Almost a year and a half after Kaos landed in the Miami Dade shelter, Benedict finally called. He didn’t call me, so I wasn’t able to ask him what the hell happened to him. He called one of the other people from the neighborhood that helped him and Kaos get to Florida back in Nov 2006.

Apparently he has been back in New York for two months. He’s living in the Bronx with his girlfriend and working as a painter. He told her he’d given Kaos to a family in Florida! She told him not to lie and told him about the time/effort/money spent to save Kaos from the shelter.

It’s a bit frustrating that he would lie about what happened to Kaos, but it is nice to know he’s alive and well. I’d pretty much given up on ever knowing what happened to him.

PS I got an email from Kaos - now Kayla’s - new family a couple weeks ago and she’s doing great. They sent video of her running around in the back yard and she looked sooooo happy.

Kaos has a new life and a new name. Colleen felt that Kaos didn’t really fit her loving nature and I agree that Kayla is a much sweeter and more feminine name! She is doing really well with Rick and Colleen. They are socializing her and exposing her to new situations slowly and she is living the good life on the Jersey shore. I’m still trying to adjust to the idea that she’s finally got someone else to take care of her, but it’s a lot easier when I see pictures like this!

PS Click to embiggen!!!

I have to tell you all that Kaos has moved AGAIN. Erin love, love, LOVES her, but there was a bit of a problem when one of her friends came over with their seven year old daughter. Kaos was a total sweetheart until the little girl reached for her mom’s hand and then - for some unknown reason - Kaos lunged at the little girl’s leg. Erin’s reflexes were fast and she pulled Kaos back, but it shook everyone up. Erin has a young niece and nephew that visit frequently and everyone agreed it was just too risky for Kaos to be around them right now.

A wonderful couple named Rick and Colleen have adopted Kaos. They live not far from Erin. Colleen visited Kaos and fell in love with her. She took her to meet Rick and he loves her too! A home visit by a friend of mine in rescue in that area resulted in a glowing recommendation. They have a HUGE backyard for Kaos to play in. They have experience with large dogs. They are committed to working with Kaos on her impulse control and then desensitizing her very carefully to small children. It seems to be the perfect situation for Kaos. Erin was really sad to let her go, but also happy that a great home had been found. Maybe it was fate the Erin met Kaos and took her home, because otherwise Rick and Colleen never would have met her!

Here’s the first picture from Rick and Colleen and they’ve promised to send more. Look at that yard!

Pictures of Kaos in her new HOME. They speak for themselves…
(ps… click to embiggen)

I also want to say thank you to Erin’s friends and family for commenting on the Celebration Time post so we can all see what a great new family Kaos has.

OK, so I was trying to wait until she’d been home or a day or two, but my sister won’t let me. She tried to scoop MY GOOD NEWS today by posting it on her blog first! Therefore, she’s forced my hand and I must make the public announcement NOW…

Exactly six months after Benedict’s disappearance,

KAOS HAS BEEN ADOPTED!

Yup! You read that right. Our girl has a home to call her own. Big thanks to Wag On Inn for courtesy listing Kaos for us on their website. A very, very nice NJ’ite named Erin ran across that listing, read all about Kaos and got in touch. She went to visit Kaos at the boarding kennel this past weekend and fell in love with our sweet girl. All the formalities have been taken care of as of this afternoon and Erin will be taking Kaos home soon - maybe tomorrow!. And yes, she PROMISES me that we will be receiving photos and updates.

YAY FOR KAOS. YAY FOR ERIN. And thanks again to everyone that helped get Kaos here from Miami Dade Animal Control, Ami for taking care of her for 2 months (even though that didn’t work out quite the way we’d hoped), to my sister for setting up the deal with the boarding kennel and paying for it, to Wag On Inn for the listing, and to everyone that made donations along the way to help defray the costs. I love you guys.

The I’s are not dotted and the T’s are not crossed.

but

it’s about Kaos…

sshhhhhhh

So… Kaos has been living in a boarding kennel for months now. My sister has graciously been paying for it, but at $13.50 per day, there is just no way to keep it up. We’ve talked to a few rescues about taking her and haven’t had any luck. We’ve had ONE inquiry from her petfinder page but that didn’t pan out either. Why doesn’t anyone want to adopt this sweet dog? And what the heck do I do with her now???

