Most
of us have read the stories throughout the world when a family cannot care for
their dog any longer. The economy, job loss, foreclosed
homes, or just over their head with the breed they have chosen.
Bo
& DeeMo is not a rescue, however, under special circumstances, we do help
families surrender or re-home their dogs. Meet Dozer and Roxy, the story of two very special English Bulldogs...
One
day a man visited our boutique, Mugsy & Moxie’s Bully Couture. He
was in awe of Mugsy’s behavior as he worked in the store. "My bulldog
isn't this calm" he
said. I could see the look of defeat on his face so I started asking
questions about what was going on at home with his bully. The issues are usually pretty standard when
they are at the end of their rope. "Dozer marks inside the house, he
jumps on
everyone including kids, he won't listen, can't walk on the leash. He
is just
crazy!"
Then
he began to describe how their lives have changed. Work schedules, two
kids. "We have to keep Dozer crated for 10 hours a day now. I really
need to find him a home where he can get the love and attention he needs
and
deserves."
At the store we
pride ourselves on helping customers with just about anything related
to dogs. I told him about the one rescue he
could contact if he wanted to go the route of surrendering his dog, but
he was still resistant. He didn't want Dozer to end up in the wrong
hands or even worse, the shelter, where he could be euthanized. Yes we
have kill shelters here in Las Vegas like The Animal Foundation aka Lied
Animal Shelter. We understood exactly what he was thinking.
Having been
trained and making a living at reading body language I knew deep in my
heart what Dozer's Dad was trying to tell me. All the information was
just too much, pointing to a
sad ending for Dozer and his family.
It was then that I told him, "Bring Dozer to me, right here at the store. I can re-home him quickly with a Bulldog
family."
As I offered him this solution, I could see the
tension release from his face, his color brightened. Still reluctant he
gave me his wife's phone number to discuss it with her and the process
began.
Surrendering
is painful. It’s hard to be honest with
yourself, your children and family when you can no longer give the proper care
and attention your family dog needs. In a situation like this, it is normal to second guess your decision, holding onto
your dog for a bit, shedding many tears before finally deciding to give up the dog.
After
few phone calls and missed surrender dates, his wife still wasn't sure,
she needed more information
on me. She was advised by one of our
helpers to research me, our companies and organizations I have worked
with for any
references. She did. I live a very
public life so it was easy for her to find out information about me.
One Saturday morning, about two weeks later, his wife called me at the
store. She shared how happy she was with the
information she had found and she was ready to surrender Dozer at
the
store.
That
evening, the entire family came in with a cute little English Bulldog named
Dozer, the "Bulldozer". I sat on the floor
with the kids and Dozer while speaking with the parents. They shared a long list of issues they were
having with Dozer. The kids made sure I knew all the fun things about him and
the parents asked for specifics on Dozer’s new home.
They
were
so heartbroken, I could feel their pain because I know how very hard it
was to make this decision. They truly did love Dozer and only wanted
the best for him.
I made promises to the entire family, something I never take lightly. I was here to put Dozer into an amazing
bulldog family so he can live as he should.
Fulfilled and loved.
 |
| Meet Dozer! |
 |
| Dozer as a Baby |
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| Dozer doing the head tilt! |
When
Kevin and I take in English Bulldogs, we re-home with previous bulldog
families. However, we re-home to those who
have become ill, seriously ill so these special dogs have a specific working
purpose to heal the patients.
I
told the family of this patient we had in mind for Dozer. It might be a long shot as they lost their
bulldog years ago, but are still heartbroken and cry when they think about him.
We know this family very well and lately I've seen Dad looking beaten by his new diagnosis of Kidney
Disease. We knew his heart break so I called
his family to meet Dozer and see if they would like to have him be Dad's
medicine.
Of
course they fell in love with him. Our
reasoning, I have no family left, parents are gone now and we didn't want to
lose "Dad" too. Maybe Dozer can bring
some fight back. The family agreed.
On
Dad’s 65th Birthday, I brought Dozer over and presented him as a
special gift to heal and be loved. It
was a magical moment. Dad began crying and hugged me so tight with happiness.
For the first time, Dad was speechless.
I gave them the family's wishes, for any reason they cannot keep Dozer,
they are to return him to us, not a problem.
They agreed to give it a try and see how Dozer and their dog gets
along.
