Mr. Darcy, seen here looking for Ms. Leah
His story, what is known of it, is as follows: a companion to a homeless man (Robert) in Northeast Los Angeles, Mr. Darcy (his eventual name) was seen running loose on Riverside Drive countless times. Robert had been asking for the proverbial spare change for many years at a stoplight near our home--my wife had many conversations with Robert about his dog: was the dog being fed enough? did he get his shots? etc. Life is tough for our homeless, and Robert would disappear for weeks at a time, leaving his dog to fend for himself.
1st Place Winner, The Inherent Perfection of Being Competition
Robert had a makeshift campsite at the top of a flight of stairs (the stairs terminated high up a hillside about two miles north of Dodger Stadium--presumably they led to heaven). Donna had placed dog tags (with our phone number as the contact) on Mr. Darcy--soon after came the calls from concerned Angelenos who had rescued Mr. Darcy during one of his many romps on Riverside Dr. His master vanished once again, this time for two months (turns out he was hospitalized at County USC Medical Center) and Mr. Darcy needed help.
Very happy to meet you, indeed...
It was decided that the dog's life, with no veterinary care and a master who was often gone or missing, was too much at risk too much of the time. Though the companionship to Robert was priceless the life of Mr. Darcy, a dog too much of the street, was hanging by a tread (forgive the pun). My wife and her friends stepped into the breach (one more time!) and began the job of finding a permanent home for Mr. Always Running On Riverside Drive.
Leah (original co-founder of Corrente) heard about the situation and found it in her heart to foster, then adopt and also name this funny poodle/terrier mix (a Terryoodle?). I visited them both recently and am happy to report there they are a happy couple indeed. Mr. Darcy sat by Leah's side, panting happily as Leah gently massaged his coat, a mutual and sweet manifestation of love if ever I have seen it.
Robert, the homeless man, continues to struggle. He has turned down many offers of assistance from area shelters and concerned locals who attempt to help him. He is a good and decent man, and when told that his former companion was loved and cared for, he smiled and his eyes glistened. "Thank you," said Robert. That was the last time we spoke with him.
Velveteen Rabbit meets Invasion of the Doggy Snatchers? Perhaps it is best to simply title this "Holding the Stuffed Animal Up to Nature" and leave it at that...
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Awwwwww...wadda puppy!
Poodle/Bichon cross?
Pure Bichon?
I have usually had a small, white dog in my retinue, though not since Poly died in 05...
I can't believe you got that last shot, MJS
Thank-you for your lovely, if also sad, accounting of the saga of the Mr. Darcy previously known as Pasqualli.
woody,tokin'lib'rul, I'm so sorry for your loss; I had lost my beloved Tibetan Terrier, "Apu," less than a year before this incredible little white dog entered my life. My major hesitation in taking him was worry that I wasn't yet ready for another dog, so I agreed to foster him, with all the insistent agreements on both sides that neither I nor Donna, famously wonderful wife of MJS, would make the mistake of letting fostering become final placement hastily.
Well, within 24-36 hours of taking him, I was sending emails to the MJS houseold, which includes many, many animals, warning the two humans therein that the only way they were getting this dog back was if they were willing to pry him from my dead, cold fingers.
We're not sure what he is, but I'm amazed you got the Bichon link, because in total he looks nothing like a Bichon, but then again, he doesn't really look like a poodle, but every Bichon owner I meet thinks he has Bichon somewhere in the mix. He's a mighty little thing, weighing in at the vets at 29 pounds; the vet reassured me he isn't overweight, it's muscle and bone. He has a huge chest, and I soon found out I had to work with him to learn not to jump on me because he came close to knocking me over. He's truly smart, and I've been able to guide him into an understanding that he's allowed to jump up in excitement, just not onto me.
I do feel so sorry for Robert, but I try and channel my sorrow into giving his dog a wonderful life.
So, woody, I hope you are as lucky when you feel ready again to share your life with an animal.
Thanks for your thoughts.
my current pack numbers 4: I have fotos of 'em up on my blog:
http://walled-in-pond.blogspot.com
enter Buddy, Hannah, Mischief, and/or Dixie in the search box.
they're m'kids...