Thanks to those of you that have donated to help keep Kaos safely boarded while we search for a new home for her. Boarding is costing $13.50 per day. Clicking the button below will allow you to pay for as many days as you are willing and able to donate.

You can pay by paypal or - if you prefer - by credit card!

(Amount is $13.75 to cover the paypal transaction fees.)

Kaos is in a boarding kennel now. She’s been there since Monday afternoon and that is where she’ll stay until we find her a new foster home or her forever home. Or we go broke. Right now, my sister is footing the bill but that can’t last forever. Kaos REALLY NEEDS A HOME. In the meantime, we reall need donations (email me for paypal info) to cover the boarding costs.

Will this sweet dog ever go home?

Ami just sent this to me and it was too cute not to post.

I’ve realized the last couple days, from emails that I’ve received about Kaos, that I’ve apparently given people the impression that she is dog aggressive. That is NOT the case. The disagreement that ended with Dakota’s eye being banged up the first day Kaos got to Ami’s was over food and it’s actually Dakota that is food aggressive, not Kaos. The two dogs didn’t know each other yet, Ami fed them near each other, Dakota got snarky (hey! he’s a Shiba!) and Kaos got mad at him. Just dog stuff.

To prove my point, here is a picture of Dakota and Kaos that Ami took last week. Click through for more pictures of Kaos.

The two main reasons that Kaos needs to move out are that (1) Ami and Mike’s daughter is afraid of her and (2) Kaos chases the cats. We don’t know if she wants to play with them or eat them and we’d like to not find out!

AAAAUUUUUUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That’s how I feel. I can’t describe it any better than that. I’ve emailed and called everyone I can think of and I’m getting N-O-W-H-E-R-E on finding a new home for Kaos. When she was in danger, friends and strangers alike were willing to move heaven and hell to save her and that’s awesome. I still appreciate that to no end. However, it is a little frustrating that I can’t figure out what to do with her now. In addition to the fact that Kaos I want to get Kaos settled into a forever home, I feel like a bad blog friend to Ami because having Kaos there is difficult for her family and I haven’t managed to find anywhere else to move her.

I’m not even looking for a permanent home at this point… just a foster. Do you know anyone that could foster Kaos?

or feisty little Shiba Inus, either, for that matter.

Kaos isn’t settling is as well as we’d hoped she would at Ami’s and it is looking like she needs to (1) not live with cats and (2) possibly not live with other dogs. Although she seems to get along great with other dogs when she’s on leash, it hasn’t gone that well with her and Dakota at Ami’s house. (Dakota ended up in the ER with a seriously banged up eye this morning.)

Kaos spent the majority of her life tethered to Benedict. She never had to worry about pack order or protecting herself or other dogs feeling they needed to protect themselves, etc. Benedict, as her leader, took care of all that. Subsequently, she’s an angel with people and totally agreeable when she’s on leash. However, in an off leash (especially off leash in new territory) situation, she apparently feels insecure enough to fight if she feels she needs to. That could probably be managed/trained away over time, but besides worrying about the safety of Dakota (who is about 1/2 Kaos’s size), Ami also has two cats and two daughters to watch out for.

So, basically, Ami and Mike have agreed to keep her (and deal with all that entails… keeping the animals all separated, etc.) until we can find her a more appropriate home. I really appreciate that they are willing to do that; a lot of people would not be.

So, any takers, ideas or leads?

Kaos met her new forever family this afternoon. I got some very excited and happy text messages from Ami and then I disappeared into the hell that is Microsoft. (I had to go to work to patch computers for DST - yes, I know I’m LATE - and do various other updates.) Ami assured me there were pictures forthcoming, so… I’m waiting for pictures and updates. Patiently. Sort of.

UPDATED March 09, 2007 9:41 AM EST
almost there!!!

Anyone who can help get Kaos to her new home this coming weekend, please let me know ASAP!

