WELCOME SCOTCH!!!!Our sweet new foster arrived all the way from Kentucky on July 11th!
Often when dogs arrive into our program we have no previous history on them....but we do for Scotch! Here is his story:
He was born partially blind in his right eye, his left eye was perfect. His “breeders” sold him at a flea market for $10 (sorry, I have a hard time with this $10 sale, it costs more for two to dine at McDonalds for goodness sake!). His brothers and sisters were sold for much more because they were “normal.”
Well one day, a nice family came along, met Scotch and brought him home. For 3 whole years he lives with this family and proved himself to be a loving and loyal companion to the humans, children and other dogs and cats that he lived with. Unfortunately his love and loyalty was not enough to buy him a ticket to the new home that the family moved into, instead it landed him a spot in a cold, lonely cell at a local pound. I wish I could say this was the first time I've heard this, but fact of the matter is that its quite a common excuse for dumping a family pet these days.
Shelter staff shared that Scotch quickly became one of their favourites. It broke their hearts to see his tail wag vigorously when he could hear the footsteps come towards his kennel as if he thought “Oh my! Someone is coming for me!” and then his tail would slow down….and eventually stop when the footsteps could no longer be heard. But no matter how many times visitors passed over his kennel for a dog that was younger, or cuter, or had full vision he still kept a goofy smile on his face as if to say “that’s okay, maybe the next one will be for me.” (Queue my tears!!!!!)
Did I mention that Scotch is visually impaired? I often forget to say that because quite frankly he gets around and does everything that full-sighted dogs do with the same confidence and ease. I can tell you this being a rookie to fostering a dog with a disability ~ we haven't had to do anything special to our 3-storey home to accommodate him. He learned our floor plan (yup, stairs and all) within the first 30 minutes he arrived! I know, he's such a smart boy!
Did you know that sight is not a primary sense for dogs!?!? Scent and hearing are the top two senses for canines! This explains why he adjusts and gets around so darn well in new environments! It also explains why some people can't tell by looking at him or watching him that he even has a disability.
To be honest, we are not quite sure yet how fargone his vision is. Originally when we pulled him from the pound in Kentucky we were told that he was born partially blind in his right, and lost most of the vision in his left when he was attacked by the neighbour's dog (at age 1). The health certificate that accompanied him stated that he had very high pressure (50 in the right, 35 in the left) and he is believed to have congenital glaucoma.
Right now he is on drops to decrease his eye pressure but we will be scheduling an appointment with a specialist next week to gain a better understanding of the sight he has, confirmation of diagnosis and overall prognosis so that we can move forward with the best treatment plan possible. Then our priority will be finding this love muffin a forever home of his own! Please check back. I will provide regular updates!
I love this picture of Scotch! He just has the most adorable markings I've ever seen ~ how cute is that black spot on his bum!?!?!?! The funny thing about this spot is that its one of his favourite places to be scratched! So there you have it, God has gifted him with a designated "scratch here" mark so his humans will never forget where he likes it! 
