Stanly: A good little boy
Stanly: A good little boy
They were two of the most healthy dogs I’ve ever meet, not a single parasite inside or out. It was fall. I never would have imagined the fate of the smaller one, Stanly.
My husband and I a couple years ago where considering an additional stud for our Doberman breeding. A friend of ours referred us to a breeder who had a litter from a pair of Dobermans both with renowned blood lines, so I went for a look.
I was met by a man planning no longer to breed and two scared puppies kept outside. They were from a litter of eight, six of whom died from the cold. With the deplorable conditions my husband and I decided to take both puppies and find them good homes.
After a trip to the vet, we brought Stanly and his older brother Oliver home. Besides a wound on Stanley’s head they where sound, but stayed curled around each other frightened on the couch.
It was hard to get them outside for their first potty trip. Once out, they laid their scat right next to the door, not venturing more that a few feet away. Getting them inside was even more difficult. House privileges were obviously new.
We decide to give the brothers to Drayko, our stud. Drayko is a puppy expert and knew just what to do. Firstly, he peed on them of course. “Welcome fellows!” Then some rough play and high speed chasing ensued. It took little time before Oliver and Stanly were part of the pack.
Oliver straightened up well, shook off his old life, and we found him a family soon. Stanly though, needed some work. He feared anything new, people, sounds, animals. More than once that winter Stanly wouldn’t come to the door; leaving my poor husband to go find him hiding in the backyard. But he was a bright and sweet little boy, even though he liked scratching and gnawing the walls.
I taught him obedience and he picked it up fast. By the summer I could hold out my hand and he would park under it for a scratch on the head. Stanly found he liked digging and he did it well. Contrary to our normal rules, we aloud a special digging area, an area that was the garden. He loved digging so much. Two main holes he maintained, a long and a wide. The long of which was technically against the rules. It started in the digging area, but subterraneanly extended out as a tunnel far beyond it.
Stanly
He danced when he was happy. Working obedience with me was his favorite. His demeanor was meek and his motions were gentle. His body was long and slender, wrapped in a fawn coat. Always sniffing was a big purple nose just above a bright pink open mouth and to long of a tongue.
We eventually found him a home. It was a heart break to see him leave. But he was happy with his new family and they were happy with him.
A few months later we got a call. Stanley’s new family had put him down. Their veterinarian said he had a genetic problem.
Now his tunnel has caved in, it’s now just a long hole. We finally plastered his claw and teeth marks on the wall. We all miss our Stanly; he was a good little boy.
