Massachusetts

FITZPATRICK: Meet our latest cuddlebug. His name's Fitzpatrick and he's s smoothcoat (shorthaired) half-masked gentleman who is neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, housetrained, and negative for heartworm and several tick-borne diseases. Fitzie has had a number of homes over the past couple of years, through no fault of his own. His owner died and he ended up with someone who didn't or couldn't take proper care of him. He was allowed to get too thin and his diet was lacking in proper nutrition. And poor Fitz suffered from a flea infestation which resulted in the loss of some of the hair on his rump. Thankfully, the hair's growing back and he's putting on some weight. He also had a very serious and painful ear infection. He even had maggots (yes, MAGGOTS) in his ears! But he is finally on the road to recovery. Fitz turned six years old a day or two before Christmas. Given that the average lifespan of a Saint Bernard is now 10-12 years, occasionally more, we figure that Fitzie still has many years to love and be loved by a special family. We're told he does reasonably well with cats though he hasn't met a cat while here at Camp Saint Bernard. He would likely be okay with a canine housemate, depending on the other dog, though we'd prefer to see him as the family's only dog. He's had too much neglect in his recent past -- We'd really like him to enjoy being the center of attention. Kids, if any, should be 12 or older. Quite frankly he'd be the perfect dog for a retired person who would spend time with him, doting on him, and letting him know that he's loved. We'd prefer him to have a fenced yard though consideration will be given to the applicant who is committed to keeping him company outdoors. Quite frankly, he doesn't spend all that much time outdoors. He'd much prefer to lie in front of a fire or commandeer a corner of your bed. Won't you consider Mr. Fitzpatrick? You won't be sorry. 1/18/2010

SKY: Our girl Sky is a delightfully sweet, though occasionally a tad stubborn. She's a 5-year-old smoothcoat (shorthaired) darling who's, spayed, vaccinated, heartworm-negative, housetrained and microchipped. Sky's a gentle soul who delights in the companionship of kids as young as toddlers. She's well-behaved and will steal some lucky family's heart. Her favorite things include hanging with her humans and getting fanny scratches. She gets along well with kitties and with other dogs, though she's not too crazy about little yappy ones. Sky's a pretty girl who has one blue eye. Really interesting! Her daddy was a champion, an impressive boy with big paws and a big heart. The ideal home for Sky will include another dog and kids to dote on her. A fenced yard and Saint- or giant-breed-experience are strongly preferred. Got room on your sofa? She's willing to share. 1/5/2010

Adoption Pending

FLETCHER: Meet our man Fletcher. Neutered, housetrained, vaccinated, HW-negative, and microchipped, Fletch is a longhaired four-year-old fellow who's quite well-behaved. He plays nicely with most other dogs, large or small. However, he hasn't yet met a cat. This boy is not for the faint of heart. He's a true gentle giant who doesn't at all mind climbing into the nearest lap. And, boy, does he take up a lot of lap! He's a big fan of ear rubs and belly scratches, playing with a ball, and going for walks. And he holds his head up proudly as he walks, almost as if he knows he's a sight to behold. Fletcher's family made the excruciatingly painful decision to bring him to our rescue group when the landlord said "Uh uh. No dogs allowed." Fletch sorely misses his 11-year-old human friend, Brady, and yearns for the companionship of another boy. He loves to be whispered to (and he promises to keep all your secrets). Fletcher will need a traditional fenced yard, perhaps a female dog to play with, and KIDS. Come and meet him -- He'll be your new best friend. 12/5/2009

SABO: This wonderful fellow is two year old Sabo. He's housetrained, neutered, vaccinated, HW-negative, and microchipped. Sabo has experienced much sadness in his brief life. He's hand-shy, and appears to have been physically abused. And he only recently had his first visit to the vet. His original family tossed him away like garbage. Despite his rough start in life, Sabo is quite willing to trust again. (We can't imagine why.) Though originally kept as an outside dog, he has discovered the joys of living inside, sleeping in the family room, and snagging any snack that happens to fall off the kitchen counter. We're pretty sure he thinks he's a cat because he loves to rub against his human like kitties do. And when he's happy he does the silliest run -- We call it the crazy dog routine -- back and forth, weaving in and out, and when he's done he slides to a stop and waits to be told that he's loved. Extremely thin on arrival, and Lyme-positive, he has made great strides. He's beginning to pack on some weight, and he finished the antibiotic that was prescribed for his Lyme Disease. Sabo enjoys lying on the ground, sun on his face, sniffing the wind. He's responsive to basic verbal commands and is learning that life can be good. Sabo will need a fenced yard, teenagers or no children, and a loving owner who will appreciate what a truly terrific dog he is. Don't miss the opportunity to meet our Sabo. 11/14/2009

