The Show: Sad Pibbles and Happy Tails

[Orchidmama]

These people in Detroit do not seem to be true animal hoarders, but do seem to have become over extended by good intentions.  In the real world of today they surely knew they need proper licensing, facilities, etc. for a business of this magnitude.  Adequate and sustainable funding is also  necessary so that you do not wake up one day and have no dog food, taxes are due, and the vet is demanding "at least some payment".  Perhaps they do (or did) not have financial or business advisors to guide them.  There is also the question (not addressed in the film) as to how they earn a living and still have time to care for the dogs.  Unfortunately, a few minutes out of a crate each day is not optimal care, although is probably infinitely preferable to the dogs previous situations.  We may all dislike rules and regulations, but such exist (usually developed in response to abuses by a few) and it is a waste of time to spend energy fighting them.  Better to generally do what is required and save your energy for bigger battles - like fund raisers and developing a foster network.  It could also be useful to join forces with an established successful rescue outfit who could guide you and help you in areas where you have no expertise.  Does anyone know what has developed with these folks over 2016?

[jnymph]

I am a blubbering sobbing mess over Jordan & Norma Rae. Truly beautiful!

The family dog portrait was beautiful too 

[Bronzedog]

35 minutes ago, jnymph said:

I am a blubbering sobbing mess over Jordan & Norma Rae. Truly beautiful!

The family dog portrait was beautiful too 

I spent most of the last 30 minutes in tears.

[zxy556575]

The Christmas episodes are such tear-jerkers! It gripes me somewhat that they were probably shot in, like, August but at least filming got all the family together and that's lovely to watch. I must say the kids have found really sweet and kind significant others.

Edited December 18, 2016 by lordonia

[Bastet]

Conflating service dogs with emotional support animals with therapy animals is a peeve of mine, so I was wary of this.  For Jordan's family to be told they'd have to wait over a year and spend a lot of money suggests a service animal -- one specially trained to provide a specific task (or tasks) to aid a disability.  But based on the fact her emotional state was greatly improved by visits from therapy animals ("bomb-proof" pets who go to hospitals and such to cheer up patients), it seems what she needs is maybe an ESA - if providing a therapeutic benefit (beyond companionship) for a psychological disability - or maybe just a great pet.  But then there was talk of the hounds' stature vs. that of pit bulls helping Jordan stand (service animal).  And since the family's goal is for the dog to accompany her to school, that further suggests service animal -- or, in some cases, unfortunately, an abuse of the system to grant an ESA the access rights of a service animal -- but there's a lot that goes into that, which was not present here.

I'm thrilled to see Jordan find a dog, and for Norma Rae to find a home, bottom line; their meeting was simply beautiful.  I just don't think they did a good job of explaining what type of dog (beyond a pet) she was, and given the mass confusion over the various terms - and the abuse of service animal regulations and public reaction to that, which ultimately screws over those with legitimate service animals - I wish it had been edited better.

While I'm grumbling, I'm perpetually annoyed by holiday episodes of reality shows, since they weren't actually shot during the holidays and thus the timing and décor are fake - and I only watch reality shows which are more like documentary series than fabricated "reality" shows.  A very small sin in the grand scheme of such docu-series, so I'm not fired up about it, but I'd just rather shows skip it.  Shoot the talking heads in front of holiday décor, shoot a "Happy Holidays" tag, and just otherwise go about your business.

So, while I'm letting my annoyances go, this was a heart-warming episode as always.  Marcel's dog Outlaw jumping up into his arms was a beautiful display of their bond, and all of Outlaw's "I did what I'm supposed to do; give me my treat!" barking was funny. 

I hope moving Tahyo into the French Quarter and opening up the store has been successful for them; they basically have to have other business ventures bringing in money to keep the rescue going - which is why they've tried so many over the years - so I hope the increased traffic offsets the increased rent as they desire.  The Dog Shoppe commercial was cute.

It's so sweet to see those who have joined the family through marriage or similar partnership be the ones to present the portrait of late dogs to Tia and the kids.  What a lovely gift.  Marcel has been around a lot longer than any of Mariah's previous partners (including the girlfriend to whom she was engaged), and at her age I wonder if he'll be joining the family in a more official capacity at some point.  Regardless, they all seem to choose fellow good peeps, and that's a nice thing to see. 

