He’s doing fine. Definitely has more energy and his coat is looking better. Had some loose stool today, but not runny diarrhea, more like a thick pudding, which I figure is a result of his getting a lot of rich wet food.
Currently a friend is taking him on a decent walkabout. Walk a couple hundred yards, sit in the shade and tell him he’s a good boy for ten minutes, rinse and repeat. He needs exercise and I don’t want to overdo it, but most of all, he needs human interaction and petting.
Sometimes when we walk he gets a little whiny and looks around hopelessly, and I think he is still looking for his scumbag owner. Just heartbreaking the dog is still loyal after what that bastard did to him.
Now that he is off my hands for a little bit, I’m going to go take a solid nap. I’ll post some pictures tonight.
cain
Your revenge Cole is to get that dog a home and make the home you bought into the awesome place that he would be jealous to live in. Fuck him with a rusty pitchfork, the asshole.
Keith P.
“Loose Stools and Solid Naps”. That’ll probably be what’s best in life in the new Conan movie.
JPL
Even quick updates are appreciated.
trollhattan
Sometimes a few words are worth a thousand pictures–thanks for the verbal stool report (hey, new title for Limbaugh’s show). Very glad pup is coming around so quickly.
lollipopguild
John-You get extra Gold Stars next to your name in the Book of Life.
Elizabelle
Walter is a love. And so is JCole.
Only good things ahead in life for both of them.
Well, maybe that will realistically happen. For Walter.
rikyrah
thanks for the Walter news.
And, you are good people, Cole.
redshirt
“Sit in the she and tell him he’s a good boy….” sounds rather dirty.
Ultraviolet Thunder
@trollhattan:
“stool report” needs to be a tag so we can check on Walter’s bowels easily.
But seriously, I’m so glad the poor soul has loving care and is doing well. I was heart sick when I saw the first pic.
Good job, John.
Hilfy
Thank you for the Morning Walter. I’ve been checking for it since 9am PDT. Walter is an inspiring reason to get up on Sunday morning. Remember, Steve knows he’s descended from Egyptian gods, and you are his human servant. “Alpha” has nothing to do with it in a cat’s philosophy.
Hilfy
@trollhattan: Genius level new title, actually.
La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes)
Who will give us Walter updates when moves to his forever home?
raven
For the first year after we adopted Lil Bit she would pull toward voices down at the eatery across the way. We think she was looking for whoever dumped her but, of course, we’ll never know. Her situation wasn’t as bad as Walter’s, she was dirty, eyes were awful and she was underweight but we never had the sense she was abused. Sometimes I wanted to take out an ad in the local rag with a picture of her saying “SEE, SHE IS FINE” but I guess I really didn’t want to give whoever dumped her that satisfaction.
raven
@La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes): Uh, whoever takes him.
La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes)
@raven: Okay, I feel better now.
Honus
When I was a grade school kid during the early days of the space program I the 1960s I was excited about the possibilities of the future. But I ever contemplated reading dog stool reports on a world wide community ovations network from a hand held device smaller than a pack of my dads kool straights. It’s wonderful.
geg6
Good. Lovey and Koda have been bugging me all day to find out how Walter is doing. They have been very concerned.
raven
@geg6: Lil Bit is sleeping.
Run, Lillian!
Daily Walter is giving me internet life right now. I am so happy to hear he is doing well and getting loads of love. He seems like an absolutely wonderful dog.
raven
If the South Korean soccer team medals the players get exempted from military service. If the Korean Army is anything like it was 50 years ago that IS a big fucking deal!
JudyinSD
@Honus: Testify!!
Renie
Everyone in my house is all concerned about Walter. Funny how many lives he has touched. Now we are awaiting the daily reports when ‘The Walter Relay’ begins, hopefully with video.
satby
I have a doggy detente going on here, Bubba is intimidated by the older, bigger dogs but he’s now laying quietly at my feet while the oldsters are out. He was trying to stay as far away from them as possible, even running back to his safety room, the bathroom. But as they lose interest because he doesn’t want to play, they ignore him. So far, his behavior has been shy and timid but responsive and good, and I’m think the alcoholic grandparents were the issue, because the family lived with them most of Bubba’s life. Once a vet clears him as healthy with nothing else going on, I will ask Anne Laurie to post an adoption picture of him.
Because he’s a good boy.
J R in WV
Thanks for your patience with US, being so demanding of updates and all, on TOP of your service to Walter, and all the other furrballs you have helped along the way.
You are a good boy, John Cole, esp. for an ex-tanker.
i kid ;-) but you know that…
Singing Truth to Power
Glad he is doing well, and that you are getting a nap, which you deserve.