Three
days later... the family dog wasn't having any part of Dozer. Their older dog stopped eating, wouldn't come
out of the corner and was miserable.
They couldn't bear to do that to their dog, so Dozer came back to us.
 |
| Dozer and Mugsy at the vet. |
That
very same morning, my husband Kevin was describing to me he felt
depressed and sad but
didn't know why. I knew right away he
missed Dozer.
I hadn't arrived to the
store yet when I received a message that Dozer was at the store. I
called Kevin, he immediately broke down with happiness. "He's the reason I have been so
depressed. He's exactly like Moxie Mia!" Which was right on the money, Dozer is the male version of our Queen Moxie
Mia. Being broken hearted still over the
loss of Moxie, Dozer has made a mark on our hearts and lives.
 |
| Kevin and Dozer |
As
I had promised, I emailed the family of Dozer's journey. I explained that
there was no one else that would be a perfect match for this little 2
year
old boy. I told her we were going to take Dozer into our family and
love him forever, they were so ecstatic to learn this news.
Dozer
had to have some surgery, so we scheduled it two weeks ago. He recovered very well and should be back
in the lime light soon.
The
family
has asked to come by once he's all healed up to visit with Dozer. We
are looking forward to that reunion. We are very happy
to report that Dozer has a lot of fans and everyone that visits the
store can't help but fall in love with this little boy.
While
all of this was going on with Dozer, I was contacted by a women who's
son has an English
Bulldog named Roxy. The son's work situation had changed and he was on
the road 20 days per month. His sister was caring for Roxy while he was
gone but she had become overwhelmed trying to take care of Roxy because
of some issues: excessive shedding, not enough exercise and
medical care. So the son had asked his Mom to help him find a new home
for Roxy. The surrender itself took a couple of weeks, changing their
minds, missed surrender appointments. All very normal under the
circumstances.
Right
away I
knew exactly who should have this little girl. Roxy was a "runt" 30-40
lbs, a sweet
little girl. A
previous bulldog "Aunt", she had cared for her brother's bulldog who was
one of our first
Ambassador's. Sadly, she has been
diagnosed with leukemia, her family lives out of state and she
really
missed her bully during her chemotherapy/radiation treatments. I sent
her a message about Roxy. I knew she needed a medicinal Bulldog to give
her that extra fight.
As
a
well seasoned and educated Bulldog caregiver, she was interested in
meeting
Roxy. I kept her posted on the surrender. I explained how the owner
was reluctant to surrender Roxy and his family was pushing for
the surrender so Roxy could have a better life.
A
couple weeks went by and finally the owner's sister brought Roxy into
the store. The owner just couldn't do it himself. Understandable.
I
sent a message to the patient…"She's here!
She's beautiful and sweet, come on down to meet her!"
 |
| Roxy's new Grandpa. |
After
doing a little shopping for Ms. Roxy, they took her home. The very next day her new owner went into
the hospital for round three of chemotherapy along with a couple of weeks stay to protect
her from infection and complications.
Roxy was
in loving hands with Grandpa and bulldog friends during this treatment. Roxy
now has a serious roll as a healer and best friend, she couldn't be in better
hands with this amazing family.
 |
Roxy on her new Mom's bed.
|
 |
Roxy on the patio.
Roxy with her new BFF Molly.
Ironically
we had two English Bulldogs surrendered in a months time, but their stories end
perfectly. Dozer and Roxy's purpose is
to heal. Dozer is healing our broken
hearts from the tragic loss of Moxie Mia and Roxy is nursing her new mom back
into remission.
|
My
unconditional love for the English Bulldog breed is widely known. I want the best for this very special
breed. They have the magical powers of healing illness, mending broken hearts and
shall always be given a Royal loving life with the perfect Bulldog family.
Kevin and I commend the surrendering
families for doing the right thing. The
ultimate love is to let them go when you know their lives aren't being
fulfilled as they should.
If
you know someone who needs to surrender this breed or any other bully breed,
contact us on our Facebook page. www.facebook.com/BoAndDeeMoNation
We will
give you legitimate no kill rescues to contact.
Every
day remember to Love, Hug and Fulfill your Bullys lives as dogs first! Your bully will return the love ten fold.
Dee
Mounts - The Bully Girl
It’s
a Bully Thing!