APOLLO: Let us introduce you to Apollo, a two-year-old roughcoat male. He's vaccinated, housetrained, microchipped and was recently neutered. Apollo has lots of energy (he's a youngster, after all) and he's strong, but he walks quite well by your side as long as he understands that you're in charge. He enjoys going for car rides and jumps right in when he hears the jingle of car keys. Apollo's an affectionate fellow and he'll actually sit right ON your feet so you can scratch his chin and his tummy. His nickname is "Velcro Dog" because he prefers to be glued to your hip, and gets lonely when left by himself for very long. He seems to do reasonably well with most submissive FEMALE dogs as long as their his size. BUT NO SMALL DOGS, NO MALE DOGS, AND DEFINITELY NO CATS for this fellow. Apollo came to us quite thin and with very little in the way of social skills; however, he's made remarkable progress in his foster home. He was neglected for much of his young life but he'll make you the center of his universe if only you'll give him a chance. He SO wants a family of his very own. The successful candidate will have a secure fenced yard, Saint experience, and kids over age 8. 11/14/2009

AUSSIE: This handsome guy is five years old, longhaired, neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, and HW-negative. His owner entered a nursing home and there was no family member to step up to the plate for him. He's an affectionate and loyal boy who still has many years of love to give. His favorite place is in your lap (and he's quite a lapful). Aussie's never lived with another dog so we think he'll do best as the family's only pet. (No cats please -- He gets entirely too much pleasure from chasing them.) He's somewhat of a bull in a china shop so kids should be over age 10 or so. He doesn't quite understand what to do with toys. How sad is that!! But he's a big fan of cookies and the occasional piece of cheese. He will need a fenced yard and a refresher course in leash-walking. Poor Aussie just doesn't understand where his human mom is so he'll need a new family willing to spend time with him, going for walks, and helping him to ease his confusion. He's a wonderful, wonderful boy. 11/11/2009

BABY: and PETUNIA: These two little misses are mother and daughter. Baby's the mom and she's six years old. When she was only a year old she gave birth to Petunia and her siblings -- Tulip, Lilly, Rosie, Peony, Pansy, Camelia, Marigold and Rhodie (short for rhododendron, who was the only boy). Hmmm. Do you see a pattern here?? Anyway, Baby and Petunia were adopted together and lived with a family who recently lost their home to foreclosure. Sadly, the family wasn't able to take the girls with them when they moved to a small apartment. Baby is a Saint/Beagle cross, and she's smaller than her daughter. She did the reproduction dance with a purebred Saint, so Petunia is three-quarters Saint Bernard. Interesting combination, no? They're spayed, housetrained, vaccinated, microchipped, and heartworm-negative. We'd much prefer to keep them together if possible, and the adoption fee will be reduced for the famly who will open their hearts to both girls. They're good with kids of most ages. Ideally they will be the family's only dogs. And a fenced yard is necessary. They're terribly sweet. Call them. They'd love to meet you. 11/11/2009

OZZY OSBOURNE: You may recall previously seeing Ozzy on our website. He was with us in early 2009 and was quickly adopted by a wonderful family in western Massachusetts. Unfortunately they had to move to an apartment where dogs are not allowed so Ozzy's back for a return engagement. Ozzy is a delightful three-year-old roughcoat fellow. He's neutered, housetrained, vaccinated, microchipped, and heartworm-negative. And what a sweetheart he is!! He knows a few commands and he walks pretty well on leash. Ozzy is essentially a healthy boy but he has a mild case of a condition called Atypical Addison's Disease for which he takes a low dose of prednisone each day. Pred is inexpensive and Ozzy's meds only cost about $10 per month. Addison's Disease is NOT life-threatening as long as Ozzy receives his meds, and it will ABSOLUTELY NOT shorten his lifespan. Ozzy will do well in a family with kids, perhaps a female dog, and maybe even a cat. A fenced yard is strongly preferred but is not essential as long as he's not outside unattended. Won't you take a chance on this cuddlebug? Ozzy will return your love a hundred-fold (and he gives GREAT kisses. 11/9/2009