And thanks for no photos of the pudding!
greennotGreen
It may not be that Walter is looking for his owner, just that he’s freaked about being outside and in other dogs’ territories.
When I first started fostering dogs, I was given a pit mix puppy that had been chained to a log in an empty lot. He was underweight and had a lot of what looked to be cigarette burns. By law I had to advertised that I’d found a lost dog, so I posted a vague description and was totally prepared to take anyone who responded to court. I doubt Walter’s abuser would be so stupid as to reply since he obviously just wanted to be done with him.
Of course, we should also remember that although odds are that Walter’s previous owner was just an asshole, it’s also possible that he’s seriously mentally ill. I have rescued pets from those situations, as well.
cbear
You’re a good man, Cole.
Btw, if you’re going to be posting more dogshit pictures, could you try working on the composition and framing a little? The straight on overhead shots, while bold and earthy, are somewhat lacking in depth and a strong focal point.
Perhaps a slightly less elevated camera angle would work? And maybe throw in a few acorns or a pine cone for a more dramatically organic feel to the work.
Thanks.
Honus
@Honus: but autocorrect isn’t so great.
lollipopguild
@Singing Truth to Power: Figgy Pudding?
wvng
@cbear: Perhaps a bit of greenery as well, to add color.
redshirt
@cbear: “You ask the impossible!”
the Conster, la Citoyenne
The only thing better than Walter getting a life back, would be to find out that his asshole owner suffered a karmic bitch slap. Make it happen, universe.
Singing Truth to Power
@lollipopguild: Uck. Just uck. I did like figs –
Mary G
Thanks for taking time out from caring for Walter, the regular menagerie, napping, freaking out about buying a house, obsessing about rehabbing and decorating the house, and the rest of your life to post updates. I was sure you wouldn’t do one today and this is a pleasant surprise. Pics later would be the frosting on the cake.
The image of him pining for his asshole owner is heartaching.
gindy51
The loose stools will continue until you get him on one kind of food he thrives with. I use Fromm large adult and it is really good. It’s not cheap but it one of the higher ranked dog foods out there. Check out the Dog Food Adviser website www dot dogfoodadvisor dot com.
Uncle Cosmo
@Keith P.: Working title: Canine the Dogbarian.
gindy51
if your county is anything like mine in podunk, Indiana, property records can be searched online on the county of record’s website and you can easily find out the name of the asshole who did this to the dog.
RoonieRoo
Looking forward to a new round of pics. But man, Cole, you need to take some photography lessons.
satby
Don’t assume he’s missing his old owner, John. He’s probably just feeling a bit disoriented and missing his old house.
Pogonip
@satby: I must have missed something. Alcoholic grandparents?
Pogonip
@Singing Truth to Power: It’s early yet.
Pogonip
Thanks for the poopdate, Cole!
Pogonip
@satby: Or he may be thinking “I’m afraid my owner is going to come and take me away from the nice fat guy and lock me up with no food again.”
Aleta
@cbear: sepia would be nice
planetpundit
Cole’s ability as a photographer has proven to be dogshit :)
redshirt
@planetpundit: It’s been getting better.
debit
John, much love and thanks. Please email me and let me know what I can provide or reimburse you for. It doesn’t seem fair that you have the added expense of food and supplies.
raven
@debit: He’s already posted a plea to stop sending money to his paypal for the pupster. I think he’s ok.
satby
@Pogonip: Bubba’s former owner and his small family had to live with his parents while rehabbing the shack they bought into a real house; and who both have drinking problems, grandma’s were legendary I heard. I could tell that the pup adored the guy, so it wasn’t him. As soon as he told me it bit his mother on the foot I suspected it was because she tried to kick the dog (but I have no proof and there weren’t witnesses). I’ve done some of the temperament tests to see if his timidity might make him snap at me, including messing with his food as he was trying to eat, and no signs of aggression at all.
OldDave
@cbear:
Additional bonus(?) to including other known objects in the composition – a sense of scale.
Pogonip
@raven: And once he starts rehabbing the money pit, we’ll have to send food donations for HIM.
Pogonip
@OldDave: still life: Dog Poop With Pine Cone.
Would have been “Dog Poop With Fruit,” but the dogs ate the fruit first.
Pogonip
@satby: The law disagrees with me, but I think many dogs would be justified in biting a whole lot more often than they actually do.
Oddly enough, the one dog I know who actually has bitten his owner has an owner who didn’t deserve it. The dog is her life and she spends her free time catering to his every wish. I don’t know if the dog is a jerk or if he was dropped on his head as a puppy.
