Romeo's "Birthday"!

Handsome boy!

Today is Romeo's "birthday"!  We're saying he turned 5 since we don't know, but 2 years ago today is when we adopted Romeo from the local pound (Winnipeg Animal Services).  

The day beforehand, I (Holly) was browsing WAS's recent dogs that were up for adoption.  I saw Romeo's picture (they were calling him Valentino) and immediately fell in love.  I mean, look at him.  I e-mailed the photo to Andrew right away and said we needed to rescue him ASAP.  So the next morning, I told work I'd be in a bit late, and we (me, Andrew, and Mia) all headed down to Logan Ave.  We saw him in his kennel, barking his face off, and I just loved him.  Andrew liked a Bug (beagle x pug), but nothing was going to deter me.  We had to adopt this dog.  

He came out of the kennel and was so gentle on the leash with me.  He and I clicked right away.  We then headed out to the play area outside so he and Mia could get to know one another.  Mia is not a dog that gets along with every dog she meets.  Unfortunately, her original owners did zero socialization/training with her in the crucial age they had her (puppy - 2 years) and we pay the price for that.  Anyway, Romeo smelled up Mia and vice versa and proceeded to try and out-pee one another in marking.  But the look on Romeo's face after a few moments - I don't think I'll ever forget it!  He perked up, ran around in circles, jumped over things, and started clipping her heels to say, "Come play with me!  I love you!"  They played and played and played until we were basically told "other people want to use this area now".  *lol*  This dog was meant to come home with us if not for me, then for Mia.  

We headed to the reception area to start filling out paperwork when one staff member said she thought Romeo was on hold for someone.  I almost started crying and said we came all the way here and the two of them (he and Mia) love one another and are getting along so well.  They checked and said the hold period was over so we were free to proceed with the adoption.  I was beyond giddy, as I'm sure you can imagine.  As I was filling out the papers, this woman and her 2 kids said, "Oh...we came to possibly adopt him."  She was obviously trying to make me feel bad because she patted her son's shoulder and he went to pet Romeo. I apologized and said, "She (Mia) is an only child and doesn't get along with dogs, but she does with him so...sorry."  Her response was, "Oh, that's okay.  We already have 2 other dogs that are in the van anyway and the 1 really wouldn't want another dog around."  I just shook my head because they were still going to look at getting another dog.  The WAS staff told us that he was found roaming around the North End with nothing but a red harness on (no ID, no tattoo, wasn't neutered).  They thought he had run away, but I'm positive someone just let him loose for whatever reason or if he did run away he must have had a damn good reason.  


One thing I would stress to anyone considering adopting from WAS is this:  Be prepared to pay for your own vet exam and bordetella (kennel cough) treatment and if you already have a dog or dogs, get them vaccinated against bordetella.  The dog you adopt from WAS will have bordetella, it's just a matter of how serious.  In Romeo's case, it was serious and WAS kept refusing to treat him even though we were entitled to 2 weeks of veterinary assistance, if needed, from them.  Mia caught it from him, but she had the vaccine so hers cleared up without much need of medication.  Once WAS finally relented and treated him, we discovered Romeo was deathly allergic to antibiotics so I stopped the medication immediately.  WAS wanted us to leave him at the pound to be looked at by their vet, but we refused (that's where he got sick in the first place and the stress would make it worse) and took him to our own vet instead.  I only offer this as friendly advice, not a warning, because we were naive that this would happen.  

Romeo bonded to me right away which reassured me that we were the right family to adopt him.  :)  We've had a crazy last few months with our little monsieur, but he's so worth all the love, attention, and support he gets.  

Alternative Health

Romeo, Mommy, and Mia

I (Holly) am a big believer in alternative healthcare options.  I would much rather see my naturopath over a regular doctor.  Chiropractic care saved my back in my teens.  Massage therapy is absolutely wonderful and last year I had my first Reiki session which I've found to be beneficial and insightful for my all around health.

You can imagine how happy I am to have alternative healthcare options available for Romeo.  It's kind of funny, the last time Romeo saw Dr. Sexsmith (his follow-up after coming home from Saskatoon), she asked if we were doing anything besides "alternative aftercare".  I replied that we were doing rehabilitation.  But, really, alternative healthcare has been so great for Romeo and he hasn't had to go back to Dr. Sexsmith.  *knock on wood*

Yesterday, Romeo had an appointment with "Aunty Linda" (Dr. Hamilton) for acupuncture and lasering.  She was very impressed and very happy with his progress.  She said his back leg muscles are toning up nicely.  She said he may permanently walk kind of funny, but that doesn't bother us (we think it's kind of cute).  Besides that, it's only been just over 2 months since his surgery and his back leg muscles aren't completely back up to what they used to be. 

After that, Romeo had a Reiki session with Shannyn at Be Still in Osborne Village.  Andrew, who has never had a Reiki session, got to take him to these appointments.  For those of you who don't know, Romeo had his first Reiki session with Shannyn last Saturday.  At the time, she said that he was all jumbled in his hind end and his left side hurt so he was trying to compensate with his right.  She worked on removing the negative energy build up and centering him.  She told me that Romeo knows he's very lucky to have had the opportunities he's had (like us adopting him, having his surgery).  As the days went on after that appointment, we noticed Romeo was getting braver with things like climbing stairs (he's climbed a few now), he even hopped up on the couch, and having more energy to go for longer walks (as in a lot more energy).  Anyway, at yesterday's Reiki session, Shannyn said Romeo was much more open and his hind end wasn't nearly as jumbled as it was before.  She said he's very happy and not in so much pain.  She also had a thought come through about a top hat so she asked Andrew about it.  He said he didn't know what it meant except that Romeo has a non-stuffy gorilla that we sometimes put on his head.  *lol*  The thoughts of pets!  Romeo will have another Reiki session with Shannyn in the near future.  Oh, and she primarily works on humans so check her out.