[walnutqueen]

My DVR did not record this episode.  Which is just another shitty thing to round off this shitty year.  :-(

[Jenkins]

Yeah, I had to manually set my DVR. My Tivo didn't see this episode as "new" for some reason.

Hope things get better for you WQ, haven't seen a lot of your posts around here lately. :(

And agree with all the posts above...kids and animals, always straight to the heart for me. There just isn't much better in this world than seeing children playing with a dog or cat. My stepson is autistic and can be really reserved at times and doesn't show a lot of emotion. But when he is around our dogs, he lights up.

And that damn painting really got me. Started thinking about all the animals I have lost over my 40+ years...

[Maharincess]

Tia said on Facebook that they returned Norma Rae to VillaLobos.   They were going to put her back up for adoption but Tia decided to keep her instead. 

Edited December 18, 2016 by Maharincess

[Bronzedog]

It sounds like the family didn't give Norma Rae much of a chance before they returned her.  I wonder how Tia really feels when they go to all the trouble of choosing the right dog, taking her to a classroom to test her with kids, drive across country and then have the dog returned within days.  Massive waste of time and money.

[zxy556575]

Oh, dear. That's a shame about Norma Rae but I'm not shocked. Tia went to a lot of trouble to find a calm, steady dog, but not one who was bonded to humans. Norma seemed like she could take 'em or leave 'em. I know Tia specifically wanted a tallish dog, but Norma also looked to be a bit large for Jordan to handle.

The show Lucky Dog pretends that only one dog is selected for each potential owner and it's a perfect match every time, but we all know that's not true. It's too bad the family couldn't make the trip to New Orleans to choose for themselves.

Edited December 19, 2016 by lordonia

[Jenkins]

Here is the post for those that are interested:

 

"LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE.......definitely a twist of emotions :(

The world watched as we did a "Christmas adoption" for a little girl in California. We drove "Norma Rae" across the country to her new home. Sadly a few days later, we were informed by the adoptive family that despite being a perfectly behaved dog, she wasn't the right fit for their family. :( They were a very nice family so for whatever reasons they had, we of course took Norma Rae back and literally...no questions asked and honestly I was too emotionally baffled to even ask why.

Norma Rae is fine so do not feel bad. She lives in my house so I think she thought she was on a west coast vacation. And I am not the little girl's parents so they obviously know better for her as to what she needs. So at this time we are just focusing on getting Norma Rae a new home. I know there was a lot of confusion last night (and still this morning) as to what happened. Just an example of what happens when "TV life" collides with "real life" and one can't keep up with the other. Adoption applications are already coming in for Norma Rae and we thank everyone for their compassion and let's also remember to tell Santa to bring the little girl in California the dog of dreams.

Hope this clears up the fog and I think I'll stick to Halloween."

 

And a couple hours ago they posted that some piece of shit stole their donation jar out of their new store in the French Quarter....seriously, stealing a donation jar is pretty damn low...

[dbell1]

The family asked for a pit bull and got a hound. From the looks of the house, there's no way they were ready for a slobbering dog, it was too "showroom" for me. Not surprised Norma Rae came back. Something seemed off, besides the phony Christmas theme. 

[Maharincess]

I didn't watch the episode, why did they get a hound if they wanted a pit bull?  It's not like Tia doesn't have a few hundred extra pit bulls to choose from. 

[gesundheit]

2 minutes ago, Maharincess said:

I didn't watch the episode, why did they get a hound if they wanted a pit bull?  It's not like Tia doesn't have a few hundred extra pit bulls to choose from. 

She addressed this on the FB post -- she worked on the adoption for 6 months and the family had very much agreed to a hound before that even came into play.

[TVbitch]

I have to say, as soon as I saw that close up of the dog slobbering at the end of the adoption, I was thinking, "oh man, this is not going to go over well."  

[Maharincess]

5 minutes ago, gesundheit said:

She addressed this on the FB post -- she worked on the adoption for 6 months and the family had very much agreed to a hound before that even came into play.

Thanks. I don't watch the show much anymore, I preferred the California episodes. The show is too dark for me now. I follow them on Facebook but I guess I missed that part. 