Sat Mar 10

Leg 1: Orlando, FL to St. Augustine, FL 105 miles 2 hr FILLED
THANK YOU CHRIS
Start 7:30 am
Arrive 9:30 am

Leg 2: St. Augustine, FL to Savannah, GA 163 miles 3 hr FILLED
THANK YOU RACHEL
Start 9:45 am
Arrive 12:45 pm

Leg 3: Savannah, GA to Walterboro, SC 60 miles 1 hr FILLED
THANK YOU GAIL
Start 1:00 pm
Arrive 2:00 pm

Leg 4: Walterboro, SC to Santee, SC 45 miles 50 min FILLED
THANK YOU GLORIA
Start 2:15 pm
Arrive 3:05 pm

Leg 5: Santee, SC to Florence, SC 66 miles 1 hr 15 mins NEEDED
Start 3:20 pm
Arrive 4:35 pm

Leg 6: Florence, SC to Fayetteville, NC 86 miles 1 hr 30 mins FILLED
THANK YOU CASEY
Start 4:55 pm
Arrive 6:25 pm

Leg 7: Fayetteville, NC to Sims, NC — 76 miles -1 hr 30 mins FILLED
THANK YOU SUSAN
Start 6:40 pm
Arrive 8 :10 pm

OVERNIGHT IN THIS AREA FILLED
THANK YOU SUSAN

SUN 3/11

Leg 8: Sims, NC to Emporia, VA 74 miles - 1 hr 15 min FILLED
THANK YOU SUSAN
Start 8:00 am
Arrive 9:15 am

Leg 9: Emporia, VA to Chester, VA 54 miles — FILLED
THANK YOU BRIAN
Start 9:30 am
Arrive 10:30 am

Leg 10: Chester, VA to Fredericksburg, VA 67 miles - 1 hour - FILLED
THANK YOU JENNIFER
Start 10:45 am
Arrive 11:45 pm

Leg 11: Fredericksburg, VA to Alexandria, VA 53 miles — FILLED
THANK YOU PAT
Start 12:00 noon
Arrive 1:00 pm

Leg 12: Alexandria, VA to Aberdeen, MD 77 miles - 1hour 45 min— FILLED
THANK YOU CHRIS
Start 1:15 pm
Arrive 3:00 pm

Leg 14: Aberdeen, MD to East Petersburg, PA 48 miles1 hour FILLED
THANK YOU AMI
Start 13:15
Arrive 4:15 pm

We need help getting Kaos from her foster family in Orlando, Florida, to her forever home in Pennsylvania. It’s been too cold to make plans to fly her and her foster family has folks moving in soon. Her forever home is anxiously waiting for her to arrive.

We’re trying to set up a transport for THIS WEEKEND, so if you live near the route (I-95 up through Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania) and have a couple hours to help out, please check out the transport schedule and volunteer. Thanks!!!

(PS If you live near Sims, NC, we need a place in that area for Kaos to spend the night on Saturday night.)

woohoo!

Kaos is going to a great, great home. I couldn’t have asked for anything better for her. My blog friend, Ami, is going to adopt her. Go visit her blog to get to know Kaos’s new family!!!

I think we can safely say that Kaos still gets along fine with other dogs. I was planning to have her temperament tested by a trainer, but I’m realizing that really isn’t necessary. What a sweetheart!

 

 

This is clearly a dog enjoying her new found non-homelessness.

  

Latest update from Jeanette (foster mom) says:

We really need to change her name from KAOS to MELLOW YELLOW! lol She is so mellow. I can take her bone and/or her food away while eating and she does nothing! That is the sign of a GOOD dog, good temperament!

The cough is all gone, but I am still giving her the antibiotic till they are done

OK, so here’s the latest update from Jeanette:

She is doing great! Her cough is getting a little better, she did not cough much last night but when she gets excited I notice she coughs more.

As far as adjusting… WOW what an awesome dog! Housebroken for sure. When she needs to go out you know it , she jumps on you and looks for the leash. She has not had an accident yet.

Truly a friendly, affectionate, loving dog. Someone will be very happy when they adopt her. Also she is not a chronic barker either. She is protective too, I made believe I was getting hurt in another room and she came flying in to see what was happening. Terrific dog I swear!

And, a few other things of note:

• I am looking into having someone temperament test her, so hopefully we’ll soon know how she gets along with other dogs, kids, etc… (She was great with my daughter (then 12) and my two dogs when she was younger, but I just want to confirm before placing her.)
• The vet said she weighed 59 pounds.
• I’ve spent $483.91 on this little rescue so far, not including the donation I intend to make to Miami Dade Animal Services for being so proactive. (That is just my personal cost and doesn’t include the time, effort and cost donated by transporters and the foster family. Kaos owes her life to a lot of people!) If anyone would like make a small donation to offset costs, I’m certainly too broke to be above accepting it, so let me know.

