Wednesday, August 9, 2006

Luna

As told by Luna's owners

Well, the story of Luna must first begin with a brief background about her two older brothers, Benjamin & Henry. We bought Benjamin & Henry from a local pet store in Maryland. We had not done any type of research about how to go about getting a dog, especially a pug but just knew we wanted one and maybe even 2 pugs. So, we got put on a waiting list for when they would have 2 male pug puppies available to purchase.

About a month later we got a call from the pet store saying they had two pug puppies. Excited, we went to pick up Benjamin on a Thursday and picked up Henry the following day. They were 1 week apart in age. Benjamin was completely adorable, but Henry, if I am to be perfectly honest, wasn’t exactly a looker. His eyes were really bulgy and his head was out of proportion with his body. Henry had a good personality, though and he was still cute in an odd way.

Over the next year or so, both the boys had a wide variety of illnesses. Benjamin had mange, Henry had had his foot broken prior to being given to us (but we had not been told), and both boys had chronic bouts of diarrhea. Benjamin later also developed pancreatitis and Henry needed surgery on his knee due to patellar luxation. Through all of these experiences, we learned that the boys were puppy mill puppies.

We decided at that point that if we were ever going to get another pug, we would rescue one. Fast forward to almost 4 years later when we applied for a rescue. We went to Compassionate Pug Rescue and filled out an adoption application. We knew we really wanted a girl because we noticed that when we would go to the dog parks or on walks, the boys would play best with the girl dogs. That was late August 2006.

Marcia, from CPR, called us in early October to discuss a pug she thought would be a good match for our family. She told us about a male pug that they were trying to place and only briefly mentioned Luna. I quizzed Marcia about Luna. Marcia told us that Luna had lived with a few people in the same family over the last 4-6 months before she was turned over to CPR. Marcia also told us about Luna’s medical issues. She had chronic dry eye, she had lots of missing fur from perhaps, untreated mange or maybe a hormonal imbalance. The foster mom was waiting on some test results. We weren’t sure what her medical condition was for sure. It didn’t matter to us, though, we wanted Luna. We knew we could help her get healthy. So, we told Marcia that Luna was the one for us. Marcia was happy for all of us. She realized she found a good home for Luna and knew that we would be very happy with her. There were some technicalities to iron out but soon Luna would be home with us, where she belonged.

Luna stayed in foster care for about another month and then it was time for us to go pick her up to bring her to her forever home. We all (Benjamin & Henry included) met Marcia & Luna at a pug festival in Hollywood, Florida which is about a 3 1/2 hour drive, one way, from our home. We completed the adoption papers and got gitty over the fact that we had a new addition to the family.

We reflect now about how surprised we were that Luna was so tiny. She weighed about 11 pounds and was a very petite little girl. She did have patches of missing fur but her eye really was the worst. Her right eye could barely close because it was so dry. There was almost no lubrication to allow her eye lid to slide over her eye. Marcia gave us the drops that she was currently on that helped the condition slightly. She was adorable but she definitely needed to get healthy. We knew we could make that happen.

So, we enjoyed the pug event with not 2, but 3 pugs now in tow. It was quite a unique experience because it seemed apparent that Luna may have never been on a leash. She had no idea of who to follow, where to go and she constantly got her leash wrapped around trees, picnic table legs, trash cans, etc. If there was an obstacle to go around, Luna went the opposite direction of everyone else. She was a tangled mess.

Luna in the car with her new brothers, Benjmain & Henry

Luna sleeping in the car during the long drive home.

Knowing that we had a long ride home, our stay at the pug festival was short. We did stay long enough to see a costume contest and to peek at some of the vendors’ goods, but that was about it. We were prepared for Luna. The boys always ride in the back seat wearing seat belts attached to their harnesses and we made sure Luna had a harness and a seat belt. The 3 puggies loaded in the back of the truck, all buckled in and Luna fell right asleep. She had had a very big day. Benjamin & Henry settled into place not long after. We made the long drive back home.

When we got home, we went straight to the backyard. The goal was to have the boys & Luna play some in the backyard before we all went into the house so no one would feel territorial. That didn’t really pan out, but eventually we all made it into the house and everyone got along pretty well. That night was a little chaotic as Luna got up several times through the night: sometimes to go potty, sometimes just checking things out around the house. We were a little worried that this was her routine but didn’t jump to conclusions. She had been in several places and it would take her a little time to realize that she was in her forever home.

Shortly after Luna got settled, it was time to take her to see some specialists. She had to go to an eye specialist and a skin specialist. It was quite fortunate that we found an eye & skin place together. Unfortunately, it is about an hour away from the house. Nonetheless, we took Luna to the specialists where they performed many tests on her skin and checked out her eyes. The dermatologist basically said that the fur would probably not grow back in many of the spots and only maybe would grow back in the others. (Today’s update: Only minor spots of fur have come back but she is no worse for the wear.) The optomologist said that she has chronic dry eye and she will have to be on eye drops for the rest of her life. (Update: Luna's condition is better and we are trying to find the exact combination of drops that work the best.)

As far as “fitting in” with the pack, Luna thinks she is queen of the pack. She loves the boys and they love her. They cuddle, tease, run and play, altogether. We’ve had the boys for 4 years and Luna for about 6 months, but it seems like we’ve had them all forever. They are our babies. They are the pack. Luna is in her forever home and we couldn’t be happier.