[Bastet]

Unless the dog is trying to eat your child - not the case here, as the owners said she was well behaved - how can you possibly determine "not a good fit" after only a few days?!  If they don't want her, she's better off back with Tia, so good for Norma Rae, but I'm just baffled by people who expect animals to immediately adapt to a new home.  Sometimes they do, and that's wonderful.  But sometimes they need a little bit of time (and then when they do fully relax and settle in, it's extra wonderful).

[Bronzedog]

I think the family wanted a free, trained service dog.  When Tia and the mother were having the tearful conversation on the phone, the mother said something about the wait time and cost of a service dog.  Tia said their dogs weren't trained service dogs but it would be free.  I suspect that the family expected more of Norma Rae than she was trained to give them.  And, rescues have always told me that an adopted dog is initially on their best behavior and it takes awhile for their true personality to come out.  IMO, they didn't give Norma Rae much of a chance. I honestly don't know what more Tia could have done for them, though.

[walnutqueen]

8 hours ago, Jenkins said:

Yeah, I had to manually set my DVR. My Tivo didn't see this episode as "new" for some reason.

Hope things get better for you WQ, haven't seen a lot of your posts around here lately. :(

And agree with all the posts above...kids and animals, always straight to the heart for me. There just isn't much better in this world than seeing children playing with a dog or cat. My stepson is autistic and can be really reserved at times and doesn't show a lot of emotion. But when he is around our dogs, he lights up.

And that damn painting really got me. Started thinking about all the animals I have lost over my 40+ years...

Thanks, Jenkins.  I've been dealing with some stuff lately ... my Mum died at the end of November after 6 months in Hospice; then at the beginning of December I had to have my favorite semi-feral euthanized, and I'm still trying to get my indoor cat's diabetes & thyroid regulated.  I just want this year to be over, and I don't want to make room for any more ashes (Mum & 6 cats in the past 7 years is just. too. much.).

I don't see any repeats of the Xmas episode scheduled, dammit!

[Bronzedog]

51 minutes ago, walnutqueen said:

Thanks, Jenkins.  I've been dealing with some stuff lately ... my Mum died at the end of November after 6 months in Hospice; then at the beginning of December I had to have my favorite semi-feral euthanized, and I'm still trying to get my indoor cat's diabetes & thyroid regulated.  I just want this year to be over, and I don't want to make room for any more ashes (Mum & 6 cats in the past 7 years is just. too. much.).

I don't see any repeats of the Xmas episode scheduled, dammit!

So sorry for your losses, Walnut Queen.  I know the loss of a mother, expected or not, is devastating and it takes time to adjust to your new reality.  Life will never be the same, but, it will get easier. Time doesn't heal a damn thing but it does give you a new perspective. Take care of yourself and, maybe more importantly, be kind to yourself.  

[GreyBunny]

5 hours ago, Bronzedog said:

 

I think the family wanted a free, trained service dog.

 

This, if they even really wanted a dog at all.  They wanted a pit bull, but also a service dog, and then agreed to an untrained hound...they're all over the place with what kind of dog they "want."  

Either they just wanted to be on TV or mom and/or dad didn't like dog hair and drool getting on the furniture and carpet of what looks like a million-dollar home.  

[blondiek237]

10 hours ago, dbell1 said:

The family asked for a pit bull and got a hound. From the looks of the house, there's no way they were ready for a slobbering dog, it was too "showroom" for me. Not surprised Norma Rae came back. Something seemed off, besides the phony Christmas theme. 

I thought the same thing

[gesundheit]

It's really impossible to judge these things. It's all sorted out in about 20 total minutes on the show when in real life this process took half a year. It's bizarre that it was undone in just a few days after all that, but maybe they realized they like visits from therapy dogs rather than a dog to take care of 24/7, and it doesn't take long to figure that out. It's frustrating, but at the same time it's a good thing Norma's back with Tia and getting lots of new applications.

 

I hope those little kids from the classroom all got to watch themselves on the episode, though!