And, last, but not least, please help spread the word that Kaos needs a home. Feel free to swipe the great icon above (or smaller version here) created by my sister Debbie. Post the icon on your blog/myspace/LJ/whatever and link back to nycgadgetgirl.com/jg/tales_of_kaos/ so people can read her story and contact me if they are interested! THANKS!!!

Apologies to anyone who (you know who you are, my Israeli friend) thinks I need to write some non-dog posts… you’re RIGHT, I DO need to do that. Right now though, I need to do this more.

We’re just having so much fun in the comments on the post before this, but it’s time for pictures. Here are a couple pics of Kaos taken by Anne. Anne is one of my new, most favoritist people because she really was tenacious about helping Kaos. She lined up Tom and Becky (who normally don’t do rescue stuff, says Anne) to pick Kaos up from the shelter Saturday and she also coordinated - and drove two legs of - the tranport to foster care.

 

And here are some new pictures, taken by Jeanette, Kaos’s foster mom. It would seem that Kaos has settled right in to life in a home.

  

If only Mike and Jeanette could adopt Kaos… I know they would be great guardians. They have family moving in soon though and an “only dog” is moving in with them. So, Kaos still needs a forever home. She’s been a great guest in foster care so far and even seems to be housebroken! Hopefully Jeanette will keep leaving comment updates for all of us (hint, hint).

Still no word on what happened to Benedict.

I got a call awhile ago from the transporter that dropped Kaos with her foster family. They will send pictures later. Just now, I got an email from the foster mom..

We have KAOS and she is a very sweet dog. She does listen to commands like sit, no and she loves affection! She came into the house and just ran around looking and sniffing. I will keep in touch and Please let me know when you have a permanent home for her.

and she sent PICTURES!

click to embiggen!
 

 

And, while we’re here, I missed an IM on meebome while I was out running some errands, so I’m going to answer it now…
meeboguest209093 asked

"hey. i didn’t understand how did the dog get to Florida if it was yours? and why can’t you take it back?"

The answer is contained in my blog, but a synopsis is…. Kaos was never mine in the sense of being my pet. Kaos belonged to a homeless man in my neighborhood. Myself and a few friends helped him take care of her and then flew them to Miami (where he had family) back in November, because they wouldn’t have survived a winter on the streets of NYC. Benedict - her companion - has disappeared and the shelter called my vet (from her rabies tag) and the vet called me because their records showed her as "mine" since I took her in for her exam and vaccinations. I still don’t know what happened to Benedict, but I feel responsible for Kaos and I know what a wonderful dog she is, so I’m doing everything I can to save her. Unfortunately, I can’t adopt her myself, because I already have two dogs (one more than allowed) in my apartment!. I hope that answers your question meeboguest209093 and please visit again.

Update (4:18pm): The foster just called and apparently Kaos has a cough, so she may have picked up kennel cough at the shelter. She said she’s a real love. Whenever they sit down she runs over and puts her head and their lap and stands there to be petted. Awwww….

Update (5:16pm): Added a fourth picture from Kaos’s foster family. Gotta love those ears!

In about twenty minutes, Kaos will be picked up from the veterinary hospital and start her trip to Orlando to her temporary foster home.

While we’re on the subject… I have to say that dog people - rescue people in particular - are the most amazing people on earth. What giving, selfless people! You want to find out who really loves dogs? Start asking for help with a situation like this and you’ll find out fast. 99% of the people I called and emailed said nothing or some variation of “oh, how awful. I wish I could help but (fill in the blank).”

If you care about something, get involved people. There is always SOMETHING you can do to help. If it is dogs you care about, I can give you some hints right now on how to help.

• Volunteer with a local rescue group. Provide a foster home if possible, do shelter pulls, take part in transports. Can’t do that? MAKE A DONATION.
• Get involved in EDUCATING consumers about how to add a dog to the family.
• Don’t support pet stores that sell dogs. EVER.
• Investigate your local and state politicians positions on pet ownership, breeding, breed-specific legislation, etc. and support the right people.
• Got a car? Check out the numerous rescue transport groups and start volunteering to drive a leg of a rescue transport when you can. Help a dog get to safety. (Don’t have a car? MAKE A DONATION.)
• Last, but not least, MAKE A DONATION. Rescue isn’t cheap and most of the people I know that are involved in rescue and transport are working hard to make ends meet. If you can’t donate your time, donate your cash, because they could sure use the help.

