

Did I mention how much this dog loves to play?! Probably not - she LOVES to play. We are always trying new toys to keep her engaged and happy, and she loves to play with us in the living room and run around in circles. It is hilarious.



 To my own defense, (not that I feel the need to justify with you folks) I was pregnant with baby #3 when we got Brownie. It is not easy to be super sick, have 2 kids under the age of 3, nanny twin babies, and take care of a very needy dog. (needy in the beginning, anyway)

Let's find that forever home!

Reasons Brownie would make a great addition to your home;

-so SWEET. This dog just wants to be loved and adored.
-loves to run circles and jump over things (sometimes I swear she is a miniature horse)
-NEVER barks. We have had her for over a year, and she has never barked. She yipped a few times when she felt ignored by company, but no barking. Ever.
-NEVER bites. And she has had her fair share of unpleasant vet trips, and kids in her face. She has never shown any signs of aggression in any scenario we have encountered with her.
-look at those bat ears! Who wouldn't love those?
-still young - we have guessed her age to be about 2 years old. She is still trainable with the right owner and with the right persistence.





This dog has great potential. We were so happy to rescue her, and we have (mostly) enjoyed having her in our home. But it has become obvious to us that we are not her forever family, and we need to get on the ball to find her forever home. What things qualify a good home for Brownie?

-Backyard - this is a MUST. She really struggles without regular and constant exercise off of a leash.
-Time - you need to be able to give her your time. She will be okay if you have a job and are gone during the day, but play with her when you are home. Play with her on the weekends.
-Homes with kids okay - but I personally think a home with kids are 6 years old and up would be ideal. Brownie still jumps on kids (too excited), and needs a "pack" who can keep her in check. The younger kids really struggle with that (at least, the ones we are around).

 -other dogs are okay - Brownie is still getting used to being around other dogs. Just in the last 2 months she is opening up to being social with other dogs. (whereas before, she would high-tail it and run away) A couple or few visits with your dog would be ideal - no need for everyone to be miserable if it can be avoided.
-If you don't have other dogs, that is fine, too! we still require a home visit, and one reference.

 Our rehoming fee is a modest $40, and we will send Brownie with everything she owns. Sorry, kennel is not mine to sell. If you really want it, I can inquire a price for you since it is on loan from a friend. Thank you so much for stopping in. Please spread the word! We would prefer to keep Brownie close to where we are, on the north side of Harris County. Please comment if you or a friend are interested in adopting Brownie. She is a sweet dog, and I will miss her silly looks and funny playtime.