River's Pick Up Story

Secondhand Hounds gets some of their dogs as local surrenders and from local shelters but they also work to bring dogs from areas where there is a high dog population with low demand to high demand areas with low dog population.

River was one of these relocated dogs. She was living in Oklahoma but that's all we know about her.

Yesterday, River was loaded into a transport vehicle to make the ride from Oklahoma to Minneapolis. It was stressful for her but she made it.

When we picked her up from the office at about 6:30 last night she had not only been on the road all day but she was vetted (evaluated by the vet, micro chipped...). She was so shy when we got there we didn't even take her out of her crate.

She road in her crate, in the back seat with Heidi but she never looked at Heidi, just kept her head down in the corner.

When we got home and opened her crate door in the backyard she jumped right out and went exploring. Within 10 minutes we knew she was ready to meet Cupcake. They sniffed and then went their separate ways.

After about 30 minutes I was able to bring them both in the house and feed River dinner. She spent the rest of the night checking out toys, putting the ones she liked into her crate for later, hanging out with us on the couch, finding the water, and checking out Peter.

She slept in her crate like a champ, no crying or scratching at all!

She seems to know that she should not go potty in the house and is trying to figure out how to ask to go outside since she isn't a barker.

And she really enjoyed her dinner and breakfast.

As I type this, we are about 17 hours into her stay with us and all is well. I think she will be playing with Cupcake in no time and I look forward to taking her for her first walk this evening!

Here is a little video of her meeting Peter for the first time. This is the best intro to Peter we have ever had!!

Oh! And she knows her name is River and she seems to know "Here" so I am looking forward to figuring out what else she knows.

If you love River as much as we do she will be available for adoption via Secondhand Hounds later this week.

Meet River!

We are gearing up to welcome our next foster into our home on Sunday night! We have not met her yet but she looks darling. I cannot wait to start sharing her story with you next week.

Meet River. She is a 9 month old Corgi / Boston Terrier mix and that's about all we know! She is coming up from Oklahoma this weekend.

She will be available through Secondhand Hounds in about a week.

Congratulations Cullen!

Last week I received an application for adoption for Cullen. It was a bittersweet moment as this little turkey stole my heart.

A young couple with a nice home and an active lifestyle wanted to come meet Cullen. They were in search for a sidekick.

It just so happens that Cullen's dream in life is to be someone's sidekick!

We exchanged emails, they came out to meet him, and everyone fell in love.

And now I have the pleasure of saying Congratulations to Cullen and his new family! We will miss you but you are ready for the next chapter in your life. You are going to really enjoy being a sidekick.  Love you, turkey dog!

As for us, and Cupcake, we will take a few weeks off and then start this amazing adventure all over again!

** We currently foster through Secondhand Hounds in the Twin Cities, MN. If you are in the area and are looking for a dog, cat, bunny, ferret... check them out. They are a great organization! **

Hi! I am Cullen!

Hi there!

My name is Cullen, I am about 2 to 3 years old, and I am a Terrier/Chihuahua mix. I came up to Minnesota from Kentucky a few weeks ago and I just love it here. I was a stray in KY but I don’t ever want to go back to that life. I love having a family! My foster family takes me for walks and I am just so proud to be on a leash being strutted around with a FAMILY! People are the best so when they let me out of the fence to get in the car I listen well and don’t try to wander off at all. Like I said, I don’t ever want to be alone again.

My favorite things are to play with my bulldog foster sister, hang out with the cats in our house, eat, play with the Frisbee in the yard, and cuddle with my foster family (mostly the mom!).  I sleep in my crate at night and I don’t cry about it. I would love to sleep in the bed with someone if they would let me. I also hang out in my crate when my foster parents are at work or school. 

I am not jumpy or skittish and loud noises don’t bother me. When my foster dad vacuums or mows the law I just hang out and watch. 

I like kids, other dogs, cats, and this crazy house I am living in right now but I think I would do pretty well as an only dog too.  Either way would be fine with me!

All I ask for is someone to love me as much as my foster family loves me. And I would really like to go to school to learn manners and tricks. That would be so much fun!

To fill out an application please visit Second Hand Hounds!

Who We Are and Why We Do This

Hi! I am Kara. A want-a-be Animal Hoarder. If it wasn't for my husband, Shawn, I would have 17 cats and 12 dogs. Of that, I am certain.

But Shawn is here to keep me sane so instead we have an English Bulldog, Cupcake, two cats, Fast Eddie and Sneaky Pete, and one child, Heidi.

I have always had animals in my life and they are very important to me.

And I have always had volunteer work in my life. It is equally important to me. My mission is to make this world a better place.

Over the winter I was really feeling like these two things were not coming together for me. That's when I came across an wonderful rescue group in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area called Secondhand Hounds. I scoured their website, stalked their facebook pages, yep - pages, and talked to my family about becoming a foster.

Since we started fostering we have had one puppy named Clyde. He was an absolute delight!

And now we have Cullen. He is a super awesome little Terrier Chihuahua mix who has wedged his way into our lives. He is going to make someone very happy when we find him his forever home.

I started this blog to help share the joys of these Foster Pups as they come through our home. My hope is to help more people see how amazing these guys are and find them their forever home!

Follow along, I am sure it's going to be a fun ride!