(Jenna steps quietly off her soap box and wanders away…)

I received this email earlier this afternoon:

Jenna, Tom and I picked Kaos up from Animal Control in Miami this morning and delivered her to the vet. She was happy to leave that place, She took the time to smell all the blades of grass and trees she could manage to get close to… She’s a great little traveler. The people at the vets were very nice and were expecting her… BTW, we left her tags with them. I sure hope Kaos finds a good home with someone worthy to have her. She has a great disposition, aims to please and would be very easy to train. We are glad we could help out. We wish you and Kaos the best. Regards, Tom and Becky

I spoke to the vet hospital today too and they said Kaos was very sweet and seemed healthy so far.

Next step is the transport to the temporary foster home. Still looking for someone to adopt her. Any takers?

We have a WINNER folks and her name is Kaos!

Woohoo! I just got off the phone with the volunteer that will be picking Kaos up from Miami Dade and transporting her to VCA!!!

More information later after I’ve had a chance to rest my weary brain, heart and fingers. There will also be a long list of people to whom I owe great gratitude.

OK, here’s where we stand:

• Kaos is still in Miami Dade Animal Services (7401 NW 74th Street, Miami). She’s safe there until tomorrow (Saturday) at 4pm. Here’s her current photo from the shelter. She looks so sad.
• An animal hospital 45 minutes north of Miami (4181 West Hillsboro Boulevard, Coconut Creek) is waiting for her to arrive.
• THERE IS STILL NO ONE TO PULL HER FROM THE SHELTER AND TAKE HER TO THE VET!!!
• I will provide all the necessary details to anyone who can volunteer to go get her and drive her to the vet. Please contact me by commenting.
• A friend in Seattle has offered to pay gas money to anyone willing to pull and transport her.
• After she’s bathed and vetted, I have a short-term foster home for her in Daytona.
• The short term foster MIGHT even have a lead on a forever home.
• I have a friend in NYC willing to pay to fly Kaos (when it gets warmer of course) to a forever home anywhere in the country.

Surely someone in the Miami area has two hours to spare to save Kaos. Someone. Anyone?

She’s still in Miami Dade Animal Services. They agreed to hold her until Saturday afternoon. Through a jillion emails and phone calls (I swear my friends and I have talked to every rescue organization in Dade and Broward Counties.) I’ve located a veterinary hospital that will take her in and board her for a reasonable rate. I had to give them a hefty deposit of course, but at least she’ll be safe while I look for a long-term foster or adoptive home for her.

There is a new wrinkle though… the volunteer that had said she would pull Kaos from the shelter has disappeared so I’m SCRAMBLING to find someone that can go today to get her from the shelter and transport her about 45 minutes north to the vet. If anyone has any contacts in Florida that might be able to take a couple hours out of their day to help save Kaos’s life, please contact them. If you find someone to do this, let me know and I will give you all of the details they will need.

Well, I have someone 500 miles from Miami that will hold Kaos for a week and a group of transport folks that will coordinate moving her up there. I even have someone in Miami that will go get her out of the shelter. HOWEVER, the transport can’t happen for a couple weeks and the person that can pull her from the shelter has nowhere to TAKE her in the meantime. I called the shelter this morning and they’re going to make some phone calls to see if any of their contacts will board her for a reasonable cost. At this point, I just need someone in the Miami area to keep her for a couple weeks. Miami is a big place… why is this so difficult? Well, from what I’ve learned there is a serious overcrowding problem there. There are no spay/neuter laws and all the no kill shelters are fully loaded with animals. I can’t send her anywhere that isn’t no kill because as a medium to large mixed breed she wouldn’t be considered “adoptable” and wouldn’t be held long.

HELP!!!!!

OK, Kaos is in trouble and I need your help.

