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Next step: Home visit
(The Casson’s look to be just 15 or so minutes from them so perhaps Susan or John could do the HV.)Marci grew up with Airedales; both she and her family are Airedale experienced. The lost their previous Airedale this past August; she was 14 years old. They never did identify the actual cause. In trying to figure it out, they began seeing a vet at NC State; laser therapy and water therapy – seems like no expense was spared. They made her as comfy as they could, carrying her when she needed to go out.
Vet reference: Monroe Animal Hospital confirmed that Annabelle, and their remaining dog, Max (lab mix), were kept up to date with all vaccines, HW, flea and tick. Annabelle was spayed and Max is neutered.
Groomer reference: Marci has been using this groomer for about 20 years. She said the family is devoted to their dogs and consider the dogs to be members of the family; she noted they provided “excellent care.” Annabelle was always in good condition and happy, obviously well cared for.The dogs eat quality food.
The initial reference she provided was her brother so I asked for another non-related reference. She gave me the name of her neighbor, Sheila, who had nothing but excellent comments about the family’s care of the dogs: “Never seen anyone so devoted,” “she takes care of her dogs when the need it,” “wouldn’t leave the house” when Annabelle was not doing well. Sheila confirmed they had a nice fenced in yard. She said they dogs get long walks regularly and Marci would plan her days around the dogs, and that Marci was the best neighbor and very devoted to the dogs.
The Imbrognos are definitely dog-people; Marci’s original reference, her brother, has 5 dogs of his own and they also foster.
Marci noted she would like another female; so far all her dales have been female, but she would take a male. She needs a dog who gets along well with other dogs because of their current dog, and Marci’s daughter has 2 small dogs she often brings when she visits.
It’s a lucky dog who will be adopted into this family. I recommend moving her to the next step of home visit. I told her the process; that someone would be identified to do the HV and then someone else would reach out to the two of them so they could then arrange the visit.
Sara Videtto
Status: Initial approval
Next Step: Move to HV
I had an excellent call with Sara Videtto. Three of the 4 family members were allergic to their previous dog so they explored breeds for their next dog to be sure that they wouldn’t have allergy issues with the next one; this is how they discovered the Airedale breed. They seem to be very proactive in this search, hence their desire to foster an Airedale first so they can be sure the breed is right for them.
I asked about the fact that they don’t have a fenced yard and they do have a pool (which itself is fenced). The house does have fencing on 2 sides but in the past (including when they lived in CT), they didn’t have fencing and they trained their dogs not to go beyond the property. They do have 4 acres so it is a lot of space. Until the dog is trained, it will not be allowed out without being on leash. The dog will never be out on its own without someone being with him/her.
There are numerous dog parks in the area. Sara noted they will ensure the dog is comfortable and safe in the yard and not go back if there are concerns.
RE: the pool. We discussed how they would ensure the safety of the dog when in the pool area. The dog won’t be in the pool area without someone being with it. They will likely deter him/her from going in the pool but will teach the dog how to swim and how to get out should it fall it. They did this in the past with Oliver.
They no longer have cats or another dog but they still have a tortoise. The tortoise doesn’t run around on its own but we did discuss working with the dog to ensure it knew the tortoise was a family member and neither a toy nor prey.
The dog will not be alone for more than an hour or so daily, up to a few hours on days their boys have soccer games. She writes childrens’ books so works from home.
When the family goes on vacation, they have always had one of their children’s babysitters staying in the house since they know they are trustworthy.
Sara commented on how she really likes that we are as thorough as we are in asking questions about the welfare of their past dogs and the home situation.
I clarified that there is no fee to foster but if they decide to adopt, there will be a fee, amount being based on age of dog. She was fine with that.
Vet: The family moved to Roswell in February so they haven’t been with Mabry Animal Hospital for too long but the clinic noted both Oliver and the one remaining cat were up to date with vaccines, dentals, bloodwork,etc. They were definitely familiar with the family so clearly the animals have been regular visitors since moving there in February.
Groomer: The person who used to groom Oliver in CT no longer works there but they were able to confirm the dog come in 4X/year. (Sara did all Oliver’s grooming once they moved to Roswell since they didn’t find a groomer they like and she also bathed the cats and cut their nails!
Personal Reference: Courtney Canhao said they were “an amazing family and Sara is one of the best moms to her humans and pets that I’ve ever met. [The animals] were so loved and cared for. They are such a special family and any human and/or animal would be so lucky to have them in their life.”Great visit with Dan Lovell and his son and recommend they be added to the approved list.
