I'd like to introduce one of the little stars of this blog.
Chanel the King Charles Cavalier
Chanel was a gift from God. For years and years and YEARS I had been reading about King Charles Cavaliers, googling information, stalking high end breeders websites, deciding which was my favorite coloring (tri color), and even picking out names for my future furry friends. You could say I'm a little bit obsessed over this breed. I'd read about the importance of finding the right breeder because of how many health issues can come down the road, knew exactly what questions I'd need to ask them, and most importantly, how these dogs don't come cheap. That's what has been my road block. I can't pay $2000+ for a puppy. Not when there are so many wonderful dogs out there being put to sleep because they can't find homes. I just can't justify it. Not to mention, I don't have that kind of money just sitting there.
Fast forward a couple decades... yup! I decided I wanted one pretty young!
Our wonderful spaniel/eskimo mix Maddie passed away suddenly from a rare disease about a year and a half ago. We were devastated. The whole process of finding out her diagnosis to her passing away was a matter of 2 weeks. We'd taken a long time to grieve over this special dog and it was time to bring in another little pup to our home. So we went about looking online and checking out shelters and rescues. I called on a few Cavaliers that needed "adopting" but the price tag was ridiculous. The owners were more concerned about the $$ vs finding a good home.
After hearing of a disappointing outcome of trying to adopt a little black cocker spaniel, one of our church members came up to me after the Sunday service. "I don't know if you'd be interested, but a lady who was going to adopt one of my mom's dogs fell through and the dog is available again. She's a Tri color King Charles Cavalier"
I about fell to the floor.
YES I WILL TAKE HER!!! I didn't really even need to go see her.
This family breeds "Cavapoos"- a designer cross between a Cavalier and a Poodle. Chanel was part of their breeding program and was being retired after 4 litters. She was purebred AKC Cav. I was overjoyed and almost in tears. I was half afraid her personality wouldn't be desirable or they would again ask for a large amount of money for adoption.
That afternoon little Chanel showed up on my doorstep. I fell in love.
After petting her and watching her hang out with my 1 yr old niece, the lady asked,
"So what do you guys think?"
In a 3 way chorus, my dad, mom and I all yelled "YES!" LOL
Then came the dreaded question.
"How much does your mom want for her adoption fee?"
The lady smiled at me and replied ...
"Mom said that if you want her... she's yours."
I tried so hard to hold back tears of joy but I failed at making my voice even.
"You have no idea what this means to me"
" I think I do" she said, and hugged me.
Chanel has a long way to go, she's not a perfect dog. In fact, she doesn't really know how to be a dog at all right now. But she'll get there. She's loved and she knows we ask nothing of her in return. In fact she has started to bounce around puppy-like in the back yard and has even begun "talking" to us like some Cavs do!
As a breeding dog, Chanel doesn't know what it's like to just "be". Her job was to take care of her pups. She knows how to be in a kennel. It's been hard to see her not know what simple things are, like the edge of a bed. Or how the refrigerator works. Or even where and when to go to the bathroom. But she's smart and she'll learn :) I think a lot of dogs have these issues when they come from shelters or rescues, so we're treating her as such. Please understand that Chanel was not mistreated or abused like some dogs that come from those places. But she was a working dog. She had a job to do. I understand that within a breeding program you have many dogs to take care of and it's hard to give each of them all of the love and attention they want. But, luckily, that's what I get to do now!!
Our job is to make sure she gets high quality food and supplements, help her build up muscle, and to let her little personality shine. She hardly has any fur on her, when they have their puppies they shed a lot of hair on their bellies, so I'll be giving her some supplements to help her skin and coat. We've also bought her a couple really cute sweaters to keep her warm at night. She really likes them!
I leave you with some puppy kisses from Chanel and a little photo to hold you over til next time.
Thank you for reading Chanel's story! It isn't over yet so stay tuned!
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