[jnymph]

14 hours ago, walnutqueen said:

Thanks, Jenkins.  I've been dealing with some stuff lately ... my Mum died at the end of November after 6 months in Hospice; then at the beginning of December I had to have my favorite semi-feral euthanized, and I'm still trying to get my indoor cat's diabetes & thyroid regulated.  I just want this year to be over, and I don't want to make room for any more ashes (Mum & 6 cats in the past 7 years is just. too. much.).

I don't see any repeats of the Xmas episode scheduled, dammit!

Awwww ***HUGS**** to you WQ.  I'm sorry for your loss(es)!  I very much feel your pain.   I lost my Mom 4 years ago; not a day goes by where I don't say out loud to myself, "I sure miss my Mom."  :(    But as Bronzedog said very articulately 3/4 posts ago,  the pain and adjustment most certainly gets better, so hang in there and if it helps, know that you're not alone. 

 

As for the return of Norma Rae, I am baffled, sad, angry; but most of all very curious as to the reasoning behind it !   I find it very hard to believe little Jordan would not become very attached to Norma right away.   Why would her parents decide to take that away from her?!?!?!??  Seems we are missing a piece of that puzzle. 

[zxy556575]

I've only been watching since the move to NOLA but do I remember three adoption fails? Two that were returned and one where Tia decided to take the dog back to VRC with her after the husband showed his ass.

[dbell1]

There was a Texas adoption once too where the guy was "too busy" to come to New Orleans. So, she drove the dog to the guy's townhouse and had to go back 2 days later. Seems the dog barked while on a walk.  Was hoping that after that fiasco she'd make people come to her rather than spending the time and money to drive to them. 

[SunnyBeBe]

I have watched this series from day one, but, it wasn't until recently that I really got a clear view of how dark and secluded those inside kennels appear to be.  I was honestly shocked when I saw how bad it appears.  It was the episode where the new parolee saw that one of the dogs was sick and brought it to the attention of the staff.  They praised him a lot and said to keep up the good work.  That's great, but, please remind me why Tia is so opposed to outdoor kennels.  Being in that dark, closed off warehouse with no fresh air must be incredibly depressing for the dogs.  Even if they are walked for 20 minutes per day, and I don't believe that any of the are, it's cruel, imo.  Those dogs are in there for years. Even with the elements, being outside would be more humane, imo.  I can't imagine how horrendous the smell must be.  Even with constant cleaning, the urine and feces must be overwhelming. 

Do they want to eventually move them all to the rural area location where they have started a Donation Wall?  

[Maharincess]

19 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I have watched this series from day one, but, it wasn't until recently that I really got a clear view of how dark and secluded those inside kennels appear to be.  I was honestly shocked when I saw how bad it appears.  It was the episode where the new parolee saw that one of the dogs was sick and brought it to the attention of the staff.  They praised him a lot and said to keep up the good work.  That's great, but, please remind me why Tia is so opposed to outdoor kennels.  Being in that dark, closed off warehouse with no fresh air must be incredibly depressing for the dogs.  Even if they are walked for 20 minutes per day, and I don't believe that any of the are, it's cruel, imo.  Those dogs are in there for years. Even with the elements, being outside would be more humane, imo.  I can't imagine how horrendous the smell must be.  Even with constant cleaning, the urine and feces must be overwhelming. 

Do they want to eventually move them all to the rural area location where they have started a Donation Wall?  

I prefer the California episodes and this is one of the reasons.  I feel so bad for those dogs being locked up inside a dark warehouse all the time.  They had beautiful outdoor kennels in California. 

The entire show seems dark to me since they moved. 

[Rlb8031]

18 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I have watched this series from day one, but, it wasn't until recently that I really got a clear view of how dark and secluded those inside kennels appear to be.  I was honestly shocked when I saw how bad it appears.  It was the episode where the new parolee saw that one of the dogs was sick and brought it to the attention of the staff.  They praised him a lot and said to keep up the good work.  That's great, but, please remind me why Tia is so opposed to outdoor kennels.  Being in that dark, closed off warehouse with no fresh air must be incredibly depressing for the dogs.  Even if they are walked for 20 minutes per day, and I don't believe that any of the are, it's cruel, imo.  Those dogs are in there for years. Even with the elements, being outside would be more humane, imo.  I can't imagine how horrendous the smell must be.  Even with constant cleaning, the urine and feces must be overwhelming. 

