July, 2017, I was perusing Facebook before falling asleep for the night. I happened to come across a posting for 2 Black and Tan Coonhounds in need of rescue in Oswego, NY, which is less than 2 hours from where we live. A male and a female. Owners were unable to keep them due to health reasons. My initial thought was to help pull and possibly foster, although I had not yet discussed it with my husband. We still had our beloved older first Black and Tan, Oscar Madison, but we knew that our time left with him was coming to an end due to illness and, because of that, his well-being had to be our first priority. We discussed it, and with encouragement and support from ABTCR, my husband and I drove to the owner's home the following Sunday (July 23) to pick them up. Their original names were Sampson and Delilah. The first letter for dogs coming into rescue for that month was the letter "M." I chose to rename the girl "Mathilda," and Frank immediately said "Mossback George," after George Bailey in "It's a Wonderful Life" for the boy.
Georgie was nervous and did not truly relax on the ride home. Mathilda was sound asleep. It was evident that we were already introducing them to many "firsts," including riding in a car for the first time since they were originally brought home from their breeder in Pennsylvania about 6 months apart. They also had never worn collars or walked on a leash. Georgie was especially clumsy and quite bullish and although fearful, he did appear to trust us. George was already 1 year and 9 months and Mathilda was 1 year and 4 months. Oscar seemed ambivalent about their sudden appearance in our home. But then again, he wasn't exactly feeling so well either and we made certain that he did not get lost in the shuffle. The unthinkable happened (insert sarcasm), and we fell in love with George and decided to officially adopt him while both he and Mathilda were still recuperating from their spay and neuter at the vet. If we did not still have Oscar, Mathilda would have remained with us as well. Mathilda, being the beautiful beast that she is, had immediate interest from a wonderful family in Canada, a menagerie that also included a Basset Hound named Annabelle. Paul and Joanne have now become like family to us.
Georgie was and still is a work in progress, requiring constant reassurance to maintain his confidence. The complete opposite of Oscar Madison, who had confidence to spare. But he is such a love and we know that he came into our lives at just the right time, because we lost Oscar about one month later and having George helped us through that difficult time. He has turned into quite the character and still continues to enjoy many firsts with us.
Georgie did well as an only dog but he always showed an obvious affection for other dogs and I finally talked Frank into a second dog. I checked the ABTCR site regularly and inquired about many. Female Bloodhounds caught my eye and it was during one such inquiry that I was told, "She's already been adopted, but I do have a liver and tan Bloodhound coming into rescue. She will be traveling to Massachusetts for foster. She's tripawed, but it doesn't seem to slow her down." I saw her picture, sent it to my husband with, "She needs us!" He didn't argue. We picked her up in Massachusetts less than 2 weeks later, just before Valentines Day 2019. Originally from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, her former owner had sadly passed away, landing her in rescue. She was lucky enough to have spent the interim with 2 very loving foster moms before becoming a part of our family. We were told that she was believed to have been 7 and had originally been with a breeder. She is simply the sweetest girl we have ever met, and she has been that way from the start. She has settled right in with us as well as the lifestyle we share with them, including summer weekends enjoying our canoe, for which they have become naturals, lazily sprawled about and enjoying the sunshine. Georgie and Beatrice, they're quirky, appear to have an over abundance of bodily fluids and have just 7 paws between them, but to us they are absolute perfection.
The Schrams