Yes, looks like a Bichon.
Yes, looks like a Bichon.
Spit and Image of Merlin
whom i adored, in all is chunky enthusiasms. You shoulda seen Merlin in the ocean. He LOVED it, getting splashed and rolled and he'd just bounce right up. Great dog...yeah your boy reminds me of my Merlin...
Dog Blogging, for Leah
You can go HERE for candids of my pack.
they're all volunteers, except mischief, who belonged to a friend who got too sick to care for her; she'd been a foundling already once before at least. dixie, hannah, and buddy all literally followed me home. it is impossible for me to turn one away, except inside the city limits, four's the maximum you can house without a license...might be the last sentence my mother spoke to me was about dogs (but has wider applications, of course): Honey, she said, you can't save 'em all.
Woody, I had to pass on a gorgeous
Rottweiler, sweet as hell, purebred or damn close to it. He just showed up one day, evidently dumped somewhere close enough on the road that he ended up wagging his stump on my back porch.
Fed him for a couple of days and even got him a collar. Then happened to see a news story that State Farm was instituting a new policy: customers who had certain breeds of dog, pit bulls and Rotties prominently among them, would be summarily dropped from coverage.
Called around and couldn't find a new company with rates even comparable (the package for house and car both, in place for decades and no claims on either). And several, as soon as I asked, admitted they had the same ban on "dogs with highest likelihood of biting" anyway. So Rocky had to go off to Animal Control. I was bummed.
Have I mentioned lately how much I hate hate hate people who dump animals "out in the country where they can fend for themselves, or some nice farmer will take them in"? I should mention that more often. This dog was in no way shape or form my responsibility, and yet I'm gonna feel guilty till the day I die that I had to turn him away.
[kicks rock, morosely]
Rottweiler Railroad
Xan: funny you should mention the Rottweiler. Aside from the one we saw on the 99 during our return trip from Oregon, Donna recently drove a Rottweiler from L.A. to his new home in San Diego. A fellow rescuer in Santa Barbara put out the alert: this Rottweiler had been in a nasty scrape with a Pit Bull in a shelter. All things being grossly unequal (the Rott apparently did not fight back) "Snoopy" was scheduled to be euthanized, at least until our friend intervened. A home was found for him just north of the border--a lovely woman who has a soft spot for Rottweilers.
Donna was already going to take a recently rescued female Husky to a prospective home down south, and so agreed to ferry Snoopy. I met this six year old male Rott, and all I can say is he is the only proof of a loving creator deity left on this good green planet. Sweet, scrunchable, massive, perfect, with the temperment of Ferdinand the Bull. We can't save them all--oh, but we can try.
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my rottie and pit bull were the sweetest, nicest
My Pit, Budreaux, Is Unquestionably The BEST DOG
I ever had.
He's happy, friendly (unless he doesn't know you and you're too close to his truck), obedient, and he makes me smile more than any other dog ever in my packs.
i don't know how to post a photo here, but here's a link>/a>
Woody's Good Pit
Sorry couldn't resist. Buddy is teaching me to fetch. Sweet dog, but a little on the too smart side. :-}
Ruth
Ruth
Woody's Bottomless Pit
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Bud-reaux
is NOT a bottomless pit,
he's a svelte 65 lbs of death-grip cuddle-puppy.
and we thank you very much...
OhmyGod, I didn't realize there were more comments
For a long time after MJS posted this lovely homage to my gentle galoot, Mr. Darcy, woody's was the only comment, and feeling rather defensive about the attention my spectacular canine was not getting, I stopped looking for comments.
Then, this morning, what do I find...
Thank-you for blogging your pack, woody; I see you didn't need my encouragement to open your life to more dogs...
My response to those pictures...Wow.
Dogs belong in packs, but since I'm an apartment dweller, one is my limit. I do try and give him opportunities to play with his own kind.
I'm enjoying reading your blog, I recommend everyone else take the trip over there and look around. Just click on woody's byline in one of his comments.
The picture of the fuzzy black dog above, which dog is that...does it go with your comment CD?