Well, my job sent me out to the So Cal mid section.

So I did my tasks in Blythe, Indio, Palm Springs, Thousand Oaks, etc ( sort of at my discretion), and the biggest let down ever, the Salton Sea and its resorts with beach front property.....

The Salton Sea is the largest body of water in California and it is also "Salty". The damn thing is appx 43 miles long of shoreline in the middle of the desert.

Well, once there, things didn't seem right. Complete areas were vacated with the exception of a few illegals and senior citizens.

I decided to explore and man it was depressing. I heard at one time it was a beautiful place, people would fish, there were food places, etc.

Now it’s a toxic dump.

I went to the shore and found TONS of dead fish on the beach. I other areas found numerous dead birds. Buildings were boarded up with very few in operational statuses.

It was amazing. LITERALLY. I thought "sh##, I need to get my ass out of here. I like living without cancer!"

I hit this one area and saw a car; I pull up on it and see people scrambling around. I then notice some 25yr old guy and his girl were "doing the do" in the back seat of his pewter 01 Malibu.

I sit bewildered, start laughing. I then turn around and left as they struggle to get clothes on.

As I am leaving I see this yellow pup. I pull up to it and call the pup; it wags a tail a few, another pops out, and they disappear into the deep brush next to this toxic dump.

Keep in mind this is right on the beach damn near.

This was last Sun. Mon comes and I drive by, get a better look, and they are clearly hungry. Bones showing, stomachs full of worms. I have a sub from Quiznoes packed full of roast beef, turkey, and chicken breast. I feel bad and say “If I catch these pups, I could save their life"

So now it’s a battle of morality. I call them; they sit back, and stare from the brush. I start tossing large pieces of mayo soak bread to them. They after some time got used to me a bit and I got one of them to take some meat from my hand.

Talk about patience.

Well, make a long story short, I come back today. Same spot, they head my car, they pop out and greet me from a distance. I figure, my assignment is done wed, "I MUST get them before I leave." There is no food (desert and on the beach, must have been consuming the dead fish and drinking the sewer water and salt water to live) and will die in a matter of days.

I say "screw it" and drive back 50miles to Indio, pick up a kennel, some dog food, and head back the other 50miles.

I set up shop. I tied a wire to the door then ran it through the side. If I could get them in, I could pull and slam the door shut.

They trust me at a distance but its tough close. They are nervous and skittish.

I put out a few cans of meaty canned food on this filthy mattress. Better than the filthy ground with sand, etc.

At least they could lick without a mouthful of sand.

At this point after setting it down the pair is nervous pacing around, starving, and awaiting more.

I make my plan. I set up the kennel, place trees and brush on the kennel, put dry dog food as well as canned. The smells were getting them to go nuts but they didn't want anything near it or def in. Took trust and days....

Well, after 2hrs of laying on the damn ground in my work clothes got them to eat next to the kennel and when the one went in and started devouring with its back legs still outside the kennel the sister did the same. I grab my damn wire, and hold the gate making it difficult for escape and grabbed their bums and their feet and shoved them in before they could bite me out of fear.

SO making a long story short, I caught them lil wild bandits.

God it was rough. So now I bring them back home and took them out of that environment which is appx 150-200miles away from my house.

I call the animal control and they state people for some reason always bring pups, dogs, etc out to the desert, esp. on a reservation where they aren't allowed to enter and pick up strays and the dogs die out there in the 120 degree heat or the dehydration and starvation.

Sad.

So I got them, getting them out of the kennel was a piece of work. I had to physically make it vertical and shake the living shit out of it. They came out, explored the kennel on the side of the house and were freaking out. Food, freshwater, bedding and blankets, shelter, etc.

They went to town on the water. 1st time ever drinking clean, clear, water.....

I can't keep both. One at this time may be a prob but I am going to see what I am going to work out.

I will foster these little bastards until they are social and possibly adopt them out.

The animal control said, "a diseased dog with shy and human behavior probs will be put to sleep as there are too many that are in good condition that need adoption."

Soooo, I may keep one. We'll see.


Here's the pics of the dead everywhere in this place. The whole area is just horrid. No way could humans live there but a lot do as it’s cheap for Cali.