Most of you probably already know about Kaos… the homeless dog that I took under my wing. (If not, go here to read about her.) Well, yesterday I got the call… Kaos is in the shelter. Miami Dade Animal Services. They’ve had her a few days now so I have one day left to get her out before they put her up for adoption and potentially euthanize her if they need the space. They know I’m the owner of record and will let me send someone to pick her up, but she becomes the property of Dade County if I don’t get her out of there today.

Apparently Benedict left her at a human homeless shelter a few days ago and didn’t return for her, so they called Animal Services. Something must have happened to him. The shelter had his name and everything, so it’s not like he dropped her and ran. Anyway, he didn’t go back, she went into the shelter, and he hasn’t tried to get her out. I don’t know why it took three days for them to get in touch with me, but I’m just happy that they called me.

I have a contact in Shiba Inu rescue in Tallahassee that has located someone in Miami to go pull Kaos from the shelter for me. All their fosters are full though, so I need somewhere for them to transport her. I need a foster home for Kaos and it I need it now.

I’ve emailed dozens of people who have emailed dozens more people. I have emailed and called no kill shelters in Dade and Broward County with no luck.

I want to find a forever home for her, but right now I’ll take even a short term foster to be able to keep her off the euth list. She’s up to date on all her shots. She’s wearing her rabies tag and NYC license tag. (I have her records here and can fax them to anyone who needs them.) The shelter says she’s been spayed since I last saw her. She’s a great dog. Very smart, loyal. She’s about 14 months old now.

If anyone knows anyone in the Dade or Broward County areas that can foster this dog - even just for a few days while I find something else - PLEASE put me in touch with them.

Benedict just called Bettina! Part of her email…

Kaos did really well on the plane, so no problems there. He said it’s really warm and that he’s on the beach, so that’s good. He says hello to you.

He also said he hasn’t hooked up with his cousin yet and that the cops have hassled him four times already, so let’s all keep hoping things go well for them.

I’m especially glad he called, because I had a dream two nights ago that Miss ~T~ and I were walking the dogs one night and ran into Benedict and Kaos. In my dream he said that something had gone wrong at the airport with Kaos’s paperwork, that they couldn’t go and it had taken him a couple days to get back to Manhattan. I’m relieved that was just a dream and that they’re really in Florida!

subtitled Bye Bye (for now) to Benedict and Kaos

Benedict and Kaos have a 3pm flight out of LGA to Miami. TODAY. They’re getting out of here before it gets cold again!!! I’m so happy for them. They were sleeping in various places (like ATM vestibules) that couple weeks when it was so cold. The cops mostly left him alone. (He’s a nice guy.) He can’t go in any of the shelters with Kaos. He’d been getting some day work here and there too, but only when he had someone to leave Kaos with. (It’s hard to go to work when you have no home to leave your dog in!) He’s been talking about trying to get to Florida (he has family there) before the cold set in, but (1) he didn’t have his ID and (2) traveling with the dog is next to impossible - it makes hitchhiking way harder; Amtrak won’t take dogs; Greyhound doesn’t take dogs - dogs can fly but only when it’s above 45 degrees, plus flying is expensive. We’d talked about trying to find a place to keep Kaos while Benedict hitched down to Florida (besides being cheaper, he hates to fly) and then fly her down to meet him, but he didn’t want to leave her behind.

Well, then, "How did this happen?" you may ask. Apparently, Benedict and Kaos have angels watching out for them. About two weeks ago, he and I were talking and he asked me if I knew Bettina. "Bettina, with the little Chihuahua? Sure, I know her." (All us dog-folk know each other, after all.) He proceeded to tell me that Bettina had offered to buy him a plane ticket as soon as he had his ID in order, which he had just accomplished. Wow! I ran into Bettina a few days later and told her what he’d said. That night, she bought him a ticket and arranged for Pet Chauffeur to pick the two of them up at 11:30 this morning. Then, another neighborhood friend, Mary, who I’ve blogged about before, donated Rafter’s kennel for Kaos to fly in. Benedict took Kaos back to the vet to get her health certificate and Bettina picked up the kennel from Mary. This morning, Benedict and Kaos met up with Bettina, got the kennel and the e-ticket info, and hopped into the pet taxi to LGA!

He promised he’d call me after they get settled, to let me know they’re doing alright. I sure hope he does. I’m going to miss having them around the neighborhood, but I’m SO GLAD they’re headed somewhere warm now.

