Cliff finds a special home with Pup's help

He-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-ere’s Clifford!!

Posted by jackson on Jack's Blog:
www.dogsofthenorth.com/jacksblog/?p=199

My new malamute brother!

About a month ago my family had a visit from a wonderful human named Tracey Perego. Tracey is the Provincial Rescue Coordinator for the Alaskan Malamute HELP League in Quebec. It seems that Tracey and my mom and dad had decided that they would foster a certain malamute in rescue from that province. They didn’t consult me, but I knew that something was up because mom cleaned out the big storage area in the back of her pottery studio and nothing short of a miracle could have caused her to do that. After she cleaned it out, she put a dog bowl and bed in there. I figured I was either being evicted or she was expecting someone with four paws and a cold nose.

One Saturday morning Tracey pulled up our lane-way and out of her car hopped a short, furry malamute named Cliff.

Cliff was seized in an abuse/neglect case and hadn’t been treated very well in his former life. I don’t understand exactly what that means because no one has ever treated me badly – unless you count the time Molly got a bit snarky with me while dad was preparing our supper.

Cliff ended up in a shelter that was really over-crowded and he was put on the euthanasia list. There wasn’t any place for poor Cliff to go! Another volunteer, named Zoe (Cliff says thanks, Zoe!) pulled Cliff and his malamute/lab son out of that place and took them both somewhere safe where they were treated nicely and got some good food. (Did I mention that Cliff hadn’t been fed in his previous life, either?)

When Zoe sprung these two dogs for the Alaskan Malamute HELP League she didn’t even know their names. Because they were father and son, she named them Cliff and Theo after the Huxtables on the Cosby Show.

Zoe soon realized that while Theo seemed perfectly healthy, Cliff didn’t see so well. He kept bumping into things! Turns out that Cliff is what humans sometimes call “legally blind.” I’m not exactly sure what that means, but mom says that Cliff can see shadows and shapes but he could never get a drivers license. (Why would he need one? He had Tracey to drive him around?)

Zoe taught Cliff some important stuff: to take treats without taking fingers, too, to sit, and to wait until she said OK when she put his food bowl down. He had to re-learn some of that when he got here, but she did such a good job with him that he remembered it all and has gotten much better at it, too. Dad has taught him to “stay” and mom taught him, “Run!” so that he will get exercise running laps in the yard. She also taught him to sit at the bottom of the steps to come in instead of trying to butt the door open with his big ol’ head.

He is pretty good at not doing his….eh hem…business… inside, too. Although, there is a rumor that a certain spot of carpet had to be steam cleaned this morning. I wouldn’t know anything about that. I don’t poop on carpets. I just chew them up.

I haven’t met Cliff yet, because mom and dad have been way too friggin busy to give introductions of that magnitude the due diligence they deserve. But the day is coming soon. Will I welcome another male malamute, neutered though he be, with open paws or be a butt-head? Only time will tell!!! Either way, Clifford is here to stay. After a month with the woolie little blind boy, mom and dad are smitten.

Welcome home, Cliff!!! I hope you like it here as much as I do. And special thanks to Zoe and to Tracey who rescued this boy through the Alaskan Malamute HELP League.

Jackson