Dan and his (part-time) son live in a great walking neighborhood, although he is very close to a very busy road. However, he has an at least 6′ wood privacy fence enclosing a good sized back yard. I’m not sure his lot is actually 1/2 acre – it’s just about as wide as my property but it was hard to see to the far end because of a stand of bamboo so could be a lot deeper.
Their WFT, George Remus, is a super happy, healthy, and friendly boy; at 11, he’s still pretty spry. Travis, Dan’s son, is a pretty responsible young man – turns out that he is the person the Ormewood Dog Yard is paying to lock up at night; this is the dog yard that I manage. This was arranged by a friend who has a pre-school that is also on the same church property; Travis locks up the school’s chickens every night after the school lets them out in the AM. I texted my friend after I got home and she had good things to say about them.
Dan is doesn’t have a preference for M or F, and he would prefer a puppy but knows that we don’t get a lot of puppies in. He is okay with a dog aged up to 6-7. He wants a playmate for George Remus, who is 11. George tried to dominate Maddie while we were there by humping her so I would recommend a dog who doesn’t need to be alpha, just to prevent possible problems.
Dan and Travis will be traveling to Ireland on 7/29 for a week. Travis is a button accordionist and he is competing in a global competition so second week of August would really be the earliest they could take a new dog.
Santa Ho
Call date: Friday, 6/24Good call with Santa (Sahn-tuh) Ho. I asked how she was familiar with ADTs; she told me her vet suggested they look into the breed because they were looking for a mid-size dog. Her Yorkie, who died of liver failure at an impressive 19 YO, was just 5 lbs. and the dog she had before the Yorkie, was a 90 lb. Doberman. I asked more specifically about size since ADTs can be anywhere, generally, from 50 or so to 85/90 lbs, even larger. She’s okay with a dog up to about 70 lbs. Her husband prefers to stay under 70 lbs, but 50-60 would be ideal.
Her previous dogs were from breeders but she worked with street dog adoption in Serbia and wanted to try adopting an ADT.
Santa’s fence is under 4 feet. I discussed Airedales high prey drive and how easy it would be to jump a fence of that height. She told me she and her husband, Minh, don’t ever leave the dog out alone but would be out in the yard with the dog. She told me they dog-sit a shepherd. Santa generally walked Xerxes in the AM and her husband, a nurse, generally walked him in the evenings, plus they would get out in the yard and play. They also want to take the dog camping with them.
She noted having a dog chipped in addition to posting on social media, checking with animal control, etc. if the dog is lost.
We discussed training. She had previously hired a trainer to work with her dogs and would do the same. I asked what she though about Cesar Milan. She’s not familiar with his training style but told me her sister loved him. I discussed the issue I had with him and how he is a negative trainer. I recommended she look for a positive focused trainer, and recommended she check out Victoria Stillwell’s style. Santa manages logistics for 2 US cricket teams and also does a lot of team building with them, which I think would be a benefit for understanding and training a dog.Because of Xerxes liver failure, the last few years Santa made his food for him. I spoke with the vet’s office and because of the liver failure, the vet chose not to vaccinate Xerxes. Prior to his getting very sick, he had been on Frontline for fleas and Heartguard for HW.
Santa’s personal reference, spoke highly of Santa and her care of both her dogsSanta is 7 months pregnant so they will need a dog that is okay with children. They also have young children coming to their home. They would like a dog that gets along with other dogs as they have friends with dogs who come over, or they go to visit. She noted a preference for a male between 1-5 YO, but would consider a female and/or older. She told me that when the Doberman was still alive, the two were roommates. She told me the dog was well trained and cared for, as was Xerxes, and that the dogs were ‘her children.’
Next step: I recommend moving Santa to the next step of a home visit
Full report:
Call date: Wednesday, June 22, 2022I had an excellent call with Ron Krom, with his wife, Lynn, also joining us in the background to make sure he didn’t forget anything.
Ron is an experienced Airedale owner having had his first while growing up, and recently having lost his second, Brownie, about 4 months ago due to cancer. The last few years, Brownie was not vaccinated but this was due to his having had kidney disease since 2018. He also had a thyroid issue. The vet told me that he was regularly in for bloodwork, HW, etc. He had been in Trifexis. Callie, the Welshi, was up to date on wellness exams, bloodwork, rabies, HW, fecals.The Krom’s vet, groomer, and personal reference all gave them glowing reviews. All three have known the Kroms for more than 10 years.
