Acacius (fka Olli)'s Story

Back in June, 2nd Chance was notified by a person who needed to rehome his Vizsla.  Since there were no available fosters in Utah a call was made to 2nd Chance Vizsla Rescue in Colorado.  I got a message from Rita and the timing was good. His owner brought him to us, along with his crate, bowl, and leash.   Mr. Ollie, as I affectionately referred to him was welcomed by my other 2 Vizslas and our border collie semi resident foster.   

When Ollie first came to me, I was told he probably was not house trained because he never let him in the house.  Strike 1.  “But just let him stay in his crate and he will do fine” the owner said.  After the owner left, I proceeded to look him over to make sure there was nothing I needed to run to the vet for. Poor boy was skinny, scared and dirty. 

(Can only think that maybe he had never had a Vizsla before and was blindsided by possible the Vizsla energy level and we all know how Vizslas are those first 2 years!)

That first night I was little apprehensive but thought well let’s just see what happens. I put his food in his crate as he was used to that, and made sure he had water.  He had seen my dogs go in and out the doggie door – was a little afraid to try it himself – I did not encourage or discourage him- wanted to see what he would do.  Next day when I went out into the room that had the doggie door, there was Ollie – and no messes – other than a stuffed pillow -which has been properly disposed of! 

 After breakfast, Ollie got a nice warm bath, and I kept thinking my gosh, he is so thin.  During the next week Ollie became more and more comfortable at our place, his eating slowed down and he just wanted attention.  It was now time for him to get neutered.  His medical, we will call it, went smoothly.  Ollie responded to commands, he wanted to please and just loved it when he got praised!!  He was well on his way from being a skinny, scared boy to a confident loving Vizsla!  Lucky for him the voluteers down in Colorado handled an application that came in from folks looking for a Vizsla.  They did a home visit and determined that this was a good place for Ollie to land. 

Turns out these adopters and Ollie were a perfect match. It was becoming harder and harder to now let him go. Due to a family issue, they could not get to meet Ollie for another 3 weeks but that was ok.  We included Ollie in our walks and trips outdoors.  He loved being out running with our other dogs.  And he was wagging his tail more and more!!

When Mark and JD met Ollie, I could tell that it was a natural fit. We arranged to have dinner outside with Ollie at a local brewery so they could see him in a relaxed environment.  (We had previously taken Ollie out to eat and he was a perfect gentleman).  When it came time for them to head back to Colorado, I of course had a lump in my throat.  But also felt so happy for him to have found his forever home!  I am sure Ollie knew why they came to our house.  He had no problem going with them into their car.  I gave Ollie a big hug and told him to always be a good boy and not worry about anything ever again - that he was safe now.

-Susan

Acacius new family John & Mark - Over many years, we have enjoyed our friends’ dogs — babysitting them and playing with them. We met a couple of Vizslas who belong to our friend, Melinda. (Melinda and JD were counselors together at a summer camp west of Boulder.) Her Vs showed us the Velcro, the Zoomies, and the wonderful world of Vizslas. Loved it!

Melinda recommended 2nd Chance Vizsla Rescue, if we were interested in obtaining a Vizsla, so we applied. We enjoyed the friendly interviews and the home visit. Near the end of the process, we got “The Call”. There was a 3-year-old boy in rescue, and he was being fostered in WY. We drove to Wyoming to meet him. It was love at first sight. The amazing and wonderful and glorious Susan and Mike Kramer fostered Acacius fka Olli for around six weeks. He was socialized with two other Vizslas and another dog. He was spoiled rotten, in a good way and he put on some much-needed weight. Susan gave us all of the supplies that new parents need — so very generous. 

These few weeks at home in Denver have been a dream come true. He behaves so well. Everyone loves him. WE love him. He’s a Velcro dog. He loves Zoomies. He searches for birds, squirrels and bunnies. Most importantly, Mark and I figured out how to get him to sleep through the night.