top of page
Search

Don’t Overlook Furry Friends With Special Needs

Lenora Kruk - Mullanaphy

Some dogs at Old Dominion Humane Society (ODHS) have twice the challenge of other furry friends in getting adopted. Rescue dogs come in all shapes and sizes, personalities and, in some cases, various disabilities. In keeping with its mission, ODHS is a no-kill canine rescue that saves dogs from many situations, including neglect, mistreatment,  hoarding incidents, as well as those that come from high-kill animal shelters.


“Old Dominion has had many dogs with disabilities, which has actually been changed to ‘specially-abled’,” said Chrissy Blake, founder of ODHS. “These dogs--blind, deaf and three-legged, to name a few—have had no problems fitting in with other dogs and are able to adapt well even with these challenges. In the past few weeks, we’ve had a blind and three-legged dog adopted to families who love and care for them, and they, in turn, are happy to have forever homes.”


Tami Boles, a dedicated and long-time volunteer with ODHS, nurtured Nugget, who was born with Cerebellar Hypoplasia, a disease that denotes inadequate development of the cerebellum, a section of the brainstem mostly responsible for modulating motor impulses. Dogs fail to move normally, specifically when trying to maintain normal balance, posture and coordination. Boles was able to get a big truck to ODHS during the January 2022 snowstorm--nobody else could get there. Nugget was born in a crate in Boles’ truck on the way home. The stressful situation and quick birth is what she thinks caused the disease.


Nugget couldn’t walk on her own, her mother wasn’t able to feed her and the siblings kept laying on top of her. Boles moved Nugget to a playpen, where she successfully coaxed the mother to feed her.


“I made a harness, where I could hold her on her feet to strengthen the muscles,” said Boles. “She had physical therapy three times a day, which included moving and stretching her legs.”

Nugget began walking more and more, learning to lean on things to help keep her balance. Soon after, she was adopted by two educators who teach special needs students. According to Boles, patience paid off and Nugget runs and jumps--and is faster than most dogs.

Boles also cared for Monty, who was born with severely bowed legs. She made splints out of silicone-covered spoons she picked up in the Walmart kitchen section, cut the spoon part off and had the pup wear them on and off during the day. With diligence in attaching the homemade splints, Boles kept Monty on this schedule for a couple of months. She also kept Monty on a regular physical therapy schedule.


When he was adopted, she sent the splints home with Monty’s new parents to remind them what a truly courageous boy he is. “By that point, his legs were pretty straight,” said Boles. “You would never know his legs were bowed.”


Adopting dogs with special needs comes with many benefits, including extra love. Elton, a three-legged dog who was missing half the fur on his body caused by an allergy, was brought to ODHS from a high-kill shelter. The minute he exited his crate, the volunteers saw a cute face with a black, button nose and big eyes. He ran around in the grass, oblivious to the fact he had three legs and not deterring him from doing anything a four-legged dog could do. His fur gradually grew back when volunteers bathed him with medicated shampoo and he was put on a healthy diet.


Elton’s personality won everybody’s hearts, because he was loveable to the volunteers, including children, as well as other dogs. He, too, had a “happily ever after” story when a caring couple adopted him into their family.


Dogs with challenges often make up for them by perservering and overcoming obstacles. They’re an inspiration to the people who volunteer at ODHS and their adoptive families. In fact, “National Specially-abled Pets Day” (formerly “Disabled Pets Day”) celebrates these amazing animals on May 3. The day was founded in 2006 to help educate the public about taking care of them and finding homes for orphaned, “specially-abled” pets.


Founder of “National Specially-abled Pets Day” Colleen Paige said that all too often specially-abled pets are overlooked, because people are woried it will cost too much to care for them or take too much work. She said that’s not the case, and most animals do just as well as if they had no issues at all. Paige said they just need a chance to show us what courageous, little heroes they are.


Some of the specially-abled pets at ODHS currently are Sunny, blind in one eye and can barely hear and Sting, an adorable senior who is going deaf and blind. The dogs don’t let that slow them down as they wait for their forever families.

Address

3602 Lafayette Boulevard

Fredericksburg, VA 22408

Adoption Center Hours

Wednesday

Friday

Saturday

  5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

  6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

11:00 am – 3:00 pm

  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Old Dominion Humane Society provides well-matched, permanent homes for animals in need through rescue, rehabilitation and education.

Copyright © 2024 Old Dominion Humane Society | All Rights Reserved

bottom of page