Last, but not least, Bettina took on a big expense (Benedict’s ticket, Kaos’s ticket, Pet Chauffeur, etc.), so if anyone wants to make a donation to help cover her costs, let me know.

If you could see my to do list… we’ll you would likely cry with sympathy.

Saturday morning, I made three lists: mine, ~T~’s and ours. T even added a few things to hers after I finished. It was a very aggressive collection of to do items, but I must say that T and I did some SERIOUS damage to those lists this weekend. I also did a few things that I’d forgotten to write down. What did not happen however was work for any paying clients. I had a bunch that coulda/shoulda been done too. <sigh> There just isn’t enough time in a weekend to do everything that needs to be done. Is that what weekends are supposed to be about?

I also haven’t had time to blog, but here are a few notes:

• ~T~ and I both got T-Mobile Sidekicks (Hiptops) this past Wednesday. We’re both quite enamoured of them. I’ll write about it later this week.
• Secret gets spayed tomorrow, so we’ll be setting a ship date for her soon!
• Benedict and Kaos have NOT left town. They were up in the Bronx for a bit, but I ran into him in the neighborhood a few days ago and several times since then. I met up with him today and gave him Kaos’s paperwork from the vet and got his signature on the city license app, which I’m mailing tomorrow. Plus, he has my phone number again, so he can stay in touch. Kaos looked GREAT, btw.
• I finally admitted to myself that I’m not young anymore… I used moisturizer before bed last night! Since when did I become my mother?
• My list of draft posts keeps growing and they’re so much better than the stuff I actually post. No time. No time. Does that happen to you guys?

That’s it. Got a little more work to do and then I’m off to bed. G’night!

EDIT, EDIT! News Flash! (sort of)… 11:51 PM: I just checked Urban Hund’s website and the new pictures are up and (this is the news) I don’t hate the picture of me and Snick! LOL. Check it out. (From the home page, click into the fall collection and wait for the third slide.) Pretty cute.

The pictures to the right are (1) Kaos getting a belly rub from me and (2) Kaos hanging out later that same day. These are from the last day that I saw them in the neighborhood.

I think Benedict and Kaos took off for Florida. It’s been 3 weeks and a day since I’ve seen them. I hope that’s what happened anyway. The thing that really SUCKS though is that when I saw them last, Benedict said the business card I’d given him was in a bag that was stolen and he didn’t have my number. I didn’t have any cards on me at the moment and told him him I’d give him one next time I saw him. Now I think he’s gone and he doesn’t have my number to give me updates on how he and Kaos are doing! ARGH!!! Plus, I still have his copy of Kaos’s shot records and health certificate.

I hope if he’s gone to Florida, he’ll get online and get in touch with me. Since I don’t blog anonymously, googling me and Snick is a sure way to end up here. (Of course, googling himself and Kaos would get him here too, but I doubt he’d think there was any reason to try that.) Anyway… Benedict, when you eventually get online after you get settled, I sure hope you’ll get in touch to let us know how you’re doing!

Sorry it has taken a week to get around to writing this post. I’m working too much and sleeping too little. I think my brain is too tired for anything coherent, so I’ll just bullet point the vet visit and what I learned about Benedict last Saturday. K? K.

• The vet said Kaos is quite healthy and has great teeth.
• Kaos was very good for her shots. The vet muzzled her for the blood draw and temperature. Kaos didn’t like that much but she was REALLY good. She just stared into Benedict’s face. He said it was OK and she believed him. She’s really devoted to him.
• Kaos was SO GOOD with the other dogs in the waiting room. Another dog there was aggressively barking at her, but Kaos took it all in stride.
• There were about 6 of us in the waiting room talking about the dogs. Benedict said something about Kaos being protective when he’s sleeping and I saw a couple of confused faces. They hadn’t realized he was homeless. Didn’t faze them at all though. :)
• Benedict is planning to move to Florida before winter. I knew that before Saturday but we talked a lot about his plans to get there and what he’ll do then. (It’s a mile walk each way - lots of time to talk.)
• He has stuff stored with a cousin in Florida and a small piece of land (no house though). He wants to build something there.
• He’s a college grad, which didn’t surprise me AT ALL.
• He gave up a ride to South Carolina that was offered to him on Saturday morning, because he didn’t want to miss Kaos’s vet visit. Now that she has her rabies tag and a health certificate though, he’s good to travel if he gets the chance.
• I’m going to take him a city dog license app to fill out and then just mail it in with my address on it and give him the tag when it comes.
• I haven’t seen him and Kaos ALL WEEK, but I haven’t seen the guys he normally hangs out with either so we probably just haven’t crossed paths.
• I gave him my cell phone number after our walk to the vet and back. He promised he’d let me know if an opportunity to leave the city arises and that he’ll give me an update after they get settled in Florida.
• Someday he may even read all this and I hope he won’t be mad that I shared so much about him with "strangers."
• Oh, and, btw, thanks to a 10% discount from the vet and donattions from you strangers… the $251 vet bill only cost me $56. :) THANKS!