Ron did a lot of training with Brownie including nosework, CGC, and therapy (through Bright & Beautiful Therapy Dogs. Brownie was a therapy dog with 1300 hours under his belt and working with the elderly, and autistic (from kids up to 52 YO).Ron mentioned that Brownie had trained with many well known trainers so I asked him what he thought about Cesar Milan – a good indicator of what a person considers acceptable for training – and he dislikes him a lot and thinks he’s a phony.
The Kroms split their time between a place in the Catskills and their place in SC. The Catskills place is a community of 250+ acres, including a 50 acre lake. He does not allow the dog into the water unless someone was there with him. Everyone in the community has been there for at least 8+ years and he trusts them; there are only about 20 people/13 cottages. The SC place is in a gated community. Although there is no real yard to speak of, there is a dog yard.
Since both Ron and Lynn are retired, the dog won’t generally be alone more than 2 hours/day. They currently have an 8 YO Welshie (female) named Callie.Ron is very interested in Tucker, although I let him know that Tucker is under consideration by another applicant. He would consider an older dog, including Patton or Huey.
For some reason, my emails didn’t get through (possibly went into spam) so I replied to a post of his on FB in the ADT club of Charlotte group. Ron really made an effort to connect with me, replying on both FB and then via text, clearly showing how much he wants another Airedale.
Ron and Lynn are currently in the Catskills but he told me he would drive down for a HV in SC but would need a couple days notice since it’s a 12 hour drive. I let him know that we would connect him and the HV volunteer so they could arrange it. He did send me pictures of both homes in case that would be enough for a HV in hopes to avoid traveling back and forth from the Catskills twice, although he said he would do what he had to.Next steps: I will forward the photos he sent via email. Recommend moving him forward, whether it is for a HV, or direct to adding him to the list of being ready.
I spoke with Megan Long. She is clearly Airedale experienced and her dogs are both kept up to date with vaccinations and well groomed and in good condition when they have been at the vet. She also provided additional care for the dog as needed, beyond the vaccines and monthly treatments.
She noted an interest in another female but I did discuss possible issues with too many females.
My biggest concern is her hours and the fact that she has a doggie door that the dogs can use when she is on shift at work for 10 hour shifts. I asked what happened with storms and she told me the older dog gets nervous and stressed but not so bad she needs drugs. The younger isn’t bothered. I think any dog would need to be carefully vetted him/herself so as not to put it in a position of freaking out if there is a storm.
Another concern is wild animals. I asked about that and she told me she’d only ever seen turkeys , however, while she may well not have seen other animals. I am doubtful there aren’t other wild animals in the area. Her home looks to be very rural and from Google Earth, it shows to be surrounded by both open and wooded land. I live in the heart of the city of Atlanta and we have turkeys and coyote, and deer have been seen. In Roswell, GA, which is closer to Atlanta than where Wendy lives and much more suburban, there have been bear sightings! I’m not sure a 5-8′ fence would be enough to keep a wily wild animal out, or a terrified dog in, or one intent on chasing.
If Megan had more regular hours, I wouldn’t hesitate to move her forward but those long hours away from home make me really uncomfortable.
Just spoke with Rebecca. Per Christine, since Rebecca knows her and has helped ARG with transport, the focus of the conversation was the fact that their current dogs are home alone for 8-9 hours a day. In the app, Rebecca notes they are trying to cut it down to 6-7 hours. She definitely understood our concerns about the dogs being alone for so many hours a day.
Rebecca acknowledged that 8-9 hours is long, but they are working on a resolution. They used to go to doggy daycare when they lived in Fayetteville but haven’t found a new daycare yet in Charlotte. I asked about hiring a dog walker; they have discussed that but haven’t yet started investigating further. Since they are in Charlotte area, I asked if they are members of the Airedale Club of Charlotte. They do follow it on FB but haven’t gone to any of the meet ups yet. I suggested that since they are from all around Charlotte, perhaps someone might be able to recommend a dog walker. Also, her vet may be able to provide recommendations for a dog walker.
Rebecca and Jay currently have their two ‘dales and there is not an immediate need for them but since their older girl will be 12 in July so they know the time will be coming when they will lose her and they want to have their application in and ready to go.
The Wolbers are approved, no HV necessary per Christina, but not currently ready to adopt another dog. They will let us know when they are ready to be put in the queue. At that time, we can confirm there is a resolution to their working situation, likely a dog walker.
