Baxter

Baxter, an elderly rat terrier, came into a crowded shelter pretty worried and uncertain – staff described him as “grumpy” but they neutered him and waited for ODH to have room. His foster family discovered a likely reason for the grumpiness: Baxter was effectively blind. He could see a tiny bit of light and mostly navigated fine – but all the noise and strange dogs and strange people must have been even more terrifying than for most dogs. They cleared up infection in his neuter site, let him settle in without pressure, and let him know he was in a safe place. Poor Baxter relaxed a lot, showed affection to his foster mom, but never got past the anxious need to drink continually and pace frequently. Extensive testing could find no medical reason, he just couldn’t get past the stress. When he began collapsing we knew it was time to let him go to a peaceful rest. He left this world with love around him. He passed away October, 2014.