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Maggie
Hi Everyone!
Please let me tell you a little about myself… my name is Maggie. My foster parents gave me that name shortly after they met me. It took me about 3 weeks to learn it, but I know it really well now. You see, my name wasn’t always Maggie; I don’t even know if I had a name before. I don’t talk about those days, but this is what I will share with you.
One night, I was dropped (my foster mom calls it dumped) off at this place called the Humane Society with 3 other fur friends of mine. It was so cold outside. We waited all night for someone to let us in. Finally when someone arrived, they took us all in. We all got cleaned up & inspected for a while. After inspections were over, my fur friends got to leave to meet their forever family while I had to stay behind. I was sad at first, but then the nice lady at the humane society told me she had contacted Minnesota Boxer Rescue to see if they could take care of me. As soon as the Rescue heard my story, they immediately came and got me.
I met my new foster parents in early February. When my foster mom saw me for the first time, she almost cried. She told me I had the worst case of mange she had ever seen! I guess that she’s helped a few Boxers with mange, but I was the worst. I didn’t really notice the mange. Sure, my skin itched like crazy, but when you’re running around on the streets looking for food, what can you do about it? I guess I had almost no hair at all. The humane society lady told my foster mom that I was probably about 5 years old, that I was as sweet as could be, and that I got a little possessive over my food. My foster parents said that my skin looked blue from the mange and noticed right away that I had infections in both ears. I guess I was one sad story.
I wasn’t with them for 5 minutes before they told me I was going to the doctor for another inspection. I was a little shy and nervous riding in my foster parents’ truck, but once we got to the doctor’s office, I knew I could trust them. When the nice doctor looked me over, she said I was about 4, that I was too skinny, that I needed medicine for my ears, that I had really bad teeth, & that I was going to need mange treatments for a long time. I didn’t know what that meant until we arrived at my foster parents’ house.
After meeting my new fur siblings (whom I didn’t like at first because they are totally spoiled & never run out of food), my foster mom took me right up the stairs & into the bath tub. A BATH ?! That’s what mange treatments are?! After my bath, I learned I wasn’t quite done yet. My foster mom had to sponge this bad smelling stuff all over my body. It burned a bit, but I already felt better.
I have had 7 mange treatments since then. I still have mange, but I now also have almost a whole body of hair!! My foster mom says that I will need about 3 more treatments. After the treatments are over, I will need to get my vaccinations and get spayed. I’m ok with that, I like my nice doctor. What’s really funny is that now that I have hair, have good food in my belly, and have people who love and take care of me, my doctor says that I am probably closer to 2 years old. Apparently my teeth look so good now that the doctors think I am much younger than they originally thought!
My foster mom says that I am rotten. I drive her crazy! I jump and hop around all the time because I have SO much energy. My fur siblings can’t even keep up with me. I try to play with them, but sometimes I am a little too rough & they don’t want to play with me anymore. I also chase kitties. I don’t eat them or anything, I just as my foster mom says, stalk them. I like to sniff them & make them run away. I can deal with them, but sometimes I do pay a little too much attention to them. Apparently I also have a bad habit of jumping onto & walking all over people. Hey, they’re in my way. My foster mom also gets a little mad when I steal food off the counters & try to sniff and eat off her dinner plate. I know I can eat dog food whenever I want, but hey, sometimes I girl needs a good steak!
Even though my foster mom thinks I am rotten, she also says that I have made a lot of progress since they got me. I used to go to the bathroom in the house all the time (both jobs), but now I try really hard to let them know I have to go outside. Sometimes I still have accidents, but they are little ones. I also am really good in my kennel. My foster parents work during the day, so they put me in a kennel. They get treats ready, say kennel, and I run right into it. Sometimes I even just hang out in it. When we go for walks, I am ok on a leash, but I do stop & stair & smell everything so walks are a bit slow. I’m the kind of gal that needs to run around – not walk!
My foster parents aren’t exactly sure if I am good with children. Every once in a while one of those little people come over to visit. Those little people often smell good (like food), so I sniff them for a while, and then lick them for a while, let them pet me, and then I’m off to run. I used to be really shy around new people, but not anymore. I like to meet new people! I also like to meet new dogs!
So, even though I came with mange & a few bad habits, my foster parents tell me they love me all the time. They also tell me that someday I will make some (energetic, fun) family really happy. I will be ready for my forever home in about two months. Do you think you could find some room in your heart & on your couch for me?
Talk to you soon!!
XOXOXO
Maggie
