Dusty's Story

It had been two months since our big, old 14-year-old café au laits male Mochaman had passed when our vet called. We had also lost Amie, our 15-year-old black female, just three months earlier. Our vet knew of two standard poodles that had been rescued from a kill shelter in the town of Martinez. They had been 24 hours away from being killed. He recommended that we leave work and come to see them immediately before anyone else had a chance of getting them. They were both sweet and playful. They had been raised together and were bonded. The rescue shelter wanted them to be adopted together.

Laura named them "Mala" for Buddhist prayer beads and "Gracie" for grace. Mala was a silver, skinny, lover and was estimated at 11 months. Gracie was a cream-colored girl, hairy, impish, and was estimated at 8 months. Both females were quite sweet and well behaved. Two years after getting them, we were on a walk when our Gracie fell over dead from a heart attack. Our vet said that her corda tendinae had ruptured. She had been born with the condition and he said that it could have happened just jumping off the bed. We felt stunned and a profound sense of loss. She was SO wonderful and less than three.

I had been in communication with Andrea from Bay Area Poodle Rescue. She knew of Gracie's passing and contacted me to find out if we were still 'just a one poodle family.' Her sister was fostering a standard 8-month-old male. His name was 'Frosty.' Along with 30 other poodles, he had been rescued from a breeder in Oregon.
We drove to visit 'Frosty' and another white standard. 'Frosty' came to visit us the next day and moved in the day after that. He was named Dante Ulysses Socrates Thoreau Yeats. We call him Dusty. Dusty is always in a good mood and quick to wag his tail. He is a very sweet dog, not a mean bone in him.


He is still a wild puppy. He loves to play with everyone like they were other dogs, including us and the cat. Dusty and Mala spend the night in the kitchen together. When it is colder they sleep together on the same bed. Every morning he is so happy and excited you would think it was Christmas day.

I work out of the house so he almost always has Sydney [our twelve- year-old black female cat], Mala and me as company. When Laura gets home from work, he gets so excited; one would think he had been crated all day. He loves to go on walks, which we do twice a day, every day. On the weekends we go for longer walks in the hills and he likes that the best. There are three dogs that live behind us. The dogs as a group run and wrestle and play ball several times a week. Dusty loves car rides. If I touch my car keys, he can hear from three rooms away and comes running at full speed.

We are incredibly grateful to Bay Area Poodle Rescue for bringing Dusty into our lives.