Introducing Zia and Taos and 7 more puppies

Meet our first two new fosters of 2013: Zia and Taos. 

 

My co-rescue coordinator and I were contacted about a litter of 8 three month old puppies needing rescue who were born to a Rat Terrier mom. At first both of us thought "CRAP, there is no way we can pull this off!" but I figured I might as well check in with the NW foster parents and see if anyone was up for squeezing in an extra puppy or two to their load of foster dogs. As usual, a bunch of folks stepped up to the plate and before I knew it all 8 of the pups had found a foster spot.

One of the foster parents donated the $50 to get them all their first vaccination and then we waited 3 weeks for them to have their second booster since we didn't want to put them on a transport unless they had 2 DHPP vaccinations under their belt.

Then yesterday, the day the puppies were supposed to hop on their transport, I got a call from our New Rattitude volunteer who was temping the puppies in Fresno for us. She had taken all the pups in that morning to get their health certificates and the shelter vet saw the pups and then brought out another puppy the same age, same size, who had been stepped on and had their shoulder dislocated. The shoulder had been reset and x-rays had been done and everything was okay - she just needed some cage rest. The vet wanted her to see if we could take that puppy too. OY! A ninth puppy?! I told Lynn I couldn't promise anything since the foster homes taking the puppies were already in overload.  So I emailed the foster parents again and sure enough, another foster parent stepped up and a ninth puppy joined the crew. I told Lynn she'd better get them on the transport soon because I wouldn't be taking a tenth.

The pups are on their way up to the Northwest as I type and there are 6 foster families excitedly awaiting their arrival. Eight pups will be fostered in Washington and one in Oregon. That makes our NW foster homes full to the brim with 20 dogs currently in our foster homes up here. They won't be overloaded for long though since there are several adoptions in the works and we're sure the puppies will go fast, even if they do look a bit mixy.

Our two kiddos are both named for Native Pueblos of New Mexico. For over 600 years the 19 pueblos of New Mexico have dealt with the worst that both man and nature could dish out and survived so they may fitting namesakes for tough little homeless terriers that have beat the odds.

Zia is a native Pueblo of New Mexico located about 16 miles north of Albuquerque.  It is also the name of the sun symbol below that is featured on the flag of New Mexico. The pueblo is known for its pottery, an unpolished redware with white slip.

 

 

Most folks have heard of the modern city of Taos, but the Taos Pueblo that lies about a mile north of the city is an ancient community that's about 1,000 years old. The famous north-side pueblo structure seen below is the largest multistoried Pueblo structure still existing and is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.