Aleta
The dog here, before he came, had not always eaten well or regularly. All kinds of good food and treats seemed to mess with him. Anything with poultry in it. Finally tried limited ingredient We//ness which has added probiotics and (I think) joint additives and it firmed him right up nicely so to speak. Supposedly fewer ingredients reduce the inflammatory response in the gut lining. Also, whenever we gave him cooked green beans he no longer ate grass for upset stomach. (I bought lots at the farmer’s market when cheap, and put right in the freezer for winter.)
I’ve read that older dogs get disoriented more easily. Even if furniture is moved around it throws them off for awhile.
bluefish
I, too, check in several times a day to get news of dear Walter. I wonder if the heat affects his tummy and stool. Seems to upset my little guy’s. Not that your keeping him in a hot place — just that it’s so hot outside.
Our whole relationship to caca is so funny. This from someone who uses the word caca. It’s a miracle of chemical engineering really. Or something like that.
Glad he’s well and happy. Having such yummy things to eat all of a sudden, combined with treatments, etc. I’d have some loose business going on to.
The idea of this dog has become a part of my life now. It’s great how happy the whole things makes me and, boy, does it feel good just about now to have something to smile about. Beyond the poll numbers, that is.
Hi, Walter! Sending you some pats and some scritches from afar. I’ve told several people the story and they all go, wow!
cbear
@Aleta:
@OldDave:
Ah, it’s nice to see I’m not the only aestethe commenting today.
The Lodger
@cbear: As long as the other objects aren’t HO scale models. (WARNING: Split level house is not actual size!)
Pogonip
I want to give Walter some very old, very soft Dan River sheets that can ease his arthritic knees. These sheets belonged to my grandmother. They are so old they were made in the U.S., by organized labor. You can make Walter a bed of these sheets that he can comfortably burrow into. Cole, how do I get the sheets from the Midwest to you?
Ella in New Mexico
This Story of Walter is just so awesome. Sweet boy–He deserves all the care and respect and love you’re giving him, John. Thank God you walked into that house on that day, or he probably would not be spending his golden years with such a beautiful reward.
The only thing I don’t understand is why, in a small town like where John lives, why does no one seem to know where his former owner went and what was his story? Was he a junkie, mentally ill, incompetent? Was he just cruel?
It would be interesting to know. It might make a difference to know.
Manyakitty
@gindy51: I feed my cats Fromm grain free. They LOVE it.
MomSense
@Aleta:
My pup used to eat We//ness but started refusing it about 3-4 months ago. Now she will only eat the Taste of the Wild bison with some wet lamb mixed in. Sometimes I can’t believe I am spending so much on her food but she is so damned healthy and happy. I also give her green beans, bits of carrot, sweet potato and blueberries as treats. We have some wild blueberries on our daily trail ans she goes nuts every time we get close to them.
debit
@Pogonip: You are very sweet to give up your grandmother’s sheets. I promise that when Walter arrives here, he will have a plethora of cushy pet beds to choose from, in addition to pretty much every couch and chair. I suspect my vet will want him on Tramadal for the arthritis, so he’ll have plenty of treats in his future as well.
Ella in New Mexico
@debit: Thank you for your gift of a loving home for Walter.
SWMBO
@satby: We adopted 3 brothers a little over 2 years ago. One is a feisty adventurer, one may be deaf in one ear and the third is a charming asshole. The deaf one gets disoriented when you call or there is a noise that most dogs respond to. He can’t tell where it’s coming from and looks to his brothers on what he should do. (Run. Go inside. Bark at something.) The charming asshole has bitten several people. Including me. Any time he sees someone’s hand near the fence, he jumps up and bites. That’s the only time he offers to bite. People come inside the fence and play with him, no problem. But try to lean on the fence or hand me the mail and he bites. He can be so charming for such an asshole. (He bit me when I took the mail from the mailman.)
@Aleta: We were told by our vet that dachshunds seem particularly sensitive to corn and beef. When we took those out of their diet, their skin cleared up. My opinion is that if the animal is sensitive to something, you just keep trying to eliminate the problem and everyone lives happily ever after.
John, you should ask about FortiFlora. It is a doggie probiotic that I have used over the years. Our old vet (before retirement) used to recommend that you give it when giving antibiotics but space it out at least 2 hours before or after the antibiotic. Kept some of our more sensitive hounds from going to far in either direction (diarrhea or concrete rocks). It probably wouldn’t hurt in any case because it could replenish what he lost from starvation.
Gianduja Kiss
Generally I’m a lurker but Walter’s story freaked me out so much that I had to donate to my local shelter. Anxiously awaiting more updated – frankly, you could post every half hour to say “still okay” and I’d say that wasn’t enough. Is he okay??
Lurker
John, you are a terrific man! Walter could not have fallen into better hands! Update and pictures, please?