Do they want to eventually move them all to the rural area location where they have started a Donation Wall?  

I don't think she is opposed to outdoor kennels (all of the original CA kennels were outdoors), but she is limited by the spacing and possibly by city requirements. Also, given the flooding issues and the quickness with which storms seem to develop in NO, kenneling everyone outside in the weather then having to move hundreds of dogs indoors for shelter during serious storms seems problematic. 

[SunnyBeBe]

Well, I recall when they left CA.  One of her complaints was how the CA authorities required her to have outdoor kennels.  So, I'm just not getting why she was so against them even then?  Keeping the dogs long term in a dark indoor environment might not be the best idea, imo.  I think that I would consider moving them to another state, where hurricanes aren't that common.  It just seems too harsh of a home for a dog to have for years and years.  And it seems they have quite a few of those.  I wonder if they could reorganize a portion and call it a sanctuary. just for the dogs who may not be good candidates for placement. 

Edited December 29, 2016 by SunnyBeBe

[Maharincess]

I think she's setting up something like that now, or maybe it's already done. If I remember correctly she got some property in the country for the "lifers".  

[Bastet]

8 hours ago, Maharincess said:

I think she's setting up something like that now, or maybe it's already done. If I remember correctly she got some property in the country for the "lifers".  

Yeah, originally, that's what the twins' property was going to be, but now that they don't live together, I'm not sure how they have the "lifers" arranged.  Maybe Kanani still lives there.

There are some outdoor kennels at the warehouse (not many, obviously), and at Assumption Parish. 

I loved the set-up she had planned for Tehachapi, with the indoor/outdoor kennels.  But New Orleans was much better for the dogs because they had so much interaction with people (being a public facility in a fairly central location, rather than out in the boonies like in Agua Dulce).  It stinks that jerks have ruined that, by forcing the cancellation of tours, but they seem to have a lot of volunteers to supplement their staff, so I think the dogs are still getting the socialization and walks they need.  I think having the warehouse and the larger country property is going to be a nice set-up, giving them good options depending on what type of environment each particular dog would do best in (plus, it has those great kitty cabins).

So long as there remain hundreds of dogs in need of them at any given time, they're going to have to make the best of the space they have available to them.  Use of the warehouse was donated by its owner, so not having to pay rent on that frees up more money for the dogs.  It's nice that it's built up with upper floors, so they can move dogs up when storms come in, rather than having to evacuate the building.

Edited December 29, 2016 by Bastet

[Rlb8031]

Also, while they appear to be in a pretty quiet area (corner property, across from the RR tracks and the freeway), I can imagine a hundred dogs outside next to trains yards might be pretty vocal at night. 

Out of curiosity I goggled NO ordinances for dogs and came up with this handy document

[cinsays]

I have a question.  I love this show and Tia's family and think she has a good heart and is doing her part.

Does she get funding from somewhere? Just wondering how she can pay the workers and pay for all the food,etc, including trucking the dogs cross country.

[Bronzedog]

I couldn't believe Mike just looked Tia in the face and lied to her, but, it doesn't surprise me that he didn't return to work.  I kind of saw that coming with his either family or work attitude.  Most people do both.  I'm also not sure about the little girl and the puppy.  I didn't get the feeling the kid was that comfortable with dogs.  I'm just a ray of positivity tonight!  I'll blame it on the snow.  

[gesundheit]

8 minutes ago, Bronzedog said:

I couldn't believe Mike just looked Tia in the face and lied to her, but, it doesn't surprise me that he didn't return to work.  I kind of saw that coming with his either family or work attitude.  Most people do both.  I'm also not sure about the little girl and the puppy.  I didn't get the feeling the kid was that comfortable with dogs.  I'm just a ray of positivity tonight!  I'll blame it on the snow.  

I felt the same way about Jasmine and Yahtzee. She just didn't seem like a dog person. If you're disgusted and/or frightened by a puppy kiss, it's going to be tough moving forward. I know the follow-up said they're best friends and go everywhere together now, but that truly surprises me. Maybe her parents just really, really engaged with her and the puppy to get her comfortable. Sometimes that's all it takes, but I was very worried.