First, it turns out that Benedict spells her name Kaos and it’s not just a cute misspelling. It’s an acronym! Kicks Ass On Spot, which is just that much cuter to me really because she’s such a sweet dog.

Secondly, here are a couple pictures of the two of them. Click to embiggen, as Lachlan would say.

  

Thirdly, yes, we went to the vet today! More on that later. I’m exhausted.

Alright gang, a few of you asked what you could do to help Benedict and Chaos. I’m going to tell you. On Saturday, August 19th, Chaos is going to the vet for a checkup, her second distemper/parvo shot, her rabies shot, a fecal, a heartworm test, and 6 months of heartworm preventative. The receptionist at the vet’s office estimated $250 for all of this. I have, oh, I dunno, about $15 at the moment, so whoever wants to help, please comment and I’ll email you. (I’m not setting up a paypal thingie, cz paypal sucks in a huge way.)

It would be cheaper if we took her to the ASPCA, but I can’t trust them not to try and take her away from Benedict. I promised Benedict we’d go to my vet, cz I trust them. I told the receptionist the situation and she said another client actually brought in a homeless person and their dog recently too. Kewl!

More than anything else, this is what really needs to be done for this dog. She needs healthcare and she needs her city license, which she can’t get without a rabies shot.

I think it’s also important that I add something here about my philosophy on helping homeless people. I’ve befriended a few homeless people in the 14 years that I’ve lived in NYC. I have never once given any of them money, but I have given them some of what they needed - conversation, food, blankets, etc. In choosing to help Chaos, I am not supporting Benedict’s decision to live in the streets (yes, he has other options). Benedict is a pretty good guy though and he’s taking the best care of Chaos that he can in his situation. The animal shelters in NYC are crowded and dogs are euthanized here EVERY SINGLE DAY. Chaos is a BIG dog and wouldn’t have a chance of being adopted if she were taken into the shelter. With Benedict she’s getting love, training, food, care, etc… that is what I’m supporting by helping Chaos - one less dog euthanized in the city shelter.

Please help if you can. Thanks.

I ran into Benedict and Chaos this past Saturday and gave them the new harness and Snick’s old leash (a nice mountain lead I got this winter, but it was too heavy for Snick). I saw them again tonight and Chaos looked really nice in her new black gear.

The "Realfeel" is supposed to get up to 113 degrees tomorrow and 116 on Wednesday, so I’m worried about how they’re going to fare in the streets. Dogs aren’t allowed in the shelters so they won’t have many options for cooling off.

Snickers and I met a homeless man this weekend named Benedict. He has a 6 month old puppy named Chaos. Chaos is one well-kept, good looking dog and she is clearly devoted to Benedict.

He said he took her from a man that was training her for the dog fights. (For those of you that don’t live in NYC, yes, we have underground dog fights here. Pets get stolen for them sometimes. It’s definitely A Bad Thing.) Anyway, Benedict took Chaos away from that and you can tell he takes very good care of her. His backpack, which was mostly all he had, was full of dog food. Chaos looked healthy. He said she’d had distemper, parvo and rabies shots, but he needs to get her on heartworm preventative. I told him he also has to get a city license for her ASAP so he doesn’t have to worry about her being taken away from him as a "stray"

If a homeless man can take such good care of his canine companion, what the hell is wrong with the people who surrender dogs to the pound? Don’t they understand that they made a commitment to a living being? Don’t they realize their former family pet will most likely DIE because they couldn’t be bothered? Maybe they just don’t care.

Benedict cares. I like him.