Yea, I wonder why? Everything is dying, people and all perhaps?




PICS.






Ed DELETED a number of photos - DONT DO THIS AGAIN - there is a two photo limit

Deleted by ed for bad language and too many photos.

DON'T DO THIS AGAIN !!!!

Edited by Ed Frawley (01/22/2008 08:50 AM)
Edit reason: bad language

You did a good thing, those pups are lucky to have you. Be ready for a lot of work, more patience and a lot of slow movements, slow introduction of new things, and gentle gentle affection

I took in 3 feral pups from a similar situation, your guys are doing much better than mine were, it took well over a week to get them to come out of the kennel if i was in the room with mine.

Another month before I could touch them without them totally panicking peeing and trying to bite me out of fear.

I spent hours and hours sitting on the floor in the room with them reading a book and tossing treats.

They never turned into outgoing confident dogs that could cope with crowds or too much chaos, but they did turn out to be sweet little house dogs for the right family who understood the issues.


These guys need to be checked for parasites, any other lingering medical problems, and just a good once over. If possible see if you can get a vet to do a housecall or allow you to drop off a fecal to them so you dont have totally stress them out with a trip to the vet.

Take it slow and easy, no punishment for anything, something as simple as a leash could cause them to totally shut down for a while until they can cope with it.
Dont force them into anything such as shaking the kennel to get them to come out. Calm happy soft voice and nothing but good things should come from you or any other people.

If at all possible I would feed them by hand

I would separate them as much as possible for one on one time with you, short trips out of the yard, even if its only to the front yard or around the block.

Mine needed to be kept in a home together though until the little girl got out of the yard and into poison and then had permament brain damage from the poison, dehydration, food deprivation that followed even with intensie vet care. We had to have her put down, but we were able to find the little male a good home with people we know and he is doing well and very loved.

The third pup was adopted out pretty quickly as she was the most outgoing of the three.

Good on you mate, really well done.

How old do you make them, 20 weeks? What did the vet say?

I would think about rehoming to the right people asap so they get more people interaction.

Those photos and description were horrific . I have never been to the states but i am surprised this enviroment is permitted to develop.

Again well done and good luck, your going to need it.

Aaron, you absolutely made my day bright. Reading your story made me laugh and cry and be amazed. The effort you went through to catch the puppies was inspiring. The videos were awesome. Watching them eat and play after being abandoned and starving - no words, are there? Just awesome.

Good luck puppies, you blessed and got blessed in return. So glad you found your wallet, how cool is that!

I truly believe, from looking at the videos and reading what you wrote about their increasing interaction with you, that these pups will make it just fine with people and in life. They look to be very young, maybe just 2 or 3 months, probably not out in the desert too long (or they would have died) but just not given any interaction with people while with their mother. They both are still happy so not worn down from their experience. That's the sense I get from watching the videos.

Yep, this kind of story is what I like to wake up to. You are one cool guy.

You might want to find a local trainer since you're worried about their people skills and explain the situation and see if you can get in on a few drop in puppy kindergarden classes as individuals to show your pups seperately that people and other puppies are not scary. If they were mine I'd do that as soon as I knew they were healthy and not going to transmit any disease/parasite to someone else's dog. This is of course assuming they don't completely shut down when you leave the yard which is a possiblity. You're less likely to get any judgmental looks there and a decent knowledgable trainer will more than likely be thrilled to work with you.

What you did was absolutely fantastic. These two are very lucky to have you.

Aaron, another thought: those puppies look like Yellow Labradors. They're uniform in color and markings and could very well be purebred. Which of course would be odd that they were abandoned, but people have done stupider things. Maybe they were stolen from someone's backyard. In any case, they do look like Yellow Labs, about 3 months old. You might want to contact a Lab Rescue, see what they say.

You won't have any problem socializing these guys, doing it the way you're doing it, taking it slowly and letting them initiate contact which it seems they're very willing to do.

Aaron - the very next time you swear on this web forum will be the very last time you post here. Nothing will get you kicked out of his quicker that your language or lack there of.

Ed

Aaron

In addition there is a 2 photo limit to a Bio post. Too many photos take some forum users too long to down load this. Please don't do it again.