So disappointed about Mike. It just seems so odd that he'd let them so far into his personal life to let them film his children and then just lie on camera and never show up again. I always prefer to follow more personal stories about the parolees rather than Tia's daughters (who are great as people who help run the rescue and do adoptions, I just feel like there's slightly too much attention on their personal lives and not enough on the parolees), so it's just heartbreaking to see any of them fail.

That little Louisa was so cute!

[Bastet]

I was sad to see Mike lie like that, because Tia gave him every opportunity to just offer up an explanation for his attendance issues and work with her on it.  She's done it many times that we've seen, and thus probably many more we haven't.  Of course, this is the guy who said he'd never had a boss tell him something as simple as "good job" before, so he very likely doesn't have any basis to understand he can honestly say, "I have some family shit doing on right now, and I left when I shouldn't; I'm sorry and I'll get it together" and keep his job, so he reverts to lying and hoping he can hang on.  For him to just bail after that is too bad, because he could have easily kept that job (and people aren't exactly lining up to give him another one).

My attention was split during this episode, so I didn't see all of Jasmine's interaction with the puppies they considered, including Yahtzee.  What I did see was fine, but the stuff at the house was indeed off.  But this is her first dog, and she reached out several times when Yahtzee was moving away; she just seemed spooked by Yahtzee making the first move.  So hopefully they have, in fact, settled into a nice groove together.

[Bronzedog]

Jasmine just seemed jumpy and uncomfortable around all the dogs.  I can envision Yahtzee knocking her down or scratching her and her wanting nothing to do with the dog after that.  I was even kind of surprised that no one mentioned the kid's discomfort at the meet and greet.  I hope I'm wrong but I don't see that ending well.  

[gesundheit]

Even when she was willing to touch a dog, I noticed she'd immediately wipe her hands off on her clothes. Maybe things turned out great because obviously her mom knows her better than I do, and may have known that she just takes a while. I hope so. It just felt like they were pushing to hard to recreate Mariah/LA's relationship, but then again that story might've just been a way to frame it for the show. I know they don't go into these adoptions lightly or quickly even though it appears that way in a 48-minute episode.

[walnutqueen]

Even with the puppy, Jasmine was constantly turning her body away from her advances, and she totally ignored the other dogs.  I hope a dog's unconditional affection can break through her walls, but feel sorry for the dog that tries and fails.  At least Mum and especially Dad seemed to bond with the pup instantly.  The follow-up states Jasmine & Yahtzee are bonded, so fingers crossed (wishful thinking???).

[Bronzedog]

As far as the follow-ups go, didn't the follow-up on Norma Rae, The dog driven across country for the special needs girl, make it sound like a match made in heaven only to learn that Norma Rae was returned within days?

[gesundheit]

50 minutes ago, Bronzedog said:

As far as the follow-ups go, didn't the follow-up on Norma Rae, The dog driven across country for the special needs girl, make it sound like a match made in heaven only to learn that Norma Rae was returned within days?

No, they didn't do a follow-up that episode actually. The ending that usually has the follow-up bumpers had a Christmas message.

[Bastet]

Jasmine sure looked happy (and comfortable) next to Yahtzee in the follow-up pictures, so hopefully she got over her awkwardness (and probably residual fear from being bitten by her grandpa's dog).  She was a lot better with Yahtzee than she was with the adult dogs, so hopefully starting small and growing together helped.  At least the parents seem like total dog people, so Yahtzee will still get plenty of affection and attention if Jasmine hasn't/doesn't ever turn into a dog person (in which case I would just hope the parents didn't try to force her into something that just isn't her).

And, yeah - no updates were given at the end of the Norma Rae episode.  I wonder why they didn't include her being returned, like they did with Artemis.  Maybe because for Artemis, she already had a new home by the time the episode aired, so they could cap it off with that happy update.  And maybe if Norma Rae gets a new home, we'll get an on-air update.

I watched the late-night airing, so I got to see the parts I'd missed.  Sui even told Mike that if he has something on, he can go to Tia with it, because she "gets us."  Sui tried to tell him, Tia tried to tell him and show him -- it's a real shame he didn't trust in that.

That dog they rescued is so cute.  It reminds me of when Escargot got a home, and either Tia or Tania (or Lizzie - someone) said he can go live with a bunch of "beagle-y things."  They're adorable.