MURPHY: and TOBY: (Murphy has the narrow blaze; Toby has more white between his eyes.) These two handsome critters recently came into Rescue through no fault of their own and are looking for their forever home. Both are neutered, current on vaccinations, HW-negative, microchipped and housetrained. They're BIG boys who will need a Saint- or giant-breeed-experienced adopter. (Both boys are pretty convinced that leashes are things you use to pull your owner down the street.) Toby just turned six years old and Murphy's three. They're delightful, friendly boys who have lived with kids as young as toddlers, and for their size they're amazingly gentle with youngsters. They play nicely with cats (though Murphy can occasionally be a touch rough with them). They know some basic commands (sit, lie down, give it), and they're generally well-behaved. Toby is a big teddy bear. He's a huge fan of peanut butter, going for car rides and playing with a tug rope. He's not crazy about thunder and generally heads for a quiet corner til the big bad scary storm passes. What a wimp. Murphy's more adventurous. He's smart, and he's also a goofball with a keen sense of humor. He'll definitely provide much comic relief for the family. They're impressive boys who are generally healthy, and both are at an appropriate weight for their height and skeletal structure. However, Toby has developed some arthritis in one hip (haven't we all?) but daily glucosamine tablets are providing the relief he needs. Periodically, usually when it's cold and damp, we give him a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication called Deramaxx. Down the road he'll likely need a mild pain reliever on a more regular basis. Our goal is to keep Murphy and Toby together if possible because they've always been together and they rely on each other. Since Toby's close to officially becoming a "Saintly Senior", and because we consider him somewhat of a special-needs dog, the adoption fee will be reduced for the family willing to adopt and keep both boys. What could be better than TWO Saints? (As the old Wrigley gum commercial sang, "Double your pleasure, double your fun ....") The ideal home will include a traditional fenced yard, perhaps kids, and lots of toys. Got room on your sofa for the two fellows? Don't miss a chance to come and meet them. 11/9/2009

Adoption Pending

ROCKETMAN: Meet Rocketman, so named because when he first came to us he readily grooved to Sir Elton John's "Rocketman" which was blaring on the CD player. We placed him with a Rhode Island couple who kept him for a brief while, then unceremoniously dumped him in a local kennel. Thankfully we were able to reclaim him and bring him back into our program. Rocketman spent several months with his wonderful foster mom who worked hard to undo the damage he suffered in that awful first adoptive home. Finally our boy is ready to try again. At only a year and a half old he is still very much a puppy with lots of puppy energy. He is neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, housetrained, and HW-negative. He plays nicely with most other submissive female dogs but doesn't do well with dominant ones. And he's pretty sure that cats were put on earth for his chasing pleasure. Rocket's favorites include throat scratches, going for car rides, and chasing a ball. The successful applicant will have large- or giant-breed-experience and will be committed to completing formal obedience lessons with Rocket. If you have a fenced yard, perhaps another dog (female only, please), and kids age 10 or older, give Rocket a call. He'd love to meet you. 11/9/2009

SUSIE: Three-year-old Susie is a smoothcoat charmer who is vaccinated, microchipped, housetrained, spayed, and HW-negative. Don't you just love her pretty little white face? Susie is a positive love-sponge! Want to cuddle? She's there. Go for a ride in the car? Just try going without her. Have a treat in your hand? She's at the ready. She has the prettiest eyes and she doesn't hesitate to flash them when she wants something. She's had much too much neglect in her young life and for that reason we'll want her to be the family's only pet so she won't have to share the affection. Susie's an enthusiastic bundle of energy who will follow you to the ends of the earth (well, as long as you have cheese in your hand). The ideal adopter will be active, will enjoy taking Miss Susie for walks in the woods, and will have a never-ending supply of cookies. She'll need a fenced yard, and kids should probably be over age 8. 11/9/2009

HEIDE: Two-year-old Heide came to us from a sad situation -- Her family had no time for her and so she was relegated to the front yard. People would pass by but very few would bother to stop and chat with her or give her a smile or toss her a cookie. She made remarkable progress with one of our foster families and so we tried a placement. Alas, we failed poor Heide. We allowed her to be adopted by a woman who appeared good, at least on paper (but, sadly, things aren't always what they seem). During her brief stay in that adoptive home she lost considerable weight, and the good behaviors we had worked so hard to help her develop simply disappeared. Back she came, and we noticed that she had become hand-shy which led us to believe that she had been struck. She was so depressed we wondered if she'd be able to snap back. Thankfully, after many months she has begun to do just that, and at last is coming out of her shell. Sweet Heide is a spayed, housetrained, vaccinated, microchipped and HW-negative roughcoat little lady. She will need a fenced yard, no other pets, and a patient adopter who will help her to continue to rebuild trust while she learns that hands can be gentle. Kids should probably be 12 or older. Saint- or giant-breed-experience is essential. Won't you come and meet our Heide? She has so much love to give. 11/9/2009