[GreyBunny]

I would not have given that family a dog, the kid's reaction was more than enough to hit the reject button. The parents were trying too hard to force a dog on the kid. I hope that the follow-up on them was honest and not the parents trying to pretend the girl and the dog became "best friends" because they want a dog even at their kids expense.

[brilliantbreakfast]

Yeah, that whole Jasmine/Yahtzee thing seemed weird to me, more like the parents wanted her to get over being afraid of dogs, but then is a pitbull really the best choice?  I was kind of surprised that Tia adopted Yahtzee out to them, though one could hardly blame her for at least trying a dubious adoption like this given the need to clear space.  It is like bailing out the ocean with a teacup.

Sometimes people think that they are doing the right thing by adopting a particular dog but then find out that they just don't bond with it.  My mother had a thing for rottweilers that she developed in her sixties.  She adopted one from a shelter that had a hair-trigger but she refused to put the dog down, re-homing two of her other dogs and then separating them out from the rest of this beast's life.  Her other three rotties were purchased from breeders and were nice dogs, though her last one was a bit high strung and she was a very bad alpha.  After her last rottie died of cancer (she was in her 80s by then) we finally convinced her that her rottie days were over.  She adopted first a very quiet beagle/basset mix who she decided was too "depressed" (mom had depression too) and returned her, then adopted another dog that ran away and she made no effort to find her (grrrr....) and finally my sister found her an adorable terrier/doxie mix with a GREAT temperament.  And she couldn't love that little dog either -- and said so.  THAT story has a happy ending; when Mom got too sick to take care of a dog, her household helper was able to place her with a wonderful family who takes her to the beach, and their little girl dresses her up and has tea parties with her, and she is very much loved now. <3  

I would rather see people who can't love a particular dog return him or her for another chance at the right home than just feed them and ignore them like my mother did with her little terrier mix.

[halopub]

On 1/8/2017 at 3:09 PM, Bastet said:

Jasmine sure looked happy (and comfortable) next to Yahtzee in the follow-up pictures, so hopefully she got over her awkwardness (and probably residual fear from being bitten by her grandpa's dog).  She was a lot better with Yahtzee than she was with the adult dogs, so hopefully starting small and growing together helped.  At least the parents seem like total dog people, so Yahtzee will still get plenty of affection and attention if Jasmine hasn't/doesn't ever turn into a dog person (in which case I would just hope the parents didn't try to force her into something that just isn't her).

And, yeah - no updates were given at the end of the Norma Rae episode.  I wonder why they didn't include her being returned, like they did with Artemis.  Maybe because for Artemis, she already had a new home by the time the episode aired, so they could cap it off with that happy update.  And maybe if Norma Rae gets a new home, we'll get an on-air update.

Villalobos shared a Christmas pic of a grown Yahtzee. It doesn't indicate anything about how Jasmine has adjusted, but that they would post the pic is an encouraging sign that the adoption is sticking.

Norma Rae got adopted!

[Bronzedog]

Yahtzee is beautiful and Norma Rae got herself a little boy!  Great updates!

[zxy556575]

2 hours ago, halopub said:

Villalobos shared a Christmas pic of a grown Yahtzee. It doesn't indicate anything about how Jasmine has adjusted, but that they would post the pic is an encouraging sign that the adoption is sticking.

Norma Rae got adopted!

So sweet! Thanks for sharing.

There's something about a dog (or cat) with white socks that always makes me melt. Try not to smile!

[Bastet]

I agree - the white socks are so cute!  My late kitties Maddie and Baxter both had them (either ankle socks or toe socks depending on the paw), and Riley has ankle on her back paws.

I'm happy to see Norma Rae has a home!  I wonder if we'll ever get an on-air update, or if they'd just like to put that fiasco behind them and move on.

[gesundheit]

On 1/10/2017 at 7:21 PM, halopub said:

Villalobos shared a Christmas pic of a grown Yahtzee. It doesn't indicate anything about how Jasmine has adjusted, but that they would post the pic is an encouraging sign that the adoption is sticking.

Norma Rae got adopted!

Thank you so much for sharing those! That's GREAT news!